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

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

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...

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

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.

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

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).

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

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.

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

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.....

Comparing Character Stats (Part 1)

Some of the folks over at TrekRPGNet were nice enough to admit reading this blog, and took some interest in my article on the Japanese Enterprise game I posted about earlier this week. Calastir over there has recently worked up some CODA character stats for the TOS Bridge Crew, and wanted to know how they compared to the classic character attributes in Enterprise.

Pretty cool idea! It can be interesting to compare the same character between different systems. It's especially interesting when one considers that not only was Enterprise the first Japanese TRPG, it was also arguably the first Star Trek RPG. Sure, Heritage had released STAGFF five years earlier, but it was more of a miniatures game with roleplay-like stats and features focused on combat, and some of the stats didn't have a material effect on the game. Enterprise, on the other hand, chose the traditional discussion-based roleplaying style to which we're more accustomed today -- and did so before FASA had released their Trek RPG!

Let's take a look at the stats for Captain James Tiberius Kirk for each of the five systems:

Star Trek: Adventure Gaming in the Final Frontier (3D6 based, 3-18)

STR 13, DEX 14, LUC 15, Mentality 14, CHA 16, CON 13

Enterprise (3D6 based, 3-18)

STR 15, DEX 15, IQ 13, CHA 16, LUC 15

FASA (3D10+40, 1-100)

STR 68, END 77, INT 84, DEX 79, CHA 94, LUC 98, PSI 29

LUG (Point spend, 1-5)

FIT 3, VIT +1, COORD 4, INT 4, PRES 5, PSI 0

CODA (2D6 random dice pool; or pick and spend, 4-12)

AGL 10 (+2), INT 8 (+1), PER 9 (+1), PRS 12 (+3), STR 10 (+2), VIT 10 (+2)

Phew. For an old school guy like me, just looking at the stats makes me want to translate Enterprise as quickly as possible!

Calastir asked that I post the Enterprise stats for the following 4 characters so that he can compare them to his own CODA versions. In Part 2 of this article, I'll post the stats for the other 10 TOS characters, along with some close-up scans and translations of those slick character cards.

Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu

STR 13, DEX 13, IQ 12, CHA 10, LUC 10

Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott

STR 14, DEX 14, IQ 12, CHA 9, LUC 11

Ensign Pavel Chekov

STR 12, DEX 13, IQ 11, CHA 11, LUC 13

Lieutenant Uhura

STR 11, DEX 12, IQ 13, CHA 15, LUC 14

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

Enterprise, the 1983 Japanese Star Trek RPG

ENTERPRISE - ROLE PLAY GAME IN STAR TREK (Japanese)

Manufacturer: Tsukuda Hobby
Designer: Tama Yutaka (多摩豊)
Set #: HG-014-R
Format: Boxed Set
Year: 1983
MSRP: ¥3,000

Enterprise - Role Play Game in Star Trek was a Japanese roleplaying game that, despite an impressive history of firsts, is not widely known in the western world. It was the first Japanese domestic RPG (note: RPGs in Japan are generally known as Table-Talk RPGs, or simply TRPG, to distinguish them from computer-based RPGs). It was Tsukuda Hobby's first entry into tabletop roleplaying games, alongside the wargames that they were already publishing. And as Enterprise was based on an official license from Paramount/Tohokushinsha for Star Trek, it was the first Japanese RPG based on a licensed property.

Background

ConSim (conflict simulation) wargames were already popular in Japan in the early 80s, published by Tsukuda, Bandai and other hobby publishers. Tsukuda had their "Hobby Simulation Game SF Series" which included 1982's Star Trek: The Invasion of Klingon Empire (HG-009), a strategic wargame similar to Task Force Games' Federation Space; two Star Wars games, Death Star (HG-005) and Hoth (HG-010); and various titles based on the Gundam and Xabungle anime universes. Enterprise would be the first of the series to be designated as a "role play game".

Although Enterprise was the first domestic RPG released in this format, it was technically preceded by Donkey Commando, a tactical level science fiction minigame featuring character stats, published in the Japanese Tactics magazine in 1982. At the time, western RPG titles such as Dungeons & Dragons and Traveller were known by many Japanese gamers, but it wouldn't be until 1984 that these games would actually be imported by companies such as Hobby Japan, and later be localized for Japanese hobbyists. In the meantime, computer-based RPGs were already beginning to gain interest, and Japanese designers were starting to create their own tabletop RPGs.

The first original TRPG came after Enterprise, and was another science fiction title called Star Quest (Tsukuda HG-032-R). Interestingly, it was written by Ed Lipsett, an American expert on Japan and author of the wonderful 1979 Spacefarers' Guide series from Phoenix Games, which served as a starting point for Star Quest. The first Japanese translations of Traveller were starting to appear and gain popularity, and Tsukuda was eager to have their own competing product in place. Star Quest was similar in concept to Traveller, but utilized a d1000 mechanic (roll 3 d10: designate one as the 100 value, one as the 10 value, and the last as the 1 value, to get a result from 001 to 1000). Around the same time, Tsukuda released the first domestic fantasy TRPG, Roads to Load (HG-030-R). All of these games set the stage for TRPGs in Japan -- imported and domestic, licensed and original -- which would become increasingly popular well into the early 90s.

It's impossible for me to know how much of an impact Enterprise made at the time (I suspect that it wasn't very much), but it is nevertheless interesting to note that it was a Star Trek RPG that started the ball rolling in Japan. I should also note that the game was written by Tama Yutaka, a pioneer in the early Japanese gaming industry. He was a founding member of the Keio University HQ Simulation Game Club, graduated in 1984 (he designed Enterprise while in school), co-edited (with Hitoshi Yasuda, translator/author of the Hobby Japan Traveller) the Japanese version of the UK publication Warlock - The Fighting Fantasy Magazine, was author and translator of numerous gaming texts and articles, and is even credited with some early PC adventure games. Sadly, Mr. Yutaka passed away in 1997 at the age of 35.

ENTERPRISE - Contents

Like most Japanese publications and boxed games, the quality of the components of Enterprise was exceptional. It came packed in a brilliantly colored hard cardboard box (8.5" x 11.5" x 1.5") featuring Kirk, Spock and McCoy on the front; and a black and white rear cover with a description of the game, pictures of some of the character cards and their stats, and a list of the game components, as follows:

• A 20-page Rulebook, almost entirely text with few illustrations and no other Star Trek photos


• A 13-page Adventure book, including 4 pages of maps with a "blueprint" look to them


• 15 double-sided Character Cards, coated for use with erasable markers or crayon; the front featured a photo of the player character, and the back listed their statistics and provided space for tracking hits, making notes and so on; cards were provided for Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Scotty, Sulu, Chekov, Chapel, Rand, Commander Kang the Klingon, Stonn the Vulcan, Subcommander Tal the Romulan and three blank cards, presumably for NPCs


• Two twenty-sided D10 dice (red and white, numbered 0-9)


• One 9mm D6


• Mail-in return survey card


• 4-page 1983 Tsukuda Simulation Game catalog detailing the SF Series, HG-001 through HG-016

ENTERPRISE - Game Mechanics

At this point, there's not a great deal I can say about the game itself as I've yet to translate it. I've done this kind of work before (see my translation of Bandai's 1982 Mothra vs Godzilla wargame), but I'm by no means a Japanese expert, and translating games is a time-consuming process. I do plan to do so (2 months?), so keep checking back!

Having said that, here's what I can tell from a glance. It appears that the mechanic is roll 2d10 under attribute for many task resolutions, as well as some percentile rolls. Each character has five basic attributes: Strength (1-18, which also acts as HP), Dexterity (3-18), IQ (10-18), Charisma (10-18) and Luck (3-18). Rules are provided for a PSY (Psionic) characteristic, but it's not listed on any of the cards. Characters are also provided a space for Special Abilities, and assigned an Alignment (Lawful Good, Lawful Bad, Neutral, Erratic Bad, Erratic Good) that is cross-referenced with an opposing character's alignment to determine CH and IQ modifiers to opposed tasks.

Hand-to-Hand combat appears to simply be ST-ST to cross-reference and determine the % required to roll under. There are only about 10 small tables, so the game doesn't appear to be at all complex. There do not seem to be any rules for class, skills, XP and possibly not even for character creation. I don't see anything for starships or starship combat, and the adventure itself appears to be completely landing party based.

For now, Enterprise appears to be mostly a curiosity, especially to those accustomed to more sophisticated (and English!) RPG systems. Nevertheless, I thought it was important to at least get it documented.

And, if nothing else, the next time someone tries to trick you when asking "How many licensed Star Trek RPGs were there?" (expecting you to forget Heritage, and answer "3"), you can turn the table on them and say "5!"

References and additonal resources (Japanese):

TRPG Chronology
Wikipedia Japan entry on Tama Yutaka
TRPG Library

Very special thanks to EL

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