Saw the New Star Trek Trailer World Premiere!

Just a quickie here from WonderCon Day 2. The Star Trek Panel was GREAT. JJ was there, came out and rapped excitedly for a bit, then made us promise to put away our video recording devices. He'd convinced Paramount to let him show the new (and final?) Trek trailer. The audience (including me) went nuts!

It was STUNNING! Really breathtaking music, I wish I knew if it was from Michael Giacchino’s upcoming score or from some other film. This trailer is much like the previous trailers in terms of content, but “more” and "turned up to 11". A little more of Pike’s speech to Kirk, this time talking about his father. A little more visuals of Starfleet Academy, and Spock speaking to what I guess must be new cadets aboard the Enterprise (”You will be afraid.”), more Nero (”FIRE EVERYTHING!!” ), more of the skydiving scene and the fight on the platform, McCoy saying something like “Well this is great! We’re on a starship and we have no Captain and no First Officer” and Kirk replies “Oh yes we do” and takes the seat, Nero's weapon turning a planet inside-out and into rubble, and more More MORE absolutely astounding shots of starships (including nice closeups of the 1701 and Nero’s) in battle.

The crowd went totally wild. The trailer and the crowd's reaction alone was worth my $40 3-day pass! I may write more about it later today, along with details of the panel itself. After the trailer, JJ brought out Chris Pine (Kirk), Zachary Quinto (Spock), Zoe Saldana (Uhura), Bob Orci (producer and co-writer) and Bryan Burk (producer). It was mostly just Q&A and I wish the audience had asked some better questions, but JJ & Co handled it all with grace and it all went by so fast!

What a great day to be a Trek fan!

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Heritage Star Trek #1615 - Gorn Soldiers

Manufacturer: Heritage Models, Inc.

Set #: 1615 - Gorn Soldiers

Scale: 25mm

Year: 1978

MSRP: $2.95

Additional Notes: 6 figures with two poses: one set with raised scimitars, the others with rifles. Each figure has "ⓒ1978 PPC" (Paramount Pictures Corporation) etched on the base, along with the set # followed by 1615A (sword) or 1615B (gun).

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WonderCon Day 1 Report

Back from Day One at WonderCon here in San Francisco. The streets surrounding the Moscone Center have Star Trek movie posters (like these, left) hanging from the street lights! Really impressive crowd for the first day, too.

Paramount was giving away the 4 posters pictured here, so I grabbed one of each. That was about it for my Star Trek haul. Didn't see any merchandise associated with the new film other than issues of the prequel comic series Star Trek: Countdown. I'm holding off on that until the compilation is released in April or May. Classic toys seemed all the rage in the Dealers' Room, though. Trek is definitely generating some excitement again.

A number of TV and movie personalities were there doing autographs. I was surprised when I saw Gary Lockwood (Gary Mitchell) at one of the booths! Then in the west of the Dealers' Room were a number of other personalities, many who'd appeared in Trek including Pamelyn Ferdin (child star of the 60s and 70s who was Mary in "And the Children Shall Lead"), Michelle Scarabelli (TNG "In Theory"), Bobby Clark (the Gorn!), super yummy (and still super yummy!) BarBara Luna (TOS "Mirror, Mirror"), Chase Masterson (DS9's Leeta), Malachi Throne and Sean Kenney (both in TOS "The Cage"), and more. I'm not an autograph person, but...

I did pick up the lush hardback of the Mouse Guard RPG and artist David Petersen not only autographed it, but sketched me a little mouse inside as well! I'm not at all familiar with Luke Crane's Burning Wheel rules system, but I've heard nothing but good things about the game, the price was right and the autograph was a plus.

Went to the The Once & Future Trek panel, and although only Daren Dochterman and TrekMovie's Tony Pascale were able to make it, there was a good turnout for the panel. Didn't learn anything new but it's always nice to attach a face to a name. Both were very funny and well-informed, and the crowd was mostly positive about the future of Trek (and not just the movie). People definitely still care, no matter what Voyager did (hahahaha). The guys showed some fun Trek clips including Star Trek Knights of the Round Table, a commercial for UK's National Power/Powergen featuring Shatner and Doohan in character, and what looked to be an anti-drugs PSA from the 70s built as a mashup of clips from Trek The Animated Series. At least I think it was for real, but I can't find it online, nor any reference to it... maybe it was just a fan mashup.

Anyway, that's my Day 1. I'll report back on Day 2 tomorrow with impressions following the big Paramount panel in the Main Hall!

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OT: WonderCon (and Trek!) in San Francisco

Taking the day off of work to start my 3 day weekend at WonderCon 2009 here in San Francisco! I'll have to get an early start because, after all, it's a whole 4 blocks away from where I live.

I like WonderCon. It's like San Diego Comic-Con... without the oppressive crowds and lines. No wonder (ha) because it's operated by the same group.

I'll definitely be swinging by the Dealer's Room, and Room 106 to check out the games, but I don't expect to catch much more than some game of Magic: The Gathering or D&D 4E. Maybe I'll finally get to see Monsterpocalypse in action. I need to start getting my own act together to run some games this year (Thousand Suns for sure, and maybe Enterprise with Heritage figures!)

Ooh, speaking of which #1: Rogue Games has just announced the release of Thousand Suns: Transmissions from Piper. I pre-ordered my hard copy from IPR last night and downloaded the PDF. Gonna load it up on the tineee eeeeePC and check it out during slow times at the con this weekend. Seems like I've been looking forward to this for ages. Hard to believe TS has only been out for a year. Really need to get back to work on TS: Final Frontier...

Ooh, speaking of which #2: I've finally finished translating every last word of Enterprise. 60 pages and 25,000 words. Phew. Looks really nice though. I'm having two copies professionally printed for myself, at which point one will be hermetically sealed along with my copy of the game itself for my Trek RPG collection, and the other to actually use for the game I hope to eventually throw together and run. Maybe at EndGame in Oakland, maybe this year at Gen Con (if I can actually afford it, if I still have a job!). I'm still concerned by the more-than-sneaking suspicion that I'm absolutely the only person in the world that is actually interested in this game I keep writing about. Plus, it's not the most, um, sophisticated RPG in the world. Still, it's one thing to have the game, and another to actually know it. If nothing else, it was a great Japanese translation exercise, I've probably doubled or tripled my time. The Tsukuda Trek wargames should go much faster. And maybe I can make this my next job, should it get to that point (anyone hiring for Japanese-to-English translation of obscure Japanese tabletop games from the 80s???).

Where was I?

Oh, right, WonderCon. Anyway, if you're in the area, there's some great Trek stuff in the program this weekend. At 3:30pm on Friday, The Once & Future Trek! with "Treksperts" Robert Meyer Burnett (Free Enterprise), Daren Dochterman (ST: TMP Special Edition), Steve Melching (Clone Wars... ummm), comedian Mary Forest (???), and one of my favorite online people, Anthony Pascale of TrekMovie.com. Definitely going just to hear people argue about nacelles and such. Saturday at 2:00 will be the Paramount Pictures Star Trek Panel for the 2009 film, with sneak peak footage (YAH!) and perhaps a surprise guest or two? And Sunday at 2:00pm is the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Q&A. I've never actually seen this show, but Summer Glau and Shirley Manson of my favorite band, Garbage, are going to be there. Yum. Then I take the ladies out for dinner. Then my wife kicks me out of the house. But what a way to go.

Anyway, if you're there, keep an eye out for me. I'll be the one dressed as an Orion Slave Girl. This is San Francisco, after all.

Just kidding.

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Heritage Star Trek #1620 - The Skorr

Manufacturer: Heritage Models, Inc.

Set #: 1620 - The Skorr "Winged Eagle Men"

Scale: 25mm

Year: 1978

MSRP: $2.95

Additional Notes: 4 oversized figures with an identical pose. Each figure has "ⓒ1978 PPC" (Paramount Pictures Corporation) etched on the base.

The Skorr, by the way, were a race seen in 1974's Star Trek The Animated Series episode "The Jihad". They were kind of a Klingon-like race that became a Vulcan-like race. But with wings! They were one of a number of aliens from TAS that Heritage released or planned to release as part of their miniature figure line.

Here's a close-up of a Skorr pictured next to Scotty for comparison.

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Trek RPG Auction of the Week - 2/23/09

Up on eBay this week, reasonably priced deck plans from FASA's 1983 Star Trek The Role Playing Game, both the "USS Enterprise 15mm Deck Plans Boxed Set" (FASA 2101) and "Klingon D7 15mm Deck Plans Boxed Set" (FASA 2102).

These are pretty much the same as the deckplans that FASA included with the First Edition STRPG Deluxe Box Set (FASA 2001), but on a much larger scale. It's kind of a stretch to say that they were suitable for the miniature FASA would release, but they get the job done. And if nothing else... they're pretty cool, for gaming or not!

Each includes nine 22"x33" folded heavy stock sheets that display the interior and exterior of the ships, with a 1/2" square grid overlay, and a 12 page "Ship Recognition Handbook". You don't often see them for under $15 each, so I'd have to say this is a pretty good deal.

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Enterprise RPG - Tama Yutaka's Designer's Notes

Here is the last in my series of excerpts from my translation of the 1983 Japanese TRPG, Enterprise. I've finally (well, 3 weeks, not bad!) finished translating both the rulebook and the accompanying scenario, "The Drifting Ring". The scenario book wraps with designer Tama Yutaka's notes (below) on what he was trying to accomplish with the game, and the importance he saw in upcoming tabletop roleplaying game revolution.

Keep in mind that up until this time, gaming in Japan was mostly limited to simulation wargames, including Tsukuda's 1982 Star Trek: The Invasion of Klingon Empire (pictured left), which he references in his notes. Look for my articles regarding this game and its follow-up Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan over on Chessmess's Star Trek Games website in the near future. Yutaka also mentions "the original SF RPG we are now planning", which I can only assume was Ed Lipsett's Star Quest, detailed previously which came out later in 1983.


As for Yutaka himself, despite graduating from law school at Keio University in 1984, he would continue to do pioneering work in the Japanese gaming industry. With his partner Hitoshi Yasuda (translator/author of the Hobby Japan Traveller), he would edit the Japanese version of the UK publication "Warlock - The Fighting Fantasy Magazine" for a number of years before they continued the magazine with their own original content. He was author of many books such as the 1990 text "Handbook of Computer Game Design", and translator of numerous gaming-related texts and articles, including at least two exclusive Japanese texts based on the writings of "the father of D&D", Gary Gygax, entitled "Master of the Role-Playing Games" and "Master of the Game Master". Unfortunately, his life was cut short at the age of 35 by a collagen auto-immune disease, and he passed away in December 1997.

Here, then, to wrap up these excerpts from his work -- the first Japanese tabletop RPG -- are the words of Tama Yutaka regarding his thoughts on roleplaying games, and his STAR TREK RPG, ENTERPRISE:


DESIGNER NOTES

I designed this STAR TREK game as a way to introduce the Role Playing Game -- currently at dizzying heights in the United States -- to Japan. It is my belief that the ability to create a background world and your own characters in an SF and Fantasy Game is a significant one and, although Mr. Sonoko feels my translation of "Midgard" was a board-less story making game, I feel this role playing game is the true next step.

Previously, there were two ways in which to convert a story to a game: by taking a portion of the whole world and cutting out the characters, and then limiting it to one game board (which made a strategic game such as Mr. Nakajima's STAR TREK possible). And although one can focus on machines like the Enterprise, SF and Fantasy -- especially in the case of STAR TREK -- are something in which the human (character) should be central (though some are not), and the game that does not make the characters the subject feels incomplete.

There is also a limit in a board game's ability to employ the charm of a character, and for this reason the development of the role playing game is inevitable.

In a board game, with the focus on a map board and pieces, the ability to convey the world is limited. In role play, the only limits to an infinite world are the creativity of the GM and the restrictions he places upon the players and the actions he allows them.

Because charts cannot be included for everything, the system of this game is based on using percentages, allowing the GM to determine results for almost any situation.

Although one might find the combat system unsatisfactory when compared to that of a board game, please consider that the most valued element of this game should be that of making a story.

Although it is a game in which many parts are left to the discretion of the GM, if you are blessed with a good GM, you should be able to enjoy yourself.

Further, we look forward to showing the next stage in SF role playing with the original SF RPG we are now planning.

I wish to thank Mr. Yoshifumi Sakatani who supplied me with information during the design of this game.

Designer - Tama Yutaka
Keio HQ Simulation Game Club

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FASA Star Trek #2602 - Mr. Spock

Manufacturer: FASA Corporation

Set #: 2602 - Mr. Spock

Scale: 25mm

Year: 1983

MSRP: unknown

Additional Notes: Spock holding something like a tricorder. This is a different pose than the "First Officer Spock" included in FASA's Wrath of Khan box set (#3001 "Collector's Series Number One: USS Enterprise and Crew"). The base is etched with what appears to be "SLP83" on the bottom (and I think all the figures from this era had it... sculptor's sig?), and "ⓒ83 PPC" for Paramount Pictures Corporation.

Comments: Time to get more of these FASA miniatures rolling out, so here we go. Also on the way I have Citadel figures from the TMP era, TOS and TNG miniatures from the Parker Brothers Star Trek Monopoly games (which are surprisingly well scaled for use in RPGs), and some beautiful Italian TOS Star Trek gaming minis that are probably the best sculpts I've ever seen for Trek. I'll also get some comparison pictures up so you can compare the scales (these FASA miniatures, for example, are noticeably smaller than you'd expect).

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Enterprise RPG - "The Drifting Ring" (scenario)

(Note: Here is the next in my series of excerpts from my translation of the 1983 Japanese TRPG, Enterprise. The box set included a separate booklet, an adventure module entitled "Scenario No. 1". As far as I can determine, it was the only official module released for the game. It's only 14 pages, many of them detailed maps, but it appears quite imaginative. Sort of "A Private Little War" crossed with "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky", as our intrepid crew finds itself aboard an enormous Stanford Torus-like generation ship, rushing toward Klingon space.)

STAR TREK RPG Scenario
"The Drifting Ring"

Captain’s Log, Stardate 3205.6

We are in pursuit of a spectacle beyond compare.

The Enterprise discovered it while exploring within UFP territory near the Klingon border.

It possessed a remarkable velocity that, in many ways, could not be believed.

Spock judged that it must be an artificial satellite powered by some kind of technology.

But the size!

It did not seem conceivable to me that this was a ship, dozens of times larger than our own Enterprise.

Once it was before our eyes, however, our suspicions were confirmed.

Now this enormous torus with a diameter larger than 10km is before us.

Bones calls it "The Drifting Ring".

However, "The Ring" is hurtling toward Klingon territory. This is our pretext, and we have no way of knowing how they’ll react. We must investigate and stop the Ring.

And we must do it as quickly as possible...

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Enterprise RPG Combat Example (excerpt)

(Note: Next in series of excerpts 1983 Japanese TRPG, Enterprise. This time, a long actual play example that illustrates really well the combat systems and how rolling against modified abilities works. I'm not including the tables that break down weapons range, modifiers and so on because the text clearly shows how they get to the numbers. You can detect the rather quirky sense of humor that shows up throughout the book, and you can see how simplistic the game mechanics are... especially for Hand-to-Hand combat!)


Kirk and Spock have transported down to a planet to investigate some mysterious activity.

GM: "Ahead of you, two men are standing 150m away."

Kirk: "I pull out my phaser and set to stun."

Spock: "Is there any cover nearby?"

GM: "Yes, there are some small rocks."

GM: "It's about 10m away."

Spock: "Anyway, I run to the rock."

GM: "I understand."

The GM reviews the Scenario and the characters Kirk and Spock are encountering.

They are two Klingons, armed with disruptors and always hostile. They have ST of 13 and 14, and DX of 12 and 15, respectively.

Because the disruptors only have an effective range of 100m, the Klingons approach.

GM: "Roll one 6-sided die."

Spock and Kirk each roll one die and get 4 and 3, respectively.

4 is added to Spock's DX16 for 20, and 3 added to Kirk's DX15 for 18.

The GM rolls for the Klingons and gets a 2 and a 6. 2 is added to DX12 for 14, and 6 is added to DX15 for 21.With the highest adjusted DX, the 2nd Klingon moves first. As the combat round is starting, it will proceed to Spock, then Kirk, then the other Klingon, in that order. (see 8-3 Combat Order Decision).

GM: "The first Klingon comes running forward."

Spock: "How far is he now?"

GM: "About 100m."

Kirk: "Your phaser is of no use holstered."

Spock: "I pull out my phaser and set to stun."

GM: "Understood."

Kirk: "I hide near a rock."

GM: "You're moving to the same place as Spock?"

Kirk: "No, a different one."

GM: "Yes, OK."

GM: "The other Klingon has come running forward."

With that, the combat round is ended. As for damage, none. Distance between the two sides is 100m. Spock and Kirk are taking cover by rocks.

GM: "We roll the 6-sided die again."

Spock rolls a 1, added to his DX16 is 17. Kirk rolls a 3, added to his DX15 is 18.

For the Klingons, a 3 and a 2. 12+3 is 15, 15+2 is 17.Combat order this time is Kirk, then Spock, then Klingon 1 then Klingon 2. Spock and the Klingon tied with a 17, but Spock's base DX is higher so he'll go first.

Kirk: "Still 100m distant, right?"

GM: "Yes."

Kirk: "I move forward to take cover near another rock."GM: (You quickly consult the Scenario. Because there's no precise description of the location of the rocks and the distance, you must decide how to proceed). "I'm going to roll a die, and if it's a 1, 2 or 3, it's 20m; and if it's a 4, 5 or 6, it's 30m." The GM rolls a die. It's a 4. "It's about 30m to the next set of rocks."

Spock: "I'll go there."

GM: "OK. The first Klingon moves forward about 10m while dodging. The second moves 50m and ducks behind another rock."

Now the second combat round is finished.

Klingon 1 (ST13, DX12) is near a rock, about 20m from Kirk. Klingon 2 (ST14, DX15) is 60m ahead.

GM: "Okay, roll the 6-sided die."Kirk rolls a 2 (17) and Spock rolls a 6 (22).

The Klingons rolls a 5 and a 2, for 17 and 17. The combat order is Spock, Kirk, Klingon 1 then Klingon 2. (Three of them had an adjusted DX of 17, so order was defined by base DX. In the case where those were the same, the player is given preference. This is the decision of the GM).
Spock: "I aim for the dodging Klingon."

The GM passes the two 20-sided dice to Spock. The distance is 60m. If it's a Phaser II, the range is M. Because Spock's DX is 16, the probability of a hit is 49%. But because the Klingon is dodging, a penalty of 10% is applied and the adjusted probability is 39%. (see 8-7, GM Options).

Spock: "I rolled a 34. Did I hit?"

GM: "Yes, the Klingon has been stunned."

Spock: "OK."

Kirk: "I set my phaser to "dematerialize" and fire at the rock the other Klingon is hiding behind."

The GM hands the dice to Kirk. The distance is 20m, so the range is M. Kirk's DX is 15 so the probability is 46%. There is no modifier because the target is a rock. Kirk rolls.

Kirk: "Yes, a 28."

GM: "The rock disappears in front of your eyes. The Klingon stands there agape."

Kirk: "Is he going to shoot us?"

Spock: "It's likely he'll shoot us."

GM: "Yes, very likely."

The GM rolls for the target, and a 1,2 or 3 will be Kirk, and a 4,5, or 6 will be Spock. It's a 3, which means Kirk will be the target. The distance is 20m, S range for a disruptor. The Klingon's DX is 12, so the probability of a hit is 83%. Because Kirk is taking cover behind the rock, a penalty of 25% will be applied (GM's decision). Adjusted probability is 58%.

The GM rolls the 20-sided dice.GM: (The dice are rolled. 11. A hit.) "It hit, Kirk is shot. Damage..." (he rolls one 20-sided die) "…6. How much ST does Kirk have now?"

Kirk: "It's 15."

GM: "OK, now it's 9."

Combat round three ends. Kirk has acquired 6 points of damage, Klingon 1 is unconscious, and the other stands 20m away with no cover.

Combat will continue to advance in this fashion.

Let's jump ahead to another round, this time with an example of hand-to-hand combat. The order is Spock, Kirk, then the Klingon.

Spock: "I'll engage in hand-to-hand combat with the Klingon."

GM: "OK."

Spock's ST is 17, the Klingons is 13: a difference of 4. Therefore the hand-to-hand value is 90%.

GM: "Roll the 20-sided dice."

Spock rolls the dice and gets a 74.

GM: "You've knocked the Klingon out."

At this time, 5 rounds have elapsed, but the time passed is 1 minute.

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Heritage Star Trek #1614 - Klingon Crew

Manufacturer: Heritage Models, Inc.

Set #: 1614 - Klingon Crew

Scale: 25mm

Year: 1978

MSRP: $2.95

Additional Notes: 6 figures total, 4 poses: 1 seated Klingon crewman, 1 female, 2 crewman with guns pointed down, 2 crewman with raised guns.

Chair not included (from Mega Miniatures SF line).

Each figure has "ⓒ1978 PPC" (Paramount Pictures Corporation) etched on the base.

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Enterprise RPG Character Creation (excerpt)

(Note: This is the first in a series of excerpts I'll be posting from my translation of the 1983 Japanese TRPG Enterprise. Future posts will include some examples of play that best illustrate how combat is carried out and how talents are utilized)

Section 6. Character Creation

Here is an example which illustrates how to actually create a new character.

First, the player must choose a Name and a Race for the character. For Name we'll choose "Leonard Shatner". Race is Human.

For each of the abilities, roll four 6-sided dice. From those, take the three highest results, total them, and the result is the value for each Ability.

• ST roll is 5, 4, 6 and 1, a result of 15.
• DX roll is 2, 3, 5 and 4, a result of 12.
• IQ roll is 3, 6, 2 and 5, a result of 14.
• CH roll is 2, 3, 3 and 5, a result of 11.
• LU roll is 1, 4, 2 and 6, a result of 12.

Whether or not a character might have Special Abilities is based on rolls corresponding to these results.

First we check for the Mechanical Repair Talent. Since DX is 12, if you can roll 60% or less on the two 20-sided dice (did you remember to designate the dice?), it is OK.

With a roll of 7 on the tens die and 4 on the ones die, the result is 74.

Regrettably, he does not have the Mechanical Repair ability.

For the Medical Talent, an IQ of 14 means a 40% probability. The 20-sided dice are shaken. 6 for the tens and 2 for the ones is 62. He does not have the Medical Talent.

The Science Talent with an IQ of 14 is a 70% chance.

The roll is 2 on the tens die and 7 for the ones. With a 27, he has the Science Talent.

Finally, a roll of 10 or less to see if he has a PSY Ability.

A roll of 0 for the tens and 6 for the ones is a 6. He has a PSY special ability.

The two 20-sided dice are shaken again. A roll of 6 for the tens and 5 for the ones, a 65. This character will have the Telepathy ability.

Next the Alignment of the character is determined. The player may choose this to their liking.
We decide that this character is EG (Emotional Good).

Next we'll decide what Equipment the character has.

Because he has the Science talent, we'll give him the Tricorder, as well as a Communicator and a Type II Phaser. Furthermore, he may be given food for 3 days, water and a knife. (However, please declare it to the GM, otherwise it may be said he doesn't have it).

With this, character creation is completed.

Leonard Shatner; Human Race; ST15, DX12, IQ14, CH11, LU12; Alignment EG; Special Ability: Science Talent; PSY Telepath; Equipment: Science Tricorder, Type II Hand Phaser, Communicator, knife and three days water and food.

Take the above, and write it on one of the Character Cards included with this game. (A water felt-tip pen or marker can be used and erased if wiped off).

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Trek RPG Auction of the Week - 2/16/09

Of course, as soon as I say that there's nothing interesting for Auction of the Week, something shows up!

Looks like this listing for the 1983 FASA Star Trek RPG "The Klingons" Box Set may include not only the original 1st edition box (and contents including the rare counters?) but also the Klingon Ship blueprints and the follow-up 2nd Editon books from 1987. Based on his picture, I'm guessing that the blueprints are not the larger scale ones from the 15mm Deckplans box, but rather those included with the Deluxe Version of the ST RPG.

If interested, you'll want to ask the seller if it includes the things not seen in the picture, such as the 1st Edition books, the Klingon counters, and the special Klingon combat panels. Still, at an opening bid of 99 cents, it's hard to go wrong with what was arguably the best of the FASA supplements (due to the fantastic background written by John M. Ford).

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Update - Translated Enterprise and More

Apologies for the extended absence this past week.

I've really been immersed in translating Enterprise, and finished the rough translation yesterday. I'm now in the process of cleaning it up, redoing charts, de-Engrishing it and so on. In the end it came out to be about 39 pages and 15,000 words. And I still have to translate the Scenario that was included with the game! That should go rather quickly, though. It's only 9 pages of text and 7 maps, so perhaps another week.

I'm still not entirely sure what I'm going to do with it once I'm finished, other than certainly run a game or two. I may even put together some online games using MapTool or some other VTT such as Battlegrounds or Fantasy Grounds, or even a Play by Post hosted either here or elsewhere. I'll keep you updated so that those of you interested in playing some very old school Trek gaming have a chance to get in on the action.

As for making the rules available to a wider audience, that's a tougher question. I've got a lead on another copy of the game, but it's rarely cheap or easy to get them over from Japan. The exchange rate is working a little more in my favor these days. And Japanese games that include translations almost always go for a great price on eBay, and might make the 100+ hours of work I've done worth it. On the other hand, the economy is not what it once was and there is something appealing about more people being able to have it, even if I have to file the serial numbers off. There might be some hints I should take from the burgeoning "Old School Renaissance" taking place as to how I can do this legally and cover my expenses at the same time!

And to think I still have to do the same for my Tsukuda Trek consims, Star Trek: The Invasion of Klingon Empire and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. There aren't enough hours in a week!

In the meantime, I'll be catching up with the blog. Look for some excerpts from the Enterprise rule book translation, including some examples of play. Also, more miniatures. There wasn't really anything worthy for the Auction of the Week when I checked on Friday and Saturday, but I'll post should anything come up. Check back starting tomorrow for more updates.

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Trek RPG Auction of the Week - 2/8/09

One of the best Trek RPG supplements ever written, so good it influenced one of the series (Enterprise). Sadly, the only supplement (other than The Narrator's Toolkit) released by Last Unicorn Games for its TOS version of Star Trek Roleplaying Game. A useful resource for any of the Trek systems for one of the more neglected species of the Trek universe.

Star Trek RPG Last Unicorn Games Among the Clans - The Andorians




by the incomparable S. John Ross, with Steven S. Long and Adam Dickstein.

Shows up less and less on eBay these days. For complete details, check out the Memory Alpha wiki entry on this great book.

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Heritage Star Trek #1613 - Romulan Crew

Manufacturer: Heritage Models, Inc.

Set #: 1613 - Romulan Crew

Scale: 25mm

Year: 1978

MSRP: $2.95

Additional Notes: 6 figures total, 4 poses: 1 seated Romulan crewman, 1 female (Commander from "The Enterprise Incident"?), 2 crewman with guns pointed down, 2 crewman with raised guns


Chair not included (from Mega Miniatures SF line).

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More on the Enterprise JTRPG (1983)

Sorry about fewer updates than usual this week; Real Life and Day Job calling.

I have been working on some Groknard stuff, though. Coming up is that closer look at STAGFF, and this week I started translating Tsukuda's Enterprise, the Japanese TRPG introduced previously. As I dig into it deeper, Enterprise is turning out to be quite interesting. It takes its position as the first real Japanese-language RPG very seriously, and spends a great deal of time (and precision) imparting the the basics and history of roleplaying games to its reader to an even greater degree than seen in TSR's Basic D&D. It makes no assumptions and often draws distinctions between the RPG and the simulation wargame (already quite popular in Japan at the time), and references western games such as D&D, Tunnels & Trolls, DragonQuest and Traveller. The rulebook is deceptively small. With virtually no illustrations, it manages to squeeze a great deal of RPG concepts and rules for the game into its 20 kana/kanji typeset pages.

I was mostly correct with my initial perceptions of the game: the mechanic is 2d10 roll under attribute for many task resolutions with some percentile rolls; characters have five basic attributes, with rules provided for PSY (Psionic) and a few other special abilities; Alignment is an an important trait for use with encounters with NPC characters; and there are no rules for starships or starship combat, with adventures mostly limited to landing party type missions.

I was mistaken on a few things. There are rules for race, skills and custom character creation. The rules are structured in such a way as to support a "basic" game that consists of using the pre-generated characters and their cards in the adventure included with the game. But the rulebook also stresses that the real fun continues when players create their own characters, and game masters create their own scenarios, and provides plenty of guidelines for doing so.

Oh, and those Alignments? Very cool: Logical Good, Logical Bad, Neutral, Emotional Good, Emotional Bad. Very Star Trek!

In terms of both its familiar SF setting setting and its execution, Enterprise seems to have been the perfect introduction to Japanese audiences for tabletop RPGs. But as I said previously, I'm not altogether certain it made much of an impact at all especially in comparison to the soon-to-come translated imports of Tunnels & Trolls and Traveller, later domestic TRPGs such as Roads to Lord and Sword World, and the very Japanese concept of published replays (example role-playing sessions in book form).

With that, here's the Table of Contents for the Enterprise Rule Book, to give you a better idea of what all the game covered:

PART I - GUIDE TO ROLE PLAYING (pages 1-4)

1. Role Play Game Guide
2. Start of Role Playing Games
3. "Role"
4. Role playing as a Game
5. Characters
6. Scenario(s)
7. How to Progress through a Game
8. Victory or Defeat in Game
9. Experience and Growth
10. Character Background
11. The Job of Game Mastering
12. Power of Game Mastering
13. Good Game Mastering
14. Ad-libbing for the Game Master
15. To the End

PART II - RULEBOOK (pages 5-20)

1. To Start
2. Contents of Game
3. Progress of game
4. Characters
4.1 Strength(physical strength)
4.2 Dexterity (deftness)
4.3 IQ
4.4 Charisma
4.5 Luck (fate)
4-1 Personality/makeup of Character
-1 Race
-2 Alignment
4-2 Trait and bonus of each numerical value
4-3 Equipment
5. Specialities (specific abilities)
5-1 Types
5-2 Mechanic Repair (repair ability)
5-3 Medical Talent
5-4 Science Talent
5-5 PSY Talent (ESP)
5-6 Limitations of PSY
6. Character Creation
7. Adventure
7-1 Movement
7-2 Movement and Time
7-3 Instant Actions and Time
7-4 Normal Actions and Time
7-5 Combat and Time
7-6 Master's option (time)
7-7 How to Resolve Type and Results of Actions
7-8 Limitations of Actions
7-9 Master's Options (Actions)
8. Encounters (Encounters and Combat)
8-1 Master's Characters
8-1 Alignment Check
8-1 Combat
8-1 Firefights (shooting)
8-1 Hand-to-Hand Combat
8-1 Master's Options
9. Equipment List
10. Alien List
11. Creating Scenarios
11-1 Maps
11-2 Numbered Squares
11-3 Enemies
11-4 Master's Characters
11-5 Missions
11-6 Conditions
11-7 About the Creation of Scenarios
11-8 Before Beginning the Game
12. Master's Reference

But wait! There's more.....

OT: Rogue Games' Thousand Suns Contest

(excuse the plug, but other than my 11th Anniversary with the lovely Barbe, this is the best thing to happen to me so far this year... my first publication within the RPG industry!)

Winners announced in Rogue Games' Inaugural Thousand Suns Artists and Writers Contest
(Chicago, IL) - February 2, 2009. Rogue Games announces winners to Inaugural Contest

The Rogues of Rogue Games are pleased to announce that Robert Saint John and Gabriel Brouillard are the winners in the Inaugural Thousand Suns Artists and Writers Contest. Their winning entries will appear in a forthcoming Thousand Suns supplement scheduled for release in August 2009.

The number of responses and quality of submissions to the contest overwhelmed the Rogues, and they are currently contemplating another contest of this type.

The Rogues thank all who entered.

But wait! There's more.....

FASA Star Trek #2617 - Klingon with Disruptor Pistol

Manufacturer: FASA Corporation

Set #: 2617 - Klingon with Disruptor Pistol

ISBN #: 0-425-06903-6

Scale: 25mm

Year: 1983

MSRP: unknown

Additional Notes: Thought I'd throw this is for a change of pace from the Heritage figures and as a sign of better things to come. I'll be posting a FASA masterlist in the future. This, #2617, seems to have been the last of the figure miniatures FASA manufactured for its Star Trek: The Role Playing Game and Star Trek Miniatures line. Most listings of the figures I've seen only go as far as "2615 - Klingon Officer with Agonizer", and I suspect 2616 would have been another Klingon. The base is etched with what appears to be "LP83" on the bottom, though it may simply be "1983".

But wait! There's more.....