Narrating for the casual Trekkie

[Dan Stack]

In my Trek games, one problem I've encountered is how to deal with a mix of players - some of them die-hard Trekkies, others more casual fans of the show - for example having a popular culture grasp of the show.

Out of curiosity, have others had a similar mix and if so, how did you handle things to keep it fun for all?

[redwood973]

Best thing I have found is to let them have all the access to the Tech. Mans. and Core Book they want. That worked best when we had a B5 fan join us. And sometimes we would take a break from the RPG. We get together, order pizzas, and watch one or two of the Star Trek shows (thank you late night FOX and TNN) or pop in one of the movies.

We did have one player awhile back who was not very polite when someone was not an all out Trekkie. Was very rude with us if we did not know every little detail about every show. [Thankfully] He left us after about five or six sessions. Not sure if it is because no one liked him or because he was not getting his way. Either way it is a lot easier to bring a new player into the group without him around. So from this I would just say dont force it. It wont happen overnight but they do get into it. . .it just takes a little time.

[Ineti]

I've had a couple casual fans in my games, but I've been lucky in that they've all shown an interest in learning at least the basics. They ask to borrow reference materials (tech manuals and Encyclopedia) and I let them borrow certain episodes of DS9 and TNG.

For instance, I had one casual fan wanting to play an XO. I gave her the TNG tech manual and a handful of episodes that I thought nicely showcased Riker and the XO position. She did fine for the few episodes we played.

I find that as long as I narrate episodes that aren't dependent on technobabble or hard science, even the casual fans can get into it. The hard-core Trekkies bring them along as needed, and we tend to turn casual fans into hard-core fans.

[erhershman]

I have this problem in the extreme... I am a diehard Trek fan and the majority of my group occasionally mixes up Star Trek with Star Wars. I usually just hand them my core book and have them read the "Hitory of the Federation" section.

[Ineti]

You have far more patience than I, then. If one of my players pulled that nonsense, I'd be braining them with both my Trek core books and my SW RPG book.

Knock some sense into them.

[Ramage]

Since Trek often contradicts itself, I generally assume that any game I run is in Federation-sub-Alpha.

In the games I have played (FASA, ICON briefly, CODAbriefly), the mix of players has been a couple of die hards (can quote obscure lines about tech from multiple series) to "seen most of one series" types to "Isn't Spock that guy with the Elf Ears?" variaties.

As no game wil ever be exactly like the Writers' Bible for a given series, I suggest going with the flow and altering as necessary. If someone gets too bent out of shape, have everyone take a deep breath, relax, and voice the mantra, "It's Only A Game."

Personal takes only, YMMV...

[C5]

For one thing, taking some time to watch a few characteristic episodes should help players to get into the mood. Then I detail broadly the universe - the powers, the technology, what can be done and what can't, helped by the visual reference of the show ("you know, the tricorder is that little thing they all open after beaming down - it can scan for things, life forms, and store data").
After all, if the players are experienced RPG gamers, they are accustomed to stomach new universes - so this is just another universe to learn about.
I just warn them afterwards when they resolutely do one thing wrong ("no no no, Klingons are brutal, but are allies of the Federation") or if they forget something that could help them ("you can recalibrate the sensors to get through the interferences").
Anyway, my players are now comfortable enough with the universe and two of them actually watched all of DS9 - and of course I'm now reaching the other side of the problem ("but in XYZ episode they can do that with the tricorder")

[Dan Stack]

I think one of the problems I have run into in the past is if one of the players is intimately familiar with something and another isn't, the latter player can feel left out.

For example, if I have a group of Jem'Hadar show up post-Dominion War, a veteran DS9 fan may immediately start wondering where they are getting their white from, think about whether they were bred in the alpha or gamma quadrant, etc.

Hmmm.... That gets me thinking.... I wonder if when I run my next game it would be best to remove the element of familiarity, much like TOS and Voyager... A Pike-era series may be the way to go for something like that...

[Aldaron]

I only really have 2 players; and only one of them (my wife) is a regular. My friend Paul comes down from Sydney a few times a year for a week or two of solid role-playing, but we usually end up with him refereeing D&D and me playing (since it's the only chance I get to play).

Janetta (my wife) is as avid a Trekkie as me, though she doesn't have as good a memory for (read: "Not as obsessive-compulsive about") the technobabble and little "ins and outs" of the show.

Paul is a regular fan, but hasn't watched a lot of VOYAGER, which is kind of unfortunate since we're playing on an Intrpid class ship.

The most ironic thing about the game so far is that Janetta is playing Dr Sito Rana, Ens. Sito Jaxa's older sister and Chief Medical Officer aboard the Intrepid, and Paul is playing Ensign Nevek, a newly-graduated officer already with something of a string of heroics behind him (including exposing a Founder that had killed and replaced one of the Academy instructors).

The irony, of course, is that Sito is a Bajoran, and Nevek is the first Cardassian in Starfleet (similar setup to Worf: parents killed in Fed/Cardie war, was adopted and raised in Juneaux, Alaska by his human adoptive parents).

And they're the best of friends and have saved each others' lives on several occasions.

[Lt. Dade]

In anticipation of this problem, I'm running a game with sort of a VOYAGER premise, set just a few years outside the Alpha Quadrant with a mix of recent Starfleet strandees (a few days in the area) and a crew that's been marooned there for six years. So, the players have some leeway in their behavior and it gives added weight to the question of whether or not they'll choose to follow Starfleet protocols out there.

Also, I consciously avoid calling players on their use of language. Folks say "on the horn" or "ah, s**t" and such and I can just assume that those of us who would like to translate such dialogue to Trek versions can do so.

Maintaining player interest in the key. Our Chief Engineer is a devout Catholic, even though religion is mostly absent among humans on the shows. It's sort of deflating sometimes to remind myself of this, but no one's ever going to watch these stories on television, so why try to make these episodes suitable for broadcast? The game is its own medium and needs to be treated as such.

Here's a nice cheap trick, too: I try to have two very different NPCs around who can voice alternative solutions or make suggestions. It's an obvious bit of nudging, but players want to get on with the game more than anything else, in my experience. (Ops NPC: "Sir, it might be possible to beam an away team into that chasm.")

word,
Will