Welcome to the Thorondor p1

[Atlirith]

Our group has been playing trek rpg games since the FASA version came out. Our ship, The Thorondor has seen many incarnations and many many crew members come and go. After reading many group members here post reviews and summaries of their games, I thought some might find our ship's plots interesting and helpfull...please note that our group samples liberally from many other rpg's, including Blue Planet...

Season One, begins in 2371...

Pilot: Gilded Cages of the Mind. The Thorondor-E enters service with the Andoran Commander taking the ship to Talos IV to pick up the new ship’s Captain, Daniel Pike, who is visiting his relatives. On the way to Talos, the commander receives news from Starfleet Intelligence that there is renewed fear that the Talosians and their hybrid offspring may attempt a take-over of the Federation – or is it a Romulan ploy to tear apart the Federation?

S1#01 Premiere: Wraith of Poseidon p1. The Thorondor responds to a distress call from the water world of Poseidon – civil war appears imminant as various factions fight over the world’s admission into the Federation, all the while, strange attacks by unknown forces, whom some of the most millitant factions claim are the planet’s true caretakers may render the entire world uninhabitable by humans. Subplot dealing with the fact that most of Poseidon’s population is geneered – having been colonized by humans who did not abide by Federation laws against genetic engineering, and also the role of uplifted cetaceans, many of which are extinct on Earth…who have their own reasons for wanting or opposing membership in the Federation.

S1#02 Wraith of Poseidon p2. Having discovered with that the unknown terrorists actually are -- ancient bio-nanite aliens who only wish to maintain the planet’s balance, the Crew are faced with a difficult choice -- Who truly speaks for Poseidon?

S1#03 Games and Thralls. While visiting Triskelion, homeworld of Lt. JG Angelique SharhraKirk -- Angelique is asked to oversee a contest of youngsters who seek the priviledge of applying for Starfleet academy. But all is not as it seems, as the Gamemasters of Triskelion are not sure that any of the contestants are worthy and seek to test Angelique’s worthines as Kirk’s heir as well…

[Atlirith]

S1#04 The Perils of Pleasure. While orbiting Delta IV, homeworld of the Deltan members of the crew, a series of anti-Federation protests break out over the need for Deltans to take vows of celibacy while off their world.

S1#05 Cait eyes. Shore leave on the Cait homeworld becomes something more dangerous when the Cait members of the Thorondor’s crew disappear – and no one will help the crew discover what has happened. Is there a conspiracy on his Federation world, or are the Cait crew members really missing?

S1#06 Libations for Olympians. While visiting the Olympian space god ruins of Pollux IV the Thorondor discovers that the ruins are not ruins at all – the Olympians have returned! Apollo appears on the bridge, asking where his “daughter” Leslie is, for he wishes to present her to his fellow gods. Cadet Leslie Palamas – human female (Cultural Anthropologist) is the great grandaughter of Lt. Carolyn Palamas of TOS and the Olympian Apollo – whose recessive genes come to play when it becomes clear that she too can manipulate the energies of the temples…Why have the gods really returned, what will become of Leslie and what of the Thorondor? -- note this episode occured long before Peter David's Being Human novel was published, and our group was very amused at the similiarities!

[Atlirith]

S1#07 Views from Heaven. The Thorondor is invited to participate in the celebration on Andarra of the expansion of their city in the sky, and the aniversary of the re-unification of the Stratos sky dwellwers and the Trogalites. Members of both factions who are part of the Thorondor’s crew soon find themselves swept into the politics of their world, where some are still more equal than others…

S1#08 Remember Scalos – Responding to a Federation distress call from Scalos, the Thorondor finds the Federation humanitarian mission to the system in chaos and the entire crew of the orbiting station missing. After years of researching into ending the Scalotian’s temporal dislocation and sterility, the station had reported great progress. What has happened, and why is there a DTI ship racing to the system?

S1#09 The Talented Mrs. Q – while visiting the pleasure planet of Risa, several members of the crew are courted by a beautiful woman, who turns out to be a female Q! What is she after, and why is she in such a hurry?

S1#10 Sculpting the Inner Landscape: While orbiting Aldea, which is hosting a Federation science conference, a group of Aldean artists stage a silent protest, and just as the protest is being dispersed, the planetary cloak is re-engaged!

S1#11 Wings of Redemption: While on their way to DS3 to help shore up the station’s defenses against Breen incursions, the Thorondor's Betazed counselor is struck by a powerful mental image of a Federation crewmember crying for help at Vagra II. Naturally cautious of a trap laid by the Skin of Evil, Captain Pike contacts the USS Enterprise – the two ships enter the Vagra system to find the planet being attacked by beings of light – with Tasha Yar as the prize...

[Atlirith]

S1#12 Twelve Little Lurians: On their way to SB 514, the Thorondor is hailed by a member of the Lurian royal family requesting to speak to one of the Thorondor’s Lurian crewmembers. Aparently, one of their elders, a member of the inner circle of the royal family has been assassinated, as have many other members of the household. Is someone trying to kill their way to the top? With each death, the Lurian crewmember is getting closer to a throne...As Luria is not a member of the Federation, the Thorondor must tred lightly. Why do the Cardassians and Breen seem to have such an interest in the matter and what are the Ferengi guild masters hiding?

S1#13 Preserving Paradise: When the Federation drones orbiting Amerind, a Preserver protected world go offline, the Thorondor is sent to investigate, lest the Preserver defensive grid goes down again, threatening the world with another astroid collision. When, the Thorondor enters Amerind’s orbit, it is struck by an intense scan from the Preserver monolith – and then a man appears on the screen calling himself Katanka-Kirok, and looking like James Kirk?! Katanka tells the starteled crew that he is a descendant of the Great Chief Kirok. Miramansee, who was aparently stoned to death, was placed in the Preserver monolith by her people, whose technology “repaired” her and her unborn child. In the hundred years since, sons of Kirok have acted as Guardians of the Monolith, but when the monolith began to act erratically, it destroyd the drones, seeing them as a threat. Not sure how to repair the monolith, Katanka called out to “the strange lodges that reside in the sky.” Prime Directive issues asside, the monolith soon seens the Thorondor as a threat, and prepares to blast it out of orbit….

S1#14 Psyche and Cupid: While being repaired from damaged from the encounter with the Preserver monolith at SB G-6, the crew is allowed some downtime, with many crewmembers travelling to Betazed…where the Counselor hopes to catch up with an old flame. But a psychotic Betazoid youth with incredible telepathic abilities, whom the Counselor treated a few years back has escaped. Betazed psychic authorites enlist the aid of the Counselor and the Thorondor’s crew to help find the boy before tragedy ensues.

[Atlirith]

S1#15 Eye for an Obsidian Eye: While on route to Bajor and DS9 to allow the Bajoran members of the crew a chance to see their “Prophets,” first hand, one of the Bajoran crewmembers receives startling news from Bajor – one of their relatives has been accused of being a Cardassian collaborator!? The charge is devastating, not the least because the crewmember was herself, a member of the Bajoran Resistance! The relative in question actually killed a Cardassian soldier who was assaulting a crippled old woman, though he was never caught or punished by the Cardassians, he became a recluse and emotionally crippled, feeling that his act of murder had violated the will of the Prophets. The Cardassian soldier was related to a now powerful member of the Obsidian order, who learned from a real Bajoran collaborator that the relative was his brother’s murderer. Unable to punish the relative directly, he has set forth an elaborate trap to destroy not only the relative, but his entire clan, including the Thorondor crewmember. The real collaborator seeks to flee Bajor to Cardassian space, but is well known and loved by many members of the Provisional government, many of whom will be embarrased or even disgraced out of office if he is exposed. How will the truth be discovered, and why is Elim Garrek, a lowly tailor in exile on DS9 so willing to help a former member of the Bajoran Resistance?

S1#16 One of Our Players is Missing: On the Aniversary of the Cestus III Masacre, a day most Gorn living on the colony wisely observe by staying inside locked homes, a Gorn player on a popular colonial baseball team has gone missing – just days before a major playoff. As news of his disappearance spreads, chaos, or even civil war is possible as political factions square off and the blame game gets physical. Was he kidnapped and by whom – anti-Gorn radicals, Gorn isolationists who want to limit “human cultural contamination,” or even some unknown faction backed by Cardassian intelligence? The player was a political dissident from Agornu and his high profile may have offended some in the Matriarchy as his public popularity may have embarassed them. Naturally, the player is a relative to the Gorn on board the Thorondor, and a friend of the pro-Gorn humans born on Cestus III on board the ship. But why is the nominally anti-Gorn member of the crew so willing to help? Will the player be found in time, found alive?

[Atlirith]

S1#17 Please State the Nature…: During routine maintenance of the Emergency Medical Holographic program, it becomes clear to the medical and science staff that the EMH is much more sophisticated than any of them remember it to be. The Mynieni (a species from the Prime Directive rpg...) crew members have been known to be modifying the program with the help of the Bynar crewmen...and now the EMH shows signs of true sentience!? What does the crew do – do they shut the program down, or even ask the EMH’s opinion? And why does the Medusan navigator have such strong views on the EMH’s future?

S1#18 A Moment of Perfect Beauty: Medusans are known to exist partially in subspace, existing as beings of energy and light – not unlike a vastly evolved form of hologram, a possibility not lost on the Medusan crewmember of the Thorondor. With the Captain’s permission and with the help of the Science and Engineering staffs, the Medusan has been working on the creation of a portable holomatrix to allow "him" to interact more effectively with the crew (without driving them insane of course). The Medusan has also become an avid user of the Holodeck, which naturally intrigues many members of the crew, after all, just what kinds of programs would interest a non-corporal being?


Well, that's it for now, hope some of you will find these episodes interesting and helpfull, till later...

[Atlirith]

Sigh, I thought that someone might comment on these episodes, that they were interesting, bad, or anything, oh well...

[Captain Zymmer]

I just noticed this thread to be honest, I think it got lost in the shuffle

I will read it over and give you some feedback senior

[Phantom]

I've read up to #12, you have done some nice work. Both in the game itself and in documenting the adventures. I shall keep reading and let you know when I have finished.

[Captain Zymmer]

WOW!

I don't know why but early on I got a real Phase II feel off your write ups

Great stuff, though I wished the sessions actual outcomes were shown as well. But still the teasers are exciting nonetheless.

Keep up the good work.

Can we get more info on the series itself? Who are the current crew, what kind of ship it is, what year it is, etc?

[Robbert Raets]

Looks very interesting to me! I might steal a thing or two (okay, probably half of it).

[Captain Zymmer]

I also wanted to ask, what does the name of the ship signify? Where does it come from?

I really want to know how the pilot ended BTW

[Atlirith]

I originally got the name from the 1980 book (like i said, we've been playing a very long time...): The Languages of Tolkien's Middle Earth, which I simply cannot recommend highly enough for use as a name generator, the material below was pasted from the equally excellent website called the Encyclopedia of Arda. Our group naturally are all Tolkien fans, and blending Tolkien's love of languages with Trek seemed somehow natural. Here's the history of the name Thorondor:

Thorondor existed during the First Age, he was mightiest Eagle to ever live; lord of the Eagles of the Crissaegrim, and constant ally of Turgon of Gondolin.

Thorondor's ultimate origins are uncertain, but he seems to have existed before the beginning of the First Age - perhaps a very long time before. The Silmarillion tells us that the race of Eagles were sent by Manwë to watch over the Noldor who had travelled back to Middle-earth. Earlier versions of the story published in The History of Middle-earth state more explicitly that Thorondor was one of these, and that he even remained in contact with Manwë during the First Age.

Thorondor's fate is equally uncertain. The only clue is a passage that appears in The Lord of the Rings, referring to '...old Thorondor, who built his eyries in the inaccessible peaks of the Encircling Mountains when Middle-earth was young.' It's plain from this that Thorondor departed Middle-earth some time after the end of the First Age. Perhaps the greatest Eagle of them all simply died of old age, but his mighty body carried a spirit sent by Eru, so perhaps, just possibly, he flew back to his master's halls on Taniquetil and still soars in the airs of the Undying Lands.

Now remember that giant eagle that saves Gandalf? That's Gwaihir (windlord), that's a direct descendant of Thorondor....in our campaign, it's also the name of an Andoran flagship, Sovereign class...Andorans love Tolkien in our campaign world, and our Andoran Commander often is found reading a copy (a real copy mind you), in his leisure time, and has been known to quote the above information to visitors to the ship....

[Captain Zymmer]

Interesting, interesting.

I like the connection.

So what kind of ship are the players on?

Tell us who the command staff are?

[Atlirith]

Okay, this is reposted from the Also Starring thread...

U.S.S. Thorondor -F NCC-74655, Intrepid class.
Thorondor means king of eagles, many Andorans feel that serving on this ship is a great honor...a friendly rivalry exists with the USS Eagle...naturally.

USS Thorondor history
2152-2161: USS Thorondor Prime, Enterprise class explorer, retired after valorous service in Romulan war. The Prime spent 4 years exploring and 4 years involved in the Romulan war.

2162-2193: USS Thorondor-A, Daedalus class explorer. 31 years, six 5-year missions. Including many along the new Romulan Neutral Zone.

2194-2245: USS Thorondor-B, Ranger class explorer. 51 years, ten 5-year missions.

Note -- These three ships were legends, and were never actually played out, remember we started with the FASA trek material, so we actually started our campaign with ...

2246-2271: USS Thorondor-C, Constitution-a class explorer. 25 years, five 5-year missions.

2272-2279: USS Thorondor-D, Constitution class refitted explorer. 7 years, one 5-year mission. The D saw a lot of time in combat, and thus spent much of its time in repair docks…

2280-2370: USS Thorondor-E, Constitution-T class explorer. 90 years, eighteen 5-year missions. Tholian War, DTI missions and badly damaged in the Battle of Wolf 359, the ship was retired…

2371-2373: USS Thorondor-F. Intrepid class explorer. Shakedown cruise and various DTI missions.

2373-2375: USS Thoronodor-F: Dominion War missions. This is where our group is right now, and we're not sure if the F will actually survive to ....

2376-2381: USS Thorondor-F initiates official five year mission… it is equally likely that the F will not survive the Dominion War...in one time travel episode, a *Captain* Kor of the Thorondor of an potential future where the Dominion had all but destroyed the Federation, claimed that his Thorondor was Sovereign class...but he accomplished his mission, saving Captain Pike and likely destroyed himself and his timeline to do so...having faded into non-existence just as the crew found Commander Kor sedated in the cargo hold...

The Crew of the current Thoronodor-F

Captain: Captain Daniel Pike, Human male with Talosian traits...

Commanding Officer: Cmdr Jarrid Kor -- Andorian male.

Chief Flight Control Officer: Navigator Tollos – Medusan.

Asst. Chief Flight Control Officers: Lt. SG Neil Hawk, and Lt. SG Cala Cirya -- Benzite female.

Chief Operations Officer: Lt. Cmdr Shreen Dunnaly -- Alpha Centauran female.

Security Chief/Tactical Officer: Lt. Cmdr Solak -- Vulcan male.

Weapons Officer: Lt. JG Angelique SharhraKirk -- Triskelion female.

Chief Engineer: Lt. Commander Sulli’Vahr -- Cygian male.

Chief Med Officer (Ship’s Surgeon): Lt. Cmdr Natira McCoy, MD -- Fabrini-human female.

Ship’s Counselor: Thalze Iscandar of the Third House – Betazoid male.

Chief Sciences Officer: Lt. Cmdr T’Dollea Droxine- S'chin T'gai – Sky Ardanan-Vulcan female.

Auxiliaries: Lakul -- El-Aurian male; runs the Recreation facilities, DTI agent (@600 years old…).

Special Crewmembers: 0010 and 0110 Bynar pairing, Computer specialists Engineering Department.

Yes, you'll notice that many crewmembers are relatives, distant and not so distant to TOS, TNG, DS9, Voyager, novel characters, etc... it started as a bit of an in joke in our group and took on a life of its own, and honestly has never gotten in the way off good roleplaying, and adds a lot of history to the characters....

The ship's crew includes members from over 36 species, including Gorn, Klingon, Tellarites, Lurians and even a Horta....this diversity has led to many, many stories as crewmembers get along, and don't get along with one another and try to understand each other's cultures....often with very funny results.