Each month, we interview a captain or first officer of the fleet to gain more insight on what it takes to command a ship and learn more about how each of these staff members found their way into these roles.
This month, we’re interviewing, Commander Serala, a Half-Romulan/Half-Human female, the Commanding Officer of the USS Chin’toka
Nilsen: Before we talk about your shiny new command, why don’t you introduce yourself to those who haven’t had the pleasure of meeting you? Where in the world do you hail from? Any hobbies? Who is the writer behind Commander Serala
Serala: Well, thank you for having me again for another interview. For those who don’t know me, IRL I go by Jim and I now live in the frigid state of Arizona after having lived in Texas for the majority of my life. I have been playing roleplaying games for over 45 years now, starting with Advanced Dungeon’s & Dragons (now referred to as AD&D 1st Ed.). I’ve played so many different TTPRG’s that I can’t even name them all anymore, but I would say my favourites are D&D (any edition except 4.0), Pathfinder 1.0 (haven’t tried 2.0 yet), and Vampire the Masquerade (which I haven’t played in a very long time, but still have a desire to play). I’ve been with SB118 for around six-and-a-half years now, and it’s been great. In fact, this community is unlike any other rpg I have ever played and I can’t see ever wanting to leave unless RL circumstances force me to do so. Aside from rpgs, I also enjoy playing video games (not surprisingly, Baldur’s Gate 3 is my current favourite) and writing. I also got married about a year and a half ago, hence my move to Arizona, and have two amazing stepsons.
You’ve just relaunched the USS Chin’toka, I understand that you have a personal connection with that ship. Can you tell us more about what it means for you to take command of the Chin’toka?
Gosh, it’s a lot. When I joined, I was assigned to the USS Atlantis under Captain Brell. When he had to step back for RL reasons, we got another Captain who took over for a time. He eventually made me his First Officer and I enjoyed it at the time. By then, I had fallen in love with that tiny Intrepid-class starship, but the Captain decided that he wanted to launch an Akira-class starship and thus the Chin’toka was born. But on the day that the commissioning of the Chin’toka was to occur, the player decided to retire for personal reasons and I was abruptly left in command until Starfleet Command (read: the EC) could find a replacement, which happened about a week later. Captain Mei’konda came aboard and the transition went about as smoothly as I could have hoped for, and we took off for our adventures in the stars. And Serala (and I) fell in love with the Chin’toka and after I became a Commander, I swore that if I ever made Captain, the Chin’toka would be the ship I would want. Mei’konda paved the way when he relaunched the Astraeus, a previous command of his that he was passionate about, and the stage was set. All that was needed now was time and patience. Now it’s mine and it’s kind of surreal. Although there is another ship I would eventually like to try my hand at, I can definitely see being absolutely content staying here for the rest of Serala’s career.
You must be over the moon with the launch, particularly because you had the extra challenge of launching during the SB118’s blockbuster, Frontier Day. I imagine that the first day must have been nerve-racking?
Nerve-racking doesn’t even come close to describing it. Honestly, things happened so quickly it was a virtual whirlwind. We pulled together a crew and launched the ship in what feels to me like near-record time and we were off to the races, as the expression goes. We stole a starship (in essence) and helped battle the Borg fleet in an attempt to save Earth from destruction. And we actually got to rescue President Chekov from his escape pod, which is absolutely going to be a highlight of Serala’s career. And she did it all while pregnant! (She just gave birth to twin boys, Terron and Vaebn, for those who have been following that storyline.)
What’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far, and how have you overcome that?
Honestly, I don’t know that I have faced that many yet. It’s always a challenge for me to get to know new players and their habits. This isn’t my old crew where I know everyone and how they like to write, their story preferences, and so on. This is a new crew, mostly new faces, and there are going to be new wants and desires for what they expect from the sim. But with all my experience in games – and a lot of the 45 years I have been playing I have been DM/GM-ing so I have the experience to adapt to these new situations – I don’t expect there’s going to be a lot of challenge there either.
On the other side, what’s been the biggest success so far? Anything or anyone you want to shout out?
Oh, the entire Frontier Day mission has been an absolute blast. And I want to shout out my entire crew. They did an amazing job coming in and jumping right into the action. But if I have to give any specific shout-outs, I would like to recognize my First Officer, Aine Sherlock, who is doing an absolutely amazing job so far. I couldn’t have asked for a better Number One. Along with Jared/Sherlock, a special shout-out to T’Ama who took on the challenge of playing President Chekov for our blockbuster is in order. She came in and when I read those sims, I literally could hear the voice of Walter Koening (Pavel Chekov/President Anton Chekov) and the dialogue seemed absolutely like something he would have said. So, great job to both of them and to my entire crew so far.
Finally, what’s next for Serala and the USS Chin’toka, I know the fleet is awash with gossip that at least one character is expecting.
Okay, so I just answered part of this a minute ago, but Serala just had her twins, which she totally was not expecting. The first one was named Terron in honor of the Battle of Earth, and the second is named Vaebn which is Romulan for “Sneaky One” since he snuck in unexpectedly. She just got engaged to her fiance – finally – and is planning a wedding that Captain Mei’konda has agreed to officiate. Afterwards, once the ship is repaired and she’s cleared of the charges she’s expecting for misappropriating the Chin’toka, the plan is to take the ship back to the Par’tha Expanse and operate primarily along the border to the Valcarian Empire, although we’ll still see missions in other areas of the Expanse, and possibly even some joint missions with the USS Astraeus from time to time since that ship will also be in the Par’tha Expanse.
Thanks for your time, Commander Serala
Thank you so much for having me once again.
You can read more about Commander Serala and the USS Chin’toka on the wiki.
