Federation Commander

Origins After-Action Report: 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:25:00 +0000

STEVE COLE REPORTS: It was a good show. Attendance was clearly down (preliminary GAMA reports indicate about 10,000 people, down from the disappointing 13,000 last year). Lots of events were nearly empty all over the show, although the "pay $12 to play all day" room was full most of the time. The dealer room was a third smaller and had "spacious" aisles and many obviously unsold booth spots, but there were far more attractive women than usual. Sales were a bit MORE than last year, surprising due to the supposed bad economy and smaller crowd. GAMA team did a superb job. Trey actually asked me for any gripes since she knew I'd be the first person to speak up if there were, but there were none, at least, none about GAMA. (The idiots who run the convention center were trying to force us to pay $100 to park our van in the loading dock, but went away when we refused to be bullied. I don't know who owns the big carts, but they -- again -- would not allow exhibitors to use them, doubling the time needed to load and unload.) The convention food was much better. Grilled chicken sandwiches were healthier than most offerings and they got rid of those horrid "home-made potato chips" in favor of French fries. I got to go to North Market for the first time ever (and that will be the last time I ever go there as it is mostly trendy ethnic food that I'm allergic to or just won't eat. I refer to that stuff one staffer brings back from there as "dog vomit" and that's when I am being polite.) The GPA booth was well organized and very professional due to the delightful fashion model (Marcy) they hired to run it. The best part of the experience, as usual, was seeing so many old friends. We learned some lessons and made some notes to change things in the future. We will no longer bring 50 or 60 backlist SFB modules just in case someone buys one or two of them; we will just bring stuff printed in the last two years. (We may use the space to bring a better cart since the decorator won't let us use the big ones any more.) We will stop bringing so many of the miniatures and will just bring a representative sample of the ones more than a year old. We will have better signs to tell people that we have products in boxes we don't have room to display. (If GAMA offers the "second booth for half price" next year, I may take them up on it and bring all of my magazine racks, since I have two complete sets due to forgetting to take them one year and having to buy a second set at Office Depot.) Ken Burnside and I need to have each other's phone numbers in our cell phones instead of relying on faulty memory. We will continue to sell Ken's products and the Factory Second starships. I plan to put Jean in "full charge" of the booth so I can spent more time "floating" around the convention. I plan to gather up a team of SFU staffers with military service and demolish the TerrorWerks scenario (again). The tournament guys need to keep better records of who played in events (and who won them; I am tired of trying to figure out on Sunday morning who won which event). We need a sign in the booth telling people that demos are available (free!) if they just ask Jean where to find them. Event attendance was up for F&E and down for SFB and FC. We're not worried since that seems to reflect the economy and the overall attendance. The judges did a great job (so maybe next year Petrick and I can do TerrorWerks more often). Kudos to Chuck Strong, Tony Thomas, Mike Curtis, Lieutenant Grant, Snacko Knipfer, Mike Filsinger, Paul Franz, and Roger Rardain. Paul put the seminars on Talk Shoe. Next year, we plan to do more scenarios (unsure if we need a tournament for SFB or FC as players want scenarios).

Thanks to the Origins Crew

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 18:39:00 +0000

This is Steven Petrick Posting.

The after Origins cleanup is almost done, although several things remain to be done (much of it paperwork).

Still, it is important that we acknowledge those to whom we cannot give enough thanks to.

Mike Filsinger, Paul Franz, and Roger Rardain kept the tournaments running. Without them it would be impossible to conduct Origins. We are eternally blessed by their commitment and support.

Charles Strong, Mike Curtis, and Tony L. Thomas keep the Federation & Empire event running continuously, and have made it an event to join year after year.

We need to also recognize Daniel Knipfer and Grant Strong who ably support the Federation & Empire events.

We also have to extend our thanks to Colleen Knipfer, Jean Sexton, and Celestia Getgen who assist SVC in running our booth in the dealer area, and who also assist in running messages.

I also want to extend a thanks to Garth Getgen (and Celestia Getgen) who ably assisted in getting our booth set up this year. I am, regretably, not as spry as I was and while I think I might have managed to make all of the trips back and forth to the vehicle to bring in our booth materials, it would have taken far longer without their assitance. Particularly given how far from the exhibit hall we were pretty much forced to park and haul our goods in.

Without the contributions of the above named individuals, Origins would be nearly impossible for us to run by ourselves. They are all eminently deservering of the thanks of the Star Fleet Universe as a whole.

In Praise of Our Volunteers

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:42:00 +0000

The adventure game (wargame+roleplaying game) industry is a small one, and there isn't the kind of money inside of it that other industries have. The industry consists of creative game designers willing to work 60 hours a week for half the pay they could command outside the game industry, all because they get to BE game designers.

Even at that, the only way the game industry survives is by the hard labor of unpaid volunteers who (for honor, glory, and rarely some free games) provide no end of valuable services to game publishers.

Mike West answers rules questions on FEDERATION COMMANDER. Mike Curtis does the same thing for Federation & Empire, Andy Palmer for Prime Directive d20, Gary Plana for GURPS Prime Directive, Richard Sherman for Star Fleet Battle Force, and Mike Filsinger for STAR FLEET BATTLES.

Frank Brooks runs the Play-by-Email system as a volunteer. Paul Franz charges barely enough for the On-Line game system (for SFB and FC) to pay the server costs. Mark Tutton does made-to-order decals for our Starline miniatures at a cost that barely covers his costs.

Federation & Empire would not exist without Chuck Strong (a real-world colonel from Space Command) in charge of the overall game system. He keeps his staff (Mike Curtis, Ryan Opel, Scott Tenhoff, and Stew Frazier) busy moving projects forward.

Very little would get done on any of our games except for the Playtest Battle Labs run by Scott Moellmer in Colorado and by Mike Curtis and Tony Thomas in Tennessee. And all of the other playtesters are invaluable to us.

We have other staffers who do specific things (and sometimes a wide variety of things) for us including Jean Sexton (Vice President of Proofreading and Product Professionalization); John Berg and Mike Incavo (Galactic Conquest Campaign); and John Sickels, Matthew Francois, Jonathan Thompson, and Loren Knight (Prime Directive). Some vital part of the product line would grind to a halt without each one of them.

Added to this list are hundreds of others who, during any given month, by Email or BBS or Forum, contribute in some way to the company and its product line. They may report a glitch in an existing product, playtest a product in development, suggest a new product, point out something another company is doing what we may want to take a look at emulating, look up a rules reference for another player, report on somebody who using our property improperly, comment on a posted draft of a new rule, or simply ask a question nobody else ever dared to ask.

Homeward Bound from Origins, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:20:00 +0000

Jean Sexton reports:

I am home, safe and sound. I lost a few plants that were apparently missed by the person supposed to do the watering, but my furkids are fine.

Steve Cole and Steven Petrick report they are about 230 miles from the office. They ate lunch (BBQ, of course) at Sweetwater. Knowing it would be another year before they got it again, they got more "to go" and are having it for supper.

Overall, attendance was down at Origins; no doubt the low attendance was in part due to the economy. However, ADB, Inc. had a better year than last year, due to our very loyal customers. For example, over 500 ships were saved from "A Fate Worse than Death" (melting down for scrap as they were factory seconds). We sold completely out of Booster #91. Star Fleet Battles boxed sets sold as did Federation Commander; I had requests for the sold-out Federation & Empire. We thank you for being at Origins, for stopping in to chat and play, and for telling us what you want us to produce for you.

Tomorrow I'm sure one of the Steves will have more information about the convention.

The Last Day of Origins, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 03:50:00 +0000

Jean Sexton reports:

Origins 2009 came to an official end at 4:00 pm EDT. It was sort of an odd day all around. We come together once a year to say hello to our friends and on this day, we must say goodbye and wend our various ways home. I already miss my "Origins friends". Special thanks for Battlegroup Murfreesboro for getting me to and from the convention and for making sure I had enough fluids to wet my whistle (also arranged in part by the courtesy of SVC).

Steve Cole and Steven Petrick had an early morning meeting, so Colleen Knipfer, Celestia Getgen, and I opened the sales boothe with Mike Curtis acting as our security. We had a steady stream of visitors throughout the day.

At 4:00 though, we are not focused on our customers, though. We are working to pack everything quickly, but without damaging anything. All the boxed games, modules, expansions, minis, and card games were packed. No tee-shirts remained to be packed/ All of the stands and display units had to be packed. Luckily, some things (such as tournament supplies, were already packed and gave Steven Petrick something to take out to the van while Steve Cole and I packed fast!

When everything was either loaded or included in the last trip out, we parted company. But then next year, our community will gather again for Origins 2010.

Got Any Marketing Ideas?

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 04:02:00 +0000

ADB, Inc., is always interested in great marketing ideas, ways and places to sell our products, as well as new products to sell. We are developing a line of non-game products (calendars, paperback books, ship books, plus Cafe Press). We have an Amazon store (not to make money so much as to put our products in front of other groups of potential customers), and the MySpace page exists for that reason as well. We tried a lot of things that didn't work (Google Pay per Click, full-color ads in trade journals) and a lot of things that did work (banners on gamer websites, Star Fleet Alerts) and are always looking for new ideas. If you have any, send them to us at Marketing@StarFleetGames.com and we'll think them over.

Third Day of Origins, Second Day in the Booth

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 03:39:00 +0000

Steve Cole reports:

Everything is going well due to our expert, veteran staff.

Sales are always slow on Friday because the people there for the entire weekend have already bought their stuff and the people coming for only one day come on Saturday, not Friday. This year however we were pleasantly surprised by sales 50% higher than normal. We began the day within $100 of breaking even and ended the day within $100 of our overall sales goal.

Tournament attendance for all events within the convention is lower than normal due to the economy, but the level of competition is higher than ever due to the number of players with multiple ace cards.

I took Steve Petrick on the TerrorWerks live-action, machine-gun combat simulator. I arranged with the gamemasters for Petrick (who is a US Army infantry captain) to be the mission commander. I served as his trusty sergeant. The mission was a success. The team said they had a very good time seeing what an expert leader could do with the simulation. The GMs were flabbergasted to see what happened to their game when real soldiers showed how it is really done.

We had the annual miniatures conference where people were able to see and comment on several new ships as well as the new fighters, drones, and plasma torpedoes. We took suggestions from the attendees about what ships they would like to see in the future.

We are all looking forward to tomorrow when the tournament finals will be held and crowds of new people will come to the dealer room. If you live within driving distance, it isn't too late to come and see us!

Second Day of Origins, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:45:00 +0000

Steve Cole reports:

Today was the first day the booth was open. We reported just before 10am and closed at 6p,. The crowd was a little light, but sales and spirits were high.

The First Day of Origins, 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 02:37:00 +0000

Steve Cole reports:

Steve Petrick and I got up this morning in Richmond, Indiana and had breakfast with Garth and Celestia Getgen. We spent Tuesday nights in Indianapolis the last ten years, but this year we decided to stay in Richmond which is closer to Columbus. This put us one hour closer to Columbus. The 110-mile drive to Origins was very easy. As usual we filled up the car with gas just before reaching the convention because when Origins closes on Sunday afternoon every gas station on I70 for two hours west of here will be packed.

We checked into the Red Roof Inn, and, as per tradition, had lunch at Charley's Steakery. We met several gamers during lunch. Jean Sexton joined us there. Jean and I went to D240 to see the F&E game, but they had all gone to lunch. Jean, Celestia, and I went down to set up the booth. Steve Petrick and Garth brought the car around and brought in the stuff. Jean and Celestia took over setting up the display and did a better job than I usually do. We all went back up to D240 where the staff and many gamers had assembled.

I spoke privately with Chuck Strong about the two F&E products for this fall; then with Paul Franz about creating new kinds of products on SFBOL and FCOL; then with Mike Curtis about his excellent job as FEAR. I met many other old friends including Mike Filsinger, Dan Knipfer, Dale Fields, Tony Thomas and many others.

At 7pm we had the "singalong" in D243. For the first time in history someone actually sang (Jean Sexton sang "How Much Is That Klingon in the Window"). I spoke to the group about future products and said I was going to be turning more pieces of the projects over to staffers so I could focus on growing the company. We passed out the preorders. I met with the judges briefly. (They are all veterans and we did not have much to go over. They all know their jobs.) I met for a few minutes with the entire F&E contingent to tell them the kind of input I need from them to successfully complete F&E-2010. Steve Petrick was exhausted and had an early wakeup call, so went to bed. I followed a couple of hours later.

Off to Origins!

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:27:00 +0000

Steve Cole writes:

Steve Petrick and I (now on the road to Origins) have done the Origins trip ten times since we incorporated ADB, Inc., so this is number eleven. We did a lot of Origins trips before 1999, but mostly as event runners, but we started doing both and booth and a tournament that year.

Being military people, we have a way of doing things. We make checklists, and every year, we use the same checklist, updating it as we go through it, and save the updated list for next year. We have one checklist for things to do, and one for things to take with us. Many items on the "to do" list are to put stuff into the various boxes of the "to take" list, and the last part of the "to do list" is to check off loading each box on the "to take" list.

This makes it pretty straightforward to do everything (and forget nothing). There is still a ton of stuff to do, but at least we have a list. It's hardly stress free. (Sunday night, after Leanna went home, one of the print engines just stopped working for no reason, and she is the only one who could fix it, which left a couple of things not done, but those meant that other things could not be crossed off the list.)

Tuesday is "the good day". It's twelve hours of driving, with a stop at the best BBQ place in the world (Sweetwater, on I44 in Missouri, mile marker 163). No phones, no internet, no stress. Nice quiet relaxing day. The worst thing about Origins is that the only time we meet the public is at the end of the worst month (for hard work and long days) of the entire year. The relaxing drive on Tuesday is the only reason we arrive at Origins as functional people, not as babbling nervous wrecks. See you guys tomorrow.

The Origins Close Out Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:16:00 +0000

This is Steven Petrick Posting.

This will be my last post until sometime after Origins.

Despite our efforts, once again the final day is filled with last minute things that need to be done, but we are pressing on with the mission of getting them done. Right now there is no reason we should not depart on schedule, even though we are currently almost 20 minutes behind, and have things to do that will put us further behind.

However, we have always taken the attitude that we must serve our customers (you who read these words), and we will somehow make it out of here and arrive at Origins.

We are, in fact, looking forward to seeing many old friends and making new ones.

So to those who are attending, we will see you there, and to those who cannot, you will be missed and we will hope to see you in the future.

FEDERATION COMMANDER Play-by-Email

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 23:52:00 +0000

FRANK BROOKS WRITES: FEDERATION COMMANDER Play-by-Email
Playing FEDERATION COMMANDER by Email is an alternative to playing Face-to-Face. While there are a few differences (i.e., your opponent isn't sitting across the table from you), it is the same game.

The basic gist of the FEDERATION COMMANDER Play-by-Email (PBEM) system is that you and your opponent submit your orders for the turn to a moderator via Email. The moderator then processes them, and sends a "Sitrep" (Situation Report) to the players via Email. You receive the results, write up your next set of orders, and then submit your orders once again. The process is repeated until the game is completed. Sounds simple? That's because it IS! It'll take a little getting used to (after all, what doesn't?), but once you've got the hang of it, you'll be lobbing photon torpedoes (or whatever your weapon of choice is) at opponents from all over the world.

Every FEDERATION COMMANDER PBEM game has at least three participants: two or more players and one moderator. The moderator's purpose is to accept orders from the players and carry them out, reporting the results of those orders to all players. While (s)he is not a player, the moderator fulfills a very important role in the game. Good moderators and good players make for a good, enjoyable game of FEDERATION COMMANDER. Moderating a FEDERATION COMMANDER PBEM game is also an excellent way to learn more about the FEDERATION COMMANDER rules.

While there are some disadvantages to PBEM (it does take longer to finish a game), there are advantages as well. You can play against people in other parts of the world (how often do you get to Australia, anyway?), you can play multiple games at once, and you can have large multi-player games (without worrying about running out of chips and soda).

For more information about playing FEDERATION COMMANDER PBEM, please visit the Play-by-Email section of ADB, Inc.'s website at www.StarFleetGames.com/pbemgames and we will be happy to help you.

PLAYER RESOURCES

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 18:48:00 +0000

Stephen V. Cole writes:

Our website is vast and full of fun, useful, and interesting documents, charts, play aids, illustrations, and other things. Most of the best stuff is found at: http://starfleetgames.com/playerresources.shtml which has lists of resources and links to other lists of resources. Take a look down the list and see if there are documents you always wanted and could never find or documents which you never knew you were looking for.

Unexpected Delays

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 23:36:00 +0000

This is Steven Petrick Posting:

We are into crunch time. Somehow it happens every year. We keep swearing to ourselves to be better organized when it comes time to go to Origins, and we always wind up with too much to do and not enough time to do it all.

In this case at least part of the problem was an unanticipated vehicle breakdown (as if they are ever anticipated). The booth and tournament boxes, along with other things needed for Origins, are not in the office building, but in the warehouse (out of the way). So, someone had to go get them, and they needed to be in a larger vehicle than a normal car. So I took the old van over.

After I got it loaded, the battery completely died. We tried jumping it with two different cars, and the battery would not charge at all. So we had to get a new battery, and since that was going to be the case, I took a tool box with me to get the old battery out. The tool box had lots of Sockets, but no socket wrench. (Why does it have all those sockets and no socket wrench?) This resulted in another round trip to the office to get a socket wrench, as there was one screw holding the battery in place that could NOT be removed with anything but a socket wrench.

So much of Yesterday afternoon was taken up with resolving the battery problem, rather than preparing the chalk loads for the trip. An so, once again, we are behind schedule and will be working late and long hours to get everything done before we can hit the road to Origins.

How to Find Opponents

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:34:00 +0000

STEVE COLE WRITES: Many gamers are looking for new opponents. This is nothing new. When I was a teenager, there were maybe four wargamers in Amarillo that I knew, but there must have been more as the one store that carried Avalon Hill games (then the only wargames) would sell one or two now and then that my friends and I knew we didn't buy. Funny, it never once occurred to us to ask the store manager to give our phone numbers to the other guys. When I was in college, SPI (then the second wargame company and rapidly becoming larger and more innovative than Avalon Hill) had an opponent wanted list. I sent in my dollar to get it, and found only one person (of the 20 on the list) who was within 120 miles; the first and last person on the list were each 450 miles away (in opposite directions).
These days, the concept of contacting other gamers has had decades to mature, and works much better, and you have a lot of ways to do it. For best results, do all of them.
You can go to the Commander's Circle and enter your data (as much or as little as you are comfortable with) and perhaps find opponents near you. We are gaining new sign-in's every day, and since it's free you can try it every month or two and find out of somebody near you has signed in.
You can go to the forum and find the area where local stores and groups post announcements and invitations and let people know you're around. How silly would you feel if you found out that the guy who you've been arguing with on the forum for years actually lives in your town. (That HAS happened.)
Feel free to go to your local store and ask them to let you post a notice looking for opponents. You could also run a demo of FEDERATION COMMANDER (or any of our games) and "grown your own" opponents. If anybody already plays the game you demo, they'll doubtless drop by just to swap phone numbers.
Many towns have community bulletin boards on the local cable company's "home" channel. These are variously free or cost just a couple of dollars. It's hit-and-miss, but you could get lucky. (When I commanded Company C of the 1-39 MPs, I gained a dozen new recruits in a year that came from cable TV.) You could also buy a cheap want ad in the newspaper or the free advertising newspaper (American's Want Ads or whatever yours is called) found in quickie marts.
The quickest result, probably, is Starlist. Go to our Legacy site and look for the button that says Player Resources. Under that menu is a link for Starlist. Enter your data in the form, and you'll get a list of local players back. (This may take a day or two as it is done by hand.) Starlist is the most effective hunt for new players because the database has some five thousand players in it, far more than all of the other sources combined. The only drawback is that Starlist works with full information (name and address) and those who are seriously concerned about identity theft often find this uncomfortable. In all reality, however, Starlist would not give an identity thief any more information than your local phone book would, and if that's enough for those criminals to operate, they would be vastly more likely to use the phone book than to request a copy of Starlist.
The original website has a bulletin board system and the 8th item on the main menu is "seeking opponents". You can post a notice there (and search the previous postings). Again, you can post as much or as little information as you are comfortable with.
Many of those on Starlist and StarFleetGames.com/discus will be players of STAR FLEET BATTLES, but most of those can be convinced to play FEDERATION COMMANDER. Indeed, over half of the names on Starlist are people who quit playing STAR FLEET BATTLES for lack of opponents (or because SFB was too complex for them or their opponents) and most of those are ready recruits for the faster cleaner FEDERATION COMMANDER game system.
With more effort, you can post opponent wanted notices in a whole lot of boardgame sites (see the links list on our site).
If there is a game convention within driving distance, it's worth a trip to see if you might find someone who is also within driving distance. If there is a game club in your home town, or a store with a gaming area, go there and set up the game and wait for somebody to ask what it is. (Even better, take a friend who will play the game with you so you won't be bored.) If there is a star trek club in your home town, show them FEDERATION COMMANDER or Star Fleet Battle Force. There are people who have printed a card with the logo of one of our games and their Email address and left these in the windows of their cards who got Emails from other gamers in their home towns who were seeking opponents.
You can go always go to SFB Online and play FEDERATION COMMANDER on-line with live opponents from around the world for the princely sum of $4 per month. You might even stumble into somebody local.
There are probably more ways than this to find opponents, but unless you live in a cave somewhere, you can almost certainly find a new friend within a short while by trying these methods.

Is This What Mohammed Said Allah Wanted

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:06:00 +0000

This is Steven Petrick posting:

I will confess here that I do not know much about the Koran, nor as much about Mohammed the military man as perhaps I should. But one has to wonder if this prophet would sanction what is done in accordance with his teachings and in the name of Allah.

Did Mohammed take hostages and use them as human shields? Certainly Genghis Khan did. Khan drove unarmed civilians before his armies to take the defensive fire of a city's fortifications and thereby allow his fighting men to take fewer casualties. The difference is that Khan drove the civilians of his enemies before his armies, and bin Laden's Al Qaida, the Taliban, Hamas, in fact all of the islamic terrorist groups use their own citizens and fellow believers as shields. They have killed far more of their own faith than we have.

Is this what Mohammed intended?

Is this what Mohammed taught that Allah would want?

I honestly do not know. Certainly the time Mohammed live in was a bloody time, and certainly the flame of Islam he unleashed on the world has killed millions in the name of Allah since he introduced it to the world.

Just as certainly it is in the interests of far too many Mullahs to feed the flame, to let this evil continue to their own profit.

Free stuff for FEDERATION COMMANDER players!

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:15:00 +0000

STEVE COLE WRITES: Some people do not realize that you can download what amounts to a free copy of the FEDERATION COMMANDER game (well, enough of the game to play a few battles). Go to www.StarFleetGames.com/fc and you will find a lot of stuff you can download. Some of those downloads include:
o The free First Missions packet (demo version of FEDERATION COMMANDER).

o Turn gauges and firing arcs for the tabletop rules.

o Sample Ship Cards.

o Wallpapers of game covers.

o Frequently asked questions.

o Information for retailers.

o The original theatrical trailer (ok, not that, but it WAS the original flyer handed out at trade shows).

o Notes from the game designer (Steve Cole) on what parts of the older game STAR FLEET BATTLES we decided to include in FEDERATION COMMANDER.

But that's just a start. If you join the Commander's Circle, which is free, you can download the monthly Communiqué which includes scenarios, tactics, and new ships. You can also access a database of FEDERATION COMMANDER players looking for new opponents (you!).

NEWSLETTER AND COMMUNIQUE RELEASED

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 23:31:00 +0000

Steve Cole reports:

We have released this month's issue of the Hailing Frequencies newsletter and this month's Communique. The newsletter has the latest information on release schedules and company news, as well as lots of other useful content. It also has links to the new Communique, a free PDF newsletter which is full of good things for Federation Commander players, including new ships, a new scenario, and updated schedules and rules. The newsletter also has links to the most recent Star Fleet Alerts, the press releases that tell your store when to expect new products.

Honor Your Soldiers.

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:21:00 +0000

This is Steven Petrick Posting:

I happened to catch the Kurosawa Film "Shadow Warrior". It was subtitled (and shown under its Japanese title which began with a "K", but I can only remember the translation). There were two things that struck me about the film. One was that "conflict" was represented WITHOUT making anyone a "villain" in the usual sense. None of the leaders engaged in various antics that have come to seem the norm. None of them engaged in random executions of henchmen who had failed them or any of the other stylized "this is how you tell this is the bad guy". Yes, they were all vying for the complete control of Japan, but none of the faction leaders were "evil", even though they were in conflict with each other. The ultimate villain was Shingen's son, and yet he was less evil than simply someone trying to move out from under his Father's Shadow. That his efforts led to disaster is a negative reflection on him, but many people fail to live up to their own visions of themselves, and in the cases of nobility, this often leads to tragedy for their subordinates.

The other thing was the final battle.

I have often been accused by people (who apparently think they know me even if they have never met me) of thinking war is something "fun". I don't, and have not since I was of an age to fully understand it. I do know what "death" is, the grim reaper and I became acquainted at a very young age in a very graphic manner. Despite this, I did volunteer and served as an Infantry Officer in the Army. I make no apologies for it. I did not think it was going to be glorious, I thought it was a job that I had some particular skills at. I simultaneous do not regret that life never required me to demonstrate those skills, and that I was not there to share the burden with others who had to in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere.

The final battle scene in this film consisted of just two parts. Each of the combat units of the Takeda clan began its charge, and as they went over the crest of the rise into full view of Ieyesu's musketeers, you just heard volleys. You did not see the men charge, you did not see them fall, you just heard the continous rattle of musketry. You just saw the increasing dismay on the face of Shingen's son as he proved unable to do anything but order the next unit forward into the field. When the shooting ended, the camera spent what seemed like five minutes simply looking at the field. Horses struggling to get up, and here and there a man "wounded unto death" would rise, take a few steps, and fall. Some just crawled a little.

I could not help but think that the man who had set that seen had seen the aftermath of more than one of Japan's failed Banzai charges into machine guns and artillery during World War II.

I have often noted that anyone considering going into the Infantry should first be made to watch the first half hour of "Saving Private Ryan". Not because I think people should not be soldiers, because soldiers are what protects a country from the larger evils that mere police forces would be powerless to stop. But because anyone who wants to be a solider should understand that war his a horrible, horrible, business. Something that should be entered into only with your eyes wide open. As the Iron Duke (Lord Wellington) noted, the only thing more melancholy than the aftermath of a battle won is the aftermath of a battle lost. Soldiers stand (to borrow from Robert A. Heinlein) Between home and war's desolation. Understand this, if you would not prepare for war, war will come for you while you are least ready for it. As the Roman said: If you would have peace, the prepare for war.

Honor your soldiers. They are the barrier that keeps the intentions of unkindly strangers from robbing you of all you own, including your very life. The fact that so many can disparage them is only the proof of how successful they have been.

Near Infinite Variation

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 22:48:00 +0000

This is Steven Petrick Posting:

One of the fun things in a game like SFB is that there are just so darn many things you can do. You never have to just settle for a boring one-on-one duel day in and day out. There are always other things you can do to spice things up. That includes for many the chance to meet entirely new enemies that they have not met before (say from the Omega Octant, or the Magellanic Cloud, or even Module C4, or Module E2). There are always terrain situations (asteroids, dust clouds, planets including gas giants, ion storms), and you can really get things going by mixing things up (Asteroid field in a nebula during an ion storm).

It all really depends on what you want to do. The possibilities, while not endless, are near infinite.

Do not overlook the small boats. Sure, a Gorn Frigate will go up like a firecracker in a fleet battle with dreadnoughts and heavy cruisers slugging it out, but that is why you should hold it out looking for an opportunity to slip in and do some damage in a fight that big. But more importantly, use the small ships in small scale squadron clashes in and of themselves. Why have another reiteration of a duel between Cruisers when you could have a squadron of Gorn Frigates clashing with a squadron of Romulan Seahawks (or ISC Frigates, or Hydran Hunters, or . . .). And, heck, why not in an asteroid field as you are both looking for the hidden Orion Base that is a hollowed out asteroid and you both want to be the one to capture it (and maybe the Orions have something to say about that as a third party).

And maybe, just maybe, as you are doing all of this, you will create a scenario that you can send in and see published in Captain's Log!

CAFE PRESS

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 23:38:00 +0000

Stephen V. Cole writes:

Have you ever heard of Cafe Press? Cafe Press is a website where you can open up a free online shop and promote products on your website. Cafe Press creates and sells products with designs provided by various companies. So upon learning about Cafe Press, Leanna set up an account and we have uploaded several designs for T-shirts, coffee mugs, Christmas ornaments, mousepads, etc.

See www.CafePress.com/starfleetuniv for these items. And take a look at our new I-heart-Klingons T-shirt!

If you have any questions or comments or would like to see something on Cafe Press, let me know and I will try to set it up for you! Email me at: Design@starfleetgames.com

Post Deleted

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 01:09:00 +0000

This post has been deleted.

I Am an American

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 11:17:00 +0000

Steven Petrick writes:

I had a grandparent who was much into tracing family lineages, but it never meant much to me (and still does not). I am what I am; it does not matter that there is "royal blood" from this or that, or that some of my Scottish ancestors were "Hunters for the Stuarts".

All of my known relations who lived in Europe are dead (World Wars I and II did a pretty darn thorough housecleaning, thank you very much). Those of my relatives from "further East" were also eliminated in part by the Joys of Living in Worker's Paradises.

Given "normal human relations", there are probably some people over there that I am related to, i.e., there is always the possibility that some of my ancestors had progeny that were not "acknowledged" (to put it daintily). But then, given "normal human relations", some of my purported ancestors may not have been "progeny of their recorded fathers". (Historically, women have not always been honest about just who actually was the sire of a child.) Add in various invasions back and forth, and bloodlines, particularly among the non-nobility, can get pretty iffy. No telling how many "Russians" have "Nordic blood" mixed in from the Vikings passing through. No telling how many Russians have a little Mongol mixed in from the Horde passing through.

So it is just not something I get all that concerned about.

Further, I am not a Texan (where I live now), nor a Floridian (where I spent most of my childhood), nor a Pennsylvanian (where my parents came from), nor a Missourian (where I was born).

I am an American.

If you absolutely must classify me as a "Hyphen American", I will answer only to "Mongrel-American", but I am an American first. Not Irish-American, not Scots-American, not German-American, not Catholic-American or any other hyphen-American other than Mongrel-American.

I am just an American, and by that a citizen of these United States of America.

FEDERATION COMMANDER wallpaper

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:06:00 +0000

Stephen V. Cole writes:

Many do not know that we have a page where you can download FEDERATION COMMANDER wallpaper.

Klingon Border, Romulan Border, Klingon Attack, and Romulan Attack are currently available in the following sizes : 800x600, 1024x768, and 1280x1024.

http://www.StarFleetGames.com/wallpaper

If there are any other sizes or any other images that you would like to see turned into wallpaper, please feel free to write me at graphics@StarFleetGames.com and I will get it set up for you.

WHALE WARS, SEASON TWO

noreply@blogger.com (Federation Commander) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 01:14:00 +0000

Steve Cole reports:

I love this show, and want to figure out ways to help Sea Shepherd shut down the Japanese whaling industry. (Just personally, I think fitting the MS Steve Irwin with underwater torpedo tubes would be the way to go, but ... I'm just saying....) Some think it strange that I am a save the whales guy (since I'm a Republican who thinks Global Warming is natural event being blamed on man to push a goofy socialist agenda) but I just really do like whales and wildlife. (Not snail darters, but whales, tigers, and other pretty animals, and sharks.)

My business partner, Steve Petrick (another Republican who thinks Global Warming is a scam) does not trust the Sea Shepherds. He points to their vegetarian galley and warns that once they stop the slaughter of whales, they'll work to stop the slaughter of cows.

This season on Whale Wars, they found the Japanese fleet very quickly. How? Somebody thought of something so obvious that even I did not think about it. A ship operating near the icepack with chunks of ice all around it has to use radar constantly, and you can detect a ship using radar from a long ways away. (The TV show said 400 miles, which seems a little far, but whatever. They did find it.) They were very clever. Their radar detector was a modified satellite TV dish which a crewman holds pointing in various directions to see if something is out there.

I cannot wait for next episode. Seems the crazy pirate captain is going to ram the factory ship in order to shut down the operation. (Surely not, but it makes an exciting "join us next week for..." film clip.)

I posted my ideas last year, most of which would get people sent to prison for piracy or murder or both. Things like EMP bombs and firing grenades (with the explosives replaced by sulphuric acid) at the harpoon guns. I still like the torpedo tubes idea, too. I wonder if we could not just take a Barrett 50 sniper rifle and fire armor piercing slugs into the harpoon guns and call it a season?