Rank and File

The next generation of RS-wide merits.

Current options, available with smaller-scale IO/staff work:

• Beginner's Path, for the early stages
• MP matches (X completed)
• Missions Database reports (X completed)
• Wiki work (X amount)
• Fiction (X amount)
• Medals (X number of Y particular subset of medals)
• Forums activity
• Oversee competitions
• Recommendations
• Time in rank
• Leadership positions
• Mission-making
• ABG campaign/sim creation
• Notable suggestions/improvements to RS (news comments, web work, expanding game info on wiki, finding bugs)
• Recruitment (especially successful)
• Cadet training (successful slightly better - CPT min. for instructors?)
• Donations
• Quote voting/submission
• Blogging (Facebook, Myspace ads for RS? Rewards for listing RS on profile pages?)
• IRC activity (tracked by MrBot)

Options available with larger-scale IO/staff work:

• Academy courses (X number, or a Basics course, or Y number from Z subset of categories) - Best to get this going ASAP, as has been the case for many years, but hard..
• Any other major project involving many people

All should be cumulative, but separate. Possible to have enough IRC activity for FA, but not enough other requirements for MAJ. Each rank should include multiple requirements. Higher ranks should need higher quantities from categories, and more categories.

Promotion requirements

Minimum time in rank required for all ranks.

• 1LT: 5 categories (out of 16 possible)
• CPT: 6 (of 16)
• MAJ: 8 (of 17)
• LCM: 8 (of 14)
• CMDR: 8 (of 14)
• LCL: 8 (of 14)
• COL: 7 (of 14)

Activities

All activities will start minimum requirements at 1LT. The requirements are matched with the goal rank (e.g. once 5 Beginner's Path points are obtained, LJG will be achieved).

Beginner's Path

• LJG: 5 pts
• 2LT: 15 pts
• 1LT: 25 pts (completed)
• CPT: 25 pts (completed)

Unavailable once CPT is reached.

Multiplayer matches

These numbers are total matches. Should there be a win requirement?

• 1LT: 10
• CPT: 30
• MAJ: 60
• LCM: 100
• CMDR: 150
• LCL: 250
• COL: 400

Missions Database reports

Bonuses awarded for top place?

• 1LT: 6
• CPT: 15
• MAJ: 30
• LCM: 50
• CMDR: 80
• LCL: 125
• COL: 200

Wiki work

Hard to quantify, and make allowances for previously existing material.

• 1LT: Create personal character wiki article (bio, OOC section about positions, infobox, categories)
• CPT: Personal character article, substantial contribution to a second article (+200 words)
• MAJ: Categorize 50 uncategorized pages/images; substantial contributions to three existing articles (+100 words)
• LCM: Create 5 "Wanted pages" with at least 200 words each
• CMDR: TBD by a superior officer (LO, FC, XO, someone of that sort - maybe create special wiki supervisor?)
• LCL: as CMDR
• COL: as CMDR

Fiction

Currently only two main venues for fiction: mission narratives and Zealot posts. Add Mission Database?

• 1LT: 3 posts or 2 narratives
• CPT: 8 posts or 5 narratives
• MAJ: 15 posts or 10 narratives
• LCM: 25 posts or 15 narratives
• CMDR: ..
• LCL: ..
• COL: ..

Medals

Note: Medals should only be used once, but can be stacked for later. e.g. two Burdine Clusters will qualify for LCM, then later CMDR, but having only one Burdine Cluster will only qualify for LCM and can't be re-used for CMDR.

Note 2: The below guidelines have only used a subset of RS-Wide "Combat" and "Commendation" medals. Division medals should be included, with some method of standardization.

• 1LT: Earn a Merit Commendation and any one other non-BP medal
• CPT: CoV, DoC, or AKC (combat)
• MAJ: AS, IS, or EVC (combat)
• LCM: IS and AKC+, or BC
• CMDR: BC and EVC+
• LCL: KC, or NRMoH, or BC+ and AD+
• COL: KC and AD+

Forums activity

The goal is to encourage communication, but for the purpose of greater community, and avoiding low-thought responses. Communications should have a positive effect and, to avoid irritating posts, not be rewarded for excess.

• 1LT: 10 posts / 3x 100+ words in "on-topic" forum
• CPT: 20 posts / 5 different days / 5x 100+ words "on-topic"
• MAJ: 40 posts / 10 different days / 10x 100+ words "on-topic"
• LCM+: Not available?

Oversee competitions

Starts at Major. Competitions should have a tangible "prize", with the most basic being a Merit Commendation or something similar, and be approved by a superior officer (OO? FC/XO?) The advanced start rank is due to this activity requiring a leadership role from someone who should be familiar with standard RS competitions.

"Same" competition means the same theme: e.g. a Caption Contest is the "same" as all other Caption Contests.

• MAJ: 1 competition with at least 5 entrants
• LCM: 3 same or 2 differing competitions, with at least 5 entrants
• CMDR: 5 same or 3 differing - 8 entrants; at least 1 with main prize CoV
• LCL: 5 same, 3 differing - 10 entrants; 2 with CoV
• COL: 5 total competitions, at least 12 entrants, at least 3 winners, highest prize is above a CoV

Recommendations

These should be obtained from higher-ranking officers to certify that the member is worthy of being elevated to the next rank. While these are potentially political, so are promotions; higher officers may reserve the option of delaying a recommendation until a certain set of criteria is met, and also should notify their own superior officers (including FC/XO?) each time a recommendation is written. FC/XO should not be eligible as writers. The direct promotion system will still exist and officers may use that instead if they prefer. Recommenders may be reused for each rank, but only after the regular time limit and with clear reasoning for their finding the activity sufficient.

The starting rank is open to discussion - it's set to CMDR as that seemed instinctively a good place to Licah.

• CMDR: 1 recommendation from BGN+
• LCL: 2 recommendations from BGN+
• COL: 3 recommendations from BGN+

Time in rank

This is a requirement for all and not another option. Here, the rank/time pairing signifies minimum time in that rank, until the rank below. Some of these are a change from the current bylaws.

• 1LT: 1 week
• CPT: 2 weeks
• MAJ: 2 weeks
• LCM: 2 weeks
• CMDR: 1 month
• LCL: 1 month
• COL: 1 month

Leadership positions

• 1LT: Hold a Squadron XO or Executive Office position
• CPT: Squadron XO or Exec for at least 2 weeks
• MAJ: Hold a Squadron CO position, or be Squadron XO or Exec for at least a month
• LCM: Be Wing/small Division CS, Squadron CO for at least a month or Exec for 2 months
• CMDR: Wing/small Division CS for at least a month, Squadron CO or Exec for 3 months
• LCL: Wing/small Division CS for 3 months, Squadron CO/Exec for 5 months
• COL: Wing/small Division CO/XO for 3 months, Exec for 6 months

Mission-making

Three kinds: RS-Wide ITOD, official smaller-scale ITOD (e.g. squadron), or Missions Database. Let's say that a squadron ITOD = 2 Missions Database missions, to promote small-scale ITODs. Keep in mind ITODs can only run one at a time, whereas MDB is only limited by the maker's free time.

• 1LT: 1 mission (any kind)
• CPT: 1 RSITOD or 3 missions
• MAJ: 1 RSITOD or 5 missions
• LCM: 2 RSITOD or 10 missions
• CMDR: 3 RSITOD or 15 missions
• LCL: 4 RSITOD or 20 missions
• COL: 5 RSITOD or 30 missions

ABG campaign/sim creation

Best determined by ABG CS. Charsims to be considered different category?

• 1LT: 1 sim
• CPT: 3 sims
• MAJ: 1 small campaign or 5 sims
• LCM: 1 medium campaign or 8 sims
• CMDR: 1 large campaign or 10 sims
• LCL: 1 large campaign and 3 extra sims
• COL: 2 large campaigns

Notable suggestions/improvements to RS

Example items: news comments, web work, expanding game info on wiki, finding bugs. Difficult to quantify; appoint an officer in charge of this sort of thing?

• 1LT: 1 squadron website
• CPT:
• MAJ:
• LCM: ...
• CMDR:
• LCL:
• COL: major, consistent improvement

Recruitment

For this category, the number of recruits should start over; a person cannot be used twice. Cadets do not qualify as valid recruits; it's very easy to achieve LJG, and not doing so implies the CDT never quite made it as a feasible RS recruit.

Note: This category is for recruitment, i.e. activity which occurs prior to the person signing up for the RS; the recruiter should not chiefly concern him/herself with instructor-type training.

• 1LT: 1 recruit who achieves LJG
• CPT: 2 recruits who achieve LJG
• MAJ: 4 recruits who achieve LJG
• LCM: 6 @ LJG
• CMDR: 6 @ 2LT or 10 @ LJG
• LCL: 8 @ 2LT, or 15 @ LJG
• COL: 15 @ 2LT or 25 @ LJG

Cadet training

For this category, the number of recruits should not start over; if person recruits 1 person who makes it to FA, that person should be able to be used for all rank requirements here. To be eligible, person must be either Primary Instructor, or a game instructor for a person who remains in that fleet when the required rank is achieved. Instructors should be at least Captain. Instruction ends when trainee reaches Captain.

• MAJ: 1 cadet who reaches 1LT
• LCM: 1 CPT, 1 1LT, 1 2LT
• CMDR: 1 MAJ, 1 CPT, 1 1LT
• LCL: 1 MAJ, 2 CPT, 1 1LT
• COL: 2 MAJ, 3 CPT

Donations

Donate money to help the RS keep running, especially to pay the costs of its webserver. Yes, this implies that you can buy your way to a promotion. But this entire system is designed to require several different types of activity, and one cannot get anywhere close to being promoted based on money alone. The people who pay for the RS server now (mostly Snappleguy) will appreciate this greatly. For those who don't have the financial means to contribute this way, there are a plethora of options to fulfill rank requirements; we expect that few people will choose this path.

As with all other items, the need resets after each promotion; contributing $20 would secure 1LT, and put $10 towards CPT, but not secure CPT.

• 1LT: $10
• CPT: $20
• MAJ: $40
• LCM: $75
• CMDR: $125
• LCL: $200
• COL: $250

Quote voting/submission

A low-helping activity nonetheless available to the lower ranks as a way of building and understanding community.

• 1LT: vote on 30 quotes, submit 2
• CPT: vote 100, submit 5
• MAJ: vote 500, submit 15. Yes, 500.

Blogging and Internet exposure

Ask for active recruitment? All the below are currently passive recruitment.

Ends at LCM - tangible recruitment is covered by another category.

• 1LT: Join Facebook or Myspace public Rebel Squadrons groups; post on wall or message board
• CPT: join group(s) and post at least 3 times; place "Rebel Squadrons" prominently among interests or activities on Facebook or MySpace for at least 2 weeks
• MAJ: Maintain RS blog with at least 5 sizable posts, and link to from Facebook or Myspace profile (or 10 posts w/o link)
• LCM: Maintain RS blog with 20 significant posts, be active on public Facebook or Myspace groups (10+ posts over span of 3 weeks).

IRC activity

Tracked by MrBot. Members would need to be logged into bot to be tracked. Functionality does not yet exist.

Ends at promotion to MAJ. Thereafter, activity can contribute towards Holy Sheet, but person should begin to understand IRC as a tool, not primarily as a result in itself.

• 1LT: At least 20 minutes in B&G on 3 separate days. At least 10 lines spoken per day (gibberish disqualifies person).
• CPT: 20 min, 7 days. 15 lines.
• MAJ: 20 min, 10 days, multiple channels (B&G + one division channel); 20 lines per channel.

Suggestions to incorporate

• Provide a way for one-category-only people to advance through the ranks. Make it less rewarding (e.g. slower) to take this path, though. (Vason)