StarBase 118 Staff

If you’ve been around our community for a while, you’ve undoubtedly run into a few Laudeans – a species unique to UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek PBEM RPG, and one of the central players of the Duronis II Embassy simming installation. The Laudeans were created in the early aughts, OOC, as the main protagonists of the Embassy sim. They’re a humanoid species and the only native sapient species on Til’ahn (also known as Luxis II or Duronis II). Laudeans feature three sexes – male, female, and lomale – and while, as with most humanoid species, the male provides a sperm and the female the egg and carries the child, the lomale is required to copulate with both the male and the female in order to provide essential gene sequences and enzymes that neither the female nor the male can synthesize naturally. Lomales comprise only 3% of the totally Laudean population. The Laudean people have been at the center of a political struggle since First Contact, which caused a great deal of upheaval on their planet. The constitutional monarchy which dominated the planet’s governance was overthrown after First Contact, and was replaced with a democratic world government. Some of the monarchy was able to escape the planet and are now refugees, guests of Betazoid. Back on Til’ahn, the Laudeans were courted by Romulans, Zalkonians, and the United Federation of Planets, all three of which maintained an embassy on the planet. The UFP embassy remains, and is home to our Duronis II Embassy sim. To learn more about the Laudeans, check out their wiki page! The post The species we created: Laudeans appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

You may remember a few weeks ago when we let you know that the yearly Awards Ceremony has been moved from December to June of each year. Well, with the next ceremony coming soon, it’s time to start preparing your award nominations! Members across the fleet are encouraged to nominate their fellow crew-mates and ship staff for awards to recognize their great work in simming and OOC activities. Every member of the fleet is allowed to make nominations for the following award classes: General awards: Any member can receive a general award. One general award, per vessel, is allowed per ceremony. Duty Post awards: Duty post awards are awards given to individuals in a designated duty post, department, or division. Only one recipient from the entire fleet is selected for recognition with a duty post award each year. Special awards: A special award is an OOC award that is awarded during the annual fleet awards ceremony. Any member can receive a special award. However, only one of each award is allowed per ceremony. Staff awards: A staff award is an OOC award reserved for officers ranked commander and above. Only one of each award is given per ceremony. General and Duty Post award nominations generally require a sim attachment to the nomination. All nominations require a well thought-out explanation for the nomination. Keep in mind that in most cases, your award nomination may be vying against another nomination for someone else. If two members of your fleet are nominated for the Prantares Ribbon, your nomination will have to be good enough to ensure your candidate wins! So start thinking about those nominations now, and get read for the nomination period to open in mid-May. Bookmarking great sims and drafting some rough nomination text will help you get a jump-start. More information about our yearly awards is available in the Hall of Honors on the wiki. Click through to learn more now. The post Start working on your award nominations appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

BRIAR PATCH — The crew of the USS Doyle-A has escaped their captivity from the slaver group Sisterhood of Chains. After being captured by the Sisterhood of Chains on the planet of Pariah deep within the Briar Patch, the crew fought their way to freedom in a bloody struggle through the slaver organization’s new planetary base. They cut power to the base and then stole a retrofitted transport shuttle to get off the planet. Meanwhile, the USS Doyle-A had already dispatched to search for the missing crew, under the command of its recently arrived first officer, Commander David Cody. Quickly dispensing with a couple of prisoners, the crew worked around the clock to evacuate from the planet and immediately enter quarantine because of heavy lead isotope exposure. Returning to Deep Space 285, a snafu came about as Doyle commanding officer Captain Faranfey learned she had acquired a new first officer without her knowledge and consent, leading to a brief miscommunication before things worked out. “Oh?” Commander David Cody said, a somewhat grim smile. “At least not by its officially recognized commanding officer. At least you’re in a position to choose now.” “You tell me twice to choose who I would like,” Captain Selene Faranfey responded. “Explaining your decision… I understand that. But I don’t accept it. Because, if you want me to have a choice, then, I hope you will accept ‘my’ offer.” One of the prisoners, an Orion known as Fotia, a former shipmaster of the Sisterhood, attempted to launch a civil suit against the crew of the USS Doyle-A, but suddenly disappeared from the Starbase after a nondescript Terran male disrupted a meeting between her and her legal team, leading the command staff to suspect Starfleet Intelligence may have swept in. The crew is currently recovering from their ordeal with the Sisterhood and enjoying shore leave with the recent announcement of the upcoming Annual Starfleet Ball issued by Colonel Nugra. Several families from the crew have flown in to add to an increased buzz on the upcoming festivities. It is unknown whether Commander Cody will resume providing his culinary talents for fine cuisine as he has done for Starfleet Balls in the past. The post Starfleet crew frees themselves from slave traders appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Is the Flash fast enough to run to a spaceship and rescue them from pirates? Will Tank Girl join Starfleet on the battlefield? Would anyone mistake Megamind for a Bolian? Or does Dru finally manage to steal a moon and get into trouble with Klingons wanting it back? So many possibilities for the Graphics Contest crossover month – our last Graphics Contest. You’re seeing that correctly: This is the LAST round of the Graphics Contest. We thank everyone who has joined in the past (and in this round) who made this a fun ride! Now help end it with a bang! The deadline to enter is April 23rd. For more information check here in our announcement post and if you have more questions check into our discussion post! The post Graphics Contest: Join the last round! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

MENTHAR CORRIDOR — Having vanished without a trace, the USS Gorkon, a Sovereign-class starship, is still missing as Starfleet Command continues to search for answers. The Gorkon, commanded by Captain Quinn Reynolds, disappeared several months ago in the Menthar Corridor, and has not been heard of since. “As of this moment, Starfleet has not given up hope of finding the USS Gorkon and her crew,” said Commodore Nathaniel Sanderson of Starfleet Communications. “The investigation is still underway.” First Officer’s Personal Log, Stardate 239303.30 To say this assignment is interesting would be an understatement of galactic proportions. Shortly after my arrival, via a shuttlecraft that was pulled through the same interdimensional rift as the Gorkon, Captain Quinn Reynolds assigned both Commander Alucard Vess and myself to lead damage control teams as a massive battle ensued between us, the USS Triumphant and a fleet of Dominion ships. Yes, that was Dominion ships! Apparently in this universe the Dominion won the war and they didn’t take too kindly to our presence here. From the various reports I’ve read from across the ship, while I was busy in engineering trying to keep tabs on the chief engineer, Lieutenant Cory Stoyer, Cmdr. Vess was handling casualties from across the ship, as well as some from the Triumphant which was destroyed during the battle. Now that was an interesting one. Apparently one of the Triumphant’s crew went rogue and let loose a virus that resulted in the auto-destruct sequence being initiated, the Triumphant did not survive but most of her crew escaped and are now calling our shuttlebay home. Apparently the spectacular display of the Triumphant’s final act, combined with a sneaky sensor jamming system the bridge crew whipped up utilizing the deflector dish, turned the tide in the battle and chased off the remaining portion of the Dominion fleet. Leaving us where we stand now, licking our wounds trying to get everything working again before the Dominion fleet returns. The post Search for missing Starfleet vessel continues appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

We see the character archetype in movies, books and comics all the time – the solitary loner who’s too tough, cool or tormented to keep the company of anyone but him or herself. It’s a favorite of fiction writers because it allows an author to focus on the motivations and character journey of just one character while all others fall into the background; however in a roleplaying game like SB118 the lone wolf character is frequently a frustrating disruption to the game. A book or movie can choose to focus on a single character or an ensemble cast; but a roleplaying game must focus on an ensemble group of characters. Because the game is comprised of multiple players portraying unique characters, the best roleplaying stories focus either on shifting action that allows all characters to get involved or encompassing action where all characters work together. Either way, the majority of fun in a roleplaying game comes from character interaction – whether you are working together to accomplish a goal or simply building relationships with the characters around you. A ‘lone wolf’ character can feel disconnected from the action (and therefore the fun) of the game; or they could fall into the danger of ‘grandstanding’ – which is when one character overshadows all the other characters in a scene, stealing the spotlight at the expense of others. These are two things we very much want to avoid in games because they create animosity and frustration between players. Yet the lone wolf is an enduring archetype that appeals to many imaginations. Is there a way to do it correctly and portray a lone wolf character that can connect and work with your fellow players while still communicating the character’s intentions? Well, the answer is yes; but it’s very challenging to do so. The best lone wolf concepts that work are characters that have a clear background and reasoning for being a loner, with a future plan of connecting more with the group as past wounds are salved. To put in a different way – simming is a group-narrative story structure. Every character needs to have a way of becoming part of the group narrative without stealing the focus away from the group. This means any lone wolf character needs a plan of how they can join and interact with the group in order to be a successful long term character. It can be dramatically interesting to watch the progression from distrustful loner to valued group member; but there always has to be some progression that binds the character to the group. So the first question for any player wanting to play a ‘lone wolf’ character is: can you accept the challenge of having your character work towards an ever growing relationship with the group? Do you have a plan for how to maintain group interaction every step along the way? If the answer is no, and you see the character as always remaining a loner, this is probably a better character for fanfiction than a roleplaying game. If the answer is yes, let’s move forward. The next advice in playing a reserved, loner character can also go for people that simply want to play shy characters and that’s: body language matters. If your character isn’t communicating much through their own voice; you as a player need to be carefully detailing your character’s body language and actions. This is what your fellow players will use to ‘imagine’ your characters role in the narrative – and if you don’t give them anything to work with your character will simply disappear from the narrative in their imagination. Make your character as present and real as possible in the minds of your fellow readers. Write details about facial tics, movement details, posture and stance. If this sounds exhausting – it is! Writing a silent character is much harder than a talkative one, but if you want to make it work it is essential you’re giving as much detail of your characters expressions and actions as possible. Second, develop an internal monologue. Being able to write posts gives simmers a great advantage in expressing the thoughts and motivations of a silence character over tabletop roleplayers. You can start to inform your readers about a quiet character’s personality and drive through internal monologues. For example: ::Lieutenant Wharf stood quietly in the corner:: Isn’t very memorable or interesting. However, with some added internal monologue Wharf becomes a character with far more impact, despite the fact that he doesn’t say anything: ::Standing quietly in the corner Lieutenant Wharf’s posture was stiff and overly formal. He was following the conversation on the bridge but was unwilling to speak up:: oO It might be the Tholians, but I don’t have enough proof. If I say something now and end up wrong, I’ll look like a fool. It’s better to stay quiet until I know for sure. Oo In the second one we get the sense that Wharf is biting his tongue because he’s worried the others on the bridge will see him as wrong or foolish. There’s a clear motivation for his silence, and he becomes a more empathetic character to the audience. There’s some great upsides of putting internal monologue into a quiet character’s posts; but there can also be some downfalls to it as well. When you’re writing the internal musings of your character focus on that character – their motivations, perceptions and desires. Do not focus on your fellow PCs unless you are directly interacting with them, and never use internal monologues to post negative things about your fellow PCs that they cannot react to. Verbal conflicts between characters are an integral part of drama; but having one character ‘thought-posting’ that internal monologue without allowing the other character to react in game brings the conflict to an OOC level which we always want to avoid. Remember that the entire goal of simming is interaction. Whether your character starts as a social butterfly or as a quiet wallflower you must interact to be a part of the story and enjoy the game. Whether that interaction is verbal or non-verbal you must focus on how you communicate to other characters in the game; and always have a plan for where your character is starting from and where they are going. A character who cuts off the rest of the characters in or waits for other players to come to him or her is not a suitable character for an interactive game; but a character willing to work on a character development journey and character interaction through creative means can be a compelling way to portray the lone wolf character. Discuss this and other writing tips, tricks, and tools in our Writing Improvement forum. The post Witty Wordsmith: Roleplaying the Lone Wolf appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

We’re heading into the final weeks of Runoff Round 1 of the 2016 Top Sims Contest. In the runoff rounds, members (like you!) decide which sims head to the final round of the Top Sims Contest in December. These sims below were chosen by a panel of judges (one from each ship) from the sims submitted in Rounds 1-6 of the contest. TO START, please read these sims: Round 1: Alora DeVeau & Lobo, “Unlikely Fellows“ Round 2: Renos & Traenor, “Point of View/Pain of View.“ Round 3: Didrik Stennes, “A different calling” Round 4: Akeelah D’Sena & Tabitha Gard, “Sleepover“ Round 5: Merrick R’Ven, “Past Goodbyes“ Round 6: Safine Tan, “The Room Where I Died“ NEXT, vote for the sim you like the most. Click here to go to the poll now. It should be the sim that’s the best written, with strong characterization, and evocative or descriptive scene-setting. DON’T vote for a sim just because you serve on the same crew as the person who wrote it. Any crew that “stuffs the ballot” (by having everyone on the crew vote for the same sim to ensure that it wins this poll) will be eliminated from the contest and shamed by the rest of the community as terrible, terrible cheaters. That would be awful. Good luck to the nominees! The post Time is running out to vote in Top Sims Runoff Round 1 appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

BETREKA NEBULA — While responding to a distress call, the USS Constitution become trapped in a subspace disturbance, and a Starfleet security officer was killed in the line of duty. The crew received the call from the USS Unity, a ship long since declared lost with all hands. Upon locating Unity, Captain Rajel sent an away team to the ship to gather information regarding the disappearance of the ship and her crew. Early reports indicated an unknown entity aboard Unity. The entity was capable of absorbing energy, and revealed itself to the away team in terrifying images, provoking a fight-or-flight response in its victims. While the majority of the team made it back to Constitution, Senior Chief Petty Officer Riyao was killed during the encounter. “It is always unfortunately to lose a member of your crew. Riyao is no exception. He served us well and with honor. I believe it is safe to say the crew will miss him,” said Lt. Cdr. T’Mar, Constitution’s Executive Officer, who was also a member of the away team. Ultimately, the trouble was not confined to Unity; the entity soon began creating problems on Constitution as well. Through skill in engineering and creative thinking, however, the crew found a way to minimize the subspace disturbance that was keeping them there. The crew also prevented the entity from tagging along on their ship, without which safely leaving the nebula would have been impossible. Now out of harms way, the crew of Constitution is focusing on rest and recovery, and keeping the friends and family of SCPO Riyao in their thoughts and hearts. The post Ghost ship investigation claims life of security officer appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Each month, the Academy staff compiles the statistics about our recruiting and training for the fleet’s informational purposes. Let’s take a look at how we did in March. This first graph shows the number of applications we received each month this year. As you can see, the fleet received nine new applications in the month of March which is an increase from the previous month. Unfortunately this number is still down quite a bit from January. The following chart shows how members found us, according to their application: This final graph shows how many people graduated from the Academy during the month of March. It is worth noting that we had several cadets who applied in February who graduated in March and a few cadets who applied in March who will be graduating in the beginning of April: New recruits are the lifeblood of our community. When our application rate slows, it makes it hard to keep our ships fully crewed, not to mention impossible to grow. So if you’d like to help us recruit more members and grow our fleet, you can join the Publicity Team using this form. The post Applications and Academy Graduates for March 2016 appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

POUIYEOG REGION — Borg activity has been detected near the new Starfleet installation in the Delta Quadrant. An extended celebratory period aboard the USS Darwin-A, which culminated in the promotion of Captain Renos to Fleet Captain, was cut short when Renos received a disturbing message from Outpost Unity: evidence of the Borg at the extreme edges of the outpost’s long-range sensors. Ne delivered the news at a gathering of the senior officers, which unfortunately cast a somber shadow on the promotions of Lieutenant Varaan to Lieutenant Commander, and of Lieutenant junior grade Merrick R’Ven to Lieutenant, which were announced at the same time. Undaunted, Darwin’s crew leapt into action to prepare the ship for departure and a possible encounter with the Borg. Underway, it was discovered that the Borg energy signatures emanated from an uncharted sector in the Pouiyeog Region, which lies between Outpost Unity and the Delta–Beta quadrant border, perilously close to the lifeline supply route back to Federation space. After six hours at high warp, Darwin arrived at a single-planet system with so sign of Borg ships, and sensors indicating the Borg activity was coming from the planet’s surface. “Our biggest asset is our intelligence, so let’s keep our wits about us and remain calm. We’re going to be fine,” said Captain Renos as the crew planned its next move. As the ship neared to investigate, a strange cloud burst forth into orbit on a direct course for Darwin, closely followed by Borg weapons fire from the surface. The cloud was quickly discovered to be composed of Borg nanites, which used the ship as a shield to avoid the weapons fire. When the nanite swarm showed signs of possible intelligence by flashing a strobing light in the pattern of the mathematical constant pi, Renos ordered Darwin to collect it within her containment sphere, and to move out of range of the surface weapons. Three away teams were formed to descend to the surface, each with a specific goal to neutralize a Borg threat to the region: destroy the crashed Borg ship’s vinculum and central plexus, disable or destroy the ground-based weapons platform, and determine if the Borg survivors are sufficiently separated from the Collective to treat them as individuals. A fourth team remained on Darwin to determine if a dialogue could be formed with the nanites. On the surface, each away team independently discovered that most, if not all of the surviving Borg drones were devoid of their nanoprobes, leaving them in various stages of biological and mechanical degradation. Each away team surmised that the swarm of nanites in orbit might be composed of or derived from the drones’ nanoprobes. Back on Darwin, the team started a rudimentary conversation with the swarm once they introduced it to an isolated copy of the Federation’s cultural database. Using snippets from popular culture, the nanites requested help and advised that they do not consider themselves to be Borg. With the mission ongoing, however, only time will tell what these nanites and the stranded Borg portend for the newly created Federation presence in the Pouiyeog Region. The post USS Darwin-A tasked to investigate strange Borg readings appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Moving into April, past the joking of the first, we can reflect back on March with some good memories. The seven ships currently in the fleet have maintained strong simming habits. Every ship in the fleet maintained a stronger sim count than the fleet’s average a year ago of 164. Only three times since 2009 has our March average hit above 200, with those times being 2009, 2012 and this year! Way to go fleet! Looking back on March, in comparison to February, we can see some ships have gotten off their mission highs and heading into shore leave, while others have walked right into them. It’s the way of the flow of the fleet. During shore leave, we expect to see more joint posts being submitted to the counts, which seems to impact the totals a bit. The strongest of the ships for this month is the Doyle-A, which seems to have picked up past it’s winter slump, rocking the charts for this month with 244 sims. After looking back on our strength in March, and the fleet’s history through the years in April, we will be looking at another good month. Have fun and keep those sims coming! The post March post counts appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

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? Looking for pointers on how to improve your own bio? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then head on over to the Featured Bio Contest’s forum and check out what we have to offer! While you are there, why not submit a nomination? All that’s required is that the bio be of an active player character, such as Antero Flynn of Starbase 118 Ops, who is this round’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, July 1 – so submit your nomination today! The post The Featured Bio Contest is now quarterly. Nominate a bio today! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Connect with old friends or make new friends! See what’s going on across the fleet, or share some good humor. The fleetwide OOC chat is the place to settle in and learn new things about your fellow players, have a laugh and get to know someone better. Come on down to the chat room, everyone in the fleet is encouraged to attend. Come join us today: Sunday, April 10 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm London / 3am Sydney (AUS). See your timezone here. 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. The post Join us today for the fleetwide OOC chat! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Please welcome our newest Academy graduates to the UFOP: StarBase 118 fleet: Jocelyn Marshall and Aartemus Vadan! The post New Academy Graduates appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

MENTHAR CORRIDOR — The starliner Charles Lindbergh, hijacked with its passengers held hostage, has been recovered by Starfleet with all passengers accounted. The USS Tiger-A was ordered into radio silence to chase after the wayward transport vessel and sent security and rescue teams aboard the Lindbergh in an effort to capture colonial extremist and hijacking ringleader Gabriela Cariño and her associates before being alerted to the presence of explosives. The passengers of the Lindbergh were safely evacuated to Deep Space 10. Despite the heavy operation, the hijackers successfully escaped and remain at large. “The hijackers have not made their intentions clear to us as of yet, but with their escape from capture, we are warning the general public that they may be armed and are highly dangerous,” said Starfleet Public Affairs officer Commander A.J. Ciaravolo in San Francisco. Meanwhile, the USS Garuda and the USS Invicta were attacked by unidentified cloaked vessels. After working how to discover these vessels through their cloaks, Commander Roshanara Rahman sent a team to disable the ship from the inside. Though a small firefight ensued, the craft was captured without further incident. Charges are still to be laid with its crew facing interrogation. After a successful mission, the crews of the Invicta Expedition have traveled to DSX for a well-deserved shore leave. The post Starfleet rescues passengers from hijacked starliner appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Please welcome our newest Academy graduates to the UFOP: StarBase 118 fleet: T’Leira! The post New Academy Graduates appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

The staff of UFOP: StarBase 118 would like to take a moment and recognize the officers – please be sure to congratulate these folks when you see them around the fleet! DARWIN Varaan to Lieutenant Commander Merrick R’Ven to Lieutenant DOYLE Cassandra Ezi to Lieutenant JG Saavei to Lieutenant JG Michelle Tonston to Lieutenant JG Brandon Craig to Lieutenant Alexander Bishop to Lieutenant Commander STARBASE 118 OPS Mirra Ezo to Lieutenant Antero Flynn to Lieutenant The post Promotions for March appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. View the full article

STARBASE 118 — The crew of Starbase 118 Operations returned home this week after putting an end to one of the most dangerous drug cartels on Tilanna V. Links between the cartel and a criminal group known as the Jenatris Confederation appear to have been severed in the wake of the destruction of a strategically important nightclub, believed to be the organization’s hub. Governor Al’Akir announced plans to bring Tilanna under the control of the Klingon Empire shortly after. Upon returning to the station, those involved in the mission engaged in some well deserved shore leave. Commanding Officer Sal Taybrim handed out numerous awards and promotions after a delicious three course meal provided by several catering companies aboard the station. Taybrim also announced plans to celebrate the birthday of the station’s Mission Specialist and Second Officer, Baylen Anders, by arranging a recreation of the 23rd century starship USS Armstrong on the holodeck. “The senior staff of this Starbase work exceptionally hard eight days a week,” said station press secretary AJ Craig. “Their mission to Tilanna V was difficult on multiple fronts and I cannot blame Commanders Taybrim and Whittaker for allowing their crew to decompress and let their hair down.” Almost all of the crew participated in the recreation, which saw the holographic vessel flying headfirst into Klingon space and facing down the disruptor cannons of two Klingon birds-of-prey. Rather uncharacteristically, several crewmembers began singing; the reason for this musical turn of events is as-yet unknown. The post Starbase 118 Ops shuts down crime syndicate; battles holographic Klingons appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Have you ever thought that Star Trek would go really well with another of your favourite shows? Now you can show us your ideas for the best Star Trek crossover ever – no matter if you are a beginner or experienced graphics enthusiast, everyone is welcome. Endless possibilities in our Spring Graphics Contest are waiting for you! Join our Graphics Contest until April 23rd and take the chance to win with your imagination. For more information check here in our announcement post and if you have more questions check into our discussion post! The post Graphics Contest: Join the Spring Crossover appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

If we want to launch new ships and provide up and coming officers with the opportunities they seek, we have to grow our fleet with new members. That’s why it’s so important that our community members participate in our publicity efforts. The Publicity Team is one of the fleet’s most important teams and we need your help! Getting involved is easy only takes a few moments. The Publicity Team has a number of small, simple tasks that, each month, can help grow our influence, spread the word about our group, and pique the interest of Star Trek writers around the net. From posting on Star Trek forums to gathering social media content, most of our tasks don’t require any particular expertise, and can be completed by anyone in 15-30 minutes. If we don’t have enough people to help each month, our goals fall short and it’s hard to sustain recruiting levels to the point of replacing the folks who go on leave or retire from the group. Click here to learn more about the Publicity Team and sign up to help. The post The Publicity Team needs you! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

During fleetwide chats, we talk about fleet events, learn more about each other, joke about Star Trek, and strengthen our community bonds! Everyone in the fleet is encouraged to attend. The next chat is scheduled for Sunday, April 10 at 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern / 6pm London / 3am Sydney (AUS). See your timezone here. 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. Please tell your fellow crew members and invite a friend using the share buttons on this post. Member referrals are one of strongest ways to draw in new members, and chats are a great way to break the ice. The post Join us next Sunday for our monthly fleetwide chat appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

2016 marks an important milestone in science fiction history, as you no doubt are already aware. One man had a dream about a universe filled with colorful characters, creatures from other worlds, and fantastic starships that could travel the galaxy. That man was George Lucas, and the year was 1973. Four years later, Star Wars: A New Hope was released and the world was never the same. To celebrate this monumental 39th anniversary, UFOP: StarBase 118 is moving to Phase 3 of its maturation and will be converting to a Star Wars-based RPG. Since 1994, UFOP: StarBase 118 has been a pioneer in the online RPG world, helping develop the art of simming. Founder Fleet Admiral Tristan Wolf decided to trial the 118 simming model on a little known campy TV show from the 60s. Based on a coin toss, Star Trek was chosen over Lost in Space. But with the release of The Force Awakens last year, interest in Star Wars is at an all-time high. Meanwhile, Star Trek‘s next installment will feature Captain Kirk jumping from a motorcycle. …yep. SO! The time is ripe for a change! Starting today, UFOP: StarBase 118 will be known as Empire: Starkiller Base 118! Check out the wiki for more details! The fleet’s current vessels will be transitioning to those of the Imperial Navy: Meanwhile, check out the Imperial Roster to see if your duty post assignment has changed and feel free to leave a comment on our forums with a new Star Wars species and name for your character if you so desire. We’re launching right now with an Imperial slant, but for those wishing to play a Rebel Alliance character, let us know as well below so we can crush the rebellion see if there’s interest! May the Force be with you! Image from Star Wars Battlefront. The post Empire: Starkiller Base 118 launches today! appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

We’re heading into the final month of Runoff Round 1 of the 2016 Top Sims Contest. In the runoff rounds, members (like you!) decide which sims head to the final round of the Top Sims Contest in December. These sims below were chosen by a panel of judges (one from each ship) from the sims submitted in Rounds 1-6 of the contest. TO START, please read these sims: Round 1: Alora DeVeau & Lobo, “Unlikely Fellows“ Round 2: Renos & Traenor, “Point of View/Pain of View.“ Round 3: Didrik Stennes, “A different calling” Round 4: Akeelah D’Sena & Tabitha Gard, “Sleepover“ Round 5: Merrick R’Ven, “Past Goodbyes“ Round 6: Safine Tan, “The Room Where I Died“ NEXT, using the poll above, vote for the sim you like the most. It should be the sim that’s the best written, with strong characterization, and evocative or descriptive scene-setting. DON’T vote for a sim just because you serve on the same crew as the person who wrote it. Any crew that “stuffs the ballot” (by having everyone on the crew vote for the same sim to ensure that it wins this poll) will be eliminated from the contest and shamed by the rest of the community as terrible, terrible cheaters. That would be awful. Good luck to the nominees! The post Help decide which Top Sim goes to the final round appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

Thanks to another contributor for our 2017 hosting costs: Antero Flynn! Can you join this, and other members, and donate $5, $15, or more today to help sustain our community and keep our website online? It only takes a few minutes and your donation is processed entirely by PayPal. The post Donation thanks to Antero Flynn appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]

You’ve got a fantastic idea for a new character or background. It’s so brilliant, and so obvious now that you think about it, that you wonder why someone hasn’t thought of the idea before. Or maybe you’ve got a fantastic new direction for your ship’s plot that you’re just dying to try out. You’re all set to create a bio or write that development. But take a moment first to think if that’s the best move. We all want to write brilliant, engaging stories that make both readers and writers want to become even more engaged. Characters are what drive stories, and stories and what allow characters to grow, change and develop. The two work in tandem to create good fiction. But no matter how seasoned a writer you are — whether you’re writing your first sim or short story or you’ve spent decades perfecting your craft and have countless published novels — there are some important tips to remember for creating that good content. Thankfully, the good folks over at OngoingWorlds provide 12 useful tips. But these tips, while specific for sci-fi worlds and Star Trek, can be adapted for other genres. They recommend writing characters with goals. We all want something, both in real life and in a story. Maybe you the writer want a promotion at your real job. Well, so does your character. In other settings, the goal could be just as simple or complex. Writing horror? Maybe the characters want to survive the night in the haunted house? Fantasy? Maybe your hero needs to defeat some terrible monster. Whatever a character does, there should be a reason. In addition to their tips, they provide links to further articles about good writing. Check out their examples and see if you can incorporate them into your writing. The post Sci-Fi Writing Tips appeared first on UFOP: StarBase 118 Star Trek RPG. [url={url}]View the full article[/url]