triogenix

Thank you for your application. However I have decided to go with another applicant. I hope to see you apply to more positions in the future however!

Thank you for your application. However I have decided to go with another applicant. I hope to see you apply to more positions in the future however!

After long consideration, I have decided to select you as the next deputy loremaster! Congratulations!

Cetian Conservative Congress Rises in Opinion Polls Part 3, Article #3 of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc About 2 weeks away from election day - the final opinion poll before the votes are cast has been concluded. It paints a grim picture for the Free Market Party, with only 18% of respondents saying that the party would have their vote. In contrast, 48% of respondents showed a favourable view of the Cetian Conservative Party, with the main reasoning provided being the parties position on the threat presented by the Solarian Alliance. Having been invaded twice by Solarian fleets, citizens of the republic appear to agree with the Cetian Conservatives that a large militarization campaign is necessary to safeguard our democracy into the future. Combined with the mishandling on multiple levels of the Peacekeeper Mandate - which has seen a decrease in support for the Free Market Party Across the board - it’s uncertain just how this election day will pan out. This uncertainty has begun to affect the Dorn-Vaur campaign and many of their supporters, as donations for the campaign have slowed to a crawl. In fact, this past month compared to the same time during the previous election has seen Dorn raise less than a third of what he once did. The most notable thing about the donation list however is the complete absence of any of the Trasen’s, or their affiliated companies; in fact the complete absence of any notable corporate figures. Long time supporters of the President, the absence of their donations seems unexplained, and so far they have failed to respond to any requests for a comment. We will keep our readers updated as we go into this uncertain election.

From a lore perspective - Eh. Technically this is already the case with Code Delta, the "whatever means necessary" clause. Additionally, we already have the following within the Standard Operating Procedure; So, captains can already order executions, it's within the remit of their authority. Sure, it might be illegal/not within reason, but that is supposed decided/adressed after the fact, once the captains orders have been carried out, as stated above. After the fact the captain can be arrested for whatever the HoS thinks he broke with regulations, but I think given the wording of the above it's abundantly clear that; a) The captain is allowed to violate regulations in non-standard situations and b) The crew and rest of command is required to follow the captains orders until they are completed, or the situation is resolved(according to regulations) Therefore I don't really think this accomplishes anything that we don't already have.

Hi! Thanks for applying, and my apologies for only now getting to this. I have a few questions/comments about your application. 1) Nearly ever application, or question on it has referenced the amount of lore we have, and it's relevance to the setting, alongside potential issues we currently have regarding both those things. I'd like to know your thoughts on lore that is, as I consider it, one step removed from actually effecting players. As an example of what I mean that I'm currently working on, the macro level economic lore for the orion spur really doesn't matter to individual characters directly; yet at the same time, lore such as that is what dictates the lower level lore that could matter to individual characters. In my experience this link is not always evident, and lore such as this makes up a majority of what people consider "irrelevant" lore.(I might have explained this poorly, but I don't want to go on a massive rant at the same time.) So should we cut down on the amount of this lore? Split the wiki into "lore pages" and "reference pages?" or whatever other thoughts you may have. 2) Adding on to what Faye mentioned above, there are going to be times where prolonged discussion/debates/arguments are simply not worth the effort from any parties. I understand wanting a comprehensive view/understanding of issues, but a big part of management is picking your battles; deciding what you can cave/budge on and what you can't. Given my past experiences with you, my main concern/fear is that every discussion about a change where there is disagreement would end up being an 8 hour slog fest, and result in team members getting frustrated about any discussion. With all that said, the question I have is do you think that you are open to reining yourself in, for lack of a better term, when it comes to discussing things, disagreement or not? 3) Somewhat related to the above, one of the more difficult parts of being on the lore team is that we tend to catch a lot of flak, warranted or not, from the player base at large. Some outright hostile, some more passive aggressive. I'm not sure what it's like as a developer, but how do you think you'll react when this inevitably happens? Do you think you'll be able to stay motivated? 4) Lastly, if you get this position, how long do you see yourself being in it?

Hi! Thanks for applying; I have a few questions/comments regarding this application. 1) Many of the questions here have referenced the amount of lore we have, and it's relevance to the setting, alongside potential issues we currently have regarding both those things. I'd like to know your thoughts on lore that is, as I consider it, one step removed from actually effecting players. As an example of what I mean that I'm currently working on, the macro level economic lore for the orion spur really doesn't matter to individual characters directly; yet at the same time, lore such as that is what dictates the lower level lore that could matter to individual characters. In my experience this link is not always evident, and lore such as this makes up a majority of what people consider "irrelevant" lore.(I might have explained this poorly, but I don't want to go on a massive rant at the same time.) So should we cut down on the amount of this lore? Split the wiki into "lore pages" and "reference pages?" or whatever other thoughts you may have. 2) In regards to this, there is a flipside that is also important, especially for management, and that is knowing when to pick your foot up. Disagreements are pretty common, whether it's between the DLM and LM, amongst headstaff, or with another member of staff, they're a fact of working in a team. And just - being honest, there's constantly times where discussing/arguing/debates over these disagreements are simply detrimental, creating more issues than they solve. With that said, the question becomes if you think you'll be able to somewhat regularly just agree to disagree, and still meaningfully contribute to a project. Furthermore, what do you think your biggest obstacles would be in accomplishing this? 3) Lastly, should you get this position, how long do you see yourself being in it?

Hello! Thank you for applying, and apologies I'm only now getting to this. I just have a couple comments/questions about your application. 1) Reading over your app, I'm struggling to get a sense of what your thought process looks like, so I'd like you to explain in depth how you'd go about accomplishing the following goals; I'd like to run a biesel arc about growing economic issues within the republic, but keeping it minor, as a stopgap measure between now and whenever I finish the scarcity rework. This should be done primarily via articles, but have in-game effects if possible. 2) The position of deputy loremaster is, compared to mine atleast, much more involved in writing lore, but still has significant management aspects. With that said, do you think you'll be capable of at times being the "bad person" for lack of a better term. That's all for now! I'll probably have several follow up questions depending on how you answer these. Remember there are no wrong answers, and thank you for applying once again!

Mandate Committee Concludes Investigations Into Dorn Administration Part 3, Article #2 of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc In a press release today, the Mandate Committee has announced that it has ended its investigation into the Dorn Administration, and will not be recommending charges being pressed against officials within it, or against the president himself. The announcement has seen a resurgence in the popularity of the Free Market Party, who while not found innocent in the court of public opinion, has been found innocent by the government. During the release one of the committee members stated; “War is never without tragedy, and the Peacekeeper Mandate had its share. However, we have found no evidence that the Dorn Administration encouraged any behaviour outside the bounds of the law, and only ever acted in the best interests of the Republic and its people.” However, as alluded to earlier, this has not cleared the Free Market Party in the court of public opinion, where they are still struggling in polls. Members of the Dorn-Vaur campaign are optimistic about this ruling, hoping it will improve their position in the polls as the date for the election closes in. Most political experts agree however, that it is too early to tell. This hasn’t ended the Mandate Committee’s investigations entirely, merely cleared the Dorn Administration, and those who are a part of it, from any blame. They will be continuing to investigate the actions of the Tau Ceti Armed Forces, including the Foreign Legion going forward. It is unclear when these investigations will end, but Times sources close to those involved indicate some months after the election is the likely period all investigations will be wrapped up. We will keep our readers updated as the story progresses.

Presidential Debate Highlights: Everything to Know About 2466’s Presidential Debate Part 3, Article #1 of the 2466 Biesel Election Arc MENDELL CITY, BSL — After struggling to secure a venue, the political action committee “Electoral Integrity” finally organized the debate for the upcoming Presidential elections. Hosted by Orion Spur Oracle Network, the event, held last night, might be the only Presidential debate of this season. However, its importance was largely felt across the Republic. With the “Dorn Out” movement gaining traction, candidates have felt the pressure to do the best out of the 150 minute runtime. As for the audience, the Presidential debate is already reported as being the most-watched presidential debate in the history of the young Republic. The night was notable for high tensions between the candidates. However, President Joseph Dorn maintained his composure for the whole run, something notable for many political commentators. The two candidates with the largest campaigns, incumbent President Joseph Dorn and Presiding Speaker Åke Torvald, are largely considered the victors by their respective supporters. Additionally, some commentators agree that Zash Vi’tak’s participation was commendable. The Hadiist Party of Biesel’s candidate, Matvei Karakhan, refrained from participating last night. The candidate had amassed enough support to earn a spot in the debate, but it is speculated that Mr. Karakhan chose to withdraw from the event after being attacked with a bottle during a recent rally. Here are some debate takeaways: NON-HUMAN RIGHTS While the Republic of Biesel has cemented itself as the most multicultural country in the Orion Spur, non-human rights remain a hot topic among many voters. This debate came after the recent Electoral Integrity Enhancement Act, approved in record time, which limited voting rights for Vaurca citizens. The 2466 election is also considered the most diverse Biesellite election by far, with all known species partaking in a Presidential ticket. The Cetian Electoral Commission allowed for ten members of the audience to ask questions to the candidates. Two questions were related to Vaurca citizenship and their participation in this election, and one was regarding the “personhood” status of IPCs. Speaker Åke Torvald—criticized for vaurphobic comments in the past—took the two Vaurca questions and redirected them towards his opponent, President Joseph Dorn. Presiding Speaker Torvald and leader of the Cetian Congress of Conservatives Adalet Uysal, are largely considered the main sponsors behind the Electoral Integrity Enhancement Act. However, Mr. Torvald shifted the focus from him towards Mr. Dorn, blaming the President for the “draconian measure.” “I’ll say this how it is: Joseph Dorn has failed Tau Ceti over and over again, and the people have noticed,” Mr. Torvald declared. “And now that we’re voting him out, he has tried to cheat the system. I support the Electoral Integrity Enhancement Act because it’s a measure to protect our democracy. The Vaurca, multiplying at tremendous rates, are all granted citizenship immediately by Dorn’s Universal Citizenship Program. What Dorn tried to do is ensure all of them, the millions of them, would vote for him forever. High Queen Vaur as his running mate was the most blatant attempt to manipulate our democracy. This draconian measure was not something we wanted, but that became rather necessary after Dorn’s constant cheating.” President Dorn responded to Mr. Torvald by pointing out the dangers of changing the rules of democracy: “It’s plain and simple, folks—if Mr. Torvald doesn’t like the rules of the game, he changes them. He’s spouted vaurphobic comments for years, and now that he’s running for president, he’s noticed he can’t win without that population. So what does Mr. Torvald do? He cheats. He rigs the system. And if he can do it against Vaurcae, he can do it against Skrell or Tajara, too. He’s a threat to democracy.” The exchange was cut down short after the debate moderators muted both Mr. Torvald’s and Mr. Dorn’s microphones. However, this exchange was followed by boos and cheers from the crowd that attended the event. When asked about synthetic personhood, Progress Party of Biesel candidate Montgomery dominated the stage: “Out of all the candidates on stage today, I’m the only one that can reassure this—each synthetic has the keys to achieve their own freedom, but we must ensure a truly free market first. Our current system is rigged by market intervention from the so-called ‘Free-Market Party’. Their reasoning is obtuse, using old feuds to protect a monopoly that enslaves us all. Before we can have these conversations, we must first strive for a truly free economy, which is exactly what I propose.” At the same time, Åke Torvald gave an unsettling answer: “I’ll say this, and I’ll say it only once because I know the media will quote it out of context,” said Torvald. “But what the Republic of Biesel needs the least of at the moment is more manufactured votes. We want all votes to count for, and more importantly, be casted intelligently.” President Dorn immediately responded to Mr. Torvald’s comment, “So you want a dictatorship?” While Torvald’s microphone was muted, the candidate crossed his arms for everyone to see on stage. “The basis of democracy, of any democracy, is that all can vote. It doesn’t matter if you’re wealthy or poor, or if you were the best of your class. It doesn’t even matter if you look different than the others—every vote counts. And we’ll make sure that every vote still counts.” After President Dorn said this, a brief cheer was heard from the audience. The other candidates were less articulate. While all of them—including Montgomery—avoided the real issue in hand, Harbinger of Peaceful Purposes awkwardly responded, “We are not ready to have this conversation yet.” This remark came after Harbinger was attacked weeks ago during a rally in District 14, an event which almost led the Egalitarian Coalition of Biesel to drop from the race. The Diona candidate’s performance was largely panned by political pundits and audience members, with many describing the candidate as “weak” on Chriper. THE SOLARIAN ALLIANCE While Biesel’s importance in the international stage cannot be understated, most questions by moderators and audience revolved around Sol and the Biesel relationship with its former State. After secession, the Republic of Biesel briefly maintained diplomatic relations with the Sol Alliance, even during the tumultuous events of then Admiral Frost’s First Solarian Invasion. However, after the second Solarian Invasion, diplomacy quickly crumbled, and four years after the 35th Fleet attacked Tau Ceti, the question looms as to how Biesel should approach Sol. Mr. Dorn’s firm stance against Sol highlighted his invaluable experience in leading Biesel through two invasions: “I’m the only man that knows how to face this peril, the warmongers of the Alliance. I’ve led the Republic of Biesel through two invasions, and after the first one, I’ve focused on strengthening our military. I believe that under the leadership of the Free-Market Party, a third invasion would never be possible. However, I cannot say the same about the platforms of the other candidates.” Mr. Torvald responded to President Dorn, attacking the Tau Ceti Armed Forces: “Dorn managed the crisis, but in typical Dorn fashion, he created a new one. In fact, Dorn’s the reason as to why there was a crisis in the first place,” the Presiding Speaker declared as the audience oohed and aahed. “The Corporate Reconstruction Zone has shown Dorn try and act tough, but he has let this circus go on for way too long. Why did it take so long for the Republic of Biesel to form a proper army? If we want the Republic to persist and prepare for any future peril, we must start by what’s important—make sure our military is properly funded. Secretary Trasen, and our entire defensive establishment, deserve a level of support the current administration has not given them. This not only includes increases in direct defense spending, but the establishment of a domestic industry base which will support the military, and ensure their supply of all the tools of war. Not only will this strengthen our country's strategic autonomy, but economists have already estimated it will introduce up to two million new jobs into the Republic, as well as bring an influx of cash into the economy, helping to combat the ongoing scarcity.” Candidate Zash Vi’tak had previously been shunned for their comments on the Nralakk Federation’s handling of the Marauder Systems. For this reason, many believed that Vi’tak would refrain from any remarks about foreign policy. However, the candidate surprised everybody with a “unity” speech: “My family migrated to New Gibson when we were still part of the Sol Alliance. I understand Sol, as many of my peers decided to migrate to Europa and Callisto. I, too, understand the fear of a Solarian invasion—a fear that is still perfectly rational. However, the politics of today do not call for bravado. The Orion Spur remains in conflict and many countries are uncertain about their future. The Republic of Biesel must act as a beacon of peace and prosperity, a destiny we have earned through our people. The only way we can maintain our leading position is by leading by example. Our platform strives for unity across the Republic of Biesel, placing value in our workers, and ensuring that there is no future threat that can hinder our progress.” This comment was followed by an applause from the crowd, cut short so as to not distract from the assembly. THE PHORON CRISIS The uncertainty amid the phoron crisis has only increased in the past couple of years. The candidates took a large segment of the debate to talk about economic policy—a topic that was shoehorned-in across many of the questions—but all were careful not to get into detail about their plans to resolve the phoron crisis. Orion Spur Oracle moderators pressed the contenders to articulate how they could solve the problem, but all candidates waltzed around the topic, instead focusing on how they could improve Biesel’s economy through different perspectives. Montgomery was the only candidate to address the elephant in the room, by saying, “We may not know how to solve the phoron crisis, but we know how to solve the crisis that’s been the Dorn’s administration.” This got a chuckle out of Åke Torvald, who immediately said, “If I agree with Montgomery on one thing, it’s that.” A NIGHT OF FEUD As expected, the debate night was full of quips and attacks between the candidates. Most of the remarks were directed towards President Joseph Dorn, not missing a chance to insult him. As Mr. Dorn breezed through the debate questions, his opponents became desperate. Last night, President Dorn was thrown various baseless insults, such as “incompetent” (Torvald, Montgomery), “a disgrace” (Torvald), “the puppet of Zo’ra” (Torvald, again), and “a man lacking the virtues of a leader” (Vi’tak). Mr. Dorn did his best to remain unfazed by all of these comments. After the rounds of dogpiling, Mr. Dorn said in a firm and inspiring voice, “You see, folks. This is what politics comes to when you make a stronger argument than your opponent. They have nothing else to say, so they’ll go to the insults. If your opponents go so low as to attack your character, then you know you have better policies than them.” This was followed by an applause that was not cut short by the moderators. However, the jabs were not only directed at President Dorn. When asked about their economic policy, candidate Harbinger of Peaceful Purposes seemingly stumbled for a moment before completing their response. Mr. Torvald immediately broke into laughter, to which a hostile Harbinger responded, “What’s so funny?” Mr. Torvald said, “You can’t make this up,” while pointing at the Diona candidate. “Maybe Harbinger should have stayed home tonight. Don’t come back, don’t come back… until you all agree who’s in charge.” The clip of Åke Torvald mocking the Diona candidate quickly went viral on social media. The more combative Torvald has received large criticism, as he seemed to miss on debate etiquette. While some of his supporters have tried to spin these spiteful comments as Mr. Torvald “saying what everybody thinks,” his opponents do not feel the same. “Åke Torvald showed that he’ll always be an Understad bully,” as put by a spokesperson from the Dorn-Vaur campaign. President Joseph Dorn seems to remain strong in polls conducted by the Oracle, and the debate is unlikely to change that perspective. However, political pundits believe that Åke Torvald’s “bravado” of last night might have hurt his campaign, with some expecting Torvald to fall almost 7 points due to alienating more non-human voters.

Attention Crew of the SCCV Horizon; While doing a routine check of the Leviathan Prototype Zero-Point Artillery, also known simply as the Leviathan, representatives of the Zavodskoi Interstellar including the principal investigator for the lab developing the device discovered several potentially catastrophic defects in the device. As of now, sabotage is not suspected, though the cause of these defects is unknown. The principal investigator, who will remain anonymous for security reasons, has however put out an official statement that attributed the defects to as of yet unknown issues with the Leviathan Prototype Zero-Point Artillery when used on extended deployments outside of a laboratory setting*, specifically saying this conclusion is “almost certain”. They have further stated they and their team will be working over the data collected during the time the device was installed aboard Horizon to remove the root causes of these defects from the device. Although setbacks were expected in the experimental process, as they always are, the nature of the defects and their potentially catastrophic results for the Horizon has led the SCC to determine the device poses an unacceptable risk to the safety of the crew, and the device must be removed from the Horizon until the root issues are resolved, and any potential defects no longer put the vessel at undue risk**. For security and safety purposes, Hephaestus Industries is currently negotiating with Zavodskoi Interstellar to send a specialized team of engineers to handle this removal, alongside two Zavodskoi Representatives, due to the nature of Hegemonic Law restricting Zavodskoi from sending their own team of engineers, with the SCC mediating negotiations. While negotiations have become somewhat heated, it is expected they will be concluded within a short timeframe***. That is all. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Assistant CCSA Boaqo Xireq-Kupta here, there’s a couple parts that the CCSA wanted me to give further context for, indicated by the * annotation, the number of * indicating a different annotation. *; The Horizon was the first ship that the Leviathan was properly mounted on without constant monitoring by lab equipment, or with a specific experimental goal in mind. It was the first live trial run, in simpler terms. **; Currently, there is no timeline for when the Leviathan will be able to meet this standard. However as a general estimate, it is expected that this could take many years. ***; Before the release of this announcement, negotiations between the two corporations were concluded with the final deal being a specialized Hephaestus Team under direct Zavodskoi contract and oversight, with additional oversight provided by the SCC, to ensure all went smoothly during the removal process. Thankfully no incidents were reported, and the Leviathan has been safely uninstalled from the SCCV Horizon.

Okay, there's a ton of stuff here. I'll do a detailed reply later, but there's just a couple things I wanted to hit right off the bat. On the whole, I am not really opposed to the theoretical idea of an independent setting, I just think there's parts of the greater picture that are understandably missing. 1. Long-term consistency. To be completely fair, this is something we currently struggle with, a ton. Look at what I'm currently doing as a lore project. That said, generally speaking there's been consistency in the entities from which our characters have employment. Things have changed here and there, but Hephaestus has always been the industrial corp, and Idris the service/banking/mafia one, there hasn't been any major shifts. With having the entity of the garden just be a group of rich people wanting to get more rich, while yes, it opens up a lot of opportunities, it also gives it zero identity, and it would result in a Joesph Dorn type situation where it's written wildly differently by different writers because there's no baseline identity to work from. Yes, while this can happen with the SCC as well, there's much less of a risk because it has a baseline, one that can't really be changed without changing the setting. 2. The Over-Arching Setting. What I mean by this is not lore in it's totality, but the overarching setting that characters work under, the SCC through command, HRAs, SCCIAAs, etc. All this and more also needs to be considered, tweaked, and then implemented. Procedures need to be written, etc. etc. At the end of all that, what I see an independent setting becoming is a mono-dominant employer(no matter what we try to call it, this is what it would end up being) throughout all departments(in this case, those working directly with the ship) with a few different contractors scattered throughout specific departments; essentially the old station setting but swapping NT for a non-megacorp, independent entity. Which, don't get me wrong, has some upsides, it's just whether those upsides are worth putting us on the road to, as I see it, a return to the old setting of the station with a new coat of paint. That's all I have for now, and this was a good thought provoking question, and is probably going to be on my mind for the rest of the day. I don't want this coming across as me trying to shoot down your idea, just throwing my two cents in as loremaster, and someone who sees alot more of the behind the scenes management then others. You certainly bring up some good points(like the suspension of disbelief towards certain things no longer being needed with an independent setting) and how corporations kinda aren't present anyway. Definitely something for me to think about.

I just wanted to tack on here. From my understanding, what we were envisioning was a less organized/centralized structure for enforcement like that. Moghes isn't Konyang with a national police force or similar, so unless it was something really big my understanding was there was an expectation for that to be handled on the ground so to speak, rather than something similar to Konyang with the whole process for reporting arrests and what not. I think that while in theory this would have led to a much more authentic hegemony law experience, with each watchmen player kind of choosing how to enforce it themselves in that round; as with alot of things, people, including volunteers and myself, trended towards the passive side, especially when it came to interacting with player characters. There's probably a billion reasons for this, but none of those really matter right now, what matters is that it happens. Practically, an arrest system similar to the one we had for Konyang would have been better, where watchmen only arrested people and then let CCIA handle actually making a call on "hey should this guys hand be cut off" after the fact. For events, the other thing we could do is make much clearer outlines for volunteers as to how, for lack of a better term, aggressively, they should be in enforcement. That has it's own issues as well, but if we ever visit a place similar to Moghes in the future, it'll be something I'd want to discuss with the team running the arc. Lastly, a short point; the lack of a Point Verdant like area I think also generally lessened the prevalence of stuff happening and people getting caught/held responsible, which is also fine. All in all, I think you were correct in that this is a nitpick, but I also think it's an important one nonetheless. It's the little stuff like this that sells the authenticity of the lore in game for me, not just relating to chopping peoples hands off but, merely showcasing how different of an outlook people in certain settings have(see me calling the Captain a lord, the rest of command minor nobles, and the crew peasants as Hutay'zai); all those tiny details are, at the end of the day, often times the primary presentation of lore to a majority of the playerbase, who(understandably) might not want to read all the wiki pages, and just stick to the ones relevant to their character.

Deputy Loremaster Applications are open once again! Beyond the standard format, please answer the following questions as part of your application; 1) What do you believe you can bring to the team as Deputy Loremaster. 2) Do you have any experience managing a Team? The duties of a Deputy Loremaster often revolve around being a Project Lead, not necessarily just writing. 3) Your thoughts on me as a loremaster, and how best you think you can assist me. 4) What do you believe are your biggest drawbacks, both as a writer and as an applicant for this position? 5) In a brief summary, explain the direction you'd wish to see the Lore Team take in regards to AuroraLore. 6) Where do you think lore is lacking currently? 7) Lastly, what timezone are you normally awake during? Remember there's no wrong answers, and I look forward to seeing the applications!

There's just a few things I want to address in this paragraph. 1. The rules regarding high intensity events were written by me, and have no relevance to anything non-canon. It's the same as if you said it's hypocritical to have those rules in place, and have merc rounds be big, intense, and bloody affairs. 2. You yourself point out that this is an already present issue, with regular antags. So I fail to see how it's a blow with odyssey, which wouldn't change it from the status quo we currently have? It is possible to say that you'd like to see odyssey mitigate this, as you admitted, already present issue with antagonists, but even taking this paragraph in the context of your whole post, if that was your intent it's presented in an incredibly unclear manner. 3. I'm not sure where the "every round thing" came from. Extended will still be a voteable option, and there are several odyssey's that the lore team are looking to see included which would be pretty chill. Furthermore, like point 2, I don't see how this is different from the status quo with secret. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In general I also just wanted to note that a lot of people are pointing out issues that, while they may be legitimate, are also issues we have with currently have with secret and the status quo, without acknowledging that fact. I don't think feedback of that type is at all helpful, as it's just discouraging changing things because as Matt said; Given that I'm currently doing my own rework to fix existential issues in lore relating to the phoron scarcity, I can say first hand that when faced with existential problems like this and coming with solutions for them, feedback becomes useless when it's pointing out a problem(s) in the rework that are also current issue(s) with the status-quo, and not acknowledging the fact; It morphs the feedback into essentially being against a rework, and something that's currently a problem shouldn't be used as justification against doing rework. To take what @La Villa Strangiato as an example, "election in Space America is something you might talk to your coworkers about, at your workplace. But when you're raiding the local Yeyland-Wutani facility, things like "hey did you hear President Schmuck did such-and-such" seem kind of pointless to write." This also applies to the current status-quo; it's hard to talk to your coworkers about an election when jimmy mcgee and his merc team who haven't read lore show up and start a gun battle with the entire ship, or there's a dude sucking blood and teleporting through the walls. Now, with that said, acknowledging that it's an issue both in the status quo and in the rework makes things different. Instead of being against a rework, it becomes saying that this issue should try and be resolved in the rework. Using what LVS said again as an example; "Currently it is difficult to have article arcs that are grounded and meaningful to the ship, when a majority of non-canon rounds are heavily divorced from our grounded lore setting, and this issue might carry over. I think Odyssey's have the potential to remedy, or atleast mitigate, this issue by having canon odyssey's which are less intense but still meaningful be common, such as the Horizon being tasked with x, y, or z, and generally more grounded missions overall, even the non-canon ones. Missions also shouldn't be to intense, with both violence and things to do, as we need to give players and their characters a nothing time, where they can simply chill out and talk, as we currently have with the sort of "prep period" antags have for the first hour of a round where nothing is really going on, which Odyssey's may remove. [insert something about regularity of intense missions here, comparing to the current system, better or worse]" You could also say it's ignorable currently and wouldn't be on odyssey's, and how to address that, there's 100 ways to do it. I don't mean to put words in her mouth(sorry LVS), so don't think this is what she was trying to say, but merely to illustrate how acknowledging an issue is not one a rework is adding, merely one that is being carried over, and could be fixed even by changing parts of the rework; that's much more helpful feedback, even if there's disagreement, than "this thing is bad" with zero further clarification besides a line at the end going "Odyssey's have a lot of potential." I could do this for near every piece of feedback in this thread, but I shouldn't have to. You don't even need to give potential solutions, just point out it's a current problem and if odyssey's will make it better, worse, or neutral. This kind of blossomed out from the short post I intended it to be, but I just wanted to make it clear, given my own experience, how to give helpful feedback for big projects like this. Tldr; if something that would be an issue if/when Odyssey's are fully implemented, but is also currently an issue with secret and the status quo, acknowledge that fact at the very least.

I'm unsure if this should be a policy suggestion or not, I just wanted to give my two cents as loremaster. At the end of the day, this is a game, and the lore is for the purposes of supporting the game, not the other way around. How exactly this is done is a subjective topic that there are wildly different opinions on, but I don't want to get into that here, the previous statement is just a fact. So, if the maintainers decide machinist should stay as is for gameplay reasons, we can rework zeng-hu so that it shouldn't be playable as machinist anymore. It'd be a fundemental rework, but it could be done. My two cents personally? I'd rather not do that, it's a ton of work, and I think the issue is just with what machinist does as a job. They repair IPCs similarly to how doctors repair organics, but then also construct mechs similarly to how science constructs things, but also fabricate stuff non-experimental stuff like prothesis as operations would. It's a job that's never going to be home in any department. Instead I'd just limit the scope of what machinists do to one of those things, and transfer the others to the relevant department. I.E, move machinist back to science, but give operations the responsibility of printing prothesis/spare robot parts, and medical the responsibility of repairing IPCs.

We have several times used body-cams in canon lore articles, when we want to either present an ""unbiased""(we would never write bias in, or have videos be edited) view on events. I think they could expand roleplay opportunities if added as an item in game, especially given the new standards around mentioning player characters in articles and similar. I'm not really in tune with the balance/development side of the game right now as I have little opportunity to play, so I'll that discussion for those who are; however I think a good compromise could just be to have a bodycam not be transmitting anything and just recording everything within itself - that way the RP value is still there, but there's no risk of antags being unable to do anything because every officer is a walking camera.

Matt said everything I would say, and I see no reason to repeat the same points. Voting for dismissal.

I will preface this by saying I do not play IPCs, and this comes from an external perspective. I think the fundamental issue when it comes to IPCs and their medical system is that, unlike every other race, there is no easy way of going "oh I damaged the IPC." What I mean is like, if I shoot any other species, something will happen that tells me, the player interacting with them, "Oh, I damaged them." This is things like bleeding, slower movement, chat messages about gasping and them being in pain, etc. IPCs have none of this, all that changes is maybe some sprite stuff(Unless something like a leg is just fully broken, in which case there is some specific stuff). This makes IPCs feel incredibly bullet spongey from an outside perspective, and IMO, unfun to interact with in a medical sense. I think the easiest fix for this is a components/organ style system, in addition to things like chat messages. Having components/organs which can break, and when they break give specific chat messages like "X's servo's grind together" goes a long way to fix this. However, given that IPCs do not feel pain, and this is not something I want to change, I think these components/organs need to be able to "break" far easier than their organic counterparts.

You were a strong contender for synthetic writer, and I think you will do well as a deputy writer; you have my full support. That said I want to chuck a few questions at you; 1) As a Lore Writer, even a deputy, you'll be expected to contribute to team projects as well, so writing for corporations, biesel, etc. Do you feel comfortable doing this? 2) Bit of a loaded question but, how do you perceive the Lore Team? 3) Lore writers nowadays are expected to contribute on greater team projects, so chances are you will get to contribute on things for megacorps, projects for Biesel, and things that are outside the purview of any one species' lore. Taking this position means contributing on these is a given, but is there anything outside of synthetic lore that interests you? 4) Lastly, what are your thoughts on IPCs in terms of mechanics? Would you like to see any specific mechanics added to IPCs?

== For General Horizon Crew Dissemination == The Conglomerate is happy to welcome the Horizon back into Tau Ceti space. As some of you may have already heard, there will be a small celebratory party onboard the Horizon once it safely reaches Tau Ceti’s gravity well; hosted by NanoTrasen. It is our hope that we can both sufficiently congratulate the Horizon crew for their work on Konyang, and also share the good work conglomerate employees did with the wider spur. Therefore, we expect all employees to be on their best behavior, as you will all be representing the conglomerate. Furthermore, the Horizon will be receiving a VIP during this party, who will be accompanied by a heavily armed protection squad, whose only goal is the safety of the VIP. While the VIP is excited to meet all crew of the Horizon, their safety and job aboard the Horizon assisting with boosting the public perception of the event are considered our top priorities, and we expect all employees to act professionally. That is all, and we look forward to seeing you back in Tau Ceti! == Command Eyes Only == OOC Note: Yes, this is not in the command WL section of the forums. However, this information is still something only command characters would have access to. Obv, if you’re interested and don’t play command, you can still read the following. Greetings Horizon Command team. I apologize if this section seems informal, but I want to be as clear as possible about this whole situation, and stiff language leaves too much room for interpretation. Put simply, the brass want some good PR out of this event. No stories about crewmembers getting outrageously drunk, no workplace incidents, etc. We need to present the Horizon as a professional, well disciplined crew who are capable of lending a hand in times of need on behalf of the SCC, similar to what you all did in Konyang. Your actions gave us an avalanche of goodwill not only among the population, but among the government - however that won’t happen again if the wider spurs thinks the crew of the SCC's flagship can’t even look after themselves. Furthermore, in regards to the VIP, you’ll all need to make sure the crew stay on their absolute best behavior around her. She’s going to be guarded by a Heavy Asset Protection Team, and those guys/gals are serious about her safety. Glossing over the fear that they might end up shooting an employee, they aren’t perfect and there’s a chance the VIP can get hurt. With that said, and being 100% honest, if a hair on the VIPs head gets hurt, or there’s any incident involving her, we’re all, myself included, going to need to have a damn good reason why it happened, or we’ll be out of a job before the end of the day. That might be a bit of a hyperbole, but it gives you a good idea just how important this VIP is to the brass. It’s a lot of weight on your shoulders, but this is your responsibility as command. I expect you to live up to these expectations. - Madyson Boyer NTCC Odin, CCSA.

Konyang Bluespace Gate to be Repaired; Linked to Tau Ceti It has been almost a month since the rampancy crisis on Konyang ended, and the planet's people have been slowly rebuilding. The road back to prosperity will be long, but the government and Stellar Corporate Conglomerate jointly announced that a project which may help to expedite the process has almost neared completion. Ongoing for the past month, SCC technicians have been working around the clock to repair Konyang’s bluespace gate, which was damaged when the Solarian Alliance abandoned the system to rogue fleets. Most of the structural damage was repaired shortly after the system joined the greater Coalition, but the local government did not have the expertise nor credits to repair* the damaged bluespace lane between the Konyang and Tau Ceti gates, and it has sat inactive ever since. The interference of Einstein Engines, a notably pro-solarian company, also hampered efforts through suspected sabotage, though no formal charges could ever be pressed. No longer. Following the SCC’s assistance in resolving the Rampancy Crisis, the Conglomerate graciously offered its assistance in repairing the bluespace gate for a reasonable fee from the government; and secured lucrative contracts for Zavodskoi Interstellar to aid in reconstruction efforts. Einstein Engines of course protested the agreement, calling the Conglomerates prices extortionate, but little attention was paid to them as the prosperity the gate could bring if the lane to Tau Ceti is repaired were immense, and were folded into ongoing reconstruction efforts by the Konyanger government. The lane would create a direct connection to the most profitable system in the spur, and allow for increased trade between the coalition and the republic, with the Xanu-Tau Ceti lane still being shuttered for undisclosed reasons. Political figures in Tau Ceti have also praised the move, with President Joseph Dorn saying; “With this lane, we further increase our ties with our friends and allies in the Coalition of Colonies.” It is further rumored that the SCCV Horizon, a ship instrumental in assisting Konyang in resolving the crisis, will be the first to travel through the gate, back to the Tau Ceti system, before having a celebratory event onboard. We wish the best for the people of Konyang in their rebuilding efforts. * Note, repair is a reductive word, and oversimplifies the gigantic complexities of bluespace lanes, and their maintenance.

After much deliberation, you have been selected as the new synthetic lore writer, congratulations!