Stormrider
Fleet
Rank and Recognition
Rank is something that should only be attained slowly, with effort.
Otherwise it means very little.
I see other clubs with twelve ranked Captains and four
Admirals on some
ships, because they automatically bump up in rank according to a points
system. One that counts every little thing. You can attain rank simply
by showing up at club meetings, parties, and attending cons. I don't
think you even need to be in costume.
That's fine for them, I don't begrudge them that. It's their club, and
their's to run any way they please. But it means very little to me. I
know I worked my ass off to become Commander.
KAG does have a system for recognition of merit. See the last 3 links
on the KAG handbook page:
http://kag.org/handbook/
Battle Notches, Kill Stripes, and Strategy Marks.
Basically: participation, competition (and winning), planning.
Note that you -must- apply to your Fleet CO (me for StormRider Fleet)
for approval
of all of these. But keeping track of how many each crewmember earns or
has earned is up to the individual ships' COs.
Think of it this way: Pretty much only fellow KAGsters will know your
rank. But everyone can see that sash full of medals, and if they ask
isn't it much cooler to tell them you've earned every one, not just
bought them at a dealer's table?
Which brings me to something else... AERs. I can't toss too many
stones, even the T'Mar is bad about writing up AERs. But there are
ships in SRF from which I have never seen a single AER on the list!
Brag! Are you a Klingon or not? I know there are things happening, I'm
hearing rumors. I've been to your events, where are the AERs?
The proper place for After Event Reports:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KAGCommunications
I also strongly encourage you to post your ship's AERs on the KAG
general talk list and the Stormrider Fleet list (or whichever fleet you
are in):
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kaglistserve/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stormriderfleet/
Anyone of these make an event AER worthy:
1. Were you or a member of your crew there? There is no minimum number
of crew that makes it a ship event. Sometimes only one is able to
attend, sometimes by the nature of the event they may have only asked
for one crew.
2. Was KAG represented there? It helps, but it is not absolutely
necessary that you be in uniform or even Klingon. Some events are not
suited to costumes at all. For several years, the T'Mar were volunteer
servers at a rest home on Thanksgiving Day for lunch so the wait staff
could all go home and spend Thanksgiving with their families. Several
times a year we'd visit them and clean up around the building while
Be'Taj played guitar and sang oldies for them. Being in any costume was
out of the question, but we were representing KAG and the T'Mar so it
was an AER worthy event.
3. Being on a ship is -not- required. Lone Klingons, tell us of your
glory. Did you attend a convention, volunteer for a public service or
charity event, or somehow bring attention to yourself as a Klingon fan
and/or KAG? Are you on a ship, busting your behind, and no AERs are
being posted about it? Take responsibility for your own glory, post an
AER!
4. Promotion on your ship and you made
a spectacle of yourselves by awarding it in costume during a visit to a
local restaurant? Post an AER about it.
5. Did one or more of your crew help out at the invitation of another
ship? Post an AER for your crew! Note that Battle Notches, Kill
Stripes, and Strategy Marks get handed out once- no collecting twice,
once for your ship and once for the other ship is not allowed. It
should be up to the captain of your ship, not the host, to request and
award notches, stripes, and marks as they are due.
AERs are as brief or as long as you wish to make them. Post a few
sentences, or post 3 pages, your choice.
KAG or ship Tshirts are an excellent alternative to being in uniform
for those situations where, for whatever reason, you just can't wear
the armor. There are several choices for that, feel free to contact me
if you need ideas or help. There are some online vendors that let you
upload your own graphics and order small quantities, such as
CafePress.com.
Lead, follow, or get out of the way. And don't be too proud to ask for
help.
- Cdr ChonBey
<[email protected]>
CO Stormrider Fleet of KAG
XO IKV T'Mar
