not an extreme solution.. I think it should be based on Hull Damage and likely once the Hull damage falls below a certain amount (probably 50% or so)... after which point crew members *die* (not Bridge Officers).
the crew member icon will go through phases to represent the number that are dead..
White - fine
Yellow - damaged (crew in sickbay)
Orange - a few are dead (50% of what that icon represents)
Red - a lot are dead (75% of how many the icon represents)
Black / gray - that "set" of crew are dead.
Returning to a starbase or space station (such as DS7 or DS9) would immediately refresh any dead crew, until such time however you're just sorta stuck with a ship operating as best it can with whomever is left.
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the crew member icon will go through phases to represent the number that are dead..
White - fine
Yellow - damaged (crew in sickbay)
Orange - a few are dead (50% of what that icon represents)
Red - a lot are dead (75% of how many the icon represents)
Black / gray - that "set" of crew are dead.
Returning to a starbase or space station (such as DS7 or DS9) would immediately refresh any dead crew, until such time however you're just sorta stuck with a ship operating as best it can with whomever is left.