Eternal Vigilance in Star Citizen

Our mission within the Star Citizen Universe can summed up in a single sentence. “Strive to be the best we can be in every facet of the game.” We are of the mindset that with a true sandbox there should be nothing hindering our members from doing everything and anything that the game allows for, that does not adversely affect the Organization as a whole of course. We want to take on challenges and achieve goals that can only be accomplished effectively by an organized group of players actively contributing towards shared objectives. We also want to empower our members to achieve their own objectives in the game with the help of the Organization and its resources.

In order to help facilitate our mission, we are accepting all play styles and roles into our Organization — from PvE to PvP, Soldiers and Privateers, Merchants, Smugglers, Explorers and Industrialists, and anything (Minus Pirates) else that will be allowed for in-game, and we’re working towards an in-game organizational structure that will help us achieve our goals while enjoying the game to the fullest!

That is of course, an extremely broad overview that leaves a lot open to interpretation for what we wish to do in-game. This is on purpose for a few reasons, the main reason though is that those of us in EV plan on playing this game for a very long time. We don’t want to handicap our ability to try different elements of the game as an Organization by committing ourselves to ventures that will keep us held down. An example of such a venture would be securing a sector of space to use as a permanent base of operations. Such an endeavor is undoubtedly tantalizing to think about undertaking. However when you factor in all of what will be required to protect and maintain it, IE. patrolling against attack and consistently rushing to help defend it on a moments notice, it loses it’s appeal. Although we have no plans to pursue such ventures at this time, that certainly does not mean we will not do so at some point in the future of the game.

Our immediate plans, for launch and beyond, are as follows:

• Force for the greater good, no matter the cost – Lore wise in the Star Citizen Universe, Eternal Vigilance is a force that primarily fights for the greater good of humanity. This means we will be fighting against those who pose the greatest threat to humanity and it’s allies. Vanduul and pirates being the chief threats at this time. We are however not knights in shining armor riding in on white horses to save the day. We do what we believe is necessary to achieve our objectives and destroy our enemies. So we are not afraid to make sacrifices, use unorthodoxed tactics or use the tactics of our enemy against them. In terms of morality of black and white, we see ourselves in the gray area between the two. We will be attempting to integrate much of this into the game, as long as it is practical to do so.

• Mobility – Instead of pursuing claiming a fixed territory in game to make into a permanent base of operations. We will be focusing on keeping the Organization “mobile”, primarily via the use of capital class vessels. Coupled with building up supply bases on civilized worlds and hidden/temporary bases throughout the galaxy. We plan to designate areas of operations (AO’s) to where the Organization will be based out of for the immediate future. Once we have accomplished our goals in an AO, or a more advantageous area prevents itself a new one will be designated and so and so forth. While most Organization activities will be planned within the current AO’s, they certainly will not be limited to them, nor will our members be. To help facilitate this, the Organization owned LTI Idris P-Frigate, the Valiant, will be the flagship of our fleet on release.

• 24/7 – In keeping with being an International Gaming Community, we plan to have leadership and activities around the clock. Thus allowing us to have full time coverage within the game! Currently we have members within the Organization located around the globe; Throughout North America, Europe and SEA/Oceania.

• Dual Focus – Our current plan for release is to have a structure in place that focuses on two crucial aspects of the game. Combat/Military and Commerce/Industry, with exploration playing a very important role within both areas. We will also be heavily utilizing those looking to be marines/soldiers via the FPS portion of the game and those who wish to function as crewman on larger ships.

• Membership driven goals – We plan to take on a wide range of challenges and achieve many objectives within the game for years to come. It is important to us that we get input on what our members want to achieve within the game, both long term and short term. We will use such feedback to decide where our AO’s will be and our objectives will be within them. Goals such as boarding an enemy capital ship, aiming for hopefully taking on a Vanduul carrier one day. Capitalizing on a previously unknown system through finding new jump points. Steadily building up an industrial machine to supply the Organization. These are just a few of the things we will be striving to accomplish in-game!

• Organization Private Server – We also plan to have an Org owned private server which will be made accessible to the membership. The private server will have many purposes such as the practice of squad tactics, simulation of large scale or critical missions to be under taken in the PU, a venue for our modders to use and for special events.

• TeamSpeak 3 – VoIP is undoubtedly a key factor in maintaining a competitive edge in both PvP and PVE. Eternal Vigilance has a dedicated, 512 client, TeamSpeak 3 server that the Organization will be heavily utilizing. While it will not be required to be on the server whenever playing SC, certain activities such as high priority missions, will require all those participating to be on TS.

Introduction:

This document contains the details of the inner workings of Eternal Vigilance’s Star Citizen Portal. Everyone who joins the Star Citizen Portal is bound by this charter, and must adhere to it whenever representing the Portal and Eternal Vigilance as a member. The Portal Commander reserves the right to alter this document when deemed necessary.

Code of Conduct:

Taken from the Eternal Vigilance Guild Charter

• Treat each other with respect. Our goal is to foster a relaxed, enjoyable and non-judgmental environment, and steps will be taken to reprimand any members that behave irresponsibly
  Ensure personal decisions affecting Eternal Vigilance, its members, and the gaming community in its entirety are ethical and always in accordance with the Code of Conduct. Our goal is to maintain a society based upon integrity and good judgment, and immoral behavior will not be tolerated.

• Consider it of utmost importance to maintain a respectful demeanor in the presence of any players in the local gaming community. You are to treat all gamers with respect and represent Eternal Vigilance well. Remember that your every word will reflect on Eternal Vigilance as a whole.

• Endeavor to remain active in team decision-making processes while they are in action; we are an extremely democratic community that is dependent on member participation, and therefore require that all members make their best effort to participate in community functions (including elections, policy discussions, and so forth).

• Maintain an honest reputation within the community. Internal communication is confidential and should never be shared with non-members. If you find yourself in conflict with a fellow member, please do not hesitate to contact a leader to help resolve the situation peacefully.

• Acknowledge that real life issues always take precedent over computer games. It is strongly recommended that members always remain mindful and balance their time wisely; periodically assess the time your game consumes and make an honest evaluation of whether or not your level of participation is healthy. Above all, we are a family and care for your well-being.

• If you are unsure if an action would break the CoC, then do not commit said action.

• Remain loyal to the Portal, under no circumstances should you be a part of another guild or squadron within Star Citizen.

This includes membership in multiple organizations within the forum and in-game “Organizations” mechanic that will be available to the players of Star Citizen. Once this mechanic becomes available and its features and functionality understood, more information will be given to all portal members regarding policies and restrictions within the system.

At this time it is highly likely that membership to Organizations that do not present a conflict of interest with Eternal Vigilance, will be allowed. Examples of such an Organization would those that are social in nature, that do not put demands on their members. However more information on the game mechanics will be needed before a final decision is made

Activity:

The following are activity standards for the portal.

A. Active Members

1. All active members are required to log onto the forums once a week in order to stay up to date on the Portal.
2. As real life takes precedence over gaming, any member that cannot meet any of the activity requirements, must post an LoA (Leave of Absence) in the appropriate area. The Commander does however reserve the right to nullify any LoA’s that are believed to be excessive.
3. In the event a member goes inactive without posting an LoA, the member will be marked AWOL (Absence Without Leave), and upon returning, must contact the Commander to regain his or her membership.

The Commander may, depending on the circumstances and the timeframe of the inactivity, do one of the following…

1. Reinstate membership without any penalty.
2. Reinstate membership but at a reduced standing within the portal from what the member had before they went AWOL (i.e. demotion in rank).
3. Require that the member reapply to the portal in order to regain membership (2&3 are likely only to be used in the event the member has gone AWOL repeatedly).

B. Standby Members

1. Members on standby are exempt from regular activity requirements during pre-release.
2. Must request access to the “SC Portal standby” user group in order to be placed on standby.
3. Members on standby retain their original join date, however cannot gain or retain credit and/or rank earned through contributing to a Team.
4. Members on standby will be reactivated prior to the Portal’s imminent switch over to a release structure for the launch of the Persistent Universe . When this occurs those on standby will have 30 days to request re-admittance to the SC Portal Member usergroup. After 30 days the standby rank will no longer exist and those who did not respond to being activated will be marked inactive – as such, those on standby are encouraged to check the forums on a regular monthly basis (at least once every 30 days) in order to stay up to date on the game and portal status.

Structure:

The following is the structure of the Portal in its entirety (currently only defines the pre-release structure).

A. Chain of Command:

1. The following diagram shows the chain of command for the portal
   • http://imgur.com/EOf0IhP
2. The chain of command explained (Active Positions):
   • Commander – Leader of the Portal
   • Lt. Commander(s) – 2nd in Command after the Commander, tasked with various duties within the portal. Assumes the role of portal leader whenever the Commander is not present.
   • Lieutenant – Tasked with the leadership and managing of a Team, reports to the Lt. Commander(s).
   • Enlisted – General membership of the portal assigned to a Team and reports to the Lt. in charge of that team.
   • Recruits – New members of the portal still in their two week accommodation phase before joining a Team and receiving an enlisted rank.

B. Teams:

Teams are organized groups of members actively participating in the betterment of the portal.

Current teams:

1. Galactic Relations – Objective of this team is to promote, and help facilitate, recruitment and diplomatic efforts within the Star Citizen community.
2. Eternal Vigilance Combat Academy – Objective of this team is to provide a multitude of events geared towards building friendships, leadership, and teamwork within the portal in the most fun ways possible while we wait for release.
3. Role-play – Objective of this team is to create collaborative works of fiction that both build the story of our characters in-game, and build the lore around our organization.

C. Team Requirements:

1. Every (Active) portal member is encouraged (Not Required) to join a team within two weeks of joining the portal.
2. Upon joining a Team, members must declare their level of effort that they wish to put into the team (effort levels noted below).
3. Members must meet the standards for the level of effort they declared in order to be considered an active and contributing member of their team.

D. Effort levels:

Effort levels are positions with associated tasks and responsibilities a member has declared as their contribution to a Team.

1. There are 3 effort levels a member may declare for any particular team.
   • Level 1 (E-1) – The minimum a member can declare for a team – requires least amount of time and commitment.
   • Level 2 (E-2) – Medium time and commitment level – these tasks require more effort than an E-1.
   • Level 3 (E-3) – Highest level of effort that can be declared, more intensive tasks than an E-2.
2. Examples of the tasks of each effort level (based on the Galactic Relations Team)
   • R-E1 = “Promoters”: Required to post on the Roberts Space Industries Official Forums, while displaying the Organization signature, at least twice a week to promote the guild.
   • R-E2 = “Recruiters”: Required to check for and contact potential recruits on the LFG thread at least twice a week. Must follow the protocol outlined in the designated Recruiters thread.
   • R-E3 = “Special Assignments/Projects”: Take on special tasks beyond the methods used by an E-2 to recruit. For example a possible E-3 position could be “New Recruit Liaisons” In charge of answering new recruit questions and guiding them until they are comfortable on their own.

E. Credit:
During pre-release only, we will be using a credit system to track activity of our membership. This system is designed to benefit those who’ve actively contributed to the Portal during pre-release when we switch over to our release structure as the Star Citizen Universe goes live.

1. Members can earn up to 3 months of Credit, to be used towards the effort level of their choice at release.
   • Must have actively contributed within a Team to gain and maintain their credit.
   • Credit will degrade each month for a member who does not actively meet the objectives for their position within their chosen Team.
   • If a member’s credit is at zero and are not actively contributing towards their Team, they will be removed from that Team’s roster which may result in being marked as an inactive member (see “Team Requirements” section).

Star Citizen Portal members who fail to adhere to this charter, in its entirety, may be subject to the temporary or permanent suspension of their membership.

F. Ranks:

Determined by a your effort level and time committed to the guild, and are an overall representation of your accomplishments within the Portal. The specifics are undetermined at this time, but rank will come with privileges after release. Please use the above diagram for reference to the the following.

1. Officer Rank:
   • Lieutenant – This rank is only held by those appointed to lead one of the three teams (currently the only available officer position that can be obtained).
2. Enlisted Ranks: The general membership consists of those within the enlisted ranks. Individual member starting rank will be determined by the level of effort they’ve declare for in their prospective team.
   • E-1 Tier – This tier consists of the Private and Private First Class ranks. Private is the lowest rank to be held within the portal and is the rank all E-1’s start with.
   • E-2 Tier – This tier consists of the Specialist and Corporal ranks. Specialist is the starting rank for those that take on the responsibilities of an E-2.
   • E-3 Tier – This tier consists of the Sergeant and Staff Sergeant ranks. Sergeant is the starting rank for those who take on the responsibilities of an E-3. Staff Sergeant is currently the highest rank an enlisted member can achieve.
3. Promotions: All ranks below Lt. Commander are obtainable by any member of the Portal, however, your level of effort will affect the speed in which you gain rank. The following are the typical methods in which a member can increase in rank. Promotions will occur both at regular intervals and when earned by a member.
   • Appointment – Members may be appointed a rank based on the tasks they undertake. All Officer positions are obtained by-appointment by the Commander or Lt. Commanders.
   • Effort – In addition to determining your starting rank, the effort that you put into your position will determine how fast you advance. For example an E-1 who does twice his or her minimum requirement
   • Longevity – The time you have been in the portal will contribute to your rank.

Note – Members should post a new request in the “Signature Request Thread” upon promotion in order to receive an updated forum signature/badge reflecting their new rank.

Notice: While contributing to the Portal/Organization during pre-release is not required to maintain active membership, it will be once we switch to our structure for release. Rest assured you will be able to choose where you contribute and how much you do so, very similar to how you would if you joined one of the pre-release teams. Eternal Vigilance is very much a cohesive unit and to maintain this we must all contribute, big or small, to be successful in the Persistent Universe.