Wesley's STCCG card of the day #204

Hi, folks,

tension now starts mounting a little, as we proceed to

Star Trek: Collectible Card Game
The Internet Expansion

Rank # 6, 678 points, Author: John (johnteti@kear.tdsnet.com)

PRIME DIRECTIVE

Dilemma, planet, rare.
Cannot get past unless Jean-Luc Picard present OR Integrity <5x (number of people in away team) OR Strength >7x (number of people in away team).
"Starfleet general order number one: Starfleet personnel and spacecraft are prohibited from interfering with the normal development of any society."
Although not entirely thematically correct (Klingons and Romulans have no such rule as the Prime Directive), this Dilemma has a nice triple-affiliation touch as it actually has more or less a different condition for each of the affiliations.

With their high Integrity and low Strength, Feds will have to resort to the Picard solution or to redshirting it with a single crewmember who meets the requirements (maybe Worf), but that crewmember will very likely get lost in the next Dilemma.

The Klingons will also on the average have an Integrity score that is too high for this Dilemma, but they also have high Strength and should be able to beat the 7.0 average required to pass here.

Romulans on the other hand will have a hard time with the Strength requirement (though remotely possible to have, if supported by some non-aligned crew), but they should be able to pass the Integrity constraint.

So much for the card alone. Now on to what nasty plots you can get out with it. First, preceding this one by a Firestorm will make it totally impossible to pass the Prime Directive unless you have Thermal Deflectors or a Genetronic Replicator as everybody who could push your Integrity average below five just got burned. The same thing works about as well with Interphasic Plasma Creatures and Rascals to lower the average Strength a little bit. And then, any decent opponent's Choice Dilemma with a Strength requirement makes the Picard condition equally moot after the Strength reducers. Chalnoth springs to my mind.

So here's the ultimate "No you don't do this mission" combo:
Firestorm (eliminate any Integrity <5)
Rascals (get rid of some Strength)
Interphasic Plasma Creatures (even more Strength gone)
Chalnoth (I'd like to see a 44 Strength after the last two - Goodbye Jean-Luc!)
Prime Directive. Hmm. Picard is dead, my Strength average is around 3.2 and Integrity hovers at about 6.8. No way out. But this one costs you five Dilemmas, so your opponent will probably seek out greener pastures anyway. And even if not, this combo has two weaknesses:

1) Genetronic Replicator. If anybody survives the Firestorm, they will pass the Rascals and then have a full crew to attempt the rest which can now be passed.

2) Full planet Scan. If I see it, I just redshirt with anyone who has Integrity of five or better. He'll pass the first three, gets killed at the fourth and I am free to pursue my Prime Directive workarounds at nearly optimum crew choices.

Favorite combo(s):
Ratings for : PRIME DIRECTIVE 

Wesley's rating:                8.0*
Cole's rating:                  8.6
Conner's rating:                6.5
Heather's rating:               4.5
Jack's rating:                  5.8
John's rating:                  6.5
Leto's rating:                  7.4
Q's rating:                     8.5
Ray's rating:                   8.0
Tony's rating:                  6.5
----------------------
AVERAGE RATING:                 7.03

* I rated play value higher than coolness, the fact that the Prime Directive should only hinder Feds ditched the score by a few points...

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Wesley Crusher, the new STCCG Lord

"A couple of lightyears can't keep good friends apart"