Space Whale Field Researchers Organization [SWFRO] - Organizations

History

Stories of Space Whales have been around since humanity began to explore the stars, even now if you sit down in a spaceport anywhere in the ‘Verse you can always find at least one grizzled old spacer with a tale of the whale that floated past their ship on some lonely cargo run. The Banu, Xi’an and Tevarin all have their own legends of these mythical beasts. But not everyone believes that they’re just stories, Space Whales are out there and we at the Space Whale Field Researchers Organization are dedicated to finding evidence of this fact. Our search takes us deep into unexplored space, discovering star systems, planets and jump points along the way.

Our goal is simple, bring solid proof of Space Whales to the Empire. But that doesn’t mean hunting for Space Whales is our only objective. We aim to do much more than that. Exploration is our main focus but we don’t want to just hunt out new systems we want to make first contact with any species we can. Whether its being the first human to stand face to face with the Kr’Thak, finding out what happened to the Hadesians or seeing if there is anyone on the other side of Vanduul space. We are driven by curiosity to find the new, the interesting and the unknown. We explore for the sake of exploration, for the chance to find something different and incredible. If that sounds like something you want to be a part of then join us!

Maybe, exploration isn’t quite your thing though, the long distances and ever present danger of the deepest expanses of the vacuum isn’t for everyone. But there is much to explore anywhere in the ‘Verse so everyone is welcome to join from Cargo haulers to traders to bounty hunters and ace pilots, transport ships, miners, salvagers and info runners. Join us for the protection of our Emergency Response Fleet or the lucrative contracts for joining the ERF.

We do look for regular players but you don’t need to log on every day or anything like that, we just want members that are going to be around more often than a casual player. So you don’t need to be a super serious hardcore player. We don’t have any times where you have to be playing and we aren’t going to be constantly telling you what to do, we’re in it for the fun.

Manifesto

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Charter

What’s In It For Me? Why You Should Join The SWFRO.

What can the SWFRO offer you that other (larger) Organizations can’t? When you join with us you can get in a rising Organization in the early days and help it to grow instead of being just another new member in an organization of thousands. All members have opportunity for advancement within the SWFRO. We have better support for both solo and group players. Solo players don’t have to worry about our interference or if they prefer can be set up in a fleet. We also look for group players who already have a team as well as those looking for a crew or additional fleet members. The SWFRO doesn’t interfere with members, we allow them to make their own choices as to what they want to do.

Even though we are a smaller org we plan to look out for our members as much as possible. Unlike other Organizations we don’t require our members to send in shares of their profits, instead we plan to have a small membership fee that will help us to do the following;

What Membership Fees Will Cover
- Purchase of commodities for selling to members at reduced cost
- Funding SAR and Medical expenses for members
- Operating Starfarers to supply members with fuel at little cost
- Operation of an Emergency Response Fleet to aid any member in need

We will also accept donations from members at any time to help fund the cost of these benefits and to expand SWFRO fleets. Whatever credits you make will not be subject to mandatory profit sharing fees. The only required payment to the SWFRO is your standard membership fees which we plan to keep as low as possible.

We allow most professions to join the SWFRO, however we are mainly focused on exploration and science. That being said, because we end up in so many different parts of the ‘Verse there are plenty of opportunities to try a variety of different roles.

Info Running will be a vital part of the SWFRO as any exploration data will need to be transported. Those who have a ship capable of info running will be kept with plenty of work.

Pilots with exceptional skill may want to consider joining to be a part of our Emergency Response Fleet. If you are willing to fly out to any member in need of help fending off attackers we can provide you with a spot on the fleet. ERF pilots can can do as they want but will also receive a small payment for being an active ERF member with bonuses for the number of calls you respond to and the success rate of those missions. The SWFRO will also offer contracts to patrol sections of space with a larger number of SWFRO members which will be useful along high risk trade routes. Of course you may also want to join a fleet or pick up contracts with members who do a lot of trade and transport if you want or accompany an exploration fleet if you just want to see what’s out there.

SAR and Medical personnel can also join the ERF to respond to medical emergencies or to search for escape pods. Similar to ERF combat pilots you can receive a small payment for being an active member with bonuses for the number of calls you respond to, as well as the option to pick up contracts. You can also choose not to join the ERF but still pick up some jobs every so often and the SWFRO will give you a bonus for responding to another members call.

If you own a Starfarer the SWFRO may be able to cover your operating costs. We plan on operating a few of these ships to supply members with fuel at reduced cost if you would be interested in using your ship for this we can cover your operating costs to make up for the reduced income from lower pricing.

We do not allow pirates to join the SWFRO and we do not tolerate members who engage in piracy.

Are There Any Rules?

We do have a few rules, here they are;

Don’t be a pirate.

Don’t make a Space Whale angry (Like elephants, Space Whales never forget).

Don’t fake evidence of Space Whales, it makes us look crazy.

Don’t shoot the first Space Whale you see, we have a good reason for saying this and it is explained below.

Is Anyone In Charge?

Yes and No. We allow members to do whatever they want for the most part. If you want to go off on your own, Do it! Have a group already assembled? Great! If you want to join a fleet or crew then go for it. As long as you stay out of trouble and don’t get the UEE or somebody else to start hunting you or other members down, it’s all good. If you want to join a crew or a fleet within the organization there will be a command structure there, otherwise you can pretty much do as you please.

The chain of command will be pretty simple essentially it works like this. If you have a crew or fleet assembled or would like to form one you can put in a request, the commander will receive a Captain rank within the SWFRO and the first officer(s) will get a commander rank, they can then assemble other members to join them. They would be in charge of and responsible for the other members within their group.

The only time you would receive any orders if you are not within a crew or fleet would be if you were in violation of any of the rules of the SWFRO or if there is a really good reason for us to do so. If you were breaking a rule then you would be getting either an official warning or a notice that you have been removed from the Organization. A really good reason for us to give you an order might be for something like picking up escape pods from a members ship that you are closest to or something like that

I Want To Shoot A Space Whale!!!!!!

Please don’t! Have you ever seen an angry Space Whale? Neither have we, so who knows what might happen if you shoot one. If you find a Space Whale report the sighting first and allow us to study it and get solid evidence to bring back to the Empire. After that you can go crazy, that’s not to say we encourage hunting Space Whales because we don’t, however we aren’t going to kick you out for doing so.

Some Quick FAQ’s

Q: What is the Space Whale Field Researchers Organization (SWFRO)?
A: We are a friendly organization of casual and above casual players dedicated to exploration and the search of the elusive space whale.

Q: What is a Space Whale?
A: Space Whales are a rumored celestial creature, stories of which can be found on almost any space port and in many cultures. Reference to Space Whales can also be found in an interview of Ben Lesnick in Meet the Devs Episode #37. https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/transmission/14906-Meet-The-Devs

Q: So all you do is search around for space whales?
A: We at the SWFRO do so much much more than just search for space whales. At our core we are an exploration group, seeking out new systems, first contact and exploring the unknown.

Q: I am not really interested in exploration can I still participate in your organization?
A: Of course! The SWFRO needs more than just explorers. We intend to maintain multiple fleets such as salvage and repair, cargo Haulers, information runners and our very own Emergency Response Fleet (ERF) to provide Search and Rescue (SAR) and fighter support capabilities. So what ever role you find yourself in, we will have a spot for you here at the SWFRO.

Q: Are there mandatory times that I must commit to every day/week? Or do I need to be available at certain times?
A: Not at all, We will not require you to participate at certain times or for X amount of hours every day/week. We do however look for players that can participate on a regular basis. We here at the SWFRO are here to have fun and that is mandatory.

Space Whale Field Researchers Organization / SWFRO