Science Officer Simming Guide
Introduction
The ship's science officer(s) has a very important role in creating an appropriately "Trek-like" atmosphere to a sim. But you don't need to have a PhD in physics to play one. Star Trek has always been more about people and their stories than about gadgets, and UFOP is no different. For convenience's sake, we can talk about three stages in any simmer's duties: pre-mission duties, in-mission duties, and outside-mission duties. I'll divide my remarks on simming a science officer accordingly.
Pre-mission Duties
This will depend a bit on the captain and on the mission, but sometimes a science officer will be asked to speak at a mission briefing about what the crew might be getting into. This might be as simple as giving the class of the planet you're orbiting around, or as complex as outlining the civilization you're about to make first contact with. It will vary. If you are asked to give a complex report, hopefully your captain has given you some notice so that you can whip up something good. But whether he does or not, mission briefings can often be moments where a science officer can really shine, where your creativity can have full play. Go wild! If you're worried about something being too over the top, check with your Chief Science Officer, First Officer, or Captain before sending something in. They'll let you know...
In-mission duties
Because regs require a science officer on every away mission, a science officer is in a very good position to see a lot of "action". But if the danger for a security officer on an away mission is to become a "red shirt" (ie, the guy who shouldn't have beamed down), the danger for a science officer is to become just a spouter of technobabble: "The alien artifact is 2.356 km that way, it seems to be composed of an unusual steel-tritanium alloy..." That sort of thing. While a good science officer knows when to use the right sort of technobabble, it's often more important to know when not to use technobabble. Unless you're playing a know-it-all Vulcan who you want people to hate (and if so, you're on your own, pal!), technobabble should be used sparingly. As correctly as your knowledge of Star Trek physics allows, but sparingly. In my opinion, technobabble is part of the "atmosphere" of the game. Think of it like a smoke machine being used in a high school play. Just the right amount, and you have a very interesting setting for certain sorts of scenes. Too much, and you drown out the play (and perhaps the audience too!).
That being said, what should a science officer be concentrating on then during the mission? Two things: plot twists and character development. We'll start with the second one first. Talk about your character's impressions about beaming down on this away team. What is he thinking or feeling when the transporter effect dies away and he sees the alien landscape for the first time? Does she take trying to locate the downed shuttlecraft as a personal challenge, or is it just part of her job? Does he hate having been teamed up with that Klingon officer? Has she been dying to tell that Bajoran that she cares about him, and now that they're alone she has the chance? What might the stresses of the mission itself reveal about your character? And away mission is a perfect time to have the best (or the worst!) brought out in your character.
Another important role a science officer can play in-mission is by creating interesting plot twists. The discovery of a cloaked Romulan outpost can really change the atmosphere of a sim very quickly. Or an unusual disturbance that prevents communications with the ship. There are two sorts of plot twists, those that shake up the storyline, and those that calm things down. For example, say that people on your ship seem not to be simming, with no real clear reason why. You may want to try shaking the plot up by detecting an unusual reading of some sort. Sometimes it's even best to be as vague as possible - this allows other players to build off your idea, it gives them a chance to get simming again. Maybe you planned that strange disturbance 100 light years from the ship to be a cloaked Warbird, but your tactical officer sims it as being a new space-faring lifeform. That's great! Be flexible and everyone has more fun. Just make sure to check with your Captain before doing anything too drastic.
The other sort of plot twists is the sort that settles things down when a mission seem to be getting out of hand. A science officer can be the person who makes the discovery that brings things back to a more even keel. Oh, the Gorn and the Andorians are fighting over this planet because there's a huge dilithium deposit here we didn't know about before. One caveat and one suggestion. The caveat: no player can be superman. No one person solves all of the problems. Even when you're trying to settle things down, you should still be opening up ways that other people can sim, not close them down. You need to close that leak in your shuttle, but only the Klingon security officer has the strength to do it. The suggestion is that often the first sort of plot twist can be disguised as the second. Your brilliant solution which seems to fix the problem can in fact really make things worse (and therefore more interesting for the other simmers), or it could uncover a deeper problem. The new species you've encountered has weapons aimed at the away team and you figure out a way of contacting the ship just in time so that the away team is saved. But then going over your sensor logs you see that the aliens' weapons are powered by Federation energy signatures. Suddenly things aren't as simple as they first seemed. And apparent solution leads to new problems.
Explore: The science station on the bridge of an Intrepid Class vessel.
Outside-mission duties
Your "duties" outside of a mission (eg, shore leave and other down-times) depend more on the personality of your character than on his or her posting to the science department. Still, you should be aware that the duty-driven science officer who would rather spend time in a lab or catching up on scientific journals than interact with his crewmates during shore leave is a cliché. It's much more fun to think up something else to do with your character. Shore leave is always a chance to round out our characters, to see them in a casual situation, when they are in fact most truly themselves. Maybe your character's secret passion is music -- have her try to organize an impromptu concert for the crew, especially if there are other musicians on ship. Maybe he is also a gourmet cook (or only thinks he is) - have him cook a meal for that cute Helm officer he's been dying to meet. Science is your character's job, but is it her whole life?
If for some reason you want to play the cliché, the shy, or anti-social lab-bound science officer, you have the responsibility for making it clear that this anti-social behavior is only on the part of the character and does not come from the player. Make sure that your crewmates know that, in spite of what your character says or does, you as the player really do want to sim with them. If handled correctly (especially if you have a willing partner or two), this can even be a lot of fun, providing some much-needed comic relief after a stressful mission. For instance, you are trying to run a few lab experiments during your "free time", but your partner keeps bursting in (Kramer-like) at just the wrong moments, ruining everything. Just make sure everyone knows what is IC and what is OOC and you can go crazy.
For the CSO
Everything I've said so far holds true for any science officer. When you are playing the Chief Science Officer, and especially when you are CSO with other player characters under you, you need to keep one more thing in mind. Usually a Captain promotes a player to the position of the department head who has shown herself to be (or at least able to become) a leader. Being a department head is a privilege not given to all, which makes it a responsibility as well. But don't let that scare you - your primary responsibility as a department head is to try to help others have as much fun simming as you do. This holds true first and foremost for the people in your department, but a department head, while not stepping on toes, should be a leader within his ship as a whole. He should take pride in seeing all of his shipmates becoming the best simmers they can be.
In this context, being a leader primarily means helping people sim, and sim better. Make sure to welcome the new Ensign assigned to your department (or to another department!). If he seems lost after his first mission briefing, help spell out his assignment. Give him something to do. Do a Joint Post with a newer crewmember to help her work on her simming style. Ask her for a second opinion on a particularly difficult problem. Look for ways that you can create openings for the people in your department (and the rest of your crewmates) to sim.
Resources for the Science Officer
In my opinion, every science officer should have at least skimmed all of the articles in the UFOP Academy Library at least once. Within a mission, a science officer can come back to these pages as needed, but it helps to have some general idea of where what you're looking for might be. Another site I find helpful is the Daystrom Institute Technical Library. Your Captain or other crewmates may know of other helpful sites. Remember that we are always going for atmosphere, not information overload.
| Mission Specialist | Helm/Com/Ops | Engineer | Science Officer | Medical Officer | Nurse |
| Intelligence Officer | Security Officer | Tactical Officer | Marine | Counselor | Civilian |
| Duty Posts |
|---|