Rahman and Rivi Vataix

Missing starship found 92-years laterStardate 239112.06 NORLIAN NEBULA — A Federation starship has been rediscovered after having been declared lost in 2299. The USS Christopher Pike was an Oberth class science ship that had been assigned to study and weaponize polaric radiation found in abundance in the Norlian Nebula. After it disappeared nearly a century ago, the ship was discovered adrift in the heart of the nebula by the USS Atlantis, which was investigating the origin of an old bravo radio signal. That signal was in fact a distress call being emitted by the Christopher Pike. The Atlantis reports the science ship has been found intact without any signs of decay, adding to the mystery. “Certainly, it makes you wonder,” said Professor Marius Stana of the University of Alpha Centauri and author of The Lost Frontier, an overview of various ill-fated voyages in the history of space travel. “Of course I’d expect a ship to be well-preserved in the vacuum of space, but when there’s nothing amiss, it raises more questions than answers as to what happened. I haven’t heard anything quite like it.” Any answers may have to wait, however, as the most recent report from the Atlantis was that it had been joined by two Dhelan class Romulan warbirds, ships from another era as well. Both Starfleet and Romulan crews have surmised that all three vessels are caught in some sort of temporal anomaly. Whether the anomaly is a natural occurrence or one triggered by polaric radiation research conducted by the Christopher Pike is under investigation by both the Atlantis and the displaced Romulans, who are working together to uncover the secrets behind this temporal mystery.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the difference between how a woman (and/or excellent writer) describes a dress and how a man (and/or chump) describes a dress: Amanda, on Alora DeVeau's dress: Rich, on Jess Webber's dress: Yep. What's her dress look like? :-) "It's red." Ah. Like, what hue? :-/ "Um... red." Yes, yes, but what of the little details? Any gems or flowing fabric? :-| "...red." I see...

Sounds good to me.

I've added most of that, although I edited some parts as the info appears to have been written before Enterprise the series and there was an overemphasis on Voyager which isn't really relevant to the history of the Federation per se. There were also some common "fan theory" errors such as Australia being the last to join United Earth (that is not true, Crusher only was using it as a hypothetical to Picard), etc. There's also a lack of info about the TOS years, and I disagreed with the notion that the 23rd Century was a "relative time of peace" or whatnot, so anyway, we'll have to revise definitely, but it's a good starting point!

All right! The work has begun! Add as you see fit! Let's try not to *duplicate* memory alpha but as the OP notes, focus more on current status of these powers in our timeframe. 118Wiki: Factions I've added Leland's guides and I like the idea of Starfleet Intelligence Assessment reports as well on the factions, similar to the CIA World Factbook.

I think it is definitely useful if we had a proper "factions" section on the wiki. Mr. Bishop has written a couple of great essays on the Klingons and Romulans, and I think an overview of their history (and more importantly, what's happened to them since we last saw prime Trek on TV or the movies) would be great. Knowing what else is going on in the greater Trek universe is important to me, which is what motivated me to start the FNS headlines section (subscribe to the twitter account to get updates directly to your feeds!). I think the more we can promote common universe developments that all ships and characters can react to the more we truly are one fleet simming in the same universe.

It always sounds worse on the police report. Ah well. I doubt he's gonna press charges.

Indeed... (Lucas interview starts at 1:40) A good attitude I think to approach 'em. I dunno. My issues were with 09. Honestly, I don't really understand why Into Darkness has gotten *such* a backlash. Yes, yes, they ripped off the last act of Wrath of Khan, but hey, maybe this means we'll finally get to stop having each new Trek movie promising to try to redo that movie yet again. To me, if you were going to complain about everything that's happened to the Trek universe in the alternate reality, 09 pretty much established the rules that we were now clearly in an action movie universe where cadets can jump to the rank of captain, people can beam from a planet to a ship traveling at warp, and so forth. I honestly thought at least Into Darkness included a message to its story which was about Kirk realizing that revenge and executing Khan without trial was wrong (and I really wish instead of seeing Khan back in the freezer, we saw instead him facing that trial). A bunch of non-Trek fans at least heard those words from Spock about what is right vs wrong, and that's at least more in the spirit of Trek than the throwaway line of offering Nero assistance at the end of 09 before he of course in typical superhero/comic book movie fashion refuses so we can be absolve our conscience of guilt as our heroes blast him out of the sky.

And I thought I was critical of these films... we need to get Townson Rants™ on the podcast! I can't dismiss these films outright as they are entertaining, and they have brought in new fans and basically revived the franchise after Nemesis and Enterprise's failings, but I think as Marvel has shown, respecting the source material and making blockbusters is not mutually exclusive. It will certainly be interesting to compare and contrast Mr. Abrams's approach to Episode VII with how he approached Trek since he admits to being more a fan of Star Wars (and as some have noted, took a lot of inspiration from that franchise for his vision of Trek):

Regardless of my thoughts on the new movies as a whole, the entire Kelvin opening to the 2009 film is excellent. RIP little Kelvin...

Congrats, ensigns! Don't be shy about keeping in touch with your mean, old trainer from time to time.

Are you an aspiring reporter? The Federation News Service (FNS) is always looking for journalists and contributors to help keep the public informed about the latest developments across the quadrants! About the Federation News Sevice The Federation News Service is an independent news agency dedicating to providing citizens of the United Federation of Planets the latest news and stories from across the galaxy. With a rich history that dates back to the founding of the Federation, FNS reporters have covered every major development over the centuries, from the era of the first colonies to the award-winning coverage of the Dominion War. Where to Find Us Access the latest headlines from the FNS through our main portal. For those on the go, subscribe to our data feedto have news updates sent to your personal access display device. You can also add us to your home screen . Contributing to the FNS The Federation News Service welcomes both one-time and regular headline submissions for inclusion in the headlines newsfeed. Objectives of FNS HeadlinesProvide "bite-sized" IC news developments that can be shared across ships and referenced in sims to promote greater fleet IC continuity.Give a fun, non-Starfleet creative avenue for simmers to develop the larger prime Trek universe. What's going on in the sports world of the Federation? What's the newest holonovel to hit the suites? You can help shape life in the 24th century!Incorporate IC sim developments into the headlines to provide yet another way of telling our stories.Submitting a StorySimply edit the headlines page under the appropriate section (politics, sports, etc.) to add your new headline. Headlines should be listed in reverse chronological order with the newest headlines of a section listed first. Want to become a regular contributor (as an OOC activity)?Leave a message with one of our editors. As a regular contributor, aim to update the headlines page with at least two new headlines a week. As the headlines page fills up, clean up old headlines by moving them to the news archive page. Look over one-time submissions for spelling, grammar, etc. What if I want to write an actual IC news article?You are very much welcome to do so! Check out the FNS archive for some examples of previous IC news articles and see below for our manual of style. However, writing out an actual article is purely optional for regular contributors. New weekly headlines are all that's required. FNS Manual of StyleReady to write your first IC news article? Follow these simple tips to give it that extra polish: 1) Add a headline.Make it a very brief, attention-grabbing summary (something you'd see on a Twitter announcement that'd make you want to click to read more). Examples:USS Apollo-A investigates coup on Pertania Marriage of Federation Ambassador Starfleet officer presumed KIA as USS Gemini responded to Rathos Prime pathogen 2) Add a location marker and a single introductory sentence in the following format:MAIN LOCATION OF EVENTS — One introductory sentence that summarizes the entire article. Examples:PERTANIA PRIME — After a sudden coup d'etat on Pertainia Prime, Starfleet has dispatched the USS Apollo-A to evacuate the Federation Embassy. TRILL — Ambassador Della Vetri and Lt. Commander T’Lea were wed on the ambassador's homeworld. RATHOS PRIME — Lt. JG Vanessa Driscoll is missing and presumed KIA after becoming infected with the deadly pathogen her ship USS Gemini was attempting to cure. 3) Put a quote from someone somewhere in the rest of your article.Whether it's from someone on your crew directly, an MSPNPC, or even someone who doesn't actually appear in your sims but would make sense as someone making a statement to the press. Examples:"We will not tolerate such an assault on the legitimate Pertainian government, but our first priority is the safety of our own people," said Secretary Douglas of the Federation Security Council. "With everything happening around the quadrants these days, it's nice to be able to come together for friends and family and just celebrate, and I couldn't be happier for the Ambassador," said Anora Manar, a guest from the USS Atlantis. "Every Starfleet officer knows the risks that come with the uniform. Lieutenant Driscoll died trying to help others in the best traditions of Starfleet and the Federation, and we join her crew in their mourning," said Doctor Rajani of Starfleet Medical. Full Example Articles: USS Apollo-A investigates coup on Pertania Marriage of Federation Ambassador Starfleet officer presumed KIA as USS Gemini responded to Rathos Prime pathogen Essays, Editorials, and Special Reports You can also feel free to write special reports, essays, and editorials that you might find in a news magazine such as Time, the Economist, or the New Yorker. In doing so, the "rules" are a little more relaxed. Example: Special Report: The Face of Treason If you have any questions, feel free to reply below!

Terrorists attack Deep Space 10 Stardate 239111.03 MENTHAR CORRIDOR — Terrorists calling themselves the Maquis Reborn have launched an attack on Deep Space 10, demanding the release of all remaining Maquis prisoners from Federation penitentiaries. In a chilling message to the station's residents and the Federation, Maquis leader Nikael Kalre announced the apparent revival of the terrorist organization, although what formal connection to the original Maquis of the 2370s—if any—is unknown at this time. With a sinister smile, Kalre seemed to be enjoying his taunting of the joint Starfleet and Cardassian crew of Deep Space 10. "I hold in my hand, the key to your destruction. Whether not it truly is, however, is all up to Starfleet. As some of your engineers may have found, we have a variety of devices spread throughout your space station that will cause a - well, a nasty little surprise if our demands are not met," said Kalre. "What are those demands you may ask? Very little, I promise. In six hours, the Federation will release all of our Maquis brothers and sisters that have been left to rot away in prison - and my brothers and I here will be allowed to leave without harm or hinderance." To prove their seriousness, Kalre detonated a chain of explosions on the station, killing the station's Cardassian commanding officer Gul Tolas Dajhul live on air. An emergency meeting of the Federation Security Council has been called into session. Starfleet Command has not made any official announcement regarding the attack, but anonymous sources report that the nearest Starfleet vessel, the USS Garuda had been docked at the station earlier for much needed shore leave as the crew enjoyed their time relaxing and recovering from the previous mission. However, their time to recuperate was cut short when without warning alarms blasted, and quarantine containment doors sealed across the station. The crew were cut off in small groups throughout the station and needed to deal with the rising panic among the civilians on the station. After initial thoughts that the crisis was just a malfunction, a number of the Cardassians on the station started becoming sick and showing symptoms such as bleeding from the mouth and nose, accompanied with violent coughing. Some of them even needed emergency resuscitation. To make matters worse, the Garuda and her commanding officer Captain Cassandra Egan Manno had been summoned away just minutes after the crisis began on an urgent mission for Starfleet, leaving the remaining crew under acting CO Lt. Cmdr. Nia Calderan to find a solution to the pathogen. Things seemed to have stabilised with Doctor Chythar Skyfire working on a cure, and a team under Lt. Cmdr. Msafiri Bakari trying to get the station's systems back online, but this was ended when the video message from Kalre was broadcast across all monitors in the station.

Hahaha, now I feel Rahman and Sanchez have to become friends.

"Cogenitor" showing why Starfleet creates a Prime Directive... If you haven't seen it, you should really watch the whole episode before this final scene. One of the great episodes that truly embraced the pre-Federation Starfleet idea to tell a story that wouldn't have happened on Picard or even Kirk's Enterprise and an allegory about the dangers of trying to "do the right thing" in foreign affairs without properly thinking through the consequences.

Well, punching a godlike being would be considered epic a few thousand years ago you'd think.

Thought you were going to say phaser.

When you find out your ex knows your current crush:

I don't think you failed at all! I also smiled at the "twist" ending as it seemed like a bit of macabre humor, but it was definitely unsettling! Great title, by the way!

There are so many great moments in DS9, but I still remember the two moments that had all the message boards buzzing after they aired: (The largest number of Starfleet ships we had seen until that point in Trek history) and of course...

Congrats, class! Looking forward to seeing you in the fleet!

Oh Mr Handley-Page you magnificent bas tard you.

Memorable quotes and moments from shore leave thus far... Sister, you don't know the half of it... Meanwhile, love is in the air for some... Well, not everyone I guess.

So whenever I'm writing a JP with someone, I tend to compose it quickly in the back and forth to keep the momentum going, and then it's only afterward when I read the complete thing again I get surprised with some amusing things my fellow writers come up with. Here's the most recent one that made me chuckle upon reading it again.

Ahem...