This is the first in what will be a monthly IDFleet newsletter. We, the Independence Fleet Admiralty, hope to use this to bring you news about upcoming fleet events, reports on the activities of our various ships, thoughts and comments by members, and the occasional interview with a fleet member.

This idea is very new though so don't expect too much from this, our first issue. We'll greatly appreciate any comments or feedback that you can give to us about our newsletter. What do you want to see here? And, feel free to submit material of your own if you'd like. Please contact RAdm Seldon, the newsletter's editor, with anything along those lines at Seldon11988@yahoo.com

FIRST, A WORD FROM ADM. WEST

Hello everyone. I am very busy most of the time so I don't really have time to say a whole lot.

I hope everyone is having a good time. Hopefully you are all having fun missions not involving too many Klingons, Romulans, or Borg......(Little inside joke there.)

You should really take the time to read this newsletter. I read it, and in all honesty, didn't expect too much out of it, but it really is awesome.

Thanks everybody.

JULY AWARDS

Yes, the Admiralty has, at long last, finalized the awards for July. The decisions were difficult and neither West, Star, nor Seldon knew quite how to go about the decision making process. However, after nearly a month, the votes are in!

The Most Posts distinction was undisputed. Tavik of the Avalon, who has since transferred to the USS Liberty, sent 23.75 posts in the month of July, an IDFleet record. The Washington's most prolific poster was Kaitly Ledbetter with 9 posts. The Sunfire's Rachel Rager had 7.

The Best Post award went to the Sunfire's counselor, Reah Santiago for her Post #319. The Avalon's nominee was Thomas Dupont for Post #86 and the Washington's nominee for Best Post was Krol for Post #13. All three posts are excellent examples of good, solid posting.

Funniest post was decided upon very quickly. That award went to the Washington's chief engineer, Big Johnson, for his Pre-Post which tells about how the football-loving country bumpkin came to be on the DRF's flagship. Reah Santiago was again the Sunfire's nominee for her post #319 in which she uses some excellent and unusual locksmith skills. The Avalon was represented by Dick Phelps for his Post #64 in which his character tries (unsuccessfully) to fool some hostile aliens.

The recruitment award went to Ashla Bogan of the Sunfire who beat out Ace Decade of the Avalon and also Joseph "Stealth" Carroll of the Washington. Adm. West credits Bogan with recruiting nearly his whole crew compliment. "Remember when we only had like, 5 people? Well now we've got 15, thanks to her help," he said in his summary of why she deserved the award.

Perhaps the most important award is that of Most Valuable Poster, MVP. The Fleet's first monthly MVP award went to Ace Decade, formerly of the Avalon and now CO of the USS Liberty. VAdm Star explains why he feels Decade deserved the award:

"Ace did a ton of recruiting. Those people are what have allowed the Deep Space Exploration Division to expand as it has. If it weren't for him, the Avalon might still be a small and struggling ship. ... His posts were all excellent. ... They all had good plot twists and included a good number of characters. He also did several joint posts with other characters, getting them involved with the story. ... All in all, for everything he did, Ace Decade was the MVP for Independence Fleet."

To win MVP Ace had to overcome T'Cal of the Sunfire and the Washington's Intelligence Officer, Joseph Carroll. Carroll, who often goes by the nickname "Stealth," only joined the fleet halfway through July but still managed, through his recruitment efforts, frequent posts, and other contributions to morale, to get his ship's nomination.

The Admiralty congratulates all who won awards or their ship's nominations. And just as these award winners are committed to excellence the Admiralty is committed to finalizing the winners of August's awards in record time. Adm. West had declared that they'll "not get behind like this again."

Look for the various ship captains to announce their August nominees within the next week!

NEW SHIPS IN THE FLEET

Thanks in full to the hard work of its members, Independence Fleet is one of the fastest growing Star Trek SIMing organizations around. Ace Decade, Krol, Priscilla Myst, and Emery Ashley (who is also Ashla Bogan on the Sunfire) have all been promoted to the captaincy by their division heads in recent weeks.

The rapid expansion of the Avalon's roster allowed the Deep Space Exploratory Division to become the first to see an expansion ship, the USS Liberty. Command of the Liberty went to the Fleet's July MVP, Ace Decade. (For more information on Ace Decade be sure to see his interview below in this issue)

The USS Potomac, which has gotten off to a slow start but is going strong now, was the fleet's second expansion ship. RAdm Seldon made his executive officer, Krol, the ship's commanding officer. "Krol is a veteran of the second Sunfire, he knows all the ropes and he is really committed to building the Potomac up into a great vessel," says Seldon, the director of the Defense Respose Force.

The Sunfire was the first ship in the fleet to spawn two expansion ships, the USS Griffin and the USS Goldeneye. Both vessels are scheduled to launch in early September. The USS George W. Bush is also due to launch in September and is in the Deep Space Exploratory Division.

INTERVIEW WITH CAPT. DECADE

Ace Decade, the USS Liberty's captain, sat down with us this week for an interview. Ace is a veteran of the first Sunfire and had previous command experience in UtopiaFleet and as an independent ship. He also has served as small craft pilot, head conn officer, and chief engineer in the past. Ace spoke with us about IDFleet, his vessel, and Star Trek SIMing.

Interviewer: Well, thank you for sitting down with us, Capt. Decade. I know that you're very busy.

Capt. Decade: Yeah, just the usual.

Interviewer: You are the fleet's first expansion captain, of the USS Liberty. Do you think that there are any qualities that a commanding officer needs that a regular crewmember doesn't necessarily have to have?

Capt. Decade: Yes I do. I think to be a good Commanding Officer you have to be able to get along with your fellow crewman. Also, you have to keep your ship from falling a part, be there for you crew, and most importantly set an example.

Interviewer: You were one of the crewmen on the old USS Sunfire, commanded by Ex-Commodore Jay "Robbie" Robertson, right? How would you rate him as a Commanding Officer?

Capt. Decade: Jay was a great Commanding Officer and a busy one outside the fleet. He was somewhat too busy for the Sunfire, and thus resulted in the Sunfire's crew breaking up and going their separate ways. I think Robertson did the right thing to resign and let West handle everything. West was more dedicated to the ship and Robertson couldn't find the time.

Interviewer: What do you think of the infrastructure and leadership provided by the Fleet Admiralty?

Capt. Decade: I think the fleet is doing great! The Admiralty seem to be handling things well. We already have four new ships that are going to be launched soon. The fleet is going places and the Admiralty is responsible. ... This is the up and coming fleet, that all fleets should watch out for.

Interviewer: Your ship, the USS Liberty, seems to be doing very well. It seems poised to break the Avalon's one month posting record -- and this is only the Liberty's first month. How do you explain your success?

Capt. Decade: Hard work and determination. There isn't anything that my crew can't do. We have already achieved great success in our four week span. This crew works together and seems to get along very well.

Interviewer: What sorts of missions do you, personally, enjoy the most?

Capt. Decade: Personally, I enjoy mission where diplomacy comes in. None of this knock down drag out fighting. It's too easy.

Interviewer: During all of your time SIMing what has been your favorite post or mission?

Capt. Decade: Nothing can be as more memorative then the mission back on the old Sunfire, where Ace loses his vision and can only see through a protective visor.

Interviewer: Yes, that was the one were your character had his tongue and testicles subjected to repeated electric shocks, wasn't it?

Capt. Decade: Yes it was.

Interviewer: What types of missions would you like to see more of? Romance? Horror? Maybe mystery?

Capt. Decade: Mystery is very interesting. There is nothing wrong with romance either. But horror may be something new. There are not very many horror missions in Star Trek.

Interviewer: What sort of improvements or changes, if any, would you like to see take place in the fleet?

Capt. Decade: I would like to see more pictures of the fleet head quarters on the home page. perhaps even starting up a Star Fleet Academy School simulation. That maybe interesting?

Interviewer: Do you think that there would be support for an Academy SIM in the fleet?

Capt. Decade: Yes I do. I think it gives new people an idea of what simming is about before they step foot on a starship.

Interviewer: Do you find it hard to recruit new members for the Liberty?

Capt. Decade: It is a challenge. So far, it has been fun. Getting to meet new people and things. We have sixteen members on the Liberty, and we have had a blast!

Interviewer: What do you think about the rapid expansion of Independence Fleet? Do you have any worries about capable captains being found to command the new vessels?

Capt. Decade: The growth is great. it's not everyday you get to be apart of a fleet like this. I am sure that there are plenty crew members that can fill the shoes of Commanding Officers.

Interviewer: Besides having a bad CO, what do you think are the biggest problems which could ruin a ship?

Capt. Decade: Group cooperation. It takes crew members that get along to make your ship the best in the fleet.

Interviewer: Things on the old Sunfire, under Ex-Commodore Jay "Robbie" Robertson, weren't always hunky dory. Weren't there some arguments and problems between you and then Chief Science Officer Seldon?

Capt. Decade: I'm not going to lie. There were plenty of arguments between he and I. Some were a bit childish, however. Some were personal towards the both of us. We would send posts through the e-mail list shooting on one another. It got out of hand. But thankfully now, we have put that behind us.

Interviewer: Yes, I've heard that you and he often converse via instant messaging. Do you keep in contact with other members of the fleet frequently?

Capt. Decade: Yes, a lot. I try to stay in touch with everyone as long as possible. There is a chemistry between my fellow crew mates and I. I also talk frequently with the Admiralty and other members of different ships.

Interviewer: Now, before Independence Fleet was formed, you commanded another starship Liberty. How was it different from being in IDFleet?

Capt. Decade: I commanded the original USS Liberty in a fleet called Utopia Fleet. A fleet that is now disbanded due to poor Admiralty. Lets face it, Admiral McKenzie did a poor job and was rarely involved with any ship, but her own. She was biased and down right stupid. She threatened to send me to JAG because crew members from other ships were joining the Liberty. Disgusted at her, I took the ship away from UF.

Interviewer: What do you see as the job of the admiralty in the Fleet?

Capt. Decade: To keep the fleet expanding. Get involved with other ships in your division. It is their responsibility to do so. Encourage other Captain's to keep their ships from disbanding.

Interviewer: Well, with more captains as dedicated as you are the job of the admiralty will be an easy one. We appreciate your generous allotment of time, Capt. Decade as you are always very busy. We wish the best to you and your crew!

Capt. Decade: Thank you.

Be sure to check out the interview with VAdm Star that'll be in the next issue of the fleet newsletter!

QUESTION OF THE MONTH

The QotM will be asked in each issue. We'll post selected answers and responses from fleet members in the next issue. This month's question is:

What changes and/or additions would you like to see to IDFleet?

We'll publish another question next month along with the answers you give us to this question. Please be certain to e-mail your response to RAdm Seldon at Seldon11988@yahoo.com

EDITOR'S COMMENTS

I hope that you find this newsletter entertaining and informative. We'd really like to make this a good resource for the fleet and a way for you, our members, to communicate.

If you have any ideas about what can be included in next month's issue please e-mail me at Seldon11988@yahoo.com. I'd really like to hear from you.

We're also looking for interesting articles or essays about Star Trek, SIMing, or anything else appropriate to add next month. Anyone with a good idea is encouraged to submit it.

Thanks,

RAdm Robert Seldon
Editor, IDFleet Newsletter
Dir., Defense Response Force
CO, USS Washington, NCC-11988