05-28-2022, 11:59 AM
(This post was last modified: 06-24-2022, 01:21 AM by Mr. Moriarty. Edited 3 times in total.
Edit Reason: Clarifications.
)
During this post, which will cover my views on why NTSCs recieved a name change, their equipment and role in Security, their presentation ingame, and my own views on the name change, I will be occasionally abbreviating roles where possible, so for the sake of clarity, and for posterity;
NTSO - NanoTrasen Special Operative, the Admin spawned, shoot-threats-on-sight role.
NTSC - NanoTrasen Security Consultant, the HoS Whitelisted latejoin role, expected to be trustworthy.
I do not believe the choice to change the NanoTrasen Security Operative's name was made solely out of a desire to make them seem less militaristic or "tacticool", although the choice of "consultant" definitely shows that this was the aim when choosing a new name. Recently, NanoTrasen Special Operatives were temporarily renamed to NanoTrasen Tactical Operatives, this was due to having two jobs with the same name abbreviation, similarly themed equipment, but vastly differing modus operandi is rather poor game design. However the Developer who created NanoTrasen Special Operatives wished for them to stay as NTSOs, so the choice was instead made to rename the then NanoTrasen Security Operatives to NanoTrasen Security Consultants. (This requires Admin confirmation, it is the current word of mouth.)
When discussing NTSCs, it is important to consider that most of their equipment is vastly outranked by anything a HoS has access to, in particular, their weaponry; the HoS's egun/Lawbringer is far more deadly than any of the NTSC's weapons. Regarding additional accesses, the only place an NTSC can access that an Officer cannot is the Bridge, or anything requiring Bridge access levels. What an NTSC does bring to the Security team however, is another whitelisted and trustworthy Security member, who if necessary, can step up and act as a second HoS, which from what I hear was very much appreciated during any of the major tides, the Ssethtide in particular. Otherwise, in my own experiences with the role, when all is as expected, NTSC just functions as a Security Officer without easy access to a forensics scanner, and can be trusted to act to the same same standards as a HoS.
This does still leave the question of why NTSCs were seen to be almost akin to wetwork agents or special security forces, which I believe is very much the fault of the theming of the role, rather than the role's tools. The NTSC's pressure suit appears as incredibly militaristic, and is identical to the NTSO's pressure suit, this is worsened by the NTSC's CBRN mask, pressure suit, helmet, and jumpsuit all being described as belonging to "NanoTrasen paramilitary" forces. While NTSCs can certainly be seen as trustworthy, fair, and generally as forces of good in their current and past states, it really only takes one person to spoil that reputation. If NTSCs are persistantly percieved by others as "NanoTrasen's cleanup detail", even despite the poor players being weeded out (which is always happening), then the issue lies with how the role of NTSCs is presented, and I would recommend a change in uniform, at least for the pressure suit.
Finally on to what this thread is actually about, I feel "consultant" does not describe the role of an NTSC appropriately. It feels closer to the name of a desk job, one that files paperwork, updates Security records, and deals with the beaurocratic side of Security (not that NTSCs can't do that), rather than an additonal member of the Security team, suited to dealing with crises quickly upon arrival (due to pre-prepared equipment), and acting as an aide to the HoS, or stepping up as a second one in times of need. As for a better name, if the presentation of NTSCs were not of concern, and it was only to make the abbreviation distinct from NTSOs, a suitable analogue for 'operative' would be 'agent', although I am more inclined to NanoTrasen Security Lieutenant, as I feel it better describes the role, if still being militaristic.
NTSO - NanoTrasen Special Operative, the Admin spawned, shoot-threats-on-sight role.
NTSC - NanoTrasen Security Consultant, the HoS Whitelisted latejoin role, expected to be trustworthy.
I do not believe the choice to change the NanoTrasen Security Operative's name was made solely out of a desire to make them seem less militaristic or "tacticool", although the choice of "consultant" definitely shows that this was the aim when choosing a new name. Recently, NanoTrasen Special Operatives were temporarily renamed to NanoTrasen Tactical Operatives, this was due to having two jobs with the same name abbreviation, similarly themed equipment, but vastly differing modus operandi is rather poor game design. However the Developer who created NanoTrasen Special Operatives wished for them to stay as NTSOs, so the choice was instead made to rename the then NanoTrasen Security Operatives to NanoTrasen Security Consultants. (This requires Admin confirmation, it is the current word of mouth.)
When discussing NTSCs, it is important to consider that most of their equipment is vastly outranked by anything a HoS has access to, in particular, their weaponry; the HoS's egun/Lawbringer is far more deadly than any of the NTSC's weapons. Regarding additional accesses, the only place an NTSC can access that an Officer cannot is the Bridge, or anything requiring Bridge access levels. What an NTSC does bring to the Security team however, is another whitelisted and trustworthy Security member, who if necessary, can step up and act as a second HoS, which from what I hear was very much appreciated during any of the major tides, the Ssethtide in particular. Otherwise, in my own experiences with the role, when all is as expected, NTSC just functions as a Security Officer without easy access to a forensics scanner, and can be trusted to act to the same same standards as a HoS.
This does still leave the question of why NTSCs were seen to be almost akin to wetwork agents or special security forces, which I believe is very much the fault of the theming of the role, rather than the role's tools. The NTSC's pressure suit appears as incredibly militaristic, and is identical to the NTSO's pressure suit, this is worsened by the NTSC's CBRN mask, pressure suit, helmet, and jumpsuit all being described as belonging to "NanoTrasen paramilitary" forces. While NTSCs can certainly be seen as trustworthy, fair, and generally as forces of good in their current and past states, it really only takes one person to spoil that reputation. If NTSCs are persistantly percieved by others as "NanoTrasen's cleanup detail", even despite the poor players being weeded out (which is always happening), then the issue lies with how the role of NTSCs is presented, and I would recommend a change in uniform, at least for the pressure suit.
Finally on to what this thread is actually about, I feel "consultant" does not describe the role of an NTSC appropriately. It feels closer to the name of a desk job, one that files paperwork, updates Security records, and deals with the beaurocratic side of Security (not that NTSCs can't do that), rather than an additonal member of the Security team, suited to dealing with crises quickly upon arrival (due to pre-prepared equipment), and acting as an aide to the HoS, or stepping up as a second one in times of need. As for a better name, if the presentation of NTSCs were not of concern, and it was only to make the abbreviation distinct from NTSOs, a suitable analogue for 'operative' would be 'agent', although I am more inclined to NanoTrasen Security Lieutenant, as I feel it better describes the role, if still being militaristic.