Gamemaster Department: Mandates

Mandate Summaries

Mandate 1:: Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 2:: Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 3:: Establishes Dual GMing as a Special Circumstance under OGRE.

Mandate 4:: Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 5:: Defines Dual GMing.

Mandate 6:: Superseded by Mandate #8.

Mandate 7:: Sets passing grade of GM exam to 75%.

Mandate 8:: Declares GMTs to be GMs in regards to access level.

Mandate 9:: Superseded by Mandate #16.

Mandate 10:: Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 11:: Establishes the Gamemaster Training Program.

Mandate 12:: Specifies that Gamemaster Trainees may only Gamemaster one ship.

Mandate 13:: Regulates Gamemaster Mentoring.

Mandate 14:: Establishes the IC Database as an independent office within the GMD.

Mandate 15:: Specifies announcing GM placements on GMD board and receiving permission for more than two GM placements.

Mandate 16:: Requires Gamemasters to use provided online forms for reporting on mission events.

Mandate 17:: GMD's relationship with the X-Fleet.

Mandates

Mandate 1:

Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 2:

Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 3:

A new style of GMing has started to crop up in STF, and I just want to lay down some ground rules for it. I'm talking about dual-GMing, where two GMs cooperate on a single sim. The first time I saw this was on Oed, where there was 1 main GM and 2 sidesim ones. It went fairly smoothly there. Right now, Alex Verdusco and Amanda Noon are dual-GMing the Genesis. In the near future, an Amanda Noon/Jared Kurz sim will begin on the USS Kansas, and a Colleen Stevens/Ramona Stevens sim will start on the USS Merlin. I just want to lay down some basics, which will appear hereafter in the GMDir Mandates Section of the GMD Laws page.

Ground rules:

Dual-GMing is officially designated an Alternate Sim (as per the Special Circumstances section of OGRE, which discusses self-sim and multi-ship sims, as well). Dual-GMing is a legitimate GMing method in STF.
Dual-GM sims, like other Alternate Sims, must first be unanimously approved by the GMDir, CO and FComm in question before implementation.
It is strongly recommended that at least one of the two GMs be of the rank of Senior GM. Dual-GMing is more difficult than normal GMing, and requires a lot of coordination and experience. I won't legislate this, but will reserve the right to refuse to approve a dual-GM sim on the basis of GM experience.

Mandate 4:

Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 5:

A Dual GM Situation is defined as two or more GMs working in concert on a single ship to run a sim with equal workloads. Through this mutual effort a countinually flowing sim should be the result, as the Dual GM Situation is meant to enhance the quality and depth of the sim. Only Gamemasters holding the rank of Full Gamemaster and above are permitted to engage in a Dual GM situation.

Mandate 6:

Superseded by Mandate #8.

Mandate 7:

The passing score on the GM exam is hereby set at 75%. Any exams taken after this day, August 22, 2004, must meet this requirement in order to be admitted into the training program. Any exams taken previously are only required to meet the previous requirement of 70%.

Mandate 8:

For the purposes of Gamemaster-level access, Gamemaster Trainees should be considered to be Gamemasters. Their access shall be managed by section 11 of OGRE, which states A CO may grant a GM access to the ship's MOTD at his discretion. Abuse of this access by any Gamemaster is an offense under section 10 of OGRE, which may result in the dismissal of the Gamemaster in mention. In any disputes regarding access levels, section 13 of OGRE will apply.

Mandate 9:

Superseded by Mandate #16.

Mandate 10:

Superseded by Mandate #14.

Mandate 11:

This Mandate is intended to expand upon and implement Gamemaster Regulations as specified in OGRE.

1. TRAINING APPLICATION

OGRE specifies certain requirements that a member must meet prior to applying to the Gamemaster Training program. These requirements are understood to be minimum requirements.

The Gamemaster Department is authorized to conduct additional inquiries regarding an applicant, including, but not limited to, getting additional information from an applicant's COs, XOs, GMs, and other colleagues. The Gamemaster Department may decline an application that meets the minimum requirements with stated cause.

No individual who submits a recommendation for an applicant may make the final determination regarding the applicant's acceptance. The responsible party should take reasonable efforts to avoid submitting a recommendation for any applicant unless no other recommender can be found. In that case, acceptance authority falls to the Gamemaster Director (if not already the deciding authority), then the Assistant Gamemaster Director, then any other department personnel in the order of their appointment.

member who is denied entry to the Gamemaster Training program may reapply after 60 days, but must provide a fresh application with complete recommendations.

As per OGRE, recommendations from a Gamemaster with whom the applicant has served are preferred over those from a CO or XO. Recommendations from a CO or XO will only be accepted if the applicant can show that he does not serve with three eligible Gamemasters. If an applicant does serve with sufficient Gamemasters but they do not feel that a recommendation is appropriate, then he may not apply.

2. GMT REVIEWS

Should the individual responsible for reviewing GMT performance after a GMT's trial period be one of the involved reviewers (CO or GMM), he may not make the final decision in that case. In that case, acceptance authority falls to the Gamemaster Director (if not already the deciding authority), then the Assistant Gamemaster Director, then any other department personnel in the order of their appointment.

3. RESOURCES

The Gamemaster Department shall maintain a list of Prospective GMs waiting for ships on which to train. That list will be made publicly available, and the Gamemaster Department may recommend Prospective GMs to COs in order of their acceptance.

Mandate 12:

No Gamemaster Trainee may Gamemaster on more than one ship during the course of his Training Program. This restriction is lifted upon successful completion of the program, per the terms of the currently active version of OGRE.

Mandate 13:

1. REGISTRATION AS A GAMEMASTER MENTOR

Per OGRE version 1.7 (Rouse-Deane-2 #7), a prospective Gamemaster Mentor must hold a classification of at least Full Gamemaster. The Gamemaster Department requires that all Gamemaster Mentors register with the Department as potential GMMs prior to taking a GMM position.

In order to register as a GMM, a Gamemaster must first meet the critera specified in OGRE. He must also provide the Gamemaster Department with three recommendations, meeting the following criteria:

- One recommendation from the Commanding Officer of a ship where the applicant has served as Gamemaster for at least one month out of the past three months.

- One recommendation from a licensed Gamemaster with whom the applicant has served with for at least one month out of the past three months.

- One recommendation from a licensed Gamemaster, whose mission the applicant has participated in for at least one month out of the past three months.

These requirements are understood to be minimum requirements. The Gamemaster Department is authorized to conduct additional inquiries regarding an applicant, including, but not limited to, getting additional information from an applicant's COs, XOs, GMs, and other colleagues. The Gamemaster Department may decline an application that meets the minimum requirements with stated cause.

A member who is denied registration as a Gamemaster Mentor may reapply after 60 days, but must provide a fresh application with complete recommendations.

Any exception to the recommendation requirement will be handled by the Gamemaster Director on a case by case basis. All recommendations must be provided through the Gamemaster Archive submission forms.

Once registered, a GMM remains registered indefinitely unless cause is given to remove him, as determined by the Gamemaster Director.

2. GAMEMASTER MENTOR ASSIGNMENT

Per OGRE version 1.7 (Rouse-Deane-2 #7), a registered Gamemaster Mentor must have GMed a ship within the past 30 days of the start of a mentored training mission.

3. RESOURCES

The Gamemaster Department shall maintain a list of Gamemaster Mentors. This list will be made publically available.

Mandate 14:

1. SUPERSESSION OF PREVIOUS MANDATES

This mandate supersedes Mandate #1, Mandate #2, Mandate #4, and Mandate #10.

2. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE REFERENCE MANUAL

The Reference Manual shall serve as a resource on canon, non-canon, and custom information pertaining to general in-character role playing. It shall exist as a sub-department under the Gamemaster Department, led by a Gamemaster Director-appointed Archivist. The Archivist shall have the authority to:

- Establish and maintain a standard format, style, layout, and internal structure that meets the requirements of the STF Library.

- Make non-substantive changes to content in order to maintain said format, including, but not limited to, correcting spelling, punctuation, grammar, links, and pagination. The Archivist is not permitted to make substantive changes to the content of the entry without the consent of the original author or, in the case of Shared entries, maintainer.

- Other powers may be delegated to the Archivist by the Gamemaster Director.

3. CLASSIFICATION DEFINITIONS

A. Canon Entries

Canon entries are those entries that cover a topic defined by official Star Trek. These are planets, species, and powers that are defined by the producers of Star Trek and seen in the TV shows and movies, and possibly elaborated upon by official producer-authored texts such as the Chronology or Encyclopedia.

Canon entries are, strictly speaking, "owned" by Paramount, and the Reference Manual is just documenting them. The TV shows and movies are the definitive source for these entries, not the submitter. Therefore, Canon entries should stick to canon information only and not embellish with material from non-canon or custom sources.

A canon entry may be updated with new information by anyone, subject to approval by the Archivist, not just the original submitter. Credit will be retained on the entry for all authors of all submissions, unless a particular submitter asks to be removed.

B. Non-Canon Entries

Non-Canon entries are those entries that cover a topic defined by non-canon Star Trek, that is, The Animated Series and novels. These often show up in STF, so they are useful to have clearly referenced. Non-Canon entries are, strictly speaking, "owned" by their respective authors (authors of various novels, for instance), and the Reference Manual is just documenting them.

The novels in which they appear are the definitive source for these entries, not the submitter. Therefore, Non-Canon entries should stick to non-canon information only and not embellish with material from custom sources.

A non-canon entry may be updated with new information by anyone, subject to approval by the Archivist, not just the original submitter. Credit will be retained on the entry for all authors of all submissions, unless a particular submitter asks to be removed.

C. Custom Entries

Custom entries are those entries that cover a topic created by one or more STFers. They are an original Trek-inspired part of the STF universe that do not appear in canon Trek or in a Trek novel. These often show up in STF, so they are useful to have clearly referenced.

Custom entries are, strictly speaking, "owned" by the STF member who developed them. The Reference Manual is hosting them for reference by the rest of STF so that others know what "Trek+" settings they may run into. The definitive source for a Custom entry is the original author(s) and the approved entry. Custom entries should be restricted to Custom information only, and not be an "extension" on any particular canon or non-canon subject.

Gamemasters other than the owner of a custom entry may not make use of a custom entry in their missions without the prior consent of the entry owner.

A Custom entry may be updated only by the original author/submitter, or the original author/submitter and someone else he chooses to bring on board. The author/submitter may bestow ownership of the entry on another member, removing himself, by explicitly notifying the Gamemaster Director and Archivist by email and posting in the Gamemaster Department ship to that effect.

D. Shared Entries

Shared entries are Custom Entries designed for the purpose of general use. They are not strictly owned by the STF member who developed them. The Reference Manual hosts a Shared entry not only for reference for the rest of STF, but for active use by individuals other than the original author of the entry. The author must specify a maintainer upon submission, maintainers being the author himself, someone he chooses to bring on board, the Gamemaster Director, or the Archivist.

Approved shared entries may be used by Gamemasters without permission, provided that the use of the material is not lastingly contradictory. Gamemasters using a shared entry must contact the Maintainer with a brief outline of the shared entry use, so as to avoid serious contradiction with other sims using the shared material simultaneously. Upon the completion of a mission involving the entry its information may be updated with the IC events of the sim at the discretion of the maintainer. Modifications are subject to the approval of the Archivist; in the case that the Archivist is the Gamemaster utilizing the shared entry material, the modifications are subject to the approval of the Gamemaster Director. If the Archivist is the Gamemaster Director, modifications are subject to the approval of the Assistant Gamemaster Director.

A Shared entry may otherwise be updated by the original author/submitter or someone else he chooses to bring on board.

4. ENTRY APPROVAL PROCESS

A prospective entry submission should first be posted in the Gamemaster Department, keeping to the format specified in the Reference Manual. The Archivist shall then deem the entry open for commentary and specify a review date for two weeks from the opening date. At this date, based on commentary from the members of the Gamemaster Department, as well as others who participated in the discussion, the Archivist shall declare the entry either accepted or returned to the author for revision. Reasons for return to author include, but are not limited to, questionable usefulness, improper formatting, inappropriate classification, and incompatibility with established Star Trek fact or common sense. The Archivist's decision may be appealed to the Gamemaster Director. If the Gamemaster Director is the Archivist, it may be appealed to the Assistant Gamemaster Director. The decision of the Gamemaster Director or the Assistant Gamemaster Director is final.

Mandate 15:

Upon being accepted to GM a ship, a Gamemaster must announce their placement in the GMD. Further to this, should a licensed Gamemaster already be serving on TWO ships (Mainfleet or Academy), they will require approval from the GMDir before they can start any sim on each subsequent ship. While X-Fleet does not normally count towards or against anything GMD related, if the GM in question also serves on a ship in X-Fleet, the GMD may take that into consideration before approval of additional assignments.

This policy ensures an even spread of GMs across the club and helps facilitate GMT placements.

Mandate 16:

1. SUPERSESSION OF PREVIOUS MANDATES

This mandate supersedes Mandate #9.

2. REPORTING OF MISSION EVENTS FOR GMD ARCHIVE

As per the Mission Records section of OGRE, every Gamemaster (GM) must inform the Gamemaster Department (GMD) when they begin or end a mission (sim) or if a GM changes mid-mission, including when a GMT is removed and the GMM takes over by completing the appropriate, fully completed GMD Archive form, as detailed below.

A). Start of a Mission:

At the start of a mission (sim), the GM must submit the Start of Mission Archive form within 10 days. All fields within the form, including mission title and start date, are mandatory. The only exception to this rule is the Mission GMM field, unless the mission is a GMT sim.

B). Mid-Mission GM Change:

If a GM changes mid-mission (sim) then the GM taking over the mission must submit the Change of GM Archive form within 10 days of taking over as the GM. All fields within the form, including mission title, old and new GM, are mandatory.

C). End of Mission:

At the end of a mission (sim), the GM must submit the End of Mission Archive form within 10 days. For the purpose of this mandate, a mission will be classed as have ended either when an individual has posted an epilogue/wrap-up post on the ship or reference has been made to the mission ending in an update posted in either Command or the GM Department. All fields within the form, including mission title and mission summary, are mandatory. In terms of the mission summary field, GMs must submit a synopsis of the mission that explains what the mission was about and what the outcome was.

Upon receiving the appropriate, fully completed GMD Archive form, the GMD must input the information into the GMD Archive within 10 days.

Failure to abide by this mandate will be classed as violating Gamemaster regulations and may result in sanctions as outlined under the Disciplinary Action section of OGRE.

Mandate 17:

The Bylaw On X-Fleet's Establishment and Supervision (BOXES), under the Exemptions section, specifically states “The Gamemaster Department is exempt from providing a licensed Gamemaster to X-Ships.” Similarly, it states: “Any sims conducted by licensed Gamemasters within X-Fleet will not count towards a Gamemaster's rank.” As such, the GM Department (GMD) will not assist individuals in finding licensed GMs for the X-Fleet and licensed GMs do not need to fill out a Mission Start or Mission End archive form while RPing on an X-Fleet ship or starbase.

Furthermore, in agreement with the Supervisor of Experiments (SOX), no one – whether a licensed GM or otherwise – can use the title or rank of GM when providing storytelling services to an X-Fleet ship or starbase, although other titles such as storyteller or master of ceremonies are allowed. We have taken this action to signify, and reinforce, the fact that the GM Department (GMD) does not provide support to the X-Fleet or provide licensed GMs to X-Fleet ships or starbases.