Thank you to Mōdiphiüs Entertainment for a copy of Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game: Second Edition Core Rulebook in exchange for an honest review.
Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game
The first 80 pages of Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game are essentially a broad overview of the world of the Franchise. “A Star Trek Primer,” “Starfleet” and “The Final Frontier” pull from every series (and beyond) to establish the world in which the TTRPG takes place.
And I do mean every series. Both Star Trek: Prodigy and Star Trek: Lower Decks are very well represented, for example. Plus, perhaps the most overlooked series, Star Trek: Enterprise, is featured throughout the book. This is because it is the only onscreen window we have into the 22nd century, which is one of the spotlighted eras of play. The IDW Comics story “Day of Blood” is alluded to, as well.
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These first three chapters truly embodied the “textbook for the Franchise” I mentioned above. As a Trekkie, I just enjoyed reading them. It was especially interesting to see how the many eras of Star Trek were synthesized together. This is something that you don’t really ever get to see onscreen since the various shows are set in their respective eras. Plus, the aforementioned endpapers come into play here, as well. In the front is a detailed star chart of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. And in the back are several timelines, providing you with a chronology of the Franchise’s shows and movies, the Prime Universe Timeline and the Terran Universe Timeline.
In addition to providing a helpful framework for a game of Star Trek Adventures, these first three chapters in particular could be of interest to Franchise enthusiasts who aren’t planning on playing the game themselves. For example, I think a fanfic author might find the Second Edition Core Rulebook to be a useful resource for their writing.
Second Edition Core Rulebook
The next five chapters are dedicated to guiding players through crafting their own game. This includes detailed instructions on how to create characters and starships. There are profiles for a variety of species and ships, from both inside and outside the Federation. Furthermore, additional specialized material is promised in supplements, in case you want your game to be about one of the more obscure corners of the Star Trek universe.
And the final three chapters are directed towards the gamemaster. The first is a general overview, while the second provides a sample adventure. And the third offers a selection of NPC ships, characters and creatures (including the Moopsy. “Value: Moopsy!”). Finally, the last few pages of the book include blank character, ship and log sheets. And rounding out the book is a dense four-page index, which will obviously be invaluable when using this book as a reference for the game.
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Every section in every chapter of the book opens with a quote taken from the Franchise’s canonical onscreen adventures. Meanwhile, each chapter is hosted by an original character, who open each section with a brief explanation of its contents. And the first three chapters include inset log entries, from both onscreen and original characters alike.
Furthermore, the entire book features original artwork by a crew of over two dozen artists. This art mostly depicts characters and ships unseen on screen, inspiring players for their own adventures. While many of these pieces are “realistic” in style, some are presented in the style of Lower Decks. All of them are very well done.
Boldly Going Your Own Way
All of the information in Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game: Second Edition Core Rulebook is presented in a clear and straightforward way. Additionally, the book is filled with informational insets, tables and charts. These make finding details a breeze. Every page of the book is in full color. Thus, the book’s glossy pages are easy to navigate throughout. I did notice a few minor typos in the text. However, considering I received an early edition, these may have been corrected already. Furthermore, none of them detracted from my ability to understand what was being communicated.
In terms of additional details about the book itself, it is a large hardcover, as you’d expect from this kind of TTRPG rulebook. Stitching at the center of the front end page seems designed to ensure the book holds together in spite of frequent use, which I appreciate.
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I do not own the First Edition Core Rulebook, so I can’t compare the two. However, having owned and used a fair few Dungeons & Dragons rulebooks, I can say that Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game: Second Edition Core Rulebook is every bit equal in quality to any of those.
Overall, this is a gorgeous, accessible and inclusive book that has me eager to run a game of my own. Further, I have thoroughly enjoyed reading it, just as a survey of the Franchise. I bet other diehard Trekkies (or newbies curious to learn more or who have had questions raised by episodes of the show) will feel the same way.
The Final Frontier
The team who worked on this book includes 17 credited writers and dozens of artists and graphic designers. As such, it isn’t possible to list the credits for everyone behind this impressive endeavor here. However, I do want to shout out Project Manager Jim Johnson for leading the crew on an extremely successful mission. Qapla’! The Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game: Second Edition Core Rulebook comes highly recommended.
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Star Trek Adventures: The Roleplaying Game: Second Edition Core Rulebook is available now from Mōdiphius Entertainment.
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