MccRrib

This is a very sudden shift in attitude that, with all due respect, comes off as more than a little disingenuous. I'm having trouble believing that this is your genuine perspective given your repeated calls for the removal of Diona, and your comments during a recent discussion in the lore discord, during which you likened alien races to "supporting characters" and claimed that to give them the spotlight was to "weaken and muddle" the setting. With that out of the way, a question. What do you think interaction between species should look like from a lore standpoint? How much collaboration should there be between the species teams when working on new pieces of lore?

When thinking of how best to go about making the Skrell feel like a more present entity within the lore, I look for inspiration mainly within Tajaran and Human lore. Consider, for example, the somewhat recent Tajara Deportation Act. Arcs like this, whether represented in articles, events, or wiki additions, serve as the best examples of lore that has presence, it goes beyond the insular "there are Skrell in this place, this is how they got here" style of political lore we have at the moment. Lore like the Deportation Act assists in creating interaction and conflict between player characters of different species and/or backgrounds, the actions of Tajaran citizens in response to their upheaval has a tangible effect on how a Human citizen might view them. Lore with presence offers player characters something to take a stance on, the Skrell feel absent from the galaxy at large because they lack anything like this beyond "I do or do not support the Jargon Federation for the following reasons." articles such as this one are a step in the right direction, but there's much more that could be done. If given the opportunity, my priority would be expanding on the relationship between the Jargon Federation and the various other political entities that pepper the galaxy, ideally through articles and assisting in the overhaul of our existing Skrell politics page, focusing primarily on elaborating on how the Skrell are viewed by the natives of planets they can be found on outside of the Federation. I'd like to write more supplementary lore similar in nature to the pieces I've posted above, as well, to ensure that the Skrell feel more like part of the lore, and less like a tacked-on afterthought.

The presence of Skrell on Silversun has been controversial, to say the least. Early “adopters” of Originals culture, Skrell on Silversun are often seen sporting dawnflower flowercrowns, and the ever-popular Silversun floral shirts. The Skrell flocked to the planet en masse shortly after they learned of its existence, largely drawn by the idea of Skrell-specific vacation spots that were promised by Idris representatives. In the decades that followed, promises were made material, and soon such spots were peppering the beaches outside of Silverport Landing. Constructed swiftly by Idris teams, these aforementioned resorts are equal parts enormous and idyllic, to the point they often encroach on nearby settlements. These resorts and their staff are dedicated to tending to to the every need of their Skrellian residents during their typically quite lengthy stays. Visitors can expect carefully curated luxuries as well as a heavy Federation presence, there to ensure residents and staff alike maintain an attitude that reflects their enthusiasm for their homeland, and their corporate allies. While the Skrell themselves are quite fond of the planet’s culture, adopting their slang, their dress, and even roughly translating some folk songs into Nral’Malic, most Originals don’t echo their friendly sentiments. It’s not uncommon to hear Originals referring to the Skrell as a symptom of the corporate plague sweeping their homeland, pejoratively declaring them to be “wading in the shallow end,” a sardonic jab at rampant tourism and those that Originals deem to only be scratching the surface of their culture, missing the forest for the trees. Inversely, the Expatriates welcome the presence of the Skrell and the boost to the economy they provide, the two groups maintaining a generally friendly rapport. Protests at the more invasive resort sites are relatively infrequent, but not uncommon enough to not be a worry for would-be investors in Silversun’s service industry.

Bound to an extensive, but long since abandoned wing of the underworld beneath one of the many megacities dotting Epsilon Eridani II, the Hive (working title) as it’s frequently called by its residents, is a somewhat hidden area of the Oran underworld that primarily serves as an anarcho-syndicalist safe-haven for the small clumps of congregative Skrell that fail to live up to their employers’ rigid standards and become stuck in the system, unable to procure the funds for, or refused access to shuttle services. Supplies for survival are often scavenged for by the more resourceful Hivers, as the commune’s Skrellian residents have come to be known, or provided in secret by some of the more merciful members of the Fleetrunners that pay visit to the system for smuggling operations, often masquerading as tourists. New members are typically attracted to the commune via signals sent out from jury-rigged Nlom beacons constructed by Hive residents with scavenged, scrapped, or purchased pieces of discarded/stolen Federation technology. Consequentially the Hive maintains an entirely Skrellian populus, with a higher presence of niche ideologies and faiths like Suur’ka, or Kir’gul, the followers of which typically living free of judgement from their fellow Skrell stemming from their unifying goal of finding a way off the planet. Contact with the other dregs populating the underworld is fairly frequent, for trade purposes, the Hivers maintain a relatively healthy trade-relationship with the communes they frequently communicate with. For the most part, their relationship is a matter of living and letting live. Living conditions are, unsurprisingly quite cramped, domiciles often containing 8-9 people in a space barely befitting a single Skrell, sharing most possessions and working in unity with hopes of getting out a signal for help, or discovering means of leaving Oran. Was unsure how long of a piece you wanted, I'd be more than willing to lengthen it a bit if you'd like! Edit: Minor spelling error.

I'd be more than happy to write something up, any preferred topics at all, or am I free to tackle it at my own discretion?

I mean this as respectfully as possible, just trying to clear up some confusion, what exactly is your question?

Ckey/BYOND Username: MccRrib Discord Name: Hugh Janus#2511 Position Being Applied For: Skrell lore deputy Have you read the Lore Team Rules and Regulations wiki page? I have. Past Experiences/Knowledge: I’ve been involved in the TTRPG scene for about ten years now, 7 of which as a DM, unfortunately, I've no experience writing for Aurora lore to date, though, I'd like to think I'm fairly active in the community and in DMs with ideas for improvements or additions to the lore as it stands. Examples of Past Work: As I mentioned above I’ve no past lore work on the server to display here, though I’d be more than willing to write a quick treatise on a subject of the team’s choice, though. Additional Comments: As per prompt #1 on the deputy recruitment post, I’ve attached a short essay on the biggest problem I perceive Skrell lore to have.

BYOND Key: MccRrib Character Names: Ian White (science man) Species you are applying to play: Skrell What color do you plan on making your first alien character: Mint Green Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: A good few times. 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 specific race: The Skrell are one of, if not the most distinctly alien species in our setting, alien customs, alien appearances, and an alien biology, the biggest draw of playing a Skrell for me stems from that otherworldly aesthetic, I think that playing characters that do their best to adhere to such a foreign culture will lead to some interesting interactions, and unique RP, and ultimately, those two things are what I enjoy the most about Aurora as a whole. I’m a big fan of the direction the newer members of the Skrell lore team are taking it, as well, my biggest worry about making a Skrell WL app before our current Skrell lore staff joined the team was a lack of supplementary lore to work with during character creation, more specifically a lack of fleshed-out planets and systems. Now more than ever Skrell players have a ton of interesting, developed lore to work with. Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human: (One Paragraph minimum) Aside from obvious things like their biology, the Skrell express themselves, and communicate interpersonally in a manner that differs wildly from your average human. Access to psionic communication, a method of instantaneously sharing one’s thoughts and feelings is uniquely Skrellian, as are the social difficulties that accompany interaction with less psionically inclined species. The Skrell rely heavily on a method of communication and expression that Humans, Unathi, etc, aren't capable of fully understanding, and this, ultimately, is what differentiates them the most from other xenos. Character Name: Qu’uuil Qu’ei Please provide a short backstory for this character: Born in the year 2404 in a Federation-sponsored fertility treatment clinic outside of Tresja on Aweji, Qu’uuil was fortunate enough to be born into opulence as the child of a Quya of 8, consisting of some of the best and brightest in their respective fields, surgeons, scientists, musicians, 6 of which had managed to achieve the coveted status of Idol. As children of some of those who were impacted the most by the rise and eventual fall of Glorsh-Omega, I.E. artificial intelligence researchers, listeners, and even one or two jurors on the collaborator trials, Qu’uuil’s parents were, to vastly understate, quite protective of them as they grew up, giving up considerable effort to prevent them from learning of or interacting with some of the harsher aspects of their homeland, and it’s governing body. As they aged, and as is typical for Skrellain children, Qu’uuil was constantly pressured to pursue medicine for the betterment of their people, the horrors of tales spun by their Quya of Glorsh’s reign, and the sheer terror it brought about for them, as a Listener and a Xiialt eventually drew them to settle on biochemistry and genomics, aiming to one day make progress on a cure for the genophage plaguing their people. Educated by the best tutors available to them and their family, they grew up in sheltered security, all their needs met, save for an insatiable thirst for knowledge that accompanied the Qeblakian faith passed down from their parents. Qu’uuil excelled at their schooling, quickly becoming an inarguable prodigy in their pursuits of choice, however, presumably as a consequence of their sheltered upbringing, they found great difficulty in opening up to other Skrell, friendships rarely progressed past the introductory phases, and they often found themselves relying on academia for comfort in times of trouble. In spite of this, time marched on, and their proficiency for the medical sciences only grew, before they knew it, it was time to pick a university. Settling on The Weashbi Jrugl Institute Of Medical Sciences, a grandiose university right in the middle of their home city of Tresja. 35 years old at the time, leaving home, even temporarily, was an entirely new experience for them, and not one they particularly enjoyed, the stress of the environment, and the pressure from their Quya began to wear on them, in spite of it all, however, acquiring their first degree, (one in biochemistry, as they had always planned,) was largely trivial, and the experience proved a beneficial one for them, as through exposure to more of what Jargon had to offer, the good and the bad, their beliefs began to shift, slowly coming to favor a more Weishii-esque school of thought in regards to their pursuit of knowledge. Ultimately, their return to their alma mater to collect a second degree was what led to their fall from grace, as they met who would soon become their most hated Lu’Pluux, Qix Zrim’Qrr, a classmate, and fellow listener. The relationship between the two started as any typical Lu’Poxii relationship might, a bitter rivalry, and a mutual respect between two talented people of the sciences, however this relationship quickly soured as the two began to contest the single remaining spot in an Advisory Council internship program, a program which invariably led to Idolhood for those involved. The elusive title of Idol being all the motivation they needed, Qu’uuil threw themselves into their study, skipping nights of sleep at a time in pursuit of the title that would finally put them on par with their parents. In their sleep deprived state, their studies began to slip, and in desperation, seeing their soon to be Lu’Pluux surpass them, they ventured out into the Awejian swamps in search of the bulbous flower they knew from their extensive chemical studies to be a source of Uoo’qui Xuqi. Seeing the drug as a sufficient compromise between sleep and study, they began to consume more and more of it over the coming days, using it to re-live entire lectures, and previous study sessions, while resting their body in the coma induced by the drug. Unfortunately, it was not enough, and shortly after graduating, they were informed that in spite of their high performance on their entrance exam, Qix had scored higher, and would be ascending to the position in their stead. Disappointment fresh in their mind, Qu’uuil returned home, where, after a discussion with their Quya on the habits they had developed during their time at university, it was decided that they were in need of help, before the week was through, they were on their way to a Federation-sponsored rehabilitation facility in the mountains surrounding Tresja. While there, Qu’uuil formed a close bond with their assigned therapist, an Axiori by the name of Qrr Zixquu, one of the first of their species they were able to open themselves up to. Eight months after their initial entry into the facility, they left, imbued with the need to help others that often accompanies one in their field, and figuring exposure may be the best path to total rehabilitation, Qu’uuil left Aweiji for the first time in their life, bound for Tau Ceti on a work visa. What do you like about this character? They’re a true Federation apologist, owing their mental and physical stability to its state-sponsored medical programs, roleplaying an avid supporter of one of the most questionable factions in our setting from a moral standpoint is an enticing challenge. Aside from this, exploring what someone failed by the Federation model of perfect parenting might act like is very enticing to me, and I feel it’s an interesting niche that has yet to be explored by the Skrell playerbase at large, at least recently. How would you rate your role-playing ability? I’m not sure how to answer this without coming off as arrogant/overconfident, 6.5/10? Notes: N/A

I've had an extensive conversation with the subject player since I wrote this complaint, they've apologized for what happened, and have expressed willingness to work on it going forward, with that being said, I'd like to request this be locked/archived, thank you.

BYOND Key: MccRrib Game ID: b9M-cHjg Player Byond Key/Character name: HunterRS/Edgar Dawnguard Reason for complaint: Needless exclusion of players from a canon event, disregard for IC orders from CCIA as command staff, metagruding, Did you attempt to adminhelp the issue at the time? If so, what was the known action taken by administration/moderation? No attempt was made at ahelping, as I was unsure of how to word such a thing, and with the size of the event going on, I had figured it was worth waiting until the round was over to do something about it, Approximate Date/Time: 10/24/20 Roughly 12:00 PM CDT-The end of the event in question. Please forgive me if I come off as overly aggressive or salty, but, I've reached the end of my rope, today was the final straw in the mountain that shattered the camel's back. During today's, (as of right now) canon event, the at-the-time research director, after, as far as I know, was given explicit orders from both the rest of command, and CCIA agents to bring the entirety of the science department (unless the subject team members requested otherwise) EVA on the Clandestine asteroid that the event was centered around, instead of doing this, Dawnguard only brought three other science members Marion Ashworth, a roboticist, Xiao Zemin a scientist, and Msizi Djikstra, another scientist iirc. From what I understand, he also ignored requests from the rest of command, (see below), the CCIA, and his team. These actions entirely prevented several players from interacting with the event in any significant way. The reason this is unacceptable should be obvious, and is indicative of a poor understanding of the IC and OOC duties of a member of command staff. In relation to me, and the character I play, Ian White, I get the impression their motivations behind leaving my character were largely personal. HunterRS has a tendency to frequently voice their negative opinions of my character, which is fine, if you dislike Ian White, that's perfectly okay, I don't play him with the intent to get along with everybody, however, based on the things he's said, how frequently he says them, and the OOCly questionable way he acts towards my character ICly, I have reasons to believe this behavior to be metagrude. I would have less reason to believe a motivator for his actions during the event was a metagrudge were it not for the fact that a member of his team had vouched for and requested my character's presence/inclusion, (said requests were ignored or denied,) and the attached screenshots. If anything, the things that transpired during today's events are a microcosm of the player's behavior as a member of command, which is not a good sign. Edit: Going to be adding more screenshots over time. Edit 2: Clarifications on the jobs of chosen team members, grammar fixes.

Testing, this went through, right?

BYOND Key: MccRrib Total Ban Length: Perma. applied on the 12th of may 2020, if I remember properly. Banning staff member's Key: witchbells Reason of Ban: built an ai to be their personal hypeman. has months of notes of low-rp behavior and showed little to no improvement. Reason for Appeal: Hindsight is 20/20, and admittedly it wasn't the smartest though process, but essentially, I had assumed AI building was fine, as I had been doing it for the last 3-4ish rounds leading up to my ban, most of which I wasn't an antag, and hadn't received an admin PM on the subject. I understand that the hypeman law was a bit much, there wasn't any grief-y intent or anything like that behind it, I just thought it was funny and would make for some entertaining RP, although with hindsight I can see that yeah, it wasn't a great call, and could be considered LRP, if I'm unbanned, I'll at the very least try to avoid doing things of that nature for the sake of a laugh. I'm inclined to disagree with the "no improvement" bit, I feel as if I've generally improved in the LRP behavior category over time, especially in comparison to a lot of the rounds I played when I had just started playing on this server, but I guess that can be subjective. If anything the notes have been helpful in getting a better idea of what kinds of things count as LRP, and I'll work on not doing that kind of stuff if my appeal goes through.