Star Trek Adventures Session Report #3

The session log below depicts our thrilling third session using Mophidius’ Star Trek: Adventures RPG, where Chief Science Officer Marco Chang, Security Chief Cuellas and Dr. Te’drall head to Klingon space and continue their investigation from the previous session 2.

Spoiler Warning: The session log below reveals events presented in the Star Trek Adventures Starter Set module. Be aware if you’re planning to play in this module.

Session Log #3 – Klingon/off

Captain’s Log, Star date 47520.7: “…The Kor’tarr mining station has gone dark.”

The USS Magellan arrives at Star Base 117, in preparation of setting metaphorical sails for Klingon space. Rear Admiral Marina Rensmith worriedly debriefs Captain Los and the away team, tasking them with going to Kor’tarr, the Klingon mining outpost, supposedly where Subcommander D’Nal was infected with the mind-controlling parasite. Chief Science officer Marco inquires if the Klingons are aware of their investigation. He suggests they contact Klingon authorities so they could get official backing for their mission. The admiral rejects the idea, stating their mission should remain secret — they do not yet know the extent of the infestation and who is to be trusted. The Admiral continues to introduce Ki’jan, a Romulan Centurion, who will also join the investigation. After all, this matter concerns The Romulan Empire as well. Dr. Te’drall opposes this intently but Marco explains this event will better the relations with the Romulans and might eventually lead to peace. Dr. Te’drall agrees this is logical though highly optimistic. Chief of Security Cuellas reassures she will not let the Centurion out of her sight. Lastly, the Admiral reports that the poor Star Fleet junior engineer survivor also found on the Alcubierre, who has received a very negative performance review from Dr. Te’drall of the away team, will not join the investigation. Apparently he has hung himself in a sonic shower.

The Magellan starts its journey to Kor’tarr. The entire crew is nervous as everyone is a suspect. Dr. Te’drall sets up a schedule of crew examinations, to check for parasites. Eventually the tense atmosphere subsides as, thankfully, no parasite is found.

As the star ship approaches its destination, a troubling message is received from Star Fleet. The Klingon authorities report that the Kor’tarr mining station has gone dark. The last contact with the station is only a short video of a frenzied station’s commander, shouting: “We are not ourselves”, before venting the entire station’s atmosphere to space. The Magellan comes out of warp near the eerily dark mining station as this recording abruptly ends.

Marco finally breaks the silence as he starts clanging his console to scan the station and area. The station apparently has no life signs but a slow and faint beeping sound alerts Marco of a single escape pod, with a very weak single life sign on it, drifting in the near-by asteroid belt. Dr. Te’drall suggests they beam the weak life sign straight to sick bay. Cuellas brings a security team to sick back, and is considering raising a force field, just in case. Alas, interference from the Kelbonite-rich asteroids make the beaming process glitch and the transported Klingon is dead on arrival. All is left is for Dr. Te’drall to perform an autopsy.

The dead Klingon’s back of the neck seems to be injured, like something was ripped out of there by force — which is what eventually killed him. A deep scan of the Klingon’s DNA tissue uncovers traces of already mixed parasite DNA! The team decide to blow up the drifting escape pod, just in case the parasite is still there. The captain then instructs the away team to put on space suits and beam over to the mining station. They must continue their investigation.

The away team, consisting of Marco, Cuellas and Dr. Te’drall, accompanied by Cuellas’ three favorite security officers and the Romulan Centurion, beam over to the station’s medical bay, apparently the only location where there still is some power. The place looks like a place of battle, dead Klingons everywhere, who evidently fought each other. They also find a few dead parasites on the floor, which they take samples of. Additionally, several Klingon bodies are found tied to medical beds, with an apparent science experiment taking place. Dr. Te’drall discovers that these Klingons were infected with different genetically modified parasites, seemingly trying to produce an optimal specimen for Klingon infestation. More disturbingly, these parasites have traces of Trill symbiont DNA!

Meanwhile, Marco attempts to access the mining station’s computer. He discovers an encrypted outgoing message stuck in queue, that was never sent due to the station losing its power. Using the help of the Magellan‘s main computer, he manages to decrypt only a few data streams before the message is corrupted beyond repair. Apparently the message was addressed to someone called Tal Duron, a Trill name!

Efficient as always, Dr. Te’drall suggests they go back to the ship and ~~nuke~~ photon torpedo this place from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure. The rest of the group insist they continue to investigate the station.

They beam themselves to the station’s command level and manage to bring some power and life support back online. Losing their space suits, the away team takes the elevator down into the mine itself, where initial scans failed due to the rich in Kelbonite mineral caves. The elevator stops and opens into a maze of dark and stretching caves, where they could be ambushed at every corner. And indeed they are. After a few moments of cautiously walking down the cave and stepping into a larger room, they are fired upon by a group of frenzied Klingons.

Later, in his personal log, Dr. Te’drall will have difficulty remembering all the details of this encounter. It was all like a long big accident. He just remembers the Klingons firing from every direction and his team-mates dropping like flies. There might have been a couple of swinging Bat’leths as well. Marco, Cuellas and the rest of the away team exchanged fire with the assailants, and one by one, were knocked down. The doctor rushed from team member to team member, trying to heal the injured and revive the fallen. At last, it was only him, hunching over Cuellas, with the Klingons rushing towards him. Dr. Te’drall never before smashed his combadge with such force, shouting: “Away team to beam up! NOW!”

In spite of the interference from the Kelbonite mineral, the entire away team is miraculously transported back to safety on the Magellan, where Dr. Te’drall instructs to blow up the entire mining station from orbit. The captain concurs, firing a couple of photon torpedoes that do the trick. The away team watch as the entire outpost explodes to space.