[deuZige]

Here are the first three ideas i had, there are more but they're less ripened.

• As the Ares explores new territory a signal, weak but consistant, is detected. Investigation reveals it is sent from a planet located inside a Nebula, which is the remnant of a Supernova. Turns out (after much investigation and research into the device sending the signal which is floating in space and decoding the language in which the signal transmits) the signal is the last remnant of the civilization that lived and thrived on a planet long gone since the supernova’s destructive forces destroyed it. The signal’s purpose is twofold: a memorial to the planet and it’s inhabitants and as a homing beacon. That beacon is, we find later, for those that were sent through an unknown portal to an unknown location where they were to rebuild, grow and eventually return to reconquer their empire’s real estate. (the signal might even be traced to a now known location and entity like the founders or the Borg or some other nasty player)

• A starfleet distress call from a long lost vessel suddenly turns on and is received by the Ares. Turns out the signal is from a crashed ship that crashed on a planet with a pre-warp civilization. Having found and slowly reverse engineered the technology the civilization is about to achieve warp capabilities. Trouble is that the civilization is not ready for the technology. In every other sense than the reverse engineered tech (did they do that themselves??) the civilization is doing everything a civilization can do to go extinct. The people call themselves the Dodo people (or something)\

• Imagine a planet with very little resources except for one. That one resource is present in almost all inhabitable planets but only in little quantities but in this one planet it makes up 40% of the planet’s crust. That resource can be used to create an incredibly addictive drug, and wouldn’t you know it, the recipy for creating that drug turns up on two or three planets and the drug gets created causing much addiction problems. Also (after a decade of the drug being produced) the resource for the drug is beginning to run out. Of course someone turns up with an unlimited supply of the resource for the drug (from that one planet) and offers it for (enter insanely valuable something). Now imagine those planets with the addicted populations to be inside Federation space.

If you like i can ripen the other ideas i have. Or if these are to ripened for your tastes i can give you some one liners.

[Josh Broughm]

I'm liking Idea three. That had the vibes of a TNG s1 episode.

This idea I have is down the road a bit, but I want to put it out here for fleshing:

Open space, just cruising along. Ares is being tailed by Max's dad's ship. We end up getting boarded & Capt. Jones gets kidnapped. With how his ship is being cloaked, it's near impossible to track, but Dad slips a bit, allows a trace of plasma to be used to track them.

That's all I got.

[Silynn]

Has the ARES mission changed from the original?

Mission Summary

Stardate 58769.1 - The USS Ares NCC-79116, a recently refitted Sovereign class starship, arrived at Deep Space Nine in order to welcome the remainder of its crew onto their new home while taking on relief and engineering supplies destined for delivery to several Cardassian Colony worlds, located along its route to unexplored space in the Beta Quadrant.

Departure is scheduled for stardate 58776.2 : the 220th Birthday of the Federation Charter.

Doing a full mission post takes a long time, several months to almost a year. Thus, if the USS ARES has a new basic mission, I think it would help design some good framework to fit in some of these ideas.

I think if they are too random or too inclusive, it could discourage others from joining or even posting an update.

The 'overall mission' doesn't have to be incredibly detailed. Ex: 5-Year exploration mission to X quadrant. To go to the Xindi Homeworld and stop the war. To find a way home from the Delta Quadrant. Like the initial USS ARES was to deliver supplies and aid to colonies (shortly after the end of the Dominion War) and move on to explore some of the uncharted Beta Quadrant.

Now giving what has happened all the way from our Mission 1, A LOT has happened. We lost a lot of Captains. Which tends to be a shake-up to some degree. Yet, even so, with the basic mission framework/outlines that were laid out, the creativity flowed. Writers were able to fill in the details in their posts with others.

I think we need to start there, with the basic premise. Get a basic outline together, then let everyone at it.

The ideas so far are very creative and can certainly be weaved in with some collaboration. I think we need to get our basic premise down so we can work from there.

[WelshAvenger]

I'm of the opinion that the outward bound aspect of the Ares mission is still the main focus. I love Silynn's description that it's our own five year mission.

I'm trying to gather ideas that we can use as we explore the unknown regions of the Beta Quadrant. They don't need to be Galaxy threatening events, just perhaps an intriguing puzzle along the way, a planetary dispute or the Captain being kidnapped by a nemesis (thanks for that one Josh). Something that we can be done with in a few weeks and then carry on exploring.

[deuZige]

I agree whole heartedly with Sillyn, and i've tailored my ideas accordingly. All of them ideas of things we could "stumble upon" while on an exploration mission. Right now though i think it's important to just stay active, even if it's at a slow pace. Someone who might be interested in joining isn't going to bother i think if they think there's nothing going on. It's also easier, i think, for players who've been out of it for a while to get back in when there's an active story to slip into.

[Silynn]

If the idea is complex, the best way to work it in is via piecemeal. Put a little bit in here and there, and work up to the big reveal. I tend to feel more involved and gripped by the plot when that occurs.

I had to do that with Jei's background and character developing. Show a little bit of a the past, then the present seemed to work for that. Thus, in all of your above creative ideas, you can throw in something here and there.

The icing on the cake is when you get to the heart and climax of it, you can bring in others for a joint post to really add more flavor. Basically, setting the stage for others to take the torch and run with it.

We did it very well with the whole Doran colony story mission. It got a lot of people involved and there was a lot of good reading!