StarBase 118 Staff

The new year has been entered, which means you have less than one month left to enter the Graphic Contest! The theme for this round of the StarBase 118 Graphics Contest is “Mission Possible – Holiday edition” and we hope that you all will join in and show us their creativity. How creative can your character be to bring a little holiday cheer when the mission doesn’t allow it? What about when your character is stuck on a battlefield, in the middle of a first contact situation, or on the hunt for a criminal? Will they put a mistletoe into your phaser muzzle, or hang a candy cane from their ear? Maybe throw tinsel over opponents? Or decorate a tree in a strange village? The deadline for this winter round of the contest is January 22, 2016. We’re looking forward to seeing your entries! Head to the Graphic Contest forum now for rules and more info. If you have questions, drop on by the discussion thread. The post Graphic Contest: Last call for your entries! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Another donation from a first-time contributor: Cory Stoyer! Many thanks to him for his generosity. Our website stays online entirely through the support of our members, and all donations go directly to the website maintenance costs. If you can help us with a donation of $5, $15, or more, please head to our donation station – it only takes a few minutes and your contribution is processed entirely through PayPal. The post Donation thanks to Cory Stoyer appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

ASTROFORI ONE — Maquis Reborn terrorists escaped Astrofori One after attacking a Starfleet awards ceremony and the Cardassian embassy. “Astrofori One is a beacon for interspecies cooperation and friendship, and the Cardassian Union, nor our Federation allies, will allow a violent rogue element to destroy what we have worked so hard to build together,” said Nirat Kalett, Detapa Council Press Secretary. After escaping a sabotaged holodeck aboard Astrofori One, Lt. Commander Chythar Skyfire, accompanied by a team consisting of Ensign Mitchell Shapiro, Lieutenant Commander Eerie, Ensign Lang, and Lieutenant Paul Sharpe set out to capture the elusive Maquis Reborn saboteurs. The saboteurs skilfully led them into a trap: an abandoned cargo bay with phaser turrets set up on motion detectors. Lieutenant Sharpe and Ensign Shapiro managed to deactivate the turrets, but not before they received injuries. Ensign Lang was reported to have sustained a broken arm, Commander Eerie’s weapon exploded in his hands, and Ensign Shapiro was grazed by phaser fire. The terrorists contacted Skyfire’s team, and made a proposition: their freedom in exchange for the forty nine lost souls from Ensign Lang’s transport. Meanwhile, Captain Quinn Reynolds and her team, which consisted of Lieutenants Ayiana Sevo, Dar Elandra, Cory Stoyer, Lieutenant JG Toni Lupo, Diplomatic Attaché Montague Eickleberger, and Acting Cardassian Envoy Tiguhn Datal headed over to the Cardassian Embassy to see if they could stop a biological attack that was based on the same virus used a year previously on Deep Space 10: a modified variant of the Skyfire Virus that was targeting Cardassians as opposed to Romulans. The team used novel technology to infiltrate the embassy through maintenance access, tagging the victims for transport. At the same time, the Starfleet officers wounded in the holodeck sabotage—namely Commanders Walter Brunsig and Alucard Vess—had been transported to the USS Gorkon’s sickbay and were undergoing emergency medical treatment. Ensign Jansen Orrey, Lieutenant Commander Kael Tam participated in life-saving surgery on Brunsig, while Petty Officer Greg Kelly received aftercare for the field blood transfusion he had participated in. With Vess able to resume limited duties, the commander was sent to the bridge to assume command, accompanied by Orrey as both as medical chaperone and a senior bridge officer. Alerted to the situation at the Cardassian embassy, they commenced immediate preparations for the quarantine and treatment of infected patients. After following the instructions of the Maquis Reborn, Commander Skyfire’s team returned with the forty-nine souls that had been held hostage to secure their escape—all of whom were surprisingly unharmed. Sadly, the same could not be said of the occupants of the Cardassian embassy, who required medical evacuation to the Union in order to receive specialist treatment, after being stablised aboard the Gorkon. A hellish shoreleave concluded, the Gorkon departed on a routine survey mission to the Alpha Chionus system. The crew took advantage of the fourth planet’s wintry environment to host an outdoor party—complete with festive lights and decorations, a holiday tree, and an ice rink. The post Maquis Reborn terrorists evade capture appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

December brings in more holidays, many international and lots of family visiting. We are pleased that the fleet is a member of those families! Even though that is said, some were in the company of their real life families, and this did impact ship to ship totals. Overall the fleet average continued to climb going into the winter. Numbers jumps and drops varied by ship, with a large surge on the Constitution of 70 more than November, and a drop on the Doyle of 28. As seen in the chart below, November had us barely breaking 159, which was a move upwards from our October drop. December has us recovering our Summer break numbers and moving us in for a really nice January! The post December Post Counts appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Submitting a sim to the Top Sims Contest is a great way to show your fellow crewmembers that you’re enjoying what their writing. And, it’s easy to do! Here’s how to get started: Open a new thread in the Top Sims Contest forumIn the Topic Title box, put the primary character name of the writer, and then the title of the sim.In the Topic Prefix dropdown, choose Round 5 until the end of the day on Sunday, January 10th. After that date, choose Round 6!Paste the body of the sim into the big box, and then click Post New Topic.That’s pretty much it! The sim you submit will be reviewed by a panel of judges – one from each ship – who will select the best sim from the round, which will then proceed to a vote by the general membership. Submit a sim today and show your fellow writers how much you appreciate their work! The post Submit a sim to the Top Sims Contest appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

If you have not already seen it, the trailer for the upcoming Star Trek film has been released and is readily available to watch on YouTube. For those who have seen it, there have been mixed reactions. This Poll of the Week, we’re wondering what do you think of that new trailer? Will you see the movie when it comes out? From the little revealed, what are your concerns, if any, that you may have with it? As always, we here at Poll of the Week are eager to hear your thoughts on the matter and are interested in your votes. So head over to the forums and vote away and be sure to join the discussion below the poll! The post Poll of the Week: Beyond appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

TURISAN II — A life support failure aboard the USS Darwin-A has forced its crew to abandon ship and take temporary refuge among a pre-warp society in the Delta Quadrant. On shore leave at Deep Space 6, the crew of the USS Darwin NCC-99312-A attended a masquerade ball designed and implemented by Captain Renos. In the following days, crewmembers attended to several personal ventures, including a class in the J’naii martial art of Kaigut, led by the captain nemself. With its previous mission complete, Task Force Silver was dissolved and the USS Triumphant was placed back in inactive status. A majority of Triumphant’s crew are offered positions on Darwin, and each takes the opportunity to fit into his new role. Renos called a senior staff meeting in order to brief the crew about the upcoming mission and to hand out recognitions. Ensign Kurt Logan was promoted to Lieutenant, junior grade, and the Explorer’s Badge, Innovation Ribbon, and Lifesaving Award were handed out to various crew. Finally, Renos announced that due to Darwin’s efforts in the previous mission, the ship has been assigned to establish a base of operations in the Pouiyeog region of the Delta Quadrant and usher in a new era of exploration. A few weeks into the mission, while en route back to the Pouiyeog region, Darwin encountered a spatial anomaly that severely affected the ship’s computer cores, with life support systems taking the most damage. With no other options, and assistance in the form of repair crews weeks away at slipstream speeds, the senior crew made the difficult decision to temporarily abandon the ship. Darwin managed to limp its way into orbit around Turisan II, a class P planet with a pre-warp civilization. Advance scouts reported a human-like civilization in the midst of an industrial revolution, and with time running out before a full life support failure, the crew hastily prepared to disembark. To help them integrate, the non-Terran crew are given cosmetic surgery to resemble the indigenous Turisans. While waiting for rescue, the crew were given orders to integrate into Turisan society, protect the Prime Directive, and conduct anthropological studies of the local peoples. A small port city called Lomorton, with a highly itinerant population, was chosen for the location of the crew’s immigration. They were divided into small households, where their efforts could be combined to provide lodging and sustenance during their time planetside. Upon arrival in Lomorton, and to uphold the Prime Directive, each crewmember has been forced to seek employment for survival, rather than use Federation technology. Some officers were able to use existing schools to good effect in acquiring employment. Others, however, were not so lucky, and were forced to take such menial, dangerous jobs as nightmen, chimney sweeps, debt collectors, and barkeeps. Darwin’s arrival coincided with the preparation period for a local solstice festival called Newgrange, which bears a slight resemblance to the Earth holiday of Christmas. As such, the crew has gained a rare opportunity to not only learn a valuable facet of Turisan social constructs, but the human crew are allowed some reminiscence while they introduce their non-human crewmates to the traditions of their holiday. Ship helm officer Lt. Todd Manius, for example, noted dryly, “From what I’ve gathered from talk and seeing all this preparation going on, there are many similarities between the two holidays. It’s almost spooky.” The upcoming holiday allowed for plenty of activities and bonding for the crew while they await rescue from the Federation. The post Crew of USS Darwin forced to abandon ship appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Our next chat is scheduled for Sunday, January 10th at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm GMC UTC (UK) / 5am Monday UTC+11 (AUS). To participate, simply head to our online chat room, at: http://www.starbase118.net/chat — if you have problems connecting, use the instructions listed below the chat box. Come say hello to your fellow fleet-mates from other ships, learn about what’s happening around the fleet, congratulate each other on award wins, and talk about the upcoming Fleetwide Plot Arc! We hope to see everyone there. The post Fleet chat this coming Sunday appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

With our annual Awards Ceremony now complete – and our Duty Post, Special, and Staff awards posted on the wiki – the captains of our fleet are proud to announce the list of General award winners for 2015. As a reminder, recipients are nominated by members of their ship, and are selected among nominees by their Commanding Officer. Congratulations to everyone on their amazing work this year and for earning these awards. Your names will live in the history of our organization among the best writers in the fleet! APOLLO The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): Antero FlynnThe Genesis Award (The Most Improved Simmer Award): Mirra EzoThe Silver Palm: Lan RielThe Sheathed Sword: Mirra EzoThe B-Plot Award: Mirra EzoPathfinder Award: Ren Rennyn DARWIN The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): John ValdiviaThe Genesis Award (The Most Improved Simmer Award): Kurt LoganThe Scotty Cross: Iniko MpebaThe Neelix Award: Maxwell TraenorThe Nebula Bar: LyldraThe Silver Palm: Graeme CookThe Sheathed Sword: Randal ShayneThe B-Plot Award: Maxwell TraenorThe Russ Bar: Didrick StennesPathfinder Award: Maxwell Traenor DOYLE The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): Brandon CraigPathfinder Award: Selene Faranfey CONSTITUTION The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): Rustyy HaelThe Genesis Award (The Most Improved Simmer Award): Jerome MilsapThe Neelix Award: Rustyy HaelThe Silver Palm: Rustyy HaelThe Russ Bar: Kalos Fiorr EMBASSY The Genesis Award (The Most Improved Simmer Award): Diego BeyettThe Neelix Award: Anora ManarThe B-Plot Award: T’Mihn Ah’mighanPathfinder Award: Ben Edwards INVICTA The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): Alora DeVeauThe Scotty Cross: T’LeaThe Neelix Award: Nikki RyanThe Nebula Bar: SaveronThe Silver Palm: Raissa MoonsongThe Sheathed Sword: Evan DelanoThe B-Plot Award: Tristam CoreThe Russ Bar: Shurimal VexPathfinder Award: Roshanara Rahman GORKON The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): Jansen OrreyThe Genesis Award (The Most Improved Simmer Award): Lael RosekThe Scotty Cross: Ayiana SevoThe Silver Palm: EerieThe Russ Bar: Ayiana SevoPathfinder Award: Chythar Skyfire STARBASES 118 OPS The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): TatashThe Scotty Cross: Trellis VondaryanThe Silver Palm: Baylen AndersThe Sheathed Sword: Nia CalderanThe B-Plot Award: Theo WhittakerThe Russ Bar: Kaitlyn Falcon STATISTICS Total awards: 47Individual recipients: 41APOLLO: 4DARWIN: 8DOYLE: 2CONSTITUTION: 3EMBASSY: 4INVICTA: 9GORKON: 5STARBASES 118 OPS: 6Recipients by award:The Order of Starfleet Merit and Achievement First Class (TOSMA): 7The Genesis Award (The Most Improved Simmer Award): 5The Scotty Cross: 4The Neelix Award: 4The Nebula Bar: 2The Silver Palm: 6The Sheathed Sword: 4The B-Plot Award: 5The Russ Bar: 4Pathfinder Award: 6The post General Award recipients for 2015 appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

We know how often the world can be a tough place and that sometimes when “life happens,” it can leave us feeling alone, in the dark, and helpless. During these most difficult times when life is difficult or frustrating, remember that what we have here is more than just a game. It’s “ohana.” In Hawaiian that words means “family.” You may remember it as a central concept of the Disney movie “Lilo & Stitch,” about a destructive little alien who was adopted by a family here on Earth. But Ohana is about more than just blood relatives. It’s specifically about extended, adopted, and intended family. While we’re not a bunch of cute and fluffy little blue creatures from another planet, running around blowing things up — well, okay, maybe we blow a lot of things up! — we still have a togetherness that transcends acquaintance. There’s a thread that binds us together, giving us all something in common. The vision Gene Roddenberry created inspires us to come together despite our differences, despite what’s happening in our real lives. That vision inspires us to that most consequential and human action: Gathering together to tell stories. We each have an individual story to tell, and those stories are best when told together, as part of this community. So as we begin the new year, we wanted to remind everyone in the fleet about ohana. This community, a family – extended, unplanned, and intentional. Often unconventional! Sincerely, The Staff of UFOP: StarBase 118 (Based on a letter by David Cody.)The post Ohana appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

The Captains Council of UFOP: StarBase 118 is pleased to announce the promotion of Lieutenant Commander Alex Blair to the rank of commander! Commander Blair is currently the First Officer of the USS Apollo-A. Blair has been a member since May of 2012, and has served on the Tiger, Gemini, and Apollo, in engineering roles before becoming a First Officer. Blair’s writer has been decorated with the Neelix Award and Scotty Cross, and has achieved the Excellence in Training badge. He is the currently Featured Bio Team Facilitator, as well as an Academy Statistician, a critical role that helps keep track of our training data. We’re really looking forward to seeing what the next year holds for Cmdr. Blair. Head to the forums now to offer him your congratulations! The post Congratulations Commander Alex Blair appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Born and raised in a place called Georgia in the North American region of Earth, Lieutenant Cory Stoyer began his career with Starfleet as an enlisted non-commissioned officer. Which was something that played in his favor during his time at the Academy. While the other cadets were occupied with what things would be like aboard a starship, Stoyer already knew and chose to spend his time sharing his experince with them. After graduating the Academy, Stoyer was assigned to the USS Constituition-B where he would serve as an engineering officer for some time before being transferred to the USS Excalibur-A to serve as the HCO officer. After that he moved to the USS Victory for a stint before moving to his current role as the Chief Engineer of the USS Gorkon. Congratulations to Cory Stoyer of the USS Gorkon who has been selected as the Featured Bio Winner for January 2016, and Baylen Anders of Starbase 118 Ops, this round’s featured nominee! As always, you can find out more about the Featured Bio Contest at its wiki page or in its forum. Head there now to learn more about the contest and nominate bios that deserve recognition! The post Featured Bio Winner, January: Cory Stoyer appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Squeaking in just before the new year, we’ve had a first donation from Ayiana Sevo. Many thanks to her for her generosity! Our website stays online entirely through the support of our members, and all donations go directly to the website maintenance costs. If you can help us with a donation of $5, $15, or more, please head to our donation station – it only takes a few minutes and your contribution is processed entirely through PayPal. The post Donation thanks to Ayiana Sevo appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Click here to view the 2015 Awards Ceremony on our wiki. The awards this year recognize some of the most talented people in the history of the organization — and as SB118 turned 21 this year, that’s quite a bit of history! Among this year’s notables with respect to duty post awards includes the first time a nurse has been recognized with the Prantares Ribbon (the medical officer of the year), recognition of the standout intelligence and diplomatic officers of the fleet with duty post awards, and the recognition of a civilian with a duty post award. Our finest simmers continue to show that they can take unusual positions, posts outside the traditional rank structure, and more, and create memorable, award-winning characters when they do so! The special and staff awards also recognize a talented group of simmers, including with a new staff award, the Chief’s Citation, that recognizes staff members (commanders and above) whose primary service to the group is via OOC work and not in service aboard a starship. We also recognize the outstanding new COs this year with the James T. Kirk Cross and the Rising Star Award, both of which go this year to COs who the community has recognized as present and future leaders. The member service awards continue to grow, recognizing membership lengths of one, three, five, and ten years! A remarkable number of simmers have been around for such extended periods, and we invite you to continue on to that list below the staff awards to view this impressive collection of simmers. Finally, we finish off with recognition of the Top Sim of 2015. This year, we recognize a pair of writers who I have had the pleasure of knowing jointly for a decade or so — and the “jointly” is particularly appropriate because the sim that was named 2015’s top sim was a joint collaboration. Scroll down for more! Congratulations to everyone recognized in this ceremony, and many thanks to all our members who submitted nominations and assisted with the awards process. Now, without further delay, I present to you the 2015 awards! Click here to view the entire ceremony on our wiki. The post Did you win an award this year? Check out the 2015 ceremony! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Each year we look to the next as – hopefully – being better and brighter than the last. We learn from our experiences as the years slip away, and as as we learn, we grow and become more mature, more adept and hopefully, more wiser. In my personal life, I see the changing of the years to be a bridge to new experiences, hopes, fears, losses, gains and loves. And as with all experiences, whether they be good or bad, each can be taken as a new form of growth. When I write for my character, I try to envision the same type of growth in her. Whether she’ll achieve her ultimate goals or not, is not so much the ideal when I write for her. It’s how she deals with the situations she encounters in her missions that she participates in is what I strive to portray. I consider each one to be in fact a new learning experience for her, whether the outcome is good, or bad. This is something I try to write into her story arc on a regular basis. As the year draws to a close, this Poll of the Week will look both to the past and to the future, with an emphasis on your character or characters. As for the past, did you achieve all you planned to achieve with your character(s) over the past year, or was there something that did not quite turn out? As for 2393, what are your plans for your character? Do you hope for that promotion, that award, that badge, or move into command? Do you plan to take up a new OOC activity, or just become more involved in the group in general? Or are you happy where you are and what you are doing and just wish to continue simming and enjoying your time with the group? Click here to input your vote now! Multiple responses are allowed, so click away and be sure to add your input below. Happy New Year to everyone in the fleet! The post Poll of the Week: Auld Lang Syne appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

FallFest 2015 a great success!This year marked the fifth annual ‘OngoingWorlds Fall Festival‘, known casually as ‘FallFest‘. It is an event that brings together the entire simming community to discuss various aspects of role playing, play trivia games and role play together. We put on the longest running FallFest in the event’s history and packed the schedule full of lots of exciting events and our dedicated radio DJs kept everyone entertained with music and updates from the chat rooms throughout. We had a huge turnout with over 50 people attending the event! I’ve had emails from several people thanking us for what we put on and telling me how much they enjoyed themselves! Everyone in the wider simming community knows that we know how to put on an outstanding party and I know they’ll be talking about this event in years to come. This is what Charles Star had to say: The entire team from host club UFOP: StarBase 118 put on another world-class show, just as they did two years ago at FallFest III. I’d like to personally thank everyone who took some part in making it all happen: those who hosted events, those who promoted & advertised, those who played a technical role whether it was graphic design or setting up chatrooms, and those who simply invited a friend to join in on the fun. Thank you all! – Charles Star, in his OngoingWorlds article “The Ongoing Worlds Community Honor now has two more Laureates“ Without the help and support of everyone who put themselves forward – be it providing graphics, helping with research or publicity tasks, hosting a chat session or being radio DJ we simply wouldn’t have pulled it off. We’re really lucky and proud to have such an outstanding support team. To everyone who helped out and everyone who turned up to support us: Thank you so much! FallFest Helper Badge presented to a great team!It is my great pleasure to present the FallFest Helper badge to the many people who supported us in organising and running a highly successful FallFest. Captain RenosFleet Admiral WolfFleet Captain E. Manno (Aka Aaron Kells)Captain NugraCaptain Jalana RajelCommander Sal TaybrimLieutenant Commander Roshanara RahmanLieutenant Commander T’MarLieutenant Commander Kaitlyn FalconLieutenant Commander Tristam CoreLieutenant Commander Tsuki KazeyamaMajor Ben EdwardsLieutenant JG Lilavati ChandurEnsign Jansen OrreyWhy not head down to the forums today and join me in showing appreciation for everyone’s hard work? Did you miss FallFest this year? Want to know what all the fuss is about?We kept transcripts so you can read (or re-read) your favourite sessions again and again! You can get pretty close to the real experience by listening to a recording of our wonderful radio show, which is also available for anyone who wants to listen in. Transcripts: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0BxECK-TtzP2CUXdka01ZRTFtZlU&usp=sharing Radio Show: https://www.spreaker.com/show/starbase-118-radio The post FallFest Badge Awarded appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Many thanks to Michael Frazier and Mirra Ezo, who both donated recently. Our site, which requires a great deal of resources to keep online our active forums and huge wiki, is kept online entirely by the support of our members. Donating is easy and just takes a couple minutes. Can you join in and contribute $5, $15 or more? Click here to get started. The post Donation thanks to two members appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

The holidays are here and with that a new round of our Graphic Contest! The theme for this round of the StarBase 118 Graphics Contest is “Mission Possible – Holiday edition” and we’re inviting everyone to join in and show us their creativity. But how creative can your character be to bring a little holiday cheer when the mission doesn’t allow it? What about when your character is stuck on a battlefield, in the middle of a first contact situation, or on the hunt for a criminal? The deadline for this winter round of the contest is January 22, 2016. We’re looking forward to seeing your entries! Head to the Graphic Contest forum now for rules and more info. If you have questions, drop on by the discussion thread. The post Graphics Contest: Mission Possible! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

It’s the holiday season and that brings out the best in the spending season. People are everywhere buying gifts and trinkets and a slew of stuff for their loved ones. The malls are packed as people rush to get their last minute shopping done. Which brings us to this week’s Poll of the Week question. As with any franchise, there are a slew of gifts and toys available for fans of Star Trek. Are you planning to buy a Star Trek related gift for a loved one you know? Or maybe even for yourself? Head on over to the polls and vote to let us know either yes or no, or if not sure yet, maybe. Also please let us know what you would fancy as a well-meaning and fun Star Trek related gift. Happy holidays everyone! The post Poll of the Week: The Gift of Trek appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

W CYGNI SYSTEM — The crew of the USS Invicta found refuge on an uninhabited moon, waiting out a deadly neutronic storm to pass. Three weeks after their trip to an alternate universe where the Dominion War had raged on, the Invicta returned to the prime universe and slowly fell back into the routine, surveying a local star cluster. However, when a vast class 12 neutronic storm swept through the region, the crew were forced to leave the Invicta in orbit around the moon of the fifth planet in the W Cygni system, camping out on the moon’s surface. Given all that the crew had been through the past few months, Captain Kells and his crew used the two weeks spent on the moon as an unexpected but welcome respite. The shore leave began with a more intimate awards ceremony around a campfire for the senior staff, where chief science officer Alora DeVeau and chief of counseling Raissa Moonsong were both promoted to lieutenant commander. First officer Roshanara Rahman then surprised Captain Kells with a promotion of his own from Starfleet Command to Fleet Captain. The first night was soon interrupted by the arrival of crew members of the recently inactivated USS Avandar, among them the Avandar’s commanding officer—and now once again ambassador—Captain Della Vetri. The two crews slowly began to intermingle, soon to become one united crew once they could return to the Invicta. Meanwhile, the junior officers, led by nurse Gabrielle Porchevska and operations officer Jess Webber organized a wild toga party, borrowing togas from the Magna Roma diplomatic delegation—and perhaps a few steaks and ale from Chief Reez without proper authorization. “I’ll tell you one thing,” said Ensign Ulyn Freuf, a geneticist and epigeneticist aboard the Invicta. “That Gabi and Jess are a pretty crazy pair, but those two ladies sure now how to throw a party! Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to find my shirt.” Not all the time on the moon’s surface was spent partying, though. Crew members also took a moment to further their relationships, from Dr. Saveron and Lt. Cmdr. DeVeau’s budding romance to Ensign Shurimal Vex’s new friendship with Fleet Captain Kells. Lt. Cmdr. Rahman wrestled with Lt. Ki Shandres on how to deal with their new “daughter” Tasnim Shandres, a refugee from the alternate universe that had remained aboard the Invicta after it passed through the quantum fissure but without her mother as intended. Once the storm passed, Fleet Captain Kells had to leave at once aboard the captain’s yacht due to a personal urgent matter as the rest of the Invicta crew returned to their ship and began the clean up operation to prevent any future inhabitants from discovering evidence of their stay as per the Prime Directive. The post Invicta crew seek shelter from neutronic storm on moon appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Here on Earth, we are subject to the whims of weather as it walks across the planet. Such phenomena is not known only on Earth, but a variety of weather can be found on several planets in our very own solar system. What some people might not realise is that weather can also be found in space itself. Weather in space? Really? Yes, really! While space doesn’t have air, it can still have certain forms of weather thanks to the Sun. From the sun, solar winds, solar flares, and plasma are tossed out into space which can actually affect spacecrafts that are sent to explore our solar system. Because of this, radiation can actually harm whatever scientist send beyond our atmosphere. A study of space weather can actually help scientists determine ways to protect spacecraft from damage. In space, a variety of ‘weather’ can affect the finely tuned instruments. Besides radiation, damage can occur when charged particles stop on the outside or even the inside of a spacecraft. This type of event is called “spacecraft charging”. Certain types of space weather can also affect what happens here on earth. When magnetic surveys are conducted via aircraft, the rapid magnetic field variations during geomagnetic storms can have an impact on the interpretation of the data being collected. Combine these with other types of weather such as coronal mass ejections (when huge amounts of plasma as well as magnetic fields are ejected from the sun), radiation belts and galactic cosmic rays, space weather is a lot more dynamic than one might think. Want to learn more about space weather? Check out NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center and Space Weather @ NASA. (Image source.) The post Under The Weather appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Please welcome our newest Academy graduates to the UFOP: StarBase 118 fleet: Chelin Ch’Gabor, and Ta’ev D’Hass! The post New Academy Graduates appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

We’re in the home-stretch of voting for the Top Sim of the Year — if you haven’t submitted your vote yet, you only have a few days to do so! There’s just a few sims to read: Set 1 winner: Tracey Townson, “Awaiting Deception“Set 2 winner: Saveron & Alora DeVeau, “Sad Songs Say So Much“Set 3 winner: Maxwell Traenor & Noros (PNPC), “Max“Set 4 winner: Alora DeVeau & Saveron, “Where Vulcan Flowers Grow“Once you’ve read the sims, head to the poll and vote for your favorite. The race is still wide open, but we’re closing the polling at 23:59 Eastern Time on Wednesday, December 30, so make sure to submit your vote now! The post Top Sim of the Year poll closes soon: Vote now! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

ASTROFORI ONE — The terrorist group known as the Maquis Reborn have executed an attack on the Astrofori One space station during a Starfleet awards celebration on the holodeck. After discovering the grisly murder of a Cardassian diplomat during their awards celebrations, the crew of the USS Gorkon soon came to realize that the death was only a single part of an elaborate plot. It was swiftly made clear that the crew—and their diplomatic and media guests—were trapped inside a manor in a Gothic Victorian holoprogram, with no way to contact the outside world and the safeties disengaged. Events grew stranger still from thereon out. The Gorkon’s commanding officer Captain Quinn Reynolds led a team to investigate a torture chamber discovered two hundred meters below the cellar. Though recently in use, the chamber was believed unoccupied, until a section of wall shifted to reveal a drugged and kidnapped member of the Gorkon crew, Petty Officer Rory. Lieutenant JG Lael Rosek and Ensign Jansen Orrey were caught unawares by a concealed hatch in the floor, falling into the catacombs below the manor. Forced to flee through a tunnel system when the chamber walls began to close in, Captain Reynolds and her team escaped through an open-air cavern, only to be assaulted by a masked gunman, who seriously injured Commander Walter Brunsig before making his escape. Fortunately for him, Lieutenant Rosek and Ensign Orrey found their way out of the catacombs shortly after the attack, and Orrey was able to provide battlefield medicine for the wounded man before the small group of officers carried him back to the manor. Elsewhere in the program, the team of Commander Alucard Vess narrowly avoided tragedy during their explorations of the manor’s hedge maze, when the sabotaged holodeck began to churn out creatures from human horror legend to pursue them through the maze. Commander Vess was wounded by one of the werewolves, and to compound the situation, the hedge maze was inexplicably set alight. Barely escaping with their lives, the entire maze was reset once the team had freed themselves from its confines, with the emblem of the Maquis Reborn seared across the sky for all to see. “First Deep Space Ten, then Astrofori One,” said Upper Secretary Korius ch’Havran, of Astrofori One’s Romulan Mission. “What does Starfleet intend to do about these madmen?” Outside the holodeck, Ensign Tonya Lang arrived aboard a Starfleet transport vessel, and discovered that she was the only one of fifty crew left aboard. Joining forces with Lieutenant JG Toni Lupo and Master Chief Petty Officer Chris Kildare, the group identified that the missing crew had been beamed away by a Dominion transporter, their location currently unknown. Meanwhile, the interior of the manor was plunged into darkness, with all lights and fires simultaneously extinguished. A team led by the Gorkon’s first officer Lt. Commander Skyfire worked out of the manor library, struggling to maintain order among the guests and find a way to shut the program down. Interrupting their efforts was an attack by a wolf-like creature, and its death provided the first evidence that the program was beginning to break down, as the creature changed shape and form after being killed, morphing into a chimera of panther, wolf and targ. As Lieutenants Cory Stoyer and Paul Sharpe, along with Ensign Mitchell Shapiro, worked on a way to shut down the program, the rest of the senior staff returned with their wounded, and the library became a temporary hospital. To the great relief of all involved, the Gorkon’s engineers managed to take advantage of the disintegrating holoprogam to shut it down, and the injured crew were immediately evacuated. The post Maquis Reborn strikes Astrofori One appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

Have you come across a great character biography on the wiki? Been working on your own bio for a while now and want to show it off to the fleet? Then head on over to the Featured Bio Contest’s forum and submit a nomination! All that’s required is that the bio be of an active player character, such as Rustyy Hael of the USS Constitution-B, who is this month’s Featured Bio Winner. You can see a list of previous winners and featured nominees at the contest’s wiki site as well as an overview of the judging criteria the Featured Bio Contest Team uses to vote for a winner. The nomination round closes Friday, January 1, so don’t delay! Submit your nomination today! The post Submit your nominations for this month’s Featured Bio Contest! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article