Just One Step - Stargate CKII Quest (AU)

Just One Step - Stargate CKII Quest (AU)
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Just One Step


Four grey walls, buzzing fluorescents, and a pair of shoddy desks crammed into...
Introduction and Character Generation

pbluekan

Somethin's Fucky ...
Location
Trumpistan
Pronouns
He/Him


Just One Step



Four grey walls, buzzing fluorescents, and a pair of shoddy desks crammed into one hundred square feet: This little room three hundred feet beneath Cheyenne Mountain had been your office, once, as a lieutenant fresh to your bars and the murky realm of black operations.

Now, you have returned nearly thirty years later, on the cusp of your retirement, with a pair of stars on your shoulder and a life filled with secrets. You only have one left to yourself, kept close to your chest, yet to come and long into the past. These days, your office, down another eleven sublevels, is one hundred and fifty luxurious square feet of hard cement featuring a single desk of polished mahogany, a cushy leather chair, and your very own aide.

How things have changed.

When the opportunity had come up to oversee the decommissioning of the old Titan Command Facility-00, you had jumped on it. Your own retirement was imminent, and with Ellen's death so very fresh, you felt the time had come. It would be fitting, you thought, to retire two old remnants of the Cold War into the redacted annals of history.

As it was, you had a year of paperwork and the aging and mediocre dregs of the Air Force to look forward to. One wasn't posted to a decommissioning base unless age or slow wits had kept you out of everywhere else.

The exception to that rule was your XO, Colonel Richard Gote. You'd mentored him at the start of his own career as a fresh faced lieutenant. Now, as a weather-beaten man in his forties with white peppering black hair, he'd called you up to volunteer himself for the post and be the one to finally kick you out the door. Though, God's honest truth, it had to be the long years of friendship keeping him here. If the reports you'd received back in Washington had any truth to them, West had left some skeletons in the closets of Cheyenne Mountain.

"Sir!"

You turn at the sound, and there, as if summoned by your wandering thoughts, is your XO at a crisp attention, hand raised in salute. You return it with a smile. "Mornin' Dick."

"George." His brows curl down in a slightly perturbed look. "When did you get in? I was sure I'd had the chief straighten out the SF's-"

"Ah," you interrupt and wave him down, "don't go tearing 'em a new one, Dick. Told the boys on watch not to go rustlin' you up and that I wanted a look around myself. Just a bit of nostalgia," you say with a smile before gesturing him to follow you back to the elevator. "What's the skinny, Dick?"

"Well, I only got in last week, so you've mostly got everything in that report I sent on to the Pentagon," he says as he flips through the thick stack of files in his hands before passing you one. "But, I've got some more inventories here for you, a few disciplinary and incident reports, and best of all, security leaks."

You huff a laugh as you open the file. "How bad?" You ask as you skim the title of each report.

"A little beer fuelled shit-slinging about secret bases and secret missions," he says with a shrug as you both turn the corner to the elevator, "but nothing about Giza, gods, and giant rings."

"I imagine Chief Hayworth has been blowin' some steam," you say and swipe your shiny new ID on the elevator.

He slaps the down arrow and nods. "One of those leaks," he says in a long-suffering tone, "was a NORAD officer that was treated to one of the Chief's lectures on appropriate bedroom talk through a poorly placed A/C vent." He flashes a quick grin as the elevator doors open and you both step inside. "Fifteen hundred washouts from every branch of the Air Force against a pair of aging officers. Just like old times."

"Just like old times," you echo as the doors close and the elevator drops into the bowels of Cheyenne Mountain.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________​

[][STAT] Martial: You are a Major General in the United States Air Force and you started as a farm boy from Texas; you hold your rank through your strategic acumen, tactical mind, and dead-eye with a rifle. You dropped bombs on Vietnam and were dropped into Russia. You have dyed your hands red and your book black for the sake of your nation and it shows in the skill of your leadership and the shrewd cunning that laces your strategy. When it comes down to the wire, you will fight for your country, your people, and your ideals to the very last. Any place. Any time. Anywhere. And so I rest on my laurels.

[][STAT] Diplomacy: The written word is your chief weapon of war. Before all else, you are a man of culture and diplomacy. We the People of the United States, says the Declaration; a tool forged in the heat of the mind, it began a revolution and built a nation. That is the ideal you strive to live by. You have always been the moderating hand to the warhawks of black operations and your specialty was always negotiation. Agreements with Kurds and Russian Mafia, African Warlords and East German Gangs have filled your history. "The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting."

[][STAT] Stewardship: A good commander knows his unit backwards and forwards. He knows every man, every gun, every MRE. He knows where and when everything comes from, and where it will all have to go. After all, "an army marches on its stomach," or so they say, and a gun ain't much without a bullet in the chamber. Over the long course of your career, from your days as a lieutenant in this very mountain to the desolate heartlands of the Middle East, you have known your supply chain inside and out, and that has not changed. You know who to talk to and the man to see for every need you and your command could possibly require. Simple man with simple wants and simple needs.

[][STAT] Intrigue: You're Hammond, George Hammond. Your career didn't start with the Air Force. Not truly. With a gift for languages and a mind for detail, the CIA had snapped you up the moment you'd graduated high school and so you became Agent Hammond, Analyst. For four years you'd teased out plot and counterplot amid the shuffle of paper, cigarette smoke, and the whirr of spinning tapes. What you'd found in the morass of information that flooded into the agency had changed you. Darkened and hardened you before your time. Your secondment to the Air Force for training and field duty had been a relief at first, before the red-stained reality came into focus. I'm an old man, filled with regret.

[][STAT] Learning: "We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard[...]" On September 12, 1962 you listened to John F. Kennedy deliver his iconic speech from a seat high up in Rice Stadium, your father on one side and your mother on the other. On that sunny day, you, along with every other American, had found a dream, a vision. Three years later you found yourself in your advisory meeting at the Academy saying: "I want to help us get there." So you did, in as much as any academy student could, and four years later you watched from the side of your father's deathbed as a craft you had helped refine touched the surface of the Moon. The dream is still alive.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________​

There will be no moratorium on this vote.

For the current vote, please use a ranked voting system for each stat in order of priority. The higher ranked a stat is, the more weight I will give to it when I divide up the stat points. Keep in mind, that these stats will also determine how your General thinks about and approaches situations.

Martial will be at rank 1 or 2, regardless of the vote. If it is at rank one or two at the end of the vote, it will remain there, if it is below rank two, it will move up to rank two and displace everything else down.


EX:
[1][STAT] Diplomacy
[2][STAT] Martial
[4][STAT] Intrigue
[5][STAT] Learning
[3][STAT] Stewardship


_________________________________________________________________________________________________________​

Just One Step is a Stargate AU CKII quest that generally follows the CKII quest model used in @PoptartProdigy 's "Terminus Quest," and torrar's "Warhammer Fantasy: A Dynasty of Dynamic Alcoholism."

Here you will control the Stargate program as its commanding general. Your mandate: To protect and defend the Constitution of the United States and her People, and to seek out and obtain alien knowledge and technology for the advancement and defense of the United States and humanity.

This is going to be a lot of fun, I think.

See the rules post below for the mechanics and AU changes.

So! I'm back from gradschool for a month, so I'm getting this started agian. The reboot is due to some rule changes and the first quest never really having gotten off the ground.
 
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The Quarterly Brief (Status)

Previous Quarter Briefs​
Martial​
Diplomacy​
Political Will: 10

You're a bit of an anomaly in D.C. right now. You showed up out of nowhere only to have a flurry of meetings all across Washington, from the White House to the Pentagon and even Langley. You also spent weeks in daily meetings with the President and the Joint Chiefs. Those who talked to you took an instant liking to you, and without even currying favors, you'd likely have their support for anything you might need.

However, you were also paid a visit by the Investigative Counsel, Kenn Starr, and given the distance the politicos on the Hill are holding the President at the moment, this meeting didn't shine any positive light on you, politically and ended up driving away many who's acquaintance you would normally have made.
Relations​
M̵̢̛͎̠̟̘̯̟̋̀͜͜e̶̥̰̱̻̜͕̫̼̊͐̐ͅ,̵̨̛̩̯̲̭̠̗̑̈́̈́͆̒́̔̓̑͠ͅr̸̨̻̺̜͖̮͚̙̪̄̾̂̿u̴̮̿͊̔h̶̢̨̼̻̠̖͔͙̖̖̰́̇́̒̓͝͠ǎ̶̧̗͙͇̥̥͛̈́̓͆́̏̅͂͑͝,̵̧̢͔̳̦̞̩͓̜̯̙̉̒͑̈́̈́̊͝ţ̸̱͔̬̅̄t̷̛̺̓̏̈́͌L̴̨̗̯̠͇̋͐̓́̕͜͠g̸̨̧̛̠̤͎̞̩̯̰̥̤̅̌̒̏,̴̧͚͉̤̱̝̝̟̂̉͒͗͒́̓̑̓̂͘v̶̮̘̻̜̞͓̟͖̌̂̅̿̐̌͋͠ẗ̶̲́͑̊̈̀i̵̫͇̰̰̪̦̿͐́́ͅḐ̸̨̢͉̹͉̭͇̱̭̭̏͝e̸̢̡̛̫̗̙̗͔͚̮̋̈́̕r̶̡̦̣̖͇͎͚͙͔̘̰͛͂͊͌̂̽̾̌͂̕͝S̴̛̙̝̫̬̬̄́̄͂̃̽͠h̶̦̝̩͎͍͇͌̊̓͘͠ę̷̗̽̍͑́͋͛͗̓,̶͔͚̭̥̗̟͕̎̒s̶̨̖͍̦͉͙̝̟̅̀̈̄̑̍̊̋͝͠o̶̧̳̦̙̓̌͗͗̃͒̓͝͝e̵̲̦̮̫͕̽͆͊͑̓͊̔̑ơ̸̲̌̌̇̍̉̌̊͒̍́r̵̪̈́̔̌̾̈̆ͅṟ̶̽​
ASK.
Attention​
Apophis​

Attention: 45
You invaded his capitol world, his palace, and then proceeded to turn his most loyal servant against him. In the face of his queen, underlings, his jaffa, and his human slaves, he has been humiliated and reduced by your actions.

However, he has bigger things to worry about, namely, the current contest for the seat of Supreme System Lord, and other goa'uld going after Ra's territory and Apophis' own in the fracas.

Earth is a fair distance away by ship, and Teal'c has advised us that he will not commit to an attack unless he feels it necessary as a strategic goal or to save face.
goa'uld - General​
Attention: 1

You killed Ra and you've really, really ruffled Apohis' feathers. The System Lords are aware something has happened, but they have no idea who, and of all entities, they expect you the least.
M̵̢̛͎̠̟̘̯̟̋̀͜͜e̶̥̰̱̻̜͕̫̼̊͐̐ͅ,̵̨̛̩̯̲̭̠̗̑̈́̈́͆̒́̔̓̑͠ͅr̸̨̻̺̜͖̮͚̙̪̄̾̂̿u̴̮̿͊̔h̶̢̨̼̻̠̖͔͙̖̖̰́̇́̒̓͝͠ǎ̶̧̗͙͇̥̥͛̈́̓͆́̏̅͂͑͝,̵̧̢͔̳̦̞̩͓̜̯̙̉̒͑̈́̈́̊͝ţ̸̱͔̬̅̄t̷̛̺̓̏̈́͌L̴̨̗̯̠͇̋͐̓́̕͜͠g̸̨̧̛̠̤͎̞̩̯̰̥̤̅̌̒̏,̴̧͚͉̤̱̝̝̟̂̉͒͗͒́̓̑̓̂͘v̶̮̘̻̜̞͓̟͖̌̂̅̿̐̌͋͠ẗ̶̲́͑̊̈̀i̵̫͇̰̰̪̦̿͐́́ͅḐ̸̨̢͉̹͉̭͇̱̭̭̏͝e̸̢̡̛̫̗̙̗͔͚̮̋̈́̕r̶̡̦̣̖͇͎͚͙͔̘̰͛͂͊͌̂̽̾̌͂̕͝S̴̛̙̝̫̬̬̄́̄͂̃̽͠h̶̦̝̩͎͍͇͌̊̓͘͠ę̷̗̽̍͑́͋͛͗̓,̶͔͚̭̥̗̟͕̎̒s̶̨̖͍̦͉͙̝̟̅̀̈̄̑̍̊̋͝͠o̶̧̳̦̙̓̌͗͗̃͒̓͝͝e̵̲̦̮̫͕̽͆͊͑̓͊̔̑ơ̸̲̌̌̇̍̉̌̊͒̍́r̵̪̈́̔̌̾̈̆ͅṟ̶̽​
Attention: /0

"QUESTIONS, QUERIES, MIRED IN A QUANDARY OF UNFATHOMABLE POSSIBILITY."
Stewardship​
Intrigue​
Exposure​
Learning​
Active Projects​
Completed Projects​
 
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The General's Filing Cabinet
Personnel Roster​
George Hammond​
You are Major General George Hammond, age 50. Born August 4, 1947.


Stats:
  • Diplomacy: 24 (Base 22-1+1+2)
    You are a people person, first and foremost. This colored the early days of your military career and became the focus of the latter years. Sun Tzu said that "the supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting." This is a maxim you have striven to uphold even from your early days in the academy. The eagle does not only carry the arms of war, but the olive branch of peace. So too have you stretched out your hand, even as you kept your gun ready in the other.

  • Martial: 19 (Base 17+1+1)
    You grew up on a ranch in west Texas. There, on three hundred acres, you learned to hunt and track under your father's eye, and chess under your grandfather's. You are a soldier of superior quality and a tactician of no small ability. Your ability in the field and at the drawing board shot you through the ranks, even as you did your best to shake the hand of your enemy and bring him to the negotiating table.

  • Stewardship: 14(Base 15-1)
    From a young age, your mother included you and your siblings in the business of the family ranch. While you were never terribly interested, those lessons have kept you in good stead all your life. As an officer, you've been noted for your easy competence when arranging finance and logistics.

  • Learning: 10 (Base 12-2)
    You've never been much for the sciences, hard or soft. Though, as part of your never ending interest in people and the necessities of your career, you've picked up more than a couple languages and the courtesies in a half dozen others.

  • Intrigue: 8 (Base 8+1-1)
    "Momma didn't raise a liar," you told your WSO when he asked why you always told God's honest truth. If anything has done more to both help and hinder your career, it is your near physical inability to speak a lie. You learned, however, in your years in the murky world of special operations, that the truth doesn't always need to be voiced.

Other Traits and Attributes:

Special Forces Career:
You have spent nearly your entire career in the special forces, in one capacity or another. After all this time, you are, as your nephew once said, a certifiable badass.
-- When in personal combat, add lowest stat to your martial.

American: You are an American. Born and bred free in the heartlands of this great nation.
-- -1 Stewardship, +1 Martial, -1 Diplomacy

The Young General: You are a general. A flag officer. A man expected to roll the hard six. You have attained your position through your skill in the field and at the negotiating table, but you are also the youngest man of your rank. Getting here as fast as you have, you've gained and lost a few things on the way.
-- +1 Martial, +1 Diplomacy, +1 Intrigue, -2 Learning

Fresh Faced Honesty: Your momma didn't raise a liar. You've worn the black cap and dyed your hands red for your country, but through it all you kept to your principles. There are, however, creative ways to tell the truth.
-- -1 Intrigue, +2 Diplomacy

Polyglot: You speak multiple languages. (Arabic (multiple dialects), Russian, German)
Department Heads​
Col. Richard Gote - Executive Officer​
Colonel Richard Gote, age 45.

You have known Col. Gote since his own days as a lieutenant when you helped mentor him. Since then, you have served together often and that familiarity has bred a lasting friendship. In the spirit of that friendship, he volunteered to decommission Cheyenne Mountain with you and when the Stargate opened, he was transferred to your newly reinstated command.

Col. Gote is, as his career suggests, a highly competent soldier. Notably, he served as the commanding officer of the 24th Special Tactics Squadron during the Operation Just Cause and Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield. He was later promoted up to AFSOC and replaced by Lt. Col. Jim Oeser.
  • Martial: 22 (Base 21+1
  • Diplomacy: 6 (Base 7-1)
  • Stewardship: 11 (Base 12-1)
  • Intrigue: 14 (Base 14)
  • Learning: 3 (Base 3)
Special Forces Career: He has spent nearly his entire career in the special forces, in one capacity or another. He is a soldier through and through.
-- When in personal combat, add lowest stat to martial.

American: He is an American. Born and bred free in the heartlands of this great nation.
-- -1 Stewardship, +1 Martial, -1 Diplomacy
Lt. Col. Patrick Smith - Diplomatic Relations​
Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Smith, 38.

Lt. Col. Smith has often served as an attaché to various JSOC Task Forces where a mandate to make contact with local leaders and populations has been required. Notably, Lt. Col. Smith served with the US Foreign Service and worked on the initial groundwork for the Oslo Accords.

He speaks seven languages including Farsi, Hebrew, and several dialects of Arabic.
  • Martial: 10
  • Diplomacy: 21
  • Stewardship: 4
  • Intrigue: 15
  • Learning: 7
CMSgt. Antoine Hayworth - Facilities and Requisitions​
Chief Master Sergeant Anoine Hayworth, 41.

The Chief was one of the servicemen stationed at Cheyenne Mountain as part of his retirement, rather than as a reflection of his ability. He has finished both his undergraduate degree and an MBA and had accepted a job with Lockheed here in Colorado.

With the activation of the SGC and the recommencement of Project GIZA, he has chosen to re-up. As a result, a promotion to Command Chief Master Sergeant (CCM) is likely.

Notably, CMSgt Hayworth served with Col. Gote during Operation Just Cause, and recommendation letters have painted him as an exemplary NCO. In the words of the Colonel: "The man can find ham sandwiches in the middle of a kosher deli."
  • Martial: 16 (Base 15+1)
  • Diplomacy: 8 (Base 9-1)
  • Stewardship: 19 (Base 20-1)
  • Intrigue: 6 (Base 6)
  • Learning: 6 (Base 6)
Special Forces Career: He has spent nearly his entire career in the special forces, in one capacity or another. He is a soldier through and through.
-- When in personal combat, add lowest stat to martial.

American: He is an American. Born and bred free in the heartlands of this great nation.
-- -1 Stewardship, +1 Martial, -1 Diplomacy
Agent Emilia Sato - Intelligence Operations​
Agent Emilia Sato, 27.

Agent Emilia Sato has been seconded to your command from the CIA on the recommendation of both President Clinton and Director Tenet. While her presence is rather unorthodox and she is exceedingly young to be heading her own intelligence operation, her history and credentials speak for themselves. She will also be supported by Maj. Nixon who commands your own reconnaissance wing.

Agent Sato speaks ten languages, and has a unique gift for analysis and contact development.
  • Martial: 4
  • Diplomacy: 17
  • Stewardship: 10
  • Intrigue: 21
  • Learning: 14
Special Abilities:

Break A Man Over Her Knee:

Add her highest stat to her Martial stat for combat rolls.
Dr. Valerie Kings - Research and Development​
Dr. Valerie Kings, PhD, 51.

Dr. Kings is a bit of a familiar face. She was a part of the team working on the Stargate for the year you were ordered to decommission this facility.

Notably, Dr. Kings was one of the women that programmed the computers for the Apollo missions. She has since completed a PhD in computer science and information systems and gone back to work for NASA as a director for software development and later, directed several classified DARPA projects. She was also part of the team that, alongside Cpt. Carter, programmed your dialing computers for the Abydos mission.
  • Martial: 1
  • Diplomacy: 18
  • Stewardship: 15
  • Intrigue: 1
  • Learning: 20
Heroic Units​
Col. Jonathan 'Jack' O'Neill​
Colonel Jonathan 'Jack' O'Neill, 44.
Current Assignment:


Col. Jack O'Niell has, like yourself, spent an entire career in special forces and black operations. You've crossed path's occasionally over the years but his career has generally stayed in those deniable operations that are redacted even to your eyes.

From what you can see and have heard through the grapevine, the man is a spectacularly competent unit commander and soldier, but with an irreverent streak a mile wide.
  • Martial: 22
  • Diplomacy: 9
  • Stewardship: 11
  • Intrigue: 14
  • Learning: 2
Special Abilities:

[BASE] Yeah Sure, You Betcha
: 30% chance of re-rolling "bad" Earth-based events. (Cannot re-roll into "good") -1PW/QTR
[FIELD] For Crying Out Loud: On a "bad" exploration roll involving goa'uld, aliens, or humans, he has a 5% chance to re-roll.
[TEAM] They're My Team, General: Doubles the [FIELD] bonuses for Sam Carter, Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c. If all three are present, bonus is 2.5X.
Cpt. Samantha Carter, PhD.​
Captain Samantha Carter, PhD., 29
Current Assignment:


Samantha Carter is one of those sorts of geniuses that you only see once in a lifetime; a polymath of such aptitude that it frankly boggles the mind. She has a PhD in astrophysics and papers published in fields ranging from mathematics and computer science to molecular biology and mechanical engineering.

Last year, she was part of the team that designed, built, and programmed the power and computer interfaces for the Stargate.
  • Martial: 12
  • Diplomacy: 8
  • Stewardship: 10
  • Intrigue: 4
  • Learning: 28
Special Abilities:

[BASE] Unparalleled Genius
: When assigned to the SGC she acts as a standalone science team. +1PW/QTR
[FIELD] Brilliance Under Pressure: On a "bad" exploration roll involving the Stargate or other technology, she has a 5% chance to re-roll.
Dr. Daniel Jackson, PhD.​
Dr. Daniel Jackson, PhD., 35.
Current Assignment:


Dr. Daniel Jackson was a bit of an unknown before Catherine Langford recruited him a year ago. Based on his history, if he hadn't been already briefed in by Dr. Langford, it's unlikely he would have been cleared for the program at all, given his work and personal history as well as his numerous contacts abroad.

That said, however, with 23 languages and a vast well of experience in analyzing and interacting with a wide variety of cultures, he is a prime addition to the program.

  • Martial: 2
  • Diplomacy: 20
  • Stewardship: 4
  • Intrigue: 2
  • Learning: 20
Special Abilities:

[BASE]
Morally Centered: Has a 5% chance of re-rolling "bad" Earth based political events. +1PW/QTR
[FIELD] Anthro to Diplo: On a "bad" exploration roll involving ruins, aliens, or humans, he has a 5% chance to re-roll.
Teal'C​
Teal'C, 95.
Current Assignment:


Teal'C is the former First Prime of the goa'uld System Lord Apophis. Incidentally, he was one of the two men you saw in the gateroom on that fateful morning. However, he has disavowed his former overlord, saved what people of yours he could and come to you seeking asylum and an offer of his service.

You have little doubt he will be an asset well worth the price you've paid for him.
  • Martial: 25
  • Diplomacy: 3
  • Stewardship: 19
  • Intrigue: 12
  • Learning: 2
Special Abilities:

[BASE]
Shol'va: 25% chance of applying 50% of his martial stat to any Martial action involving the goa'uld. +1 PW/QTR
[FIELD] Indeed: On a "bad" exploration roll involving goa'uld, aliens, or humans, he has a 5% chance to re-roll.
Maj. Janet Frasier, M.D.​
Major Janet Frasier, M.D., 30.
Current Assignment:
Chief Medical Officer - Cheyenne Mountain

Dr. Janet Frasier, formerly of the 96th Medical Group based out of Eglin, has been recently transferred to your command by your request and recommendation of her superiors to serve as your Chief Medical Officer.

She earned a bachelors in biology from the University of Colorado and went straight to Harvard Med. She specializes in ER medicine and Trauma Surgery. However, she has significant experience in infectious disease and as a Clinician.



    • Martial: 9
    • Diplomacy: 8
    • Stewardship: 15
    • Intrigue: 3
    • Learning: 19
Napoleonic Power Monger: Has a 20% chance to negate the consequences of a "bad" mission.
SG Teams​
Roster​
SG-1​
Roster:
  • Colonel Jonathan "Jack" O'Neill (Overall Command)
  • Capt. Samantha Carter (XO, TechWar, Med)
  • Dr. Daniel Jackson (Linguistics, Relations)
  • Teal'c (Local Relations, HUMINT)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-2​
Roster:
  • Maj. Louis Ferreti (Command, Prom. Rec.)
  • Maj. Carl Warren (XO, Linguistics)
  • 1st Lt. Andy Anderson (TechWar)
  • SMSgt Casey Malkovitch (Med)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-3​
Roster:
  • Col. Robert Makepeace (Command)
  • Maj. Alex Baker (XO, Med)
  • 1st Lt. Daniel Johnson (TechWar)
  • TSgt Bosco Reynolds (Linguistics)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-3ß​
Appeared as part of a temporal anomaly on October 13, 1997. They are, by all appearances, a perfect copy of the members of SG-3 as they were that morning.
Roster:

  • Col. Robert Makepeace (Command) - ß
  • Maj. Alex Baker (XO, Med) - ß
  • 1st Lt. Daniel Johnson (TechWar) - ß
  • TSgt Bosco Reynolds (Linguistics) - ß
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-4​
Roster:
  • Lt Co. Abraham Palitz (Command)
  • Cap. Amelia Fines (XO, Linguistics)
  • Cap. Joe Nowak (TechWar)
  • SMSgt Casey Casaway (Med)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-5​
Roster:
  • Lt Co. Evan Wills (Command)
  • Maj. Mark Makers (XO, Linguistics)
  • 1st Lt. Jimmy Beamer (Med)
  • SMSgt Walker Johnnson (TechWar)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-6​
Roster:
  • Lt Co. Theodore Barnes (Command)
  • Maj. Brian Thatcher (XO, TechWar)
  • Cap. Mira T'Vael (Linguistics)
  • SMSgt Tommy Ättikslag (Med)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-7​
Roster:
  • Lt Co. John Smith (Command, Linguistics)
  • Cap. Thomas Anderson (XO, TechWar)
  • Cap. John Wickowski (Med)
  • 1st Lt. Kimberly Anders (Med)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-8​
Roster:
  • Lt Co. Jake Andrews (Command, TechWar)
  • Maj. Jenny Brackley (XO, Med)
  • Cap. Ariel Lee (Med)
  • TSgt Alejandro Esposito (Linguistics)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
SG-9​
Roster:
  • Maj. Jonas Hanson (Command)
  • Cap. Thomas Frakes (XO, Linguistics)
  • Cap. Matthew Baker (Med)
  • 1st Lt. Laurence Conner (TechWar)
Assignment:
Heroic Units:
Current Mission:
Mission History:
State of the Galaxy​
You Came, You Saw, You Killed Ra.

The Goa'uld Empires are reeling and unsure. They don't yet know that Ra is dead, however, they are beginning to suspect. Aside from Apophis, they have no idea who is responsible for Ra's disappearance.

Current major players according to Teal'c, are the following System Lords:
  • Apophis
  • Heru'ur
  • Yu-huang Shang Ti
  • Ba'al
  • Amaterasu
  • Bastet
  • Camulus
  • Cronus
  • Kali
  • Nirrti
  • Moloch
  • Morrigan
  • Manannan mac Lir
  • Olokun
  • Svarog
State of the World​
The Permanent UN Security Council members are as follows:
  • United States
  • China
  • France
  • Russia
  • United Kingdom
The current temporary members of the UN Security Council are currently:
(exit date)

  • Egypt (END 1997)
  • Guinea-Bissau (END 1997)
  • Kenya (END 1998)
  • South Korea (END 1997)
  • Japan (END 1998)
  • Chile (END 1997)
  • Costa Rica (END 1998)
  • Protugal (END 1998)
  • Sweden (END 1998)
  • Poland (END 1997)
Scientific Projects on the Docket​
Gate Address Database​
Maps​
 
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Quest Rules and Information
Standard Rules​
By this point, most of you should be familiar with CKII style questing based off of "Crusader Kings II" by Paradox Interactive. Play goes on a turn by turn basis and uses a character's stats as a measure of success for a given category of actions after a dice roll.

There will then be events within a so-called mid-turn.
Stats​
Each character has a set of stats that govern their ability with certain types of actions and how the individual characters think. So stats are not only what they can do, but how they go about doing it.

0-4: Incompetent
5-8: Poor
9-12: Decent
13-16: Competent
17-20: Expert
21-24: Masterful
25-28: Legendary
29 and higher: Incomparable
Martial​
Martial is a character's aptitude for combat, grand strategy, and/or tactics. In your case, it can be thought of as your strategic or tactical ability, rather than strictly your ability to run a military force. It will also factor into your individual physical combat score, but only as a half strength score. (Literally, if you get into a grapple or physical combat) You are a general. You are on the wrong side of fifty and just aren't quite as strong or fast as you once were.
Diplomacy​
Diplomacy is a character's aptitude for organizing and conducting diplomacy of all kinds. It is not necessarily a "nice" trait, as high diplo necessarily gives ability in political subterfuge and legalese. That said, high diplomacy characters often make excellent ambassadors, politicians, and negotiators.

In Just One Step, Diplomacy will be used when interacting with races beyond the Stargate and with your own politicians back home.
Stewardship​
Stewardship tracks a character's ability with finance and supply. In this case, a high stewardship will allow you a better understanding of the routes the military uses to supply itself and the best ways to navigate that chain to reduce costs.

Above 10, Stewardship will begin decreasing costs by .5% per level.
Intrigue​
The intrigue stat tracks a character's ability with subterfuge of all kinds. Intelligence analysis and procurement, political subterfuge, etc. Intrigue can be seen as the darker side to diplomacy and High Intrigue characters often make excellent politicians.

In Just One Step, Diplomacy will be necessary both on and off world in order to keep your program in the dark and obtain the intel you need.
Learning​
Learning tracks a character's ability and aptitude in engaging with the sciences. It is not intelligence, as a low Learning character can be an excellent financier or strategist but just not have a mind for the sciences.

In Just One Step learning will help your character to understand what their scientists are telling him. At high enough scores, he will even do some science himself! Learning stats above 15 will add 2 per level to a random project roll up to 10.
Piety​
Piety Is not used in Just One Step.
Play and Turn Structure​
Play in Just One Step follows a quarterly structure. In one fiscal year of game time, there will be four turns, each a fiscal quarter of the US government. The American government's fiscal year goes from Q1 on October 1, through the end of Q4 on September 30th. The credit system is slightly peculiar as a result. See below for more information.

At the beginning of each main turn, the players will pick actions in each stat category and personal actions. These will be rolled for and we will proceed to the mid-turn where other events of the quarter and knock on effects of the player's choices will occur and be voted on.

There may be multiple mid-turns.
In Just One Step
One of the major themes in the design of Just One Step was a wish to incorporate the Stargate program into the real world and at the same time, not lose out on the syndicated scifi whimsy that makes the franchise so wonderful.
Real World Events & Politics​
As a part of incorporating the Stargate into the real world, you will have to deal with real world events and people as a part of your regular operations. Generals are flag officers and, as such are political creatures and appointees. Certain events in the world and US government will affect you and the demands placed upon you, though not always to any degree that you will care or notice. Sometimes I will use these as anecdotes and little easter eggs in the writing, sometimes they will show up as prominent things you will have to address.

Central to this are the exposure and attention mechanics addressed below.
Credit System​
The credit system used for Just One Step is a two part system.

Dollar Budget:

Every year you get a slice of the Pentagon's (at the time) $30 Billion USD black budget. This budget will be reflected in the quarterly brief after operating expenses for utilities and salaries are "paid." This "after operating expenses" amount will have to be budgeted out by the players over the course of the year. Reserving money for larger expenses down the line is possible, however, banking too much, too often will result in a review of the operations and a decrease in your budget, so be like a good little government program and spend it all. Going into the negatives is also possible, but will generally require you validate your reasoning to your superiors.

Expanding your budget is possible and can be done by requesting increases from the pentagon, petitioning lawmakers that are in the know, and even requesting stipends from the President.

However, there are consequences to making yourself known in order to get funding…

Political Will:

Political will, or PW, is a concept adapted from the Startrek Quest, To Boldly Go. It conceptually represents your political muscle and ability to get things done on a political scene; who and what you know, who your friends are, and what you've done for people. This currency does not refresh from year to year or turn to turn. It is increased and decreased solely by your (or what are perceived to be your) actions.

Certain actions can be paid for only with PW, or can have their dollar cost exchanged whole or in part with PW. PW can be decreased by your own mistakes or failures(real or perceived) of your command. It will be gained by fulfilling your mandate, making nice with politicians and public figures, and impressing the rest of the government.

High Diplomacy and Intrigue characters will start with more PW but will often find that when you're out and exposed, it's easier to get hit by flying shit.
Attention​
Attention is a mechanic I am using in a near identical manner, with permission, from @PoptartProdigy 's Terminus Quest.

Attention represents how relevant to various groups' interests said groups consider you to be.

In general, this represents very broad divisions. By default, this represents Earth side nations, in particular, the individual nations of the UN security council, the Goa'uld as a whole and individually, and various other alien cultures.

Attention is tracked on a scale from 0-100 for each tracked faction. At certain levels of Attention, factions begin taking action with regards to you, depending on how their relationship with you is. For instance, at 25 Attention from Russia, they will start making diplomatic noise and making inquiries. Depending on whether relations with them are friendly or not, these noises may or may not be quiet or friendly. On the other hand, 25 with a Goa'uld (as a whole or individual, they don't add together) will prompt them to start sending things your way.

Reaching 100 Attention with any faction triggers drastic measures -- outright declarations of war, formal diplomatic requests, and major concessions on your part. Mind your Attention; knowing when to increase it and when to try to dump it is key.

You also will not know what the attention from any given nation (permanent UN security council excepted) is without putting feelers out.
Exposure​
Exposure is my own mechanic and it collectively represents how much information there is about the Stargate and/or your operations in the public consciousness.

Exposure is tracked on a scale of 0-1000. It cannot be reduced, as in the information age everything ends up everywhere once it drops on the internet. Gains can only be mitigated or buffered.

Gains in exposure will increase the attention on you from the current UN security council and a little less from former members.

As exposure increases, it will naturally start to increase faster as more and more interest and eyes drop on you from the public. At certain thresholds of exposure certain actions will become available to you and certain events will start rolling in the background. Additionally, as we work further towards the modern day, you will find that you need to defend yourself from other threats at home that seek to expose your program.

Many of your intrigue and diplomacy actions will involve exposure to some degree.
Disclosure​
Disclosure is a constant and inevitable fact of life for the SGC and you will have to deal with it.

Starting from fairly early on, you will be able to make plans for disclosure and direct your departments towards making things look favorable for disclosure.

As exposure increases, various politicians and committees will begin making noise about plans for disclosure. At particularly high levels there will be severe ramifications for disclosure without plans in place. Should you reach maximum exposure, your program will be exposed and not voluntarily.

It will be bad.
SG Teams​
SG teams are by far my favorite mechanic we will be using for this quest. They are a similar mechanic to the Explorer Corps ships of To Boldly Go.

You will have a number of SG teams that you can use for various purposes. They will, essentially, be your hands, eyes, and ears, on the other side of the gate. However, they will, first and foremost, be exploratory teams.

@pbluekan I remember somewhere in the series where they mentioned SG-1 was for exploration, SG-2 for diplomacy and SG-3 for fast raids and rescue operations IIRC. Is this going to apply here?
Kinda.

Certainly, you will be able to assign an SG team to a specific mission, but the teams are specifically designed for exploration and combat operations. SG-1 aside, they are teams of highly qualified special forces soldiers with diverse backgrounds. So, you can assign SG teams as SAR, Medical, or Combat. If you do, it will take them out of the rotation for exploration but give other options or bonuses for teams that are exploring.

If you wish to, say set up a diplomatic team to go follow up with a race you have already met, you can. But it won't be an SG team you send. The same is true for an engineering or scientific team.

Frankly, there is just no reason to consider them "SG teams" at that point.

Each SG team is headed up by either a Hero Unit, or a commander with their own set of stats.

Every quarter, half of your unassigned SG teams from SG-2 on up will roll to go on exploration missions. SG-1, unless otherwise assigned, will always go. They roll a few times that basically defines "what" and "to what degree." Most of these rolls will result in a generic event that will show up as fun filler in the writing. Some, when rolled extremely bad or extremely good will get special events. These special events are the only way to meet certain races and start certain plot lines with them.

This is my attempt to maintain the whimsy, and Stargate just isn't Stargate without shenanigans.
Science and Technology​
Science and tech is one of the core aspects of this quest. In an attempt to prevent you irreverent min-maxers from just punching the "learning" button and going at it I've designed the following system.

Please keep in mind that some types of technologies and projects will be locked behind real world development schedules unless you somehow manage to accelerate those. Many of your advances in computing, for example, are locked behind timed development of that industry in the real world.

Finishing projects, both applicable and not, will give you bonuses and change dice tables in fairly predictable ways.

Science Teams:

Each science team will trickle 10 points per turn onto a given project. Every turn, I roll a d100 for the team and if they roll over a 90 for the turn, multiply the trickle by 2.5. If they get a nat 100, double the multiplier. Inversely, if they get less than 10, divide by 2.5 and subtract, roll a 1 and double the divisor.

You can hire more science teams, and purchase ones with specific specialties and bonuses.

Some heroic characters will provide bonuses to the teams and specific projects.

Scientific Projects:

You will have access to various projects that will lead to other projects or "Applicable Technologies." You will not be allowed to see what is beyond a given project, but I encourage you to think about it conceptually. Scientific projects are researched by assigning one or more science teams to them and "filling the progress bar." They will have different "progress bars" based on how difficult I feel the tech is. You will not be able to see the progress, only infer it from the narrative.

Reverse engineering falls under this category and will tend to add to other existing, more fundamental, scientific projects and open up others.

Applicable Technologies:

Applicable technologies are the "your version" of a technology and must be researched like any other scientific project.

Once finished, this technology can sometimes be implemented immediately, and other times, it will require that you approach an outside contractor to develop the technology and manufacturing process in order to sell it to you in quantities large enough for practical use. For example, programming projects can be used immediately whereas things like ceramic inserts for tac-vests will require you go to a contractor with the design. Need F-302s? Go to Lockheed or Boeing.

Going to the contractor, especially with mysterious blueprints, will always entail risk of exposure and leaks, so be aware of what you're giving out and who you're giving it to. That risk drops if you have the supporting technologies.

Special Projects:

Special Projects are those projects which skip the normal workflow for S&T, and when they finish, they will provide large increases for multiple projects. They also carry their own inherent risks, especially with the final project. An example here might be reverse engineering a death glider and stuffing your own avionics in it and hoping it works.

Selling Science and Tech:

The sale of a technology can be done. It will happen with NASA as an intermediary and will not generate dollar funds for you. It will, however, generate political goodwill (PW).

Scientific Projects may also be given away to other Agencies. And may be given to Universities or Corporations provided you can explain or lie it away. This will also generate PW, though you will lose control of the project and you won't explicitly know when it finishes.

So let's take an example:

You want to mass produce your own version of a staff weapon.

Scientific Project: Reverse Engineer Staff Weapon -> + To Naquadah Chemistry, + To Goa'uld Design Fundamentals, + To Plasma Physics, Applicable Technology: Staff Weapon -> Contact Contractor for production.

In this case, if you have not finished Naquadah Chemistry, Goa'uld Design Fundamentals, and Plasma Physics, the contractor will be very suspicious, as they won't understand the design at all, just be able to produce it, as you also don't understand the design and can only produce it.
Heroic Units​
Heroic Units are units with a pair or more of special abilities and can be assigned in various positions related to those abilities. Some heroic units will also activate a bonus (or malus) for working with other heroic units on the same team or project.

For example, Sam Carter has the following bonuses:

Way Smarter than You: +1 to Learning rolls.
Unparalleled Genius: When assigned to the SGC she acts as a standalone science team with a threshold DC of 15, 65, and 85. +2PW/QTR
Brilliance Under Pressure: On a "bad" exploration roll involving the Stargate or other technology, she has a 10% chance to get the team out with no consequences to the team.
The General​
As the CO of the SGC you oversee everything your command does and you have your fingers in every pie. However, you can't dedicate yourself to every single project, for all that your leadership will help. Though, if you do dedicate yourself to a specific project, you will be put your full attention to it and others will suffer.

TL;DR is you have two available personal actions. You can dedicate your attention to two specific projects and apply your whole relevant stats to them, or you can not dedicate your attention and use one action as "The General is Present" which gives ¼ of your relevant stats to every single action taken in a turn.
Combat​
The combat system here is pretty simple and will rely mostly on the narrative to give a true accounting of the event. However, you will roll opposing combat rolls with a Martial bonus to determine the exact outcome.

When combat involves the General directly (he is overseeing it, or it was a major planned op) you use his Martial score.

When combat does not involve the General, IE, on the other side of the gate, you will use the unit commander's score unless the general's is higher, in which case you use the average of the two.

What this is meant to account for is the General's training and advice being useful to a less seasoned commander and not being necessary for one of higher caliber.
The Narrative and You​
I generally run things by narrative. This means that a disastrous roll against someone nice, you would, at best, offend them. By that same token, the opposite is true.

I also take what the thread is saying into account when deciding how something will proceed and an action will pan out. YOU ARE THE GENERAL's THOUGHTS.
Rolling​
For each action (except Dedicate Attention and General is In) you will roll a d100 and try to beat the DC or Dice Cutoff. Added to that roll are half the relevant stat from the relevant director, and anything added from rewards or personal attention. There are multiple degrees of both Success and Failure. Failure does not always mean the action does not go through, it just means there may be side effects.
Live Events​
Live Events will primarily be used for negotiation between the players and other organizations in the game. The idea is to simulate high pressure negotiations and keep you guys from looking over every angle. You will not necessarily come to an optimum solution in these events.

For the events, I will allow you to vote on a negotiating party (from the playerbase). Who will act in your stead during the event. I will choose people for the opposing party based on those whom I can trust to stay in character. These individuals will be given a rough character profile. Each side will be given a list of goals and priorities. The event will then take place in a room on the discord server where everyone but the negotiating parties (and myself as the moderator) is muted.
Voting​
We will be using an approval plan voting system for most main turn votes and approval for any others. This means you can vote for as many or as few plans as you like.

If another vote style is used, I will specify it in the update.
Omakes and Tech Reports​
Minimum 1k words, with at least some technical quality.

Reward is a +10 to any main turn roll, non-stacking, it only activates on the next main turn, and only one may be used per turn, with the oldest bonuses having priority. Basically, you can't all pile your bonuses, you don't get to pick some difficult project and then write a tech piece to make it work, and one person can't be a loot fairy. Sorry, I know these are harsh, but I've seen too many quests spiral out of control with bonuses, but I do like giving rewards.

The same rules apply for omakes.
QM Availability and Discord​
I don't really have a particular schedule for writing, but I'm aiming for an update or two per week.

Please feel free to ping me on discord at any time. I have it on my phone. I will answer questions there.

LINK

Most importantly, please don't ping me asking when the update is going to be up. I don't tend to schedule my writing, just give myself weekly goals. If you ping me, I'll just tell you it will be up when it's up.
So What is Canon?​
This is a pretty easy question. For the Earth side of things, just read your own history. The only real change is that the Titan Missile facilities remained active until the early seventies.

Wikipedia will be a good resource.

For Stargate, you will find things to be similar in broad strokes. People there in Stargate are here, and they're mostly the same. However, there are substantial changes to make a coherent setting, as late 20th and early 21st century pulp scifi was never meant to be taken wholly seriously. I have had to do some substantive gap filling in order to make a coherent setting that doesn't handwave a lot of things the syndicated show was able to.

Is the NID going to be here?

*Takes a breath*

No. I thought about it, but you're going to have enough problems to put out at home without the comically evil, faceless alphabet agency dogging your steps.

Edit 12/28/2018:
The Ori and everything related to them and space Nazis are not canon. Why? The Ori were a fantastically poor writing choice that is little more than a re-skin of the goa'uld made more difficult. As for space Nazis, I watched Iron Skies a few too many times in college and just can't take them seriously.

This is an AU. There may be other people to meet, however.
Time Travel​
Time Travel is a thing in Stargate and it will be a thing here. However, if you've noticed, Stargate time travel usually ends up with things either going back to normal or nobody having realized anything was wrong at all.

SO

Time travel is something that happens to you. You don't get to control it or make things happen. By the time you read about it, it is generally already over and done with.
 
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[1][STAT] Diplomacy
[2][STAT] Martial
[4][STAT] Intrigue
[5][STAT] Learning
[3][STAT] Stewardship


So this is coming back? Awesome. I was disappointed when I realized you weren't going to update. Glad you rebooted it.
 
[1][STAT] Intrigue
[2][STAT] Learning
[3][STAT] Diplomacy
[4][STAT] Stewardship
[5][STAT] Martial


Happy to take part.
 
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[2][STAT] Diplomacy
[3][STAT] Martial
[5][STAT] Intrigue
[4][STAT] Learning
[1][STAT] Stewardship
 
[3][STAT] Stewardship
[2][STAT] Learning
[1][STAT] Diplomacy
[4][STAT] Martial
[5][STAT] Intrigue
 
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[1] [STAT] Stewardship
[5] [STAT] Diplomacy
[4] [STAT] Martial
[2] [STAT] Learning
[3] [STAT] Intrigue
 
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Going by last time, our highest (base) stat (before trait bonuses) was 24, then 20, then 16, then 12, then 8. So keep in mind, our highest stat will be exceptional, but our lowest will be a liability.

[1][STAT] Learning
[2][STAT] Stewardship
[3][STAT] Intrigue
[4][STAT] Martial
[5][STAT] Diplomacy
 
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[3][STAT] Diplomacy
[5][STAT] Martial
[4][STAT] Intrigue
[1][STAT] Learning
[2][STAT] Stewardship
 
[1][STAT] Intrigue
[2][STAT] Learning
[3][STAT] Diplomacy
[4][STAT] Stewardship
[5][STAT] Martial

Stat lines are all over the place, but I did enjoy the concept of Intrigue specialist Hammond. That said, I'd like for us to be able to keep up a little with Carter from time to time.
 
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Awesome to see this back.

Rules section is interesting. I look forward to seeing how the mechanics hold up. I know Durin had a hell of a time balancing everything and adjusting for shifts in the situation.
On a side note did Sam steal that third trait from Rodney?

Stats… martial is painful. Combat is by far the least important thing we will be doing.
Also I don't think the thread vote tally picks up on the system you are trying.

Assuming manual count:
[1][STAT] Diplomacy
[2][STAT] Martial
[4][STAT] Intrigue
[3][STAT] Stewardship
[5][STAT] Learning

Dip over intrigue because negotiations with politicians will be more important than blackmailing people. Learning gets the chop because we can outsource our Science! needs but not our funding.
 
[1][STAT] Learning
[2][STAT] Martial
[3][STAT] Diplomacy
[4][STAT] Intrigue
[5][STAT] Stewardship
 
Stats… martial is painful. Combat is by far the least important thing we will be doing.
I'm pretty sure I noted it in the rules, but martial isn't so much your personal combat score as it is your tactical and strategic acumen. Your ability to "general," so to speak.
Also I don't think the thread vote tally picks up on the system you are trying.
Thread vote tally doesn't, but I've got a program for that.
Adhoc vote count started by pbluekan on Dec 13, 2018 at 11:03 PM
This vote count is in an error state, please contact support
 
[1] [STAT] Stewardship
[2] [STAT] Diplomacy
[3] [STAT] Martial
[4] [STAT] Learning
[5] [STAT] Intrigue
 
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