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The U.S.S. Southern Cross is the eighth vessel in the NOVA-Class starship line and the first to field the new "Nova Variant" upgrades. Unlike her Nova Mark One brethren, the Southern Cross is meant for a wide range of deep-space assignments- focusing on exploration, survey, patrol and first contact. Southern Cross is meant to go for fairly long periods of time without refueling, also unlike the Nova Mark Ones. While she doesn't possess the awesome resources of the command and control "multimission cruisers" like the Galaxy Class, Southern Cross does possess a wide variety abilities and mission profiles, including transport, interdiction, patrol, light combat, exploration and medical evacuation. She can be a platform for diplomatic missions as well. The Southern Cross herself is situated on a fairly new frontier in Federation terms. She is quite a distance from Klingon or even Cardassian space. Here, Humans, Vulcans and Bajorans are comparatively rare. This region, known as the Argolis Reach, is situated not far from the Typhon Expanse, which are infamous for its sightings of Borg vessels. The Federation has only been able to penetrate about ten (10) light years into this region and has yet to gain a true foothold. The closest galacto-political powers are small and young, which include the Children of Tama, the Sheliak Corporate and the Nybarite Alliance. From time to time, long-range Breen scouts have been detected. The Southern Cross' closest "Homebase" is that of Deep Space Five (5), a massive starbase built very much like Jupiter Station, but is easily double the size. DS5 is the first line of defense against invasions by the Borg, but also serves as the major hub of commerce for the region. Aside from the Southern Cross, however, DS5 possesses very few starships at its disposal- less than a handfull even. Southern Cross' mission is a broad one- seek out new resources, new allies and new worlds to colonize. Perhaps one of the most important missions is simply to explore. Looking out for any possible Borg incursions is also a stress-inducing but ultimately essential part of the Southern Cross' mission profile. |
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A NOTE ABOUT THE BORG: While the Typhon and Argolis sectors have had many sightings of Borg vessels, one must remember recent events. Only a year ago, the crew of the Voyager dealt a serious blow to the Borg by destroying their unicomplex and one of four transwarp hubs. Now place the damage done in context. Remember that the unicomplex alone was quoted as having "trillions" of Borg. If the average Class M world held, say, 5 Billion people, that would be an equivalent loss to the Borg of 200 Class M Worlds, or roughly the loss of EVERY Federation member world. That's crippling. However, the Borg, at least in our story, DID survive, however in a weakened state. The shock and loss of the Queen threw the Collective into brief chaos while they found a new one. Several ships were lost and "broke away", while others were destroyed. With the help of Unimatrix Zero survivors, some Borg formed "New Cooperatives"- both benevolent and not. Other ships went "Rogue" and may have formed up alot like those we saw in the episode of "Descent." In any case, the Borg are still quite vast and, after they clean up the mess, will be back with a singular vengeance. The worst part of it is that the Borg now recognize how dangerous the Federation is and could potentially act accordingly. However, in the scope of our game, it is unlikely that the Southern Cross will be encountering alot of Cubes. From time to time, we may run into the New Cooperatives, but even this will be rare. |
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The Southern Cross is unlike a Galaxy-, Defiant-, or Intrepid-class starship. Her mission is primarily exploratory and scientific in focus and thus, the crew is a bit more laid back. Off hours, people don't usually wear uniforms. People might wear the variant uniforms and feel perfectly acceptable. Its a small ship, so the rumors will fly and hopefully everyone will get to know everyone. This premise will hopefully create an atmosphere that the crew is more able and willing to socialize- focusing on character plots more than other elements. If people want to start a romance between characters- explore it. Such social plotlines should be welcome and can be as well written and as entertaining as action-packed thrill scenes. Funny, light-hearted plotlines are great too. Humor is another great asset. While the ship probably shouldn't have Mickey Mouse or Ren and Stimpy aboard, characters with varied and consistent senses of humor are embraced here. We're here to have a good time. |
