Now that you've mastered the basics of posting and navigation, we must turn our attention to character creation. When you are initially assigned to your first ship, only your name and chosen department will appear on the ships roster. You now have some information to complete.

You will need to complete your roster entry by adding your character species, height and weight. There is also space within each rostered character to add a full biography of your character. To access a characters biography, you need only click that characters name on the roster.

You are able to edit your own character biographies by clicking their name on the roster.

The temptation to use non-standard races is strong, but we have a set of basic rules concerning what races may be used for Starfleet characters. These rules are laid out in one of our governing edicts, FCOMM. The section in its entirety can be found here.

What the above linked edict specifically means is that only the character types listed or referred to can be played. Generally speaking this means any species that is a part of the Federation as referenced in one of the series is acceptable. Known hostile species, such as Romulans, Cardassians and such which we've seen specifically acting against the Federation in the series are unacceptable because they'd never be realistically present in Starfleet. Neutral species which have been seen to be allied, such as Klingons can be accepted but only with the consent of your CO. Custom species which you've described can also be accepted, provided you've chosen one from our Reference Manual or have a full backstory and history to the people that you can provide to help your CO make a decision. Obviously the "super" species are unacceptable for any reason (Q, Borg, Species 8472 and Changelings).

Full lists of federation member worlds for canon species can be found at the website Memory Alpha. We maintain a list of custom STF species for use by Gamemaster's in the Gamemaster Department, but you need the creator's permission as well as your CO's in order to play one of these.

Now that you've chosen the basic features of your character, you can begin the biography. Below is a suggested biography, but by all means do feel free to customise it to your own standards. Creativity is the cornerstone of our club and we appreciate players who can bring something different to the game.

Name: Larry Smith

Rank: Ensign

Occupation: Engineer

Race: Andorian

Age: 22

Height: 6'2"

Weight: 165lb

Physical Description: Here you could include such things as hair colour, eye colour, scars, tattoos, distinguishing marks, general body build (muscular, large, skinny, lithe) and any other feature (tentacles or a second head :P)

History: Here you could include information on parents, siblings, place of birth, date of birth, Institutes of education, anecdotes, what led them to Starfleet. Any information at all could go here.

Medical History: This comes in especially useful when joining a new ship for the first time because you'll need to report in for a medical examination as well as a psychological assessment before assuming duty. Any past injuries or operations should go in here. Any medical conditions your character may have or any medical history that could affect your character.

Naturally there are more things that could be added here.

With the biography complete and emailed to your CO, you're ready to report in and begin posting.