Tactical Officer

Lieutenant Neeraj Anahira is a tactical officer. He co-ordinates the vessel’s tactical operations and serves as ‘tactical point’ on the bridge during combat situations, ensuring that the Conn has current information on the vessel’s Tactical Operating Environment (TOE) and available strategic options.

A tactical officer aboard is also responsible for the management of tactical crew and systems aboard the vessel.

What Would I Be Doing?

Interested in Neeraj’s role as a tactical officer?

Once you've completed training at the Academy you'll be able to gain more experience by joining simulator missions chosen from a growing library of tactical, exploratory, scientific and diplomatic scenarios.

As tactical officer on these missions you may be assisted by crew operating tactical systems elsewhere on the vessel, but as the only tactical specialist on the bridge you must be ready and able to operate those systems yourself.

EMDAR

EMDAR detects other vessels in space based on their EM emissions. By analysing EM patterns it is possible to determine the position of vessels so that they can be tracked, scanned and if necessary targeted by weapons.

Weapons Direction

Torpedoes (guided missiles) are Endeavour's primary weapons system, having proven more more accurate at greater distances than bean weapons. Weapons direction involves managing the configuration, launching and tracking of torpedoes.

Countermeasures

When these systems become available in the simulator they provide the vessel’s last line of defence, including decoys to confuse beam weapon targeting systems and close-in ‘phalanx’ weapon systems to destroy incoming kinetic weapons.

Becoming a Tactical Officer

Officers require a broad knowledge of ship systems to effectively manage them and the crew that operate them. As an officer your career will involve training across a range of systems and gaining mission experience. As you advance in rank you’ll also begin to gain command experience.

First Steps

It starts by signing up as a cadet. It's obligation free and provides access to more information about the mission and Endeavour's technology as well as access to the Academy and assistance from the ISDC team.

You’ll be asked to choose a ship system that interests you and begin training. As an aspiring tactical officer you’d likely choose a tactical system like those described above.

When you successfully complete a training course you’ll be qualified (or ‘rated’) to operate that system on missions. You’ll also be promoted to ensign.

Tip

Only more advanced missions will require separate crew for tactical functions such as EMDAR and weapons direction, so for most missions a tactical officer with both those ratings will be a useful addition to any crew.

Gaining Experience

As you participate in missions your experience will be logged and will contribute to your next step up in rank.

Training on additional ship systems will also help your advancement and widen the range of missions you can participate in.

To reach Lieutenant you’ll need a total of three ratings. They don’t all have to be tactical systems – you may find that a navigation rating such as Impulse Operations helps your understanding of tactical systems, for example.

Ready for Command

Once you reach the rank of lieutenant, you’ll be able to start logging watch hours - a class of experience gained when in command of a mission. This type of experience gains you access to command training and a coveted command rating.

Not Sure?

Choosing your first rating doesn’t lock you into any particular career track or role. Choose something that interests you so that you can try simulator missions and get a feel for what you enjoy most.

There are no barriers to changing career tracks at any time. Your accumulated experience and ratings are fully transferable.