By Jim Johnson, Star Trek Adventures Project Manager
Art by Justin Usher
In last week’s blog, we discussed how to create your crew of Star Trek™ Adventures characters. By this point, you should know what Star Trek time period you’re setting your game in and which civilization your characters are part of. You should also know the role for each character, and may have already discussed ideas on what type of starship you want to use for your campaign. Before you go boldly exploring the Star Trek universe, you need a means of transport: your home among the stars. You need a starship.
The following advice applies equally to whatever sort of starship you and your group want to create, whether it’s part of Starfleet, the Klingon Defense Force, the Romulan navy, independent traders, or some other combination. All page references below refer to the second edition core rulebook.
Follow the Starship Creation Process
Page 193 outlines the five steps for building your starship. After reviewing the process with your group, follow it step by step, selecting a timeframe, spaceframe, mission profile, service record (if desired), and assigning refit modifiers (if needed).
Select a Timeframe
If your group hasn’t already selected an era of play for the game by discussing it during Session 0 or during character generation, discuss which era of play most appeals to the group as the basis for your game. Most ship classes are available only during specific periods of play, just as some types of starship weapons are present in certain periods only. The timeframe the group selects has a strong influence on what kind of starship they’ll serve on and what types of adversary starships they are likely to encounter while exploring the unknown.
Select a Spaceframe
Your group may have already discussed what kind of ship they want their characters to serve on during Session 0 or while building characters together. If so, then selecting a spaceframe should be a simple matter. If they haven’t yet agreed on which spaceframe to select, note the group’s expected era of play, and review the core rulebook for a spaceframe with a launch date within or before the chosen era of play. If your group has access to a copy of the first edition supplement Utopia Planitia Starfleet Sourcebook, review the additional Starfleet spaceframes contained therein.
Selecting a spaceframe provides the ship’s base ratings for systems and departments, the starting complement of weapons, any relevant starship talents, and any special rules specific to that spaceframe. Note these on your ship sheet.
Select a Mission Profile
During Session 0 or while creating characters together, it’s possible the group discussed what types of missions might appeal to them most. If so, select the mission profile best fitting those desired mission types and add the system and department modifiers to the base spaceframe statistics, and work as a group to pick a talent from those listed for the mission profile.
If the group hasn’t yet decided what types of missions most interest them, work together to pick the most appealing mission profile.
If your group wants more options than what is provided in the core rulebook for spaceframes, mission profiles, and talents, the second edition Game Toolkit provides an additional 17 spaceframes, five more mission profiles, and five more starship talents.
Select a Service Record
The group may decide to further differentiate their ship from the sister ships in her class by selecting a service record and adding that service record’s trait and special rule to their starship sheet. This is an optional step, as the group may decide none of the available service records fit the vision for their ship.
Assign Refits
If your group picks a spaceframe with a launch date more than 10 years prior to the starting date of the campaign, the group assigns a refit benefit to the ship for every 10 full years of service between the spaceframe’s launch date and the start of the campaign. This represents how starships are in a regular state of refinement and revision, enabling them to keep pace technologically with spaceframes launched in later periods.
Final Details
You and your group should pick a name and registry for the ship, as appropriate. If the ship doesn’t have a number of talents equal to its Scale, work as a group to select as many additional talents as needed. Determine the ship’s starting Resistance, Shields, and weapon damage modifier. Then, gather the player characters on the bridge to take her out for your crew’s first adventure!
Adapt First Edition Spaceframes and Ship Mechanics to Second Edition
If you are familiar with first edition Star Trek Adventures, what if you have a favorite spaceframe that isn’t yet available in second edition but you want to port it over for use? No problem! Since the two editions are very similar, converting a first edition spaceframe to second edition is a simple process that will require just a little bit of effort between you and your group.
First edition spaceframes (found in a variety of products) were all built using essentially the same points process as detailed in the Utopia Planitia Starfleet Sourcebook. Most of the spaceframes presented in second edition are the same as those found in first edition, though in some cases system and department ratings and lists of weapons and talents were tweaked to better represent the spaceframe within canon. Feel free to do the same with your spaceframe of choice. Tweak the ratings as needed, and adjust the list of talents and special rules as needed to meet second edition standards. Minor adjustments to the system and department ratings, or tweaking the lists of weapons, talents, and special rules aren’t going to break the game, so feel free to work with your group to adjust the statistics of your chosen spaceframe to your specific interests.
Note you will need to revise any first edition starship talents or special rules referring to Challenge Dice, as Challenge Dice are not used in second edition. If a favorite starship talent or special rule from first edition is not present in second edition, work with your group to tweak it to taste, or find a second edition option functionally the same as your desired talent or special rule. You’ll also need to calculate the new ratings for Shields, Resistance, and weapon damage.
If you and your group get stuck on how to convert a particular first edition spaceframe, starship talent, or special rule to second edition, feel free to post a question to the official Modiphius Discord STA rules questions channel.
I hope this article helped you and your group create your crew’s home among the stars for your Star Trek Adventures game or campaign. The next blog in this How to Play series will focus on planning and running your group’s first adventure together. In the meantime, clear all moorings and set course for the second star to the right!
Order your print copy of the second edition Star Trek Adventures core rulebook now in standard format or one of three limited edition covers! And order a print copy of the second edition Game Toolkit as well, to expand your options for exploring the final frontier.
2nd Edition Core Rulebook (Command):
2nd Edition Core Rulebook (Sciences):
2nd Edition Core Rulebook (Operations):
All print orders will also receive the digital versions right away.
Alternatively, you can order the digital editions by themselves of the standard core rulebook and the Game Toolkit.
2nd Edition Core Rulebook PDF:
Thanks for reading this article, and thank you for your interest and support of Star Trek Adventures! Keep frequencies open for news about other upcoming Star Trek Adventures product releases. Live long and prosper!
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