My take:
SETTING:
Early 26th-Century. Eighty years after the devastating Earth-Vulcan War that brought Humanity to the brink of annihilation, the United Federation of Earth has arisen. There are approximately thirteen member worlds and colonies in the newly-formed Federation spread out among the Sol, Alpha Centauri, and Groombridge Sectors. The starship-based Starfleet Command and the planetary-oriented Starcorps Command serves as Earth's deep-space services. Earth has an uneasy peace with the Vulcans, but enjoys trade treaties with Andorians, Tellarites, Rigellians, etc. The Star Trek Program is the Earth government's newly-announced deep-space exploration and colonization initiative that not everyone thinks is a good idea since a similar earlier program (Project "To Boldly Go...") is largely blamed for initiating the Earth-Vulcan War. Opponents to the Star Trek Program argue that the resources of both Starfleet and Starcorps would be better used for fixing problems at home.
THE SHIP:
UFS
Enterprise, NHC-17. Yorktown-class heavy cruiser. Crew: 437. Top speed: Warp Factor 7.8. Armed with phaser banks and photon torpedoes and defended by deflector energy shields, the
Enterprise is technically a battlecruiser, but she is just as much an exploration vessel, a diplomatic ship, and a logistical transport. As a long-range starship, the there isn't much the
Enterprise can't do. In addition to seven aerospace shuttlecraft, the
Enterprise is also equipped with a matter-energy teleportal system that allows near-instant personnel & equipment transport over relatively short distances. Powerful subspace sensor and communication systems allows the
Enterprise to see and talk with distant worlds. Only a few weeks out of the spaceyards, the
Enterprise is Starfleet's newest heavy cruiser and features the latest shipboard technology and amenities.
THE CREW:
Mostly Human, the 437 souls aboard the Enterprise represent many of Earth's races and cultures and is almost split evenly between men and women. Many are Starfleet's best and brightest, but there are also many down-to-earth everymen among the crew.
MAIN CHARACTERS:
- CAPTAIN ROBERT A. WINTER: British male, early 40s. A veteran of the Orion Pirate Wars of twenty years ago, he alternates between being a brilliant battle-hardened tactician and a total goofball. He often allows adversaries to underestimate him. If the Doctor from Doctor Who was a Starfleet captain, he'd be like him.
- COMMANDER SAMARA N. UHURA: African-Canadian female, mid 30s. A former wunderkind, she graduated at the top of her Starfleet Academy class with honors, but spent years as the youngest instructor there. The Enterprise is her first deep-space assignment and she embraces it with an adventurous spirit that is borderline reckless, especially as the ship's first officer.
- DOCTOR JOTARO ICHIRO, M.D.: Japanese male, late 40s. Served with Winter aboard the UFS Voyager during the Pirate Wars and is something of a smart-ass older brother. A resourceful chief medical officer with a background in advanced biochemistry, he has the ability to develop new medicines and surgical techniques on the fly. When not busy in sickbay, Doctor Ichiro often acts as the ship's chief psychologist, as the crew's emotional welfare also fall under his duties.
- LIEUTENANT SPOCK: Vulcan male, mid 20s. Like all Vulcans, Spock exhibits pointed ears, upswept eyebrows, and superhuman strength. As part of the officer exchange program between Starfleet and the Vulcan High Command, Spock was assigned to the Enterprise as the ship's chief sciences officer and wasn't given a choice in the matter. He doesn't particularly like Humans, finds them annoying and rude, but his Vulcan pride won't allow him to request a transfer. He is both baffled and intrigued by First Officer Uhura's unabashed zest for life.
- PETTY OFFICER 1ST CLASS JOSE O. DIEGO: Hispanic-American male, late 20s. Previously a corporal in Starcorps, Diego accepted a promotion and transfer to Starfleet, where he discovered things were noticeably more casual and there was a higher percentage of people wearing skirts while on standard duty. As the Enterprise's chief security specialist, Diego is generally the strong silent type and never shies away from a fight, but is totally awkward and clumsy around women.
Other positions such as chief engineer, chief communications officer, head nurse, chief helm officer, etc., will be filled in with rotating/reoccurring characters and will only appear when needed in a story. Some may become main characters later if they become popular enough. Although the series will have a lot of action-adventure, drama, and frequent food for thought, it is the characters and their interactions that will be the primary driving force for most stories.
