Rules of Engagement (RoE) were created by STFC players for STFC players, in an endeavour to guarantee a fair gameplay experience.
In Star Trek Fleet Command (STFC) gamers can enjoy iconic characters and ships from the classic Star Trek series. The game takes place in a fantasy galaxy, in which gamers can explore several star systems, fight enemies, and mine resources.
As with all games, STFC has its own terminology that consists of an array of terms. One of the terms that you may encounter in the game is “Rules of Engagement”,(RoE). However, many players do not know what this means.
Terminology in STFC
There are more than 20 gaming terms in STFC, so it can be quite confusing to understand what they mean when you first start playing the game.
The table below explains some of the terms you will encounter:
| Term | Explanation |
| AMS | This is short for “Alliance Milestone”. Players can find the term in the Events Panel. |
| Bubble | It describes a Peace Shield, which protects your fleet or cargo for a certain period of time. |
| CoW | This is short for Crucible of War, which is a recurring event that runs as a filler between monthly content arcs. |
| GC | Galaxy Chat is a feature that allows you to interact with every player on your server. |
What is RoE in STFC?
As you advance in STFC, you may see one player mentioning RoE in the chat. RoE, which stands for Rules of Engagement, is a self-imposed code of conduct. This code is devised for players, by players, in an effort to improve gameplay for all.
The objective of having a RoE is to make player interaction more orderly and less chaotic with regard to mining, reading, warring, and generally co-existing in the galaxy. The principle of RoE is known as Fair Play.
Bullying, trolling, griefing, controlling resources, or otherwise depriving other STFC players from their own reasonable access and opportunity to enjoy STFC all constitute violations of Fair Play. These actions are therefore discouraged by the RoE.
The goal of RoE is to ensure that exchanges are as amicable and civil as possible, even when one is in conflict with another player.
Unfortunately, RoE is a bit of an inaccurate term, as there is no official list of rules that spans all of the game servers. Instead, leading alliances of STFC servers have their own adaptations of RoE to suit their own interests and goals.
However, every server’s core RoE is essentially the same, and therefore, the basic and universal fundamentals of RoE are known as Base RoE.
When you first start playing STFC, you will not know the RoE of the server you are playing on. As such, you should reach out to your Alliance to familiarise yourself with the general RoE.
However, if you are not part of an Alliance, you can ask to be informed about the server’s RoE in the Galaxy Chat.
Server 32’s RoE
As previously explained, every server has its own RoE that corresponds to its gameplay and rules.
In December 2019, server 32 released its official RoE so that all players who play on server 32 are aware of the rules. This RoE is outlined below as an example of what they generally entail, though these differ from one server to the next.
| RoE | Description |
| Survey Ship Hits |
|
| Warships |
|
| Kill on Sight (KOS) |
|
Does breaking RoE break game rules?
Since RoE are not the official game rules, you are not breaking official STFC rules if you break them.
However, your server may be lenient if you were not aware of the RoE and broke one of them. If you continuously break RoE rules, you may be banned from the server entirely.
It is therefore recommended that you attempt to follow your server’s RoE rules strictly if you wish to enjoy STFC on a specific server.
Should a server have RoE?
RoE is an optional feature and therefore, a server can enjoy the game without having them. However, it may be more difficult to progress in STFC if the rules are not in place.
Players can try out different servers until they find a server that best suits their playstyle. Some servers have a strict RoE while others just follow basic rules. It is up to you to find a server that suits your preferences and requirements.