An unofficial guide into the Monitor Celestra

I got tired with the phpbb forum, since it's often very difficult to find just the post you were looking for from the multiple subforums. So I created this page as a shortcut to the meaty bits, to separate the signal from the noisy channel. --Pervilä 2013-02-17 16:28

It seems I'm not alone with my grievances. These two threads have further justifications on why the phpbb is set up the way it is. --Pervilä 2013-02-20 19:12

What to bring

If you only have time to read one post, read this one. It describes the char classes and what's included in their ticket price.

• Costumes - what will be provided for you?
• Much more detail in The costumes
  • This one also doubles as a primer on which groups are in the game
• More detail about Colonial marines

There may be problems fitting into the costumes on the premises.

The organizers recommend using Röda Stjärnan with the Celestra discount code. Here's a listing of suitable gear. One can probably find alternatives from Varusteleka and or eBay. Check out this Massive gallery for alternatives and inspiration. Do not bring garrison caps, baseball caps etc everything modern is fine.

The hostel where we sleep is a full service place, so no bed sheets or stuff like that are required. (You can forget about Alcohol.) Smoking is possible, but one must remove the IC clothing to do so.

Photos, mementos and personal belongings are encouraged. Stuff to put in your locker. Guns and knives are provided and should not be brought.

Background

Read the Fictional section of the main web site. Story and Groups is pretty long, but very much necessary.

The ships and their staff

Celestra belongs to the merchant navy and their internal ranks are intentionally very hazy. Saluting etc. will probably not happen on Celestra(?) but probably will happen on Galatica. (It's up to the players.)

The ship has a captain and an XO, and they should be obeyed, but even the authority of the high-ranking Vergis team members (also here) is questionable.

Galactica is a whole different matter and they have internal ranks and stuff. Conflicts will occur. According to this post, "all officers are game masters too".

More info on the very obscure GM topic:

• GAME 1: Military conduct
• Officers = Game Masters?

CIC

The ship will have its command consoles probably in different rooms, and there will be runners and some kind of low tech telephone network in between.

There will be quite a lot of in-game confusion on how to use the consoles, "since the Cylons have just fried all the fancy stuff".

People with Guns

There will be at least two factions with significant firearms. The colonial marine squads from Galactica and the Vergis security team aka Hermes Project Security (also here).

Interestingly, the officers of the Celestra are unarmed, with the possible exception of the Captain.

Tauron vs Caprican vs. others

A general rule of thumb is that if the char is a member of the Vergis staff, she is a Tauron. If Galactica, then Caprican.

You can usually deduce the ethnicity of the char by the origin of its name.

There is a separate post describing the religions or Faith issues.

Civilians and Tattoos

Tauron markings have been simplified quite a bit. They are mostly just a few greek letters on either hand. This thread also provides some details on Tauron clans.

Some wear mourning gloves. Tattoos should be made with Stargazer tattoo pens. There will be three (3) in each game provided by the GMs.

Full list of characters

A complete list of characters (but not the players) is here

A complete list of characters AND players is here