Pierre_LaRoche

Just thought I would post a log to get into the swing of things again. -- Starfleet Academy – Engineering College "For Friday's exam, you will need to remember the four principles I have lectured on Battlefield repairs. Now, who can explain the first principle?" Cadet Grimson raised his hand, "The first principle is 'Know your ship'. You need to know the strengths and limitations of the vessel you serve on." "Correct. Who's got the second?" "Know the theory," Cadet Bloc'num blurted out. "And that means?" "Understand the basic principles of operation and keep current on current theories. You never know when something new will come out that will help you out in a pinch." Professor LaRoche smiled, "Very good, Cadet. Who has the third?" No one initially raised a hand. LaRoche looked from one side of the room to another. Finally, a shy female Catian in the back stood. "Channel the resources," she spoke. Pierre paused long enough for her to explain. Slowly she began again, "Which means you keep an inventory of what is available… and use it to your advantage." She retook her seat. "Right you are. This is the principle of improvision. If you don't know what you have, you cannot adjust to what you need. And the last?" "Keep ze ship afloat!" several students blurted out at once. LaRoche chuckled remembering his lecture on how to allow accents to filter through the universal translator. The students seemed too distracted to continue on with the normal lecture, so he had accommodated them. It turned out to be a bonding moment. "That's right! It's the Captain's job to go down with the ship. It's the engineer's job to make that unnecessary. That means," pointing around the room, "it's your job to speak up when you know an enemy is exploiting a weakness the Bridge officers might not know." A hand lifted in the middle of the room. "Yes, Cadet Yakamosho?" "Professor, are you leaving us?" Pierre paused to consider his response. He didn't realize word had gotten out that he had applied to serve as a consultant engineer in Cardassia. There were some other positions he too was considering, but this would allow him to reconnect with Jarella. He wondered if there was room on Skyharbor Aegis or if he would need to find a place on Cardassia itself. The later involved much more paperwork. "Professor?" LaRoche looked up and realized his mind had wandered off target. Given the number of times he pointed this out to students, he was a little embarrassed. He looked at the time and decided letting them out a few minutes early would not hurt. "Well, if there are no more questions on subject, class dismissed." Cadets began gathering pads. "And don't forget, you have your holographic repair project due on Tuesday!"

It's been a number of years since I last SIMMED and absence has made the heart grow fonder. Certainly my time watching the Aegis SIMs has been enjoyable. I have found a few of the Academy SIMs quite enjoyable. Afterall, I am able to play in these. Let's see. I have served recently as: · An assistant engineer who saw his ship destroyed by a Romulan Warbird. I truly wish the Chief Engineer had taken the warp core off line, or at least told the Captain something like, "She cannot take much more of this" or "One more hit like that and we're all dead." Maybe we could have avoided certain doom? · A Chief of Security on a runabout. I didn't realize that Academy SIMs are known for changelings serving as the GMs. The clues given were subtle, but I suppose I could have picked up on them before the XO mysteriously disappeared and reappeared in the Runabout. It sure stank to be stranded on the planet. · An assisted engineer from the Corps of Engineers. This was my favorite! A Hercules class tug showed up to retrieve a (Galaxy-class) saucer section. Nearly all of us were engineers assigned to two teams, one from a starship and one from the Corps. Oh yeah, we had 2 chief engineers. Talk about confusion! We all persisted, enjoyed the SIM, and no one got killed or stranded! · A Chief Science Officer of a 'no plot' SIM. This is the one where the ship had been out on mapping the universe for much too long. The crew was demoralized and began bickering. It might have been easier if the Captain or even the XO were throwing in the occasional ACTION statement. Instead, I got to hear at least one lover's quarrel, the grumpiness of a Captain confined to quarters, the MXOs discussion of his wives cooking, etc. Bottom line, if the GMs don't want to make and/or support an actual Star Trek plot, the SIM is bound to degenerate into a Soap. I suppose personal taste is the best way to describe why I enjoyed one over the other. I have noticed that there are quite a few people who like to explore relationships in advanced SIMs. I used to make it a point to read every log to make certain I keep up with the main plot lines, but I found that excessively long romance logs are not enjoyable reading. I am certain others feel different. Just a bit of babble from someone who misses writing logs. Pierre