Tag: Star Trek

Anime, Character Creation Challenge, Dungeons and Dragons, Horror, Humor, Role Playing Games, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Top Secret, Westerns

2024 Character Creation Challenge After Action Report

Written by TardisCaptain February 4, 2024February 16, 2024 1 Comment

And we’ve reached the end of the 2024 #CharacterCreationChallenge. If you made it to 31 days, congratulations. Send me a note via email (carl (at) tardiscaptain.com) on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. My daughter is currently working on a new graphic for those that completed the challenge and I’d like to make sure that it gets sent to you upon completion.

I did make it to 31 characters, but I was delayed by a few days due to a family emergency. Thank you to everyone who reached out to me to ask. One poster mentioned that they had seen a lack of entries for the last two days. My mother and grandmother were involved in an automobile accident. The good news is that they are OK with no injuries and they are just fine (other than needing to replace a minivan). But it was a little scary for me when I found out.

I noticed that the Scooby Doo gang was used in a lot of different themes by participants (seeing Velma and Daphne in the Doctor Who RPG was a hoot). It was interesting to see them show up in different gaming systems. On the discord server there was a very good representation of characters from 80’s movies represented in the Power Rangers Roleplaying Game. It was kind of a trip down memory lane since I hadn’t seen some of these moves in a LONG time. There was also a participant who was making Star Trek characters for three different RPG systems for several entries. It was interesting to see the characters side-by-side. One of the most unexpected discoveries wasn’t a current participant, but someone who participated back in the first challenge in 2021. Apparently it got him out of some serious mental funk that he had been dealing with. It got him back into blogging and eventually back into writing RPGs (that he had done before). It was an emotional moment for me when I read his blog post.

Of the entries that I used for 2024, the games that stood out to me were Monty Python, Fallout, White Lies and Star Trek Alpha Quadrant. I really enjoyed making a character for Teenagers from Outerspace and I’ve been watching some classic comedy anime lately While Vintage Space didn’t fully scratch the FASA Star Trek itch that I was trying to recall, it did get some gears turning that may result in a future project. I also appreciated the publishers that responded when I posted characters for their games. They were able to answer some of my questions that I had raised in the blog posts. I tried to post those responses in the “Additional Notes” section of an entry a day or two later.

The disappointments were those games that were needlessly crunchy or overbearing. I had a few readers on Mastodon and a few of the message boards respond with similar experiences, which made me feel like I wasn’t such an idiot. I’m still digesting Cowboy Bebop and I have a few things I want to check out before I post my unboxing and final thoughts entry.

Here is my 2024 list of characters:

Day 1: Fallout Character: Ragnal Walker of Vault 47
Day 2: Hackmaster Basic Character: Cid the Kid
Day 3: White Star Galaxy Edition Character: Jenker Slix
Day 4: Fantasy Quest (Dicing w/ Dragons) Character: Alric Hinman
Day 5: Top Secret S.I. Character: Nick Tanner
Day 6: Tiny Wastelands Character Stewart Barlow
Day 7: The Dark Eye Character: Halmar
Day 8: Star Trek: Alpha Quadrant Character: Tropp
Day 9: Monty Python Character: Sir Richard Hammond
Day 10: Basic Fantasy 4th Edition Character: Durlan Torven
Day 11: Teenagers from Outerspace Character: Prince Zaxxod
Day 12: The Spy Game Character: James “Captain Slow” May
Day 13: Star Ace Character: Balkor
Day 14: Ninjas and Superspies Character: Luke Ward
Day 15: Conan Character: Braga
Day 16: Boot Hill Character: Noah ‘Lasso’ Johnson
Day 17: White Lies 2nd edition Character: Jack Sterling
Day 18: Vintage Space Character: Troxtor
Day 19: Fantasy Hero Character: Drokkin the Dwarf
Day 20: Shadowrun Anarchy Character: Spike
Day 21: Nights Black Agents Character: Kendal Barker
Day 22: Barbarians of Lemuria Character: Kruk
Day 23: Starfinder Character: Sarangari
Day 24: Crypts & Things Character: Azor
Day 25: Cyberpunk Red Character: Indigo
Day 26: Dungeons and Dragons Essentials Characters: Pelloth Graysoul
Day 27: Cowboy Bebop Character: Wayne Wolf
Day 28: Rolemaster Fantasy Character: Hobson Silversting
Day 29: Tiny Frontiers Character: YYZ-2112
Day 30: Pathfinder 2nd edition Character: Rogar of the Granitebender Clan
Day 31: Anarchy Character: Marcell Freeman

Also, if you purchased anything after clicking on the link to DriveThruRPG or Amazon, thank you. I’m not doing this blog to make money, but the kickback helps when making game purchases for future challenges.

This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: January 29-February 4

Written by TardisCaptain January 29, 2024

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of January 29th through February 4th. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

January 29
“Captain, you’re asking me to work with equipment which is hardly very far ahead of stone knives and bearskins.” Spock- The City on the Edge of Forever, Stardate: 3134.0 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 30
“Already another one to take his place. It never ends.” Alexana “He could have killed you. He didn’t. Maybe the end begins with one boy putting down his gun.” Riker- The High Ground, Stardate: 43510.7 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 31
Happy Birthday to Paul Scheer. @PaulScheer https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Paul_Scheer #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“But what if I forget her again?” Rutherford “Son, if you can’t keep making new memories, does it matter?” Billups- First First Contact, Stardate: 58130.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

February 1
“Principles, principles. That’s what it comes down to. Do I compromise my almighty principles?” Janeway- Prime Factors, Stardate: 48642.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

February 2
Happy Birthday to Brent Spiner. @BrentSpiner https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Brent_Spiner #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #StarTrekFilm #StarTrekENT #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Captain, the most elementary and valuable statement in science, the beginning of wisdom, is ‘I do not know.'” Data- Where Silence has Lease, Stardate: 42193.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

February 3
“There are other ways to create order in your life—your quarters, for example. Everything in mine has its specific place and it’s all arranged just so.” Odo, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

February 4
“No power signatures. It appears to be deserted.” T’Pol “But are your sensors calibrated for ghosts?” Tucker- Oasis, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

What are your favorite daily Star Trek quotes selected for this week? This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: January 22-28

Written by TardisCaptain January 22, 2024

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of January 22nd through January 28th. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

January 22
“The prejudices people feel about each other disappear when they get to know each other.” Kirk- Elaan of Troyius, Stardate: 4372.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 23
Star Trek: Picard premiered on this date in 2020 with the episode Remembrance. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Picard #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“I haven’t been living. I’ve been waiting to die.” Picard- Remembrance, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 24
“We can’t try to save Humanity without holding on to what makes us Human.” Those were your words to me.” T’Pol- Damage, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 25
“Never spend more for an acquisition than you have to.” (Third Rule of Acquisition) Quark- The Maquis, Part II, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 26
“The logical course isn’t always the right course.” Chakotay- Tattoo, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 27
Happy Birthday to James Cromwell. @jamesocromwell https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/James_Cromwell #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #StarTrekFilm #StarTrekDS9 #StarTrekENT #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“I gotta to take a leak!” Cochrane “Leak? I’m not detecting any leak.” LaForge “Don’t you people from the twenty-fourth century ever pee?” Cochrane- Star Trek: First Contact, Stardate: 50893.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 28
Happy Birthday to Gillian Vigman. @Gillian_Vigman https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Gillian_Vigman #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“You’ll be a great officer on the bridge one day, but you’re gonna have to risk screwing things up to get there. You understand?” Dr. T’Ana- Mining The Mind’s Mines, Stardate: 58256.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: January 15-21

Written by TardisCaptain January 15, 2024

I wish we could have seen this version of the NX-01 Enterprise on screen.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of January 15th through January 21st. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

January 15
“Life’s true gift is the capacity to enjoy enjoyment.” Lwaxana Troi- Cost of Living, Stardate: 45733.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 16
Star Trek: Voyager premiered on this date in 1995 with the episode Caretaker. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Voyager #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Ensign, despite Starfleet protocol I don’t like being addressed as ‘sir.'” Janeway “I’m sorry, ma’am.” Kim “‘Ma’am’ is acceptable in a crunch, but I prefer ‘Captain.'” Janeway- Caretaker, Stardate: 48315.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 17
Happy Birthday to Isa Briones. @TheIsaBriones https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Isa_Briones #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Is that strange? To find beauty in imperfection?” Soji Asha- Maps and Legends, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 18
“Starfleet could have sent a probe out here to make maps and take pictures but they didn’t. They sent us, so that we could explore with our own senses.” Archer- Civilization, Date: July 31, 2151 #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 19
“Anything worth doing in a holosuite can be done better in the real world.” Kira- Second Skin, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 20
Remembering DeForest Kelley wo was born on this date in 1920. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/DeForest_Kelley #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #StarTrekFilm #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Admiral Nogura invoked a little known, seldom used reserve activation clause! In simpler language, Captain, they drafted me!” Dr.McCoy- Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Stardate: 7412.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

Happy Birthday to Rainn Wilson. @rainnwilson https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Rainn_Wilson #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #StarTrekShortTreks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Where are we?” Lorca “On a resort off Antares Minor. You should try the spa. The hot-stone massage is delightful.” Mudd “Where are we?” Lorca “Typical Starfleet. No fun at all.” Mudd- Choose Your Pain, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 21
“No. Men do not roar. Women roar…and they hurl heavy objects…and claw at you…” Worf “What does the man do?” Wesley “He reads love poetry. He ducks a lot.” Worf- The Dauphin, Stardate: 42568.8 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

Character Creation Challenge, Role Playing Games, Star Trek

2024 Character Creation Challenge Day 8: Star Trek Alpha Quadrant

Written by TardisCaptain January 8, 2024January 9, 2024 1 Comment

For Day 8 of the 2024 #CharacterCreationChallenge I will be making a Starfleet Officer for the Star Trek: Alpha Quadrant roleplaying game. What is Star Trek: Alpha Quadrant? It is a fan-made conversion of the Cepheus Engine System Reference Document for Star Trek. It originally started as a conversion of the FASA Star Trek RPG, then evolved to cover all of the shows (up to Star Trek: Discovery) that had been released by 2017. Several years ago, the publishers of the Prime Directive rules wanted to make a “Traveller” version of their game, but it hasn’t appeared yet. So for fans who want to play some sort of Trek with the 2d6 system, this is probably going to be up your alley. Steven J. Ege, the author, did state that Star Trek: Alpha Quadrant is not compatible with other 2d6 style games.

Now this isn’t the first time I’ve used a fan-made Star Trek RPG in the Character Creation Challenge. Previously I had covered Far Trek and Where No Man Has Gone Before. I have also covered the original Little Black Book version of Traveller as well as Cepheus Deluxe release. So I’m interested to see where this goes.

The Star Trek: Alpha Quadrant PDF has 160 pages with the character creation checklist on page 11. There is no character sheet in the book, but luckily I found a fan made character sheet on the Polyhedral Nonsense gaming blog. This sheet has four pages with the first being stats and skills, second page is equipment and weapons, third page is character history and the last page is any telepathic skills. I discovered that there are a lot of good character sheets on the Polyhedral Nonsense website.

OK, let’s light this candle. The first thing the checklist states is that the characters begin at the age of majority (usually 18 in Humans). But with the Q’s consent (Q is the name of the Game Master in ST:AQ) the character can start at 19 or 20. The character is entering Starfleet Academy. After discussing with the Q what positions and ranks that the character will take you can dig into the attributes. Thinking about this, I want to create a character in the time of the Original Series. Looking at the different alien races available (there are several basic ones that are mentioned in the front of the book, then a lot of races listed later in the publication) I selected Denobulan and named him Lt. Commander Tropp. He would be the Chief Engineer on the USS Valley Forge, a Constitution-Class starship.

Next we generate the attributes for Tropp by rolling 2d6 and assigning them. They are Strength (STR), Dexterity (DEX), Endurance (END), Intelligence (INT) and Education (EDU). For those of you wondering, INT is the intellect and the EDU is the learning and experience. Traveller/Cepheus players may notice that there is no Social (SOC) attribute. The author of AQ did state that he had to make some changes to make it fit the Star Trek universe. I’m assuming that dropping this attribute was one of the items he was referring to. I rolled my dice and made the racial adjustments and wrote down the attribute modifiers.

Step three is to select the background skills that Tropp had before he entered the academy. The rules state that you divide the EDU score in half and that is the staring number, in his case 4. These skills would be of rank 0 (semiskilled) and I had to choose two from the education category and two from the development category.

Now we enter the academy and gain several skills from the curriculum. This includes core, candidate school, outside electives and advanced study. While this took a moment, I was able to complete the task.

Step six is the cadet cruise. I rolled a 2 on 1d6 to represent that Tropp participated in two six-month cruses. At the completion of the cruises, he has graduated from Starfleet Academy and now holds the rank of Ensign. To be a Lt. Commander, Tropp needed to go on nine tours of duty (from rolls and various modifiers). This time allotted resulted in several skill rank increases, which I wrote down.

The steps now indicate that I should come up with a background for the character (which I would if this was really going to be played). The Universal Character Format at the end of the steps can list equipment, but no rules were listed at this time to any allocation. I snuck down to chapter 4 to read about the equipment and it described some equipment types, but didn’t really say if you started with anything. In most Star Trek games, your equipment would be what is available on hand. So I didn’t bother with any on the sheet. This meant that I only wrote on the first character sheet for this challenge. I’m certain that at least three of the pages would have been used in a campaign.

Afterthoughts:

This book was pretty thorough and covered the bases that you would find in a standard RPG core rulebook. These include a “What is roleplaying” section and how the core rules worked. You wouldn’t need any of the Cepheus books to play this game.

The lack of a character sheet concerned me. I was very grateful to find the Polyhedral Nonsense release. Their character sheet is also fill-able which may be of interest to some players. Since I was going old-school with my entries, I had mine printed out to mark up with a pencil.

Another concern was the use of graphics in the book. Since this book was never going to be printed for copywrite reasons, the author could use the images as he saw fit. There were some pages where a full color image in the background with white highlighted lettering over the top of it. It made it difficult to read.

I liked how the PDF was bookmarked. This made it easier to jump to a section to look up information. I also appreciate that major and minor characters from the Original Series and The Next Generation have been stated out. When talking with Star Trek fans who haven’t had a lot of experience with RPGs, they might create a character by saying “He’s good with computers, just not as good as Spock.” or “He’s just as strong as Worf.” I can take the provided stats to give them a starting point.

There is also a FASA to AQ conversion guidelines in the back of the book. While reading, I could see a lot of FASA influences in this publication. I could easily see myself homebrewing for this system just as I want to for Star Trek Adventures, Far Trek and Where No Man Has Gone Before.

Additional Notes:

I had a couple of readers report to me that they had heard of The Dark Eye and even owned a copy, but they hadn’t had a chance to do anything with it. So I guess this European game has made it to the states. But because they hadn’t tested it out yet, they couldn’t tell me about how the game plays at the table.

Coming Up Next:

Monty Python’s Cocurricular Mediaeval Reenactment Programme

This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: January 8-14

Written by TardisCaptain January 8, 2024January 8, 2024

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of January 8th through January 14th. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

January 8
Happy Birthday to Michelle Forbes. @MishkaForbes https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Michelle_Forbes #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“I was dead and there was another life, and it made me feel like I’d been pretty arrogant to discount everything I’d been taught, you know? Now I don’t know what to believe.” Ro Laren- The Next Phase, Stardate: 45892.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 9
“But most legends have their basis in fact, Spock.” Kirk- And The Children Shall Lead, Stardate: 5029.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 10
“When every logical course of action is exhausted, the only option that remains is inaction.” Tuvok- Twisted, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 11
“I hope I never see snow again!” Mayweather- Breaking the Ice, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 12
Remembering Kirstie Alley who was born on this date in 1951. @kirstiealley https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Kirstie_Alley #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“General Order Fifteen. ‘No flag officer shall beam into a hazardous area without armed escort.'” Saavik- Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Stardate: 8130.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 13
“As First Officer, it is my responsibility to point out any actions that may be mistakes by a commanding officer, sir.” Riker- Chain of Command Part II, Stardate: 46360.8 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 14
Remembering Barry Jenner who was born on this date in 1941. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Barry_Jenner #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“That’s a glib answer and a cheap way to avoid the fact that you’ve trampled on the very thing that those men and women are out there dying to protect! Does that not mean anything to you?” Dr. Bashir “Inter arma enim silent leges.” Ross- Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: January 1-7

Written by TardisCaptain January 1, 2024December 26, 2023

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of January 1st through January 7th. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

January 1
“Those doors, they’re so loud.” Tomin “You’ve got a hangover.” Neelix- Someone to Watch Over Me, Stardate: 52648.0 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 2
“If the cause is just and honorable, they are prepared to give their lives. Are you prepared to die today, Tomalak?” Picard- The Defector, Stardate: 43462.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 3
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine premiered on this date in 1993 with the episode Emissary. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Deep_Space_Nine #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“I didn’t want some cushy job or a research grant. I wanted this the farthest reaches of the galaxy. One of the most remote outposts available. This is where the adventure is. This is where heroes are made. Right here, in the wilderness.” Dr. Bashir- Emissary, Stardate: 46379.1 #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 4
“Mister Spock, life and death are seldom logical.” Dr. Mccoy “But attaining a desired goal always is, doctor.” Spock- The Galileo Seven, Stardate: 2822.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 5
“We must strive to be more than we are, Lal. It does not matter that we will never reach our ultimate goal. The effort yields its own rewards.” Data- The Offspring, Stardate: 43657.0 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 6
Remembering Aron Eisenberg who was born on this date in 1969. @AronEisenberg https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Aron_Eisenberg #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“May the years continue to be good to you, may your muse continue to inspire you and may someone make a holoprogram out of one of your stories so you can start raking in the latinum.” Nog- The Visitor, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

January 7
“Denobulan family units are different from Klingons.” Dr. Phlox “Ah, yes, I’ve heard. Three wives for each husband – three husbands for each wife. Your mating practices must be very complex.” Antaak “Wondrously so!” Dr. Phlox- Divergence, Date: December 2154 #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

Archer, Character Creation Challenge, Comic Books, Conventions, Doctor Who, Dune, Dungeons and Dragons, Horror, Movies, Music, Role Playing Games, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Star Wars, Video Game, Website

Moving from 2023 to 2024

Written by TardisCaptain December 31, 2023January 11, 2024

Stack of character sheets printed out for the 2024 #CharacterCreationChallenge

2023 was a weird year to say the least. I was able to see a ton of concerts including several that I wanted to check off of the bucket list. These included Duran Duran, Love and Rockets, The Cure, Garbage, and Depeche Mode. I was able to see a live show that featured some of the comedians from “Who’s Line Is it Anyway” (the show had a different name probably for copyright reasons). I’ll be getting the photos for these up in the photo albums.

For the first time in a long time, I had the opportunity to attend a gaming convention. SaltCON Spring, SaltCON Summer and SaltCON End-of-Summer. I know at the beginning of the year, I stated that I only wanted to participate at this event and not volunteer. Well, after much thought and discussion with others, I’ll be running two games next spring. One will be a one-shot for Basic Fantasy RPG that I already had written up and did some polishing on. The other is a Star Trek Adventures: Lower Decks inspired game where the crew will be meeting the cast of Top Core (a sci-fi parody of the BBC show, Top Gear).

I’m still watching a ton of movies at home thanks to the many streaming services that I have access to. In the theater I did enjoy Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. I also saw Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. I also enjoyed this movie and I hope that the ending would lead to another sequel. But I wouldn’t be disappointed if there wasn’t one. My youngest is a Five Nights at Freddy’s fan so we had to go see the movie in the theater. Not knowing much about the video game series, I thought the movie was OK and I wasn’t bored. In 2024 I’m looking forward to seeing Dune: Part Two, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

Television wise I’ve been soaking up all of the various Star Trek franchises (Picard knocked it out of the park and I demand more Lower Decks). The Star Wars episodes have been good as well. I’m sad that Archer is ending, but I’d rather have it end on a high note. What We Do In The Shadows has also continued to entertain me. MST3K season 13 was a blast. I watch so much TV that I am unable to list them all here. On the weekends I’ve still been enjoying Svengoolie and Creature Features. I’m really looking forward to the new Doctor Who episodes after the great introduction from the 60th Anniversary specials and Christmas episode. The Fallout TV series has also caught my attention. I did cancel my Peacock account because there was nothing on it to watch (and I’d go months forgetting it was even there).

Reading wise I’m still going strong on the Star Trek and James Bond comics. While I’m also enjoying the Star Wars comics, I had to move from buying the physical books to a subscription to Marvel Unlimited due to the high cost of the individual issues. Too many Star Wars comics to continuing to buy them all.

I may have made a mistake with my video games. I set up both a Steam account and a GOG account. So I’ve been getting deals on lots of classic games that I use to play. I’ve been trying to play a few others as well such as Fallout New Vegas and a couple of other hidden gems that were tossed my way. But when it comes to time crunch issues, the video games get put off to the side pretty fast. I need to make sure that I’m spending some enjoyment time playing these games.

I want to get some writing done in 2024. I’ve talked about it, but I need to sit down and do it. Hopefully the Basic Fantasy scenario will be good enough to submit to the BFRPG community for consideration. While I also have some fan projects in mind, I’d actually like to have a few publications that I could legitimately sell online.

Keep an eye on this blog for what happens in 2024. Now off to the USS Ticonderoga New Years Eve party. Tomorrow I dive into the deep end of the pool with the Character Creation Challenge.

What did you enjoy about 2023? What geeky things do you want to do in 2024? Tell me about it. This article is open for discussion on the TardisCaptain dot Com Discord server. You can also email me at Carl (at) TardisCaptain.com or click on my social media links with any comments.

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: December 25-31

Written by TardisCaptain December 25, 2023December 24, 2023

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of December 25th through December 31st. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

December 25
“What’s this, Christmas come early?” Michael Sullivan “It has for you. Open it.” Janeway “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, by Mark Twain. I’ve read some of his books, but not this one.” Michael Sullivan- Spirit Folk, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 26
“The time for killing has come to an end.” Riva- Loud as a Whisper, Stardate: 42477.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 27
Happy Birthday to Wilson Cruz. @wcruz73 https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Wilson_Cruz #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“I didn’t know you were married.” Dr. Culber “Yup. My wife is Soyousian. She went totally bananas during the planning.” Reno “Believe me, I understand micromanagement.” Dr. Culber- Through The Valley of Shadows, Stardate: 1048.66 #StarTrek #StarTrekDiscovery #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 28
Remembering Nichelle Nichols who was born on this date in 1932. @NichelleIsUhura https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Nichelle_Nichols #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #StarTrekFilm #StarTrekProdigy #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“You know what they say, Be careful what you wish for. You may get it.” Uhura- Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Stardate: 8210.3 #StarTrek #StarTrekFilm #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 29
“It’s important to know how you… candidates deal with other cultures, other species…” Chang “Then it was a test!” Mordock “Yes… not all tests are announced or what they appear to be.” Chang- Coming of Age, Stardate: 41461.2 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 30
“I used to say I could land a shuttlepod with my eyes closed.” Archer “Well, the proof’s in the pudding, Captain.” Reed- Rogue Planet, Date: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekENT #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 31
“Oh, you know how I hate to miss a party.” Dax- Rejoined, Stardate: 49195.5 #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

Quotes, Star Trek

Daily Star Trek Quotes: December 18-24

Written by TardisCaptain December 18, 2023December 17, 2023

Wondering if we can survive one more week of constant Christmas music.

Here are the Daily Star Trek Quotes that will appear on the @STrekQuotes Twitter account and the @STrekQuotes Mastodon account for the week of December 18th through December 24th. Coming soon to Bluesky once we can find a scheduler option.

December 18
Happy Birthday to Jason Mantzoukas. https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Jason_Mantzoukas #StarTrek #StarTrekProdigy #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Jankom’s not just an engineer. He’s a miracle worker.” Jankom Pog- Supernova, Part 2, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekProdigy #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 19
“Your Surak is a brave man.” Kirk “Men of peace usually are, Captain.” Spock- The Savage Curtain, Stardate: 5906.4 #StarTrek #StarTrekTOS #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 20
Happy Birthday to Nicole de Boer. @Nikki_deboer https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Nicole_de_Boer #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Are you always this emotional?” Ezri Dax “I refuse to engage in this human game of taunting.” Solok “Human? Did I forget to wear my spots today?” Ezri Dax- Take Me Out to the Holosuite, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekDS9 #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 21
Happy Birthday to Michelle Hurd. @ItsMichelleHurd https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Michelle_Hurd #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“Also, you look conspicuous in that hood.” Worf “Says the Klingon in warrior gear.” Raffi Musiker “It is not warrior gear, it is casual.” Worf “Seriously, where do you wear that… to a Tuesday beheading?” Raffi Musiker- Seventeen Seconds, Stardate: Unknown #StarTrek #StarTrekPicard #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 22
“The captain and Doctor Crusher are saying that the very thing which has given us this wonderful world is what has caused this tragedy.” Rashella “That’s it. Exactly. Your Custodian has controlled you so completely you’ve lost even the desire to even question it.” Picard- When the Bough Breaks, Stardate: 41509.1 #StarTrek #StarTrekTNG #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 23
Happy Birthday to Noel Wells. @RealTomHankz https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/No%C3%ABl_Wells #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #StarTrekStrangeNewWorlds #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

“You guys don’t know anything about my family!” Mariner “WE ARE YOUR FAMILY! We will always be there for you and right now, we’re heading right into a pile of crazy dangerous space debris!” Tendi- First First Contact, Stardate: 58130.6 #StarTrek #StarTrekLowerDecks #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet

December 24
“This is Lieutenant Tuvok to all decks. We are preparing to land the ship. Go to Blue Alert and report to Code Blue stations.” Tuvok- The 37’s, Stardate: 48975.1 #StarTrek #StarTrekVOY #IDIC #WeAreStarfleet