Hawking Handbook

Welcome to the USS Hawking, an Intrepid class ship that focuses on fascinating story telling and in depth character development.

If you choose to explore a character here on Hawking there are a few key things that will make everyone’s experience a lot more fun!

First off, we adhere to the Megiddo Handbook, so get to know it. As a part of this fleet, it is important that we follow the guidelines set out by the administration.

Next…Posting is important. The purpose of this site is to work together to tell a story. We use an episodic format, in which we decide on a mission ahead of time and flesh it out as we go. Usually there is a bare bones framework that gives a roadmap for the mission from beginning to end, but creativity is encouraged. Getting from A to B can be as circuitous as we want it to be. And on certain occasions a plot point may be abandoned in favor for a better one on the fly.

Although we do “predestine” our framework, micromanaging a story can be boring. Feel encouraged to stretch your story telling wings, but if something you have in mind is far departed from the agreed upon plot points, please clear them with the CO or XO beforehand.

Promotions are awarded for participation. If you don’t post, don’t expect to be promoted. And more importantly, our relationships IC and OOC are strengthened through participation. Hawking happens to be a very active ship, so if you don’t want to participate in such an environment, this ship is not for you.

If a crewmember vanishes with no LOA for longer than seven days, I will attempt to contact you via PM/email. If there is no response for another seven days, count on being colonized. Ultimately, there will be a 14 day grace period of inactivity before you will be removed from the roster. I will attempt to contact you to find out what is going on, but it is your responsibility to contact us if you will be away for an extended period of time.

Up to the rank of Ensign, expect a promotion every promotion period if you do the bare minimum to keep up (about a post a week). Past that, you must be involved in developing plot and pressing into a more active role in order to earn a promotion. Being an active ship, our crew is required to make quite an investment of time. If you’re not willing to read, this is the wrong ship for you. If you’re not willing to write, perhaps another ship with a slower post turnover would suit your needs.

Having said that, the pay off of involvement is incredible! It is my opinion that we have some of the most engaging storytelling in all of Star Trek’s huge array of fan fiction. Our characters (even NPCs) have life and vitality. And the people behind the characters are some of the best friends a person could have.

Here are some important links for the crew of the USS Hawking:

Hawking Wiki – Our wiki is a place to let our characters shine. In addition to holding our archives, the wiki is a one-stop shop for everything you ever wanted to know about the ship. It is a constant work in progress and if you are interested in helping with development, contact Torrik Nils for information.

Memory Alpha – Aboard Hawking we are pretty consistent when it comes to Star Trek minutia. Although canon is a GREAT tool for developing our stories, we won’t use it to bash you over the head. Don’t let it intimidate you. This site is a fantastic resource when it comes to trying to fit your story into the huge world that is Star Trek. Feel free to contact me if need help with something in regards to canon. But DON’T let it stop you from being involved.

Crew Roster – We work hard to build a world in which we can play. This is a simple list to let you know who is on the ship. If you’d like to add an NPC, please contact the department head where that NPC will be placed to put them on the roster.

NPC Biographies – Our NPCs sometimes have more life than our PCs. It’s sometimes a sad fact, but it adds a huge dimension of fun and depth to our tales of galactic domination.. er.. exploration. These biographies will let you know more details about those NPCs. If you want to add an NPC bio, please contact the department head where the NPC will be placed with your information.

Writely/Google Docs - Something we do quite often (and quite well if I do say so) is create Joint Posts (JPs), which are posts in which two or more individuals write together to form one coherent post entry. Contact another member of the crew if you wish to open a doc and start writing together. Some will be quite open to the idea, while others may not have the time or inclination to write at that juncture.

Finally, the point of any sim is to have fun. Fun is the name of any game, and we want everyone who chooses to write with us to have fun. So get involved! If you have a story idea or a suggestion for a way to make the ship better, please speak up!!! No one will jump you for trying to be involved.

If you want to talk about joining the ship or any problem you are encountering on the ship please PM me. I’m also always available to build signatures for NPCs and PCs alike. Thanks for reading the Hawking Handbook and Godspeed.

Live Long and Prosper!

Hawking Guidelines

Realism

Post Quality

Format

Department Heads

New Crew

Chain of Command

Statement of NPCs

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