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Basic Military Training Skill Slot?

Nyton

Nyton

Inactive Member
I think there needs to be something addressed when it comes to characters who are newly enlisted in the YSA. While it has not been a 'common' occurence it still seems to be happening and there are other examples which affects how soldiers behave and thus what they experience.

I'm talking about this whole 'skipping basic' or being 'unaware' of regulations and culture because their background is not Yamataian. Given that the YSA has a sort of Japanese samurai/military background I get the impression that basic would be very strict. Maybe not USMC strict, or even Starship Troopers strict, but regardless basic military training is supposed to be very intense and restrictive. I've been to basic training twice now. It sucks. Yeah it can be fun but it sucks. It's supposed to suck. The purpose of this is to see if you can be put under intense pressure, have most if not all of your comforts removed, push you to your limits, and still perform duties or follow orders without snapping. Plus you're supposed to learn how to conduct yourself in the military, customs, courtesies, traditions, history, culture, and discipline. All in the hopes that once they release you from the restrictive environment that you will retain what they taught you and act accordingly. Or at least enough to keep you within regs and under the radar when on duty and out of trouble when you're off duty.

Because of the dangerous and critical situations a military is placed in the teaching of soldierly duties cannot be ignored just because you show talent. They don't even train you on your specific profession during basic. That happens at AIT, tech school, or whatever you want to call it. So seperate the notion that you learn your job at basic. Basic is where you learn how to be a soldier first. If you pass that THEN the military figures you can learn how to do your job.

Don't get me wrong, it's not like you can't have fun once you reach your duty assignment, but you have to endure the several weeks to months long suck of basic to get there.

Military life is not for everyone. Not everyone can or even wants to try to live that life. That is why new recruits go through basic to see if they really are cut out for the life. Otherwise they would go out to the field unprepared and either die or get other people killed. During the pressure of battle an untested recruit could crack and freeze up, ignore orders, go nuts, etc. True that could happen to a tested recruit but at least they have some sort of 'background' stress to recall and maybe help them pull through.

Alright enough reasoning. On to my point. Dude, why are there characters joining the YSA and claiming they 'skipped basic?' While it's not necessary to be some straight laced toe the line stiffer, there would be so much less conflict occurring between characters if they just had the basic tenets of military behaviour down. Even if they do act up and say stupid things or are a wisecracking smartass so long as you know your limits you'll be fine. Hell you could even break the regs now and then and still be alright so long as you're really good at your job.

Anyways, I think there needs to either be a spot in the CCG saying 'You MUST go through basic and learn the regs, none of this I'm too good for basic nonsense' or maybe even make it a no-cost skill slot. It just seems ridiculous that a character could join the military and be completely unaware of how Yamatai and military culture works. At the least give a reaction like 'Oh yeah they do that silly bowing stuff.' or 'Oh whoops high ranker, better salute or come to attention'. You know, SOMETHING to show that they were taught this but they may just be still 'adjusting' to military life.
 
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I think the main obstacle to this is that most of the player base are actually not in the military and sometimes can't bother themselves to go and read / follow up on the military courtesies and rules of the Star Army (as written in the organisation page); or to consider the import of the new guide to military roleplay (whom outlines some important points very well).

Player inexperience is likely the onset of a lot of this. Wes wanted to make a military training ship to put new players through at first before allowing them to transfer to other plotships. However, he never got around to completing that project (namely due to his currently ongoing Sakura plotship and the loss of the file on which he was typing the training ship's specs).
 
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Woo, I bet he's talking about Leutre.

I remember when I first joined SARP I was hesitant to make a Yamataian and jump in, because I wasn't familiar with Yamatai slang, cultural, habits, and so on. I was afraid that if I jumped into a culture I didn't know much about, but someplace my character supposedly grew up, it would seriously clash with RP. So I thought a complete outsider and stranger to Yamatai would be a good start. Maybe those that make 'untrained' characters feel the same way, or maybe they're just too lazy to read the protocols. Maybe both. Though the laws and customs section doesn't help too much anyways. Mostly all it does tell you what's illegal, what to wear, and how to salute/bow.

In my opinion, the main problem isn't just laws and protocol being covered, but the little everyday things. Culture and society in the SAoY. There's no FAQ or guideline that says, 'this is what people usually do for entertainment', or 'this is the typical schedule of a crewperson', 'this is how computers in Yamatai', 'this is what's taboo and not taboo', 'this is how ____ race is typically treated,' and so on. I spent a few days reading plots before I jumped in, but it sometimes an hour or two of reading would yield little or no important key points about culture and society. I don't think many have the patience needed to dive headfirst into the vast archives of SARP. This lack of basic cultural info may contribute to the hesitation of some to make standard military characters. At least with civilians they can feign ignorance to cultural by coming from simpler or isolated places.

A training ship would really help to cover not only military training, but important cultural points. Of course, getting someone with the infinite patience to handle an endless supply of new recruits is a major roadblock to that end.
 
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Well, its not just Leutre so don't think it a personal attack on you or anything. But in the past there have been more then a few (but less than several) players who start a character, join a ship, act oblivious to how they are supposed to act in the military, and then are wondering why they're face down doing push ups or getting sent to the brig. Sometimes even worse.
 
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I think, at minimum, we need a guide new players could read - I also want a training ship, but right now I have no GM for it.
 
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I'd be willing, but I can only do SP. That and I've never been that good on the whole formalities side.

I feel that the last thing a new player needs is an SP plot - not enough motivation to keep posting.
 
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But my plot is going fairly well and it's mostly SP. o_O

You know, we keep talking about saddling one GM to manage the plotship... but, wouldn't it make some sense to have more than one GM work on it?

For example, Wes is likely the one whom makes the starship battles right, while I seem to have a knack for power armor combat and portraying evil genocidal aliens and destroying things. Doshii seems to have a thing for sparring and firing ranges. Zakalwe looks like he has a thing for turkey and gadgets. Players like Nyton look like they'd play terrific drill sergeants. I could picture someone roleplayed by Toshiro as leading the engineering team, etc etc...

Wes might be the person ultimately in charge of the training ship, but with other GMs working under him making specific tasks, we could insure a training plotship which could be fairly active, dynamic and no single GM would have to deal with the responsability alone. Not to mention many GMs managing it would allow to have more players involved, thus giving the impression of a genuinely larger vessel.
 
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Turkey = Fred's nickname for Elysians.

And of course you guys would agree with me. I am that cool. ~_^

Now, what this needs is actual implementation... Wes wanted to use Rufus Sydney to lead this thing, so, I suppose we need to determine if he's available. Rufus is currently on Yamatai screw- err, dating with Yumi and he's supposedly in command of the Yamataian Gunship Nadeshiko. Would he be useable for this?

Secondly, people whom would participate as instructors would need characters and prefered vocations. I suppose formerly used characters could be used, such as Zakalwe's Arild Bard or even Ghi (though I don't think ghi is teacher material... but then again, I suppose someone to teach medics is better than no one).

Doshii-jun could perhaps use his samurai Kosuka to train people in personnal combat... whereas I could use the kickass NH-12B Lillen as the armor instructor (SA pilots will never be the same ;) )
 
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Kosuka: "If I must, I will mold new recruits into stalwart killing machines for the Empress' disposal."

Yukari: "Could you train them to be singers, too?"

Kosuka: "I could try. Ahem!" *clears voice* "UUUUNBREAK MY HEAAAART, SAY YOU LOVE ME AGAAAAAIN, UNDO THIS, HURT THAT YOU CAUSED WHEN YOU WALKED OUT THE DOOR AND WALKED OUT OF MY LAAAIIIFE!"

Yukari: X_X

Kosuka: " ... I will stick with stalwart killing machines then."

Yukari: "A sound plan."
 
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Doshii: Epic.

Really, I don't see too much trouble with players in knowing how to operate on a military ship - then again, I've made my own share of mistakes. :p
 
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Well, it'd insure to disminish the amounts of mistakes in a real battle and make sure that experienced personnel do get on the more gritty fighting plotships.

There's always the option of being a washout and heading elsewhere too.
 
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Indeed he did.

However he has ST backups. If nothing else he'd have had one when he - quite recently - transferred into a Yamataian body.

No reason why SA wouldn't resuscitate him is there?
 
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