Calling All Star Trek Fans!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Hello Everyone!

I'm currently working on a brand new Star Trek adventure based on an original crew that I created. I'm not sure what form it will take yet, but I can figure that out later. I'm here to ask you guys for ideas. I need missions and adventures for the crew to go on. I would be interested in any of the following:

1) Aliens you'd like them to meet (real in the series already or created by you)

2) Planets they should encounter, such as those with unique qualities or inhabitants.

3) Missions they could be assigned on

4) Anything else you can think of that might be interesting for a Star Fleet crew to encounter or do.

I will remind you that this is based on an original crew, and though established characters will cameo in some way, they are not main characters. However, a returning character could be the basis for a storyline. For your reference, the story is based around the newly comissioned NCC-1825 also known as the U.S.S Phoenix, a Galaxy class starship. The story takes place post-Nemisis and so many characters will have been promoted or are dead (i.e. Kirk's crew, Data, etc are dead and Riker is now captain of the Titan).

Here is the senior staff and main crew of the Phoenix:

Captain Charles Bradford – Commanding Officer
Commander Evan Pratt - First Officer
Lt. Cmdr. Riley Caddigan - Second Officer
Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Sobel – Chief Engineer
Lt. William Hahn - Chief of Security/ Tactical Officer
Lt. Verdona Freeton - Counselor
Doctor K’Tran– Chief Medical Officer
Ensign Julie Walters

Also, anyone who provides a story idea will be credited in that "episode". Thanks for the help guys!

-GPR

[kyfm]

so this is complete Star Trek with no PR related stuff. well u gotta have the klingons and romulans in some way. yes im kinda of a trekkie. i have all the live action shows and movies. but since this is your story why not combine your love of PR and Star Trek? theyre both big shows with huge followings and it would sound cool to me

[Question]

PR and Trek should never combine. Ever. Ew.

I'd like to see what would happen if the Romulans found out what Sisko did to trick them into joining the Dominion War.

(I also have a Trek crew/storyline I tinker with when I'm bored; if you ever need someone to bounce ideas off of, I'd be more than happy!)

[kyfm]

what i meant was that since hes a PR and ST fan he should do something like that fanfics have portrayed PR characters as more adult anyway ive seen it done in a few fanfics a few years ago

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

yes, Question I remember you wanted to join my first Trek RPG back on the other board. Remember the one with every series? that was me. Until The Virginian threw a fit over Worf, lol. Glad to have someone to help! I also agree, PR and Trek don't mix.

-GPR

[Question]

I do remember that RPG! It's too bad it never started up.

Incidentally, out of curiosity, is your thing going to pay attention to the expanded universe books Star Trek's been putting out?

what i meant was that since hes a PR and ST fan he should do something like that fanfics have portrayed PR characters as more adult anyway ive seen it done in a few fanfics a few years ago

I seriously can't see the universe with Klingons and Romulans mixing with a band of spandex clad mecha piloting superheroes, and I'm someone who loves both so very, very much.

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

To be honest I don't know much about the books so probably not. If there is something really good that happens in one then I might consider it but until then it's just the TV series and movies.

-GPR

[Question]

In a month or two, there's a huge crossover starting that's supposed to redefine the Trek universe as we know it - http://startrek.wikia.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Destiny

Plus, the latest TNG book introduced my new favorite Trek character ever!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Wow, that sounds crazy. I will definaltey have to read those. I just hope that I'm not too lost, having not read any of the other books. Although it may reshape the Trek universe in the novels though, none of it is canon so I still may not include it. I'm not going to decide at the moment, but I appreciate you letting me know about this!

EDIT: Now that I think about it, this could work. I could say that the Phoenix was the first ship to be built and comissioned following the events of the novels. As such, it was given a ceremonial name of Phoenix, which if you recall was the name of Zephram Cochrane's original Warp Drive ship back in 2063.

-GPR

[Question]

I have a hard time thinking of the novels as uncanon when I remember T'Ryssa. And Vaughn from the DS9 relaunch. I heart DS9.

Destiny's going to be drawing a lot from the recent TNG relaunch novels, three out of four of which have focused on the Borg. They're fantastic books on their own, but if you'd like, I could type up a brief-ish summary before the first Destiny book comes out in October so you're not completely lost.

[GoldDragonRanger]

PR and Trek should never combine. Ever. Ew.

I'd like to see what would happen if the Romulans found out what Sisko did to trick them into joining the Dominion War.



If I remember in the book Deep Space Nine: Hollow Men, Sisko learns that the Tal Shiar may know all about the trick but considered it a nessecetiy for Romulus to join the Allies against the Dominion.

In a month or two, there's a huge crossover starting that's supposed to redefine the Trek universe as we know it - http://startrek.wikia.com/wiki/Star_Trek:_Destiny
Dude I definitely can't wait for this.

GPR, I have a ton of story ideas for my own series with my own crew of the USS Revelations. I have some ideas you might find useful. This one since you have a counsler, is a situation where the crew is involved in an incident that causes a crew member to suffer painful flashbacks from the Dominion war.

One idea I started to use but discarded is having an alien crew feel indebted to the ship after they are rescued, that they insist on becoming servents onboard. Despite, the captain refusing their offer, telling them that Federation does not endorse slavery, the aliens continue to push. It gets to the point they refuse to leave the ship when they arrive at their homeworld. Its up the crew to find a way to allow them to "pay their debt" in an way both parties can agree too.

[Question]

We should totally come up with a mini-shared universe fanfic website or something.

You guys have the Phoenix and the Revelations, and my crew belongs to Starbase Epsilon in a largely-unexplored region os space in the Beta Quadrant rife with spacial anomalies that they're tasked with finding the (presumably shared) source of.

(My original plan was to have the Epsilon starbase be a top-secret platform for studying Borg technology, but my insistence on sticking to novel canon meant I'd have to change my crew's missions around every time the Borg were used in the TNG relaunch novels. This seemed easier.)

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

A mini universe fanfic site could be cool. If someone wants to go over and make one on freewebs or something we could give this a shot. Before we go that step however, we should each lay out a basic background of our crews and ships so that we know where we each stand, specifically in relation to the Dominion War. I'd also like to have the Borg involved in some way but if Question is going to make us stick to book canon that could be a bit difficult.

However, I'm still not crazy about book canon as I haven't read any of them. The post-dominion war idea fits well and we can work with that, thought I'll have to brush up as I haven't seen as much of Deep Space 9 as I'd like.

GoldDragonRanger those are some good ideas and I'll definatley put them on my list.

-GPR

[Question]

If you guys don't want to stick to book canon, that's fine by me. I might refer to events from them in my little area, but I'm cool with whatever.

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Ok, thats fine Question. Let's each work on the background of our respective ships/starbases and crews and then post them in this thread. Once thats established we can figure out how to link them and then open a site if we do decide to go through with this.

-GPR

[Question]

This is my command crew:

Captain Quinn Michaels
Commanding Officer
Human

Commander Zeth Tal
First/Science Officer
Trill (Joined)

Commander T'Rana
Second/Executive Officer
Vulcan/Betazoid

Lieutenant Commander Chemithran Zh'frace
Chief of Security
Andorian

Lieutenant Commander Gwenna
Chief Medical Officer
Orion (currently the only Orion in Starfleet)

Lieutenant Jennifer Gilmore
Chief Engineer
Human

Lieutenant j.g. Khay Cremlik
Counselor
Bolian

I don't have extensive, RPG-esque bios for them, but I'll type out what I have of their personalities, brief histories, and such shortly.

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Nice crew, very diverse! I've only seen one crew as diverse as that and that was in a story on fanfiction.net called Star Trek: The Third Generation. I almost feel bad that most of my crew are humans. Perhaps I'll change that.

Yea, we don't need huge bios I just think we should know a bit about who they are and their main expirences in terms of Starfleet. Also, do you guys each have names for your story series? I didn't think Star Trek: Phoenix sounded or looked very good so I was hoping for something different. I was also going to treat mine like a show and do episodes instead of chapters but I can change that if it works better for team-ups and overlaps.

-GPR

[Question]

Hey, there's nothing wrong with having a mostly human crew. As I recall, humans are the species most represented in Starfleet anyway.

I usually call mine Star Trek: Epsilon, as it's Epsilon Station, but I'm not married to the name. If you guys want, we can pick an all-encompassing name and then use our ship/station names as sort of a subtitle.

Star Trek [blank]: U.S.S. Phoenix, Star Trek [blank]: U.S.S. Revelations, and Star Trek [blank]: Starbase Epsilon. Or something along those lines.

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Oooo, I like that title idea. We need to think of an all encompassing name that we can use.

Well, I supoose having one all human crew isnt bad, and Doctor K'Tran is a Vulcan so there is a little diversity. I need to work on bio's for my characters so I'll post them when I can. Hopefully we hear from GoldDragon so he doesn't get left out of the discussion.

-GPR

[GoldDragonRanger]

My crew of the Revelations are assigned to begin further exploration of the Gamma Quadrant as long as they do not cross into Dominion owned space.

Captain Jared Garrison
Commanding Officer
Human

Former First Officer of the previous incarnation of the Revelations which had been destroyed shortly after the war by a left behind Dominion weapon. Scarred by war, loss, and a love gone sour he almost retired from Starfleet but was talked into accepting command of the newly commissioned Revelations.

Cmdr. Yerem Wu
XO
Joined Trill

A friend of Garrison's during their Academy days, Wu also served as Science Officer aboard the previous Revelations but had taken a leave to Trill right before the accident that destroyed the ship.

Lt.Cmdr. Bryce Jenson.
Chief Tactical Officer
Human

Deeply affected by the war, Jenson spent two years in counseling. He showed a lot of improvement but this current mission is a large test for him.

Lt. Karolynn Ouss
Chief of Security
Human

She is a dedicated officer and loves starship life which tends to conflict with her personal life as a wife of a born and raised farmer and mother of a young child. Both of whom are onboard.

Lt. Metzin Jonga
Chief Science/Ops officer
Bajoran

Having been disillusioned by the thought of the Prophets being aliens and not gods, he left Bajor to join Starfleet. While on Earth he stumbled upon Christianity and found a new found sense of spirituality. During the war his faith was what helped him get through the horrors he experienced.

Lt. Gibb T'jess
Chief Engineer
Vulcan/Bajoran

Formaly a Lieutenant Commander, she had left Starfleet to join the Maquis but after surviving the massacre by the Dominion she was pardoned and granted a return to Starfleet but at a demontion.

Lt.Cmdr. Mae Cassidy
Counsler
Human

As ships counsler on this mission finds herself sometimes overwhelmed by crew members whose memories of the war make being close to Dominion space troubling. It is even harder to handle when dealing with her own demons and raising a son.

Ensign Rose Tysonne
Helm Officer
Human/Romulan

Half sister to Lt. Ouss, Rose was the result of their mother's short lived abusive relationship with a Romulan. She is the only crew member who had not fought in the war because she was still early in her Academy training at the time. This is her first posting on a starship.

Dr. ZzzChcksz "Bug"
Chief Medical Officer
Anzmirz(made up race)

A native to a destroyed world in the Gamma Quadrant,ZzzChcksz, nicknamed Bug because of his races insect like appearance, came through the wormhole during its earliest years of discovery. His profession as doctor made him take an interest in Alpha Quadrant life. He soon found himself on Earth learning from and sharing knowledge with Starfleet Medical. He is assigned to Revelations because of his intimate knowledge of many Gamma Quadrant races.

[Question]

Actually, I like the idea of setting our meta-fanfic in the Gamma Quadrant. The Alpha Quadrant's been done to death, after all.

And hey, that could be our name. Star Trek: Gamma Quadrant. Or Star Trek: Operation Gamma. Or something along those lines. I have no problem moving my station to the Gamma Quadrant - first starbase established there, for the purpose of evaluating local races for Federation alliance/trade/eventual membership maybe?

(Am currently working on a series overview. Details to come.)

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Sweet! Sounds good Question. Oh, and we can work the Borg in by saying that thay start trying to move into the Gamma Quadrant. And yes, thats should totally be our name! I look foward to the details and will have my short crew bios up by the end of the night.

Also, if anyone needs help planning thigs out mapwise or figuring out where in the galaxy they are, I reccomend this index full of handy ST maps and charts:
http://www.ucip.org/science/newmaps/


-GPR

[Question]

The Borg could be our first big crossover! Assimilated Jem'Hadar, anyone?

edit:

Rank: Captain
Name: Quinn Michaels
Position: Commanding Officer
Race: Human
Personality: Quinn is a genius military strategist, always thinking seven steps ahead of his opponent. He's serious, rarely making merry with his staff, as he prefers maintaining a professional distance. Zeth, his old Starfleet Academy classmate, is one of the few people who can bring the captain out of his serious shell, one of the major reasons Quinn recruited his old friend.
Brief Biography: Quinn joined Starfleet to follow in his father's footsteps, a high-ranking admiral in Starfleet Operations. There, Quinn met the man who would become his lifelong friend, Zeth Rale (pre-joining). The two were inseparable, at least until graduation. Quinn took a posting on a deep space survey into the Beta Quadrant, earning a promotion to junior grade lieutenant before the yearlong journey had finished. Quinn severed with distinction during the wars with Cardassia, Tzenketh, the Klingons, and the Dominion. Quinn's knack for unique strategies in battle caused Starfleet to assign him to the first Gamma Quadrant starbase, in the hope that if the Dominion reinstigated hostilities, he would be able to head them off.


Rank: Commander
Name: Zeth Tal
Position: First Officer, Science Officer
Race: Trill (joined)
Personality: Zeth has always loved to laugh, from the moment he was first able to. Joining to the Tal symbiont hasn't changed this. He loves finding ways to bend the rules of Starfleet procedure, although he stops short of doing anything completely inappropriate or anything that would hinder the work in any way. He's charismatic, and people tend to flock to him like flies to poop.
Brief Biography: Zeth Rale joined Starfleet solely for scientific study. He never wanted to command, and he never wanted to do anything but study temporal phenomena. His first year after graduation was spent as an assistant at Starfleet Command, before he became a floating science officer with no permanent posting, moving from ship to ship to study anything Starfleet Command deemed important enough. He rose from a junior grade lieutenant to a lieutenant commander before his old Academy classmate and newly promoted captain Quinn Michaels recruited him as his new first officer. Zeth accepted on the condition that he also be science officer, so he could still do the thing he loved the most.
Tal's Previous Hosts:
Drakin Tal - Trill geneticist
Flaura Tal - Botanist
Crafe Tal - Head of the Trill Symbiosis Commission
Yuzin Tal - Physics professor at the Trill Institute of Science
Bekah Tal - Reporter for the Federation News Service
Jokan Tal - Spy with Trill Intelligence until Trill joined the Federation, later an operative for Starfleet Intelligence. Tal was then recruited into Section 31 upon Jokan's death, because a spy with multiple lifetimes of experience was deemed to be an incredible asset.
Zephryn Tal - A spy with Section 31. He passed away on the starship Excalibur, and another 31 agent drugged Zeth and had the ship's EMH implant the Tal symbiont in Zeth despite the Trill's vehement nondesire to be joined.



Rank: Commander
Name: T'Rana
Position: Second Officer, Executive Officer
Race: Vulcan/Betazoid
Personality: Despite being a halfbreed, T'Rana fully embraces her Vulcan heritage. She claims not to understand humanoid emotions, but truthfully, her unique heritage and telepathic potential gives her unparalelled insight into emotion, at least for a Vulcan. Often, she'll overcompensate for what she sees as emotional weakness in herself by becoming cold and distant, even for a Vulcan.
Brief Biography: T'Rana's mother was a Betazoid commander, a counselor for high-ranking admirals at Starfleet Command. A Vulcan politician went through a pon farr cycle, and T'Rana's mother offered herself to satiate the Vulcan. The two were wed shortly thereafter and T'Rana was born. She joined Starfleet, and rose through the ranks quickly thanks to her intelligence and to deaths in the Dominion War. She should have been first officer of Starbase Epsilon, she feels, but she lacked practical command experience, causing a bit of resentment toward Commander Tal.

I'm going for a Kirk-Spock-McCoy dynamic, although I don't plan to ignore the rest of the crew like TOS used to tend to do.

These are all I have so far, as I keep getting distracted when I sit down and try to type. More later!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Ok, after several hours of working on this, here are the bios for my crew. Question, your bios are cool and I look foward to visiting Epsilon, lol. I agree that The Borg should be the first big team up challenge. Assimilated Jem'Hadar..........is there anything more frightining? lol. Anyway, here's my crew:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Star Trek: Gamma Quadrant - USS Phoenix

Captain Charles Bradford (Commanding Officer) – Bradford was previously stationed on the USS Nobel as Commander and first officer during the Dominion War. He was given the rank of Captain and the newly commissioned USS Phoenix for his service in the defense of the Federation while in that position. He is a gruff man that sometimes has trouble accepting the advice of others. He also has a personal vendetta against the Founders, as the only woman he ever loved, his wife Karen, was serving as a member of the medical personnel aboard the USS Odyssey when it was destroyed by the Founders in the Gamma quadrant. This is also the cause of some of his could outward attitude, however he will warm up as the series goes on.

Commander Evan Pratt (First Officer) – Pratt joined Starfleet to emulate his father, who was the Captain of the USS Bonestell which was destroyed by the Borg in the Battle of Wolf 359. He worked his way up to chief engineer and then to first officer aboard the USS Magellan which participated in the Battle of Bajor. He was transferred to the Phoenix by his own request due to his longing for a change of scenery as well as a chance to learn more about the engine types used by the species in the less explored quadrants. His wife Maggie is on board as a member of the science team, as well as their 12 year old son, Christopher.

Lt. Cmdr. Riley Caddigan (Second Officer) – Riley grew up not knowing her parents, as they were killed early in her life. She was raised by her grandmother, whom she loves as a parent, and who still lives on Earth. Riley has spent much of her Starfleet career on Earth working on new sensor technology. She has been aboard starships as a Starfleet liaison and to help with tests of the new technology in detection. Her work earned her the rank of Lt. Commander which she was pleasantly shocked to receive. The Phoenix was the first ship to be outfitted with the new sensor designs she worked on and so she was assigned as second officer (her first official starship assignment) at the ops station to use them in the field, record her observations, and make changes as necessary.

Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Sobel (Chief Engineer) – Kevin’s parents were the kind of people that thought space travel was dangerous and would rather keep their feet on solid ground. Early in life, Kevin took an interest in starships but his parents thought he would grow out of it. They were rather distraught when Kevin grew older and showed interested in joining Star Fleet. They tried to talk him out of it, fearing for his life, but he insisted that it was safe and enrolled. After a time, his parents came to terms with his choice of career and supported him, which they still do. After joining Star Fleet, Kevin was fascinated with interstellar propulsion systems and subsequently studied them. While he has served in Engineering on several vessels over the years, this is his first assignment as Chief Engineer. He met Riley at the Academy and developed a bit of a crush on her, but hasn’t had the courage to tell her as of yet.

Lt. William Hahn (Chief of Security/ Tactical Officer) – A rough life is a good way to understand William. He was picked frequently as a child and so became defensive and strong. He became emotionally distant to most people except his family and didn’t have many friends. He did admire Star Fleet for their promotion of peace and their strong defense of the Federation and so he enlisted. Shortly thereafter his life took another blow when his parents passed away suddenly. William, or Bill as he prefers to be called, is close with his older brother Matthew, who often protected him during his childhood. Matthew is currently a Stellar Cartographer working on another vessel. Bill is not the kind of guy you want to mess with, as he will disarm you and take you down so fast it will make your head spin. He served as a security officer on previous vessels where he rose to the rank of Lieutenant for his skills and prowess. He feels that Head of Security/Tactical officer is the perfect post and vows to be one of the best.

Lt. Verdona Freeton (Counselor) – Verdona has always been a people person and lives to aid those in need. People often mistake her for a Betazoid due to her uncanny ability to know how people are feeling. It’s possibly true, as her great aunt once hinted that there is Betazoid blood somewhere in her lineage. She gained the rank of lieutenant for her service to several Admirals and ambassadors in Star Fleet. She was assigned to the Phoenix to learn more about the effects of the Dominion War on the psyche of the crew, as well as to study the mentality of the various unknown creatures in the Gamma Quadrant.

Doctor K’Tran (Chief Medical Officer) – K’Tran is a natural born doctor and one of the best in Star Fleet. His natural Vulcan logic allows him extreme focus and clarity in regards to his patients. He has been decorated by Star Fleet Medical for his work in studying the medical aspects of Gamma Quadrant species, specifically the Jem’Hadar. He is level headed and the only thing that can cause him to lose his Vulcan cool is when people don’t follow his medical orders (such as to stay in bed and rest). He was assigned to the Phoenix to allow him to further study the Jem’Haddar as well as other Gamma Quadrant species.

Julie Walters (Ensign) – At 17 years old she is the youngest active member of the crew. She is third in her class at the Academy and earned a scholarship which allowed her to spend time on an active Star Fleet ship. Her parents are both in Star Fleet and so she wants to show that she can be a great Star Fleet officer too. She is always attentive to her surroundings and eager to help with whatever she can. She has taken a particular liking to Riley, and often turns to her for advice in a big sisterly kind of way. Having done so well on the Academy simulators, she has been given the helm of the Phoenix which she considers a supreme honor and the biggest achievement in her life so far. She hopes to impress the rest of the crew and show them that she isn’t just a kid.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hope these are good!

-GPR

[Hidden Ranger]

Oooh, Star Trek brainstorming! I've been a huge fan of Trek for most of my life; I started watching TNG with my parents when I was little, and my favorite series of all time is Deep Space Nine.

I like the idea of doing some post-Nemesis-era stuff. I've made a few characters here and there for Trek RPGs, but not enough for an entire crew roster (well, with the except for a crew I made up when I was in fifth grade, but I barely remember them and that's probably for the best):

Lt. Quentin Roswell - Science Officer, Human. Born on Mars Colony to parents working on the Utopia Planitia Fleetyards. Evidenced a keen mind and aptitude for physics and stellar cartography at a young age; was groomed for a life in Starfleet almost immediately. Has a quiet sense of humor and a tendency to get distracted easily. Is becoming more and more fascinated by civilian life, because he's realizing that no one's ever asked him whether or not he ever wanted to be in Starfleet. He wonders what life he would have chosen for himself if he'd ever been given the opportunity to choose.

En. Susan Piping - Computer Sciences, Human. She's one of the rarely-seen technicians assigned to a starship's massive computer core. Perky personality; enjoys being given complex puzzles to solve, but she works best by herself. She's not good at communicating with people, and sometimes she gets frustrated when having to collaborate with others on a project. She sees how a problem might be solved, but she has difficulty being convinced that anyone else's way might work as well.

En. Lurrga - Helm Officer, Ferengi. On of the few Ferengi in Starfleet, she has completely turned her back on the restrictive Ferengi society (Nagus Rom's reforms didn't come soon enough for her), and she enjoys the relative freedom of being able to pursue her own career in Starfleet. In fact, she enjoys it so much she can be rather opinionated once in a while. Okay, twice in a while. She also likes bucking the stereotype that Ferengi are weaklings, so she serves as the tough girl (like Kira or Belanna Torres).

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Nice crew members Hidden Ranger! Maybe we can figure out a way to work them in somewhere. Nothing is set in stone yet so time will tell.

-GPR

[Question]

Actually, I'd love to steal Ensign Lurrga if I could, HR. I want a starship attached to my starbase, similar to the Defiant on DS9, and I think she'd fit in perfectly. Also, I just now realized that I had a counselor but nothing specific planned for her, and am having trouble coming up with something compelling that isn't simply a blue-skinned Troi. I may later change her into the first Ba'ku in Starfleet, but I'm not sure.

Also, I'm not sure which starship I want for my station. I've narrowed it down to either a Defiant- or Nova-class ship. The Nova is more science-oriented, but the Defiant is *so* pretty.

(I love everyone's crews, by the way. I can't wait to see how we all work together!)

So, minus Khay, here's my command staff:

Star Trek: Gamma Quadrant - Starbase Epsilon
http://images.wikia.com/memoryalpha/en/images/2/26/Starbase_375_with_ships.jpg


Rank: Captain
Name: Quinn Michaels
Position: Commanding Officer
Race: Human
Personality: Quinn is a genius military strategist, always thinking seven steps ahead of his opponent. He's serious, although not opposed to the occasional gathering with his senior staff. Zeth, his old Starfleet Academy classmate, is one of the few people who can bring the captain out of his serious shell, one of the major reasons Quinn recruited his old friend.
Brief Biography: Quinn joined Starfleet to follow in his father's footsteps, a high-ranking admiral in Starfleet Operations. There, Quinn met the man who would become his lifelong friend, Zeth Rale (pre-joining). The two were inseparable, at least until graduation. Quinn took a posting on a deep space survey into the Beta Quadrant, earning a promotion to junior grade lieutenant before the yearlong journey had finished. Quinn severed with distinction during the wars with Cardassia, Tzenketh, the Klingons, and the Dominion. Quinn's knack for unique strategies in battle caused Starfleet to assign him to the first Gamma Quadrant starbase, in the hope that if the Dominion reinstigated hostilities, he would be able to head them off.


Rank: Commander
Name: Zeth Tal
Position: First Officer, Science Officer
Race: Trill (joined)
Personality: Zeth has always loved to laugh, from the moment he was first able to. Joining to the Tal symbiont hasn't changed this. He loves finding ways to bend the rules of Starfleet procedure, although he stops short of doing anything completely inappropriate or anything that would hinder the work in any way. He's charismatic, and people tend to flock to him like flies to poop.
Brief Biography: Zeth Rale joined Starfleet solely for scientific study. He never wanted to command, and he never wanted to do anything but study temporal phenomena and other scientific oddities. His first year after graduation was spent as an assistant at Starfleet Command to an admiral who'd taken the young ensign under his wing, before he became a floating science officer with no permanent posting, moving from ship to ship to study anything Starfleet Command deemed important enough. He rose from a junior grade lieutenant to a lieutenant commander before his old Academy classmate and newly promoted captain Quinn Michaels recruited him as his new first officer. Zeth accepted on the condition that he also be science officer, so he could still do the thing he loved the most.
Tal's Previous Hosts:
Dakin Tal - Trill geneticist
Flura Tal - Botanist
Crafe Tal - Head of the Trill Symbiosis Commission
Yuzin Tal - Physics professor at the Trill Institute of Science
Bekah Tal - Reporter for the Federation News Service
Jokan Tal - Spy with Trill Intelligence until Trill joined the Federation, later an operative for Starfleet Intelligence. Tal was then recruited into Section 31 upon Jokan's death, because a spy with multiple lifetimes of experience was deemed to be an incredible asset.
Zephryn Tal - A spy with Section 31. He passed away on the starship Excalibur, and another 31 agent drugged Zeth and had the ship's EMH implant the Tal symbiont in Zeth for debriefing, despite the Trill's vehement nondesire to be joined.



Rank: Commander
Name: T'Rana
Position: Second Officer, Executive Officer
Race: Vulcan/Betazoid
Personality: Despite being a halfbreed, T'Rana fully embraces her Vulcan heritage. She claims not to understand humanoid emotions, but truthfully, her unique heritage and telepathic potential gives her unparalelled insight into emotion, at least for a Vulcan. Often, she'll overcompensate for what she sees as emotional weakness in herself by becoming cold and distant, even for a Vulcan.
Brief Biography: T'Rana's mother was a Betazoid commander, a counselor for high-ranking admirals at Starfleet Command. A Vulcan politician went through a pon farr cycle, and T'Rana's mother offered herself to satiate the Vulcan. The two were wed shortly thereafter and T'Rana was born. She joined Starfleet, and rose through the ranks quickly thanks to her intelligence and to deaths in the Dominion War. She should have been first officer of Starbase Epsilon, she feels, but Captain Michaels felt she lacked practical command experience, causing a bit of resentment toward Commander Tal.



Rank: Lieutenant Commander
Name: Chemithran zh'Frace
Position: Chief of Security
Race: Andorian
Personality: Thran is serious, by-the-book, and no-nonsense. He has very little patience for anything he deems frivolous, bringing him into conflict with Commander Tal more often than not. Thran hates secrecy, even secrecy sanctioned by his superiors, and will work tirelessly to uncover the most inconsequential details of people, even if they don't wish it. This makes him a dangerous enemy to have, but an exceptional security officer.
Brief Biography: Chemithran (Thran to his friends) was born on Andor. From a young age, he showed predatory instincts outclassing those of his classmates, and a brain for military strategy. Thran signed up to be an enlisted officer in Starfleet during the first Cardassian War, but had earned a battlefield commission to lieutenant by the time the Dominion War began. In the last year of the war, Thran met Commander Quinn Michaels, saving the man's life during a Breen assault on Tellar. This impressed Michaels enough that Thran was his first choice to be chief of security on Michaels' new command. Thran was initially reluctant, as serving in the Gamma Quadrant would mean being that much further away from his bondmates back home, but duty won out, and Thran accepted the assignment.



Rank: Lieutenant Commander
Name: Gwenna
Position: Chief Medical Officer
Race: Orion
Personality: Like Bashir, but more Orion-y.
Brief Biography: Gwenna was expected to become a slave girl and member of the Orion Syndicate - as her mother before her, and her grandmother before that - but Gwenna was somehow unfulfilled by the prospect of whoring herself out for money. Her life seemed aimless until she met a Starfleet crew during a routine dismantling of an Orion Syndicate cell. She saved the ship's Chief Medical Officer from being shot in the back by a member of the Syndicate - Gwenna's older sister, in fact. Gwenna was disowned by her family as a traitor, and she was taken in by the doctor she'd saved. A year later, the captain of the ship sponsored Gwenna's entrance into Starfleet Academy, where she decided to become a doctor like the man she so admired. The Academy was tough, as prejudices about green-skinned Orion slave girls persisted, and the sexual harassment was almost enough to make her quit and return to the Syndicate. She endured, however, graduated with honors. She spent the next few years as a doctor on various starships, including a stint as a battlefield medic during the Dominion War. Her work in comparative interspecies physiology eventually earned her the position of CMO on Starbase Epsilon.



Rank: Lieutenant
Name:Jennifer Gilmore
Position: Chief Engineer
Race: Human
Personality: Perpetually bright and cheery, Jennifer is the adopted little sister of everyone on the command staff. She's always the optimist, and the first to see the silver lining of any cloud. Occasionally, Jennifer can be a bit too naive and trusting, but she's always more than willing to correct her mistakes. Occasionally, she's been known to "converse" with the station and Wisdom.
Brief Biography: Jennifer was inspired to join Starfleet after her parents were killed in the Battle of Wolf 359. She'd always had a head for engineering, so that was her concentration in Starfleet Academy. Upon graduation, her marks were high enough that she earned a posting as a junior engineer on the Enterprise-E, shortly before the Borg attack on Earth's past. Unfortunately, Ensign Gilmore was never much of a fighter, and she was quickly overrun by the Borg forces storming Engineering. Luckily, in the process of assimilation, the Borg Queen was defeated and Jennifer was saved. However, feedback from the Borg assimilation nanoprobes had an odd side-effect - Jennifer is able to "speak" to sufficiently advanced machinery. She can't control machines with her mind, but she can speak to them, or access hidden files by thinking at them. This ability was studied thoroughly by both the Enterprise crew and Starfleet Corps of Engineering, and it was deemed harmless. This ability to commune with technology was the major reason Captain Michaels chose her as his chief engineer aboard Starbase Epsilon.

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Nice crew Question! I like them. I think we need to decide how we want to present this now. Should we post them here, establish our own site, or what? Also, should we do that right away or work on our stories first?


EDIT: Also, if we do this we will need a logo. I made this one, which I can personalize for each of us if you guys want me to.

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb316/GPRanger/StarTrek.jpg

-GPR

[Question]

Very nice logo! Might want to Photoshop some of the rough edges off the 'Star Trek' part, though (which I'd be more than happy to do; I could use the practice).

I'm cool with posting the stories wherever, although my personal preference is a website somewhere. I'm open to anything, though!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Yea, I actually made that in Paint, so you're more then welcome to spruce it up with Photoshop! Greatly Apperciated. I'll check out freewebs and see what I can set up. I'll let you know.

-GPR

[Hidden Ranger]

Go ahead and use any of my characters you want, guys. I like the idea of Lurrga especially, since I like the idea of challenging the assumptions people have of the Ferengi. If the concept of Star Trek is to expose people's racial prejudices, then the subconscious bigotry that a lot of Starfleet seem to have toward other races should be dealt with. That kind of things was done wonderfully in Deep Space Nine, and I really like Question's handling of the Orion medical officer.

If you're looking for something different to do with the counselor than just making her a Troi retread, Question, maybe look at some of the other counselors/advisors in the Trekverse (like Ezri Dax, Guinan, Jadzia Dax in her 'Old Man' role with Sisko, etc.) for examples of the way they might approach things. Still, I like the idea of a part-Vulcan who is in touch with her emotions. You could do a lot with her struggles to balance those emotions, I think. Maybe others' emotions tend to rub off on her, so that she's happy when others around her are.

Oh, and another idea I had was that we don't see a lot of non-human captains in Starfleet. Practically, that's because the captain is the main character on each show and burying the lead actor under a lot of alien makeup might not be a wise idea, but this is a fanfic project -- we don't have to worry about that. We could make the captain any kind of non-human race we wanted to. Just food for thought.

[Chris3123]

For your reference, the story is based around the newly comissioned NCC-1825 also known as the U.S.S Phoenix, a Galaxy class starship.

You can't use that registry (or any 4-digit registry, for that matter) for a Galaxy class starship. A starship with that registry number would have to have been commissioned in the late 23rd century, decades before the Galaxy class starship was developed. Registry numbers were already past 70000 when the USS Galaxy was commissioned. Here are the known Galaxy lass starships, with registry (other than the Enterprise-D):

USS Galaxy (NCC-70637)
USS Challenger (NCC-71099)
USS Yamato (NCC-71807)
USS Odyssey (NCC-71832)
USS Venture (NCC-71854)

So the Phoenix would have to have a registry number higher than 70637, if you want it to fit with what has already been established.

[Question]

It's never been established that registry numbers are assigned in numerical order. I doubt Starfleet has (or has had total) over 71,000 ships. The Prometheus-class ship from Voyager had a two digit registry number, for instance. Maybe so many four-digit registries were lost during the war that Starfleet decided to reuse some of them.

edit: I might try my hand at some individual logos later. I know Phoenix has a Galaxy-class ship, what's your ship's class, Dragon?

Here's my work with the logo:

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e125/dkfromtk/StarTrekGQ2.jpg

[Chris3123]

It's never been established that registry numbers are assigned in numerical order.


It is a fact that the newer the ship, the higher the registry number (exception being ships that are successors in name and keep the original ships number, ie the Enterprises). And that's been the intention of the folks who make Trek, for a long time. Even if it's not a matter of merely adding 1 to the most recent registry number, there is without a doubt some system in place (within the fictional world) that involves ever increasing numbers.


I doubt Starfleet has (or has had total) over 71,000 ships.

70,000+ would only have to be true if the numbering scheme was merely starting at 1 and adding 1 for each ship. It could be more complicated than that, but what we do know is that the numbers only get higher.

The Prometheus-class ship from Voyager had a two digit registry number, for instance.

You're mistaken. The Prometheus' registry was NX-74913, which follows the long established pattern of ever increasing registry numbers. Enterprise was the only show that showed any Starfleet vessels that had a mere two-digit registry.

(If you were actually referring to the Dauntless from "Hope and Fear" (which I assume you were), that doesn't count, as it was not a Starfleet vessel)

[Question]

You're right, I was. May bad there.

But again, a lot of ships were lost in the war. It's not inconceivable that some numbers are being reused.

And there was at least one case of a ship having a lower registry number than the first of its class, but I can't for the life of me remember which it was. That alone throws doubt on registry numbers always going up.

I'll concede they usually go up, but not in every single case.

[Chris3123]

But again, a lot of ships were lost in the war. It's not inconceivable that some numbers are being reused.

Oh, I agree.

And there was at least one case of a ship having a lower registry number than the first of its class, but I can't for the life of me remember which it was. That alone throws doubt on registry numbers always going up.

Perhaps, but it's still like 99% of the time.

I'll concede they usually go up, but not in every single case.

Just exceptions to the rule, really.

[Question]

Yeah, it's definitely the grand majority of the time, I agree there. It's just not an absolute rule.

(You seem pretty up on your Trek lore; do you know of any decent pictures of TNG-era starbases besides Memory Alpha? I've been there most of the day, but haven't found a picture I like yet.)

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

No need to argue over my number guys, lol. I realized that my number wouldnt fit a while back but never got around to changing it to a higher number. And actually, "Phoenix" is a special ship, because if you recal First Contact, Zephram Cochrane's original Warp speed ship was called the Phoenix. I'll pick a new number when I get to it.

Great job with the logo Question, it looks much smoother now. Chris, you do seem to be very up on Trek lore. Would you like to be an official advisor for our Meta-Fic? You're more then welcome to join us.

Thanks for working on the other logos as well Question, and I look foward to seeing them.

-GPR

[Question]

Equinox!

The Nova-class Equinox had a lower registry number than the prototype USS Nova.

(Assuming the Nova in question was a Nova-class... I think it's safe to assume, though.)

Man, that was bugging me.

edit:

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e125/dkfromtk/epsilonlogo.jpg

If you guys have stock images you'd like me to use for your ships, let me know! Or I can pick; either way!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

You can pick a ship for the Phoenix Question, Thanks. I'll add your picture to your page on the site.

Here is the website for anyone that wants to view it: www.freewebs.com/gammaquadrant

-GPR

[Question]

Also, I just realized that Gilmore is basically Kaylee from Firefly.

I'm slightly shamed, but too vested to bother changing her.

I should have your pic up sometime tomorrow, Phoenix!

[Chris3123]

(You seem pretty up on your Trek lore; do you know of any decent pictures of TNG-era starbases besides Memory Alpha? I've been there most of the day, but haven't found a picture I like yet.)

Well you can always visit TrekCore (http://www.trekcore.com), which has screencaps from every show and movie. Just think of an episode or movie featuring a starbase, then check out the caps for that episode/movie. If you are having trouble thinking of some, I could help you out. :)

Chris, you do seem to be very up on Trek lore.

Is there an echo in here? ;) Anyway, yeah i am. I'm a big Trekkie. Been one for over 15 years.

Would you like to be an official advisor for our Meta-Fic? You're more then welcome to join us.

Woah, really? That'd be awesome. Thank you, I accept. :D


Equinox!

The Nova-class Equinox had a lower registry number than the prototype USS Nova.

(Assuming the Nova in question was a Nova-class... I think it's safe to assume, though.)


Well, all we know is that there is a USS Nova with a registry lower than the Equinox's. But anyway, this is way too trivial to be worthy of debate, so let's just leave it. ;)

[Question]

Nah, I wasn't bothering to debate anymore. Not only do I doubt my ability to win a Star Trek debate for the first time in over a decade (something I will resent you forever for ;)), but I really just wanted to remember. It bugged me that I didn't.

Thanks for the site!

[Question]

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e125/dkfromtk/phoenixlogo.jpg

I'm not sure how happy I am with the wormhole (it's meant to be more symbolic than anything else), but here's the Phoenix!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Nice Question!! Thanks, I'll put it on the site now!

-GPR

[Hidden Ranger]

You can pick a ship for the Phoenix Question, Thanks. I'll add your picture to your page on the site.

Here is the website for anyone that wants to view it: www.freewebs.com/gammaquadrant

-GPR

Nice site, though I did spot a typo you might want to fix:

[QUOTE=Star Trek: Gamma Quadrant]So, if you're ready, Let's Go Where No Human Has Gome Before!!!![/url]

"Gone", you mean? :D

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Ah, thanks Hidden. I'll make sure I fix that.

-GPR

[Question]

Clearly, gome is Domionese for gone.

WIN!

[GoldPhoenixRanger]

Ok, I fixed the "gone" problem and also added the first post to the Forum over there. It lists all of us and our positions in the Meta-Fic so check that out when you have time. Also, idk if you guys noticed, but there is also a Shoutbox on the Forum page, under the actual Forum, so feel free to use that at your leisure.

I think that either on the forum or on the story pages, each author should have a little introduction from them to the fans as sort of a "foreward" to your story. You don't need to sign up to use the Forum over there, so make a post whenever you want. Just use the same names you have here, as thats what I put in the intro thread.

Good Luck to everyone in their writing and lets see how popular these stories get!

-GPR