Posted in: Role Playing Games, Star Trek

#RPGaDay2021 Day 14: Momentum

Day 14: Momentum

I’ve been reading up on the Star Trek Adventures role playing game by Modiphius (I still don’t know how you pronounce that). I’ve only had one chance to play in a session and I’d love to get into an actual campaign. The 2d20 system sounds logical (no pun intended) and I can see how it would work. There are several interesting and huh tidbits about the game. One of the interesting tidbits is one of the subjects for today’s #RPGaDAY2021 challenge. “Momentum”.

When you roll your d20’s in Star Trek Adventures you have to roll under a target number (based upon your Attribute+Discipline+any variables) to earn a success. If you only needed two successes to accomplish the goal and you ended up rolling three or four, you gain what is called Momentum. For example if your character is attempting to scan an energy source on an alien device and you earn Momentum, you can spend a point or two of Momentum to gain some additional information. It is a reward for a well done roll of the dice. Momentum can also be used to create an advantage in a situation (or remove a disadvantage), add additional damage, re-roll a die, and more. The Momentum doesn’t have to be used right away. A player can elect to place it in a pool for anyone in the party to use (max number of items in the pool would be six). Thus the player can decide to help the party if they are having a bad day at rolling dice.

Game Masters have their own pool of dice, called “Threats”. If a player decides that they don’t want to spend Momentum (or they don’t have any Momentum to spend) they can request a Momentum from the GM who gains a Threat to use or place in his pool.

I thought this added an interesting twist to the game. Now if I could get a session in that actually explains how the combat system works.

Final Thoughts:

This was a much better batch of suggestions compared to the past few days. “Fun” is the primary reason we all play role playing games and there was a lot of possible topics that could have been discussed about that. I’m certain that “Limits” could have talked about some of the limits of spells or abilities in various games. “Safety” was another good one as it should be a big goal of both players and game masters.

RPGaDay 2021 chart
The RPGaDay 2021 chart
Posted in: Role Playing Games, Science Fiction, Star Trek

#RPGaDay2021 Day 9: Percentage

Day 9: Percentage

The primary reason I enjoy role playing games is the opportunity to participate in a story with a bunch of friends. I’m certain that if I asked the reason why most gamers participate in RPGs the answers would be very similar to this one. However there is a secondary reason I enjoy role playing games, especially those based off of an Intellectual Property. It provides me with a system that I can use to compare two different things within the scope of the game. A really good example has been the discussion held in geek circles about how two characters/items can stack up to each other. Would a Klingon have an advantage over a Moclan in combat? Which starfighter would be better in combat, the X-Wing or the Starfury? How would Mr. Spock and Yoda do in a chess match with each other? While there hasn’t been an official multi-IP role playing game, fans have homebrewed stats for popular characters, ships and races for their favorite RPG systems. There have also been enough official publications for generic systems (such as D20 for both Star Wars and Starfleet Battles’ Prime Directive) that you could start to put together an educated guess.

While the above mentioned D20 system is very useful for ease of game play, I feel like it lacks on the comparison side. I believe that both Klingons and Moclans would end up with a +2 to their Strength attributes and doesn’t help with the debate. This is why I thought the FASA entry into the Star Trek role playing license was perfect. It was based off of a percentage system for both attributes and skills.

For example: I remember trying to create the FASA stats for the character of Will Decker, the Captain demoted to Commander in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. In a D20 system, he would have looked pretty similar to other command grade Starfleet officers. But in the percentage system of FASA, he becomes a little more unique. Sure sometimes the difference may only be a few percentage points, but on paper he is different. I brought my Decker stats to a few of my fellow FASA players and we had a debate on the numbers I had brought in. One friend thought I had Decker’s luck too high (since he lost his ship and his captaincy in a sucky situation). I was really hoping to find my notes from that discussion, but it’s been years since I’ve seen them. Knowing my luck, they will turn up in a box that I’ll be cleaning out of the garage. If I find them, I’ll post them here.

Now I’m not saying that the FASA system is superior to other IP based RPGs. But it is one that I’ve enjoyed a lot more because of the way that they used percentages in the game. I’m aware of other gaming systems that use percentages, but I’ve never had a chance to try them out or look them over.

Final Thoughts:

I’m not certain what to think of all the other suggestions for this date. “Medium” is mostly a size (unless you count the magical medium). I could have done a blog about the different “Role” methods used to generated D&D stats. “Emotion” didn’t elicit any emotion from me. Yea I’ll see myself out for that last one.

RPGaDay 2021 chart
The RPGaDay 2021 chart
Posted in: Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: August 9-15

How the year feels so far.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes twitter account for the week of August 9th through the 15th.

August 9
Happy Birthday to Eric Bana. @EricBana67 https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Eric_Bana #StarTrek #WeAreStarfleet

“James T. Kirk was considered to be a great man. He went on to captain the USS Enterprise, but that was another life.” Nero- Star Trek (2009) #StarTrek #WeAreStarfleet

August 10
Happy Birthday to Evan Evagora. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Evan_Evagora #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #WeAreStarfleet

“Am I better off dead? I’m an xB, I have no home, I don’t belong anywhere. Why don’t I just put a phaser to my head and get it over with?” Seven “Because… I’d miss you.” Elnor- Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #WeAreStarfleet

August 11
“Well, I’ve been a husband and I’ve been a wife and I know that look from both sides.” Dax- House of Quark, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

August 12
Jane Wyatt born on this date in 1910. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Jane_Wyatt #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #WeAreStarfleet

“Spock, …the retraining of your mind has been in the Vulcan way, so you may not understand feelings. But as my son, you have them. They will surface.” Amanda- Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Stardate: 8390.0 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #WeAreStarfleet

August 13
Happy Birthday to Dawnn Lewis. @dawnn_lewis https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Dawnn_Lewis #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #WeAreStarfleet

“If you ever disrespect me like that again, I’ll skip the court martial and blow you out the airlock!” Freeman “Cool. Well, live long and prosper.” Mariner “Don’t you give me that sarcastic Vulcan salute! BECKETT!” Freeman- Moist Vessel, SD: 57538.9 #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #WeAreStarfleet

August 14
““You canna chance the laws of physics,” I told him but he wouldn’t believe me.” Scotty- Relics, Stardate: 46125.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

August 15
“I’ve been equipped with an autonomous self-sustaining mobile holo-emitter. In short, I am footloose and fancy free.” The Doctor- Future’s End, Part II, Stardate: 50312.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #WeAreStarfleet

Posted in: My Creations, Role Playing Games, Star Trek

#RPGaDay2021 Day 7: Engage

Day 7: Engage

Oh come on. With how big of a Star Trek fan I am you’d think I’d pass up on “Engage”? Captain Picard’s catch-phrase when sending the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D) into warp. It even got to the point where other commanding officers attempted to try to find a good catch-phrase to jump into warp.

Starships from Star Trek have always been one of my passions. Collecting technical manuals, blueprints, and posters detailing the vast number of starships seen on the show. I’ve even earned the mantel of “Treknologist” when a co-worker brought me a name plate with that title for my office. Years later it now hangs on the wall in my Geek Den.

Back in the early 1990’s when I was collecting all of the FASA Star Trek role playing books, I loved how the Starship Tactical Combat Simulator worked. I was able to compare how different starships stacked up against each other. I gathered photo copies of all the starships I could find from the official guides, the rulebooks, the modules, magazine articles and fanzines into one big three-ringed binder. Even after findings all of these ships and their stats, I wanted more. Luckily FASA created the Starship Construction Manual. With this book I was able to create homebrewed stats for some of the starships that I had in my book and blueprint collection. I recently found this three-ringed binder and I started to scan my original documents into PDF format. You can see the previous scans Here, Here, Here, Here and Here.

There was one starship in my three-ringed binder that I created from scratch. One of the minor governments in the FASA lore was the Affiliation of Outer Free Worlds. Basically it was a mini-Federation found within the Triangle region. A lot of ex-Starfleet officers found employment in the AOFW Space Navy. The only vessel I found for my book came from a Stardate Magazine and it displayed that they used Federation based equipment. So I created the Emerald Class VII Scout. For the image, I quite literally cut-and-paste the top off of a Federation (Upgraded) Class Dreadnought for the images and used the assembly rules from the Starship Construction Manual. Here is the PDF for download.

Final Thoughts:

“Small” as a primary suggestion for a topic made me raise an eyebrow. Yes, Haflings are small. But I wasn’t moved to use small as a subject. I could see some options for “Inspiration” but it had the bad luck of being on the same day as Engage. “Better”? Again not very inspiring. There were a few days like this that the bulk of suggestions were lacking.

RPGaDay 2021 chart
The RPGaDay 2021 chart
Posted in: Dungeons and Dragons, Role Playing Games, Science Fiction, Star Trek

#RPGaDay2021 Day 6: Explore

Day 6: Explore

There are a couple of different types of role-playing styles played by fans of RPGs. Power gaming, more acting than dice rolling and a few others. One of the biggest styles is Exploring. Star Trek is a classic for this style of gaming. Boldly Going Where No One Has Gone Before. Finding a strange new world and discovering new life forms. While I’ve never had the opportunity to play Traveller, I understand that Exploring is a big portion of that game as well. There have been various rules in different Science Fiction games that gave a methodology of creating new worlds (FASA had a very interesting system) and new aliens. I remember being amazed that Starships and Spacemen had a system that could randomly decide what the aliens bumpy foreheads would look like.

The Dungeons and Dragons Expert Rules introduced Dungeon Masters and Players to the hex crawl. This was the next step up from exploring underground caverns and dungeons as described in the Basic Rules. What will the players encounter when they blaze a new path (hey did I just connect to another one of the words in the challenge?). I remember reading the rules and wondered how many times the DM would actually keep track of the party getting lost? Is the adventure in the travel or is the adventure in the destination? I don’t recall which one of the retro-clones it was, but one rulebook talked about how the regular population hardly moved past the regional area that was controlled by the local baron. This made travelers from other ares carriers of news. The locals would want to know what they saw on their exploration. This could lead to some role playing opportunities when the party reaches a tavern in a new town. That is, if the citizens of the town trust outsiders (insert dramatic music here). Something for DMs to consider between dungeons and hexcrawls.

Final Thoughts:

Flavor is one of the suggestions? Really? I wonder if anyone will really post about Flavor. Path kinda works alongside Explore (which I tried above). But I couldn’t think of anything that would be interesting to post about. I’m still scratching my head about Flavor as a suggestion. Chase could have been an interesting subject. I’ve heard that the James Bond RPG had a good chase system. I’ve just never played it to try it out. Flavor? What are we going to get the homebrew stats of Flavortown King Guy Fieri?

RPGaDay 2021 chart
The RPGaDay 2021 chart
Posted in: Dungeons and Dragons, Role Playing Games, Star Trek

#RPGaDay2021 Day 5: Community

Day 5: Community

The stereotype of a person who plays role-play games is not a good one. Like the Trekkie, the general public tends to look upon gamers as socially inept loners who happens to get together with a couple of other loners on a Saturday night and dress up like their characters. I’ve been gaming since the late 80’s and the only time I’ve seen someone dress up as their character was for a Halloween party.

I really think that the general population doesn’t realize how much the gaming community has grown. I still meet up with friends, and possible new friends, at local gaming stores. I talk with the clerk about what is selling and what is not. And while I miss publications like Dragon Magazine and Challenge Magazine, the internet has taken on the load that those publications once served.

Not only are there active gaming communities on social media like Twitter, Facebook and MeWe, but they tend to be more focused. Want a group that only talks about 2nd Edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons? There is a Facebook Group for that. MeWe has a FASA Star Trek/Doctor Who RPG community. There are a ton of twitter accounts that you can follow for both classic games and the latest releases. Discord has also become a popular destination for the gaming community for several reasons. You can have private chat rooms to hold games in. You can share files in certain channels. It’s a combination social media and communications platform.

I still think that message boards serve a purpose of bringing together the gaming community. Like some social media pages, they can be very specific, or they can be very general in nature. I’m going to link a few of them here for others to check out.

Old School Trek– If you want to talk about classic Star Trek gaming, this is a place to go. This includes some of the older classic Trek games, semi-official games and fan made creations.

Star Trek Starship Tactical Combat Simulator Online Database and Archive– This message board specializes in topics for the FASA Starship Tactical Combat Simulator for the Star Trek Role Playing Game. Lots of ship designs and homebrews posted here.

Trek-RPG Forums– This message board talks about all of the different Star Trek RPG products that are out there. Unfortunately it is not as active as it use to be.

Basic Fantasy RPG Forums– Basic Fantasy is a good retro-clone of Dungeons and Dragons with a very active community providing new content.

RPG.net Forums– The good thing about this site is it is very active. You’ll be able to find just about anything here if you just ask. The bad thing is that it is very active. It is easy to get overwhelmed by the number of posts made at this site.

Now like any community, the gaming community has it’s good and it’s bad. But overall I think that the gaming community is a good one. RPG.net has a series of Secret Satan (a joke on Secret Santa) gift exchanges every year. I’ve also seen gamers who have never met offer support to other gamers in times of need.

And there has been an ongoing battle to improve the image of the gaming community. My favorite Dungeons and Dragons DM would take extra time to not only help new players (especially encouraging them with the math in the game) but he would take extra time to talk with a spouse or family member of a gamer to alleviate any concerns they might have (no D&D is not of the devil, etc.)

Final Thoughts:

While “Throne” was begging for a fantasy adventure blog entry, I just didn’t have one that I could post at the time. “Include” could have been integrated in the above post. “Gamble” didn’t bring anything to mind, but I could have talked about gambling in gaming if I had more experience in the subject.

RPGaDay 2021 chart
The RPGaDay 2021 chart

Posted in: Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: August 2-8

Logically, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes twitter account for the week of August 2nd through the 8th.

August 2
“That’s what you get for missing staff meetings.” Kirk- Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Stardate: 8210.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #WeAreStarfleet

August 3
“And what better place to find oneself than on the streets of one’s home village.” Picard- Family, Stardate: 44012.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

August 4
“All ready for Attack of the Lobster People?” Chakotay “I am not familiar with that species.” Tuvok- Repression, Stardate: 54090.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #WeAreStarfleet

August 5
“I grew up with dogs. Can’t remember not having one.” Archer- A Night in Sickbay, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #WeAreStarfleet

August 6
Happy Birthday to Michelle Yeoh. @michelle_yeoh https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Michelle_Yeoh #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #WeAreStarfleet

“He is a bully. They crumble like a cookie when they meet a bigger one.” Mirror Georgiou- Scavengers, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #WeAreStarfleet

Star Trek: Lower Decks premieres on this date in 2020 with the episode Second Chances. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Lower_Decks #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #WeAreStarfleet

“Yeah, no, we’re not really elite. We’re more like the cool, scrappy underdogs of the ship. You know, we don’t wash our hands, we’re doing kick flips all the time.” Mariner- Second Chances, Stardate: 57436.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #WeAreStarfleet

August 7
Happy Birthday to Cirroc Lofton. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Cirroc_Lofton #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

“The entire future of the galaxy may depend on us tracking down Willie Mays…and stopping him.” Jake Sisko- In the Cards, Stardate: 50929.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

August 8
“We will start with the assumption that I am not crazy. If I am, it won’t matter one way or another.” Dr. Crusher- Remember Me, Stardate: 44161.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

Posted in: Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: July 26-August 1

How it feels driving on Utah roads.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes twitter account for the week of July 26th through August 1st.

July 26
Happy Birthday to Nana Visitor. @NanaVisitor https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Nana_Visitor #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

“You really think the fear of death will end the fighting?  Never has in any other war.” Kira- Battle Lines, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

July 27
“Why did you let him do it?” Kirk “I was convinced in the same way you were, Captain. By the good doctor’s hypo.” Spock- The Empath, Stardate: 5121.0 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #WeAreStarfleet

July 28
“A good meal involves much more than simply providing the proper nutrients.” Neelix “Why is that?” Seven “Well, er, there’s a certain satisfaction that comes from eating food that’s been carefully prepared.” Neelix- The Raven, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #WeAreStarfleet

July 29
Happy Birthday to Wil Wheaton. @wilw https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Wil_Wheaton #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

“Space and time and thought aren’t the separate things they appear to be.” Wesley- Where No One Has Gone Before, Stardate: 41263.1 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

July 30
Happy Birthday to Mary Wiseman. @may_wise https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Mary_Wiseman #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #WeAreStarfleet

“When we were in the Terran universe, I was reminded how much a person is shaped by their environment. And I think the only way that we can stop ourselves from becoming them is to understand the darkness within us, and fight it.” Tilly- The War Without, The War Within #StarTrek

July 31
“No, no, no, no, no. You don’t understand the scope of my crime. I didn’t kill just one Husnock, or a hundred, or a thousand….I killed them all. All Husnock… everywhere.” Kevin Uxbridge- The Survivors, Stardate: 43152.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

August 1
“I was gonna lay on a different beach every week for two months. The only thing to figure out was whether to start in Tahiti or in Cancun.” Tucker- Storm Front, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #WeAreStarfleet

Posted in: Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: July 19-25

Wait… it’s… not… Monday… is… It???

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes twitter account for the week of July 19th through the 25th.

July 19
Happy Birthday to Benedict Cumberbatch. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Benedict_Cumberbatch #StarTrek #WeAreStarfleet

“I will walk over your cold corpses to recover my people. Now… shall we begin?” Khan- Star Trek: Into Darkness #StarTrek #WeAreStarfleet

July 20
“Like the rat said; keep the cheese, I just want out of the trap.” LaForge- Where silence has lease, Stardate: 42193.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

July 21
“The next time you take a swing at me, I’m hitting back.” Kim- The Chute, Stardate: 50156.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #WeAreStarfleet

July 22
Happy Birthday to Louise Fletcher. http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Louise_Fletcher #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

“[Kai Opaka] told me that one must never look into the eyes of one’s own gods.” Winn- In the Hands of the Prophets, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

Star Trek Beyond premieres on this date in 2016. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek_Beyond #StarTrek #WeAreStarfleet

“There is no relative direction in the vastness of space. There is only yourself, your ship, your crew. It’s easier than you think to get lost.” Commodore Paris- Star Trek Beyond #StarTrek #WeAreStarfleet

July 23
“What’s the point of having a senior staff if they just sit around with their mouths shut? I’m glad they have opinions.” Archer- Minefield, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #WeAreStarfleet

July 24
“We are Starfleet.” Saru- Will You Take My Hand?, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #WeAreStarfleet

July 25
“This unit is programmed to provide sources of acceptable nutritional value. Your request does not fall within current guidelines. Please indicate whether you wish to override the specified program.” Enterprise Computer- The Price, Stardate: 43385.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

Posted in: Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: July 12-18

Star Trek Bar Fight
Now let’s look in the comments section on social media… oops, bad idea.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes twitter account for the week of July 12th through the 18th.

July 12
“Science Vulcan Directorate has determined that time travel is… not fair.” T’pol- Shockwave Part II, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #WeAreStarfleet

July 13
Happy Birthday to Sir Patrick Stewart. @SirPatStew https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Patrick_Stewart #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #StarTrekDS9 #StarTrekPicard #WeAreStarfleet

“Starfleet was founded to seek out new life.  Well, there it sits.” Picard- The Measure of a Man, Stardate: 42523.7 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

July 14
“Insults are effective only where emotion is present.” Spock- Who Mourns for Adonais, Stardate: 3468.1 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #WeAreStarfleet

July 15
“You’re proposing now?” Torres “It’s as good a time as any.” Paris- Drive, Stardate: 54058.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #WeAreStarfleet

July 16
“The customs and history of your race show a unique hatred of captivity. Even when it’s pleasant and benevolent, you prefer death. This makes you too violent and dangerous a species for our needs.” Talosian Keeper- The Cage #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #WeAreStarfleet

July 17
“Everyone is talking about me and no one’s talking to me.” Okona- The Outrageous Okona, Stardate: 42402.7 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #WeAreStarfleet

July 18
“What changed her mind?” Kira “I told her, if she didn’t remove them, I would.” Ross “And what changed your mind?” Kira “You did…Remind me never to play poker with you.” Ross- Shadows and Symbols, Stardate: 52152.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #WeAreStarfleet

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