Drake�s Wraiths - introduction and recruitment (longish)

[SpaceDrake]

(re-posted from the Station forums for maximum coverage )

Now that I�m pretty familiar with the information that is available to the public concerning PlanetSide, I think it�s time I get my idea for a squad going. Well, an Outfit technically, but for all real purposes it�s a permanent squad. Despite the fact that PlanetSide is a FPS, there is a lot of material for storytelling/roleplay in the game. And when I say storytelling, I mean action storytelling - not sitting around making up stories of grand adventures (with the sole exception of the squad�s background fiction, so we actually have some purpose behind what he do from here on out), but taking in-game actions and using that as the basis for the story we want to weave.

What I�m looking to do is start an infiltration/covert ops group. While we�d technically classify as an outfit, I�m going to keep enrollment down to ten people - enough for a single squad. Not only does that allow us to operate truly as one unit, but also I�ve been in a few MMOGs before and have both led and been in clans/squads/corporations/what have you. Frankly, I find that when a group of any kind gets beyond a certain size, it becomes a pain in the azz to manage. Ten people should be enough to actually get things done when we take on our missions, but at the same time it�s small enough that members can actually get to know one another - and I can get to know the men I�ll be leading.

We�ll be doing infiltration work almost exclusively - sneaking into bases to disrupt enemy forces before a main attack comes, capturing defenses so the Galaxies/fighters/etc. can get through, recon in force ahead of an assault group, that sort of thing. If the need is dire enough, we�d don other kinds of armor in defense of a base or something, though it�s hardly our specialty. If you sign up with us, you should be ready to do a hell of a lot of �wet work.� Sneaking, hacking, causing havoc� that�s our specialty.

But who the hell are �we?� We�re Drake�s Wraiths. We�re a New Conglomerate outfit/squad. And the back story behind the group will be this (in short): Members of the group were formerly members of the Vanu Sovereignty, mostly in the infiltration and assassination squads. However, I and several of my �friends� (at least in the Vanu sense of the word) began to feel as though something was wrong with our lives. For SpaceDrake, at least, he felt as though he was not living his life to his fullest. Of course he had Vanu tech in his head that allowed him to think straighter and faster than a normal man, but at the price of much of his emotion and human feeling. Was the advancement of the human race really worth this? Had he once again been reduced to little more than a cog in the machine, which was one of the reasons he had left the Terran Republic when the fighting first broke out in the first place? He finally came to the conclusion that he could not stay with the Vanu, and with several like-minded associates fled. They could not flee back to what was left of the Terran Republic on the planet� they�d be shot on sight. So they went to the only other people who would have them� the New Conglomerate. They were reluctantly accepted, though only because the NC will take anything it can get when it comes to soldiers. Most other NC soldiers shun these Vanu defectors because to them, these Vanu guys seem cold, impersonal, and almost alien. And so they are. Vanu indoctrination and implants have stripped them of much of what most people would term their �humanity.� They cannot go back to the Vanu, having betrayed them� they could not return to the Terran Republic even if they wished to� and the New Conglomerate has taken them in only out of desperation. It seems that they are dead to the entire world. Thus, they shall serve the ones who will have them the only way they know how: by being as silent and deadly as the ghosts everyone seems to treat them as. Thus, they earned the name �Drake�s Wraiths.�

So. What I�m currently doing is recruiting the �defectors� who came with me over from the Vanu to the New Conglomerate. Let me be clear: I�m not asking Vanu people to change sides. I�m simply seeing if anyone else would be willing/eager to work with the above source material. You�d have to be New Conglomerate, as I figure they�re the only ones who would have us at this point. (That, and we�d still be fighting on the side of the righteous, even if they don�t appreciate us much. ) If the above taste of our story got your juices flowing, then below is an outline of the structure of the outfit.

Command Structure: I am in charge of the squad overall, though having commanded and been commanded, I know that any leader has to listen to his men. I won�t be utterly dictatorial, but if I give out an order I expect it to be done. I�m afraid that in the heat of battle, there simply isn�t time to make command decisions by committee. Outside of battle, though, you can feel free to question me if you have a problem with the way the squad is being run. Beyond that we�re not really going to have any �ranks� per se� if someone has a specific skill/cert that the others don�t have, they�ll be deferred to when it comes to that specific task and respected in their execution of it. If we need to split up into several groups to take out several defense batteries at once (or something similar), then I�ll assign who I believe to be the most capable to command that part of the unit for that specific mission. Skill and respect is what binds us together - not some artificial, pompous rank matrix that means jack when you�re facing down a Republic fire-team.

Server: Currently, it looks like we�ll be based on the North American East Coast server. That is subject to change, and hey, most of the time I�m on a college LAN T3 connection. I�m flexible. We are going to all be on the same server, however. If we get good �n famous for our roleplay and fighting exploits (a fairly big if at this point), I might endorse other �Wraith� squads on other servers. It�s way too early to think about that, though, so for now one server, looks like it�ll be N.A. East.

Experience: No previous MMOG experience required. Or much FPS experience, for that matter. I come from a more RPGish background than a FPS one myself (though I was a semi-regular at �the pond� on Tribes 2 for a while), so I won�t discriminate at all when it comes to gaming experience. I do demand that members act with maturity at all time (whether in or out of character). Avoid CAPSPEAK, 1337speak, and teh netspek unless you�re trying to be humorous. (Some netspek is of course permissible if you�re rushed for time. ) No flaming or trolling, either. Well, flaming only if the guy brought it on himself. Intelligent flaming, you might say.

Website: I�ll be speaking with the PlanetSide Universe guys once the group consists of more than just myself (I.E. it actually exists.) We�ll have basic forums, player bios (real life bios are completely optional, of course), stories of past battles, etc. Graphics help would be appreciated. (A note to other outfit commanders: has anyone taken a look at what www.planetside-universe.com is OFFERING? They�re practically giving away prime web space for nothing. I�m going to have to see if there isn�t a catch there somewhere.) Also, we�ll have to see about voice chat. If it�s not integrated into PlanetSide, we�ll get a TeamSpeak 2 server set up.

Roleplaying: The biggie. Here�s the stance on roleplaying: the squad has been formed with storytelling/roleplaying in mind. I don�t demand that everyone roleplay to the hilt all the time. I do expect that everyone try a little bit of storytelling every now and then, and when you�re not speaking in the squad channel (be it voice or text), I do expect you to be in character (which is of course a somewhat cold individual�) I do allow for some variances from the basic idea of the squad, of course, but when you sign on do include a basic outline for your character so I can know what to expect. Essentially, if you make a good contribution to the overall roleplay environment of PlanetSide and the squad, you�re in excellent shape. And remember: we ACTION roleplay. The only time we make up a story without at least some in-game backup to it is the introduction story, which I will begin work on in a day or two and really get rolling once I get some membership in this group.

Other considerations: We are, of course, completely equal opportunity in real life. Ethnicity, gender, nothing will get you disqualified from being in the outfit/squad. The only thing you need to bring with you is a mature attitude and a desire to roleplay out what I hope is a fairly interesting idea. If you have any other concerns, please post them here or email me at [email protected].

Joining: If you like what you see here, then reply below that you�re interested in joining us, and fire off an email to [email protected] with your basic character outline. Once we get an actual roster page going, you�ll be added.

See you in PlanetSide, guys.

[Flashingfish]

Just a bit of helpful advice:

PS won't support voice, so you might as well go ahead and make Teamspeak 2 a requirement

Other than that, good luck!

[Airlift]

Hey Drake, you may want to make that size a platoon of three squads instead of one squad. The reward sharing in Planetside is on a platoon level, so you're giving up on both operational strength and faster advancement by restricting yourself to a single squad.

[Lexington_Steele]

Supersize it!!!

[SpaceDrake]

Eh. We'll see. I still feel that more than ten guys would be a pain in the ass to manage effectively, but we'll see.

And isn't anyone interested in JOINING?

[Maus]

just a question SD, you moved over from the Eve community, just out of interest?

[SpaceDrake]

That I did, because... well... EVE just doesn't hold my interest the way it once did. But you didn't hear that from me, 'kay?

[Lexington_Steele]

Originally posted by SpaceDrake
Eh. We'll see. I still feel that more than ten guys would be a pain in the ass to manage effectively, but we'll see.

You can manage about 9-10 guys right? Well then you just need to find 9 people like you, who can each manage 9 guys. And poof, you now have the ability to manage 3 platoons.

[SpaceDrake]

Originally posted by Lexington_Steele
You can manage about 9-10 guys right? Well then you just need to find 9 people like you, who can each manage 9 guys. And poof, you now have the ability to manage 3 platoons.

Yeah, but the thing is, if I were to do that, I'd have 90 guys, and I'd only really know the commanders of each squad. I've been in groups like that and I'm tired of operating that way. I want a small, dedicated squad where I know each one of my men pretty well. Also, this is an I.S. outfit. Even a platoon would be rather large for what I hope to make an elite outfit designed for wreaking havoc and mayhem within enemy compounds, gather intelligence, and silently overtaking forward defenses. (http://planetside-universe.com/forum...threadid=1630, if you haven't read it already.) But, we'll see how popular the idea is. I've already got two people interested in the idea, with the distinct possibility of two more, and the idea hasn't been in the air for even 24 hours. We'll see.

[Lexington_Steele]

You could always approach another outfit leader and see about forming an infultration suit division of their outfit. You could be the Drakes Wraiths division of Outfit X.

Then you would have your tightly knit group, accesss to more familiar people when your sqad mates are not online, and have the support of dedicated healers, infantry, tanks and transporters.

[SpaceDrake]

Ehhhhhhh... not really. The very fact that we're Vanu tratitors and thus our attitude sort of freaks everyone out, so there isn't a group that'd take us in, RP-wise. Sorry Lex, but I want to try and do this my own way.

[Lexington_Steele]

All good. I wish you luck.

[Ludio]

Sounds like a great idea for an outfit SpaceDrake, unfortunately I'm a diehard Vanu, and I think my first character is going to be a MAX.

I especially like the roleplaying and the small size, I think its a good idea to keep it at 10 for the type of group you want to run.

I'll be looking forward to a base I'm defending being disrupted by unknown enemies

[Faust Sheck]

Also Drake, another incentive to increase the member size is because the said 10 members or so you want to command won't always be on the game when everyone else is unless of course you make that a requirement to be on extremely often. Anyways I like the new side to your squad (roleplaying), alot different than the others in that way.

[SpaceDrake]

This is true, Faust. We'll have to see how it goes. I have noted that we'll be based on the US East server, so hopefully I'll get guys with rather compatible times.

And I would give you an offer to join me, but it seems you're taken. Isn't there ANYONE else who is a bit turned on by this?