Who 'gets to be' the Captain: Crew Roles in Star Trek Adventures

[@philhatfield2282]

I always felt the captain would be most challenging to play for my players. I was open to the idea if one of my players wanted to be captain, but none never did. Now that I am playing Star Teek Captain's Log, I am the captain (as the rank of Commander) and when I decided to try the cooperative play I have carried on being captain.

[@RichardKurbis]

In a lot of cases in Scifi... I usually set up the players as "Crew" with an NPC Captain, so you can set the initial tone without things possibly going out of hand. Captain then either dies or gets transferred and the players then take over, but in a lot of cases they prefer to be crew officers and I keep the NPC Captain.

[@SigmaUrash]

I'm the same, my group tends to find playing Captain too stressful.

[@TheThriven]

Maybe I don't watch enough of your videos but I have to say that's some pretty creative use of the mirror.

[@GrognardPiper]

I think Jellico was vastly misunderstood. He had a job to do and didn’t have time to dance around it. He was straight and to the point.

[@TroySeward]

Another great video on STA. I can't wait to start my game once I get my hands on the book.

[@Kritfayle]

Running a learn to play for this on Friday at my local store. I have been cramming your vids in all week to supplement the core book reading :)

[@The_CGA]

It's just different more than it is hard. The line I use is 'It's as complex as 5E, no more, no less' I think that gives folks who like to push buttons and roll dice something to start with, while at the same time I feel it's very slick in play. I didn't have it all figured out when I started, and was also learning Roll20 for the first time at once...but I made it through. Jim C. over on the FB Star Trek Tabletop Gamers group also runs demos at cons and FLGS , and has a fair bit of experience. He may be of some assistance, has a good deal of experience with demos now. Best of luck and don't forget to have fun! (it really is good fun playing around with threat)

[@Kritfayle]

We are on D&D, Starfinder, Star Wars, Doctor Who and now Trek. The last 3 are narrative games. Its like Star Wars when I first read it. Wasn't hard but was easy to confuse myself. Once it sunk in Star Wars is now a very easy rule set. Must unlearn what I learned :) I like the narrative games a lot. Was using the quick start guide for a while but got my core book the other day so reading through it. Looks to be a very cool game and better than I thought it was going to be. Just have to get Momentum, Determination and how characters can use dept assets like a security team. That's something not many other games do.

[@john-lenin]

The 6-sided dice in the starter set are nicer and easier to read.

[@LoreReloaded]

Did you ever do the ship combat in depth video? I saw one saying you would go more indepth and then this one seems to come after that one.. i know you did a little bit

[@The_CGA]

I had put it off for practice, but During our campaign, we didn’t have enough full-on combat for me to get the experience i was looking for. I have something that focuses on an example of play in the works

[@snate56]

Note: Your initial roll of the Challenge Dice equaled 5, not 8. Effects count as 1. So you rolled your initial 2, +3 for 5, + 3 Effects.

[@Alex-wi1mx]

The weapon had viscous 1. It is 8, not 5

[@cassmi8783]

@@Alex-wi1mx Eww, ”viscous” weapons. 😅

[@CampusBoyFeet]

When does the Cardassian Union edition come out?

[@AzureIV]

I could see groups that either all want to be captain, no one wants to be a captain, they all sort of elect someone, or one person wants to and the rest don't want to be captain.

[@seanhillman1016]

So a question, it is about characters not necessarily about roles. TNG gets better as the episodes focus on a character story, typically one of the main cast. And occasionally Barclay. Are people running the game this way? With each "episode" somewhat focused on a particular player and their character? It is how I intend to run when I get around to it. Just thinking out loud. Thanks.

[@snate56]

Nathathaniel Gray? Was that supposed to be Nathaniel Gray? ;)

[@teresaravenshaw5477]

I like the idea of starting off a crew as junior officers and giving them room to progress up the ranks until they *are* the senior officers of the ship. Maybe have them on a different shift to the senior crew so interactions don't have to be that often. Would that be viable in this game?

[@The_CGA]

Lots of people do it-I would definitely copy the autonomous and interdependent parts of the “bridge crew team” down the chain of command to wherever the player character echelon falls. And that they have some of their own subordinates available to delegate tasks to (so that they can “clock out” of a scene, and action can resume in the morning when the lab tests come back). And that the player characters have reasonable access to mobility (to beam up and down, to grab a runabout or shuttle for a short jaunt to follow up on a lead).

[@RexYoung206]

Newbie Q: Can a group of players be pilots (captains) of their own smaller sized ships, instead of being crewmates of one larger ship? i.e. Instead of taking various roles aboard one big communal ship like the Enterprise, can they command their own individual ships in a squadron?

[@The_CGA]

The basic answer is: sure, go ahead. Nothing stopping you- The longer answer is: the starship combat system-its complexity and the way movement is imagined-accommodates a single player ship with much less friction. If there’s one player starship, all the players are working together to keep track of all the different bits of the starship mechanics. Just like players in D&D with horses, some players will engage with the mechanics of the horse’s HP and nourishment and happiness. Other players will forget altogether they have a horse under their character’s butt when the water heater makes a rumble in the basement. When everybody’s on the same ship, this “forgetfulness” I have observed over and over again as a GM doesn’t come up. Secondly the way the starship movement and ranges work, it functions much better when there’s one player ship at the “center” of the situation. Like the DRADIS on Galactica’s bridge, the easiest way to run encounters in a ship is with a “radar grid.” Running away and running past (to beam people up/down) is a big part of the genre in Star Trek. The maps are going to get pulled apart like silly putty a bit as multiple player starships pull in different directions. I would probably work, but-it would be harder, and making things harder for players new to the game is …something to be cautious of. And then there’s the thing where Star Trek characters hang out on the bridge, watch each others’ PowerPoints, at tbe bar, in their corner office, and kinda make plans and take in exposition in the same physical space. The supporting character mechanic could cover you well there, with players taking on the role of crew on the other player’s ship when it’s a scene aboard one starship that their character ain’t on. This is perhaps the most interesting aspect of your idea that piques my interest a bit

[@ChrisRyot]

I may not be familiar with the general price development of roleplay equipment but isn't $23 for six dice a bit overambitious?

[@The_CGA]

It is indeed absurd, and most people buy blank d6s and put stickers or sharpie them. There are doubtless some 3d printing options out there in the grey market as well. Normal d6s pass in a pinch but the delay in translating the results is palpable for some folks more than others

[@gurtana]

Pretty sure that was a Roland System-1! Am I correct?

[@The_CGA]

+gurtana correct. Since about a year ago I've gone to all my intro music being dawless recordings of my hardware. Good eye!

[@gurtana]

Excellent. I would also recommend the MX1 mix performer (if you don't already have one!). It's a great mixer that has some interesting effect tools. I have those plus the TB3 and TR8. I love them all and as a suite they integrate really well together. PS, another great video for STA

[@eloyc4245]

Well, you DID have one player who wanted to play the Captain... :) Maybe the stars will align back someday and we’ll be able to make that happen!

[@eloyc4245]

Well, you DID have one player who wanted to play the Captain... :) Maybe the stars will align back someday and we’ll be able to make that happen!

[@The_CGA]

We will recoup to the game, things have become a total mess with bedtime around here. I think the end of DST may give us a window, 9p is suddenly much later viz. the primary blocker on this end. I know internet may (still) be not great in your part of the world from what I hear. Look to my coming from the east~

[@john-lenin]

Yeah - let’s just skip Counselors. That was Roddenberry’s biggest failure.

[@Qardo]

Geez...I do not like the dice. I mean sure it is nice but really if you have been playing Role-Playing Games. You most likely have a lot of d20s and a lot of six-siders. Sure the Challenge Dice are nice to have. Yet I think the price of the dice is a bit too high. I am just going to cheap out and try to decode normal d6s over shelling out 23+ US dollars for just 7 dice.

[@RecklessFables]

I like that they didn't make it too hard to translate. Only the d6s, which are only used in combat, need a translation and it isn't bad. A lot easier to convert my dice-zealot friends than Genesys/Star Wars.

[@Qardo]

RecklessFables No, I get that. Though I am just mad at the price. I believe they are overcharging. They are a nice set and do like they color coded them to whatever department you are playing in...if you like. Though being a pen and paper rpger I have loads of dice. So I personally do not see the reason to get the set. That is my personal opinion. Not saying others don't have to get them. Yet buy beware and all that.

[@snate56]

@@Qardo I know this is a year ago but I completely agree! Way more expensive than they need to be. You could probably have your own custom dice made cheaper. Anyway, the d20's are no problem: 1's are success, 20's are "complications". On the sixes, there is a chart, in the intro guide, the starter set and in the rulebook. One = 1, two = 2, three and four = 0, five and six = 1 + effect.

[@pappabear4977]

The Captain should be an NPC. Players will be petty and immature.

[@The_CGA]

My experience is to the contrary; people who watch Star Trek want to be authentic to the source material.

[@ArthurRex131]

This is not true in all instances. In fact, my biggest hurdle has been finding someone who DOES want to be the captain so I dont' have to do it.

[@jesternario]

In my opinion, players shouldn’t be the bridge crew at all. No, make the players the away team: the bridge crew are stuffy-britches who kiss babies, cut ribbons, iron out details that have already been negotiated over, and basically get to be the important people who don’t put themselves in danger. They don’t bother with the early exploration or establishing diplomatic relations with potentially hostile alien species, they don’t go searching for fuel when the ship is low on trilithium and risk potential radiation poisoning, and they certainly don’t solve any actual problems that could possibly kill them. No, that’s the away team’s job. You know, the low people on the ladder. The expendables who’s job it is to go get killed by alien atmospheres until the area is safe for the captain and bridge crew to come in and take credit during the ribbon cutting ceremony. The people who do the negotiating with hostile aliens until the weapons are lowered so the captain can come in and claim victory. You know, the player characters.

[@The_CGA]

That is simply not how Star Trek Adventures is set up. The game is built to maximize the relevance of the source material to the gameplay. The way the game is built is such that more actual minutes of Star Trek Screen Content (film and tv) is of 1:1 relevance for both GMs and players. “Imagine a situation like the situation Kirk found himself in…” etc. The Player Characters can *also* be the away team: that’s the purpose of the Supporting Character mechanic. Star Trek Adventures is Something of a troupe play RPG.

[@jesternario]

@@The_CGA So in otherwords, it's the exact opposite of what I suggested. Instead of being the important crew of red/gold shirts that go out and do the important work, you are the all important bridge crew that sits around until you hear "the away team has found nothing dangerous, you can come on down." Also, what if I don't want to play as the Kirk-style federation ship? What if I want to play the Next Generation, where the situation Kirk found himself in is not what the captain of the ship did, because Picard actually followed protocol?

[@The_CGA]

​@@jesternario These are some interesting thoughts. I will consider doing a video to clarify. Suffice it to say this is a specific game, in the way that Edge of the Empire is about the Scum and Villainy side of the Star Wars Galaxy, and Force and Destiny is about the "World War 2 in space" side of Star Wars Galaxy

[@jesternario]

@@The_CGA See, I dissagree with that too. Star Wars wasn't just about the jedi or just about the rogues, it was about a group of them, and to disallow one group and style of play from the book is to lessen the game as a whole (or be a scummy way to draw in more money via forcing people to buy splatbooks, I'm guessing the second one with Edge of the Empire).