A Tribute to Online Legends

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Picard
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A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Picard »

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As you might have heard, FC’s last days are numbered and the launch of [VC]Vanguard Command is imminent. We will attempt a feat that has very few times been successful, but I remain confident. We have time and time again shown our resilience, who we are and what we already accomplished together is something to be proud of. The Star Trek gaming community has been insufficient for sustaining a clan, and this has been true for several years now. Hope for a new and better Star Trek game combined with nostalgia and memories of better times have sustained us for years. However, as the situation show no sign of improvement we must put the interests of what is left of our group first and leave the Star Trek Community behind.

We can, each and every one of us, hold our head high – the last Star Trek game that fitted our style to have any success is now over 12 years old. Our survival is nothing short of absolutely extraordinary – we are not role players; we are gamers who have reinvented their group and their games for over a decade.

Most of us are now closer to 30 years old than we are to the 20’s. Our teenage days are long gone and it is somehow fitting that we should move on to something new. We should strive to refine our community but also expand it to keep it young. We will find new games to enjoy - returning to the basics of what made this community a leader: competitive gaming. We have never been a group for role playing or whatever STO is about nowdays. There is a better way forward for our group. Jesse understood this well when he advocated that we become a club, and on this point we agreed. I think we all know that our friendship is what makes us special, but we can and must bring new blood to this family and it can only be done the old fashion way. Being the best in the games we play and going out there, we can't stay isolated anymore.

The mission of this fleet has been fulfilled, and our group will continue to prosper under the leadership of Fleet Admiral Costello, he will write the beginning of a new chapter, the most important chapter since our creation.

We must now say good bye to this Star Trek community, It has occupied a big part of my life for many years. So for those interested I will post part of my little story below.

I invite you to do the same, post your own story, let this forum stand as a monument to our friendships and all we have gone through on a personal level as humans. Let it be a tribute to our Star Trek aliases to which we have dedicated so many years of our lives. This is not make believe, they are part of us and their actions defined our personalities both on and off the web.

I will now explain a small part of my years in the ST community, someday I might come to these forums and read this and recall what great fun we've had. In some ways, it is also the story of FC.

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My Personal Experience with the Star Trek Community

My experience with Star Trek began in 2000. I was then downloading every demo version of Star Trek games I could find. My first love was undoubtedly Armada 1, an outstanding success back then in 2000 – trying all these games, even as demos were a great experience as Star Trek games were as good as any games could be back then. It was not before January 2001, when I had asked and received for Christmas my second favorite ST game of the time: Starfleet Command 2 that I joined the community. After installing the game, it was not long before I proceeded to the Game Spy Arcade lobby and began noticing tags and one particularly caught my attention, [SF] Starfleet.

Having no idea which level of organization existed in such entities I proceeded to enter their room after modifying my name to [SF]Adm_Kirk and posing as an Admiral. As you might have guessed it didn't fly especially since I barely wrote or spoke any English back then. A certain [SF]Commander Greed took charge and had the patience to direct me through the enlistment process. I enlisted as [SF]Picard since the name Kirk was already taken in the fleet. Had I known this name was going to stick with me for so long – I might have given it more thought. Nonetheless, it’s fair to say that Greed was a mentor to myself, Jesse and TParis in [SF], we all remained close to him until the passing of his wife from cancer about a year later, after which he began a downward spiral of self-destruction that landed him god knows where. For me at least, he was a very important figure and a dear friend.

A few months went by after my enlistment and a rising Star in the fleet transferred to the SFC2 division, his name was Jesse. There was lots of “division” picking back then as you would try to be in the division you believed gave you the best chances of advancement, divisions CO’s were in charge of promotions. Jesse was quickly given the command of Epsilon Squadron and I was to serve as his XO. It was also in SF where I began serving in the web team, I had absolutely no prior knowledge of HTML.

But it wasn't enough for me, being 13 years old at the time; it didn't take long before my ambition pushed me to leave [SF] to create my first fleet. [FR]Federation Republic, I had just seen Star Wars Episode 1 and decided to use the name Republic, it was there I would learn to command a fleet, the hard way – I was confronted with coups, treason, spying, wars, the community was very active back then, it’s safe to say that you’d see more action and would be confronted with more challenges in 6 months that UFP and the second FC was confronted in their entire existence. The community was truly something magnificent back then – I wish you could have seen it.

Interestingly enough, FR survived until 2006 but by then a lot had already changed for me.
It’s all of a blur for me but I decided to return to Star Fleet a few times between 2001 and 2003. One time I closed FR to rejoin and one other time just decided to double clan – joining as Sisko and claiming that he was my brother. You can see how original my thinking is when it comes to finding names. Of course, I had no brother. I was just bored. That is when I started to interact with TParis who was in security back then -he was onto me. Of course, we had contacts before, back then every key person in most fleets were talking to other people from other fleets to exchange services and sometimes intel on key people and hostile fleets. TParis will recall someone named Predator (later David) who had also left SF to create consecutive clans [MRA]Maquis Rebel Alliance (which I was part of), and which never took off. David then created [UF] around 2004-2005 which lasted longer and had some mild success, this pushed him to try to influence and bully other fleets. By then TP and I began cooperating and we decided to have fun with him, TP was in [RS] by then and I was FA of [FC] so it wasn't long before we made David our bitch - he was a major douchebag and deserved it. There’s nothing like a common enemy to forge bonds.

Going back to 2003, I created Federation Command, by then Jesse had taken over [SF], but left quickly afterwards. I think he had a run in [RS]Red Squadrons, which was the ultimate nemesis of the time, led by another former [SF] officer, Dan Jones – a big name of the community if there ever was one. Between 2000 and 2003 – [RS] and [SF] went to war a few times and [SF] was most times victorious (if not all?).

In 2004 I recall I hired Jesse to design a new web site for FC. He did a very good job with some help from TParis -that was before any of them joined FC. But not long after Jesse deceided to join [FC], at the time FC was becoming quite big especially in SFC3. We were successful and it didn't take long before he was FC’s XO. Having a thirst for something greater, Jesse decided to create [FEDS]Federation an uncluttered simple and efficient war and propaganda machine. I could not resist leaving FC in the capable hands of Sean (Dark_Sean) and join FEDS to have some fun. Of course FC and FEDS remained very close allies. But in FEDS I could put my skills to use, I was a very skilled EF and SFC3 player so I had a field day racking up the victories for FEDS during our campaigns.

A few months later, Jesse and I decided to create something unique, a super-clan. [UFP]United Federation of Planets, it became a huge success. You are all aware that there was another {UFP} at the time, a fleet that was barely worthy of the name "clan". We had surveyed their forums and found that for weeks, even months sometimes there would not be a single new post on their public forums. They were highly inactive, much more than FC is today. It even took them months before they realized we existed, and it wasn't because we didn't make waves, [UFP] became a huge deal and fast.

The rest is history to you all and I’ll let you speak of your experiences in UFP and FC. If I have one regret it is that I have not been closer to all of you, the fact that I’ve been Fleet Admiral for most of your time in UFP or FC made it so we were unable to bond like we would have had we the community provided us with more opportunities or if we had gone up the ranks together.
Despite the realization that my teenager years are long, long gone and that the Star Trek Gaming Community is very unlikely to return to anything like its former glory, we must now find a new, more fertile ground for our family. I truly hope that we’ll be able to find the path to the simple pleasure of having a whisky while enjoying gaming online, blowing things up, teaching a thing or two to those ‘noobs’.

I regret nothing and I am immensely grateful for all that the Star Trek Community has given to me. It has thought me the language of Shakespeare, web coding, how to create graphics and so many other things that made me a truly better man.

From the bottom of my heart, Thank you SF, FR, FC, UFP and more importantly, my warmest thanks to you all my friends. I'll see you all in VC and look forward to the announcement of our leader, Fleet Admiral Costello.

I joined the ST community as a 12 years old kid and I now leave it as a 27 year old man, not without some nostalgia but most of all very grateful for the memories.
Thank you,
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Shroombuck
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Shroombuck »

I echo the sentiments of my Esteemed Friend.

We have been here so long, that we almost cannot remember the days. My story within the Star Trek community began in 2004 as Zell when I joined 9th Fleet, which was established back in 1999. I didn't rise quickly through the ranks because I was far too occupied with being the administrator of SFC3Files.com, which remains to this day part of the organisation known as FileFront Network, a collection of over fifty-five specific game-related sites.

I stumbled upon the UFP website in 2006 and registered with a new nickname, which most of the old-timers vividly recall for its shortness: Oda. It only lasted a year, because then I reverted back to my original nickname, Shroombuck, that I have used since my computer-gaming days began back in 1996 with Duke Nukem 3D, Quake 1 and Red Alert. Finally after the emotionally dead bunch of fuckers took over the old-UFP, I too signed up for FC.

Now at the onset of Vanguard Command, we begin a new journey. Let it be known that this is not the end, it's not even the beginning of the end, but it's perhaps the end of humble beginnings because we stand at the dawn of a glorious future.

Onwards and upwards!
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Costello
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Costello »

It's almost impossible for me to quantify the value I have taken from the twisting and turning Trek experience that I've embroiled myself in since 2007.

My career and record stand as a reflection of my growth between the ages of 16-25. My involvement in this community eclipses relationships and even time spent at properties. It's truly become a universal constant that has deepened my appreciation and well of affection for those who I have become acquainted with.

Furthermore I have had the additional benefit of creating tangible friendships that transcend the politicking and competitive gaming handles. Through such connections the incarnations of this fleet have become interwoven as significant memories and components of a life I am altogether thankful for.

From my incipient interest, I was captured. The internet in 2006 was a novelty to me, a truly undiscovered country. I found [UFP] and the rank structure, the multiplayer ethos, it was a catalyst for remarkable events and moments I am proud of.

Between captaincy of the Marines, heading up war efforts and charting a transition from Photoshop novice to guru, this experience is unlike any other. In fact we should be more complimentary towards the education this community provides. Were it not for our organisation I would not be the proficient leader that I have become outside of fleet affairs.

I have had my moments of unpredictability - where ego battled potential. However having crossed the bridge in terms of maturity I am able to look, with hindsight, extremely fondly at the time I have spent with (and the word is not laboured) the legends I can call friends.

I am tremendously excited to chart a new direction for our close-knit group. To find greener pastures and rekindle the animus that makes us great. All are welcome aboard, and with the likes of EVOXSNES and Carbonizer interested in Vanguard Command I am positive this dynamic step forward will be an extension of the greatness we have found in the past.

Thank you Picard, for your faith in me over the years, and thank you to all who have helped create the community we enjoy.
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EVOXSNES
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by EVOXSNES »

I remember purchasing Starfleet Command III from a local games store in 2006. I'd seen that the game supported online play and was excited by the prospect of meeting new people from other parts of the world. The Gamespy process was very new to me. I remember how exciting it was to login to Gamespy Arcade and find all these people waiting for a match.

I'd had a few games, had a great time. Then out of nowhere i meet a [UFP] recruiter by the name of, Jeraco. He messaged me and asked if i wanted to join a clan. I had to ask what he meant by that as i had no idea what a clan was. 2006 was a year of firsts for me and an internet connection, an afterthought today, was worlds away in a small country town back then.

Coming to the forums, swearing an oath and marvelling at what was on display. It was all very exciting. I sought to immerse myself in the content and immediately found a depth indicative of pride as i poured over the literature. I was hopeful and energetic, enthusiastic and curious. I bounced off of a few walls as i found my way. One of the first was a member of the Sig Team - Worf. I can recall how overworked he was. He was direct but witty. After making my signature, i asked how he came across the picture that he used and he colourfully told me to "Google it" but it was all in good fun. This is how i came to appreciate the usefulness of Google. At that time, i knew 'of' Google but knowing and then knowing how is very different. This isn't a homage to Google as such more that it demonstrates that learning comes before knowing.

This was just a taste of the years to come. Where i would learn above and beyond what i would have anywhere else. The truth is that throughout the years everyone offered their knowledge freely, fully cognisant that we're all in it together. A Clan which allows freedom for personal growth for certain safe guards its own. It's the friendships, mentors and the times we remember that sets the people in it a part as a stand out success, surpassing & surprising all lucky enough to hold on.

The new era approaches. A change of impeccable taste which celebrates a decade of the most stupendous success is coming. A courageous, modern enterprise is in the making and only because of that can we say good bye to our grand old Lady properly.

I'd like to make special mention of Costello, Janeway and all who've come together to meticulously work to ensure a smooth transition and a tailored direction with the promise of years more enjoyment. Thanks guys.

I echo Picard assessment, it can be a blur but in one of the longest living memories of my life. Know that you've all been awesome and shall remain so. You have my congratulations and gratitude.

And from that big Gamespy lobby in the sky...
[VC]EVOXSNES: o7
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Shroombuck
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Shroombuck »

Hahahaa, I remember Worf a.k.a. McManus.

I wonder where he is...
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Twisted
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Twisted »

My first Clan was UFDF i was told about clans from a school friend back when i was a Teenager (i cannot remember when). I joined them for a long while until well it when inactive and finally Died but being recruited by a school mate made me a gamer today.

Shortly after UFDF i believe i joined FC as or Tripz but left maybe 6 months later to form my own clan Commanded Forces [CF] which of course went to war with FC and well...uhum........ Lost. I then met a person called Ugstar who helped me with growing CF into a multi gaming clan don't get me wrong it had just over 100 members but went inactive very quickly.

I then joined [UFP] and was there for a while until i resigned and tryed CF again but by that time nothing was done then i went clanless for about 8 months and returned to what is now FC.

So i met some good people and been around but you have to move on to stay alive and sane.
Signed,
Snr Captain Twisted

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Alexraptor
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Alexraptor »

My first fleet back in the day, back in 2002 which was also the year I first got access to broadband internet, was none other than Starfleet. I got my hands of a.... um not entirely legit copy of Bridge Commander.(Man, remember the days before torrents and online piracy when you actually still shared and copied games with your friends IRL? lol). I mean what better place to learn the ropes then in Starfleet?

So for 3 years I got to play and learn, and eventually got EF and its expansion pack(strictly legit!)
I bounced around a number of jobs, Squadron CO, division XO/CO, JAG even served temporarily on the Admirals council.
Met some awesome people during my time there as well, Picard, Jesse, Trunks, TParis.
Eventually things soured after Nelson took over and we had a serious falling out, and thats when Picard invited me over to join [FC] and that was the beginning of something truly great. I got my hands on SFC3 learned the robes and became part of the elite SFC3 pilots in the community, even managed to win an official GameSpy Arena tournament. :grin:
And then we became [UFP] and ive been through all the ups and downs, climbed the chain of command a couple of times, commanded squadrons and fleets/divisions and Starfleet, attained the rank of Admiral, served as Fleet XO under two different Fleet Admirals.
And then after [UFP] fell I came back to FC, and finally retired as Admiral.

And lets not forget all the wars we had over the years, oodles of fun there owning sad little noobs that thought they could challenge us!
The DD war was is particularly memorable, though our opponents were downright pathetic and nor worthy like in past wars, it was the last great war of the Star Trek Gaming community.

Its been a long wild wild ride, and ive made friends, and some enemies, and had just lots of good fun all over.
I will always look back at my teen years with fondness, no regrets.
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Jesse
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Jesse »

We should have done this tribute a long time ago. I've enjoyed reading every one of the accounts above. Twisted, I forgot that both you and Ugstar were the founders of CF. I remember greeny was involved, Greeny of course being my real life school friend who I got to join SF back in the day. If you're feeling a little nostalgic I have the CF website backed up here: http://fedcommand.org/jesse/CF/ Thanks to Ugstar for paying me to make it back in 2005, though some of the code is now apparently deprecated. :P

Picard, damn man I feel bad I forgot about Greed's wife. He was such an influence on us both. We had a falling out sometime later, when he went a bit off the rails.. he always had a bit of a temper. Once he sent me a Christmas card. Nice guy.

Any way I'd like to share my story too, mine is a little long and maybe boring to some of you... but I should get this all down for posterity. So bear with me:
It had been a while since I played Elite Force and Armada 1, and I couldn't get Armada 1 working. So in December 2001 just before Christmas I went searching online forums for a solution to my problem. When browsing I came across a thread by a [SF]Rear Admiral Damian about "Starfleet". I thought it sounded pretty cool and signed up for Armada (as I was getting that game for christmas), and was assigned to Omega Squadron.

Omega squadron was SF's dedicated Armada 2 squadron and the game had just came out. I served under Hunter1, and served with the likes of TParis, Greeny, Deimos, TheDice, and many other greats. Eventually I became the XO of that squadron, I think under TParis of all people... But soon transferred divisions to lead a new squadron of my own in Starfleet Command 2, which I called Epsilon Squadron.

My XO was none other than our very own Picard, as he discussed above. Some number of weeks after I founded the squadron, Picard decided to leave SF and form FC. I remained with SF, and was soon promoted to Division XO. I also had a career in JAG and Security, and eventually became the Security CO, a very powerful and influential position in SF at the time. Eventually I made it to the Council and worked right up to Fleet XO and even Fleet ACO. For reasons I wont get into (politics of the day), I lead a mutiny against the council and took SF over and kicked off the entire council and started a civil war with the aid of Dan Jones, Trunks, TParis, Alexraptor? and others that still serve in FC today.

I had been in SF just over 1 year, and was still a kid... so after realising I made it to the top, and after fighting a bunch of wars with everyone in the community I eventually got bored of war victory ceremonies and decided to join up with RS... because, well, RS was a great supporter of my takeover of SF and I had friends there and it felt like a new adventure. I'd only ever been in SF, and the community was still very big then. But RS was, frankly, a little disappointing. Dan Jones was a Titan in the community but fuck RS wasn't. They supported every game in the world but excelled at none. I was a Fleet Admiral in RS (one of like eight) and the rank just held no value for me.

So I went back to my gaming roots and signed up for a Romulan Fleet called "Romulan Star Command [RSC]", which was a pure SFC3 fleet lead by many community greats from the 90's. (incidentally, RSC also inflicted the only war loss against SF that I can remember, so I wanted to learn why.) RSC had a very efficient war system and excellent pilot training which I took careful notes of, before I got bored of their bullshit elitism and left. As good as RSC were at gaming, they sucked at everything else, including being decent human beings. I thought I could do a better job than RSC, so I founded "The Federation" FEDS which was really a Federation-themed version of RSC (website archived here for posterity: http://ufpfleet.org/jesse/feds/index2.php).

A second golden age had just begun. Within a week of founding FEDS, we were at war with 2 fleets that were supposed to be our allies. One was UF and the other with fucking RS, who decided to side with UF over us for reasons I can't remember. Being greatly outnumbered by your enemies is the best feeling in the community when you are an order of magnitude better than them in games. Picard laid waste to them in EF and A1, and I had two of the best BC pilots in the community at the time obliterate their BC divisions, and I took out their SFC3 pilots personally, and of course a few other of our best pilots engaged their constant stream of mostly talentless meat until UF and RS with their superior numbers surrendered.

There were other wars and altercations but eventually the community became quiet, eventually we decided to go down the non-trek route much like we're doing now. We re-named ourselves from FEDS to "Rogue Force" and started a new life. I merged Rogue Force with a big diversified gaming clan and went on as the Fleet XO. Eventually I missed the ST community and decided to join my old friend Picard over at FC, a Fleet that I felt an affinity for as I also designed their website. It was 2004. Any way despite what Picard said in his post above I was not the XO of FC. I was but a lowly Quadrant Admiral in a dead-end position, if I was the Fleet XO I probably would not have done what I did next... and left FC to re-found FEDS. The second founding went well and I recruited out of SF and RS mostly as well as old FEDS and probably a few FC and built a respectable Fleet, and while Picard was annoyed by this, he had a soft spot from FEDS which he was also an ex-member of, and instead of becoming enemies we became the best of friends. Eventually Picard and I decided to merge our fleets together and formed [UFP], and the rest is a story for another day.
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Shroombuck
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Shroombuck »

God damn, I want to go back to the end of the 90s and the beginning of the 2000s.

I can't put myself to playing games these days anymore. It's too boring after a while. The day when one would get up at 8 o'clock in the morning and stop playing well over midnight, are over for me. It certainly was an epic period back in those old days. I hold onto so many fond memories.

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Twisted
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Re: A Tribute to Online Legends

Post by Twisted »

Jesse wrote:We should have done this tribute a long time ago. I've enjoyed reading every one of the accounts above. Twisted, I forgot that both you and Ugstar were the founders of CF. I remember greeny was involved, Greeny of course being my real life school friend who I got to join SF back in the day. If you're feeling a little nostalgic I have the CF website backed up here: http://fedcommand.org/jesse/CF/ Thanks to Ugstar for paying me to make it back in 2005, though some of the code is now apparently deprecated. :P
Oh that brings back good memory's thanks for showing me this Jesse :D that was a uber template i must say. I havent seen greeny or ugstar in a very long time.
Signed,
Snr Captain Twisted

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