My goal is to bring new life to the RPG. My hope is that we can ride the wave of excitement created by the new Trek Movie and keep people coming back or joining our writing group.
I would like to propose that our RPG shift to the alternate timeline of the new Trek film. Only our place in the timeline would be the future. This will give us all the opportunity to try new ideas and write stories that tie into any future films without stepping on what JJ is coming up with for the next installment... or we could simply build our own universe based on what we saw in the movie.
It would be, in essence, a soft reboot that will allow us to write fresh stories. It will serve as a jumping 'on' point for any new contributors that might be intimidated by the prior 9 seasons of reading.
The change also allows us all to fix some of the things that we all have written as newbies, in pasts seasons, that didn't work well or we wish we could have written better...yet it will allow us to keep what we have worked so hard to create. It will also give us a chance to clean up our timeline and eliminate characters like "Captain Bell" who dropped into 'nowhereville' in Season One and we never explained what happened after that.
Like the individuals in the new movie, our characters' histories would be different. They may have different roles on the ship, have family aboard, if they've disappeared from the RPG or died in a past season they may seamlessly return, and if you're new to our RPG we can write a history that puts your character in our crew from the start.
The new versions of our characters are from the timeline created by the events of the movie...only we are still set in the future. Season 10 will not be like the mirror universe story of Season 8, where everything returned to normal at the end of the story. I am proposing a permanent change to our RPG. No characters would be from our previous timeline and I don't think we should return to it.
If you don't like the idea of changing what you've written with regards to your characters, you can leave them as they are as they are. But if you'd rather tweak them, you can change almost anything: the department they work in (with permission from the story mod), their role on the ship, their relationships with others, their history, etc.
Below is a different outline from the one's I've posted in the past. I used a book called "First Draft in 30 Days" to format it. If you want to develop your character back-story, I highly recommend the book I mentioned above.
At the bottom of this outline is a definition of terms. Check it out. Please read the outline carefully and ask questions or pose ideas here. The outline is not set in stone. Again, it is simply a proposal.
The idea of switching to the new timeline was kicked around by a few writers this past season, so there may be more than one person answering your questions. The proposed outline was brainstormed by Chris and I, but it can be modified.
Plot Sketch
Story Goal:
The story occurs after the timeline shift in the new Trek movie. Romulus has been destroyed. Our story can start anywhere from a few hours to a few days after the loss of the Romulan Homeworlds. The Star Empire is in chaos. Vulcans still have not fully recovered their numbers since the loss of their planet. All vulcanoids are an endangered species and the universe is more dangerous.
Arabella is tasked with performing humanitarian missions in Romulan space and to explore it while there. This new primary mission would give the crew an opportunity not only for exploration and first contact, but also adventure. In their first humanitarian mission, the Arabella is full of Romulans that wish to defect to the Federation. The starship then encounters a damaged vessel carrying evacuated Romulan Senators. How will the Arabella provide the help they were sent to give, without creating a diplomatic incident?
Subplot Threads:
Among the passengers the Arabella is carrying, are a multitude of Romulans with different political ideals. There is a mix of people: defectors, Unification Romulans and loyalist aboard. They have a private little war of ideas with the crew of the Arabella stuck in the middle. They clash, keeping security and medical busy.
Main character side stories could be additional subplots. Work together with other writers to brainstorm how your characters could be intertwined. Remember that what makes our stories intersting is the people who live in them. Don't forget to bring them to life. Those side stories make our RPG rich.
Main Plot Tension:
The deeper the Arabella travels within Romulan space, the more chaos they discover. The disillusioned military is patrolling the crumbling boarders in search of the remnants of their former government. Their mission is to assassinate officials and assume power over whatever remains of the Empire. They encounter the Arabella and insist on inspecting her, to make sure she's not carrying defectors or members of the senate. Arabella must protect their passengers without causing a diplomatic incident. They must also deliver the senators them to their new throne world.
Release: "family dinner" in the captain's mess introducing the family dynamic as one of the new "customs" of the ship. The captain sometimes invites others to his table to get a feel for other aspects of the ship's workings. Kind of like Archer did with T'Pol and Trip, but more relaxing and inclusive.
Downtime:
Reintroduce the RPG characters and begin revealing their new histories.
Crew learns that the Cardassians are making overtures to Romulans for a united empire.
Black moment or climax:
A very important senator is found murdered in her quarters on the Arabella. There is an uproar as the news spreads to the Romulan passengers. Some blame the Federation for assassinating her or failing to protect her, some believe it is the Romulan defectors others believe it is the Tal Shar. The Romulans who believe it's the Federation (and/or the defectors) form a group and try to take the ship.
Resolution: This senator was murdered by the aide of another senator. She was actually going to defect and that would have hit the empire with a serious blow to its pride and honor at point when moral is necessary to rebuild their Empire. Arabella security and medical (working together) uncovers the plot and solves the crime.
After effects: The Arabella is successful in maintaining peace on the ship. She avoids an all out war with remnants of the Romulan military and delivers the senators to their thrown world without much bloodshed. Because of the rift between military and state, after the senators are returned, the Arabella is granted special status to operate in Romulan space by the 'Empire', and continues to operate as a humanitarian vessel by assisting the migration of Romulans and their subjugated neighbors.
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Terms and Definitions from 'First Draft In 30 Days' by Karen S. Wiesner
Story Goal: the catalyst of the story—the reason why the characters are there, the reason why the story evolves, the reason why the reader opens begins the story, starts and keeps reading.
Subplot threads: Secondary plots. Contrast or run parallel to the main plot. Function outside the realm of the main plot, existing largely to provide a change of scene, emotion or tone.
Plot tension: Anything that brings the reader to a fever pitch of anticipation. A story without plot tension leaves the reader uninvolved and unemotional.
Romance/sexual tension: Begun as early in the story as possible. Start the suspense promptly and keep it intense. Can be subtle or intense, depending on how important the romance is to the story.
Release: An easement of plot or romantic tension. Ex. a kiss, resolution to one aspect of the main problem. The final words in a story should also produce a release that satisfies the reader and makes them long to revisit the story.
Downtime: A form of release that happens during a time of incredible tension. It should be one of the most poignant scenes in your novel. During downtime, which comes at the end of the middle section of the book, the main character may step back from the action and reflect on what happily-eve-after could have been (if not for all the obstacles you put in his way). For a time, the main character also may believe that the story goal is unachievable, and he may seem to give up the fight.
Black moment or climax: All horrors is happening or has happened, and the main characters (and readers) are now thoroughly convinced the future will never be happy. The black moment which occurs in the first part of the end section of the book (when tension is at its highest), leaves the reader and the characters wondering whether evil will overcome good.
Resolution: comes after the climax when the story's main problems have been resolved. This is your chance to tie up any loose ends and provide satisfying conclusions for your subplot threads. The resolutions for the long term story threads should be relatively clean, but subplot threads resolutions may not tie up quiet so neatly (egg death or some other legitimate dead end). Tying up these loose ends is crucial to leaving the reader satisfied.
Aftereffects of resolution: An emotional reaction or an event that carries a story goal or subplot thread beyond its conclusion. In other words, the thread my continue even after it's been resolved. Very few writers included aftereffects of resolution, though they're used frequently in movies.
I really like this idea and I can't wait to see the application of it.
Jen & Chris- This is a pretty cool idea! :) Great job on the plot framework; looks like we'll have a fresh, exciting new sandbox to play in! :thumbsup
I like the idea of a change, but I am confused. In the movie alternate timeline, Romulus is not gone. It was not destroyed. Am I missing something in the time frame you are talking about?
Quote from: Rico on May 24, 2009, 05:30:15 PM
I like the idea of a change, but I am confused. In the movie alternate timeline, Romulus is not gone. It was not destroyed. Am I missing something in the time frame you are talking about?
I think the story is supposed to pick up in the future of the alternate timeline; at the same point in time at which Romulus was destroyed in the "Trek-Prime" timeline-- the assumption being that in the alternate timeline, the Hobus star goes supernova, just like it did in the 'Trek-Prime' universe.
Quote from: wraith1701 on May 24, 2009, 05:35:01 PM
Quote from: Rico on May 24, 2009, 05:30:15 PM
I like the idea of a change, but I am confused. In the movie alternate timeline, Romulus is not gone. It was not destroyed. Am I missing something in the time frame you are talking about?
I think the story is supposed to pick up in the future of the alternate timeline; at the same point in time at which Romulus was destroyed in the "Trek-Prime" timeline-- the assumption being that in the alternate timeline, the Hobus star goes supernova, just like it did in the 'Trek-Prime' universe.
Sorry, but this doesn't make much sense to me. Sure, certainly certain physical events might end up the same, but 120 plus years in the future of the Federation things would be so vastly different I'm not quite sure we even have a frame of reference to work with. I suppose that could be interesting but EVERYTHING would have to be reinvented. Is that the proposal?
Quote from: Jen on May 24, 2009, 04:40:22 PM
... or we could simply build our own universe based on what we saw in the movie.
It would be, in essence, a soft reboot that will allow us to write fresh stories. It will serve as a jumping 'on' point for any new contributors that might be intimidated by the prior 9 seasons of reading.
All we know is what the movie showed us (which only shows the past after the supernova). We are imagining a future that stemmed from the event. This could have affected the future of the altered timeline if we want it too. This proposal is an imagining of what could have happened from that point forward. It is a blank canvas which allows us to paint what ever we want on it. Some Trek history could remain the same or we can alter it. Not everything would have to be reinvented if we want to keep some elements the same. We would, in a sense, be doing exactly what JJ Abrams did...rewriting history. Only he's probably going to focus on the past, while we focus on the distant future.
Thanks for clearing up my confusion. Well, that certainly would be a very daunting task. Heck, we don't even know how big the new Enterprise is! LOL! ;)
It doesn't have to be daunting. We're just focusing on our character's story, on our ship, in our future which has always been set in a time that is outside the movies and television shows. We had to invent a future at that point too. :) We're not writing the whole of Trek...just the things that have touched the lives of our characters. Like Sevryll, obviously her backstory is out the window if Vulcan was destroyed. So I have had to imagine where she would grow up, and what career she would have chosen if she no longer had Vulcan's historic landscape to inspire her to an archaeologist. Her father was a Vulcan diplomat working toward Unification...was he on Romulus? Was he on Earth? These are the things we have to dream up. We don't have to worry about all the particulars of Trek history. :)
How about we just create all new characters and start right where the new Star Trek film left off? I think that would be more inclusive for new writers and get out moving again. I understand what you are saying Jen, but for me, the RPG has grown stagnant and I would love a "reboot" for real.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 24, 2009, 06:25:13 PM
How about we just create all new characters and start right where the new Star Trek film left off? I think that would be more inclusive for new writers and get out moving again. I understand what you are saying Jen, but for me, the RPG has grown stagnant and I would love a "reboot" for real.
It's very difficult for me not to take offense at that. It may be stagnant to you Bryan...but there are quite a few people who continue to write in the RPG season after season. We have more writers participating in the RPG than ever before and more individuals that have seen the season through from beginning to end. If you want to create a new character, I won't stop you but it's easier to build upon something that was already constructed than to start all over with new characters. If that wasn't the case, then JJ would have created his own crew instead of using the one we know and love.
I guess I just see things so different in the Kirk/Spock new movie era, that I have a very hard time thinking of what the Federation, Starfleet and so on would be like over a hundred years later. Frankly, I think it would be a lot different than the post Voyager era the Arabella and crew have been in up until now. It's just a lot to work out. And it would have to be all written ahead of time to a degree. The technology present, the state of the Federation, etc.
Okay folks, I'll add my two copper pieces into this.
First let me clear up the confusion. This will be a different universe set in the future. The year 2387 ... shortly after the destruction of Romulas and Remus.
Various sources from book to movie will be used to make a new universe that is our universe. We can use the same characters with altered histories or different characters. In the coming weeks, a new time line will be constructed that tells what the major events that happened in our universe are. We don't need the ins and outs of what Kirk and his crew did or didn't do because that rarely comes into play in even TNG.
Major differences in the time line will be addressed in the timeline that comes out. Similar events that happened in the stories that we previously wrote might have happened in this new timeline, but the changes will be spelled out in the new timeline that is posted.
We are still going to be on the Arabella. It's going to be the same size. We are doing this because of a passage in the book that suggests a reality will try over time to make the timeline what it's supposed to be.
So visually, we're sticking with the same things that we have been using. Technology wise, we are sticking to the same things we have been using. This new universe will be a blending of elements from all trek.
For instance, Vulcan is destroyed, but by the time we get to our point in the timeline, the vulcans have a new home they can call vulcan. Their numbers are still WAY lower than what they would have been in our old timeline and there are ramifications of the destruction of Vulcan.
Everything is going to be spelled out completely for people to get. When new people come aboard, they can look at the handy dandy timeline and see just what important things have happened in the universe that we are writing in.
The reason that we are starting with the same ship and a similar crew is because some people have finally gotten a feel for their characters and when polling the active writers of the last season, this plan works the best.
Sure, this might seem like a lot to work out, but at the same time, it works better because things are a mystery. Sure the average cadet might know about the BIG stuff that happens in the past, but they wouldn't know what happened in every episode that has ever aired on TV. This goes for officers as well. The big stuff that has happened or that has been changed will be covered. The other things weren't supposed to be common knowledge anyway.
As Jen pointed out, this also allows some of the errors that we might have made while learning the ropes to be corrected. To me, that's a win.
Another win is that it has revitalized the creativity of most of the people that worked to bring an end to the season. I don't think that the RPG has grown stagnate because there were a handful of people working to the very end to finish the season. I do think that this new direction has given them new motivation to write more and that's what keeps the story flowing. People writing and this idea works for that.
I think the confusion here is that there is the perception that the story is going to have all these huge changes with everyone else having no idea of what has come before. This is not the case. For the past few season, Kenny and Jen have worked pretty hard getting all the information together for a season, doing the research for things that might affect the plot, and then getting the story moving along.
These changes don't affect how things are done in the background. Things will still be planned out and everyone will know what to expect. This isn't that hard. It's no harder than the work that was put into building our version of the mirror universe. This time, we're just going to stick to the new universe because it will work better and allow for an easier time of putting together those stories.
I understand that there will be some hesitation and objections, but all that it needs to work is just a little bit of trust. Trust that Jen wouldn't try something if she didn't think it wouldn't work out for the best. Trust that the a good portion of the writers that finished this season agreed with her and will still continue to write and push the story from beginning to end.
I think that this is the best course, not just for this season, but for future season of the RPG. I believe that this is a perfect jumping on point for new people or for old people to change their characters or adopt new characters because of what they learned in the past.
This will work, all it requires is a little leap of faith.
The only thing that most people will have to worry about going in is designing an actual history for their characters, but the time line will help with that. You will know who was born when. If there were other famous people in your class at starfleet.
This will give the RPG a far better foundation for future stories and that's the most important part right? The ability to continue the RPG and keep the people that have been constantly contributing still contributing? That's what this offers.
Well, that's my opinion. I hope it makes sense.
Thanks for that and I certainly do trust all of you. But, if things are going to be "pretty much the same" - then I have to ask - why do it at all? I'm not a heavy player in the RPG, so this is just me asking and being curious. Jen, Kenny and the rest of you can certainly do what you feel is best and I have no issue at all with it. But again, frankly I personally think a lot will have changed in the intervening years in the alternate timeline. But that's just me I guess.
Quote from: Rico on May 24, 2009, 07:25:23 PM
Thanks for that and I certainly do trust all of you. But, if things are going to be "pretty much the same" - then I have to ask - why do it at all? I'm not a heavy player in the RPG, so this is just me asking and being curious. Jen, Kenny and the rest of you can certainly do what you feel is best and I have no issue at all with it. But again, frankly I personally think a lot will have changed in the intervening years in the alternate timeline. But that's just me I guess.
I think a lot of things will change, but the focus will still be on the characters. For the sake of imagination, the look of the tech and the design of the ship that we are in won't be changing, but the characters will be.
I think that if people have a better idea of their history, they can better write their characters. For instance, from my perspective, Aeric's nanites aren't there, his infant daughter doesn't exist, aria is a tween. those are just a few of the changes that happened to Aeric to make him better to write and remove some of the stuff that didn't work well in the story. This will cause slight changes that will be addressed in the storyline notes and the timeline. It will also make the story stronger in the long run.
Another example is that some people were never on the ship. Quinn was the Captain of the Tirberius and Bell was never there. It was a loose end from season one that needed to be addressed or corrected.
There are more things, but I think the example above give a general idea of how things are changing to make the characters central and clean up some of the mess of people joining for a post and never being seen again. There are other things that people are working on, but I can't speak on everyone. This is a good time to build great histories for your characters that will carry them through to the season after this one.
So thing of the changes in two categories: Major universe affecting changes like Vulcan's fate and Character changes.
Build a good frame and the rest will fall into place.
Quote from: Jen on May 24, 2009, 06:26:24 PM
Quote from: Bryancd on May 24, 2009, 06:25:13 PM
How about we just create all new characters and start right where the new Star Trek film left off? I think that would be more inclusive for new writers and get out moving again. I understand what you are saying Jen, but for me, the RPG has grown stagnant and I would love a "reboot" for real.
It's very difficult for me not to take offense at that. It may be stagnant to you Bryan...but there are quite a few people who continue to write in the RPG season after season. We have more writers participating in the RPG than ever before and more individuals that have seen the season through from beginning to end. If you want to create a new character, I won't stop you but it's easier to build upon something that was already constructed than to start all over with new characters. If that wasn't the case, then JJ would have created his own crew instead of using the one we know and love.
I'm sorry you feel offended by my own personal feeling, Jen. :( You shouldn't, it's just my feelings and doesn't reflect at all on the work you and others have put into the RPG. Is the RPG beyond any criticism? For me, I just think that if we are going to change, let's change the whole thing, start a brand new series, like a brand new book. Sorry if this is somehow making others feel bad, that's not my intention nor a reflection on the characters they have created.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 24, 2009, 07:55:58 PM
I'm sorry you feel offended by my own personal feeling, Jen. :( You shouldn't, it's just my feelings and doesn't reflect at all on the work you and others have put into the RPG. Is the RPG beyond any criticism? For me, I just think that if we are going to change, let's change the whole thing, start a brand new series, like a brand new book. Sorry if this is somehow making others feel bad, that's not my intention nor a reflection on the characters they have created.
I think that if we're going to change, it should be in a way that will keep the people that have been writing motivated. From my own talks with some of the writers that wrote this season. This is the best idea. They like the new direction and that they can alter their characters. There's really no need to throw the baby out with the bath water. At the same time, going 100% new would require a ton more of research and I don't think that there's many people on the boards that are going to invest their time in doing all the leg work to start completely fresh. This works better because it's easier on the people that's going to be working to build the time line and all the other stuff.
However, if you are willing to build a new time line and design a new ship and the specs for it, I'd be a little more willing to start from scratch. For me, there is just too much good effort and detail that we can still use to toss it all.
I personaly think this new idea is rocking. New, fresh, could be a lot of fun. I trust Jen, Kenny and Chris, and all the other creative minds. I'll join in, perhaps with some help so I don't dissapear anymore. :)
I know I'm a new boy to this but for me I think this could work quite well. What I've found over S9 is that I like consistency and I like things to be 'right' which is difficult to achieve with forty years of TV and a whole load of books that I haven't read to be consistent with. To be honest, it surprised me when I was writing - I didn't realise I reacted like that.
What this idea appears to present (for me at least) is a much wider playing field on which to perform in terms of Galdar's character. To take a simple example - in the current universe, Galdar is the third or fourth Ferengi in the fleet (probably). 1- Nog, 2 - Lt Plummer?, 3 - Galdar. That's pretty much set in concrete from DS9 and our story. In the new universe, that doesn't have to be so...it may be the same but it doesn't have to be. This means I can invent another Ferengi character if I want to without fear of tripping over 'cannon'. FWIW I'm not planning to but this would give me that freedom.
In terms of what the universe looks like, Rico's right and it could be anything. However, as the point of this is to be a game for people to join in with I don't think we can adjust too far in terms of technology etc from what we know and I'm not sure it would happen that way anyway.
Bear in mind that technological evolution is in some ways like a jugganaut (sp?) plowing forward that a 25 year deviation isn't really going to throw off course. Yes, tech recovered from the damage to the Narada caused by the Kelvin could have thrown things off a bit and what was discovered there would be built upon. At the end of the film, however, the Romulans were swallowed by a black hole - there's no more future-tech to salvage so development reverts to the pace it was previously progressing in. I think over the time periods we're talking about there's a good arguement for things being pretty much at the same level. With the loss of Vulcan, it could even be further behind.
Politically, of course, it will be completely different. I imagine the Romulans have a lot more agressive for a lot longer, for instance. With regard to Romulus being destroyed - with the loss of Vulcan, would the Vulcans have been able to discover Red Matter with their reduced resources? Spock Prime didn't invent it so I doubt he passed the formula on. Maybe they got there just after Romulus was destroyed or maybe they had to find another way to deal with the supernova. Given that all that is off screen, we don't need to resolve it instantly.
This is all really a long winded way of saying I quite like this idea since it keeps a lot of what we know but gives us a lot more scope to play with it all inside the new political arena that the film opens up while being far enough away from the film that we won't trip over continuity for future films.
I like the idea and I would love to continue to participate. It would certainly chnage Lester Garriss completely though, no more Vulcan influence and I'd have to change the character completely...
I will hold off any thoughts until I see the timeline sketched out. I think we do need certain 'guidelines' to draw from but the potential for this is amazing!
On a side note (and I haven't read the book yet) doesn't the movie imply that Nero used the red matter in the past to destroy the system that went supernova in the future to prevent Romulus being destoyed? This would mean no supernova at all in the alternate universe. I don't know, I'd have to recheck...
Quote from: Dangelus on May 25, 2009, 01:20:41 AM
I like the idea and I would love to continue to participate. It would certainly chnage Lester Garriss completely though, no more Vulcan influence and I'd have to change the character completely...
I'm sure the Vulcan influence is still there but I guess it's far smaller than it was in the 'Prime' universe. I wonder what other impacts that loss would have on things.
Quote from: Dangelus on May 25, 2009, 01:20:41 AMI will hold off any thoughts until I see the timeline sketched out. I think we do need certain 'guidelines' to draw from but the potential for this is amazing!
On a side note (and I haven't read the book yet) doesn't the movie imply that Nero used the red matter in the past to destroy the system that went supernova in the future to prevent Romulus being destoyed? This would mean no supernova at all in the alternate universe. I don't know, I'd have to recheck...
Did it? I don't remember that.
Still, I've only seen the film once so perhaps this would be a good excuse for a rewatch. :)
Ok here is my throw in on this new idea. I love it. I enjoy writing joseph and he's different from when i first started which annoys me as a writer. I've now got the chance to write joe as he is now but more or less from scratch which is so exciting. I've grown as a writer and i find this new proposal a idea. Bryan i actually believe this is the best thing especially for you and other writers who have become bored or maybe out of ideas. You say the rpg is stagnant. You can't say that without hinting you feel my writing, jen's writing, chris, erics, mike's and dan's writing is boring. I challenge that as i think this story has been challenging and dramatic. I'm not having a go at you, you're welcome to your opinion but don't expect me to sit back and have mine or anyone else's creative work knocked. I want to see the likes of you Bryan and the others who have great character breath some new life into them and bring them back into the stories. I'm not changing an awfull lot about Joe, but what i am changing is allowing me to write him easier and have him as he is now. He won't have had the trauma he had originally he'll be more laid back which how i wanted him. This i feel is a great opportunity for everyone to join in again. I love writing Dunn but he would be better if Bryan wrote him, he's a great character and in my mine more than a NPC. Anyway that's my thoughts.
Another thought popped in my head with regards to this. I really doubt the new young Spock, Kirk and the Federation will let the star (Hobus?) go supernova and destroy Romulus in their future. Their involvement with Nero, older Spock, etc. has given them plenty of evidence to stop this - or at least let the Romulans know about it over a hundred years before it will happen. So do we really think they won't do something about this? Isn't that kind of one of the points of the movie?
Again - up to all of you. I like the idea of the using the alternate timeline/universe, I just really think some of the particulars need to be worked out still.
As long as you guys keep writing I'll keep reading! At first I wasn't sure if this was the best idea but I'm warming to it. This will kind of be like season 8, except people won't necessarily be 'mirrored', just...different.
Obviously Sevryll will be a different person, Garriss as well. A lot of the rest of the characters could remain relatively unaffected (if the writers deem it to be so). It's a good opportunity for writers to 'fix' their characters and to stretch their muscles outside of the prime timeline.
And hey. Worst case scenario, for season 11, we revert to the prime timeline. It'll be a fun experiment.
That's what I mean mean, Meds, for me I felt the story had sort of run it's course as far as my participation in it and my character. Even last season when I stopped writing I kept reading and listening to the podcast and enjoyed all of your collective work. I said this is not a knock on the work everyone put's in or it's quality, it's just I personally haven't felt engaged to participate. I really like the idea of using the new time line, I just like the concept of making this in the same era in which the films are now being made. I think it's exciting and dynamic and fresh and would be fun. I understand what Chris is saying about set up, but maybe we don't need all of that to get it going.
As you've read the comics Rico, you'll know Spock warned the Romulans in the Prime timeline. They didn't listen then so why should they listen in any new timeline? I seriously doubt the presence of Spock Prime would make any difference to the Senate. But that's only my view obviously.
Strictly we could imagine just about any set of events we like. What I see from this plan is that it becomes a little more 'our' Trek universe rather than an extension of someone else's.
Quote from: Feathers on May 25, 2009, 06:59:57 AM
As you've read the comics Rico, you'll know Spock warned the Romulans in the Prime timeline. They didn't listen then so why should they listen in any new timeline? I seriously doubt the presence of Spock Prime would make any difference to the Senate. But that's only my view obviously.
Strictly we could imagine just about any set of events we like. What I see from this plan is that it becomes a little more 'our' Trek universe rather than an extension of someone else's.
The Federation would just stop it themselves then. They have over a hundred years to fix this. I truly doubt they would just let it happen all over again.
Who's to say that the universe doesn't want Romulus gone? And "mother universe" finds a way to keep it from being saved? If it can bring the same crew together over and over again, it can make sure no one can save a dying star.
Remember that the point of an RPG is to be creative...to imagine what 'could be'. We are in our own realm here, and always have been. The books and movies have been a guide, but we have written whatever has tripped into our imagination. Can Andorians mate with humans and produce a child? There's nothing in cannon to say that could happen...but I thought it made for a great story. Can a dude with nanites control machines? It doesn't seem plausible, but it works as a story...
We have written of many events in the past that wouldn't be 'logical', and from those 'illogicial' ideas sprang unique and fun stories. All we are doing here is trying to come up with a catalylist to create a new perspective on what we've built for 9 seasons. We're not reinventing the wheel or throwing the baby out with the bath water. The people who continue to read this story, and write in it, love the characters we have all created. For those of us who have invested a lot in our characters, it would be like killing a favorite pet with our bare hands to ditch them and start from scratch. If you don't have much invested you wouldn't mind scrapping them. This is your opportunity to do that if you want to create something new.
Challenges are what inspire creativity. It's about working with other writers to come up with ideas to meet the challenge head on and solve it with something witty or unique. If you look at it as "hard" or "difficult" then it will never be fun or exciting.
What Kenny and I suggest to writers who are frequently frustrated by the RPG or can't keep up or can't come up with ideas despite the help of others, is that they take some time to consider if this game is a hobby they enjoy or if is it a chore. If it isn't fun, then chances are it's a job that doesn't pay. Not everyone enjoys spinning stories and inventing characters, worlds and dialog. It it is my hobby and I spend a lot of time writing here when I could be writing a novel, LOL. In fact, I think I've probably written about 9 of them already. :) Maybe it's not the game you find unengaging...maybe it was never your cup of tea to begin with. And that's okay...everyone is different.
Kenny and I were pondering an alternate timeline story several seasons back. After I saw this movie, I thought the questions it left us all with would inspire the writers of the RPG. I didn't like the events of the movie, I think I've said that more than a few times, but I thought it would be good for us to wonder how our characters would be affected by that one event. It's a ripple in a pool...but please remember this is actually a sandbox. And we, as a group, can make whatever we want with the sand. If there's a will there's a way. :)
I'm sorry if I have upset anyone by my comments. That certainly was far from my intention. I guess using a "Star Wars" phrase, I just have 'a different point of view' about what the future would bring to the alternate movie timeline. And even in Kirk's time it seems quite a bit different already. Please, feel free to take the RPG where you see best.
Quote from: Rico on May 25, 2009, 08:11:55 AM
I'm sorry if I have upset anyone by my comments. That certainly was far from my intention. I guess using a "Star Wars" phrase, I just have 'a different point of view' about what the future would bring to the alternate movie timeline. And even in Kirk's time it seems quite a bit different already. Please, feel free to take the RPG where you see best.
No biggie, Rico. :)
You may be right, it may not turn out this way in the films...Spock could save the day. But for our RPG, I think it's more interesting to deal with a disaster and the fall out from that. It makes things interesting. Again, it's our own universe of Trek it doesn't have to be perfectly in step with the movie or TV show. Consider the RPG story a "what if' scenario. What if he didn't save it again? What would happen?
I think I found an easier way to explain everything for some people to understand.
Ultimates version of Star Trek
We're taking some of the things that we think work and starting new stories with new civilizations and boldly going where our creativity takes us. We're using characters familiar to us, but cleaning up their histories.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 25, 2009, 06:01:08 AM
That's what I mean mean, Meds, for me I felt the story had sort of run it's course as far as my participation in it and my character. Even last season when I stopped writing I kept reading and listening to the podcast and enjoyed all of your collective work. I said this is not a knock on the work everyone put's in or it's quality, it's just I personally haven't felt engaged to participate. I really like the idea of using the new time line, I just like the concept of making this in the same era in which the films are now being made. I think it's exciting and dynamic and fresh and would be fun. I understand what Chris is saying about set up, but maybe we don't need all of that to get it going.
Think about what Chris has said above, this a new start to get your charcter back into a fesh story. Karath is a great character and like i said Dunn is such a brilliant character i'd love to see you put your enenrgy into him in this new season. he is you after all (well a younger version ;) ) .
I like the new direction idea personally. Actually I think my characters could really benefit from a complete overhauling. I don't know exactly what I want for them, or how I want them to be, and I can't say I'd change them completely, but I'm game for a change in the RPG.
...devishsly handsome as well. Meds..... ;) I think where I am having an issue is I am really getting into the current "new" Trek universe but I really have no idea what that universe will look like 150 years or so later. I want to play in the current one. K'arath wouldn't be around, but I could play Dunn as my main guy and most all of you have characters that could just jump right in or be modified to fir into the time line. Like Aeric James wouldn't be Borg augmented but just about everyone else is either human or a species which appears to be part of the re-boot universe, or can be if we decide it. Let's man one of those cool ships we see at the space station! Let's pick up in a universe where Vulcan's are refugees. Jen, you could re-invent Sevryll, think of all the different directions we could go.
This is also a chance to have a new character that was there from the beginning. If X wasn't working for you at their Y job or in their Z history, try something new. Work it in and invest in the history so that the character can write itself.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 25, 2009, 09:41:46 AM
...devishsly handsome as well. Meds..... ;) I think where I am having an issue is I am really getting into the current "new" Trek universe but I really have no idea what that universe will look like 150 years or so later. I want to play in the current one. K'arath wouldn't be around, but I could play Dunn as my main guy and most all of you have characters that could just jump right in or be modified to fir into the time line. Like Aeric James wouldn't be Borg augmented but just about everyone else is either human or a species which appears to be part of the re-boot universe, or can be if we decide it. Let's man one of those cool ships we see at the space station! Let's pick up in a universe where Vulcan's are refugees. Jen, you could re-invent Sevryll, think of all the different directions we could go.
The universe, because it has worked damned hard in fixing itself, looks almost identical
visually to the current setting we have and the current ship that we are using. There will be some new looking ships as a part of our universe, but ours is not one of them.
Instead of picking up helping vulcans, we're going to be picking up helping the other pointy eared race. We're also taking a page for BSG. If we focus on building a good foundation for the characters, the rest will work itself out. I'm personally more worried about the characters. The look will fix itself. We could describe something in text and if you asked everyone to draw what they see, I doubt it's ever exactly the same.
I don't want to sound like George Michaels or Russel Watson, but the key word is faith.
Hmm, going to throw out my questions/ideas.
What about characters that made a lot of mistakes? Mine is probably the prime example of our RPG. I made quite a number of mistakes which ultimately led to him being killed to save the character. Would such a character be allowed to return? I feel that I could possibly bring him back. (obviously a lot of changes/fixes)
Second, it almost sounds like your trying to hard to fix the universe to the current one. Is all the work truly worth it? It to me seems like we should just do a full-reboot of our current universe rather than do this new one. Thoughts?
Third, how many people are going to be involved in this if we decide to go through with it?
I'd love to return to writing. I haven't done any sort of "role-playing" writing since I left this RPG and I feel I have the time, energy and imagination to try again.
King
If we switched to TOS era, Bryan, you would be more involved? You would rejoin the RPG and be consistent in your posts? My impression has been that you were too busy to write. That's okay, it has been the case for a couple of our writers since day one of the RPG. But if I did make this change and you didn't jump back in, you would disappoint me beyond words. :klingon:
I welcome everyone's thoughts, but the RPG is not going to write itself. I need people to take an active role in drawing up a new outline, if you are opposed to the old one, and driving the story from beginning to end. If you want to change this RPG, you need to be consistently involved, especially if we incorporate your ideas into the game.
Personally, TOS is not my Trek... not my favorite Trek I should say, but I would switch the RPG to that timeline if the majority of writers wanted to make the jump. But we do have a Klingons, one human raised by Klingons, and Ferengi on the Arabella. We'd have to do some 'creative thinking' to get them into the story set in the past...creative thinking is what we are doing now with the future supernova idea.
Writers, let me know if you agree with Bryan and if the majority wants to go that route, I'm fine with it. I don't care as long as good stories come as a result. But if you do agree with his proposal, make a New Year's resolution to stick it out in the seasons from start to finish. It's not fair to the regular players to have someone who doesn't practice with the team show up at the state championship game to play as a starter.
It takes a lot of work to plan ahead to the next season. We didn't dream this up in a day. It was a few months worth of back and forth, "hey what if...." Luckily I usually have help from Kenny and Chris and a few other writers here and there. This time Meds and Mike brainstormed with us about their own characters. Even though I have good help, I always worry about how the new ideas will be received. I don't want anyone to be disappointed or discouraged. I hope no one has been turned off by this idea we posted. It wasn't my intention to turn people away, but by the same token I'm sort of responsible for keeping this ship in space. I'm constantly trying to think of ways to keep the RPG fresh, fun and inclusive. I am not soliciting a pat on the back, I get that often from people without asking for it...I just want to let people know that this game is fun, but it takes the motivation and dedication to keep it running.
Having said that, the forum members always seem to inspire and encourage me through the enjoyment they get from reading/playing this game. I like to see the comments of readers and writers that they leave about characters in the OOC. Patting each other on the back for well written scenes, encouraging eachother and picking each others brains for ideas on the next scene.... I like the teamwork aspect and the fun they seem to be having while doing it. That's the point of this game and it's why I keep moderating and writing in it. If you dropped out or haven't joined yet, get into the game and collaborate with these guys. It's fun, otherwise we wouldn't be doing it.
Quote from: Kinglinksr on May 25, 2009, 11:20:37 AM
Hmm, going to throw out my questions/ideas.
What about characters that made a lot of mistakes? Mine is probably the prime example of our RPG. I made quite a number of mistakes which ultimately led to him being killed to save the character. Would such a character be allowed to return? I feel that I could possibly bring him back. (obviously a lot of changes/fixes)
Second, it almost sounds like your trying to hard to fix the universe to the current one. Is all the work truly worth it? It to me seems like we should just do a full-reboot of our current universe rather than do this new one. Thoughts?
Third, how many people are going to be involved in this if we decide to go through with it?
I'd love to return to writing. I haven't done any sort of "role-playing" writing since I left this RPG and I feel I have the time, energy and imagination to try again.
King
As I posted early, fixing problems with characters is one of the main reasons we proposed this and I mentioned that dead or MIA characters could return. But part of the reason we want to fix things is because of characters who dropped out with no resolution. So if you want to return, please consider whether you are going to stick around or not.
The people actively writing in this game are greater in number than they've ever been before. There have been several people who have already posted that they like this idea and will return to the story. Eric, Rick, Meds, Mike, Chris, Sheppard...Dan said he liked it too, though he did have a question.
Again, I am proposing an idea that will give everyone a chance to do what they want with their characters. If they want to chunk their character and start over they have the chance to do that. If they want to change something about their character it's open season. If they want to leave them as is...that's fine. I do not understand the opposition to a soft reboot. It does not make sense to me to scrap everything and start over. I've seen other forums where two RPGs were running. Maybe that could be an option. But it is not fair to the consistent writers to ask them start over on a character that they are just now learning to write after several seasons. I'm adamantly opposed to starting all over.
Oh, no Jen, I don't mean TOS, I mean new movie era, like picking up right where the film ends. And yes, although I tried to be a full time participant in the last two seasons, I wasn't able to keep up writing due to personal time constraints. However, the summer gives me a break from racing and my training will be more flexible and I will have more time.
I have been involved with the RPG from it's inception, have read for the Ready Room and the drama you are putting together, have encouraged and complimented every one involved, but I say one thing critical and I get jumped. I understand the investment the core RPG writers put into the work, and it is a work of art. Sometimes, it's not perfect but it's the result of blood, sweat, and tears and that's all that matters. It's strong enough to take a few knocks, especially coming from someone who loves it like I do. Was I engaged by the last season? Not so much. Was it bad? Of course not, you guys did great. Am I in a position or have the creative chops to lead us in a new direction? Not on your life, you all are talented beyond me. If this thread is a discussion of Season X, I wanted to share my thoughts. If the plan is to do as you guy's have outlined, I'm game to give it a go. :)
I'm 100% for what's been suggested in the post 2387 era.
...now can we all be friends again? :)
Quote from: Just X on May 25, 2009, 12:04:04 PM
I'm 100% for what's been suggested in the post 2387 era.
What does that mean, Chris? I don't have my Trek time line chart in fron of me! ;)
Quote from: Bryancd on May 25, 2009, 12:07:09 PM
Quote from: Just X on May 25, 2009, 12:04:04 PM
I'm 100% for what's been suggested in the post 2387 era.
What does that mean, Chris? I don't have my Trek time line chart in fron of me! ;)
2387 was the date mentioned in the countdown comic. It's the year that Romulas was destroyed. I think we should pick up shortly after that. I'm about to start another thread with another idea that will help make sense of some of the stuff.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 25, 2009, 11:59:31 AM
Oh, no Jen, I don't mean TOS, I mean new movie era, like picking up right where the film ends. And yes, although I tried to be a full time participant in the last two seasons, I wasn't able to keep up writing due to personal time constraints. However, the summer gives me a break from racing and my training will be more flexible and I will have more time.
I have been involved with the RPG from it's inception, have read for the Ready Room and the drama you are putting together, have encouraged and complimented every one involved, but I say one thing critical and I get jumped. I understand the investment the core RPG writers put into the work, and it is a work of art. Sometimes, it's not perfect but it's the result of blood, sweat, and tears and that's all that matters. It's strong enough to take a few knocks, especially coming from someone who loves it like I do. Was I engaged by the last season? Not so much. Was it bad? Of course not, you guys did great. Am I in a position or have the creative chops to lead us in a new direction? Not on your life, you all are talented beyond me. If this thread is a discussion of Season X, I wanted to share my thoughts. If the plan is to do as you guy's have outlined, I'm game to give it a go. :)
I am protective of the folks I'm moderating and the work they're doing.... and I did say that I would be willing to go with your idea if the majority liked it. I'm trying to be diplomatic here.
I'm glad your up to the challenge of rejoining. We've missed K'arath.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 25, 2009, 11:59:31 AM
Oh, no Jen, I don't mean TOS, I mean new movie era, like picking up right where the film ends. And yes, although I tried to be a full time participant in the last two seasons, I wasn't able to keep up writing due to personal time constraints. However, the summer gives me a break from racing and my training will be more flexible and I will have more time.
I have been involved with the RPG from it's inception, have read for the Ready Room and the drama you are putting together, have encouraged and complimented every one involved, but I say one thing critical and I get jumped. I understand the investment the core RPG writers put into the work, and it is a work of art. Sometimes, it's not perfect but it's the result of blood, sweat, and tears and that's all that matters. It's strong enough to take a few knocks, especially coming from someone who loves it like I do. Was I engaged by the last season? Not so much. Was it bad? Of course not, you guys did great. Am I in a position or have the creative chops to lead us in a new direction? Not on your life, you all are talented beyond me. If this thread is a discussion of Season X, I wanted to share my thoughts. If the plan is to do as you guy's have outlined, I'm game to give it a go. :)
As long as you are in your lycra Bryan i reckon you'll take it as a new challenge ;) LOL.
Serously though i think the change of direction will be re-freshing and a challenge and that is the key.
I for one don't want to start again with a whole bunch of new characters. Not so much for my own sake really, as Galdar's only been here a season but for everyone else who's spent years working out who they play. To have finally got D'Callan 'right' for instance and then have to throw him away seems a real shame and a waste of effort. To have to start again would rip a lot of the fun out of things I suspect.
Also, given that this allows character mistakes to be sorted out I don't think starting off a whole load of new characters helps there either. You can't fix mistakes you haven't made yet and until you've written a character for a bit I doubt the mistakes are identifiable.
Time and place doesn't worry me so much but binning all the characters does both as an understudy author and a RR listener. I feel I know these guys! Even if they do get 'tweaked' they are still likely to be recognisable. I don't want to listen to a whole bunch of new ones. (Of course if some people want to rewrite from the ground up that's fine. I just suspect most people won't)
Quote from: Jen on May 25, 2009, 12:10:32 PM
I am protective of the folks I'm moderating and the work they're doing.... and I did say that I would be willing to go with your idea if the majority liked it. I'm trying to be diplomatic here.
Like a lioness protecting her cubs ! :) Let me be clear, i am not advocating tossing out the current characters, I just though it would be fun to move them to the new movie era and tweak them accordingly. Galdar can be the first Ferengi in Starfleet! If we get to make up new canon, then all of our characters, maybe even K'arath. It's just an idea but if no one digs it, that's fine.
Ah, OK. I was sure you'd suggested throwing all the characters out to move to the new era. No matter then.
The more I think about it the more exciting this new direction is. Got to start thinking about what changes I would like Lester's character to have!
The reason I thought to take the characters back to the new Trek movie era as we now know much more about it. We know what the Federation and Starfleet and the ships and the uniforms look like. We have a framework to build off of that's new and exciting. Everyone is so jazed about the new movie, let's play in that sandbox. It will allow new writers an easy touchstone to join in. It gives all of us the chance to have our characters be in those new outfits, facing these new challenges. If we do this in a future version of that, it does allow us to keep character continuity intact, but we have to make up the new realities of this Federation. I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like, but I can totally imagine Ensign Dunn running around on a JJ starship in the JJ universe.
I think the consensus is in and we should go ahead and start moving forward with putting the characters together, so that we can be prepared to start the next season in less than a month. I think that once everyone gets an idea of their characters, we should get them down and move to the next step. A general timeline should be up soon enough to assist with that. Migraines not withstanding, it shouldn't be that hard to assemble a bare bones and then add individual histories.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 25, 2009, 07:22:23 PM
Quote from: Just X on May 25, 2009, 02:42:36 PM
I think the consensus is in
oh...it is?
yep yep! It's not a unanimous consensus, but it is by far a majority consensus. 1 wanting writer TOS the rest going with the proposal. Seems a pretty obvious conclusion there.
Seems pretty obvious you didn't read what I wrote, but that's ok.
Quote from: Bryancd on May 26, 2009, 05:02:59 AM
Seems pretty obvious you didn't read what I wrote, but that's ok.
Byran, I honestly and fully read what you wrote, but I didn't agree. I don't think that we know more about that era. I actually think we know a LOT less about that era. We don't even know the size of the Enterprise. I know it would be easy for some characters to just port into that time, but for others it would be difficult if not impossible. Sure you can change everything up to make it work, but why? The way that was proposed seems the best idea to me. It also seems easier from the standpoint of putting together a cohesive story. The proposal works for most of the people that will be writing. If we have to take another survey on if we like it or not each time a new idea is posted, the three week gap between seasons is going to rush by with nothing accomplished.
If you have a serious counter proposal, write it up and plot it out then post it like Jen did. I don't think that a few lines of text to sell your idea works for me. there was some effort put into coming up with that proposal, I think it's only fair that a counter proposal has at least the same level of effort in presenting it. Since it wasn't presented as a proposal and a few lines above that, you said you were willing to give it a shot, I thought you were pretty much just giving your opinion, not actively suggesting a new idea.
When I said 1 writer wanting TOS, I didn't mean old TOS, I meant the new movie era. When I say TOS, I mean Stuff having to deal with Kirk and Spock. Even books set in the Enterprise E era featuring the TOS cast still get labeled as the TOS era. So if that made it seem like I wasn't reading what you wrote, I was. TOS was just easier to frame the time line as opposed to the JJ movie era.
Let me just step slightly in here. I have made a few comments, as others have as well about this idea. I think now it is up to Jen & Kenny and anyone else they wish to consult with on what they want the next season of the RPG to be. I don't think much more will be gained by saying the same thing over and over. I trust their judgment and they will have my support and I trust the support of all the RPG writers with whatever conclusion they come up with. If they wish to continue to get more views and opinions, I suppose that's fine. But I think maybe other people from the RPG should chime in too rather than just a select few.
I am game for what you guys have said and thank you for clarifyinfg, when you said TOS it sounded like, well, TOS! :)
Wasn't there a whole thread about acronyms for the New TOS era... Perhaps we should adopt one of those for future cultural references :)
The quite a few regular contributors have already commented here. We're only missing Kenny, Dinghead, KC and Institches....I'm not even sure some of them are rejoining. I've PMed them to ask them to look at the thread, let me know if they are returning and offer their opinions if they are.
Something that just hit me that would really throw a wrench in my character and others, is if we go with the movie era (TOS or whatever you want to call it :) ), is that Spock is the only Vulcan in Starfleet. For reasons I can't say at this point, Sevryll has to be in Starfleet too. It not only messes with Galdar's availability to join the fleet (because Ferengi first contact doesn't happen until TNG), but it limits the abilities of people wanting to play Bajoran, Klingon or Vulcan officers in this game. A setting in the future opens the door to more possibilities. If people want to go that route we have to step all over what the movies are coming up with by including characters we want to play in this game.
Hey Everyone... sorry about my delay.. been a crazy weekend with the house and all.
Honestly I wasn't thrilled with this story idea when Jen mentioned it to me a month or so ago, but the idea has grown on me. I think this will open the door for some great story telling. We will be creating our own Trek universe in which our characters will live. I think it will be a lot of fun.. besides Jen has never lead us astray.
Quote from: Jen on May 26, 2009, 08:22:12 AM
Something that just hit me that would really throw a wrench in my character and others, is if we go with the movie era (TOS or whatever you want to call it :) ), is that Spock is the only Vulcan in Starfleet. For reasons I can't say at this point, Sevryll has to be in Starfleet too. It not only messes with Galdar's availability to join the fleet (because Ferengi first contact doesn't happen until TNG), but it limits the abilities of people wanting to play Bajoran, Klingon or Vulcan officers in this game. A setting in the future opens the door to more possibilities. If people want to go that route we have to step all over what the movies are coming up with by including characters we want to play in this game.
I don't recall if in the JJ movie they did say Spock was the only Vulcan in Starfleet. That also applies to the other races, we don't know they are not part of Starfleet or the Federation and we could just say they are, previous canon is out the window, we don't have to adhere to any of those constructs. The only race that seems the most problematic are the Klingons, K'arath would likely not be there but it would make Wraiths K'Tan an interesting case!
I'm just pointing that there could be a lot of flexibility that would allow for participation of our characters without having to imagine a future. We make the currnet movie time allow for everyone to be there. The next movie is 2-3 years away, and who's to say there won't be a Bolian in it! Just a thought. :)
I thnik it's just I am having a problem getting my head around a post destruction of Romulus timeline which occurs in the JJ universe. Like Rico said earlier, wouldn't they have moved because they know it's coming. I see how it could effect Vulcan's and even Klingons like my character, but we have a lot of blanks to fill in, 150 years of history to make up. If we start in the current movie era, it's all established already, no? What am I missing? ???
I haven't read the book yet, but from what Chris (I believe) said in the Skype call, "mother universe" makes things happen the way they are meant to. Like getting the crew together in the movie.
Perhaps "mother universe" requires that Romulus be destroyed, so no matter what we try and do, it dies either way.
Maybe in the new timeline whatever is done to stop the supernova fails. Maybe the supernova occurs in a way that can't be detected. Maybe the Romulans are working on a new weapon and the project goes awry and destroys the planet. Maybe they have a nuclear (or antimatter?) holocaust and while the planet is not destroyed, it is rendered uninhabitable.
Either way, now that I think about it, it's an interesting situation. It kind of makes a case for karma. The Romulans (well, A Romulan) destroyed Vulcan, but in the end they still suffer the fate that they destroyed Vulcan in retaliation for/to prevent.
The universe sucks sometimes, doesn't it?
Got to love Karma Joe, got to love it. :)
Quote from: HawkeyeMeds on May 26, 2009, 10:10:37 AM
Got to love Karma Joe, got to love it. :)
yep, it's a b#tch! OK, Joe, I see, i didn't get Chris' refrence either, he speaks in Trek code somethime. ;)
But if we are willing to be that flexible, how is my idea too hard to make fly?
It would require more work that what we are doing because it will need a new history and a new ship designed.
I also like jen's idea better and if i had to choose which one to invest into it's that one. I love that idea. Not even mildly interested in going for the movie era.
Quote from: Just X on May 26, 2009, 10:30:27 AM
It would require more work that what we are doing because it will need a new history and a new ship designed.
I also like jen's idea better and if i had to choose which one to invest into it's that one. I love that idea. Not even mildly interested in going for the movie era.
I'm just asking so I can be more clear about this, so please indulge me. :) We don't need to design a ship, what's on what deck isn't what makes the RPG stories good. Isn't the history arleady there? It was in the movie. Aren't we creating a whole new history by working in their future? I suppose that's where I get confused.
Do we really have any information on what's what in the JJ era? Other than a single film and a book that tells the same story, there isn't an awful lot to draw on is there? With the parallels proposed for the future idea we at least have a lot more stuff to raw on from the Prime universe at that point.
What would worry me about going back in time would be the tendency to try and invent anything we didn't have yet. Enterprise went down that route a couple of times to the detriment of the show.
So to clarify (not that my understanding matters but it may help others) the universe would be as such:
We would be in the timeline created by the new movie.
The 'present' time would be shortly after the destruction of Romulus which occurs despite foreknowledge of the event (as described in my last post)
Tech-wise and politics wise the universe would be similar to the prime timeline except Vulcan is destroyed and now Romulus is as well.
Am I right?
Quote from: billybob476 on May 26, 2009, 11:16:38 AM
So to clarify (not that my understanding matters but it may help others) the universe would be as such:
We would be in the timeline created by the new movie.
The 'present' time would be shortly after the destruction of Romulus which occurs despite foreknowledge of the event (as described in my last post)
Tech-wise and politics wise the universe would be similar to the prime timeline except Vulcan is destroyed and now Romulus is as well.
Am I right?
Well put, Joe, even I can understand that. :)
Yes Billybob. I'm sure I've said that in the outline and other posts, but you summed it up nicely in an abbreviated way. :)
I'm not asking people to rewrite the history of Trek. I was proposing that what we've written about our characters, can change as a result of the movie. The people, not the history, is what carries our RPG. Readers and writers of the RPG like the individual stories. Like Galdar for instance, everyone fell in love with the character... not the history or politics of his people. It's interesting to know what would be different about them if the timeline was messed up.
As I've said before, the game has always operated in the future (just beyond Nemesis). We are picking up at the point where the Romulan Star empire is devastated by the destruction of their star. The fun comes in imaging a slight variances in our RPG's history that would occur as a result... We would be imagining the affects of an altered past, from the opposite end of the timeline. It's like our Mirror Universe season, only tied to the film.
We would be tweaking some of the details of our RPG's history (like the Lucas virus), but not necessarily the outcomes; Tiberius is still gone. But what happened as a result? That's just one example, but it's only backstory. The altered history of our RPG is only a basis for the rest of the Seasons. We're not dwelling on the past, we're continuing with what we know of Trek, but giving it a twist based on what we saw in the movie.
We all know the Romulans are backstabbing, politically charged 'ticking time bombs'. It's not difficult to imagine what would happen if they were scattered because of the tragedy that befell their star. That's the plot, which few people have commented on so far. All we have to focus on is this plot, other than what we want to do individually with our characters.
I like the plot very much, that I did read and get. I almost want to play a Romulan now. I want to be one of the guys out there causing trouble....kind of like me here! ;)
Maybe I will make one. :)
Quote from: Bryancd on May 26, 2009, 11:39:27 AM
I like the plot very much, that I did read and get. I almost want to play a Romulan now. I want to be one of the guys out there causing trouble....kind of like me here! ;)
Maybe I will make one. :)
That would be awesome. :)
I don't understand why this is being discussed. In the past when Jen and I came up with ideas/storyline for the RPG, that was it. We went with that story as Jen and I are the moderators who run the RPG. Of course we don't rule with an iron fist and always include others when making decisions about storyline.
Jen posted what our next storyline will be and I think she laid out a pretty detailed storyline. What is great is it's set in a alternate Trek timeline. We know very little about this new universe. We can do whatever we like (within the realm of Trek). This is going to allow the writers to really be very creative.
Be it set right after the movie or 150 years in the future that doesn't really matter as we know very little about either time. But Jen and I have chosen the future alternate time line and that is where the story will take place. So start putting on your thinking caps.. how will your character change or will they. Maybe they will be exactly the same as the other universe.
I hope no one take offense to my comments, as none was intended. Just trying to figure out why folks are confused or questioning the upcoming storyline. It seemed pretty clear to me.
It's possible that the title of the thread may have thrown people off a bit.
"Proposing A New Direction..." seems to imply that this was a potential idea to be discussed, not a decision that has been made.
Again, I'm not a writer so I don't want to get too involved but I seem to be good at clarifying things in this thread. :)
Ever the polite Canadian helping everyone out, eh Joe? ;)
Galdar's in progress. He's only been here a season but some things are going to change. :)
I aim to please. We do a lot of peacekeeping up here. :)
Quote from: billybob476 on May 26, 2009, 10:08:00 AM
I haven't read the book yet, but from what Chris (I believe) said in the Skype call, "mother universe" makes things happen the way they are meant to. Like getting the crew together in the movie.
Perhaps "mother universe" requires that Romulus be destroyed, so no matter what we try and do, it dies either way.
Maybe in the new timeline whatever is done to stop the supernova fails. Maybe the supernova occurs in a way that can't be detected. Maybe the Romulans are working on a new weapon and the project goes awry and destroys the planet. Maybe they have a nuclear (or antimatter?) holocaust and while the planet is not destroyed, it is rendered uninhabitable.
Either way, now that I think about it, it's an interesting situation. It kind of makes a case for karma. The Romulans (well, A Romulan) destroyed Vulcan, but in the end they still suffer the fate that they destroyed Vulcan in retaliation for/to prevent.
The universe sucks sometimes, doesn't it?
LOL, I just saw your post... I wrote that same thing a few posts up from yours. :) Great minds think alike. ;)
LOL, ha ha. Indeed.
Sorry for not replying sooner, but hey this thread is only a day and a half old... ^_~
Darius didn't really have a lot of plot since his arrival, so plopping him in an alternate timeline is no biggie. I think I might alter his profile just a touch though, say he's been on the Arabella a bit longer.
As for the plot of S10.... I foresee all sorts of fun little quirks and snags. Falling empires still have soldiers, and bored troops start looking for trouble.
Darius: "A ship full of Romulans of all flavors. Probably Remans before too long ... Oh yeah, and we aren't allowed to just stun em all. What, are you TRYING to give me gray hair?!"
Well looks like it's all knitting together nicely for season 10. Gonna be fun and interesting. :-)
Quote from: Jen on May 26, 2009, 11:34:34 AM
Like Galdar for instance, everyone fell in love with the character... not the history or politics of his people.
Ouch! Just re-read this - I must have sped through it before. Is Galdar the poster-child of the RPG now? Pretty ugly poster if you ask me... ;)
Seriously, if anything I wrote did have that sort of impact on people I'd be chuffed beyond words. Thanks.
Quote from: Feathers on May 27, 2009, 01:32:24 AM
Quote from: Jen on May 26, 2009, 11:34:34 AM
Like Galdar for instance, everyone fell in love with the character... not the history or politics of his people.
Ouch! Just re-read this - I must have sped through it before. Is Galdar the poster-child of the RPG now? Pretty ugly poster if you ask me... ;)
...
Galdar is our mascot. He's like a great big intergalactic pug. ^_~
Quote from: dinghead on May 27, 2009, 06:50:09 PM
Galdar is our mascot. He's like a great big intergalactic pug. ^_~
Charming!
With those ears, he'd probably hear a dog whistle too...
Quote from: Feathers on May 28, 2009, 04:15:06 AM
Quote from: dinghead on May 27, 2009, 06:50:09 PM
Galdar is our mascot. He's like a great big intergalactic pug. ^_~
Charming!
With those ears, he'd probably hear a dog whistle too...
Unfortunately for Galdar I think 'alternate' Lester is really going to be into Heavy Metal. ;D
Quote from: Dangelus on May 28, 2009, 10:21:53 AM
Quote from: Feathers on May 28, 2009, 04:15:06 AM
Quote from: dinghead on May 27, 2009, 06:50:09 PM
Galdar is our mascot. He's like a great big intergalactic pug. ^_~
Charming!
With those ears, he'd probably hear a dog whistle too...
Unfortunately for Galdar I think 'alternate' Lester is really going to be into Heavy Metal. ;D
And he'll be a slob...right? ;)
We're going with the story set in the future: an alternate timeline future affected by the events of the movie. Our characters are not the same people we have been playing. They may be similar in many ways, but they have not lived the same lives as the people from the past 9 Seasons. To help guide the story, a timeline has been in the works for a couple of weeks. It's not integral to the story, but it will help everyone know where and when certain RPG events fall in Trek History. There's always been some confusion as to when our story takes place, this timeline should help with that but none of it needs to be memorized or anything.
We've imagined a few possibilities for the future. Some Star Trek cannon and RPG events may be the same, just a little tweaked. Look for that to be posted soon. In the mean time, work on some alternate profiles for your characters. Post them when Season 10 begins. Several of us are working on character backstories. Consider writing a few scenes for your own character or write a whole book if you feel the urge to do so. Writing a backstory will help you know the person you play in the game. It's easier to write in the seasons when you have some idea of their past experiences. The RPG will begin again in about two weeks. So start thinking about your character if you're planning on returning. Consider whether or not your character is married with children, what department they work in, what their history is like etc.
If you're not going to return please PM me and let me know. I've PM'ed just about everyone, and many are coming back. There's only a few who have not replied. If I don't hear from you soon, I'm going to move your character to AWOL/MIA. You can still come back, but I need to clean up the Profile Section and consider new department heads if you aren't returning.
New banners will be issued to reflect new ranks. A few newbies have passed the one season test and need to be issued banners. Look for those soon.
Banners! Woohoo!
*cough*
Not that I'm shallow enough to worry about such things...obviously ;)
I look forward to seeing Galdar's lobes in silhouette.
jen, Galdar would make for an interesting portrait challenge, wouldn't he? :)
I'm there and looking forward to it.
I'm getting more excited with each new day!
Looking good Bryan, looking good.
I removed her profile as per Kenny's instructions but I would like to hear from anyone who might be familiar with the ST short story "The Suicide Note".