Terra Novans...

[Michael Barratt]

(Semi-spoilers for "Enterprise,")

Anyone played around with stats for Terra Novans? I'm thinking once they got to the southern continents, and they realized they were human, contact would be kept up after Enterprise's visit. They'd probably end up with their tech level back, but they'd keep their own culture, living in subterranean buildings and the like...

Thoughts?

The Doc

[Ineti]

I don't know. There was still a lot of mistrust at the end of the episode; perhaps it'll take a generation or two to get their hatred of humans out of their system.

And did they have any communication gear that still worked? I don't recall from the episode if they had much in the way of tech other than the slug-throwers.

It's possible that they'd want to be left alone.

[Michael Barratt]

You're right, Ineti, that it would have taken time to bridge the trust gap, I just through it would be interesting to catch up with them in the current era of TNG.

I picture a people still proud of their planet, and not overly involved with the rest of the galaxy. Pretty much human in genetics, with perhaps a -1 to Empathy and a +1 to Vitality modification, and instead of "any science," a Planetary Sciences (Geology) skill or the like...

The Doc

[Michael Barratt]

A species with the dubious honor of being the first failed colony of the humankind first leaving Earth, Novans life on Terra Nova, a planet that suffered an impact that left the colonists saturated with radiation. The children went underground, and for seventy years they were left alone, surviving with their own culture, until the Enterprise NX-01 arrived and contact was re-established. Though the actions of the Enterprise crew, they were spared total destruction, and thereafter moved to a new colony site on the Southern Continent, where, over the course of generations, their own culture evolved, and they reestablished contact with the Federation.

Novans tend to build structures that are at least partially subterranean. Often, their largest cities look like low-level towers, when in fact their are large open spaces underground, and deep "towers" leading downward. Their geothermal technology is likewise impressive. After many generations on Terra Nova, especially the harsh early years, Novans have developed a slightly "tougher" physique than most humans, and likewise tend to have a shorter, leaner build.

Attributes
Fitness 2 [5]
- Vitality +1
Coordination 2 [5]
Intellect 2 [5]
Presence 2 [5]
- Willpower +1
Psi 0 [5]

Skills
Athletics (Select Specialization) 2 (3)
Culture (Novan) 2 (3)
History (Novan) 1 (2)
Language: Federation Standard 2 *
Planetary Sciences (Geology or Mineralology) 1 (2)
World Knowledge (Terra Nova) 1 (2)

Typical Advantages/Disadvantages
1 Extra Courage Point

(This is just my take on where the Terra Novans would be by the time TNG came around. I can't imagine that the Federation never spoke to them again, and never tried to help out more after their first re-contact.)

* Novan language is the same as Federation Standard, but they use a lot of geological and Terra Nova specific metaphors in their speech. Lies or falsehoods are "Shale," for example, and if a person is weak, they are "like wet moss."

[Ineti]

I'd imagine there are plenty of possibilities for the Terra Novans in the TNG/DS9 era. Did they actually manage to survive 200 years and make it to the TNG era? If so, they should be something of a historical location. Or, they could just be part of the Federation. Or, they could just be left alone, never contacting the Federation again.

Of course, they could also have succumbed to any number of diseases, natural disasters, attacks by off-world forces, etc. etc.

Sounds like a world ripe for adventure.