Guide:RPG Proposals

The purpose of this guide is to walk you through the RPG proposal process, with explanations of why the process is the way it is, what the Operations Office is looking for, and things to consider as you create this document. Most basically, your proposal should demonstrate very clearly why your concept will be successful and what your preparation level is for running it.

General Evaluation of Proposals

The Operations Office considers factors both related to the proposal itself and to your history as a member in Bravo Fleet, as an RPG is more than just checking a registry item out, it's an exercise in leadership, interpersonal relationships, and good citizenship. Game managers provide a service to the fleet by organizing their games, and so we vet proposals very thoroughly to ensure a positive experience for everyone.

A successful prospective GM has:

• reached the rank of Commander and has already requested a primary command;
• demonstrated familiarity with the command system (i.e. fiction writing) through contributions to their primary command; and,
• created a potential CO character that is realistic, appropriate, and effective as a model for potential applicants.

A successful RPG proposal demonstrates clearly:

• how the concept will have broad appeal for Bravo Fleet's members and be able to successfully recruit;
• why the particular ship or base was selected, especially in terms of how its class will support the premise outlined;
• how the missions the RPG will write are connected to the premise, with major story beats and explanations of how members will engage in each mission;
• why the concept is suited to an RPG rather than a fiction;
• how the platform selected (Nova or BFMS) supports the concept; and,
• why the potential GM wants to run an RPG.

Concept

"Explain the premise, theme and focus of your game that will make it stand out as unique and interesting within the Bravo Fleet universe. Describe in several paragraphs how your game will add new storytelling opportunities for players, how it might overlap with existing games, and why you are proposing to use the class of ship or base you've selected."

This section should be several substantial paragraphs.

Picking a Ship or Station

It is important to pick an appropriate class of ship or station to match the premise you are going to describe. If you're intending to do exploratory and first contact missions, a tactically-oriented ship would be a poor choice, just like a science vessel would be a poor choice for tactical missions. That's not to say that games can't be set around ships ending up doing things they aren't designed for, but the ship's stated mission (i.e. what it's been ordered to do in-character by Starfleet) should match the class you select.

When selecting a class, it's good to spend some time in the specifications area of the wiki, as each modern class has a detailed write-up with substantial information on what a class is intended for and what its strengths and weaknesses are. In particular, pay close attention to the "In Play" section on each class, for some quick and easy tips on what to do with a particular ship.

Here are some concept types and which ships are suited to them (sorted by age):

• Long-Range Exploration: Elysion, Vesta, Century, Luna, Rhode Island, Intrepid, Galaxy
• Exploration closer to Fed. space: Inquiry, Resolute, Odyssey, Norway, Nebula, Ambassador, Sovereign, Excelsior
• Science: Grissom, Nova, Norway, Olympic, Springfield
• Tactical: Inquiry, Manticore, Argonaut, Diligent, Rhode Island, Akira, Defiant, Prometheus, Saber, Sovereign, Typhon, New Orleans
• Generalist: Inquiry, Reliant, Resolute, Steamrunner, Nebula, Ambassador, Excelsior
• Scout: Rhode Island, Saber, Challenger, Cheyenne, Centaur
• Utility: Parliament, California
• Humanitarian: Resolute, Atlantia, Odyssey, Parliament, California, Olympic

This isn't all-inclusive or restrictive, but could help guide your thinking. Picking the right ship for your proposal is a very important step, and not being able to see the connection between your premise and the class you're proposing is almost certainly going to result in asking for revisions.

This is also not to say that a game's concept could involve a ship doing things outside of its specialty or purpose, but the ostensible in-character purpose for a ship being sent to a particular area should match its design. For instance, Starfleet wouldn't send a hospital ship on a tactical mission, but that doesn't mean a hospital ship wouldn't ever encounter trouble or be attacked, and so in your proposal spell this out if that's your intent: "This class has mission type X, and I want to run missions of type Y, due to Z circumstances which force the ship to do things outside of its initial parameters."

Describing Your Concept

Think about the premises of various Star Trek shows and movies. What was the overall theme or niche that made it successful? While there is a certain amount of room in the fleet for generalist vessels, each RPG's proposal needs to demonstrate how the idea is unique and why it will attract interest. The more thought you can put into this section, the better the Operations Office will be understand your intentions, and the more successful your prospective game will be when you're actually running it with players.

Things to consider here:

• Is my premise suited for Star Trek specifically, or would it be more at home in another fandom?
• Are there other RPGs doing the concept I want to do? Are they full or recruiting? How will my RPG compete for players in the fleet?
• How will I explain my concept to prospective members? What's the recruitment appeal?
• What are of the galaxy do I want to operate in, and is there a lot of material already developed by the lore office that can help me?
• Does my concept use standard starship/starbase departments and positions or is it more specialized, say for an engineering or medical ship?
• Does my concept comply with existing canon, or impact any major races/powers?
• How much 'homework' would potential members have to do to get up to speed joining my game?
• Why is this premise suited for an RPG in the first place, rather than a fiction?

Mission Summaries

"Describe three mission concepts you might pursue after the launch of your game. They should include at least the basic story beats, explaining how you would get members involved and why that mission is suited to your premise."

Your mission summaries:

• should have a beginning, middle, and an end, even if you don't intend to reveal those story beats to your players at the beginning. You need to demonstrate that you're able to plot out an entire mission from beginning to end.
• should related directly to the premise you're describing, and they should be the missions you intend to start with. If you change the specifics later, that's fine, but part of what you're proposing in this document isn't just the premise but how you're going to get started, so it's important to put a lot of detail here.
• should not just be re-hashes of Star Trek episodes, but riffing or homage are perfectly acceptable.
• should show how you would get members involved, especially thinking about departments that aren't directly aligned with the mission idea.

"Red Flags"

There are several things that will almost invariably trigger a request for revisions or a flat rejection when found in a proposal:

• Section 31 or other black ops-style units
• MACOs outside of ST: Enterprise-era games
• Alternate universes
• Time travel
• Content above 16+