Alternate Universe and Evil Betazoids

[Lt.Khrys Antos]

Hi all!

Its been a while since I've posted anything new, my campaign has been running a solid two years and the current status is as follows;

The U.S.S.Excalibur (Ambassador-Class Refit) is stranded in the Delta Quadrant. The PC's crew has lost roughly a fifth of their crew and half the original PC's have lost their original characters.

PC's:
Lt.Cmdr.Tevek, Chief Medical Officer
Lt.Cmdr. Nathan McGuillan, Chief Science Officer
Ensign William Theodore Desoto, Engineer
Petty Officer 3rd Class-Taleko, Science technicien


In the following episode I intend to send the crew into an alternate universe together with their ship. They will believe, briefly, that they have managed to return home, only to realize that it is an alternate universe and they must return to their own universe.
The alternate universe has no federation, the region of space it occupies is in total anarchy (nearly). They will appear near Betazed and the Betazoids on the planet will help them. In reality these Bet's are eviiilll, they intend only to gain what knowledge they can from the crew and then take their ship by force by using their psi skills. I intend to have a few skirmishes on the ship with eviilll psi endowed Betazoids using their skills to make the crew fight each other.

I need help figuring out a plausible way to throw them into this alternate universe. As well as a pseudo-science way to get them back, i.e. like Kirk does by flying really fast around the sun.

Suggestions/Advice anyone?

[qerlin]

All of our alternate universe hopping has occured when faced w/ weird quantum weapon or drive-type incidents...subspace weapons, the slipstream drive thing could work really well (tweaked wrong & POOF, you've entered an alternate universe).

[C5]

For the means, it's rather easy. If the players are trying to get back and are looking for wormholes, space anomalies, or even jury-rigging their ship, well, give them a nice spatial anomaly, or a bit of the Barzan wormhole, or have the engineer discover a good old recipe from Uncle Scotty and ZAP! parallel universe. Otherwise, just throw some unexplained anomaly in their way.

To go back : if they used a space anomaly or wormhole, it would open a window two or three times before closing for a century or so. That way, they would have a way to return, but they'll have to time it precisely (and waaaait for the window to open, and be ready for it - not very easy if nasty Betazoid are wrecking havoc among the crew ).
Another way would be to create an artificial subspace distorsion, for instance by going to warp in an area where subspace is thin. Dangerous, but the end justifies the means (besides, such a manoeuver is not guaranteed to return them to the universe they are from ). Or maybe a weapon doing such a thing exists in this universe (like the Son'a weapon in Insurrection).
Finally, you could have some evil Betazoids having developped some powers allowing them to "see" subspace disruptions (and guide them through them to their universe). However, these Betazoids will need a good reason to help them....

[Lt.Khrys Antos]

Hmmm....I like these ideas.

How about this...

The crew detects the signature of the Barzan wormhole nearby (the same which threw them into the quadrant in the first place), however, it has become even more unstable nowadays and requires tweaking with their core. The drive malfunctions and throws them into an alternate universe.

The Evilll Betazoids use their psi to lure the ship closer, the PC ship is damaged so the Betazoids offer to help repair it (They don't understand all of the tech). They decide during their stay that the ship is worth a fair amount and decide to take it by force.

I would still need to figure out the exact nature of the Evil Betazoids attack. I would like to have them modify the warp drive and possibly cause the ship to return to the alternate universe. Maybe even they flee the ship in the PC's universe using some of the shuttles, I could then introduce recurring evil Betazoids.

I wonder though, how they would fare with other species? In their alternate universe their species was never placed in internment camps and they didn't have the whole honesty thing about their powers. They are more arrogant and immoral about their powers.

[C5]

Okay, let's see... some quick suggestion for these evilll Betazoid history...
These Betazoid fought indeed a war with their neighbours (forgot their name), but they won it - in fact, they crushed their ennemies, by shameless use of all their powers (an extremist government took the power during the war). After that, they decided to found a small empire, using their abilities to win over their ennemies (either reading thoughts for intelligence operations, then empathic attacks to weaken them). Being less advanced technologically, they didn't spread very far (relatively speaking), but met their share of other species. Among them :
- Klingons : their favourite ennemies, since their violent nature can mostly be manipulated. Some Betazoid generals use enslaved Klingons as war dogs (the Klingons don't realise their state, since they are persuaded to fight for honour, while in fact they're tearing apart some ennemy of the Betazoid)
- Vulcans : one of the greatest ennemy of the Betazoid. Since they can resist their attacks, they are very dangerous. The Betazoid try to use the dissenssions among Vulcan to weaken them.
- Terrans : easily abused, but not as valuables as Klingons. Can make good slaves or cannon fodder.
- Andorians : see Klingons. For a change, the Betazoid could have been forced to sign a peace treaty with the Andorians, their fighting skills having managed to overcome the powers of the Betazoids.
Given Betazed location, Cardassians and Bajorans could have been met too.

Okay, maybe more ideas tomorrow. Hope you'll find these interesting. Me need sleep

[AslanC]

Why not let them bring it on themselves?

They find a nebula that has the perfect conditions for creating a "sub-space fold" or whatever conduit to the AQ you can cook up

The problem is that the conduit takes them into the alternate universe.

There are just sciences and maths they do not understand and cannot comprehend at work (thus preventing them from ever doing it again)

Always best when they try these things for themselves, instead of just tripping over them, IMHO.

[Phoenix]

Lt.Khrys Antos: (argh, another double ranked person)

If you have time there are some really good examples of the evil Betazoid personality in the book 'Dark Mirror' by Diane Duane. Just to give you a bit of a quick preview, 'Cmdr. Troi Ships Head of Security and Political Officer'

[Lt.Khrys Antos]

The idea of political officers really spiked my interest so I decided to include them and revamp by Evil Betazoids slightly.

Their political officers will mimick the Soviet Commissars during WW2; ensuring obedience to doctrine and ensuring that "converted" species fight for them. These guys basically use their mind powers to control violent impulses in other species and direct them at enemies. As for their own species, they scan their minds every so often to ensure that they are not thinking "bad" things.

Their enemies include the Vulcans, Ferengi and other psionic species. The Evil Betazoids will resemble the Bolsheviks of Lenin between 1917-21. All my PC's will enjoy that

As for the reason why they help, well they do it firstly to get to know the species aboard. Once they realize that the Betazoids aboard are good guys they will attempt to take control of the "renegade" ship, in their eyes. They'll just say that the Betazoids have steered away from the true path and must be brought back into the fold. Obviously their lying and just want the tech, so while they are fighting on board the ship returns to the normal universe with some of these Bolshevised Betazoids. They'll flee using some of the shuttles and seek to control a nearby race (i.e.Kazon or even maybe some Vidiians).

That way I could re-introduce them if my PC's really like them.

Any thoughts on such changes?



Posted by Phoenix:

Lt.Khrys Antos: (argh, another double ranked person)

Oops When I wrote it in I wasn't thinking and didn't think much of it so I just left it as is.
Consider the Lt. as meaning Little-----Little Khrys Antos.

Better?

Thanks for the reference I'll try and find one.

[Phoenix]

I think I can let slide this time

[Ineti]

If the focus of the episode is going to be more on their adventures with the Evil Betazoids and not so much on the scitech, you could just fudge it like DS9 did and have them get into the alternate universe fast and get into the good part of the episode.

In "Through the Looking Glass," O'Brien hopped over to the 'real' universe, grabbed Sisko, and beamed over to the alternate universe, without a lot of stopping for tech explanations.

Just a thought.

[Lt.Khrys Antos]

Posted by Ineti:

In "Through the Looking Glass," O'Brien hopped over to the 'real' universe, grabbed Sisko, and beamed over to the alternate universe, without a lot of stopping for tech explanations.

Sort of. I've run quite a few tech oriented episodes, because the PC's are engineering, science and medical. I wanted this one to be more based on action and quick thinking. I intend to at least have something for the PC engineer to do by modifying, refitting and fixing the warp drive. I'll use the warp drive as the tech reason why they are where they are.

[Phoenix]

How about this to throw a wrench in the plans, rather than the ship/anomaly/technobabble device- the Evil Betazoids did it, psionically

You have the Engineer crawling through every Jefferies tube on the ship, the Science officer going over the last few weeks sensor readings, the medical...treating a hang-nail? I don't know the CMO is a NPC in my game. But all are looking in the wrong places for the cause, their new 'friends' are just not telling.

[khyber]

I like Phoenix's idea.

You could have your PCs encounter one of the Evil Betazoid's in their own universe who lures them into into the alternate universe where the other Betazoids are waiting to take control of the vessel. You wouldn't have to explain the tech behind getting into the alternate universe. Only the Betazoids know and they are not talking.

Just a thought!

[Lt.Khrys Antos]

Posted by Phoenix:

You have the Engineer crawling through every Jefferies tube on the ship, the Science officer going over the last few weeks sensor readings, the medical...treating a hang-nail?

Oh...that is just so eviiillll I have to use it.

Alright then, the crew will meet one of the Evil Betazoids in their own universe aboard a damaged ship. He will hail them and ask for assistance. The Bet. they beam aboard is a political officer from the alternate universe. He convinces the crew that the anomaly ahead could help them return home safer and thus himself (Hey, he ain't going to tell them who he really is... ). Unfortunately their ship will suffer some real damage and will be forced to stay for a bit in the alternate universe which they don't know is.

The evilll betazoids will help fix it to gain greater knowledge of the tech. They will also fool around with the minds and have the engineer round around on goose chases throughout the ship fixing psionically induced problems.

Once they realize what is happening they'll have to:

1) Re-configure their ship warp field to go back.
2) Stabilize the Barzan wormhole to ensure they make it back at a correct spot.
3) Fight off the Evil Betazoids using political offciers to control other species and members of their crew.
4) Once on the other side, the remaining Evil Betazoids will flee using the ship's shuttlecrafts once the Barzan wormhole moves again.

This is just so evilllll. My PC's will definitely remember these guys. I intend to have the Betazoid tell them that he was sent by their people here using the wormhole. He'll also be the arch-enemy I intend to re-use.

[khyber]

One question? If they are stranded in the Delta Quadrant will your PCs not question the presence of a Betazoid there since Betazed is in the Alpha Quadrant.

I know if I were a PC I would wonder what a lone Betazoid was doing way out there. Perhaps being an alternate universe, the Betazoids look the same as Humans.

If you haven't established the identity of all the crew, you could have some Betazoid crewmembers present who learn, via telepathy, how to return to their own dimension. You can also use your Betazoid crewman for other things as well.

Once you play the game, I'd like to know how it turned out.