From: chad@quality.ta.ford.com (Chad Childers)
Newsgroups: rec.games.mud.tiny
Subject: Re: Plots and soforth on TrekMUSE
Date: 14 Dec 92 15:15:27 GMT
Reply-To: Chad Childers <chad@quality.ta.ford.com>
Organization: Technical Affairs, Ford Motor Company
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>authority over those under it.  There are also @organizations, which limit the 
>power of people to the org they are in and those subordinate to it.  Thus a 

All true.

>Captain attached to the Fleet org can @fo and otherwise order around anyone on 

Right.  Imagine an orgchart.  If a Ensign is in Ferengi Master org, s/he
can use his powers on anyone in the Alliance (but he doesn't have the power
to @force or examine, or any major powers, really).  If we had an Admiral
in Ferengi Sex Slave org, though (actually we do, but Shokinja isn't an
Admiral anymore so she doesn't count) she could examine, force, and change
objects belonging to anyone in Sex Slave, but not any other org, Ferengi,
Fed, or even Klingon.

>actually Captains in rank).  But a Fleet Admiral attached to a single ship 
>can't affect anyone not on that ship's crew.  Of course, Fleet Admirals usually
>get attached to central Empire orgs.  Thus, to start a plot, it has to be one 

Well, actually, that's not true.  Fleet Admirals actually have certain powers
over everyone on the game, but by that point you're expected to behave
honorably and not use your powers to adversely affect other races.  I can
@boot Ferengi, but I can summon or @set anyone=slave.  Directors have all
powers over everyone, and are supposed to be impartial, whatever their org.

>within your MUSE power to pull off.  A bunch of Crew can plot to steal a ship, 

Well, not really.  IC, you are supposed to be able to pull off any reasonable
plot you can concoct, and you're supposed to get help from a director, which
has the dual purpose of keeping things sane and allowing anyone to play.
In practice, I don't know of any cases where it's happened, but that's the
theory.

>foreign Director to give them haven by @detaching them and putting them in a 
>new org.  If they fail to do that, or ask the wrong empire for sanctuary, their

Politics can get interesting.  We actually had a ship that wanted to defect,
the Captain and a number of the crew, but because of the political maneuvering
that was going on with the director of that race, we couldn't pull it off.
Also, you can steal a ship for a specific purpose and get some definite
benefit thereby, but you always have to give it back eventually.  I can't
ever think of an instance where the theif got to KEEP the ship.  OOC, someone
else owns all the rooms, so you just can't hold on to it.

>over all empires (rightly so, the Emperor of the Ferengi can't do squat to 
>anyone not in the Ferengi Empire), you need to do some IC negotiating and 

Two problems with that.  The Ferengi Alliance is not an "empire" canonically,
although a top-level org is often called an empire, and Ananias called himself
Emperor.  The system now is more like a set of ruling Sicilian families,
with Dons and Bosses (or as we call it, Daons and Daemons).  The second
problem is that OOC I *can* do pretty much to you, but I prefer to stay IC 
and do things the fun way.  Besides, you're the Ambassador to us from a 
friendly power.  (toothy grin)

>     Overall, involvement in plots is greater with greater rank, but even 
>newbies can get in on the 'fun' of a full scale alert.

Or get sent off to die gloriously.  (-:  You certainly have a lot of full
scale alerts... what were the Earthlings attacking your starbase for, anyway,
and is another war about to start?

-Chadnibal
-- 
Chad Childers                            Work: chad@quality.ta.ford.com
FMEAplus Project Leader                  Home: chad@deep.mi.org
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