Army folks who are participating in the Navy story "Surprise: The Vast Empire Strikes Back" (found here), please use this thread for OOC instructions/discussion.  And a friendly reminder: we are psyched to collaborate with you, but your priority should remain regular Army stories: this is "extra" fun! 

Thank you for your interest, everyone.  Here are the ground rules for participation in what is going to remain an official Navy story:

1. Your Army/squad stories come first, as does the HSC; this is a volunteer, if-you-have-extra-time opportunity, and shouldn't take the place of your work for the Corps.

2. If you participate, and you're active duty Army, you'll need to create an NPC for this story - a member of the special squad assembled for this mission (Dread Squad, unless that's totally unpopular with you all).  Feel free to post abbreviated bios of these NPCs here in this thread for your fellow writers to peruse.

3. I only need a half-dozen or so folks for this experiment in interdivisional writing, and again, I request that you be able to balance this extra story with your own divisional responsibilities.

4. There will be an initial, one-week-long window for Army folks to post to the Navy story board, opened specifically for people to post to this Surprise story.  That is for this first boarding action, where you're detaining the crew of the New Republic freighter Salvation.  There's something of value aboard, which should be fun to play with as a concept, but don't get too elaborate: this first combat is meant to be a proof-of-concept for the story more than a huge plot twist.  If we do this well, there will likely be other windows for posting when we get to the later boarding/counter-boarding actions.

Everything clear?  Make an NPC, stun some New Republic merchant mariner types, find some valuable intel, and get out, while proving you can balance something extracurricular with your regular Army posting, and can respect the story board of your sibling division. 

I'll go ahead and view the posting of an NPC bio here as an indication you're on board with the above, and whoever is most senior of the participants will have the command of the squad.  One other thing: Jegora has graciously indicated that - again, with the caveat that your regular Army posting comes first - your activity in this Surprise story WILL count as official Army activity, considered for promos and shinies. 

Next time, we'll get something going in the StoryNet, and I'm not averse to making cameos in official Army stories, either.    Happy writing, all!

-Trick

Quote:whoever is most senior of the participants will have the command of the squad. 

Yup, got it.    So, yeah folks, post a bio here for an NPC, and then I suppose a name suggestion for the squad if you feel passionately about it, and then once we have a team and it's clear who's senior, we'll get you in the story!

Here's my go-to NPC (at least from here on out lol), this is probably insanely more detailed than it needs to be for this story, but I've had this ready to use in post-HSC stories for a week or so now.

Also Guys lets not forget our guys need a rank, so lets say SL and ASL can be SGM-->SSG, all troopers are SGT or below. I'll say for my NPC this is early in her career and she will be a LCP (I"m so not the SL <3 to Gar and Skarr lol)


Temia 'Jack' Jacaranda

Background:

Born on board the Hedon, a large pleasure vessel operated by her family. Her parents were gamblers themselves, and often spent any money they earned from the ship in the large casino onboard. At first she enjoyed spending time around the bar and sabbacc table, but as Temia got older the severity of their financial situation became apparent to her. The people who she spoke to from a very young age gave her an education in liquor, games, and survival that she still uses to this day.

When Temia, or Jack as the regulars had started calling her, was seventeen a meeting was held by all the senior members of the Jacaranda family. Her grandparents were getting older and they needed someone to step up and take over complete operations for the Hedon. Grevor, Jack's father, felt he should be the one in charge as the eldest child. His family disagreed. Grevor had millions of credits in outstanding debt already and that was with some measure of throttling from his father. Grevor's wife, Tilda, did nothing at all to stop him from gambling and boozing, in fact she indulged his vices.

After the meeting Grevor got exceptionally drunk, grabbed his wife and - based on on lookers accounts - dragged her to one of his personal transports and took off. Jack woke the next morning to an empty apartment and a knock at the door. Her uncle, Theo, was there. He told her that Grevor and Tilda had left and they hadn't been able to raise them on comms. Jack stayed in the apartment and waited, days turned to weeks that turned to a year. She wasn't privy to what had been said in the meeting, only that her father had not been given control of the Hedon.

Eighteen now, Jack decided it was time to stop waiting and move on. Before she could her uncle asked her for one more favor. Jack had been working in the casino and as a bartender to make some credits, she had even managed to pay off some of her parents debts and buy back at least one of their ships they had used as collateral on a bet. The vessel, she renamed the Reborn Grace, was a small ship and had room for cargo yet only needed one person to pilot it.

Jack spent time in spaceports and other planets she had only heard of. Being on planet seemed wrong somehow to the girl that had grown up on a large cruise liner in space. The vibration below her feet wasn't there any more and gravity felt too strong against her back. She never stayed in any one place too long and found that the only job she did well was assisting others in spending money and engaging vices. She hated how many faces she saw hoping they would be her mother and father, but were only other gamblers from other worlds.

Theo called her one day on board the Reborn Grace, he needed her for a large booking they had in the outer rim. She returned to find out the booking was an officers ball for members of something called the Vast Empire. Jack spoke to several of the members that night, serving drinks and directing them to gaming tables. The thought of joining a military seemed like the worst idea she could ever have yet somehow she found herself considering it for the first time. It was a way to escape the life her parents had abandoned her in. So at the age of twenty one, Jack left the Hedon and went in search of a planet called Tadath.

Personality:

Jack is not someone to be messed with. She comes off as a pleasant young lady but if she needs to defend herself she can. She doesn't trust men, her father's drunken behavior would have been enough for her but the number of men that attempted to get into her pants at bars and casinos cemented that unease. Jack can take orders but will have an opinion and stand up for that opinion up until the last moment. Jack is good with people, but not as good with repairing things when they break, she would rather just purchase something new than attempt to fix it herself.

Trent "Lightning" Durrant,
Stormtrooper, Private First Class
== General Information==
Homeworld: N/A (Born on a space station in deep space)
Age: 33
Species: Human
Native Language: Basic
Gender: Male
Skin Color: Tan
Height: 87 kg
Weight: 1.87 Meters
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Blue

== Background History ==
Planva Matra was born to pirates. Due to a shortage of space-fighting capable craft, the pirates had recently adopted a more boarding focused mission style. After proving his exceptional skill, he was given command over a small elite squad of 6 (including himself). Here he personally lead the captures of 23 ships. The 24th was to be his turning point. In a dangerous gamble for a contraband ship, his squad, plus thirteen regular squads (which contained 16 pirates each), was deployed to attack a Victory Star Destroyer, under the control of Vast Empire and Captain Barrac. To the misfortune of the pirates, the Victory Star Destroyer was transporting 6 platoons of stormtroopers to the stormtrooper's next destination. The normal pirate squads were easily overwhelmed by the entrenched stormtroopers. Under this confusion Planva's squad was able to escape into the maintenance shafts through unknown means. After approximatly ten hours the squad was lured into an emptied detention block. Here they were trapped by the various lockdown means. Captain Barrac, noticing their skill and after gaining approval from his surperiors, offered them a choice. They could either be trained as marines and serve the Vast Empire for a period of 10 years after which they would be given a normal trooper retirement or die in the detention block. They all unhesitatingly took the offer. Under the exact final details of agreement, each was required to take a new name. Planva Matra became Trent Durrant, taking the callsign "Lightning". From here he deticated himself to the Vast Empire, quickly learning the various courses offered to him. He is now in his ninth year with the Vast Empire Navy.

    == Character's Personality ==
*Although he is usually quiet, he is extremely talkative if having fun or nervous. To friends, he can be extremely talkative.
*He is a semi-perfectionist. If he wants something done perfectly, he'll do it that way, but if he doesn't care, well, he doesn't care. 
*He prefers not to be noticed until he has clear advantage over anyone who he does not know, or does not trust..
*He does not hesitate to lie and steal if it will give him a crucial benfit.
*He is also very good at running rough estimates in his head but requires a writing medium for exact information
*He often uses jokes and sarcastic remarks to verbally attack inferior people. However, this is not to be confused with when he uses them to have fun with closer friends.

==Specs.==
P1
-3.1
-4.1
-6.1
-A9
-A16
1.2
A5
A10
A1
5.1
5.2

OOC:

Ones marked with a '-' are covered under the above unmarked spec.

Here are a few from myself:

Terror
Jolt
Fear
Panic
Tremor
Fright
Dread
Tremble
Fright
Despair
Quake
Startle
Scare
Petrify
Deter

OOC:

Feel free to take different forms of the above words. I reduced it, in order to condense to save space.

Figured I'd might as well drag him back from the graveyard for this.

SGT Jori Lekrif

Homeworld: Iridonia
Age: 27
Species: Zabrak
Gender: Male
Skin Color: Light Tan
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 140 lbs.
Hair Color: Brown
Eye Color: Red, with specks of green

Background

Jori's early life is wrapped in mystery and intrigue, relatively unknown outside of the little he has shared. What is known is that he was orphaned at an early age and grew up on the streets of Iridonia. It was here that he learned many of the basic rules of survival that carried him into adulthood. Gradually, his life began to improve as luck seemed to favor him. Despite this, he still had nowhere to go. His family was gone, his home was gone. All he knew was life on the streets. Resentment began to build up as he realized this, leading him to seek any way off planet and, hopefully, onto a better life.

It happened on a day just like any other. He was prowling the streets, looking for ideal targets to pickpocket, when he glimpsed a strange sight out of the corner of his eye. In the doorway of a nearby store stood an armored figure, his helmet under his arm. All thoughts about pickpocketing vanished and Jori wandered over. Somehow, he knew that this was his chance and he approached the man as he left the store. A few weeks later and Jori was enlisted and was on his way to the Stormtrooper Academy.

He was a successful recruit. He exceeded expectations in many things, propelling him to the top of his class. However, there was one slight problem. He was used to being independent, and would react harshly to many orders that he viewed as being forced upon him. Still, he made progress in this matter and it was not long before he had graduated and placed in a squad.

Personality
Jori is quiet and reserved, preferring not to attract attention to himself and remain in the figurative shadows. Due to his life on the streets, he is incredibly mistrusting of others, but skillfully hides it. While quick-witted, he does not typically allow much of a chance for it to show. He is prone to avoiding confrontations, preferring flight over fight.

Are you calling me a senior citizen, hold still I'm going to whap you with my cane.

Yes yes, I'm an officer. Do with me what you like I can change the rank but Garryll and Skarr are more than capable of being in charge.


/me hands Tviana a potted plant for comfort on the cold star ship.

Hmm... Well.... I love EC activities... Why not?

Sergeant Lieu Monfam

Homeworld: Naboo
Age: 21
Species: Human
Gender: Male
Skin Color:
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 190 lbs.
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Grey

Background
Lieu doesn't know of a time his family wasn't in the Naboo Security Forces. Heck, every member of his father's squad was like family to him, and treated him such. When he got to be 18, however, the local Imperial recruiter caught his attention with stories of adventure and making oneself in the ranks of the Stormtrooper Corps. He was going to be the best soldier out there and take on the Republic by himself

Three years of hard reality changed him. Seeing acadamy buddies die in the line of duty, poor commanders, the whole shitload of problems that people could dream up were thrown at him. Now he just yearns for a ticket out. Problem is, he doesn't know anything more than killing. He's one of the better troopers out there. He joined up with Dread Squad to try and get a desk job from Moor, who might know of an open position.

Personality
Lieu was once very arrogant, but now is a grim soldier, very pessimistic about things. He will fight when it is needed or when ordered to, but that doesn't mean he will like it. He sees each mission as his last, but it never ends up like that. Kind of like Sarge in BFBC2, but more meloncholy

OOC:

Will develope more tomorrow.

Standard Stormtrooper gear: E-11s (with stun feature), standard Stormie armor, pistols, etc. No personal weapons. Get by on standard gear for this one.

Name: Troy "Horse" Grecus
Rank: Corporal
Species: Human
Gender: Male
Home world: Corasaunt
Age: 32
Hair: Shaved
Eye color: Brown
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 239lbs
Native Language: Basic
Tattoos: red horse head on side of neck
Scars: one over his right eye.
Cybernetics: Right eye

Background History:
    Troy was born in the middle class of Corasaunt. His parents, Natalie and Jorn Grecus, had enough money to live in comfort. He was spoon fed imperial idealism since he was able to understand. When he was twelve his father bought him his first blaster and tought him to shoot it. Growing into his mid teens, he was sent off planet to his uncle's home on a forest planet he never bothered to remember the name of. Knowing he was sent there to protect him from the civil war.
    He tried to use his time in mostly solitude to hone his body and mind. Spending days alone in the forest surrounding the home, he survived without aid. A few years later, Troy's uncle approached him to tell him grave news. His parents had be killed during an attack on an imperial station. Grief struck him like a mallet and caused him to head out into the forest with only a weeks supply of food and his blaster. After a few months he returned. Once he heard of the the Empire's fall, he looked for those that would help him gain revenge against the New Republic.

Personality: Horse is a hardened veteran. Never would disobey an order unless he felt strongly against it. Is know to throw himself into the line of fire to protect those of a lesser rank or age as they are the future of the VE.

Glad to see you all ready, and loving the clear chain of command; thanks, Hav, for taking charge a bit.  My confidence with all things Navy far outstrips my knowledge about how y'all do things.  There's a New Year's resolution in there somewhere...

I sent the last PM to the Naval powers-that-be: the restriction on the Navy Story Board for Navy personnel only should be lifted shortly, and then you'll have a solid week to post to the tale before we reevaluate and possibly extend.  Remember, no need to be outrageous or showy with this first action: we're building toward bigger things in-story, and proving OOC that this collaboration is all pros, and no cons. 

Sorry his bio's so long, got carried away... >.>

Name: Dorian “Scratch” Sauls
Home World: Oorn Tchis
Rank: CPL
Age: 30
Hair: Black, cut short
Eyes: Light Brown
Skin: Tanned Leather
Distiguishing Features: Missing patch of hair from a pistol whip early in his career, whiskey on his breath, and a burnt in scar across his right cheek.

Biography                                                     
Dorian was born in a remote, rural community on the remote, rural planet of Oorn Tchis. As the oldest child, he was to inherit the farm, and he was taught everything his parents did for their farm to function; it could be said he was born with a plow in one hand and a loom in the other. The land in question was 2 colorful acres of plants, harvested in the week of the Autumnal Solstice, due to the even greater color variation brought on by the change in the seasons, and planted the day after the last bit of frost melted into the ground.

When his twin brothers came at the age of six, his role as the family child was over, and he was taught all his parents knew about taking care of the farm. It was his duty to learn how to get the bantha to pull the plow straight and true; to spread the seeds even and keep the crop straight in their rows; and to chop the plants low to the ground to make the stalks as long as possible. Inside their modest shack, his mother taught him what to do with the harvest. He learned to soak the stalks in a base bath overnight to separate the threads of the plant to use them as such, and to work the loom in such a manner as to make long and flawless bolts of cloth.  The least fun he had with the estate chores though had to be handling the money; exporting the colorful fabric to the closest town to go off-planet and to get the best price wherever it traveled was tedious work he didn’t feel suited to.

It wasn’t all bad, though; his fondest memories, in fact, were of running through those chromatic crops, hues of red, green, orange and brown surrounding him and flying past in a pastel swirl while his brothers giggled and whistled with the stalks in the wind. It seemed his future was set, and he was happy with his lot in life. Alas, it was not to last, and it came to a rather abrupt end at the same time as his last harvest at the age of eighteen.

The week was long, and the harvest was good. The bantha were in the stable, the batches were soaking, and the day was accompanied by a long hard rain. Three days’ worth of water fell, and the topsoil ran thick without living roots keeping it anchored. No one thought much of it, though, as there was plenty of work to be done inside. Once the rain stopped and the mud settled, there was something odd to be found. Large rocks were unearthed, bright and metallic in the morning sunlight. Dorian’s father was furious, as they weren’t easily moved. In fact, the bantha all together couldn’t move a few of them an inch. Help was asked for from town, and was received posthaste. One of the helpers was from offworld origins, though, and recognized the metal for what it was: a rare ore used for navigation equipment. He investigated it further, and it seemed it was rarer than he’d thought, as the sample he’d brought with him gained him a hefty sum of money in exchange for it and the location of its origins.

While the local government refused the appraising company rights to the property, the geographical surveys they performed afterward found a very large vein of the ore just below the farm. The Sauls land, and the farmlands surrounding it, were annexed; for the property, Dorian’s family received a bit of money, just enough to buy a field half the size of the family lands. They tried their luck there the coming Spring, but it was no good; the soil wasn’t fertile, and their yields were a quarter of the year before, and not nearly as good a quality. Their contacts were discouraged, and so was the family. Winter was bitter, and the family came out of it in debt.

Dorian decided that the best way to support his family was to join the Corps. He located the town recruiter, and signed up that Summer. At first he was taken by the dazzle of the stormtroopers, and felt pride in being among their ranks. He applied himself in every aspect in training, and graduated as a Lance Corporal. The muse eventually wore off, though. He became a sergeant, and around the same time saw one of his comrades die. A good friend, he was shot during an investigation into smuggling aboard a merchant vessel. He fell into a depression, and he never completely regained his confidence. Due to this, he was demoted, and has not been promoted since. He has grown to dislike the military, but stays with it to support his family and himself at the same time.

Personality                     
Cynical and sarcastic, he doesn’t engage in friendly conversation but is a lover of banter. He isn’t very outgoing, and prefers to keep his own counsel. He follows orders in such a manner as to keep himself out of danger and doing just enough to keep brass off his back. He doesn’t like to boast or tell stories, either, even though he has plenty of stories to tell from his long military career. He isn’t the best trooper, or even pretends to be; but then, the best ones died before him.

Great posts Dread Squad!  Keep 'em comin'! 

Something new to play with, Dread Squad: we've picked up a massive build-up of energy aboard the freighter.  Either they've rigged their reactor to blow (possibly to prevent us getting our hands on some piece of cargo or intel or an important passenger), or else they've got some new weapon aboard.  Figure it out, but do it quickly: the ship's command staff have ordered a general withdrawal.  Have fun.