What's the moral?

[Sho-sa Kurita]

Just a curiosity thing for all you Narrators.

When making up episodes, how often do you try to include a moral to the story versus just having a good adventure. Nothing wrong either way, I just wondered, given the nature of Trek.

Personally, I'm a 50/50 guy.

-- Daniel

[Rayaru]

In my experience, all good Trek episodes have a moral. It's just builit into the series, from Day one of TOS. If you'll notice, all recent episodes that stray from that directive all sucked.

If it's good for TV Trek, it's usually good for the RPG too, so that's my GM'ing attitude.

[qerlin]

Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

[Ramage]

My general take is that Star Trek is a morality play. So, yes, the few episodes I ran all had "messages" and the like; the players seemed to expect and like that.

YMMV

[Capt. K. Vaughn]

I usually don't worry so much about individual episodes but about half still have some sort of morality play. I do strive to have an overall moral for each season and for the campaign as a whole.

Though one needs to be careful of this, if you strive to hard for it you end up forcing the story somewhat and that will take it all down a notch.

Sometimes, a good Star Trek adventure with no intended moral can be fun in its own case and the players may even draw their own moral from it.

Regards,
CKV.

[Cptn. Taggart]

Sometimes I have a moral to individual episodes. But I always have one for the season. I tend to plan on a grand scale.

[Diamond]

Most of the time, if you allow for a very subtle moral. I've never done anything as blatant as "but he's black on the *LEFT* side".

[erhershman]

Most of the time, I just try to tell a dramatic, exciting story... and my thinking pattern tends to work out a moral without me realizing it. I don't actually have clear-cut "morals" but more sort of general 'messages' about life that apply to certain episodes. For example, the "moral" of almost all the war-focused stories set during the Dominion War I've run is, "War kills people. Period."
Only trouble is trying not to make my political/social views come across in my episodes, as not all my players share the same opinions as me.

[Lt Cmdr Matt]

I don't go out of my way to have a moral in my stories, it just comes naturally. (No I am not tooting my own horn here) When I write in Trek a moral finds it's way through the boundaries. Sometimes I do go out of my way though... 50/50 for me aswell I guess.

[Sho-sa Kurita]

the "moral" of almost all the war-focused stories set during the Dominion War I've run is, "War kills people. Period."

This is actually the thought that prompted me to ask the question in the first place. I know there have been, and still are, a great number of war-oriented series out there, and thought it might narrow the focus a little. Not saying it's bad or anything, though.

-- Daniel

[Ineti]

It depends on the campaign and the characters, and how I'm feeling when writing shows. Sometimes I come up with a good morality play, and sometimes I just come up with a good, non-specifically moral Trek story.

I'd say I've had a moral in 2/3rds of my stories, maybe a little less.

[T'lara]

I use to run WoD games all the time. Infact that was how I ended up into roleplaying all the way back in their 1st Edition.
Running those games is a morality tale and about the judgements you have to make. This is really relavent when running a Vampire Camarilla game. The chooses you make as a Vampire and the world you try fitting in forces your moral hand as you feel your Humanity slip as you try to retain to be Human. How far would you be willing to go to protect yourself or save a lover whom your leaders deam to die.

This is what has drawn me to the Star Trek game. The play on Morality. I have been a fan of TOS, the TOS Movies, TNG, and DS9. I love the idea of meeting a civilization and if your influance is right or wrong. Is going against Star Fleet regulations the right thing to do? The Prime Directive is both a blessing and curse this depends on the PC's view of the situation. It is ironic that a game I first learned to do in a Horror game I can use and apply to Star Trek and create a Moral Dilema stories. Vampire is about the choices we make and so is Star Trek.
Luckily my WoD group are the people playing the Star Trek Game I am putting together. So I know they will play their PC's Moral Stance. That is what the trick is in Star Trek and what I am hoping to apply in my game. I also recall that not every Episode of Star Trek was about the Moral Code either. Arguably the best Star Trek Episode of all time is "Best of Both Worlds" and that was about fighting the Borg no morals there. Then in Q-Pid it was about Picard admitting he was in love. In the Q-Pid case, it was a fun non serious tale that was a moral and character buidling Episode. Also do not forget "Trials and Tribulations" where we see Star Trek in a Serious and Funny SL. Going to Voyager's "Think Tank" is choosing to leave one of your crew members to a group the right thing to do if you and your crew need to go home?

My overall opinion about this is try to mix and match as much as you can. Not everything needs to be a moral tale and not everything needs to be an action tale. Come up with a funny episode so we can see the players having to deal with a serious funny situation. Very it up keeping your Episodes the same way makes your game dull. So thus your Season is dull so mix and match and make your Seasons and Series fun for you and your players.