This will be the Q&A thread for our new Trek game, "Star Trek: Veiled Chimera". 

First and foremost - familiarize yourselves with the posts in the Star Trek: Draconis Fleet FAQ.  This covers things like posting format, how to play, chain of command, ranks, etc. I am more than happy to help with any and all questions, but you really should refer to that thread first, as a lot of the common stuff will go there!

If you have question, though, you can always submit them here.

Some links you may find useful!

Memory Alpha: the biggest Star Trek wiki on the internet. If you need to know canon trek info, check here.

RDI Trek Tools: our own in-house trek tools include the ship's roster and logbook, among other items. Use these to help keep things straight in our game.

Saber Class Specs: complete details of the Saber class vessel. Use this to figure out what deck a given department is located on, what types of probes the ship carries, what a given security rating is, and on and on. If there is ever a conflict or question, please use this resource as absolute canon information on our ship.  Special thanks to the "Star Trek: a Call to Duty" community for this superb resource!

Saber (-P Variant) Class Crew Compliment: a full breakdown of all officers and enlisted crew on the ship, by department (Word Doc format).

Bridge layout: The current standard Saber Class bridge layout is as follows. The Captain's Chair, Tactical, Operations, and Engineering are on a raised area of the bridge.

The Tactical/Security control station (comprised of two consoles, one for tactical, and one for security functions) is to the left of the Captain's Chair.

To the Captain's right is the Operations manager's console. Identical in size and design to the Tactical/Security station, the Operations manager is located closer to the bridge engineering station rather than close to the front of the bridge.

Also located on the platform, against the aft wall of the bridge, is a large master systems display monitor, similar to the one in main engineering. All relative ship information (such as damage, power distribution, etc.) is displayed on the cutaway image of the ship. Below the MSD is a large engineering console encompassing Eng I and Eng II. These consoles are usually unattended, but can be activated if an Engineering presence is requested on the bridge.

Directly fore of the command area is the Flight Control Officer, who faces the main viewer. At the very front of the bridge chamber is a large viewscreen.

Against the port walls of the main bridge, forward of the raised command section, are the consoles for Science and others that are programmable for a multitude of functions. There are two Science consoles.

Against the starboard wall of the main bridge, forward of the Captain's chair, is the Executive officer's console. It is typically configured as a backup to any of the other stations, as the XO is most often a department head currently in one of the other stations.



Pretend that second chair by the Captain isn't there, and you have a nigh-perfect image.

Stardate: 2018.10.10
My Work, My Office - 1512

Yay the game is starting! I'm playing a junior officer, Ens. Garner.  He'll be a Flight Control Officer for this mission.

This game will begin in early 2365, which roughly coincides with season two of Star Trek: the Next Generation. The Borg attack and the Battle of Wolf 359 is around two years in the future.

The game will start on 2365.02.19.  Commander Drake has spent a week off of the ship.  If you are new to the Peregrine, you will have come on board at some point between the 12th and the start of the game.  Quite afew will have come on as of the 19th - since Drake was just cleared.

Commander Drake has been the CO of the Peregrine for about seven months now.

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On ranks...

As you all know, I am the GM of this game. I am playing the role of Commander Drake, but understand that he is as much a plot device as a player character.

Chain of command does matter. The command staff of the vessel acts in something of a "helper GM" role to me, and their orders carry full authority and weight. I doubt that will ever be an issue, but I wanted that to be clear.

Note that my version of Trek is slightly more military than that often portrayed on the various TV shows. Unless a superior officer has given you leave to act more informally, assume that you should salute, make formal reports, etc. Pay attention to the standard forms of address (which basically mimic those of Her Majesty's Navy):

Superior officers are always referred to as "sir" (unless you are using the proper rank address below). This is regardless of gender. Likewise, the term "mister" is pretty universal, regardless of gender.

All flag officers are always called "Admiral", regardless of grade. A commodore is called "Commodore".

The captain (or commanding officer) of a ship is always called "Captain", regardless of grade (such as when a commander is in charge of a smaller vessel, as is the case in this game).

A full commander is always called "Commander" - unless, as above, said Commander is in charge of a vessel. When under weigh, said officer would be referred to as "Captain".

A lieutenant commander is called "Commander", unless a captain (or higher) elects to refer to him as "Mister". However, doing so is giving offense, as it indicates that the lieutenant commander is a junior officer.

Junior officers (ensign up to lieutenant) are referred to by their ranks or by "Mister" Lastname.

Cadets or warrant officers are referred to as "Mister" Lastname.

NCOs are addressed solely by their rate (the term rate is preferred over "rank" for enlisteds). It is appropriate to address a petty officer (of any grade) as "Petty Officer". A chief petty officer is referred to as "chief", a senior chief petty officer is referred to as "senior chief", and a master chief petty officer is referred to as "master chief".

In addition, note that chief petty officers are expected to assist in the training of junior commissioned officers, so while the lowliest ensign may technically outrank a chief, the ensign would be wise to pay proper respect!

Enlisteds are typically referred to as "crewman" or "yeoman", without the last name attached.

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Chain of Command

There are no ties; the higher on the list that a character is, the higher they are in the chain of command. Note that in all but the most catastrophic of situations, only line officers are eligible for command. This means that, even though the Chief Engineer and Ship's Doctor are higher in rank and have more experience, Ensign Thomason (on his first assignment from the Academy) would theoretically command the ship first. That said, if he values his large skin, he would do well to show proper respect for the ranks of superior officers regardless if they are line officers or not.

Line Officers
Cmdr. Drake
Lt. Cmdr. Zai (XO)
Lt. Nyle (2O)
Lt. Tal
Ltjg. Reid
Ltjg. Moriden
Ltjg.. P'Tammah
Ens. Blackmon
Ens. Forb
Ens. Garner

Staff Officers
Lt. Cmdr. Thorson
Lt. McTavish
Lt. Reine
Ltjg. Sh'iraolnas
Ltjg. Sa'eridon
Ltjg. Morgan
Ens. Maize
Ens. Jenneric

I have hijacked this spot to post the standing duty roster, by character. Shifts are divided into alpha, beta, and gamma - roughly corresponding to day shift, evening shift, and night shift.

Please understand that there can certainly be variations on this - a couple of people swap shifts, somebody gets a rare bridge shift, somebody gets an extra off day, etc. However, it should be really useful to help people figure out where they should be on a given day. Obviously, seniority grants a more stable, favorable schedule - fewer late night shifts, fewer rotating shifts (i.e. alpha one day, gamma another). I have tried to keep people on ROUGHLY the same shift wherever possible, and when that isn't possible, I try to keep shifts one step off (i.e. alpha to beta, but not to gamma).

NOTE: the first day of our game (2365.02.19) is a Friday!
If you have issues or want to adjust this, just let me know, and I'll see what I can do.

Standard shifts are eight hours long, and flow as follows:
Alpha: 0700-1500
Beta: 1500-2300
Gamma: 2300-0700

A responsible officer should expect to be at their duty station a good fifteen minutes before the shift starts, so as to get report and be up to speed.

Medical shifts are twelve hours long, and instead take the following schedule:
Alpha: 0700-1900
Beta: 1900-0700

Typically medical shifts are referred to as "Sickbay Alpha, Sickbay Beta" so as to avoid confusion.

Some diagrams:

Basic Ship Data

Saber Class located on page 74 (actually on page 76)

Class: Saber
Type: Fast Frigate
Commissioned: 2358
Length: 190 metres
Width: 193.19 metres
Height: 48.6 metres
Weight: 2,756,000 metric tons
Crew: 60
Cruising Speed: Warp 6
Maximum Speed: Warp 9.7
Armament: 3 Type X phaser arrays, 2 Mk 75 photon torpedo launchers

NCC Known Ships (USS)
79273 Nighthawk
79812 Shrike (destroyed)
61956 Pearson
61947 Yeager

CLASS INFORMATION:
The Saber Class starship entered service in 2358 with the purpose to replace the out-dated Oberth class science/scout ships, as well as to fill the role of an escort/police vessel for the internal security of the Federation. She was envisioned as an extension of the Steamrunner class light cruiser, so that, when working in tandem, the two classes would complement and support each other. With limited facilities, long-term missions were generally outside of its design, but for internal Federation missions, or specific deep space objectives, the Saber proved to be a very capable ship.

Small, fast, highly maneuverable, and well armed, the Saber has also proven its worth as a defensive vessel. Many ships of this class were involved in the defense of Sol during the Second Borg Incursion, as well as being involved in the conflict against the Cardassian/Dominion alliance. While not specifically a warship, the Saber held its own and showed itself to be a valuable asset for Starfleet and the Federation.

Right-click on any of the images and select View in New Tab to see the full-sized image.

Here's Memory Alpha's info on the Saber Class.

And Memory Beta's...

Yes we are!

I would like to propose that the Science Department be downsized. Providing, of course, that the nature of the mission doesn't require such a "stocked" science department. Asovil could likely handle it either alone or with one subordinate. This would bring the overall personnel count down by four or five and make the ship less crowded.

I have hijacked this post to share the duty schedule per station.  All PCs now have their own personal duty schedules, but it can be very helpful to know who is on the bridge at a given time, who is in charge of engineering, etc.

By Odin's pants, let's get this cranked up. Chief Engineer Eric Thorson is dusted off and online. Fair warning, though, I have to work the next four days in a row, twelve-hour shifts, so I won't be able to get into game mode until Monday. After that, I shouldn't have to work more than three days at a stretch, which is the longest I should have to go without posting. Looking forward to getting back in the saddle!

CTO Lt Kara Tal, reporting for duty.

Looking very forward to meeting you, Lt Tal.

Assistant Chief Tactical OfficerJohn Reid reporting for duty.

I will modify m background a little to make the family link a bit more vague.

Not going to push that and make things seem silly.

No worries, Ody.

I have edited the sim details  Trek tools to reflect the mission date and the new game threads.

Chief Operations Officer Nyle, respectfully requesting to come aboard!

I'm excited! I cannot, however, figure out how to add LT Nyle to the roster. How would I go about doing that?

You have to be logged in.  Go to armoury->Trek Tools.  Pick the USS Peregrine.  Go to roster.  Mouse over the "roster" menu item, it will pop up "add character".

Let me know if you need help!

I will give that a go!