Star Trek w/ BRP

[Mysterioso]

Reading the threads here on Science Fiction in general and Star Wars has me wondering if anyone has done anything with Star Trek? If not, any recommendations on how to start preparing? Eventually, I'd like to be able to play out the kind of plots often found in the orginal series, with a party beaming down onto a planet to solve a mystery/have an adventure. Any sections of the Yellow Book I should look towards in particular? Any other ideas?

Thanks in advance.

[Jason D]

Here are my thoughts:

Use the following optional rules:

Choosing characteristic values

Higher starting characteristics

Education/Knowledge Roll

Cultural Modifiers

Nonhuman characters

Point-based Character Creation

Step Six

Increased Personal Skill Points

Total Hit Points

Skill Category Bonuses

Complimentary Skills

Skill Ratings over 100%

Psychic Powers and Mutations to handle aliens and mind powers - they shouldn't clash at all

Dodging Missile Weapons

Page 311 has a helpful illustration next to the Space Opera setting description

A phaser combines the blaster, disintegrator and stun functions

Medi-kits were pretty much straight out of Trek

It could work well... just spend some time browsing on Memory Alpha and take a lot of notes.

[threedeesix]

If you have access to the old FASA Star Trek, it's completely % based. Even the characteristics are, which can just be divided by 5 to get the BRP equivalent. It's still the best one that has been done in my opinion.

It also assumes all the characters are bridge crew, and each have their own control panel when space combat takes place, giving everyone something to do. Very well thought out.

Rod

[Mysterioso]

Here are my thoughts:

Use the following optional rules:

Choosing characteristic values

Higher starting characteristics

Education/Knowledge Roll

Cultural Modifiers

Nonhuman characters

Point-based Character Creation

Step Six

Increased Personal Skill Points

Total Hit Points

Skill Category Bonuses

Complimentary Skills

Skill Ratings over 100%

Psychic Powers and Mutations to handle aliens and mind powers - they shouldn't clash at all

Dodging Missile Weapons

Page 311 has a helpful illustration next to the Space Opera setting description

A phaser combines the blaster, disintegrator and stun functions

Medi-kits were pretty much straight out of Trek

It could work well... just spend some time browsing on Memory Alpha and take a lot of notes.

Thanks for this start! Coming from a Call of Cthulhu background, and only recently returned to it at that, seeing everything in the Yellow Book is a bit like being given an I-Phone after just starting to figure out the features on a regular cell phone; I'm amazed but also a bit overwhelmed. I'll have to pull out the little post-its to start marking the sections you cited.

BTW, I did see the illustration by the section on Space Opera. (As an aside, I wish that illustrator had done all the illustrations in the BRP book. I like his style and I think his pictures always capture the versatility that BRP presents.)

[Mysterioso]

If you have access to the old FASA Star Trek, it's completely % based. Even the characteristics are, which can just be divided by 5 to get the BRP equivalent. It's still the best one that has been done in my opinion.

It also assumes all the characters are bridge crew, and each have their own control panel when space combat takes place, giving everyone something to do. Very well thought out.

Rod

I wish I had a time machine to go back and get all these games that for some reason I did not grab when younger. This is another one that I missed out on. Maybe Drivethurrpg will have it?

[rpgstarwizard]

darn I was going to say that, also check other suns for ship construction

[wbcreighton]

I wish I had a time machine to go back and get all these games that for some reason I did not grab when younger. This is another one that I missed out on. Maybe Drivethurrpg will have it?

You won't be able to find it on Drivethrurpg because it was a licensed product and the license has long since expired. If you did an internet search you might find a pdf copy of one of the FASA rulebooks such as the one here:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/21028919/Star-Trek-Officers-Manual

[wbcreighton]

or this one:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/21368032/2001-star-trek-the-role-playing-game-game-operations-manual

or this one:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/21265289/2001-star-trek-the-role-playing-game-cadet-s-orientation-sourcebook

[Jason D]

An awesome and somewhat obscure game called Worlds Beyond uses the BRP system, officially with Chaosium's approval, and is pretty much exactly what you want. Starship construction rules, space combat, etc.

It's unfortunately long out of print. Chaosium got a boxload of copies and sold them all quickly, and tried to get the rights to a new version, but I believe they couldn't ever get the original IP holder to agree.

Here it is on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Worlds-Beyond-softcover-core-rules-Worlds-Beyond-RPG_W0QQitemZ290414249018QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item439e09c43a

Here are two entries on abebooks.com:

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=1220248799&searchurl=kn%3Dfrank%26sortby%3D6%26tn%3Dworlds%2Bbeyond%26x%3D0%26y%3D0

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=2158927865&searchurl=kn%3Dfrank%26sortby%3D6%26tn%3Dworlds%2Bbeyond%26x%3D0%26y%3D0

[Mysterioso]

An awesome and somewhat obscure game called Worlds Beyond uses the BRP system, officially with Chaosium's approval, and is pretty much exactly what you want. Starship construction rules, space combat, etc.

It's unfortunately long out of print. Chaosium got a boxload of copies and sold them all quickly, and tried to get the rights to a new version, but I believe they couldn't ever get the original IP holder to agree.

Here it is on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Worlds-Beyond-softcover-core-rules-Worlds-Beyond-RPG_W0QQitemZ290414249018QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item439e09c43a

Here are two entries on abebooks.com:

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=1220248799&searchurl=kn%3Dfrank%26sortby%3D6%26tn%3Dworlds%2Bbeyond%26x%3D0%26y%3D0

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=2158927865&searchurl=kn%3Dfrank%26sortby%3D6%26tn%3Dworlds%2Bbeyond%26x%3D0%26y%3D0

Thanks! There was a copy on Amazon's Used for $11.00. I say was as I just bought it. Now there is just the wait for it to get here.

Edited March 30, 2010 by Mysterioso

[jaysun]

Did you ever get anywhere with BRP take on Star Trek?

[Mysterioso]

Sadly, no. Started writing a few notes and then had major changes arise at work that have really kept me from doing much gaming at all.

[jaysun]

Ah man that's a shame.

[Mysterioso]

Some searching did turn up these non-BRP one-shot rules which look fun:

http://www.abillionmonkeys.com/trek/

Edited November 11, 2010 by Mysterioso

[jaysun]

Some searching did turn up these non-BRP one-shot rules which look fun:

http://www.abillionmonkeys.com/trek/

This looks pretty cool. Thanks for the link.

[The Venomous Pao]

This looks pretty cool. Thanks for the link.

Oh hey. I just poked my head in here because your WNMHGB thread at RPG.net had my brain ticking Trek thoughts again and lo and behold, it's you Small internet, eh?

Anyway, for those who are looking for a nice, simple Trek for one shots and such should definitely check out Where No Man Has Gone Before. It's d20-based, but let's be magnanimous in the proper Trek fashion

[jaysun]

Oh hey. I just poked my head in here because your WNMHGB thread at RPG.net had my brain ticking Trek thoughts again and lo and behold, it's you Small internet, eh?

Yep, this is where I found out about it.

[simonh]

I ran a short BRP based Star Trek game many years ago. I used a copy of the CoC rules and made up my own character sheet. Literaly, I didn't even worry too much about character generation untill we actualy started the game. Pretty much the only preperation I made was working up the character sheet. BRP is a highly flexible game system and it didn't let me down. Nowadays with a fully worked out set of multi-genre BRP rules it realy shouldn't be a problem.

I let the players decide amongst themselves which crew possitions they would take and then generate their characters from a big stack of skill points. I only allowed one Vulcan in the party, I gave him an extra 1D6 POW, a mind meld skill and resolved mind meld attempts using POW vs POW rolls. Nerve pinches were just a hand to hand attack with POW vs POW to stun instead of rolling damage. Can't remember how I handled Phasers. I pretty much made up any further special rules I needed on the spot.

It worked fine. As is often the case, trying to anticipate the rules you will need in advance is just too much work. Better to just get stuck in and do it. I did spend quite a bit of time working out the scenarios I'd run and the situations I wanted to put the characters in. That's the key. Spend your efforts on what you actualy want the game to be about and you should be fine.

Simon Hibbs

Edited December 31, 2010 by simonh

[rust]

By the way, GURPS Prime Directive, a Star Trek clone, is now available in a ver-

sion updated for GURPS 4th edition and as a PDF:

http://e23.sjgames.com/item.html?id=ADB8401

This could turn out to be a good source for ideas on how to translate Star Trek

into a roleplaying game, I think.

[SDLeary]

By the way, GURPS Prime Directive, a Star Trek clone, is now available in a ver-

sion updated for GURPS 4th edition and as a PDF:

http://e23.sjgames.com/item.html?id=ADB8401

This could turn out to be a good source for ideas on how to translate Star Trek

into a roleplaying game, I think.

Yes... based on the Star Fleet Battles universe, rather than a direct clone.

SDLeary

[Mysterioso]

Back when first mulling this over, I picked up a used copy of the original system rather than GURPS. It has some neat ideas like away teams rather than half the bridge beaming down. It also does reflect the universe as seen through Star Fleet Battles.

[sladethesniper]

Yeah, I have the original version too. Lots of good material to work with, but converting that system was PAINFUL...I went with LUG Trek/FASA Trek instead and using PD as background.

-STS

[Jeffrywith1e]

Having just seen Into the Darkness I'm all excited about Trek now. So I resurect this thread. And look what I found, all three FASA books from the original box set in one PDF

Star Trek the FASA Game

Edited May 27, 2013 by Jeffrywith1e
typo

[Mankcam]

Wasn't there a RQ Sci Fi homebrew pdf doing the rounds a while ago...? Perhaps someone may remember it...

[soltakss]

Wasn't there a RQ Sci Fi homebrew pdf doing the rounds a while ago...? Perhaps someone may remember it...

There is one at http://www.soltakss.com/rq_scifi.doc