Missions and the Portal

We’ll now discuss using the portal to organize and manage missions as well as demonstrating in-game examples to show the benefits of working with Operations and following specific mission creation and management guidelines.

Step 1, Creating a mission on the portal

After taking on a mission from a job board in game (optional), you go to the Mission System on the portal. From the portal, you have the option to create a mission with multiple positions open where others can sign up. As others sign up for the mission, you have the option of approving or rejecting their participation in the mission. Remember that units may be requested and/or assigned to perform missions instead of individual members. The following are a few specifics that will need to be added to the mission profile when creating the mission on the portal:

• Public data (title, description/mission type, time and date, duration of mission, position/job type, etc.)
• Information for approved mission participants (detailed mission description, departure point/rally point, area of operations, etc.)

The following points are required for rank 1-5 missions, but remain optional for Rank 0 missions (although they are still encouraged):

• Detailed mission objectives, waypoints, and flight plan
  

Step 2, Signing up to participate in a mission

When you go to the portal to find a mission that you want to participate in, you will be able to search with different variables including mission type, mission rank, et cetera. Once you have found a mission that interests you, you can press the ‘SIGN UP’ button to apply to join the mission. The mission creator and or administrator will then accept or deny your application to join the mission. If the mission creator is looking for a unit specifically to fulfill the mission, you may sign yours up if you have the proper authority to do so.

Step 3, Assigning a Mission Commander and other positions

Prior to the mission start time, a Mission Commander will need to be assigned (however, Operations will be the final authority for appointment of a Mission leader in cases of dispute, or when the Mission is rank 1 or higher). This is also a good time to assign other roles such as XO, Comms Officer, etc.

Step 4, Mission In-Progress

During the mission, the Mission Commander or crew member assigned to communicate with Operations will keep track of mission status and update the mission on the portal. Keeping track of the mission and updating via the portal will be a simple point and click procedure to minimize the amount of time spent on the portal. (This is optional for Rank 0 but again strongly encouraged.)
Direct communication with an Operations controller, during the mission, will only be necessary in the event that the mission encounters a problem, or an anomaly that requires an immediate report. Conversely Operations will only contact the Mission Commander (or designated Comms Officer) if there is a problem or anomaly in the mission area that requires special attention.

Step 5, Mission Complete

After mission completion, the Mission Commander will make a short After-Action Report (AAR). There will then be options for the Mission Commander to fill out sections, such as ‘Mission Success’, ‘Loss of Material’, ‘Loss of Personnel’, etc. Individual Mission Participants will have a much simpler AAR process, requiring them to simply respond to a few basic questions rating (on a scale from 1 to 10) the success or failure of elements of the mission. While comments and explanation will always be welcome during the AAR process, only negative responses will require further explanations (entered into text boxes).

Practical In-Game Application

The Operations Division will use the Mission System ( MS ), to coordinate the efforts of Imperium members creating numerous benefits in game. We will now use 2 different types of missions as an example for creation, signup and on the way updates. This will allow us to showcase the benefits of MS.

Example mission 1:

Trade convoy, 1 Hull C & 2x Constellation Taurus. The mission is to take supplies from planet Earth / SOL System , to a research station in the system Taranis.

• Mission Type: Trade Rank 0
• Travel routes, 2 options:

1. SOL - Croshaw - Davien - Cathcart - Taranis 2. SOL - Croshaw - Rhetor - Nemo Taranis

• Total Crew: 8 Imperium Members, 6 NPC’s

Example mission 2:

Combat Patrol, 1 Command fitted Constellation, 4 Combat fitted & 1 Scout fitted Hornets, 2 Torpedo fitted Vanguards, 1 boarding craft/Redeemer. The mission, patrol Sector between the sun and Corel Jump point, in the Nemo system, deterring a recent spike in medium sized pirate attacks on trade routes.

• Mission Type: Combat Patrol rank 0
• Travel route:
• Meetup point, Hub Croshaw - Rhetor - Nemo.
• Total Crew: 15 Imperium Flight Crew members, 3 Flight crew NPC’s, 8 Imperium Marines Members.
• In this example, an Imperium unit has twelve members flight ready and uses the Imperium mission system to locate 3 additional flight crew and a marine squad.

Mission Commanders will have access to Risk Assessment Information, that will provide pertinent intel regarding the area of operations (AO) and/or flight plan.

Example 1 would receive intel such as:

‘Travel Route contains no noteworthy activity with the exception of Cathcart, where there are indications of high pirate activity and low UEE presence. There are also no known allied or friendly forces in that system. Reccomend alternative travel route thru Nemo system. Be advised: There are reports of light to medium pirate attacks surrounding jump points to Corel, however, there is a substantial UEE presence in the Nemo system. The central star in the Nemo system is currently experiencing heavy solar flare activity with peaks twice a day. Advise keeping a distance of 2 million km.’ *Example 2 would receive intel such as:

‘Travel Route contains no noteworthy activity until Nemo system. Be advised: There are reports of light to medium pirate attacks surrounding jump points to Corel, however, there is a substantial UEE presence in the Nemo system. The central star in the Nemo system is currently experiencing heavy solar flare activity with peaks twice a day. Advise keeping a distance of 2 million km. UEE Intel indicates that pirates are retreating after an attack towards the central Nemo star. The timing of the solar flare activity and that of the pirate attacks seem to indicate a correlation between the two. There may be an uncharted jump point located nearby the central star which the pirates are making use of or they possess high-grade shielding technology that protects them from the solar radiation. Both statements are unconfirmed conjecture.’

Combining Examples to Showcase Mission System Benefits

The trade convoy and combat patrol are now in the Nemo system at the same time, and this is a typical scenario of how events might unfold. The combat patrol from Example 2 has located, engaged, and pursued a smaller pirate wing from the local sector of the Corel jump point into the local sector of the Taranis jump point. Although updating their status and position on the MS is not mandatory, the patrol’s comm officer is intelligent and has been regularly doing so. The trade convoy from Example 1 has decided to follow Operations’ advice and take the route through Rhetor and Nemo to Taranis. The journey is uneventful until they are mid-way between the Nemo system entry point to the Taranis jump point, where they are ambushed by a medium-sized pirate wing. The Mission Commander, due to the size of the attacking force, contacts Operations for emergency assistance. The Operations Specialist on duty immediately searches for the closest capable allied/friendly force and can immediately see the Example 2 combat patrol is within 5-8 minutes of the trade convoy’s position. He/she immediately contacts the combat patrol and strongly urges them to support the trade convoy, and the combat patrol is on the way within two minutes of the emergency call being received.’ OR

‘Alternatively, the combat patrol did NOT update their status or position with the MS and the Operations specialist was forced to spend more time locating and contacting all the other forces in the area that did not update their position to try to find someone close enough to assist. Unfortunately, the combined search and travel time proved to be enough for the pirates to overcome the convoy and achieve their goal…’

Dynamic Mission Group

This refers to any group undertaking a particular mission. Depending on size they will classed differently from Battlegroups, Wings, Units to Flights.

1. A Dynamic Mission Group is created when a mission has a large variety of individual members unaffiliated with one or more Units. Even a mission filled with 1 Unit and 1 member not in that unit is considered a Dynamic Mission Group.
2. Membership in a Dynamic Mission Group is not unique as the Group is created and dissolved as needed be the missions that need them.
3. Dynamic Mission Groups can be administered by during mission creation but is not required.
4. The mission creator may or may not participate in the mission but may only take on the role that they are qualified/certified to do.
5. Rank structure of a Dynamic Mission Group will follow Imperium Official Ranking Structure.
6. Naming of a Dynamic Mission Group will be up to affiliated divisional officers and can be reused as long as two or more are not share the same name during the same or parallel missions.

Mission Ranks

Mission Ranks are the levels at which the missions themselves are generated within the mission system. They have a range which denotes not only their level of urgency, but also the priority to the fleet as a whole. Access to some of the higher level missions may have more strenuous requirements from the people who can undertake them. However, the lower level missions will be relatively unrestricted, ensuring that there are many tasks available for members who desire them, but also that the right person is selected for the right job for the more critical tasks.

[Note: some of this text is an interpretation of the FO Policies and Procedures from Priorities Documentation]

Rank 0

• Any Imperium member may create a mission of this level.
• Imperium Sanctioned: No
• General Missions which are created by any Imperium member that does not affect Imperium negatively. This is the lowest possible level within the rank system and largely equates to a “job board”. Any individual Imperium Member or Unit can enlist or be invited to participate in these missions.

Rank 1

• Member must be at least a Specialist to create a mission of this level.
• Imperium Sanctioned: Yes
• Divisional Specialist created missions, missions created for the Divisions of Imperium for daily objectives and progression of the Fleet’s needs.

Rank 2

• Member must be at least a Operations Specialist to create a mission of this level.
• Imperium Sanctioned: Yes
• Operations Missions, requests that help fulfil operational needs in turn helping all other missions. Any individual member or unit can apply to join or be invited to join these missions at the discretion of the mission creator.

Rank 3

• Member must be at least a Operations Officer to create a mission of this level.
• Imperium Sanctioned: Yes
• Primary Division Operations, missions that are critical for the continued operations of any Primary Division. Operations officers have the ability to span multiple Divisions.Any individual member or unit can apply to join or be invited to join these missions at the discretion of the mission creator.

Rank 4

• Member must be at least a Commanding Officer to create a mission of this level.
• Imperium Sanctioned: Yes
• Missions that have been deemed necessary for the protection of Imperium’s assets and reputation. Any individual member or unit can apply to join or be invited to join these missions at the discretion of the mission creator.

Rank 5

• Member must be Fleet Command to create a mission of this level.
• Imperium Sanctioned: Yes
• Imperium Space Under Full Scale Assault/Invasion, Full Scale Emergency Missions.

Mission Creation

• Generating rank 0 missions can be completed by any member who has undertaken a short familiarization course.
• All missions created by an Imperium Member must follow all the rules of the Imperium Code of Conduct.
• Rank 0 missions are considered “unsanctioned” and can be generated by any member. Imperium Sanctioned missions are those missions which serve the organization and are completed as part of official Imperium operations.
• Rank 1 missions and above are created only by Imperium personnel who are qualified to do so. See Mission Ranks for more details.
• Any mission generated must be created at the lowest possible level depending on the requirement, so if a member who CAN create level 4 missions but wants to set a personal mission for transportation of goods, they are expected to set the mission to level 0.
• Missions may be generated from a bank of premade missions or they can be tailored at the creators discretion.
• Creators may be limited in how many missions they create within a certain time period.
• Missions can be generated up to 2 weeks in advance of the intended operation date, unless approved by an Officer or higher. Any mission generated with an extended preparation/signup period must have a valid operational reason for this requirement.
• All missions that fail to meet these requirements and/or breaks the Imperium CoC will be removed at the discretion of an administrator, this includes missions which are not appropriate for Imperium members to participate in.

Operational Structure

[The diagram above is for reference only and is subject to change.]

Operational Roles

An Operational Role is assigned on a per mission basis. In the case of rank 1 or higher level missions, roles are granted based on certification and Fleet Operations discretion.

Mission roles

Mission Commander
Member who is temporarily assigned the role of coordinating Large Scale Missions. Mission Commanders are responsible for assigning tasks to the Battle Group Leaders under their command in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Battlegroup Leader
Member who is temporarily assigned the role of coordinating multiple Units. Battlegroup Leaders are responsible for assigning tasks to the Wing Commanders under their command in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Wing Commander
Member who is assigned the role of coordinating a wing of multiples Units. Wing Commanders are responsible for assigning tasks to the Unit Leaders under their command in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Unit Leader
Member who is assigned the role of coordinating an entire Unit. Unit Leaders are responsible for assigning tasks to the Flight Leads under their command in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Flight Lead
Member who is assigned the role of controlling a flight. He is responsible for assigning tasks to the Element Leads under their command in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Element Lead
Member who is assigned the role of a senior member within their Element. He is responsible for the Wingmen under their charge directly. Element Leads are recognised for their ability to complete instructions to a high degree of satisfaction and their ability to coordinate the wingmen in completion of tasks.

Pilot
Member who is assigned the role of a single seat or dual seat spacecraft, operating as part of a larger, coordinated force. This member will be in charge of maintaining and running their own ship and acting to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Ship roles

Capital Ship Captain
Member who is assigned the role of the classical large (capital) ship Captain. Managing and running a ship containing a crew of 20+ members, this person is responsible for organizing and orchestrating the running of their ship in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Multi-Crew Captain
Member who is assigned the role of the classical small ship Captain. Managing and running a ship containing a crew of 3+ members, this person is responsible for organizing and orchestrating the running of their ship in order to complete objectives set for them by the mission parameters.

Crewman
Member who is assigned the role of the classical ship crew. Fulfilling a function aboard a multi-crew ship or piloting a smaller craft in support of that ship, possibly as part of a larger force. This person will be responsible for the maintenance and operation of their designated area of responsibility.

Infantry roles

Platoon Leader
Member who is assigned the role of the classical infantry leader. Setting objectives based on an overall goal, this member will command several squad leaders and make strategic choices in order to complete their objectives.

Squad Leader
Member who is assigned the role of the classical infantry subordinate leader. Taking instructions from above but making tactical decisions in order to complete their designated short term objectives.

Fireteam Leader
Member who is assigned the role of the Fireteam leader. This member will be responsible for a small group of Marines under their command.

Marine
Member who is assigned the role of the classical infantry functions within the Fleet. This can include, but not limited to Ship boarding and defense as well as planetside first person combat.