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Procedures for starting a new ship chapter in the Battlestar Fan Club.

         Here is information you will need to know and requirements in order to have a new chapter officially commissioned.  Right now as a member in the BFC your initial rank is Ensign within the Battlestar Fan Club Fleet (BFC).  Anyone starting new starts at the rank.  However you are wanting to start a Chapter and I will help you from beginning to end until you become “Officially Commissioned”.  Until such time your Chapter is “Under Construction”.  Once the Chapter is commissioned you will be promoted to the rank of Major.  Instead of being promoted to Colonel quickly I want to make sure you can handle leading a Chapter and the people who have joined you as the ships crew. Promotions are not just handed out for Command you must earn it.  Attitude reflects leadership so your crew will look to you for guidance.  I can be reached at anytime on the BFC website and you can leave me a message there and I will contact you.  Every ship commissioned in the BFC starts at a certain rank in order to allow growth.  Naming your ship can be done by you or a group vote.

        The ship name cannot be called by any ship which has appeared on the Original Series or New Battlestar Galactica show.  Those ships Galactica and Pegasus etc represent the First Fleet.  We honor them by following their lead as they battle the Cylons to get away in search of the far away planet Earth.  You can keep the name you choose among you and your shipmates.  However, once you pick a name there is no changing it for something better. Once you have the name, I will issue you your ship Registry Number (BSR/GSR/Civilian).  The name and registry is how your ship and crew will be identified here in the BFC.  This is NOT a race to get a Chapter started immediately instead it needs to be done correctly there is a process.  If not you and your Chapter will slowly fail and fade away.  I don’t want that to happen.  The commissioning process is not a long one unless the criteria’s that are mentioned are not meant.  I am here to support provide guidance, feedback and assist you anyway that I can for you and your ship to be successful.

        Below you will find more information on the aspects for starting a Chapter and guidelines / procedures.  On the BFC site please go into the forum section and you will also find Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).  I am releasing them as I go and I am big on Quality Control b/c fast and short cuts can undermine a fan club or a chapter. Battlestar Galactica is what we want to keep and strive for according to our founders.  Always consider short cuts really do not cut it and any hidden agendas will eventually come out into the open and cause issues.  In the BFC its all about having fun and leaving the drama in the cold vastness of space.

         Here is the formation you will need in order to form a new ship chapter. There are a few stipulations which I will list below and if you have any more questions please let me know.

1- A Chapter cannot be started if another chapter is 1 to 2 hours away. From your exact locations this is important.  This is to help Chapters not get into any issues in recruiting new members.  Instead it helps the chapter grow in numbers and add team cohesiveness which makes you all stronger as members.

2- There are manning rules which are carefully watched from Command HQ. In
order to launch your own Battlestar, Basestar, Gunstar or other type ship regardless if it’s from the new series or old you need a minimum of 15 people. If the number gets below 15 you risk losing your Chapter, or it can be downgraded to a different ship classification of my choosing.  Until you can get the manning numbers back up.

        You can always have more people, but for starting out you only need the above numbers. Your Chapter/Ship can be from the Original or Re-Imagined series. As always I am here to help I have a great reputation in the BFC so
you can always feel free to ask about anything to help you out.

POSITIONS REQUIRED to be filled in order to launch ships is listed below.

Battlestar, Basestar, Gunstar or other Type = 15 People  the positions are listed.
Commanding Officer
Executive Officer
Operations Officer (2^nd in Command just below the XO)
Communications Officer
Chief Engineering Officer
Chief of Security
Commander, Airwing Group CAG (Only for Battlestars and Gunstars)   Have your CAG contact me via email so I can give them more details on their specific duties aside from the norm.

Manning Levels:

       Manning levels are crucial to the success of a Chapter if you drop below the 15 member count.  You risk your Chapter going into decommissioned status b/c you as the Commanding Officer failed to maintain it.  However, if you know you are going to lose a member or members.  Please email or contact me immediately in order to come up with an extension or game plan.  It helps to keep you honest as well as me in order for me to perform my duties effectively. You will be given the opportunity to recruit personnel in order to retain your manning status.  Always keep track of your personnel aboard ship. Part of your duties as a Commanding Officer as well as your Executive Officer.

       Manning aboard a Battlestar is everything if a Chapter falls under manning in this case less than 15 members. The Chapter will go from active duty into a dry dock status until the manning level are raised back to the standard level no exceptions.  This is the responsibility of the Commanding and Executive Officer.  Smaller ship manning level will be discussed in a different topic. Monthly ship status can be emailed to me for activity as well as manning status.

            It is the mission of every Commanding Officer to keep the Chapter (SHIP) clear of dry dock.  Everyone is aware there will be problems in each chapter as well as disharmony or lack of cooperation.  I am confident everyone will do their very best to be cooperative and fun well-rounded individuals.  I will not decommission any Chapter unless I have no choice and have exhausted every option.  The shipboard reporting every month will be the standard on communications with Commander, BFC.  When implanted I will have a section which I will record all Chapters reporting in for each month. 

Honorary Membership Status:

         You as the Commanding Officer can grant any member within the BFC Honorary Membership status.  Be advised that Honorary Members do not count as part of your crew manning and should never be listed as such.  They are already serving on a BFC Chapter, so be careful pouching rule can be harsh.  Another reason I inform all new personnel to please read all the SOPs I have posted and there will be more.  In order for someone out of the BFC to be granted Honorary Membership(HM) you can grant as well they don’t have to be part of the BFC in order to be HM onboard ship such as friends, family or a BSG Actor/ Actress.  If you have any further questions email for more details.

Ship reporting failure:

             All BFC Chapters will be obligated to submit a Dradis Status Report (DSR) to me in order to maintain contact and continuity throughout the Fleet.  It will contain areas for you to fill out such as name, crew total, problems, assistance required and much, much more.  It a great tool and it helps me to help everyone in the BFC Fleet!   If a Chapter fails to report 30 days of the actual reporting day said chapter goes may go to dry dock.  No comms from the senior three as I called them, (Commanding Officer, Executive Officer and Operations Officer) ship falls into a 30 day dry dock period.  If after 30 days there is still no communications I will try to reach out to the senior three and get a status.   If there is no reply from my sub-space communications and I will give a few days.  If not the Chapter will go into a 60 dry dock period.  Here is where the ship get closer to getting decommissioned.  From here I will try and get a hold of anyone on the ship to establish comms.  If no one contacts me then the ship drops into a critical status with 90 days total now and the ship will be decommissioned.  The Dradis Status Reporting doesn’t have to be if you do not want to, but a simple email will suffice.

            In order to regain your Chapter again there will be a 30 days re-commissioning period for the ship to launch again.  If any of the senior three will be away please contact me, so I know who will be submitting reporting in absence of the Commanding Officer.

Promotion cycle:

            As the Commanding Officer you will be allowed to promote within your Chapter. I caution you about being rank heavy if people work hard and deserve it then by all means.  However, if they are just along to ride the bus then don’t even if you lose a crewmate.  People should be for the love and joy of BSG fandom not just b/c of rank.  This method also help you know who the real fans are.  As a Major or Colonel you can promote to the highest rank below yours.  Once you reach rank of Commander then you can then promote someone to Colonel.  Yes, you can have two Colonels on the same Chapter it is not an issue.  As the Fleet Admiral I reserve the right to promote said chapter leaders to the rank of Commander.  If they work hard and can show proof to back it up all in good time b/c I don’t believe in rushing anyone through the ranks.  Many BSG Fans want the rank, but none want to put in the effort to know they have earned it. All I ask personally is to not promote people to quickly just ensure they earn it b/c it means they will hard to keep the Chapter going and for the next higher rank.  There is an official promotion cycle I am working on, but I am still working things out.  Once it is ready, I will release as an SOPs.

         There are a few other key areas, but we can touch on those when over email, so there is no confusion. Remember if you have any questions contact me and I will respond.   Once commissioned I will release to your Ship Seal logos, Official Commissioning Letter with your first set of orders and I will make an ALL HANDS announcement to the BFC Community on your Chapter Commissioning Day. If you need help making squadron logos I can also assist with that.  I am happy to see you have chosen interest in making a new Chapter within the Battlestar Fan Club.

         I am here to help please email me anytime CAG_VF84@yahoo.com and I will get back to you soon. I am US Navy retired military as it is an Honor to serve in real life as it is in the Sci Fi community.  Be safe and watch out for Cylons in your area of operations. ~Salutes~

Respectfully,
FADM Rivera, M.A.(CF)
Fleet Commander, BFC