By Jim Johnson, Project Manager
Art by Martin Sobr

 

“We’re going to attempt time travel….”

 

One of the staples of Star Trek™ that has gotten regular use over the last 60 years is the use of some form of time travel. All the series and many of the movies have played with time, notably the most recent season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, which had specific elements of time travel in two episodes and played with time elements in several others.

 

You can also play with time in your Star Trek Adventures roleplaying campaigns and adventures. As always, check in with your group to see if time travel is something they’d like included in the campaign at Session 0 and in your ongoing campaign check-ins. 

 

HOW TO USE TIME TRAVEL IN STAR TREK ADVENTURES

 

Here are a few ideas for using time travel or other forms of time manipulation in your Star Trek Adventures missions and campaigns:

• WE TIME TRAVEL TO THE STORY: Somehow, some way, one or more player characters are moved out of their time and into a different time. Perhaps they are chasing an adversary or plot element through time, or are pulled into some sort of time vortex or MacGuffin that temporally relocates them to some other when. Then, sit back and have fun as the players work to figure out how to get their characters back to their time.
• THE STORY TIME TRAVELS TO US: The story, plot device, or key non-player character travels through time to the player characters’ present, and the player characters engage with them and attempt to figure out what’s going on, and, if needed, how to get the character back to their time. Or, at least out of their time to prevent any issues.
• SCENES OUT OF SEQUENCE: Another way to play with time is to present the events of the story out of sequence. Perhaps your coda comes before the cold open; perhaps the big adversary reveal comes before the mystery set-up. Whatever the case, if you keep the pieces clear and the story moving, you might be able to bring the players along and tell an amazing story beyond a traditional sense of storytelling order.
• SIMULTANEOUS SCENES: Often seen on-screen in a ‘split-screen’ style, such as that used in the Strange New Worlds season 4 finale, “Tomorrow’s Enterprise.” We see two Uhuras, a year apart, on the screen together. You can play with this by quickly cutting from scene to scene with your players, and sharing with them that the moments are happening simultaneously. It may take a little getting used to, but it can be a fun story-telling and pacing technique to keep players actively listening and thinking and to encourage them to attempt tasks without a lot of analysis paralysis.

 

 

REMEMBER TO HAVE FUN

 

However you choose to use time travel or various forms of pacing and storytelling to bend time to your needs, remember to have fun with it. As we have seen so often in Star Trek, time travel issues always seem to work out. More often than not, everything is put back into the place it was before the time travel shenanigans began. Except when they’re not, and then they become plot hook for a future episode.

 

THE LINE MUST BE DRAWN HERE!

 

As an example of how to incorporate time travel into the Star Trek universe and to make it relevant to the characters beyond just a science fiction trope, check out Star Trek: First Contact, which delivered all the goods, from a great villain to fun action and humor, and a deeply personal story for Jean-Luc Picard.

 

We’re celebrating First Contact along with Star Trek’s 60th anniversary by releasing a free mission briefs pack today, focused on the events in and around this classic movie. The mission briefs pack is available on the Star Trek Adventures download page as well as on DTRPG.

 

 

SHARE YOUR STORIES

 

What are other ways you can use time travel in your Star Trek Adventures missions? How have you used time travel or played with time and sequencing of events in your games? What are some of the most memorable moments your character or crew has experienced involving some form of time travel? Share your ideas and experiences with your fellow Star Trek fans at the official Modiphius Discord.

 

Until next time, watch out for agents of the Department of Temporal Investigations. They’re tired and overworked, as ever.

 

Thanks for reading this article, and thank you for your interest and support of Star Trek Adventures! Keep frequencies open for news about other upcoming Star Trek Adventures product releases. Live long and prosper! 

 

 

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