Guide:USS Columbia

The USS Columbia is an ongoing open sandbox for members of Bravo Fleet. Open to everyone holding the fleet rank of midshipman and above, this space is meant to provide people with an opportunity to write character development stories and organic plots without relying on direct game manager intervention like a traditional RPG.

Set on board a Galaxy-class starship, the Columbia provides members with the full writing flavour in an environment similar to Star Trek: Lower Decks. It focuses primarily on the lower decks characters set in the departments of command, engineering, operations, security/tactical, science and medical.

Unlike SBB and Avalon, this sandbox allows members to collaborate with other members in a set time to complete a sub-storyline/plot within a main mission arc.

Before you proceed, please read the USS Columbia Rules.

Initial Character Creation and Joining

Any Bravo Fleet member with the rank of midshipman or up can join the USS Columbia.

Everyone’s Character Rank will be Ensign. Like on the USS Cerritos, the Senior Staff of the USS Columbia are only around for cameos (usually at the start of a mission, maybe introducing a twist in the middle and possibly at the end to wrap things up). They are NPCs with their set guidelines.

You need to create a full biography for your character, as this allows other members to understand your character before you collaborate. You should create a character on the BFMS, set it to Story Mode and assign it to USS Columbia. Then click here to fill out the application. The character biography should be complete (though you can still expand and develop it further later), and your application does not require a sample post.

What to write and how

For each mission, ideas for each department will be shared for members to explore with others. One mission will last for two months OOC. During this time, members will engage with the plot. This means that any stories covered would contribute to the overall mission. If a story isn’t completed, the mission will not be paused; the sandbox will move on to the next mission.

The Columbia staff will create a mission every two months OOC. You can directly post in this mission, on your own or with others. Requesting a joint post with someone before you start the post is considered polite, so reach out on Discord.

Remember that Columbia’s content is also restricted to 111 on the RPG Ratings scale in accordance with our Content Policy.