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Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

ATTENTION ALL WRITERS!

@Brutus @rae @Nolan @chXinya @Griff @Stegro88 @RyeTanker @Pierce @Nesota Kynnovan @P.C. Haring @Eden @ob2lander961 @Dumedion @Eirual @tongieboi @Tae @Hans Applegate @joshs1000 @Krajin @TWilkins

There comes a point in every long-running story where the crew has to stop staring at the viewscreen and ask a harder question:

“Where are we actually going from here?”

The USS Theurgy has a long and meaningful history behind it. If you take even a brief look through the forum statistics — including post counts, member activity, and the sheer number of stories and characters that have passed through these halls — this board has mattered to a successful many people over the years. Some of those writers are sadly no longer with us. Others drifted away because life changed course. But the history is there, written into every thread and archive, and it deserves acknowledgment and respect.

The statistics also tell another story: a steady and undeniable drop in activity and participation that we can no longer ignore or quietly work around. This is not meant to be a doom post. It is meant to be an honest one. It is also not a matter of hoisting the blame upon any one person or one variable post, as the GMs acknowledge their place in the sliding as well.

Many of you were here during the difficult period surrounding AL’s departure in 2023 and the scramble that followed to keep the board running and preserve what had been built together. For anyone wanting to revisit that discussion, the original thread can be found here:

Initial 2023 Discussion Regarding AL’s Departure

Likewise, we also had our last fireside chat regarding the future of the board and the direction we hoped to pursue moving forward:

Previous Fireside Chat Results and Future Discussion


And for those who want to review the broader picture of the board itself, including membership and posting trends:

USS Theurgy Forum Statistics


Our current setup is not generating enough sustained activity to keep things healthy long-term. That means we need to be willing to discuss everything from the ground up, including:

* Posting expectations and rules
* Character creation and acquisition
* Storyline structure and long-term trajectory
* Accessibility for new writers
* Retention of existing writers
* Forum/Discord engagement and socialization
* Leadership structure
* Onboarding new writers
* Plot pacing and collaboration
* Community culture overall

Nothing should be considered too sacred to discuss.

This also means we need people coming into the conversation prepared to contribute constructively. Bring ideas. Bring solutions. Bring experiments worth trying. Think about what would make you more eager to write, more invested in the stories, and more connected to the community.

Understand that not every idea will be accepted, implemented, or agreed upon. That is part of collaborative storytelling and community-building. Please do not come into the discussion solely to vent frustrations or catalog failures. Everyone here is already aware that things have been struggling — even when not every concern has been openly stated. That awareness is precisely why this conversation is happening.

There is not a firm date for the live chat yet because schedules are currently flexible and chaotic for many people (summer has a way of doing that), but please take some time over the coming weeks to reflect and prepare your thoughts. When the discussion date is finalized, we hope as many of you as possible will participate live.

If you cannot attend because of time constraints or scheduling conflicts, please still contribute either through the Discord or in response to this thread. Your voice matters whether spoken live or written afterward.

And finally: thank you.

Thank you for your time, your creativity, your patience, and your passion over the years. The USS Theurgy has always been more than a collection of forum posts. It has been a collaborative world where people came to imagine together, tell stories together, and escape the grind of everyday life for a little while.

Its longevity is worth fighting for.

Its quality is worth fighting for.

And the friendships built here — both the ones we already have and the ones still waiting somewhere in the future — are worth fighting for too.

May the Sim, and you, Live Long and Prosper.

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #1 –
Posted here because ill probably  miss the pow-wow due to work/adulting. These are my thoughts on the matter (so far). Will add/edit as more come.

NOTE:If you agree/disagree, that’s fine, but please don’t clog the thread with replies to this – I'd prefer to use Discord for that; this is simply a list of thoughts and points id like brought up at the meeting if I am absent.

Alternatives to letting the sim die:

•   Eliminate posting requirements altogether (nobody is following the rules anyway). Alternative: If you havent contributed shit in three months, and we havent heard any reason why, you’re out.

•   No more art. (Hot take, I know). I think folks focus too much on art – don’t get me wrong, I like it too – but reading doesn’t require it, writing shouldn’t either. You can still make it if you want, share it in Discord, etc, but it shouldn’t be mandatory and shouldn’t stop folks from writing.

•   Eliminate character inheritance. If someone leaves, their characters go with them. Their story ends unfinished, and that’s it. Writer’s can handle their characters involvement/relationships with that IC (or not) if they choose to.

•   Eliminate requirements on current writers adding new characters. If inspiration strikes, they write; the bullshit process in place takes too long and acts more like a gatekeeping mechanism than anything else.

•   New writers get approval from one (1) person. It shouldn’t take months to onboard newbloods. Everyone needs to do better about making themselves available to write with new people. If we cant attract new writers and grow, we face stagnation – and people that do engage with new writers all the time will get burnt out doing it.

•   Wrap the current narrative. Shelve it. We did our best to complete AL’s story – but its clearly floundering and dying on the vine. We can keep the history, but it’s a lot for new people to absorb; we need to dumb it down and pick a new direction. There are so many options available to use for this; I hope you all have some ideas – I am thinking on it.

That's it for now. More to follow.
 

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #2 –
I suppose this is the place to share it: as some of you know, I've been having health problems for the past few years, but especially since last year. The physical issues aside, the illness has also affected my cognitive function. It's not dementia, but my creativity has definitely been affected.  My writing both here and elsewhere has taken a nose dive in quality.
I am sorry for not communicating this better, as I know that I bear a fair bit of the responsibility for not posting.  I keep trying to force it, but that simply does not work. It is clear that something needs to change.
I am due to get surgery in September. I am hoping that this (plus other things I am now doing) will get me back on track, but if not, I will bow out. I very much hope to stay, but only if I can still write.

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #3 –
ATTENTION ALL WRITERS!

@Brutus  @rae  @Nolan  @chXinya  @Griff  @Stegro88  @RyeTanker  @Pierce  @Nesota Kynnovan  @P.C. Haring  @Eden  @ob2lander961  @Dumedion  @Eirual  @tongieboi @Tae  @Hans Applegate  @joshs1000  @Krajin  @TWilkins

Hello all, we are still working on determining a date that will enable a majority of the GMs to be in attendance, if not all of them. Sorry it is taking so long. Summer time is notororiously a difficult time to pin down anyone and anything.

Despite this hiccup, I would like to encourage everyone to continue in the vein already established, of voicing thoughts on improvements here so we can cite them during the discussion and thereby, perhaps, more rapidly move through the discussion when it is had, since folks will have had a chance to read through the suggestions, as they will have been made to that point.

Thank you again for sharing your thoughts and suggestions and taking time to invest in the future of the sim.


EDITED: I wanted to go ahead and share a draft of what the planned next episode was going to be, so folks can read through it and ponder over it. It is written rather like a DnD campaign because, why not haha!

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #4 –
I would like to also voice my opinion on Dumedion's comments and my own. I am in 100% agreement on everything Dume mentioned and have been thinking that for a while now which has made it hard to get the motivation. That will make things easier to manage and therefore keep the GM's and all of us going.

Since AL left, with the story having more splits and that I believe started with him too, it has made it increasingly difficult to manage threads and knowing what's going on. I know it's even harder with more characters. I get that. However, with the story never ending on the threat, it is kind of draining and I feel it needs to end and start fresh in another direction for the story to evolve properly and get people re-energized again with the stories and the plot.

I know I say I love complicated, but this is too much between life, job, other hobbies and trying to keep up here. I was asked to join other Trek sims that are by past Theurgy members and I turned them down because I feel we still have something here and theirs are just starting. Between my lack of commitment here, I couldn't justify elsewhere when I am so invested here. The story here I feel is like getting into DC Comics at this point where I signed on for Batman or Justice League and have to read 5-10 other comic series to understand what's going on and I just don't have time for that despite the writing being awesome when I do get the time.

Simplifying and tying up the old storyline might be best for the evolution and continuation of the legacy of Theurgy. It would also allow us to remember the past but move on to give a more or less clean slate unless people wanted to know the past making it easier to join and write.

I love this site and the people in it and this has been a lot of fun. I do apologize for my lack of writing but again, I've had a difficult time getting the brain to wrap around the story and assignments, etc. I get it's not a free for all but if it's something I lack knowledge or don't care for, I can't realistically sit and write about it. Which is why I try to do what I know and keep in that realm.

I'm sure I'll have more to add later but this was what I had time to contribute at the moment.

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #5 –
@Brutus   @rae   @Nolan   @chXinya   @Griff   @Stegro88   @RyeTanker   @Pierce   @Nesota Kynnovan   @P.C. Haring   @Eden   @ob2lander961   @Dumedion   @Eirual   @tongieboi  @Tae   @Hans Applegate   @Ellen Fitz    @Krajin   @TWilkins

Just going to get my thoughts out there because when we do the group discussion I feel like I will probably have A LOT to say and suggest so easier to have essentially a reference here to my points.

First I really love Star Trek and I really love role-playing and I really love character development, so that is the basis for my points below. Some of these may mirror other people, some may not, if you disagree then you disagree and if you agree then you agree but either way, as Dume said, responses should go on Discord or be saved for the discussion.

Further, and this is very important to me and something that I have internalized over the past few years, criticism is not inherently negative, it can be said in a negative tone sure, but objective critique is important to help learned and grow and in the end everyone benefits.

So now that the pre-amble is out of the way I'm just going to lay out my thought sin a numbered list:


Thoughts on Story Improvements

Just my thoughts on the story and where I think we should go from here.

1. We really should just axe the entire story, it's been going on for over a decade but the primary creator has long since left leaving it to the group to try and interpret how they wanted to progress it. Personally I am not particularly fond of this story, there is very little Star Trek stuff to do, exploration, science, diplomacy, and the constant emphasis on action leaves little in the way of character interaction and thus character development. Further the state of the galaxy is so wrecked and lobsided that just saying it is all done and over with would not return things to a more traditional Star Trek status-quo. A change of story to either reset back to 2379 or perhaps even move to a new era entirely like the Enterprise Era would be the best course of action if we are ending the story. I don't know about other folks but I don't mind making new characters.

2. Nix the hyper specific tracking of in-game time. To me this is proving to be a massive headache, it's been over a decade since this story has started and yet it's only been six or seven months of in-game time. To be blunt, that is ridiculous and makes it impossible to have any sort of meaningful character arcs. I joined in like 2023 with my character Lok and he has had to essentially be in some form of development-purgatory because in those years in-game time has only gone barely a week. A solution to this would have to come in the form of a group consensus but I've seen on other RP forums where time is generally relative with a broad monthly announcement of what time of year it is while events are more specific for over-arching story telling purposes. The key is that players need to keep track and pay attention and with this being such a small group I don't think that is a tall ask.

3. Abandon the Theurgy, I know this is a tall ask, but for how small our writing team is the ship is honestly just too massive to really make a good show of managing it without people needing to play multiple characters or NPCs. In a more practical sense, as far as I know, other than some images and the Sketchfab preview, AL never turned over those models of the ship and other models for us to continue to use or develop, thus if we need to do concept or promotional artwork then we are just sort of stuck with whatever we have left.

4. Per what I mentioned in 1. we really should just end the story and start over fresh with our own story that allows us to interact more with the world of Star Trek and to be able to do those Star Trek things that have, at least since I've been here, have been hitherto unavailable by the very nature of the current story. As such I do have suggestions on story ideas.

-4a - Star Trek: Theurgy Reset - We essentially keep everything in regards to the ship, the characters, the uniforms and the world history, minus anything to do with The Infested, essentially reverting it to right after Star Trek Nemesis. We can head into the 2380s unburdened and chart our own path doing exploration and diplomacy.

-4b - Star Trek: The Early Frontier - While my dislike of the series Enterprise is well known, that is mostly due to the writing and the many missed opportunities in the first two seasons. What I do love though is the production design that mixes a NASA vibe with a Star Trek flavor and makes the idea of exploration of even as something simple as a gas giant or nebula truly exciting. This story would also allow our ship to operate mostly independently thus allowing a bit more freedom off creativity and more freedom of action. While this is my preference it would also require the largest amount of work to setup out of all of them and also limit things like artwork initially as well as character species.

-4c - Star Trek: Theurgy Other Eras - Maybe not the Enterprise Era but another era. The lost era between Enterprise and TOS or the lost era between the TMP Movies and TNG. Maybe going into those specific era, TOS, TMP, TNG, etc. We could even go into the future and create our own Star Trek: Legacy.

-4d - Star Trek: Andromeda - Theurgy in either current form or reset form is somehow whisked off to the Andromeda galaxy where they have to survive, thrive, and find a way home or perhaps stay and bring Federation ideals of freedom, unity, and diplomacy to this new galaxy to bring about a new Federation.

5. A broader focus on character development and less focus on combat. TNG and DS9 are my favorite Star Treks for a reason and that is their emphasis on characters, especially DS9, and I would like to see that going forward. As I mentioned above it is very difficult to have a character truly "develop" because things move so slow that it feels like you are spinning your wheels. Further though I think that moving away from combat oriented threads towards things that involve problem solving and characters bouncing off of each other would be really refreshing and thus saving combat for special occasions.

6. NSFW content, I like it and I just wanted people to know that lol.


Thoughts on Admin

Just my thoughts and suggestions on running the forum going forward to help make it more open to new players and perhaps make it run a little more efficiently.

1. Keep the general writing requirements in terms of post length and formatting as well as maintaining the proper post order. Post time limits and the consequences for failing to post on time should be changed. I'd say essentially change it to a respond within 48-72 hours of the previous post or you will get skipped and won't be able to respond until your turn is up again, thus somebody not responding will not completely shut down a thread for a week and a half costing writing momentum and inspiration as well as preventing threads from being drawn out for months and months due to slow responses. If somebody stops responding entirely in the game then don't kick them but perhaps just give them a warning and mark them as inactive in case for whatever reason they come back.

2. Easier access for newer players, allow people to join the forum without needing approval but start off of course with the limited access to only certain threads until their character is created. Make the Discord more open for people to join, I don't know how you do it but you can add certain things to filter out bots and stuff by requiring them to post things or something, the point is though that it allows people to get their questions answered directly before considering if they wish to join. Further there should really be an investment of having a dedicated person to help guide new players with their characters as well as getting them into a thread as quickly as possible. The more players we get the easier this will be.

3. New characters should be easier to get created. Currently the process takes months, mostly spent waiting for ALL the GMs to read and approve a character concept, followed by waiting for ALL the GMs to read and approve the database entry, and if a GM just doesn't bother reading it you are just stuck waiting in limbo. It really should be looked over by at least one GM or a senior player who can use their best judgement to approve the character or request that the author make specific changes before reviewing it again. This process needs to be especially swift and efficient for new players so as to not discourage them.

4. Broadening character art. I think everyone should at least have one character art for their profile but that the rules of how the art id created or designed should be loosened to include other forms of media beyond photomorphing such as drawn art, 3D modelling, and even (shivers) AI art. However, as getting art can be difficult there should be a push by the group, similar to what Dume said, to not focus so much on character art beyond its use as a reference. If people really would like art we should all work as a team to quickly and efficiently help a person find something they like. Further, perhaps less focus on "face claims" and "voice claims" when it comes to character art and utilizing that as a shortcut to describe a character; personally I've never felt particularly comfortable about using an actor's or model's likeness without their permission.

5. Players can only have characters with senior level positions if they meet a requirement for being active. Essentially a player should not be allowed to assume the role of a Department Head or some other level of importance if they are not active enough. Department heads/senior staff in my mind should function almost like deputy GMs and be leaders for players who have characters in that department to help coordinate and guide their team so that onus is not placed entirely on the GMs.

6. The Captain needs to be active and available. Star Trek has placed a lot of emphasis on the Captain of the ship as being one of the lead characters and while this mold does not have to hold true all the time, see Lower Decks, unless the story is going to exclusively focus on lower decks characters then whoever is playing the captain needs to be active and that the captain needs to seem like they are in command in-game.


That is pretty much all I have for the moment, I might think of more and expand it later. Hopefully I didn't piss too many people off lol.

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #6 –
Hi Everyone,
I know I haven’t been around much and posted less than that. I am going to put my 2 cents forward as others have and I hope that it will be accepted and taken into consideration. I am going to reference posts above this and offer my opinions on points others have raised. Please do not be insulted or annoyed/pissed off. These are just my own thoughts.
I feel like we should have some sort of posting expectation. 7-Days could be a bit tight but it did keep everything flowing. 10 Days was better but it was a band aid to cover people having less time available to post. Have no expectation? How would we keep everything in any kind of character flow. Perhaps we could do it better? Maybe a 6-month window to cover events within a time period. While having open space between ‘episodes’ for free posting. I believe the Director’s cut location would be great for that.

The tracking of time. We need it. Does it have to hyper accurate…not all the time. That said, using the format we have is awesome for making sure characters are not in two places at once. That said, we do need to come up with a way to make time pass faster between ‘episodes’. I have been writing in this sim for a 8 years and think only 2 months have gone past in-sim. I think the most fun I had writing was the time period on Aldea because we had such a window to write in and create that character growth. I would suggest having a ‘blank’ period between episodes, as mentioned above, allowing for writing in between, or at least the availability to reference time having passed.

Abandoning the Theurgy----A part of me rebels at this thought. It is home, its where everything was set that I know of in the Sim. We are Star Trek Theurgy. What are we without her? That said, is the infested storyline becoming a little long in the tooth with no seeming way to victory…definitely. I am actually more interested in this developing syndicate recently mentioned. I have a few suggestions.
Resetting the story is out. It kills all the hard work we have done up to now. We might as well just pack up show and not call it Theurgy then. But, Time Travel is a thing, as are changes to the timeline that immensely effect how things are then perceived. “Yesterday’s Enterprise”, “Year of Hell”, “All Good Things” to name just a few  Trek episodes. I suggest one of two courses of action.
A)   The Theurgy is shifted forward in time (5-10 years) to a point after this new enemy has had time to develop but also to where the Infested have been defeated. Maybe the ships disappearance has was the inspiration for the Quadrant to rise up against them. We provided the tools but now they did the fight and its time for the aftermath.
B)   The Theurgy, and the universe as a whole, is caught in a Temporal shift that rearranges key events. We know the Theurgy was a development pushed by the Infested. What would have happened if they never existed. 1 Change by someone from some time, and it reverberates throughout time. This solution offers us the anility to do a soft reset of everything while also compensating for OOC developments. We can get a smaller ship (I suggest an Akira for the multi-role nature but small size of the ship. I also have full deckplans for it). The Infested never existed but we can all remember it, so our character development remains intact. (how we remember can even remain a mystery. It doesn’t need to be answered.)
C)   As Josh suggested, we got to andromeda or another galaxy and have to figure out how to get home with limited crew. Could set up some sort of mystery of random crewmembers occassinly arrive at random times (allows the onboarding of new writers and characters) but we don’t understand how. They just appear. A limited character number then becomes a defining part of the story that we write with rather than disguising with an unending stream if NPCs.
Any of these suggestions allows us to do more in our episodes besides just fighting. Trek had dozens of episodes where a weapon’s system was never even armed. I understand Theurgy was fighting a war, but I’d love to see some science and exploration. Personally I like option B.

We keep the NSFW. I like writing that too.

I think we keep new player on boarding like how it is now. They need a character ready for them to inhabit. That said, it doesn’t have to be just the GMs helping them develop that character. Though they retain final approval of joining.
Established writers need to maintain a posting ration to earn a new character, (I will get mine back up) but I don’t think there needs to be as high a ration set for a 2nd or 3rd character. 4th and up, yes.

Art… always a touchy subject. Should there be a focus on it, no. Should every character have at least one piece, yes. Should face/voice claims remain….definitely. We need to know what people look like. Option B above, would allow older face claims of previously dead characters to be made available again.


I have more to write but have run out of time at this moment. More to come later.

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #8 –
@Brutus   @rae   @Nolan   @chXinya   @Griff   @Stegro88   @RyeTanker   @Pierce   @Nesota Kynnovan   @P.C. Haring   @Eden   @ob2lander961   @Dumedion   @Eirual   @tongieboi  @Tae   @Hans Applegate   @joshs1000   @Krajin   @TWilkins

In preparation for next week's meeting, I used AI to summarize the points as they've been made to this point (I used AI because I am multitasking today with a ton of projects, but I wanted to create a summary list that can be a TL;DR for folks just jumping in). I will add my own thoughts as well, as this is posted (because I'm also a writer here), and they will be marked with (( ... ))
After reviewing the discussion thread, there are a number of recurring themes where several writers independently arrived at similar conclusions. Below is a consolidated summary organized by topic.

Overall Consensus

The discussion is largely optimistic rather than pessimistic. Almost everyone emphasizes that:
* Theurgy is worth saving.
* The community itself remains its greatest strength.
* The current decline is viewed as structural rather than personal.
* Writers want simplification rather than abandonment.
* Nearly everyone supports significant changes instead of minor adjustments.
((It has been stated that RL happens and I would add that the majority of the writers on this site are of a certain age currently and after a certain point in life RL gets immensely more complicated. Not trying to say that life ISN'T complicated at younger ages, but the pulls from aging parents/siblings/children is significantly less when you are younger and this is a part of the writing on here that has yet to be clearly stated. I do appreciate how it has been stated that RL should not be seen as a burden to apologize for and then you feel guilty for not keeping up. I agree with that, and would add that when it comes to a community of writers, it is important that if/when you do have to step back because of RL you understand that the story continues without you and you need to be okay with that. You should also NOT volunteer your character or get involved with a thread if you know that you won't be able to commit. Wait until you can, unless you're willing to let things pass you by and you do then have to read a ton to catch up in order to get back in. This part of writing in a community is inevitable if you can't log in regularly. It is a part of the responsibilty of a writer in a forum to keep up.))

---

Story Direction

## Strong consensus: The current Infested storyline has run its course.

Repeated observations include:

* It has lasted for many years.
* The original architect is no longer present.
* It has become increasingly difficult to manage.
* New writers face an enormous amount of history.
* Existing writers struggle to remember all the moving parts.
* The story rarely feels like it reaches meaningful milestones.
* The endless nature of the conflict reduces motivation.

Many people specifically suggested:

* Finish it.
* Wrap it up.
* Shelf it.
* Soft reboot.
* Begin a new major narrative.
((I would add that we keep the narrative as it is and we use the next episode as a way of stepping away from it while respecting what's been built over the years, the very fact that this site is called uss-theurgy.com, and all the work that has gone into the art and character creation.))

---

Desire for a cleaner narrative

Common opinions:

* Reduce complexity.
* Reduce simultaneous plot threads.
* Make stories easier to follow.
* Make new writers capable of joining without years of homework.
((There are already TL;DR summaries of past episodes that can be read to get a bird's eye view of the story and canon. This is what I used to get caught up when I joined and then I followed-up with talking directly with basically every writer on the board directly, getting to them them as a person as well as their characters. The most recent episode was an experiment that AL had started and we saw through, and I think we can all agree that the separation of the ship and pursuing different missions was difficult to keep up with and play out, especially with the in-game time and out-of-game time constraints. However, prior episodes did have simultaneous plot threads for the main storyline, and that has been the trend from the beginning, as that allows for different writers and departments to accomplish different aspects of the story. This is also what the story prompts is about too. However, I agree in the separation of the ship that makes it impossible for supplemental threads.))

One comparison made: Joining now feels like jumping into DC Comics where reading multiple series is required just to understand Batman.

---

More Star Trek

Several writers expressed wanting stories centered around classic Star Trek themes:

More:

* exploration
* diplomacy
* science
* mysteries
* ethical dilemmas
* character interaction
((consequences of the actions taken in the story so far, we need that day of reckoning!!)

Less:

* constant warfare
* endless combat
* galaxy-ending threats

---

Possible future directions suggested

Ideas proposed include:

* Finish current story then reset after Nemesis
* Enterprise era
* Lost Era
* TMP era
* TNG era
* completely new future timeline
* Andromeda galaxy
* temporal reboot
* time jump
* alternate timeline
* post-Infested galaxy
* smaller-scale exploration
((I love the Andromeda galaxy and would add that the next episode is an opportunity to have that and we keep the Theurgy in all its largeness specifically for the purpose of onboarding, so folks who onboard have been there all along, and not necessarily in stasis. The writer would just start writing and can talk to other writers prior to posting to establish relationships if they want or they can just start from scratch. They can also wake up from stasis as well, if they want, and we can have Andromeda characters too (just like Neelix hoo ah!))

---

Story Complexity

This was probably the single largest recurring complaint.

Writers repeatedly mentioned:

* too many concurrent threads
* difficult to know where characters are
* difficult to know what is happening
* too many story branches
* too much required reading
* difficult to keep momentum

Several admitted this complexity directly impacts their motivation to write.
((I would add that this last episode is not the norm. I wasn't here for a terribly long time before AL left, but I was here long enough to know that the experiment of this last episode was an exception to the norm.))

---

Time Progression

Nearly everyone discussed time.

Common complaints:

* in-game time moves far too slowly
* years of real life equal only weeks or months in-game
* character growth becomes impossible
* relationships cannot realistically develop

Suggested solutions:

* allow significant time skips between episodes
* have "blank" periods between missions ((already do with the interregnum and epilogue and etc))
* broad seasonal/monthly progression
* maintain chronological consistency without excessive precision
* permit off-screen growth

One person also defended maintaining enough time tracking to avoid characters existing in multiple places simultaneously.

Overall consensus: Time should remain organized, but progress much faster.

---

Posting Expectations

Opinions differed somewhat.

### One camp

Suggested:

* eliminate posting requirements
* simply remove inactive writers after several months

### Larger middle ground

Suggested: Maintain expectations but simplify them.

Ideas included:

* 48–72 hour response windows
* skip absent writers rather than freezing threads
* warnings before inactivity
* inactive status instead of removal
* maintain writing momentum
((partially because we have RL obligations of a wide variety and complexity, I believe we have to have a schedule for posting. Be it everyone understands that the main story plot will progress by the third Thursday of every month or everyone is expected to post at least ONCE A WEEK, we have to have a schedule to keep to more so than a number of posts))

Another opinion: Maintain posting expectations because they preserve story continuity.

---

Character Creation

One of the strongest areas of agreement.

Current process described as:

* too slow
* too bureaucratic
* waiting months
* dependent on every GM reviewing

Common suggestions:

* one GM approval
* trusted senior player approval ((I'd say more feedback, not approval. Approval should remain with GM alone))
* much faster turnaround
* remove unnecessary gatekeeping

Goal: Get writers into stories quickly.

---

New Writer Onboarding

Almost unanimous agreement.

Suggestions:

* simplify onboarding
* reduce waiting
* assign mentors ((I would add that all current writers are mentors. Period. You get assigned mentors who are in your department.)
* help writers enter active threads quickly
* answer questions immediately
* improve accessibility
* make Discord more welcoming ((I also like the idea of having a limited access Discord role for potential new writers))
* advertise for new writers
((To this I would add that I use my DeviantArt to playfully advertise, yes via AI art, and more folks can use their already established social media or art or whatever platforms to advertise as a grassroots initiative starting...NOW without having to wait for things to get figured out.))


One simple recommendation: We need new blood. Advertise.

---

Character Ownership

If a writer leaves:

* their characters leave
* no inheritance
* no transferring ownership
((I am also in favor of no character inheritance. I know this makes me rather hypocritical since I inherited Cross, however I took him over to help a writer keep the relationship developing and to help with the senior positions, more so than being attracted to him. It has taken time and effort for me to learn him and love writing him (which I do) but an inherited character is such a strange thing when you look at it from the creative process of writing with a community. In some cases, people feel pigeon-holed into maintaining what was (I somewhat felt that) and then they stagnate and lose motivation. And if we are so strong with AI being about stealing, then I would say that this is a similar situation as this character was created by someone else. )) 

Reasoning: Characters belong to their creators.

---

New Character Restrictions

Several writers believe: Current restrictions discourage creativity.

Suggestions:

* let active writers create characters when inspiration strikes
* reduce approval requirements
* maintain activity requirements only for leadership positions
((I would add that if you create a character you have to post as that character at least once a month in order to maintain that character otherwise you run the risk of having that character offed))

---

Senior Staff Expectations (In-Game Characters)

Suggestions included:

Department heads should:

* remain active
* help coordinate departments
* function almost like assistant GMs
* provide guidance

Captain specifically:

* must remain active
* must visibly lead the ship
((needs to be fallible and real and an actual character and not just a caricature. This applies to all senior staff positions. They should all be approachable by new writers both in game and out of game, and be willing to write outside their department))

---

Ship Size

A more divisive topic.

One proposal:

Abandon the enormous colony ship.

Reasons:

* too many NPCs required
* difficult to populate
* promotional assets unavailable
* difficult to manage

Alternative suggestions:

* smaller ship
* Akira-class
* more manageable crew

Others strongly opposed abandoning Theurgy entirely because of its identity and history.
((I think it depends on what we do for the next episode and story. If we need a larger ship for the purpose of onboarding characters (i.e., we're in Andromeda but we want Federation characters))

---

Character Development

Strong agreement.

People want:

* slower personal moments
* friendships
* relationships
* departmental interactions
* science
* diplomacy
* everyday ship life

rather than:

* constant battle
((I came in on two battle threads, Cross was literally in the captain's chair on the Praxis mission, and Enyd was getting on a shuttle heading to Qo'Nos to confront the Infested. I don't say that to say I want more battle. I also prefer EVERYTHING other than battle, with a little battle involved. For whatever reason, AL had two battle heavy episodes planned back-to-back before he left. However, even with that I was able to develop a lot using supplemental threads and story prompts, and we always have that option.))

---

Artwork

Mixed opinions.

### One side

Reduce emphasis.

Arguments:

* writing matters more
* art should never delay writing
* art is optional

### Middle position

Keep one reference image.

Allow:

* drawings
* 3D models
* AI art
* photomorphs

Reduce obsession with:

* face claims
* voice claims


### Another position

Face claims remain useful for visual consistency.
((should allow face claims from deceased characters))

Overall: Art should support writing—not become a barrier to it.

---

NSFW Writing

Two posters explicitly stated they would like it to remain permitted.

No objections were posted in the thread.

---

Community Culture

Repeated themes:

* constructive criticism is healthy
* avoid blame
* focus on solutions
* preserve friendships
* preserve collaborative spirit
* remember why people joined

---

Leadership

Several comments indirectly addressed leadership.

Suggestions include:

* faster decision making
* fewer approval bottlenecks
* clearer organization
* greater availability from leadership
* distribute responsibility among department heads ((within reason, because part of the problem we've had to this point since AL left is delegation of responsibility. Yes, having more buy-in and consensus is great within reason, but for momentum and development you need one head, not many, for strategic decisions. Saying this specifically as a writer who also had a character stagnate for awhile before she was onboarded (Ehfva))

---

Areas of Broad Agreement

The following ideas appeared multiple times across different writers:

* End or substantially conclude the Infested storyline.
* Simplify the overall narrative.
* Reduce story complexity.
* Make onboarding dramatically faster.
* Reduce approval bottlenecks.
* Allow faster character creation.
* Make time advance more naturally.
* Increase opportunities for character development.
* Include more exploration and science.
* Reduce reliance on constant combat.
* Improve accessibility for new writers.
* Recruit additional writers.
* Reduce barriers created by artwork requirements.
* Preserve the community even if the setting changes.

---

Primary Areas of Disagreement

Only a handful of subjects produced meaningful differences of opinion:

### Keep or replace the USS Theurgy

* Some advocate moving to a smaller ship.
* Others argue the ship is central to the sim's identity.

### Hard reset vs. soft reset

* Some favor a complete restart.
* Others prefer an in-universe explanation (time jump, temporal shift, alternate timeline) that preserves character development.

### Posting rules

* Some favor eliminating them.
* Most prefer simplified, more flexible expectations rather than removing them entirely.

### Artwork requirements

* Some would remove them almost entirely.
* Others want at least one visual reference while broadening acceptable art styles.

Overall, the discussion reflects a high degree of alignment on the need for structural simplification, faster onboarding, renewed focus on character-driven Star Trek storytelling, and reducing administrative friction, while differing primarily on *how* to implement those changes without losing Theurgy's identity.

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #9 –
@Brutus   @rae   @Nolan   @chXinya   @Griff   @Stegro88   @RyeTanker   @Pierce   @Nesota Kynnovan    @P.C. Haring   @Eden   @ob2lander961   @Dumedion   @Eirual   @tongieboi  @Tae   @Hans Applegate   @joshs1000   @Krajin   @TWilkins

USS Theurgy Community Meeting Notes (Consolidated)
[/b]

1. Story Direction & Long-Term Vision

## Core Questions
* Should the Infested storyline remain the primary focus?
* Should it continue only as a background element while new stories take center stage?
* Is it time to begin an entirely new era of storytelling?

Potential future directions include:
* Time skip
* Alternate timeline
* Parallel universe
* Mirror Universe (distinct from the established Mirror Universe)
* Temporal displacement
* Another galaxy
* Entirely new overarching narrative

Story Structure
Current concerns include:
* Too many simultaneous plotlines.
* High required reading for both new and existing writers.
* Difficulty keeping up with multiple story arcs.
* Important information becoming buried.

Suggested improvements:
* Reduce the number of concurrent major plots.
* Focus on one primary story arc with supporting side stories.
* Maintain centralized plot summaries.

* Introduce more:
  * science
  * mystery
  * exploration
  * diplomacy
  * technology
  * cultural interaction
  * investigative storytelling

Story Pacing
Discussion focused on balancing:

* Respect for writers' real-life schedules.
* Maintaining meaningful plot progression.
* Avoiding stories remaining open indefinitely.

Potential solution:
* Major story arcs receive defined timelines from the outset.
* Establish expected beginning, middle, and conclusion windows.
* Clearly communicate deadlines before plots begin.

2. Time Progression

Current issue: Only a few in-character months have passed despite years of writing.

Consequences:
* Promotions feel unrealistic.
* Career progression stalls.
* Department transfers become difficult.
* Character growth slows considerably.

Suggestions included:
* Larger scheduled time skips.
* More flexible passage of in-character time.
* Using time jumps between story arcs.
* Allowing transfers and promotions through controlled chronology.

3. Posting Expectations

Current concerns:
* Posting requirements may discourage participation.
* Activity expectations do not always reflect real-life availability.
* Writers may be penalized despite remaining engaged.

Discussion points:
* Remove mandatory posting quotas.
* Adjust expectations for new writers separately.
* Review inactive memberships more consistently.
* Consider objective activity measures rather than subjective evaluation.

Character creation metrics discussed:
* Three substantial 1,000-word posts may be more valuable than five shorter posts.
* Avoid systems that create perceptions of favoritism.

4. Community Growth & Recruitment

Discussion centered on actively growing the community.

Ideas included:
* Grassroots advertising.
* Advertising in additional roleplaying communities.
* Making Discord more accessible to prospective members.
* Allowing visitors into public community areas before full onboarding.
* Improving mobile accessibility of the website.

The goal is to make prospective writers feel welcomed before committing.

Community Culture

Discussion included:
* How open should Discord be?
* How should alumni be handled?
* Should former writers remain community members?
* Improve role management instead of removing people.

Consensus leaned toward:
* welcoming former members
* encouraging community interaction
* keeping alumni connected where appropriate

Community Retention

New writers are especially valuable because they create:
* new stories
* new relationships
* new opportunities

Retention improvements discussed:
* clearer expectations
* easier onboarding
* mentoring
* quicker integration into ongoing stories

5. Onboarding & Mentoring

There was broad agreement that onboarding should become more collaborative.

Suggestions included:
* Reintroduce the mentoring system.
* Recruit volunteer mentors from every department.

* Use volunteers to:
  * answer questions
  * monitor inquiries
  * review character biographies
  * assist prospective writers
  * ease GM workload

Ideas for new writers:
* Begin with an NPC or "redshirt" character.
* Allow experimentation before creating a permanent character.
* Create an onboarding area outside the main timeline for practice writing.

Concerns:
* Previous mentoring systems became cumbersome when it was one writer.
*We currently have a mentoring system that isn't functioning.
* Expectations and responsibilities would need clearly defined guidelines.

The onboarding process should also:
* simplify required reading
* establish story expectations early
* make the website easier to navigate
* reduce information overload

6. Character Creation

Approval Process

Suggestions included:
* One designated GM manages approvals.
* Reduce bottlenecks.
* Shorten wait times for approval and artwork.

Character Needs

Onboarding questionnaires could include:
* preferred department
* preferred rank
* desired art style
* departments needing recruitment

The community should balance:
* what writers want to play
* what the story currently needs

High-demand departments:
* Medical
* Engineering
* Security

Departments requiring controlled growth:
* CONN
* Diplomacy
* Command

Character Limits

Questions discussed:
* How often should writers create new characters?
* Should there be objective requirements?
* Should GM discretion play a role?

General agreement:
* avoid favoritism
* maintain objective expectations
* ensure additional characters contribute meaningfully

Inheritance

One of the largest discussion topics.

### Advantages
* Allows immediate integration.
* Provides established relationships.
* A helpful gateway for new writers.

### Concerns
* Different writing styles affect continuity.
* Previous relationships become inconsistent.
* Creates butterfly effects across ongoing stories.
* Some writers prefer full ownership of original characters.

Alternative ideas:
* Make inheritance optional.
* Place inactive characters into stasis.
* Encourage new characters first.
* Introdwas reachedracters initially as NPCs before promotion to permanent status.

No clear consensus reached.

7. Department Leadership

Discussion focused on reducing GM workload.

Ideas included:
Department Heads become more responsible for:
* coordinating department activities
* establishing departmental goals
* directing department-specific storylines
* helping writers find opportunities

Examples included previous successful coordination within Science and Diplomacy.

Challenges:
* some departments lack enough writers
* departments require recruitment before leadership models function well

Important distinction:
The chain of command should remain **strictly in-character**, while out-of-character authority remains collaborative and GM-led.

Additional proposals:
* Department Heads assist GMs.
* Department Heads become secondary GMs.
* Convert some or all Department Heads into GM-controlled NPCs.
* Restrict GM-controlled command to only Captain and First Officer.
* Ensure no single writer controls multiple departments.

No final consensus reached.

8. Artwork & Visual Identity

Artwork generated one of the longest discussions.

## General Agreement

Artwork is valuable because it:
* attracts new writers
* improves marketing
* helps visualize characters
* supports immersion

However, artwork should never delay participation.

Onboarding

Strong support for reducing initial requirements.

Suggested standard:
* one character headshot only

Additional artwork can be added later.

Art Styles

Suggestions:
* AI
* photomanipulation
* Blender
* 3D rendering
* illustration
* digital painting
* mixed media

Members expressed interest in collaboration between artists using different techniques.

AI Artwork

Discussion recognized both benefits and concerns. And was rather a rehashing of what's been discused before but with added application.

Benefits:
* faster onboarding
* fills artistic gaps
* creates consistent references
* easier recruitment

Concerns:
* legal uncertainty
* community perceptions
* potential objections from anti-AI writers
* originality concerns

Potential compromises:
* allow writer choice
* watermark AI-generated artwork
* keep AI as a tool rather than a requirement
* avoid delaying writing because of artwork

Face Claims

Several members suggested moving away from strict photorealistic face claims.

Ideas included:
* stylized artwork
* original AI faces
* illustrated portraits
* broader artistic interpretations

Existing Artwork

Suggestions included:
* reuse Revan assets
* reuse artwork from inactive characters where appropriate
* determine whether artwork from departed writers may continue to be used

NSFW Content

Possible options:
* keep private
* Discord only
* remove from the public website

No consensus reached.

9. Leadership Structure

Discussion centered around improving organizational efficiency.

Topics included:
* Clearly defining decision-making authority.
* Reducing approval bottlenecks.
* Delegating responsibilities beyond the GM team.
* Sharing administrative workload.

Possible models:
* Department Heads serving as assistant GMs.
* Broader volunteer leadership.
* Defined responsibilities for onboarding, recruitment, and mentoring.

10. The Future of Theurgy

Questions raised:
* Should the simulation remain aboard the USS *Theurgy*?
* Would a major setting change reinvigorate the community?
* Does the current setting still best support long-term storytelling?

No consensus reached.

Topics Requiring Formal Decisions

The following areas were identified as requiring future discussion and community votes:
1. Long-term story direction
2. Story pacing and arc timelines
3. Time progression and promotions
4. Posting expectations
5. Character creation requirements
6. Character inheritance
7. Department Head responsibilities
8. Leadership structure
9. Onboarding process
10. Mentoring system
11. Recruitment strategy
12. Community retention
13. Artwork standards and AI policy
14. Face claim policy
15. Discord/community access
16. Future of the USS *Theurgy*
17. Long-term strategic vision

And in that vein of thought, here is a poll with questions touching on nearly everything mentioned in this post.

**Though we didn't directly discuss the story just yet, there has already been enough stated and some form of consensus on it to vote a bit and let that vote guide our next discussion.**

Please respond to this post rather than on Discord with any further thoughts, as it is easier for everyone to find your thoughts/opinions here rather than scrolling through Discord. Err on the side of ease of later access rather than convenient immediate sharing. Thank you!

Re: Course Correction: Discussing the Future of USS Theurgy

Reply #10 –
Hello Friends,
I have to apologize for my long absence to the forums. Real life has thrown me for a loop this past year. I totaled my vehicle, took some time to recover, lost a significant income almost immediately after and lost internet access. My phone does not provide the best avenue to get onto the forums. And does not have unlimited access as you can imagine. That said, I recently was able to get internet access again and am planning on making a concerted effort in returning to my writing.

As too the restructuring of the sim, there is a lot to read and consider. While I see some of the points others have made I think one of the most confusing parts for me was keeping track of the timeline. Where were my characters, what would they be doing. With such a limited amount of time passing in sim, it made it difficult to progress my characters in any meaningful way.

As too the Theurgy itself, this is our home, our identity. I do not think we should abandon AL's concept, just modify it. Moving to a less 'us against them' scenario, ending the infested storyline and getting into more actual (and shorter) missions would definitely be an advantage, at least for writing opportunities, IMHO.
 
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