Nagito Komaeda

This sounds awesome! Holopads get used infrequently for on-station communications, and I think they're a really cool tool as an alternative to radio or announcements.

Reporting Personnel: Osisra Devorask Job Title of Reporting Personnel: Executive Officer Game ID: cFc-dukr Personnel Involved: Forbearance, Head of Security - Offender Leah Staymates, Investigator - Witness Narasi Perlyalna'Shirani, Bridge Crew - Witness Secondary Witnesses: All the crew who visited the Starlight Lounge. Time of Incident: 00:30 Real Time: 02:30GMT+2 23/05/2026 Location of Incident: Starlight Lounge Nature of Incident: [ ] - Workplace Hazard [ ] - Accident/Injury [ ] - Destruction of Property [ ] - Neglect of Duty [ ] - Harassment [ ] - Assault [X] - Misconduct [ ] - Other _____ (Place an x in the box that applies. If other, replace line and specify.) Overview of the Incident: During the Horizon's visit to the Starlight Lounge, crew at the casino encountered a member of the Outer Eyes, one of the Eyes. This Eye offered information if the crew won a game of poker. Head of Security Forbearance contacted me, who stayed behind on the Horizon, for 500.000 credits from our expedition supply, as well as armoury equipment. They stated their intent was to extract the Eye if necessary. We argued about the course of action, and I used the emergency messaging system of the Command console to contact Central Command, but with no response. After the game was played, and we lost out on 300.000 credits from our expedition supply, Forbearance ordered the entirety of Security to gear up and try to extract the Eye from the Starlight Lounge. While the Starlight Lounge is a shady place due to its location and relative obscurity, it is still a neutral area, with multiple ships of various walks of life docked with it. The Lounge has shown no hostility to the Horizon's crew at any moment during their stay. While it is true that the Outer Eyes are a dangerous organisation, we shouldn't actively engage in hostility. We have a status to uphold, and other lives - civilian or not - to account for. Forbearance's actions not only led to nothing, as the Eye escaped the Lounge, it also destroyed any potential goodwill from affiliated parties with the Horizon showing off that it is capable of resorting to violence when it doesn't 'get their way.' Submitted Evidence: A large amount of the active Security force and Bridge Crew during the shift can testify on Forbearance's orders. Due to my remote position during this operation, I have no photographic or recorded evidence available, hence why I am willing to testify myself as well. Would you like to be personally interviewed? [X] - Yes [ ] - No Did you report it to a Head of Staff or a superior? n/a; there were no other Heads of Staff besides Forbearance and myself. Actions taken: n/a Additional Notes: Our mission is incredibly important, and I understand the value that could have come with extracting a key member of the Outer Eyes. But jumping the gun and raiding a casino - notwithstanding our failure in actually extracting the target - is detrimental to our status as the SCC's flagship vessel. If I had been on the ground with the crew, I would never had let this happen, but I was confined to the Horizon.

Assuzionii plant science has gone TOO far.

Another thought, how do offships interact with skills? I haven't had the opportunity to play an offship since the update, so I'm going to take the example of the Kataphracts. They are expected to have incredible combat prowess, while also being capable of piloting the ship, doing engineering work, doing medical work... and there is often a degree of overlap seen due to the insular nature of offships. Will they get a 'custom' skillset/background, or will offships adhere to the 'normal' educational standards?

As another XO player, yes please oh my Lord. Being able to actually see what's going on while sitting on the Horizon seems exactly like something we already should have had.

Piloting feels extremely expensive as a skill to take. Spending 6 out of 8 occupational points on piloting feels very punishing, especially when it's required for Mining, Bridge Crew and for some, Science. Additionally, needing to spend 6 points on being 'a licensed pilot' when there's a big difference between ship classifications feels weird. I think it could work to split it between small, medium and large crafts, where the Spark, Quark and Canary fall under small, the Intrepid (and a ship like the Lone Spacer ship) fall under medium together with the targeting console, and the Horizon and most other ships that can't land on planets fall under large. There is also no education that allows for someone to 'be' a pilot. So being a Bridge Crewman means you have to have a different background than a full pilot's background, which I could foresee causing issues with a lot of character archetypes. A Xenobotany degree should realistically also entail having at least familiar atmospheric knowledge, or if anything, permit you to take the familiar/trained level. Xenobotany has been intertwined with atmospheric systems significantly over the past months, and if there will be mechanical consequences for not having atmospheric knowledge, Xenobotany will really need at least a baseline level of skills in it. For Science in particular as well, not being able to have a 'familiar' level in any other field of science feels really off. While they're not expected to have full knowledge over the entire Science department, I'd argue that a Research Director is at least familiar with other fields in research. Not being able to spend your skill points on Science fields when playing a Science character is a little strange to me.

Shamelessly copy pasted: How do you feel the 'Hephaestus vs. Zavodskoi' arc landed? I personally believe the premise was good (e.g. two big megacorps having some actual, tangible beef with each other) but the stakes for crew themselves were too low to be involved with the matter (from my perspective). Do you believe the Hephaestus vs. Zavodskoi idea should be improved on pre-NBT2? And do you believe other megacorps should have a similar, deep-rooted rivalry with actual in-lore justification? If so, what corporations would you pit 'against' each other?

How do you feel the 'Hephaestus vs. Zavodskoi' arc landed? I personally believe the premise was good (e.g. two big megacorps having some actual, tangible beef with each other) but the stakes for crew themselves were too low to be involved with the matter (from my perspective). Do you believe the Hephaestus vs. Zavodskoi idea should be improved on pre-NBT2? And do you believe other megacorps should have a similar, deep-rooted rivalry with actual in-lore justification? If so, what corporations would you pit 'against' each other?

It's amusing that you mention the first part in regards to having a heavy accent, because I do roleplay a character with a pretty noticeable accent. So I get where you're coming from. It's what stands out most to me whenever I think of Tajara. But Tajarans also have different views on gender. Notably, many Tajarans view same-sex relationships as something wrong, believing that a relationship should be for reproduction. This view is shifting slowly, especially with exposure to other species, but there is still an underbelly of Tajarans who view this as deviant. This also extends to open displays of affection, though Tajarans do huddle together to keep warm and share body heat, which isn't seen as something intimate. Going into further details regarding the 'use of pronouns', Tajarans have a strong divide between the public and personal self, which I can best liken to something like French or Dutch having a formal/informal word for 'you'. Their way of using this depends on the person they're in conversation with, the relationship they have, and the tone of the conversation. So for Nja'kanja, he would use a second-person pronoun to talk to officers, while using a third-person pronoun to talk to the Captain, for example. This divide between the personal and public self, and the use of third-person pronouns indicating respect, has a history; the Tajarans have a long history of being ruled by noble families, where respect was deeply ingrained into the culture. In fairness, though, this is a difficult question to answer to me. I feel like the thing that makes Tajarans different from most others is the sheer recency of their culture's events and the peace that came with it. I'd argue that they're individually the most divided species. Humans have large swaths of space where each culture fosters, and literal planets dedicated to an entire culture. Tajarans have comparatively very little territory, which the three factions keep fighting for. Many Tajarans haven't really known 'peace', because their lives are dictated by this constant tug-of-war. And I feel like that divide in their species makes them more unique to roleplay than a human, for example. Nja'kanja was born in B'urr, but moved closer to Al'mari at a young age. Most of what he saw was the curated front that the PRA put up, with how Al'mari was metropolized. His worldview really changed after finishing his studies, because once he got into the 'real' world, he was faced with reality that is the PRA's police state. Nja'kanja's time with the PSIS had him investigate a lot of religious extremism. His mother and siblings worshipped S'rendarr and Messa, and he was raised with these strong beliefs - and more importantly, the values - but Nja'kanja started to question faith during his time at the PSIS. He's been exposed to the extremes that occultism bring with them, and has seen bits of what a cult like the Raskariim forces upon his people. His view on faith whittled away over the years, and by the time he actually joined the national police, he almost entirely distanced himself from any religion. However, Nja'kanja believes he needs to conform to the 'norm', staying in line with his fellows. So he does keep up with S'rendarr and Messa in a base form. For example, he'd invoke S'rendarr's name in conversation with another Tajara to compliment them, but he wouldn't do so with a human because it tends to not matter for them. As a further dive into his personal life, his entire life is focused on being 'the norm'. Nja'kanja doesn't strive for exceptional feats, he strives for simply performing. He keeps surface contact with his siblings, works out every so often, doesn't indulge heavily into substances but doesn't abstain from them either. He feels like it's his goal to be so normal, he fades into a 'background', which is often an advantageous position to be in if you want to eavesdrop. The S'rand'marr Coalition was the PRA's attempt to call their allies for help. While Al'mari Hadii started transitioning into a xenophobic stance, Malik backpedaled and instead welcomed other species. The Coalition consisted of mercenaries, peacekeepers, freelancers, generally any ally they could convince to help out. Those two months were TERRIBLE, because the Adhomian Liberation Army adjusted and used the right tactics to fight off this coalition. What was supposed to be a coordinated effort to retake ground turned into a slaughter of the various actors in the Coalition (in part thanks to Ringspire's liberal ROE-policy.) In just two months time, Malik Hadii's own stance changed from "winning the war" to "salvaging what's left". To outsiders, the Coalition seemed like a meat grinder, carelessly tossing people into a guerilla war that stagnated, where the original offensive intent was hamstrung and turned into a desperate defense. The various parties of the Coalition expressed their deep concerns about the validity, terms and safety of their soldiers (except the Skrell, who remained faithful). Any press from the front also highly altered the public view of the S'rand'marr Coalition. A lot of news reports focused on the horrors that came with the war, which in turn made people lose faith in the Coalition. The final result of the Coalition was the PRA giving up on their original mission, being dominance over the DPRA and the NKA. One can wonder what the PRA would have been like if they didn't invest into foreign actors that fought as long as there was money. In line with Nja'kanja's philosophy of being 'average', he tries his very best to avoid having any express, outspoken opinions. Naturally, he thinks that most of the DPRA are terrorists, since he doesn't know any better than his own side in the Tajaran civil war. He's been against the DPRA all his life, after all. However, he tempers his opinions by thinking on how the PRA is also flawed, with his experience in the police force. While the NKA and the PRA have had their hostilities, Nja'kanja doesn't see the NKA as the enemy. He remains respectful with any Royalists, referring to them by title if they so wish. Nja'kanja feels like fighting crime only puts him on the radar for anyone who'd wish ill upon him. Even after leaving Adhomai, moving to Little Adhomai to work as an officer there, he felt like catching and persecuting someone puts a mark on him. Tajaran society just has a lot of undesirable elements to it, and if he wants to live peacefully he needed to find work where he was a 'number'. Signing with the KOG made him exactly that: a mercenary. The KOG has an office in Little Adhomai, which is where he got in contact with them, and that eventually grew to a contract. Nja'kanja prefers this semi-desk job that the KOG found for him with the SCC, because it means he can be, instead of be antagonized or vilified for just doing his work. Naturally, he had the choice of doing incredible field work with the KOG, being a guns-blazing kind of mercenary. But that doesn't gel well with him. He'd much rather enjoy his desk job, where he can put more of his social skills to use. And while working as a Head of Security with the SCC gives him some status, he's still more in the background, operating under the SCC's banner moreso than being an 'individual'.

BYOND Ckey: N. Komaeda Discord username: Nagito Komaeda/viego_vol_kalah Character names: Osisra Devorask, Kharybdis, Radiance Species you are applying to play: Tajara ------------------------------ General Whitelist Requirements What colour do you plan on making your first alien character?: Field Snow, an M’Sai colouration. Have you read the lore pages for the species you wish to be whitelisted for?: How is there so much Tajara lore??? Yes I’ve read a bunch of it oh my GOD. Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph format. One paragraph minimum per question. Why do you wish to play this species?: I see a lot of people playing Tajaran, and through this experience I’ve come to find them more and more interesting. The different Tajaran factions feel far more closely tied together than I’ve experienced with the Unathi, for example. They also have an incredibly varied and recent history, which means that, universally, every Tajara went through the same shit, just looking at it from a different side. What makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a human?: Tajara speak in the third person, using “He/She” or saying “This one”, as opposed to saying “I” or “me”. This is already a pretty big shift from most other species (sans Diona, who refer to themselves in a plural form). They also roll their R’s, by nature of being felines. Much like Unathi, Tajara also have the option to incorporate their tail into their mannerisms, like tucking the tail between the leg to portray worry. ------------------------------ Character Application Character Name: Nja’kanja Manqrhaz Nja’kanja Jri’ketdra Manqrhaz is an M’Sai Tajara who was born right after the formation of the People’s Republic of Adhomai, in 2432. His early life was dictated by the instability around him, and the new government that took power on Adhomai, but also by the absence of his father who pledged service to the budding People’s Strategic Intelligence Service. Raised by his mother, together with two older siblings, Nja’kanja learned that standing tall would only get your head chopped off, and that being present has two vastly different interpretations. Wanting to follow in his father’s footsteps, and perhaps also figure out where he disappeared to, Nja’kanja applied to study at the Al’mari College of Hadiist Sciences, before transitioning to the PSIS as a lowly intelligence officer. This coincided with the new era of the PSIS, after the organisation succeeded in their fight against crime. Being a newcomer to the organisation, Nja’kanja was assigned to a division focusing on religious extremism and substance abuse. For the first year and a half, he was treated like the ‘intern’ in his division, given no respect or authority whatsoever in comparison to his peers. The rising instability in Tajaran society took precedence over the ‘low-stakes’ crimes Nja’kanja’s division was focusing on, and the general consensus was that interfering with these esoteric groups would just cause more problems. The assassination on President Al’mari Hadii gave Nja’kanja another good reason to step out of the PSIS, with him feeling like the organisation was compromised by Tufir’s actions. Instead, he chose to enlist for active service with the police, actually enforcing the law instead of sitting by idly, writing up reports that nobody cares for. But even under the national police, Nja’kanja felt out of place. The sheer corruption and abuse of authority rubbed him the wrong way. Regardless, he persevered for ten years, doing his best to keep his head down, do what is asked of him, and not think too much about the consequences. Yet, consequences came during the formation of the S’rand’marr Coalition. With his history at the PSIS and his experience with the national police, Nja’kanja was assigned to fight alongside the S’rand’marr Coalition, and alongside the aliens Al’mari once denounced. What Nja’kanja saw wasn’t corporate greed, but a unity, one pure of heart. Even despite the disasters of these two months, Nja’kanja was reminded what good can come from banding together and forming a unit as opposed to a hit squad that the national police reminds him of. The Armistice is signed, and Nja’kanja starts to ponder if staying on Adhomai is the best thing for him or not. Still, for the next couple of years, Nja’kanja chose to stay with the police force, though securing a contract in Little Adhomai, moving to Biesel. On the one hand, he was back where he started, fighting crime like it’s removing water from the ocean by the bucket. On the other hand, it felt like a nice breath of fresh air, being ‘just’ one of the many detectives that desperately tries to contain the criminal underbelly of Little Adhomai. Eventually, Nja’kanja stumbles his way into the Kazarrhaldiye Operations Group, signing a contract with them to be employed by the SCC on one of their flagship vessels. How has the recent events of the Orion Spur impacted your character? Events such as the Phoron Scarcity, the Solarian Collapse or even the Invasions of Biesel for interstellar-wide affairs, while region-specific events such as the Peacekeeper Mandate, The Titan Rises or even Cold Dawn may impact your character. In general, the instability in Tajaran society eventually caused Nja’kanja to leave Adhomai. Fearing a nuclear war would actually break out, he felt like his life was in danger from that as well as the various risks that come with his field. The Horizon’s actions at Din’akk don’t really concern Nja’kanja; it’s DPRA territory, and he genuinely thinks he has far more pressing things to worry about in his own life. How does your character view the megacorporation they work for? Despite the SCC’s mishaps on Adhomai, which caused strife with the DPRA, Nja’kanja believes the corporation has some good ideas. If KOG believed he’d be a good fit for the SCC, he’s not one to question it. Make a big deal out of it, and you get on a radar. Get on a radar, and you jeopardise your own safety. Nja’kanja very firmly believes that he should just be steady, not exceptional, and working with the SCC allows him that opportunity.

I don't disagree with this, but Scientists have a lot to do on the ship to begin with (I know, Science is a gameplay department with sparse gameplay). Modular guns and telescience can still be tested on the station pretty easily, and they can absolutely be field tested in collaboration with others! But a Xenoarchaeologist/Anomalist has barely any gameplay on the ship and needs the Quark to get artifacts. Looking at it from the gameplay perspective (I don't play Xenoarch so I can't universally speak for those players) I think it would suck if the Xenoarch has to wait with doing their own thing because a Scientist wants to prepare things for an expedition/field test later in the round. There's already plenty of options to go on an expedition and do field testing. Xenoarchs/botanist/biologists are all allowed to fly the Quark, as can the Research Director. Shaft Miners can also be a pilot for anyone wanting to do an expedition, as can Bridge Crew, the OM, XO etc. I think it's lightly redundant for Scientists to get shuttle access if them working together with other pilots stimulates connectivity and roleplay. We shouldn't bar the Scientist role from doing field research, but we already have plenty of possible solutions (e.g. pilots), and interdepartmental reliablity isn't a strange thing (see the Machinist).

This is an interesting idea, but that seems hellish to implement. But it got me thinking: what if the Marshalling Wand can work as a 'camera' for the pilot of a shuttle? It'd make it so that flight crew can see the conditions immediately prior to landing, and it also feels like it makes sense that you can better 'see' your landing zones if someone is waving around bright sticks to signify the area.

Fabian's most outstanding point as a contributor to Aurora's codebase has to be his communicative nature in writing PR's. His contributions do not leave any guesswork for what they do, and what's expected in the future. I personally believe that is a MAJOR skill to have, and even only for that Fabian should be given the opportunity to trial as a developer. That's not to mention the actual contributions he makes to Aurora being high quality. Definitive +1!

Osisra Devorask, Executive Officer: "We've ourselves next 'no clue what the fuck we're going 'be dealing with. But, my stance is that we're best off investigating signals and employing crew expertise if we've the supplies. Charting a general course 'Beta Marax II' seems a recurring theme, for good reason in me opinion. If there's any point where we're best equipped 'deal with threats, 't is now. Equally true, if there's any point where we can expend resources 'get more in our stocks, it's now." "The best we can do while in any given sector is host salvage ops as much as we can. Sites should be logged and scavenged as effectively as possible, which will require coordination from Operations and 'neering, together with the Bridge. We'd be best assessing our situation and acting accordingly after a jump from 'Beta Marax II' in the direction of 'Berkley 72', where we can decide on if we're needing 'push through a bluespace jump or nae."