Question, as I'm new to the forums: is there any kind of "necro thread" rule? Or, is it OK to add to this despite it being over 7 months old? Or has another one been created in its wake?
To answer your question, yes, but I've barely started, and with being only a week in, need a few more million credits before I can outfit my dream combat vessel. And if I had the friends, it'd involve a Federation Betrayal that'd destroy Starship One, OR working with both Alliance AND Federation, to try and create a truce (as absurd as that may sound).
But, since I don't have those friends, here's my placeholder. You don't have to feature this, as it's merely a dream as of this writing, but still. (Ahem)
Commander Golden-Knight
Ship tag: AC 294
Ship name: Freedom's Beginning
Claim-to-fame: Circumnavigated the Galaxy (Sol was the starting point, and the rule was to connect a ring of stars around the outer galaxy, ending back at Sol) using only a Cobra Mk3 and a Fuel Scoop (also it was literally his/my second ship, the first one being the loaned Sidewinder that every noob is entitled to).
I'd love to one day be "canonized", but I'm awfully addicted running errands for various space stations...still just a mere Petty Officer as of this writing, but one day, calling myself "Admiral" sounds mighty cool.
One thing that I AM aiming to do, though, is reach "The Mug" (my ship clocked out at over 1,700c by the time I made it halfway). That is my mere warm-up to becoming "The Magellan of Y3K." Right next to my home, it's definitely an hour or two of REAL time spent going in one direction. Luckily, I can find other ways to pass the time while I let this project cook in the background (such as me writing this right now, and reading the literal Wikipedia article about Ferdinand Magellan).
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And while waiting for the real hour to pass, a little blurp on the lore of my character. (Ahem)
Commander Golden-Knight was born on Earth, but had to go many lightyears to achieve pilot certification. Earth had recovered from its many countless conflicts, and even with battle taking the galactic stage (albeit mostly confined to "The Bubble"), most of that period on the planet itself was peaceful.
The name Golden-Knight comes from a famous warrior (or infamous, depending on your sources, and their credibility or lack thereof), who began his dynasty back in the Third World War, as a key leader and "Secret Weapon" that saw the United States win - the very beginning to the "Butterfly Effect" that would directly lead to the founding of The Federation.
Upon reaching the stars, and having set out from the loaned Sidewinder, it was always the dream of Golden-Knight to "return home to Earth", which as fate would have it, would mean completing a single and very specific objective: achieving the rank of Petty Officer in the Federation! This would be no small task, especially with ideology that aligned more closely with the Alliance, and their Libertarian values over Corporate dominance. "Money was just a tool to me, the means for fueling my ambitions to conquer scum and carve my name in the stars. That glory is both priceless and everlasting, which drives me far more than any paycheck ever could."
As soon as possible, Golden-Knight bought the Cobra Mark 3, the first ship to have been purchased through the fruits of hard work. This would be the ship to blaze the trail, and would symbolize the feeling of freedom's beginning...and the ship was named after that emotional sentiment: Freedom's Beginning.
The Freedom's Beginning was armed with 2 pulse lasers and 2 heatseeking missiles, which had proven to be a winning combo: the lasers take down shields, the missile blow away the hull. But, the ship during its legendary voyage that'd draw a ring around the whole Milky Way would be shockingly unarmed, since the ship itself was designed specifically for maximum speed, fuel capacity, and a 4A fuel scoop - the key to any deep space voyage outside "The Bubble".
Should there ever be any indicator of success, the pilot has brought honor to the clan name, and the original "Hero Leader" of World War Three had been commemorated in the form of a plush doll, that can sit atop any pilot's dashboard (provided the ARX were good, of course). Honoring the start of that bloodline was the personal and explicit request of Commander Golden-Knight.
Any screenshots from this point on are used as proof of achievements.