Monthly Awards: August 2022

It’s that time again…

Best Post (Single Author)

Lieutenant Torvin Anor
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Wayfarer

For “Counting flotsam and jetsam”

We often forget the tedium of being an engineer. This post is great in its illustration of that.


Best Post (Joint Post)

Capt. Shran dh’Klar & Lt. Ayana Hillis & Lt. Cmdr. Deanna Celes & Cmdr. Jonathan Grayson & Cmdr. Samantha Howard & Lt. Cmdr. Shoniara T’ghann-Travis & Lt. Cmdr. Callie Raven-Grayson & Ens. T’Plana-hath & Ens. James Phoenix & Lt. Seth Travis & PO1 Amethyst Reece
CO / ACRTO / OO / XO / CMO / ACMO / CC / IO / TO / CDO / CA
USS Washington

For “Bringing Them Home”

This is a great holodeck scene featuring Lord of the Rings characters. A nice juxtaposition between real time events happening on the bridge while seconds are passing on the holodeck. Fun!


Funniest Post

Cmdr. Dean House & Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell
CTO / CSS
USS Sunfire

For “Feels like the first time Pt 4”

Nothing like a decaying Deanwich to help you get to the bottom of something…


Genesis

Captain Shran dh’Klar
Commanding Officer
USS Washington

For “A Breach in Temporal Accords”

Nice multi-scene genesis post about time travel. Excellent use of Daniels!


MVP

Lieutenant JG Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok
Flight Control Officer
USS Wayfarer

The Wayfarer’s FCO had a fantastic month, leading and organizing posts while also injecting some great Klingon humor into the story.


Most Posts

Lt. Cmdr. Shoniara T’ghann-Travis
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Washington

For writing 15 posts.


Most Improved

Lieutenant JG Aurora Vali
Chief Counselor
USS Sunfire

The Sunfire’s Chief Counselor had many contributions this month, but the most noticeable was moving the plot forward in creative ways that inspired other players to take some chances.


Rookie of the Month

Lieutenant Nicole Logan
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Washington

Lt. Logan wasted no time in getting to know her fellow crewmembers, jumping immediately into the action.


Recruitment

None this month


2022 is nearly 3/4 done. Keep the great posts coming.

Monthly Awards: June 2022

Congratulations to those who won some real prizes at our annual gift drawing earlier this month. Here’s the first group to place their names on the big wheel for next year…

Best Post (Single Author)

Commander Samantha Howard
Chief Medical Officer
USS Washington

For “Progress”

Writing for doctors can be difficult, without constantly employing a deus ex machina to solve a problem. Spending time writing about the thinking process and coming up with a creative solution is sometimes the best kind of medical post. Love this one!


Best Post (Joint Post)

Capt. Rhenora Kaylen & Lt. Cmdr. Dean House & Lt. Ashlesha 4827/A & Ens. Kitiuas Thenis
CO / 2O / COO / SO
USS Sunfire

For “Bridge Crew”

This is a very interesting subject, not seen often in Trek posts, which kept me engaged. Well written, seamless even though multiple folks contributed, and just the right mix of personal interactions with technical jargon. Well done!


Funniest Post

Lieutenant Nerex
Flight Control Chief
USS Eminence

For “Fun During Downtime”

Ok, intentionally flying a shuttle into a black hole and dying over and over again is inherently funny!


Genesis

Captain Shran dh’Klar
Commanding Officer
USS Washington

For “Unexpected Adventure”

Unexpected, yes, and a perfect way to get the crew going.


MVP

Lieutenant JG Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok
Flight Control Officer
USS Wayfarer

Lt. jg. Luna has really developed her character in a short amount of time. She expertly writes the clash of the Human/Klingon slides while easily incorporating it into the mission with the rest of the crew. A great teammate!


Most Posts

Lieutenant Anna Thesia
Chief Medical Officer
USS Sunfire

For writing 10 posts.


Most Improved

Lieutenant Ashlesha 4827/A
Chief Operations Officer
USS Sunfire

Still relatively new to the Sunfire, Lt. Ashlesha continues to involve herself in all matters of the mission and consistently offers great ideas and well written posts. She is also super easy to work with, which is always a plus.


Rookie of the Month

None this month


Recruitment

None this month


It’s hard to believe this crazy group we call IDF has now been around for 21 whole years. Here’s to 21 more!

Monthly Awards: March 2022

Congratulations to our March award winners below.

Best Post (Single Author)

Lieutenant Aiko Kato
Flight Control Officer
USS Washington

For “The Truth Will Set You Free”

Lt. Kato wins for the second month in a row and the fifth time in six months–incredible! This is a lovely post, with vivid descriptions of both emotion and the environment. Well done!


Best Post (Joint Post)

Lt. Cmdr. Michael Murphy & Capt. Jackson Adams & Lt. Seth Munro & Lt. T’Ponga Shemara
CRO / CO / CMO / CEO
USS Montana

For “A Doubtful Friend Is Worse Than A Certain Enemy”

This one is interesting, with a sense of anticipation from the crew as they meet the Klingons, many of them for the first time.


Funniest Post

Commander Samantha Howard
Chief Medical Officer
USS Washington

For “The Sounds of Silence”

Rest, finally! We all can relate.


Genesis

Captain Shran dh’Klar
Commanding Officer
USS Washington

For “Mission Diverted”

Short and sweet, allowing the crew to do the writing. I like it!


MVP

Lieutenant Raelyn Mckenzie
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Wayfarer

Lt. Mckenzie really stepped up into the Second Officer spot. She is always quick to participate, offer suggestions, and help others by opening up opportunities for fellow writers.


Most Posts

Commander Finchley Kerr
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
USS Sunfire

For writing 15 posts.


Most Improved

Lieutenant Niali Korial
Chief Medical Officer
USS Sunfire

Lt. Korial’s writing has advanced to the point where she’s one of the top contributors to the sim. Her posts are always imaginative and open doors for others.


Rookie of the Month

Lieutenant Seth Munro
Chief Medical Officer
USS Montana

The Montana’s new CMO hit the group running. His posts are funny, interesing, and revelant all at the same time.


Recruitment

Lt. Cmdr. Dean House and Lt. Cmdr. Sandra “Phantom” Risa
XO / ACEO
USS Sunfire

Each player recruited a new member to the Sunfire. Excellent work!


1/4 of 2022 is now in the books!

Monthly Awards: February 2022

With month two of 2022 in the books, let’s present our February awards:

Best Post (Single Author)

Lieutenant Aiko Kato
Flight Control Officer
USS Washington

For “Alpha Shift”

I love this post! It’s simple, just a crewmember getting ready for her shift, but the detail about sharing a bunk and all that goes into getting ready for a shift on the bridge is compelling. Well done!


Best Post (Joint Post)

Capt. Shran dh’Klar & Lt. Deanna Celes & Cmdr. Samantha Howard & Lt. Shoniara T’ghann Dex & Lt. Callie Raven-Grayson & Lt. Seth Travis & Petty Officer 1st Class Amethyst Reece
CO / OO / CMO / ACMO / CC / CDO / CA
USS Washington

For “The Stuff of Dreams”

This was a really tough choice as there were three absolutely outstanding nominations. However, this one rose to the top due to its unique writing style of switching back and forth between Dex’s dream and the happenings in Sickbay. The incredible descriptive detail of Dex’s visions made me feel like I was actually there.


Funniest Post

Lieutenant Aurora Vali & Lieutenant Niali Korial
Chief Counselor / Chief Medical Officer
USS Sunfire

For “Apologies”

Awkward, right down to the OOC argument at the end!


Genesis

Captain Dick Sprague
Commanding Officer
USS Albion

For “The Good Ole’ Boys”

This one could have been nominated for funniest post! However, it lays out the mission parameters just fine and really gets the crew going. Well done!


MVP

Lieutenant Rania Bhatti
Chief Counselor
USS Wayfarer

Since coming aboard Lt Bhatti has consistent produced top notch quality writing in all of her posts. Her creativity has been a boon of inspiration for the rest of the crew as well.


Most Posts

Lieutenant Shoniara T’ghann Dex
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Washington

For writing 11 posts.


Most Improved

Lieutenant Callie Raven-Grayson
Chief Counselor
USS Washington

The Washington’s Counselor has done remarkable work for her own character development as well as creating opportunities for her crewmates.


Rookie of the Month

2nd Lieutenant Emily Janeway
Marine
USS Albion

The Albion’s newest Marine hit the ground running in her first ever month of simming with 3 posts, each one better than the one before, she’s really getting the swing of things.


Recruitment

None this month.


Thanks again for the great simming last month!

Monthly Awards: January 2022

I apologize for the delay on getting the January awards out. I promise it was Admiral Star’s fault! Regardless, here are your January winners.

Admiral Star edit: Unfortunately, that’s true.

Best Post (Single Author)

Lieutenant Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell
Computer Systems Specialist
USS Sunfire

For “Can you see me daddy?”

Wow! A fantastic piece of writing! It kept me super engaged and was emotionally fulfilling to boot. Well done!


Best Post (Joint Post)

Captain Akeno Misaki & Lieutenant Ileah & Lieutenant Raelyn Mckenzie & Lieutenant JG Torvin Anor
CO / Yeoman / CSTO / CEO
USS Wayfarer

For “Junior Emerges”

A very nice post with tense writing with a pleasing cliffhanger. Well done again!


Funniest Post

Ensign Laurel Zatara
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Albion

For “Get out of there! Get out!”

Not a laugh out loud post, but funny given the context.


Genesis

Captain Shran dh’Klar
Commanding Officer
USS Washington

For “A Needed Rest”

You don’t see a lot of detailed posts like this kicking off shore leave. I like it!


MVP

Ensign Laurel Zatara
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Albion

Ens. Zatara joined during January and immediately finished second on the ship in posting. Even better than that, her posts were always excellent, driving the plot forward while giving other players a chance to get in on the action, and best of all, they were usually pretty funny–which is par for the course on the Albion.


Most Posts

Lieutenant Shoniara T’ghann Dex
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Washington

For writing 25 posts.


Most Improved

Lieutenant JG Torvin Anor
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Wayfarer

Lt. jg. Torvin joined the Wayfarer as an engineering officer and was initially mainly in the background. However, after the recent mission he really stepped up and into place of a CEO both in and out of character. He is a pleasure to write with.


Rookie of the Month

None this month.


Recruitment

None this month.


Thanks for a great start to 2022. Keep the excellent posting coming!

Monthly Awards: November 2021

On this Christmas Eve, in addition to presenting our November awards, we wish everyone a festivus holiday season and a happy new year!

Best Post (Single Author)

Lieutenant Aiko Kato
Flight Control Officer
USS Washington

For “Unintended Consequences Part 3”

Lt. Kato wins for the second month in a row with a cool post about what it’s like to have extra sensory perceptions. Well done!

Best Post (Joint Post)

Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell & Capt. Rhenora Kaylen & Cmdr. Finchley Kerr & Cmdr. Savar cha’Salik hei-Surak Talek-sen-deen & Lt. Thriss Kla’ren & Lt. Dean House & Lt. Aurora Vali & Lt. JG Avarak & Harper McGinnis
CSS / CO / CSOO / XO / CEO / CTO / CC / CSO / Chef
USS Sunfire

For “Moving Out”

I’m a sucker for a well written bridge scene. This post does it right.


Funniest Post

Lieutenant Dean House
Chief Tactical Officer
USS Sunfire

For “Not Everything is Black and White”

Fun and heartwarming, with a little humor thrown in.


Genesis

 Captain Shran dh’Klar
Commanding Officer
USS Washington

For “Righting Wrongs”

Gets the story going and leaves many openings for other players to take the story in different directions, everything a Genesis post should be.


MVP

Lieutenant Callie Raven-Grayson
Chief Counselor
USS Washington

The Washington’s Counselor has really came into her own, crafting in-depth posts that moved the story, included much of the crew, and created lots of personal development for both herself and others.


Most Posts

Lieutenant Shoniara T’ghann Dex
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Washington

For writing 13 posts.


Most Improved

Commander Finchley Kerr
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
USS Sunfire

Finchley stepped up big by driving the plot forward, offering many valuable suggestions, and creating opportunities to engage the rest of the crew.


Rookie of the Month

None this month.


Recruitment

None this month.


Congratulations to our award winners. I’ll see you again in 2022!

Monthly Awards: July 2021

Last month may have been the earliest we’ve ever gotten the monthly awards out. This month, well, may be the latest. My apologies!

Speaking of last month, I want to offer my sincere thanks to Admirals Charles Star and Ken Gillis for all the hard work they put into our epic 20th anniversary. They hosted two really excellent events: the Science Fiction Trivia Day & Special Webcast, both which had real prizes… unlike these awards!

We also released two incredible products, a 20-page anniversary almanac & a congratulatory video message from Jonathan Frakes. What other fleet does that for its members?? That’s right, none! If you haven’t checked them out yet, do yourself a favor and do so now.

As we embark this month on our second 20 years, I think back to my earliest days in IDF. I wasn’t there for the fleet’s launch, but I joined soon after in October 2001 on the USS Washington. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” I had no idea back then what I was getting myself into, but golly has it been fun! Enough on me, time for the awards:

Best Post (Single Author)

Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell
Computer Systems Specialist
USS Sunfire

For “Except for Monday”

Nice recap of events and a good bit of character development to boot!

Best Post (Joint Post)

Capt. Shran dh’Klar & Cmdr. Jonathan Grayson & Cmdr. Samantha Howard & Ens. James Phoenix
CO / XO / CMO / TO
USS Washington

For “Boom Town”

Lots of action, lots of emotion, and some all around great Trek. Very good integration between contributions makes this seem like seamless writing as opposed to lots of different people tacking on to each other’s posts.


Funniest Post

Lt. Dean House & Capt. Rhenora Kaylen & Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell & Lt. JG Avarak
CTO / CO / CSS / CSO
USS Sunfire

For “Weapons Go Boom! Pt 2”

Tactical map that looks like it was drawn by a three year old? Awesome.


Genesis

None this month.


MVP

Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell
Computer Systems Specialist
USS Sunfire

Another great month for the Sunfire, in no small part the work of Lt. Durnell, who took an idea and wrapped it into a myriad of stories that encompass every other member of the crew. The result: extremely well written collaborative stories.


Most Posts

Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell
Computer Systems Specialist
USS Sunfire

For writing 31 posts.


Most Improved

Lieutenant Aurora Vali
Chief Counselor
USS Sunfire

A great month for Lt. Vali. She doubled her posts from the previous month and added some absolutely stellar additions to some joint posts.


Rookie of the Month

Master Chief Petty Officer Alake Van Der Luan
Master-at-Arms
USS Eminence

The Eminence’s new Master at Arms introduced himself to the rest of the crew and set himself up well for his upcoming first full month on the ship.


Recruitment

None this month.


… and the Adventure continues…

Monthly Awards: May 2021

I hope everyone enjoyed SciWorld yesterday. It was an instant classic! Thank you to all who played a part in putting it on, including Aurther Winters, who was just awarded the Ongoing Worlds Community Honor for his efforts as Chair. Congratulations!

And now, on with the May monthly awards:

Best Post (Single Author)

Lt. Cmdr. Grexx
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Albion

For “Stop blowing holes in my ship!”

A great character introduction, and the character’s introduction to his new ship… along with its problems.

Best Post (Joint Post)

Lt. Cmdr. Estella Stratton & Cmdr. Jonathan Grayson
Chief Counselor / Executive Officer
USS Washington

For “Quiet Time”

A fantastic character development piece between the two Washington crewmembers. Well done!


Funniest Post

Capt. Shran dh’Klar & Lt. Deanna Celes & Cmdr. Jonathan Grayson & Cmdr. Samantha Howard & Lt. Cmdr. Estella Stratton & Ens. Connor Carrick 
CO / OO / XO / CMO / CC / CSO
USS Washington

For “Dealing with Duplicates”

A classic ensemble post that reads like a great sitcom episode! Hilarious!


Genesis

None this month.


MVP

Lt. Cmdr. Grexx
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Albion

The Chief Engineer joined the Albion after many years away from simming. He immediately integrated himself into the story, drove the plot forward, and worked well with the crew. It’s as if he never left!


Most Posts

Lt. Bonnie “Bon-Bon” Durnell
Computer Systems Specialist
USS Liberty

For writing 12 posts.


Most Improved

Ensign James Phoenix
Tactical Officer
USS Washington

Ensign Phoenix dove into the current mission and showed an eager willingness to advance the story, both for his own character and the greater storyline.


Rookie of the Month

None this month.


Recruitment

None this month.


Keep up the great work, everyone, but let’s make sure we have winners in all categories for June!

Trivia Day Results

We’re less than two months away from our 20th Anniversary this summer on July 4th. As part of the ongoing celebrations this year, we held a 20th Anniversary Trivia Day this past Saturday. In addition to giving away six “fantastic” prizes to our winners, we were able to cap the evening off with a Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan watch party. For those who were unable to attend, here’s the summary:

Prizes

  • Description (estimated retail value)
  • Independence Fleet mug ($15)
  • Micro Machines Star Trek Generations set ($16)
  • A Happy Birthday message from John de Lancie ($150)
  • Star Trek TOS VHS signed by IDF co-founder James D. West ($0.99)
  • Star Trek TNG Badge & Lapel set ($17)
  • Spock Vehicle Decal ($25)

Results

  1. Aurther Winters won Star Trek: TOS Season 1 and selected the IDF mug
  2. Galaxis won Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and selected the John de Lancie birthday message
  3. Aurther Winters won Star Trek Round Robin and selected the Badge & Lapel set
  4. LuckyFan won Doctor Who and stole the Badge & Lapel set; Aurther Winters selected the signed VHS tape
  5. NisaMage won Supernatural and selected the Spock Vehicle decal
  6. NisaMage won Star Wars Original Trilogy and selected the Micro Machines set

Beyond the prizes above, we will also be sending a small token to each person who correctly answered at least one question at any point during the day. Finally, we thank our event hosts for helping make it a truly special occasion: Shran dh’Klar, Trident, Angelus, Emmalyn Marcus, and yours truly.

All-in-all, it was a fantastic experience. Thank you again to all who were able to take part.

9/9/2022 CORRECTION: Aurther Winters actually stole the mug from himself, and then selected the Badge & Lapel set.

20th Anniversary Trivia Day: May 8th

In honor of our club’s 20th anniversary later this summer, we’re hosting a day of trivia in our fleet Discord’s general discussion chat room on May 8th. All are invited to partake: current members, former members, and non-members.

Join the Discord server here

We have six one-hour sessions on a variety of Star Trek and science fiction topics planned. Feel free to pop in and out for the ones that most interest you.

Schedule of Events

EDT (-4)BST (+1)TopicHost
10:00 am3:00 pmStar Trek: TOS Season 1Charles Star
11:00 am4:00 pmStar Trek: Deep Space NineShran dh’Klar
12:00 pm5:00 pmStar Trek Round-RobinYou!
1:00 pm6:00 pmDoctor WhoTrident
2:00 pm7:00 pmSupernaturalAngelus
3:00 pm8:00 pmStar Wars Original TrilogyMarcus

Prizes!

Yes, prizes! We have six fantastic prizes to distribute to the six trivia winners. Here’s how it’ll work: The winner of the first event will get to pick one of the six prizes below. The next winner can then choose to take one of the remaining five prizes or to steal the first prize selected. Same thing for the next winner, all the way down to the final winner, who will have their pick of the entire lot. Anytime someone has their prize stolen, they have to take one of the unselected prizes–no back-to-back steals. You might recognize these rules as similar to a white elephant gift routine. And you’re right!

ImagePrizeRetail Value
Independence Fleet mug$15
Micro Machines Star Trek Generations set$16
A Happy Birthday message from John de Lancie to you or a friend
Must be used within 1 year
$150
Star Trek TOS S1E17: The Squire of Gothos VHS tape
signed by IDF co-founder James D. West
Not guaranteed to work
$0.99
Star Trek TNG Badge & Lapel set$17
Spock Vehicle Decal$25

Watch Party!

Finally, please also join us after trivia at 8 pm Eastern in Discord for a watch party of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.

Until then, good luck and enjoy!