Space Frames: The Chandley

Continuing Mission LOVES when our readers submit amazing additions to our universe of helpful resources. Here is another great space frame contributed by Stephen Near. It has blown my away the work our contributors put into making their games Trek-legit!

Stephen Near is a writer and educator living in Hamilton. He is a graduate of York University (BFA), the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (B. Ed) and the MFA Creative Writing program at the University of Guelph. He is a member of the Playwright’s Guild of Canada and an alumnus of the Sage Hill Writing Experience and the Banff Centre. Recently, he was named the inaugural Writer-In-Residence for the Cotton Factory in Hamilton. His writing has appeared in a variety of online and print publications and his plays have been widely produced at a variety theatres and festivals. A long-time gamer and geek, Stephen has written extensively for the LARP organization Canada at Midnight including supplements for their Vampire: the Masquerade and Mage: the Awakening chronicles.

Stephen writes, “The write-up and schematics are for the fan-favourite class of the ship, the Chandley. A vessel first created for the FASA game, this design has seen a lot of love and it’s been my favourite for many many years. I’ve seen so many spaceframes from the FASA line included so I wanted to give a detailed look at the Chandley as well as several variants I’ve seen designed over the Internet.”

He adds, “The Chandley-class design is one of the most celebrated starships to ever come out of the old FASA RPG and it’s not hard to see why. The elegant secondary hull behind the saucer section, along with the sweeping aft wing struts for the warp nacelles, make the ship stand out as one-of-a-kind. This was especially the case back in the eighties when it first appeared in the Federation Ship Recognition Manual. In that first appearance, the Chandley was classified as a frigate with the express purpose of transporting Federation troops (ie. marines) to hotspots throughout the quadrant. The military focus of Starfleet along with the idea of shipboard marines was somewhat controversial and perhaps not in keeping with the ethos of Star Trek. But there’s no doubt that it captured the imagination and left a lasting impression of this amazing ship. Since picking up my own copy of Star Trek Adventures, I have wanted to see the Chandley integrated into the game with a compelling backstory befitting the ship’s legacy. I also wanted to call attention to and acknowledge the variations of the ship that have cropped up over the years on the Internet through many fan designs. So, the following write-up and ship schematics are meant to easily be dropped into any STA campaign along with a history involving the Khitomer conspiracy and the legacy of the MACOs from Star Trek: Enterprise. Enjoy!”