Command branch - WTH do they do?

[ghosty]

A lot of ideas, but here are some constructive suggestions.

JAG liasion - I prefer to have a junior JAG officer assigned as the ship's Legal Officer. He can do a lot of things including advising the CO on treaties and interstellar law and he can draft the treaties that Starfleet sends its ships out to negotiation.

Crewmaster - this one I stole from FASA Trek. He's a civilian relations officer who liases between the CO and the civilians on board larger ships...A tough administartion job.

Recreation Officer - the crew has to relax and nothing better than a Rec officer to make sure that they do. Working with the CMO/Counselor they make sure that the crew stress and morale levels remain high. Most are retired or semi-retired officers on the way out with fatherly ways to keep the crew relaxed. Some could be ordained ministers to keep the crew's spiritual well-being. I can see a Bajoran Vedek running the recreation department.

Intelligence - intelligence is strictly subordinated to tactical.

Communications - coms is also a tactical function as comms will relate to the ship's EW functions as well.

Flight Ops - i don't mean the Conn officer but the Air Boss, the chief of flight deck operations onboard Akira and El-Dorado class carriers. He will have to be an ex-fighter jock to rise to that post but he'll be transferred to command branch for that purpose. The flight deck crew itself would be Ops/Engineering personnel so would be the Boat Bay officer who is really a specialist in small craft operations.

Boarding officer - a mixed security/command function, the Boarding officer leads security/customs inspection teams to board merchant and other civilian ships for security/customs inspections. I think he should be command to give him authority to tell freighter captains where to stuff it...

One thing about the Watch Officer and the OOD.

The Watch Officer is the senior officer on the bridge during a duty shift so its usually the CO/XO or one of the senior staff.

The OOD (Officer of the Deck) is usually the junior officer working as the Watch Officer's right hand. Usually he has the "Conn" which means he runs the bridge under the watch officer's supervision, sort of an XO in training. When the ship is hard docked the OOD is in charge of the airlock detail making sure the right persons get on and off.

[CmdrBluejeans]

Just a couple more sample Command Branch berths I hadn't seen listed:

<B>Cultural Resource Officer</B> -- One-part diplomatic officer, one-part Social Scientist, and one-part Counselor, not really any, but a little of all three. A specialist in all-there-is-to-know about one or two specific races, civlizations, or organizations which might be common or influential in the area of space in which a ship is based or a base is located. A cultural resource officer on a ship based near a section of Romulan Neutral Zone with heavy smuggler activity might have the (Romulan) and (Orion Syndicate) specializations under History, Culture, Diplomacy, Streetwise, Starship Tactics, etc. type skills. They would basically serve as advisor to the CO and XO on matters involving the subject of their specialty, as they would have more practical knowledge than a Social Sciences officer but more theoretical knowledge than a Diplomat.

<B>Crew Management Officer</B> -- An officer not present on smaller ships, but any ship with more than 400-500 personnel would be wise to have one. This officer helps the CO, XO, and Counselor resolve minor disputes and discipline problems --- crewmen and junior officers who don't get along with their assigned roommates, cadets who lack in discipline, and so forth. They are called in when the problem at hand becomes more than just the potential for a problem (when it is still the balliwick of a counselor to defuse) but when it is not so serious that the CO or XO must take personal attention.

<B>Yeoman</B> -- How could we forget this one?

Also, I like the Training Officer ... I have one IMC. He is basically a specialist in one specific skill taught either in the general SFA curriculum or required to achieve command ranks (i.e., Planetary Survival, Vehicle Ops, Energy Weapon, Dodge, Athletics on the one hand, or Administration, Law, Command on the other hnad), and in addition to having instructor-level skill in that area, and handling refresher courses for officers (or further training for crewmen who wish to step up to OCS), also helps the CO and XO plan out 'advancement charts' for junior officers looking to further their careers, helps evaluate folks for advanced training at SFA, helps the CO and XO arrange for 'field tests' of folks who wish to apply to Starfleet Academy (like the surprise emergency simulations to test a would-be cadet's resourcefulness and courage), and so on.


BJ

[Phoenix]

Ok, Army boy talking here, but what exactly is a Yeoman, and what do they do (Other then look good in a skirt for James T.)

[heikki]

Originally posted by Phoenix
Ok, Army boy talking here, but what exactly is a Yeoman, and what do they do (Other then look good in a skirt for James T.)

I conseder him/her working at the desk...doing paperwork in the ship's office.

[JALU3]

Originally posted by Phoenix
Ok, Army boy talking here, but what exactly is a Yeoman, and what do they do (Other then look good in a skirt for James T.)

Basically S-1 (Administration) or 73 MOSs, you remember them all those people who get to stay in those nice clean, warm offices while the rest of us do all the grunt work.

[ghosty]

The Yeoman is basically the Captain's secretary. He (or she) makes sure that the Captain does his obligatory paperwork and keeps his schedule of appointments...basically the Yeoman is a Man (or Girl) Firday, the Captain's enlisted right hand doing all the little chores so that the Captain can concentrate on running the ship...in my game the Yeoman also doubles as the Captain's bodyguard on Away missions.