Quote:
Originally posted by Don Mappin
I wanna do more faction-specific items. There weren't enough Romulan components, for example, for my tastes. Plus I want more Romulan-specific maneuvers and traits, all with cool names that just ooze and scream "Romulan!" to the reader. After "Starships" we've got Starfleet covered pretty damn well now.
The next "Starships" books should (IMO) be era- or quadrant-specific with less of a Starfleet slant. Another large book with tons of Klingon, Romulan, Cardassian, Tholian, Breen, and Ferengi stuff with components and maneuvers custom-suited to those species. Really funky stuff. Then you do the same for the Delta Quadrant, for example. (I, of course, see endless possibilities there!)
If faction (alien) books ever make a return that'd also be another place to put these items. Imagine reading a big write-up on the Breen and towards the end, in a sidebar, are five Breen-specific maneuvers and three Breen-specific starship traits. Then in the Kazon section you find the same. Or the Tholian write-up. ;)
Series-specific would be another route. If we ever do a Voyager book, as an example, I'd love to do a chapter on the Kazon, the different sects, their maneuvers, Trabe components, etc, etc. Same with the Hirogen, Species 8472, Voth, Krenim, Viidians, etc.
I see lots of potential to take the entire starship construction and combat system into almost as a line of its own. I feel the products need to go further. We talk about "tool oriented" and "crunchy bits"--well, here are some really easy crunchy bits that are begging to be used. I'd also like to do the same as Wizards and duplicate where necessary. A Breen write-up that references Breen maneuvers reprints those maneuvers--put what the reader needs in front of them (within reason). Shouldn't have to flip through five products to make your ship. :)
Oh well. Sorry for the tangent. Just thinking of some of the possibilities!
Hear, hear, Don! I'm 100% with everything you say here.