At the last informal gathering, several points were brought up. Among them was the types of characters we might play. The history of Battlestar role play on SL has been comprised of several basic character styles. A short list includes Civilians, Pilots, Crewmen, Command Staff, Marines, Special Forces, Humanoids, Centurions and Pirates.
I think we can safely rule out pirates, since Earth is taking its fledgling steps into space travel. Another group that I think we can agree do not need to be included is Special Forces. With the limited capacity of a single ship, it would be a waste of resources to house a military unit that in this modern age is typically used for counter terrorism purposes, in an environment where terrorists would be light years away. Another sim has stated reasons for not employing Marines in the game. I have felt the same way for a long time. While Marine players tend to enjoy the style of play, it tends to create issues with Chain of Command and ends up in arguments more often than not. The Genesis will be protected by the highly honored 95th Rifle Regiment. They will be essentially NPC’s but if some players want to play one as flip title at times, then thats ok as long as it doesnt create friction. The Rifles have a long proud history and are elite troops that can provide excellent security for the ship and crew. Keep that in mind when using them as NPC’s or flip title characters.
We wont have any humanoids initially because we have not met the third race yet. So if you want to play a humanoid, feel free to play another character that can die or fade to background as necessary upon contact.
Centurions will be the primary adversary as they pursue their plan to create peace makers out of the humans. The twisted logic of their plan is what prevents anyone from figuring it out.
Civilians wont play a big role in the game. Its one ship. The crew are hand selected and highly screened. Player characters are considered to be excellently skilled at their jobs and psychologically tested to guarantee their ability to handle the trip. Characters will be considered valued members of the crew and capable of performing under stress. These are tough survivors and professionals.
Pilots will all belong to one of two squadrons. Pawnee pilots will all be part of one squadron, though we will have a second NPC Pawnee squadron. Tigerhawk pilots will all belong to the same Tigerhawk squadron, though we will have three other NPC squadrons. The reason is logistics. During a long journey, we will be battling at least one foe, which will cause casualties and loss of Tigerhawks. A single squadron of forty Tigerhawks would be destroyed too quickly. So the additional squadrons can absorb the losses. One will constantly be training pilots as they recover from injuries, as well as test flying new or rebuilt Tigerhawks while the other three fight.
Staff Officers should be proper English Gentlefolk. In other words, they are the quintessential British Officers. Proper, stoic and dignified, they also have very personal lives they live but keep separate from their duties. The men and women of the British Officer Corps are the finest examples of leadership and should be played as such. Players interacting with them should keep this in mind. They are your officers and the RAF and RA hold them in high regard.
There are a few smaller roles that can be filled as well. We will honor the RN tradition of a ships chaplain. This could prove pivotal at times, as spirituality will be a running theme in the game storyline. We also could use a few reporters, perhaps ones from BBC and Sky News. Also perhaps Associated Press and Reuters. We might also have along someone from the British Embassy staff on the outside chance that we meet with “some form of alien life”. After all, the ship was extraterrestrial.
And of course if you can think of interesting possibilities we can try to fit them in. But the above list is mostly for the Battlestar side.
On the Patriot Games side, the general rule is, no minors. Sorry but we are a Mature rated sim with simulated violence, strong language, and the occasional simulated romantic interludes. (Just try to keep it in PM)
So to ensure we do not violate Linden Labs Terms Of Service, we ask that characters be 18 and above, so that nobody gets in trouble.
If you are not sure if your character is useable, then ask.
Agreed?
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It must seem very intimidating to have such large dreams and so much to create, but you all seem very dedicated to this. I will love seeing this project become a reality because of the courage it takes to even try.
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This can not be real Battlestar Galactica. None of this is in BattlestarWiki. If it us not canon, it can not be used, anywhere ever! Only retelling the story of the attack and subsequent journey through the stars is real Battlestar Galactica. Check the BattlestarWiki, it will prove it.
Hi, thank you for your opinion. We encourage you to find your way to another Battlestar Galactica sim. Thank you for the time you invested here. We have our own path to travel and what we present here comes from well over a year of conversations among friends. The ideas and stories we have, stem from our desire to make something that might appeal to Battlestar Fans looking for something new. Since no idea or story is perfect, we accept that it may not be to everyones preference, and while many ideas have been tried in various forms in the years since the show ran, via fanfiction, discussion forums, and even group chats, what we have is simply our version of the way we would like to present it all.
Your post was one of several that have stated that what we do is not absolutely fact. I thank you, as well as others, but we have made no pretense to what we present being canon or factual in any way. It is a game. Nothing more. For anyone to invest more into what we do is a waste of time. We are only a game sim and not a collection of experts or analysts. You can find that on other sites. With little effort you will find people willing to lay claim to ideas, knowledge, Intellectual Property and really just about anything that they see. But we do not wish to engage in the pointless debates that go with such wild claims and the kind of people who would make them.
So we respectfully decline to engage with you, in any discussion on this matter. Genesis is about Genesis. What is presented here is only for Genesis. The administrative staff have no interest in what other sims do, nor do we have any interest in the discussions, debates, flame wars, accusations, allegations, or anything else, that people not affiliated with our game might present.
This will be the only time this is publicly addressed. Your post was approved only to give an example of why we will not participate in the pointless excercise of forum debates. We do understand your view, as we understand the other posts that have been disapproved. It simply is not something we will engage with. If you or others do not see your future posts, please accept that while you have every right to your opinions, we have an equal right to ours. This forum will not be used to debate. Our goal is not to provide a site for others to formulate drama, it is for our players and builders to communicate and feel safe in their views. Thank you.
Lindsay
Hey, True Fan. I would suggest you go play the Battlestar Galactica online game. Play it over and over for a few weeks until you are completely bored with it and you wish there was more to it. Then, when you are ready for some fresh ideas regarding the Battlestar Galactica story, come back and visit us. We all know how the Galactica story went. We know it all too well. Wouldn’t it be nice if some other Battlestar’s somehow survived and we could then enjoy those stories as well? That is exactly what we are doing here. We are writing our own story about our own battlestar, our own ships, and our own problems with the cylons.