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expanding on BO trainning

SystemSystem Member, NoReporting Posts: 178,019 Arc User
I am for Bridge officers and Captains having more expanded (non combat) & specialized abilities that can not only assist me in my travels, but can also open up more mission varieties, and stories arcs.

Adding broader tricorder options, mini games, and the ability to switch your perspective to "puppet" your BO's would greatly enhance this system.

This is how I would envision it working:

I, as Captain, beam down to a planet alone. I encounter an alien plant, and scan it, only to discover it has medical applications that can be crafted into hyposprays, so long as a specimen sample is collected. The tricorder allows me to collect a sample, but warns me of possible dangers in handling this material, being that my captain has no experience in the field. I proceed, and am notified that the sample was contaminated upon collection. I am given the option to try again. This time, the spines on the plant injured me (minor injury applied), or perhaps a mini game is prompted. The third scan allows me to take the sample. Whew, finally. It would have been a lot easier if my Captain was trained in the field, but he is already trained in Cosmology. I should have brought my Xeno Botanist Science Officer with me. She could have collected the sample with no problems, and, for that matter, she could have detected & located the plant immediately upon beam down. I would not have had to hunt for it with a tricorder.

here is another scenario: [url] http://william380.photobook.org.uk/c1852147.html[/url]
(sorry for the spelling mistakes. also on the tricorder concept panel the T S and E stand for tactical, science, engineering)

Now, my Technician Engineering Officer can easily hack computer consoles. Without him, I must play a mini game in order to get through.

SCIENCE OFFICER:

Xenobotanist: provides abilities based on plant life and fungi
-expands on the plant life
Inherent passive: Flora Identification; Provides ability to detect and caution benefits or dangers of plant life forms upon approach; i.e. defenses, poisons, medicines, or any other beneficial or non beneficial effects.
Active training ability: Flora Analysis; Provides ability to inoculate against floral poisons
Train up: Fora Interpolation; Provides ability to shield crew and NPCs against dangers and projectiles from plant life.

Ground ability: Cryogenic Containment; drops a containment field around targeted plant, effectively neutralizing it.

Xenobiologist: provides abilities based on animal life, insects, bacteria, and viruses
-expands on the ambient creature part of the game
Inherent passive: Organism Identification; Provides ability to detect, and caution benefits or dangers of alien life forms; i.e. defenses, poisons, medicines, behavior, or any other beneficial or non beneficial effects.
Active training ability: Organic Analysis; Provides ability to inoculate against animal poisons & attacks.
Train up: Behavior Interpolation; Provides ability to neutralize, deter, or communicate with animal life forms.

Ground ability: Perimeter Establishment; activates a unique universal translator, essentially warding off any aggressive creatures within a specific range. Only partially effective against trained creatures.

(Start with ambient creatures, but make them interact-able later in the game. Some can be basic, but then make different "intellectual" variates, going up to full sentient, telepathic, telekinetic, etc, with abilities that are harmful, beneficial, and discoverable, or exploitable. Same as plant life and other forms of life I.E. silicon based, non-corporeal,) So that way there are humanoid and non humanoid sentient life forms.

Medical officer: Provides abilities related to healing, curing, and researching for NPCs, crew, bridge officers, and players during missions
-expands on the injury system
Inherent passive: Pathogen Identification; Provides ability to detect, and caution benefits or dangers of microscopic life forms; i.e. illnesses & applied medicines, or any other beneficial or non beneficial effects. (perhaps certain microbes can harm or deter other harmful ones). Also provides the ability to provide heal minor injury equipment, using anomalous data.
Active training ability: Treatment Analyst; Provides ability to slow the spread of dangerous illness, or exploit the gains of beneficial microbes (can draw in or deter microbial life. also able to collect samples (perhaps certain microbes can be used to consume certain radiations, or lower the ill effects of plasma fires) Can help in the treatment of major injuries,using anomalous data.
Inoculation & Treatment-Ships Surgeon; Once collected, Medical officer is able to provide full defenses to crew and NPCs against dangerous microbes, or provide the ability to invent chemical or technical versions of microbial benefits (applies to crafting). Also now capable of treating critical injuries, using anomalous data & crafting medicines when partnered with a Xenobotanist.

Ground ability: Field Physician; ability that allows the healing of 1 injury per away party member per mission, allowing the team to remain fully functional during missions, without having to leave for treatment.

Second ability: Medical Beamout; ability that beams out a downed officer, and downed npc units, effectively saving their lives. Saving an Npc unit on this ability has the chance of granting special information or item of some sort. The more people you save, the better the chances are of getting something.

Planetary Scientist: provides abilities based on Planetary mechanics, including Geology & Meteorology
Inherent passive: Planetary geology; Provides ability to detect, and caution benefits or dangers of planetary elements & anomalies; i.e. gravity, elements & minerals, volcanic activity, or any other beneficial or non beneficial effects. (perhaps certain minerals have electrical properties, or certain rock formations can be exploited)
Active training ability: Atmospheric Science; Provides ability to determine weather patterns, storms, turbulence, etc.
Train up: Planetary Classification; Provides ability to shelter or dampen planetary effects, expose/develop methodology toward exploiting and/or defending against planetary effects. (perhaps a new environmental suit can be crafted, or a new alloy can be applied to a shuttle hull to absorb plasma discharges)

Ground ability: Induced Weather Pattern; induces a weather pattern dominantly inherent to the occupied planet. could cause a lightning storm, wind gusts, earthquakes. Being that it is a type of orbital strike, it can be unpredictable, and may have unforeseen consequences. Think wisely before using.

So in effect, if I selected my Xenobotanist, she would be able to detect, warn you of, and defend herself & the crew against the harmful effects of the plant's spines, Also, if sent to scan the life form, she would be more effective in gaining information about it, gaining more skill points and even new loot (such as an advanced medicine to use in combat, or to inoculate crew against similar plant life in the future).

A regular officer would simply be able to scan it, and collect from it (less effectively, gaining less skill points), however, would not be capable of gaining these bonus protective abilities.


TACTICAL OFFICER:

Weapons specialist: abilities pertaining to alien weaponry and tactics
Inherent passive: Arms Identification; Provides ability to detect, and caution exploits or dangers of alien weaponry
Active training ability: Munitions Analysis; Provides ability to determine exploits & weaknesses in alien weaponry
Train up: Weapon Application; Provides ability to use extremely foreign weapons with great efficiency. Also can create new defenses, armaments, and tactical behaviors based on newly encountered alien technology when partnered with a Technician

Ground ability: Precision Targeting; direct hit to hand-held weapons, knocking them out of the target's hand. Also effective at vaporizing blunt objects being prepared for throwing use, such as the gorn attack using a chunk of rock being thrown. I.E. a gorn picks up a rock, the move is activeated, the rock is vaporized in his hands, rendering the move neutralized.

Explosives expert: abilities dealing in explosives
Inherent passive: Chemical Analysis; Provides ability to detect & caution benefits or dangers of explosive elements in a given area; (perhaps certain minerals have natural explosive properties
Active training ability: Pyrotechnics Specialty; Provides ability to determine and utilize weaknesses and neutralization of explosive devices and chemicals with absolute precision
Train up: Blast Applications; Provides ability to create new defenses, armaments, and tactical exercises based on newly encountered explosives (perhaps a certain metal in a ships hull is exploitable using a specific explosive, or when exposed to certain pressures, depending on partnership)

Ground ability: Remote Mine; ability to place attachable mines to objects or locations anywhere within arms reach. Place a mine in a discreet location, then detonate with a remote to take out enemies, or reveal hidden objects of passageways. Hint: detonate near explosive or combustible objects can result in new effects, or simply a larger blast.
Post edited by Unknown User on

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  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited May 2010
    (CONTINUED)

    Ambassador: abilities assisting in negotiation
    Inherent passive: Reputable; Upon dealing with trading & buying, prices drop, received commodity amounts/offers increase, and hostile attacks will drop in frequency.
    Active training ability: Advanced Linguistics; Provides ability to determine and utilize alien languages, enabling the programming of the universal translator. (perhaps certain visits, the language box comes up as "[]MWE 77NM DEEAX ^^ #/\ HLLT," when the alien speaks, with the option to repeat, which enables "Greetings, 77NM DEEAX are #/\ Kunai." repeat "Greetings, captain. We are the Kunai." Having an officer with this ability provides immediate translation.
    Train up: Eloquent Diplomat; Provides ability to cease an attack or threat, unlock abilities to initiate friendship with other races, through mere presence, or using trade. (new options appear/unlock in some NPC boxes, which seemingly have now answer, when Eloquent Diplomat is trained)

    Ground ability: Negotiate; (works only on Npcs) trade an item in the cargo manifest to persuade an opposing party to cease hostilities. Depending on the alien, it may or may not work; this is random. Also, this will not stop everyone on the planet, but it will stop from one to five individuals on an encountered npc team.
    Second ability: Infiltration effort; Sends a demand to cease hostilities. Upon use (before an enemy group fires, the whole party may disarm and surrender, a member or an opposing party may surrender, and provide a tip of some sort to use on the map against the enemy forces, such as 'blast away the large duct in this room to gain access to the next room and take the next party by surprise," or a few members may take up arms against their group, joining the fight.

    Xeno-anthropologist: provides abilities based on artifacts, ancient cultures, society structure, & their study
    Inherent passive: Cultural Analysis; Provides ability to detect, and caution benefits or threats of planetary cultures.
    Active training ability: Archaeological & Developmental Science; Provides ability to identify artifacts, locate ruins & temples, and determine genetic ancestries.
    Train up: Artifact Classification; ability to acquire artifacts (when partnered with an Ambassador), analyze and apply their meanings, buffs, and abilities to self, crew, and/or NPCs

    Ground ability: artifact reclamation; analyze map objects to reveal special items, which may be applicable as trophies, trade with npcs, and on up to items of interest to entire races.

    ENGINEERING OFFICER:

    Technician: abilities dealing with computers, generators, power supplies, & alien technology
    -expands on injury system
    Inherent passive: Technology Identification; Provides ability to detect & caution benefits or dangers of alien technology. Provides ability to repair minor ship injuries, using anomalous data.
    Active training ability: Technical Analysis; Provides ability to determine exploits & weaknesses in alien weaponry. Ability to repair Major ship injuries, using anomalous data. Ability to repair NPC Technologies, access hack, and utilize computer systems.
    Train up: Mechanical Application; ability to use extremely foreign technology with great efficiency. Also can create new devices, utilities, and commodities based on newly encountered alien technology, depending on partnership. (perhaps new replicator items become available, when partnered with an Ambassador while visiting a planet. Or a new shield configuration can be gained or crafted when partnered with a Physicist while encountering a spacial anomaly). Also provides ability to repair critical ship injuries, using anomalous data.

    Ground ability: Power Cell boost; temporary boost to power cells on away teams active devices, enhancing their abilities for a short time.

    Second ability: Materials usage; allows for the use of map objects that can be manipulated.
    examples: *using a welder to seal a door, preventing an enemy from entering, or following. *beaming down a phaser drill to blast a hole in an expose-able wall, door, or pile of rocks.

    Space ability: Jerry-Rig; applies a temporary quick fix to a damaged subsystem, restoring ship effectiveness for a time. the effect does ware off, so be sure to visit space dock for repairs.

    Cosmologist: abilities dealing with spacial anomalies
    Inherent passive: Astronomer; Provides ability to detect & caution benefits or dangers of nearby or approaching anomalies.
    Active training ability: Intra-Galaxy Process Analysis; ability to determine defenses and utilize spacial anomalies, enabling the defense and exploits of such objects. Boosts abilities that are capable of manipulating such objects. i.e. enhancing the tractor beam to repel or drag large asteroids, when paired with a technician.
    Train up: Cosmological application; ability to create or craft new technologies, mimicking or creating miniature to full forms of natural anomalies. Able to fully neutralize certain phenomena.

    Ground ability: Spatial Distortion; creates a spatial distortion in front of the target adversary, distorting his/her beam weapon angle. There is a chance it will deflect and hit the original gunman.

    Physicist: abilities dealing with physics
    Inherent passive: Navigational Physics; Provides ability to analyze star maps and planetary terrain, providing suggestions toward short cuts and environmental exploits. i.e. "The lack of gravity in this planet can allow us to jump over that cluster of rocks to cover less ground." or "Slipping between the moon and that asteroid will provide a significant slingshot effect on our ship"
    Active training ability: Particle Physics; ability to manipulate unseen environmental elements, either on their own, or using current tools, such as firing a phaser into the subspace eddy to generate partial and brief exposure of cloaked ships nearby, or using the graviton generator near the small rift in the temple (when partnered with an Archaeologist) to create the doorway to another room.
    Train up: Inter-dimensional and Temporal Theory; ability to detect, create, and/or assist in the manipulation of temporal and inter-dimensional anomalies, depending on partnerships.

    Ground ability: Graviton Generator; fabricates a graviton generator, which essentially pulls ground objects, including enemy units toward it, containing them in one location and slowing their movement within a specific range. Power drain is significant, so the effect wares off after a time. Activated by remote, as to help friendlies from getting caught in its effect.

    Space ability: Graviton Beacon; using the deflector dish to convert the ship into a graviton beacon for a period of time. when passing between 2 objects of smaller or equal mass to the ship, they are drawn toward a central point in its wake, inevitably leading the objects to crash into one another. colliding asteroids do area damage, colliding ships, well, do the obvious damage.

    Inventor: (Have not come up with anything for this yet.) :o
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited May 2010
    Kind of like FF7 and 8 where you had to be exposed to an attack to learn it.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited May 2010
    or to learn something from it.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited May 2010
    Perhaps certain type of these abilities can be combined with natural species traits too, although that might make things very complicated. But the combinations could be interesting, especially if some of the stuff mentioned in my telekinetic abilities thread ( http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=152681&highlight=telekinetic+abilities ) were applied.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited May 2010
    * Added visual scenerio link
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited May 2010
    Definately need something like this - at present, officers don't really function as they should. The current system of 'each ship has a number of NPC crew, each specialising in DPS, healing or tanking, with different powers relevant to the 3 classes' is just cookie-cutter MMO mechanics, and doesn't reflect the 'reality' (figuratively speaking!) of what we know from the shows.

    Case in point: One of my Science officers has the 'Tachyon Beam' ability in space, and 'Stasis Field' and 'Hypospray - Dylovene' on the ground. In a 'Swords & Sorcery' MMO like Warcraft, that'd make him a Mage or whatever, with 'weaken armour, 'freeze ray' and 'cure sickness' or something like that.

    Trouble is, this is Star Trek, and those are all abilites from different jobs. Hyposprays are medical equipment, obviously, so that's the responsibility of CMO or other doctor, which falls under 'Sciences' - so far, so good. But creating stasis fields and using the deflector to create a Tachyon beam? That's the job of someone from the 'Operations' (not 'Engineering' - that's a misnomer) division, most likely the Chief Engineer. I can almost hear McCoy now - "I'm a Doctor, not a particle physicist!". And yet, that's exactly what my Science officer can do. So what exactly is he?


    How this needs to be improved is by creating specific 'roles' for Bridge officers, each with corresponding abilities. For example, 'Helmsman'/'Flight Controller' would have access to 'Evasive Maneouvers', 'Doctor'/'Chief Medical Officer' would have 'Hypospray - _______', 'Tactical Officer' would have 'Torpedo - High Yield', Chief Engineer would have 'Emergency Power to _______', and so on - you get the idea. Plus, there could be a 'rank hierarchy' in place, where a ship can't have more than so many Commander-ranked officers, for example, and designated First and Second Officers. Add to that an option to 'buy' higher-ranked Officer candidates, some already with training in a specific duty (for example, instead of requisitioning an 'Engineering Officer', how about asking for a 'Conn Officer', or 'Head of Astrometrics'?), rather than untrained Ensigns all the time.


    That's all just conjecture, but I hope that shows how relatively simple it'd be to rework the existing system to better reflect how things 'actually' work aboard a starship. The current system is 'ok', but as I said, it's just regular MMO mechanics with a veneer of Star Trek. A revamp like the one I've detailed above would make the game feel much more like the shows, and I'm sure would be welcomed by a lot of people, as well as helping to set the game apart from the numerous WoW clones out there.


    Oh, and while we're at it, for the love of Q, can we PLEASE re-name the divisions? It's COMMAND, OPERATIONS and SCIENCES, not 'Tactical', 'Engineering' and 'Science'! :mad: Sorry, but that REALLY bugs me...!!
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited June 2010
    updated a bit... i need some ideas for abilities, and for the last engineering ability. any suggestions?

    updated: medical officer, targeting specialist, xeno anthropologist, and technician
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited June 2010
    updated some abilities
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2010
    great ideas.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited December 2010
    Definately need something like this - at present, officers don't really function as they should. The current system of 'each ship has a number of NPC crew, each specialising in DPS, healing or tanking, with different powers relevant to the 3 classes' is just cookie-cutter MMO mechanics, and doesn't reflect the 'reality' (figuratively speaking!) of what we know from the shows.

    Case in point: One of my Science officers has the 'Tachyon Beam' ability in space, and 'Stasis Field' and 'Hypospray - Dylovene' on the ground. In a 'Swords & Sorcery' MMO like Warcraft, that'd make him a Mage or whatever, with 'weaken armour, 'freeze ray' and 'cure sickness' or something like that.

    Trouble is, this is Star Trek, and those are all abilites from different jobs. Hyposprays are medical equipment, obviously, so that's the responsibility of CMO or other doctor, which falls under 'Sciences' - so far, so good. But creating stasis fields and using the deflector to create a Tachyon beam? That's the job of someone from the 'Operations' (not 'Engineering' - that's a misnomer) division, most likely the Chief Engineer. I can almost hear McCoy now - "I'm a Doctor, not a particle physicist!". And yet, that's exactly what my Science officer can do. So what exactly is he?


    How this needs to be improved is by creating specific 'roles' for Bridge officers, each with corresponding abilities. For example, 'Helmsman'/'Flight Controller' would have access to 'Evasive Maneouvers', 'Doctor'/'Chief Medical Officer' would have 'Hypospray - _______', 'Tactical Officer' would have 'Torpedo - High Yield', Chief Engineer would have 'Emergency Power to _______', and so on - you get the idea. Plus, there could be a 'rank hierarchy' in place, where a ship can't have more than so many Commander-ranked officers, for example, and designated First and Second Officers. Add to that an option to 'buy' higher-ranked Officer candidates, some already with training in a specific duty (for example, instead of requisitioning an 'Engineering Officer', how about asking for a 'Conn Officer', or 'Head of Astrometrics'?), rather than untrained Ensigns all the time.


    That's all just conjecture, but I hope that shows how relatively simple it'd be to rework the existing system to better reflect how things 'actually' work aboard a starship. The current system is 'ok', but as I said, it's just regular MMO mechanics with a veneer of Star Trek. A revamp like the one I've detailed above would make the game feel much more like the shows, and I'm sure would be welcomed by a lot of people, as well as helping to set the game apart from the numerous WoW clones out there.


    Oh, and while we're at it, for the love of Q, can we PLEASE re-name the divisions? It's COMMAND, OPERATIONS and SCIENCES, not 'Tactical', 'Engineering' and 'Science'! :mad: Sorry, but that REALLY bugs me...!!

    I agree about that,but i hate mmo`s with too many classes,a simple way to balance in game mechanics with canon material is create some sort of specialization for each class to separate a medic from a science officer .
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited December 2010
    i wanted to add this for medical staff options:

    I agree that there should be a ships doctor and medical bay. i also believe that ship doctors should have their own expert areas. so when taken on an away team, they can perform certain medical functions;
    -Dermal: treats anything affecting the skin or outer body
    -Orthopedic: treats anything relating to bones
    -Surgeon: treats anything realating to internal
    -Infection Specialist: treats anything relating to illness
    -Neurologist: treats anything affecting the mind, brain, nerves
    Perhaps each skill can also provide defense and/or combat bonuses relating to their field.

    i think things like med kits and hyposprays, also equipment and scanned anomalies relating to biology and medical could be taken to the sickbay inventory. each doctor can use these items to treat crew and away teams on the fly.

    so, you get 4 hyposprays, 3 dermal regenerators, 6 DNA sequences in your inventory. you then go to your sickbay and transfer them out of your normal inventory and into your sickbay inventory. this allows your chief medical officer access to this equipment. Now when your CMO has a dermal specialist and orthopedic skill, they can use the items out of their inventory relating to those specialties. so, when picked on your away team, and you or your officers become injured, they can use that material to instantly heal those injuries. any injuries that are not trained to their skill list yet will require a trip to a starbase.

    if they are not picked on the away team, you have to beam back to the ship and go to sickbay for treatment.

    now, some bonus down the line could allow you to transport a medical team (with varying skills) down temporarily, when not in combat. once treated, they leave. Note: the inventory items are used by this team as well.

    these systems could be used in other ship locations too, such as engineering.

    - these officers can not only treat your character and away team, but also npcs. they can even provide combat or defensive bonuses relating to their field. that way, if you are on normal mode there are still benefits to picking the CMO on away teams.

    a space station Doctor can heal all afflictions at once (or multiple, but not all) for simple engergy credit "cost"
    perhaps they can also provide materials for your sickbay inventory, in case you run out. again, using energy credits.
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