Character Performance Evaluations

Getting to an Evaluation

Timeframes

• In Star Trek: Trek A Call to Duty a character will be evaluated no more than three months after their initial posting to a given ship. All subsequent evaluations will be performed at intervals of no more than five months. At all times, the Ship Manager retains the right to call for an evaluation to be performed on a given character prior to the maximum timeframes as stated above.
• The initial timeframe, three months, begins on the date that the character is assigned to a vessel. The characters first evaluation must be performed prior to the conclusion of three months assigned to the same vessel.
• Once an evaluation is performed, regardless of the outcome, the character then moves into subsequent evaluation periods. The second evaluation, and all subsequent evaluations, performed on the character while assigned to the same ship must be performed at intervals that will not exceed five months from the date of the last evaluation.

Multiple Characters

• A player with Multiple Characters will have each character evaluated independently and separately. The results of an evaluation for one character will not have any effect the outcome of an evaluation on any other character portrayed by the same player aboard any other ship.

Transfers & Reassignments

• Transfer - In the event a player should transfer from one vessel to another, the date of their last evaluation will be forfeited. Upon assignment to the new vessel, the character will be treated as a new character and enter into the initial evaluation timeframe. This initial timeframe will require the character to be evaluated prior to the conclusion of three months assigned to the new vessel.
• Reassignment - In the event a player should be reassigned from one position to another, while retaining their vessel assignment, they will continue to be evaluated based on the timeframes previously discussed discussed.

Reprimands & Demotions

• If during the course of an evaluation period a character receives either a reprimand or a demotion, said character will forfeit their evaluation timeframe to date and begin a new evaluation period consisting of three months, if during the initial timeframe, or five months, if during any subsequent timeframe.
• Should a character be involved in situation which warrants either a demotion or reprimand, the Command Crew will address this issue at the time of the situation and will not consider either a reprimand or a demotion to be a possible outcome of a character evaluation that will not exceed five months from the date of the last evaluation.

The Evaluation Process

Conducting an Evaluation

• All character evaluations must be conducted with the input of the full Command Crew which shall consist of the Ship Manager, vessel Commanding Officer, vessel Executive Officer, and, where applicable, vessel Second Officer. In the event that one, or more, of the positions listed is open at the time of evaluation, then the remaining assigned members of the Command Crew will conduct the evaluation.
• All evaluation discussions shall be performed in closed sessions either via email or Internet relay chat. Discussion Boards are not a recommended forum for evaluation discussion, however they may be used with the approval of the Ship Manager and only when password protected.
• The character being evaluated shall not be present during the discussion. The Ship Manager may choose to make a copy of the evaluation discussion available to the character being evaluated, or to all assigned crewmembers, only in the event that the evaluation discussion was performed in an "in-character" manner.
• When this right is performed it should be done in a consistent manner throughout all evaluation discussions for assigned characters.

During the Evaluation Discussion

• During the evaluation discussion all members of the Command Crew should discuss their opinions of the character s fitness and aptitude taking into consideration the following five fields of involvement:
• Mission Attendance: The Command Crew should take into consideration the attendance record of the character in question. This would include, but is not limited to, such things as regular attendance, notification of possible absences, and on time arrival in the mission room.
• Log/Posts Completion & Substance: The Command Crew should take into consideration the available logs/posts of the character in question. This would include, but is not limited to, such things as turning in logs/posts for missed missions, log/post realism, quality, and substance, as well as logs/posts being posted to the newsgroup (when applicable).
• Quality of Game Interaction: The Command Crew should take into consideration the interaction that both the player and the character provide while in attendance at missions. This would include, but is not limited to, such things as proper use of game chat protocols, proper use of the out of character room, and the use of character actions (::) to describe what is occurring in missions.
• Character Attitude: The Command Crew should take into consideration the attitude that the character displays towards the other characters on the ship. This would include, but is not limited to, such things as proper address of senior officers, respectful attitude towards superior officers, and the use of general military style protocol.
• Player Attitude: The Command Crew should take into consideration the attitude the player displays towards the other players on the ship. This would include, but is not limited to, such things as the use of appropriate language, maintaining a respectful attitude towards others, and upholding a spirit of camaraderie amongst all players.

The Final Decision

• The Ship Manager shall have the final decision as to the outcome of a given character evaluation. Their decision shall be based on the discussion brought forward by the command crew during the evaluation discussion and their own opinions of the character s performance as a member of the vessels crew.
• Furthermore, it shall be the responsibility of the Ship Manager to maintain, or appoint a member of the Command Crew to maintain, a written record of when a character s last evaluation was performed and when their next evaluation will be required to take place by. This written record may be from the Ship Manager, by Game Management, at any time.

Arbitration

• In the event that the Command Crew unanimously believes that the final decision as to the outcome of the evaluation has been made in a manner that has not taken into consideration their opinions as expressed during the evaluation discussion then the assigned Commanding Officer of the vessel shall contact the Fleet Manager for arbitration of the evaluation. In the event that the Ship Manager also serves as the Ship s Fleet Manager, then the Captain of the vessel shall contact the Division Manager for arbitration of the evaluation.

Outcome of an Evaluation

Promotions: The awarding of a promotion is the highest result of an evaluation.

• When a Promotion is awarded to a character the promotion shall be recorded in the character s official Star Trek: A Call to Duty character file. When a Promotion decision has been made the Ship Manager shall be required to provide the character with a copy of the Promotion Letter so that the character is made aware that an evaluation has occurred and a Promotion is the result of the evaluation. The Promotion Letter shall be sent to the character in question, the full assigned crew of the vessel, the Fleet manager, and Personnel Manager.
• Ranks available for Promotion:

Non-Combat Medals

• The awarding of a Non-Combat Medal is the second highest result of an evaluation. When a Medal is awarded to a character the medal and the reason for the medal shall be recorded in the character's official Star Trek: A Call to Duty character file.
• When a Non-Combat Medal decision has been made the Ship Manager shall be required to provide the character with a copy of the Non-Combat Medal Citation so that the character is made aware that an evaluation has occurred and a Medal is the result of the evaluation. The Non-Combat Medal Citation shall be sent to the character in question, the full assigned crew of the vessel, the Fleet Manager, and Personnel Manager.
• Combat related medals will be awarded on an incident-by-incident basis and will have no effect on the evaluation timeframe.

Letters of Commendation

• The awarding of a Letter of Commendation is the third highest result of an evaluation.
• When a Letter of Commendation is awarded to a character the letter and the reason for the letter shall be recorded in the character's official Star Trek: A Call to Duty character file. When a Letter of Commendation decision has been made the Ship Manager shall be required to provide the character with a copy of the Letter of Commendation so that the character is made aware that an evaluation has occurred and that a Letter of Commendation is the result of the evaluation. The Letter of Commendation shall be sent to the character in question, the full assigned crew of the vessel, the Fleet Manager, and Personnel Manager.
• In addition, the Ship Manager may choose to award a 'Level of Service' to the Letter of Commendation. For example, a Captain s Letter of Commendation for Lifesaving may be the result of an act that saves 15 crewmembers, while an Admiral s Letter of Commendation for Lifesaving may be the result of an act that saves 150 crewmembers.

No Action

• The decision to take no action is the lowest result of an evaluation. No Action evaluations shall not be recorded on the characters official records but shall be recorded at the ship level for the purposes of scheduling the characters subsequent future evaluations.
• When a no action evaluation decision has been made the Ship Manager shall be required to provide the character with a copy of the NAL (No Action Letter) so that the character is made aware that an evaluation has occurred and that no action has been taken as a result of the evaluation. The NAL shall be copied to the character in question and the Command Crew as defined previously.

Conflict resolution

• If a player has a concern about or conflict with another player, an attempt must first be made to work things out directly with that player. Most conflicts can be solved in this manner, as many conflicts arise out of a simple lack of communication or misunderstanding. If the conflict is not solved by direct player-to-player communication, the concerned player must then contact their respective SM with the details of the problem. If a player is still not satisfied with the solution at this point, they can contact their Fleet Manager directly with all details, including the SM s proposed solution, and all steps taken thus far.

Resignation/Reinstatement

• Players may resign from the Game at any time, although players on a starship should consider giving some warning if they plan to resign, to help assure a graceful storyline transition for their comrades.
• Players who resign from the Game can return at a later date with the same rank or position that their character previously held as long as the same character is used. If a new character is created he/she will start with a rank that is equal to or lower than the previous character's rank. Previous positions may already be taken so the reinstated player may have to settle for a different position. Also, depending on the situation, it may make more sense for a reinstated player to assume a lower rank since they could be subordinate to another character s rank.
• For instance, it would not make sense for a Tactical Officer to have a higher rank than the Chief Tactical Officer. This could be considered a temporary reduction in rank as happened in the first Star Trek movie where Admiral Kirk assumed command of the Enterprise and the actual captain became his First Officer, with a temporary reduction in rank.