Group Introduction

UFOP: StarBase 118 (or, "SB118," as it is called for short) was started in June of 1994 by Fleet Admiral Tristan Wolf, and has been in continuous operation since then. The group consists of writers from around the world, of all ages, and has over 100 members.

Because of the size of the group, the membership is split into several sub-groups, some being ships, others being bases. Each ship or base is facilitated by an Experienced Member (called the "Commanding Officer") who has spent at least a year training as part of the staff. The thorough and comprehensive preparation of our staff ensures that we provide the best simming experience possible to all our members! To achieve the rank of Captain, one must climb the hierarchy from Cadet (in training), to Ensign, Lieutenant Junior Grade, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Commander, Commander, and then Captain.

There are two governing bodies in the group, the Executive Council (higher), and the Captains Council (lower), which follow the group Constitution. The Executive Council mostly discusses administrative issues such as rank and the comissioning of vessels. The Captains Council mostly dicusses in-sim issues, like alien species our group recognizes, or how our awards are given.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is simming?

A. Simming is short for “simulation,” and basically just means Role Playing. Our group is a Play-By-Email Role Playing Group (PBEM RPG), which means that people’s contributions to our game are done through e-mail. We use Yahoo! Groups, an easy and popular service, as our e-mail servers.

Q. How much do I have to pay for this?

A. Nothing. Our group is entirely volunteer run, and playing within our group costs nothing.

Q. When is the next training group?

A. The next training group begins on Monday, May 12, 2008. Get your application in soon!

Q. Do I have to sign on at a specific time?

A. No. You can sign on any time of the day to get your e-mails and respond.

Q. How often do I have to sim?

A. We usually suggest at least three times a week, though you’ll want to check your e-mail as often as possible. (During training, we’ll ask you how often you plan to play, and you’ll have the chance to decide whether you would like a faster or slower playing ship.)

Q. Can I join more than one ship?

A. It is permissible to sim more than one character, as long as you are of the rank of Lieutenant. Our group's focus is on quality of simming. As such, we don't want any simmer to overstretch themselves and have their simming drop on their primary vessel. In our experience sometimes people under-estimate the workload of taking on a second character. However, as mentioned, once you reach the rank of Lieutenant you may play up to three characters regularly.

If you decide you don’t like the character you started with, you’re more than welcome to create a new character and remove your old character at any time.