Failed Astrogation Rolls

[Stan]

I'm trying to think how to model the Star Trek activity in plotting a course in RPGs (I'm designing my own rules).

In Traveller and some other games, you'd make something akin to an Astrogation check. A failure means a misjump and you go to someplace unexpected.

I don't recall any "oops, I messed up and we warped to a wrong location" episodes -- were there any?

I was thinking that, in my game, if you fail an astrogation check to plot a course it could take longer to be able to jump to warp; essentially you'd have to try again on your next turn. 

Thoughts?

[ThrorII]

Since there does not seem to be any 'misjumps' or 'mis-warps' in Star Trek, I'd rather think it was a poorly plotted course that took a longer period of time (and possibly cost more fuel points - if you use those).

[blackbat242]

Well, the complete difference is that in Traveller, once you enter Jump your course cannot be altered in any way... nor do you know whether you got the course etc correct or not until breakout into normal space.

In all series of Star Trek, your course and speed may be altered however you see fit while in Warp... and you can do further astrogation checks while in Warp, giving the opportunity for whatever corrections are needed as soon as the need becomes apparent.

Thus, in Trek, anyone who actually follows an incorrect course/speed plan to its conclusion is either utterly incompetent, mentally unhinged... or derelict in their duty to actually monitor the ship's progress.

[c57d]

Imho, I think that in ST's setting, space travel (including FTL) is a routine process controlled and overseen by highly experienced crew.
In Traveller (Classic, anyway) it is a far more rare occurrence, just as any "Traveller" is a rarer type of person.
My feeling is that astronavigation in ST is only hindered by unforseen external factors, not errors in crew skill.

[starcruiser]

The only exceptions in Trek would be due to outside interference (advanced aliens) or mechanical failure of some kind. Both of those would be part of the scenario - or could be inserted by random die rolls (both should be rare).

[Stan]

So, in terms of why you would even bother to have a navigation / astrogation skill in Star Trek games, the only thing a roll would determine might be the time to plot the course I'm thinking.

[Falconer]

Hm, “The Corbomite Maneuver” has a bunch of stuff about efficiency. The Navigator, Bailey, freezes up a few times, but eventually recovers; once or twice, Sulu is able to lean over and perform his duties. I kind of think that’s how a failure of a “routine” duty might look. You’re presumed to be able to succeed, but in the event of a rare failure there can be a delay at what might be an important moment, maybe a chance for a little character moment.

Most uses of the Navigation skill in my game have had to do with unusual feats, such calculating an intercept, or triangulation, or trying to figure out how to navigate a completely alien craft.

[aramis]

Failed astrogation should be simply a case of taking extra time, hurting the mission's completion time...

[Jack Photon]

This is a good topic. Sorry I'm so late! In my case, I've tied the helm to the navigator to the warp factor and travel time.

In the Ballantine Star Trek Maps, they posited that both gravitational density and hydrogen/spatial density were tied to speed. The short of it is that major/minor space lanes took trips along idealized space corridors. This amounts to legs of a journey.

Enter the navigator. In my house rules, every 10pt margin of success/fail per leg shaves/adds travel time. As the navigator plots those curves, the helm uses their skill to ride the throttle and trim the sails as were into and out of those curves -again adding/shaving travel time. A good combination at the controls can shave massive travel time and helps account for 1701's vast reach (as posited by STMaps and now mechanically supported in my 40th anniversary revision)

Here's the very page with the ruleset for online preview at the Internet Archive.

It will let you determine the actual time saved or lost by the Nav helm rolls.

archive.org/details/b-02-pieceofthe-action-med-q-230101/page/144/mode/2up

[Stan]

Very nice! Thanks for sharing :-)