Command Officer Duties...?

[Sheridan]

I am working on a character concept for an upcoming STRPG campaign. I know that I want my character to be a Command Officer (we will be using Decipher's RPG, books on order and will be here soon - so if this is covered in the books sorry!). I was wondering, what would my young Command Officer do.

I know how to run Operations/Science/Medical officers, their duties are clear. If you are Flight Control, you fly the ship. If you are Sensors or Communications or Security, you run those stations. If you are Medical or Science, you work on things in relation to your field of study.

Command Officers... if you are Capt. Picard or Commander Riker, I know what you do. But for my LT (jg) who is just started in Command, what the heck does he do?

Could I make a Command Officer who is an Operations duty officer? I think Tom Paris was Command (red uniform), yet he was the Flight Control Officer (something regulated to Operations -gold uniform). How does the Decipher system handle transfers? If I make my character Operations/Flight Control or something but want him to be Command later, what do I do?

I think you have an idea of what I'm asking, any information/advice/help/page numbers would be WONDERFUL!

Thanks a lot!

[Owen E Oulton]

" I think Tom Paris was Command (red uniform), yet he was the Flight Control Officer (something regulated to Operations -gold uniform). "

I don't know why LUG and Decipher did this, but Flight Control has always been a part of the Command branch - always! Right from the beginning of TOS, through TNG and Voyager. Sulu: Command gold. Geordi (season 1): Command red. Wesley: Command red. Raeger: Command red. Paris: Command red.

The games (both of them) are wrong. Period.

As for generic Command officers, most of their duties are administrative. Command would be the smallest branch in Starfleet.

[Ineti]

Just some thoughts off the top of my head..

Junior-level command officers would likely be spending a lot of time in simulations, getting hands-on experience commanding Away teams and starships, assuming they were heading for their own command someday.

A junior officer could be put in charge of a work detail or other small project on-ship or on-base. The DH and the XO could then evaluate his or her performance and give him more difficult/challenging duties if he did well, or send him to training for more work if he needed it.

Command-level officers could also be spending a lot of time doing cross-department activities. I'd think a good XO or Captain would be familiar with most systems and departments on the ship, so a junior officer with a breadth of knowledge would be quite useful...

As for transfers from one department to another, I don't know if there's any specific game mechanic for it, but the shows never seemed to make an issue of it if it was good for the character. Worf transferred from Command to Security to Command and Data transferred to Command at a couple points.

If it were my game, and one of the PCs wanted to move out of one department into another, and had a good in-game reason for doing so, I'd just go with the change in uniform and move on.

[RaconteurX]

Originally posted by Owen E Oulton
Flight Control has always been a part of the Command branch - always!

Yes it has, and CODA properly lists Flight Control under the Command Branch. Likewise, both Engineering and Security fall under Operations, and Medical falls under Sciences.

As Owen said, most Command duties are administrative. Junior Command officers are the middle managers of Starfleet. They also provide localized leadership in crisis situations and head up Away Team missions which do not require the attention of a higher-up.

[Sea Tyger]

I'd also think that command officers would get a lot of cross-training, spending parts of their tours in various departments.

[P'l]

Originally posted by Owen E Oulton
" I think Tom Paris was Command (red uniform), yet he was the Flight Control Officer (something regulated to Operations -gold uniform). "

I don't know why LUG and Decipher did this, but Flight Control has always been a part of the Command branch - always! Right from the beginning of TOS, through TNG and Voyager. Sulu: Command gold. Geordi (season 1): Command red. Wesley: Command red. Raeger: Command red. Paris: Command red.

The games (both of them) are wrong. Period.

er.... No.

In the Decipher game, atleast, flight control is catagorized as command. Don't recall anything about LUGtrek though.

Originally posted by Owen E Oulton
As for generic Command officers, most of their duties are administrative. Command would be the smallest branch in Starfleet.

Again, er.... No.

If starfleet operates anything like most modern organizations, wether it be Navies or less martial groups, administration would probably make Command one of the largest branches.



Also, as a detail aside, most of Star Fleet Intelligence would be command, I'd expect.

[Sheridan]

Okay, so let me get this straight... A junior Command Officer will most likely do Administrative work. That is pretty much what I was guessing that he would do, I just wasn't sure.

Examples of Command duties would be handling requests of higher ups (job delegating), taking care of "paper work" as needed in his department (and he could be stationed in any department, Engineering to Sick Bay to Flight Control to Botany). He would probably work as a "supervisor" to those below him in rank and/or position and handle disputes, requests, and problems before taking them to his Department Head (usually a senior officer).

He would act as a middle-man to his boss (probably a department head and/or senior officer) for the crew (at least those in his direct "control").

He would be sent to lead away missions if they were not important enough for the attention of a Senior Officer (or if none are available).

So basically he would just take care of whatever needs to be done. If he was assigned to Engineering, he wouldn't be an Engineer fixing things, he would be handling scheduling or parts requisitions, or something like that right?

Thanks for the help thus far, I'm just trying to work up exactly what my character would do as far as his duties until he gains experience and rank to be a senior officer (whose duties are easier to determine).

[Doug Burke]

In my own games, I usually assign junior command officers to whichever department they seem to have a leaning towaqrd (Ops, Engineering, whatever). I figure Starfleet would want them to have a broad range of experiences during their career, so they would do a number of different jobs.

I see a couple folks already corrected you on the flight control thing, Owen, so I won't go there.

[Lancer]

Originally posted by Sheridan
... taking care of "paper work" as needed in his department (and he could be stationed in any department, Engineering to Sick Bay to Flight Control to Botany). He would probably work as a "supervisor" to those below him in rank and/or position and handle disputes, requests, and problems before taking them to his Department Head (usually a senior officer)...

...So basically he would just take care of whatever needs to be done. If he was assigned to Engineering, he wouldn't be an Engineer fixing things, he would be handling scheduling or parts requisitions, or something like that right?

Sorry for being late to the party.

That's exactly how I view the role of a junior command officer - he/she is more or less a glorified office assistant, taking care of all the paperwork and assisting the people in the department he/she is assigned to in dealing with administrative duties.

That aside, any such junior officer should be tasked with at least some duties that teach him how to become a good commanding officer, e.g. while you are basicaly a "paper pusher" you would be assigned responsibility for some crewmembers.

Think of a situation like this: You are assigned to the shuttle maintenance department on a starship. You know next to nothing about shuttle maintenance, but you are responsible for some crewmembers nonetheless.
When some engineering problems come up you refer them to the senior NCO assigned to that shift and let him handle it, but as soon as some personnel matter comes up (from leave to fitness reports), you are the guy who signs the papers. You may confer with the senior NCO in charge of shuttle maintenance - and you better should - but it's your call to grant or deny any request and sign the papers.

The thing to keep in mind here is that there may be a difference between the disciplinary responsibility and the professional responsibility. (Not sure if this makes sense, as english is not my native language).

[Sheridan]

It makes perfect sense! I think that we are all in agreement on what newbie Command Officers are expected to do. I really appreciate all of your help in this matter. I now have a job for my character! Yay!