Oooh thank you for the character sheet thread, Elendil's Heir! That is very handy, especially for someone who hasn't played very long like me. Great idea!
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Oooh thank you for the character sheet thread, Elendil's Heir! That is very handy, especially for someone who hasn't played very long like me. Great idea!
Thanks. Should've thought to do it long ago.
Ooh, that is a great idea. Thanks, Elendil's Heir.
So that's an "Oooh" and an "Ooh"! I must be doing something right.
:D
I hadn't noticed I was mirroring choie there.
what character sheet? where? am I missing something? I wanna play, too! :p :D
Sorry. Thought you would've noticed it on the Mello RPG homepage: http://www.mellophant.com/forums/sho...acter-profilesQuote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Oh! That old thing. It's a permanent tab on my browser at home. I thought it was something new I'd missed out on.
But it is new -- he created it a couple of days ago. I think it's really handy to have all of the sheets in one place, instead of scouring this set-up thread for them.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Collins forgot to ask - how many extraneous Red Shirts can she kill take with her?
None. It's already a bigger boarding party than usual.
I'll be out of town from Wednesday afternoon through late Friday and may not have Internet access (or much time). Feel free to keep posting in the game thread, but I may not respond until the end of the week.
By the time I post this it's possible Elendil's Heir has returned to guide our way, but I do have a question/suggestion in the meantime. If it's not too presumptuous considering a) I'm brand new, and b) I know almost nothing about RPGs, that is.
During times when our GM isn't here, I wonder if might be a good idea if we made efforts to bring our characters into contact with one another, making it possible to us to interact? Obviously this would only be possible for those of us who aren't in the middle of some activity (e.g. Kylah, Delaney and Pourtash are all on Bridge duty, so we're not that free to move around, and Kylah's just asked a question of Thalen so I think I'm kind of stuck until he answers via our GM). But for folks like T'Var and Collins, maybe you could manipulate yourselves so you can be in contact with one another (maybe Collins notices her shoulder hurts from all that cardio she does :D and heads down to Sick Bay, that sort of thing)? This way we're not in stasis waiting for the GM. Even Delaney and Pourtash might be able to have some kind of conversation on the Bridge.
Sorry if this sounds pushy from a newbie. It's just that after reading the two mission threads, I've noticed that when not involved in a specific mission or away team (sorry, boarding/landing party) scene, there's a tendency for the characters to split up and do stuff with NPCs or even just by themselves, rather than contriving ways to interact with one another. Which may be very normal for RPGs, I don't know.
But when I watch Star Trek (any incarnation) my favorite bits are almost always the scenes where the crew interact with each other, often during downtime. Whether it's Bashir and O'Brien bantering while playing darts, or Deanna giving Worf parental advice, or Odo snarking it up with Quark, letting us see the relationships (friendly, romantic or conflict-ridden) among the crew may not push the plot forward, but it definitely deepens character development.
Also it lets us do stuff with each other without having to rely on the GM pushing plot. I get the sense that Elendil's Heir might actually approve of this sort of thing, (though obviously I can't speak for him) as long as we don't do anything that infringes on the main plot. As far as I can tell there's no reason we can't have mini-plot arcs driven by our interactions.
Anyway, just a suggestion. What do you guys think? Again I do apologize if this is overstepping and obnoxious coming from a noob.
Definitely worth considering.
I think that's a good idea. I really like getting in more in character interactions and building them up as a crew.
Thanks for the suggestion, choie. No need to apologize! I agree with you, and would welcome more mixing among the PCs. I will remind you all of Rule 4: This is a role-playing game, and I encourage you to write about anything which gives further meaning and depth to your character, both on- and off-duty.Quote:
Originally posted by choie
I like this idea. T'Var is a fairly new character as well, so she doesn't really "know" anybody. As a Vulcan, she is a bit introspective, but she's also curious about other races and is more social than most Vulcans.
So, feel free to engage T'Var in conversation or suggest off duty activities -- T'Var would enjoy getting to know you all better!
Yay! Thanks Elendil's Heir for confirming that it wasn't too uppity of me. (And also thank you for getting Thalen off my back, heh. :))
Glad everyone's keen on the idea. I'm really enjoying the game so far and really appreciate having been invited.
We're glad to have you here!
WES posted in the game thread:
T'Var wrinkles her nose, then shakes her head in the negative. "Perhaps another time," she says.
Heheh. This was what Tuvok always said on ST:VGR when someone suggested something he had no interest in ever, EVER doing.
Can we just assume Delaney is doing his duty, trying to duty too much and only lightly socializing at best. He is spread thin by his own nature. I'm reading along but have nothing to add, and what he is actually doing is very boring stuff.
Gotta love those Vulcans! <g>
You sure do! It's the pointed ears and the green blood, you know....
That's fine. If you want more feedback from the Chief Engineer or from Engineering subordinates, just post what you want him to be doing. I could easily throw more things Delaney's way.Quote:
Originally posted by What Exit?
Geeze, I can't imagine how scary these doctors would be if they had to tell a patient of a serious illness. If I were Collins I'd be assuming I'm terminal by now!
(I'm also intrigued by that 'indulged' line, anyrose!)
Point of Order from an RPG novice: If I want to ask if my character does something, or whether she can do something, do I ask in here, via PM, or in the game thread (assuming I can make the request sufficiently in-character)?
depends what you want her to do - if you don't mind giving away a plot point or such, post it here; otherwise PM Elendil's Heir.
As for the "indulged" line, you'll just have to wait and see if it becomes an issue. ;)
Heh. Thanks anyrose. My question isn't really related to a plot point -- or rather, I don't know if it is. I'll give it a go and see.
I look forward to the unveilling of that particular mystery, should it occur. ;)
If it's something very simple, just write, "Ens. Kylah scratches her nose."Quote:
Originally posted by choie
If it's at all complicated or difficult, write something like "Ens. Kylah begins to realign the lateral sensor array," and I'll let you know how it goes.
If it's a question of whether or not she's allowed to do something, ask a more senior officer or inquire of the Library Computer in the game thread, or PM me.
Gotcha, thanks Elendil's Heir. (Oops, I almost wrote Elendil's Hair; you must get that a lot! As detailed as Tolkien can get, I doubt he said much about Elendil's tresses.) Well, if Kylah's breaking the rules by listening in, or if it's something she literally cannot do, you can have her change her mind or realize she's not capable of eavesdropping on these outgoing messages. I was just trying to pick up on what seemed like a possible plot beat you were tossing out there in the exposition.
Quite so. You're doing fine.
Thank you, Elendil's Heir. :)
I was going to write a PM to you with a question re: your own latest question "Where does Kylah put the backup copies of the files?" but then I thought maybe it would be a good general topic for everyone.
I admit I might have made assumptions about Star Trek ship computers just by assuming the crew members each have their own personal server space. I know that the 1960s TV show that we're using as a guide wouldn't have referred to it (at least my memory doesn't recall a reference to personal computers back then), and heck, I don't remember even TNG or DS9 referring to personal storage space on the main computer system.
But then again, 1960s TV shows probably wouldn't have mentioned abortion either (or would they? that would've been a bigger deal than the Uhura/Kirk kiss I imagine!), so I'm gathering while we're being true to the feel and flavor of ST:TOS, we're also informed by the knowledge of how modern technology works and are assuming things will move roughly in parallel to what we know of 21st century technology, even though obviously we're not going to mention cell phones instead of communicators, or iPads instead of data pads, or thumb drives or whatever.... or are we? It would be simplicity itself for Kylah to unobtrusively transfer files to a wireless flash drive (or whatever the appropriate ST technobabble naming convention would be... maybe a micro-silicon conductor interface or whatever. :)
So... I guess my question as a ST RPG newbie is first, was it okay to assume that the crew members do have their own storage space, and if so, what should it be called? How much are we stuck with 23rd century technolgoy as seen through mid-20th century designers? Can we make some assumptions that in 200 years mankind will not suddenly go backwards and forget how to create personal computing devices (or name the technology of your choice)?
PS I admit my deciding on the backup copy was a cop-out -- I wasn't sure which decision Kylah would make, but I thought violating Starfleet regs on her first day was going a bit too far; and yet on instinct, either mine or Kylah's :D, I felt there was something important in those logs. So I figured I'd copy 'em and delay the decision until Kylah is by herself in her quarters. At least if she's gonna break the rules, let her not do it on the Bridge with the Captain sitting a few yards away!
You raise some excellent questions. I'll let others weigh in - players and lurkers - before I give my answers; I'd be interested in what all of you have to say.
Since crew members have personal logs, it stands to reason they'd also have personal storage for family photos and such. Apple has probably merged with Microsoft by the 23rd Century, and whatever other major players are still out there, producing truly universal (at least universally Terran) technology. Flash drives are likely the size of a fingernail, and have only to be placed near a datasource, rather than actually plugged in. There was a civilian fad in the late 22nd century of teenagers stringing several flash drives together and wearing them like beads.
Do the crew members in TOS have personal logs? I know they did in TNG and later, but I wasn't sure about TOS. Even on TNG I don't remember if they were considered private, as in, encrypted and unable to be seen by outsiders. I know there was an episode where Geordi has his own mini-version of the movie Laura where he's investigating some Starfleet chick's death/disappearance and he starts listening and watching her personal logs. Of course, he's the chief engineer at this point so if anyone was able to access an encrypted log, it'd probably be him, but I'm just wondering how much expectation of privacy one would have in an organization like Starfleet.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Hee, I can see that. Maybe it'd be like autograph books used to be (oh God I'm reeeeallly dating myself, aren't I?) where kids would record some personal message and swap the flash beads with one another and the idea is to get the most beads/jewelry and so on.*Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Anyway, a wireless flash device was exactly what I was thinking. But of course it woudl need a proper ST-esque name. Even "nanodrive" would sound more Trek-y. (Does a quick look-up.... how the hell is "nanodrive" not a brand name for a flash drive yet?!)
* And you know what? This is actually an awesome idea for a real product to promote as a fad. Does this already exist, and if not, we need to do something about it!
So, judgement call, your honor? May Kylah use her wireless thumb drive, which in ST:TOS-ese would be properly called a ___________ (I rather like the name "nanodrive." but whatever you decide is a-okay), to keep her ill-gotten booty?
In general terms, I agree that computer capabilities would not actually have regressed from where they are in 2012 or can be reasonably extrapolated from now. However, the show was made in the 1960s, after all, and the only Starfleet data-storage media we saw in ST:TOS were those flat plastic doohickies, called microtapes: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Microtape. So Kylah can put the clandestine data on a microtape, or simply transfer the file(s) electronically to her own shipboard comm account (which functions, as has earlier been mentioned, as email/bulletin board/fax/text/video/audio/picturephone/overall personal data storage, etc.) of, in practical terms, virtually unlimited storage capacity. All Yorktown crew have their own comm accounts, which are private under Starfleet regs, voiceprint- and/or password-protected, and could even be encrypted, especially by a talented young Communications officer....
Fair enough, thanks Elendil's Heir. Well, I've already mentioned that she copied them so I don't really need to go into further detail as yet. When it's retrieval time I can mention the accounts and such.
Should've answered your other question: Starfleet personnel are permitted but not required to keep personal logs. They, as with comm accounts generally, are considered private unless there is (a) a compelling duty-related reason for a superior officer to need to read them, or (b) probable cause to believe they contain evidence of the commission of a crime. Both are a rarety.
All department heads keep official logs, and the Captain, of course, keeps the ship's log.
Elendil's Heir - please do let us know when it's getting close to 1800 ship's time
Of course. I was thinking over the weekend that, to move things along, Collins and Cooper might have their conversation about her pregnancy through PMs between anyrose and me, and when it's run its course, I'll post it in its entirety (subject to some editing, if necessary) in the game thread. The rest of the characters can meet for dinner sooner that way. What do you think?
Sounds good
works for me - PM on its way
All right! Trying to catch up quickly here, as I'm leaving to go across the country yet again in a few hours. I added it up last night and realized I've only spent eight weeks total at home in the last six months. o_O
Good news is that I'll be home tomorrow morning and will not be going anywhere else for at least two months.
...I hope.
Cool, this has been a very long first shift for Kylah! :)
Have a good trip, Zuul!
Wishing everyone a happy and safe holiday weekend. Working here, but my piggy bank is happy. <g>
Live Long and Prosper!
Thank you. It's been a good but busy weekend, incl. my 25th college reunion. Saw a lot of old friends and caught up with some people I haven't seen in a looooong time.
I just want you all to know just how ignorant I am, in a "what the hell is she doing in a Star Trek RPG" sort of way: I actually had to Google for like ten minutes before I could decide what Kylah's one-line response should be to Singh's asking her to hail the freakin' station.
(First I wasn't sure if by "Hail the station" Singh meant that it was Kylah's job to say the old "This is the U.S.S. Yorktown" greeting bit, or if "Hail the station" meant "open a frequency so I can do my 'This is Captain Singh of the U.S.S. Yorktown' bit." Then I was torn between "Channel is open" or "Frequency is open" (Uhura seems to have used both according to my research, though TNG it was purely "frequency," and quite often Riker did it instead of Picard, after Data opened the hail.) I was also contemplating "Frequency is open and they've responded," but the latter seems presumptuous. For all I know, Elendil's Heir intendes for the station to have been taken over by a virus and everyone's dead.)
In short: I'm pretty ignorant. I figure doing the Uhura role would make sense since, no offense to Nichelle Nichols, but her role wasn't exactly technologically demanding. (They didn't even have a regular Comm officer on ST:TNG as far as I know.)
Just thought I'd come clean to prepare y'all for my inevitable flubs. Which is partially why I made Kylah a newbie/outsiderish and not-very-diplomatically-inclined kinda gal. So if her portrayer messes up, it'll be sort of in-character. Yeah, that's the ticket! :)
yeah. right. whatever. ;) :D
Mistakes happen, choi. You can always PM EH and ask him if you're unsure of something, too. :)
I have now had two dreams about this game. In the first one, Delaney was making Pourtash cook waffles for everybody (er, why?) and the second had the Yorktown overrun with tribbles.
I have yet to dream of the game. But I respect those who do!
And yes, you're always welcome to PM me if you have any questions about the game.
Not waffles, but my daughter made French Toast for Breakfast yesterday. :)Quote:
Originally posted by Zuul
Anytime I read about anyone making waffles nowadays, I hear it in Eddie Murphy's voice from Shrek.
I have that same problem. My littlest niece wanted to watch that movie five times a day back when I was caring for her. Now there's no escape from Donkey.
I know I'm totally new to RPGs and in addition, everyone's busy and so on -- but does it usually take a week to get us on board a research station? :) So many necessary protocols!
(In addition to my curiosity about the adventure, the soap fan in me is dying to find out if Waite and T'Var are actually old lovers or old enemies--or the former that turned into the latter; their descriptions so far could fit any or more of these potential relationships!)
What takes a week, choie, is that unlike you and me who check in daily, some players check in every other day, some less frequently; and allowing for reaction time from the other players, and instructions from the GM, can add a day or two as well. In ship's time, however, mere minutes have passed.
Heh, I know, I know, I'm just psyched to get started on this mission! I keep hoping for Elendil's Heir to post "Yeah whatevs, so everyone did all the tech thingies necessary and the gang beamed aboard already." :)
...Which is probably why I'd never make a good GM.
It can be tricky, and I'm not perfect, but I do like giving everyone a chance to post. On average I'll wait two days after each of my posts, as the game rules require everyone to check the thread at least every other day. If a majority would prefer me to post more frequently and nudge the story along a bit more aggressively, I will consider it.
I personally check the thread each day, but sometimes early in the AM or early evening when there hasn't been any new posts and my character really has nothing new to add at that point. I post when I feel it's needed for my character.
But I understand how you feel. To be honest, there are times when I'd like things to move faster and others when I'd like things to slow down and take more time.
We're all doing our best and EH is great as GM. I'd never be abel to keep track of everything! I have enough of a challenge keeping T'Var up and running. <G>
As for T'Var and Waite -- only time will tell the tale.... :)
Agreed. Three Cheers for Elendil's Heir! Huzzah! Huzzah! Huzzah!
Personally, a little nudge now and then can be a good thing.
EH is doing an awesome job keeping track of everything and giving us cool situations and exposition. I wouldn't be enjoying myself and so anxious to see what happens if he weren't!
Maybe just nudges or sweeping us along when there might (and this is totally subjective I know) not need to be actions or reactions? It's such a hard call, though, I'd imagine.
If worse comes to worst, and someone misses the chance to opine before the scene moves on a bit, there's always the old standby: flashback! Ens. Smith can always walk in the corridor and remember his first thought upon seeing the planet Jai'Ha'Lai.
I'll be offline starting Friday probably through next week. I might sneak in a post or two but I might not. Off to see the National Aquarium and then the Smithsonian and Zoo.
I add a round of cheers for for Elendil's Heir myself. Huzzah! Huzzah! Huzzah!
:: blushing ::
You're all too kind. Really. I enjoy GMing very much, and I love ST and this crew. And frankly, I can't go too far wrong if I ask myself, "What would What Exit? do?" He's been keeping our LOTR game going through thick and thin for more than four years now.
choie is absolutely right about flashbacks. Unless you're right in the middle of a fight or some other serious action, it's just about always fine to write a flashback. When in doubt, PM me or post in this thread. And remember Rule 4: This is a role-playing game, and I encourage you to write about anything which gives further meaning and depth to your character, both on- and off-duty.
(The rules are in the first post of this thread, BTW, if anyone wants to take another peek - not that I'm suggesting that anyone needs to).
On the other hand, if you truly have nothing to say, don't feel compelled to post. There's no point in a post that says zilch or is utterly trivial.
Have a great trip, What Exit!
Incidentally, I was just reminded of this ST:TNG-era writing round-robin that I set up on the Straight Dope. Anyrose also participated, as you'll see: http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...d.php?t=406398.
Good lord. I'd forgotten about that. Collins does get around, doesn't she?
Probably her granddaughter, right...?
:D
I'll be leaving on a family trip tomorrow morning, heading to Boston and then SE Vermont, and will be posting only intermittently through July 8. You're welcome to post in the game thread in the meantime, but I think I'll take a break from the game until then to recharge my mental batteries. Thanks, everybody!
Three big spoilers for the next ST movie. Read them at your peril!:
http://trekmovie.com/2012/04/30/majo...ers-confirmed/
To which I say
1. Ah. Continuity
2. Really? They're going there?
3. YAY!
I pm'd Zuul in hopes of putting the genie back in the bottle, but I have not heard back yet.
Just a note, anyrose, that while you did tell Captain Singh of your plans for your crewmen's duties, we haven't been enlightened yet. ;)
Yeah, you were. At the group dinnerQuote:
Originally posted by choie
No no, I mean that you wanted me and Fujishiro to suck up to Waite.
oops - can we just assume I did?
Hee. Normally I would've, but it's just that you wrote out your actions pretty clearly without any time for chatting. BUT when/if I get a response from Geb on my scanning job, I'll make mention of you murmuring in my ear or something. Or maybe our esteemed Mod can indicate as such--perhaps having you talk to Fujishiro first and then me.
This is probably all totally unnecessary and just reflects my newness at the RPG thing. I don't know how much to assume of other PC actions. So, sorry if I sound annoyingly pedantic, I just want to make sure I'm not overstepping. I'm not as impulsive as Kylah.
Actually, no need to waste Elendil's Heir's time, I can slip in a mention now.
Okay, done. Hope that was okay, anyrose. It feels odd "handling" another person's character (which is why I kept Collins's interaction very brief).
works for me :D
Rather than summarizing what your characters say in reporting to Capt. Singh upon returning prematurely from the Sakathian research station, you should write exactly, in quotation marks, what they say. This will allow the other players to pick up upon and either agree or disagree with what has been said previously. Thanks!
The U.S. probe Curiosity has successfully landed on Mars: http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/06/tech/m...html?hpt=hp_c1
Very exciting stuff!
Everyone MUST visit Google today (Friday 9/7/12) and play with the doodle.
Definitely! My boys showed me just an hour ago. Good stuff.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
Doodle was "Totally Awesome!"Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
My parents just got back from a very fun St. Lawrence Seaway cruise on a ship with a familiar name: http://greatlakescruising.wordpress.com/
Happy birthday, What Exit!
Yes, indeed, a very happy birthday to WE!
Also, I think we forgot to acknowledge Elendil's Heir on September 1st. If so, a belated (but heartfelt) Happy Birthday, EH! For all you do, thanks! :)
Thanks! My pleasure.
A college student has discovered an extragalactic pulsar. Talk about bragging rights...!
http://www.fandm.edu/news/article/f-...alactic-pulsar
Sorry for my silence, Elendil's Heir and everyone. It’s been difficult to figure out what Kylah can do aboard this mission--she's neither a science officer who'd be of use, or either a security or command officer who has a role to play keeping the others safe and supervising things, respectively. Let's face it, Kylah's only on board this mission because her actress is in the main credits. ;)
The only angles I’ve been able to play are sucking up to Geb, having mutual mistrust with Porr, and being curious about that freakin’ mural, which I'm the only one who seems interested in and is probably a non-issue anyway. So I've been kind of at a loss and just happy to watch the others who have active roles and personal matters to deal with. Taking a backseat for my first mission makes sense considering both my character's inexperience as well as my own, RPGwise.
but you're the best writer, at least the most thorough, in the group!
Kylah definitely has the ability to smooth things over with the Sakathians and make this mission less of a hassle for everyone. I think she'll have a big role to play at this dinner party, so hang in there! :)
Thank you! But you mean the longest-winded, right? :)Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
I hope so, and Kylah will try her best! If she doesn't stick her foot in her mouth. (I also just realized that for no particular reason I'm no longer getting emails when these threads are being updated, which isn't helping! Better resubscribe...)Quote:
Originally posted by WES
Everyone has a role to play; nobody should feel their character to be a dunsel. Don't be afraid to think outside of the box.
What every old coot of a scientist should wear: http://www.thewirelesscatalog.com/cg...L&ITEM=VM2051S
Hey, Perhaps Kylah overstepped, but such is the life of a communications officer--as a glorified telephone operator, she's got one job, I figure she might as well do it! :)
Yes, Sigouney/Gwen
LOL. Precisely. (What a fabulous movie!)
It's been dubbed "the best Star Trek movie ever". :)
Dang it, sorry for the duplicate post! I don't get it, I totally didn't hit the reply button twice. This site hates me! First no notifications, now my posts are repeating on me like a bad burrito.
Oh before I forget, a question. Have we lost Pourtash and Delaney (Zuul and What Exit)?
Zuul hasn't responded to PMs or emails for awhile, and What Exit? is on hiatus for the moment, but I hope he will return. Your polite encouragement of him couldn't hurt!
I must tell you a dream I had recently. I was with a group of people who, it turned out, were you all. We were play acting and blocking, in a high school cafeteria, with the tables and chairs all pushed to the side, a production of a Star Trek story that turned out to be the story we all had written years ago on the SDMB (link is upthread somewhere). How odd.
Heh. I'm sure you were ready for your closeup!
This is mega cool
I.Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
love.
it!
That really is gorgeous. Wow.
In-Game World Question to our DM: I asked this in a PM but then thought it might be better in the main setup thread, so here it is. Could our all-wise and all-powerful DM tell us the names and positions of any Sakathians other than Porr and Geb we (the remaining Yorktown crew) would have been introduced to over the course of our stay so far?
Just want to know who else we can interact with on this lab, preferably by name if we assume we've met folks other than the Director and Lurch, I mean Porr.
T'Var has met and compared notes with Yblec, who loves games; I don't believe any other Sakathians have been specifically named. If there's someone with a particular job on the station that your character would like to meet, just let me know.
Happy Halloween, all...!
from the game
You're kidding, right? Who in their right mind would leave an unmanned shuttle around a non-federation space station? Did they even have remote transporters during TOS-time? How in hell were Collins & crew supposed to get in to the shuttle?Quote:
Originally posted by gm/narrator
Not kidding.
Unmanned spacecraft have been left in orbit in various works of sf (off the top of my head, in 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine). No one asked about any crew being aboard. On a practical note, there don't seem to be bathroom or kitchen facilities on TOS-era Starfleet shuttles - could make for an uncomfortable stay for whoever's left there while Collins and her boarding party finish their multi-week stay on the Sakathian space station.
No remote transporting in the TOS era, correct, but you already know of at least one transporter on the station.
Ummmm how far away is this Sakathian to Kylah right now? (Trying to decide whether to run or throw. I'm inclined to listen to orders and skedaddle but if the guy's only a few yards away I'm not wasting time turning my back on this Sakombie.) Also is he lumbering or, shall we say, moving apace?
That's better addressed in the game thread. Please post there how you'd react to each of those scenarios.
Oh sorry about that. That seemed like a meta question I'd ask the DM before taking a dice roll or some such thing. (As you see my knowledge of RPGs is very sophisticated!) :)
Not sure if this counts as meta or not, but: will you be playing Delaney and Pourtash as NPCs now that their players have gone AWOL? Oh, and Fujishiro too?
Yes, I will, unless and until they return.
Y'know, it kinda helps to watch NCIS reruns when trying to figure how a mission leader would act.
Heh. When Waite said "All right, I'll tell you...," did anyone else want all the characters to start singing: "He's going to tell! He's going to tell!" while Collins yelled "Not like that, not like that!" or am I the only wacko?
Oh I just thought of a question. I'm not that up on how transporters work in this century. Can people transport themselves, or do they need a person to stay behind and work the transporter controls? I'm just wondering if T'Var and Rangin have to split up with one person working the controls and the other going back to the shuttle, then returning?
It's possible but unusual for a TOS-era Starfleet transporter to be set on automatic. Remember that's how Kirk was going to get to the surface of the spore planet when he was the last man left aboard the Enterprise in TOS "This Side of Paradise." Who knows how Sakathian transporters work, though...?
well, *you* do, one would hope.
Thanks, Elendil's Heir. I hope they can get back from the shuttle then, or else one of 'em will have to stay behind!
LOL to anyrose.
And damn those Sakathians and their supersmall air vents! Where are the Jeffries Tubes when you need 'em? As a ST:TNG fan I always wanted to do some tube-crawling!
What makes you think you can believe everything Dr. Waite tells you...?
OooOOOooh. Damn now I wish I'd gone with my instincts and inspected those air vents to see if Kylah, who's not exactly big, would fit in them after all. Now I feel like I've gone ahead and looked ahead in my Invisiclues booklet.
I guess I'm conditioned to believe everything out of the GM's (or would that be the DM's?) mouth, a sort of "Word of God" thing. Even when his NPC is a weedy cowardly twerp like Waite. (No offence to T'Var's romantic history intended. Assuming they do have a romantic history!)
Statements of nonplayer characters may or may not be reliable. You have to weigh their credibility, bias, prejudice, ulterior motives, etc. just like you would in real life.Quote:
Originally posted by choie
What I, as GM, tell you in the game thread, without quoting anyone, is reliable, subject to modifiers like "apparently," "as far as your character can tell," "seems to be," etc.
They do indeed. See post 792: http://www.mellophant.com/forums/sho...re-quot/page16Quote:
Originally posted by choie
A secret U.S. plan to detonate a nuke on the Moon - and a young Carl Sagan was involved!: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/1...6pLid%3D239355
I saw that! Such a strange, creepy story.
Can't we fans all just get along...?: http://www.northernsun.com/Science-F...288345%29.html
Sorry for the delay guys; it's been a crazy couple of weeks for me in general. Let's assume Kylah was having a very tough time dealing with the Sakathian technology, particularly the menus.
Hmm. Yep, he said they should be sealed with the lockdown and were too small for anyone to get through. He was wrong (or lied) on both counts, wasn't he? Is there really a big semantic difference between "inaccessable" and "sealed"?Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
Or are you referring to something else? He didn't comment about where the air vents went.
I'm wondering why T'Var doesn't use the VNP? Or can't she get close enough to Saka-zombie?
"Should be" is different from "are" (and remember that you've already seen that Sakathian maintenance is slipshod), and "I'm not sure they're big enough" is different from "too small for anyone to get through."Quote:
Originally posted by choie
The Vulcan nerve pinch doesn't work on all humanoids.
His face-saving "shoulds" and "maybes" aside, Waite seemed to be dissuading them from even bothering with the vents. I would say Kylah's not in the mood (nor is she the type) to give the guy any benefit of the doubt at this point considering how unhelpful and downright obfuscating he's been throughout the entire mission, starting with his screw-up (or was it?) with the weapons ban. Plus, Kylah's personality is pretty well-established as being prickly. Ergo, as her player, I feel no compunction at giving the girl a snarky grudge against the man who I hope will end up being zombie-bait. :)
BTW, anyrose, were they saying "Make it so" in TOS? I thought that was just a TNG thing.
Edited to add: Damn! Rangin! Crapples, I liked him. Save him, T'Var!
choie - would you rather she'd said "Fine! Do it, dammit!"?
T'Var is doing her best -- I promise! Still, there's only so much one lone Vulcan can do against these zombie Sakathian munchers.
Nah, I wouldn't want her to steal lines from Janeway. :)Quote:
Originally posted by anyrose
"Make it so" goes back to the old British Royal Navy on Earth. There's no reason Picard should have a monopoly on the phrase (although no one says it as well as he does, I daresay!).
Hey, Picard could say "Fine, do it already, damnit!" and I'd do whatever it is he told me to do, gladly. As much as a puddle of goo can do anything. (I do loves me some Patrick Stewart!)
I saw him on Broadway about 17 years ago - amazing actor
Yes, he is. I saw him in the Peter Shaffer play Yonadab in London in late 1985, when I was on a college semester abroad. I didn't know anything about him at the time, but noticed that he was very good. He played the Biblical King David as a backslapping politician, surrounded by scheming noblemen who all thought they ought to be in charge instead of him; the king played them all against each other and was thus able to retain power. I was very pleased when he was cast as Picard two years later. Never saw him in I, Claudius or anything else before that.
I saw him in his one-man Christmas Carol on Broadway. Really amazing and a delight.
I have a game question I'm not sure Kylah can ask, so I wanna. :) Kylah wouldn't ask it because she couldn't have seen it, and maybe it doesn't matter, but... I'm just wondering: why did Waite lock the bedroom door behind him? If there's a secret reason for it never mind, I'm curious only 'cause I'm having some difficulties imagining the layout of the station and in particular the common room and its connection to the residences. Aren't they all locked down in there already?
Dr. Waite locked the bathroom door to the adjoining bedroom, not to the common room, and he didn't lock it behind him. He just didn't want a zombie to surprise them while he was helping Fujishiro. The common room doors are otherwise all locked.
Thanks. Sorry I'm really bad at imagining spaces -- when I used to play old Infocom text adventure games I always had to draw maps in order to figure out where the heck I was. So these bedrooms and the areas where the crew were sleeping, which were locked down every night/morning, are not locked now during an emergency, I take it? Wow, you weren't kidding about the Sakathian security being oddly lax all of a sudden. Hmmm. Must think.
The rooms were not locked from each other unless the occupants chose to make them so. There is a single access hallway from the offworlders' residence area to the large main corridor that runs the length of the space station, and it was that access hallway which was locked every night.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all. Let's take a holiday hiatus for one week, to New Year's Day.
Merry, Happy, Joyous to all
Wishing everyone a happy and safe holiday! See you in 2013. Till then....
LIVE LONG AND PROSPER!!! :)
Happy New Year
E.H. - please be so kind as to remind me of Geb's bodygiard's name? Or please point to one of the posts in which his name is mentioned.
kthxbai
^ Chief Porr, I believe.
Happy New Year, all!
Edited to add: I'm still staggered by the fact that we're alone in the common room. All this time I've been thinking there were other Sakathians et al. in the room with us. Am I the only one wondering how on earth we Yorktownites (and Waite) are the only lucky ones who made it to safety? Dayum, who wrote this episode? Gotta be one of the Voyager folks. Braga, probably. :D
(I'm kidding, I'm kidding, EH!)
Happy New Year to all! Wishing my crewmates a very healthy, joyous, safe, creative and prosperous 2013!
Yes, Chief of Security Ombloun Porr.
Remember that the common room, as is the entire residential wing, is for offworlders only. It's not too surprising that there would be no Sakathians there. And if there were, you would surely have heard from one or more of them there by now.
Did I mention at any point how long a trip it is from Sakath V to Cavinre VII? I checked my notes and looked over the game thread, and it doesn't look like I ever said specifically. Thanks!
I couldn't find anything specific about how far away the Cavinre system is from Sakath. Unfortunately the trip from Cavinre to Sakath wasn't direct--it included a stop-off to pick up the animals. FWIW, it was a 17-day trip at Warp 6 from Morra III to the research station.
Since the Yorktown left the research station's orbit, there's been nothing about distance either, except that it'd take 20 minutes for Kylah's message to reach the ship, and another 20 minutes for a return message to reach the lab. Of course that means nothing concrete; all we know is that subspace communications travel way faster than light, and I think it works faster than ships can go (warp 9, right?). Even if it just sludged around at only the speed of light, that puts Cavinre at, uh, 223 million miles away (186K mps x 1200).
Which probably tells you nothing, sorry.
Just a quick note: I'm making one last-ditch effort to get the Necessary Evil RPG back off the ground, and we need one more player. If you're interested, I encourage you to have a look. It's a fun scenario with a bunch of classically comic-booky supervillains banding together to fight an even larger evil. The game petered off some time ago, and I'd like to get it going again. Pop in to the setup thread if you're interested!
Don't poach my players, Appleciders! Grrr.
Just kidding.
And choie, thanks!
What, I can poach you but not your players?
Hey, wasn't Appleciders Rangin? Now he's a mere NPC and zombie-bait. Scram, quitter! (Rangin's basically my character's only almost-friend.) :)
Actual meta game question: is it bad form to post twice in a row? I just realized something Kylah really should have added to her argument and want her to make an extra statement.
Either that or I guess I'll hope that whoever posts next gives me the ability to respond with what I should've said earlier. Darn it!
sorry I haven't been posting - please be patient, I've not had the energy to concentrate lately - I promise to post before the week is out
choie, it's generally best to wait for an intervening post, but if you just gotta post again, go ahead.
anyrose, hope to have you back on board soon. Thanks.
anyrose I hope you feel better and things look up for you soon!
Thanks, EH. I'll wait then, I don't want to break the flow. Besides, to be honest now that I look at what I wrote, I can't think of a smooth way to bring this up now that Kylah finished her speech the way she did, argh. If I could edit and insert the comment I would, but since that's not a possibility, it's probably best for me to wait and hope Kylah will get the opportunity for this particular coup de grace later. :)
Point of order: will you have Pourtash and Fujishiro add their opinions? Presumably Rangin's down for the count, at least as he rests up (or turns into a zombie, which I hope doesn't happen!).
Yes, Pourtash, Fujishiro and Rangin will share their views.
Ah! Bless you, EH. Fujishiro said the magic words. :)
I thought you'd appreciate that.
The White House responds to a petition to build a Death Star: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/res...-youre-looking
Maybe we should rename this tale Decem Indians Parvi, considering our players are disappearing one by one? :)
Not so fast there! CatInASuit has reviewed the game thread to date and is now joining us, and will henceforth play Appleciders's original character of Ens. Rangin. Welcome aboard, CIAS!
Oh how lovely, thank you, CatInASuit! And that's good news for me, as Kylah seems to have good rapport with Ranglin. At least before he was attacked...
Welcome aboard!
Permission to come aboard? :)
Granted - and I haven't completely disappeared - I've been following the story and I'll be back, someday
Welcome aboard, CIAS!!! May you -- and Ens. Rangin -- live long and prosper. :)
Hurry back, anyrose. We miss you!
Seconded. The more, the merrier!
Just want to clarify, Elendil's Heir -- Kylah was pondering the fact that the storks (non-mammals) were left alone while the capybaras, humans and Sakathians (all mammals--at least, that's what I'm assuming about the Sakathians) were eaten. So she was wondering whether these new hybrid Sakathians are only eating mammals.
From your description of Rangin's thoughts upon looking at the stork, it kinda sounded as if this were a reaction to Kylah's thoughts--as if you thought she was suspecting the storks of being the hybrid attackers. Definitely not where I was going with that post.
It's probably just my misreading, but I wanted to make sure you didn't think the girl's stupid enough to think the storks are, like, feral. As amusing as werestorks are to contemplate! :D
Understood. Rangin is a xenobiologist and would naturally be curious about that. I wanted all the players to know what he had learned, more in response to what CIAS posted than what you did.
Bad Star Trek episodes, and better titles for them
1. Code of Honor / Planet of the Savage Negroes
2. And the Children Shall Lead / Melvin Belli Needs a Paycheck
3. Spock's Brain / O Dear Lord, Please Make it Stop
4. The Way to Eden / Hippies? In space? And they're singing?!?!?
5. The Man Trap / Nancy, the Incredible Salt Monster
6. Patterns of Force / James T. Kirk and the Space Nazis
7. Justice / Planet of the Diaper People
8. Let That Be Your Last Battlefield / Battle of the Obvious Metaphors
9. Unnatural Selection / The Deadly Bore
10. Shades of Grey / The Clip Show We'd Rather Pretend We Never Made
11. Assignment Earth / The Badly-Disguised Pilot Which Didn't Get Picked Up
12. Threshold / Janeway and Paris Turn Into Salamanders and Get Bizzay
13. The Cage / We Paid to Shoot It, and By God We're Gonna Air It
From the Straight Dope Message Board Baker's Dozen thread.
If (shudder) you need to refresh your recollection about any of these: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Portal:Main
Happy birthday, WES! Hope the looming blizzard doesn't hit you too badly.
So today, I had three accounts: Rangin, Cooper, and Collins, all right in a row
Accounts?
I work in collections
Thanks, EH, for the bday greetings. I had a wonderful day. Light snow right now as lunchtime looms. Supposed to get worse later on with up to a foot around upstate NY.
Hope all is well with everyone! If you're in the path of this blizzard (or any other nasty weather situation), stay safe and take care!
Crapples! Sorry guys, I've suddenly stopped getting notifications again--haven't seen one since WES posted in the game thread about attacking the slime beast with the crow bar. Now I'm off to see if Kylah's been killed or something in the meantime, gulp...
And happy belated birthday!
If y'all could cool it a bit until I here back from our illustrious GM - when he answers my question, I will post and move the story along :D
Heh. I promise Kylah won't be saying/doing a thing until Collins responds. :)
Obama's "ultimate nerd sin": http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com...ues/?hpt=hp_t2
That did give me a smile. But I think it's pretty understandable, accidentally merging "Jedi mind trick" and "mind meld." My inner geek forgives him.
Hope anyrose got her answer and will get a chance to post soon. Those Zombkathians aren't getting any less hungry! :D
Just wanted to say this cracked me up! Waite's an asshat but here he does get a moment of humor. (Sadly at our expense, but hey.)Quote:
Originally posted by Elendil's Heir
Choie - a teensy favor, please. When there is a major action to be taken, please wait until I post. I can only get here in the evening, and because you're posting so frequently, it looks like Collins is an imbecile.
Sure, sorry about that. I guess I'll go last after waiting for you, T'Var, and Rangin. Elendil's Heir, is that order okay with you? If it gets too long before any of the others post I'll ask EH if it's okay for me to speak up. I don't want him to think none of us are taking action and decide to fling a metric fuckton of Sakathians up in our grill. :)
Now that you've posted, can Kylah comment on the fact that apparently Collins pulled a second phaser out of nowhere? Is she hoarding weapons or something? :D
There were two dead guards, no?
Yeppers, but for some reason only one phaser was mentioned, which makes me figure one is... gulp... gone. I daren't hope we get two phasers unless our fair GM tells us we do!
Suspension of disbelief - better we have two than the zombies have one, right?
Hey I'm all for it, believe you me! But last time I assumed something I got a note from Elendil's Heir reminding me that one shouldn't assume. Note that WES's T'Var seems on the same page.
Admittedly I just got done with a Mafia game where I was pretty much raked over the coals for looking too much into "color," so maybe I'm now being super-careful not to read more than is on the page. I just figure if God--uh, Elendil's Heir meant us to have two phasers, we've have seen two phasers.
We haven't had much luck in this quest so far; I would guess that having only one phaser is our GM's way of making us struggle and the crew--well, Collins anyway--have to make a difficult decision as to who gets it.
If your characters want to look for more than the one Sakathian weapon you see sitting there, you certainly may. And your order of posting sounds fine; Collins remains in command of the Starfleet boarding party.
Cool. Of course I don't remember ever questioning whether Collins was in command. While waiting for Collins to make her decision about the phaser or tell us what to do next, I figured it was okay for Kylah to look around and discuss our surroundings, especially since she was the last one in the door armed only with a measly knife, so would naturally be invested in seeing if it could be secured behind her.
I didn't think that was tantamount to initiating a flippin' mutiny. But I'll be much more reticent in future, I promise.
So now that Elendil's Heir has posted, just to confirm, I will wait for Collins, T'Var, and Rangin to post before I post again.
And I shall say nothing about being right about just one phaser. Nope, not one word will I utter about the fact that there was a single phaser, not two. 'Cause that would be wrong, very very wrong.
It's just you have all these great ideas on how to proceed, so Collins looks like a bad leader for not thinking of them first! ;):D
What am I missing? I thought we were heading to the transporter?
Seriously, Elendil's Heir, I thought we were headed to the transporter?
We were, this is presumably just a stop off and a place to get some clues. (E.g. there are no escape pods so at least several people got away.) Maybe it's also a place to stop and take the virtual temperature of the various wounded. I suppose since we've already got some info from the room -- and you've got a phaser -- you can lead us out again. But it's up to you.
Personally I only had Kylah mention the door because I thought if we were going to be looking around for a while it'd be a good idea to make sure our backs were protected.
If you want to move on down that hallway without further ado, you certainly may.
Request: since CatInASuit doesn't post all that often, and since Rangin and Kylah are technically of equal rank (if not seniority), may I ask to break order so I don't have to lose a turn if s/he doesn't post after anyrose and WES and the round is about to begin again?
It wasn't a question of seniority - it was just, well, put simply, Kylah was making Collins look bad. ;) :D
I get that, but then I figured if we instituted a play/turn order then we (okay, I) wouldn't have to worry about saying something I shouldn't before ranking officers had a chance to say something. Elendil's Heir said this was okay, so I wait my turn patiently. Now we're already leaving the room and Kylah hasn't had a chance to speak because Rangin hasn't posted. So I'm asking if I can post before we're halfway down the corridor to the transporter.
There are things I think we should be doing in this room that we aren't. It might not come to anything--my guess is it probably won't--but there's at least one basic question that we need to check on before we leave, IMHO. And if I'm taking the "RP" part of the "RPG" seriously, if Kylah thinks something's important, she's really not the type to keep quiet about it just so her superiors don't look bad.
On the other hand, I could just suggest it to you so Collins does it instead, or orders it done. I don't know, this is my first RPG. Is it permissable to make recommendations OOG to other players on what their characters might consider doing?
That'd be cool - you could PM me <insert evil smilie here>
Again, it's a hallway, not a room.
Players are free to PM each other as much as they like. You may include me, or not, as you wish.
I'm thinking of "room" in an old-school, Infocom text adventure way, Elendil's Heir -- in the sense of a discrete area described by the game (or game moderator, in this case). Dang, if I've out-geeked you, that's pretty impressive. :D
But you didn't answer my Q. about order. Can Rangin and Kylah post in either order depending on who's around? Pleeeease?
(Just hoping we can get this mission climaxing before the real 23rd century is upon us. ;))