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T'Leynti
Netherlands
Oud-Beijerland
Zuid-Holland
Live long and prosper RPG Geek
Challenge your preconceptions or they will challenge you.
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How did this session came to be? After being asked as RPG Geek of the Week (I was very often in the RPG Tavern because of another Geek I was subscribed to) I got several questions making me explore the RPG side of gaming. Not having played any at all I resorted to my favourite series of all times: Star Trek: The Next Generation. I found through the Geek a fellow Dutchman who has a lot of experience in GM-ing RPG’s and who also has lots of experience with a Star Trek setting. So after some geekmails we settled on a date for a session.
Saturday 12th of February 2011, time for my first RPG face to face ever. Right on time arrived Louis (GM), Marleen and Marc. Together with Robert (SO) we had a group of 5. At first there was a lot of awing, seeing all those Star Trek manuals and other RPG material. It looked awesome!
Setting: the 23rd century on the USS Zheng He, a Galaxy Class Starship with an Galaxy Exploration assignment. The starship was in the 1st quadrant (Fasa) left above Gamma 7. So quite far away from other species. Nearest federation outpost being Starbase 16.
On the Starship are (besides the NPC’s):
T’Leynti – Captain – female - Vulcan
Trebor – first officer – male – Andorian
Krenn – Doctor – female – Imperial Klingon (on the ship because of an exchange program)
Sinek – Commander and Chief Engineer – male – Vulcan
The Zheng He left star base 16 two weeks ago. We are about to explore a tachyon source. Suddenly we receive a call from Admiral O’Brien. T’Leynti takes the call in her ready room. (1st strange moment, I didn’t realize this would mean I would actually leave the room to receive the message, so my crew wouldn’t hear it ). The message from the admiral mention that the planet Zestar (2 days travel away) is issued a distress call. The planet has had earth displacements because of heavy rain for a complete week. Which caused the mines of the planet to flood. We are the nearest ship to lend assistance. It should take about two weeks until other ships could be there so we could continue our original assignment.
Coming out of the ready room I issue a change of course to the planet Zestar. Due to my inexperience I neglected to inform my crew about the why. During our 2 day travel to Zestar I am ordered by the doctor to come for a medical check. This doctor only joined the crew on Star base 16 so she is relatively new but still is quite straight forward. She puts T’Leynti to several tests which are fulfilled with a good mark, even for Klingon standards.
When we are still a half day away from Zestar Trebor is able (thanks to excellent dice rolls) to pick up weak signals from Zestar. It is a Class 4M planet, and an outpost of the United Federation of Planets. It seems they only have 16% power left in their main power station. The earth displacements are not entirely natural.
Arriving at the planet, the Zheng He goes into orbit. Several more scans are deducted. It seems half of the mountain has collapsed on mining space 1, the one closest to the village of the mineworkers and the main utility building. There are about 10.000 mineworkers of which 10 have died because of the flooding and earth shiftments. There is a big river nearby which has become severely larger because of the incessant rain (3 weeks already). On the other side of the there are vine-growers. About 40 kilometer away.
T’Leynti has the ship get into contact with the vine-growers through AM/FM (they have no other way of communicating). The vine-growers have no troubles as of yet, so the main concern are the miners. The river is threatening the village and the power station is still not working on full capacity again.
The planet is an M planet so suitable for several life forms to breathe on the surface. For our convenience both the captain and first officer are beaming down to the planet. Together with the doctor, the engineer and his assistant and a security officer. We walk to the main building in which we find a local security officer. He gives the mining director a call who comes several minutes later into the hall. He’s quiet obnoxious and arrogant. Time is money you know? Why did it have to take so long for us to come and help? After assuring him we came as soon as we could and we are willing to help he settles a tiny bit.
The doctor on the planet itself is summoned for. Krenn goes to help this doctor. The most severe cases are transported up to the ship for better aid. Some nurses beam down to have additional hands to help. The local engineer is also summoned for. Sinek is talking with him what should be done to get the power station up and running again. There are no additional materials needed which they do not have themselves, the power station has to be disposed of the debris caused by the mountain caving on part of it. Then they can repair the station. For now several portable power plants are needed to keep production running. T’Leynti orders for them to be transported down to the mining locations.
Things are relatively going as needed. T’Leynti, Trebor and the security officer are still in the main building. New scans reveal that in about 8 hours the river will overflow to the point the village will be submerged. T’Leynti, Trebor and the security officer are going to the director’s office. Before being able to enter they meet the 3 gorgeous / stunning secretaries which distract the human security officer right away. T’Leynti makes a remark which gets the security officer reminded of his duties.
She asks for a meeting with the director on urgent matters. One of the secretaries calls and gives as reply we can see him in a couple of hours. Not taking this for granted, T’Leynti asks again for a meeting right away. Now the reply is we can see him in about half an hour. This is not good enough, matters are urgent. This time he is called away, we cannot have a meeting. T’Leynti goes to the door to the office and enters, disregarding the answers through the phone. The director is sitting behind his posh desk in his office with several very expensive items. He is irritated by T’Leynti and company barging in. What is the purpose of all this?
T’Leynti explains the urgency of the situation. The director calls for his own scientist to enquire about his estimates. When arrived the local scientist has to agree with the results of the scans from the Zheng He. Reluctantly the director orders us to contact with his head of administration.
With the head of administration we had a very good talk. Why were we there? We want to start with an evacuation as soon as possible. He hands us over the plans for it right away, saying: glad we’re finally can go ahead! This was going much easier as expected, having dealt with the director at first. Our doctor will be assisting in the evacuation.
Other scans that have been going on for several hours now reveal an open space inside the mountain and a perfectly rounded corridor, half filled with an unknown liquid. After deliberation Trebor, 2 scientists and 2 security officers (beamed down from the Zheng He) are going to climb the mountain to the point where the corridor should be, several meters below the surface. With the ships fasers we should be able to disintegrate the debris above the corridor, so Trebor and the rest of the company can enter the corridor.
Sadly we had to abort the mission by this time. It was getting late already and our guests had a while to travel left. What would have happened? We would have found out that the flooding and hard winds going straight for the mountain (instead of going around) were caused by a race that once inhabited the planet. In the mountain are several members of this species in stasis. The flooding and wind would have broken the mountain down so they could have been revived. The colonists on this planet came later and were unluckily building on the wrong spot at the wrong time.
It was a great experience! I really need to find players more nearby so I can try again. Off course I can play online but I think it would be advisable to read more about RPG in different settings. I still like the Star Trek setting but feel open to more.
My main issue was forgetting to disconnect me from my character. By asking the GM I could have known more about what my character would know. I mean I have a big list of skills which could have been used better. But hey, first play, lots to learn. To boldly go where no one has gone before.
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Eric Dodd
New Zealand
Martinborough
Wairarapa
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Play long and prosper!
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Sarge in charge!
Germany
Bremen
Ash nazg durbatulûk
Speak "thriend" and enter!
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The first step is always a bit strange, but you'll soon learn there is so much in your mind to discover. And the rules get easier each time you play, trust me.
Great report, Leonie.
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T'Leynti
Netherlands
Oud-Beijerland
Zuid-Holland
Live long and prosper RPG Geek
Challenge your preconceptions or they will challenge you.
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Thanks Daniel, I appreciate it. To all other thumbers, thanks for thumbing.
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Engoduun wrote: The first step is always a bit strange, but you'll soon learn there is so much in your mind to discover. And the rules get easier each time you play, trust me.
Yeah, I had the same issues the first couple of times I played RPGs.
"So, uhm... I *insert action*! Which dice do I roll? a d20, right? Oh, a d4... sorry." was probably the most used sentence when I played my first games.
But yah, it gets easier every time. And more fun ^^
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Louis Kolkman
Netherlands
Nijmegen
Gelderland
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Hello Leonie,
Good recap of what happened. And yes, I can image it can be a little overwhelming the first time... 
One of the reasons I wanted you and your SO to play important characters is that you are now "forced" to make decisions. If one of my, more experienced, players would have been the captain, you could have just tagged along. which is, in my view, not the "proper" way to experience Role Play.
Like I explained after the session: what happens in a typical ST show? There is a crisis\conflict, and the Enterprise is called in to solve it\look into it. Just like happened here!
And you did get better in your role as captain.
I am also glad that you liked it enough to want to do more of it.
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Maurice Tousignant
Canada
Windsor
Ontario
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I was wondering how you enjoyed the system, the actual rules of the game. This ones a real classic that I haven't played since I was a teenager. I wonder how the rules have stood up to the test of time.
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T'Leynti
Netherlands
Oud-Beijerland
Zuid-Holland
Live long and prosper RPG Geek
Challenge your preconceptions or they will challenge you.
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I wish I could tell you about that, but I did not have to read the rules in advance. I only watched about 8 episodes of Star Trek: TNG to get the sphere back in my mind. For the rest it was our GM who led us the way. I liked it for sure!
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