Jeremi decides to call her old boss for assistance . . . ;) :D
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Jeremi decides to call her old boss for assistance . . . ;) :D
Here is Appleciders's new character, as mentioned in the game thread. Welcome aboard! (I'll add your attributes here later, if you wish).
CHARACTER NAME: Velir Rangin
USERNAME: Appleciders
CURRENT RANK: Ensign
CURRENT ASSIGNMENT: Xenobiology Officer, Sciences Department, USS Yorktown, NCC-1717
SPECIES: Coridanite
RACIAL/ETHNIC SUBGROUP, IF ANY: N/A
AGE: 30
SEX: Male
HOMEWORLD: Coridan
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Ens. Velir stands only 165 centimeters tall and masses only 65 kilograms, with thin dark hair and an olive complexion. To the untrained observer, he appears to be an Earth-normal human.
PERSONALITY PROFILE: Social and affable, Velir rarely shows stress and enjoys the company of others.
SPOUSE, SIGNIFICANT OTHER OR NEXT OF KIN, IF ANY: None
HOBBIES OR INTERESTS: In addition to his interest in xenobiology, Velir is a skilled amateur chess player (both traditional and Tri-D). He is very interested in traditional Coridan culture, and has an elaborate metal nhorel heirloom mask that he wears on special occasions.
ACADEMIC BACKGROUND: Bachelor's equivalent in Xenobiology from Cordas University 2263; Starfleet Academy Class of 2268.
SERVICE RECORD: Following his graduation from Cordas University, Velir sought special dispensation from Starfleet to enroll in the Academy despite the fact that Coridan had not yet been accepted into the Federation. This was granted, and he graduated in 2268, having continued his studies on xenobiology. He was assigned to the USS Lexington upon graduation, and was slightly injured in the M-5 incident near Alpha Carinae. He is familiar with Ens. Pourtash from their mutual service aboard the Lexington. He has training in advanced first aid.
CAREER GOAL: Velir believes that the best hope for Coridan to break the cycle of violence and political instability associated with dilithium smuggling is Federation membership. Now that that's been achieved, Velir feels that continuing to serve in Starfleet represents the best service he can offer to his beloved Coridan.
This mission is now winding down and almost over. I'll wrap it up in the next few days and we'll take a short break before our next adventure. I encourage you to post now, if you wish to. Thanks!
A warm welcome to Appleciders! Looking forward to our next mission. :)
I've updated and expanded the Crew Roster in this thread's post 1.
You will be telling us the solution to the mystery, right? Right???
Indeed I shall... mostly.
Thus ends Mission #1, "On the Brink." I hope you liked it. Although I never expected it to last so long, I wanted to give everyone a taste of what I love most about Star Trek: a sense of optimism, of humanity united and courageous as it faces the unknown, of futuristic adventure aboard a cool ship. Over the course of almost 14 months (!) you had First Contact, boarding party duty, landing party duty (and no dead redshirts!), combat, diplomacy, scientific and engineering challenges to overcome, espionage, a murder investigation, and all the ups and downs of shipboard life, including a touch of romance.
This is your game as much as mine, so please let me know what you thought - the good, the bad and the ugly. What could I do better next time? If you'd rather not post here, please PM me. Your feedback is important to me. Thanks.
And now we'll see if What Exit? knows what seven of our NPCs had in common.
We'll start Mission #2 in about a week.
Okay - I have a complaint.What 'before"? Was a previous meeting mentioned and I missed it? Did we ever meet or hear of Walsingham, Sorge, or Gohh before? Please point me to the post. And other than being Brownlock's roommate, when did Dr Bucci have any significant part in the scenerio? Jeez, you're worse than Agatha Christie!Quote:
Originally posted by game thread
Now for more constructive feedback. Aside from vacations, there was too much space between GM posts. I'd like to see more frequent updates. I know it's tough doing this in a forum as opposed to sitting around a table facing each other, but perhaps all players could make the commitment to check the game thread daily? that way the game might move faster. And if a player-character has nothing to add, to post as much in the set up thread?
Thanks, anyrose.
Walsingham, Sorge, and Gohh were mentioned in the second post of the game thread, setting the stage for what was to come. (The first two names are also significant, BTW).
It was Dr. Bucci who examined George when he was first brought aboard, "tried" to revive him when he was found unresponsive in the Brig, and did the scans of blood, urine, marrow etc. after he was autopsied. Doctors make the deadliest criminals, Conan Doyle wrote. Agatha Christie, indeed!
As to posting more often, I prefer not to until everyone has had a chance to respond to my most recent post. And everyone should already be aware of Rule 12, which requires them to check the setup and game threads at least every other day.
My apologies - I did not remember that from page one. I'm guessing the names Walsingham and Sorge have something to do with the original Yorktown and its famous battle?
I get the impression that Gohh is Ferengi. He talks of business too much to be Klingon. But has the Federation even encountered Ferengi yet?
Wrong about Walsingham and Sorge. A little Googling will yield the answer.
Correct, no Ferengi encountered yet. I dropped a clue about Gohh's race in that last post.
Very interesting article - thank you
btw - when I Googled "Walsingham and Sorge", the game thread was the fourth entry.
"mottled yellow" skin - that's Eruunlac, no?
Ding ding ding! Gohh is of the same race as the three aliens aboard the cloaked ship.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Thank you so much for running this for us, Elendil's Heir! And especially for being so tirelessly patient with me.
As far as feedback goes, I've really loved the intrigue elements of the game. Those have been the parts that really made things exciting for me and I can't wait to see how things unfold.
You're welcome! It's been fun for me, too.
In addition to the seven NPCs mentioned earlier, I thought you might like to know the stories behind some of the other crew names. In no particular order:
Sundri Parvinder Singh - The first name I picked from a list of common Sikh female first names; the second I've always liked for its exotic flavor since first seeing it many years ago, and the last because of Kirk's great foe and because I just think Sikhism is pretty interesting. Sikh women today don't typically use Singh as a last name, incidentally; most go by Kaur ("princess"). I presume that Sikh naming practices will change in the next two hundred years.
Horst Leventhal - Some years ago I wrote a series of ST:TNG-era short stories set aboard the USS Kearsarge, commanded by Capt. Margot Leventhal. I thought Horst might be her grandfather or grand-uncle.
Pablo Echevarria Vargas - The first and last names don't mean anything in particular, but TNG writer Rene Echevarria was once helpful to me.
Euterpe Terezis - Euterpe is a relatively common Greek female first name, and I knew a very nice girl in high school with the last name Terezis.
Abdi Roble - I once did some reading on the problems of Somali immigrants in the U.S. Among those quoted was a man with the first name Abdi, and another with the last name Roble. As it happens, I know a guy who perfectly fits my mental image of the ship's Science Officer.
Mikhail Trigorin - I played Trigorin, a famous author, in a college production of Anton Chekhov's tragedy The Seagull.
Miriam Villa - Named after a friend and former coworker who's a ST fan (it's her last name, but Miriam is not her first).
Cecilia Bennett - A mashup from two of British actress Keira Knightley's finer roles, Cecilia Tallis in Atonement and Elizabeth Bennet in Pride & Prejudice.
Sarah Perry - One of my sisters is named Sarah, and I went to high school with a memorable guy named Perry.
Giancarlo Bucci - There's a nice Italian restaurant nearby named Bucci's!
Not every name has a story behind it; some just pop into my head, or are from an otherwise-insignificant list I have of names I like.
Keep the comments coming, please! Praise or constructive criticism, it's all useful. If I can improve the game for the next mission, I'd like to. PM me if you'd rather.
Many thanks to Elendil's Heir for a job very well done. Also thanks to my fellow crew members for great posts and lots of fun! I'm really looking forward to mission #2! :)
Only suggestion -- I'd like to see our crew have more free time during the mission to interact socially and explore their hobbies and interests, etc. I think this would add depth to the game itself and also allow us to grow with our characters and learn more about them.
I know a Somali guy named Abdi, actually. He was born into a family of nomadic herders and eventually left Somalia on a basketball scholarship. Very nice guy. He'd play in local pick-up games and refuse to shoot unless his team was losing.
I thought I had posted already, it may have been eaten on my iPhone.
I thought the pace of the game was good and it was a fun adventure.
My thoughts exactly, on both points. The mission was great fun; I appreciate the gamemaster and other players a lot.Quote:
Originally posted by WES
And I wish there were more "down" time chances during the mission. The Giya subplot is an excellent example. But, in particular, I'd like to see more talking among the player characters. Maybe by having less time pressure to get things done in-game (not much time to talk when boarding another ship) and more things to discuss.
Thanks for your feedback. I tried to build in downtime at the end of every ship's day when your off-duty characters could have coffee (or something stronger), swim, study, enjoy hobbies, explore the Yorktown, go on dates, play games, read, exercise, goof off, etc., but maybe that wasn't clear enough. The next time you get itchy for that kind of chance again, please post it here in the setup thread, or PM me, and at the next possible opportunity I'll see to it.
ETA: In fact, I'll start the next mission out that way!
Knowing what a Heinlein fan What Exit? is, I'll now admit to using Heinlein character names for some of our NPCs (non-player characters), including the Security team aboard the alien ship in its entirety:
De la Paz - from The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
Russell - Have Spacesuit, Will Travel
Dodson - Space Cadet
Nivens - The Puppet Masters
Bartlett - Time for the Stars
Rico - Starship Troopers
Mahmoud - Stranger in a Strange Land
Dahlquist - from the short story "The Long Watch"
Here is WES's new character. Welcome aboard! (I'll add your attributes here later, if you wish).
CHARACTER NAME: T'Var
USERNAME: WES
CURRENT RANK: Lieutenant
CURRENT ASSIGNMENT: Assistant Chief Medical Officer, USS Yorktown, NCC-1717
SPECIES: Vulcan
RACIAL/ETHNIC SUBGROUP, IF ANY: N/A
AGE: 60
SEX: Female
HOMEWORLD: Vulcan
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Tall and quite muscular. Black hair and eyes, with typical Vulcan features.
PERSONALITY PROFILE: Brilliant, friendly and, unlike many of her race, very interested in emotions and how they relate to the physical and mental healing of patients. She believes strongly in duty, honor and honesty.
SPOUSE, SIGNIFICANT OTHER OR NEXT OF KIN, IF ANY: T'Var comes from a large, supportive family. She hopes to find a mate - who need not necessarily be Vulcan - and have children someday.
HOBBIES OR INTERESTS: She loves team sports of all kinds and is very athletic and competitive. Meditation is also an important part of her daily routine.
ACADEMIC BACKGROUND: Raal Prefectural Medical Institution, 2257; Starfleet Academy, 2264; Starfleet School of Medicine, with high honors, 2267.
SERVICE RECORD: T'Var served in the V'Shar, the Vulcan intelligence and security service, for decades, but tends not to talk about it. After becoming a physician and serving a residency on Arcadia, she was in private medical practice on Vulcan but felt unfulfilled professionally. She decided to join Starfleet, and served aboard the USS Constitution, NCC-1700, as a staff surgeon before being recently assigned to the Yorktown.
CAREER GOAL: To be the best doctor she can possibly be, always improving her skills while serving the Federation with distinction and honor.
I should have gotten that. Dahlquist especially. If you'd had Martin, Rivera, and Wheeler, I'd have gotten it for sure.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
The new mission: http://www.mellophant.com/forums/sho...il-Nocere-quot
OK, remind us who those three are...?Quote:
Originally posted by Appleciders
Just a suggestion: "watch" is a more nautical term than "shift" to describe a scheduled period of duty aboard a Starfleet vessel. I recommend it.
Noted! Thank you.
Huh? Those are the four. "Dahlquist! Martin! Rivera! Wheeler!"Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's HeirOK, remind us who those three are...?Quote:
Originally posted by Appleciders
Oh, I get it. The other three are from the Space Patrol's missing-man roll-call ritual?Quote:
Originally posted by ApplecidersHuh? Those are the four. "Dahlquist! Martin! Rivera! Wheeler!"Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's HeirOK, remind us who those three are...?Quote:
Originally posted by Appleciders
I clearly need to reread Space Cadet again.
Me too! I loved that book back in junior high. I reread Time for the Stars not long ago, and it held up pretty well.
Yep. I guess that was unclear; I associate Dahlquist more with Space Cadet than The Long Watch simply because I've read it so many more times. My dad hooked me on science fiction with Space Cadet and The Rolling Stones when I was about seven. I must have read them twenty or thirty times each before I was sixteen, and it's funny how well some of those firsts stick with you. Space Cadet holds up really well-- I have only one quibble nowadays. The female characters are really, really weak, and the Patrol seems to be exclusively male. Heinlein usually does so well with having strong, savvy women, so it's surprising not to see them in that book.
I tend to reread a few Heinlein books every summer. "Glory Road" was one this year as an example. That book has held up real well.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
I love The Rolling Stones, it is one of my favorites. It has been a while since Space Cadet.Quote:
Originally posted by Appleciders
I reread The Rolling Stones & Red Planet this summer also.
I confess I have never read The Rolling Stones, Podkayne of Mars or Red Planet. Someday! My favorite Heinlein stories are... well, all those from which I drew character names, and Glory Road and Have Spacesuit Will Travel.
In fact, The Rolling Stones contains an episode with a single small, cute, furry creature which breeds wildly until it threatens to overwhelm the ship with thousands of adorable furballs. The writers for TOS admit that they probably subconsciously lifted the idea for Tribbles from Heinlein. They wrote him to ask for his permission to do the episode anyway, and he gave his consent, noting that he'd stolen the idea from someone else anyway. I have heard that while he was offered a payment for the idea by the Star Trek producers, the only reimbursement he'd accept was a copy of the script for the episode signed by the writers, but that part of the story may be apocryphal.
More importantly, we first meet Hazel Stone in this wonderful book.Quote:
Originally posted by Appleciders
David Gerrold presented the idea to the ST writers, and admits in his book he was inspired by Heinlein. The only thing the writers did was tear Gerrold's story to shreadsQuote:
Originally posted by Appleciders
WES has a great idea for the chess-loving Trekkers here.
I'm setting up a thread for her here, http://www.mellophant.com/forums/sho...ays-some-chess, in which she, as Dr. T'Var, will play Earth-style chess with any other Yorktown crewmember who wishes to take her on. Stay in character, please. Each move will be posted and other crewmembers can comment as they see fit as the game goes on. No hints/advice as to next or future moves, please, unless requested by the players.
Other Mello members who'd like to kibitz may do so - but tell me what kind of character you'd like to be (sex, race, age, branch of Starfleet, etc.) and I'll cook up a quick Starfleet character for you to maintain the in-game mood.
This will be a sideline to the regular Star Trek roleplaying game, as if you all were in the ship's Rec Room, playing chess one lazy afternoon, or watching others do so, before going on-duty.
Heh, nice idea Elendil's Heir, although my chess is terrible, I may follow along.
*Paging Malacandra, Paging Malacandra* - Oh wait, he's already there.
Since neither I nor Collins is a big chess fan, you all have fun. Collins would rather play D&D or something similar anyway.
Thanks, but 'twas WES's idea, as noted above.Quote:
Originally posted by CatInASuit
Hi everyone! Many thanks to Elendil's Heir for setting up the chess thread. This should be a lot of fun.
I'm an intermediate player, BTW. Definitely not a beginner, but no master of the game (if that's ever really possible). I'm sure Dr. T'Var is much better than I am, though. <G>
Anyrose, perhaps Collins could introduce the crew to some D & D action? I played when I was younger and enjoyed it very much. I love fantasy RPG's of all kinds. :)
Onsott: "That would violate the Prime Directive, wouldn't it, doctor?"Quote:
Originally posted by WES
Okay, "Onsott" - you owe me a new keyboard.Quote:
Originally posted by MalacandraOnsott: "That would violate the Prime Directive, wouldn't it, doctor?"Quote:
Originally posted by WES
Of course, that would be interesting. All the player characters would take on player characters, and we could ask Lt. Bennett to be the GM. . . . :dubious::LOL::bravo:
I think my brain would explode if we did that....
Another TOS-era Starfleet women's uniform design, for those who dislike both miniskirts and pants:
http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__...ions_Spock.jpg
Talking of recursion, there was a great quote from Dream Park where some characters were reminiscing about the pencil'n'paper days: "...then the party went into the house and the DM said 'You go into the kitchen and there are a group of people sat around a table with some books and strange dice.' One of the PCs shot the DM - and the dungeon disappeared!". :D
Thanks. Collins'll stick with the pants and tunic. ;)Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
Though Vulcan's aren't really all that fixated on their attire, I'll have to agree with anyrose on this one. T'Var will remain in pants and tunic, thank you very much! <g> Thanks for the option, though. An "interesting" look.
I cannot recall if TOS's computer was programmed to repsond to "Computer, locate Person"
No.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
As to Lt. Shaw's dress, Memory Alpha says it's the women's dress uniform of that era, but I'd think that would have just as much gold braid on it as Spock's does in that picture. To me it really does look like just a longer, less revealing version of the women's standard TOS uniform. I actually rather like it.
Here's a front view: http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__.../AreelShaw.jpg
I wasn't really sure, either, anyrose. Which is why I had T'Var suggest security look into it. If Roble isn't responding to a call from the Bridge, something must be amiss. The plot doth thicken.... <G>
What is the protocol in this situation, since they are already on a patrol? Does Pourtash have the authority to change course?
That's certainly something the characters may wish to discuss. I'll provide a game-definitive answer if necessary.Quote:
Originally posted by Zuul
Just finished this book, about the 1942 naval Battle of Midway and the 1998 Dr. Robert Ballard-led search for the sunken aircraft carrier USS Yorktown. Good text and even better pictures: http://www.amazon.com/Return-Midway-...8799841&sr=1-1
Sounds interesting. I still think Midway was the most important battle in WWII for the US but then I am prejudiced in favor of the USN clearly. I can see the arguments for some land battles in Europe, especially if D-Day is considered 1 battle.
Descendants of our erstwhile young engineer?: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Delaney_sisters
I suppose I should go watch that episode on Hulu.com to refresh my memory before Collins answers - Way to set me up, there, Zuul. ;) :DQuote:
Originally posted by Pourtash
Hey, Collins could be instrumental here. Pourtash isn't going to give away any advantage he could get. ;)
Funny, I picked the name as a Delaney was the senior enginering officer that kept the Yorktown afloat overnight at Midway. IIRCQuote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
ETA: I went Googling and found more on John Delaney, after winning the silver star he eventually went on to the rank of Rear Admiral. Pretty good. He was a Lieutenant Commander when serving on the USS Yorktown, CV-5.
Nice to see he later got his own ship! He's mentioned just once, in passing, in the Ballard book.
anyrose, does this help?:
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Jour...abel_(episode)
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Orion_scout_ship
thank you, Elendil's Heir. I'll post after I've read those two pages - please be patient, though, I've got things to do for my chorus that are taking priority right now
Developing tractor beams of a sort. Be sure to read the last two paragraphs: http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2011...am/?&hpt=hp_c2
Did Collins actually appear on ST:TOS? Unnamed red-dressed female personnel start about halfway down this page: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Unna...701)_personnel
Yes, that was before she dyed her hair to better fit her personality. :dubious: :D
So... any of those pictures of anonymous Enterprise officers in red dresses fit your mental image of Collins?
This one seems close, but with a shorter nose and shorter hair.
Ah, thanks!
This would make any Starfleet mother proud.
::shudder::Quote:
Originally posted by Zuul
Do you share my revulsion of those "reborn" dolls? :D
I have no clue what a "reborn" doll is, but that was just plain wrong. Do I dare ask what "reborn" dolls are? I thought the doll just had something to do with Star Trek III when Spock was reborn.Quote:
Originally posted by Zuul
Reborns are where they take a normal baby doll and do...that to it. They paint it in a realistic way, add hair, etc. It usually looks somewhat like a dead, slightly deformed baby.
I tell you, it's a lot easier being stunt coordinator for a written RPG.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Wishing everybody a very Happy Thanksgiving. Have a safe one.
Seconded! One of the things I'm thankful for is having such good players in this game.
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Class_F_shuttlecraft
In the game thread, What Exit? asks about the maximum speed of the Yorktown's shuttles. The ship carries several of these small Class-F spacecraft, the max speed of which was never established on ST:TOS. They have what look like small warp nacelles, and it was pretty clear that they weren't limited to sublight speeds, as they were used for relatively long distances between the Enterprise and other planets or starbases (and Kirk chased the Enterprise in one in "The Menagerie").
I'm open to suggestions. How fast would it be reasonable for them to go? We know that Constitution-class starships in good repair can cruise at Warp 6 indefinitely, and at Warp 8 in emergencies. Based on the "Menagerie" precedent the shuttles would, I think, be quite a bit slower than that.
I found this: "As of Star Trek: Voyager, advanced shuttles are capable of speeds of up to Warp 4" thus I think I am out of luck as far as a shuttle faster then the Yorktown.
Warp was on a different scale in Voyager than in TOS, though. In the later series, Warp 10 was a hard limit, while TOS ships exceeded it. The way this was explained was that the scale had been changed. Warp 4 in Voyager would not be Warp 4 in TOS.
Following a naval analogy, bigger ships will almost always be faster than smaller ones.
OK, thanks. I'll specify in the game thread: Warp 2 cruising and Warp 4 emergency speed, which seems reasonable to me.
Here's something interesting. Nichelle Nichols first read for the part of Spock:
Spock had originally been planned as a female Vulcan science officer, with a human female first officer as a separate character. My, that would have changed things!Quote:
Nichols recalls the day she was interviewed for this new television series called “Star Trek.”
“They gave me a three-page script to read from that had three characters named Bones, Kirk and somebody called Spock, and they asked me if I would read for the role of Spock. When I looked at this great text, I said to myself, ‘I’ll take any one of these roles,’ but I found the Spock character to be very interesting, and I asked them to tell me what she [Spock] was like.
That's the first I've ever heard of that. Color me... skeptical.
Well, she said it in an interview, so Nichols makes the claim, at any rate.
I've read an awful lot about the creation of ST over the years and have never, ever read that anywhere. So yes, I'm a bit doubtful.
It could be that they had her read it because they needed someone else for the scene and lacked another male actor and the character had not been intended as female, with the article writer mistaking her description. Majel Barrett-Roddenberry can be seen playing Number One in "The Cage" and "The Menagerie", though.
That seems more likely to me, but even so, in as many convention appearances as Nichols has made over the years, it's odd that she's never (to my knowledge) mentioned this little factoid before.
Very strange, considering that Spock (and the female Number One) were in the first pilot, and Kirk, McCoy, Scott, Sulu and Uhura were not... and this has never IME been so much as rumoured in the last 45 years.
It's too bad the interview was with HuffPo and not with an organization who would have recorded video of it. I imagine being able to actually see the interview would have made the context and full story a bit more clear.
Well, quite, the actual cite seems to lack a certain ring of authenticity. My point is that there never was a time when Kirk, Spock and McCoy were all being cast - for Spock was an established character from the first pilot, and by the time they were casting Kirk and McCoy, they already had a Spock.
Well, I've looked at the article where the quote originally comes from and HuffPo does claim it really comes from their interview with her. I don't think they'd lie exactly, but you're right. It doesn't seem to match the facts at all.
Looking up the development information on Uhura, Nichols was introduced to Herb Solow and Robert Justman by Roddenbery for the express purpose of playing a female communications officer. It seems doubtful that she would have auditioned for any other roles in that light, regardless of when they were created or cast.
Unfortunately the story is being spread now by people as credulous as me. :emb: We'll see if Huffington Post ever retracts it.
I just turned down an invite to add the HuffPost app to my facebook page. Each time I read one of their articles, I walk around with a :dubious: face for the next several hours.
Yeah, this certainly does call their credibility into question, doesn't it?
I find HuffPo usually credible on political stuff (although slanted, even if in my political direction), but don't have much experience with their other content.
I wrote to the interviewer and he says the quote is accurate, though I pointed out what Malacandra had noted about Spock:
So...I suppose she read for a character already cast and the interviewer didn't ask follow up questions to clarify the story, thus leaving us with a misleading (but apparently truthful) quote.Quote:
In the world of casting interviews and auditions and issues of what actors may be better suited for certain types of characters, etc., why wouldn't it have been possible that the three-page "audition" script handed to Nichelle Nichols by studio execs had lines from the three characters that she says it did: Bones, Kirk and Spock... if she had seen something in those three pages that referred to a MR. Spock, then why would she have asked the execs to explain what "she" (Spock) was like?
Isn't it possible that they simply wanted her to read certain lines to see how she would handle specifically-written characters? I have no problem with that process, regardless of whether or not Nimoy had already been cast. They still could've simply wanted to see how she was as an actress.
I don't think Nichelle lied to me when she told me this story, or that she somehow mis-recalled the facts of her audition. I trust that it happened as she said it did, and she was subsequently given the part of the communications officer, whose name resulted from the book, "Uhuru," that she had brought with her to the audition. As far as I'm concerned, it's an interesting story, a good part of the overall "Star Trek" lore, and case closed.
I question the interviewer's knowledge of naval (and by extension, Starfleet) nomincature. Everyone, regardless of gender or species is addressed as Mister, unless they are a commissioned officer - and even then, officers are sometimes addressed as Mister by their superior officers.
Yeah, I thought of that, too, anyrose. It didn't seem worth it to correct him, though, so I just thanked him for his time.
ETA: In my letter I'd referred to the descriptions of "Mr. Spock" from production notes (in which that was used as the character's name and he was described as male), so he may have thought I was referring to the "Mr." part itself as identifying him as male, rather than the notes themselves. So continuing down that avenue seemed potentially nitpicky and annoying, for someone who probably isn't a Trekkie.
I suspect you're right. But many thanks for looking into it more deeply! Quite interesting.
Meh. Looks like a typical instance of "Let's imagine some circumstances under which I would be right, and pretend that is what happened." But anyone who can't cope with that has no business on the Internet. :D
ETA: So what actually may have happened is that Nichelle read some lines written for Spock, but not that she was likely to be cast as Spock, who BTW was originally going to be red-skinned, not unlike Sinestro out of Green Lantern. But it's a better headline to say "OMG Spock was going to be a black woman!"
Sounds about right, Mal. I'm embarrassed for having taken it at face value, and annoyed that such a misleading quote is floating around out there with no explanation of what it really means (or apology for being misleading, for that matter). Thank you for pointing out how it had to be wrong, though.
It's what I do. And, to be honest, it would have been a great story - just like the one about when Nicholls was thinking of quitting Trek and MLK himself, no less, pointed out what a great role model she was to black Americans and she should hang in there. I understand this story is now considered of dubious provenance, but hell, something as awesome as that totally should have happened.
Also, Uhura should have got far more lines; but we all knew that anyway.
Agreed as to more lines for Uhura. She also shouldn't have had to wait for TAS before having a turn in the big chair.
:) 10 days early, but thank you for that.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
I have the kids Chanukah gifts ready as I sit next to the Christmas Tree, we have a mixed up household we do.
Wishing everyone a very happy, healthy and safe holiday season!
Looking forward to another year of boldly going.... :)
Fun with Google:
Type the following word or phrase, with no punctuation. You may have to wait a bit to see the result, but it's fun.let it snow:D
askew
do a barrel roll
Those are cool, I noticed that Chanukah had a small surprise also. (Hanukkah did the same).
okay - but I figured since you have Collins' roommate awake and answering Delaney's "email", I thought the new day had started. Roommate was, after all, sound asleep when Collins returned to quarters.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
Fair point. Just the same, hold off, please.
Color me impatient, and this is typed with nothing but respect and affection, but if T'Var and Bennett are going to have a lengthy expository conversation, could the two of you please post more quickly? kthx.
I understand. I don't expect it to go much longer.
Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you all!
Brainstorming the future of space exploration: http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2011...ool/?hpt=hp_c2
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Proteus_Steinmetz
We know from Mission #1 that one of the Yorktown's four shuttlecraft is named the Steinmetz (I read an interesting book about him as a kid). The Captain and the other senior officers will shortly be arriving in another shuttle. What should it be called? PM me (don't post it here) the name of a noteworthy scientist or explorer, in keeping with ST:TOS naming practices, in the next 48 hours. I'll then put the names up to a vote.
Nonplayers and lurkers are welcome to make nominations, too.
as you can see by my PM, I have a lot of ideas; more, if you'd like.
Just one apiece, if you please. Thanks!
Should've said earlier, I reserve the right to DQ any nomination, but will explain why to you privately, and of course give you the chance to nominate someone else.
A Safe, Healthy, and Happy 2012 to you all.
Happy New Year, Everyone!!!
Live Long and Prosper!
Likewise, and the same, all around! Here's to a better 2012 for everyone.
Our nominees for the next shuttlecraft name are:
Meitner
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lise_Meitner
Kaku
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michio_kaku
Tesla
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla
Please vote, via PM to me, in the next 72 hours. You're encouraged but not required to vote for one you didn't nominate.
By a vote of 3-1, the next-mentioned shuttlecraft will be the Tesla. Congratulations to What Exit?, who nominated the inventor and engineer. Since we had three nominees and that's just as many shuttles as the Yorktown carries (in addition to the Steinmetz, already mentioned), the Meitner (nominated by WES) and the Kaku (nominated by anyrose) will eventually be the others.
Thank you for your nominations and votes.
Where's my laser pistol, dammit?: http://www.straightdope.com/columns/...rs-as-ray-guns
Nice Straight Dope article!
It puts me in mind of my uncle when he was a little boy. It would have been in the very early 1960s. He wrote a paper for school on lasers and did a great deal of research, which was of course much harder in those days, especially for a little boy in a small town. When he presented it to his teacher, she gave him an F, because she said he'd made it all up. Surely there could be no such thing as a "laser" in reality.
Next they'll be thinking we could fly to the Moon!
That's crazy talk!
There's $10m with your name on it if you can make a working medical tricorder: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-16518171
riiiiiiight. :dubious: I'll get right on that.
what does BCDO stand for?
(and don't say "just about anything")
Bridge Command Duty Officer
When I was in, it was only CDO though but this is hundreds of years later and Starfleet not USN.
We've discussed BCDO training several times already. In the current game thread, check out posts 2, 6, 9, 13 and 18, for instance.
I found a possible continuity error
In post #190 you mention Roble picked up the sim while on Banij Prime
In #296, you say several other ships have run the sim.
This is not the only Bridge simulator module around; there are others.
From the game thread:
Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
Nice catch for TOS "The Trouble with Tribbles." Telperion is a Tolkien reference; it was one of the Two Trees of Valinor. The Topgallant Corp. was in a ST short story I once wrote (named after the uppermost sail on old sailing ships). Morra III is a reference to the 2011 movie Limitless, which I really enjoyed. The protagonist, Edward "Eddie" Morra, isQuote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Spoiler (mouseover to read):
pretty clearly destined for the U.S. Presidency by the end of the movie. I imagined that he was elected and did such a great job that, many years later, a star was named after him.
For every Trekker/dog lover: http://www.thewirelesscatalog.com/cg...L&ITEM=VL8031S
And his or her baby: http://www.thewirelesscatalog.com/cg...IL&ITEM=VM1702
Happy birthday, WES!
Happy birthday, WES! I hope it's been a lovely day for you.
Hippo Birdies Two Ewes, Wes.
Live Long and Prosper Wes.
Thanks for the bday greetings, everyone! Turned 50 (wow, it's been half a century already? <g>). May you all "Live Long and Prosper" as well. :)
I hate to do this mid-adventure, but it's become clear I don't really have time to fully participate in this RPG. I think I'll gracefully bow out at this point. It's been fun, and I'll try to follow along and see how it all turns out. Enjoy, all!
Aw, are you sure? It'd be a shame to lose you.
Appleciders - you don't have to leave altogether, the gamemaster has given you a "graceful" leave of absence. When you're ready to pop in, post here first and one of us will try to catch you up.
Nah, my life is only going to get busier in the near future, and it's not really fair to you folks to only pop in occasionally nor is it really fulfilling to me to be here only occasionally. I do wish you the best of luck, though!
Bummer. Well, if you change your mind, let me know.
If any current players know of a prospective player, or if any Mello lurkers would like to get in as a player, let me know soon, please.
Please let me know when it's morning on the ship, then I'll post. ;)
Will do.
Are you sure Jeremi and Ben have had their full 24 hours together? I thought they'd already gone back to the ship, and found that either Terezis or Ben's cabinmate were on shift so they could end their day "properly" ;)
Write it as you see fit. You're welcome to run a draft by me first, if you wish, via PM.
Please assume Delaney is busy working, probably too hard.
After two hours of "enjoying Ben's company" (;)), Jeremi realizes if she doesn't hurry back to her cabin to shower and change, she'll be late for her shift. "We really must do this again, very soon" she says, and kisses Ben before rushing off.
I'll post that in the game thread for you.
nm
hmm, there's enjoying, and then there's enjoying. Just so we're clear which one was meant in the post, the "enjoyment" was some private adult time after a full day spent together.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
I think we all knew what you meant, nudge nudge wink wink.
I sure did. <vbg> Not sure T'Var would, though. Then again -- you never know with Vulcans! <G>
I'm still willing to bring in another player or two, if anyone's interested, or knows of someone who might be...?
Hello, everyone. I'm so sorry for my absence. I caught strep throat and instead of being a minor sore throat like it was when I was a kid, it's lingered for weeks and left me pretty out of it, on top of a burst ear drum from a secondary infection.
I am back now, though, and going to be catching up to jump back into the game. I missed it!
We're very glad you're back, Zuul! We missed you.
Welcome back. We missed you, too! Hope you're feeling much, much better. :)
Yes, welcome back. Beaming you Trek style healing vibes
Just FYI, the Tricorder Mark I was already invented, marketed and sold in the late 90s by a Canadian company, although it isn't a medical device and is no longer in production, so it doesn't meet the X Prize requirements. But the tech is on the road that way.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
(Don't mind me. Just poking around, at Elendil's Heir's request...)
Cool, stick around, the place is quiet now but peaceful at least. Were you considering joining in the game?Quote:
Originally posted by dread pirate jimboJust FYI, the Tricorder Mark I was already invented, marketed and sold in the late 90s by a Canadian company, although it isn't a medical device and is no longer in production, so it doesn't meet the X Prize requirements. But the tech is on the road that way.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
(Don't mind me. Just poking around, at Elendil's Heir's request...)
Considering but leaning towards no. Between work, coaching ball, and writing for three different websites these days, my calendar is pretty full. I may change my mind at some point, however, since I spent a lot of time and money on the FASA game in my youth. :)Quote:
Originally posted by What Exit?Cool, stick around, the place is quiet now but peaceful at least. Were you considering joining in the game?Quote:
Originally posted by dread pirate jimboJust FYI, the Tricorder Mark I was already invented, marketed and sold in the late 90s by a Canadian company, although it isn't a medical device and is no longer in production, so it doesn't meet the X Prize requirements. But the tech is on the road that way.Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
(Don't mind me. Just poking around, at Elendil's Heir's request...)
I just emailed my old GURPS buddies - perhaps one or two of them would like to play
I'm certainly willing to discuss it with anyone who's interested. I'd like to add another player or two.
Dread pirate jimbo, the game really only take a few minutes every other day, at a minimum. And it looks like you have your costume already...!
We will be having a new player, choie, join us shortly. She's also a Doper. Stay tuned.
Hi everyone. I've just finished reading both missions and the set-up thread, so I'm rarin' to go. However, not only is this my first RPG, I'm also not all that knowledgable in the TOSverse; I'm a TNG/DS9 gal all the way. Nevertheless, I'll try not to let any anachronistic stuff slip into my character's thoughts/dialogue, and I'll also try to watch some eps (and will keep abreast of things in Memory Alpha as much as I can). Thanks very much to Elendil's Heir for inviting me!
My next post will be my character sheet, which.... um... like most of my posts on the SDMB, is rather too long and detailed. Gonna eliminate some stuff (though everything we discussed will remain part of her character, O leader) so y'all don't fall asleep on me.
Oh wait I lied about this being my character sheet post. I forgot to mention how entertaining both missions were, just as an observer, and that you guys did a terrific job in both. Especially that simulation--I still have no idea how Collins figured it out! Lots of fun and I hope to fit in and at least try to live up to your standards of entertainment and character exploration.
Welcome to the game and the board. We're one of the quiet backwaters of the net.
Aw man, I was hoping for a wretched hive of scum and villainy. But seriously, thanks Jim.
Okay, wasn't able to keep it as brief as I wanted, but c'est la vie.
=======================
Starfleet Personnel File
=======================
NAME: Kylah
CURRENT RANK: Ensign
CURRENT ASSIGNMENT: Assistant Communications Officer, USS Yorktown, NCC-1717
SPECIES: Half-human but raised by members of the Elasian royal family.
AGE: 23 1/2
SEX: Female
HOMEWORLD: Elas
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Kylah has very dark, wavy brown hair and fair skin. She is quite striking, with nearly black eyes that can seem hypnotic, and expressions that can flash from serenity to rage, and from open to inscrutable, in only seconds. She does her best to restrain her warring emotions, which she’s been told tend to show on her face, and falls back into an impassive demeanor. Her full lips don't smile very often (but when they do, watch out!), and she has a small, well-curved figure that looks good in the Starfleet uniform dress that she prefers to wear as it's most similar to the Elasian attire that she grew up with (in her family, trousers were associated with overalls or work outfits – peasant garb).
PERSONALITY: Kylah was raised as the first-born child of two members of the Elasian Royal Family, cousins to the future Dohlman Elaan (who is ten years older than Kylah). Kylah was highly prized and her parents had hopes for her becoming Dohlman if something should happen to Elaan, but this favored status lasted only until her mother gave birth to anoher daughter. Abruptly her parents' attitude toward her changed and the truth came out: Kylah had been adopted, privately sold to her parents in order to provide them with an heir when they thought they couldn't have children. Worse, she learned she wasn't even a full Elasian--her father was a human.
As the natural differences between her and the others grew more apparent, her family (which also included a younger brother) made her feel like a freak, while with other children in school, she feigned bravado with her sharp tongue and willingness to defend herself against anyone who bullied her. Even though she invariably ended up more physically hurt than her opponents, her insults were so incisive she was often considered the victor.
Kylah is focused and intense, and has a remarkable memory; she can sit in the corner at a party for hours at a time, and can later recite full conversations verbatim, and is also an excellent mimic.
SPOUSE, SIGNIFICANT OTHER OR NEXT OF KIN, IF ANY: Her younger siblings (the natural children of her adoptive parents) are her only family. Their parents died when she was young, and she has no idea who her birth parents were/are, but she's had many servants and particularly a guardian to look after her and her siblings. This guardian, who would eventually become the new Elasian ambassador to the Federation, proposed to her when she came of marriageable age at 18 (though she will still be under her guardian’s control until she’s 25). She turned him down, not kindly, as she suspected he was using her to gain a connection to the royal family.
Even though Elas wasn't yet a UFP member, Kylah's guardian realized that since her birth father was human, she was eligible for Starfleet. He shipped her off to the Starfleet Academy, which she guesses was because she’d mocked his proposal. Glad to get away, though somewhat resentful at having a future picked for her, Kylah entered the Academy.
HOBBIES OR INTERESTS: Kylah loves music and can sing and play an Elasian zither. Hates sports but has trained, as most all Elasians have, in many forms of armed and unarmed combat. She owns a pair of non-regulation throwing knives that she keeps secreted beneath her uniform, and is expert in their uses (which is fortunate since she’s not very strong). But her true weapon is cutting with words. She adores the ancient works of Shakespeare and can recite whole acts from memory. She loves all animals, finding their honest simplicity a relief compared to the duplicity and subterfuge of people.
ACADEMIC BACKGROUND: Private schooling; Starfleet Academy Class of 2269.
Her highest Academy marks were in language and astronomy. Her facility for learning languages and memorization made Communications a natural choice, but her lack of tact and dislike of protocol made her a tough case for some of her teachers, and certainly took her out of the running for any diplomatic career path. Still, she has an uncanny ability to use even fragmentary information to come up with workable translations of alien languages.
Despite some problems at the Academy caused by her sharp tongue and some injudicious mimicry of her professors when outside class—but not, sadly, outside their earshot—she still yearned for acceptance while not trusting others. She was excellent at poker, though she won so often she was accused of cheating, and was no longer invited to play.
SERVICE RECORD: Assigned to the Yorktown right after graduation, Kylah is certain she’ll do well in her specialty but worries about meeting and getting along with others—and especially taking orders, still not exactly her strong suit. Something doesn’t fit about how easy it was to get assigned to such a prestigious post, but as defensive as she is, she decides to play it as no more than she deserves as a member of the royal family.
GOAL: To be a starship captain. Anything less than a command position is unacceptable—her goal is to avoid ever being under anyone’s thumb again.
Nicely done, choie, and thanks! Glad to have you aboard.
A warm welcome, Choie! Glad to have you aboard. :)
Don't worry about the TOS thing. I was just the same -- knew a lot about TNG, etc. Very little about TOS. You kinda learn as you go and you'll find that your crewmates here are very patient, kind and helpful.
Once again, welcome and enjoy!
Welcome aboard, Chole.
As for how Collins figured it out, she's psychotic psychic. ;)
Thanks for the welcomes, everyone! I'm sure looking forward to that ship docking with the Yorktown (sorry for the lack of italics, Elendil's Heir!) so Kylah can step aboard and begin her first assignment. We -- er, I mean, she has a lot to learn.
Welcome aboard, choi! I look forward to seeing Kylah in game.
Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) meets the President: http://www.mellophant.com/forums/sho...lly-What-Exit-)
anyrose, I must say I'm tempted to have Kylah snap "I heard you the first time!" to Collins.
Also I thought I was still wth the First Officer. Things move quickly on this ship!
nm
You can do a flashback to the rest of your conversation with Cmdr. Vargas, if you'd like. You write your lines, and I'll write his.Quote:
Originally posted by choie
Oh thanks, Elendil's Heir. It's not important, I was just expecting more grilling time since you'd asked how Kylah was going to respond to the question/comment, so I thought we were heading somewhere with that. But it makes total sense to just zip ahead and get to the PC interaction.
Oh, choie, this is gonna be FUN! ;) :D
Heh. Thank you, and right back atcha! As I've mentioned my favorite Treks were TNG and DS9 (especially DS9, I should emphasize), so interpersonal conflict is what I enjoy most.
Okay, so I'm Dax and you're Narisse?
Just don't, Elendil's Heir, let anyone start calling me "old man"
As it happens my RL name is Kira, funnily enough. Not sure if you're Dax -- you're definitely gonna run into trouble if you start trying to sleep with any Klingons at this point in history!
As an aside, I must say it really is a challenge to be playing a game with none of the races that I'm so used to. Bajorans, Cardassians, friendly(ish) Klingons, Trills, Ferengi... Obviously they're out there, somewhere, but we're certainly not coming across any -- except, I presume, the Klingons, but they certainly won't be the honor-obsessed antiheroes they turned into in TNG/DS9.
All of those aliens (other than Klingons, and of course they look different now) are indeed out of the picture for us, although there are still plenty of others to mess around with:
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Caitian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Edosian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Vulcan
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Andorian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Tellarite
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Saurian_%28species%29
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Tiburonian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Bolian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Denobulan
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Rigelian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Rigellian
http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Coridanite
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Skorr
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Arcturian
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Rhaandarite
http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Zaranite
...among others.
Just a word, I'm scuffling along with Delaney at the moment. I think the Ref needs to pull us PC together in some way.
I'm purposely trying to make the rounds to interact with other characters. Can't you, I dunno, drop a bi-phasic tetryon conductor on your foot and head over to Sick Bay? We definitely need more interaction and I think, during down times, it's up to us to connive ways to be together, rather than go off and do our own things with NPCs. Handsome as they may be, Mr. Collins! :D
Jealous, much, Mr Kylah? :p :D
Now that Kylah is aboard we'll move forward in the next day or so. By all means, have her explore the ship and meet other PCs, if you like.
I'd love to if the damn doctor will deign to talk to or even notice me. Vulcan levels of concentration must be scary good!
Now, now. Patience, my friend! I only ask that players check the game thread at least every other day.
Heh, sorry, Kylah's cantankerousness is catchy.
Now here's a question for you after your latest update: what's a "comm account"? Is this something Kylah would have on her person (e.g. part of her communicator) or something she'd only see in one of the computer panels if she logs in?
And if it's the latter, WES, is this something T'Var can check in her panel and pass the news on to Kylah? I'd like to continue our talk in Sickbay for a minute but if things have moved past that and we're all assumed to be back in our quarters having checked the comm accounts (whatever they are :D), that's cool and we can get moving on the mission briefing.
I was just waiting for Kylah to answer T'Var's question about the brief exam in her office. Didn't know we had moved ahead. Or have we?
Sometimes the game posts overlap. Can get a bit confusing. It seems to work itself out, though. :)
Ha! Well played, WES. I totally forgot about those knives. :D
A spammer hit the previous game thread. I deleted the post. Do you want me to close the thread to guard against that happening again, Elendil's Heir?
Yes, please, Zuul. Thanks.
choie, your character's comm account is a communications account, like email, text, fax and voicemail all in one. She may access it at any Library Computer terminal, or (audio only) with her communicator. Starfleet personnel don't typically carry around communicators while aboard ship, though.
Sorry for the delay in my posting in the game thread. Been a very busy weekend for me.
Miskatonic U? I've got a bad feeling about this....
I had the same reaction, who is hiding behind the star. ::shudder::Quote:
Originally posted by choie
Just as a heads up, I have to travel yet again tomorrow night. I should be able to contribute to the game Tuesday morning and then again Wednesday evening, but if things are getting good and I suddenly go quiet, that would be why. :)
Thanks. I really appreciate the heads-up, Zuul.
And glad you both caught the Miskatonic U. reference (as I knew you would). Heheheheh....