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Thread: Trek Homebrew

  1. #1
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    Trek Homebrew

    LUGTrek went far too soon.

    CodaTrek is more than likely a memory apart from fan-created material.

    Has anyone thought about developing a completely home-brew RPG rules-set that we could work a new fan-made Trek game around?
    chris "mac" mccarver
    world's angriest creative mind

  2. #2
    Why? I'm still using the LUG's Icon system.
    Phoenix...

    "I'm not saying there should be capital punishment for stupidity,
    but maybe we should just remove all the safety lables and let nature take it's course"

    "A Place For Everything & Nothing In It's Place"

  3. #3
    There's plenty of Trek conversions floating around.
    Portfolio | Blog Currently Running: Call of Cthulhu, Star Trek GUMSHOE Currently Playing: DramaSystem, Swords & Wizardry

  4. #4
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    Thought I'd poll the room. Just curious.
    chris "mac" mccarver
    world's angriest creative mind

  5. #5
    I've given thought to stripping out the parts of ICON i didn't like and converting the CODA ship combat system (turns out all you really need to do is adjust target numbers), but without a game being run to spur me on it didn't seem important.
    Portfolio | Blog Currently Running: Call of Cthulhu, Star Trek GUMSHOE Currently Playing: DramaSystem, Swords & Wizardry

  6. #6
    I have to agree with Tatterdemalion King on that as well. Icon is what works for me.

  7. #7
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    I've been toying with the idea of setting up for TREK in the FATE rpg. It might be easier for some gamers to learn, and the system has some interesting cinematic touches.

  8. #8
    After many years of trying to port one game to another system, I'd suggest just using FASA or LUGTrek (Or CODA, if you are of a mind). Otherwise, it's just too much work, for no end result. But to those that wish to blaze the trail, drive on.

    Long ago the days of
    Star Wars via Traveller (Pre-WEG D6 SW)
    Twilight:2000 via Aftermath!
    Gamma World via TMNT After the Bomb
    Top Secret via Mechwarrior 2nd Edition

    ...were kind of cool, cross-genre, same game / different system flavor.
    But as advancing age takes its toll, I just play what I know, or don't play it.

    The above mentioned ICON + Decipher Space combat is something that might make ICON flow a little better, although, again, more work than I can handle at this point. I'm still working on the ICON Starfleet character compendium book.
    - LUGTrekGM

  9. #9
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    I've done a bit of porting too, and it all depends of just what the GM and players are looking for. Going from one system to another is a response to either overcome something viewed as a flaw, or to go with something that has an improvement over original system, or for the sake of familiarity with a set of rules.

    What constitutes a flaw or improvement in RPG systems can be highly subjective. So as far as what go with with depends a lot on the tastes of the gamers invloved.

    One thing that I like about FATE and a reason why I am working on TREK rules for FATE is that the system has certain things that I think would benefit a TREP gaqming experience. For instance, I like how Academic skills can be used in SotC/FATE3.0 to add Aspects to something. THis allows a player to add stuff like making the natives cannablisitic or sun worshippers or some other detail. Even beeter it can make technobabble solutions something that the players can have a hand it. I think that is is nice, and addresses one of the weaknesses with TREK as an RPG experience.

    Basically, knowlege skills are not a lot of fun to play. With the action oriented abilties, a player can do something with the skill and the action can have an effect on the game. With knowledge skills it is more like make a roll, and hen sit back as the GM either tells you what you know, or gives you a handout. Not a lot of fun.

    THe same thing happens with things like sensor rolls. Since the GM is the eyes and ears for the players, the science offficer pretty much makes rolls so the rest of the players can be spoonfed infomration. Sure it is important to know what sort of ship you are facing and if it is powring weapons, but it doesn't give the player much to do, or any way to have an effect on the situation. Even situations where the character come up with some Science based way of defeating a menace is nomrally just the group beening spoonfed the proper info thanks to a good skill roll.

    With the declaration idea in FATE, the Scientist can sort of make something up, and have an impact on the adventure.

    For examp0le, consider the fight between the Enterprise-D and the D12 Bird of PRey in ST: Generations. Worf, on Tactical, identifies the ship as a D12, as well as the cship's flaw, a fauty coil for it's cloaking devicne. Now in most RPGs, inclduing the various TREK RPGs, the GM would decide, probably way in advance, what flaws the D12 had, if any, and feed the info to the player for a good skill roll. With the declaration idea, the player could make up the flaw, make his skill roll (players can be wrong, for instance, what if if was the D13 or D12b that had the flaw, or if the ship had an upgraded coil, and the character usually have to find out the hard way) and have an impact on the game.

    Thinking abot it, the Declaration rules might be something to port over INTO FASA, LUG or DEC Trek. IT would make it a lot more fun to play characters like Spock, Scotty or Dax.

  10. #10
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    Tony, I'd be interested in your rules when your done, or if you ever need someone to bounce ideas off let me know. I'm not the biggest FUDGE fan but FATE intrigues me.
    Duct tape is like The Force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the universe together.

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  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by IceGiant
    Tony, I'd be interested in your rules when your done, or if you ever need someone to bounce ideas off let me know. I'm not the biggest FUDGE fan but FATE intrigues me.

    Sure, I am planning on putting them up on the FATERPG yahoo group, but can certainly email them or something to people here.

    I'm not a big FUDGE fan either. I was a bit suprised that I tooke to FATE like I did. BTW, you can DL the 2nd edtion rules for free from the faterpg websight. FATE 3.0 has some differences, primaily in how aspects are invoked, combat and adding stunts (stunts are similiar to some edges andprofessional abilties in CODA, but are tied to spefici skills For example, there is a Flying Kick stunt under the Fist/Unarmed Combat skill). FATE 3.0 SRD isn't out yet, but the rules for FATE 3 have been used in the Sprit of the Century RPG and are being used for the new Dresen Files RPG. Both games customize the rules for their genres (pulp or modern horror).

    Fate 2 is certanly worth a DL for a free game, and Spriit of the Centruy is available from Evil Ha as both a hardcopy and as a pdf file (I took advange of a buy both option so I have hardcopy and a pdf that I can read on the computer or print off approrpaite sections for handouts).


    THere are a few things in FATE that are interesting and worth consderation as house rules for CODA or ICON trek. FATE has something called FATE points that are similar too, but not exaclty the same as the Courage points in ICON and CODA. THe similarities are that FATE points can be spent to modify die rolls, and used to overcome a problem from a flaw, such as spending a point to resist acting arrogant or to overcome bloodlust. FATE points can also be used in other ways.


    Characters can have certain aspects compelled against them, typically by the GM, but sometimes by other players. For example, a character who is greedy and if offered a bribe could be compelled by the GM. When that happens the character has the option of resisting the temptation by spending a fate point (like courage) or giving into the temptation and earning a fate point for the trouble. This is how the game rewards good role playing and character "flaws". Rather than earning extra XP or getting extra points during character creation, the player gets more fate points to spend in the game. So someoneone playing Worf who is grouchy, suggests viloence as the solution to everyproblem, and mistrusts Romulans can rack up a few extra fate points that can be used to good effect latter in the adventure.

    Giveing into the temptation is not just doing what the GM says, either. IT just means that the player has to react to the flaw in some way that reflects the flaw. For instance the aforeementioned greedy character doesn't necessarily have to accept the bribe. He could try to pick the other guy's pocket, or stun him and run off with the money, or just make plans to try to liberate the money later, or maybe take the money and turn the other guy in.

    What is also cool is that other players can tag these traits if they are aware of them, or can guess them. For instance, if someone wants something from a Ferengi, he can probably try to tag a Greedy trait (tehcnically in FATE, these as aspects and have other uses too, but this is an example of how they could apply in ICON or CODA). Tagging someonelekses aspect this way usually costs a Fate point, but players are typically reward a freebie the first time they tag a trait in a scene. SO if you know Quark is greedy, you get to tag it once for free. After that it costs a fate point (Quardk is getting more resistant or suspicous, or maybe just ticked off that everyone is trying to press his buttons).

    It is also possible at times for a compell to be escalated. This is done when the GM thinks a particular temtation is very strong. In such a case, the GM can up the ante to 2 point or even 3 (max). Such compusions then cost 2 or 3 fate points to resist or net that many points if going along with the compell. This is also good when a complsuion get stepped up, like when someone ups a bribe.

    Fate points can also be used make a declaration. THis means that the player can make some sort of statement and spend the point to make it true. THis can't be used to make radical changes or stuff that doesn't make sense. A player couldn't make a ship full of hostile Klingons turn into best buddies or drop dead, or have thier ship explode. A player could spend a fate point to have one of the Klingons on the ship know the character and maybe owe that character a debt of honor, or maybe have a female Klingon develope a crush on one of the characters. The GM can veto this, and the gudelines are that the more interesting the declaration will make the game the liklier it is to be granted.

    Basically some minor change or coincidence , and that is the sort of thing that pops up all the time in Trek. It can really help to spice up a game, since it allows the other players to have more of an impact on the story, and is a great way to add or enhance a subplot. Spending a point to know someone from your days at Starfleet Academy can help flesh out a scene, an NPC, and perhaps spice up an adventure. SPend a fate point and perhaps the prosecuting officer turns out to be a Old Flame. Could be good, could be bad, but it certaily makes the situation more interesting. Plus, a player could always spend the point for it to be someone else7s old flame.

    THis is just so Star Trek. Considering how big the Federation is, it is amazing that practically every major character runs into an old flame at one time or another\even Spock. A rule like this would make that sort of thing more common in a RPG advenutre, without the GM having to work it all up as a suplot in advance.

    Keep in mind that this can also explain things like oldrivals who appear in one episode and never again, like Sisko's Vulcan rival, or having the Spock accidently trip a buttom then messes up the ship's playing dead, or having a vitial system go off line just when it is most needed (i.e. the phasers go out just when the ship is about to be hit by a ball of plasma that could be detonated by just one phaser hit).
    Last edited by tonyg; 01-25-2007 at 01:34 PM.

  12. #12
    We do this "It could be like X anyway", without fate points.

    Hey, GM, I have a contact/enemy/patron, is this him/her?

    I mean, it's all there without the specific mechanic of spend a point, just takes initiative on the part of the players, to say "X".

    But good luck, anyways with it.
    - LUGTrekGM

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by LUGTrekGM
    We do this "It could be like X anyway", without fate points.

    Hey, GM, I have a contact/enemy/patron, is this him/her?

    I mean, it's all there without the specific mechanic of spend a point, just takes initiative on the part of the players, to say "X".

    But good luck, anyways with it.

    No it isn't "all there without the specific mechanic of spend a point". Using your exmple, a character has to have a contact, and then ask the GM if the newNPC is him/her.



    In ICON or CODA the player must buy the edge, in advance, to have a benefit. Normally the player has to work out the contact prior to play, too.

    THe thing with FATE is that changing the situation or knowning an NPC like this isn't a replacement for things like Contacts (they exist in Fate and work somewhat similar to in ICON and CODA). The idea with the Fate points for this is to allow the players to make a change to thier enviroment. Using it to run into people from your past is just one way to modify the enviroment.

    A differernt example:
    The character7s ship gets attacked and borded by surprise, and the character are not at thier station, as they were off duty. A player could spend a Fate point to have his character to just happen to be near one of the ship's armories when the attack breaks out and be able to get a hand phaser. Or even spend a fate point to happen to have one in thier quarters.

    Yet another example:
    THe ship gets attacked by some sort of alien menace, like a Space Amoeba or Doomsday Machine.. In typical Trek fashion, the typical responses to the threat (weapons, or manybe retrating) are unsuccessful. With standard ICON or CODA rules, the players will wind up making rolls skill in order to "discover" (that is have the GM tell them) a weaknes that can destroy the menace.

    On TV, this sort of situation builds drama. In a RPG session it builds frustration. The actors on TV have writers who have written down the solution and the actors just have to deliever the lines. Likewise, when the actors get into a fight, they don't have to fight, but follow the script. That the character will dicover the solution is a given. All the time that they try the usual solutions and are thwarted just help to buiild tension, as does the obsctacles/deadline that come into play when implmenting the solution.

    In a RPG, the players have a lot ot help them get through a fight. THe actors don't have to know much about martial arts, phasers or what not. The layer can use a skill rating and some basic familarity with the rules to handle the situation. With technobable stuff, it isn't so easy. There is really no way to defeat the menace by appying a knowedge skillin the same way one can apply a combat skill. Just saying "I've got a high Propulsion Systems skill, what's the solution?" isn't that dramatic. Going through the procedue of elimitating the usual options and finding a solution is less dramatic as it is irriating, since the players really don't have much of an say in the situation. They don't get to select tactics, targets and do things--it just turns into a technobabble guessing game, or some sort of skill test so the GM will hand them the solution.

    Withe FATE, THe ability for a player to be able to make a declaration, and invent a solutution, rather than having it be spoonfed by the GM, is a lot more dramtic. Especially since the character still have to implement the solutiion, and do not know for certain if the solution is corrent (the GM sets a difficulty and the player rolls blind, although the better the justification the player can come up with, the more likely it will work). This is a lot more fun to play, and even builds drama since, as on TV, the solution might not work and the players will have to come up with another solution.




    The point mechanic is parrt of a reard and limitation system, since the points are used to trigger aspects and other things. It prevents someone from always doing something (like always ignoring a flaw or always doing the same sort of special attackor whatnot).

  14. #14
    I'm sure it's probably been mentioned elsewhere but the Yahoo group Star Trek for the d20 System has recently released a d20 version of Star Trek which is available in the files section for download.

  15. #15
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    I've been giving some thought about working up Trek for the Tri-Stat dX system as developed by the late, lamented Guardians of Order.
    chris "mac" mccarver
    world's angriest creative mind

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