The Veteran; a soul shaped by time, tempered by trials, and hardened by duty. An honour bestowed at the discretion of the Rebel Commanders for long-standing service to the army and marked by a purple role in our Discord server.
Every veteran has their own story, and today we’re travelling back to April 8th, 2020, to hear the journey of former Second in Command Princhi.
Take yourself back to April 2020, the lockdown just a few weeks young as the chaos of the global pandemic kept the world inside. Princhi, who was running out of things to keep herself entertained, logged onto CP Rewritten for a hit of nostalgia with a friend. That same night, Princhi was recruited into the Rebel Penguin Federation by Third in Command Moon.
Wednesday, April 8th 2020 marked 3 years and 5 months, to the very day, of service in the Rebel Penguin Federation for Princhi.
In this edition of Vet Spotlight, I was able to interview Princhi about her journey and experiences in the RPF, and even gleam some inspiring advice for the Rebels reading.
What was your journey through the RPF ranks?
Reflecting on her rise through the ranks, she said she believes she ranked up at an average pace. As a troop, she was promoted almost every week and made quick work of earning the rank of Cadet.
Troop: 4 months
Cadet: 1 month
Brig Gen: 1 month
Major Gen: 2 months
Lieu Gen: 6 months
General: 3 months
Third in Command: 1 year and 3 months
Second in Command: 10 months
During her time as staff, the team ebbed and flowed between 21 and 28 members, which meant there was a lot of competition, and performance expectations were “crazy”. She confessed: “I was never a star recruiter, and as a quieter person, I found it hard to stand out. Being Lieu Gen for 6 months was not normal. If I’m being honest, I think I was unjustly held back and it was extremely demoralizing. But as unfortunate as that was, I grew from that experience and I’m happy I persevered. The fact that I was a General for only 3 months compensated for that “lost time” in a way.”
Once she’d made it into the HCOM, she thought she would “cap out at Third in Command” because she was vocal about having no interest in becoming Rebel Commander. She said this was because she did not want to get involved with the CPA community and army politics: “I think you need to have a certain personality and qualities to be a good Rebel Commander, and that’s simply not me. Also, the attention and responsibility of being at the forefront of everything was not something I wanted to deal with.”
Her eventual promotion to Second in Command, while not completely unexpected, was nice a bonus because “it felt like an acknowledgement of my hard work, and it gave me the perms to carry out more tasks without relying on an RC.”
What was your favourite part about being a HCOM?
“Leading teams, planning events and parties, keeping track of spreadsheets, and general server upkeep, among other things. My favorite things about being HCOM were always having the inside scoop and giving my input toward big decisions.”
From Rebel to Veteran
When asked about how and why she made the difficult decision to depart from the Rebel Penguin Federation, Princhi explained: “I retired in August of 2023, so I’ve been a Vet for a little over a year now.”
On May 8th 2022, Princhi was awarded the ‘RPF Rebel‘ Hall of Fame accolade. Rebel Commander F6 described Princhi as a vital hand in RPF’s success, and a a key player behind the scenes.
She was originally going to retire in October 2022 but felt immense guilt for doing so when RPF was at such a low point. So she stayed on to fight the good fight, only to get promoted a month later into the Second in Command position!
“The following year had more downs than ups and, eventually, the burnout caught up to me. I knew my time was up when I started feeling resentment towards HCOM members who I previously got along very well with. I never had issues with anyone and I didn’t want my lack of patience to get in the way of friendships after all those years. From an egotistical standpoint, I had met all but one goal I had set for myself and that was good enough for me.”
It turns out that this one goal was to retire with Link3000!
How does it feel to be a Veteran?
“Very freeing! I like having the freedom to participate and help out only when I feel like it. No more pressure to do anything.”
Prin-ciples of Success
In our chat, Princhi candidly spoke about how she came very close to leaving twice throughout her time in RPF – first as a Lieu Gen, and then later as a Third in Command. Ultimately she didn’t, due to friends and mentors at the time who reassured her that she was a valuable asset to the team.
With this in mind, I asked Princhi to share her top Prin-ciples (if you will) of success in navigating one’s time in RPF.
“My advice would be not to be afraid of talking about the not-so-shiny aspects of being staff. Lack of communication only makes them harder to deal with. Take advantage of the fact that you’re part of a team.”
“Don’t make rash decisions in moments of despair! Each rank has something to offer. Remind yourself of your priorities and the milestones you’d miss out on when times get tough. Lastly, push yourself but don’t be afraid to draw the line if you need to. RPF is not worth losing your sanity over!”
Quickfire Questions
To finish, something fun. I challenged Princhi with five rapid-fire questions:
The better purple: RPF Rebel purple or Veteran purple?
RPF Rebel Purple!
Favourite role in the Rebel Bot Shop?
🌈
Name of the person that made the biggest impact on you?
Link
CPR or CPAB?
CPR!
Three words to describe your time in RPF?
An interesting experience
A huge thank you to Princhi for speaking with for this Vet Spotlight column – I really appreciate your openness and willingness to share your experiences in RPF! Hearing about your own journey has been inspiring, as I’m sure it will be for many other Rebels reading. Until next time.
Lieutenant General, Patroclus
