Star Trek: Death of the Federation

[General Havoc]

That's enough. I will allow people to comment on characters and ships posted for consideration, but not to pre-emptively condemn a character and ship we haven't even seen based on guesses as to what she is going to post. There will be plenty of time to investigate the character and ship once it is actually posted.

Seriously, people, I appreciate the help in pointing out the flaws in different designs of ship, as I don't always spot everything objectionable, but some of the comments in here have veered out of "the ship is statistically and structurally unacceptable" and into "the ship (or character) does not appeal to me, and therefore is a crime against all reason."

This game is a Star Trek game, in which such combat as occurs will take place in Star Trek terms. These are non-negotiable facts that are taken as assumed pre-requisites when posting potential characters. As I assume that everyone understands this, I am prepared to consider extra-canon materials IF they do not unbalance the game, IF they work in the context of Star Trek, and IF they don't make me want to jump off a bridge due to the extra workload. We will determine if Hadrianvs' character meets these criteria when it is posted, not before.

[Hadrianvs]

I was sanity checking my ship design with Havoc last night. He was concerned I had too much alpha-strike power, so I cut down the size of its full spread volleys. Then he was concerned that my magazines were too big on the grounds that no other player had something in that ballpark, so I cut that down too. The current design has, in absolute terms, less per-volley firepower than the Akira. Look everybody, it's the SDF-1 Macross!

God forbid someone take some inspiration from something they like.

Turns out that I do understand this is a Star Trek game, and that SFB and derivatives are non-canon, even if at first I forgot just how far the game and TV shows diverged.

I just wanted to know how many torpedoes an Akira carries in her magazines so I could ballpark mine. Currently it's pegged to the Galaxy's torpedo load. And no that doesn't mean you'll have two missile boats, mine is actually shaping out to be a medium-range DPS ship that carries missiles.

The ship design is practically done. I haven't posted anything because I'm writing up characters and characterization is hard for me. I also asked Havoc about it and he said, "No rush".

[Hotfoot]

Look, bottom line, I want Hadri to post her ship concept. We're able to give more direct feedback to a posted concept in full than to arcane inquiries to specific functions. What does she want from this ship, what can she do with it, what weaknesses will it have? I mean, this isn't going to be a stock Star Trek chassis, I get that, which means she'll really have to do more work in the design than most of the rest of us. Here's the bar, as I see it:

Sovereign: Big, mean, combat machine
Size: 700+ meters
Weapons: 16 Beam/10 Torp

Prometheus: Lean Beam machine
Size: 400+ meters
Weapons: 18 Beam/3 Torp

Vor'Cha: Rough and Tough Cloaking Bastard
Size: ~500 meters
Weapons: 18 Disruptors, 1 BFG, 3 Torp

Akira: Artillery Support Carrier
Size: 400+ meters
Weapons: 2 Beam, 15 Torp, 40 Fighters

Defiant: Flies like a Hummingbird, Hits like a Freight Train
Size: 100+ meters
Weapons: 4 Cannons, 2 Torps

These are all based on the "stock" designs, before players modified them. This is a wide range of combat capabilities. There are other roles, other niches, hell, the Prometheus and the Vor'cha are pretty similar in some ways. Point is that the upper limit in weapons is generally about 20, in a mix of energy and torps. The more you slap on, the bigger you generally need to be unless you have some kind of downside somewhere. The bigger you are, the slower you are, and the easier a target you make.

Going torpedo tube heavy in this setting is a risk, which is why we only have 3 ships currently with torpedo counts higher than 5, and two of those have some kind of modification that allows them to try and make more when their complements run out. What others have done is try to have higher quality torpedoes, such as Tricobalts. There are still other types, including Borg Heavy Plasma, Transphasic, and others.

The biggest issue, however, with missiles (and fighters), is that this is a setting where resupplies are coming at a huge premium. Even DET boats like, say, the Defiant, may have to wonder where their next phaser coil is coming from, to say nothing of dozens of torpedoes or fighters, and to say nothing of the crew. It's an attractive path, but it's very risky in itself, because while even a humble photon torpedo may have more damage than the most powerful cannon, once that torpedo leaves the tube, it is gone forever.

That said, Hadri, if you really want to play, post a ship with a basic overview of what it can do, what it can't, and heck, if you can find a good picture online, what it looks like. While I'm not the GM, I've assisted many of the players in this game with their designs and am a reasonably good judge for what's broken and what's not. Here's where you should start:

Ship Role
Ship Size
Ship Weapon Mounts

Size, as a general rule, determines things like speed, shield strength, maneuverability, and so on. Ship Role tends to modify that, by and large, and the weapon mounts give an overall impression of firepower. Generally speaking, the smaller you are, the more maneuverable and fast you tend to be, but you'll carry fewer weapons. Ships with support roles, such as science vessels and artillery ships, often will have weaker shields than brawler type ships for the very simple reason that they'll have more space dedicated to their support equipment than to say, shield generators.

As far as roles, here's what I can come up with off the top of my head. You have Crowd Control, Tanks, Beam/Cannon DPS, Torpedo DPS, Heals (currently empty), and Buffs. Yeah, I know, MMO terminology, it's terrible, but it's effective. Right now, many of these roles are filled in various ways, with duplications in some spots, but even those cases, the duplications have their own twist on things to make them unique. For example, both the Defiant and the Valdore are heavy cannon boats. The Defiant zips into point blank range (often with other Defiants and/or fighters) and lays down accurate firepower while evading fire from its targets. The Valdore, meanwhile, sits a bit further out and lays down withering amounts of high firepower while taking it on the chin.

So there you have it, a basic start, just post what you're going for and we'll go over it. I've given you some baselines to work from so you don't post something terribly outrageous, and we can go from there.

[frigidmagi]

Hotfoot, give it a damn rest. Seriously man, give it a rest. You can freak out when she actually post her ship.

[Hotfoot]

That is precisely what I am asking her to do, Frigid. She had questions about relative levels of firepower between ships, I've given a decent spread to give her an idea. I've honestly tried to be as helpful as possible given what little information she's decided to reveal about her goals for the ship's design.

[General Havoc]

We've all said what there is to be said prior to the ship itself showing up. Hadri is encouraged to take advantage of myself, Hotfoot, and other players to turn this inspiration of hers into a workable Star Trek ship. Now I believe you all have IC posts to make...

[Dark Silver]

already made.

Don't make me tickle your chin.

[SirNitram]

USS Vigilance
Class: Galaxy Heavy Cruiser

Crew Complement: 750+
Dimensions: 623m long, 463m across, 200 tall.
Weaponry: 14 Phaser Arrays, 2 Torpedo Tubes.

Special Systems:
Combat Refit: After the Dominion War, the Galaxy Class was upgraded heavily, removing most of the luxuries and civilian areas. The Vigilance itself got shipyard time for this after the Voyager had been disassembled, and got several upgrades from it's adventures. All in all, it's phaser output, it's quantum torpedo warheads more dangerous, and it's shields enhanced to deal with Borg adaptive weaponry.

Plasma Torpedos: Scavenged off the wrecks of a variety of non-Federation starships found on it's journeys, these now make up the majority of the 120 torpedos on the Vigilance. The choice to use them was after it assisted a small group of Klingon Warbirds try and bring down a Borg Supply Ship convoy fast enough to avoid retribution. Adaption has not been as effective on this weapon's output as against most torpedos, and is the choice to force down most ships in the Borg Fleet capable of outrunning the slow cruiser.

Regenerative Shielding: A type of technology first seen in use by Borg Drones, this form of deflector shielding is capable of recovering from weapons fire if it can take a volley and get a pause.

Weaknesses:
Structural Integrity Field Failure: The SIF bid it's farewell over a year ago. The ship can no longer take hits after shields are down without losing rather large chunks of it's own mass.

Sluggish: Whatever Commander Riker may wish, the Galaxy-class is not a nimble vessel. Where other ships can dodge, the Vigilance can only take blows head on. This only worsens with each time it fails to get high-output thrusters from wreckage, and it has failed for years now.

Liberated Borg Combat Teams: The best kept secret of the Vigilance is it's combat teams, known only to have never let even one level fall to the Borg and capable of sabotaging Borg facilities. The reason is a dark secret never discussed by the crew: The combat teams were all victims of the first Borg boarding action the ship suffered. After extensive time in the Medcay and Cybernetics Lab, they were disconnected from the Collective entirely. Their memories have returned, and now they have no purpose apart from killing as many Borg as possible to try and remove the horrible whispers of them in their heads. They are never deployed where the ship expects to meet allies.

Major Crew:
Captain: Joseph Markson, Human. A decorated officer before the Borg hit, he blames himself for much that has happened. He was the one who forced the return of true alcohol.. Not synthenol.. to the ship, as he too-often drinks himself to distraction to stop thinking of the corpses the ship has left behind. Nevertheless, he manages to stay sober while on duty, beleiving if he can only save the next squadron he's in, he might redeem himself somewhat.
"We will hold this line until our allies are safe, or die trying. Raise shields."

XO: Suvuc(No other name given), Vulcan. A survivor of the Borg assault on Vulcan itself, he has been badly shaken and shows emotions very easily, even by human standards. Nonetheless, he approaches strategy and tactics as a chess game, only ever sacrificing a 'pawn' if it gains him more by outcome.
"The situation no longer equals total logic."

Helmsman/Navigation: Knew-The-Deep, nickname Deep, Dolphin. After the loss of the Helmsman at the skirmish at Betazed Prime, the smartest member of Cetacean Ops swam to the front. Knew The Deep was born and raised on Earth, but his easy use of cybernetics earned him a spot on the Fleet's interspecies entrance class. A field promotion moved Deep from Consultation to active navigation.
"Call me Flipper again and you'll regret it."

[Hotfoot]

My only note would be that, supposedly, "regenerative" shielding as described by canon is shielding that tried to mimic Borg adaptation to various weapons.

Otherwise, looks good.

[General Havoc]

Now you see gentlemen, THAT is how you make a weakness.

I love the ship, Nitram. I just need to know who's flying the thing and we're in business.

[rhoenix]

Wow.

That's an excellent ship for this game, I must say. I've no issues with it, Nitram.

[Charon]

Captain's Name: Hizir Alpharius Rais

Captain's Species: Human

Captain's Background: Hizir Rais was born on one of the many worlds on the Federation/Cardassian border and ended up spending the first part of his life as a human under the rule of Cardassians. When he turned 16 he left home to join the Maquis where his charisma and natural abilities showed themselves to their full extent. When the Maquis were destroyed as a military force only a few years later, Hizir was one of the few survivors. Refusing to join the Federation, he soon found another group who was interested in hiring him, the Orion Syndicate.

Hizir rose through the ranks fairly quickly, both due to his own talents as well as the occasional assist from an Orion woman named Danava. Eventually he was given his own command and served the syndicate for many years as a captain until in 2390 he was caught by the Federation and put under arrest. The trial was fairly quick for though Hizir had not managed to make much of a name for himself, the evidence was fairly irrefutable. Just a few weeks later, the Borg War began. While the Romulans were still being destroyed by the Borg, Hizir was on his way to his prison on a ship filled with other prisoners. Danava, commanding his old ship, mounted a daring rescue during which Hizir was able to turn the tables on his captors and gain control of the prison ship with relatively minimal loss of life.

Rather than return to the Syndicate, Hizir felt an opportunity in the interstellar breeze and charted a course for Romulan territory, much to the confusion of his crew. When they finally arrived, they found a graveyard of massive proportions, as well as a Borg Sphere that was in the process of towing in a D'deridex for assimilation. Without a second thought, Hizir charged the Borg Sphere and launched an attack with his two ships. It was not much of a fight and soon enough both the prison ship and his ship were heavily damaged, though hey had managed to injure the Borg Sphere. Ordering the prisoners to escape pods and his crew to teleport to the downed D'deridex, Hizir teleported from the prison ship just moments before it went into warp, slamming into the sphere and destroying both ships.

Hizir now found himself in charge of a Romulan ship that was barely functioning and was filled with the bodies of dead Romulans. Collecting the prisoners, Hizir scavenged his old ship for the parts he needed to get the D'deridex running again and quickly fled Romulan territory. From there he spent more time fixing up the ship as well as launching surprise raids deep into Borg held territory. Action he continues to this day.

Ship Name: The Barbarossa (Was The IRW Gannius )

Ship Class: D'deridex Class

Crew composition: 300 Romulans, 200 Orion, 200 Human, 200 various races. 200 Romulan Marines, 100 Orion Pirates

Ship Features
Though she looks dented and bruised, the Barbarossa still looks as regal and powerful as ever. Her most distinctive feature is the intricate red paint job that has been applied to the "head" of the ship. A feature which immediately identifies her.

Special Systems and other Acquisitions:
Subspace Communication Blocker- It happened almost completely by accident during a more hair-raising encounter with the Borg that their Science officer discovered that at the right frequency and power they could cut a group of borg off from receiving information from the rest of the Collective. The more scientifically minded among the crew immediately set to work to ready a program which would allow them to do this quickly within the confines of the ship. When it works, it blocks invading Borg off from the rest of the collective, making them much easier to deal with when the ship is boarded. Work on a more mobile device is still pending.

Cutting Beams- Two heavily modified mining lasers were strapped to the front of the ship in what might at first look like a rather poor attempt at grafting a weapon onto the ship. They are weapons, but the placement was meticulous. Though they take five seconds to spin up and several minutes to cool down and recharge after firing, for ten seconds they are as the very fists of God. If any escort were caught under the full brunt of these weapons they would suffer immense damage. Any Borg cube caught under the full power of this weapon would either have their shields drained by quite a bit or be missing a large chunk of their ship. Being fixed weapons, it is very hard for The Barbarossa to hit anything smaller than a Cruiser for long periods of time.

Ship's Weakness:
"How is this ship still running?"- Against most reason and logic, Hizir and his crew managed to get the heavily damaged engines of the ship once again in working condition. But they still aren't working perfectly. The ships maximum speed is Warp 8. Additionally, it can only move at a maximum of half impulse and has some trouble with turning.

"I think she's making fun of me."- Although a third of the crew is Romulan, two-thirds of the crew is not, and even with seven years of experience their Romulan is a little rusty, and the ship only speaks Romulan.

Service history to-date: The Gannius was completed part way into the Dominion War and served with distinction and honor in the final stages of the bloody war. When the war was finally over, she was returned to Romulan space and was given the honor of serving in the home fleet which defended none other than Romulus and Remus. The Gannius was stationed there until the first days of the Borg War when she suddenly found herself on the front lines of a battle no one had expected. She fought hard, and she fought valiantly and in the end she stayed behind, trying desperately to buy her people just a few more precious minutes to escape with. Her crew died, her planet died, she was on the verge of death.

That is when she was found by Hizir and saved from a fate worse than destruction. As Hizir drove his prison ship into the Borg Sphere, destroying it, she was given a second chance at life. Through more luck than skill, her mighty engines flickered to life once again and she managed to limp away from the battle long enough to be repaired.

Once repairs had been completed, she was given a new name, an old name that had once long ago been enough to make it's enemies shiver and cower at their imminent demise. Then she was sent right back into the fray, but not in the way way her original builders had expected her to be used. Hizir used her as an ambusher. Sneaking up on lone Borg scouts and crushing them under the mighty firepower that she possesses. Slowing down the invasion of the Borg by just a tiny fraction, one that was enough to save thousands sometimes. As the war grew and spread, the Barbarossa's fame grew. Appearing just as all hope had failed, one of the last of the mighty Romulan Warbirds. She never directly fought the Borg though, distracted them, picked away at their edges, never striking full head-on, always hitting from an unexpected angle. Hizir proved he had a nearly infinite patience.

Eventually, ships began to flock to the banner of the Barbarossa and a small guerrilla fleet was born, stalking and ambushing the outriders of the Borg fleet. He could not hold back the tide however, and eventually it crashed on Earth. The Barbarossa and her small fleet of 20 ships of various and much smaller designs helped to hold the line as best they could, but it could not last forever. Before the Battle for Earth there had been roughly 20 D'deridex left. After that battle there were barely enough left to count on one hand. Beaten and bloodied, and having lost it's entire rag-tag fleet, but somehow still alive, the Barbarossa fled.

She was not beaten however, after what repairs could be made were made, she returned to her old tricks of ambushing lone Borg, but even that was getting harder as the Borg continued to learn. The Barbarossa has not been in friendly space in a year and a half, but with news that there will be one last do or die fight on their hands, the last of the mighty Warbirds is on it's way.

Notable Crew:
Danava, First Officer, Orion Female: Danava is the self-proclaimed "Most dangerous woman in the galaxy". Those that have met her say that if she's not right she isn't far off. Unlike so many other Orion women, Danava does not rely on her good looks and pheromones to win the day. She is a vicious, ruthless, and highly skilled fighter both in personal engagements and in ship fights. She has been Hizir's right hand for over a decade now and it is no secret that the pair have been in a physical relationship. But the question is what kind of relationship it is, as they both shift between seeming indifference and strong devotion at times. There is a running pot among the crew as to how close Danava and Reis are, with a fat paycheck for whoever ends up correct.

Khoal Mliessan Othan, Tactical Officer, Romulan Male: Khoal was an up-and-coming Romulan commander before the Borg war. His tactics were sound, as were his decisions in the heat of battle. He was not the best, there were several who could defeat him regularly, but he was a good solid commander all around. When the war started, Khoal found himself moving from fleet to fleet as the mounting casualties forced the fleets to combine to serve as a buffer against the Borg tide. Eventually it became clear that the cause was lost and Khoal and his ship drifted through the galaxy without a purpose until he heard rumors of a Romulan Warbird that was fighting the Borg on its own. Khoal was one of the first to join Hizir's fight, and became a trusted lieutenant. After the Battle of Earth, when his own ship had been destroyed by the fighting, Khoal had survived and moved to the Barbarossa where he continues to serve Hizir as the Tactical Officer. He and Davana occasionally get into fights as he believes he should be the First Officer.

Eriess Lareth, Navigation Officer, Romulan Female: Some say she is a Romulan diety made flesh. The reason for this is simple, the woman seems to be immortal. Eveiss is the only surviving crew member of the Gannius. She was badly hurt and not even the best of medical treatment could have fixed everything, but she did not get the best of treatment. She is missing her left leg from the mid-thigh down, large portions of muscle on her right arm are missing, she has scars criss-crossing most of her body, both from her injuries and from surgeries. A metal plate in her head serves where parts of her skull are now missing, and she can barely move her mouth, let alone smile or frown. She is still a hell of a pilot though, and has a burning hatred towards all things Borg. Ereiss refuses to tell anyone what her second name is, saying that she will not speak it until Romulus is free.

Erib, Science Officer, Andorian Male: Erib is a more recent addition to the crew of the Barbarossa. After the Battle for Earth he had been the Science Officer on a starfleet ship turned refugee ship that was making its way to an outlying colony world when a Borg sphere caught up to them and attacked. That was when the Barbarossa decloaked and fired everything it had at the sphere. Between the two ships they were victorious, though Erib's ship had been heavily damaged and could no longer achieve warp. The refugees and crew were then taken on by the Barbarossa and shuttled to their new colony. Erib decided to stay with the ship however. Feeling he could do more there. He spends most of his time in his office, working towards the latest scientific breakthrough that he hopes can be used against the Borg.

Delvok, Medical Officer, Vulcan Male: Another survivor from Barbarossa's fleet, Delvok's commander was a human that had been a Maquis and, knowing Hizir, had joined his fleet. At the Battle for Earth the ship was among many that were destroyed, though Delvok and some of the crew had been transported to the Barbarossa just before the ship exploded. Delvok adjusted rather quickly to life aboard the Barbarossa and has spent a great deal of time with Eveiss, doing what he can to ease her pain.

Adrek, Pel, and Zek, Chief Engineers, Ferengi Males: These three Ferengi brothers are well known ship scavengers, taking the juicy parts off of wrecks for a hefty profit. They met Hizir on the prison ship after being arrested for illegally salvaging a Starfleet ship. When Hizir hired them on as engineers to run the ship their superb talents shined through and half the reason the ship still runs at all is the brothers' ability to make pieces that have no business fitting together fit nearly perfectly. The brothers have first rights to any new salvage found and every once in awhile Hizir sends down a bottle of good Romulan Ale to keep them happy.

Romulan Ale, Bottled in 2375, Ship's Counselor: Searching the ruins of the Romulan Empire, the Barbarossa came across a huge stockpile of genuine Romulan ale. It was immediately brought on board and druing a drunken revelry the ale was declared to be the Ship's Counselor and given a battlefield promotion. Since then the ale has served dutifully as the Ship's Counselor, helping the crew get through the worst of times. Most of the time the crew drinks replicated ale, so as to save the good stuff for celebrations or mourning. It's rumored among the crew that Hizir has a bottle of 2273, generally regarded as the best year for Romulan ale, that he is saving for the end of the war.

[General Havoc]

And another good, solid design. I approve of this ship as well.

Space is gonna get pretty crowded up there. I thought we'd have a small task force. At this rate we're gonna have a fleet.

[LadyTevar]

Ferengi Engineers?!

That is simply terrifying.

[rhoenix]

Ferengi Engineers?!

That is simply terrifying.

From what I understand thus far of his ship, in the battle royale between the Laws of Acquisition and the Laws of Physics, the Laws of Acquisition are ahead on points.

[Charon]

Ferengi Engineers?!

That is simply terrifying.

From what I understand thus far of his ship, in the battle royale between the Laws of Acquisition and the Laws of Physics, the Laws of Acquisition are ahead on points.

And all it cost me was my first two children!

[SirNitram]

Edited: Added some crew. Yes, the Dolphins are canon.

[Hotfoot]

Edited: Added some crew. Yes, the Dolphins are canon.

Alternate timeline background line canon apparently, but hilarious and awesome canon nonetheless.

I feel bad for the Dolphin, piloting a gimped-speed Galaxy. Poor bastard.

[rhoenix]

A dolphin pilot, and attack-trained Borg - I must say I'm impressed, Nitram.

[Cynical Cat]

Sweet ships and interesting characters.

[Hadrianvs]

Whoa, a Galaxy and an D'deridex. Those are big ships. By volume the Galaxy is 2.5 Sovereigns or 1.2 Valdores. A D'deridex is 4.5 Galaxies.

BIG.

[Cynical Cat]

A lot of the D'Deridex is empty space, which makes its size deceptive. Where did you get the Galaxy versus Sovereign figures? They sound off and I would like to see the mass, but in any the big boys are allowed and we can use all the help we can get.

As a side note, it appears they were strongly considering doing a Kzin episode in the never produced Season 5 of Enterprise and even did some ship concept art.

http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Kzinti

[Hadrianvs]

[Old incomplete character sheet. Removed due to being superceded by later posting.]

[rhoenix]

Alright... so how many missiles do you have remaining, and what are they?

What exactly is a Kzin Battlecruiser, and what are its capabilities?

[Hadrianvs]

A lot of the D'Deridex is empty space, which makes its size deceptive. Where did you get the Galaxy versus Sovereign figures? They sound off and I would like to see the mass, but in any the big boys are allowed and we can use all the help we can get.

There is a neat list of starship sizes here.

The D'Deridex is 2.1 times longer than the Galaxy. That means that one would expect it to have more than 9 times the volume. That it only came out to 4.5 times suggests to me the empty space was being taken into account.

The figures for the sizes of the two TNG Enterprises are fairly consistent all over the place. The warp cores for the two also scale, with the Galaxy's warp core also being about 2.5 the size of a Sovereign's. It has been suggested that the Galaxy is a battleship design while the Sovereing is a heavy cruiser, rather than the other way around. There are even statements to the effect from one of the guys who designed the Sovereign-class (in real life). He said that in-universe it is a replacement for the Excelsior.

Isn't Trek canon fun?

As a side note, it appears they were considering doing a Kzin episode in the never produced Season 5 of Enterprise and even did some ship concept art.

http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Kzinti

Henceforth the Kzin look like that model Mr. Diggs is holding.