Captain
PRIORITY: Not defined
 Captain |
Superiors: Space Law and Nanotrasen Officials
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You are the Captain, the top of the Chain of Command. It is your duty to ensure the stability and productivity of the station, as well as carrying out directives from CentCom.
You should have experience of all Heads of Staff jobs. At round start, take the Nuclear Disk with you, call the Heads to report in and keep checking in from time to time on what needs to be done and who should do it.
Howdy, Skipper!
Being a Captain – Basics
The Captain has spacious quarters, complete with arcade machine, ID computer and Communications console, a Jetpack, a hand teleporter, the Nuclear Authentication Disk, an SSU with a spaceworthy suit of armor and helmet, an energy gun, and a pressurized and humidity controlled display case with your pride and joy, an antique laser gun.
It's probably best to leave the gun where it is, as the case has been outfitted with a handy anti-theft system. You'll probably also be mocked if you carry it around with you.
There is also a locked wooden box in your office filled with medals. These can be awarded to your crew to commend them for exemplary service.
At the start of the shift, take your spare ID and nuclear authentication disk and put them in your backpack. If you've done that, you've done half your job already. If you're feeling particularly vulnerable, give your pinpointer to the Head of Security. After this, walk around the station and command people.
Have a look at all your unique equipment here.
Head of Heads
When you’re not fighting Revolutionaries, Traitors, Syndicates, and Wizards, you are monitoring the crew. You are at the top of the food chain, and possess the ultimate authority over everyone and everything on your station.
You are the Judge, the final word, the Big Guy. You have the ultimate veto power over all matters and is the only person who can authorize an execution without a trial. Anyone who questions your authority can technically be tried for mutiny. There really is no way to tell you exactly how to run things as many people have different leadership styles. However, as Captain, here are some guidelines you should keep in mind:
- Do not involve yourself when there is somebody else available to do the job. Why have a Head of Security if you're going to involve yourself in every security matter? If there isn't a head for a specific department, promote a new one. It will make your life so much easier.
- Delegate whenever you can. You should never have to do any manual task yourself. If someone says 'Captain, there's a plasma leak!' then you should order your Chief Engineer to fix it. Do not attempt to fix it yourself, as you will put yourself unnecessarily at risk.
- Follow the Chain of Command. You command the Heads. The Heads command their departments. Try not to skip them in the decision-making process as they are the ones who should know their own departments best.
- Stay alert. You have a big target on your back. It is likely you'll be a prime Traitor target just for your all-access ID. With this in mind, you may want to spend a fair bit of time lounging in the security of the Bridge.
- Keep calm and carry on. As Captain, be prepared to deal with any or all of the following: Incompetent or absent Heads, traitors and angry crew members banging down the bridge door trying to get in, corrupted AIs on a murder spree and the occasional aftermath of an Armageddon against the station, thanks to a range of the above. And it's your job to manage it all. Good luck.
Refitting the DOORKNOB – Uploading Laws Made Easy
Uploading Laws to the AI isn’t something you should be doing lightly… unless you’re a traitor. Then go crazy.
Do not get angry with the AI if it does not want you uploading a new law, as Nanotrasen has pre-programmed them to be sensitive to law changes. Besides, Nanotrasen wouldn't want another SHODAN fiasco happening again.
But remember the Hierarchy. Law 1 overrides Laws 2, 3, 4, etc. A Law 4 telling the AI to kill all Revolutionaries isn’t going to work. A Law 4 classifying Revolutionaries as Nonhuman and that they must be eliminated works much better. Law priority is enforced by the order they are listed. A law is invalid if it disagrees with previous laws in the form of conflicting orders, or challenges the procession of law priority.
Keep in mind that if the AI announces you are in their upload, uploading laws, people will likely form a lynch mob.
Those Assholes From Corporate
With your fancy title, medals, and luxurious excesses it's easy to forget that there is an outside, higher power scrutinizing your every move.
Contact with Central Command may be few and far between, but you're expected to follow any directives issued by them. CentCom will usually issue directives and updates on activities in your sector through the Communications Console located on the Bridge and your office.
If you're unlucky, you might have to deal with a visit from a CentCom Official or Commander. Official visits vary from standard performance reviews, internal investigations, or some other kind of corporate meddling. Whatever the case may be, it is important that you try and keep the Official happy throughout their visit. If all else fails, just make sure you can't be blamed for anything that goes wrong.
However, keep in mind that you still hold authority over any Officials on your station. That is, as long as you're still the legitimate Captain. If you piss off the wrong guy you might find yourself relieved of command. If the official is causing trouble, though, you are well within your right to have them arrested, and then contact THEIR superior with a complaint. However, CenttCom Commanders do hold authority over the Captain.
If you somehow really piss both them and the crew off, do start worrying. Many a Captain has been vaporized in their own Quarters for acting like a complete lunatic.
Contacting CentCom on your own is possible through the use of Communications Consoles, but unless the transmission is urgent it will likely get caught up for weeks in CentCom's notorious bureaucracy. Even then, it'll be a crapshoot.
Abandoning Ship
You are ultimately responsible for the station. It is not uncommon for Captains to be court-martialled or even executed if he or she should decide to abandon their ship, regardless of condition. As they hold the ultimate responsibility for the station and its crew, losing them could likely be perceived by your superiors as desertion, mutiny and/or sedition.
So keep this in mind when you are facing disaster. Permit no evacuations without your explicit authorization. You should be doing your utmost in keeping the station up and running --lest you go down with the ship, either one way or the other.
Tips
- As Captain, you should always be carrying the Nuke Disk: The Head of Security spawns with the pinpointer so that he can find your inevitable corpse. You also have a pinpointer that is included in your locker that is able to be distributed to whoever you choose, or keep it if you want.
- The Nuke Disk can fit in a wallet. Now the operatives have to search yet another storage container on your person! Nuke Disk into a wallet, wallet into a box filled with wallets, in a backpack full of boxes, in the AI upload.
- Never, NEVER, put the Nuke Disk into your safe. Anyone who needs to steal it WILL be able to easily steal it with an emag or similar.
- Don't go nuts and run off by yourself. You're not a one-man army, and no one else on the station has your level of access, rushing head along into a Medbay Cult, only to discover the rest of security doesn't have access to follow through the front doors to help you, can quickly lead to disaster.
Conclusion
The only person with more potential to fuck things up than you is the AI, and they’re probably not going to do that. So watch your step, your back, and your crew, or you may just end up floating through space wondering why your Oxygen tank is filled with plasma.
As a special note, the gods tend to notice the actions of the captain quite a bit more often than they do anyone else.