This thread is for PCs to talk about character concepts, consider potential back-stories, and other topics necessary and appropriate for getting your character up and running.

Greetings fellow sentient beings, I will be serving as your "fun loving" mind melding logic spouting ("is he having a relationship with the ship's computer!?") Vulcan Science Officer.  ;)

Sadly I must be heading off to work soon in RL, so I'll have to work up Sorvok's character sheet details later when I get home (or find time for a break).

But I am very glad to be here and I look forward to a great and entertaining TOS game.  ;)

In reply to Starfleet Command (msg # 1):

REALLY, REALLY, REALLY FAST.  I've got to edit the Microlite 20 sheet for our game, and then I'll open up the char sheets.  However, it's midnight where I am, so I'll do it sometime tomorrow.  Sorry for the delay.  Call it technical difficulties, a problem finding advertising money, or a lobby by concerned parents that's slowing things down.  :-p

Glad you're all excited for the game!  ^_^

In reply to Starfleet Command (msg # 3):

Sounds cool, I think we can wait Starfleet Command! :-)

Hey all I'm Dan Carson, your local devil may care, ruggedly handsome security type.

Hello, everyone!

I'm Amelia Komatsu, your resident helmswoman.

I've been looking for a TOS game to play in for quite some time, so I'm very excited to be a part of this one, as well!

Ensign Parker.

Quietly efficient background bridge character, with that shiny doodad in her ear.

I'm Ally Zephyr. I'll be your doctor on this fantastic voyage, pleased to meet you!

Really looking forward to this.

Howdy!

I'm your half-Vulcan, former security officer who will be making sure we get where we're going from the Navigation station.... :)

I can tell this is going to be an interesting game. :)

Out of curiosity, how does the system handle "half breeds" (from a mechanics standpoint)?

I heard there were some additional optional rules to go along with the main rulebook (which already contains some alternative/options rules itself)... is that were the rules covering mixed races is?

I thought about going 1/2 Vulcan but I couldn't see where the system accommodated that (but I'm not an expert with these rules, so I could easily have missed them).


EDIT: Anyways, nice to see a familiar face (or at least 1/2 familiar face!)... does James take after his Vulcan parent more or is he more like his non-Vulcan parent?

I'm expecting that Sorvok is going to be very Vulcan (a sort of "Vulcan's Vulcan"... I'm thinking he probably has the Ethnic Pride talent to represent this).  Or at least I'm going to try that out (it has been awhile since I last played a Vulcan, so my logic & Kolinahr may be a bit "rusty" ;)
This message was last edited by the player at 17:27, Wed 04 Sept 2013.

Thinking about it, I may lean toward just using human stats for the most part. He doesn't have much in the way of Vulcan features. He was raised on Vulcan by his Paternal Grandparents.

Maybe there's some connection from there? I imagine him going into the Security branch may not have followed Vulcan mentalities....

Just brainstorming... Lol

Also, I found the extra stuff in the supplement here: http://www2.abillionmonkeys.com:3389/trek/
:)
This message was last edited by the player at 18:01, Wed 04 Sept 2013.

Well Sorvok's parents were both scientists from the Vulcan Science Academy, mother was a xenobiologist and father was a xenoarchealogist.  So he spent much of his childhood aboard VSA research ships traveling from one alien world/culture to another and being "home schooled" away from his homeworld on Vulcan.

So part of Sorvok's "extra Vulcan-ness" is kind of a compensating technique for feeling like he never really got immersed in his Vulcan heritage or Vulcan roots growing up as a child... so as an adult he's trying to make up for lost time by fully embracing the Vulcan cultural traditions (or at least he's doing his best to embrace them).

In his own way, Sorvok "disappointed" his parents' expectations by choosing Starfleet Academy over the VSA (then again, they really only have themselves to blame for instilling a sense of exploration in their son).  Sorvok has a younger sister who actually got raised on Vulcan by her grandparents and she is the "dutiful offsping" by attending the VSA (though she focused on engineering, while Sorvok at least is a Blue Shirt pursuing science like his parents before him).

I'm glad we have such an enthusiastic group!
This message was last edited by the player at 23:58, Thu 05 Sept 2013.

Glad to meet everyone. :-)

Daniel's a smooth talking, handsome daredevil (yes he has "Manly Chest") who is out to make a name for himself who is convinced the universe holds adventure but no risk for someone with his talents. He might have made a good Kirk style captain but lacked the studious nature to make it in the Academy, so ended up transferring to the Security programme where he can find the action. He isn't mindlessly gung ho and won't question a captain who tries talking before phasers but at the end of the day he's happier with a little excitement.

He's from Earth originally and comes from a Starfleet family though none of family has ever achieved true fame - something Dan is hoping to change.

Parker is a professional communications officer, out to prove that nobody can hail other starships, planet-side facilities, away-teams, and even starbases like she can!

She also plans on putting a lot of that stuff up on the viewscreen, just you wait and see.

Furthermore, she's really good at muting the communication when given the traditional cut-that hand motion.

Also, you'll recognize her voice as she reminds crewmembers throughout the ship that yellow alert means all crew to battlestations.

She may or may not have some other tactical, engineering, and or operations training, but those pale compared to her primary specialty of announcing that "The Klingons refuse to answer our hail."

I'd also note that she does not have those especially long legs and/or short skirts; her clothes fit her according to regulations.  There's not much about her that would make her stand out in a group of similarly fit and trained starfleet officers; at least at first glance.

Well at least that's better than just simply repeating everything the ship's computer says!  ;)

http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0008365/

http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0008365/quotes
This message was last edited by the player at 19:16, Wed 04 Sept 2013.

@ James Black:  I didn't know about those supplements.  Neat!  I'll have to give them a look when I have the time.  I might have to add a few more optional rules...

Hm. I should chime in. Let's see...

Ally was born and raised in Dublin, and went into medicine like her father, but she had a touch of wanderlust (maybe more than a touch) and so she decided to join up with Star Fleet. She loves studying other cultures and ways of doing things, and is as interested in traditional Andorian duels as that amazing cure for xenopolycythemia she read about a few weeks ago. She's an optimist, and something of a pacifist, so don't be surprised when she argues for a peaceful option. But don't worry, if violence is what's required, she'll follow orders.

I just updated the char gen rules and added a thread for important NPCs as they get created.  I forgot to mention that you are all starting at Lieutenant Junior Grade.  Parker, that means you can either stay at Ensign or slap a dashed band around your sleeve cuffs.  I know, I know, it's a lot more work for not a lot of money.  However, it does come with a few perks, like a new fashion accessory for the old uni and the authority to order Ensigns to pick up your dry cleaning.  :-p

I would like to request a favor... could we please play in the Original TOS setting (and not the current "alternate universe" TOS of the last 2 movies).

While I like much in both of the recent ST movies set in TOS "the early years", especially the characterizations and depictions of the young TOS characters... I must admit that, being a Vulcan-phile, I absolutely HATE what they did to Vulcan in the 1st of the new TOS "early year" movies.

The idea that Vulcans are now an "endangered species" really rubs me the wrong way (and honestly the long term effects on the future & fortunes of the Federation, considering the very substantial contributions made to both the Federation and Star Fleet by the Vulcans, is literally immeasurable bordering on, I suspect, catastrophic).

Now I can set aside my bitter prejudice for what was done in the new movies and play in that "alternate TOS universe" if need be, but I figured there would be no harm in at least requesting that we try playing in the original TOS setting.  Or as an alternative, if we could just say that Nero failed to destroy the planet Vulcan (and thus failed to commit near total genocide upon the Vulcan people)... I could live with the rest of the new movie twists and alternate takes on things.

@ Sorvok:  What happened to Vulcan was pretty awful, but I'm going to have to stick with the original plan.  I mentioned in the game info section that this is the JJ Abramverse version of Star Trek with Roddenberry's spirit returned to it.  I also picked it for one big reason:

I don't have to worry about canon.  It gives me the opportunity to put you guys in some classic Trek situations with a twist (i.e. be a little lazy).  If I decide that you should meet the Guardian of Forever, you totally can.  Maybe Trelane is your problem, and you'll get a chance to go face to face with the Squire of Gothos.

More importantly, I have a few overarching storylines (say season-long conflicts and cliff-hangers) in mind.  I think they'll work better in this setting.  I promise that none of them involve picking at old wounds concerning Vulcan.  Just trust me on this.  ^_^

At least in this universe, Vulcans are not on the brink of extinction.  There were more than enough off-planet and on Vulcan colonies that they are guaranteed to survive.

Will that work?

Ultimately SC you're the GM and this is your game and I believe in abiding by the gaming rule that the GM has the last say.  I guess I was so excited by the TOS and using the Microlite system that I missed the part about JJ Abramverse (maybe I just have a "mental block" against it?).

That said... I can certainly live with it.  I really want to play and I'm really looking forward to the game.  I understand the desire to have the freedom from canon and I accept that it makes the GM's jobs easier (and I assure you that I am not a "canon nazi" or a nit picker about every last "historically accurate" detail).

I just never quite got over what happened to Vulcan or the idea that Abrams thought he could get away with that (or worse that seemingly everyone has allowed him to get away with that travesty).  Attempting to destroy Vulcan is one thing... succeeding is something else entirely.

But that's not your fault, I lay the blame squarely at Abrams feet and my ire is solely directed at him.

So... yeah I can live with it.  It does mean I have to decide what happened to Sorvok's family and relatives.  While his father is missing from earlier and his mother was likely off world on a research mission, he had a sister either attending or recently graduated from VSA and he had both sets of grandparents living on Vulcan (they raised the sister while Sorvok accompanied his parents as the elder child).


Longwinded reply made short... yes it will work (I can work with it).  I was just making a request based on my personal sore spot over the Abrams Vulcan fiasco but I want to play.  ;)

Tell you what, Captain Tabin also got a commendation for managing to get a few civilians beamed onto her ship's escape pod...  ;-)

Pretty awesome our captain is an Andorian! I played a female Andorian in my last (sadly very short lived) Star Trek game so I have a definite soft spot for them. :-)

Also very cool Ally is Irish, as am I in real life.

Okay, char sheets are unlocked.  We have a chief engineer and an intelligence officer (maybe?) who will be joining the bridge crew, but they have to decide what role they want first.  Then we should get a few more.

@ James Black:  Thanks again for the supplement link.  I might use some of the optional rules in the supplement, like the movie one, in the game.  Definitely not the gritty ones, though.  This is network television, not basic cable!  :-p

@ Daniel Carson:  Yeah, I always liked Andorians, too.  I always hoped that they would get a bigger role in the series, and then they finally did in the one series I didn't watch.  I may have to give Enterprise's later seasons a chance...

Same here, but I see now.

Lt. (JG) is even better.

The more authority to "calibrate the universal translator" the better!

How long (chronologically) after the 1st and 2nd new/early years TOS movies will this game be set?

I ask because I'm wondering if any of our PCs would have been out of the Academy (aboard ships) during the events of either the 1st or 2nd movie?

I think Ranks 1 and 2 are still Cadets with ranks 3 & 4 being Ensigns (though senior Cadets, probably rank 2, could have been on a "cadet cruise").

That's a good question.  I have 2262 as the date for Season 1, Episode 1, which puts it about 3 years after Into Darkness and 4 years after Star Trek.  It's not set in stone, as I just figured it was a good starting point.

@Daniel Carson: Neat. I'm not Irish, so if I get anything too terribly wrong, feel free to tell me :)

Yeah, I tend to think of Abramsverse as grimdark, so I forgot about it too... but I don't mind. This is going to be awesome.

Also yay! character sheets!

Ok... hmm... figure it takes roughly 4 years to finish Starfleet Academy (although I suppose some accelerated students may finish in 3 and there may be a few holdouts/held back that finish in 5?), so figure Rank 1 Green Cadet is the first 2 years and Rank 2 Cadet is the second 2 years.

Then figure what... 2 years as a Green Ensign (rank 3) and then maybe 2-4 years as an Ensign (rank 4)... and it sounds like we just got promoted to Lt. jg. (rank 5).

So likely short of an accelerated promotion schedule (which is still possible given Starfleet's losses in recent years)... our PCs could have been either Ensigns (rank 4) or Green Ensigns (rank 3) dating back to the 1st Movie (Star Trek).

It might even be possible that during the time of the 1st Movie, a few of us (on an accelerated track of promotion later on) could have been in our 4th year at SFA (rank 2 Cadet) at the time of the 1st movie (set 4 years prior to the start of this campaign).

Does that look right?

That looks about right.  There's definitely flexibility on when you got promoted and what you were doing at the time of the movies for the sake of writing backstory.  ^_^

Sadly, I just got word that Amelia won't be able to continue with the campaign.  I think we may have a new helmsman, but I need to wait for a reply.

I see James as just having been promoted and offered a change to Yellow/Command track due to actions in a pirate raid on his previous posting. He'd been unsure of his path at the academy, until the incidents of ST: Into Darkness, and that's when he chose security to better protect his birth home.

I figured I'd share a bit of my thought on him too:
James Black is the son of Madeline Black, a ranking Archaeologist for the Federation Science Council, and Sevrek, first officer of the USS Intrepid. Raised by his grandparents on Vulcan, James has shown high ESPer ratings and an aptitude for tactics and positioning in 3D spaces. Joining Starfleet as a security officer, his navigational skills have put him on the bridge of several smaller vessels while also serving in a security capacity. He's hoping that a position as the Vigilant's navigator will lead to an opportunity for his own command.

Also, a question - Is it Helm or Navigation that fires the ship weapons? I seem to recall both Sulu and Chekov at different times doing it...

In reply to James Black (msg # 33):

The Vigilant is a big ship with lots of weapons.  I think what I'll do is use Wrath of Khan rules:  helm (Sulu) fires phasers and navigation (Chekhov) fires photon torpedoes.

Also, we have a few changes to the cast.  Two new crewmembers incoming.  ^_^

That would be me.  Let me introduce myself.

I am Spid'Dar Nevi, Chief Engineer of the starship Vigilant.  I am Andorian and hail from an ancient and noble family.  Not being Andorian, I am sure that there is little interest in our intricate culture so I will not bore you with my family's line and accomplishments.

Let me just say that the Vigilant, under my attentions, will exceed all your expectations and overcome all demands you place upon it.  I stake my honor and my word that I will spare no effort, no personal expense, to make it so.

(OOC: I am waiting on a picture upload but this will do for now.)

@ Ally:  I always thought Star Trek Nemesis was the grimdark world, or at least one with space Drow and iridescent gowns.  :-p  I liked the level of plight Into Darkness left Starfleet with, and I assure you that the bad writing of Alex Kurtzmann and Roberto Orci will be replaced with my own bad writing.  :-p

(I had so much hope for the movie when I watched the opening for Into Darkness and the away team mission...  It was like watching TOS reruns through nostalgia lenses.  The rest kind of let me down, but I'm happy that Star Trek interest is growing again)

Hello all!  Chief Helmsman Carlos de Silva here!  I was born in Brazil, so that means that I love soccer, beaches and women...not necessarily in that order.  Under my expert guidance, the Vigilant will undoubtedly be setting course for white sandy beaches and dense, mysterious jungles full of savage tribesmen.

Oh, yeah, Nemesis was definitely more grimdark! I just feel like actually letting a planet die is way grimmer than the old time travel "let's clean up our time-messes before we leave back to the future" trope that TOS and TNG both stuck with.

For the record, I actually enjoyed 2009. It had the right levels of callbacks to the old series, new content, action, humor... I just felt it was darker than, say, Voyage Home. And I wanted to love Into Darkness, but I just ended up so disappointed after they did the reveal that I couldn't. The problem for me was that they'd promised it wasn't him! So I ended up feeling lied to for half the movie. Plus nu!Kirk and nu!Spock weren't really friends enough to pull off that scene... You're right, though, that first scene was pretty fun. I would have been much happier watching them pull off that away mission for more of the movie. :D Ah well, I've got such a special place in my heart for TOS's characters that I'm sure I'll forgive them and see the next one.

I was...conflicted with Trek 2009.  I went expecting crappy acting and great special effects and got pretty much the opposite, with Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto especially doing a great job in their roles.  The SFX I was "Meh" about since there was too much lensflare and the Narada didn't make any damn sense, even for a Romulan mining vessel upgraded with Borg tech.  The story was pretty terrible in most places, but the cast acted the Hell out of their parts despite that, so I couldn't fault them.

"Into Darkness" was more of the same unfortunately.  Everyone did a fantastic job overall, but the story wasn't worthy of them in most cases.  Abrams seemed to think that Star Trek was all flash and thunder when even TOS had lots of philosophical moments and morality plays.

Still, Pike's little speech to Kirk about his father was one of the best Star Trek moments ever IMO.  In just a few phrases he summed up much of what I love about the series.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:49, Fri 06 Sept 2013.

Okay, I realized that I didn't include post frequency rules.  I'm in a game on another site that has been running for over 2 years now, and these are its posting rules.  I wanted to ask you all if you'd be okay with this:

• Post at least 1/week
• Let me know if you are going to be gone for a while so I can write you out of the picture for a while (like a sudden case of Tellarite tonsillitis or Bolian stomach flu <===There's always an issue with the Bolians).

I'll try to keep things moving faster than 1/week, but I understand that people get busy.  Fortunately, the goofiness of the system (and the vast array of sci-fi technobabble at my command) can make giving people a break easy.

Does this sound fair?

Yes, its fair.

Sounds fair to me.  ;)

Sounds fair.

Also welcome newcomer types. :-)

After I hear a few more sound off, I'll toss that into the "Pitching the Series" thread.

Also, would you be interested in me opening up an RP-vamping thread so that you can meet each other and the captain?

That sounds good! :-)

Very fair to me too. :)

Your rules are most fair and agreeable.

Sounds good to me too.

Sounds good!

Cool.  ^_^  I updated the "Pitching the Series" thread, and also included our current equipment rules (if you want it, it's yours within reason---just remember that the Federation's people have grown beyond material avarice  :-p).

I'll also get an intro/RP thread up after I check character sheets.  Should be tomorrow-ish or so.

I'm curious, who would you cast as your character? :)

RP thread is up.  Call it the pilot---where I figure out who I'm working with, and can come up with story threads in the future.  ^_^

Also, just to make sure, can people see the Pilot-Encounters at Spacedock thread?  I tried switching it from one group to another (so I can write a draft before opening the thread up), but I'm still figuring out the rpol GM tool thingamobobbers...

It's fine! :-)

Awesome, thanks for letting me know!  ^_^

We have one more player joining the crew of the Vigilant.  ^_^

Hello there! Your friendly Starfleet Intelligence officer here! If you need something ... say, a bottle of Romulan Ale ... just let me know! *chuckles*

So, the obvious question: how many people can do script-writing style? I can, though I don't claim to be a Pro by any means.

Heh, I did my MA in Screenwriting actually. :-)

That said I'd prefer not to use it here. Oh and a belated welcome T'Enya. :-)

I've always wanted to try Romulan Ale. Hi T'Enya!

Hey James Black, you can't ask that without saying who would play your character!

Will try to get an IC post in for Sorvok soon, time has been eaten up lately by some pesky RL.

Welcome to the game T'Enya.  ;)

I think a script-style post is fine for the pilot, but once we get to the episodes it will be serious business. To quote Sir Ian McKellan from Extras:


This message was last edited by the GM at 02:15, Sun 08 Sept 2013.

I vote for no more script-style writing, its terrible!

@ Parker:  I did like it.  This is the perfect system to do some meta stuff.  I might add a tag at the end of each episode called "Grousing in the Green Room" for actors and actresses to gripe about how things are going.

I do have a plan to tie all of this together into the PCs' universe.  I'm crossing my fingers that it's not too cheesy...  :-p

Oh, that Green Room thing sounds pretty fabulous to me. Especially with the Neilsen ratings. "You mean they loved Sorvok's Brain, and hated The City on the Cliff of Always? Our audience sucks!"
This message was last edited by the player at 03:27, Sun 08 Sept 2013.

Posted a reply to everyone who posted in the pilot thread.

@ Sorvok:  No worries, it's the weekend and I understand that RL takes precedence.  You still have about a week.  :-p

And while it's not exactly from the TV series, here's a little music in the spirit of the campaign to write to:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeS0Eo8fAnw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7s5lQ-bGe6c

Ok I know SC said it would only be occasional and temporary but having read it... I have to say I strongly hope we do NOT have much more script-style writing.

I'm not saying it was badly done (it does indeed read like a script)... but that's part of the problem, it totally takes me "out of the scene".  I know we're being campy and I know we have elements of a TV show influencing the game... but ultimately I hope that the game will primarily focus on the IC RP like a normal game (meaning people speak and act "in character").

Breaking the 4th Wall is fine on rare occasions for effect but I hope it is a technique reserved for only special occasions.

Just expressing an opinion/preference.  ;)

I wouldn't worry about it.  I'd worry more about posting your own intro in the pilot thread...  :-p

Why worry... it is posted.  ;)

Well that's hard because my first 2 choices are already taken within the new ST Abramverse.

What can I say, Zachary Quinto has done a marvelous job with Spock (he is one of the key reasons why I can't just write off the new movies entirely).

My next choice would have been Benedict Cumberbatch (for his excellent work in the new BBC modern Sherlock TV series)... but of course he was picked to play the new Khan Noonien Singh.

Other possibilities are: Cillian Murphy (who played Dr. Jonathan Crane/Scarecrow in the Nolan Batman movies) or perhaps Ben Whishaw (who played the new "Q" in the Skyfall Bond movie).  Maybe Jonathan Rhys Meyers (Steerpike from Gormenghast).

Other ideas: Hugo Weaving (Agent Smith from The Matrix & V from V for Vendetta) or Tom Hiddleston (Loki from Thor & Avengers).

Hmm, I'd probably cast the Irish actor Eoin Macken (Gwaine from the BBC version of Merlin) as Dan.

Alys Tabin would probably be Jennifer Connelly in her 30s (maybe A Beautiful Mind era).  Admiral Barrett's inspiration never really acted (well, he had an off-camera voice over bit part one time), but he's a pretty cool guy...(http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0734472/?ref_=sr_1)

@ Daniel Carson:  Lol, he's on good terms with the captain, she's just giving you a hard time.  As a note, I am a d00d (i.e. I'm smuggling grapes in my groin) and not used to writing opposite gender, so I apologize now and in advance if I do a bad job of it.  However, I wanted to have a female captain because there's not enough of them in Star Trek.  ^_^

I'm absolutely terrible at casting people, mostly because I never really remember actors. I'm going to go with Lisa Lambe as Dr Zephyr.

Selena Gomez, hands down! Young enough to look the part, I was looking at "Mediterranean" looks, and she just the right range of acting talent. Or Catherine Zeta-Jones in her younger years. That would work too.

I am also a d00d, but (online) I have been mistaken for a female in the past so I guess I'm doing an alright job. ;D

For the record, I will never call a female officer "Sir" -- they hate that. Know that from personal experience. Only made that mistake once ...

*shudders*

I was kind of vamping when I mentioned Scotty's mods, but now that I think about it I might give the Vigilant a little bump.  This would be after the effects of any other talents (ex:  the Pride of the Fleet 10% bump on impulse engines would be applied to the base score first---.5c in the case of the Vigilant---and then whatever).

I'll look through the rules and think of something appropriate...

@ Sorvok:  Well...you know I had to find a way to involve a Tellarite.  They are one of my favorite species in Star Trek---Space Dwarves, if you will.  Their idea of "Nice to meet you" is to give you a laundry list of complaints---and if that doesn't work,simply make fun of you.  :-p

No problem... I was not actually all that familiar with the race so I had to look them up on Alpha Memory to remind myself about them.

My initial thought was "what the heck is this guy doing with all the insults"... until I read up about the race and realized that was a culture heritage way of dealing with people.

Still... I doubt Sorvok is the type to "play along" IC... he is apt to be unfazed by insults and simply stick to the logical facts.  He'll probably drive the Tellarite nuts (and if the Tellarite doesn't "shape up" he may find himself on report for "wasting time with frivolous over argumentative behavior"  ;)

But I thought you handled the scenario very well... clearly Tabin is quite adept at cross-species interaction (then again she does have diplomatic training).

Oh it's cool, I had no issues at all with the Captain. Definitely an IC mistake on Dan's part. :-)

He really does find Tabin very attractive (young Jennifer Connelly + Andorian... wow...) but he isn't stupid enough to pursue that avenue. On the other hand he knows he has that reputation thing so he's feeling really awkward about things there with the whole first meeting.

@ Sorvok:  Why, thank you!  Just trying to flesh Tabin out beyond deus ex machina for me to hand out bonuses and occasional damsel in distress (start at 0:20 on this bloopers vid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMG7EBrKCR4)...

@ Carson:  Haha, well, she may not get another chance to bust your balls with you wearing a red shirt and all...  :-p
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:04, Mon 09 Sept 2013.

Ok, so I will try to get a post up in about 10 hours. Today is a busy-ish day at a place where my only lifeline to the Internet is my phone.  Plus, I'm hoping James Black gets a chance to post soon. He's well within the 1 week limit, but I see the game pace is picking up.

We're pretty close to bringing the pilot to a close. No need to worry about ratings just yet. I'll save that for the first episode...

I personally appreciate the update, thank you.

No problem :-)

Okay, bump post is up.  Feel free to mix and mingle as you see fit.  I'm planning a scene in the conference room, and then I'll bring the pilot to a close.  ^_^

Also, feel free to let me know if there is somewhere/something you want to do in-pilot (visit the rec lounge, explore the cargo bay, argue with Tellarites, etc.).  I'll set it up.  ^_^

Bump is up.  Also sent a rMail to James Black to check on him.

Ok, I've been mulling over the Montgomery Scott adjustments.  I think this is what I'm going to do---and I'll put this in the Network Stars thread (because the ship is a star, too!):

• Maneuverability:  +0.05c to Impulse Rating AFTER other bonuses are applied
• Stable Subspace Bubble:  New warp cruising speed is 6.5, and can push maximum warp speed by 0.2 for first increment (others are 0.1)

Still here, just tied up with RL :(

Trying to catch up today so can post... Lol

Knew I forgot something! LoL I think James would be best represented by a 21 Jump Street era Johnny Depp :)

I asked, because I'd like to do a few photoshop images of the crew of the Vigilant. :)

In reply to James Black (msg # 88):

No problem, just wanted to make sure a Mugato didn't get a hold of you.  :-p

*blink blink*

Selena Gomez in a Star Trek uniform? Hmmmm .....

Pointy earred Selena Gomez. ;)

yeah ... *lol*

Feeling a bit like a dirty old man. But at least this has her wearing clothing ... *lol*

Hey T'Enya... regarding "first contact" between the Federation and the Ferengi... it is kinda interesting because there's actually something of a continuity disconnect/error.

The earlier (as in when it aired on TV) TNG series had Capt. Picard and company supposedly meeting and dealing with Ferengi as practically a new or at least very much "unknown" race with little data to go on.

However... the later (as in when it aired on TV) Enterprise series (which technically pre-dates the Abrams movies and thus should still technically be "canon" even in Abramverse) has Capt. Archer and the Enterprise NX-1 encounter Ferengi and not in a good or positive way with Archer specifically telling the Ferengi never to invade Federation space again and something about warning others about the race.

So either Archer had a "senior moment" or his Log on the Ferengi got accidentally erased because a couple of centuries later Picard and the Enterprise D knew next to nothing about Ferengi (including how dangerous/tricky they could be).

So it is sort of "take your pick"... though I at least Enterprise is still canon in Abramverse while TNG is off in some "alternate" reality now (at least as compared to us in the Abramverse).

Hmmm ...

Well, then I guess it's up to our GM Producer then ... :D

Enterprise did so many things wrong---see the temporal Cold War----but they also did a lot of things right---see the Andorians, Tellarites, and Earth-Romulan War.  I'm going to say that we don't know much about the Ferengi culture, but we know that they are out there. Don't worry about retconning stuff or editing posts. Let's just call it a script-writing mistake, like how Star Trek also called the warp drive a hyperdrive at one point...

Also, as a heads up, I'll probably wrap up the pilot thread this weekend. I'd like to kick off episode one soon. ^_^

Waiting on Chief Helmsman de Silva.  You around crewmate?

In reply to Spid'Dar Nevi (msg # 98):

Apologies, yesterday was...eventful and I didn't get a chance to post.

No problem.  I am quite familiar with the regular butt-whuppin' that reality can unleash upon a person.  Just giving you a heads up in case you missed my post.

So one question for everyone... would any of the PCs know or have met Sorvok in the past?

Figure he was a freshly graduated Green Ensign 4 years ago (during the 1st Abrams movie Star Trek) and was a non-green Ensign about 3 years ago (during Into Darkness?)

So he would have attended Starfleet Academy between 8 to 5 years ago (assuming the standard 4 years to graduate from SFA), so Green Cadet from 8-7 years ago and Cadet from 6-5 years ago.

I'm thinking he got promoted to Lieutenant jg around 6 months ago (so he's not brand new to the rank but still less than 1 year at Lt jg).

He served with then-acting Capt. Tabin aboard the Newton-class USS Saratoga during the destruction of Vulcan but I figure the Saratoga was probably pretty badly damaged and likely spent time in Spacedock following Nero's attack (and the rescue of the surviving Vulcans).  Sorvok may have spent a few months of "shore leave" on the New Vulcan Colonly assisting the Vulcan survivors in setting up their new home.  He then probably served as a junior science officer aboard another ship (as yet unspecified/undetermined) where I assume he was still stationed when he got his promotion and then got his new orders to report to the new Contitution-class USS Vigilant (once again under the command of Capt. Tabin).

So assuming nobody else served with Tabin aboard the USS Saratoga, there's still room for having previously met Sorvok either at Starfleet Academy or perhaps briefly on the New Vulcan Colony or on the "as-yet-to-be-detailed" starship that Sorvok was serving on prior to his new orders transfering him to the USS Vigilant.

If anyone is interested in a prior connection to Sorvok, we can discuss it here or in a PM if you like.  If nobody's interested, that's cool too but I thought I would throw out the idea (especially as Sorvok hasn't interacted with any of the other PCs just yet).

In reply to Sorvok (msg # 101):

Dan might have known him in passing at the Academy due to Sorvok's interest in Security though it is unlikely they would have gotten on; Dan would have been a very human human. ;-)

Perhaps, if you wish, Sorvok and Nevi might have been stationed on the "as-yet-to-be-detailed" starship between the Saratoga and the Vigilant.  We can work out the details in PMs and then present them IC when the time comes.

I am always up for a melding of plot lines.

Yeah and aside from Sorvok being very Vulcan, he is also not very good "socially".

That said, it could be fun if they had very divergent views on how best to promote security.  Dan is a very "action oriented" security officer while Sorvok would have been the passive "thinker" & planner.  I could see them sharing some classes and usually finding themselves on the opposite sides of debates in class as to the best methods to employ for hypothetical situations posed by the professor.


That sounds good to me.  ;)

I imagine Science and Engineering probably work hand-in-hand often enough (perhaps we encountered "something" during our prior assignment that required both theory as well as practical application to overcome?).

Nevi is not a social creature and neither is Sorvok.  I can see the two of them having a wonderful time pouring themselves into some enigma that was presented to them either on an away mission or as a hurdle for the ship to pass through.

I would say, judging from your description of Sorvok, that this would make them quite at ease with working with each other.  Looking them over I would say they would make an excellent technical team.

Now we just need to generate the story of how they cultivated that friendship.  Oh, and generate a name and commanding officer for the "as-yet-to-be-detailed" starship.  "As-yet-to-be-detailed" isn't much of a name.

Highly unlikely. T'Enya has never been to Vulcan or any of the new colonies. She also didn't attend the academy (direct commission). As intel, probably wouldn't have ever worked together either.

That said, they could be an unusual team as she does have an appreciation for knowledge.

I'm thinking that Dan is probably wondering if it is too late to apply for a transfer. ;)

Dan has only "struck out" with 2 women thus far... he still has an entire ship (and at least 2 more PCs) to go before he has to worry about transferring!  ;)

A Vulcan upsetting a human?!? Say it ain't so!!! *lol*

Well one of them is the Captain and the other is the officer he'll probably have to work closest with so it is not a great start. ;)

(Especially since he wasn't actually making a pass at either of them.)

Here's my suggestion:

Armstrong-class
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Armstrong_type
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wik..._Armstrong_(NCC-1769)

USS Excelsior  NCC-1729
http://www.ex-astris-scientia....s/excelsior-stid.jpg
http://memory-beta.wikia.com/w...(alternate_reality)_

Although some sites list the Excelsior as being destroyed at the Battle of Vulcan, this ship has a unique reddish-brown color scheme and in the movie Into Darkness there is a reddish-brown Armstrong-class vessel seen docked at the Starbase (just as the Enterprise is pulling away to head for Klingon space).
This message was last edited by the player at 20:28, Thu 12 Sept 2013.

With the Producer's blessing I would go with the Excelsior then.  I would have been working under Chief Engineer XX and you would have been working under Chief Science Officer XX.

Works for me.

I would say the Excelsior ran into spatial anomaly that had formed in the Helix Nebula.  The anomaly had formed around the ship in a sphere about three light years across and was collapsing at a exponetial rate which gave us 43 hours to figure out a way to escape it before we were crushed.  The energy barrier that had formed around the anomaly prevented us from leaving it.

With Sorvok's keen analysis and conclusion that the anomaly was due to a unique implosion of a dark matter node colliding with cometary matter at near light speed, he figured out that alternating a wave of positrons/electrons with a frequency of .0154 picoseconds would allow the ship to escape the collapsing bubble.  Nevi was the one who came up with the idea to spin the ship while distorting the warp field into a perfect sphere to match the sphere that was closing in on them.  Then, when the sphere was within 5000km of total collapse, he would use the forward array to emit the proper frequency of positrons and electrons.  It cut it close but it worked and that was probably the reason, at least for Nevi, that he was chosen to be Chief Engineer.

Likey or no?  I love me some techno-babble!

Don't worry, I'll toss a friendly yeoman or two your way.  :-p

Glad to see you all getting into the swing of the game!  It's morning where I am, and Fridays are my busy days.  I'll try posting after work to move things to the next scene.  ^_^

I'd sort of like some info on my Security crew even if they are just monster fodder. ;)

(Also I'm guessing the Casting Dept can have fun there.)

Yeah Sorvok's next step will be to meet with the members of the Science Department.

So I'll need some info from Casting regarding the Extras and "Day Players" filling in those cheap knock-off blue shirts!  ;)

Well, T'Enya isn't exactly Miss Congeniality. She's not upset with him, if that helps ...

Am I correct in guessing that there isn't an "intel department"?

Probably make it worse actually. As first meetings go it was a bit of a disaster; he isn't best prepared to deal with Vulcans to begin with and one with a Klingon fascination in particular and she insulted him (unintentionally but still.) He'll have to have dealings with her in future but I doubt he's looking forward to it. ;)

Edit: Just to be clear that dislike is entirely IC, not from me as a player - I have no problem with T'Enya. :)
This message was last edited by the player at 00:52, Fri 13 Sept 2013.

Okay, a bit of a bump is up.  I'll give James Black a chance to answer Tabin's question, and then I'm planning on calling the bridge officers to the conference room for a quick briefing on the situation.  After that, we'll wrap things up for the first episode.  ^_^

In reply to Starfleet Command (msg # 119):

Is the above backstory acceptable for Sorvok and Nevi?

Also, to Sorvok, is it acceptable to you?

I just want to flesh that out before the two run into each other.

Backstory looks fine, and I'm happy you guys are putting the energy into it.  ^_^

I was going to write something for the Engineering department, but it looked like Spid'Dar and Carlos were about to start ritualistically dueling.  Or something like that.  Not sure if I should call security...  :-p

Also, sorry Sorvok.  I'm kind of fried after having a long day, so the blue shirt casting wasn't as creative as it could be.  However, you have Humans of Somalian and Punjabi working with you.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:40, Fri 13 Sept 2013.

You can go forth with the Engineering department scene.  The training of de Silva can wait for the day Nevi has downtime.

Yeah, I wasn't figuring it would start immediately.  Although that could be kind of amusing in itself.  :)

I don't have the TOS dueling music ready yet.  Therefore, no duel.

Reply and question = posted :)

Wait 'till he sees her quarters ... Vulcan and Romulan and Klingon! Oh, my!

Yes that looks good.  Sorry for not being more responsive but I got swamped with some RL last night.  ;)

Question: since they were serving together on the same ship prior to the Vigilant, do you think they would have known about each other's transfer to the Vigilant (it would seem likely but it could be that the orders indicated not to discuss the transfer)?


That's Ok, I'm sure they'll do fine and perhaps when there's additional budget for the make-up department, the next Blue Shit to be introduced can be an alien.  ;)

Maybe a Deltan, Efrosian, Orion or Arkenite?

In reply to Sorvok (msg # 127):

Hmmm... I am good either way.  Since they were probably working closely together I would say that each of them knew of the other's transfer and promotion.  But if this is a hush-hush mission, which is up to Starfleet Command, then we can be surprised when we finally meet.

Either way we will have kind words to speak to each other when we finally get together in the same room.

I'm sure Dan appreciates the irony of having to inquire about someone else's reputation. ;-)

Sure sounds good.  ;)

Speaking of the old ship... suggestion for senior officers:

Captain: Captain Yana (female Deltan)
Chief Engineer: Lieutenant Xavier Lapierre (male Human, French descent)
Chief Science Officer: Lieutenant Joon Cho (male Human, Korean descent)

In reply to Sorvok (msg # 130):

That will work for me.  Putting them in my scratch pad.

Fixed that for you...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AphxyjrH4SE

Question: is this a shakedown cruise?

T'enya:  Sorry I missed your earlier question on the Intelligence Dept.  You are right, there is none.  You are attached to security, but working independently.

All:  The pilot is meant to be an RP thread before I put the episode up.  We won't have to worry about shakedown stuff because you've being written for syndication!  The first episode will time skip and have all of the time-related bonuses (ex:  pride of the fleet) active on the Vigilant.

I hope we haven't finished the Pilot just yet; Dan still has to finish with Maryan and go through the rest of his interviews (maybe in a montage.)

Maryan's not quite done with you yet, either.  :-p

Also, I am working on another big bump.  However, I just wanted to mention that I love that you guys using the "there's always a problem with the Bolians" theme.  :-p

Well I had a theme song ready, but now it won't work. Gotta pick another one ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pk-W_i7Z59I

Okay, big bump up.  Once you all make one last reply (or post an OOC "Ready to go" message), we'll have the bridge crew meeting in the conference room.  ^_^

@Daniel Carson:  I'm sorry, was that too much with Maryan?  She likes you, in an Orion sort of way---the same way Gayla liked Kirk. Sorry. :-(

Its cool - see my PM. :-)

I am so late to this party!

Dr Zephyr was with the rest of the fleet doing whatever unspecified thing they were doing in the Laurentian system during the destruction of Vulcan. (Memory Alpha says they were probably over at Rura Penthe, responding to the distress call.) Anyone else happened to have been there who might have met her?
This message was last edited by the player at 14:59, Sat 14 Sept 2013.

Carlos was a Helm Officer aboard the Hamilcar, which was patrolling the border to the Klingon Empire.

Just waiting on Sorvok and then I'll bump us forward ^_^

Actually, with 7 of 8 ready to go, I'll post a bump soon.  ^_^

Yay!

Bump up, and I think you can see another big reason why I chose the Abramverse.  If you need, here's the tl;dr version:

We need to represent the heart and soul of the Federation's philosophy of peace, or else we're fucked.

:-p

Sorry RL got in the way this weekend... didn't mean to hold anything up.

No problem.  I realized afterwards that I could move us along.  Qaydiib and Patel will still be there.  :-p

By the way... has everyone been introduced at the current meeting?  I know Sorvok is likely to recognize Daniel from the Academy and Spid from the USS Excelsior... but I didn't want to presume too much by having Sorvok make reference to other officers if they haven't actually been introduced IC (ie if Sorvok wouldn't know their names IC)?

Let's assume everyone knows one another, or that there were introductions at the beginning.  Is that ok?

Sure that works... I just didn't want to assume too much without at least checking first.  ;)

No prob.  Thanks for checking, though.  ^_^

Also, if people don't have anything to add then just give me an OOC "good to go" message in the Pilot thread and I'll move us along.  ^_^

Just waiting on T'Enya to give me the go-ahead before bumping. That, or until I get to real Internet and not my smartphone.

Bump up.  I'll give you some time to post before bumping along.  ^_^

Also, to clarify, you are still Starfleet officers.  You're just in a distinctly un-Starfleet area.  >:-)

Parker, you never fail to crack me up.  :-p

I'll wait for a few more responses before bumping along again, but I am glad to see that everybody has the "Dammit, Q!" attitude locked and loaded.  :-p

Heh, I think everyone beat me to the punch with asking the questions Dan might have asked!

Bump up.  Just let me know if you're good to go.  Also, I apologize for the G and L part being a little railroady.  It's almost over.

Assuming Dan isn't erased for his impudence I'm guessing I'm good to go. :)

Yeah I'm not expecting Sorvok to get most of his questions answered (at least not to the level of detail he normally likes)... but being who he is, he had to ask and hope for as much detail as he can get.

However, I accept that for plot reasons the current "interview" may need to be cut short and I don't want Sorvok to "derail" the story thread... so he's probably good to go after the next replies from L & G.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:57, Wed 18 Sept 2013.

Obviously good to go, here.

Engage!

Good to go!  Everyone already asked all of the questions I would have.

Player smiling, character seriously ticked. :) Yep, we're good to go.

Yep, good to go :) James is a bit overwhelmed, taking it all in....

Ok, almost done with the pilot and onto the episde!

Also, here are what G and L would look like:

G:
http://thecontemporarychronicl...11/09/don-draper.jpg

L:
http://sugarsocial.files.wordp...26-at-2-41-59-pm.png
(maybe a little more business-like bob haircut)

Heh, that would definitely fit in with Dan's hunch that G and L are basically losers (near omnipotent losers but losers the same.)

No one goes to that much effort to look cool and above it all without being one. ;-)

Think of them as your defense counsels...or, better yet, the only friends you've got in The Network...  :-p

In case it's not obvious from my post, good to go. :D

Which isn't at odds with them being losers. :)

Lawyers. I knew they were evil! *lol*

Hey!  I resemble that remark!  :-p

Only the lawyers NOT working for you are evil.  I like the ones I hire.

In reply to Spid'Dar Nevi (msg # 175):

That seems to be the common consensus.  :-p

Hello, I'm your Doctor, my treatments may smell or taste bad or hurt or other situation but its to make you better.

Damned humans not one female Tellerite is posted on rpol's site I'm not happy about that.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:14, Mon 06 Apr 2015.

You can ask for a submission to be added ;)
Though I don't remember where...

Welcome!

There's an email address. You can find it through FAQs. I submitted my portrait.

Has there even been a picture of a female Tellarite?

There's an index of Trek portraits at the bottom of this link:
link to a message in another game

I found ONE, but not a person dressed as one for the show, its odd since they are one of the founding Federation races you would think some would be around say DS9.

According to memory alpha a female has never appeared on the show.

Its a Star Trek on-line female Tellarite, its the best I could do.

That will work. The PC you're replacing used an STO picture for his character.

Sorry for the delay. This week has been busy with classes starting (and a bunch of stuff to grade dumped on my desk). I'll try to update sometime today or tomorrow.

Also, apologies to Graalka. I'll try and get you in for the tail end of Episode 2. Let me update your group membership, but just hold off on posting until I give you an intro. ^_^

Perhaps the doctor could step in patch us up while we fight?

In reply to s'Alka Rhu (msg # 185):

Ok so I'm rolling my character and just averaged an 11 on my stats randomly...  What do we consider 'poor'?

That's not great but it could be worse. Carson has an Intelligence penalty (which isn't so bad as he's more of a combat type.)

Maybe you could ask Starfleet Command if you could change species? Different species have pluses and minuses.

You can also use the point buy system in the char gen thread:

link to a message in this game

I'm always burned by the dice roller, so I choose point buy whenever I can. However, I'm giving people one shot at rolling and then a chance to fall back on point buy if you don't get the stats you like. Don't forget that you'll get a chance to bump attributes as you level up (+1 to one attribute for every level divisible by 4). ^_^

Cool.  I ended up going with point buy because...  Well he was pretty darned average.  Anyway, character sheet is filled out just let me know how you want to work me in.  Until then it is writing description and background.

@ Felix: You're welcome to just start writing in Episode 3. We'll assume introductions were made, and Felix is the Bones-style of Ship's Doctor: on the bridge because he wants to be. :-p

If you want to do some RP to feel out Felix's personality, you can join in the tail end of shore leave in Episode 2.

I rolled pretty well on mine, fortunately: 18, 16, 13, 15. Against my racial bonuses, I got a good set of ability scores.