Hawk

1) What is the best strength a (deputy) lore writer can have? Passion for the species. That's entirely what I'm running on here if we're being honest. I think if someone really cares about the species. To me, that's the most important part of the application and a biggest strength a lore writer can have. It translates into persistence, to coming back from work and wholeheartedly enjoying writing for Unathi. And I want to inspire the same passion to other members of the community. I want to write lore that causes someone to log onto Aurora and say "That one. I want to play the lizards." Just like I did back in the day. 2) What the worst flaw a (deputy) lore writer can have? Failure to communicate. You're a (deputy) lore writer. You're part of a team of three for a species, part of a wider team making Aurora enjoyable for everyone. If you need to step back. You should inform someone. If you need help. You should say. If you think something needs changing. Why not speak up? 3) I was gonna give this a snappy shortened title and decided to be meta instead. Recurrence of themes. I think if I was going to highlight the Unathi alien mindset solely in lore pages. I would repeat- and have certain sections on central tenants of Unathi lore. How does being a Grey Healer affect your honour? Is Hept's maneuvering on the planet having effect on how Sinta are self-identifying with gender? By elaborating on these points consistently and in detail. It'll become a bigger thing whenever an Unathi breaks the mould. The player expression will be more meaningful. A character saying "I take the human view on gender." Will be 5 times more significant.

Well. I'd like to say that it's one helluva compliment to hear that my application is good. So plenty of thanks for that. Kind of makes me feel like river dancing. 1. While it may just be my own self-efficacy talking I wouldn't immediately describe myself as anything beyond an amateur who really enjoys the process. But I'd be willing to knuckle down and really work on it as a skill, particularly with my idea of adding a lot more Unathi booze. Mainly I've worked on custom items. Catsin once approached me to help create an investigator specific notebook item. But I believe while we were working on that, the item just became available to everyone in the loadout anyways. Some Examples: 2. The first thing. Is that I would want it to be a relatively grey conflict. Neither side should be obviously in the right or wrong and I would like for there to be an argument made for both sides. That way players can freely create characters on either side of the conflict. And we don't end up with ninety rebels, and one Unathi Hept Liason. The way I imagine it is that Moghes, while starting to recover was still a heavily ravaged planet. Hept investing so much time and finances into it is going to result in benefits for the population, particularly the peasantry but those benefits are going to be heavily localized to population centers. There's going to be a drain placed on towns and villages as a result. This isn't even getting into the power Hept now wields politically with the guilds. And it's opportunity for propaganda, as it teaches the next generation of Unathi through apprenticeships. I want it to be emphasized that Hept is ultimately a megacorporation at the end of the day. And they're not helping the planet solely out of charity. On the other hand. Those rebelling can have a number of reasons why. From simple xenophobia against a human corporation. To more logical ideas, such as the fear that this will reduce Unathi to a worker race for a single corporation, which will further affect their political standing with other nations. That Unathi cultural values will be replaced by those of the corporation. Furthermore I'd be open to Hept's unsavoury past of over-industrialization, their expectation of workers to "Backstab" up their ranks, and the low amount of Unathi at the upper echelons of Hept decision making causing fear that there may be a "Glass Ceiling". But I also want the rebels to be prone to the occasional poor decision making, infighting, and preexisting divisions. To finish off, the last thing I'd want for this idea, is for both sides, Hept, and Rebellion, to have Unathi from all social strata working for them. I want nobles, and peasants, "fighting" other nobles and peasants. I think it'd be really interesting to see a conflict, not based on traditional Unathi norms, such as Hegemony vs Traditionalist. And expand on how Unathi are adapting to the galactic stage. For better or for worse. 3. Vaurca I'm not gonna pretend I'm some kind of expert on Vaurca lore, but it seems the K'lax hive is very well attuned to the Hegemony, even the more rabblerousing elements such as Vetju. I think it could be a very interesting development if, in seeking to analyze and expand upon their unique augments. Vedhra sought out at Aut'akh. Something like this already exists in lore where it's noted that exiled C'thur roboticists work with Eridani Aut'akh. But I think a K'lax Queen engaging with Unathi counterculture (I'm open to the idea that Vedhra does this through deniable assets, or simply does it boldfacedly) could cause some very interesting questions to be raised about their place within the Hegemony. Whenever it comes to preexisting Vaurca concerns, such as preparation against the Lii'dra.

Ckey/BYOND Username: Hawkington (KodiakOpossum on Discord) Position Being Applied For (Wiki Maintainer, Lore Developer, Deputy Lore developer): Deputy Unathi Loredev Have you read the Lore Team Rules and Regulations wiki page?: Ayup Past Experiences/Knowledge: I study English at a Russell group university, and I've wrote a number of journal articles already for both student newspapers and in-house political party reviews. Examples of Past Work: CatisnHD and Gecko can both account for my constant harassing of them. I also helped Dekser a lot whenever they were writing the Unathi Afflictions and Disabilities section of the wiki page. Include answers to the following questions in your app as well: 1. What other skills do you have that can assist the team? (I.e. Coding, Spriting, Mapping, etc.) I've sprited a few custom items back in my day. 2. What is one section of Unathi lore that you want to expand, and what would you do to expand it? Unathi-Hept Relations Hephaestus, essentially bought the whole planet of Moghes. But it's funny how little you hear about this in the everyday type of round but I think it's because players are drawn to conflict, people play Aut'akh because it sets them apart from the more traditionally minded types of Sinta, the same goes for Dominian Unathi. I'd also argue it's why certain types of humans such as Martians or Dominian nobility are played so much. I really enjoyed this arc. It painted Hept in a bit of a darker light than what you usually see beyond mentions of the Burzian method. And I think players would be really drawn to it if we started some form of further arc, or at least gave a wiki page or two on Unathi rebellion to this. Maybe with a few events to get players really invested. So much of the Unathi lore, from the Contact War, to Ourera has been essentially, conflict towards the Hegemony from other forces. The way I would want to write this is that instead, this is more of an "every-sinta" vs a corporation type angle. It would allow players to play whatever type of Sinta they wanted, from an impoverished traditionalist who hates this "Human" corporation treading upon their guild system. Or a noble, working from inside, leaking crucial bits of information. I would hope, this would draw people back to Moghes as a planet, because it's changed so much from when I've started, with so many new accents and pieces of clothing that I'd really be excited to see people using. 3. What is one section of Unathi lore that you want to remove or rework, and how would you go about it? Out of all these questions, this is the one I struggled with the most, cause I do love these little freakshow lizards. The main thing that sort of always bothered me is that their religions are strangely homogeneous. Like every Si'kahist, who are usually poor, superstitious and undereducated. Follow the exact same strand of Si'kahism? On a planet with a lot of isolated communities that at times can be extremely disconnected and hostile to one another? That just seems a little unrealistic to me and could be improved to allow for a wider range of player expression. I'd be interested in creating "Schools of Thought" for a handful of the religions shaped by their histories and environments, Aut'akh, for example, already have examples such as the Razortails which eschew the pacifistic tendencies of the religion. And I'd also be interested in creating some form of heresies that could be used for some positively spooky odyssey rounds. 4. What do you think is missing from Unathi lore? Lizard booze. I know the whole system may or may not be going a total overhaul right now. So this may be the best time to suggest this. Whenever Sarezhi was removed from the booze-o-mat. I realized how absolutely limited Sinta drinks choices are. There's essentially only one "Spirit" (Sarezhi) while even Dominia has a couple, such as Geneboosted Wine and Tarasun and Tajara honestly just have their whole own bar. As a result, a lot of the Unathi players I see end up just drinking human booze, and creating IC explanations such as Aut'akh liver processing augments. I'm not against this idea, but I think it'd be worthwhile creating a few new bottles, and a few new cocktails to give these players more of a choice, expressing themselves through their choice in butanol. Two ideas I had is either creating Unathi unique spirits, maybe some form of fermented sap. Maybe it's traditional to have certain parts of animals literally trapped within the bottles, what do pirates drink? What do Aut'akh drink? Furthermore these new cocktails could be mixed with alcohol like the xuizi pulque and could be used to expand the lore of how Unathi live abroad. 5. What aspect of Unathi lore interests you the most? What would you like to work on the most? Essentially, character hooks and gimmicks themselves. I remember when I first started. Unathi were so interesting to me that my IPCs and Humans basically just followed them around and talked to them the whole round. I want to create that experience for new players. But as a result. I think Unathi players should offer a unique form of interaction and RP. They shouldn't just be humans with scales and a funny hiss. A line that sticks out to me is how Unathi "Smiling" doesn't look right. And how loaded with connotations this is. It can be used for a funny one off joke. It can be used for the character attempting to look approachable. Or the opposite, downright threatening. It can show a wish to be more socialized by humanity. But there's always a gap, it doesn't look quite right. I think little details like this are what make the species such a standout. 6. Propose a new group or faction of Unathi. Write 2-3 paragraphs about them. Kra'Sarkaz - Grey Healers While nearly every village has a healer. Most of them lack access to the most modern forms of equipment and knowledge. Which is reserved for the nobility with selective and restrictive recruiting processes. Not every Sinta has the opportunity to become a prestigious healer from the Skalamar University of Medicine. Despite the fact that the need for healers, particularly after the Contact War and 2465 recession is near enough omnipresent. Those who are unable to afford a more exclusive physician may find themselves seeking out the rumours of the Grey Healers. An illusive band of medical dropouts, doctors sickened by their inability to help those worst off, apprentices, faith healers, anti-Hephaestus surgeons and otherwise medically inclined rabble. Humans find themselves drawing parallels to their own plague doctors. As these healers covered themselves in thick strips of cloth to ward off the diseases they combat. And utilize hoods and masks to maintain anonymity in areas where the official medical guild would rather have them removed. The Grey Healers have been a fixture of Unathi Medicine almost since the original founding of the House of Medicine back in the 1600s, where the firebrand physician “Rebik Ziikaz” famously stormed out of the guild hall over disagreements in patient treatment and the guild’s attitude towards those less fortunate. As a result, in every city there is supposedly a “Grey Lodge” in derelict areas, equal parts hospital, rehabilitation center and shadowy secret society. Additional Comments: [Insert Witty Additional Comment]

Likewise, I've known Catsin for a pretty long while now. They're nothing but absolutely passionate for the Tajara lore and the species as a whole. I've been consulted by them practically every time they've made a new Tajara character and they're always well researched. Thought out. Bringing interesting RP opportunities. And most of them flesh out a rarely touched piece of lore. Maryah and the FTC comes to mind. This isn't even bringing up the fact that whenever they create a character they straight up create a Google document with everything from early life to war wounds planned out. +1 all the way!

Tones is the goat, OOCly and ICly, I can't say this enough- that out of all the people that I regularly talk to in my DM's? Tones is the one I most wanna see with a Command WL. They really put 101% percent effort into every character they make, and they're willing to do valuable support work so other players can shine, which IMO is the best trait for any Command member to have. I know they'd make me wanna play Ops as a Manager. I never would. But with Tones as OM, I'd want to. +1

It's Goddamn NM- I can't think of a single person who doesn't think Ren Hartfort is the pinnacle of RP. I know I sure as hell do, let the man play his bobits. Plus he also +1 'ed mine, so uh, take it?

BYOND key: Hawkington Discord Username: Opossum (kodiakopossum) Character names: Lope Cardenas Aheke Han'san Connor Albrecht Ayano Nishioka How long have you been playing on Aurora? 3/4 Years-ish, I joined around King of the World Have you received any administrative actions? And how serious were they? 2 Warnings- both have been expired for three years now. Both only lasted for three months which I've been told means they weren't the most serious. Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph each. What do you think the OOC purpose of a Head of Staff is, ingame? I remember years ago whenever I first started playing- I used to play pAI a lot and I remember having an LOOC conversation with a Skrell HOP, whose name I cannot remember for the life of me, and they said "Other players are the main characters, Command are the supporting ones" I personally believe a Command member should help drive RP for the round, but not be the sole focus of it. They shape round dynamics- for example a HOS sets the tone with an antagonist which in turn effects how both the antagonists and the security staff play. I also believe that Command players should be ready and willing to teach newer players mechanics. So many great command staff such as Ioraks, and Han'san have taught me how to play certain roles really effectively, while making the learning a fun and engaging experience both ICly and OOCly- most tellingly, I didn't feel like an idiot whenever we came across something that I didn't know how to do. And I have enjoyed subsequent rounds all the more because of this knowledge. This particular line on the CMO's wiki page stands out to me. "Like any other command member, your job is to delegate all of the work to everyone else, and be liaison between command and the medical department." which to me, basically sums up the job. What do you think the OOC responsibilities of Whitelisted players are to other players, and how would you strive to uphold them? I think perhaps the biggest one is to generate interest in the whitelists themselves. Characters such as Raks Appartu really inspired me as a newer player to put the work in, learn more of the lore. Because they made all of it seem so interesting. Which I think is invaluable to newer players every character with some form of whitelist, is in fact, a walking advertisement for that lore if they're doing their jobs right. I wanted to learn about Unathi Religion- I wanted to speak Siik'maas to understand what those characters were saying. And for older players. I know for a fact some of my favorite interactions are just having two characters chatting about their cultures across a hallway- it's something that really no other server allows you to do and why I've spent the guts of four years here. Secondly, to make people want to play rounds. I remember whenever I saw Ioraks as CE I would immediately play some form of Engineer, I don't even enjoy the department that much but as soon as that name was on the manifest you couldn't stop me from joining, damn the next two hours of my life. And I know it's particularly common for players to sit, to look at the manifest, see nothing of interest and not bother with the round. My hope is that one person sees me playing some form of command member, and that makes them join in. Explain how the recent events in the Spur changed your character and how they came to be employed on the SCCV Horizon. Ozhika Dorviza was certainly unique for her wasteland clan- that is. She was absolutely hopeless with plants. This ended up with her becoming embroiled in the village's guard against Punished raids. After a period of time, and an incident she refuses to speak about she signs up with Dagamuir Freewater Private Forces. Only too well understanding some of the harsh realities of warfare and becoming increasingly willing to engage in pragmatic techniques towards victory, she moved up the ranks quickly, performing admirably in quick-close knit tactical encounters and small-team operations. With increasing unrest at home with the Si'kah and Aut'akh mob- and the increasingly dangerous missions the SCCV Horizon is being given, it only seems natural such a commander would be recommended to the Chainlink with a glowing review...and a chip on their shoulder. Konyang is something that interests her- not the IPC rebellion- but the response to it, how would the Trinary and such respond? Sometimes the organic response to synthetics can be the more dangerous one- and that is what she is wary of. Lastly, being raised from a relatively impoverished Th'akh background has made her wary of the church's militarization- blind zeal and effective weaponry being a particularly dangerous combination. She is however, glad that there were not open hostilities between the two. Moghes has seen enough war as it is. What roles do you plan on playing after the application is accepted? CMO Consular/Liason HOS Have you familiarized yourself with the wiki pages for the command roles? Yeah Characters you intend to use for command or have created for command. Include the job they will be taking: Ozhika Dorviza - HOS Maharaz Mavhstok - CMO Do you understand your whitelist is not permanent, and may be stripped following continuous administrative action? Of course Have you linked your BYOND account to the Forums? Pretty sure it is. Extra notes: Y'all finally wore me down into doing this.

Squall Voidsuit Helmet: A voidsuit helmet seemingly made out of plasteel. A respirator lines the bottom which gives somewhat less airflow that one would expect. It has an enhanced communications receiver on one side and a gyroscope system on the other; loose wires trailing out of both systems. The four yellow eyes give it a uniquely aggressive look similar to that of the hakhma beetle. "Property of Engineering Department" is handwritten on the side in small orange text. Next to a small logo of Hephaestus Squall Voidsuit: A voidsuit that has been bedecked in the Yeongseon colours, namely navy. The entire thing is custom built out of spraypainted plating and a much softer synthleather underlayer; networks of tiny tubes carrying coolant liquids are laminated between the fabric layers. These active cooling systems help regulate the temperature inside the suit. There is particular padding around the joints and spine. Notably a series of dark-brown cables pulled taut around the legs brace them somewhat. While metal reinforcements that resemble a ribcage surround the chestpiece and form into a "Spine" on the back. A Hephaestus brand wristbound has been integrated into the forearm of the suit, it's capable of controlling the levels of cooling and the rigidity of the spinal support system. It looks comfortable for a voidsuit. (Mostly just removed any reference to it being made out of scrap etc.)

Mainly when needed, it's designed to be worn for longer, but honestly it's mainly for my gimmick of I try to give my engineers a bit more of a specialisation than "Can do everything" by giving them an area they prefer when there's a time when you can pick between tasks. Ashkii's whole thing is EVA Repair, so I seemed like a good idea and hopefully get some RP going just through visual interest if nothing else. Would you guys want the new description posted in here or does it even need one?

Alright, thanks for the heads up. If I were to change the lore to something like a smaller corporation or even a Branch of Zeng-Hu or Hept making specialised voidsuits for offworlder employees that allow longer working hours, etc would that be more acceptable?

Seless was a very engaging character that taught my dumb ass to use the Tesla, which I had been avoiding figuring out for about 3 years OOCly, they did the entire thing in very easy to understand steps including some more "Out There" tips and tricks for efficiency that I now do roundstart, and most surprisingly I didn't feel like a moron, like +1 absolutely.

BYOND Key: Hawkington Discord Username: Opossum #8999 Character Name: Ashkii Yeongseon Item Name: (if you are applying for multiple items, it should be made into a list with the description, name and appearance together): Squall Voidsuit Modkit: Item Function(s): A modkit that can turn engineering voidsuits into the squall voidsuit. And vice-versa. Item Description: A spraypainted box in Su-Yeongseon colours with a number of wires, circuit boards, metal plating and a whole cracked-open wristbound computer barely fitting inside. Written along the front in yellow is "Replace Anything you Take." Refurbished SLS Cloak: Item Function(s): A Cloak with the same functions as the poncho (The ability to go over armour, etc) But, also similarly to the surgical masks, the ability to put the hood up as an alternate sprite that can be toggled. As opposed to the way that hoodies/winter coats usually work wherein the hood takes up the headspace slot. Item Description: A black cloak with a notable grey and orange plastic trim. The bulk of it is made out of a number of nanoceramic fibres giving it a distinctly synthetic sheen particularly in bright light. Some tiny and worn white writing on the side and the hood mark it as the property of "Spur Logistical Solutions" a small cargo company that went bankrupt years ago. (Descriptions for the Voidsuit) Squall Voidsuit Helmet: A voidsuit helmet seemingly made out of various other scavenged and now discontinued elements. A respirator lines the bottom which gives somewhat less airflow that one would expect. It has an enhanced communications receiver on one side and a gyroscope system on the other; loose wires trailing out of both systems. The four yellow eyes give it a uniquely aggressive look similar to that of the hakhma beetle. "Property of Engineering Department" is handwritten on the side in small orange text. Squall Voidsuit: A voidsuit that has been bedecked in the Yeongseon colours, namely navy. The entire thing is custom built out of spraypainted plating and a much softer synthleather underlayer; networks of tiny tubes carrying coolant liquids are laminated between the fabric layers. These active cooling systems help regulate the temperature inside the suit. There is particular padding around the joints and spine. Notably a series of dark-brown cables pulled taut around the legs brace them somewhat. While metal reinforcements that resemble a ribcage surround the chestpiece and form into a "Spine" on the back. A wristbound has been integrated into the forearm of the suit, it's capable of controlling the levels of cooling and the rigidity of the spinal support system. It looks comfortable for a voidsuit. Images: Why is your character bringing this item to work?: Modkit/Squall Voidsuit: Ashkii finds the ship's gravity is still a little too strong for his tastes, he often seeks out padded surfaces and near always turns the gravity off in the holodeck, just to take the weight off his shoulders and occasionally complains of finding the standard issue voidsuits too warm and uncomfortable which compound the aforementioned issues. Ashkii being an engineer with an immense sense of pride would of course, think he could create a better voidsuit than a standard issue NT/SCC model with plenty of padding inside. SLS Cloak: Despite his pride in his engineering capabilities, I doubt Ashkii has full faith in the voidsuit, especially for the first few shifts, and the materials of the cloak are specifically designed to be waterproof, nonconductive and highly resistant. Considering he's fallen into an antimatter engine, been blasted with the scrubbers hundreds of times and has come across many many stains and glowing sludges of unknown origins around maint, it makes sense to me that he'd bring an extra layer of protection. Furthermore, he doesn't really trust the crew yet, and commonly feels a sense of distance and a lack of community that he felt towards the people on the Su-Yeongseon, so it helps him "Cover Himself Up" as he feels like an outlier with the lack of other offworlders on the crew. How did your character obtain this item?: Modkit/Squall Voidsuit: Over the past month Ashkii has been building this voidsuit out of literally any parts he could get his hands on. I personally imagine it to be a mixture of components he bought himself, either through cargo and flea markets on any inhabited planets such as Crevus and mothballed plates of old hardsuits that have fallen out of usage (The older Advanced Hardsuit in particular) alongside spare parts he brought himself from the Su-Yeongseon, the cooling system is very similar to the venter assembly in the offworlder's loadout options. Occasionally in the relay and in conversation on ship I'd have him mention the project, ask for some help with it or just complain about how stubborn the components were being. SLS Cloak: It's mentioned on the wiki that offworlders essentially cannibalise any derelict ships they come across for their own use. The cloak, didn't even originally start off as a cloak, instead it was more than likely a form of tarp for keeping sensitive cargo covered that Ashkii took alongside a number of spare parts from an old cargo hauler. One of the first times he disembarked from the ship and realised the world around him was actually much larger than what he'd grown up in, he'd never admit it, but it does have significant sentimental value to him, and holds a similar personal function to the scarves scarabs are gifted with. What value does this item have to your character, and what story does it tell?: Both pieces, highlight the scarab's need for self-reliance and their ability to scavenge, alongside making Ashkii very visually distinct in quite a unique way. Their ramshackle, slightly jarring appearance made out of the "Natural" repurposed debris materials one would find in space feels like quite a nice contrast to the ultra sleek appearance of the ESS RIGSuit and the Horizon in general. Both of them highlight elements of Ashkii's personality, namely the eccentric collector and inventor traits I've tried to highlight at times. To Ashkii, these pieces would be a way of proving his engineering skills to the department on the Horizon, most of the workers there have been on the ship for longer than he has, and know all the mechanics and the layout inside out. No longer having the "Home Field Advantage" would slightly bruise his ego, resulting in not only the modkit being brought back, but also the reappearance of the cloak. Ashkii didn't know his parents, and as such the Pioneer Scarf he was gifted has very little emotive connections to him, while he brushes off thinking about it mostly, the cloak is something that has much stronger ties to his heritage, which he does have an awful lot of pride over. To him, it's little different than a Dominian noble wearing a cape, or a security officer placing a flag behind their locker. And hopefully, they garner interest for an offworlder character just by appearance alone, the same way for Vaurca/Skrell or Unathi characters. Sprites: Additional Comments: Currently taking all the shots I poured out for saying "Why doesn't that look right" while I was spriting this thing. jointsuit.dmi

I think a lot of situations are really dependant as well, an antagonist, like a Ling could be either a CMO, a HOS or a RD's main concern, if at any time an XO just gets to overstep any of these command members it'd breed resentment or at least, I personally think it would especially with relaxed command roles like RD who don't often get heavily involved in events such at this, plus, pre-existing XO's would have to be near entirely rebuilt to justify why they're allowed such power over such a wide-ranging breadth of issues and as previously mentioned, race restrictions would likely have to be put in place which would then remove pre-existing characters this is especially relevant considering the current sector the Horizon is in and the fact that any Tajaran could be an XO, who would then have executive power over weaponry, mining operations etc is an powder keg I cannot see the SCC allowing ICly.

Building off of previous points here, I distinctly remember a round where TAKMAN basically charged down a techno, by themselves, who had just appeared, and had done basically nothing, insofar, especially nothing hostile, but TAKMAN shot them numerous times with a disruptor and cornered them in a maintenance tunnel, I genuinely thought they were an antag after this, maybe doing a rogue IPC gimmick and was surprised to learn at the end of the round that they weren't. However my major concern would be: I understand there has been a previous time investment with other servers. but I think a lot of behaviour, particularly the frag-happy elements, can be tracked down to not playing Aurora for a long enough period of time, and that there should be more experience built up before going for a moderator position on the server. -1

I imagine, Hengsha is pretty big and as a result security forces from any company would be designated to separate departments, which do separate patrols. Some with higher or lower risk. That must be designated. Hence "K6" being where Aheke started as his first post.