Building the Foundation

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Building the Foundation

Post by Taylor_Isley » Sat Sep 10, 2016 2:53 am

Hello Team,

As stated by Matt when he first posted about the new Areas of Operation the focus of this Task Force will be exploration. That does not mean however that our TF story arc needs to be vague, undefined or boring.

Was the new world boring when the Europeans first came to the Americas? No. In fact, it was deadly and scary for the native and new explorers. Asia and India were both full of culture and traditions long before the west ever arrived and made thing worse. ( Sorry but It’s true.) And I think as we build this story arc we need to look at our own past and make sure we incorporate that into this new area of space.

When TF11 was made the staff put together three concepts and then asked you all what one you liked most. I am not going to do that to start. There is too much we don’t know about this area for me to just do that out right. I want you all to be apart of building this. So what I will do is ask you all to help me build a foundation of basic facts and once we have that I will start a new post with some concepts for us to chose from.

Here are some questions we need to ask as we make this story Arc are:

Who is already living in the area? Nations? Raiders? Trade Federations?

What are the current relationships between those currently living in the area? How does the Federations arrival in the area effect these relationships?

How did we arrive in the Delta quadrant? How secure is this method of travel?

How long ago did we arrive? Did we just arrive or have we had time to make a beach head (starbase)?

If we have been in the area for a little while who have we already made contact with? How do they feel about our presence?

These are all questions we need to ask as we build this story arc. Some of them we need to put Limits on and we already have an answer to thanks to the Simms within the Task Force.

Simply due to the fact the Oberon Base is in the TF, we can safely say that the Federation has had access to the Delta Quadrant some time. Because the Federations feels comfortable to build a Planetary base we can also safely assume that Starfleet has some sort of beachhead within the area. This also means that we have most likely made Contact with at least some of the major players in the area.

Seeing how we don’t have a map for the TF (unless you are hiding something from me Matt) we are open to whatever.

So Let's get talking about this and let's Start by answer these questions and once we answer the ones below we can move forward.

#1: Who are the Major players in the area? (3 maybe 4 Major players)

We should make at least two if not all three of these Major players races we have seen from Voy. The reason we should do that is so that New members entering the fleet don’t need to read up and learn about our created races when they join. It is easier for them to see races they know from the Show.

#2: How did we get to the Delta quadrant?

This is a very importing Question. I am really looking to hear ideas from you all on how we are going this.

#3: We have already established above that the Federation has made a beachhead in the area. So the question is: How large is this beachhead? Is it a starbase and the area around it or is it a larger area? Have we claimed area or are we just looking around?

Once we these three questions answered we can move forward. An importing thing to remember is that we have until the end of the month to make this TF plot so we can’t spend forever talking. At Points along the way we will have to say “This is what we are doing,” Move forward.

I open this to everyone. Seeing how we don’t know what TF everyone is in at the moment and I feel the whole fleet has good ideas.

So Let's get Talking!
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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Taylor_Isley » Sat Sep 10, 2016 5:03 pm

Last night I came up wit this idea to Question one:
#1: Who are the Major players in the area? (3 maybe 4 Major players)
I Started Looking at Maps of the path that Voyager took across the Delta quadrant to get an Idea of what races are near each other. I found this Map here http://members.tripod.com/neelix_4/astrom.gif Now I don't think we should use this map but it is a good look at the path shown on the show.

My thinking is we be a little east of the Caretakers array. It would put us in an area that is Isolated from the Borg and near Major races that new races can look up on Memory alpha.

With this idea the Major Players in the are would be:

The Kazon: We all remember that lovely nice group of people :D . They Split into Sects and out worldly violent. Very Simular to the Klingons when we first made Contact. There is a lot of possibility for conflict. We know from Voy. that they are Jealous and want our technology. But at the same time, they seem to have the capability to be reasoned with and talked to. Which like with the Klingons could lead to an alliance down the road. http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Kazon

The Vidiian: Best known as having their skin falling off and trying to take our organs the Vidiian are a race anyone who has watched Voyager knows well. However, Voyager did leave us with something that may have changed the way the race viewed, in more than one way.
In 2375 the Think Tank stated they had cured the Phage. In doing so, the Think Tank also stated that "you wouldn't recognize them now," insinuating that they had returned to their pre-phage pursuits, ideals, and morals. (VOY: "Think Tank")
It has been almost 20 years we can expand that and make them a people not much different than ourselves. Now does this make them a natural Ally or are we an unwelcome competitor? I vote for a potential cautious ally in the region. http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Vidiian

Krowtonan Guard: You may not know that Krowtonan Guard even if you did watch the show. They are only talked about briefly during the USS Equinox episodes. But to sum them up they are an aggressive military organization. What is cannon can be read about here http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Krowtonan_Guard which is not much. What this means is that as we explore we can learn more about them and build the fleet cannon.

So, those are my idea for the Major powers in the area. Like i said we should get our own map but as you can see from the map linked to above there is a whole lot of space around that is unclaimed and completely unexplored. So not only would we be exploring and meeting these 3 major players there is a large area for us to meet and create our own regional players.

As I stated before this would also Separate us from the dreaded Borg. That is done by the Nekrit Expanse to the south. Information About the Expanse can be found here: http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Nekrit_Expanse
If we went with this Idea the Expanse would form our southern Border with the borg on the other side. Which means we may run across them but not a lot.

That is my idea for the Major players in the area. How do other feel about this? What is your idea? and What do you think about the other 2 questions I asked above?
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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Taylor_Isley » Sun Sep 11, 2016 12:47 am

Below are a couple of ideas to question #2: How did we get to the Delta quadrant?

Iconian gateways:

This idea is based off the Iconian Gateways, basic cannon on them can be found here: http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Iconian_gateway & http://memory-beta.wikia.com/wiki/Iconian_gateway

Due to some limitations of Gateways in Cannon in order to have the gateways serve the function we would need, two-way travel, Fleet Cannon would have to be made. Below is a basic overview of that Cannon. In the event that this option is chosen this canon would be fleshed out in more detail.
“The Iconian gateway was a technology developed by the ancient Iconians, whose underlying principles remain well beyond Federation science. The gateway allowed instantaneous travel over enormous distances, at least 70,000 light years. Physically the gateway appeared literally as a "door", either suspended in space or surrounded by a frame, through which was the destination. An individual could simply step through the gateway (as they would an ordinary door) and emerge on the other side. The gateway network allowed the Iconians to travel throughout the galaxy without the use of starships.” - Memory Alpha
Before Iconians mastered their gateway technology and gave up the use of travel via Starships They attempted to connect galaxy via large ship sized gateways. It is believed that these gateways were used to move large fleets across the galaxy during the development of the Iconian Empire.

Due to the size needed to move fleets the Large Iconians gates required a receiving gate to stabilize the connection. Meaning that unlike the final version of the gates the large gates could only travel to fixed positions.

(Long story short) A Large gate was found (Insert location) and activated, connecting the Alpha and Delta quadrants. For unknown reasons, the gate seems to only connect to the one other gate. It is assumed that other gates in the system have all been destroyed.

Like I said this is not a finished document but just the basics to give you all an idea of the idea.

Barzan wormhole:


http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Barzan_wormhole

This is a very simple Option. The barzan wormhole has been stabilized and now comes out in the Delta Quadrant. It is so simple I almost feel lame suggesting it.
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Theses Ideas came up while talking to others on the IRC. I want to hear what you all think about these Ideas and if you have any others that would be good to use.

It seems I am the only one talking here but it has only been one day so maybe it is too soon to say that. Feel free to comment on any suggestion I made above and make your own suggestions. No matter your Position in the fleet I want to hear from you.
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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Aaron » Sun Sep 11, 2016 1:03 am

When it comes to how we got there I think both are viable situations and I like to keep things simple so I personally prefer the wormhole situation.

As to How long ago did we arrive I think we would have sent some scout ships through a year or so ago and that is long enough for us to find a place and setup Oberon Base and then Star Fleet decides that the wormhole is stable they start sending new ships through to build a task force to explore the quadrant. Just my two cents!
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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Williams » Sun Sep 11, 2016 1:50 pm

One idea I kind of like for how to get there is the use of a graviton catapult. We saw one used in the episode The Voyager Conspiracy, I think in season 6. That was cobbled together by one guy and used a type of reactor only found on the caretakers array, so it's feasible that Starfleet could reverse-engineer a better one, utilising some sort of special power source - a linked power plant on a highly geologically-active planet, or placing it in orbit of a particularly rare type of star that would give it the power to send ships across greater distances than the one Voyager used. That special power source could be the limiting factor in why we don't use the technology more readily; we'd have to locate a suitable location on the other side (maybe using Pathfinder) to send the ships to, and then construct a matching catapult on the other side. It's one of the ideas we came up with while brainstorming areas for the new TFs before putting it up to a vote, but it was my favourite of the bunch, personally. It would also give some more options around the beachhead - did we build a starbase or planetary base with the new catapult? How long did the catapult take to build? Did we send a bunch of exploratory ships and enough materials to build places like Oberon Base through while we were still building the return catapult?

I've emailed you through details of the other bits of brainstorming we did too, in case that is of any use to you.


For the major players in the region, I've always quite liked the idea of revisiting some of the species we saw in later seasons, like the Voth, Vaadwaur and the Hirogen. I think they're all pretty well-travelled though, so they could show up anywhere we choose to locate the TF.

I don't have a TF map already for 37, though the other maps we have for the fleet are based off the Star Trek Star Charts by Geoffrey Mandel. I can always put one together in the same style, either based off his version of the DQ map, the one you found above, a combination, or something that we just come up with ourselves.

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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Taylor_Isley » Sun Sep 11, 2016 4:21 pm

Ok, let's just say that I wrote A very long response that then got lost and now I am sad. :( Due to that this response is not going to be as long or detailed but I will get my major points across.

I really like the Catapult.

OOC I like it because it is something that has not been done by others. We would be doing our own thing and not copying something else. It is also not as lame as the wormhole or as complicated as the Gateways.

IC I like it because it is something we would own. Other races could not make the argument they have the right to use the Catapult. It is also something that can be destroyed making it so we do not open the federation to an invasion like happened with the Dominion. Because it can be damaged it also gives other, who may not like us being in the area, a target. Which could be fun?

If we used the Catapult here in the chain of events I see leading to current times.
1. A probe is launched to the star with a way of communication back to SF (Maybe By the use of pathfinder) to make sure the star has the right properies to build a return catapult.
2. Ships and resources are sent to build a small Station to use as a staging ground to the Catapult construction.
3. Construction starts on the Catapult once the small station is finished.
4. Ships start to explore the immediate area and find the "cluster" Oberon is now in
5. Starfleet takes interest in this Cluster and proposes the Oberon project.
6. The Catapult is finished
7. Construction starts on a larger Starbase to secure the Catapult.
8. Oberon project approved.
9. With the Starbase and Oberon finished Starfleet starts sending ships to explore the larger area.

This all takes 2 years?

With this timeline I make the assumption that Starfleet waits to explore the larger area of space because they do not want to risk stranding people in the Delta if someone attacks the Catapult before the Starbase is finished.

We could start our TF Story right at #9 with us moving out from the Starbase and starting to explore the area. This will allow for simms to make first contact with Major players in the area. Which is something I really like.
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Williams, I am a little skeptical adding the Voth to the main story arc, Their technology is so advanced I think if something went south we just couldn't win that fight. I think they would be the type of people that are perfect to keep in mind for a nice cameo at the perfect moment.

While looking at Maps I can see that the maps of the Delta are all over the place. Most have very little consistency. Because of that, I think we can and should take some leeway and do our own map.

Here is my suggestion of that map would look like.

The northeastern corner would show the Krowtonan Guard. To the eastern side of the map below but bordering the Guard we put The Vidiian.

All the way across the bottom of the map we put the Nekrit Expanse which stops us from moving south. In the south West on the other side of the expanse, we put a sliver of Borg territory so we know they are around.

Coming out of the Expanse we put some Hirogen relays so everyone knows they have found their way through the expanse and are here for the hunt.

Now the Vaadwaur don't really have territory being the traders that they are and they tend to use underspace (http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Underspace) but we could do something to show they are in the area. #1 we could label known unserspace corridors, #2 we could label a Vaddwaur trading post or colony.

The rest of the map to the north and the west would be unexplored. This would give us some known powers to interact with along with a large area for us to explore and do what Starfleet does best.


thoughts? on this or anything else.
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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Williams » Sun Sep 11, 2016 9:01 pm

Yeah, that all sounds pretty good to me. If we do go for the Catapult idea, it would be a good idea too to select a place in the Alpha/Beta Quadrants that would be our starting point, just so people could refer to going via there (or starting their sims there prior to travelling through the catapult) in order to get to the DQ

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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Thompson » Sun Sep 11, 2016 10:33 pm

My issues with the catapult are twofold.

Firstly in theory with it we could just ping anyone we wanted anywhere. I'd find it very difficult to believe that the Romulans/Klingons would allow Starfleet to be in possession of such technology without kicking up a serious fuss. Look at how they handle tricobalt and transphasic weapons.

Secondly is the issue of supplying the otherside. One would assume that any such jump with any inaccuracies could leave a fleet stranded far from home and sending supply ships through to get more people stuck isn't a thought that's great. Also along that line what happens if the return array gets destroyed?

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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Taylor_Isley » Mon Sep 12, 2016 1:32 am

To address your First point I think that is a good plot line not just for TF37 but if the catapult is in TF11 space if they wanted they could follow that plot line as well. If we wanted to go wth a Wormhole we would have parties on both sides laying claim to it (Which was overdone is DS9), and the same with the Gateway idea.

The only way to avoid that would be to use slipstream, which not all ship classes could use, which is why It is not suggested here. We want all classes to be welcome into the TF.

We could use the transwarp conduits, which would put us in the direct path of the borg. Which I think we can safely say, none of us want.

Any technology on this scale is going to open us to conflict with other races. We just have to choose which one we want to create. It is a valid point and I think if we did go with the Catapult it is an idea that could be explored by TF37 and others.

To your Second point, that is a risk, supply ships may get lost but humanity has made many risks in the name of exploring. I think that Starfleet would have tested the technology 1,000 times before we started using it on ships and you may even find those that refuse to go on assignment to the Delta for that reason. In the same way, that people refuse to use the transporter. And as you said if another TF wanted to use the Catapult to go, let's say into Klingon space, maybe the could.

The idea and risk of the Retune catapult getting destroyed is exciting to me! It is a great target for any foes and I kinda like that. It is something as a plot device I enjoy and why I think I like the Catapult as much as I do.

That said those are good points and feel free to poke holes in my response. I am sure I am missing something.
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Re: Building the Foundation

Post by Taylor_Isley » Thu Sep 15, 2016 4:54 pm

On Saturday unless a back and forth starts up about them, I will Finalize answers to the first 3 questions I asked close this topic. The reason for this is because the TF will be active at the end of the month and we must give time to develop other aspects of the Story Arc that build off this foundation.

After I finalize the Foundation based off of what you all suggested and commented on I will start a new Topic that will put forth a couple over-arcing themes and concepts for the TF in poll form.

The questions that we are addressing and attempting to answer in this post are:
#1: Who are the Major players in the area? (3 maybe 4 Major players)

#2: How did we get to the Delta quadrant?

#3: We have already established above that the Federation has made a beachhead in the area. So the question is: How large is this beachhead? Is it a starbase and the area around it or is it a larger area? Have we claimed area or are we just looking around?
Everyone is welcome to comment and make suggestions.
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