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A close-up view of a futuristic starship's bridge seats, featuring a central command chair with an elaborate design. The seat has angular, dark purple and beige components, with additional seats on either side, all positioned in front of a curved control panel. The overall design is modern with sleek, minimalistic features and geometric shapes.

The Captain’s Chair: Bolak

As most of you already know, Rear Admiral Bolak is our new Director of Media. When I first told him of the old My Favorite Treks we used to do, he immediately came up with this new format. As a result, I can’t claim to be the brilliance behind it. Expect him to do a mix of My Favorite Treks and Captain’s Chairs moving forward. In the meantime, here’s Bolak…

Welcome to the Captain’s Chair, Mr. Bolak. Please input your details into the data pad before we begin.

Name: Bolak

Rank: Rear Admiral

Position: Director of Media

Fleet Sim: Currently None

Thank you, Rear Admiral. So let’s get started with your favorite Captain. Whose chair are you sitting in this evening? 

“It has to be Picard’s. Sorry Kirk but despite the off screen tiff with James Corden Picard is class in a glass, and man he even has his own series now and it is fantastic. Q and I agree that Picard is our man!”

Does that make TNG your favourite series or is there another?

“TNG all the way. It’s the series of my youth and contains a whole bunch of my favourite personalities and story arcs. Also for me it brings more breadth and depth to the star trek universe than any other series in the franchise.”

Do you have a favorite episode?

“Now that’s a tough question, there are so many! Let’s go with Q Who… Why? Not only is it action packed, With a healthy dose of our friendly neighbourhood Q. This is where we meet the Borg for the first time! Fantastic. This is where shit got real for the Federation.”

How about the movies, which is the best one?

“Come on… Wrath of Khan all the way! Isn’t that everyone’s favourite? Notice I said favourite, not favorite. It’s like the Empire Strikes Back of the Star Trek universe. Dark and gritty with some amazing action scenes and even a smattering of Shakespeare.”

Good choice, and the worst?

“The Undiscovered Country. Oh Sybok, if only Deadpool would cross the multiverse and shoot you in the head at the start of the movie to save us from what follows. It’s just utter mush.”

Wow ok, so not a fan of The Undiscovered Country. Noted! How’s Picard’s chair by the way? Comfortable?

“Very.”

Good, good. How about the ship? Are we on the Enterprise-D or would you prefer another? You can have anything you like, we have a huge imaginary budget.

“Can I have a Firefly?”

Darn right you can!

“Shiny!”

When did you start simming Bolak?

“2016.”

And what was your first Sim? 

“I started off with a Stargate Destiny game on Ongoing worlds. It was great fun but only had a few players so it eventually fizzled. I took a small break then before returning with a few games of my own that I still mod today.”

What keeps you interested?

“I’ve just always wanted to write and I am a huge fan of role play games. This is just the perfect hobby for me. I love the communities I write with and have had the honour to write with some amazingly talented people.”

Me being one of them of course?

“Erm, yes of course.”

What about real life? What else do you enjoy doing?

“Minecraft is my guilty pleasure, as well as working through my out of control Steam Collection. Damn you Humble Bundle why are you so cheap! Between work and the kids I don’t have time for a whole lot else.”

It take it you’re a Firefly fan given the ship we’re on. What else are you into besides that and Star Trek?

“Yeah Firefly is amazing. I am a massive Buffy and Angel fan as well.”

And at the Movies?

“Ok so let’s put Star Wars, Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings on the shelf because that’s too easy. I’ll also pop Shawshank up there next to them because damn that movie is a masterpiece. I am going to go with… Barbarella. That movie is bubble gum for my brain. Jane we salute you!”

Time for the quick fire round now before go to warp.

“I am pretty sure the Firefly is a sub-lightspeed vessel so capable of warp.” 

Don’t be pedantic.

“Sorry.”

Quickfire round. Are you ready?

“Yup.”

  • Favorite book? – Mere Christianty by CS Lewis
  • Favorite video game? – Minecraft or anything in the ElderScrolls universe
  • Favorite musician or band? – Pixies
  • Favorite superhero? – Hell Boy
  • If you could have any super power, what would it be? – Good Luck
  • Favorite sport? – Bloodbowl 
  • Favorite team? – Greenfield Grasshuggers
  • Favorite food? – Tandoori Chicken
  • Coke or Pepsi? – Coke
  • Lennon or McCartney? – Lennon
  • Star Trek or Star Wars? – Star Wars (Wait do I get fired now?)
  • Jordan or Lebron? – Jordan

Excellent! Thank you for sitting in the Captain’s Chair. It’s been a pleasure to get to know a little more about you today.

Bolak, everyone!

I’m not sure if I was conducting that interview or if it was this. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed it!

A purple-tinted space scene featuring a futuristic starbase and a Starfleet-style starship approaching it, with the text "IDFLEET.COM" in the bottom right corner.

USS Washington Stays in IDF

After discussing the matter with his crew, Captain Shran dh’Klar has elected for the USS Washington (NCC-81533-E) to stay in Independence Fleet. The Washington had been released last month to explore opportunities outside of the fleet. However, we’re more than pleased to have Captain dh’Klar and his crew remain a part of the IDF family.

The Washington’s tradition dates back to IDF’s founding on July 4, 2001, when we launched with three active sims. The Washington’s crew has won numerous awards and set many records over the years. We look forward to watching their role play adventure continue here for many more to come.

A close-up view of a futuristic starship's bridge seats, featuring a central command chair with an elaborate design. The seat has angular, dark purple and beige components, with additional seats on either side, all positioned in front of a curved control panel. The overall design is modern with sleek, minimalistic features and geometric shapes.

My Favorite Trek: Sadie Stanton

This section may be familiar to those of you who have been with Independence Fleet for long time. We even did a whole group interview over at Ongoing Worlds back on Star Trek’s 50th Anniversary. For those who might be new, this is where we interview a fleet member about their favorite Star Trek episode, some other Trek-related items, and now even some non-Trek topics.

As Director of Media, Rear Admiral Bolak will be conducting these and more moving forward. I think he even has a few ideas on how to change them up a bit. I can’t wait to see what he has planned!

Until then, I thought Director of Art Rear Admiral Sadie Stanton would be a good place to start. She’s the creative force behind all of our graphics and the general artistic theme of the fleet. Doesn’t the site look great! Since she’s done so much with the visual, why not give her the change to share her words too? Here’s Sadie Stanton…

Name: Sadie Stanton
Rank: Rear Admiral
Sim: N/A
Position: Director of Art

Favorite Star Trek episode? “In the Pale Moonlight”
Why? I love the drama. I love Avery’s delivery, and the way he and Robinson bounce off each other.
Favorite Star Trek series? Deep Space 9
Why? Again, drama. I LOVE a good overreaching plot arc, and I like seeing a grittier side of Trek.
Favorite Star Trek film? IV or VI. I’m not sure.
Why? I love the whales and the humor of IV, but I like the mystery of VI.
Favorite Star Trek Captain? Sisko when I’m watching DS9; Janeway when I’m watching VOY.

What year did you start simming? 2001
What sim was it? USS Cortez
What keeps you simming today? I love to write. I love the interaction and the stories.
Favorite non-simming hobby? There’s other hobbies?
Favorite non-Trek series? That’s a hard one… Depends on the day you ask me.
Favorite non-Trek film? No way I can choose.
Favorite book (fiction or non)? The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie
Favorite video game? I don’t have time for video games much these days.
Favorite musician or band? Within Temptation
Favorite superhero? Black Widow
If you could have any super power, what would it be? I honestly don’t know.
Favorite sport? I watch college football on rare occasion.
Favorite team? UCONN Huskies Women’s Basketball
Favorite food? I like a good steak and potato dish.
Coke or Pepsi? Coke.
Lennon or McCartney? Don’t care…
Jordan or LeBron? Jordan
Star Trek or Star Wars? Star Trek

Rank the Trek TV shows from best to worst. DS9 -> VOY -> TNG -> ENT -> TOS. I don’t watch DSC or Orville. I haven’t gotten to Picard yet.
Rank the Trek movies from best to worst. G, FC, I, TVH, TUC, TFF, TWOK, Abrams, N, TSFS, TMP, B, ID
Was this too many questions? Yes. I didn’t like the ranking thing. 😛

Sadie Stanton, everyone!

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Meet the Admiralty

So much for a little training cruise.

Thank you for that introduction, Fleet Admiral West.  I can’t express how excited I am for the days ahead, especially as we get closer to some big fleet milestones.  Yes, our best days are ahead.  To help us get there, we’ve put together a highly talented and absolutely fantastic staff.  Without further ado, here they are:

Vice Admiral Ken Gillis
Director of Technology
Responsible for IT architecture & infrastructure

Ken Gillis has long been a technical leader and trailblazer within the role playing community. In the early years, he led RolePlayerUSA, which provided hosting services to many of the top clubs. He even served as Simming League President in 2002 and later won the Squiddie Award in 2015.

Rear Admiral Sadie Stanton
Director of Art
Responsible for graphics & design

Sadie Stanton is a veteran role player who has served in a number of fleets during her career. Her artistic talent rarely goes unnoticed as her outstanding work adorns the sites of several groups. Most recently, she provided all of the graphics for and co-hosted The Simming Endeavor game show.

Rear Admiral Bolak
Director of Media
Responsible for media content & engagement

Bolak, new to simming in 2016, wasted no time in making an impact. He has been a player and leader in many games across multiple genres on the Ongoing Worlds platform. Known for his quick wit and imaginative stories, he finished as runner-up on the 2019 Simming Endeavor game show.

Rear Admiral James “Rook” Mirtoh
Director of Personnel
Responsible for awards & recognition

Rook Mirtoh hails from Independence Fleet’s early days, having joined in the first year. He has served in many capacities and made numerous contributions since. Known as one of the most talented role players ever, he is the only fleet member to have individually won all five of the fleet’s original awards.

As always, the IDF Admiralty exists to support you, the role players.  Our goal is simple: create and maintain the best simming environment possible. If there’s ever something we can do better, please don’t hesitate to let us know.  Here’s to IDF!

A purple-tinted space scene featuring a futuristic starbase and a Starfleet-style starship approaching it, with the text "IDFLEET.COM" in the bottom right corner.

Welcome to Independence Fleet

As of 00 hundred hours this morning, I have assumed command of Independence Fleet (IDF / IDFleet.com).  All active sims with the exception of the USS Sanctuary (NCC-2880) and the USS Chuck Norris (NCC-4005) are hereby released from the fleet and free to continue as independent games or to seek membership with other groups.  Additionally, all members of the Admiralty are also released from their duties with this fleet.

I have appointed Admiral Charles Star as Chief of Fleet Operations to assemble a new Admiralty and reorganize the fleet.  I’m also proud to announce that the USS Ganymede (NCC-80107) is launching for action today.

I know that none of you were expecting this.  I’m sorry.  I’m going to have you to ask you to grow up a little sooner than you expected.  Know that I have full confidence in you and every member of this fleet to continue role playing excellence.

Independence Fleet may be almost 19 years old, but I believe her best days are still ahead. Let’s role play!