"Eric Does Nancy"
A History of the Royal Air Corps.
(A work in progress by our illustrious Colonel! he he)
Volume 1 (Birth to the Great War)
(Can’t wait for the movie)
This is a very general history of RAC and its members, whether still active or not.
"All Internet people are crazy. They are all cons, and all seek to hurt others for their own gain" - unknown
I. Birth of the Royal Air Corps
The Royal Air Corps was founded July 26, 1998 by Captain Gunslinger. It was formed as an honor squadron and structured like a military organization with a rank structure. The Royal Air Corps structure was very basic to begin with. It had a Captain (Capt. Gunslinger, the CO), a Lieutenant XO, and a 2nd Lieutenant. Others enlisting into the Royal Air Corps did so as a Privates. It was a very basic structure! One of each officer rank and the rest privates. However RAC was off to a good start by enlisting people that wanted to fly and fight as a team. The first Pilots were Captain Gunslinger, Lt. Eddie, 2nd Lt. Hunter, Pvt. "TMO" Tazz.
Once the dust settled from forming the squadron, its structure expanded. The first change was to add more enlisted ranks. RAC would have a senior NCO and every flight would have an NCOIC. The officer corps was enlarged to have more than just one of each rank. Officers needed to be able to meet for making decisions. The CO had final authority, but RAC's officer corps voting served to advise the CO.!
We could vote, but it still always crossed the desk of the CO for approval or "veto". In the air, officers were wing leaders. On the roster they were flight leaders who would keep contact with members in their flight. Anyone who wanted to become an officer could do so by taking a task. A person taking on a project for RAC probably got commissioned. Officers also had the power to promote the commander. This was added in to simulate a higher authority, and promote a commander. The intent was to use this to promote him based on his time in or any good service.
*In this time frame, Captain Gunslinger was CO, Lt. Eddie was XO. Each are RAC's first. The officer corps consisted of those two, Lt. Luder, and 2nd Lt. Hunter.
A site was needed. Like other squadrons, RAC frequently met in WON to fly, chat, and recruit. One discussion was the making of a site. The person who stepped up was a member who joined a week after RAC's day of founding. That member was Private Paul Johnson. He took on the task, and took to it well. He became a commissioned officer almost immediately. Paul "Dood" Johnson proved did this task well. RAC had a newsletter. "Rocket" Tom was the author of this one. He was commissioned as 2nd Lt. for this task. Did a good job too.
August 1998. The Royal Air Corps had an enemy right on birth. The German Air Force (GAF) took this job. In WON, squadrons meet and arrange wars. This wasn't one of them. This was a conflict on revenge, hate and distrust, not an arranged honor war. This was RAC's first conflict, a war yes, but of a different type. This was a war of attrition you could say. GAF was actively and heavily targeting RAC pilots for recruitment. Competition in these days was for survival. Younger squadrons, it seemed, targeted each other to boost their strength while lowering their opponents. The older squadrons just carried on in their usual way (probably more developed and enjoying the game much more without any bickering heh heh). More often than not, words weren't kind with GAF members. In the air we waged war on them. RAC dealt death pretty well for being new. Both sides won some and lost some. In the rooms of WON, we watched them carefully. It seemed trivial to wage war over something so simple, but it was decided to fight them over their actions. RAC was using ICQ and more often than not and one RAC pilot would say to the other "lets go kill GAF’s". They would go to WON and do just that. Then we tried to steal members from them. Both sides took to this. GAF had turned at least two RACers during the conflict. Many squadrons formed and lived short lives in this time period. By late September 1998, GAF participation dropped and it became one of the short-lived units. One or two GAF members could still be seen but it was clear that this conflict was finished by October. The Royal Air Corps emerged victorious.
RAC had an ally born around the same time. This was Rogue Squadron. It was another unit like RAC. It wasn't tailored after any WW1 squadron. RAC and Rogue flew together many times. There was one incident over a Rogue member leaving for RAC, but this was resolved peacefully and without incident. Other than that minor incident, it was a good "unwritten" alliance. Later on a squadron called HOS would be it. This lasted maybe a week before they all reformed into a squadron we all know now as Mad Hatters (MH).
RB3d was around early on too. RAC had one member who participated in 3d (downloaded that patch). Msgt. Tazz was that member.
In this time period, most of RAC enjoyed RBII and existed there. We had a good time there.
September 1998 was another month of RAC growth. We recruited people, still had a few engagements with leftover GAFs, and just carried on as normal. Some members disappeared too. Boredom of RBII, personal life, or any unexplained reason has often taken people away from it all. Some of RAC's first officers disappeared as well. RAC's first XO disappeared right away. Despite these losses, RAC's officer and enlisted corps grew. The commander, Captain Gunslinger, was promoted to Major by vote of his officers. Lt. Eddie was still gone (never to return) so he needed a new XO. He picked Lt. Luder to the job and promoted him to Captain. Though a freak of nature and a hitchhiker, he got to be RAC's second XO.
*In this time frame we now have "Dood" Johnson (Lt.), Cary Philby (2nd Lt.-Our personnel Officer making rosters), and "Rocket" Tom as officers (2nd Lt.). We still have frikin Luder and Major Gunslinger in this time frame as well. 2nd Lt. Hunter and Lt. Eddie disappears. "TMO" Tazz became a Master Sgt. and was RAC's "NCOIC" by October 1998. We had three Sgts as well: Sgt. Risto'd'Essen, Sgt. Talon, and Sgt. Jaegermeister. Jaeger was an actual war veteran from Desert Storm. Though he was in the Army, we don't hold that against him.
"They must have hidden the Beam in the droids" - MH Crazie E
II. New changes and War!
The Royal Air Corps faced a new problem by September and October. One of those "unknown" reasons of disappearance struck again, this time at Major Gunslinger. No one had heard from him. Email attempts went unanswered. Concern grew as did the questions of "where is the CO?". The big question was "what to do". Certainly, the RAC couldn't be allowed to die off....but how to go about preventing the unit from becoming dead was the issue. During this time the XO acted as CO. This would allow time for the CO to return. When he didn't return, RAC's officer corps debated the issue and came to the conclusion of retirement. It seemed to be a terrible thing, but it had to be done. Major Gunslinger was retired. This did start RAC's retirement options.
We discussed the "what to do next" part. We gave it a week after the letter went out for a reply or anything. With no reply, the ideas bounced. The first thing was to dissolve the enlisted corps. Most enlisted members were commissioned as 2nd Lts. A few became Lts based on their enlisted grades. An all officer squadron is what RAC became. The CO's rank was established as Colonel and that freak named Luder was appointed for the job. "Dood" Johnson was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and appointed as RAC's XO...giving Luder someone to pick on all the time. Rocket Tom and Philby were promoted to Major. To carry on the tradition of an "advisory officer corps", the Command Team was invented and would consist of senior Captains and above. The participation style of leadership works great, so this was to be retained.
We had flights with wingmen (usually picked). Some members took part in RAC's OPFOR (Opposing Force). The idea here was to be the simulated enemy. OPFOR would vulch, verbally cut down members....etc...It became a training purpose to shed some light on new members as to what they would face. We had a training flight with a training flight CO and TOs.
"Foof, did you leave that hill there?" -Maj. Nommo
*Note on Philby-He really was that evil neighbor...when you played baseball and accidentally hit the ball in his yard. He’s that guy that always chased you away. We never went trick-or-treating there. Not EVER.
RAC had its first war in November 1998 against GT. This was an actual arranged event with another honor squadron and not the senseless bickering as seen in the GAF conflict. Both sides discussed the war rules, prepared in advance, and then went to it early November. It was to last a weekend. We had a good time. We were getting beat badly starting off, but still kept at it. In the end, GT won the war and had scored most of the points. We all had a good time as was even though we lost. There were awards for best pilots on each side. Captain Skeeter won as RAC's best pilot.
"If it doesn't work this time, you should have your computer accidentally fall off of the desk" - LTC Paul Johnson
III. Another year, another conflict.
"Well, at least I served under Reagan when I was in" - Maj. Jaegermeister
After the GT war we opened up the floodgates on recruiting. We decided to let anyone join. (Why not? We already know the pros and cons. Why not let anyone have fun. We don't need to be picky). Many people did join the RAC. Many people in WON noticed the recent war with GT. The good things were that we got in a lot of good people, some that still serve actively. The obvious bad part was that we got quite a few "bad apples" as well. The older squadrons knew that would happen because they too probably experienced this. We did it anyway. (I still don't regret it). It worked out in the end. Those who didn't work out left with a long email of what bad guys we were or something similar. It is sure to happen. (They were sure to get an email right back with a very detailed explanation of why they were wrong). Problems or not, RAC grew big time and went into 1999 with flying colors. We had a good time too.
BB Conflict: Around February and March of 1999, the Royal Air Corps earned a new fan club. Barry's B@stards (BB). Yes, we got to fight another conflict. It started probably with some misunderstanding or an insult at one point....maybe a few "kind" words were exchanged. For whatever reason, RAC earned another actual enemy. Their CO was Col. Barry. His mission: "To the destroy the RAC". Barry and a few other BBs came in cursing out others, cursing out RAC....etc. They condemned "honor flying" as a "sham". They would post obscene msgs on our message board. So we fought them. In the air we were more experienced. Often we in RAC took on two or three at one time just for fun. Though we won most of these battles, often times Col. Barry would return to the chat room with boasts of victory. The game changed very quickly to a game of nonsense and propaganda. We both got to play a little fun game (take the sarcasm)..Theirs was to make RAC look like vulchers. Our game was to make fun of them...spin Barry up...etc. This conflict dragged on, but for the most part we kept to our ways. RAC humor seemed to have grown by now. (One thing I remember best that came from Barry is "I'd expect a smartass RAC remark". Spinning that guy up was fun and we took to it well). Both sides shot off insults. We had our fun with them, and they continued their war "to kill RAC".
"WON Raids" were initiated to strike BBs in WON. I was told that this really torqued Barry. We had fun doing that. Later on the conflict shifted. MH took part during a really heated time period too. This part of the battle also involved the Red Shirts (Reds, Red Coats). The Moderators never did their jobs and as a result became legit targets to kill in the air. (I used to stir it up with them a lot). There was one incident where the moderator made an allied member apologize to a BB that was causing problems. This set off many (it made me go nuts), and resulted in a war challenge (LOL!). A war: RAC vs. all BB and Red Shirts. Winner takes all. "If RAC wins, then you moderators have to ban BB and then leave as well". If we lose, we'll leave and let you and BB continue" (very radical way of looking at it, but stated a point. Might have insulted them too). The Red Shirt was challenged, but moderators don't do this. When the accusation was made that "Red Shirts have orchestrated the entire problem or they would have taken care of them [BB] in the first place" (wasn't just RAC's problem after all), the Reds seemed to look into the matter finally. With more complaints coming in about BB conduct (cursing all over, breaking of the rules on WON.....etc), the Reds acted. The BBs that were breaking rules were banned.
The conflict brought out the worst of us too at times. Sometimes we just ignored them. We refused to fly with them. Other times the back-and-forth insults got heated and we acknowledged them with a game. If ever "conduct unbecoming an officer" ever happened, it was here in this conflict. Insults grew, things became more serious. Three was a coldness that came out too. (One example was that "this isn't a daycare, it is a squadron representing veterans here"). Many members lost interest in the game. This happened on both sides. Both sides also had defectors. On BB's end were people either leaving and sick of Barry or the mission. Not all that left them came to RAC. Some went to other squadrons. People left the RAC too. A few for BB, some just went neutral...sick of the ongoing namecalling. Even Major Rocket Tom disappeared....was very strange. (A good portion of RACers leaving during this time was my fault too. I had my share of arguments with some members. Certainly some that left felt insulted! It really did bring out the worst in us.)
One hero of the conflict (you get a point if you can guess whether this is sarcasm or not) was a guy named RAC Coonter. His last words to the Royal Air Corps were inspiring to us all. "I have left RAC to join a real team, BB! Death to the RAC". There were some other "compliments" about the RAC in this one as well. The right thing to do probably would have been to Salute and press on. We in the RAC had a better way to honor this member....in tribute to his loyalty we added a new item to our latrine urinals: The Urinal Cake.
"You never see it all in WON" - Capt. Luder
The conflict continued for a while. We became so used to it that Barry and his followers were just background noise (a little taco bell dog that you throw a stick to once in a while to keep him occupied). In the meantime we flew around in RB3d a bit more!
RBII was getting to be the same old thing every night. Other squadrons had experimented with moving to 3d. Many stayed, some came back. We weren’t going to move, but it was surely a new thing to try out. We still flew RBII too. (SOS LOL). The occasional fight with BB, new squadrons developing, and just routine life in the war overall was the menu.
We were playing in 3d offtime. We wanted to get somewhat established there. We then made detachments. We had a 3d detachment and a regular RBII detachment. 3d participation was still somewhat lower, but RB3d participation was underway. The position of an operations officer was brought back in the 3d detachment. MORE TO BE ADDED BY SKEET LATER
BB had finally ran its course by May-June 1999. Its leader was said to have been banned. Many members left to form new squadrons. A few stayed, but the mission was done. In the end, the whole affair was just a big waste of time. Instead of throwing a stick to the dog we should have just tied the dumb thing up. It can't yelp forever. We had our bad moments, yes, but those of us that stuck together kept the Royal Air Corps fighting and proud. We emerged with more spirit and motivation. Friendships were started or made stronger. (Seems strange being online and all, but we became an outstanding group).
The Royal Air Corps and other honor squadrons emerged victorious and still very much alive. (Salute to the victors!)
*Factoid- RAC spent at least half of its first year (overall total) in conflict.
IV. 3D and the Great War....
"Son, Factories can be rebuilt, but once booze is spilt, its gone forever" - Col. Luder
By March/April of 1999 a Great War was being organized in RB3d.
This massive effort would be a war involving squadrons from all over. The Royal Air Corps was invited to this event. It would last until June by the plan. It was a good war, and was good fun. It involved strategy in addition to every other aspect of the game we knew. There were problems with servers, and arguments between squadrons. Most of them were resolved on the squadron level, but problems continued. By the middle of the war, an incident happened and the war was "on hold until further notice". There was no notice other than "the server is shut down" and "the war is over". Rumors flew, but certain squadrons were kept out of the loop. No explanation was given. We pressed on with important things.
Good things came out of the war. During battle we were matched against RD, a hun squadron. Though an enemy in the game, we got to meet some good people in RD. Yes, Huns, but still friends (enemies in the game). There were the "goat accusations", but it was fun. The Nancy Casino emerged as an RAC past time. (Heh heh! On Yahoo.com). On their off time RAC officers would go gambling there. Though RAC officers enjoyed gambling before the war, it became famous for it during the GW days. The town of Nancy enjoyed having its defenders despite the incident at the casino. The Royal Air Corps became known as "The Defenders of Nancy".
Though treatment rendered to the Royal Air Corps and other honor squadrons was less than honorable, we emerged as a RB3d squadron. We had contact with others like us, (try to keep contact with the shady guys of GW2 LOL) and still enjoy ribbing RD and others.
With the talk of goats during the GW, we took in the homeless goat (his farm was bombed) as a mascot. We named our goat after a recently "deceased" enemy CO. His name is Eric. "Eric the Goat". If RAC couldn't make the best of a bad thing, then an innocent homeless goat could.
*Factoid - By June and July of 1999, the RBII/RB3d ratio of RAC pilots had switched. A year later, RAC participation was mostly in RB3d with one or two still flying RBII. This statistic is a complete turn around from a year earlier.
*Memo from Captain Nommo - That casino still had yet to pay up some winnings to RAC officers....... The report of any RAC debt was false media..... We believe that the......mysterious Casino fire was an RD stray bomb! I will personally accompany Colonel Luder to investigate this crime against the civilian population!
Other recommended reference material
"1001 ways to take advantage of a goat" by Capt. Foofy
"My 'Roo and a tall field" by Maj. Nommo
"Boozin With the Big Boys" by Col. Luder
"Uhhh..cammies..err..OOORAH yeah" by Ltc. Skeet
"Stories of the Gay Rights Movement" by Col. Barry
"A Quick and Easy Way to Lose Weight!" by Labine