RPG Campaign Idea; Star Trek Phase II
This idea comes from a triumverate of key inspirations:
Basically, my proposal is to run a Star Trek game set just a couple of years after the end of the original series and that follows the basic premise of Phase II. The Enterprise has been renovated and is about to leave on yet another five-year mission; players take on the role of that crew. It's possible they might want to play classic Trek characters or the Phase II newbies planned for the show, but of course I'd be expecting custom PCs to be the norm. (Though taking Decker and Ilia, who appeared in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and turning them into full characters could be an interesting challenge.)
The Star Trek world, however, is explicitly as though this series was made in 1977 - that is, only the original series is canon, and maybe adopted bits from the animated series/novels/reference books. Nothing from TNG onwards is in play and even the movies are adjustable depending on the needs of the plot. Everone must unlearn what they have learned and possibly try to insert a more 70s, overtly Roddenberry-ian vibe to it.
In particular, this means that the Klingons are still villians and haven't been space Vikinged yet - heck, they aren't even bumpy-foreheaded! Klingons, I believe, are only in three or four episodes; Romulans have had a mighty two appearances. The only other Starfleet ships shown on screen have been other Constitution class vessels, and the size & nature of the fleet is totally up in the air.
Phase II outlines not only the aborted production of the series but summaries for a first season of 13 episodes, as well as whole scripts for two of them. I would try to incorporate those as adventures to start with, and some of the ideas there (like a totally different Klingon culture) might be strong influences.
Is this an idea which grabs anyones attention?
- My recent purchase of FASA's second edition Star Trek RPG
- This post from September relating to "Star Wars with a reduced canon set".
- The reference book Star Trek Phase II, which covers the history of the almost-made second Star Trek series in 1977
Basically, my proposal is to run a Star Trek game set just a couple of years after the end of the original series and that follows the basic premise of Phase II. The Enterprise has been renovated and is about to leave on yet another five-year mission; players take on the role of that crew. It's possible they might want to play classic Trek characters or the Phase II newbies planned for the show, but of course I'd be expecting custom PCs to be the norm. (Though taking Decker and Ilia, who appeared in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and turning them into full characters could be an interesting challenge.)
The Star Trek world, however, is explicitly as though this series was made in 1977 - that is, only the original series is canon, and maybe adopted bits from the animated series/novels/reference books. Nothing from TNG onwards is in play and even the movies are adjustable depending on the needs of the plot. Everone must unlearn what they have learned and possibly try to insert a more 70s, overtly Roddenberry-ian vibe to it.
In particular, this means that the Klingons are still villians and haven't been space Vikinged yet - heck, they aren't even bumpy-foreheaded! Klingons, I believe, are only in three or four episodes; Romulans have had a mighty two appearances. The only other Starfleet ships shown on screen have been other Constitution class vessels, and the size & nature of the fleet is totally up in the air.
Phase II outlines not only the aborted production of the series but summaries for a first season of 13 episodes, as well as whole scripts for two of them. I would try to incorporate those as adventures to start with, and some of the ideas there (like a totally different Klingon culture) might be strong influences.
Is this an idea which grabs anyones attention?