Star Trek: Theurgy

Out-of-Character Message Boards => Main OOC Board => Topic started by: Auctor Lucan on September 06, 2017, 04:16:53 PM

Title: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on September 06, 2017, 04:16:53 PM
STORY WORKSHOP

Now, it is time to plot our story ahead. Yes, I may have plenty of stuff for the main storyline, ideas for what the next Episode will be, but I bet all of you may have ideas for the storyline ahead as well, so I would like to start a little workshop where we pool our minds into paving the path forward.

I realise, however, that some might have more than one idea for an Episode, and unfortunately, I will be asking you all to only pitch one Episode plot each. I very much would like to avoid everyone throwing as much stuff on the wall as the can just so that something might stick. That won't be constructive at all. No, instead, I want you all to pitch one story premise or Episode each, and only one. That way, only the plotlines you really believe in will end up in the workshop, and we go from there.

Of course this is not mandatory, btw. I do not expect everyone to throw their hat into the ring. Not going to force you to either, lol. It will be a fun thing, this project.

I tried to set up criteria and such, but I felt it was too restrictive for you guys. So, in short, the floor is yours! :)

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on September 06, 2017, 04:25:38 PM
Woot!

Okay, so I really liked to pitch the idea of the Nopefish! :P

Because we've had trouble with sentients and their ships and pretty much everyone wants to killz us! Now on top of it all, a fish the size of a dyson sphere maybe swallows us whole and we find whole ecosystems living inside the fish, and we even find an enemy ship (you pick) inside and we have to fight them off as well as find our way out of this gigantihugemunguonormous fish.

As I write this though I wonder if this is better as a Interregnum moment rather than a full blown episode. But I think it can be expanded on.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Josie on September 06, 2017, 04:32:55 PM
what sort of restrictions are there on... sanity of the idea? like not 'on weed' or gibbering squirrel?

Zrinka is actually tame compared to some I have played on other sites.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on September 06, 2017, 04:36:06 PM
I'm already a gibbering squirrel...
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on September 06, 2017, 04:40:57 PM
Haha, well, we are writing a serious story, that we are. So... the Nopefish would in that case not be called a nopefish, for example. ;)

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Hastata-Nerada on September 06, 2017, 04:52:50 PM
I like the idea of the Theurgy stopping at a neutral port, perhaps during the next interregnum. During that time, any number of colorful NPCs from alien merchants to who knows what could be conjured up to interact with the crew.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on September 06, 2017, 05:30:29 PM
Haha, well, we are writing a serious story, that we are. So... the Nopefish would in that case not be called a nopefish, for example. ;)

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Well I'm glad to know that because Nopefish is just my working name.

How about Tetraodontifornope Giganticus?  Scientific name, and called the Dun Ghotl' in Klingon legend as they were the only ones to meet this monstrosity before.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Brutus on September 06, 2017, 06:32:06 PM
To be fair, the USS Enterprise under command of Captain Kirk, did encounter a giant space born Amoeba that destroyed the USS Intrepid. There was also the cosmozens that were under Farpoint Station, the Crystalline entity, Gomtu (all encountered by the USS Enterprise-D and that giant space born whale thing that ate starships by luring in crew with their deepest desires (encountered by the USS Voyager in the Delta Quadrant).

So a giant spaceborn nopefish would not be all that out of place. :3
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: CanadianVet on September 06, 2017, 11:27:04 PM
Next episode?  Some classic Trek stuff.  Doing good things for good people, a strictly local plotline that only peripherally connects to the overarching story.

Basically, Theurgy doing what a Federation starship should be doing when it comes across people having a really rough day.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: chXinya on September 07, 2017, 12:41:05 AM
My latest idea:

We pick up and answer a distress call from a Federation patrol or science ship (something small, not able to defend itself very well) currently under attack from Orion pirates, or something similar.  After chasing the thugs off we render what aid we can, hoping to prove that we have no hostile actions towards the Federation, just the parasites.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on September 07, 2017, 12:59:50 AM
And then we discover that whole ship and its pet monkey has been infected....
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: TrexelCat on September 07, 2017, 01:18:45 AM
So I've been tossing around an idea. The crew of the Theurgy encounter a previously unknown ancient species who primarily stick to their own world due to cultural taboo and what not. Warp capable, with exceptionally powerful weapons. They've been monitoring Starfleet communications, and know about the parasites. Upon seeing the Theurgy, they mistake the Theurgy as part of what is going on with the parasites. This would probably devolve into a cluster-furball, weapons fire, explosions, lets blow our entire CGI budget on this one. Would be up to the crew of the Theurgy to fight back, or try and convince this race that they mean no harm and are not infected. Could they become new allies? Or a potentially new, very powerful enemy.

Just tossing this out there.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: steelphoenix on September 07, 2017, 03:49:19 AM
I still have a vengeful race of carnivorous cat people bent on a bit of galactic exploitation.  What if they actually got their hands on something truly terrifying... say, one of the TOS planet killers from Doomsday Machine?  Or if a telepathic kzin gets hold of a Gomtu or a Farpoint alien to turn it into the throneship of their assault fleet?  I  know we have the asurians breathing down our necks but I would love to see the kzinti finally step up their plans to make the Federation suffer for all those centuries of humiliation.  Perhaps they form an alliance with some rogue Klingon houses (a la House Duras).  I mean, let's kick the political status quo on its posterior.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Absinthe on September 07, 2017, 06:31:34 AM
My idea is much more "Classic Star Trek" than anything revolving around the current parasite issue, so I am not sure how well it will work, but here goes.

Quote
With repairs still underway the Theurgy is forced to a slow impulse. Long range Scans detect a large unknown object approaching and the Theurgy is forced to prepare for combat while still trying to fix that which is broken. Tensions rise.

The large unknown object turns out to be a large pod of space faring life forms similar to Earth's whales. The beautiful sight offers the crew some respite from the high tension of so many previous encounters. The chance of scientific learning is too great to pass up so after some debate the ship travels with the pod to learn as much as possible.

However all is not well when a small fleet of ships approach and begin "fishing." The caught between a hunter and it's prey, the Theurgy will soon be forced to decide who may live and who must die.

Definitely some morale choices to be made, but not the high flying tension of the past few episodes, so it might make a better Interregnum than a full on episode.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Even Angels Cry on September 07, 2017, 08:58:31 AM
I have an idea as well, though I may paint too broad of a picture with my strokes.

As we sit, the Theurgy is on the run and we have exhausted our supply of potential allies (maybe? dunno if that's all played out yet or not.. but assuming so..).  Since we have no one to turn to, the Theurgy escapes to unfriendly space.  This would be an alien race/faction/planet (known or unknown to the Federation) that is neutral to our parasite problem but generally unfriendly toward Starfleet and the Federation.  The kicker here is that through negotiations with them (ahem that's a Diplomatic Mission!) we turn an unfriendly people into our ally.  This will likely also involve humanitarian issues, moral and ethical issues, etc as we will probably have to help their society in some meaningful way before they agree to aid us.

Perhaps this race/faction/planet has knowledge about things that we don't and with our knowledge combined we see a broader picture.  Perhaps they simply agree that as it stands with the parasite infestation, the Federation is corrupt and must be stopped.  Either way, when the actual battle comes (much later down the line, hopefully... cuz let's not take out our Admirals all at once), these new unlikely allies will be INCREDIBLY useful for reasons X, Y, Z.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Josie on September 07, 2017, 10:02:05 AM
Haha, well, we are writing a serious story, that we are. So... the Nopefish would in that case not be called a nopefish, for example. ;)

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Well I'm glad to know that because Nopefish is just my working name.

How about Tetraodontifornope Giganticus?  Scientific name, and called the Dun Ghotl' in Klingon legend as they were the only ones to meet this monstrosity before.

Fred..
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Josie on September 07, 2017, 10:04:57 AM
Haha, well, we are writing a serious story, that we are. So... the Nopefish would in that case not be called a nopefish, for example. ;)

Best,

Auctor Lucan

Hmm.. that knocks out my ideas.

- ship thrown into a cartoon-physics universe
- Nopefish is close enough to Giant Space Hamster
- captain gets infected with something, somehow ship gets shrunk down to sub-atomic size and has to go fight infection inside captain's bloodstream
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triton on September 07, 2017, 11:52:58 AM
ENT: E(2)  (E Squared)

In this episode of Enterprise, NX01 was thrust over a century in the past, before First Contact, and the crew was thus forced to be a generational ship to assist their future selves. Tucker's and T'Pol's son (three times the age of his father when they met) was the 'other' ship's captain and long story short, assisted Capt. Archer and crew in a space battle on a battered but still functional NX-class 100 years old and still kicking ass.

I had this idea of there being a fork in the timeline:

Tholians (officially or unofficially) are working on something they captured in the nebula, which astounds our heroes: It's a Theurgy-class, ours in fact, but it's clearly much older. This doesn't make any sense until we realize the Tholians are trying to use history as a weapon and research, using a Defeated Theurgy from a doomed timeline to cause further temporal sabotage or whatever it is those mother-buggers (The joke being they're a matriarchal society) are up to. We raid this Tholian base and rescue the ship and its crew, which, plot-twist... are Theurgy's crew's descendants.

The 'Other' Theurgy crew reconnects with some of their original 'parents', it seems to be interesting, romantic, almost even comic when some pairings produce interesting offspring (ahem-- kzinthi-caitians). But then temporal threats occur, one misfortunate 'other theurgy' redshirt's parent dies from his or her wounds during the Tholian battle, and aforementioned redshirt ceases to exist (ie Back to the Future, like what almost happened to Marty.) Thus opens up spots of melodrama and worry about messing with the laws of providence and all that, when suddenly, hostile forces are spotted in the area. Other Theurgy, long story short, sacrifices itself to make it look like Theurgy is officially destroyed, while Theurgy somehow, after a bittersweet section of development and instrospection, gets itself ready for the next big fight.

I don't know enough about Tholians, aside from their fine Silk and tendency to steal temporally/dimensionally-mislocated ships.

Who knows, maybe the 'other' theurgy survived, or at least some of her future crew did.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Masorin on September 10, 2017, 03:25:31 AM
ENT: E(2)  (E Squared)

In this episode of Enterprise, NX01 was thrust over a century in the past, before First Contact, and the crew was thus forced to be a generational ship to assist their future selves. Tucker's and T'Pol's son (three times the age of his father when they met) was the 'other' ship's captain and long story short, assisted Capt. Archer and crew in a space battle on a battered but still functional NX-class 100 years old and still kicking ass.

I had this idea of there being a fork in the timeline:

Tholians (officially or unofficially) are working on something they captured in the nebula, which astounds our heroes: It's a Theurgy-class, ours in fact, but it's clearly much older. This doesn't make any sense until we realize the Tholians are trying to use history as a weapon and research, using a Defeated Theurgy from a doomed timeline to cause further temporal sabotage or whatever it is those mother-buggers (The joke being they're a matriarchal society) are up to. We raid this Tholian base and rescue the ship and its crew, which, plot-twist... are Theurgy's crew's descendants.

The 'Other' Theurgy crew reconnects with some of their original 'parents', it seems to be interesting, romantic, almost even comic when some pairings produce interesting offspring (ahem-- kzinthi-caitians). But then temporal threats occur, one misfortunate 'other theurgy' redshirt's parent dies from his or her wounds during the Tholian battle, and aforementioned redshirt ceases to exist (ie Back to the Future, like what almost happened to Marty.) Thus opens up spots of melodrama and worry about messing with the laws of providence and all that, when suddenly, hostile forces are spotted in the area. Other Theurgy, long story short, sacrifices itself to make it look like Theurgy is officially destroyed, while Theurgy somehow, after a bittersweet section of development and instrospection, gets itself ready for the next big fight.

I don't know enough about Tholians, aside from their fine Silk and tendency to steal temporally/dimensionally-mislocated ships.

Who knows, maybe the 'other' theurgy survived, or at least some of her future crew did.

If we do this my character jack can live up to 250 years old. I'd love to play old man jack as I have been working towards that idea after I blinded him.

I'd even be willing to have the original young jack die on the older ruined theurgy and the older version live on the younger version of the ship. Because why not add a grandfather paradox onto everything else.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Hastata-Nerada on September 10, 2017, 03:56:33 AM
If we do this my character jack can live up to 250 years old. I'd love to play old man jack as I have been working towards that idea after I blinded him.

I'd even be willing to have the original young jack die on the older ruined theurgy and the older version live on the younger version of the ship. Because why not add a grandfather paradox onto everything else.

I swear if time gets messed up any more than it has I'm going to need aspirin just to be able to think about the temporal mechanics of our shenanigans.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Brutus on September 10, 2017, 04:16:27 AM
Um....from what I could find on Memory Alpha, Klingon life spans capped out around 150-175 years....certainly not 250 :(

I still like the idea of old man jack tho :D
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Masorin on September 10, 2017, 05:02:03 AM
Um....from what I could find on Memory Alpha, Klingon life spans capped out around 150-175 years....certainly not 250 :(

I still like the idea of old man jack tho :D


from Life spans memory alpha:

http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Life_span


"No exact lifespan has been given for Klingons, just approximates. In 2370, Odo observed that Kor "must be a hundred years old" and his "best friend," Koloth, was "probably a hundred and fifty years old." This observation was made over one hundred years after their encounter with James Kirk, when they were already accomplished adults."

I honestly don't know where I got 250 from either, but at the same time the klingons we saw in that episode were still powerful warriors and their advanced age did not seem to slow them. Those qoutes come from the DS9 Episode Blood Oath.

There is also Khayless, who is the klingon Moses, and his ancient legends were more akin to religious stories, but that guy was... ancient by the time he decided to 'ascend to the stars.'

Now i'm not saying that Jack is a god, but I'm also not saying that he isn't (but yeah he would probably be around 80 depending on the timeline of the ship. Enough time that he could be a cranky old blind man who is fed up with nonsense.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: steelphoenix on September 10, 2017, 05:21:25 AM
Of course if we find a time displaced version of our ship, not only will it be overrun by the Thundercat progeny of Deacon and K'Ren   (  (laugh)  ), just imagine the round of "I told you so's" we're going to have to deal with from the Devoted.  ;)
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Havenborn on September 10, 2017, 05:30:44 AM
Heck the Devoted may not even be around anymore, they may have been replaced by a new cult.  The Cult of Havenborn. :p
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Brutus on September 10, 2017, 05:40:19 AM
I can see it now: "If you'd just fucking listened to us and made the Morali the Captain..."
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Hastata-Nerada on September 14, 2017, 05:20:56 AM
I think we should either stop for resupply and then see Garak as Rez said, or gather allies within the Federation, worlds which could secretly assist the Theurgy. Worlds like Efros or Delta, or Betazed, or something.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Aeolus on September 14, 2017, 06:34:03 AM
I think we should either stop for resupply and then see Garak as Rez said, or gather allies within the Federation, worlds which could secretly assist the Theurgy. Worlds like Efros or Delta, or Betazed, or something.

This would be pretty awesome.  Some of my favorite Trek episodes are crossovers.  Lwaxana visiting DS9, Q popping up on Voyager, Arridor & Kol (VOY: False Profits) showing up in the Delta Quadrant, Louis Zimmerman, etc.  It bridges the series in a spectacular way.  Garak is such a profound character, that it'd be a shame he didn't make a "guest appearance".

And I wouldn't be opposed to the Theurgy visiting Betazed.  Lol.  Though, from STO's map, it's on the opposite side of Federation space to where the Theurgy is actually right now.

This isn't really a specific story suggestion, but of a general idea.  I think to connect the Theurgy deeper into Trek mythology would be to take an episode TNG, DS9, or VOY, and pick up where they left off.  Such as the VOY episode: "False Profits" did with TNG's episode, "The Price".  The Ferengi were stuck in the Delta Quadrant at the end of The Price and False Profits's finished that specific story.  The two episodes are completely different, but one thread unites them.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: steelphoenix on September 14, 2017, 04:37:38 PM
As cool as dropping in to visit one of the big Federation worlds might be, we also have to consider the fact that those world are heavily visited and monitored by other Federation vessels.  I would think the Theurgy showing up in orbit around one would raise several red flags quite quickly no matter how kindly the world itself might be disposed towards the ship.  I would think any such support would have to come through back channels in otherwise obscure sectors not frequented by Federation traffic (like perhaps in the sun shadow of that world, or on a mining facility hidden inside a gas giant within the system or in another system that race holds).

Not intending to sound critical; just adding more spices to the mix.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Hastata-Nerada on September 14, 2017, 04:52:20 PM
I like that idea a lot actually, back channel arrangements for support would be a good place to start until a more general movement can be made.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: TrexelCat on September 14, 2017, 10:20:22 PM
[Trexelcat prepares the spell: Wall of Text]

Okay, so some of you might have been party to my initial posting of this idea in discord. And after discussing it with @Auctor Lucan he gave his like of it and requested I post it here. So.. Here we go!

In discord it's been brought up a couple of times now of having something that can swallow the Theurgy, and have an entire plot of trying to get out(or something along those lines). So my plot idea is to have a Voth (http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Voth) Fortress Ship (http://memory-beta.wikia.com/wiki/Voth_Fortress_Ship) be that something.

The idea is that this ship appears, and is completely unknown so an investigation is warranted. It's just cruising along at sublight speeds, any attempts to hail go unanswered. The ability to identify it would be purely based on if the Theurgy has access to Voyager's records of their encounter with the Voth(keep in mind that in 2381 the events in STO haven't happened yet). Either way, the Theurgy moves in to investigate and, poof! The whole ship gets beamed inside.

Inside the ship there is more than enough room for the Theurgy to move about. It's quickly(or slowly) discovered that there is no life aboard this ship. It's just been flying in a straight line because no one remained to turn off the engines. The Theurgy being beamed inside was an automated system that was also never turned off and was set to beam in anything that entered a certain proximity.

This ship is massive, it even dwarfs the Voth City Ship (http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Voth_city_ship).

Voyager outside the City Ship:
[Show/Hide]
Voyager inside the City Ship:
[Show/Hide]
Voth Fortress Ship Comparison:
[Show/Hide]
Size Comp 2(detail):
[Show/Hide]
Intrepid Class inside the Fortress Ship:
[Show/Hide]

It's already a canon species, and this would also fulfill the desire of those who want the Theurgy to be swallowed up by something large enough to fly around in. Granted, the ship exclusively appears in Star Trek Online. But since CBS/Paramount have deemed STO's story to be canon to the Star Trek universe, it stands to reason that in 2381 the Voth had at least one of these bad boys laying around. Could have been a prototype that malfunctioned and the entire crew died(ship jumped to warp, the IDF (http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Inertial_damper) generators failed and the crew was turned into paste). Could have been a test bed for automated systems and during testing the ship was lost(How the F do you lose something THAT big?!). The ship could have been invaded by another life form that killed the entire crew, which is still there and doesn't show up on sensors(Halloween is coming, spooky).

Anywho, thank you for reading, and I'm happy to field any questions and ideas y'all might have to make this idea better.

[Wall of Text hits you for 9,000 points of damage.]
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Brutus on September 15, 2017, 04:15:46 PM
Hey all.

A little while back i had informed Lucan that i was a playtester for Star Trek Adventures, at my local game store. The store was singing up to be a hub for the living campaign, and through them (and a sizeable discount) i preordered the Collectors edition of the game, that included all the table top rules, as well as secondary books,about various species, departments....and missions. I told lucan that he was welcome to use anything that i got from this (as it is a hefty investment, discount aside, and by god I wanted it used!).

Today in an email from the publisher I got a notice about a volume of collected missions.  While i do not have al ink for the pdf yet (i'll get a free copy with my preorder collectors edition when it comes out) i do have the mission summaries, that i shared with him, and he suggested i post here. So without furhter delay....

Quote
Space, the Final Frontier

These are the Voyages: Volume 1 presents eight ready-to-play missions for Star Trek Adventures. Within this book Gamemasters will find the means to test their Starfleet officers at the front line of Starfleet operations. Create your own Star Trek stories of discovery and adventure on the Final Frontier. This is a 128 page full colour hardback book in print & PDF
* 8 ready to play missions using the 2d20 game system from Modiphius Entertainment adapted for Star Trek Adventures, and requires the Star Trek Adventures core rulebook to play.
* Uncover the truth about an anomalous wormhole that has trapped an older starship vessel.
* Weigh up the dilemma of the Prime Directive with an intelligent species that originates outside the confines of normal space and time, subjugated by another civilization.
* Rescue a Federation science vessel, drifting dangerously inside the Romulan Neutral Zone, avoiding an escalation into war.
* Investigate strange events on Carina VII, where a colony is rapidly disintegrating around its foundations.
* Explore a strange alien space station, containing a massive forest eco-system of its own.
* Foil plans to spread a long dead plague and uncover the truths of its origin.
* Stop the theft of an experimental torpedo and pursue its thieves to expose their plot.
* Respond to a distress signal from a mining colony in revolt and discover new life in its mines.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Top Hat on September 15, 2017, 04:20:00 PM
One of my (many) projects on the go is putting a campaign framework in the Shackleton Expanse for STA. Looking forward to torturing running a group through it at some point!
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Brutus on September 15, 2017, 04:24:42 PM
From what i can tell, the living campaign missions that will be coming out (Free, if i remember correctly) are all set there. Our store plans to run through those as a kind of open play campaign (IE, if new players show up we dont turn them away as long as they have a valid sheet and we have enough spots at the table, ala pathfinder society)
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on September 15, 2017, 04:29:09 PM
Before I begin to compile alternatives from all the awesome ideas put forth here, I have one contribution of my own.

In many previous episodes, we had guest appearances from other starships. Like the Harbinger, the Resolve and the Orcus. So, my contribution to whatever plot we decide upon, here I present a screencap for you all. It is from a project folder I have on DeviantArt.

(https://orig00.deviantart.net/c1b4/f/2017/258/9/9/image_by_auctor_lucan-dbnha98.png)

It is a teaser for the next starship featured in the Star Trek: Theurgy story. The USS Hekate NX-78492.

Please, continue to add ideas here, I promise it will be worth it for when I compile them into something cohesive. :)

Best,

Auctor Lucan

PS. Thank you Top Hat for the brainstorming that led to the name being settled!
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Top Hat on September 15, 2017, 04:52:52 PM
From what i can tell, the living campaign missions that will be coming out (Free, if i remember correctly) are all set there. Our store plans to run through those as a kind of open play campaign (IE, if new players show up we dont turn them away as long as they have a valid sheet and we have enough spots at the table, ala pathfinder society)
They are, yeah. I have the core rules, and will likely pick up the rest as they're released. Mostly I was planning to use the hubs and relevant characters (presiding admirals, and so on) but do other things. There's all sorts of fun to be had with the Orion Syndicate in the area, as well as Romulan adventurism and, despite the ostensible partnership with the Klingon High Command to explore/exploit the volume, conflict will inevitably arise with the odd KDF ship, too. That way if my usual group (assuming I can even pin them down long enough to play!) get bored with Trekkin' we can fall back on good old pew-pew-boom.

PS. Thank you Top Hat for the brainstorming that led to the name being settled!
Any time! It was an entertaining conversation, and I got a refresher/crash course in Greek mythology when I should have been working instead :P Far more enjoyable.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Josie on September 17, 2017, 03:30:23 PM
(https://orig00.deviantart.net/c1b4/f/2017/258/9/9/image_by_auctor_lucan-dbnha98.png)

It is a teaser for the next starship featured in the Star Trek: Theurgy story. The USS Hekate NX-78492.

I suggest racing stripes.  and unless you have other ideas, I suggest the captain, XO and Second Officer are all female.

Will fit with the triple-form goddess idea. and any shuttles/fighters be named based on breeds of black dogs,  or polecats and frogs.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: steelphoenix on September 17, 2017, 07:08:13 PM
(https://orig00.deviantart.net/c1b4/f/2017/258/9/9/image_by_auctor_lucan-dbnha98.png)

It is a teaser for the next starship featured in the Star Trek: Theurgy story. The USS Hekate NX-78492.

I suggest racing stripes.  and unless you have other ideas, I suggest the captain, XO and Second Officer are all female.

Will fit with the triple-form goddess idea. and any shuttles/fighters be named based on breeds of black dogs,  or polecats and frogs.

All senior officers will be colonists from major moons?
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on September 18, 2017, 09:59:53 PM
Ohh, in the fog of my illness, I had a bit of an epiphany in regard to the name of this new guest ship. :)

I realised, with some research, that the Federation has canonically not honoured the native Americans, or recognised the terrible loss of them because of Europe's colonisation. So, how can it be Starfleet is still lacking a line of starships in honour to the Iroquois tribes as of the twenty-fourth century? So, I personally feel like there is a lot more potential in using these names for this guest ship, and for the line of starships it belong to.

IROQUOIS-CLASS

...and the ship in question for our story would be the USS Cayuga. Better than Hekate, right? :)

I really look forward to finish the design and model of the Iroquois-class, and I think it will be really awesome.

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Top Hat on September 18, 2017, 10:05:19 PM
Iroquois is a fine name for a ship class, and has a suitably-badass history attached. Albeit from a parallel universe. (http://media.moddb.com/images/members/1/552/551636/unsciroquois.jpg)
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Hastata-Nerada on September 18, 2017, 11:12:05 PM
I like the idea of the Iroquois-class, I myself have made a few nods to honoring native Americans with my custom Starfleet vessels, notably the Deganawida-class, and a member of the Deganawida line, the USS Jigonhsasee
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Brutus on September 18, 2017, 11:15:45 PM
Sounds reasonable to me!
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Even Angels Cry on September 19, 2017, 01:01:47 AM
That's an awesome name choice for ship class and vessels!!
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: CanadianVet on September 19, 2017, 01:46:29 AM
And Iroquois is also the name of the latest, though now thoroughly decommissioned class of destroyers in the Royal Canadian Navy, and the name of the class' lead ship.  HMCS Iroquois DDG-280 was decommissioned 1 May 2015, after a service life of almost 40 years. 

She was the second ship to bear the name in Canadian service, the first one being a WW2 Tribal-class destroyer, and ships of that name have the following battle honours: Atlantic, 1943; Arctic, 1943-45; Biscay, 1943-44; Norway, 1945; Korea, 1952-53; and Arabian Sea.

She was a good ship, with a good crew and a distinguished service life.  May I ask a change from Cayuga to Iroquois?  Please?
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Doc M. on September 19, 2017, 01:51:40 AM
I agree with CanadianVet.  I can pronounce the names of the first three ships of the class but not the rest, and Iroquois is on my spellchecker, making it easy to type even if I can't spell it.   :p
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on September 19, 2017, 01:57:51 AM
*chuckles* Sorry, request denied, but the Cayuga will still be a Iroquois-class. Furthermore, Cayuga can be added to the spellchecker too. ;)

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Josie on September 19, 2017, 02:15:03 PM
I prefer the Hekate..

Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on October 04, 2017, 04:59:39 PM
RECOMMENDED THEURGY STORY PATH

Hi there people!

After looking over all that has been posted here, I have kneaded things out into something that could work for everyone. So, without further a due, here is my recommendation for the story (but in no means only exclusively these things, since more might be added, of course). I will be reusing your writing freely here to save time, so you may recognise a few turns of phrases here and there. Figured there was no greater need for me to re-write some portions in my own words. Hope you like it.

INTERREGNUM 04-05

First, we have the current subplots, which are:

- Day 03: Away-Mission to the Coreless Moon and its Klingon outpost, resting on top of an ancient ruin.
- Day 03: Resolution of the Devoted subplot (somehow, please post in it's separate discussion thread if you have ideas)
- Day 03: Resolution of the Virus 117 plot (this was supposed to start on Day 02, where we at with the treatment?)
- Day 03: Random Meeting (Optional, but a fun exercise in having random characters meeting from different departments)

Then, on Day 04, I figure we should end the Interregnum with some cgi fireworks!

Yes, indeed, we discussed several other subplots but it seems like none of them truly stuck or were popular enough, so there is no need prolonging this interregnum further than the concluding encounter on Day 04. What happens is that the crew of the Theurgy encounter a previously unknown ancient species who primarily stick to their own affairs, as they have always done. Warp capable, with exceptionally powerful weapons. They've been monitoring Starfleet communications along with several other Alpha and Beta Quadrant societies over hundreds of years, and indeed, they have come to know about the parasites. They are, in short, the Sheromi, the ones who uplifted the Asurians.: [Show/Hide]
The Asurians leaders who decided to go hunting down the Theurgy have called on aid from the Sheromi, and together, they find the Theurgy. The Sheromi has sent a large, heavily armed and armoured vessel, a carrier with its own advanced fighters. After the initial contact and skirmish (let's blow our entire CGI budget on this one), a game ensues playing cat-and-mouse in the depths of the Azure Nebula. Shields are not readily available for battle, lest the Theurgy risk getting cooked by the radiation (anti-radiation shield harmonics being incompatible with those needed for combat). For the culmination of this encounter, Thea will be running as silent as possible (no warp core, minimal power levels, no active sensors, etc), and passive sensors are almost blinded by the background mess. It will basically, our own version of the the engagement between Khan and Kirk in the Mutara Nebula, or Worf commanding the Defiant in the atmosphere of a gas giant against the Jem'Hadar, and the obligatory hunter-vs-hunter scene in every submarine movie.  A battle lasting hours while trying to come into position to deliver a single killing blow... without getting blown to bits by the sirillium gas. Moreover, the Sheromi has cloaking tech, so chXinya's lookout character Shall will have to be inventive, to say the least.

It would be up to the crew of the Theurgy to stay one step ahead, where the end of the Interregnum will have several possible resolutions depending on what you all bring to the table once we get there. I do not want to nail down the ending here in stone, since aside from the possibility of either defeating the Sheromi ship, or they loose each other in the Nebula, the crew of the Theurgy could try and convince these Sheromi that they mean no harm. Potentially, Dyan Cardamone could earn some trust and redemption when speaking with the Sheromi? Could they become new allies when loosing the Asurians? Or, aside from the Asuirans, they could be a new, even more powerful enemy. Perhaps the Sheromi has knowledge about things that the crew of the Theurgy don't and with knowledge combined, they see a broader picture.  Perhaps they simply agree that as it stands with the parasite infestation, the Federation is corrupt and must be stopped. 

Essentially, let's wait on deciding on the outcome of this encounter, but I have already started working on graphics for the Sheromi ship and fighters. *grins* These can, of course, be re-purposed for some other species if you really hate this development.

EPISODE 05: TITLE TO BE DECIDED

A) Still inside the Azure Nebula, or B) They might have escaped the Nebula in order to flee the Sheromi and Asurian forces via subspace tunnel/wormhole or whatever. Either way, long range scans detect a large unknown object approaching and the Theurgy. The crew prepare for combat while still trying to fix that which was broken by the Sheromi. Tensions rise. The large unknown object turns out to be... even more, and they might think its a whole fleet of Sheromi ships. When they can't flee any further, they decide to make a stand... only to find that what's approaching them are actually space faring life forms similar to Earth's whales (Nopefishes!). Hundreds of them, gliding by in serene beauty. Called the Dun Ghotl' in Klingon legend as they were the only ones to meet this monstrosity before. The beautiful sight offers the crew some respite from the high tension of so many previous encounters.

However all is not well when... *switches notes from the workshop* ...the crew pick up and answer a distress call from a Federation ship currently under attack. What's strange, however, is that it seems to be coming from one of the stragglers of the nopefishes. They head towards the end of the great shoal... What comes next is some classic Trek stuff.  Doing good things for good people, a strictly local plotline that only peripherally connects to the overarching story.

At the source of the distress call they find not a Nopefish, however... but a Voth Fortress Ship. The idea is that this ship appears to be following the nopefishes, perhaps having scared them and made them flee. The nature of the Voth ship is completely unknown, but the scrambled distress call seems legit, so an investigation is warranted. It's just cruising along at sublight speeds, any attempts to hail the massive ship goes unanswered. The ability to identify it would be purely based on if the Theurgy has access to Voyager's records of their encounter with the Voth. Either way, the Theurgy moves in to investigate and, poof! The whole ship gets beamed inside.

Basically, Theurgy will be doing what a Federation starship should be doing when it comes across people having a really rough day. Inside the ship there is more than enough room for the Theurgy to move about, and they find the USS Cayuga inside. A couple of things are learned from the present Starfleet crew. One, it's discovered that there is no life aboard the actual Voth ship. It's just been flying in a straight line because no one remained to turn off the engines. The Theurgy being beamed inside was an automated system that was also never turned off and was set to beam in anything that entered a certain proximity. It was also how the Cayuga was trapped inside. This ship is massive, and it could have been a prototype that malfunctioned and the entire crew died (ship jumped to warp, the IDF generators failed and the crew was turned into paste).

The second things learned is that the Theurgy and the Cayuga are not alone. The ship has "swallowed" another ship. Namely, a vengeful race of carnivorous cat people bent on a bit of galactic exploitation. So, indeed, what if the Kzinti actually got their hands on something truly terrifying... say, a Voth ship? :)

A showdown with the Kzinti ship and its crew soon ensues, fought both ship-to-ship but perhaps also in struggle to gain control of the bridge of the Voth ship. After the resolution, the Theurgy renders what aid the crew can to the Cayuga, hoping to prove that they have no hostile intents towards the Federation, just the parasites.

INTERREGNUM 05-06

The Theurgy stop at a neutral port. During that time, any number of colorful NPCs from alien merchants to who knows what could be conjured up to interact with the crew. They could either stop for resupply and then see Garak as Rez said, or gather allies within the Federation, worlds which could secretly assist the Theurgy. Worlds like Efros or Delta, or Betazed, or something. As cool as dropping in to visit one of the big Federation worlds might be, we also have to consider the fact that those world are heavily visited and monitored by other Federation vessels. I would think the Theurgy showing up in orbit around one would raise several red flags quite quickly no matter how kindly the world itself might be disposed towards the ship. Any such support would have to come through back channels in otherwise obscure sectors not frequented by Federation traffic (like perhaps in the sun shadow of that world, or on a mining facility hidden inside a gas giant within the system or in another system that race holds).

EPISODE 06 OR THE SAME INTERREGNUM

Another idea is that, given the rather character-based plotline, the encounter with another Theurgy ship from the future happens in the above interregnum too. Or it could be its own Episode. Either works. A fork in the timeline where Tholians are working on it. This doesn't make any sense until the crew realise the Tholians are trying to use history as a weapon and research, using a defeated Theurgy from a doomed timeline to cause further temporal sabotage or whatever they are up to. The Theurgy raid this Tholian base and rescue the ship and its crew, which, plot-twist... are Theurgy's crew's descendants.

The 'Other' Theurgy crew reconnects with some of their original 'parents', it seems to be interesting, romantic, almost even comic when some pairings produce interesting offspring. But then, temporal threats occur, hostile forces are spotted in the area. Perhaps the Sheromi? The other Theurgy, long story short, sacrifices itself to make it look like Theurgy is officially destroyed, while Theurgy somehow, after a bittersweet section of development and instrospection, gets itself ready for the next big fight.

FEEDBACK PLEASE?

How do you all like this set-up? I think most ideas or variations of them have been incorporated, right? Please post here and if there isn't too much objections about it, we do it this way, yes? If required, we can always have a poll about it, but then I need to know what choices/paramaters there are to take into account. :)

Oh, and no need to worry about the major storyline with the parasites and Starfleet Command. While I have not revealed much here, I mean to integrate the main storyline into the above events too. I just want to keep it as surprises for the time being... *grins*

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Even Angels Cry on October 04, 2017, 07:25:38 PM
I like these ideas and the way you've laid them out across several episodes and interregnums makes a lot of sense.  It really freaks like episodes in the shows.

I'm curious about the future theurgy though. In this, we're assuming that the current members meet their grown children or grandchildren? Or are we taking it further than that? It's an alternate timeline so are where does the split happen? Its interesting to think about possible hook ups, marriages and other relationships and the offspring they might produce.  How will we decide that?
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Masorin on October 04, 2017, 08:20:48 PM
I posted this in the discord, but with episode 05, for names:

Migration

Also I am loving this, it feels like everyone is getting something to do, and I kind of can't wait.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on October 05, 2017, 12:47:47 AM
Finished the graphics for the Sheromi! As you may already have seen, they were the species that made the old Asurian motherships, which are a couple of centuries old:

(https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/a/a0/Asurian_Mothership.jpg)
>> Click for Full Size (https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/a/a0/Asurian_Mothership.jpg)

By that time, the Sheromi also used Overseer-class Research Saucers, which the Asurians (once they rebelled) weaponised a bit further. Still, the graviton beam technology used on them were more advanced than current Federation tech by that time, so by 2381, the Sheromi ought to be pretty far ahead tech-wise compared to the Federation. So, I present here the ship in question that Thea will encounter in the Azure Nebula, and its a big one (exact size to be detemined, but check the windows size):

(https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/2/2c/Sheromi-Dreadnought.png)
>> Click for Full Size (https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/2/2c/Sheromi-Dreadnought.png)

As for the Sheromi interceptors, which will be fitted with forward-facing graviton beam emitters, I picked a name reminiscent to the Overseer-class, namely the Initiator-class, which fits an interceptor perfectly because of its role.

(https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/b/bc/OVERVIEW-SHEROMI-FIGHTER.png)
>> Click for Full Size (https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/b/bc/OVERVIEW-SHEROMI-FIGHTER.png)

These are all just graphics, so tech specs will come next as I work on wiki database entries on these.

@FollowTomorrow I look forward to hearing your opinion about the Sheromi's new role in the story, but one thing I want to mention to everyone, which is kind of a spoiler, but which is too significant to not bring up at this point. I want you to look at the Sheromi ship up there again, and then look at the Calamity:

(https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/b/b1/Cala-02.png)
>> Click for Full Size (https://uss-theurgy.com/w/images/b/b1/Cala-02.png)

Do you all see the resemblance? Perhaps you should take a look at the red impulse engine exhausts on the Reaver fighters too, and look at the Initiator-class exhausts, comparing them. See what I am getting at?

The Calamity was a starship of the parasite-infested Federation, so why does it look a bit like a Sheromi vessel? Because, of course... the Sheromi leadership have been infected by the parasites too, and the Calamity was a future joint-venture between Starfleet Command and the Sheromi.

So, I hope you all like this twist. ;) It is one we can end the Interregnum with, as they see the Sheromi ship and its fighters, and how the resemblance makes them wonder what the true role of the Sheromi is in the threat to the Federation.

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: SummerDawn on October 09, 2017, 07:38:09 AM
I'm curious about the future theurgy though. In this, we're assuming that the current members meet their grown children or grandchildren? Or are we taking it further than that? It's an alternate timeline so are where does the split happen? Its interesting to think about possible hook ups, marriages and other relationships and the offspring they might produce.  How will we decide that?
I'm assuming children most likely, though grand children is also possible, especially if the children are grown themselves. As to the hookups, marriages, and the like that produce these offspring, I'm assuming the players involved will decide between them who has babies with who. For K'Ren I think it's obvious that Deacon will be involved somehow. For Sel it's hard to say, could be Sarresh, could be another character, just depends who could be fun to have paired off with. :)

I for one am curious to see what Ovri / Klingon offspring look like. :)
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on April 20, 2018, 10:23:30 PM
So, I know it's been a while since anyone put anything here, but I had an idea I thought might bear some consideration for a future episode or Interregnum down the line.

Perhaps, while pursued by Federation ships, not necessarily from Task Force Archeron, the Theurgy and her pursuer(s) enter a wormhole anomaly and awaken to find themselves hopelessly lost in a dimension that's between dimensions...the realm of the parasites? It's not empty either, there are multiple factions that appear to be people from various quadrants that got lost or pulled into this place. Jem'Hadar, Cardassians, Romulans, Klingons, Ferengi, Federations, are all trapped here. Many of the individuals here are slowly and eventually infected/infested, while others remain free, but with infested members often sowing discord amongst the uninfested for the sheer madness and mayhem that ensues among the free.

Working with the Federation individuals and perhaps the pursuing ship(s), they struggle to find a way out, before the Parasites entrap them for good or destroy them altogether.

It's really rough, but if it's worth considering, maybe brainstorm or modify the concept? What do you all think?
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triton on April 23, 2018, 11:14:22 PM
That gives me an idea tying into the 'X2'  offspring theory I once suggested, in that perhaps the ENT season 3 episode that sparked that suggestion, we encounter Lorian and the other-timeline NX-01, whose fate is ultimately uncertain.  There's also a TAS episode that sees Kirk's ship wind up in a dimension where all exiles from all species coexist to survive together. Vaguely remember that one but it ties in both ideas before and this alt-dimension notion. However: It could be a good idea to see if these castaways can be rallied into fighting Versant or the Borg, or both?
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on April 24, 2018, 11:18:47 PM
Hi guys, I know it's just barely days since my last "brilliant" idea, but I had another one to share, and it's got a bit more content too.

For one, two whole new races to ooh, aah, and AAGH! about.

I'll start with the race first, and their working name is the Harbingers. You'll soon see why.

They're green skinned like Orions, but their eyes are completely black opaque and their hair is white. They have a talent of seeing or identifying fates and destinies which to them isn't divine or magical talent, but simply advanced mathematics and science. They're like the Savi in the sense that they're technologically superior, but they do not appear to possess technology, as the tech is ingrained or imprinted onto their bodies, usually their wrists and legs, and they can perform "godlike" feats such as transporting across distances directly into a ship through active shields.

The idea is they'd approach Theurgy, interested in the fates of the individuals there, and desiring to observe the crew, but their presence attracts problems as they themselves are prey to a more malignant race, and they reveal that they're trying to see if their own fates can be changed, since their doom was already foretold years ago. They had calculated and tried to counter this undesirable fate, and they learned that variables in the counting such as the Theurgy could potentially alter destiny, to which they had brought themselves aboard for. In the process, one of the Harbingers becomes infatuated and awed by Jien Ives, whose mere presence bears a great strength and a swirl of fates, as s/he literally pulls in fates like maelstrom around hirself.

But it is not only Jien Ives that interests these Harbingers, as many or most of the individuals aboard the Theurgy are beyond calculation of their fates, and the visiting Harbingers grow intrigued/attracted to the various members of the crew, and they begin to ponder if these people with such powerful destinies according to their calculations could not only alter fate and destiny, but master it. To the Harbingers, it's all science and mathematics, not magic or divine ordained plans.

I haven't quite come up with the "malignant" race yet, but it could be something already in Trek canon, or something new and equally dangerous/challenging to Federation tech. And the Harbingers may be interested in joining up with the Theurgy as new crew or they become potential allies with a safe haven for R&R and so on. All very rough still, but I think it warrants thoughts for something in a future episode. Let's discuss it if you like. (L)

Oh and here's a rough idea on what they look like: [Show/Hide]
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: FollowTomorrow on April 25, 2018, 12:09:41 AM
If I may also share an idea, I'd like to! I don't venture much into these threads (I like to keep the plot a surprise) but I wound up reading anyway after it got linked in the discord 8P

So Triage and I talked a while back, and she allowed me to use her Radiants in Efros's history and story. The outcome is that one of the oldest, most culturally rich cities is built right on top of what the locals believe to be a 'fallen star', an item of pure blessed energy said to bestow upon one the power of the Spirits themselves. In reality, it is a Radiant craft, and may hold even more secrets (though that's not well known.)

Efros isn't neutral, they're a Federation planet, but they sure as hell have a bias against the Federation. It wouldn't be very hard at all to convince their theocracy of the parasites, since it already fits in with their spiritual worldview and it's a convenient scapegoat for everything they dislike about the Federation. Though they may not play an active role against the parasites, they could become the beginning of many secret channels for the Theurgy to take advantage of, with their communications and craft usually masked by more layers of security than necessary and their penchant for privacy. They've rebelled once against a force much larger than them, the Klingons. One of their own was the Federation president too. They have a rebellious spirit, and a sense of justice and unity. If The Theurgy played their diplomatic cards right, it could be a good alliance. Better than the Asurians, anyway.

Perhaps the crew could come visit for a chance to make allies and recover, and also seek out some of the secrets of the fallen star of Efros? Worst comes to worst, it's a fruitless daytrip, but what if they were to find something Radiant that could be used against the parasites?

All in all, I'd deeply appreciate a visit to Efros not just for that reason, but also because I spent a lot of time coming up with Efros. I hope the planet and the people will feel well developed and multifaceted, but also fit in the Star Trek universe. There's so much more to the planet and race than I can put on a wiki or show through Suq, and I'd be delighted to share this with everyone, if at all possible.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on April 25, 2018, 01:37:36 AM
lol, I'm just curious what the Efrosians' reaction would be to Heather. More so if the craft reacts to Heather's touch. Cascadium responds to any Radiant.
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: FollowTomorrow on April 25, 2018, 02:53:01 AM
Depends on the Efrosian, but it'd be quite a show to say the least. She'd probably be asked to share her wisdom to the Efrosian people across the galaxy and she'd probably have a new canon written about her and her people. That's if anyone other than the Theurgy finds out about the craft 8P
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: CanadianVet on April 25, 2018, 04:16:34 AM
I have to say, I really like the idea of being able to have Theurgy have at least something resembling safe haven, at least for some time. 

Not that they could just hang out in Efros orbit where they can be seen by everyone with sensors more advanced than a telescope, mind you. 
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Auctor Lucan on April 25, 2018, 09:07:32 AM
Excellent ideas put forth here! Personally, my mind is on the current Episode, but these things are awesome to work with as we mould the story and go forward from the state things will be at the end of the current leg of the race. :)

Best,

Auctor Lucan
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: FollowTomorrow on April 30, 2018, 02:14:43 AM
We could always go to Efros around wintertime....get some snow-filled interregnum rp's going 8P
Title: Re: Story Workshop
Post by: Triage on June 25, 2018, 07:34:11 PM
[ Triage | Story Workshop | Main OOC Board | Out-of-Character Message Boards | Star Trek: Theurgy ] Attn: Everyone
[Show/Hide]
Sorry, I couldn't help myself...

Okay, this is for those who don't haunt the Discord channels like I do, and for the boss to consider, and if likes, to approve. Adding on to FollowTomorrow's volunteer of Efros for a potential refuge for the Theurgy, crew and whatever potential allies we might have with us at the moment, I would like to submit New Mariposa as a planet to consider taking temporary refuge in.

All jokes aside to throwing our characters from one hellish situation after another, I think it would be nice to unwind a little, and to perhaps see a little light at the end of the tunnel. I think in the five episodes, the fifth still ongoing thus far, we have seen little else except the potential, by supreme skill or dumb luck, to live to see another day, but hardly any substantial win beyond surviving to endure more hell the next days to come. I'm just throwing out that perhaps we could see a big victory for a change, like Task Force Archeron's captains actually seeing something to give them pause (and I don't mean the Borg or the Savi), but a potential that there's truth to what Theurgy's been trying to say. Or...maybe we actually defeat the Borg, or the Savi turns tail and runs. I don't know, but I just think we need to have a win that isn't what I call a costly victory, where we barely pull out with our lives, and lose hundreds of lives in the process. It becomes what I said in the Conference, to be rather repetitive.

No allied ship has yet to leave Theurgy's company intact. The Harbinger, the Resolve, and the Asurians. It seems like anybody that even potentially refrains from shooting us ends up blown to bits in exchange. It'll be nice to have one ship that leaves our company not as an enemy, and doesn't get destroyed.

Sorry if it sounds like a rant.

Okay, back to what I was suggesting: New Mariposa.

As you know, I have one character that's from that planet and its dual-society of Mariposans and Bringloidi, Sinead O'Riley, and I have the idea that in the coming Interregnum, assuming all goes relatively well, she, or Meony or A'vura, could suggest heading to the planet to conduct repairs, and potentially dislodge crew for R&R, take on new crew, or even retire some active chars, if it's so desired and approved by Auctor Lucan.

I'll give a brief history from 2065 (since the rediscovery by Captain Picard and the Enterprise-D):
Upon the discovery and the establishment of the New Mariposan society (merging both the Mariposans and Bringloidi on the planet of Mariposa), the Enterprise-D left as much personnel, tech and material as possible to bring the planet and its people up to date on Federation standard of technology and living. Starfleet was informed of the lost colony, and more ships and personnel were sent to assist the society to intergrate and prosper. It is discovered that Mariposa and Bringloid V, as well as other uninhabited planets are rich in resources, valuable minerals, produce, herbal remedies and medicine. The Ficus Sector was a literal new gold mine.

Before long, the New Mariposans had attracted traders, travellers and visitors, most of them initially from the Federation, but Ferengi, Pakled, Orion, Klingon and even some cautious Romulans inspected the planet and or made establishments and trade agreements. A spaceport was built, with the help of the industrious and eager Bringloidi, and there was a population boom. With their growing numbers, new cities began to spread out across the planet. But their eyes now began to dream of the stars and the other uninhabited planets that they could colonize. Remembering their ancestral desire to grow outside of Federation Control, New Mariposa secedes from the Federation, and the personnel pull out, leaving only a handful of people who chose to stay of their own accord, or represent the Federation interests in the name of the alliance that was established between New Mariposa and the Federation.

The Ficus Sector sees a rapid expansion by the New Mariposans, who build new colonies on resource rich planets. Some Bringloidi return to Bringloid V, setting up satellites and shields to ward off the sun's harmful flares and restore their cave dwellings. Since the Klingons are allies of the Federation at the time, they establish an outpost on Mariposa, with a surprising bunch of Bringloidi seeking to join their new neighbours and learning their ways. Their propensity for drink, song, fights and dance pretty much surprises the Klingons who hesitantly allowed these odd humans to join some of their houses, At least one Bringloidi wins command of a B'rel-class Birb of Prey.

They form a lose coalition of trade allies and even invite the Pakleds to join them, using their own simplicity to rope them in.

It went along the lines of this:

"We want to be strooong."

"Yes, we can help you to become strooong, by joining our Alliance. You'll also be riiiich."

"...o-kayyy..."

So the New Mariposan Home Defense Fleet was formed, consisting initially of Federation starships donated to them, then a few little ships and even old warships that no one minded parting with, and Pakled cruisers. The Ferengi had traded a few of their cruisers in exchange for a substantial wealth of resources, which fetched them lots of latinum. But their real shipbuilding boom happened during and after the Dominion War. When the various battles left numerous ships from all factions devastated or outright destroyed, the Mariposans and their allies salvaged as much from the battlefields as they could, collecting Federation, Cardassian, Klingon, Romulan and even Dominion tech, which the Mariposan engineers, scientists and designers reverse engineered to build their own unique arrays of vessels, built for various roles. They have at least one ship-of-the-line, and a dreadnought, in their home armada.

Their ships do not possess cloaking technology, but, they have devised their own defensive countermeasures. The Mariposans and Bringloidi believed that a pure cloak like the ones used by the Klingons and the Romulans drew far too much power, and generally left the ships defenseless. Instead, the dedicated their studies to powerful ECM devices that told enemy ship sensors that the ship simply wasn't there. And naked eye inspection also could be fooled with camo designs painted to make them resemble stars and the darkness of space. This is not foolproof by any means, but it certainly meant they could still shoot and keep shields up. It would be quite frustrating trying to target these ships which are also constantly on the move.

New Mariposa would be something of quite a central hub for all the ships coming in and out, and they'd have their own kind of space station, and a spacedock.

Of course all this is subject to approval, as well as tweaking and discussion, by all of you and the boss. I'm just putting up my garbage pulled out of my mind and poured here for you all to dissect at your pleasure.

Since they're an independent society, they could be convinced to aid the Theurgy, and Sinead could help seal the agreement of assistance. And we could refresh resources, give personnel a rare chance to take some downtime, and for some to even potentially consider retirement, or outright fleeing the conflict. There could be stories made regarding this. Also, there could be trouble in paradise, perhaps parasite infested hosts, or spies of Starfleet and Task Force Archeron, or even other things. It's been 16 years, and New Mariposa is now a big and prosperous spaceport, so things could have changed substantially since 2065.

Taking from another idea, we could also use a visit here to fast-forward the timeline by a huge span, say a month, or even longer? I mean considering that Thea's got holes in her hull, I'd say she's going to need a lot of time to be 100% again. And they'd have to be discreet. Allies or not, the Mariposans are a wild card, since they might potentially believe the stories coming out of the Federation, and Sinead may not be influential enough to turn the Confederation. And for goodness sake, 10% of the Home Defense Fleet has Pakleds in cruisers! They're liable to explode, crash into the Theurgy, or unintentionally fire shots, triggering a massive battle. So it's actually quite a hell of a coin toss. We might want to consider a discreet approach to one of the smaller colonies where Sinead can guarantee assistance, maybe Bringloid V? We park the Theurgy underground. And you can all meet Sinead's thousand-and-one cousins, aunts, uncles and so on.

Whoa this got longer than intended. Hope you have fun reading this and feedback appreciated. Also, hope boss boss you like it. (L)
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