As of today, Captain Michael Intermeezo has relieved Captain Aurther Winters as Commanding Officer of the USS Chuck Norris. Captain Winters concludes 36 months in command. However, his history with the Chuck Norris goes back much further. As a Lieutenant, he officially joined the sim on June 26, 2012 as Chief Engineer, and then sent his first post on June 28th. He picked up his first award, an MVP, in November of that year. He later became Executive Officer in 2014, and then Commanding Officer in 2020. Along the way, he snagged 12.5 total awards, including 4 MVPs and 3.5 Genesis awards, good for 8th place all-time. He also chaired the 2021 SciWorld Online Convention, for which he was awarded an Ongoing World Community Honor. If there’s one thing that stands out, it’s been Aurther’s loyalty to both the fleet and his sim! Aurther, best of luck with everything and we hope you don’t wander too far!
Captain Intermeezo, welcome to the command team! We know that you have what it takes to lead this wonderful and historical sim to even greater heights.
Less than a month later and we already have another new sim joining us: the USS Eclipse officially launched on January 16, 2023. This is a brand new sim focusing on science and exploration that takes place in a post-Nemesis timeline. Take a look and consider joining today!
We don’t often have outside sims join our fleet. However, I am very proud to announce that the USS Churchill joined us last month with their first official post as a member of IDF coming on December 23, 2022. Captain James Stewart is the Commanding Officer.
It’s hard to believe that this is our first sim change of command since February, which I think is a real testament to the stability of our fleet. My, have we come a long way since our early days of the 2000s! Anyway, one official change to announce:
Captain Kaylia Strenvale relieved Captain Sandy “Ghost” Shannon as Commanding Officer of the USS Liberty on November 1st. A very special thank you to Captain Shannon for her outstanding leadership commanding the USS Liberty since June 2021. You might remember that she also commanded the USS Sunfire in May 2021 and was more than a good sport about the Sunfire-Liberty sim swap. Best of luck with your future simming, Captain Shannon; and welcome to the team, Captain Strenvale!
With a long a illustrious history in the simming community, Independence Fleet has been a bedrock for quality Star Trek role playing for over twenty years. Although IDF’s leadership works hard to ensure our members have several games to suit their role playing needs, we also know how to have fun, and what better day to enjoy our brand of humor than on April’s Fools’ Day. For those of you who have been part of IDF for a while, you know that April Fools’ Day jokes have become a pretty big tradition around here. We’ve done World Wide Sims, the classic 1990s simming website, and Super Space Command 3000. Actually, we’ve done Super Space Command 3000 three different times–no one said we were original! For those of you new to IDF this year, your introduction was our, er, rebranding where we took on a new menacing moniker.
Additionally, what we included for our humorous 2022 was the spectacular trial and banishment of our fleet CO–this is simming after all! And then added for good measure, a good ole’ useless administrative burden for sim COs, complete with threats of facing JAG. All in good humor, but these whimsical jokes mirror the real-life history of dozens of simming fleets (sadly including even this one at times), fleet XO Ken Gillis overthrew fleet CO Charles Star and installed Joseph “Stealth” Carroll as his JAG Magistrate… just in case you missed it! These were all great ‘Easter eggs’ for those of you who have been around the community and witnessed some of the ludicrous events that have unfolded in past years outside of IDF.
Here are some of actual statements Admiral Star received in response to the gag:
“Loving this year’s prank by the way! I was hoping Super Space Command 3000 would have made a come back.”
“Were you kicked out of Independence fleet?”
“Are you really in trouble?”
“Hahaha you got me.”
“Let me know if you need any help.”
“Apparently I was fooled by Ken on April fools day. He got me good!”
“What happened?”
“I just remembered what day it is. April 1st.”
And here are a few of the quotes from our Discord server:
“Qapla!”
“Wrong Empire, but you got the spirit!”
Long live the Empire…”
“I see we have a new Grand Admiral. I guess it was going to happen eventually.”
“JAG got more positions [open], or just the Director?
“I am always looking for Inquisitors.”
“Long Live the new IDF Empire!! I expect sims that post less than 300 posts a month will be immediately shut down and mothballed? Right?”
“You had me going for a while there.”
“I was around IDF in 2003 when Federal Appeals Court Judge, Lance Stiffler, had ruled that due to copyright law IDF could no longer be affiliated with ‘Star Trek’ and so had to change its name to Super Space Command 3000. I can’t believe that joke is almost 20 years old now!”
Thank you again to Ken Gillis for planning and organizing this year’s joke, and a special thanks to Charles Star and Joseph “Stealth” Carroll for playing along and being great sports. On behalf of the Imperial Defense Fleet, I hope everyone else enjoyed it! I can’t wait to see what tomfoolery that is in store for 2023 and remember: “Forget the ring! The ring is bupkis! I found it in a Cracker Jack box!“
Edit: This post was part of the 2022 April Fools’ Day gag.
The previous administration ran a pretty loose ship. Our ships aren’t posting enough, and that’s a problem!
Effective immediately, all Commanding Officers must turn in weekly reports, directly to the admiralty. Failure to do so will result in harsh disciplinary action from the JAG.
Edit: This post was part of the 2022 April Fools’ Day gag.
Charges
The Defendant, Charles Star, is charged with the following crimes:
Mutiny and Sedition
Theft of a Starship
Disreputable Behavior
Verbal Abuse
Unauthorized Shuttle Parking in Disabled Shuttlebay
Harassment
Discrimination
Sabotage of a Starship
False Statements
Dematerialization of a Beagle
Hacking
Crude Behavior
Terrorism
Facts of the Case
Charles Star was removed from command at 11:59 PM EST, March 31st, 2022. Charges were brought by Grand Admiral Ken Gillis.
The Defendant was contacted by carrier pigeon to appear. Since the pigeon did not arrive, the assumption was made that the Defendant was waiving his right to a trial by a tribunal and confessing to all above crimes.
Ruling
Presiding over the case were Judge Advocate General Joseph Carroll, Commodore Meadows, and Admiral Satie.
By unanimous vote, the tribunal has declared Charles Star GUILTY of ALL CHARGES prescribed above.
Sentence
Charles Star is hereby stripped of all rank, awards, and honors, and shall further be BANISHED from Imperial Defense Fleet for ALL TIME.
Edit: This post was part of the 2022 April Fools’ Day gag.
Today is a momentous day in the history of IDF! We are evolving beyond the organization we created over 20 years ago, and making way into a more glorious future! As of today, IDF will no longer stand for Independence Fleet (poor acronym anyway, where’s the D? In the middle of the first word?). No, it will now stand for:
Imperial Defense Fleet
Imperial Defense Fleet will be boasting a command structure, effective immediately! First of all, Charles Star is no longer in command of IDF. Star is stripped of all rank and privileges of his station.
In his place, I have taken command, as Grand Admiral. I will bring a new era of glory to IDF.
Joining me is Admiral Joseph Carroll, who will be taking up his new position as Magistrate in our newly formed Judge Advocate General Corps.
Captain Emmalyn Marcus has resigned as Commanding Officer of the USS Montana and will be replaced by Captain Jackson Adams. We thank Captain Marcus for all of the hard work and great simming since April 2021.
As a result, Captain Adams’s other character, Captain John Wells, will be resigning as Commanding Officer of the USS Eminence and will be replaced by Captain Alex Shepard. We thank Captain Wells for all the hard work and great simming since June 2021.
Captain Adams and Captain Shepard will both assume command on February 1st. Congratulations and best of luck, Captains!
Not only is this the latest edition of My Favorite Trek, but it’s also announcement time: Commodore Heather Meadows hereby joins us today as our new Director of Media. Her main responsibilities will be My Favorite Trek interviews and other blog & media content. She has a long and distinguished simming career, frequently filling roles similar to this, that goes back two decades now. Without any further ado, let’s meet Commodore Heather Meadows…
Name: Heather Meadows Rank: Commodore Sim: N/A Position: Director of Media Other Characters: Lieutenant Tosh Tarkin of the USS Eminence
Favorite Star Trek episode? It is incredibly difficult to narrow Star Trek down to one favorite episode. However, I will go with “Measure of a Man” from Star Trek: The Next Generation’s second season. Why? The writer of this episode is Melinda Snodgrass, an accomplished science fiction author, but has a background in law. She earned her Juris Doctor from University of Mexico School of Law. Snodgrass’ knowledge of law applied to the science fiction setting of Gene Rodenberry’s 24th century brings about a thorough discussion of morality, ethics, and what constitutes sentient life. Favorite Star Trek series? Alas, a continuation of a predicament that places a fan in a tug-of-war within a wonderful franchise. Star Trek: The Next Generation has the best cast, but my personal favorite is Star Trek: Voyager. Why? When measuring each series and comparing/contrasting them, Star Trek: Voyager edges out the others for me on a personal level because the premise was good, the pilot was interesting, and the first season was solid. Where other series needed time to grow and develop (surpassing Voyager even), Voyager as a series did not need to go through the same growing pains. Favorite Star Trek film? This would be Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home for me. Why? This is probably one of the more divisive films because of the plot and humor. I, however, greatly enjoy both the plot and the infusion of humor throughout the movie. The 1980s was a quirky time and having Kirk and the crew travel back to this period of time in Earth’s history worked out well because the actors were contemporary during the time. This made for sharper writing than having them sent back to say the 1880s. Environmental conversation is also something that is very important to me, and that is essentially at the core of this film. Favorite Star Trek Captain? Most people have the ongoing battle of Kirk or Picard, but mine is actually a struggle between Picard or Janeway. Any given day, it could go either way for me, but I will go with Captain Kathryn Janeway. She adjusted to the situation that she found herself in, and part of that adjustment meant being more than just the Captain – Janeway had to become softer and more integrated with her crew, especially because there’s a huge difference between a Galaxy class starship and an Intrepid class.
What year did you start simming? I started simming in 2002 which does indeed feel like a million years ago because things were different back then.
What sim was it? It was Dowding Station, a space station sim and it was not part of a fleet. I actually spent about eight or nine years, strictly on the independent scene before setting foot in a fleet.
What keeps you simming today? I actually don’t write (simming) as much these days, but I do keep involved with the simming community. I stay involved because I like being a mentor and helping new COs (Game Managers) find their confidence and get into their groove.
Favorite non-simming hobby? I actually am a bit Neelix myself. I enjoy cooking and baking (hate the cleaning) and experimenting with recipes.
Favorite non-Trek series? That would probably be Buffy the Vampire Slayer because it’s a relatively timeless piece that has embedded itself into pop culture, and it is a series that any writer, director, or producer could learn a lot from.
Favorite non-Trek film?North by Northwest because I love James Bond, and though this is not a ‘Bond Film’ it still has the feel of one, and it is a well written film. It certainly is rightfully a classic.
Favorite book (fiction or non)?I’m going to give a quick shoutout to Nightshade, a Star Trek novel by Laurell K. Hamilton because Star Trek books do not get enough attention. However, because I am a literary geek, Frankenstein by Marry Shelly is my favorite book.
Favorite video game? I really don’t do gamming aside from auto racing games and such. Though I thoroughly enjoyed the Uncharted series and Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order.
Favorite musician or band?The Cranberries (Yes, the band known for “Linger” and “Zombie”) as I loved the Singer (she passed away a few years ago) and the band had a lot of gems of songs that weren’t hits or singles.
Favorite superhero? Nightcrawler from the X-Men.
If you could have any super power, what would it be? I would take telepathy though it would literally be a headache. The ability to know what people are truly thinking is alluring as you’d get them in their truest form.
Favorite sport? I’m an auto racing and motorsports person. Be that Formula 1, IndyCar, or NASCAR.
Favorite team? Team Penske
Favorite food? Pretty much all of it though I am fond of Tacos, Pide, and Malai Kofta.
Coke or Pepsi? I reject your binary cola thinking and insert my own. Royal Crown (RC Cola). However, I am less of a ‘cola’ person and more of a: Moxie, Dr. Pepper, birch beer, root beer, sarsaparilla, and cream soda person.
Lennon or McCartney? Let’s just say I am not a Beatles person.
Jordan or LeBron? Basketball – Nope.
Star Trek or Star Wars? Star Trek because it was less action and more philosophical.
Rank the Trek TV shows from best to worst. VOY / TNG / DSN / ENT / TOS / PIC / DSC Rank the Trek movies from best to worst. TVH / FC / TUC / TWOK / I / G / TSFS / N / TFF / ID / B / TMP / ST (2009) Was this too many questions? Not at all. It was a nice opportunity for people to get dome insight into me from a Trek perspective. I welcome any questions they may have.
