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!
The overly flirty doctor works in a Funniest Post or a Best Post.
Best Post (Joint Post)
Capt. Akeno Misaki & Cmdr. Mashiro Munetani “Shiro” & Lt. Ileah & Lt. Rosaleen O’Donnell & Lt. Raelyn Mckenzie & Lt. Mark Johnson & Lt. JG Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok CO / XO / Y / COO / CSTO / CMO / FCO USS Wayfarer
I haven’t read a good time travel post in a while. Nicely executed!
MVP
Lieutenant Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell Computer Systems Specialist USS Sunfire
What doesn’t Lt. Durnell do? Always a top poster, driving the plot, and encouraging others. It’s just one of a many recognitions to a month-in and month-out superior performer.
Most Posts
Lieutenant Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell Computer Systems Specialist USS Sunfire
A nice detailed post about a visit to sickbay, along with a little love in the air.
Best Post (Joint Post)
Captain Shran dh’Klar & Lieutenant Commander Callie Raven-Grayson & Ensign T’Plana-hath & Ensign James Phoenix & Lieutenant Seth Travis & Lieutenant JG Tarja zh’Rhun CO / CC / IO / TO / CDO / MO USS Washington
Captain Akeno Misaki & Commander Mashiro Munetani “Shiro” & Lieutenant Rosaleen O’Donnell & Lieutenant Raelyn Mckenzie & Lieutenant Mark Johnson & Lieutenant JG Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok CO / XO / COO / CSTO / CMO / FCO USS Wayfarer
House successfully pushed the mission forward when momentum was lacking by getting others involved into the story, focusing on plot development. He also recruited the Sunfire’s newest member.
Most Posts
Lieutenant Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell Computer Systems Specialist USS Sunfire
This is a great holodeck scene featuring Lord of the Rings characters. A nice juxtaposition between real time events happening on the bridge while seconds are passing on the holodeck. Fun!
Funniest Post
Cmdr. Dean House & Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell CTO / CSS USS Sunfire
Nice multi-scene genesis post about time travel. Excellent use of Daniels!
MVP
Lieutenant JG Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok Flight Control Officer USS Wayfarer
The Wayfarer’s FCO had a fantastic month, leading and organizing posts while also injecting some great Klingon humor into the story.
Most Posts
Lt. Cmdr. Shoniara T’ghann-Travis Assistant Chief Medical Officer USS Washington
For writing 15 posts.
Most Improved
Lieutenant JG Aurora Vali Chief Counselor USS Sunfire
The Sunfire’s Chief Counselor had many contributions this month, but the most noticeable was moving the plot forward in creative ways that inspired other players to take some chances.
Rookie of the Month
Lieutenant Nicole Logan Chief Security/Tactical Officer USS Washington
Lt. Logan wasted no time in getting to know her fellow crewmembers, jumping immediately into the action.
Recruitment
None this month
2022 is nearly 3/4 done. Keep the great posts coming.
What a great post that sets up things well for both the plot and character development.
MVP
Lieutenant Shoniara T’ghann-Travis Assistant Chief Medical Officer USS Washington
A heavy volume of deep and detailed posts throughout the month. She collaborated with others to paint vivid portraits to advance the plot and generate enthusiasm with the rest of the crew.
Most Posts
Lieutenant Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell Computer Systems Specialist USS Sunfire
Congratulations to those who won some real prizes at our annual gift drawing earlier this month. Here’s the first group to place their names on the big wheel for next year…
Best Post (Single Author)
Commander Samantha Howard Chief Medical Officer USS Washington
Writing for doctors can be difficult, without constantly employing a deus ex machina to solve a problem. Spending time writing about the thinking process and coming up with a creative solution is sometimes the best kind of medical post. Love this one!
Best Post (Joint Post)
Capt. Rhenora Kaylen & Lt. Cmdr. Dean House & Lt. Ashlesha 4827/A & Ens. Kitiuas Thenis CO / 2O / COO / SO USS Sunfire
This is a very interesting subject, not seen often in Trek posts, which kept me engaged. Well written, seamless even though multiple folks contributed, and just the right mix of personal interactions with technical jargon. Well done!
Funniest Post
Lieutenant Nerex Flight Control Chief USS Eminence
Unexpected, yes, and a perfect way to get the crew going.
MVP
Lieutenant JG Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok Flight Control Officer USS Wayfarer
Lt. jg. Luna has really developed her character in a short amount of time. She expertly writes the clash of the Human/Klingon slides while easily incorporating it into the mission with the rest of the crew. A great teammate!
Most Posts
Lieutenant Anna Thesia Chief Medical Officer USS Sunfire
For writing 10 posts.
Most Improved
Lieutenant Ashlesha 4827/A Chief Operations Officer USS Sunfire
Still relatively new to the Sunfire, Lt. Ashlesha continues to involve herself in all matters of the mission and consistently offers great ideas and well written posts. She is also super easy to work with, which is always a plus.
Rookie of the Month
None this month
Recruitment
None this month
It’s hard to believe this crazy group we call IDF has now been around for 21 whole years. Here’s to 21 more!
It’s going to be near impossible to top last year’s Day of Trivia, Webcast, and special edition Message & Almanac. And that’s for good reason: 20th anniversaries are a big deal in role playing! But 21st birthdays are important too. Indeed, if Independence Fleet (IDF) was a humanoid (living in the United States), the 21st would be even more important. I’m quickly getting off track…
What did we decide to do? For our 21 years together, here are 21 facts about IDF, Star Trek and/or other topics that might change your perception of time. Modeled after two articles from Buzzfeed (here and here), we hope you enjoy the list.
But before we do that, here is a special message for this year’s anniversary:
IDF’s launch (July 4, 2001) was closer to the release of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (June 4, 1982) than it is to today: 19 years, 1 month vs. 21 years.
Ditto for the North America release of the Nintendo Entertainment System (October 18, 1985): 15 years, 8 months, 16 days.
And for the release of Windows 1.0 (November 20, 1985): 15 years, 7 months, 14 days.
And also for the release of the world’s very first website (December 20, 1990): 10 years, 6 months, 14 days.
The time from IDF’s launch on Angelfire to the registry of its first URL (July 4, 2001 – February 26, 2005) was longer than the entire run of Star Trek: The Original Series (September 8, 1966 – June 3, 1969): 3 years, 7 months, 22 days vs. 2 years, 8 months, 26 days.
The time from the registry of IDF’s first URL to officially moving to its current URL (February 26, 2005 – February 29, 2020) was longer than the entire run of the TNG/DSN/VOY television series era from the premiere of Star Trek: The Next Generation to the finale of Star Trek: Voyager (September 8, 1987 – May 23, 2001): 15 years, 3 days vs. 13 years, 7 months, 25 days.
The time from moving to IDF’s current URL to today (2 years, 4 months, 5 days) is shorter than all but three periods between Star Trek movies: The Wrath of Khan to The Search for Spock (1 year, 11 months, 28 days), Generations to First Contact (2 years, 4 days), and First Contact to Insurrection (2 years, 19 days).
However, it’s longer than the time from Utopia Fleet’s founding (April 7, 1999) to IDF’s founding: 2 years, 2 months, 27 days.
Utopia Fleet’s founding was closer to the North America release of the Atari 2600 (September 11, 1977) than it is to today: 21 years, 6 months, 27 days vs. 23 years, 2 months, 27 days.
Ditto for the release of the original Star Wars movie (May 25, 1977): 21 years, 10 months, 13 days.
The time from the launch of the original USS Sunfire NCC-3935 (February 16, 2000) to IDF’s launch was longer than the entire run of Star Trek: The Animated Series (September 8, 1973 – October 12, 1974): 1 year, 4 months, 18 days vs. 1 year, 1 month, 4 days
The launch of the award-winning USS Sunfire NCC-3001-D (October 10, 2010) was closer to IDF’s founding than it is to today: 9 years, 3 months, 6 days vs. 11 years, 8 months, 24 days.
The launch of the USS Chuck Norris NCC-4005 (January 2, 2012) was closer to the first Chuck Norris facts appearing on the Internet (sometime in early 2005) than it is to today: ~7 years vs. 10 years, 6 months, 2 days.
IDF is older than the iPod (October 23, 2001),
Facebook (February 4, 2004),
YouTube (February 14, 2005),
the Microsoft Xbox (November 15, 2001),
commercially available Blu-ray Discs (June 20, 2006),
and NBA All-Star LaMelo Ball (August 22, 2001).
At IDF’s launch, Tom Brady had zero Super Bowl rings. In fact, he had only completed 1 NFL pass.
The time from IDF’s launch to today is longer than the time from The Original Series finale to The Next Generation premiere (June 3, 1969 – September 28, 1987): 21 years vs. 18 years, 3 months, 25 days.
And for a bonus, something to look forward to next year: On our 22nd Anniversary, we will be further removed from the premiere of the 2009 Star Trek film (May 8, 2009) than IDF’s launch was from the premiere of The Next Generation (September 28, 1987): 14 years, 1 month, 26 days vs. 13 years, 9 months, 6 days.
Until then, let’s keep role playing!
Oh, I almost forgot: We have another video message for this year:
Ahh, classic genesis post, distress calls are the best!
MVP
Lieutenant JG Patra Rommel Structural/Environmental Specialist USS Wayfarer
Since joining as a non-senior staff in Engineering, Rommel has done a fantastic job of getting onto the ship and story and finding things to do in the field.
Most Posts
Lieutenant Anna Thesia Chief Medical Officer USS Sunfire
For writing 7 posts.
Most Improved
Lieutenant Thriss Kla’ren Chief Engineering Officer USS Sunfire
The Sunfire’s Chief Engineer has really stepped up the past month, encouraging other players to work on joint posts and moving the story along nicely.
The Washington’s new Intelligence Officer joined late in the month, but still managed to post and have an immediate impact to the current mission that was already well developed, showing that she will be a great addition to the crew.
Recruitment
None this month
Congratulations again and have a great summer of role playing!
A wonderfully crafted post inside the mind of the character.
Best Post (Joint Post)
Capt. Akeno Misaki & Lt. Cmdr. Jonathan Miller & Lt. Ileah & Lt. Torvin Anor & Lt. Raelyn Mckenzie & Lt. Rania Bhatti & Lt. Mark Johnson & Ens. Magnum Rhodes CO / XO / Yeoman / CEO / CSTO / CC / CMO / FCO USS Wayfarer
I love this post! It’s very well integrated and an exciting atmospheric entry and landing.
Funniest Post
Lt. Ayana Hillis & Lt. Deanna Celes & Cmdr. Jonathan Grayson & Cmdr. Samantha Howard & Lt. Aiko Kato & Lt. Shoniara T’ghann-Travis & PO1 Class Amethyst Reece TO / OO / XO / CMO / FCO / ACMO / CA USS Washington
Lt. Kato wins for the second month in a row and the fifth time in six months–incredible! This is a lovely post, with vivid descriptions of both emotion and the environment. Well done!
Best Post (Joint Post)
Lt. Cmdr. Michael Murphy & Capt. Jackson Adams & Lt. Seth Munro & Lt. T’Ponga Shemara CRO / CO / CMO / CEO USS Montana
Short and sweet, allowing the crew to do the writing. I like it!
MVP
Lieutenant Raelyn Mckenzie Chief Security/Tactical Officer USS Wayfarer
Lt. Mckenzie really stepped up into the Second Officer spot. She is always quick to participate, offer suggestions, and help others by opening up opportunities for fellow writers.
Most Posts
Commander Finchley Kerr Chief Strategic Operations Officer USS Sunfire
For writing 15 posts.
Most Improved
Lieutenant Niali Korial Chief Medical Officer USS Sunfire
Lt. Korial’s writing has advanced to the point where she’s one of the top contributors to the sim. Her posts are always imaginative and open doors for others.
Rookie of the Month
Lieutenant Seth Munro Chief Medical Officer USS Montana
The Montana’s new CMO hit the group running. His posts are funny, interesing, and revelant all at the same time.
Recruitment
Lt. Cmdr. Dean House and Lt. Cmdr. Sandra “Phantom” Risa XO / ACEO USS Sunfire
Each player recruited a new member to the Sunfire. Excellent work!
