“Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul. And sings the tune without the words, and never stops at all.”
–Emily Dickinson
The USS Astraeus was first launched on Stardate 2396.06 (2019, June) under the command of CO Captain Mei’konda Delano. The USS Astraeus served with distinction during the Dominion war. Today we are joined by Commodore Mei’konda Delano, Lt. Commanders Lael Rosek-Skyfire, and Timothy Alentonis to tell us more about this storied vessel.
Harford: Thank you for joining us. Can you please start by giving us a short overview on the USS Astraeus and how it fits into our fleet?
Mei’konda: Hello, Meri! I’m always happy to answer these, and I hope it helps to give the rest of the fleet some insight into ship Captaincy.
Being a Captain comes with a lot of work, but also with some wonderful benefits, not the least of which is getting to pick your own ship. I have an affinity for ships with a history behind them, and some of the quirks which come along with that.
The Astraeus was designed to be an aging ship with character rather than something state of the art and top of the line. She has been refitted over the years in ways that let her keep up with the latest and greatest of Starfleet’s explorers in many ways, but she doesn’t do so nearly as efficiently as perhaps an Odyssey or Inquiry class starship can. Sometimes, systems break down or require more maintenance. She has a massive crew complement compared to most of the newer explorers in the fleet in order to keep up with those engineering demands.
Most importantly to me, though, creating an older ship afforded me the opportunity to write its history. One of the first six starships of her class along with Galaxy and the Enterprise D, Astraeus was commanded by two other Captains before Mei’konda (not player Captains, but NPCs), and it gives my character a chance to help form his own legacy, and that of the ship’s, as her third commander.
Harford: Why did you choose this class of ship? What are the strengths and weaknesses of a Galaxy Class vessel?
Mei’konda: Galaxy class starships were designed during the Federation’s golden age, a time where conflict had been limited or nonexistent for a very long time. As a massive multimission explorer, she is capable of believably being assigned to any type of mission and having the resources to accomplish them, which is something I wanted for the storytelling we do in our region. I was seven when Star Trek: TNG came on the air, and fourteen when it went off, and so the Enterprise D was very formative for me. There was never any doubt in my mind about what class of ship I would want to Captain because of my love for the Galaxy.
Harford: The computer on the USS Astraeus is pretty unique, can you tell us more about that? Does your ship have any other quirks that sets it apart from other vessels of this class?
Mei’konda: While not a true AI, the Astraeus’ computer has developed a personality over time. These quirks mostly started to develop after the ship’s original isolinear computer cores were replaced by bio-neural ones during her massive 2390s refit, and the biological properties of those systems allowed the ship to begin adapting more easily to what it was designed to do, that being the care of the crew and the advancement of the ideals of the Federation. It speaks with a certain lack of formality and a matronly tone which is meant to inspire comfort and confidence, all things the computer decided to do on its own.
Something which can be seen often in real world naval ships, such as the Essex class aircraft carriers of World War 2, are extensive changes and refits over their years of service. Astraeus still serves the same role for which she was designed, that of long range exploration, but if an officer serving on our other Galaxy class ship, the Constitution-B, were to come aboard and attempt to find their way from one end of the ship to the other like they’re used to, I like to think it would be an entirely different experience. Her internal layout is different, as are her installed systems, and one of the things I love to do is give my players the opportunity to design locations on board the ship. That has resulted in some wonderfully unique locations, like our ship’s version of Ten-Forward, the Pagrati Lounge.
Alentonis: Several of the bridge consoles, particularly near the helm and science stations, have small magnetic cup holders that keep our department-themed Brew Continuum mugs secure during flight when we’re assigned to bridge duty.
Harford: What sort of missions does the USS Astraeus primarily focus on and how is it uniquely designed to handle such missions?
Mei’konda: The Astraeus is a generalist, more limited by her high crew requirements and the quirks of her aging spaceframe than by being specialized and simply not having the room for certain types of equipment she might need for a job. I love to tell all sorts of different types of stories aboard the ship, and if we’ve been experiencing too much of a certain type of mission, we can step away from that and focus on something completely different for the next one.
This can occasionally complicate storytelling. After all, there is inherent drama in a challenging task, like for example, the Defiant from DS9 being pressed into doing some sort of scientific job for which it is woefully ill equipped. But in my years of command. I’ve never had my crew lack the creativity to come up with something interesting.
Rosek-Skyfire: In my experience, too much of a certain mission type isn’t a good thing. One of the unique features of the Astraeus as compared to other ships I’ve served on is the ability for the stardrive and saucer to separate. This opens up a whole new world of mission opportunities and even has the power to enhance certain aspects of a mission. For example, with the recent Frontier Day battle, the Astraeus was able to perform a saucer separation with one portion of the ship serving as a decoy while the other portion performed rescue operations. I feel that this feature of the Galaxy-class starships is under-used and has so many possibilities, including in battle drills against other ships.
Alentonis: Many times, the ship itself is prone to some unique circumstances. Science is fascinating, and lets you create some unique things if you’re desperate enough. I once created a vacuum cleaner specifically to collect an Omega particle, but that was aboard the Veritas.
Harford: Tell us a little bit about the ship culture on the USS Astraeus. What would you say is the greatest strength of the crew as a whole?
Mei’konda: I would say, functioning as a large community
In-character, the ship is too large to have the sort of small, intimate family atmosphere that a ship the size of Voyager might. She is more like a city in space, filled with unique and disparate communities existing and working together. On Tuesday, a crew member on board might attend a Yoga class in the ship’s Arboretum, and on Wednesday, an abstract painting course before picking up her children from one of the ship’s many schools.
One new element which I have recently introduced is the addition of many NPC Cadets in their third or fourth year on board Astraeus, a necessity after the losses of Frontier Day. These Cadets have the responsibilities of Acting Ensigns as well as having to focus on formal schoolwork, both in classrooms and under the supervision of experienced officers. I can’t wait to see what my players do with this.
Nearly any activity one could imagine can be found aboard, and Mei’konda does his best to encourage both the Starfleet and civilian members of his crew to get involved, both in attending these events and in leading them in areas in which they have expertise.
Finally, part of my head canon is that all of the SB118 ships are recognized throughout the Federation as having some of the best crews in all of Starfleet. Mei’konda takes a lot of pride in this, and in order for this to make any sense at all, it means that day to day, the Astraeus crew has to work very smoothly and very well together, taking care of each other’s needs and taking pride in their work, and that’s something that I love to imagine.
Rosek-Skyfire: I agree with the Captain. The Astraeus is blessed with an active crew, especially our newest members. When tasks need to be completed, there are always solid suggestions on how to do so. Problem-solving is one of our crew’s greatest strengths. We are truly invested in helping one another and building one another up professionally and personally. Though professionalism is a key part of any cohesive crew, we have developed a bond of trust and respect that takes our collaboration to a new level. I love how we look out for one another and look for ways to share tasks whenever possible. We’re willing to step outside our comfort zones to make a colleague’s life a little easier. It’s truly beautiful to see.
Alentonis: Sometimes, you just need to know that the support network is here for you regardless of whatever happened during the mission. It’s one of those places where you can develop a friendship within five minutes. There are some really amazing coffee jockeys who take up night shifts in the Pagrati Lounge and do a good job listening to whatever ails the crew, regardless of whether they’re a psychiatrist.
Harford: Finally, is there anything else about the USS Astraeus that you would like readers to know about?
Mei’konda: Only that myself and Astraeus’ command staff will always do our best to support our players. Have an idea for a mission? Want to throw a twist in while we’re working through one? I think a lot of writers’ first instinct is to worry that it will disrupt a big plan we’ve made for the way a mission will go.
That couldn’t be further from the case, though. We deliberately avoid overplanning our missions as much as we can, for several reasons! First and foremost, Starbase 118 is all about collaborative writing. Players who advance to higher ranks need to be confident in leading scenes, and the first steps toward that are in introducing ideas during a mission. Few things can be more fun than throwing a small twist in and watching your crewmates delight in it and run with it.
Secondly, I love to be surprised. I don’t want to have an iron grip on every aspect of the mission, because I’m not just here to lead a ship – I’m here to play my character, as I have with Mei’konda ever since he was an Ensign. Unpredictability makes that a whole lot more fun.
Rosek-Skyfire: Honestly? Reflecting on our recent missions, I feel that we have so much engagement because we don’t over plan and are flexible with our storylines. We do have contingencies and discussions in case the plot needs a little boost occasionally; however, I enjoy the breadcrumbs style of our mission. We as staff drop the hint and let the players run with it. I’ve gotten a good laugh from some plot twists our crew has thrown in. On top of that, it keeps me on my toes. There are so many opportunities for wonderful storytelling that come from the unexpected. I’ve found that it’s more fun for me to toss out a puzzle to be solved than to solve it myself. While that is sometimes necessary, the ideas of other writers are just as valid as mine and I love watching them come out of their shell and, seeing their ideas integrated, get invested in the mission.
Thank you so much for your insights on the USS Astraeus, Commodore Mei’konda Delano, and Lt. Commanders Lael Rosek-Skyfire, and Timothy Alentonis!
Mei’konda: Thank you for the interview! Truly, I had a lot of fun answering these questions, and you asked some really insightful ones.
You can read more about the USS Astraeus on the wiki, here.
