Odyssey of Athena [Sci-Fi] OOC & Discussion (Open)

[SaintB]

Equipped with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure Science.
— Edwin Hubble, The Nature of Science, 1954.

IC

It is 2415...
Humanity has spread through the stars. 2001 saw the invent of the first RF Resonant Cavity Thruster (The EMdrive) by Roger Sawyer which eventually revolutionized space travel in the 2020's by allowing trips from Earth to its Moon in only four hours and from Earth to Mars in mere days. The 2050's saw advances in fusion power that would lead to the first commercially available EMdrive equipped space craft in the early 2060's which lead to what is known as the 'Space Boom'. Soon travel around the solar system became commonplace, colonies where established by Earth's nations and by private interests and resources where gathered from the asteroid belt and even surfaces of other planets.
The modern age of mankind did not truly begin however until near the end of the 22nd Century when physicist Jody Dilly harnessed the use of matter/antimatter reactions to produce usable energy (2142) and Doctors Thomas Kearny and Takaoshi Fuchida stumbled upon the secret to opening wormholes in space time (2177) that allowed humanity to travel thousands of light years in an instant. Since then humanity has settled in 17 systems and visited dozens more and now the time has come to search further into the deepest reaches of space to explore, catalog, and defend our species' claims from whatever may be out there.
You have been chosen to join the crew of Athena a starship like no other. Like her namesake Athena is a being of both knowledge and war, she is a vessel full of both soldiers and scientists alike tasked with expanding the boundaries of human knowledge and protecting the boundaries of human space. A champion for humanity which represents their two most defining traits; War and Peace. Welcome to the maiden voyage of Athena, welcome to her Odessy.

This topic is both an OOC and discussion thread, world building for the setting will continue to go on with participants in the RP having some influence over the UEC and the planets that exist outside of Earth's sphere of influence. I'm willing to take questions and suggestions to flesh out the Universe in which we will be RPing.

Rules
1. Read all of the rules here and in the character app section before making an application.
2. No godmodding. Godmodding is here defined as taking actions on behalf of other players without their prior consent, taking massive world changing actions without clearance from myself, and assuming that your attempt to affect another player will automatically succeed.
3. Treat each other with respect. If you are obnoxious or habitually rude to other players I reserve the right to cull you from this RP and its OOC.
4. Follow all the site rules. If you are violating the site rules in my IC or OOC I will call the wrath of mod down upon you as well as erase your existence in this RP.
5. Profanity, nudity, and violence, are all perfectly fine but make sure to keep things PG13. If you think Hollywood would give it an R rating then tone things down.
6. In my absence the word of my Co-OPs is law.

Crew
Commanding Officer: Captain Carter Washington, SaintB
Executive/Signals Officer: Commander Linus Charles Mencili, Kassarran
Chief Helmsman: Commander Lycares Van Houtent, NPC
Liaison Officer: Lt. Commander Jake Sadowski, Ontorisa
Security Chief: Marine Gunner Mahuika Cohen, Ularn
Chief Medical Officer: Commander Dr. Celsus Bell, D. O., Brusia
Chief of Engineering: Lieutenant Virgil Rhodes, Ubaria
Quartermaster: Ensign Hedy Pagano. NPC
Psychologists: Lt. Ahmad Easton, Lt. Rica Lestrange, NPCs.

Scientists
Xenobiology: Dr. Sebastian Forester PhD., NPC
Astrogeography: Dr. Annabel Man PhD., NPC
Astrophysics: Dr. Torben Accursio PhD., NPC
Linguistics: Dr. Marisa Fuentes PhD., NPC
Dr. Katrin Arima PhD., Escalan Corps-Star Island
Xebotony: Dr. Jovanka Negrescu PhD., NPC
Geology: Dr. Maximo Etxebarria PhD., NPC
Dr. Neil Lockwood PhD., Theyra

[SaintB]

UEC Athena

http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2013/086/c/1/bertaeyn_federation_corvette_commission_by_adamkop-d5zh58t.jpg

Class: Science Cruiser
Original Design: Stalingrad Class Heavy Cruiser
Length: 311 meters
Beam: 40 meters (average)
Crew: About 540 maximum.
Mission: Explore the outskirts of UEC Space providing both scientific and advancement and a military presence in outlying sectors.
History: Formerly the UEC Battle of the Marn. The Marn was the second ship in the Battle of Stalingrad class in UEC service, commissioned in 2362 and completed in 2364. The Marn served a full 45 years as a front line war vessel and later anti-pirate raider and was the designated flagship of no less than three fleet level operations. Decommissioned in 2409 and put into dry-dock where she was mothballed. For more detailed information see the entry for UEC Marn, Battle of the.
In 2412 The Marn was nearly made into a museum but was instead appropriated by The Colonial Congress to be the flagship/testbed for Project Athena. It took three years of work to renovate the ship by updating the technology, providing appropriate amenities, and equipping the best available scientific equipment and weaponry. The newly christened UEC Athena is ready to embark on her first mission.

Athena has the facilities to house around 540 people but will carry less on her inaugural mission. Athena is staffed by the best and brightest available with even the lowest ranked member of the crew being an example of the position and likewise none of the scientific minds aboard Athena are anything but the best and brightest, all hold doctorate or post doctorate degrees with nothing less than PhD candidates among their researchers and assistants. The whole UEC has high expectations for the ship and her entire crew.
Environment: There are no windows on Athena or any other UEC Naval ships for a multitude of reasons. The interior walls of the ship are matte gray in combat personnel areas and a creamy white color in other areas of the ship and each deck has its own unique floor color, signs are posted to inform people of where they are on the ship. The ship has its own artificial day/night cycle; full spectrum lighting is used throughout the ship to simulate sunlight for 12 hours a day in the common and dormitory areas then switch to a dimmer light that allows for visibility but provides a shadier more twilight feeling; this is to help keep those aboard from suffering from sleep irregularities and provide a natural circadian rhythms.
Living: Officers and the leaders of scientific teams live in individual quarters that are 4x5 meters while the ship captain is housed in the largest room measured 10x10, the private rooms are furnished with small individual restrooms. Enlisted crew and other scientists are housed in dormitory style housing with two people assigned to a 6x6 room and one communal shower for each 20 rooms. The basic amenities include a bed and a locker for personal belongings as well as a computer console for personal use. The console is connected too an intra-ship network with its own social media application, games, and a personal cloud storage. As was previously mentioned there are no windows on UEC naval vessels but each room is equipped with a view screen connected to an exterior camera that gives a view of the immediate area outside Athena but can also be set to display one of hundreds of preloaded images or a personalized image set by the user, it can also be used to display motion pictures or games played on the computer console or simply turned off. Room assignments can be requested and dorms are not unisex.
Recreation: There are several recreation areas aboard Athena including athletic facilities, two theaters, and a club that can be reserved for special occasions..
Food and Water: Meals are made and served around the clock with two breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, once for each shift and are served for 4 hours at a time with 6 to 10 different menu items available to choose from. Enlisted military crew members are on a strict duty schedule get assigned breakfast, lunch, and dinner times to prevent there being too many people off the floor at a time. A large portion of Athena's food is produced aboard ship in a vertical farm which provides fresh vegetables for meals. There is no real meat kept aboard the ship because of its easily perishable nature but nutrient rich soy based soup products (that can also be produced in the vertical farm) can be flavored and molded to the texture of any common type of meat. Used water is filtered, sterilized, and recycled. With a full crew Athena only needs to resupply once every standard year.

Though the Athena has been built on the foundation of an aged vessel The Marn was among the first in the current generation of standards for deep space ships and she has been retrofitted with the most advanced technologies available. As she is still nominally a warship Athena carries a suite of offensive weaponry that puts her on par with the current generation of light cruiser and defensive measures still equal too a heavy cruiser, as well as scientific instruments and equipment.
Defense:
Advanced Point Defense System:Like all warships the UEC Athena is equipped with multiple layers of exterior armor to protect her from the rigors and hazards of travel and combat in deep space but the first line of defense for any modern vessel is her point defense systems. The APD System is a network of sensors, computers, weapons, and countermeasures that encompasses the entire ship. The network consists of seven independent sectors of operation, fore, aft, bridge, and one each for the top and bottom of the port and starboard sides of the ship and carries a variety of hard and soft kill countermeasures that can be deployed too protect the vessel from missiles, debris, and small attack craft or drones. Each sector of the APD System's network can identify and track targets only centimeters in width and records their mass, velocity, and makeup, determines the best countermeasures to use against the target, checks it for IFF signals, and then eliminates or deflects any incoming that it identifies as dangerous. The system can only be overridden by simultaneous access codes entered by the CO and his XO and having multiple independent sectors of operation ensures that damage too the ship does not deactivate the whole system.
Whipple Bumpers: The first layer of Athena's armor is Whipple shielding. Whipple Bumpers are in essence a variation of spaced armor that protect against hyper-velocity impacts by small orbital debris and micro meteors. Athena is protected by hundreds of variations of the design on different areas of the ship but the thing they all have in common is their construction material. The Athena's Whipple bumpers are constructed of a heat resistant and ablative ceramic of a currently classified make and double as part of the plasma protective layers.
Kinetic/Impact Layer: While the Whipple shielding that encompasses the outer shell of Athena is strong against impacts from small debris or from the heat and radiation of space certain weapons are capable of puncturing straight through this relatively thin and brittle layer of protection. Thickening the armor layer to withstand attacks from rail cannons, coil guns, or even impacts with other craft would be prohibitively expensive and add too much mass. The/Kinetic Impact Layer is as common on modern warships as it comes and of course Athena is no exception. Athena's K/L (kill) layer is as thick as the heavy cruiser from which she descends and is comprised of carbon nanotubes, a very strong, very flexible, material that rates almost as high as diamonds on the Mohs scale of hardness. Thanks too this armor layer Athena can take dozens of direct hits from the most advanced kinetic weapon systems available before suffering serious damage. The density of the K/L layer's material also allows it too resist plasma assaults making it the second line of defense in the plasma protective layers.
Superconductive Energy Disperser: The first successful Superconductive Energy Dispersers (SED) were mass produced just over a century ago and more advanced versions are standard equipment on all UEC warships. The simple explanation for the SED layer is it uses room temperature superconductive materials that absorb and disperse energy in the form of electricity and heat from laser and plasma attacks. While modern anti-ship lasers are strong enough to burn right through the first two armor layers the SED layer stops attacks from these weapons dead on by absorbing their energy and dispersing it among the whole system. Superconductive Energy Dispersers strength is also its main weakness, to offer maximum protection the system covers the entire ship which allows it too absorb tremendous amounts of energy by its mass alone, but concentrated attacks from hostile ships in multiple places could override the system quickly. The SED layer installed in Athena can reach approximately 675 degrees kelvin before it begins to fail. It comprises the third and final portion of the plasma protective layers as well.
Spall Layer: A standard feature in all types of vehicle armor for centuries, the spall layer is made out of ballistic resistant materials and serves to protect the crew on the interior from shrapnel and other debris that can result from impacts with space born objects or from combat damage.
Weaponry:
Kinetic Penetrators: Modern Kinetic Penetrators (KPs) are fired from rail guns that only vary far from the weapons used by our forebears since the middle of the 21st century in their sheer power. Athena's main battery is a single gun capable of launching up to eight 24 kg shells per minute at speeds exceeding Mach 15. It only requires a two man team for normal operation and can be manually targeted but is usually done so automatically via computer. The main battery is toward the fore of the ship with three secondary batteries (port, starboard, and aft) each with a quartet of guns that fire ten to twelve 7kg shells per minute. The Kinetic Penetrators used by modern vessels are wedge shaped projectiles that like their name implies rely on sheer force and velocity too damage targets alone. Most point defense systems are unable to intercept KP's fired from less than 250 kilometers so they are a preferred weapon for 'close' range combat though since there is no friction in space their range is technically unlimited and KPs are often used at ranges of hundreds of kilometers too attack 'static' targets such as space stations.
Anti-Ship Lasers: Anti-Ship Lasers use ultraviolet frequencies of light to melt through the armor and hulls of a target but become less focused and thus less effective at extreme ranges. Despite the downsides Anti-Ship lasers are a favored weapon for long range engagements (more than 1,000 kilometers) because the attacks travel at the speed of light. Lasers also become more effective as combatants close distance. Athena's laser batteries consist of three weapons a piece with each individual weapon capable of damaging targets as far as 5,000 km away.
Plasma Projectors: Particle projection cannons work by super heating helium or hydrogen gas until it reaches the plasma stage of matter and then discharges it in a manner similar too the firing of kinetic penetrators from a rail cannon. Projected Plasma can travel at velocities greater than 60km/s and has an effective attack range of around 4,000 km. Plasma weaponry is primarily caused by vaporizing and melting whatever it comes into contact with and becomes inert gasses when it cools.Athena has port, starboard, and fore batteries of projector cannons with four weapons each.
Missiles and Torpedoes: Guided Munitions have been an integral part of warfare since the 20th century when they were first introduced and will continue to remain such for the foreseeable and likely unforeseeable future. Today's guided munitions are far more complex than their ancestors and capable of tracking targets using minute amounts of data and dozens of different parameters and packs a large number of electronic countermeasures and stealth features to avoid detection on its approach. The most important distinction is between what we consider a missile and what we consider a torpedo. A torpedo is a long to extreme range guided weapon, larger than missiles by around twice the magnitude a torpedo carries a similar warhead and sensor suite too a long range missile but travels greater distances at higher velocities, torpedo strikes at 12,000 kilometers are not unheard of. In 2386 a torpedo launched from the light cruiser Waterloo struck and disabled a separatist ship at 14,267 km setting the current record for such a hit. Torpedoes are usually used to engage targets between 6,000 and 10,000 kilometers away and occasionally within 5,000. Missiles are closer range weapons and are classed as long range (3,000 to 6,000 km range), intermediate (1,000 to 3,000), and short range (50 to 1,000) with closer range weapons carrying larger warhead payloads in most cases. Athena only has one missile battery located near the fore of the vessel on the meridian between the port and starboard sides on the bottom deck of the ship. It is capable of handling and firing one missile every two or three seconds.
Matter/Antimatter Warheads: Anti-ship rated missiles and torpedoes usually carry high explosives equivalent to half a kiloton of TNT but Matter/Antimatter warheads are many magnitudes stronger for many magnitudes less mass. Matter/Antimatter warheads where the result of failed early experiments in the 22nd century to harness antimatter as a power source (when it was first available to be produced in quantities exceeding nanograms). A quantity of Helium-3 and an equal quantity of its antimatter equivalent Antihelium-3 are suspended apart from each other using small magnetic superconductors. To detonate the warhead the the pole of one magnet is reversed which releases the particles to react with one another in a powerful exothermic reaction - even small quantities of matter and antimatter can produce very high yields. Security protical requires that the warheads be constructed only before deployment and can only be activated with authorization by the President or in case of an emergency their successor, or in rare cases a designee ratified by the President and a congressional majority. Athena carries the material to produce half-gram and single gram warheads which provide more than 20 and 40 kilotons of TNT yield each. These weapons of mass destruction can only be assembled with authorization of the ships captain or direct orders of the President.

Athena is the newest and most advanced vessel in the entire UEC fleet but the technology that makes her possible is grounded in tried and true devices from our past.
Power: Athena's energy production comes from a matter/antimatter reactor buried deep within the ship's engineering deck. The reactor works by allowing a single atom of Helium-3 and a single atom of its anti-matter counterpart Antihelium-3 to interact with one another. In essence the two atoms cancel each other out, breaking the bonds that hold together the particles in the core of the atoms' nuclei and releasing tremendous energy in the form of heat and light. The heat from the process is harnessed to activate turbines which create electricity that is used to power the entire ship. Excess power from the reaction is stored in batteries capable of holding enough power to run the primary systems of Athena with the exclusion of the EMdrive and Kearny/Fuchida drive for a month.

Propulsion: To successfully traverse through space Athena requires several motive systems. She is equipped with an EMdrive for primary thrust, hundreds of maneuvering thrusters, and backup systems for emergency use.
Emdrive: Emdrive is likely the single most important advance in space travel, ever. EMdrive is the colloquial term for the RF Resonant Cavity Thruster, an engine that creates thrust using electricity but without the use of a propellant. The first drive was built by an Aerospace Engineer named Roger Shawyer at the turn of the 21st century in the year 2001 and was regarded as a hoax by the scientific community as it seemed to violate the Action/Reaction law of physics. Undeterred Shawyer and other pioneers of the field continued to build and develop improved versions of RFRCTs and soon the rest of the scientific community took note and began to experiment with the technology. Eventually the 'impossible' technology became more acceptable to the scientific world and NASA launched the first unmanned EMdrive powered space probe in 2022, it was an unprecedented success.
By 2030 EMdrive was the standard in astrogation, virtually every new satellite or space craft was powered primarily by EMdrive technology, an Indian lunar mission reached the moon in one day which prompted the US to launch a lunar mission that took only 4 hours, and then an international effort reached mars in less than 2 weeks. Soon advances in fusion power made EMdrive powered spacecraft commercially available creating the Space Boom and the rest is history. Athena's EMdrive allows the craft to reach velocities of more than 88,500 kilometers per hour at flank speeds, she is capable of traveling from Earth to her sun in around two months, or from Earth to the outer reaches of the Solar system in just under two years and is the primary motive system aboard Athena.
Maneuvering Thrusters: In space there is no atmosphere to speak of, with no atmosphere there is of course no way to generate lift and hence it is impossible to maneuver using rudders and flaps as a terrestrial aerospace vehicle would. Athena gets beyond this through a series of hundreds of maneuvering thusters. The maneuvering thrusters do not work on EMdrive technology, instead they are electrothermal plasma drives, which provide quicker acceleration and allow the ship to pitch, yaw, and turn in a manner very similar to an aircraft. The thrusters do require a propellant and the chemical hydrazine is that fuel.
Kearny/Fuchida Stabilizer: The Kearny/Fuchida Stabilizer allows Athena to traverse wormholes and seemingly instantly travel distances of hundreds, or even thousands, of light years.

Wormhole Travel: Wormhole travel is the means by which humanity travels the stars of the Milky Way. The term wormhole is the common parlance for a phenomena known as The Einstein–Rosen bridge which at its conception was a theory that there were ways to connect two areas of spacetime that are extremely far apart in a manner that could be traversable. In the early 22nd century physicists successfully performed an experiment proving that wormholes existed as naturally occurring phenomena but it wasn't until almost six decades later that two physicists named Doctors Thomas Kearny and Takaoshi Fuchida accidently discovered the secret to stabilizing a wormhole long enough to send an object through. Their device, which was named the Kearny/Fuchida Stabilizer, was able to hold open a naturally occurring wormhole so that an object could traverse to the other side but it only works in areas where the energy density of space is negative in relation to the average energy density or extreme gravity. The few areas of space that have confirmed lower enough energy density than average are called jump points and are most always protected by a space station which also serves to aid friendly ships in astrogation but in many areas there is no local jump point so an area of high gravity such as (relatively) near to a star or other massive stellar body.

Communication: Most energy waves travel at the speed of light in space. Many commercial starships use radio signals to communicate with one another as it is simple technology that still allows essentially real time communication with vessels as much as 300 thousand kilometers away though the background noise and radiation almost always makes the range drastically shorter. More advanced communications equipment such as that aboard Athena use more directional media that are less likely to receive interference such microwaves and lasers to send transmissions to 'nearby' areas these can reach over a million kilometers away under the optimum conditions with only a few seconds lag time. Athena's real time communications include radio, laser, microwave, and others. For extreme range communications vessels can have their messages relayed from other ships and stations or in cases when they are isolated, such as will be the case with Athena's, first mission probes can be sent. The probes can carry messages and data to wherever they are needed, they are equipped with a Kearny/Fuchida stabilizer, their own EMdrive, a small fusion reactor for power, and a highly advanced virtual intelligence with complicated astrogation algorithms that allow it to be sent to any jump point to send its messages.

Its standard for any UEC vessel over 100 meters in length to contain a hangar bay. Athena's hangar bay is small for a ship her size since room needed to be made for the civillian equipment on board the ship but is still large enough to hold three shuttles from two different classes. Athena's hangar is located in the upper section of the ship toward the aft and takes up space on two decks. Shuttles are raised from and lowered into the ship by a hydraulic lift that serves a dual purpose as the landing pad.
Yue Fei Class Shuttle: Yue Fei was a legendary Chinese warrior of such fame and status he has been used as a cutural icon of the chinese people since the 14th century. Unsurprisingly, with a name like Yue Fei, this class of shuttle was designed as an attack shuttle for the Marines; capable of carrying enough weapons, ammunition, armor, and equipment for up to 50 marines and has port and starboard bridges for boarding actions. The Yue Fei attack shuttle is armored in the same manner as any UEC warship and includes its own point defense system. The 23.4 meter long vessel is operated by two crewmembers and capable of endo and exoatmosphereic operations and is powered by an EMdrive. The large black stripes on the flank and top of the vessel collect raditation to power the ship's systems and is backed up by a powerful battery capable of running the vessel for 22 standard hours at full capacity. Athena houses one Yue Fei shuttle.
Consulate Class Star Shuttle: Consulate Class Shuttles are small shuttles designed for short exoatmospheric transit. Consulates are crewed by one pilot and can carry five passengers or a small amount of cargo. Mostly used to shuttle officers from one vessel to another they are also used to ferry VIPs around large space stations like Oslo. Consulates are recognized as diplomatic ships throughout human space and every faction carries stiff penalties for firing on one unprovoked. Athena carries two Consulate shuttles.

[SaintB]

Politics and Factions

The UEC
Early on in this new age it was quickly determined that a new organization would need to be formed to protect the economic well being of humanity's new star born society and provide mutual defense from whatever threats may lurk in the vast reaches of space be they human or something else and so the UEC was born. UEC stands for United Earth & Colonies and functions as an interstellar governing body and military alliance similar to a combination of the United Nations of the 20th and 21st centuries and NATO. The UEC currently has 7 member planets each with its own governments, nations, and cultures but all contribute resources to the military and government of the UEC organization. The UEC military only has a 'Navy' with a small corps of marines mostly trained in combat aboard ships so member planets need not feel threatened by invasion from the UEC authority. Each planet in the UEC sends 100 elected representatives to Congress to make decisions, Congress is lead by a President and Vice President who are elected from the body of the Congress and was originally based out of Oslo Norway.. In 2359 Congress was relocated to a space station in the asteroid belt of the Sol System named Oslo Station.
Population: 28, 243,097,432 (est)
Life Expectancy at Birth: 103.4 years
Official Language: English
President: Edna Harris
Vice President: Rajmund Pål Afolayan
Capitol: Oslo Station
Member Planets: Earth, Mars, Coritha, Salvation, Arkanuma

Federation of Free Planets
Known in the UEC as The Separatists the Federation of Free Planets consists of a quartet of systems that were once members of the UEC. During the course of The Federation's secession a conflict was sparked between the two factions that turned into an eight year war. The Federation and the UEC have yet to repair relations though they are not openly hostile.
Population: 18,345,167,984 (est)
Life Expectancy at Birth: 101.9 years
Official Language: English

Rim Commonality
The RC as it is known colloquially consists of two small systems on the furthest edge of human influence in the galaxy. It was formed in response to the creation of the UEC which they have always felt threatened by. Relations between the UEC and RC are cold but the RC's government is weak, a fact that the UEC has taken advantage of in the past when it negotiated limited trade and travel with private entities. The Ulysses Corridor is the unofficial border between them.

History
Separatist's War 2385 - 2392
For the almost 150 years the UEC existed there was no actual credible threat to the might of the union but among the populace of some of the farthest reaching worlds resentment began to build. Four worlds that were members of the UEC felt that Earth had an undue amount of influence in Congress and that it was too large and bureaucratic to properly manage and protect everyone; they grew more disenchanted and then angry with the UEC. It began with the election of more isolationist representatives to the congressional body who were disruptive and opposed anything they thought benefited the 'core' worlds of the UEC over the others. Eventually as things became even more mired in Congress and tensions grew worlds closer to Earth began to break off relations with the far reaches which hurt the economies throughout the UEC and began to escalate the situation further. In February of 2385 the four planets recalled their representatives in Congress and withdrew the vessels they had provided from the UEC's shared navy. One such vessel, a destroyer named Sacred Hearth, had a Congresswoman from Earth named Edna Harris and her security detail on board.
Not knowing what to do with the Congresswoman the ship's captain confined her to his quarters and attempted to arrest her security detail until they could make port and send them back to the UEC. Congresswoman Harris's security team fought back and managed to gain control of the communications station long enough to send a probe with an SOS stating that Sacred Hearth was being overrun by mutineers and that the Congresswoman was in danger. The EUC's Busan and Jeddah, two frigates from Earth, intercepted and responded to the distress call. Busan and Jeddah attacked and then boarded Sacred Hearth killing her captain and a third of her crew in the fighting and arrested the remainder to be put on trial for mutiny. The incident was the spark that ignited the fires of war.
The break away worlds formed a union of their own named The Federation of Free Worlds but became known simply as Separatists to the UEC and an eight year war ensued. Early in the conflict the UEC held total dominance in space because it enjoyed a significant advantage in fleet sizes over the Federation but after two years of conflict other 'independent' unions and planets such as The Rim Commonality lended their support to the Separatists and locked the war into a six year long stalemate. In June of 2392 all parties involved agreed to cease hostilities and the war was officially over, the UEC made official peace with The RC and other independent systems but no official peace has yet to be reached with The Federation of Free Worlds. During the war the decision was made that all ships in the UEC Fleet regardless of where they were built would be owned solely by the UEC.

[SaintB]

Q&A
Q: What's the status of xenotech in this universe?
A: As of yet no alien life forms have been deemed sapient by either science or the UEC government so Xenotechnology and Xenolinguistics are not yet scientific disciplines.

Q: What are the marines' equipment and weapons looking like?
A: The standard infantry weapon is a coilgun that functions much like a modern assault rifle. They have a wide variety of ammunition types too. The standard ammunition is armor piercing, then there is semi-smart air bursting ammunition which contains a small amount of high explosives and goes boom when it detects the presence of a hostile, a subsonic ammunition that basically acts like a rubber bullet, and 'glass' ammunition that shatters on impact with a surface, it causes really nasty wounds on flesh while not damaging the hull of a starship.

Q: What classifications of starship does the UEC Navy run, and how are they named?
A: The UEC Navy classifies their ships similarly along the lines of modern navies, with Destroyers, Frigates, Cruisers, Battleships, and Carriers. Destroyers and frigates are the most commonly produced classes of ship. Destroyers are escort vessels capable of wormhole navigation, they are comparatively lightly armed with small crew compliments but their smaller size allows them to perform atmospheric operations on some planets, destroyers are usually named for famous historical figures. Frigates are used for patrolling star systems and are not equipped with a Kearny/Fuchida Stabilizers, instead they have the most powerful thrust to wieght ratio on their EMdrive and carry more powerful sensor and weapon packages than destroyers and are named after countries and cities located within their solar systems. Both destroyers and Frigates range from 95 to 160 meters in length with a 10 to 20 meter beam depending on their class with an average compliment of 200.
Cruisers are the generalist class of ships that are able to perform the most varied roles, they come in the light and heavy subcategories and are usualy named after battles and battlefields. Light cruisers trade firepower and armor for complicated sensor equipment while heavy cruisers play in the role of front line combatants, the average length is around 300 meters with beam ranging from 25 to 40 meters and an average compliment of around 1,000 marines and crew. Battleships are purpose built for destruction, they carry the heaviest weapon and armor payloads of any class and are often named for mythical beasts or famous warriors, two of UECs most famous battleships are Leviathan and Ajax. They range from 350 to 500 meters in length with beams between 34 and 70 meters and as many as 5,000 marines and crew.
Carriers have large internal hangar bays filled with hundreds autonomous attack drones and have wide beams for their size. They are usually not heavly armed or armored because they aren't meant for forward combat roles and have small crew compliments for their size. The average length is around 200 meters with a beam of 50 to 60, a notable exception is the Salvation Class carriers which have a circular diamater of 128 meters. Carriers are named after stars and planets and usually are never staffed with more than 500 crew.

Q: Space fighters?!?!
A: Sorry but no... the automated defenses of starships would make an attack by manned spacecraft nothing more than a massive kamikazee attack that amounts to an exercise in futility. Drone fighters are used in the place of manned missions to overwhelm the defensive systems of enemy ships so that the weapons on board other ships can be effectively used. Every ship does include a shuttle hangar for ferrying people and supplies and those craft are manned.

[SaintB]

There are two different applications, the first is for the military officers of the ship, the second for civilian scientists. The chief of Medical can be either a civilian or a soldier and all apps are at a first come first serve bases so if I accept a Quartermaster nobody else who applies can have the job. Officer ranks are O-1 through O-3 for minor jobs, O-5 for the Captain, and O-4 for the command crew. Currently only accepted Junior Officers for military applications, O-1 and O-2, any position that hasn't been struck is available and if you have an original suggestion pitch it to me feel free.

Code: Select all

 [b][u]Military App[/u][/b]
    [b]Name:[/b]
    [b]Age:[/b] (Officers are typically at least 17 when they enlist and can be as old as 45. Training takes about 4 to 5 years depending on MOS.)
    [b]Gender:[/b]
    [b]Rank:[/b] (Naval Rank O-1 or O-2 except for XO)
    [b]Appearance/Pic:[/b]
    [b]Home World:[/b] (Earth, Mars, Coritha, Salvation, or make one up)
    [b]Position:[/b]
    [b]Height:[/b]
    [b]Weight or Mass:[/b]
    [b]Biography:[/b]
    [b]RP Sample:[/b]

Military Spots Available
Executive Officer: Second in command, takes over commander's duties when captain is absent or too wounded to fulfill duties, must be at least O-4 in rank.
Chief Helmsman: Chief Helmsman is the officer who oversees piloting and navigation of the ship and is responsible for ensuring safe and efficient travel, serves as an unofficial 3rd in command when it comes to decisions involving immediate action without the presence of Captain of XO. Must be at least O-3.
Security Chief: In charge of the ship's security details and safety drills.
Quartermaster: Responsible for ensuring the cataloging, tracking, and maintenance of all war materials, food, and non-critical facilities aboard ship.
Chief Engineer: Oversees maintenance of all engineering, computer, and locomotive systems.
Master Gunner: Responsible for overseeing the maintenance and use of all offensive and defensive weapon systems and related facilities.
Signals Officer: Oversees care, maintenance, and usage of communication's equipment. Protect classified codes, monitor, send, and analyze incoming and outgoing signals.
Liaison: The middleman between military and civilian personnel who's primary duty is too mediate disputes, assist civilians in navigating the often complicated military procedures, and ensure civilian readiness in case of emergency.
Medical Chief: In charge of health and wellness including emergency medicine and first aid. Can be civilian or soldier minimum soldier rank O-3.
More can be added later.
Psychologist: Could be part of the military or a civilian. Life aboard a metal box floating through space can have profound psychological effects on some people. The ships Psychologist is responsible for seeing to the mental well being of any who need help.

Code: Select all

[u]Scientist/Researcher App:[/u][/b]
    [b]Name:[/b]
    [b]Age:[/b] (Remember that it takes an average of 8 years to earn a doctorate in a field of study and further time might be needed to prove your chops enough to be considered for a coveted spot aboard [i]Athena[/i])
    [b]Gender:[/b]
    [b]Specialty:[/b] (Pick from the list or make a suggestion)
    [b]Appearance/Pic:[/b]
    [b]Home World:[/b] ((Earth, Mars, Coritha, Salvation, or make one up)
    [b]Height:[/b]
    [b]Weight/Mass:[/b]
    [b]Biography:[/b]
    [b]RP Sample:[/b]

[b]Science Positions Available
Astrogeographer: Astrogeography is the study of the layout of space, a far more complex study than run of the mill geography because of the 360 degree nature of the job. The Astrogeographer will be responsible for creating a 3-dimensional map of the unexplored areas reached by Athena.
Xenobiologist: Xenobiology is the study of alien organisms. As humanity spread through the stars encounters with alien creatures was inevitable and Xenobiology has grown into one of the most important fields of study. As there is a moderate to high chance of Athena encountering new life forms a Xenobiologist is required aboard the ship.
Xenobotonist: Like a Xenobiologist, a Xenobotonist is considered absolutely necessary to the mission at hand. Xenobotony involves the study of alien plants and fungi, an absolute necessary if a new inhabited planet is discovered.
Linguist:The UEC itself has almost 30 Billion inhabitants in 7 different solar systems, there are thousands of languages both new and old and untold dialects between them. Linguists not only learn multiple languages but they study language patterns, morphology, and trends. Many consider it a boring field but in today's society it is considered a critical discipline and Athena plays host to an entire team of linguists. The character position represents the head of that linguistics team.
Geologist: While Astrogeographers make note of the location of stellar bodies and their types it is the Geologists job to determine the make up of those same bodies. The data they collect can determine any number of factors about the potential future of an asteroid or planet like whether it has resources suitable for mining and etc.

Other Jobs
Medical Chief: In charge of health and wellness including emergency medicine and first aid. Can be civilian or soldier minimum soldier rank O-3.
Physicist/Astrophysisict: Physics is one of mankind's most important scientific disciplines. Any number of studies or experiments involving physics could be performed on Athena.
Sociologist: For the first time in UEC history a vessel carrying both military and civilian personnel is being launched on a tour of duty. The behavior of so many people from such wide backgrounds and professions could make for an interesting case study.
Psychologist: Could be part of the military or a civilian. Life aboard a metal box floating through space can have profound psychological effects on some people. The ships Psychologist is responsible for seeing to the mental well being of any who need help.

[SaintB]

Reserved

[Ontorisa]

Military App
Name: Jake Sadowski
Age: 29
Gender: Male
Rank: O-3
Appearance/Pic: Sadowski
Home World: New Berlin, Mars
Position: Liaison
Height: 5"10
Weight or Mass: 187 LBS
Biography:

Born and raised in Stauskorf, the "hood" of New Berlin, Jake Peters Sadowski was born into a family of four. His childhood revolved around learning the hardships of living on the streets and in the sketchy parts of large cities. Throughout Sadowski's childhood, he was treading the thin line between a legal and an illegal lifestyle, seeing most of his friends turn to the deadly drug known as Fratrideras-903, a hallucinogen that had recently overtaken Mars' youth population. Of course, as soon as Sadowski finished his high school and obtained his Diploma of Standard Level Education (SLE, the Martian equivalent of a GCE), he turned to any possible career opportunities to get him out of Stauskorf.

The military was always there for him, he found. Enlisting in the Special Communications Unit (SCU), a military unit dedicated to teaching both combat and communication skills to its members, Sadowski could only realize that this was his life. It was a military life for him. He quickly joined the 206th Communications Company, which was attached to the 93rd Mars Regiment and saw combat operations against separatist rebels near the North Pole of Mars. Following his combat deployments, Sadowski was offered, by the SCU, to be detached from the 206th and sent on-board the UEC Athena to act as its liaison, following the cruiser's completion. He agreed, knowing that this would only hone his skills even further. [Pretty weak bio, I know. Not really sure what to do I can help with the world building tho]

RP Sample: Oh, seriously?

---

You want me to brush up on those weapons I sent you in the TGs?

[SaintB]

Military App
Name: Jake Sadowski
Age: 29
Gender: Male
Rank: O-3
Appearance/Pic: Sadowski
Home World: New Berlin, Mars
Position: Liaison
Height: 5"10
Weight or Mass: 187 LBS
Biography:

Born and raised in Stauskorf, the "hood" of New Berlin, Jake Peters Sadowski was born into a family of four. His childhood revolved around learning the hardships of living on the streets and in the sketchy parts of large cities. Throughout Sadowski's childhood, he was treading the thin line between a legal and an illegal lifestyle, seeing most of his friends turn to the deadly drug known as Fratrideras-903, a hallucinogen that had recently overtaken Mars' youth population. Of course, as soon as Sadowski finished his high school and obtained his Diploma of Standard Level Education (SLE, the Martian equivalent of a GCE), he turned to any possible career opportunities to get him out of Stauskorf.

The military was always there for him, he found. Enlisting in the Special Communications Unit (SCU), a military unit dedicated to teaching both combat and communication skills to its members, Sadowski could only realize that this was his life. It was a military life for him. He quickly joined the 206th Communications Company, which was attached to the 93rd Mars Regiment and saw combat operations against separatist rebels near the North Pole of Mars. Following his combat deployments, Sadowski was offered, by the SCU, to be detached from the 206th and sent on-board the UEC Athena to act as its liaison, following the cruiser's completion. He agreed, knowing that this would only hone his skills even further. [Pretty weak bio, I know. Not really sure what to do I can help with the world building tho]

RP Sample: Oh, seriously?

Lt. Commander Jake Sadowski, Liaison Officer for EUC Athena

[Ontorisa]

Military App
Name: Jake Sadowski
Age: 29
Gender: Male
Rank: O-3
Appearance/Pic: Sadowski
Home World: New Berlin, Mars
Position: Liaison
Height: 5"10
Weight or Mass: 187 LBS
Biography:

Born and raised in Stauskorf, the "hood" of New Berlin, Jake Peters Sadowski was born into a family of four. His childhood revolved around learning the hardships of living on the streets and in the sketchy parts of large cities. Throughout Sadowski's childhood, he was treading the thin line between a legal and an illegal lifestyle, seeing most of his friends turn to the deadly drug known as Fratrideras-903, a hallucinogen that had recently overtaken Mars' youth population. Of course, as soon as Sadowski finished his high school and obtained his Diploma of Standard Level Education (SLE, the Martian equivalent of a GCE), he turned to any possible career opportunities to get him out of Stauskorf.

The military was always there for him, he found. Enlisting in the Special Communications Unit (SCU), a military unit dedicated to teaching both combat and communication skills to its members, Sadowski could only realize that this was his life. It was a military life for him. He quickly joined the 206th Communications Company, which was attached to the 93rd Mars Regiment and saw combat operations against separatist rebels near the North Pole of Mars. Following his combat deployments, Sadowski was offered, by the SCU, to be detached from the 206th and sent on-board the UEC Athena to act as its liaison, following the cruiser's completion. He agreed, knowing that this would only hone his skills even further. [Pretty weak bio, I know. Not really sure what to do I can help with the world building tho]

RP Sample: Oh, seriously?

Lt. Commander Jake Sadowski, Liaison Officer for EUC Athena

You want me to fix that?

[SaintB]

Lt. Commander Jake Sadowski, Liaison Officer for EUC Athena

You want me to fix that?

No need to that was just me saying you were accepted.

[Ontorisa]

You want me to fix that?

No need to that was just me saying you were accepted.

OH. I'm an idiot, sorry.

So you need help world building or something? Because I could work on Mars + the personal weapons.

[SaintB]

Military App
Name: Captain Carter Washington
Age: 54
Gender: M
Rank: O-5
Appearance/Pic:

Home World: Riverside Iowa, Earth
Position: Captain of Athena
Height: 1.82 meters
Weight or Mass: 76kg
Biography: Captain Washington is not lost on the irony of being born in the same place as the fictional Captain Kirk and even made a joke of it during the party celebrating his commission, "I will ask myself every day WWKD. What would Kirk do? Then I'll do the exact opposite of that!"
Captain Washington possesses a sense of humor which is something he regards as necessary in a high pressure job like his, the whole galaxy is watching him and he knows it. Carter is a veteran of the Separatist's War and was actually serving as an ensign aboard the UEC Busan when it participated in the attack on Sacred Hearth and launched the war. He has since participated in a dozen battles on half as many ships and a score or more skirmishes with the occasional pirate.
Athena is his second command, he was recommended for the job after two years Captaining the light cruiser Shiloh. His being picked for the position has lead many of his peers to believe he will soon be promoted to Commodore.
RP Sample: This is my RP.

[Skaixeque]

Military App
Name: Lycares Van Houtent
Age: 29
Gender:M
Rank:0-4
Appearance/Pic:flight suit
Home World: Brussels, Belgium
Position:Chief Helsmen
Height:"5'11"
Weight or Mass: 125 pounds
Biography: Born in Brussels, he grew up in the middle class. Both his parents were teachers and his father did a side job as a computer specialist. When he was 16 his mother was killed in by a gunmen who had got into the school and was holding everyone hostage. After he graduated high school, he enlisted in the military at the age of 18 and became a pilot. He served on the UEC Citadel a Salen class frigate as the helmsmen for eight years.

over the years, he has been asked to test pilot several experimental ships. he also piloted several black op mission after four ears of service. Where other pilots said it was suicide, he said it was possible. His career was built off the impossible. he has heard the reputation at being a extremely good pilot, but also a risk taker. When he was given the chance to be the head helmsmen of the UEC Athena he jumped at the chance.
RP Sample:http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?p=25472202#p25472202

[Ontorisa]

Jesus Van Houtent is skinny.

[Lancearc]

Tagging :3

[SaintB]

Lycares Van Houtent is a little too young for his listed experience, he'd need to be at least 28 to 30 to have six years as a helmsman then probably another year at least for his test pilot experiences, also please link to one of your RP posts directly because I lack the time or the will to search the whole thread for examples. Otherwise it looks like a good application so if you can fix those two bits you're golden.

[Ularn]

Tag. Will have an app submitted for the Security Chief soon.

Out of interest, what's the overall crew complement of the Athena? Knowing that'll give me a rough idea of how many marines would be on board and what rank of officer would need to be in charge of them.

[Creataris]

Tag, shall have a Gunnery Chief app up soon.

@Above, 540 crew max it says on the second post with post four indicating that you should probably be O-4 as Command Crew.

[Ularn]

Tag, shall have a Gunnery Chief app up soon.

@Above, 540 crew max it says on the second post with post four indicating that you should probably be O-4 as Command Crew.

I saw that, but the Athena's actual crew complement is going to be less. Assuming it's around 300 and about 50% civilian, that leaves room for maybe one platoon of marines - definitely less than a company, anyway - and the highest rank you'd want to place in charge of something that size would be an O-2. Besides, I want to make a grizzly non-com to keep things interesting, so you're all getting:

Military App
Name: Mahuika 'Mah' Cohen
Age: 46
Gender: Female
Rank: Marine Gunner/Chief Warrant Officer
Appearance/Pic:

(Image)

Mahuika Cohen has been likened more than once to a mother bear. Tall, sturdily built and of Maori heritage, her appearance commands respect yet does not at the finely honed edge of years of marine training. She carries herself with a bearing that exudes authority and the experience of her decades in the service reinforced by the lines on her tanned skin and close-shaved once-black hair now well on its way fading to grey. Like just about all marines, Warrant Officer Cohen wears various tattoos although the only one visible while in uniform is a traditional ta moko on her lower lip and chin, which can look alternately elegant or fearsome depending on the expression on the heart-shaped face above it.
Home World: Earth
Position: Security Chief
Height: 173 cm
Weight or Mass: 87kg
Biography: Named for the Maori Goddess of Fire, Mahuika Cohen was born and brought up in Rotorua, New Zealand. Growing up she did reasonably well in school but found her real passion in sports. Mahuika joined the UEC Marines just out of School when the Seperatist's War was well into its third year, though her motives were less to do with the war and purely out of a desire to see space, partly inspired by the character Mazer Rackham from the novel Ender's Game - at the time one of her favourite books.
Over the course of a career spanning almost three decades, Mahuika Cohen rose steadily through the ranks and served on several different ships, including the ageing heavy cruiser UEC Battle of the Marn while a corporal. Because of the exigencies of war and her own personal performance, Mahuika advanced quickly through the enlisted ranks. From around the time she reached senior enlisted during her mid-twenties, it was noted that the officers whom she served under tended to go on to lead distinguished careers which several of them attributed to her guidance in their early years. Around the same time, marines junior to her took to calling their favourite non-com "Mah" or "Mamma Bear". With the respect of the officers above and the soldiers below her, Mahuika's career following the war remained lucrative and decorated long after the end of the war.
Now approaching retirement age, Mahuika Cohen was assigned to serve as Executive Officer to Lieutenant George Harrison on the Marn - now recommissioned as the UEC Athena. When Harrison was beached for medical reasons days before the scheduled departure with no suitable marine officer available to serve as replacement on such short notice, Gunner Cohen found command of the entire platoon fall into her lap as she became Acting Security Chief for the Athena's inaugural voyage. Although looking forward to the challenge, Cohen is used to serving on warships and is not entirely happy with the idea of sharing her boat with a load of civilians and foresees all sorts of trouble between them and her marines.
RP Sample:Children of Infinity

I do want to flesh out the bio a bit more but you get the idea.

[SaintB]

Tag, shall have a Gunnery Chief app up soon.

@Above, 540 crew max it says on the second post with post four indicating that you should probably be O-4 as Command Crew.

There's only about a platoon of marines, a junior officer commission O1or O2 would sufficient for the role or higher if they want. Command crew is the CO, XO, and one other officer.

[SaintB]

Marine Gunner Mah Cho is accepted as Security Chief (acting).

[Ularn]

Sweet!

Okay, so next question: what are the marines' equipment and weapons looking like? By the 25th century I'm guessing we'll be on man-portable railguns or maybe plasma or laser weapons. As for armour, would we be looking at plain old Aliens or Halo-esque body armour, or some sort of power armour? Personally I'd prefer the latter because badass (also, I have some designs sketched already that we could use) but considering Athena is meant to be on a peaceful mission and the UEC is actively trying not to make its marines threatening, I guess power armour would not be standard-issue and could imagine Mahuika's marines not tetting any (or at least, not for more than a single squad) even if the UEC did have it.

[Skaixeque]

Updated my app

[Ularn]

I get an extremely good feeling about an RP when I start drafting my intro post as soon as the character's accepted.

[Flammaland]

What's the status of xenotech in this universe? Because I've got an idea for a xenobiologist/linguist that has a xeno arm.