[Accepted]Evandorf's Head of Staff Application

[Evandorf]

BYOND key: Evandorf

Character names: Suvek Tokash (Unathi Warden/Officer), Nia (Shell IPC Engine Technician), Patriarch (AI)

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How long have you been playing on Aurora?: Three Years

Why do you wish to be on the whitelist?: I have two main reasons for wanting the head whitelist. The most obvious one is that I would have a greater influence on how events play out on station. I would likely be playing Head of Security mostly but IAA would be interesting to me as well. I have sufficient knowledge of the server rules in addition to adequate RP skills to make antag and non-antag confrontations both enjoyable and equitable. My second reason is for personal character development. Tokash is a driven individual and his personal goals include climbing the ranks as high as he can, bringing more honor to his clan and economic stability to his family.

Why did you come to Aurora?: The short answer is I found it one day when it was listed and not hidden. I enjoy HRP and after spending some time here, on and off with a few breaks in between, I enjoy the structure and amount of oversight the community, moderators, and admins afford the server. I may not always agree with admin rulings but overall the few unfavorable experiences I've had are far outweighed by my enjoyment of the community and the environment it creates.

Have you read the Aurora wiki on the head roles and qualifications you plan on playing?: Yes.

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Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions in a paragraph each.

Give a definition of what you think roleplay is, and should be about: Roleplaying is telling a story. It is what immerses you in this world and makes these characters we play important. Being competent within the game mechanics and being "robust" should be secondary. Roleplaying is what elevates this game above the others. It gives the actions taken in-game meaning. The infinite amount of interactions you have with other people creates situations, relationships, and outcomes that are never really identical to one another. As long as people communicate, work together, and act with their fellow players in mind we can always find new and interesting directions to take situations, both antag and non-antag.

Roleplay should be about both the interactions between characters and adding finer detail to the situation at hand that the game mechanics don't account for. You want to give the other players as much information as you can in your actions, speech and emotes. Communication is key, and it does need to come from your character's mouth. Even in tense, high pressure situations, you can give the other player notes and an idea of your intent and the direction you want to take a scene. If both parties are willing to listen and facilitate the other, then RP is like the grease that helps the round move along while enriching the experience. Detailed descriptions of actions taken, small mannerisms, and speech patterns all add depth to and reinforce the lore of the universe.

What do you think the OOC purpose of a Head of Staff is, ingame?: To assist other players. Whether it is by helping new players understand their jobs, mechanically or ICly, or ironing out IC disputes before they escalate to something that requires an IR or ahelp. You are also required to coordinate within your department. CE should delegate repair tasks, Head of Security should ensure that regulations are being followed and due process applied. The Captain coordinates between the other heads and within interdepartmental affairs. Heads should be the foundation of the station, a base of stability that can be relied on when shit hits the fan.

What do you think the OOC responsibilities of Whitelisted players are to other players, and how would you strive to uphold them?: Heads of staff are not moderators or admins. Their power is only IC and usually only in their department unless a clear and present danger requires action. Still, it is their responsibility to be impartial and free from bias against other players. This does not mean that your character cannot have their own hangups, but you must make sure that when dealing with other players you take their considerations in-mind when making decisions that affect them. Obviously you have to follow regulations but there are a lot of instances where it will come down to a personal decision and then you have to act fairly. Upholding this is mainly accomplished with clear communication. Ensure you have as much information regarding the issue as possible. Some information may need to be obtained by LOOC but it should be kept to a minimum.

 

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Please pick one of your characters for this section, and provide well articulated responses to the following questions.

Character name: Suvek Tokash

Character age: 32

Please provide a short biography of this character (approx 2 paragraphs): Suvek is the youngest of seven brothers. He was born on Moghes, in Skalamar. The Tokash clan is largely centered around interplanetary trade and most of his brothers have followed his father into the family business. However, Suvek is very close with his grandfather who is a veteran of the Contact war and has been guiding him since he was young along the Path of the Warrior. Tokash is not dumb, but for better or worse he was trained mainly for combat from a young age. However, with the end of the war and the shift of the Hegemony's focus as it works with outside races, focused warriors are no longer in prime demand. After winning acclaim in some tournaments as a young adult, Suvek hired on with NanoTrasen's security department mainly due to a glut of unemployed Unathi on the homeworld.

Since joining the Company, Suvek has worked his way up the ladder. He spent the mandatory two years as cadet. Duriing his tenure as cadet, his traditionalist nature caused friction multiple times. The following is an excerpt from his employment history:

NSS Fellowship

20/06/2453 - 13/01/2454

- Assigned to Station Security Division as cadet pending proper training and on-the-job hours.

- Reason for Leaving : Incompatible Management Style

- Mr. Tokash was regularly at odds with Head of Security Angela Williams, with trouble coming to a head when Williams promoted a female human cadet ahead of schedule waiving certain training requirements. Certain insults were made against the Head of Security and were met with threats of termination. Reassignment was requested after the intervention of the Station Captain.

...and then further on...

ONGOING TRAINING: Is currently enrolled in company provided Extranet classes for Racial and Gender Sensitivity Training. Enrollment was recommended by resident Hypatia Station Psychologist, Arthur Clarke, PhD, after multiple complaints were recieved regarding Mr. Tokash.

Since becoming a fully fledged Officer, and subsequently Warden, Tokash has mellowed out considerably. I still try to give people the stink eye when they are female in sec, and Guwan are still guwan, but he is amicable for the most part if a bit stoic and brusque. He is recently "engaged" to Ilaeza Marwani and her influence has also changed his behavior slightly.

What do you like about this character?: Sometimes I think I am good at RP. Other times I think perhaps I'm just good at RP as Tokash because it's close to my IRL mood and I don't have to change much. Regardless, he is no nonsense and most often will take the quickest and most direct way to solve a problem. He can have a sense of humor but for the most part is silent. I have been trying recently to incorporate these aspects into more lengthy RP, especially where antags are concerned. His sense of honor will often time prevent him from backing down from a fight, but on the verge of starting a familiy and also growing older he is starting to mellow more.

What do you dislike about this character?: Sometimes because of his traditionalist nature it is REALLY hard to find a way around a simple confrontation. I am getting better at it, but sometimes especially with loud and fast antagonists it can devolve into a shootout. Additionally, it causes friction with his "fiance" who is much more progressive, similar to Ouereans. It will be interesting to see how this gets resolved but it can be very frustrating at times.

What do you think makes this character fit to be a head of staff?: Despite his traditionalist views and single-mindedness, he is able to coordinate others effectively when needed. As warden, in the absence of an HoS, he regularly has to man cameras and coordinate with Officers in the field during emergencies. He is also well versed on Regulations, warrants, and the application of due process. Following the Tenants of the warrior requires righteousness and so he tries to be fair and honest in all things. This includes making sure the prisoners are treated fairly and are not subjected to charges that do not apply.

 

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Please provide well articulated answers to the following questions.

How would you rate your own roleplaying?: I would rate myself at about a 7. I have improved over the time I have spent here but sometimes I do focus too much on the task at hand. Getting the Unathi whitelist and having to remember cultural norms, speech patterns and such has also made me slow down and take my time when doing things. It means that I have more time to stop and think before acting.

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Extra notes: None.

[K0NFL1QT]

I definately did not come here after PM harassment.

I am conflicted about this application. I would +1 the player, but -1 the character. Suvek is a good officer, and you rightfully assess that he has a good grasp of regulations, but as Warden he too often goes to personally respond to combat situations or carp hunt. Learning to have access, authority and opportunity, yet still stay hands off whenever possible is a tricky thing for HoS players to come to terms with, myself included; the expected mentality needs to manifest in the character as part of their development before they would pass consideration, if they're working up the ranks. Also, Suvek suffers from the Unathi trait of being overly aggressive at times, he still holds onto his traditional prejudices, and will ignore better tactical options to use a traditional Unathi spear whenever possible despite that being needlessly risky.

I am aware that a lot of this feedback can be construed as 'shave off all the unique Unathi traits', but I genuinely think NT would very carefully assess the temperment and composure of prospective Unathi Commanders. I know Suvek is 'old enough' to be promoted, but there are more qualifications than age when considering Command aptitude. Suvek is a driven character, so his reaching for promotion is understandable, but I just don't think he's ready. Suvek is one of my favorite, and I think best, examples of a well done Unathi on station; but the traits he emphasises don't, in my mind, predict a HoS that can be a calm, fair and unbiased, tactically adaptive co-ordinator.

[BurgerBB]

Konflict brings up a good point, however Tokash's waifu is actively trying to get him to cease with the barbarism and carp hunting. Unless that shitler has been hunting behind her back, those traits are being knocked back.

My only complaint with the character is that I always see that ligger in a breacher. One time Marwani screamed for help because she encountered a spider and next think you know I see him in full breacher and a spear. If that behavior was cut back then I would give a +2, but for now I can only give a +1.

[Coalf]

I have been personally requested by the player to observe him to appropriately provide feedback before the final judgement.

Upon my observations I have learned that Tokash is not a good character for said role. While yes his validhunting and spearchucking ways have been curved he is much too reserved and "Serious Warrior Type".

They say "Words silver, silence gold", but in this case it does not apply. Tokash is one of those people who saves his words to report "only important things" however I've seen his performance suffer because of this as often he simply doesn't call out or communicate with his team. This has led to minor problems that slowly and slowly escalate into bigger problems which are frankly near unnoticable from a player perspective.

While sure a HoS needs to be a large robust laddie he is most importantly THE person who enforces communication and gives out orders. While being a frontline HoS is okay, you should primarly focus on directing your department towards issues instead of silently taking care of them, no matter how small they actually are.

[Evandorf]

Hmm. I agree with your concerns, Coalf, and I appreciate your taking the time to observe.

The only qualifiers I will put out are that lately I have been more Officer than Warden and I tend to take a more operational/organizational role as Warden, especially if there is no HoS at the time.

I like Tokash as a character and I don't want to put him in a "Serious Warrior" box so I would be completely amenable to making him more responsive. It would go hand in hand with what Burger said about his other tendencies being curbed. I could also amend his records and RP like he has taken further managerial/organizational training. Currently his command skill is set to amateur. I think it could realistically be raised to trained.

On the other hand, I could also make a new character for the whitelist if it is simply the character which is the issue.

[Icuris]

The answers provided in the application demonstrate suitable knowledge beyond the character's own limitations and have satisfied my concerns regarding the player's understanding of a head of security's role.

The points of contention raised by Coalf and Konflict pretain to how critically important communication is, for a HoS character, and indeed the quality of the character/player can be determined by how well coordinated their team is. There are a number of player/character complaints regarding this subject, and I recommend reviewing them to broaden your perspective of what players, staff, and IC characters expect from a HoS.

[mention]EJ_Denton[/mention], a question for you, regardless of which character is used in this application, being aware of Coalf and Konflict's points, how would you best adjust yourself to fit the role as HoS?

[Evandorf]

A question for you, regardless of which character is used in this application, being aware of Coalf and Konflict's points, how would you best adjust yourself to fit the role as HoS?

 

The main reason why Tokash is tight lipped is because I felt that being overly active on the radio would take away from his stoicism. He has already changed a lot since I started playing him which is why I have no problem making him less stoic.

As far as changes to make, I would more closely monitor comms and have regular check-ins with security staff. In an emergency I would likely lead from my office, assigning overall tasks without micromanaging and acting more to manage resources than interact with the threat directly. Unathi aren't oblivious to the benefits of tacticians, and I think you can successfully RP an Unathi that sees strategy has an honor of its own.

I would lean more heavily on the Warrior Tenant of Integrity as opposed to the Tenant of Courage, which is what I do now.

[Icuris]

Thank you for awnsering my question.

Best of luck with the application.

+1 (even though it’s a dirty lizard HoS)

[Azande]

Tokash is consistently a good Security Officer and still takes time out of their rounds to focus on our core aspect - roleplay, they've built relationships with crew members and have a nice reputation with existing Command staff.

+1

[Alberyk]

Application accepted.