The Game

Starbase Phoenix is a PBEM (Play By E-Mail) RPG (Role Playing Game). A player may choose to create one (or more) characters who will live, through posting story pieces, on and around a Federation Starbase in the Delta Quadrant. Characters may be Starfleet Officers, Enlisted, Marines, Diplomats (both Federation or from other governments), Scientists, or Civilians of any conceivable kind. The general premise must be, however, that for some compelling reason, they have come to the Delta Quadrant, on the very edges of explored space, to find... something: fame, fortune, adventure, a place to hide.

Story messages are distributed via email to all the players, using an "open tag" format of soliciting input. The following plot summaries are just an example of the exciting stories we play out on Phoenix. For a better example of form and content, stop by our Yahoo Group and peruse the Messages archive.

Characters advance in rank (or civilians in public standing) over time and active participation in plots, but we have no hard and fast rules about gaining experience, nor are there new skills or abilities gained with an advance in rank. More so, promotion is a recognition of the writer's dedication to the game, the character, and the energy and creativity they bring to the writing. The bottom line is that a writer who participates actively and collaboratively will get to grow their character through increasing responsibility in the game.

Initiative in starting scenes with other characters is always welcome, as is active participation in other players' plots. Caution should be taken, however, never to significantly alter the purpose or tone of another player's scene or plot without first consulting with them. Likewise, players are cautioned never to let their characters fix things too quickly, save they day too heroically or make shows of abilities or skills that make them too powerful with respect to other characters. We call this Superhero Syndrome. While we understand the desire for a player to have their character do well, we think it is more important to write a good story, than to "win the game." Whatever that means.

Story is developed through posts - individual pieces of prose sent via email to the entire group. One character may "tag" other characters within a post, meaning they leave narrative sections open for other characters to fill in, not unlike madlibs (though usually not as funny). An example would look like this:

The first line is the Subject Header for the email. It names the character sending the message, the stardate, the primary location of the action (on the starbase, on a nearby ship, at the marine base, and so on), and a title for the post, each part separated by a colon. The Stardate can be confusing, but once you understand, its easy: the first three numbers represent the "real" date of the post, plus 400 years. So, that post was originally sent on September 15th of 2006. The last number is a sequential number for how many posts that character has put up that day. In the example, that was the 3rd post made by Captain tra'Fitz on that date. Simple!

The second and third lines denote the specific location, and the character who is being "tagged." Tagging is the heart and soul of our style of writing. The general guideline is that one player writes their character's action and/or conversation, and then leaves two or three open tags for another character (or characters) to respond. Anything more may become cumbersome. And please remember, one player should never assume or specifically write another character's actions or responses. If your plot requires another character to behave in a certain way, or say something specific, then discuss that with the player outside of the posting board to make sure it is understood.

"ON:" denotes that the in-character, in-story prose section has started. The ::snip:: signifies that some text from a previous post has been cropped out to save space and allow things to move forwards.

Where possible, Starbase Phoenix sticks to canon Star Trek history and technology as established by the television shows and movies (though obviously projected into the "future" of those sources). Elements from the multitude of books, video games, or the pen-and-paper RPGs are considered variants, and may be introduced after consulting with the CO or XO.

We encourage good writing, and recommend proofreading your work before posting, or using a word processor-based spelling and grammar checker. If you would like help with your writing, please feel free to ask other members. We consider Starbase Phoenix to be a collaborative, and supportive writing environment, where anyone can come to improve their work and have fun.

Starbase Phoenix, being based on the spirit of what Gene Roddenberry created, and on the content of the television shows and movies, adheres to the level of quality expressed in those sources. We feel that coarse language, explicit violence or other adult situations are not part of the Star Trek vision for a better universe, and as such, we do not include such things in our sim. If you could not reasonably expect to see a scene on one of the TV shows, then don't post it to our board.