In last week's meeting I said I'd make a post on Comnet to gather opinions on what could be done to improve acitvity in the Navy, as well as generally improve it, etc.

Well, here's that post. What do YOU think we, as a group, or I as an individual could do to improve the current state of the Navy.
 
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Rear Admiral Japheth Cappadocious, Krath Templar
Naval Commander in Chief, Captain of the mSSD Atrus
Headmaster of the Dark Jedi Order Academy
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NCC/RAD Japheth Cappadocious/NHC-1/Raptor 1/mSSD Atrus/DEF/VEN/VE/(=MA=)(=SCPA=)(=FCO=)[BRC][LSM][MC:1][KC:OC]
HM/KT Japheth Cappadocious/DC-3/Krath Order/Elite Griffen Sect/VEDJ/VE

Some inspiration from above would be nice. It's a great idea getting all the Navy members to contribute suggestions, but it's down to the person in charge to enact things, and give things a kick when they need it.

Look at Chapter 8. What it needs most is a new set of orders. We're sitting there just after Moorja, and no one but the HC knows where we're supposed to be going with this.

Lead from the front.
 
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Ramon Stonefish

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/me taps at the rust on his mission making skills

Yup still there.

Face it we're probably not going to get a whole lot of help from LEC and the Jump To Lightspeed expansion for SWG.

I can see about knocking rust off my skills to make missions to at least bring more replay value back to those old games and maybe get people interested in playing them again.  I know not many people actually want that but if it helps I will do it.

I'm getting over being burnt out writting wise again so if we get something going again I can probably add my creative flair.

Supporting new games may be a long term neccessity.  For the large part LEC just does not seem willing or able to put out games that will help us rather then hurt us.
 
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Kuroishi Wraith VEA
Daishi Raptor VEN
Assistant Writer Why Project Copyright Infringment
Ich bin hessliche amerikaner.
Nehmen mir zu dein frauen von vernunftig preis tugendhafte.
"And the sound of many heads hitting many solid objects was heard throughout the land." me

A thought came to me while i was watching the trailer to the new Star Wars Battlefront game. I was thinking that, why doesnt the Navy add that game as one of its own. You might be thinking "well its ground based." While it is mainly ground based fighthing, there are air units. So if the navy accepted that as its game, Navy memebers could only be pilots and fly fighters. Its a long shot but it could help activity and it could be a place to get recruits.
 
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*DarkDragoons*
+ Advance Recon Commandos {ARC} +
"Only Trust your Allies as much as you can Predict your Enemies."
"Do you expect me to talk?" "No Mr. Bond, i expect you to die."
"Luke, I am your Fasha."
To Nom Anor, a truly superior Yuuzhan Vong.

Flights simulaters seem to be a thing of the past unless you have a gamecube, but they don't have those games on the internet for some reason...  Maybe I should try to figure out this whole 'game creator' thing on Blender...  I could attempt to creat some kind of game...  It would take me some time mind you...! 

Realistic Ideas, I would have to agree with FA that when people get active it's a chain reaction...  You need a boost of activity, interesting topics or lack there of to make or break this Navy...  So I say that we find something that we can just use as a "main topic' other than the stories and continuing gaming crisis we have...  There's got to be something around here that is of interest...  Maybe RPG...  But the only problem with that is I have no idea how to RPG so I have no idea how to promote such an idea... 
 
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*Flash Was Here...*
My Real Bebop: (=A=)

I believe one thing the Navy needs is more of an active role in the Chapters.  I know right now they have great potential of becoming active with the whole Bestine conflict.

Maybe HC can send them out on seperate missions to expand the power of the VE.
 
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TRP/LCPL Anubis Benor/4SQD/1PLT/1COMP/1BAT/1RGT/VEA/VE
Wraith Squad
Vast Empire Army

/me whistles innocently

Riiiiight.  Orders.  Mmmhmm.  My navy character had those when he decided to basicly use his rank to hijack the offensive fleet and help the army out like the navy should have been doing.

There is no reason the navy cannot keep up in terms of quality of posts, but the army has the navy beat in quantity.
 
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Kuroishi Wraith VEA
Daishi Raptor VEN
Assistant Writer Why Project Copyright Infringment
Ich bin hessliche amerikaner.
Nehmen mir zu dein frauen von vernunftig preis tugendhafte.
"And the sound of many heads hitting many solid objects was heard throughout the land." me

Man, this place is dead.
I have an idea of how to improve the Navy - put me back on active duty and let me kick some butt.

You, too. How's it going? I didn't realize you were still around, 'cause I didn't see you on any of the rosters. Do you still get on IRC any? Maybe I will have to make an appearance...

In order for the navy to survive we need some serious restructuring.  I said this last time we had this thread and I'll repeat it now, the old way is no longer sustainable.  We have a choice, we can try and keep it and hope to hell we get something going, which is highly unlike, or we go move on and start to rethink our gaming platforms, our structure, and our very role in VE.

I am going to address gaming, writing, and structure all seperately since I think we can make changes in each of them.

Gaming:

We all know, the old platforms are dead.  Lucasarts doesn't appear to really be serious about making a XWA 2 or a Tie Fighter 2 so its time to move out of the star wars realm.  I personally think we have potential to recruit in realistic flight simulator games, by that I mean games that have nothing to do with star wars but are flight simulators.  We need to stop being star wars pureists, and for that matter space purists, and expand our horizons.  I recommend something like IL2 for example.  There are a couple of other new ones apparently coming out so I can let ya know as they do.  I agree with Rema, we should make battlefront a game for us as it does involve flying.  It'd also allow for some interresting relationships with the army, working together in games against other groups or in inter-VE games.  It would at least potentially reinforce the fact to some of VE that we actually are a real division that does stuff, not a section with random names on the site's roster.

Writing:

I don't know about the rest of you but after many missions of the same old ideas, space combat gets dull.  In fact it gets very dull.  It gets tedious to write and a bit repetitive to read.  There are only so many things you can do in a fighter in space.  Space doesn't have much in the way of terrain, in it's variance of weapons (we always use the same fighter), or in its variance of enemies (I probably couldnt use all my fingers counting the number of different enemy ships we've fought lately.)  I have two options to help bring back some novelty and excitement into navy writing.  Both of them are similar but with important differences.

1. Make the navy into two squads, one for space combat and superiority, one for ground support.  Get us out of the TIEs and into ships better suited for atmosphere combat but capable of going into space.  I picture some sort of space variance of the snow speeder for example, hell if there isnt a good imperial craft for this make one up, plenty of fighters get invented all the time for writing and RPGs.  We can allow people to choose which squad they'd rather be in and let them go from there.

2. Refocus our writing with an emphasis on ground operations, throw in the occasional space superiority mission to cheer up those who perfer the old writing style.  This will lead sort of into my structure changes.  I think the navy should change into a subdivision of the army, a marine division.  Their primary mission is using modified atmospheric fighters to help the army, they will also be trained in survival behind enemy lines if they are shot down, and some special ground combat functions.  Make it sort of a flight/special forces idea.  I mean ultimately we could disband the navy and create such a specialty squad in the army but I dont think any of us want to see that, hell I sure as hell dont want that to happen.

Structure Changes:

This is going to sound a bit drastic but I think we need to throw the entire navy structure out the window and re-create us entirely as a marine division.  Ultimately we can keep navy ranks for the ship commanders, etc but other than that the pilots can all change.  The other option is to make the marines a subdivision of the navy with its own rank structure, how its done doesnt matter as much, what matters is if its done.  I can create a new rank and position structure if you wish, I have a proposal in mind.  Ultimately I think we need to completely rethink the way this division works and our role in VE.  We can continue in the old fashion and keep having these discussions which can be fun but dont actually manage to accomplish any shift from the status quo, or we can finally realize the navy as we know it is finished and we should move on to another format.  Id hate to see us just all go to the army, we can have 2 good divisions.  We just need the division to work in a new way.  And also keep in mind, as a marine division we will have much more to write about in chapters since we will be working more with other divisions, not just floating around in space destroying the same things over and over using the same tactics and the same fighter.


Ultimately I dont think simple changes or platform changes are enough.  We need to change in all three areas and recreate ourselves completely, put the navy to rest and move on with a more modern and effective approach to ensure the survival of a two division system in VE.
 
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SL/ESN_Arturus/Kaph 1-1/Phoenix Wing/M-SSD_Atrus/VE/VEN/(=a=)(=sa=)(=jcpa=)(=scpa=)[MC:1][SV][BRC][LoC]
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No...I expect to leave on some beach with absolutely no name at all while I sail away on my ship...and then Ill shout the name back to you...savvy?

Thing is most of what is suggested for a Marine division and what it would do is mostly stuff the Navy should be doing already.

For some reason they don't.

Space is big.  Go fight some rebels in an asteroid field.

Run through the rings of a planet.

Have fun in a gas nebula.

All these are things that can have drastic impacts on a story.

Fighting the same opponents in new environments can suddenly change a combat encounter.

I consider the Gunboat a rather respectable ship.  It performs well in atmospher(better then some rebel fighters because it actually has a deceant wing configuration).  It isn't too shabby in space.  In my prime I could hunt A-Wings with a bit of trouble in a Gunboat.  Of course it's rather easy to swat aside most any fighter when it's piloted by the rediculos AI.
 
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Kuroishi Wraith VEA
Daishi Raptor VEN
Assistant Writer Why Project Copyright Infringment
Ich bin hessliche amerikaner.
Nehmen mir zu dein frauen von vernunftig preis tugendhafte.
"And the sound of many heads hitting many solid objects was heard throughout the land." me

Well I called it Marines Heth but you call really call it anything.  Ultimately we wouldnt function like the real American Marines since we will be primarily in modified atmosphere combat and not in too many outright ground attacks.  We can stay out of the army's hair most of the time and provide them the support they need as they advance.  Atmospheric combat opens up all kinds of new writing possibilities and would be I think a welcome change from the same old space fighting which continues to simply get rehashed in a new form.

We need some dramatic change here, I think most of us can agree on that.  Regardless what you want to call the division, we need serious reform to make that division viable.  I have structural ideas if ppl want them, so its not like id be something completely out of the blue.  I think with a completely new gaming focus, a new writing focus, and a totally revamped division we can make what we have sustainable and possibly open the door for some real potential recruits, a door that hasnt been really open for almost 2 years.
 
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SL/ESN_Arturus/Kaph 1-1/Phoenix Wing/M-SSD_Atrus/VE/VEN/(=a=)(=sa=)(=jcpa=)(=scpa=)[MC:1][SV][BRC][LoC]
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No...I expect to leave on some beach with absolutely no name at all while I sail away on my ship...and then Ill shout the name back to you...savvy?

Hmm, I was going through the old posts here.  Almost exactly a year ago, we had this same debate.  Thread is called September 14th report.  Some different faces, different games mentionned.  But same arguments, and everyone who was there then has the same position today.

That begs the question, did that year of doing nothing do any good?...Answer is obviously no.  The status quo wont work.  I for one dont want to debate this same thing again a year from now.

I proposed a meeting with all the navy and the VEHC in order to try and hammer out at least some sort of position or new argreement that we could all live with and move forward on.  Ill propose it again and see what ppl think.
 
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SL/ESN_Arturus/Kaph 1-1/Phoenix Wing/M-SSD_Atrus/VE/VEN/(=a=)(=sa=)(=jcpa=)(=scpa=)[MC:1][SV][BRC][LoC]
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No...I expect to leave on some beach with absolutely no name at all while I sail away on my ship...and then Ill shout the name back to you...savvy?

Well then only the ones really interrested show up.  I mean ultimately we should be able to collectively state our positions and come up with a statement of principals, an agenda for another conference, or some sort of resolution to begin restructuring.
 
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SL/ESN_Arturus/Kaph 1-1/Phoenix Wing/M-SSD_Atrus/VE/VEN/(=a=)(=sa=)(=jcpa=)(=scpa=)[MC:1][SV][BRC][LoC]
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No...I expect to leave on some beach with absolutely no name at all while I sail away on my ship...and then Ill shout the name back to you...savvy?

Get some assigned recruiters and recruit.
 
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Cleric "Cosmic" Vor'soth
CoT/HCL Cosmic/HCA-3/SL/3SQD/2PLT/1COMP/1BAT/Tadath/VEA/VE [OPE][OTH][OPA][EW1][CDS][IH][GS][LM][SoS][CoH][PoC][MSM][SCP][IOC][SoA]
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Cleric "Cosmic" Vor'soth
SL/KPR Cosmic/Lion 1-1/Lopen/VEDJ/VE [VP][KC1][OAK]
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