You mean "crewman number 6"?

We had one of those in the Discovery games, too, I believe... Ensign Ricky... don't know that we ever killed him off, though. Those sorts of characters are usually "shared" NPCs, though.

If you're really interested, I could use some dept heads... I don't have anyone slated for Ops, Sciences, Engineering, etc, as yet, for example and, as a Dept Head character, you do have some leeway in creating NPCs to staff your dept... even the "disposable" kind.

For those of you who may be wondering, the Marine contingent aboard Cerberus is going to be a single platoon of "gyrines"... That is three rifle sqauds consisting of three fireteams each (i.e. 36 'jarheads') plus a Platoon CO, a platoon XO, and a platoon NCO... (boy, once you get that stuff drilled into your head ya just don't forget it)...

Anyway here's kind of what the structure looks like broken down:

Command Section:

• Platoon CO - Needs to be 1st Lt or better (Lt rank is fairly standard in today's Corps as a platoon commander)
  
• Platoon XO - Should be 2nd Lt or above (someone's gotta be handy to take over in case the El Tee gets geeked, right?)
  
• "Command NCO" - Gunnery Sgt or better (preferably MSgt or 1stSgt but don't tell the Gunny I said so)
  

The Platoon - consists of three "rifle squads" comprised of three "fireteams" each. Each fireteam consists of 3 marines and a squad leader (so, technically 4 marines, but there's that MC "rule of three" that we stick to, y'know?) Traditional fireteam structure looks something like this (following the USMC mnemonic of "ready-team-fire-assist")

• "Rifleman": acts as a scout for the fireteam; called "Ready" - Rank is typically Pvt thru LCpl
  
• Team leader: also works as the grenadier; called "Team" - Rank req'd to be team leader is Cpl
  
• "Automatic Rifleman": also serves as second in command for the fireteam; called "Fire" - PFC thru Cpl, typically
  
• "Assistant Automatic Rifleman": carries extra ammo, etc; called "Assist" - Pvt-LCpl
  

((Yes, I know, there are no Automatic Rifles and/or Ammo in Trek... I'm using "modern day" terminology here, until I can figure out SF equivalents.. ))

Anyway; there you have it for what it's worth.

Fireteams can be designated as the CO (or whomever) might see fit... I've got it broken down into Alpha, Beta, and Gamma Squads at the moment and, for simplicity, have drilled down when "naming the fireteams" so, in Alpha Squad, you'll have Fireteam Alpha 1, Fireteam Alpha 2, and Fireteam Alpha 3. Beta Squad has Fireteam Beta 1, Beta 2, Beta 3... etc, etc, etc...

Semper Fi!

Incidentally what's the difference between a 'Gunnery Sergeant' and a 'Master Sergeant' (bit off topic, but I'm curious).

Hard to put too fine a point on that but, aside from paygrade and time served, it kind of boils down to to the "role" that each paygrade serves in the Corps... Let's see if this helps...

Gunnery Sergeant USMC Gunnery Sergeant (GySgt) is the seventh enlisted rank in the United States Marine Corps, just above staff sergeant and below master sergeant and first sergeant, and is a staff non-commissioned officer. It has a pay grade of E-7.

A gunnery sergeant in the infantry is typically in charge of a company-sized group of Marines, or about one hundred personnel. A U.S. Army Sergeant First Class shares the same pay grade as a Gunnery Sergeant, but not the same responsibilities.

Gunnery sergeants are commonly referred to by the informal abbreviation "gunny." This nickname is usually regarded as a title of esteem and/or cameraderie, and is generally acceptable for use in all situations except formal and ceremonial ones. Use of the term by lower-ranking personnel, however, remains at the gunnery sergeant's discretion.

Master Sergeant USMC MSgt is the eighth enlisted rank in the United States Marine Corps, just above Gunnery Sergeant, below Master Gunnery Sergeant, Sergeant Major, and Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps. It is equal in grade to First Sergeant. It is abbreviated as "MSgt." Master Sergeants in the U.S. Marine Corps provide technical leadership as occupational specialists at the E-8 level. General command leadership at this paygrade is provided by the separate rank of First Sergeant.

The Cherron needs staffing as well. The XO slot is being filled by Olan, I believe, but everything else is open.

...feel free to request your billet on the Charon, too. Two ships, two crews, twice the fun, eh?

After some pondering I've decided to report for duty, preferably as Chief of Security for Cerberus. I don't have a character concept ready and I doubt I will finish the character tonight. I'll ponder some more about that tomorrow and PM you once ready.

Be warned though, I don't know much about Trek so much of what I write might seem out of place. Most of what I know is based on what you've written so far and I hope that's enough to qualify for the job.

glad to have you! Well, *I* am, at any rate. Mean old Eol might not be.

Glad to have you aboard Skari...(no matter what Olan says about ya ) as I've said to a few other folks, hard-core, super-geek familiarity with Trek is not a necessity by any means (Olan, Brom, and myself have enough of that between the three of us that we can help out and advise on most fronts) so, if you have any questions, need some input, blahblahblah, dont think twice about asking.

Also, no need for a full service record and super huge bio right away, a concept and such are good to start... we can work the rest in between now and when the game actually takes off at full speed.

Just kidding. So I've been convinced to join, somebody help me out here. Unfortunately I know about as much about Star Trek as I do about the Military.....nada.

So, where do I start?

Glad to see that we could twist your arm.

To get started, take a look at the last post on page 1 and the first post on page 2 of this thread: there is a list of departments and positions listed there that may give you an idea of what sort of "job" your character might want. Once you've picked a department and/or narrowed down a position you might be interested in, whip up a brief "bio" (physical description, character concept, etc) and PM me or post it here. (I've posted MacTavish's "service record" on page 1 for reference -don't let it intimidate you though, you needn't get that detailed... especially right away). Once you've got that bit, we'll work with your concept and see what we can put togehter to flesh it out and make it all shiny.

Squad Sergeant James Taggart Player: Suicidolt
Current Assignment: Squad Sergeant
Gender: Male
DoB: 2352-07-11
Birthplace: IN PROGRESS
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 180lbs
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown
Bio: James was born into a rich military family. His mother was his father's CO and their marriage was very traditional. He's quite certain he heard firearms going off in the background of the video at one point, but that's an aside. He was born about 7 months later (easy math). He is an only child (need to work out a birth location). He's rebellious in the only way he knows how. Military was never a question in his family, so he is a part of it, but tradition is not James' thing. He makes a deliberate effort to fiddle with Traditions as much as possible, to the point of cussing out his subordinates on a regular basis, whether the situation would dictate such a gross overreaction or not.

His early military career as a grunt (starting at age 15, much earlier than most) was like sleepwalking. He had been a recruit his whole life with his mother and father's rules. He had regular bunk inspections since before he could walk. Entering the military was a breeze, but his bad mouth has held him back. He only just recently made Squad Sergeant, and only because one of his recent (give me a rank)s was a bit o fa potty mouth himself. They would shout back and forth for hours at the lounge on the rather dirty base where he was stationed. They argued about the way Starfleet should be run from top to bottom. It was his rapport with this (rank) that started him climbing the ranks.

James got a taste for the power and liked it. He gained a better understanding of the logic behind speaking appropriately in formal settings from (haven't got a name for the above guy yet, thinking of possibly someone on this ship) whom he has started to see as a mentor. His focus on work has improved, but it has resulted in him being a bit more short with his subordinates. He curses more down-rank than he used to and less up-rank than he used to. Still, he has a tendency to become overly focused on his assignments and get flustered when interrupted. He has breakdowns when he is unsuccessful in an assignments and usually can be found in the lounge cursing at the newest ensign while drinking Jack and Captain.

He has a long scar across his face from the middle of his forehead down under his eye to beneath his left ear. This is not as visible as it was when he first got it, but it still can be seen to those who look at his face as often as most of his PFCs do. The common rumor among his subordinates is that his head was sliced in half and that he carried his brains back to the medical crew to have them placed back in. He doesn't like to tell the real story, but will always make a point of embellishing the rumor when he's got a drink in his hand. Maybe if he stays alive long enough some of the members of this ship could hear why he has that scar.



HOW'S THAT???
- Sui

That's a fantastical starting point... as I get a chance today, I'll pull a little "this and that" togther (such as some "Skills and Rankings" that would be approproate, suggested entries to your "service record" and the like) and send them your way... Really good start, though, Sui. As I knew it would be...

for those of you who are interested, please note that we have a lot of info up (and much more coming) in the site's Trek Tools.

View the roster, that sort of thing.

I did some more pondering and this is what I figured: I'm in too many games. I'm a player in Almerin's Chakran Portal, starting a WoD game here at the Inn, and I am a part of two gaming groups outside the Inn. Too make bad things worse, things are getting more difficult at school with more assignments and upcoming exams.

I'm just not sure if I have the time to be in this Trek game, even though I would like to. The decision is not final, but I am thinking about dropping this game. I am really sorry, but I'd rather do it before I start than afterwards when I would leave things hanging.