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Just looking for a few details, how many players, how you're handling communications and all. One of my favorite aspects of the whole TCS campaign idea was the complete lack of communication the Fleet Commanders had, but that invloved having several commanders and ways of communication. I'm interested in how (if) you used that part and how you pulled it off.

Players/Characters:
Sir James Bathory, Director of Amondiage.
Adm Ronald Paskin, CNO Colchis.
King Charles X of Joyeuse, Emperor of Quichotte.
President Krieg, Neubayern.
President Filip Ebling, New Colchis.
Prime Minister Sir Reginald Bell, New Home.
President Emil Trudd, Sansterre.
Anthone Baden_Fallon, Chairman of the Board, SBAM.
FAdm Hari Rachel Helsson, Esperanzan Empire Navy (and her deranged cousin "Uncle Mitch", Emperor of Esperanza).
and the 900 or so members of the governing committees of Topas.

As you can no doubt see, I have far too few players available to provide an adequate staff of fleet commanders. There are a few people I bounce ideas off of when the situations presented to me by the players do not have a clear-cut resolution, but for the most part, I play the part of all the admirals.

Players are the "High Comand" of their respective governments. They may command from a fleet in space if that is their trip, but so far only one person has chosen to do so even once. Players are expected (required really, but some haven't yet) to develop a Doctrine and Rules of Engagagement for their fleets. Specific orders for a fleet will override doctrine as required, but in general I determine the bahaviour of the various fleet admirals based on my own interpretation of their orders, as modified by various factors that I keep track of for each admiral (such as imagination, recklessness, stubborness, etc). Whenever a player detaches a fleet to an independent command (one which MAY require combat, and will be out of touch with HQ during this hypothetical combat), I invent an "admiral" to fill the slot. If the Player comes up with a name, I use it, otherwise I invent my own. The players will learn something about the admiral's performance if they pay attention, and/or ask for a dossier. Most have now learned to do this as a matter of course, but some (Joyeuse) have never been in combat, and so have never had a real opportunity to get into the habit.

Diplomatic communiques are routed by me to the respective addressees, and anyone who has spent enough on espionage to routinely get copies of someone else's mail. Communications between the High Command and his/her own subordinates is handled in the course of the normal turns sent in by the players, and out by me. There is no requirement that players get turns in any special time, but I send turns out Sunday and Thursday, and will not wait for a late player - if they miss, too bad. This is easiest on me, and produces a small amount of the indecision that large governments normally face. If each turn were to wait on all players, then these governments would run like well oiled machines, which I do not want.

In many ways, this is higher level than most TCS games: the players are the supreme commanders, sending their men off to win/lose/die as appropriate. They get to sit back and chew their fingernails wondering whether their plan has worked, whether their fleet even exists anymore, whether the orders they just gave have already been superseded by events. All that good stuff. Of course, they can accompany a fleet and exercise personal control, but that cuts down on their control of the rest of the Navy, since messages now have to chase them down, perhaps arriving too late for any meaningful response (which may happen anyway, but is less likely if you are sitting in the middle of your communications web).