Towards a Grittier d20 Trek!

Using your previous chart, I suspect he would've made level 5 or 6 while still in Starfleet. Taking into account the other people's comments about low ranked people at helm, I somewhat agree. I see this guy as having been in Starfleet for a while though, and constantly moving between ships. He eventually got promoted to Lt, but it took much longer than normal, primarily due to concerns of "character issues". He was never really "leadership material" and his superiors knew it, but he was very good at his job, so they overlooked his minor issues for quite some time (possibly for even longer due to galactic issues, such as maybe it was occuring during the Dominion War or something, and they needed every man they could get).

Eventually something bad happened that was his fault. For any other officer, it would have been called an accident after a board of inquiry looked into it, but in his case, with a record full of minor disiplinary actions and reprimands, years of screw ups came down on him all at once. Though the "bad thing" (maybe a collision between two ships in combat, maybe a shuttle accident, who knows) wasn't technically his fault, the board was able to use this opportunity to remove this "less than Starfleet material" officer from their midst. (At this point, he was level 5)

After that, he worked indepently for a few years on various freighters, salvage, and mercenary ships of a dozen different races. Though a "recreational" user while in Starfleet (the source of a portion of his disciplinary record) he slipped deeper into depression and drug addiction just to get through the days. He holds a massive grudge against Starfleet, and superior officers and Starfleet command specifically (he gets along fine with the junior officers who are just 'doing their job'). Part of him wants to prove that they made a mistake though, and every time he takes the helm of a ship, he flies with not just precision, but passion. He feels every time he sits in that chair, he has to prove himself again.

His eventual level for game play would be based on how much time he has been out of Starfleet and how much action he's seen since then. I'll probably peg him at 7th.


How does that sound for a start? Not sure what to use for classes, probably some combination of Fast and Tough.
 

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Jephkay said:
No matter how they are written, unless Gene Roddenberry rises from the dead, there will always be "better" ways of writing this stuff. We just agree that a certain method is what we're doing and finalize a design.

I still say what we have so far is great. And I'll get my blended document to everyone as soon as I can.


I just meant, if you change or discard parts of what I did, I won't get my nose out of joint over it.


RC
 

Corsair, that sounds like a really good start for level and characterization. Fast/tough is good as we dont have those types yet. Reminds me of a pilot I played in Alternity once upon a time. (NOTE: Comparing a creation to something I would've or have created is amongst the highest form of praise I give :D )

[Arrogance Off]

Jeph, I love the class write ups. Each does a great job of selling the class and highlight where their spotlight will shine. Bravo.

Before we get too far along the Table of Contnets though, I had some starship concerns you missed in the posting frenzy: http://www.enworld.org/showpost.php?p=3287009&postcount=82
 

Jephkay said:
The Captain will be tenth. In a Starfleet game, everyone will be lower than him/her/it. In a non-Starfleet game? Hmm... it is conceivable that there could be some grizzled old space hand with more experience.

The pilot should be 7th or 8th. Lower if he washed out before Lt Commander. I feel a chart coming on... This will be argued, I should hope. If Life Experience is a function of Level, then:

Rank Level
Ensign 1-2
Lt JG 3-4
Lt 5-6
LtCMDR 7-8
CMDR 9-10
CAPt 10-11
Adm+ 12+

But we could easily do this:
Rank Level
Ensign 1-3
Lt JG 4-6
Lt 6-9
LtCMDR 10-12
CMDR 13-14
CAPt 15-17
Adm+ 17+

Note that weeks and months and years sometimes go by between doing something other than charting gaseous nebula (or dust clouds). Also, you have to make your promotion rolls after every campaign to see if you get new rank, and captain isn't something everyone gets, you might stay a department head for 20 years like Will Riker.

I prefer chart 1, with the addendum that there can be a degree of slippage. As you said, Riker *should* have been Captain long ago but he chose to stay Commander just so he could be on Enterprise. Likewise, a newly graduated Ensign might very well have been a prominent scientist (with 7 levels in other classes) before entering Star Fleet.

This raises the question: Will you write guidelines on how to create a starship crew? That would mean no 1st level parties to go adventuring. Or they'd all have to be low ranking crewmembers on the same starship (a completely viable possibility).
 

Diggus Rex said:
Really, when I think about, there are no good examples of average Betazoids in the whole franchise. Half-Breed, super sensitive, psychopath, comatose, and middle-aged nympho. Lt. Stadi from Voyager's premiere was our best hope, but died before act II :p

this made me giggle!

Working with what we have, Lwaxana is very good at picking out surface thoughts. She cuts you off before you're about to say something and can tell you want to see her naked at Deanna's wedding. Also, she can tell when an Antedan terrorist is about to blow up a conference with ultritium charges, but not if he's not thinking about it. She doesnt know that Pappa favored brother Robert over you, that's a guarded memory. Just because thoughts arent usally heard doesnt make them secret. I dont think the answer is in higher DC's, maybe just do what Raven did but lower the bonus and make it ranged.

And there's the problem that they kept redefining Deanna's abilities as Half-Betazoid over the course of the series. Lwaxana accuses Deanna of getting soft with her telepathy in season 1 (which kinda hints she had full-fledged telepathy before), and I think there was even one episode where Deanna went inside Lwaxana's mind to help unlock the repressed memory of her sister Kestra's death. (Did she have Crusher's medical intervention to help with that? I forget...)


On the mind chat, I think it's so common amongst Betazoids, one would need to take a Drawback not to have it. I'm thinking we are statting the low level telepath, with those in the show being exceptionally strong or handicapped (like Suder). Really it's a small advantage over a regular species language.

OH
MY
GOD!

Betazoid languages: Speak Betazoid, Read/Write Betazoid, MINDSPEAK (!!!!!)

Make it a species language!

For one skill point, a Betazoid can learn to telepathically speak with others who have the skill. It could even be optional...but would definitely have a prereq of Betazoid Telepathy (or similar) to learn it. Thus, those born without the species trait would never have access to the skill (except with their Betazoid Imzadi).

Opinions?

I mean, it can be used at range, but so can other languages (via Comm devices)...
 

Corsair said:
I guess I'm just not entirely sure what a level in this means. I mean what level would you say an ensign fresh out of the academy is? What level is someone like Wesley Crusher when he first appears in TNG? What level represents a young Miles O'Brien (lowly transporter chief)?

I guess I'm looking for benchmarks.


The Weasel is Smart Hero 1 in "Encounter at Far Point Station."

He's an unusual Star Fleet cadet when he enrolls since he was an acting ensign for like 4+ years before that, so he was prolly level 5 or 6 by then.
 

Diggus Rex said:
... and what does Mara do? Seductive sales manager? :cool:

[

haha

I am waiting to detail that until I see the Captain. :]

I was inspired by Jephkay's suggestion for a "hanger-on"...you know, like the guest who won't leave... Probably one-part Q (who always just seemed to want to hang around for awhile, dammit!), one-part Neelix.
 

Ya know... if someone does nothing but the Academy, and then Starfleet thier whole lives, maybe you would find them "correctly" on the rank/level chart.

If they'd played sports, you might find them with Tough or Strong or Fast levels. Had they gone to a great deal of schooling, then entered Starfleet, they might be Smart or Dedicated.

So no... Level doesn't seem to equate to Starfleet rank. Perhaps there instead is a Level Requirement for a given rank? Like... Level 10 or no captain's pips? That has a certain nice ring to it.
 

Eep. I just looked at my character, she's level 10 (by mistake, but that can be handwaved away I guess). Maybe the captn should be around level 12 or so to even things out.
 

Jephkay said:
Perhaps there instead is a Level Requirement for a given rank? Like... Level 10 or no captain's pips? That has a certain nice ring to it.

Sounds reasonable, accomplishment in tough situtations gets ya the big chair and the more of these you handle the higher the level. Just gotta be careful with XP or ya get 25 year old captains.

When Q let Picard avoid that Nauscican fight in the past, his new reality had him in Starfleet the same amount of years but only a lieutenant. He never handled stuff, played it safe, but got only 2 promotions in a quarter century.
 

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