Re: Creating a realistic crew manifest for a Starship. Ideas & comment
I have no problem with a mostly civilian science section, if that's what his story calls for. And are they civilian-civilians, or are they government GS civilians?? He gave them "ranks", so I'm thinking it might be the later.
RE: Transporters on shuttles .... depends on the era. If it's ST:TOS / ST:TAS, then no. And even if they do have, I would think the range is limited. I would think that cargo transporters are tied in with the personnel transporters.
I have a problem, as I mentioned before, with the premise that he kills off the top two or three officers as well as the chief medical officer, and now wrecks the transporters (maybe that's how they died?) .... this ship will NOT be left out on patrol. Start Fleet will recall that ship back to base, or as the very least send out a replacement command staff.
It's set in 2370 or there about, so Season 7 of TNG ish.
I also have an issue with the entire higher chain of command getting incapacitated.
I really don't want to give too much away from my story, because it's all in REALLY early design stages so far and is seriously subject to change, but maybe if I gave some context to this it would help a little. Character names subject to change.. heck..EVERYTHING subject to change.
PREMISE
The USS Endeavour is lost in the Large Magellanic Cloud, with no possibility of getting home. Her fresh-faced, inexperienced, crew have to deal with the emotional pain of realistically never seeing home again, while dealing with a damaged ship, dwindling resources, and a hostile element on-ship. They struggle together to survive in the face of the completely alien and unknown space they are now in.
The main character is Samuel Isaacs, a fresh Starfleet graduate. How do we get him into the post of Second in Command and at the rank of Lieutenant immediately? I am not sure. It's fairly integral to the story that he is not experienced. Driven, passionate, but still raw and rough around the edges. I am thinking that the Captain Amasov places him as Second Officer as a proving test; he can see how much potential Sam has, so puts him in this position that doesn't require much responsibility. But how he gets that rank is still something that I haven't figured out.
Core characters include the Vulcan Captain (N’Vea), Mission Specialist, and the Tzenkethi Katarch (see below).
Other characters are a rotating number of characters from all ranks and divisions; shuttle pilots, engineers, scientists. I want to show how different characters deal with the situation in their own distinct ways.
REASONING
Sound like Voyager? Yeah a bit. Voyager was my favourite TV show growing up. I loved the premise, but like a lot of fans I was a little unhappy in the way the direction went. The whole ‘inexperienced crew dealing with an extreme out-of-context situation’ really appealed to me, and I thought that there is lots of potential for story there.
Likewise, I loved nu-Battlestar Galactica and how it dealt with a fleet, alone, under constant threat with no way to get home. No surprise that Roger D Moore worked on both, there are lots of similarities. I didn’t like that BSG had very little “hope” in it. It was a dark and depressing series: Star Trek has always seemed to be best when it shows how humanity can face the darkest of situations with hope, always keeping to the ideals and principles.
The premise, then, is almost combining Voyager and BSG. I want our ship and crew to be stuck in a hopeless and utterly terrifying setting, having to face constant challenges, but still clinging together and trying to uphold the idea of what the Federation and humanity is. It’s a struggle, a journey, but one where through the actions of the characters there is still light at the end of the tunnel.
But I also wanted some internal conflict, and an internal threat. The Marquis in Voyager were meant to be that, but it fizzled out by the fourth episode or so. But I also didn’t want the cliché undeveloped evil aliens trope. So what about an alien complement on-board who have ideals and beliefs that are, for their own reasons, completely opposite to what our main characters want. Looking at the various races we’ve been exposed to, I wanted a race that had threatening dealings with the Federation, but which was undeveloped enough to not be constricted by existing canon. The Tzenkethi is perfect for this. We know they’ve been at war with the Federation before, must have a similar level of technology, but we’ve never actually seen them on-screen (though they have been developed in the books). So we have about 25 or more Tzenkethi civilians, led by the Katarch. She is a ruthless, manipulative, and fiercely loyal character who will do anything to ensure the safety and interests of her people. Completely hates the Federation and Starfleet, massively resents the crew for getting them stuck in the LMC.
I also wanted the story not to focus on Captain N’Vea. In fact, in the story, N’Vea (a reluctant Vulcan retired-Commodore who was only meant to command the Endeavour until she got her back to Starbase, again see below) spends most of her time locked away in her quarters meditating. Absolutely not the caring and empathetic Captain we are used to. So it’s up to Sam and the senior staff to try and lead the crew through the darkness.
INITIAL SETUP
The USS Endeavour sets out on a three year mission (in 2370 or 2369). She is a newly commissioned ship, commanded by the experienced Captain Amasov. The crew is mostly fresh graduates and the newly enlisted, with most of the senior staff coming over from Amasov's old ship (the USS Endeavour, Nebula Class, damaged beyond repair in Wolf 359). Their three year mission is planetary survey and interstellar charting of the Cygni-Draconis sector of space: light-years out from the borders of Federation Space but still in relatively friendly backwaters. The nearest culture is the Tzenkethi Coalition, but their initial route just skirts its claimed volume.
Now for a really quick rundown of the events that lead them to getting stuck in the LMC. A month into the mission, surveying the first planet; the survey base is attacked by a Tzenkethi faction. The CMO is killed, Captain Amasov critically injured. At the same time the Endeavour is attacked by Tzenkethi ships. The First Officer leads the rescue attempt; he is killed defending the base. Captain Amasov dies, the ship is heavily damaged. Several mistakes by Sam, who is hopelessly out of his depth while as Duty Officer on the bridge when the attack happens leads to many deaths. They even have to leave some crew behind on the planet while they retreat. Sam, who was ‘in command’ at the time is wracked with survivors guilt and feels that his actions have lead to the death of the Captain. The Endeavour is contacted by Starfleet Command who appoints a nearby Vulcan retired-Commodore, N’Vea, who was on extended retreat on an uninhabited planet, to take the ship back to Starbase where a full court-martial and investigatory hearing can be decided.
On the way there they pick up a distress signal from a Tzenkethi civilian science station. N’Vea, who is very by-the-book, orders the Endeavour to investigate much to the consternation of some of the crew. We find a Collapsar (can’t have Trek without at least one subspace anomaly!), which is a cross between an unstable wormhole and a collapsing blackhole. The Tzenkethi are studying it, but their station is falling into the gravity well. A rescue operation commences, but sudden gravitational changes forces the Endeavour also into gravity well of the Collapsar. I’m fond of the “shit goes wrong, then shit gets much worse” doctrine of writing. With some clever engineering the Endeavour survives but with massive structural damage from the trip through the Collapsar and with even more crew deaths. They are deposited on the outer edges of the LMC.
That’s my initial setup then. Hopefully it answers some questions. Please do be ruthless if anyone wants to pick apart the above. I have a thick skin and criticism can only help my work improve!
Sgt_GL: Shall reply to the rest of your big long post when I get back from work!
I was a weather forecaster and had to brief them before their flights. Army helo jocks are pretty cool, and most USAF heavy drivers are okay, but fighter pilots are the worst.
