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Morkonan
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Post by Morkonan » Sun, 8. Oct 17, 03:11

A parting line, if I may be so presumptuous:

As the Tamarind Captain rushes headlong into a squishy fate against the hull of the DSP, the subject of "why" might come up.

Either the players will ask the NPC why he is sacrificing himself or he, himself, will tell them. If the latter, which is probably the way it will go, then..

"For Tamarind and Federation at <system name>."

Hearken back to "Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra", there. It's a good flourish to cap off the theme of the mission and to note its success.

Just a thought and I had to come back and post it. :)

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Usenko
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Post by Usenko » Sun, 8. Oct 17, 06:36

THAT'S IT!

When the Tarmian Captain is on his way to the heroic sacrifice, one of the Tamarians laments "Hamlet! Holding Yorick's Skull!"

Hopefully one of the PCs will pick it up and say something like "I'd also like to know why."

And then he drops his one liner - "For Tama and the Federation at Zeta Tau IV."

It's perfect - it's a phrase that works in both languages!
Morkonan wrote:What really happened isn't as exciting. Putin flexed his left thigh during his morning ride on a flying bear, right after beating fifty Judo blackbelts, which he does upon rising every morning. (Not that Putin sleeps, it's just that he doesn't want to make others feel inadequate.)

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Morkonan
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Post by Morkonan » Sun, 8. Oct 17, 22:38

Usenko wrote:...It's perfect - it's a phrase that works in both languages!
It's your version of "And they lived happily ever after." :)

It might make it even more personal, and be a bit closer to the original inspiration, if he, instead, says "For <shipname> and <shipname> at <systemname>." I'm not sure. Roll it around on your tongue, see how deep it strikes a chord. Whichever phrase is most capable of creating the most emotional impact on your players, judged by how it effects you, is the one you should go with.

On the creative process:

Over the course of several of these discussions, you might notice a few different themes that I seem to get "stuck on." So, in some topics where suggestions have been offered, they may appear to gravitate towards certain sorts of ideas, sometimes repetitively, applying them to different situations with abandon.

When you think of something that would be "cool", you naturally want it in your "story", right? So, you chase that idea and keep trying to grab that square peg and force it into whatever hole appears. If there isn't one, you engineer one and see if it fits. Eventually, after many sessions of trial and error, it finds its place. And, delightfully, it's not always a place you've prepared for it, but one that evolves and presents itself, on its own.

Stories aren't usually developed in a linear fashion. They can be, of course, but they're a lot like movies. Bits and pieces come together that don't obey a particular timeline. While creating a story, a great idea for something that develops later can come to light and insist that it be included. So, what do you do? You start creating the scaffolding to support that great idea and you lead your story in its direction.

When constructing a story, the ending should come first. (In my opinion.) Why? Well, why leave the ending up to chance or, as some say, "wherever the story takes me?" Sure, some stories evolve on their own and take their creators for a delightful ride. There's nothing wrong with that, really, but it's certainly a heck of a lot easier to get where you want to go if you already know where it is that you're going. :)


Artificial Intelligence is a scary thing.

The galaxy is filled with stuff that is more powerful than anything one can imagine. We're not naturally equipped to understand power any further than a spear-point.

A last desperate battle. Especially one that "pops" with beat after beat.

(One of the best examples of this sort of thing, for this setting, can be found in some of Tom Clancy's books, especially "Red Storm Rising" and "The Hunt for Red October." If you haven't read either, read Red Storm Rising to get a taste of how "battle" themes should be applied to your Star Trek play sessions, in my opinion.)

Revelation of the truth in a startling manner, but without giving it to the players on a platter. (They have to work for it and/or it has to seem as if the revelation evolves naturally in the story.)

The forlorn remains of an ancient explorer one can empathize with and that foreshadows the possible fate of the players, should they fail. (HAD to be in it, somewhere, else what's the point? We know the players won't "fail", so they have to experience that possibility in other ways, right?)

The preservation of the enigma as a natural force, one that is too mysterious to understand, one that is aloof and above mere mortal concerns, and one that may, or may not, be benevolent. Ultimately, this "force" retains its power over the story and in the future, as part of the player's recollection of the setting they're in, because it remains untouchable and mysterious. (Not showing the full body of the monster means the monster remains just that much more malevolent and terrifying.)

An entity, a ghost, an alien spirit, something truly alien in so many ways, but one that the players can empathize or identify with. Another purpose, besides the foreshadowing above, is to introduce even more of an air of mystery and wonder, partly supernatural, to flavor the experience. And, it raises questions that can't be answered, not for any value of a particular answer, but for the precise value of the question, itself.

Every player is "the most important player" at some time. Ideally, by the end, every player contributes something to the group's success that only they could have brought.


Certainly, these were constant themes behind many of my suggestions. They were bones that I insisted on chewing. :) And, with collaborative effort, they've come together nicely with your own to create a good experience and a good story. It has a good beginning, a good middle and a great "blockbuster" ending, don't you think?

Nicely done!

Oh, and it's not finished... The hard part is now left up to you. You have to actually make it work!

Reminder: Get that graphic done or printed out, just in case you need it. If you had more time, a great way to present it would be with two clear-sheet overlays, the sort of things that used to be used with overhead projectors. I suggest this old-tech only because it's "tangible" and you can put it in the player's hands so they can "feel it." Eventually, they'd turn them every-which-way and finally figure out that if they turned them a specific way and put them on top of each other, the diagram of the system would match up with specific points/processes on the flow-chart. The act of doing so, itself, is similar to "unlocking" secrets in that they figure out a "puzzle" they've been handed. Printing out overlays used to be easy, back in the day. It's even easier, today, with a home printer and custom overlay stock from an office-supply store. Just a thought, since these pages could represent separate "journal entries" in the alien's personal log that the empathic player discovers. You could even print out "gibberish" that has been scratched out/scrawled over, so the players immediately understand these are "cast off" thoughts from a mind that may have been slowly breaking apart...

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