Quote from: BadApple on December 05, 2023, 01:23:27 PM

Quote from: Banjo Destructo on December 05, 2023, 01:07:29 PM
I think "Cyberpunk" is the wrong word for the setting? What is it that they call "Alien"?  "Cassette futurism"? I think that fits in better than cyberpunk if you're trying to make a gritty less "everything is perfect" kind of description of star trek.  Or just call it was it is "space western" because its a "wagon trail in space"

It's not the setting that makes a cyberpunk story cyberpunk, it's the characters.  My hypothesis that I started this thread with is that Star Trek is an excellent setting for cyberpunk characters to have adventures in and that in turn could illuminate Star Trek in a new way.

Hmnn.  How about saying "It's a Space Western - Let's call it 'Man With No Name' in space"?

Quote from: finarvyn on November 20, 2023, 08:21:18 AM
I like the way you think, BadApple. 

Also, don't forget the Orion Pirates. In the universe of the FASA Star Trek RPG I'm pretty sure they had a region of space near Orion known as "the Triangle" full of scum and villainy. Perhaps I'm getting that confused with the Tholian Holdfast region, at the intersection of Klingon-Romulan space. Either way, a hotbed of action there. And with the Klingons and Romulans trading tech, there must be some group of smugglers assisting the transfer.

An interesting vision of Star Trek. 

You're right and wrong.  In FASAtrek, the Triangle was a no-man's land of single planets, single systems, and pocket empires - pretty much the original Traveller vibe. The Tholians were off in another corner of the map.
In Star Fleet Battlesverse, well put a map of 1940 Europe on the wall.  The Federation is France.  In the upper right of the map is an enemy nation waiting to invade (think Germany), while in the lower right is another nation waiting to invade (think Italy).  What prevents them from attacking as a united front is a fiercely independent and paranoid nation who has loudly proclaimed belligerent neutrality (think Switzerland).  That is where SFB put the Tholians.
(I prefer SFBverse, and would set any games there, rather than FASA or more recent efforts).

Star Trek is not a cyberpunk setting in any way.

Star Trek is the pseudomilitary space opera of the movie Forbidden Planet, mixed with the sci fi voyage of exploration themes from A.E. van Vogt's book The Voyage of the Space Beagle. (The latter's odd title is a reference to the ship HMS Beagle that took Charles Darwin to the Galapagos Islands, btw, not to Snoopy.) It is broadly utopian, but conflict is a constant theme (again, think Forbidden Planet). It is set in the far future.

Cyberpunk is a dystopian view of society, mixed with a somewhat utopian view of technology. In cyberpunk, all technology eventually becomes as cheap as human life, but unlike Star Trek it does not improve the human condition. Cyberpunk was originally set in the near future, in an urban setting devoid of space opera themes, but as its original timeline has been overtaken by the present, it has become more of an alternate universe. There are space colonies, but they are depicted cynically, and it is assumed that they are no better than life on earth.

This whole thread makes me want to start a thread about the 'right way' to run a good or fun Star Trek RPG campaign....

Sorry,...apologies - I know that is not 'on topic'....

- Ed C.

Quote from: Koltar on December 17, 2023, 01:00:51 PM
This whole thread makes me want to start a thread about the 'right way' to run a good or fun Star Trek RPG campaign....

Sorry,...apologies - I know that is not 'on topic'....

- Ed C.

Admittedly, I knew that I would spark up some controversy when I started this thread.  I love the original series and the hopeful outlook it had.  I can understand how it can ruffle feathers looking at the setting with a different perspective.  No need to apologize.

I do have to put the question out there though.  If I had recommended a Klingon game centered around combat and honor, would it still have been wrong?  It does go against the major theme of the shows...

Quote from: BadApple on December 17, 2023, 01:41:37 PM


I do have to put the question out there though.  If I had recommended a Klingon game centered around combat and honor, would it still have been wrong?  It does go against the major theme of the shows...

A group that is a Command crew of a Klingon cruiser is a very much more valid campaign framework.

TWO game companies have given that as an option over the years - Both the FASA company back in the 1980s and more recently Modiphius with their game system.

Heck, "Deep Space Nine" set at least two episodes 90% on a Bird of Prey with General Martok commanding. The episode "Soldiers of the Empire" is a classicf RPG situation - group of 4 or 5 are not sure about their commander. Will the First Officer do the right thing? Who can they trust?

- Ed C.

Quote from: Koltar on December 17, 2023, 01:00:51 PM
This whole thread makes me want to start a thread about the 'right way' to run a good or fun Star Trek RPG campaign....

Sorry,...apologies - I know that is not 'on topic'....

- Ed C.

Honestly, I'd read that thread.

Or even just a "how I ran my Trek game" thread with followup on how it turned out.

I'd enjoy running a Trek or Trek-like game at some point, and I'd love to get some pointers.

Quote from: BadApple on December 17, 2023, 01:41:37 PM
I do have to put the question out there though.  If I had recommended a Klingon game centered around combat and honor, would it still have been wrong?  It does go against the major theme of the shows...

Show me a Star Trek show with a Klingon ship and crew as the main characters, and you might have a point.

As it is, the series(s) do have some Klingon centric epsiodes. And combat and honor feature heavily in them. And in many they question the ideas of Klingon honor compared to the reality of how the Klingon people actually act. Kind of comparable to asking if the Federation is really a utopia.