State of the Rebel Squadrons

August 9, 2019

I. Foreword
II. Results
III. Recognition and Awards
IV. Roster Updates
V. Mission Briefing
VI. Mission Objectives and Activities
VII. Conclusion

I. Foreword

Greetings, Rebel Squadrons officers! The time has come for another State of the Rebel Squadrons. Read onwards for news, recognition, and the next mission briefing. For the session that just began last week, we'll have fiction, simming, X-Wing Minis, and general (Special Directive) objectives. The current session will run through October 31.

II. Results from Hammerfall – Paved in Blood

Overall - Minor Victory. The Rebel Squadrons has generally prevailed against the Titan forces this mission.

Special Directive - Stalemate - RA Boid Reaves, MVP. We failed to make any significant progress in restoring security and order to the Greeop sector. The Titan fleet continues to raid and disrupt RS supply lines, hindering our ability to make any kind of counter-attack as all efforts are focused on consolidating the fleet and affecting repairs to our flagships.

Fiction - Minor Victory - FA Danny "David Lee Japan" Qatar, MVP. General information on the state of Bethlamore is revealed, including a summary of enemy forces on planet and in Bethlamore orbit. Allies in hiding on planet will be discovered, and some will provide assistance on a means of escape or aid in maintaining the stealth mission. This will facilitate a possible means of escape.

Simming - Stalemate - FA Lucas Benoit-Stark, MVP. The ABG and its forces will have no access to any planet on the Baphomet System to nestle forces in preparation for an attack. The ABG may be able to mount minimal forces to aid in the possible invasion of Titan, but with Titan patrol throughout the entire system, heavy losses are imminent. An attack from this distance will give Titan considerable time to mount a defense.

X-Wing Miniatures - Major Victory - FA Danny "David Lee Japan" Qatar, MVP. A major weakness has been found in Titan's lines. If we can act, it could put us in a prime position to capitalize on it and begin the liberation of Bethlamore.

X-Wing Alliance - Loss - LCM lmaokai88, MVP. The RS has suffered substantial pilot and starfighter losses in the recent mission, and will be unable to muster similarly strong space support in upcoming missions.

III. Recognition and Awards

FA Danny "David Lee Japan" Qatar has once again earned rights to the RS ITOD Top Gun by scoring the most individual ITOD points. Congratulations, Cody!

FA Lucas Benoit-Stark has earned the RS Activity Top Gun by earning the most leaderboard points.

The active participants of Resurrection Squadron have earned the RS Top Squadron medal for their efforts in leading all other squadrons. Congratulations are in order to RA Boid Reaves, FA Cyrel Vandroth, FA Danny "David Lee Japan" Qatar, FA Kaz Falcion, and FA Lucas Benoit-Stark.

The following officers have earned the Citation of Victory for leading their respective objectives:
RA Boid Reaves (Special Directive)
FA Danny "David Lee Japan" Qatar (Fiction)
FA Lucas Benoit-Stark (Simming)
FA Danny "David Lee Japan" Qatar (X-Wing Miniatures)
LCM lmaokai88 (X-Wing Alliance)

LCM Yaihi'l Beskar, we would like to formally commend you for your consistent activity over the course of the session, and hereby award you the Merit Commendation. Congratulations, Fulliron! Keep up the good work!

Cadet Gar Chenu, congratulations on completing your first sim this past session. I hereby promote you to Lieutenant Junior Grade. Congratulations, LJG Gar Chenu!

Soryn Inek, please step up. You have shown more consistent activity since the last newsletter. Please accept a promotion to First Lieutenant. Congratulations, 1LT Soryn Inek!

Brigadier General 'Crazy' Carl, it's your turn. You have served the Rebel Squadrons faithfully, and in various positions of leadership. You have especially provided 5 years' worth of brand-new X-Wing Alliance missions for us, which has involved a great deal of effort and time, along with all of the administrative work which you have done for us as RSXO, TFL of various activities, and High Command member. It is only right to recognize your service with the rarely awarded and prestigious Tatooine Suns medal, and a promotion to Major General. Thank you for all you've done, Carl. ":)

IV. Roster Updates

Please welcome our newest recruits:

Lieutenant Junior Grade Gar Chenu (Diamond)
Cadet Alx (Academy)

And please welcome back 2LT Jack Jatir (Red Dragon).

We hope to see you on Discord or our forums! May the Force be with you.

Command Staff Openings
We are sorry to say goodbye to MGN CrazyCarl, who has moved on from the position of RSXO. The Rebel Squadrons Executive Officer position is therefore open and we are welcoming applications for it. This job involves being willing to work on whatever aspect of the RS that is needed most, interacting with the various leaders of the club, and helping to guide the club on a positive path towards the future. Please send Licah a message if you are interested.

We are still in need of someone to serve as Academy CO, who will interact with all new members and help them through the process of becoming an active RS officer and showing them the ropes in various capacities.

If you are able to make new X-Wing Alliance missions, we would gladly like to hear about it, as CrazyCarl was making 100% of our missions and has resigned from that position after a long tenure. We will also need an XWA Task Force Leader.

Serving in Command Staff positions are the only way to earn promotions to Brigadier General and higher. If you would like to help out with Command work, but would prefer to assist an office rather than serve as the principal officer, send Licah a message to get started.

V. Mission Briefing for Hammerfall – Triage

The anxiety of the past few months had slowly settled down, and Fleet Admiral Licah Fox, in charge of Republic Shield, felt a sense that he might actually start getting some sleep. Not that the overall situation was great, but the imminent danger of getting wiped out at any moment had ceded to trying to make sure the future included excellent protections against that. Gazing into space in the command center, he turned to one of his officers hunched over a data screen, absorbed in the numbers and letters streaming past.

"Aph, what's our status on those transmissions we took from the RSD?"

"Still deciphering them, sir. I've assigned some more officers to take a look at it, the initial team still isn't getting anywhere."

"Okay, got it."

Licah thought a bit, about the strange soldiers that had been on the Redemption, and what it all meant, what steps he should take next. There would be another run on Aurora coming up, but his capable commanders would handle all of the details there.

Licah kept thinking about his ideas for a future command center and how it might change everything, the course of the battle, new recruits, everything. He wondered if he'd ever have the time to invest in it. So many details of daily command kept him from digging in to the most important long-term projects, and not for the first time he wondered if there were others to whom he could trust to delegate aspects of command. The shock of the assault on Tarsonis had barely begun to fade from the whole fleet, and it was time to make a new permanent home, but hard to say how that would turn out. Fortunately, the Baphomet system seemed to have provided a distraction for their enemies. Commodore Xyla Xuana had sent two missions to the system to find more information about what was happening.

"Aph, any updates from Xuana about Baphomet yet?"

"Let me find out, sir."

Licah quickly handled some communications that had come up while Aph spoke to Xuana's aide, then Xuana herself.

"Sir, Commodore Xuana reports that there is no word yet, and no indication of when word might arrive."

"Thanks, Aph. Send 'Crazy' Carl up here, I have an idea."

'Crazy' Carl had recently decided to step down from High Command, but was looking for a special mission worthy of his exceptional piloting skills and executive standing. Licah was going to send him to recruit an ace in the hole.

VI. Mission Objectives and Activities

Simming Objective

The forces of the Titan invasion have pushed inexorably forward, closing in on the Greeop Sector. The ABG's home Baphomet system is now under Titan occupation as the Imperials plan their next move. Sentinel company has been tasked with gathering intelligence on their old home and has been snuck onto Mormo mining station on the outskirts of the system.

Participant Overall Objective: Participate in sims! Make certain that every week, at least ONE sim happens. If GMs are not available to run an official sim, get to gether with others and have a character sim (free form RP session). The requirement of an aGM being present is waved for this session, provided logs can be given to an aGM (or higher), or it is done on discord.

Individual Scoring: Participate in a sim! When the GM uses the Character Sheet Database Updater tool, your participation will be tracked on the RS Leaderboard. To receive credit for this ITOD activity, you must submit a report to this objective including a synopsis of one or more of the sims you participated in this session. Your final score (out of 10) will be based on your participation in sims (up to 7) and the length and quality of your synopsis (up to 3).

RS Defeat: Side projects and businesses are unable to produce gains for the next session. All skill/attribute upgrades cost 1/5 more CP than normal.

Stalemate: Businesses, side projects, and upgrades function as normal.
Objective: At least 75 hours of total sims reported. ((3 characters + 1 GM count as 4 hours per every hour they participate.))

Minor RS Victory: As stalemate, plus all participating players are awarded 1 FP and 5 CP.
Objective: 150 Hours of sims reported, 5 hours of character sims reported and/or major objective completed in any GM's campaign.

Major RS Victory: As stalemate, plus all participating players are awarded 10 CP and 2 FP.
Objective: 225 hours of simming reported. At least 1 member successfully takes their aGM, GM, SGM tests OR at least 10 unique players participate in a sim during the session.

Special Directive Objective

Effort across the fleet continues to be required in order to combat the Titan threat and have any chance of saving the Greeop sector. Continuous raids on Republic Shield supply lines and support installations in Greeop threatens to wreak havoc on the logistics of the fleet.

Participant Overall Objective: Participate in multiplayer activity! Record your activity using the Reporters -> Generic Reporter tool. After you have at least one entry, submit a report to this objective with a link to your activity profile (the url that shows up after you go to the Leaderboard then select your name). Solo reports are capped at 999 points. Reminders: No more than 4 reports should be submitted in a one hour period. Activity should be reported within 3 days of its occurrence. You may report durations longer than 15 minutes with a single screenshot if, and only if, a) the screenshot contains a duration metric -or- b) you post your start and stop times in #everything_else on discord. Failure to follow any of these guidelines can result in your reports being disqualified.

Individual Scoring: Your ITOD score will be based on your the total score displayed on the Leaderboard MINUS the 'ITOD' column.

RS Defeat: RS supply lines are thrown into disarray, vessels are not operating at peak capacity due to lack of supplies, and ordinance supplies are drying up.

Stalemate: Despite the harassment, RS forces manage to keep basic supply lines open. Ships are operating at regular capacity, ordinance is still scarce.
Objective: At least 100 hours of activity (400 points) reported. At least 10 participants score more than 15 points.

Minor RS Victory: Basic supply lines remain fully secure, regular ordinance (Concussion Missiles, Proton Torpedoes) remain available, but their high yield variants do not.
Objective: At least 150 hours of activity (600 points) reported. At least 10 participants score more than 20 points.

Major RS Victory: The RS manages to completely push back against the attempts to sabotage the RS's supply lines in the Greeop sector, even managing to capture some of the Titan's supply vessels. High yield versions of ordinance and heavy rockets are available.
Objective: At least 200 hours of activity (800 points) reported. At least 10 participants score more than 25 points. At least 4 participants score more than 100 points.

Writing Objective

Under the instruction of High Command Member, Commodore Xyla Xuana, the Republic Shield nestles in the heart of Bethlamore, a planet at the mercy of Titan whose resources and optimal position for the eventual endgame. As more is discovered, the insertion group's goal remains simple: warn the Republic Shield of Titan's plan and find a means of escape in belly of the beast.

Participant Overall Objective: In a fiction based story, RS forces will work together towards a common goal: find a means to relay Bethlamore's status, then escape without discovery.

Individual Scoring: IronMan will once again GM the story. Scoring will take place based on the number of post per each session. There will be 3 major phases, one for each month. If that requirement is met, then the total words from posts will be tallied. Extra points will be given for joint posts or creative/witty actions, and whether or not objectives have been met. (Joint posts will share the number of words in the posts). Bonus points will be factored in for creativity, humor, and joint posts among peers.

RS Defeat: The message never escapes enemy territory, leaving the RS to whatever surprises Titan has in store. In addition, the infiltration group may face capture or heavy resistance, delaying or even preventing their escape.

Stalemate: Of all the information obtained, the Republic Shield will gain access to only one (1) of those pieces of information, as Titan will cut off transmissions before any further information is given. The infiltration group's presence will be tipped, complicating an escape.
Objective: At least 5 unique post will take place for each phase of the thread (15 total). Joint post between several individuals will count as multiple post depending on the number in said post.

Minor RS Victory: The infiltration group reveals the essential gist of Titan's plans and gives some means of planning for what is to come. As such, the Republic Shield will have some awareness of the next mission and have some means of preparation. The infiltration group will have some resistance in their escape, but they'll be able to partake in the next mission.
Objective: Stalemate objectives. In addition, at least one (1) joint post must take place AND/OR at least two (2) post must be over 500 words per each phase.

Major RS Victory: The infiltration group reveals the entirety of Titan's plans. In addition, the group successfully escapes without detection and will play a part in the next mission. Their information gives the Republic Shield sufficient means to prepare for the battle.
Objective: Minor Victory Objectives. In addition, there must be at least (1) post over 1000 words per each phase.

Tabletop Games (X-Wing Miniatures, Armada, Imperial Assault, Legion, etc.) Objective

Titan's forces have closed in around a special operations team's mission to Bethlamore. An extensive minefield, picket forces, and interdictor vessels offer no escape route. We need to open up a path for that team to get off planet. Wwe must eliminate mines, those screening forces, and any ships that could constrain hyperspace operational freedom to escape. Get in there and blow things up.

Instructions - Members of the Rebel Squadrons can submit reports for any of the various Star Wars tabletop games or their emulators (Vassal, Tabletop Simulator, Fly Casual, etc.). If applicable, RSers that submit a report of a single player match vs. an AI opponent (e.g., via Fly Casual) will receive 1 point per reported match. RSers that play a live or online match against a non-RSer will receive 3 points. RSers that report matches against other RSers will receive 3 points per reported match plus 2 points extra to the winning RSer (5 max). The end results will be tallied and scaled to a 10-point scale.

As an added bonus this month: Use a ship with a medium or larger base. Extra point per match rewarded this month for employing craft larger than a small-base starfighter.

All reports must include proof of playing matches via screenshots or photos.

Individual Scoring: At the end of the session points accumulated previously will be scaled across a 10-point scale and winners ranked.

RS Defeat: Less than 30 matches played during 3 months of the session. Fictional Outcome: RS forces do nearly no damage to Titan's defense screen. Interdictors still operational and any escaping forces will find no easy way out.

Stalemate: Between 30 to 45 matches played during 3 months of the session. Fictional Outcome: RS forces were able to eliminate some mined areas and fighter forces, but the interdictors remain operational and areas could be re-mined. Titan is looking outward for further attacks, so perhaps there is a window for escaping forces, but not much of one.

Minor RS Victory: 45 to 65 matches played during the 3 months of the session. Fictional Outcome: RS forces were able to damage an interdictor enough to pull to take its hyperspace interdicting systems offline, but its fighter compliment and other weapons remain. The exit corridor lacks major mines, so escaping forces may have some success in getting out of system.

Major RS Victory: Over 65 matches played during the 3 months of the session. Fictional Outcome: RS forces have damanged an interdictor cruiser enough to send it back for repairs and have applied further pressure and damage to other minefields and picket forces in the area, and it seems a credible exit that lacks major mines and other defenses for arriving in-system has emerged. Escaping spec-ops forces have the best chance of escaping via the exit corridor.

VII. Conclusion

I wanted to give one more special thanks to CrazyCarl for his service to the Rebel Squadrons. CC, I hope you'll stay around and continue flying with us for a while to come!

And I also wanted to recognize Cyrel Vandroth for his invaluable contributions to this SotRS, overseeing all of the mission results and upcoming objectives, recommending medals, and generally taking care of business. He's done an excellent job as Operations Officer, and we're lucky to have him around.

IronMan, Cody, and Cyrel are continuing to provide great activities for their fellow RSers. I hope you all partake in them this coming session as often as you can!

See you out there, everyone!
-Licah


":)

FA Licah Fox
Rebel Squadrons Fleet Commander
Contact the Fleet Commander

FA Cyrel Vandroth
Rebel Squadrons Operations Officer
Contact the Operations Officer

Rebel Squadrons High Command