New XO greetings and stuff...

[Kyan Mackenzie]

Greetings fellow Challenges"¦ Challengites"¦ We'll work on that.

Since our former XO done ran off and now lives on a cushy space station, I have been given the task of taking up her former post. (And her quarters. Once they've been de-cootified)

Anyways, I feel like I probably ought to tell you guys how I operate, and all that jazz.

First off, I want you guys to feel like the Challenger is YOUR sim, just as much as it's Michael's and mine. What that means is, we are ALL the main characters. So whether you play a Crewman, Cadet, Ensign, or a Department head, you're an integral part of the story. So you should write accordingly. Feel free to be creative and help move the plot. Or if you aren't really involved in the main plotline, or it just doesn't get your muse going, then you can always create a B-Plot with another character, or use NPCs to help tell your character's story. And if you get stuck, I'm always here to brainstorm and get you moving. I get stuck sometimes too. Brainstorming with another player always helps. Don't be afraid to be creative and add your own piece of the story! The goal isn't to follow a script, but to roleplay your character and have fun with everyone else.

As to missions, your input is wanted. My goal is to have mission planning be more of a shared thing among all of us. One of the biggest complaints that I've had myself and heard from other people in the past is that they sometimes don't know what's going on in a mission or they feel like they are just replying to tags with no real freedom to do much. So what I want to do is make sure you all have a chance to get in on the planning and to make sure that we're all on the same page. With that being said, my personal philosophy on mission planning is this: Have a well established end goal and one or a few big rules to guide people. For example"¦ "œThe science team all get rescued." That's the end goal. The rule(s) would be like; "œDon't kill any of them." Or "œDon't damage the ship." Stuff like that"¦ other than that, use your imagination. Or we could just say "œThis is what we're supposed to be doing.", but maybe we go off on a tangent and we all like the tangent better.

Either way, the goal is the same: Write and have fun. If you have an idea that you want to explore for your character, DO IT! Take initiative and have fun with it.

Now lets talk about NPCs and their usage. We use NPCs in a lot of ways"¦ Sometimes they get used as fillers if we don't have a PC to fill a spot, like a department head. If you are in a department with an NPC department head, feel free to use that NPC to tell your character's story, especially if you're the only PC in the department. If that's the case, consider yourself the OOC department head. Use that NPC to help you write your character. Unless it's someone else's protected NPC, then you can use it however you want. Maybe the NPC department head doesn't like meetings so they send your character. Maybe your character and the NPC have conflict, or maybe they're friends. Whatever the case may be, my position is that you are free to use them to help you write your character, who is the main character in the department. Also, if you want to create your own NPCs for your department"¦ DO IT! Just let me know and I'll get them on the roster. If you want to create NPCs for another department, just coordinate with the players in that department to make sure you're on the same page.

Lastly, I want to talk about OOC stuff. If you have an issue that you can't resolve on your own, let me know. If your issue is with me, also let me know. I'm not perfect and sometimes I screw up. If I do, tell me. I can take criticism, especially if its constructive. Most of the people who have had bad experiences on this site and others, it was OOC drama. I want to avoid that sort of thing. And as far as I can tell, you're all reasonable people who want to write and have fun. So if you have an issue, I'm here to help. I check discord all the time, so just DM me. We'll get it figured out.

So that's my opening rant. But it's not meant to be a speech. Lets talk about you guys now and what you want to see with the sim. Got ideas? Changes that we might enact to make things better? Reply below and lets talk about them!

[Zhukdrashar Mrekrerhas]

Dang Kyan! I was so close to becoming the second-in-command of the ship! But you meddling kid ruined it! Just joking~

I am happy to see you as XO, and I am excited to see what you bring to the table. In all honesty, I think you are an excellent writer, and I have no complaints from you in any sense. Though we haven't talked much in my opinion, I like Kyan and the way you have integrated other NPCs. For example, giving Zala a little brother I think was nice c:

Hm... out of the top of my head I cannot think of any suggestions, but if I do I will let you know.

[ShranLahr ch'Verret]

An excellent philosophy!  I'm looking forward to this next mission.