Overview

In Star Trek, the rank structure of the United States Navy has been followed as canon for over 30 years. In keeping with that tradition, Spacefleet Online believes that following the same rank structure as much as possible helps to create a sense of reality in our games, and helps to promote consistency in all of our games. The official rank structure of the United States Armed Forces can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/specials/insignias/index.html.

In reality, all but three of SFOL's ranks match the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps Officer ranks. The three ranks that don't match are:

1. Midshipman - Rank used to denote a new member of SFOL who is simming on a ship during his or her training. Upon completion of training on board his or her sim, the CO and XO will promote the Midshipman to the rank of Ensign. The US Naval equivalent rank is Cadet. SFOL decided to change the rank of Cadet to Midshipman because SFOL no longer uses an Academy-based system, and therefore believes a more "real" rank should be awarded to new members of SFOL.
   
   
2. Private - Rank used to denote a new member of SFOL who is simming on a ship as a Marine during his or her training. Upon completion of training on board his or her sim, the CO and XO will promote the Private to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. The US Marine Corps equivalent rank is Cadet. SFOL decided to change the rank of Cadet to Private because SFOL no longer uses an Academy-based system, and therefore believes a more "real" rank should be awarded to new members of SFOL.
   
   
3. Commodore - Rank used to denote the first level of being an Admiral in SFOL. As is explained below, in the 1980's the rank of Commodore was disbanded and changed to Rear Admiral (Lower Half). Because of the way screen names work and the limitation of the number of characters that you can have in a screen name, it was decided that Commodore would be much easier to use than to have Rear Admiral Lower Half and Rear Admiral Upper Half.

It is entirely possible that at some point, we may change our minds and use the correct US Navy and US Marine Corps ranks, but for the time being, it is generally agreed that the current rank structure established in this document best fits SFOL's culture and pre-existing rank system.

NOTE: Non-commissioned ranks will be added to this document in the future.

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Line Officers

A line officer is anyone with below the first Admiralty rank, which is Commodore. More about that in the Flag Officers section.

Line officer ranks, listed below, start from Midshipman, which is the first rank held by a player on a Spacefleet Online game, and end at Captain, the highest rank you can achieve before becoming a Flag Officer.

Midshipman
The rank of Midshipman replaces the former rank of Cadet in Spacefleet Online. Because SFOL no longer holds formal Academy games, new players are assigned to ships and play for a few weeks at this rank. If the CO and XO of the ship they are assigned to are pleased with their performance, the Midshipman is then promoted to Ensign, and is officially added to the roster of that ship as a regular player.

Ensign
This is the first rank an officer achieves after being approved to join a game as a regular player.

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Previously, some games in SFOL used the rank of Chief directly after Ensign. Because SFOL is sticking with a formal US Navy/Starfleet rank structure, the rank of Chief has been deactivated, and replaced with the next rank, Lieutenant Junior Grade.

Lieutenant (Full)
A full Lieutenant is the first rank in which a line officer can begin considering becoming a Game Master. While they cannot begin training until they are a Lt.Commander, it is at this time that a line officer should begin speaking with his or her CO and XO about whether or not they feel ready to consider training for a Game Master position.

Lieutenant Commander
This is the first rank where line officers are eligible to become a Game Master, and is the highest rank that can be achieved without completing Game Master training. The time from when a person joins Spacefleet Online, to when they can become eligible for promotion to the rank of Lt.Commander is NO LESS THAN 1.5 years, or 18 months. Promotions to this rank should be carefully weighed by the CO and XO of each game before the final decision to promote is made.

As a Game Master at the rank of Lt.Commander, the highest GM position available is as an XO of a game.

Commander
Commander is the traditional rank of an XO in SFOL, and is formerly the first rank in which an officer could become a Game Master. Eligibility for promotion to the rank of Commander should take NO LESS THAN 2 years, or 24 months. As an XO, the Commander reports directly to the CO of the ship.

This is the first rank in which an officer is eligible to become the CO of a game / ship within Spacefleet Online. Only members of the Admiralty can promote officers to become CO's.

Captain
The highest rank a line officer can achieve is Captain. This rank bears with it the responsibilities entailed to a CO of a ship. Eligibility for promotion to the rank of Captain should take NO LESS THAN 3 years, or 36 months. As a CO, the Captain reports directly to the Spacefleet Online Admiralty.

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Marine Corps Officers

The Spacefleet Marine Corps are a branch of Spacefleet Online that has been refined over the years, and it presently being worked into simulations. While not all games in SFOL have Marines on them, it is up to the CO and XO to decide if they would like to start a battalion onboard their ship.

Marine Corps officers have the exact same number of ranks as standard line officers, 7, and follow the same rules and regulations as line officers. Note that due to the structure of SFOL, there are no Marines in the Admiralty. If a Marine Corps officer is asked to join the Admiralty, his or her rank will then be changed to an Admiral rank.

Marine Corps ranks, listed below, start from Recruit, which is the first rank held by a player on a Spacefleet Online game, and end at Colonel, the highest rank you can achieve before becoming a Flag Officer.

Private
The rank of Private replaces the former rank of Cadet in Spacefleet Online, and is equivalent to Midshipman. Because SFOL no longer holds formal Academy games, new players are assigned to ships and play for a few weeks at this rank. If the CO and XO of the ship they are assigned to are pleased with their performance, the Private is then promoted to Second Lieutenant, and is officially added to the roster of that ship as a regular player.

Second Lieutenant
This is the first rank an officer achieves after being approved to join a game as a regular player. It is equivalent to Ensign.

First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant is the first non-entry level rank for a Marine Corps officer, and is the first one that makes the officer eligible to be a Department Head. It is equivalent to Lieutenant Junior Grade.

Marine Captain
A Marine Captain is the first rank in which a Marine Corps officer can begin considering becoming a Game Master. It is equivalent to a Full Lieutenant. While they cannot begin training until they are a Major, it is at this time that a line officer should begin speaking with his or her CO and XO about whether or not they feel ready to consider training for a Game Master position.

Please note that it is inappropriate for someone holding the rank of Marine Captain to try and mislead others into believing that they are an actual "Captain" within SFOL. When the player creates a new screen name to coincide with a promotion to this rank, there should be an "M" or "Marine" before the "Captain" part of the rank, to signify that they are not an SFOL Captain.

Major
This is the first rank where Marine Corps officers are eligible to become a Game Master, and is the highest rank that can be achieved without completing Game Master training. It is equivalent to Lt. Commander. The time from when a person joins Spacefleet Online, to when they can become eligible for promotion to the rank of Major is NO LESS THAN 1.5 years, or 18 months. Promotions to this rank should be carefully weighed by the CO and XO of each game before the final decision to promote is made.

As a Game Master at the rank of Major, the highest GM position available is as an XO of a game.

Lt. Colonel
Lt. Colonel, which is equivalent to Commander, is the traditional rank of a Marine Corps XO in SFOL, and is formerly the first rank in which an officer could become a Game Master. Eligibility for promotion to the rank of Lt. Colonel should take NO LESS THAN 2 years, or 24 months. As an XO, the Lt. Colonel reports directly to the CO of the ship.

This is the first rank in which an officer is eligible to become the CO of a game / ship within Spacefleet Online. Only members of the Admiralty can promote officers to become CO's.

Colonel
The highest rank a Marine Corps officer can achieve is Colonel, which is equivalent to Captain. This rank bears with it the responsibilities entailed to a CO of a ship. Eligibility for promotion to the rank of Colonel should take NO LESS THAN 3 years, or 36 months. As a CO, the Captain reports directly to the Spacefleet Online Admiralty.

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Enlisted Personnel

Coming soon...

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Flag Officers (Admiralty)

A flag officer is a member of Spacefleet Online's Admiralty. The Admiralty are the members of Spacefleet Online who are in charge of the operations and well being of the fleet. They schedule games, assign CO's and XO's to ships, resolve conflicts, advertise for SFOL, maintain chat rooms and message boards, and handle all of the administrative tasks related to SFOL as a whole fleet.

Eligibility for becoming a flag officer is solely based on the needs of the Admiralty. Positions within the line of flag officers can be created and terminated as needed. The Commander-in-Chief and the Deputy Commander-in-Chief must approve all flag officers.

Commodore
As the first rank in the Admiralty, Commodore is rarely used within Spacefleet Online. This rank is the only departure from Trek / US Navy canon. In 1986, the US Navy changed the rank of Commodore to Rear Admiral Lower Half. Because having two Rear Admiral ranks could be confusing, Spacefleet Online has decided continue using the rank of Commodore.

Responsibilities given to Commodores are typically light duties within the Admiralty, including tasks such as organizing newsletters, overseeing problematic games, conducting GM training, and assisting new members.

Rear Admiral
The responsibilities of Rear Admirals within Spacefleet Online are a mix between the Commodore's responsibilities, and the other upper echelon of Administrative duties. Responsibilities vary from Rear Admiral to Rear Admiral.

Vice Admiral
Previously, Vice Admiral was the second-highest rank in Spacefleet Online. With the change to the new canonized structure, the Vice Admiral is squarely in the middle of the flag officer structure. Typically, there is only one Vice Admiral within Spacefleet Online, and this position is the third highest in the Fleet.

Admiral
The rank of Admiral is held solely by the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Spacefleet Online. There can be only one Admiral at a time, and is the second-highest rank in the Fleet. It should be noted that in the United States system of governance, the Deputy Commander-in-Chief is the Vice President. Due to the way SFOL works, the rank of Admiral is given to the officer who's duty it is to fulfill the role of Deputy Commander-in-Chief.

Responsibilities of the Deputy Commander-in-Chief vary from time to time, but their primary responsibilities are to oversee the handling of personnel, help resolve conflicts between officers, draft ideas and help to maintain order within SFOL.

The position of Deputy Commander-in-Chief and the rank of Admiral, which it bears, can be approved only by the Commander-in-Chief of Spacefleet Online.

Fleet Admiral
The highest rank in Spacefleet Online, the Fleet Admiral is the Commander-in-Chief of Spacefleet Online. It should be noted that in the United States system of governance, the Commander-in-Chief is the President. Due to the way SFOL works, the rank of Fleet Admiral is given to the officer who's duty it is to fulfill the role of Commander-in-Chief.

The Commander-in-Chief of SFOL is responsible for all aspects of SFOL, and can operate as a sole-entity. Decisions made by the Fleet Admiral are final, and appeals must be made through the Deputy Commander-in-Chief. The only exception to this rule being if a call for a vote of no-confidence in the Commander-in-Chief is called. If a majority of SFOL votes to have the Commander-in-Chief replaced, then that cannot be overridden by the Commander-in-Chief.

All requests for mergers, alliances, new games, and other major changes in Spacefleet Online must go through the Commander-in-Chief.

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Glossary of Terms

• C-in-C - Commander-in-Chief; The highest position in Spacefleet Online. The Commander-in-Chief is in charge of the Spacefleet Online organization, and holds the rank of Fleet Admiral. The C-in-C is picked by majority vote from the current SFOL GM's.
  
  
• CO - Commanding Officer; The person in charge of an SFOL game / ship. The CO reports directly to the SFOL Admiralty.
  
  
• GM - Game Master; A Game Master is a person who has gone through official Spacefleet Online training, and has been certified to be in charge of games with Spacefleet Online. All CO's and XO's must pass GM Training in order to host official games within SFOL.
  
  
• SFOL - Abbreviation for Spacefleet Online.
  
  
• XO - Executive Officer; Also known as First Officer within Spacefleet Online, the XO is the second-in-command of their assigned game / ship in SFOL. The XO reports directly to the CO.

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Credits/Acknowledgements

• Document written and produced by: Fleet Admiral Scott, C-in-C, SFOL
  
  
• Document edited by: SFOL Game Masters
  
  
• Draft 1 Completed: 05/31/2004
  
  
• Document Approval: Approved as of 12/20/2004

Thanks to Steve Marriott (smarriott@rpg-insignias.co.uk) of Tangofleet (www.tangofleet.org), and owner of RPG Insignias (www.rpg-insignias.co.uk), for the use of his wonderful rank images.

Much appreciation goes to Will Morse, for the image of the USS Endeavour, which is used on the title page, just above the Table of Contents.

This document is an official document of Spacefleet Online, and is © 2004 - 2005 Spacefleet Online. Copying any of this document, in part or in whole, is prohibited, unless granted by written permission from Fleet Admiral Scott.

Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager and Enterprise are all registered trademarks of Paramount Pictures. No copyright infringement is intended or contained on this site. Spacefleet Online understands and recognizes the right of Paramount Pictures to enforce ownership of these trademarks, and does not dispute this. Spacefleet Online believes that everything on this web site falls within the fair use clause of Trademarks and Copyrights, and pledges full cooperation with Paramount to protect its trademarks. Spacefleet Online is in no way affiliated or recognized by Paramount Pictures.

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Last updated: 05/18/2005 by Fleet Admiral Scott

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