Winters

Winters is a prominent community leader, content creator and digital organizer within the Star Trek Online (STO) player base. An Irish military veteran who served for 11 years, Winter transitioned into full-time community management following his retirement. As the Fleet Admiral of the Priority One Armada, he transformed a dormant in-game guild into one of the largest and most active cross-faction alliances in STO, championing a strict "no drama" environment for thousands of active captains.

Community Leadership (Priority One Armada)

Winter's journey in STO began shortly after the game transitioned to a free-to-play model. He originally founded and led a highly successful fleet called Starfleet Task Force One.

The Merger: In 2016, while attending the 50th Anniversary Star Trek Las Vegas (STLV) convention, Winter met Elio, the executive producer of the Priority One Podcast. Elio offered him control of the podcast's official in-game fleet, which had essentially died due to real-life commitments from its previous leadership. Winter merged his existing community with Priority One, founding the Priority One Armada.

Expansion: Under his leadership, the Armada grew exponentially. By mid-2026, it expanded to encompass over 26 active fleets spread across both the Federation and Klingon Defense Force (KDF) factions on PC and Xbox, holding over 3,000 members.

Community Events: Winter is famous for organizing massive, calendar-spanning community events. These include "Mirror Month" in March (where players masquerade as the Terran Empire), the "Where's Winters?" hide-and-seek game, Halloween costume contests, and the massive "Great Holiday Giveaway," which distributes billions of Energy Credits (EC) worth of rare prizes to fleet members.

Content Creation (Winter's Gaming)

Beyond fleet management, Winter operates the YouTube channel Winter's Gaming, dedicated to helping players navigate the notoriously complex and layered mechanics of Star Trek Online.

Free-to-Play Advocacy: He is a staunch defender of STO's free-to-play model. One of his most popular video series featured a completely new account where he documented how to build high-DPS end-game ships without spending a dime of real-world money.

Tutorials: He is the creator of the popular "Winter's Top Tips" series (later rebooted as the "Guide to Personal Endeavors"), providing vital strategies for resource farming, ship building and avoiding common newbie traps (like his famous golden rule: "Always pick up your loot!").

His Main Build: To this day, Winter still mains his very first character—a human tactical officer commanding the USS Wolverine, a Tier 6 Defiant-class escort using the Sao Paulo skin.

Podcast Career (Priority One Podcast)

Winter was a central figure on the Priority One Podcast, the premier Roddenberry-network podcast for Star Trek gaming.

Rise Through the Ranks: He originally joined the team as an audio editor by simply messaging Elio in-game. Within months, he was promoted to Chief Audio Engineer and eventually became a weekly co-host.

The Voice of the Gamer: During his tenure, Winter represented the hardcore STO player base, conducting multi-hour interviews with Cryptic Studios developers (such as Al Rivera and Jeremy Randall) and directly pitching community-requested features to the design team.

Departure: Winter stepped down from the podcast around 2018/2019 to focus on his health and the massive logistical demands of running the Armada and his YouTube channel. The podcast itself officially concluded its legendary 10-year, 535-episode run in December 2021.

Current Status Winters remains one of the most recognizable and respected figures in the Star Trek Online community. Despite the natural burnout that plagues many MMO veterans, he has managed to play STO consistently for over a decade by treating community building as his primary endgame. Today, he continues to lead the Priority One Armada, host regular fleet livestreams (such as Priority One Armada LIVE!) and maintain a thriving, drama-free digital haven for Trekkies across the globe.