New StarTrek.com Account Manager

We are pleased to announce the appointment of a new account manager to maintain and update the fleet's official StarTrek.com profile.

Please congratulate Petty Officer Third Class Sukal who, effective immediately, will be responsible for ensuring the fleet is appropriately represented on StarTrek.com by posting regular updates in our own RPG topic, interacting with forum members and actively recruiting from the site.

As a secondary role, Petty Officer Sukal will maintain his commitments to the crew of the Gettysburg but will now be joining the fleet's Media & Recruitment Team to assist the recruitment and retention of new players in a fleet-wide capacity.

We have full confidence that he will perform well in his new role.

Spotlight on Command: Reece Thompson

Following on from our recent Q&A with Gettysburg Commanding Officer, Captain Lance Krol, we are pleased to announce the launch of a new feature series called "Spotlight on Command", focusing on the work carried out by the fleet's Command Level Officers.

In this installment, we chat to the newly-appointed Commander Reece Thompson about his previous experience in Shadow Fleet, his new position on the Churchill and his advice for any budding captains out there.

 How long have you been a member of the fleet?

I have been with Shadow Fleet for over just over three years. During my time here I have made a number of friends including: Riley T. Munro, Shelaf Greegy, John Brown, Alyssa Meadows and many others. The fleet has helped me a lot during those three years.

What has been your most memorable moment?

I think without a doubt, it was just after I joined. I was assigned to the USS Port Royal as a security officer and I was fighting off intruders in Engineering. The OOC roasting I got from Commander Munro was astounding. It was after that roasting I decided to brush up on my Star Trek knowledge, and realised that particle weapons and warp cores don't mix.

How many SIMMs have you role-played and which has been your favorite?

I've actually been on quite a lot of the SIMMs here. I get around a little bit. I've been on the USS Discovery a few times, I was also on the USS Intrepid at one point, the USS Port Royal while it was active, most recently I was on the USS Gibson and now on the USS Churchill for the second time I believe. So yeah, I've pin-balled around the fleet.

If I'm honest, I'm not really sure which was my favorite. I think that my time on the Discovery would rate just marginally higher though because the ship and storylines were established so well.

So you were recently given command of the Churchill. How did that feel?

Genuinely, I was surprised about it. I expected Mr Price or Mr Brown to be given the ship. I'm quite glad about it though. I'm quite new to command, having only been an XO beforehand, but luckily, my new XO is a former Captain of a SIMM, so I know that I'm in good hands.

Have you implemented, or are you planning to implement any changes to the SIMM?

I haven't implemented any changes yet, and for the time being, I can't think of anything I need to implement. Ask me again in a few weeks, I might have something more helpful.

What advice would you give someone wanting to pursue a command position in Shadow Fleet?

Well, first of all, don't get so attached to post counts. Although I'd tell that to anyone talking about any sort of promotion path. Don't rely just on post numbers to advance. The best way to get noticed for a command position is to help out your current command officers. Submitting mission ideas, welcoming new members, diffusing any confrontations between members. Any and all of these things would catch someones eye. Keep doing them, and there's a high possibility that once you hit Lieutenant, you'll be strongly considered for the COTC.

Short answer, don't just be a poster. Be an asset.

Finally, if you could pick just one word to sum up your time in Shadow Fleet, what would it be?

Fantastic!

A very big thank you to Commander Thompson for answering our questions. Keep your eyes open for our next installment of "Spotlight on Command", coming soon.

Startrek.com Account Manager

An exciting new opportunity has opened up for a player wishing to become involved in advertising the fleet externally as part of the Media & Recruitment Team.

We are looking to recruit a new StarTrek.com Account Manager, responsible for maintaining and updating our account on StarTrek.com - the official website of Star Trek.

Responsibilities of the role include:

• Logging in daily to check profile posts and responses to recruitment topics
• Posting recruitment invitations on other user's profiles
• Regularly updating the Shadow Fleet recruitment topic 
• Participating in meetings and discussion topics as part of the Media & Recruitment Team
• Advertising fleet social media (Facebook, Twitter, Blogger) through StarTrek.com
• Assisting in planned fleet recruitment events
• Exercising appropriate control of restricted information
• Following instructions from the Head of Media & Recruitment

Candidates applying should be extremely organized, trustworthy, online often and hold the minimum enlisted rate of Senior Crewman. Additionally, all candidates should have had at least three months time within the fleet.

If you think you meet this criteria and wish to apply for the role, please send a PM to Rear Admiral John Kawolsky explaining why you think you would be a good choice along with any relevant experience you may have.

The deadline for applications is February 8th, 2013.

The Gettysburg Gets Underway

The Galaxy-class USS Gettysburg

February 1st has arrived which means only one thing; it's time for our newest SIMM to set sail!

That's right, the USS Gettysburg has now officially launched under the command of Captain Lance Krol, her mission to reignite the Star Trek ethos of exploration and discovery on the fringes of Federation space. With her first mission entitled "Unwritten Future", our newest addition to the fleet is set to be an exciting one!

But that's not all! With the launch of Gettysburg brings new changes within our fleet. We are pleased to announce the promotion of Reece Thompson to commander and his appointment as the Churchill's new Commanding Officer. Assisting him as First Officer will be Lieutenant Commander John Brown. Together, these two officers will ensure the high standards the Churchill has shown of late, are maintained as we go into February and beyond.

Join us in celebration by heading along to our Facebook page, Twitter feed, or Blogger profile today and help us wish the Gettysburg a very successful maiden voyage!

Posting Record

With the launch of the USS Gettysburg today, we have reached a milestone in the development of our fleet. Over the past six years we have built this community up from just a handful of players to a thriving group of like-minded Star Trek role-players.

As well as this, you have also managed to break yet another record in the form of the monthly post count. With 3968 posts submitted to the boards in January, you have beaten and surpassed our previous record of 2876 from June 2012.

This is a tremendous achievement and I thank each and every one of you for your hard work and determination in making this fleet - this community - a wonderful place to be.

Keep up the good work!

Post of the Month--January 2013

It's time to announce the first Post of the Month for the year and for January the award goes to a player who has been with us for a little over a month. However, in that month he has gotten off to an excellent start with some great quality posts.

Here's one of them:

"Sing us a song, you're the pianoman..." Alex hummed as he sat on the deck of a shuttlecraft, working on calibrating the power distribution system. Ever since they had replaced the EPS conduits due to cannibalizing parts in the last mission, there was a notable performance deviation with the shuttles. He had managed to track the problem back to the new conduits; for some reason, there was a partial block after the engines and power was being siphoned off before reaching the rest of the systems. You'd think this would be an engineer's problem...he mused, leaning against the bulkhead and entering readings from his scanner into a PADD.

Making a few small adjustments to the flow regulator, Alex slowly got up, stretching his sore muscles. It had been a rough night, and his body was now hinting at what his mind couldn't remember. "...Sing us a song tonight...Well, we're all in the mood for a melody..." Moving over to the pilot seat, he sat down and powered up the shuttle, waiting for the automatic pre-flight check to run it's course. Comparing the new information with his PADD, he smiled with satisfaction. That's a bit better. Shutting her down, he glanced quickly at the chronometer before the panel went blank. One down, one to go, Alex thought, going to pack up his equipment. Right on time. He was looking forwards to the end of his shift; there were rumors of a live band in the mess for that evening and he didn't want to miss it.

Even though he was still new to the ship, Alex felt a slight tremble under his feet as they entered warp before the inertial dampeners compensated. His Chief had mentioned that it was a little quirk of Gibson's, and no matter what the engineering team did, she would always let her crew know while jumping to top speed. Idly wondering where they were heading in such a hurry, he finished packing up his kit and headed to the other Type-9 for round two. "...And you've got us feeling alright...La La Lalalala..."

Please congratulate Crewman Alexander Wu for a superb post that goes into exquisite detail, really painting a picture of the role he performs on the USS Gibson. Commanding Officer, Commander Riley T. Munro said of the post; "This is excellent, a good bit of casual human traits, with an extensive knowledge of engineering mixed in. I enjoyed it, and he is an awesome addition to the ship!"

Keep your eyes open for those rare and wonderful posts and if you do spot one, don't forget to send it to your Commanding Officer before the end of the month.

Q&A With Gettysburg Commander

With the launch of the fleet's next starship just over a day away, we sat down with soon-to-be-Captain Lance Krol for chat about his time in Shadow Fleet and his future position on the USS Gettysburg.

A very big thank you to Lance for taking the time out to answer our questions. Like him, we're very excited about the launch of our next starship and it's a sure thing that she's in good hands.

Until February 1st...

How did you feel when you were told you would be running the next starship SIMM?

I was thrilled, of course! The idea of running a bigger Galaxy-class was exciting to me because I immediately recognized it as a chance to take on bigger responsibilities and contribute even more to Shadow Fleet as a whole. Plus, I'll be honest, when I was called to take on the command of the Churchill I was ill-prepared, although I like to think I did an okay job overall anyway. The Gettysburg is a chance to start afresh for me, and I'm really glad to take it!

Did you have any say in choosing the roster for the Gettysburg?

The roster, like those before it, was decided largely by the admiralty, but I had a few choices to make that I'm quite glad to have made - the first was Lieutenant Commander Price, who has been an exceptional help to me over the course of my command by doing all the work helping me with my work. I really owe most of my success in command to him, even though I did get there by myself. My second was Petty Officer Sukal, who has proven himself an exemplary crewmember and has, in my opinion, an incredibly bright future ahead of him. My third was Mr. Benjamin Bradley, who wanted to come along with me for reasons unknown! So, I gave him special mention because he's an exemplary poster, and I'm always ready to help out a fellow engineer!

What do you intend to do differently with the Gettysburg as opposed to the other ships in the fleet?

For a start, I've got this system that was worked out a while back. I give each department head a taste of command months in advance of their actual placement by requiring them to fill out a monthly report - much like the one I myself have to fill out for Admiral Kawolsky. This contains any concerns they have for their department and any honorable mentions of crewmembers who have gone above and beyond the call of duty without me noticing, as well as any promotions I may have missed. This is a quite unorthodox system but I like to think it will allow them to adapt to command without dealing with too much of the stress first.

As well as this, I'm planning to introduce optional posting training in specific departments for those who wish to take part, such as security training and engineering training. This will take place in the holodeck, and will involve a quick scenario which I'll expect everyone taking part to deal with in one post - the best post wins, and I'll keep a tally of wins in a pinned thread at the top of the holodeck once this feature is launched. These two measures will only really apply once the roster is more populated but I'm excited for getting them launched as soon as possible!

You've risen through the ranks pretty fast. How does it feel now that you're one of the most senior players in Shadow Fleet?
Well, gosh, I dunno. I've never considered myself 'senior', if you know what I mean, because I haven't really been here very long - most people won't remember me as a yellow-shirt, but it feels like it was last month, or maybe the month before that. My quick advancement feels like happy accident but I guess I must've been doing something right! If I'm honest, I feel slightly displaced - I want to be out there posting with you guys, but backstage the command position requires so much work, especially in the run-up to the Gettysburg launch, that I haven't been able to do so much posting as I'd like. I used to be able to win PotM any time I put my mind to it (some of you may remember Lance's 'I am your God' speech), but nowadays most of it's just paperwork and I get most of my job satisfaction from helping my crew work to its best. But I digress. Overall, I'm happy with my position but I guess I think I might have advanced too quickly.

Are you going to miss posting on the Churchill?

Of course. There's a great community on the Churchill and I've come to think of most, if not all, of you as my friends. As well as that, I've made most of my advancement on the Churchill, though I did have a brief opening stint on the Discovery all those years and light-years ago. I've come to think of it as sort of a home for Lance, who is a sad, displaced shell of a man when you come to the core of his character, and so transferring ship comes with all the emotional strain of moving out of your childhood home, for those who are familiar with the feeling.

Do you have any words of advice for the Churchill's new commanding officer, Commander Thompson?

Well, I'd tell you not to believe for a moment that what Alyssa calls a physical is anything like one, but you probably already know that having known her for longer than me. Just stay away from the iron maiden in the medbay and you'll be fine!

Finally, if you could pick just one word to sum up your time in Shadow Fleet, what would it be?

Stupefying!