Hey,

I also RP Ithron. So why a new character? Well basically, I noticed that Astral Astoria is promoted a lot in the newbie literature as a place to go where experienced RPers can help you develop your own style in a relaxed environment. When I first joined, I looked forward to RPs there before moving on to the Battlegrounds.

However, for whatever reason the Astoria has fallen into disuse - something that seemed to happen long before I arrived.

I do not claim to be a particularly good RPer (not even someone who is familiar with the intricacies of TRF - something to which I am myself relatively new) but I think the Astoria is a good idea.

I would like to appeal to the staff to agree to this character being a prominent Commander on the station. Under his name, I intend to RP the actions of the station and its personnel as a unit. Hopefully providing an interactive experience for new players, and turning Astral Astoria into something worth using. I would welcome any thoughts from experienced TRF RPers on this matter.

If this is inconsistent with the plans of the Staff, please simply let me know and you will never hear from this user account again (unless I choose to remake him as a normal character.)

Appendix: Proposed Bio:

Commander Arnau Otavio

Name: Arnau Otavio
Species: Human
Age: ~45

Basic Bio:

A lifelong soldier, Otavio joined the militia on his home planet early in life and rapidly advanced through the ranks. Serving time in both what was once the "Rebel Alliance" as well as in the regular Imperial Navy, he learned a variety of skills and proved himself to be an effective, if predictable, leader. Set in his ways, Otavio is generally sceptical of new technology, even when it makes his job easier.

Having visited the new Astral Astoria Space Station, Otavio found himself offered a job by the station's upper echelon. Retiring his commission in the Imperial Navy, he took up the position - "Commander-in-Chief of Station Security Forces". Nominally, this gives Otavio command of every security person, every Defence starfighter, all the military-esque command structure and also considerable influence with the station civilian police. In practice, however, the individual elements very much act as individuals and Otavio's role tends to be more as a mediator. However, he is dedicated to keeping his adopted command running smoothly and will keep it that way at any cost.

Though this sounds pretty cool, I don't do much (any) posting in the Astoria, so I guess you'll have to wait until someone who does can judge it. Good job, though.

hmm...

Arnau makes a very valid point.

We should discuss this...

Whats the best way of catching you?

AIM? MSN? Singing Telegram?

Singing Telegram. Those rock. Kind of like this idea.

His msn is fedex141@hotmail.com

Given the IC history of the station I doubt an outsider would obtain a command position. I do not object to having someone in charge and activly RP'ing with people however, go for it.

I would tend to agree with Titus. Character integration would be nice, however; given the history of Astoria I cannot say that I would or could agree to placing any Player Character in a position of authority within what is supposed to be a fairly free-form Role Play environment. I have no objections to your taking up the mantle and helping newbies feel welcome.

Thanks for the feedback. Yes, my MSN is fedex141@hotmail.com. A quick mail will catch my attention most likely.

I understand what you're getting at - have a PC character "in charge" could limit the free play options and turn Astoria into just another faction hangout. That said, I'm not sure that *entirely* free play is so useful to newbies. Writing a one person RP is a daunting prospect for a new player (hell, even experienced players might shy away frm it) and it's a little unfair to force them to do exactly that, saying that we can't interfere in free play. (And being as how newbie-newbie threads tend to fizzle out fairly fast.)

I mean, how many players have posted once or twice on Astoria and never come again? PERSONALLY I think it's a lot better to have someone to post *against*. Not necessarily someone in charge though. To give you an example:

Newbie posts:

"Dave the starfighter pilot was walking through the empty corridors. This is what he was wearing. This is what he was doing. He was trying to find a bar. Blah blah, Rhetoric, etc."

Rather than leave this as an unfinished story for all eternity, I (meaning the account of Arnau) would reply with something along the lines of:

"Bill the security guard had just finished his shift but was still on duty because he had been ordered to the hanger bay to investigate a strange craft that had just landed. He pushed past Dave and made this particular witty comment.....etc etc."

(where Bill is a random NPC)

Then the newbie has something definite to respond to. As you can see, Arnau will play "the station" and, yes, he will be able to influence the direction of the story, he will try to minimise this while keeping them going. Thus giving the chance for newbies to "play" without having to worry about storylines.

Hmm. In Astral Astoria, I also intend to post some very basics on RPing, i.e. How to develop a char, how to make a first post, how to do a bio, etc. All for newbies. Being as how I was one myself not so long ago.

Again, I would very much value feedback on these revisions.

Damn. Yes, obviously I meant that post to be from my Arnau account :-p

As long as your security guard doesn't mess with my wonderfully inactive drug-dealing operation onboard the Astoria, you're cool.

For them to do that, you'd have to post.

On that note.... *nudges*