Star Trek: Frontiers | [OPEN] [Forum or Discord Play]

[GloomCookie]

IN THE EARLY 23RD CENTURY...

It is the year 2223. Starfleet and the Federation at large are in the grips of a cold war between two rival star nations: The Klingon Empire and the Romulan Star Empire. Peace with the Klingon Empire is maintained by the fragile peace treaty established by the powerful Organian species, while the Romulan Star Empire lurks in the shadows, kept at bay only by their internal politics and distrust of the Federation. Other powers are no less eager to cooperate, be it the openly hostile Tholian Assembly or the thread-bare non-aggression treaty with the Gorn or the outright distrust of the Orion Syndicates, there are numerous enemies to the Federation's way of life.

One region of space does hold promise for the future, but it is located in one of the most unstable political regions of the galaxy: The Triangle. Formed by the meeting of the Federation, Klingon, and Romulan borders, the Triangle is a region of intrigue and constantly shifting political alliances. The Orion Colonies, eager to turn a profit, will trade with anyone willing to spend the money, but are wary of their nearby Klingon neighbors. Baker's Dozen, a loose coalition of worlds surrounding Baker's Planet, are warm to the Federation but are fiercely independent. The Imperial Klingon State is made up of Klingons who fled the Empire following a failed coup and must trade with the deplorable Romulans to survive. And the Mantiev Colonial Association chaffs under the political instability of the Romulans and Klingons funding a civil war within their space.

It is in this politically unstable region that the Federation must rely on Starfleet to help keep the peace. Following the devastating Four Years War, the Federation is not eager to get into another shooting war with the Klingon Empire, especially now that the Romulans are once more trying to expand their sphere of influence, even going so far as to engage in a limited alliance with their Klingon foes. Starfleet cannot sit idly by as two fierce neighbors attempt to claim such a valuable region of space, but they are also bound by policy and procedure. Whoever is sent into the Triangle region will need to be quick witted and cunning to avoid the traps, both physical and political, such a region holds.

So ask yourself, cadet. Are you one such person?



Hello everyone, Gloomy here, and I want to welcome you all to Star Trek: Frontiers. This has been a titanic project compared to many other works I've done in the past, so I do hope that you find it interesting and will join us for play.

So what is Star Trek: Frontiers? Well, it's a mixed format game taking place both on Elliquiy forums and in the custom Discord server. The mixed format is for those who want to play a longer game on the forums, a medium format using text in the Discord group, or even a voice game for fast action (this is still being worked out). It's all meant to let anyone play how they want, however they want, and to have fun doing it.

Useful links are below. If you have questions, please feel free to send me a direct message, reply to this thread, or ask on Discord or in the OOC thread.

Discord: https://discord.gg/RjzY2Tn

Playbook: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-qeype4Hs5JRrIWeCmV_XpM9O64CoADa/view
Character Sheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1r8oRrcK5_AoS0SD0lyOKF3hA6hB0jUdvREjZ9yor_p4/edit?usp=sharing

Out of Character Thread: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=321072.0
Character Sheet Thread: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=321071.0
In Character Chapter 1: https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=321070.0

Thank you very much for reading and I hope you have a wonderful day.

[Sarah Morgan]

I'd be potentially interested in this.  I've so far watched the original series, and the first five movies.  Being visually impaired, my boyfriend was going to start describing select episodes of Next Generation to me before this quarantine and lockdown hit, thus preventing us from renting the DVD's from the library, so I'm stuck for now.  Still, I might try my hand at this, though it's good to know that just reading along is okay too.  :)

[AbyssDruid]

I love Star Trek so much, I'm interested but I've not done a D&D tabletop style roleplay online before. Is there much storytelling or just dice rolling?

[GloomCookie]

I'd be potentially interested in this.  I've so far watched the original series, and the first five movies.  Being visually impaired, my boyfriend was going to start describing select episodes of Next Generation to me before this quarantine and lockdown hit, thus preventing us from renting the DVD's from the library, so I'm stuck for now.  Still, I might try my hand at this, though it's good to know that just reading along is okay too.  :)

Sounds awesome, hon! This game will be set around the Original Series era mainly because I love the aesthetic, and I really hope you get to see The Next Generation soon. When you get done, definitely give Deep Space Nine a watch, as it has some of the best storytelling in the entire lot.

I love Star Trek so much, I'm interested but I've not done a D&D tabletop style roleplay online before. Is there much storytelling or just dice rolling?

I chose the Where No Man Has Gone Before System to avoid excessive dice rolling. The dice are mostly just for when fighting and stuff does occur, or when you need to be sneaky or something, but the emphasis is all about story. This is about everyone coming together for a good time with fun adventures, not to roll dice.

The system is super easy to work with, and we'll be using a dice bot I've already got on Discord to handle the dice. It's 4 attributes and 6 skills, plus any talents, and most of the talents emphasize roleplay too. For example, one of the talents is called "Ripped Shirt/Long Legs Short Skirt", which gives you a bonus against anyone attracted to you. Most of the time, that means unless there's a reason to roll, you'll be getting flirtatious looks across the bar when your character walks in.

While I'm on that subject, this game is totally meant to include private and intimate scenes, and maybe even a few adventures where the party might be encouraged to get to know the locals better, if you catch my drift. This wouldn't be E without a bit of sexy adventuring!

[AbyssDruid]

Sounds really fun! Please consider me interested and willing!

[Envious]

I'm not interested in the discord aspect, but I'd roleplay on the forums. I've watched everything Star Trek except Enterprise, which I'm working through currently!

[GloomCookie]

Good morning/evening to all of you. I have a few updates based on work with the playbook and other elements.

The playbook is nearly finished. I have a few more elements to add but I'm rather pleased with how the technical sections came out. Lots of info there to help immerse yourselves in roleplay, plus a life path generator to help you figure out what you did when you first started out in Starfleet.

I'm still accepting questions and hope everyone is as excited as I am. The plan to launch on 1 June is still in effect, so as we get closer to launch I will send out private messages with info for people who have already expressed interest. Consider you guys like beta testers or early accessers. Everyone else will be able to join once the game officially goes live.

Thank you to everyone who's shown interest so far and I can't wait to reveal it all to you! Wait that sounded wrong... yet so right. Anyway, kisses!

[Armphid]

I'd like to express my interest also.  I admit to being nervous about the Discord component but I am willing to give it a try!  I've had a hunger for a Star Trek RP for a while now and just haven't known how to approach getting that itch scratched.

Given the era that this game is going to be set in, essentially Original Series if I'm figuring the years right, what limits do you plan on putting on character creation?  While there were a number of worlds in the Federation, judging by the Original Series, there were very few non-humans in Starfleet even if they were part of the Federation.  Are you planning on loosening that up?  I admit to enjoying the Andorians a lot, though Star Trek humanity is always appealing to me as well.

And I will also freely admit to Next Generation being my Trek media of choice, though I pretty much like all of what I've engaged with.  I will also freely admit to not watching Discovery or Picard at all.

[ElayneTrakand]

I am super down for this! I am definitely a Treky to the point that it is the reason I am in my major (physics) and have been waiting for something to come along that seems like it will be well done. Seconding Armphid's question my thoughts lean more towards Betazoid, Trill and Orion options.

[Hidalgo1998GT]

I would absolutely love to get in on this.  I'm a huge trekkie and have been for 33 years.  Since I found this thread through the discord chat I'll probably reach out there to talk more.

[GloomCookie]

I'd like to express my interest also.  I admit to being nervous about the Discord component but I am willing to give it a try!  I've had a hunger for a Star Trek RP for a while now and just haven't known how to approach getting that itch scratched.

Given the era that this game is going to be set in, essentially Original Series if I'm figuring the years right, what limits do you plan on putting on character creation?  While there were a number of worlds in the Federation, judging by the Original Series, there were very few non-humans in Starfleet even if they were part of the Federation.  Are you planning on loosening that up?  I admit to enjoying the Andorians a lot, though Star Trek humanity is always appealing to me as well.

And I will also freely admit to Next Generation being my Trek media of choice, though I pretty much like all of what I've engaged with.  I will also freely admit to not watching Discovery or Picard at all.

The Federation of this era is mainly composed of humans and the other major races of the Federation. That's just a given since they were the founding members. However, given that the show often has the alien of the week with weird forehead ridges, I'd say there's definite wiggle room on what is and isn't available. After all, the biggest limiting factor on aliens in Trek was the budget, which was partially fixed with The Animated Series as well as Discovery, which did one hell of a job with the era.

Now, as for the dice rolling mechanics, assuming you're into those types of adventures (completely optional, btw) the system is made to be flexible. You get two boons, and any additional boon after that comes at the cost of a drawback. The book will explain in detail, but basically as long as you can dream it, you can play it. And the book also includes literally hundreds of worlds within Federation space that are known to be inhabited, but if you want to claim you're from some obscure world that was accidentally left off the census for whatever reason, that works too.

The reason for me choosing this era is because I like the setting, personally. It felt more hands on, even if the newer interpretations of Trek have made it feel more like TNG than before. Even so, I like the ships, I like the styling, and I like the miniskirts.

I am super down for this! I am definitely a Treky to the point that it is the reason I am in my major (physics) and have been waiting for something to come along that seems like it will be well done. Seconding Armphid's question my thoughts lean more towards Betazoid, Trill and Orion options.

Having just finished Discovery, I can say for a fact that Betazed are known to the Federation, though are not members as of yet. Trill are an unknown, but I'd say they're an option. Orions are... more complicated. Orions within the Federation are known as smugglers, pirates, and prostitutes. They are a separate entity within the Federation sphere of influence, and maintain a number of colonies in an area known as the Triangle. The four worlds are known locally as the Turnstile, mostly referring to the way people come and go for a good time. You can certainly play an Orion, but I'll need to review it first.

I would absolutely love to get in on this.  I'm a huge trekkie and have been for 33 years.  Since I found this thread through the discord chat I'll probably reach out there to talk more.

Please do not scream KHAAAAN! if you stub your toe and we should be good.

[GloomCookie]

A reminder to everyone this project is still planned to launch Monday 1 June 2020.

Those who have expressed interest so far will receive an early access link on Saturday 30 May 2020 with access to the playbook and discord group. Public access will begin on the following Sunday evening late in the evening (~10 pm ish).

I'm still taking any questions if you have them, and I will be active helping people create their character sheets and possibly even doing a live game or two.

Thank you to everyone who's shown support so far, and I look forward to playing with you all.

[Armphid]

So excited!  Right now I'm thinking of an Andorian, because I love their lore as it was developed before they showed up in Enterprise and ended up liking that too.  Though I admit that I haven't actually seen all of their appearances/lore from that show.  Plus, blue is cool!  Do you intend our characters to be high ranking officers on a ship or are we more of a below decks kind of group?

[Muse]

*peeks* 

Hi awesome people! 

I may want to apply here with a friend of mine.  (I certainly see lots of people i love playing with.)  Even if i don't it looks really fun and i hope you have a great time. 

Armphid, is your andorian going to be a girl?  If so boop me somewhere if you want some pictures.  I have a petite  andorian security officer character i played recently and she's got lots of images.  (Including one i wanted to use for a Mirror Universe episode.)

[GloomCookie]

So excited!  Right now I'm thinking of an Andorian, because I love their lore as it was developed before they showed up in Enterprise and ended up liking that too.  Though I admit that I haven't actually seen all of their appearances/lore from that show.  Plus, blue is cool!  Do you intend our characters to be high ranking officers on a ship or are we more of a below decks kind of group?

So the system has ways to advance over time. You'll start as a lower deck officer and over time will gain experience, and with said experience, gain ranks. Eventually, your character will reach a really high rank, such as a Captain, and then you'll hit a soft cap. That soft cap is so you can enjoy your time as Captain and fly around your ship before eventually you'll get bumped up to a flag rank. Flag ranks will be manned by NPCs only, so at that point your character is effectively taken out of action and sent to pilot a desk somewhere. You may then create a new character if you feel so inclined.

The reason I want this system is so that over time, your character grows and accomplishes things in their career, and eventually has the opportunity to move beyond. Don't worry, it won't just happen every time you post, as it'll take a while between advancements in rank and those advancements take longer the higher you go. That way, when your character does get taken out of action, they've got a storied career under their belt.

*peeks* 

Hi awesome people! 

I may want to apply here with a friend of mine.  (I certainly see lots of people i love playing with.)  Even if i don't it looks really fun and i hope you have a great time. 

Armphid, is your andorian going to be a girl?  If so boop me somewhere if you want some pictures.  I have a petite  andorian security officer character i played recently and she's got lots of images.  (Including one i wanted to use for a Mirror Universe episode.)

While you didn't pose a question, I will take a moment to mention that the Mirror Universe is something that will very rarely happen. It's fun and I get the appeal to play a bad boy/girl, but I don't want it to become the trope of the week. That being said, there is no Section 31 in this game. I hate the concept, always have. But, there will be opportunities to conduct covert operations on behalf of Starfleet Intelligence.

To me, Section 31 has no real reason to exist. Every single government in history has a reason to rely on intelligence gathering organizations and sometimes those organizations have had a need to carry out covert operations on behalf of their nation. The CIA, KGB, all of them do not need some special mandate to exist, and neither should Section 31. Starfleet Security and Starfleet Intelligence work together to identify threats and, if necessary, carry out operations to eliminate potential threats.

That doesn't mean, however, that they run around without oversight. They are still bound by Federation law or, in the case of operations against foreign powers, a requirement to inform the President and Federation Council this is going on. They must get approval before they can act, such as assassinating a foreign dignitary. The reasons are obvious: There's no point in having an organization that could kick off a war with no consequences.

Most of the time, Starfleet captains might actually knowingly host a Starfleet Intelligence officer onboard their ship as part of the Starfleet Naval Intelligence office. Their job is to collect information from starships on routine operations and send it up the chain and then receive information coming back down. Examples would be detecting an enemy ship's warp signature and passing it up, and then another ship detects that same warp signature later. The information is combined and slowly paints a picture of who is operating where, and that information is passed to the captain as "We believe it's the K'var, captained by Brenash, son of Trelark. He's known for being rather brutal and not too bright, so he'll likely attack head on."

Where does the info on the ship's name and major officers come from? Well, beyond covert operations, there's also just plain buying information. While the Federation doesn't directly deal with the Klingon Empire or Romulan Star Empire, there are plenty of free traders who do, and they buy and sell information that is passed along to interested parties. That also means, yes, that they sell Federation information to the Klingons and Romulans. It's the price of doing business. But, it helps each side paint a picture of the other and, ironically, helps prevent war by making each side aware of just how much they're going to need to expend to win.

I know that's kind of a rant but I wanted to give some insight into how the Federation operates and why there's no Section 31 in this game.

[Armphid]

Armphid, is your andorian going to be a girl?  If so boop me somewhere if you want some pictures.  I have a petite  andorian security officer character i played recently and she's got lots of images.

I hadn't decided, to be honest.  But I'd love to see the pictures!  That might help me decide.  Thank you for offering!

While you didn't pose a question, I will take a moment to mention that the Mirror Universe is something that will very rarely happen. It's fun and I get the appeal to play a bad boy/girl, but I don't want it to become the trope of the week. That being said, there is no Section 31 in this game. I hate the concept, always have. But, there will be opportunities to conduct covert operations on behalf of Starfleet Intelligence.

This inspires me for this game even more!  I dislike Section 31 immensely and always found the Mirror Universe to be a tired and overused trope, even the only time it showed up in TOS.  Unpopular opinion, I know.  But knowing that The Mirror Universe is central to a lot of Star Trek: Discovery (or so I have heard) is one of my reasons for avoiding that show.

[GloomCookie]

I hadn't decided, to be honest.  But I'd love to see the pictures!  That might help me decide.  Thank you for offering!

This inspires me for this game even more!  I dislike Section 31 immensely and always found the Mirror Universe to be a tired and overused trope, even the only time it showed up in TOS.  Unpopular opinion, I know.  But knowing that The Mirror Universe is central to a lot of Star Trek: Discovery (or so I have heard) is one of my reasons for avoiding that show.

Having seen Discovery, it does take up a good chunk of Season 1, but the arc is only a few episodes. I was hesitant at first too but once I watched it I was kinda happy I saw it.

[Armphid]

Maybe I'll check it out at some point.  I saw part of the first episode at a friend's when it first came out and was...not impressed.  And became less so as I heard about all the Mirror Universe stuff, Klingons having open fires in their ships, and knife ships, and...yeah.  But maybe I'll give it a shot!

So I read through a lot of the PDF and skimmed over must of the rest of it.  At the end it shows uniforms; are we using those as the Starfleet uniforms for the game for women or will female Starfleet personnel wear the minidress?

[GloomCookie]

Maybe I'll check it out at some point.  I saw part of the first episode at a friend's when it first came out and was...not impressed.  And became less so as I heard about all the Mirror Universe stuff, Klingons having open fires in their ships, and knife ships, and...yeah.  But maybe I'll give it a shot!

So I read through a lot of the PDF and skimmed over must of the rest of it.  At the end it shows uniforms; are we using those as the Starfleet uniforms for the game for women or will female Starfleet personnel wear the minidress?

I am very particular when it comes to the look and feel, and I much preferred that picture of the uniform than other available image sets. Alas, they did not have an accompanying image of the skirt as a viable uniform, so I am going to say that a miniskirt variant does NOT exist, sadly enough. Pants, anyone can wear, but skirts are still sort of a gendered item even in the 23rd century. At least I'm not making you queue up vinyl records or magnetic tape as storage media.

[Armphid]

I am very particular when it comes to the look and feel, and I much preferred that picture of the uniform than other available image sets. Alas, they did not have an accompanying image of the skirt as a viable uniform, so I am going to say that a miniskirt variant does NOT exist, sadly enough. Pants, anyone can wear, but skirts are still sort of a gendered item even in the 23rd century. At least I'm not making you queue up vinyl records or magnetic tape as storage media.

Good point!  Oh, those magnetic tapes.  Okay, so the miniskirt will remain an item for shore leave and off duty hours. 

[GloomCookie]

This game is now live. Please see first post of this thread for additional information.

[Armphid]

So excited for this!  I'll get my character sheet up soon and try to post back when I'm able to.

[Hephaestus]

Im a huge trekkie and have alot of interest for the game. Is there a slot left for me to play in?

[GloomCookie]

Im a huge trekkie and have alot of interest for the game. Is there a slot left for me to play in?

Of course. Feel free to join either the forum thread or discord (or even both), however you feel like playing.