When the Guns Fall Silent (A Star Trek quest)

You set course to Vanilli Vc, a large enough moon to give you some cover. The three ships are obviously modified merchants, with several disruptions, and worryingly, two more modern plasma torpedo launchers.

Yanagashira frowns, and looks at a few spots. "I think they have more modern phasers hidden behind false plating." She says, marking a few points on the ships, and sending it to Kenni and Daliareth for analysis.

It takes only a half minute for them to concur. You begin to worry about where they might have gotten it.. but you'll have to disable and board them to find out.

[Each success above 1 reduces shield drain by 15% from a max of 70%]

(Enemy Ship I [4d Science] 2 successes (1 bonus effect) -> drain of 40%, but resilience against directed energy discharges (negate half phaser damage)
(Enemy Ship II [4d Science] 3 successes -> drain of 25%)
(Enemy Ship III [4d Science] 2 successes (1 negative effect) -> drain of 40%, but more damage from torpedoes)

You discuss plans with Yanagashira, and agree that a torp spread against them, followed by a phaser sweep focusing on the most damaged would be the most logical. Delarnious positions squads in critical areas, and readies boarding parties.

Still.. if they do have modern phasers..

You try to ask the colonists if they could aid, and they offer their sensor network, providing you with a +1d accuracy boost and negating the terrain penalties. They do also give some information about the primary ship, the "Spear of Akhenaten.".

They refuse (0 command success) to aid in firing, but that's fair.

(Phase 0)
[11d (+1 Combat +1d Janeway +3d (max) from Speed +4d Yanagashira +2d You) => [10, 10, 10, 8, 6, 6, 6, 5, 2, 1, 1]
(Yanagashira's Trait: Tactical Prodigy removes a 1.) -> 7 successes, 2 Bonus Effects]
[Ambush successful! All enemies have no speed bonus to attacks. Bonus Effects: No Tactical rolls to first attacks, Shields -1d for passthrough calculations. Bonus Effect for double successes required: damage *1.25 for each attack first phase.]

Yanagashira and Janeway time it just right, and the ship comes out from the moon's polar region, firing a spread of torpedoes in rapid fire as she makes as many strikes as she can. Which is really one to each. but that's still: 2 torps + 1 phaser to each, with the flagship gets 2 more torps.

And.. she disables everything first pass.

[Yanagashira gains trait "Sharpshooter", which gives her +1d Tactics, and the ship +1d Accuracy.]

The only one who reacts differently is Delarnious, who immediately sends his GroundOps into the crew to arrest them and gather evidence, the civilian instructors following in heavy armor and armed. But the bridge and colonists seem bemused that she took them out in one blow.

It turns out, you find with some distaste, that the flagship was rigged for slave carrying. These were repurposed as prison cells, and you return with enough information for Starfleet to take out the syndicate forming here. You also found out how they got some of their equipment, and Starfleet and Federation Security had already made arrests and was investigating several fleet depos.

That said, they'd need to get more ships out here, and you're told that you're being temporarily seconded to a high priority target.

Rkfna Faianr, a Caitian, was actually shipping resources to the Cardassians, and as such, was a priority target for Starfleet Intelligence. You would be traveling with the USS Kyushu, USS Tioman, USS Empress Sindeok, USS Fires of Antares and USS Rakahanga .. when they arrive. Three New Orleans-class Frigates, a Starlight-class Carrier, and an Akira-class..

You had worries about this.

Alternatively, you could argue to rejoin your mission of exploration, as they don't need you at all and everyone knows that.
[ ] Go back to exploration (Politics: 4 successes needed) [Ends Episode early]
[ ] Bargain to do this and then go to exploration (1 success needed, +Respect with Command.) [Selects Ep 3]
[ ] Agree to orders without any real argument.

As such, you have a bunch of downtime.

Training: [5 training periods of 10d] => 50d
Note: Command Bonus: +4d, Medical Bonus +3d, Engineering: +3d, Tactical +1d, Science +3d
- [] Write in plan - specify number of dice, and who you're training.

Downtime Actions [Take Five beyond the automatic one] (note this occurs *after* training.)
- Automatic: Why is Starfleet Medical upset with me so much? (Politics investigation, write in what officers you want to help.)

- [] Send Wentian to attend a seminar on experimentation safety
- [] Assist in R&D Writeups. [Medium, will mean your next ship starts automatically with any successful R&D initiatives, +1d R&D Progress]
- [] Delarnious would also like a re imposition of Captain's Mast for NJP. [Medium, will require at least one officer designated for this collateral duty, and JAG would like to go over with you what you can and cannot do. May have unpredictable results on Morale.]
- [] Attempt to contact your parents, or friends back on Pacifica. If they're willing to talk to you, anyway. [Hard]
- [] Wentian has asked for someone who can help her with her "experiments", and you need a new Assistant Chief Engineering Officer anyway. [Medium, removes Complication rolls from Wentian's experiments, more likely to catch negative effects.]
- [] Send your officers to a seminar on [skill] (Guaranteed +1 rank. One take per officer)
--[] Send Yanagashira on an Engineering Development Course.
- [] Request officers for X Department.. (write in)
- [] Work out a way to get Daliareth more research clearance, or, more likely, a way for you to review what she wants in closer to real time.
- [] Investigate the Forsaken Order. [Hard, requires 6 intelligence successes]
- [] Get an Intelligence Officer posted to the ship. [3 successes, requires a Command roll vs political issues]


R&D (note this occurs after any downtime actions.): 40dice (5 periods) with an extra 8 dice to anything with Yanagashira/Tactical:
Current Options:
-[] Wentian, Talonis, Delarinous, Janeway: Develop the Type-7C Shuttlecraft. (Add default weapons, increased impulse speed, more armor. Slightly better comforts. [11 successes](Short Time)
-[] Delarinous, Janeway: Probe Mk XI (probes upgraded for better armor, thrusters, and sensor reach.) [6 successes, cut down by Ep.2 usage](Unlocks: Probe Mk XI deployment, Photon Torpedo Type 5 Mk I research.)
-[] WTDJ: Develop the Elbe-class Multi-Use Runabout. (Increase max speed to Warp 5, add two more phasers, one torpedo launcher) [19 successes](Short Time) [Requires: Develop the Type-7C Shuttlecraft][Cannot take with Develop -CX Shuttlecraft.]
- [] WTDJ: Develop -CX Shuttlecraft with default packs: Demon-class Hazard, Medical Rescue [8 successes](Short Time). [Requires: Develop the Type-7C Shuttlecraft][Cannot take with Develop Elbe-class.]
-[] Wentian: Shields Mk VI+ (+1d to prevent Shield Bleedthrough) [8 successes][Medium Delay] [Progress Shields Mk VII] [+]
-[] Nana, Janeway: Modernize Sickbay. (+1d Health, Resilience Improved, gain auto reroll of critical failures.) [5 successes (Command)](Politics Roll)
-[] Dalirath, Janeway: Experimental Safer EPS Distribution. (Less Injuries from Weapons Strikes, More Available Power, Less Single Point of Failure) [11 successes][Very Long Delay][Progress: EPS System Mk X.]** [+]
-[] Wentian, Kenni: M/AM small scale backup reactor. (Ensures a backup power supply, instead of needing full warp power for weapons, shields, and also adds life support system power. Also unlocks Attack Pattern METEOR at -1d accuracy.) [9 successes][Medium Delay] [Progress: Power Systems Mk VI.][Dangerous: Complication will trigger damage rolls]***[Unlocks: EPS Redundancy and EPS Segmentation Systems, Warp Core Mk VII research, Phaser Cannons Mk III, Phaser Strip Mk VI]
-[] Yanagshira, Dalirath, Wentian: Prototype Plasma Rainshower Launcher Mk. I [14 successes](Very Long Delay)[Progress: Plasma Rainshower Integrated Weapons Systems Mk. I (Starbase)][Unlocks: Plasma Rainshow IWS Mk. I (Starship) Research]
-[] [LOCKED] Progress of subspace singularity research based on data and samples from the Vanilli IV. [At least 10 successes][??] [REQ: Dalirath has access to the Federation research, or additional Science or Engineering R&D personnel.]

Things marked with a [+] are in collaboration with other engineers, and therefore less prone to complications.
* This is already being used in the upcoming Galaxy and Steamrunner classes, Dalirath is backporting from papers in the field to something Wentian can eventually experiment with.
** This is next-gen tech, which is always going to be extremely hard.
*** I'll be updating the stat sheet to indicate what things are. This is a "we probably shouldn't rely on aux warp cores for power if things go wrong." It is also excessively dangerous, meaning a Complication roll will result in damage to the ship.
**** Unlocks further research.
Look, Starfleet is perfectly happy when people make their own shuttles as long as they can steal it. Think of the Elbe-class as a prelude to the Danube-class of DS9.




R&D update:
Safety Forcefields, Auto-Deploy Seat Restraint System
While we feel that such systems are superflous, testing from many ships has seen a massive request for these to be implemented. Further refinements in power generation will be needed to couple these with improvements to EPS safety and proposed redundancies.

(Project Athens - Internal System Mk. I - blocked. Starfleet R&D is working on improved warp core generation, as well as refinments to the onboard fusion plants. However, there is no ETA for this.)

Plasma Rainshower IWS Mk I (Torpedo Countershoot)

This is a fairly inventive idea to use the fact they only have shields rather than full on shield packages to try and point overwhelm them, but the power required pretty much requires it be installed on starbases or outposts. Still, we commend the crew of the Creiwry for coming up with this.

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.. Yanagashira shortchanged an entire plot line that wasn't supposed to end until at least ep4. So uh.. congratulations! (the flagship was supposed to flee to overwhelming resources, hence why you're being held back until you have some frigates and an Akira with you.)