By Steven James

My entire life has been guided by Star Trek and its ethos for humanity in a literal sense. Trying to find the closest thing to Starfleet in the present day, I became an Air Force Officer as an astrophysicist. When that didn’t quite align with the Roddenberrian ideals I respected, I turned toward social science and became an educational peace psychologist and researcher. It was my hope that through that knowledge, I could play a small part in making a Star Trek future possible.

I taught physics, astronomy, peace studies, social psychology, and conflict resolution for years at a Buddhist high school devoted to peace education. During that time, I introduced and “indoctrinated” many Gen Z students into a love of Star Trek and what it represents. Indeed, when Star Trek Adventures was nothing more than a rough Word document in beta, I participated with a group of students from that school. Several of those students are still in my player group today, though they have now graduated from college and are pursuing their own professional careers.

That group has expanded and evolved over time, with friends ranging in age from 24 to 55, who meet once or twice a month for in-person sessions. Our group keeps it light and has been operating like a Lower Decks episode since before it was a show. They crew the USS Ke’imi, a Steamrunner Class in the midst of the Shackleton Expanse Campaign, with a ship motto of “We’re still good!”—a reflection of the number of times they’ve survived by the skin of their teeth.

I’m excited to incorporate many of the recent new mechanics and systems into our play sessions from both Second Edition (2E) and expansion books like the Federation-Klingon War. That inspired me to create this flowchart as an easy way for them to understand the new Stress and Injury systems. I hope it can simplify the transition for other groups and get them hyped for 2E as well. This new system offers a more fluidly realistic and fast-paced approach to combat and danger.