User Tag List

Results 1 to 9 of 9

Thread: Skies - Commander Application

  1. #1
    Junior Member Skies's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Posts
    14
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)

    Skies - Commander Application

    Commander Whitelist Application
    Byond ID?
    NewSkies

    Player Name You Use Most?
    Michael 'Cutter' Koetter

    Make a list of links to all of your applications and (job)ban appeals, including whitelist and staff apps, within the last year. Also, provide "Ban reason; Verdict" beside each (job)ban link
    //showthrea...ic-Application | Synthetic Application

    Have you received any ban within the last month? How long was it and what for?
    No

    Do you understand that any player - even donors or staff members - can have their whitelist status revoked should they break our Server Rules or Roleplay Guidelines?
    Yes

    How do you view the tool of Battlefield Execution to be used? What circumstances do you think it would be necessary to BE a member of the crew? Where do you think the Battlefield Execution Mechanic Differs from regular Execution and why?
    A Commanding Officer's duty is to make certain that the USCM accomplishes it's mission, with a few casualties and loss of corporation property as possible. Keeping morale up, as well as protecting those that I can, are my concern. Battlefield execution is of course, an absolute last resort, only to be used in dire circumstances.

    Executing a marine for whatever reason, be it just or unjust, has a very strong effect on everyone's moral and the experience of that round. It is also, by no small part, a political decision. Should you execute a marine that the other marines deem to be a threat to the mission or their lives, it could put them at ease, knowing that danger is no longer behind and in front of them. It allows them to focus solely on their objective. In the same vein, executing a marine that other marines deem to have been helpful and useful could decimate moral, make them question leadership, and create problems where there might have been none. While an execution does not only rely on what the rest of the crew thinks, this should be at least considered before making a decision to execute, or battle execute.

    Battlefield execution, in my opinion, should only be used if the marine or civilian in question is causing major issues for the mission in general. If they are a detriment to the mission to a point far beyond mere incompetence, through intentional measures or even certain unintentional ones, a BE should be considered.

    Battlefield execution should be performed if:

    -The person is threatening other marine's lives (not just a small fist fight but actively shooting or otherwise being lethal)
    -The person is a major threat to the mission
    -The person is being a troll (not many great ways to word that one)
    -The person is actively plotting a mutiny

    BE would not cross my mind unless it was a serious issue that couldn't be resolved in a peaceful way or if lives were in danger (not necessarily if the marine in question is being dangerous, but holding up the mission and potentially costing us time and lives). A CO has to realize that, IC stuff aside, you are taking someone out of the round, and it is almost solely your decision to make. It is a decision that should not be taken lightly.

    I would always prefer marines to be subjected to marine and space law before being executed on the spot by me. However, should the time ever come where an execution or BE must take place, I would be the one pulling the trigger. After all, "The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword."

    How will your Commanding Officer run his/her ship? Provide a detailed explanation on how he would handle situations that might commonly occur such as, a insubordinate Req, Engineering, MP, or Command Staff
    So, I want to start by saying that taking other people's advice is a very, very good idea. It is okay to accept when you are wrong as a commander, and to take advice from your subordinates. You, as the commander, typically sit in CIC and monitor from above, as the brains of the operation. You do not, and can not possibly know everything that is going on because you are not there. Even if you are on the ground, you only know what is going on around you, and in the heat of battle you might not be able to focus on the larger picture. In any strategy or tactical game, information is the key to victory. If someone else knows something you don't listen to them. A true leader has faith in his men.

    At the same time: If you make a call over announcements, stick to it. A person who makes a thousand wrong decisions is better off than a person who makes no decisions at all. Better that everyone moves and follows one voice, one final call, than a wishy washy voice that changes his mind at the first person that openly questions it. I might make the wrong call from time to time. I might call for the marines to hold cades when I should have told them to push. I might designate LZ2 as primary LZ when LZ1 is far superior as a FOB. Making a firm mistake that everyone follows is much better than being indecisive and unsure.

    Moral is such a large part of it all. Believe in the marines, even if they don't believe in you, or themselves. Be active on the radio, be vigilant, try to commend people for doing good things and help them when they stumble. Berating someone is fine, but keep it short, to the point, explain why they are wrong for doing what they did and move on. You have to macro the station, micro when you can, but the overall operation is your objective.

    Now, for my daily CO or solo XO routine:

    -Wake up and greet command chat by 1200
    -Grab a coffee and set primary LZ, let the POs know about primary LZ by 1201
    -Make an announcement for when briefing is by 1202, usually 15-20 minutes out
    -If no SOs are present, sign in to each squad terminal and check for who has medics and engineers, as well as getting a feel for headcount of marines 1205
    -Decide squad orders, and write down on a paper in game, copy the paper, pass it out one paper to each squad terminal and keep the original on you to read aloud at briefing 1210
    -Talk to your command staff, RP with them a bit. Generally, I like to play command as a kind commander with an iron fist. The kind you could get a beer with, but when shit hits the fan, he's all business.
    -Brief by 1220 or whenever you assigned it, then dismiss the marines and from there its all touch and go

    As far as insubordinate staff in general, I try to reason with them if at all possible. Try to see their situation from their eyes, try to empathize with them. As long as nothing goes too far out of bounds (such as reasons to BE or arrest) typically words will suffice to calm people.

    Here's a scenario where things go wrong on the Almayer, and my guidance is needed: Requisitions declares themselves the independent state Cargonia and initiates the law of equivalent exchange; meaning that we must give req something before they will give us anything. This of course, causes a real issue and begins holding up the line and the preparedness of the marines for the mission in general. First marines begin complaining, then word gets to me as going about my routine. I would consider this to be a big issue, and would first contact req over comms. I would first speak to them and tell them that they are holding up the line, and might offer them to punish marines that wake up late by doing that, but not to do that to the marines that are here for the first wake up. This would be a diplomatic, peaceful way to make it so that the operation isn't completely held up at start, and req can still have their fun by berating the marines that wake up a bit late. After all, having to go do a scavenger hunt for weird things that req asks for is a bit funny, and might break the routine of the marine lives.

    Alternatively, if req disobeyed that, I would most likely give them the order to stand down. Should they not, it might be worth a red alert. I would mobilize the MPs and possibly a few marines, or the command staff, to neutralize Cargonia and return req to operational status. Order my men to only raise to the lethality: if they shoot, we shoot. If they are non-lethal, we are non-lethal. Depending on the outcome, executions may be needed to take place. Those of Cargonia that were "just following orders" may get lesser sentences.

    What do you think is the job of a Commander?
    The Commander's job is, if nothing else, to be a proper leader.

    As the CO, you are the final judgement call of every major event on the ship. You are who the men look to, and in my opinion, should be one of the most veteran and best players in CM13. While you might not necessarily understand everything about every aspect of every role, you should be very proficient is most roles. You must be able to create a proper plan, and be malleable enough to change that plan as time goes on. Plans never survive first contact with the enemy. The CO must be able to defend against armed threats both on the ground and onboard the ship, may they be assassins or PMCs without the best intentions for the USCM.

    Leadership is a difficult job, and goes far outside any other position in any other SS13 role. You might learn some things about being a doctor on a different station that you can take here, but in my experience no other station requires the amount of leadership skills as being XO or CO does here. As the commander here, if you are wanting to be a good one, you need to be the best you can be and on point at all times. I can really only do a couple rounds of XO per day, because it wears on me quickly.

    Personally I find it important that everyone has a fun time too.

    As a player what do you think could be added for Commanding Officer to benefit the role?
    Honestly, I'm fine with everything as far as command goes, I think it plays fine. However, I really want those executive cigarettes upstairs. Those neat blue ones. This probably wouldn't really benefit the role, as you could just jog down to the MP area and buy a pack.

    After thinking about this overnight, it would be nice to be able to squad monitor any marine or squad from the XO/CO's computer in the center, rather than having to run up to a SO on alphas computer and shove them out of the way so I can check if Alpha SL is doing what I told them to do. Really, anything that increases the amount of information that the CO/ XO has is incredibly helpful.

    What do you think you could contribute by being whitelisted?
    I've been involved with a handful of semi-mil sim groups and was in charge of one for a good long while. I am also ex-military, and was a 92F Petroleum Supply Specialist in the USArmy (Mom always said I'd end up pumpin' gas somewhere haha). I've basically been around military stuff for my whole life, and carried that online. I find it very thrilling to lead people to victory, and even when we lose it's still fun to RP the devastation my character might feel when losing. Leading the charge for one last stand, etc.

    In short, I feel I could act as and RP as a good leader of the USCM.

    Your story (potential topics listed below)
    USCM DOCUMENT, DDA-2514
    DOSSIER OF COMMISSIONED OFFICER O-4 OR HIGHER
    5/19/2189

    ANY ALTERATIONS OF THIS FORM RENDER IT VOID

    Commanding Officer Name: Manny Herman Ackerman (Nicknamed Mann)
    DOB: November 9th, 2150
    Place of Birth: LV-404 Vourassi Medical Department, Sector 5
    Gender: Male

    Manny 'Mann' Ackerman was born a poor, third generation colonist on LV-404. His family consisted of him, his mother and blue collar father, his younger sister, and his four older brothers. His grandparents all came from Boston, and their dialect, though thinned from passing through two generations, can still be heard in his voice.

    Ackerman originally enlisted in the USCM as an E-1 Rifleman, doing his best to prove himself, but never seeing combat for six years. Constantly working on his PT scores, learning as much as he could, and eventually proving through training simulations that he had the potential to lead, he caught the eye of his company commander. Eventually, he was transferred to the Ice Colony of Sigma VI, a moon off the gas giant RTO-059, as the newly appointed E-5 sergeant. Though an NCO, he was treated poorly as a dog of the staff sergeants and higher ranked officers, running errands and doing things far below his pay grade.

    Through matters unrelated to Ackerman, riots broke out in the mining districts, the armed protestors demanding unionization and willing to fight for it by force. Ackerman was quickly called to assist his company commander, 1SG Cain as his runner. Ackerman, having been raised around four older and larger brothers had learned to be quick on his feet, and when communications were brought down, the 1SG relied on him to transmit messages on foot across the colony. Ackerman did his duty as a sergeant and was waived to be promoted to SSG within a year.

    Ackerman spent little time as a staff sergeant however, because he was recommended by higher ups to be put through Officer Cadet School. After initial testing and physicals, he was granted access to a higher military training and put through OCS.

    From here, Ackerman spent time doing an assortment of officer positions. As an ENS, he was assigned to a rear admiral as his orderly, doing his paperwork and getting the admiral coffee. When promoted to an O-3 as a Lieutenant, he was charged with running squads in the USCM through training drills, and helped to organize them. As an O-4 Lieutenant Commander, he was assigned to oversee an entire logistics department of cargo. Finally, after a lifetime of serving the USCM, Ackerman was found eligible for training to be a full fledged O-6 Captain. Another year of schooling passed, and Ackerman was found to be worthy of Captainship, and was given his wings in May of 2188.

    THIS IS AN IMPORTANT RECORD
    SAFEGUARD IT
    Filing CL: Abby Sulyard, 5/19/2189

    Do you understand that you cannot advertise your application on any public platform for votes. Do you also understand you may not edit this application 1 hour after it has been posted?
    Yes

  2. #2
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2019
    Posts
    388
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I think once you nail down your RP high you’re better suited to be a synth. I haven’t seen you command and honestly like I said I know you can RP but you gotta prove to us you can command as well.

    Tips:

    1.Give marines reminders more. Often times I find that the best thing to do as a CO/XO is just to remind them to do stuff. Call in CAS, remind them when the next bioscan in which is every 15-20 minutes I think, tell them where contact is and what's going on thru tacmap if you want, remind them the status of MEDEVAC, etc.

    2. Use the command announcements more, you don't have to save them for anything, there's just a 60 second cooldown on them. You started getting pretty good about it near the end, so that's good.

    3. Relax a bit on the micromanagement, while you certainly weren't scrutinizing every action of the marines, you still tried to be the one giving orders while the SLs and SOs had little room to improvise or move, which, in my opinion, I think a more relaxed leadership role where you rely on the quick thinking and actions of the SOs and SLs on the ground will get you further as they both get and can react to information faster than you can in the CIC.

    -1
    Last edited by Enyonggg; 05-20-2020 at 03:59 AM.

  3. #3
    Senior Admin & Whitelist Overseer Fortelian's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2019
    Posts
    935
    Mentioned
    7 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Alright, for now I will have to give a -1, however that can very easily be changed to a +1. Here are some points I cam up with:

    1. I liked the app overall, it is late so I may have missed something, but overall it seems good.

    2. The story is a bit short. I'm not a councilor, but I can tell you that might irk some people.

    3. You need to know marine law and the standard operating procedures very well to be a good captain. Otherwise you will be reported. You're a whitelisted synthetic, so I'd assume you know this. I will however ask you some questions after my fourth point.

    4. Roleplay. The job of commanding officer is High Roleplay, so ya better treat it as such. Again, you are a whitelisted synthetic, so I think that may be able to attest to your roleplaying abilites.

    I have three questions for you:

    1. You have one military police officer. An engineer hacks into your office and kills Jones with a knife. The door being hacked notifies MPs (It is considered destruction, and notifies MPs over general comms) and so they investigate. They arrest the engineer for murder and perma him. The engineer wants an appeal. What do you do? Study marine law carefully for this.

    2. Bravo has one engineer. That engineer has broken all the briefing windows before briefing started and is yelling "Boo command! CMP is stupid!" and the MPs arrest him for Major Damage to Government Property and Disrespecting a Superior Officer. What do you do?

    And finally, in what situations would you see fit to pardon someone? This isn't a question on the application itself, but it ought to be.

    Remember. Play XO/SO and MP/CMP, you need to be well versed in command, but marine law is just as important. If you do this, a +1 is on its way.
    Last edited by Fortelian; 05-20-2020 at 04:07 AM.
    Salvador Kepplinger - President of Andorra
    LOV3 - The friendly Bean.
    Senior mentor

    Medals:
    Spoiler Spoiler:







  4. #4
    Admin Novacti's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2019
    Posts
    427
    Mentioned
    7 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Your BE answer is missing one of the most important aspects of a BE: a BE's extrajudicial, fast and dirty. You did not answer the "Where do you think the Battlefield Execution Mechanic Differs from regular Execution and why?" part of the question at all.

    "How will your Commanding Officer run his/her ship? Provide a detailed explanation on how he would handle situations that might commonly occur such as, a insubordinate Req, Engineering, MP, or Command Staff"
    Is actually a good place to show of your understanding of server rules and whatnot. Your answer's average and does not contain any information to demonstrate your understanding of the server rules and ML that you've brought in with the chance you were given.

    Your story displays your character going from E-1, doing 6 years of nothing, then suddenly getting promoted to E-5 Just because they were verbal in some virtual training. You.... Were recommended by higher ups to attend OCS..... Do you understand what if takes to get promoted from lower enlisted (NON WO) to an officer? You have to be EXTREMELY GOOD AT LEADING. You running on your feet relaying messages won't get you from Enlisted to Officer.


    Your story is lackluster, short and un-creative. Your answers to the questions are quite below-average.
    We have plenty of average CO's. Why do we need one more?
    I don't remember seeing you as XO at all, I doubt you have the required experience.
    -1
    Ex- Predator Council Senator, Mentor Manager, Discord Moderator and Moderator Trainer
    My wall of medals: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1...it?usp=sharing
    Discord: Novacti#0505

  5. #5
    Ancient Member
    Join Date
    Dec 2019
    Posts
    572
    Mentioned
    3 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Hey there guys, I spoke to Skies over on discord for a while about their CO app and what they can do to improve the perception people have of them. Skies told me they are going to be playing more XO and SL to try and show people that they know how to lead, and I will be keeping a close eye on them whenever I get them as one of my XOs or SLs. I would greatly appreciate it if you guys all give them a chance in the next few weeks to try and prove themselves.

    I have seen them roleplay and they are clearly competent at it, and I am encouraging Skies to make their CO's personality a little more 'out there' for the sake of fun. If everyone here is okay with it, I will be asking Skies to write out a more interesting story for their CO that will give them a more flavorful personality, so judge them based on what you see in the next few weeks, not what you see at this exact moment on the app. They clearly are putting the effort into it, so let's give them a chance to prove that they deserve it.

    I'll give a +1 just to show that I trust them to follow up what they have told me with the in-game performance and actions.

  6. #6
    Retired Manager Doctorprobe69's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2019
    Posts
    437
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Yeah I’m tossing this a -1 next time be sure to expand more on the BE and when you should use it as well as you failed to show how it differed from a normal execution.

    Also I found your story to not really exemplify who/how you intend to play as CO, it doesn’t show of your character to well.

    Lastly I don’t believe I have ever seen you in game or in command roles?

    So far this will be a negative vote.
    Mentor 1st Mar, 2020 - 11th Apr, 2020
    Trial Moderator 11th Apr, 2020 - 23rd Apr, 2020
    Moderator 23rd Apr, 2020 - 31st Aug, 2020
    Senior Moderator 31st Aug, 2020 - 8th Oct, 2020
    Trial Administrator 8th Oct, 2020 - 6th Nov, 2020
    Administrator 6th Nov, 2020 - 21st Feb, 2021
    Moderator Manager 21st Feb, 2021 - 11th Jul, 2021
    Administrator Manager 11th Jul, 2021 - 8th Aug, 2021



    Administrator 12th Oct, 2022 - Present

  7. #7
    Senior Member Axyinious's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Posts
    260
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    I do not need to echo others here but I will be leaving my opinion.

    Your BE answer is not complete, it has not been explained too well in regards on how BEs differs from a regular execution. We need to know if you can differ that.

    The story did not show me how your character acts or how you will play him as a CO.

    The most impactful point of my opinion is that I have never seen you before as a XO or SO. Grind these roles if you are applying for CO.

    Seek help on the #whitelist-app-help channel in the discord. My DMs are always open if you need me to proof-read your story.
    For now, it will be a NEGATIVE vote.
    I play as Viktor 'Beer' Kleiner, Matthaus and as Var'dqi Bo'ytill




    LT COL. VIKTOR KLEINER, USS LOWË'S COMMANDING OFFICER

    PROVISIONAL COMMAND OVER THE USS ALMAYER


    Ex-CO Councillor. If you have any questions regarding the whitelist, feel free to DM me.
    Discord is Axyinious#3635

  8. #8
    Junior Member Skies's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2019
    Posts
    14
    Mentioned
    0 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Withdraw my app, Ill just redo it in a month and have more than two people review it. For some reason I was given the okay to post this by two different folks. I do appreciate their review though!

    As far as you all never seeing me in command roles, I honestly don't know what to say. I play XO between two characters: under Michael 'Cutter' Koetter and Manny 'Mann' Ackerman. I play SL here and there, I play SO often. Ill try to be on more often during my small amount of time off. I have been on SS13 CM for nearly three years now, I have plenty of experience in all forms of command.

    For my story, I didn't want to make another cookie cutter 80s mary sue super hero greatest commander ever. I made a realistic, believable character that had to go through what most people in the military go through: waiting. Going through the motions. The guy that claims you "have to be good at leading" is wrong. You really don't. There are plenty of shit bag commissioned officers in the military.

    Thank you for the feedback, I'll rewrite everything for next months new application, and will have minimum three people review it.
    *You notice a small coffee stain ring where the signature should be*

  9. #9
    Dev Team Frans_Feiffer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    181
    Mentioned
    2 Post(s)
    Tagged
    0 Thread(s)
    Apologies for the late response.

    Resolved, application withdrawn. You may reapply a month from when you withdrew, so 6-21-2020.

    Your 'Friendly' Neighborhood Captain, Frans Feiffer. Austrian Kommodore vith zie vorst accent, survivor of Space Vietnam, and Loving Caretaker of the Ungas Aboard the USS Almayer.
    Pred App that is now null lol
    Synthetic model Darwin

    Spoiler Spoiler:

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •