StewardsCap

Ckey/BYOND Username: UnionGuy Discord Name: Asalesmen#5866 (unioncap) Position Being Applied For: Lore Deputy Past Experiences/Knowledge: I go over this in my ramble of a first answer, but I have experience in writing and worldbuilding with a hint of vibes posting. Examples of Past Work: N/A Please answer the following questions to the best of your ability in your application: 1. What skills can you bring to the Skrell Lore team? I have never written in any official capacity, I never felt a real calling to work on a staff team, nor did I have the passion that would justify me before others, who would be more suitable for the role. However, I was a real ideas guy and a loud critic of the many roleplay communities I took part in. When I was really young, I had (embarrassingly) joined many Roblox clans, as well as Sci-Fi building groups. While many in a clan would enjoy the infinite array of techniques and skills to put you above the other, I was really more enamored by the history and hobbled lore that was made for the sole purpose of being cool. It was what spurned my interest of looking critically into a world's backstory or ‘worldbuilding’, which would eventually lead me to join groups specifically catering to these crowds. Now if you have heard of these types of communities, you would know that it has no real mechanics or limited interaction beyond the ability to write out what you want to be. This meant the main enjoyment came from acting out in improv with the support of a background world for consistency. However, in reality it grew to be nerds obsessing over superficial details to prove intellectual superiority, and I was one of those nerds. Since often the official lore of these groups was made to be a backdrop, it allowed for a lot of flexibility for someone to make their own character and backstory in the world. However, many would come to criticize it for not bending to their own hyper specific considerations or just generally being too vague, thus starting “factions” or “fan-lore” of their own to make up for it. Now this often comes from a pedantic or “I want to slap my OC in” worldview, which if you know is often not pleasant for worldbuilding. Furthermore, I was staunchly opposed to it, and I began writing unofficial ways to get around the logical inconsistencies and hyping up the lore itself. I would often go on long-winded rants with needlessly excessive swaths of text to attempt to “sell” the lore to onlookers. It was akin to a salesman selling a car, hence my username. I would often use fluff and researched concepts to give the base lore more appeal to those who were displeased or newcomers. Eventually utilizing these hard scientific concepts to better explain the world itself, and to support the backdrop. Now you may look at this and say, “what is the point?” and I say to you its context for the frame. I have a true passion for this stuff, and I do not think my track-record shy's away from this. I’ve amped up TerraGov for TG with creative retellings of the breadcrumbs given to players, I have made news articles and after-action reports for factions in Shiptest, and I have even used flowery language here (i.e. calling the USSR the “World Soviet Republics/World Soviet” to showcase their accomplishments). I know this isn’t the most mind-blowing, and I know I have overstepped these thin lines in the past, but I do believe that holds some merit in a game like this. 2. What part of Skrell Lore interests you the most? The historical era, the old commonwealth's pre-glorsh and the systemic order of planets are definitely the top two for me. The Commonwealth is really cool even if it is somewhat old lore. I like the whole idea of the war being a hushed sabotage campaign with hired guns doing what they can to keep each other down. It leans into the skrell's war tactics, their crab-bucketing, and their skill with diplomacy. It explains the origins of the federation, and I think it’s a good starting point for the underground criminal movements that would come to bite these officials centuries later. The fun with this is that it sets a precedent early on that the skrell are just vastly more experienced in the affairs of nationhood. While the Unathi’s history showcases their strength through brutal domination and war, or humanity showcasing its will through an unlikely union between west and east, skrell history simply shows their intellect. The skrell’s intimidation is below the skin, their ability to swindle and manipulate is something many would be worried about and probably make conspiracies around. The fact that the largest war in their history is probably a tenth of the devastation of a small war in pre-modern human history is something that is often scoffed at as evidence of a “weak and passive” people, in reality I think it showcases that the skrell do not need to wage a great war of attrition to take down their targets. The system of order that the planets follow being named after the waves of colonization is neat and draws back to their amphibian nature. It also lays out the thinning of the federation and the segregation of the frontiersmen otherwise known as traversers. In-game players can distinguish each other with where they're from, that being those from the core worlds, colonized worlds, and uncivilized frontier worlds. For a species that often judges and questions each other, I think it’s a great way to add depth with communication and mutual connections. It also helps visualize the gap between federalist and traversalist that is much needed in an already confusing species. The Core takes, the Colonists wait, the Traverse makes. 3. What part of Skrell Lore would you like to expand or develop further? Starlight Zone and Skrell Engineering are probably the two that come to mind, maybe more stuff about dining and food rituals would be neat as well? The Starlight zone is okay, but the detail is just “There is a city above water and one below water” and that’s really it. The notes on Lekan and Severson are really just talking about their conformity level to biesel rather than the actual place they live. Also, the fact that even though they're both right next to each other yet are in a red vs. blue in regard to culture and politics. At least Xoikko has something to talk about with it being a tourist attraction and renowned for its bars and casinos. Though it seems like it's just Aliose and Qerr'Malic combined. Skrell overengineering or just ship craft would be cool, why wouldn’t it be sweet to have the smart scientist species talk about pedantic and pointless architectural schools of thought to the himeno worker who lives in a pod? We know that the Skrell spacecraft are not like human ones, if it wasn’t obvious from the weird coloring, hover chairs and strange holo-like design. In regard to cuisine, again, how does more eating lore hurt worldbuilding? It is just another appeal to the “I am different” theme that Skrell has going for it with the principle of “Mon”. 4. What part of Skrell Lore would you like to remove or rework? The Prescient Republic of the Qar and Skrell Skin Coloration both need some touch-up, I don’t think anything needs to be explicitly removed from the lore, epically since I’m more of a fix it then trash it type of guy. The PRQ is really weird and from reading it I don’t understand how you could enjoy playing as someone from there. The OOC note of “Members from the core of the PRQ fleet living out in the Spur are rare, are expected to not divulge many details about the inner workings of the fleet, but are quite open about their background.” is really vague and makes reading the lengthy wiki page incredibly unrewarding since you aren’t allowed to talk about most of it. The fact that members aboard are either an incredibly rare sight or are criminals/pseudo-criminals dissuades people from picking it up in our current setting. Sure, it is funny to pray to a giant slug, but other than that I don’t see much else that could get you to stand out from your co-workers or fellow skrell. Secondly the structure of the Fleet, who is going to call the great leader “Species Apex” with a straight face? I understand it’s supposed to be a unique take but it’s just so funny thinking of someone seriously calling themselves a Class Healer or Kingdom Artisan while writing in the ‘Holy herald’ about big slugs. The strange organization with the core vessels and Periphy vessels is also strange, how does a weird slug cult wring a bunch of low-end marauders in a species known for debating is a little illogical to me. Skin Colornation has always been something that has bothered me or at least confused me. We know that the natural colors are Red and Green for Axiori, Blue and Yellow for Xiialt, and Xiori is the mix between the two. Yet actually this isn’t the case, the chart itself says that it doesn’t represent all the colors and the skrell just come in “numerous color and species combinations” which is moot since spa treatment basically makes any customization possible, so it doesn’t really have any meaning anymore. What is the point of denoting those with longer headtails as wiser or older when a 60-year-old can just get a spa-treatment to grow them out faster. What is the whole point of the food changing pigmentation if it doesn’t show up mechanically and has an easy solution that is readily available. The fact that it is ubiquitous and socially acceptable everywhere seems handwavy of potential to differentiate both subspecies and origin or play on unique amphibian traits like mimicry, countershading, or even signaling? I am not a biologist, but I do think it would be nice to develop origins for different natural skin colors from around skrell space since the skrell colonists have had millennia to situate themselves. Here’s an example, if you look at the New Gibson page and go down to the Xoikko you will find a very interesting line: “Due to the similar environment of Aliose to that of New Gibson, Skrell from these planets share similar appearances - thick, white skin meant to assist in thermoregulation.” This is obviously old lore, since Aliose makes no mention of this from what I can tell. Yet it is probably one the more interesting traits of a skrell from both planets. A pale white skrell would be quite striking and is something that would get someone's attention. Now obviously skin color isn’t the most important thing to a character, but it does play a part in making your character and I do think giving it some more structure wouldn’t be terrible. It would also mean that a skrell taking spa treatment would matter since there could be outlined differences that could be noticed in-game which is something major to character creation. 5. Provide a 2-3 paragraph long sample of your writing. This can be basically anything, so long as it’s related to the Nralakk Federation. Independent contracting or freelancing within the Federation is often a cognitive dissonance when it comes to the trans-stellar nations' political theory. Historically Independents were condemned and often labeled as ‘consultants’ with the rise of federation due to the infighting by colonists in that time period. Unlike other nations, most colonial fleets were state-organized; solely kept within government bounds to avoid sabotage from the other nations. However, independent colonists were still instrumental in charting the first and second wave, with the invention of the warp drive the need to tediously organize and sanction was no longer necessary. The public outlook of freelancers shifted as well, as the ambition of each nation to chart out more stars than the other grew a new demand. This is where the lucrative industry of independent exploration came to life, with an endless supply of adventurous scientists and veteran surveyors working much the same way as the dishonorable consultant agencies. The modern stigma that freelancing would garner wouldn’t come about until the Tresja Agreement and reinstatement of the Federation. Fearing the idea that unsanctioned research could bring about the next calamity, the 2nd Federation quickly dissuaded and cracked down on non-state agencies. The only meaningful presence that freelancers had was in the traverse, which only further vilified them. This was only exacerbated with the rise of the Independent Traversal Movement, whose members often went under the moniker of simply “Independents”. Quickly many independent contractors would replace the word to avoid the ire of the federation, using titles such as Autonomous, Corporate, lone, or even the oxymoronic title of “Independent-Government” contractor. Those who choose not to trade outside of the traverse often kept the original title, usually as a badge of honor and a reinforcement of traversal resistance. It is, also, one of the many pieces of red tape that corporate and independent contractors outside of the federation must go through. While many federation-born independent scientists and workers may lament the safeguard of scientific, mineral, or gas sites, they still have options. Independents from outside the Federation are disbarred almost entirely from most work beyond the traverse or estuaries. The prospect of being independent has also deflated significantly with the onset of the phoron scarcity with the freelancing sector practically frozen due to the rationing favoring government entities. Many of these contractors have given up, either being absorbed into SOE’s at best or marauder groups at worst. 6. You’re in a room with Weashbi Jrugl, Klaq’Qi Weibii, Xioshi, and a loaded gun with one bullet. What do you do? Shoot Xioshi, ruining the reputation for the skrell equivalent of “John” is irredeemable.

Something that should've died a long time ago.

Playing this chaotic mess of a round, they did well and used the resources as best they could. I think they kept composure and played a cool angle, a good mix of RP and Mechanical flow. I've played with them before, they were well put and I think their a good player. +1

Seen Yan on a few occasions, pretty levelheaded Dominian, I hope they do well!

Good player, I would absolutely recommend to the WL, they are very attentive and interested in people and play very well into each character's strengths and weaknesses. Love to see them when they get on, easy +1 for me

BYOND Ckey: UnionGuy Discord username: unioncap Character names: Josh Zachery Jekzaw Zawayi Ooruex'Yutiex Lish-Xoio Maldwyn - XO Husso Szs'Koask Dharma Nasir XX-112 Species you are applying to play: Dionae ------------------------------ General Whitelist Requirements What colour do you plan on making your first alien character?: The light bark of a young coeus Have you read the lore pages for the species you wish to be whitelisted for?: The Majority Says Yes Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph format. One paragraph minimum per question. Why do you wish to play this species?: I am a big fan of representing the factions either not showcased or simply not well known by the general playerbase. But more importantly, Dionae was the first WL that I ever actually really wanted. Like the skrell, they are a truly alien group that even with human influence have very neat tricks to help separate them from the average man. The sprite design is super cool, and I think the challenges they have to face are among the harshest of any other alien, making them a great vet pick! Other than that, they have incredible lore and I want to see that in-game. What makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a human?: Like synthetics, they sort of are an “imitation” of human-like sapience, being a group of nymphs that join together and share in a hivemind… or work together as a choir! They have a very strong sense of community, peace and a wish to proactively achieve things through words (or song) rather than through physical force. They are wanders, voyagers, and vagabonds set out to live a fruitful life for personal growth. Character Application Character Name: Peaceful Cry for Freedom Write a backstory for your character. This may include their origin, education, personality and how they arrived to the SCCV Horizon. They came from a grouping of seven, all a few weeks after their birth. Born in a Biesel Eternal Temple, they were assigned a guide, the Eternal Priest "Drifting into Starless Night Guiding the Youths Through". Slowly, they grew to learn how to walk, speak properly, and work out relationships. They had built bonds with other diona in the temple, and slowly accumulated knowledge through scholarly study. They were very peaceful, at first speaking kindly and sorrowfully, but not old enough to really make any which way of it. They had for the early half decade spent a lot of time working towards the sciences, their master close in toe. The bound between Geras and Coeus was akin to a lifelong tutor and their student, and the young one feared the time when they would have to come and pass. That time would unfortunately come, with the second invasion by the ASSN onto the Tau Ceti System. They were a Loyalist, and like many before them, joined up into the TCAF upon the first threat of invasion. They had joined as a gunner, wanting to use their skills in arms to aid the forces. They had fully solidified the Singular Sound mind type, taking reference to the humans they worked alongside to better fit in. Yet that hope was soon drawn out, as Ozdemir was not young to the art of war. The 35th Fleet had done terrible blows, what had been to them a naive notion of some chance to prove themselves, turned into a miserable slog and tragic retreat. There was no victory, especially after the capture of Reade, and the confusing mess of nations who mustered to stop the Solarian Fleet. Shortly after the push for reade, the side gun had malfunctioned and burst out in flames and their right arm caught the fire. The Main porter had seized the extingisher and put them out, recieving some moderate burns. It was the first real pain they had felt, a nasty sting that eat at their vulnerable and young bark, it tormented them for a great while. The crisp flames would turn their heart ashen and bitter, filled with ideas that before were otherworldly but now laid in their soundscape for hours at a time. They served another year before departing back for liberty's cluster. Now a true loyalist, they heartily debated amongst them on the question of solarian diplomacy. They returned lost, having been bitter from the aftermath of the conflict, and the death they saw. They soon reunited with their Geras, who gained considerable concern for the young lost one. Struggling with some deep attachment issues and loss of self-worth, the Geras made great lengths to see the coeus back to enlightenment. Something which the coeus is deeply thankful for, even if they are still martial among in regard to solarians. The help ensured total loyalty, working as the Geras's assistant and carrying their things. Where the Geras goes, they go, and that happens to lead them onto the Horizon. How has the recent events of the Orion Spur impacted your character? Events such as the Phoron Scarcity, the Solarian Collapse or even the Invasions of Biesel for interstellar-wide affairs, while region-specific events such as the Peacekeeper Mandate, The Titan Rises or even Cold Dawn may impact your character. Being a supporter of the Biesel Federal republic through and through, they are adamant that the Republic is simply going through growing pains, and that a solution to the problem will be found. They are adamant on the righteousness of the peacekeeper mandates, believing that the stripping of solarian power is for the good of the whole galaxy. The Magna Expansio arc is something they are aware of and generally disgusted by the Gla’orrs autocratic and frankly xenophobic regime. They are totally supportive of the Omnivirate's Intervention in the Omi Providence arc, though are not the best with theological apologies. How does your character view the megacorporation they work for? Nanotrasen is something that the Gera supports and thus in turn they are generally supportive. Peaceful remembers the staunch resistance of Trasen against the Solarian Alliance and views the family kindly if not a little stricken to selfishness. The benefits that nanotrasen gives are quite nice for a dionae in regard to free training and certifications, something peaceful has relied on in the Eternal Temple Colleges. Nanotrasen's rivalry with Einstein is one that Peaceful admires and wishes that someday NT will totally beat them out.

Not only an incredible player, but an amazing role-player. I have never seen someone who can curate such characters with relative ease. Someone who genuinely cares and contributes to the server, and a good inspiration to many including myself. Absolutely do not see why they would not be accepted +1

Good Head of Security, knows how to escalate and works well with others. Not much experience with them personally but I think there a fine person, I like Courtier even if I rarely met them +1

Beautiful RP'er, and naturally a great Command Member, they were on top of things and very vocal about what they needed to do and what was to be done. They had actually surprised me with how focused they were on tasks and the bounties were done like 10 minutes after I asked! In other regards, they play a competent leader who acts like a sane down-to-earth (Or Moroz?) member! I hope they can inspire a new group of scientists! +1

I like Graul Porlip as a character, and I think the player is very passionate! I hope they can show the same for the Tajjies! +1

+1 Do I need to even to explain why? One of the most iconic characters I know, fun to play with, and an amazing person to hang with! No matter how long you know them they are approachable and memorable!

I forgot to answer a question just uh, ignore this rq. Edit: I answered the question, ignore this request to ignore.

BYOND key: unionguy Discord Username: unioncap Character names: Flin'tin Flackie Josiah Oved Xioshi'Qum Koqun'Ouqu Jugurtha Dada Josh Zachery Yutiix Yourgul'Frqu Jekzaw Zawayi Itrulix Hexkrya Fern 17 SYNOD Ooruex'Yutiex Lish-Xoio Tikruxl Szs'koask How long have you been playing on Aurora? Started early 2023 I think? So I’m a little new in the grand scheme of things. Have you received any administrative actions? And how serious were they? I few warnings for leaving the game without cryo-ing Permanent Ban for DC’ing after getting arrested as an antag, around when I first started. 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? Generally the duty of a HoS is to be the master of a bunch of apprentices, the mentor to a bunch of mentorees (?). For the player, a HoS gives them the relief that a true patriot is in control, someone they can go to if things trouble them. It’s for this reason that the HoS role is so important, obviously you are not totally necessary for an everyday round, meaning you can’t just float but strive to beat an ambivalent average. People also expect you to know how to lead and to know what you're doing, and with lower pop you can’t just delegate your problems all the time. What do you think the OOC responsibilities of Whitelisted players are to other players, and how would you strive to uphold them? Other than teaching players the game, I think a major responsibility is standard. Even if your Command Char isn’t the most interesting, you're still a part of the big leagues. You've demonstrated that you're an experienced player and thus deserve to have powers invested in you over the lives of other characters. You have the power to literally ruin some characters' careers, a CW player should know this always and be aware that at the end of the day, we're all just playing a game. Explain how the recent events in the Spur changed your character and how they came to be employed on the SCCV Horizon. Ooruex'Yutiex Lish-Xoio? Why would a 328-year-old skrell go out of their way to work within the SCC Horizon? Truth be told, the Nralaak Federation is not all well, the Phoron Scarcity is graining, and the Traverse is getting too big to ignore. The Nralaak Federation is at a standstill, backed into a corner with their affiliation with Sol, which is under strain with recent missions to Biesel. Logistics has to take on the burden, NraLogi freighters work double time to keep the inevitable slow and drawn out. Technology, once the pride and plentiful boon of the Federation has become a pipe dream for most on the lower index. Even with the ITM's defeat, with how the Federation has divided itself the Traverse will only expand and grow stronger. It won't be long until the Pluat, or some more strong-armed influences come for the polite core. Some are unsure of how long the Federalist Dynasty can hold on as political alternatives spring up to make there stand, with the furthering of public relations and trade only exacerbating these foreign ideas. Many hope that the long-standing Federation can keep its promise. Yutiex doesn't have that hope, in their eyes the victory against the ITM just foreshadowed the end of an era. Born in the dark times of the Glorsh-Era, they carry the now rare insight into a time before the Federation and survived an abuse that leads to little questioning. Surprisingly, Yutiex doesn't have as much fervor for the Federation as one would suspect from those of the weeping generations. Working as a Senior Manager with Nralogi, they have grown concerned at the firsthand accounts of rising shortages and deficits, the long-term gas shortage and the lack of proper alternatives. Originally a supporter of Jurgl, they have grown unimpressed by how they have proceeded the diplomacy on the galactic stage. It may not be best to stay in government management for much longer in the long-term, why not broaden the horizon? What roles do you plan on playing after the application is accepted? Operations Manager - My second character was a hanger tech, and so I feel at home in the bay. I’m not just choosing this because “It’s the easiest” but actually because it’s a great test of my leadership skills. Orion is unique among the corps because of its lower standards regarding employees, and so HTs are known to be from less friendlier backgrounds. People are a lot more divided on routine, sorting, and bounties so compromises need to be made. Finally, there are miners who I have to trust and can’t micro-manage, which gives me the task of juggling soft and hard power. Executive Officer - Pretty much ditto on the first but add the fact that your damm smacking HICOM. Definitely a role I’m excited to try out as it can help connect the most rp intensive and separated department: Service/Civilian. Have you familiarized yourself with the wiki pages for the command roles? Yes. Characters you intend to use for command or have created for command. Include the job they will be taking: Ooruex'Yutiex Lish-Xoio - Operations Manager Lincolin Owens - Executive Officer (This’ll be later down the line though) Do you understand your whitelist is not permanent, and may be stripped following continuous administrative action? Of course, same with my whitelists I have been grateful for the trust you’ve all put in me. Have you linked your BYOND account to the Forums? Yes. Extra notes: *warble