Below are some updates on different things that have crossed the desk of the Voice, looking at the different ongoing projects specific to the office. There are quite a few others being wrapped up for the ACC specifically. Then going over all the competitions since the last report.

Updates

Lore and Language Topic Bonuses

The Character Sheet System was recoded so that taking skill points in Lore, or Language, opened up an applicable number of open slots to choose Languages or Lore topics. When this was done, the species feats that added +1 to Lore became problematic, while each could specifically grant a Lore topic, it was not free form. As such Shard, Omwati and Draethos needed to be updated. New species Feats seen below.

• Shard: Dances With Droids - Based on {{gender:his,her}} reliance on a droid body to serve as a host, {{member}} possesses an intricate understanding of the inner workings and nuances of machinery, allowing {{gender:him,her}} the ability to communicate using the Binary language and use {{gender:his,her}} Mechanic skill at one skill point higher when modifying a piece of machinery.
• Omwati: Riddle Me This - {{member}} has an inherent penchant for solving puzzles and riddles. {{member}} can use {{gender:his,her}} Intellect skill at one skill level higher when presented with a problem that requires logic alone to figure out.
• Draethos: As Far As I Can See - {{member}} can see twice as far as humans in low-light conditions due to {{gender:his,her}} cave dwelling ancestry.

Eyes Wide Shut

A new Feat was added to the system for Force Sensitive Elders called Eyes Wide Shut. This basically allows a member’s character to have Miraluka sight.

Full Aspect Text: {{member}} has lost the use of physical sight and learned instead how to 'see' through the Force. Like the Miraluka, {{member}} can perceive the world around {{gender:him,her}} in a two-tone colored spectrum by way of shapes, outlines and auras. This allows {{gender:him,her}} to live and exist seamlessly with the other sentient beings of the galaxy without stumbling into obstacles blindly. {{member}} is still blind in the conventional sense and cannot read written text or discern intricate details like patterns or symbols. {{gender:He,She}} is still affected by ocular and mental Force Powers the same way any other sentient being is.

Imperial Tradition

Xen'Mordin Vismorsus-Palpatine, who you may know, submitted a great proposal to add a new Tradition to the site that was approved and made live. I’ve seen a few different members picking this up already but wanted to advise again in my report of this change. Thanks to Xen for his great work bringing this option to the membership.

You can now select the Imperial Tradition.

Member NPCs

Not as much an update, as just an opportunity to be transparent with the status of members getting NPCs and CS for them on the site. Since I’ve gotten quite a few requests of late. It remains that only the Dark Council can create CS for NPCS. I am looking for an opportunity to expand this to Clans first, allowing common characters for official Clan fiction. Then later, potentially tied to possessions, allowing members to take on additional CS for additional characters. The major hold ups are policies and guidelines on how to manage this, as well as timing with an influx of Character Sheets at a time when the Character Sheet system, as well as a Possessions system in progress that includes a potential for having companions.

In short, not wanting to have to give something, then take it away, it’s something at the forefront of my mind that I want to see happen when it makes the most sense.

Official Fictions

After a request by Aabs to get Clusters of Ice for his Dark Council office, I worked with James to include the Chamber of Justice and all other units in the list for categorically submitting and awarding Clusters of Ice for this activity. This affects just those on the Dark Council and their offices, with the Dark Councilor submitting that item for cluster awarding.

Praetor

Atra, or as he character is known now Keira Viru, has agreed to transition from Magistrate to Praetor on my staff to focus his efforts on the list of projects above and work more closely with me on the position of Voice and my Dark Council responsibilities when it comes to additional responsibilities and decisions made. I extended this offer, versus seeking applicants, because all his ambition and positive can-do energy that he has poured into projects for the benefit of members both in Clan Naga Sadow and DJB Wide has already shown he has the right attitude to take on this primary role where he will undoubtedly continue to have the same positive influence. It’s my hope this focused effort will see the DJB move forward more quickly and help make better decisions on the future of major initiatives like Possessions.

Projects

Fiction Center

If you look at the site navigation, there is nowhere to go to get the latest official fictions, the current fictional date and time, what’s going on fictionally in each unit. I’m hitting this topic broadly, a central area for users who come across the site to see the great fictional work going on across the DJB.

Fiction Archive

I’ve mentioned this in past reports, but progress seems slow and I haven’t put my own attention too deeply into it. Need to go back and organize and catalogue as much official DJB fiction as possible so it’s in one central area: see above.

Cluster of Ice Awarding

One of the first emails I got after assuming the role of Voice, and I’ve received quite a few since, was on the leaky process for awarding Clusters of Ice upon completion of a Voice approved competition. I agreed with James at the time that doing it right was top priority over any band-aid and so we’ve run status quo since. There is a need to revisit this when time permits in the coding schedule.

Non-Player Characters

There is a tracking sheet and a future state goal and Xen has been diligently creating Wiki pages along with the help of some members of Taldryan and getting all the NPCs that were envisioned during the Dark Crusade and the last GJW well documented and ready for wherever the DJB is going. As well as a system to manage those NPCs and make sure we have a well developed and engaging collection of them. Mainly because members come and go, but NPCs will always be cast players.

Trophies

You likely have seen this hinted in quite a few other reports, because beyond a coding effort it’s really something that spans quite a few offices. It’s something the Voice office is supporting and reviewing and as such wanted to include it here as well.

DJB System

There are quite a few documents already created by Atra and Slagar related to the new system, including quite a few decisions made about the future state of it. There are some major decisions on hold and some additional waiting to do on a certain movie before this ever closes. It’s a high priority project for the team though.

ACC Venues

Expanding the graphics, options, and language present in the ACC Venues was something that A’lora basically showed up and volunteered to do and began driving. I’ve been watching progress and it’s been good. I do see need to expand in this area and the work there is ongoing.

Possessions

I hesitate to include this, it could literally show up in every project list. However, it’s a real thing, and real effort is being expended on it by myself and my staff and so here it is. For those that don’t know, it’s a plan to give members ability to buy items for display on their character sheets as well as ACC type events.

Active Competitions

• Destruction of Outpost TC-152 Alpha: Bentre Stahoes from Naga Sadow is running a Fiction competition that runs until November 25th where your character gets an SOS and investigates an outpost.

• Time Circuits On!: Andrelious J. Mimosa-Inahj from Taldryan is running a Fiction competition that runs until November 22nd where your character travels through time. A BTTF themed competition set in Star Wars.

• Wait! Don’t kill me!: Darkblade Bladedark from Naga Sadow is running a Fiction competition that runs until November 15th where your character reacts to purging of the Undesirabales by Grand Master Pravus.

Competition Results

INQ Deep Pockets:

• 1st Place Archangel Palpatine
• 2nd Place Aiden Lee
• 3rd Place Xantros

INQ All In A Day’s Work:

• 1st Place Elincia Rei
• 2nd Place K’tana
• 3rd Place Andrelious J. Mimosa-Inahj

Jinkies!:

• 1st Place Archangel Palpatine
• 2nd Place Lexiconus Qor
• 3rd Place Xantros

Nightmares of Our Own Making:

• 1st Place Qyreia Arronen
• 2nd Place Archangel Palpatine
• 3rd Place Braecen Kaeth

Now’s the time to strike!:

• 1st Place Braecen Kaeth
• 2nd Place Xantros
• 3rd Place Bentre Stahoes

Cut A Slice Outta Life:

• 1st Place Locke Sonje
• 2nd Place Bentre Stahoes
• 3rd Place K’tana

Voice Staff Links

• Antei Combat Center
• Character Sheet Approval Guidelines
• Voice Competition Approval Guidelines
• Cluster of Ice
• Standard Fiction Grading Rubric

Cluster of Ice Requests

Organizers must send their pins and word counts to [Log in to view e-mail addresses], for Clusters of Ice to be awarded.

• Fiction Format: Pin#wordcount
• Run-On Format: Pin#wordcount#postcount

Conclusion

I hope this update has given some great insight into the past 6 weeks or so of Voice activity since the Fiction Society was launched and I took a bit of a breather to re-assess the priorities and wait out some major plot decisions that seem to be now on hold. I wholeheartedly support Pravus’ decision to keep us modernized, and we don’t know what we don’t know and look forward to taking us into the unknown next year.

If you ever have any questions, ideas, feel free to let me know. I do my best to reply quickly. Telegram works for a quick question but major proposals and long thought processes definitely get more reception in an email.

In darkness,

Evant Taelyan
Voice of the Brotherhood