Starfleet Expansion: Adding Aliens Into the Mix

[Shawnster]

I've heard this suggestion before, and I am certainly not opposed. I actually think it's a very interesting idea, but I'm not sure how to make that work. How would the Horta fulfill a Starfleet duty post with its biological and cultural differences, most importantly its lack of articulating limbs or spoken language of any kind?

There was a Horta in the comics back in the 80s or 90s, I believe. It had a universal translator affixed to it for speaking, and was capable of operating a console in some way.

You may enjoy reading about Lt. Naraht. He appeared in comics and in novels. https://memory-beta.fandom.com/wiki/Dahai_Iohor_Naraht

I recall he was sent on a covert Ops mission where he was inserted into a planet via HALO jump. His rock body acted as a heat shield during planetary entry and he'd show up on scans as a meteorite.

 

[fireproof78]

You may enjoy reading about Lt. Naraht. He appeared in comics and in novels. https://memory-beta.fandom.com/wiki/Dahai_Iohor_Naraht

I recall he was sent on a covert Ops mission where he was inserted into a planet via HALO jump. His rock body acted as a heat shield during planetary entry and he'd show up on scans as a meteorite.

Yes, that's the Horta I was thinking about! He was my favorite character in the Mirror Universe comic, and loved how the comic goes "And Kirk is a personal friend of his mother's" as an allusion to "Devil in the Dark."

So fun.

Also, speaking of aliens, why not the Phylosian plant people from TAS?

 

[Nyotarules]

Naraht is a great character, I liked in the novels how the Romulan commander (from The Enterprise Incident) was impressed that Starfleet had a talking rock officer lol

 

[Thomas_Sullivan]

Tuvok mentioned an Ensign Golwat as a member of the crew once or twice. And 'Bolians on the ship' was used as a plural multiple times, so there is at least 2 on board. Chell is the former Maquis. Golwat might very well be full Starfleet. Maybe there is another that I'm not remembering?

There were two or three Bolians aboard Voyager, you're right. There were, if I recall correctly, two males and one female (that we saw.) I know there was at least one male (Chell) and one (unnamed) female Bolian. I believe there was another male as well, but I couldn't swear to it as a fact.

There was a Horta in the comics back in the 80s or 90s, I believe. It had a universal translator affixed to it for speaking, and was capable of operating a console in some way.

I mean, it can be spoken with telepathically, as well as learning written language fairly quickly. With all the telepathic species in the Federation the ability to communicate should be a nonissue.

Of course, the translator could solve that, I suppose, if it had a spoken language. From what I recall, however, it only communicated with Spock in TOS: Devil in the Dark via mind meld, which would indicate it lacked the ability to do otherwise.

This wouldn't stop it from communicating with telepaths, of course, but it would mean that there would always have to be a telepath working in close concert with it to allow communication with the rest of its crew -- or it would have to be assigned duty posts where that communication didn't matter. I'm not sure what sort of duties they might, but solo ops are one category that would qualify, I suppose.

I personally think that they would be honest, but I just as easily could see them lying their way in, given what was done in "In the Flesh" and their attitudes expressed towards bipedal organisms. It reminds me of the Founders attitudes towards "solids."

But, personally, I would just have Chakotay provide a recommendation for an interested member of 8472.

It seems most likely to me that our interested 8471 would probably keep its human (or whichever species) disguise and use it to locate and make contact with Chakotay, so that he might be the one who not only provides a recommendation but aids them in making contact with Starfleet, so that the obvious strangeness of the situation might be mitigated and someone trusted by both parties (Chakotay in this instance) might be there to better facilitate communication. This is a first, after all.

I still believe that they would keep their assumed form most of the time, though, with only the commanding officer and chief medical officer at their duty posting knowing their true nature, per their request. Sort of the way that Pon Farr is not known to most, but is to certain Starfleet doctors, due to Vulcans viewing it as a private matter. Or the way you wouldn't inherently tell your crew their navigator used to be a Borg drone if it weren't obvious. It's a private matter and they have a right to keep it that way so long as it doesn't interfere with their duties or create a danger to themselves or others.

I definitely think there's room for both and even more types of Gorn we haven't seen yet.

I agree. I try to view most apparent discrepancies that way. If there is a potential and plausible in world explanation, I'd prefer to assume it to be true (until contradicted or disproven) than to just assume writer or production error (which does nothing to further the franchise's stories or universe.) I view the difference in appearance for Trills from TNG: The Host to DS9: Emissary (and more, of course) as a similar issue of species subtype, with Odan's subtype being a minority (or perhaps Odan is a Trill symbiont bonded with a non-Trill species which happens to be compatible, unlike human beings or most other humanoids.)

You may enjoy reading about Lt. Naraht. He appeared in comics and in novels. https://memory-beta.fandom.com/wiki/Dahai_Iohor_Naraht

I recall he was sent on a covert Ops mission where he was inserted into a planet via HALO jump. His rock body acted as a heat shield during planetary entry and he'd show up on scans as a meteorite.

That's definitely a useful ability to have under certain circumstances. I wasn't aware of Naraht's existence. I'll give that a read, thanks. I'm always happy to absorb more Star Trek.

..why not the Phylosian plant people from TAS?

I admit it's been so long since I watched TAS that I had to check Memory Alpha to remind myself of who the Phylosians are. I find the idea of a plant based species incredibly interesting. On Rockne S. O'Bannon's Farscape, Zahn was a member of the plant based people the Delvians, and definitely one of the most interesting alien species on the series. That said, whereas I am very fond of the design of the Delvians, I'm not sure I care much for the look of the Phylosians. That's just an aesthetic, and opinions may vary, but there you have it.

 

[fireproof78]

Of course, the translator could solve that, I suppose, if it had a spoken language. From what I recall, however, it only communicated with Spock in TOS: Devil in the Dark via mind meld, which would indicate it lacked the ability to do otherwise.

This wouldn't stop it from communicating with telepaths, of course, but it would mean that there would always have to be a telepath working in close concert with it to allow communication with the rest of its crew -- or it would have to be assigned duty posts where that communication didn't matter. I'm not sure what sort of duties they might, but solo ops are one category that would qualify, I suppose.

That's not quite accurate, as Mama Horta in the episode was able to inscribe/burn words in to the cavern floor prior to Spock's mind meld. But, @Shawnster has already highlighted there is literature based Horta characters that hopefully will help figure out the details

I still believe that they would keep their assumed form most of the time, though, with only the commanding officer and chief medical officer at their duty posting knowing their true nature, per their request. Sort of the way that Pon Farr is not known to most, but is to certain Starfleet doctors, due to Vulcans viewing it as a private matter. Or the way you wouldn't inherently tell your crew their navigator used to be a Borg drone if it weren't obvious. It's a private matter and they have a right to keep it that way so long as it doesn't interfere with their duties or create a danger to themselves or others.

I do too but it would be fun to see when their true form would come out.

I admit it's been so long since I watched TAS that I had to check Memory Alpha to remind myself of who the Phylosians are. I find the idea of a plant based species incredibly interesting. On Rockne S. O'Bannon's Farscape, Zahn was a member of the plant based people the Delvians, and definitely one of the most interesting alien species on the series. That said, whereas I am very fond of the design of the Delvians, I'm not sure I care much for the look of the Phylosians. That's just an aesthetic, and opinions may vary, but there you have it.

I was thinking a similar thought with Zhan, and the possibility of a plant based lifeform but still more bipedal.

 

[Farscape One]

It might be interesting to see a Tamarian in Starfleet. Though figuring out the dialogue would be a challenge.

"Helm, set a course for Betazed, warp 6." - Captain

(Presses buttons)
"Darhupno walks into the Caves of Wellgarth. Pace: not brisk."
Tamarian Ensign

 

[Nyotarules]

Tamarians are in the relaunch Voyager novels, one is a doctor in the Full Circle fleet

 

[Farscape One]

Really? Does that Tamarian speak in metaphors, or has he learned to talk like everyone else? Or the crew learned his metaphors, or some combination?

You can spoiler tag if you feel it's necessary.

 

[Thomas_Sullivan]

That's not quite accurate, as Mama Horta in the episode was able to inscribe/burn words in to the cavern floor prior to Spock's mind meld. But, @Shawnster has already highlighted there is literature based Horta characters that hopefully will help figure out the details

She burns "No Kill I" into the ground, right? I forgot about that. So she's capable of learning language at least at a basic level and attempting to communicate. Of course, she still has no spoken language, which becomes problematic. The Universal Translator is impressive, but it isn't telepathic.

There are certainly also some other physiological issues where operating a starship is concerned. Horta don't appear to have any sort of articulating hands or limbs. I suppose they could give commands through the translator if it were viable. The explanation offered with the above mentioned Horta is that they are capable of communication through vibrations. I'm just not sure if that would (or should) be translatable by the UT or not based on what we know of it.

I do too but it would be fun to see when their true form would come out.

Of course their true form being revealed would be a must at some point throughout the story, most likely because they were trapped in a situation where they could not receive their medication and they reverted to their original form against their will (as we saw happen in the simulation to at least one person, and be mentioned as something that has happened and could happen to any of them.) How their crewmates would react to that would become a very interesting plotline to carry through following stories as well. Even the most enlightened people are capable of bias or prejudice, especially when they feel as if their trust has been broken.

I was thinking a similar thought with Zhan, and the possibility of a plant based lifeform but still more bipedal.

I'm thinking I might do something like this and invent my own plant based species, one perhaps more visually plant like than Zhan, but more bipedal and humanoid than the Phylosians. There are more than 150 member worlds in the Federation (of which we have seen only a fraction of the whole) and a whole lot more worlds that aren't members. The Star Trek galaxy is a densely populated one. There are surely many species we have never heard of or encountered, leaving room for new ones to be invented by us.

If you were going to create a bipedal plant species, what sort of features do you think you would give it to underline its nature without making it look like nothing more than a plant that happens to be walking around?

It might be interesting to see a Tamarian in Starfleet. Though figuring out the dialogue would be a challenge.

It would certainly be interesting and challenging in equal measure. I've always loved the idea of this species because it really underlines that not all sentient beings will view things the same, but we can still find a way to communicate if we are patient and understanding. It's a great episode.

If I had a Tamarian as a player character instead of an NPC, I would probably reward the player plot points (something which can be used to affect the story in certain ways with gamemaster permission in the Cortex roleplaying system) or whatever equivalency exists in the system I choose to use for coming up with especially good Tamarian speech.

Does that Tamarian speak in metaphors, or has he learned to talk like everyone else? Or the crew learned his metaphors, or some combination?

I'm not sure what the author in question did, but theoretically, if Starfleet could communicate with the Tamarian government well enough to convince them to do so, they could exchange historical databases with them. This would either allow...

A) Starfleet to program their ship's databases with Tamarian historical information, allowing the computer to then search that information for the most logical meaning behind the phrase (for instance, searching for "Darmok" and any instance in which he was involved with "the walls falling") and then translating that for others.

B) Tamarians to learn and use Starfleet and Federation history as a means to create new analogies to communicate with (for instance "Kirk, when Spock fell.")

Either would allow communication between their people and Starfleet and yet allow the potential for miscommunications (and thus narrative intrigue and drama - or comedy - when desired.)

 

[fireproof78]

There are certainly also some other physiological issues where operating a starship is concerned. Horta don't appear to have any sort of articulating hands or limbs. I suppose they could give commands through the translator if it were viable. The explanation offered with the above mentioned Horta is that they are capable of communication through vibrations. I'm just not sure if that would (or should) be translatable by the UT or not based on what we know of it.

Why not? Part of writing these type of characters is to expand what is possible. Depending on the era, the computer monitors the crew's brain waves. So, why couldn't technology be developed based upon those vibrations?

 

[Nyotarules]

Really? Does that Tamarian speak in metaphors, or has he learned to talk like everyone else? Or the crew learned his metaphors, or some combination?

You can spoiler tag if you feel it's necessary.

From what I can recall the doctor speaks Federation Standard, he learned the language

 

[Thomas_Sullivan]

Why not? Part of writing these type of characters is to expand what is possible. Depending on the era, the computer monitors the crew's brain waves. So, why couldn't technology be developed based upon those vibrations?

I'm not saying it would necessarily be impossible. I'm only saying I'm not sure. I've seen the translator have problems with certain spoken languages, especially when lifeforms are different enough from what is standard for humanoid life in Star Trek.

As far as I can tell, the ability of the translator to monitor brain frequencies and interpret familiar ideas mentioned in the Original Series is disregarded by The Next Generation and this is not how their translators function.

Instead, it seems they operate by analyzing similarities between an unknown language and all known languages, finding commonalities, and using them to predict what is meant. This makes sense as this is how we translate unknown languages in reality. There are certain things which all languages have in common, certain mathematic likelihoods, and we can use them to discover what words mean what. Of course, the translator takes this concept to its most extreme, but it is still a plausible concept.

If we are using that concept, which is supported by Enterprise directly and implied by the other series in the franchise (aside from TOS), then it does make me question whether or not a language based in vibrations might not be difficult to translate at the least, if not undoable.

Regardless, Horta still seem to lack certain physical necessities for operating starships -- at least traditional ones with push buttons, knobs, or levers.

EDIT: My intention in questioning it isn't to limit what writers can or should do to expand what is possible for these characters, but only to establish what makes sense and is plausible for those characters based on what we know. Any author is free to disagree, but since a Horta Starfleet officer is not canon to the television series, establishing what seems reasonable to me as regards their serving on a starship is important if I'm going to use them in a game as I have no canon answer.

 

[Farscape One]

Given TNG is set almost 100 years after TOS, I think the fact that the Universal Translator interprets far more and doesn't fail to be just that the technology and programming got better and better in that time. Just look at computers in real life from only the last 20 years.

Funny enough, one of my favorite things about the DS9 episode "SANCTUARY" is the fact it took a while for the Skreea language to be interpreted correctly by the UT. Given they were from a different quadrant, it's understandable.

It frankly should have been a bigger problem for VOYAGER, at least in the first season or two.

 

[trekshark]

Andorians are one of the species that I was considering. I always found them interesting, and I thought "Enterprise" did a good job of expanding their lore. Knowing they were one of the first species to join the United Federation of Planets, it seems to me that we should see more of them in Starfleet.

I'm not criticizing the shows for this, don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting it was an error because a species being in the Federation doesn't automatically indicate that members of that species should want to serve in Starfleet. It just seems from a narrative viewpoint, now that we have seen the crucial role they played in the Federation's formation, it would be nice to see some serving in its most prominent organization.

especially since they, and the Vulcans and apparently the Tellarites, had decent sized fleets and colonies pre federation. The single world species that join shortly after getting warp re one thing, but races with more space presence prior to joining than Earth had should have retained that activeness.

 

[Arpy]

It might be fun to include an alien of another gender than we’ve seen before. Say a male Betazoid and figure out what he might be like.

Or of another gender than in humans, say a Vissian cogenitor.

Here’s another vote for a non-humanoid. Maybe an Aurellian or Monchezkin or Edosian/Triexian? Or make up a non-humanoid Federation member (they’re too humanoid-heavy). Maybe if a form you’ve always wanted to see but never did? Like, we saw tripodial 8472...maybe a monopodial human-sized snake alien... Or a being that’s like a Portuguese man o war, a colony of technically separate beings functioning as one being.

 

[fireproof78]

if I'm going to use them in a game as I have no canon answer.

Not to snip too much but writing characters will some times involve going outside of canon. I think if establishing nonhumanoid aliens that haven't been seen much then some creativity in their interactions will be required.

I guess I'm curious as to why a canon answer would be needed?

 

[Doom Shepherd]

Well, these date from the 90's, but...

My RPG crew includes Snarfrashtalgarr (Snarl), a Kzin security officer. He's actually a dreamer and a poet, and his security specialty is cryptography and SIGINT, but his species and size is just so intimidating that he ends up being used for interrogation and bluffing a LOT.

We also have a Helm officer named "Tiff" who was built from a hodgepodge of various different android technologies, stolen and cobbled together by a rich Ferengi DaiMon, with the intent of having his own geishabot. But she was accidentally allowed to upload a security program (because why not make your love doll your elite bodyguard as well?), "woke up," violently freed herself, (that's why!) and fled. As of right now, nobody else on the crew knows her true identity.

Orion CMO - treats herself with drugs to knock out the pheromones. Also heavily tattooed, to cloud the fact that she's Orion - embarrassed by her species' reputation.

Klingon Engineer, graduate of the "Hit It Till It Works" School. Very much based on Lev Andropov from "Armageddon," "Federation components, Klingon components, ALL MADE ON FERENGINAR! This is how we fix things on Klingon starship! *BANGBANGBANG!*"

Oh, and our First Officer is a Flint-type immortal with truly ridiculous healing abilities. (My players were total noobs, I needed a highly skilled, overpowered NPC to keep them alive, so...) (One of my players was convinced he was a Time Lord.)