Plot & Storytelling           While the game is driven by Action! (see the previous page), it is all for nothing without a compelling story based upon the desires of the officers. There are two levels to play- The game play itself is centered on the personal drama of the characters as they take action in a dangerous and wild universe, and meanwhile the players are building a Star Trek universe which breaks canon in interesting ways. The former means we need to create a starting situation that gets the game going, the basic plot of the story we will call the Mission Statement. The latter occurs naturally over the course of the game using the structures presented, but the players have to embrace this overall idea called the Inspired Retelling.                 Its pretty easy to create the Mission Statement, its just a one line summary that lets all the players know what the general gist of the story is going to be. As players you should bounce all kinds of ideas around as they come into your head, and then eventually settle on a single option amicably. When you create a mission statement, it always features story foreshadowing and lets the game get moving in the right direction. This doesn’t mean the first moment of play will openly reveal it, but that it will at some point become clear as the game progresses. Word these statements with the beginning: “To boldly go forth and <do something>.” These can be pretty long, keep these in mind from the movies: To boldly go forth and rescue the known universe from an invading machine of immense and godly power. To boldly go forth and stop Kahn from taking his revenge on Kirk and crew. To boldly go forth and bring Spock back from the dead, while everyone stands in our way.      You should view the Mission Statement as your overall guide to just what the unfolding story is about, and let it direct your creativity as you play. Every part of the unfolding story should either be driven by officer's conflicts or resolving the Mission Statement - both at once when possible.      The game is Inspired Retelling because it isn’t actually about recreating Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek, but instead creating your own Star Trek. This means you need to go into playing the game with the right attitude. You will choose not to quibble over the functions of the transporter such as its range and capability, or about the history of the Klingon empire. Instead focus on telling your story and let the facts about the technology and society of your Star Trek form as they will.      You are also tasked with actively destroying canon, and this means bringing in the elements of Star Trek that you know with inspired twists. Each time you do so, think about the implications. If Kirk died young that leaves a space to fill for some other officer or maybe a totally different latter Starfleet would form. Obviously, if you don’t know much about the canon don’t sweat it since you are making your own universe anyway and are bound to crush canon without even trying.       << - @ Storytelling Scene by Scene