Interesting/Unique character ideas

[Tricky]

Don't forget, the offspring of some Q's lived amoung the ENT. crew, and was totally unaware of her origins (hey I thought VOY established that no new Q had been created...oh well): Imagine the look on the face of a Founder as some ensign he's torturing for information suddenly busts out the 'near-omnipotent toolkit' and singlehandedly erases the Dominion presence from (insert proper level of erasure: the base, the planet, the system, the quadrent, the galaxy, the TIMESTREAM!)

This bit also works as a way to save the crew during a massive attack: sheilds down, massive damage and most of the crew near death as 4 Dominion Crusiers begin to fire/board the ship. Ensign Qubert sudenly glows while wishing everyone was safe. Then, they are all sitting on a beach on Risa, with the ship in drydock.

[The Tatterdemalion King]

Don't forget, the offspring of some Q's lived amoung the ENT. crew, and was totally unaware of her origins (hey I thought VOY established that no new Q had been created...oh well): Imagine the look on the face of a Founder as some ensign he's torturing for information suddenly busts out the 'near-omnipotent toolkit' and singlehandedly erases the Dominion presence from (insert proper level of erasure: the base, the planet, the system, the quadrent, the galaxy, the TIMESTREAM!)

This bit also works as a way to save the crew during a massive attack: sheilds down, massive damage and most of the crew near death as 4 Dominion Crusiers begin to fire/board the ship. Ensign Qubert sudenly glows while wishing everyone was safe. Then, they are all sitting on a beach on Risa, with the ship in drydock.

Of course, it's not like that won't be noticed, and someone will probably get pissed.

What something like that effectively means is that you have one character who is interacting with both Q-level entities and the rest of the Crew is being shuttled around at this one character's behest. Everyone else is playing Star Trek, while Ensign Charlie E. is playing a solo game of Nobilis.

[First of Two]

Yeah, you really have to be careful if you're going to give a player (or NPC) superpowers just so he can save the ship if your other players screw up too badly.

Not without a big price, anyway.

Peter David's "New Frontier" books had a character who was descended from one of the God-beings mentioned in "Who mourns for Adonis?"... but while he did have "powers," they were very subtle -- and didn't prevent his own eventual death at the hands of other "Gods." Or save the ship when it blowed up good.

I admit, I did something similar with my Security Officer... he has limited 'probability powers,' (ie "fudged dice rolls when it's necessary") but they're not consciously used, and they have some strong negative drawbacks built in, like an exceptionally high casualty rate among people he gets emotionally attatched to.

Of course, it also helped that my players liked playing oddball characters.

[Tricky]

Of course, the whole 'ensign saves the ship with Q-power' could unbalance a game, unless it became part of a bigger storyline:

The second the ensign uses his power, it is felt by others of his ilk; maybe he is a lost member of their race, or perhaps he had mysteriously disappeard eons ago, and they want to find him.

Now Ensign Smith is a lightning rod for various "cosmic entities" that want him to return; SF Intelligence guys that want to know how he did it; and maybe some other group (Section 31, Pagh Wraith style 'anti-Q') that has nothing but bad intentions for him. Has he always been a cosmic being? Is his whole life a lie? Why are these nearly omnipotent beings afraid of him, and why is there an ancient sculpture of his likeness on a planet that's been dead for 1,000 years?

It could all wrap up with the character "wishing away his power" (ala Sphere), or being stripped of it by his fellows (along with mind wipes of the whole event for his crewmates), or him asscending (yeah, I know that is a SG-1 term) to a higher plane, bringing a better understanding of lesser creatures (and possible last ditch saves from the higher realms in the future) to his omnipotent brethren.

I just hope he didnt have any kids. Then it gets all kinda out there...

[The Tatterdemalion King]

OK, here's the problem:

When one character is a Klingon, the other characters can still come along and beat people up, as they're still humanoids.

When one character is a Q, he does all this stuff in Qville, while the other characters make sarcastic comments or shout ineffectually. Like I said, one character would be off playing Nobilis, while everyone else is hoping the Thasians or Metrons or whatever don't magic them away.

[C5]

With great powers come great... ways to torture the player.

Having one character with Q-like powers with no disadvantages is indeed unbalanced. On the other hand, if well done, it can be quite interesting IMHO.
For instance, like Tricky said, if the character is indeed a member of one of Trek's godlike species, but in hiding among the mere humans, he would be extremely wary of using his powers since it would be like a beacon to his fellow godlike entities (think Frodo putting on the ring in LOTR). If the character in question is a runaway, or a dissident (or even, for something lighter, a Trelayne-like entity who doesn't want to get caught by his parents ), he would have to be really careful.

Another big trouble could simply be the use of the power. Imagine you wake up one day with indeed the power to manipulate matter at will on the atomic level (thus being able to do almost any magical feat you want)... but with absolutely no idea whatsoever on how to do it (bit like the mutants in X-Men having to learn how to control their powers). The character would have almost no way to know before using his powers whether he'll vaporize the disruptor in the hand of the Klingon guard, or grow a mustache, or remove his own liver, or cause a tremenduous earthquake on Bajor 10 ly away. And of course, the learning curve would be veeeeeerrry slow...

Hm. It sounds a bit too much like a wizard in a D&D system actually. Or Jedis in SW D6.

[Tricky]

For the record, I'm not advocating having a "Q-based" Character as a pc; I'm just saying it would be a very interesting character. Perhaps that person should be a npc (in an old Marvel Super Heros game, I had a lesser hero npc get the Captain Universe power when the rest of the gang got into a scrape they couldnt get outta; but for a few minutes they all wondered how the 'lil mutant communicator girl' was able to toss the big bads minions around like toys until the costume manifested itself), but hey, we're all talking possibilities and theoreticals here.

Unless someone wants to do a game on the "USS Misfit-NX1947": last home of the unwanted SF personel?

I get dibs on the formerly assimilated Q !

jk.

[Tricky]

Just watched the VOY ep. where B'elanna was split into a human and a klingon by the vividians. Her two sides quickly became achetypical (aka sterotyped cliche's) and didnt get it together until the very end.

How would this have effected our favorite hybrid, Spock? I could see the Human Spock taking a chance to woo Nurse Chapel, while Vulcan Spock argues that having two Spocks would be very benificial for the ship.

Any other ideas (don't forget our other fave hybrids; K'aylehr and Dukat's daughter)?

[JALU3]

For all those who have heard the facts that have become popular in the "Sandbox", why not create a character that lives up to these facts: Sirron Kcuhc.

He can be like a well meaning alien, who due to its overwhelming power destroys all in its path, without intending to.

And here is a related article.

[Tricky]

That sounds like fun; I might have to try it (don't tell Sea Tyger though, I'm so way behind on my character for the forum rpg) :P

I had an idea for a unique character: Borrowing from a couple of TOS episodes, a ship comes across the stored minds of a telepathic (or maybe tel-Empathic) species; they have the tech to transfer their minds, but don't have anywhere to go; they suggest creating "organic-androids" (or biodroids; basicly geneticly created bodies to house their minds), and offer their vast knowledge and superior tech as inducement to help them, which the crew eventually does.

However, as with all body swapping, things go badly. A faction of the stored minds don't want to wait just to live in the new "shells", they want to be free now, and begin taking over the command staff. This fact comes to the attention of the character, who, being a student of history (specificly Kirk's history), devises a way to stop them. Eventually, he himself enters the storage device while the crew forces the invaders to return. The other conciousnesses decide that perhaps they should (move on to a higher plane, just plain move on, or continue as mental impulses in the machine), and help the SF crew destroy the evil conciousnesses. However, the Character's body is destroyed in the process, and his mental pattern is not totally compatable with the storage device, and he will soon perish.

Feeling a debt is owed to him, the alien minds transfer his mind into the prototype biodroid (perhaps giving their lives for his....?). So, as a result of his heroic actions, he is now in a new body that is definatly not human, but which might give him new advantages, once he begins to explore them. But how does he "pick up the pieces' of his life?

Thoughts?

[JALU3]

I think, as stated before by others who have posted, the biggest fear, is allowing a PC to much power, as to make the game unbalanced . . . with that PC controlling to much of the direction of the game. As an NPC, I can imagine the character that you are describing . . . but I would be cautious to give these abilities to a PC that you know, as a GM, that cannot control said powers.

As it has been said to Spiderman, and by Hiro quoting Spiderman's grandfather:

With great power, comes great responsibility.

Furthermore as an NPC, you do not know whether the character will be positively or negatively effected by the new powers, thus you have the potential for a possible arch villian in the future . . . an archvillian that the PCs may have had an unknowing role in creating in the future. There is nothing worse to know then that you could have possibly saved hundred of thousands, if not millions of people, if you didn't save person X (which seemed like a good decision at the time).

I mean, what if a Jewish German Officer had saved Corporal Hitler back in World War I, by dragging him out of no mans land. Not that actually happened, but as a hypothetical. Imagine what that Officer would be thinking come the mid 1930's?

Hindsite has a nasty way of coming back and kicking you in the pants for doing what appeared to be a good thing.

As it is said:

The path to hell is paved with good intentions.

[Tobian]

Tricky, sounds interesting but I am not too sure as to all the allusions you're making! I like the idea of giving the player characters a way to 'save the day' at the cost of their own lives, with no obvious way out. Of course as a GM you can have a backup plan to save them (not just a Deux ex machina, but a clever twist in the plot!) But nothing is better for the player to have that kind of opportunity, and go for it. Of course, make sure you write it into the plot that the universe doesn't end / ship explode or all the PC's die when they don't 'cause you can guarantee they won't go for it if they HAVE too haha

[Tricky]

Actually, the idea I had was more for a character's background then an actual adventure to play (although it would be a nice "season finale" episode), so it's not like I was planning to ask some poor sap to lay down his character's life to promote my idea.

[JALU3]

Well why not . . . you can't make a cake unless you crack some eggs. I mean you can either live for ever, or die like a hero . . . granted if they choose not to sacrifice themself(s) the world will not end, or atleast theirs might not. Instead someone else will suffer due to their inactions. And maybe they have a slim chance that they might make it alive, let them know that . . . give them the hope. Who knows, they might roll it.

For instance, in one of my final gaming sessions prior to my first game ended (the second one ended due to scheduling issues at work and problems with players) . . . the XO of my squadron was holding off a flight of D'Deridix's and Theta's with a supped up Danube, and some really good sensor work . . . nothing like being nimble enough to dodge non-burst setted Plasma Torpedos, great sensor skills (to get past their shields), and a lot of luck.

But it eventually ended, his luck that is, he took a large number of the enemies with him, but bought enough time to evacuate a small colony and the rest of his squadron mates. He just couldn't emergency transport out in time to avoid being caught in the explosion of his vessel. Sure, the rest of the PCs were saddened by their comrades loss (and so was the player who played the fallen PC), however they knew that his sacrifice was worth it . . . and due to some good roleplaying, I awarded him with a better, new PC after a short while away from the game.