To see the cards themselves, check out this Card list for the Deep Space 9 expansion set.

PICTURE: Neela's dedicated expression carries the card, because its various other elements don't necessarily work. The gun, for example, is extremely out of focus. The color palette is very plain. And that smiling guy to the right is somewhat jarring (though it appropiately puts the Activist in an otherwise adoring crowd). But with our eyes always attracted to the most intense eyes in any given image, we tend to stay on Neela. I'll go for a 3.1.

LORE: The story as it happened on the show. It mentions a lot of specific characters, which takes away from its potential universality, but is otherwise average: a 3.

TREK SENSE: Our Activist is either found on the planet, or has managed to get aboard the ship under false pretenses, and manages to kill an "enemy" VIP or Command personnel. These are attractive targets to terrorists and assassins, and it makes sense for them to be the target of extremist activism, but it does require us to answer a question: Are there people that could be manipulated into killing any of the VIPs and Command personnel in the game? Well, given that some might be manipulated (or misguided, if you will) through the use of brainwashing/conditioning, most anyone can be made a target. You might not even think an Activist who took a shot at a Cardassian legate or OS Klingon captain (or at Kai Winn herself) would necessarily be "Misguided". Even the Feds may be seen as dangerous to natives of other worlds, just as some people on our own planet are against globalization (which the UFP embodies in a sense). I don't endorse the random selection however. I think assassins have definite targets, they're not aiming for just any Command/VIP personnel in the crowd. If a couple of Security are present, they may stop the assassination attempt, and this only stops the VIP (it gets it out of harm's reach, but away from the mission too). The Security is NOT stopped, which is a mistake, and in fact, I don't think the mission should continue at this point. There's just been an assassination (or assassination attempt), and the personnel are just going on about their business? Even more than other kinds of deaths, this thing necessitates an immediate investigation. Finally, speaking to the alternative requirement of Miles O'Brien, it's very much rooted in the episode, but not universal at all! Maybe O'Brien's assistant (an ensign Bob of some sort) is automatically the Misguided Activist, but I don't think there really are ensign Bobs on Away missions (space missions, ok), and besides, while that might work in and around DS9, it's not too viable outside of that, is it? I understand they wanted to cover the fact that O'Brien was instrumental in stopping Neela in the pictured example, but why does this keep happening to him everywhere else? A good basic idea, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired. Hits a 1.8.

SEEDABILITY: This is an automatic filter that will either stop or kill a VIP or Command icon personnel, probably stop more often than kill. The requirement for preventing the kill (but not the stop) is fairly easy to come up with. 2 SECURITY will probably be part of most crew/Away Team complements, and there's also Miles O'Brien who can do it in a pinch. Either way, the mission continues without a randomly selected personnel. Many VIPs aren't that useful, so their presence is due to a crucial ability or skill you need for the mission. Losing Empathy, for example, can be hard on certain affiliations. The really useful VIPs, like, say, The Emissary or Zek are, well, useful. You don't want to lose them. The high-yield mission Diplomatic Conference probably won't survive a VIP loss. Most mains have Command icons, and they're usually pretty good too, though there are some universal commanders out there who might not be big losses. Still, there's a fair chance of hitting a personnel with a large skill load or a matching commander. Something that requires Leadership following this dilemma might well be fruitful. Like I said though, most encounters will result in a stop, so waste the player's time, but even that's acceptable. Of course, it has no effect on the Borg unless a VIP counterpart is present (or the Queen takes on the skill for some reason I can't name). Misguided Activist gets a 3.7 in this category.

TOTAL: 11.6 (58%) Watch out for that Neela!

PICTURE: The gunmetal grays unite the card color-wise, and while that's a bit dull, it works here. Otherwise, what could we say? Odo's characteristic hair style is in evidence, and Dr. Mora could be seen as either creepy and calculating, or kind and fatherly. Works out to a 3.5.

LORE: A bunch of facts, all of them fine. I guess Odo would take exception to the word "encouraged", and perhaps to all the father/son stuff, but that's part of this character's ambiguities. That said, I'll give a 3.3.

TREK SENSE: He's a scientist through and through (Science x2) and particularly interested in Exobiology (his expertise on changelings nets him a x2 here too). He wasn't shown to have much of anything else, but such an important character should doubtless have gotten a little something special in addition to standard skills. Too bad. The Staff icon is okay - he seemed comfortable around consoles and such. The middling Integrity shows an essentially good man driven by a scientific curiosity devoid of morality. His Cunning is high in keeping with his expertise, though you could say he's relationship-dumb. And the low Strength works for an older scientist type. It all works, though it's a little dull, so I won't go above 4.

STOCKABILITY: Only a support personnel? Yes, but 2 SCIENCE and 2 Exobiology are excellent to have around, in a pinch or otherwise! Exo x2 in particular passes a large number of dilemmas (Exobiology is often required in double doses). Add the SCIENCE, and he singlehandedly passes Macrovirus. That complete list also includes Garak Has Some Issues, Zaldan, Coalescent Organism, DNA Clues, Iconian Computer Weapon, Nanites, Nitrium Metal Parasites, Interphasic Plasma Creatures, Berzerk Changeling (which asks for him specifically) and, let's add it too, 10,000 Tribbles. The Bajorans have plenty of SCIENCE missions in any case, with Mora Pol doing especially well with Changeling Research, Investigate Rumors and Characterize Neutrino Emissions. A strong, easily-reportable little mission solver worth 3.8.

TOTAL: 14.6 (73%) That's without Odo's bias of course.

PICTURE: A lot of steely grays, both in the background and foreground, darken this card considerably. And Morka's in a holding cell, which isn't encouraging me to include him in my decks ;-). Comes off as pretty average overall, so a 2.9.

LORE: A few good things here. First, there's a mention of the High Council, which makes him reportable for free. Then, there's all the very Klingon huffing and puffing of the last two phrases, especially fun since Morka HAS no Honor. I think we can go with a 3.5.

TREK SENSE: Lots of invention, I think, because while he was in charge (Officer/Command) of a Klingon Intelligence team, his range of skills is pretty out there. Computer Skill is the one we can easily buy into, since it includes Intelligence stuff like hacking into databases. Geology and Stellar Cartography, however, were far afield of what the team accomplished (or tried to accomplish) in "Visionary". The two skills are even diametrically opposed (though not an impossible combo for, say, a colonist/terraformer). What is that about? Integrity's a little high for a spy, don't you think? The team under his control tried to assassinate one of the Romulans! The low Cunning allowed them to be caught by Odo (well, I'm sure he can catch smarter people) and is a cute riff on the oxymoron that is Klingon Intelligence. Of course, as the leader, maybe he should have had a little more Cunning than his lackey Atul. Big, bulky and prone to bar fights, I'll believe the Strength though. Well, I remain unconvinced about too many elements, so no more than a 2.3.

STOCKABILITY: Klingon Intelligence isn't a very useful skill, I'm afraid. It allows the Klingons to solve Espionage Mission, so an AMS downloaded Atul with a freely reported Morka (at The Great Hall) will do the job fine. And you can use HQ: Defensive Measures to give Morka Leadership (OFFICER already makes him a leader though), but attacking his own affiliation, the Klingons can already do that. And that's it for that skill. Otherwise, he's got good attributes, the useful but common Computer Skill, and 2 scientific skills that cover both planet and space missions. Both are in high demand on Klingon missions, and Stellar Cartography is even a little rarer than most skills on Klingons, so Morka could make a fair back-up personnel. The Intel stuff is almost a waste of space however. I'll spring for a 3.1.

TOTAL: 11.8 (59%) Failed the test.

PICTURE: The Orb isn't centered, and the purple streaks take away from the subject even more. Ends up being too messy for a high score, though it could have been a beautiful jewel. How about 2.5?

LORE: Orbs have been called "Tears of the Prophets" on another card, the Orb of Prophecy and Change, so it does little for me here. Just what happened to Dax in "Emissary". Bah, a 2.8 because of the repetition.

TREK SENSE: I agree that this Orb could and should be found at a space location. It's free of any kind of box, and was found in the Wormhole, which can be considered a space location. At the same time, it's entirely possible this thing could be sitting in a cave on Bajor or some other world, waiting to be found. The Prophets work in mysterious (natch) ways. I also agree that its effect should be to relocate a personnel to anywhere in play. I don't think the Prophets would have any limits when it comes to this given their intemporal nature. Other quadrants, Time Locations, whatever. As with Dax, it would then disappear. Where I don't agree, however, is that the relocated personnel isn't in the acquiring party. The Orb goes to your hand until played. What is that? Where does it go until it is used? CAN it be captured for later use? And if so, why can't it only be used on the crew or Away Team that found it? How do you negotiate with it to go kidnap an opposing personnel? That's its only real flaw, so still a good 3.8.

SEEDABILITY: This one's great. Though you can't Return it to Bajor with HQ: Return Orb to Bajor, that objective still allows you to acquire it without completing a mission. Since it can seed in place, it's not as obvious a self-seed as those other dilemmas (Characterize Neutrino Emissions is an obvious red herring). Freely acquired or not, the Mysterious Orb can then be used to relocate any personnel anywhere in play, at any time. Think of the possibilities. Commandeer a ship effortlessy cross-quadrant. Send your opponent's best mission solver, or otherwise key personnel to limbo (i.e. a lone DQ mission, or Time Location), even in the middle of a mission attempt (while stopped, of course). Kidnap potential Counterparts just like that, or a cool Organ bank. Send a personnel reporting engine, like The Emissary, to a Colony in the Gamma Quadrant. Force Defend Homeworld by bringing an intruder to your homeworld. Use as a game ender when you've just lost an important personnel of your own, and another waits impatiently at the Outpost. Anything goes, it's not even unique, not nullifiable, and that flexibility is certainly worth its 4.6.

TOTAL: 13.7 (68.5%) Average due to pic and lore, but all criteria are equally important to me.

PICTURE: Nalan Bal looks like they took his picture without telling him first (I hate it when that happens, don't you?), but it's really a Jem'Hadar's eye-view perspective, so don't begrudge him his expression. Goes well with the lore at any rate. The busy background actually works here, giving an uncommon depth of field. The left with the airlock works better than the hazy right with the Bajoran national though. Quirky and fun, I'll give it a 3.6.

LORE: Some good copy, universality isn't ignored, there's a sense of history, and the episode he's from gets a mention (it's "The Abandoned"). A better than average 3.4.

TREK SENSE: Ok, your typical Bajoran astrophysicist would have, surprise surprise, Astrophysics, as well as Navigation. It's easy to explain that one: He's either charting stellar phenomena with the skill, or actually piloting to these areas for closer study. Probably the former since he's not rated for Staffing a ship (not that smaller craft require such a rating). The Integrity's a bit low, especially without more justification, but perhaps his cowardly reaction to the Young Jem'Hadar drove that attribute down(?). Cunning's great, as I've often complained that personnel with difficult skills like Astrophysics, even universal ones, should get and IQ to match. Strength's a bit high for a scientist, but I'll buy it from a toughened-up Bajoran. So aside from the Integrity, which isn't that much of a problem, this makes for a fine example of support personnel. A 4 and that's all there is to it.

STOCKABILITY: Nalan Bal is the only Astrophysics support personnel in the Bajoran stable, and one of two with Navigation. Navigation is a more common requirement anyway. That said, he's perfect for helping out at Characterize Neutrino Emissions, which might be a key mission in your Return Orbs to Bajor strategy, supplying 3 requirements (you only need a SCIENCE with Physics after that). Astrophysics and SCIENCE show up on a couple other Bajoran missions, and Navigation on more than a half-dozen. That's not to mention the many dilemmas that require either (or both!) of these skills (plus SCIENCE). You can keep him busy, or even two of him, replacing a dead Nalan Bal on your ship with another copy without going back to the outpost or Deep Space 9 through Assign Support Personnel. Lackluster INTEGRITY and STRENGTH are offset by good universal CUNNING. A good little 3.5.

TOTAL: 14.5 (72.5%) Good for someone who's just support.

PICTURE: The extreme close-up isn't exactly flattering, especially with her hairpiece acting as heavy parentheses to her face. The bright light in back of her turns part of it purple even. Not a disaster, but no more than 2.5.

LORE: A one-shot guest star that gets the telegraphic treatment usually reserved for mains. The upside is that we get lots of information. The downside is that her story isn't very clear. In fact, why the redundant mention of her as a dissident AND as an member of the underground? Romantic interest is basic, but I do like her full job description and her specific appetites. Lang (odd that the creators would pick such an Earth-sounding name) gets 3.1 here.

TREK SENSE: As someone who doesn't only teach ethics, but lives by an unusually moral code of ethics, we can believe she has high Integrity and Cunning, as well as Honor. She's a leader in the dissident movement, ergo Leadership, but still a Civilian, of course. Negotiating with Sisko for asylum, I'll believe the Diplomacy. And since the dissidents with her seemed bent on protecting her, the attribute boost makes some measure of sense. She did need protection, being untrained in combat (Strength 4 shows she's still feisty). The one possible blemish is the Staff icon. A Civilian isn't required to be able to staff a ship, and though she "commands" a Cardassian Shuttle, those don't require any staffing icon. Still a good 3.9.

STOCKABILITY: Natima Lang is a "good" Cardassian who offers a not-so-common DipHoLe package, and some high INTEGRITY, especially with another dissident present. That's right, with the likes of Ari, Hogue, Tekeny Ghemor and Rekelen (sorry no bakcwards-compatible 2E Cardassian dissidents), she goes up to 10-10-6. Some very high attributes, and STRENGTH enough to at least survive a battle. Speaking of boosting attributes, she's the matching commander for the Cardassian Shuttle, Logging and Plaquing its numbers to 9-6-7. Potable, but a minor vessel. But are her skills really useful to Cardassians? Leadership usually is, and Diplomacy is always useful. Even Honor shows up on a few missions, though it's actually more common than the other two! Ok, not a necessity, but if you work your deck around dissidents and other Honor-bound Cardies, you'd use her. A 3.1.

TOTAL: 12.6 (63%) Not stellar, sorry Quark.

PICTURE: The Badlands have different looks sometimes, and here, it's that of a roiling ocean, and the Defiant is like a submarine coming up for air. The "storms" don't look so bad without any vortices, but the card's got rich colors and a real sense of menace. Ok, I'm sold for a 3.9.

LORE: N/A (score will be adjusted accordingly)

TREK SENSE: It's an odd "Objective" because it's more a necessity than something you seek out. Maybe that's why I'll object to its being seeded. Still, exploration being an end unto itself, I'm sure some ships have tried to map it before, so my objection's not very loud on that point. It's louder though when you consider the effects and their targets: The card would have been better designed as simply "Plasma Storms", since all ships in the Badlands are affected, whether they are "Navigating" or not. So a storm starts off, and you don't know what'll happen, so you probe (a random element) to see what they do to your ships. An odd thing here: They can be in multiple places in the Region, but will all suffer the same fate. At the same time, opposing ships there are unaffected until the end of THEIR turn, where a different result may occur. Ok, what are those results? Well, on anything but what's here, the storms remain, but aren't strong enough to damage your ships. A flare-up has one of those vortices hits and damages all ships and facilities unless they have 3 Navigation to get out of the way. Facilities??? Tom Paris is quite the pilot now, isn't he? It's bad enough they ALL get hit. A maelstrom probably has multiple vortices, so even more Navigation is required or they destroy ships and facilities. Same problems. If the plasma storms subside, well, no need to navigate them anymore, and the objective is discarded. There's no difference between a shuttle and a starship being hit, so that's also fishy. I do generally like the choice of probe icons however. A flare-up would Interrupt your flight path, and possibly be caused by an opening (or Doorway) in the plasma cover. Subsiding storms would be an important Event in the cycle of the Badlands. Why is a maelstrom an Objective though? The best I can do is that it represents the ultimate in accomplishing this Navigation "goal". Bah. Too much unbelievable stuff anyway: A 1.9.

STOCKABILITY: Interrupts, Doorways and Objectives are common enough to get a fair number of hits thanks to this card, though an Event is also likely (but 1 of 4 possibilities here). A flare-up can be avoided with 3 Navigation, a maelstrom is a high 5. This is the reason personnel with multiple Navigation are great, because 5 is a large number of be carrying around, though it's a common enough skill that it could happen, especially in mega-crews. All you need is enough Badlands Region locations (one is universal, another is in the short Mirror Quadrant) so that your opponent can't avoid stopping there. Of course, that means you'll probably be spending time there too, because those are your missions to solve, so it's a balanced effect. Maybe seed only a couple, but send useless shuttles to Hail passing ships, or keep relocating them with Wormholes, Cytherians, etc. If the requisite Navigation isn't present, the ship can be damaged or completely destroyed (ouch!) either in one or two turns no matter what its SHIELDS are. Take that, Mr. Mega-Crew. Or will your opponent be real cautious and wait to have 5 Navigation before undocking from the Outpost? After all, this isn't a Hidden Agenda. The Terran Empire, thanks to their Emblem, can protect their one Mirror location with this card while remaining storm-free. Note that Caretaker's Array can be used to keep a ship from being destroyed, sending it to the Delta Quadrant or owner's hand instead. I doubt anyone stocks the Incident as the better way to avoid death in the Badlands, but that's unfortunately a road both players can take. Between that and the fact it affects you just as much, I have to be conservative and give it a 3.5.

TOTAL: 12.4 (62%) Treading water.

PICTURE: A pretty young woman with admiration in her eyes for the Chief. The earring is plainly visible, a tie to her religious background. My only real beef with the picture is that her hair and uniform sort of melt into the background. Otherwise, a softer side to the Misguided Activist. Worth my 3.4.

LORE: One of these days, 2E'll have a backwards compatible card that makes use of her "assassin" keyword, but for now, it's pretty plain, sitting there alone. Her criminal activities are all there, but perhaps redundantly put. We do get some of this on Misguided Activist too, so I'd have liked something a little more human (you know what I mean), such as her crush on O'Brien. Stuff like that. Plus, all the stuff about a bomb might make some players wonder why she downloads a phaser. Not the same assassination attempt, but it does lead to confusion. It's not terrible, but I can't go above 2.5.

TREK SENSE: Neela was an Engineer working under O'Brien, who was convinced by Winn to assassinate Bareil. That Bajoran Phaser she downloads was pulled for just such a goal. Computer Skill no doubt helped with the sabotage and is part of the Engineering package besides. The rest, I'm not too sure about. Archaeology could have a tie to the Bajoran religion, but so could Anthropology. And if she were truly versed in this kind of stuff, maybe Winn wouldn't have been able to manipulate her with prophecies. Physics would have been a better skill to handle explosives correctly. Treachery is more than just intent, it also represents duplicitous abilities. Sabotage, hiding weapons, covert meetings, they all fit the skill. It's a good thing, because I don't really believe her intent was Treacherous. She was sorely misguided, but not an evil person. I'd even say she was sweet in real life. That's why I really don't buy the low Integrity. She's a zealot more akin to Jem'Hadar than Founders, doing what she's been led to believe is the right thing. Cunning could have been lower, allowing her to be manipulated, but she still needs to be one of O'Brien's best workers, and able to pull off her little acts of sabotage without being detected. 7 will do. Strength, on the other hand, could have been slightly higher. She was easy to take down once detected though, so it'll do too. With two faulty elements, she ends up at 2.9.

STOCKABILITY: Bajorans don't have a terribly great number of ENGINEERs, but it's still one of the most important classifications in the game. Can you do without Neela? She also provides the rare Archaeology for Uncover DNA Clues and thus, Hunt for DNA Program. Treachery and Computer Skill are more common (some good Bajoran missions), but together, they allow her to throw people out DS9's Airlock (or your ship's, of course). Of course, her attributes aren't too great, even with the downloaded Phaser. Maybe Shakaar Edon can help? In any case, it's always nice to grab a hand weapon in a pinch, just when you need it. Amounts to a successful 3.7.

TOTAL: 12.5 (62.5%) Another example of Bajoran attribute boosting at work.

PICTURE: While the sandy palette and atmospheric haze and shadows aren't unappealing, this pic at best gets a lukewarm reaction from me. The T'Lani are ridiculous with their aerodynamic haircuts, and the scene is a bit muddled. The dilemma is just too complex to be represented by this single image. Just a 2.

LORE: Works well enough, even if they weren't going to be "captured" for long. Keiko's role in the game text is explained. Hey, it's fine, but nothing really great. I do like the vague title though. A 2.9.

TREK SENSE: The dilemma tries to be two things at once. It wants to be the specific events of "Armageddon Game", but also be more general in case the dilemma isn't encountered by Bashir and O'Brien. The effect is to kill all Medical (Bashir) and Engineers (O'Brien) present, which may represent the two races trying to get rid of anyone who's found out too much about their engineered virus (I guess the harvesters were nano-machines). I can easily imagine them hunting down personnel across the spaceline in their obsession, sure. Our friends were to be killed aboard a ship, but they escaped and were tracked to a planet, so the dilemma is space/planet. The T'Lani or Kellerun could track you down in either place. Except for the Defense drones, the requirements seem to imply that the Medicals and Engineers have, like Bashir and O'Brien, escaped the first attack, but their Away Team/crew has still gotten word of their "accidental" deaths. You could use Science to analyze the data offered, Officer to request it in the first place and Computer Skill to figure out the tapes were doctored. If O'Brien is involved, Keiko can spot the discrepency in his coffee drinking. Unfortunately, Keiko can help even if Miles is safe and sound elsewhere (big mistake). Resistance would have to be with the escapees, helping them hide from the bad guys and/or fight them. See, the whole problem with these is a little thing we call "being present". How can the requirements be with the targeted personnel and still not know something's up? Keiko and co. certainly didn't need to be present to work their magic. Only the Def drones make sense, in that they immediately protect your other personnel from an attack. Too many problems to score more than 1.8, but I admire the thematics.

SEEDABILITY: A big mass killer, it targets and kills all MEDICAL and ENGINEER personnel present. That's huge! Those are two of the most useful and frequently required classifications/skills in the game. They are consequently quite common in both crews and Away Teams, and some decks make great use of either of them in mission selection, etc. Now, you must make sure the dilemma isn't overcome. Against the Borg, there's a good chance Defense drones will be present, so you might as well forget it, though they would be easy to kill with Yuta (so long as there were only two Defense drones to begin with). I wouldn't be too worried about Keiko O'Brien though. Resistance is only ever going to occur on Bajorans, and is common enough to make them fairly immune to No Loose Ends. The other affiliations will be using SCIENCE/OFFICER/Computer Skill, all quite common. Fortunately, it's possible to filter out many of these personnel with lead-in dilemmas like Unscientific Method, Punishment Box, Ferengi Ingenuity and any "opponent's choice" dilemma. At the bottom of the dilemma stack, No Loose Ends may still cause lots of problems for the targeted player. The card's power remains balanced by the need for a well-designed lead. Still can't fault the effect though, so a 4.

TOTAL: 10.7 (53.5%) Not enough Trek Sense.

PICTURE: Not terrible, because I do like the admittedly off-center weapons barring Sisko's way and that odd tiered torch in the background, but the bad guys' helmets are just this side of Tron (silly), and Sisko's blurred. The idea of matching the composition to the Star Wars CCG's card of the same name is fun, but still an unconvinced 2.8.

LORE: The first sentence makes the dilemma universal, and the second gives a pertinent example. No problems, though not particularly cool. A good 3.3.

TREK SENSE: Natives not giving you access to the mission's objectives? Fight back (lots of Strength because you're potentially against a large number of people), talk it out (Opaka's Diplomacy did the trick here), get them to accept you (with Anthropology, though this could also just be used to find some loophole in the No-Pass policy), or just plain stand up to them (a Nausicaan with Guramba might intimidate the natives in question). The dilemma respects different strokes for different folks, and though vague, represents well a planetside stonewalling. A 4.

SEEDABILITY: A simple wall, it has 4 possible requirements, wich isn't usually a good thing. See, while Guramba is pretty rare, and the STRENGTH requirement is higher than most, 3 Diplomacy is fairly-to-excessively easy to come up with depending on affiliation. And 2 Anthropology? Not the most common skill, but again, not uncommon. The multiple requirements also prevent combo-building: You could put a Diplomacy hoser after this, but you can't be sure the dilemma won't be overcome with Anthropology or STRENGTH instead. It holds true for filters/killers that would come before None Shall Pass. Still, it's semi-effective against red-shirting, especially for less diplomatic affiliations. Gets a 2.1.

TOTAL: 12.2 (61%) None shall object, I hope?

PICTURE: Where other Nors get more of a close-up, the details are skimpy on the universal model. The pic is dark and takes away from the station's scale. Definitely not the best picture of Deep Space 9 (which is playing the role here). A 1.8.

LORE: Goes the outpost route, using many of the same words. The only different thing we get, really, is the station's function. A boring ol' 2.

TREK SENSE: We know the Cardassians have a number of these ore processing stations in their territory because we've seen more than one (Terok Nor and Empok Nor). Their homeworld is also resource-poor, so they need mining stations to build their ships, houses, funky giant viewscreens, etc. The universal Nor can thus be seeded or played at any mission the Cardassians can attempt EXCEPT the Bajor system. See, the Bajor system already has its Nor (plus, no longer belongs to them). Now, Empok Nor's location isn't forbidden despite its not having a [Car] icon, but that's Mining Survey's problem. And we saw there was no Nor around Cardassia Prime, and it doesn't have the icon. Looks like it all works. Except that as with outposts, all [Car] missions are not part of Cardassian territory (Covert Installation II and Eliminate Virus are among the least nebulous). And what about space missions without any mineral content? I'll accept a location "near" a planet, like Intercept Maquis (not Kressari Rendezvous, though, which is near Cardassia), but Collect Sample and Verify Evidence are suspect. Being universal, it gets lower attributes than Terok Nor, but why? Yes, DS9 was more heavily defended than your standard Nor, but during the Occupation? Well, the game could take place during the Dominion War, with the station under siege by Feds and Klingons, or even if it is prior to the Cardassian withdrawl, Dukat might have upped defenses to deal with the Resistance. The usual "where do I seed/play" caveats apply, but the universal Nor works out to a 3.5.

STOCKABILITY: Why use the cheap Nor when Terok Nor/Deep Space 9 is stronger, tougher and has more tricks? Well, exactly because of that. See, there's a lot of competition from other affiliations to control the station. The Bajorans can in fact seed it before your do, during the dilemma phase! Even if you initially control it, Quark's Bar might bring in Ferengi, and Bajorans might be interested in flipping the card over, then using your seed cards against you. All you wanted to do was a little Ore Processing, and you're wasting resources fighting off commandeering attempts. Your opponent might still try to take a universal Nor away from you, but he's less likely to do so. Plus, you don't have to plop the station into hotly contested territory (the Bajor system), and can relegate it to the hind end of space. Of course, if using it as a reporting base, you'll want it a little closer to the action, but you can actually have more than one, can't you? Or just use the Nor as a place to Process Ore. It's not as fool-proof as it once was, unfortunately, but it's still a viable Cardassian strategy. Another sacrifice you have to make is not being able to use Garak's Tailor Shop, so Obsidian Order decks won't be as keen on using the plain jane Nor, but as a safe haven for your other sites, it's got real possibilities. Note that it doesn't seed/play at THAT many locations. Other quadrants are right out, and so is the Bajor system. Nor are "any Away Team/crew" missions except Mining Survey open for business. But you can put one near your homeworld at another Cardassian Region location for maximum reporting concentration. I say 3.7.

TOTAL: 11 (55%) Picture and lore kill this otherwise fine concept.

PICTURE: Taken from an Odo-centric episode, "The Alternate", it's a good shot of him, even if his hair kinda comes off as silver (caught in the act of shape-shifting subconsciously to mirror his "father" more?). The gunmetal background has some interesting linework to it too. Nothing excessively cool, but Odo's rarely been about excess (except when it comes to Kira). Ok, a good 3.6.

LORE: Losing a line of lore is always disappointing when dealing with mains, since there's so much to tell. The bare bones here include species, post, location and a couple of fun tidbits. The first is a character trait that he mentions himself in an episode, and it's one I've never really agreed with. Not good at pretense? Isn't he always pretending to be a humanoid (or bird, or mouse)? Seems like it would be a major flaw for a security chief, always showing his hand like that. Still, it's more interesting than strictly biographical info. The last is also from Odo himself, and a funny moment to boot. When asked if Quark was really a suspect, Odo earnestly says "I always investigate Quark" (can't be pretense, after all). And it then translates into a special skill. A good job given the constraints, so a 4.

TREK SENSE: The ultimate Security officer, Odo defintely deserves a double dose of the skill. The Command icon gives him the right to order his deputies around, but I'm left wondering why, aside from space in the skill box, he shouldn't have Leadership too. He's been shown to hide and find computer files with deftness, so Computer Skill x2 is dead on. Also makes him an intellectual match to Quark, which is fun. He doesn't ever use weapons (only in a couple of contradictory episodes), which accounts for his restriction, but also helps explain the doubled Honor. There's also the matter of never doing what he wants when he knows it's not right, from fighting for Kira with Shakaar to returning home to the Founders. He'll finally do those things, but that's not the Odo we have here. The high Integrity follows the same rationale. Law, of course, is a useful too for a security chief, but he also served as Cardassian nestor. The special skill allows him to counter Quark at every turn by stopping the Ferengi. He asks him questions, follows him around, whatever it takes to make him less effective. Despite the computer know-how, he's not particularly technical, and his "social" intelligence is definitely lacking, so a Cunning of 7 fits even if his deductive reasoning may be higher than most. And as a changeling, he's got superior Strength. There's a reason he doesn't use weapons, boys and girls. It's hard to do a main character justice sometimes, but Odo comes off pretty well, enjoying the abilities most showcased on the show. A 4.4.

STOCKABILITY: At 2 SECURITY, 2 Computer Skill and 2 Honor, Odo makes the most of his short skill list. Throw in the rather rare Law, and you've got a probable high score. For one thing, he's great at passing dilemmas, which often require 2 of this or that. SECURITY appears on more than a half-dozen Bajoran missions (Relocate Settlers at x2), and Search for Survivors asks for Computer Skill x2. Speaking of which, that's also what's required for you to download Odo into hand early using Quark's Isolinear Rods. Other tricks thanks to his x2 skills: He prevents Neural Servo Device from controlling your ship, may use No Way Out, passes Ferengi Ingenuity, and ignores Scanner Interference. Great attributes too, with STRENGTH being particularly high, though he can't add to it using hand weapons. Shakaar Edon still boosts it though, as do The Guardian and HQ: War Room. The special skill is a little incidental though. It hinges on your opponent using a specific personnel card, though it actually includes a number of possibilities. The baseline Quark is a terrific card that the Ferengi are bound to use, Lumba less so. Mirror affiliations might have a Mr. Quark, and the Klingons could use the Son of Keldar. Still, getting Odo next to Quark may be more work than it's worth, that's IF he shows up at all. Beyond the card text, the fact that Odo can use shape-shifting cards should not go unnoticed. Jem'Hadar affected by White Deprivation cannot attack him, passes Founder Secret, survives Berzerk Changeling, is immune to Vantika's Neural Pathways, Assassin's Blade and Organ Theft (though a target of Angry Mob), use Caught Red-Handed against infiltrators, can escape death with Flight of the Intruder or You Dirty Rat, can exchange with an Equipment card with In the Bag, stuns 3 personnel with Strike Three, and reports aboard ships and even gets points with The Walls Have Ears. It's sometimes hard to justify stocking such cards when the Bajorans only have Odo, but a couple of NA shape-shifters could help you do that (Anya and Salia). But there's more: Odo can nullify Install Autonomic Parasites (indeed, he's pretty good at fighting the Dominion), pass Ferengi Bug with a Tricorder, only needs an extra Navigation personnel to complete Investigate Rumors, and may be downloaded to Runabout Search when solved. The Non-Aligned OS version of his persona isn't really switchable, given that it only really helps in OS decks. Better against certain opponents (Ferengi and Dominion), he's still a good mission solver without cashing in on all the extra abilities. The restriction and limited special skill do hurt the score, but it still winds up at a high 4.

TOTAL: 16 (80%) In the top 3!

PICTURE: Not much urgency in this "dilemma" (a theme that will return below), showing a couple guys looking into a petrie dish. The frame is full and the expressions appropriate, their interest drawing you in. Likeable enough for a 3.3.

LORE: The facts about Odo's "Cousin", but not about how this constitutes any kind of danger or dilemma. It's all after-the-fact to me. Not badly written or anything, I can give it a 2.

TREK SENSE: I don't really have much trouble with the game text - the creature is a somewhat mineral compound with shape-shifting properties, and a healthy dose of Exobiology, tempered by Geology, is what's needed for sure. Once the discovery is made with those skills, it's important to study it further (with more general Science), which is a goal worth 5 points. Sure, ok. But look at the episode ("The Alternate"): Once found, "Cousin" was brought to DS9 where it was leisurely (in a manner of speaking) studied. That Science shouldn't be stopped on the planet, he should be heading home with the sample. In fact, I don't know why this is a dilemma at all. It's more of a mission, really, and one I thought covered by Changeling Research. The card has the creature being discovered by chance, not on a probe follow-up as in the lore, on some other mission. The dilemma then, I suppose, is whether to stay behind to study it, splitting the Away Team up. With that justification, I think a 3.1 fits, but no more.

SEEDABILITY: Geology and 2 Exobiology are now more common as requirements than they were when Odo's "Cousin" came out, so they're not as surprising to the Away Team, but it's still a large package of skills. Still, even if you stop on the first attempt, you might risk giving away points on the second. See, you have to see this dilemma as a filter as well as a wall. If they take the points, they risk barreling into a dilemma that requires SCIENCE. So you should always follow up with something dangerous if they don't have the skill: Barclay's Protomorphosis Disease, Crystalline Entity, Interphasic Plasma Creatures, No Loose Ends, etc. Most require only one SCIENCE, and it's hard to believe an Away Team would have only one, so maybe Unscientific Method could be part of the combo too? Of course, your opponent could be too scared to take the fiver, in which case, all your preparation goes to waste (at least they might have first been stopped by the wall). It's not a bad self-seed though. Again, I'm on the fence: 3.3.

TOTAL: 11.7 (58.5%) Far from an Odo.

PICTURE: Great, great shot. It stands on its own with the goofy expression (and moustache), a finely tuned color palette, and the violence occuring outside the frame. At the same time, it's a followup, almost comic book style, to Fightin' Words, so that the two tell a story. An excellent 4.8.

LORE: One of the few good things about this episode was the line quoted (with Sisko simply saying "I'm not Picard"), so I'm glad it made it in. And are we now doubting Q's omnipotence? Well, if he really were, wouldn't he have seen it coming? "Alledgedly" indeed. Title's a little ridiculous, but I'm game for a very good 4.1.

TREK SENSE: Rather conceptual, it starts off with a nullification of Fightin' Words, as being the historically accurate response to the situation. Of course, if you don't have Sisko there (or another adequate pugilist), who's hitting Q? Q wasn't really deterred for more than a moment, so this is the only Q-card Oof! gets rid of. The second function would have your personnel hit Q2, Amanda Rogers(!) or Kevin Uxbridge, sending them out of the game in the process and costing them points (the shame! the shame!). The theme is that of shooing away omnipotent beings by responding unconventionally to their interference. It probably doesn't have to be a fist in the gut. Of course, they were already in the discard pile, so how is this a response to their shennanigans? The system breaks down, and we're left with a 0.8.

STOCKABILITY: The first function is more important to Feds than others, because Fightin' Words requires them to initiate a personnel battle to regain lost skills, and they normally can't. Thankfully, Oof! has a hidden Referee icon (it's mentioned on Q the Referee) and can be downloaded at a moment's notice. Your personnel won't be stalled long. The second function is a counter against players who stock too many Kevins, Amandas and Q2s in an effort to shut down all your Events and Interrupts (including your own Kevins and Amandas). What? You say The Line Must Be Drawn Here took care of that already? Well, maybe. Don't forget TLMBDH is slow to play (or costs seed slots) and can't be downloaded. While a big Line can cost a player plenty, he can then wait for the Line's countdown to end, Palor Toff his interrupts and hit you again once the coast is clear. So add insult to injury: Oof! the player's discard pile toward the end of the game (when it's packed with universal counters) for an extra -5 points each. Or at any time really, since it'll keep those cards from being rescued. Note than when you nullify an Amanda or Kevin with your own Q2, it goes to the discard pile. -5 points for even THINKING about using a counter against you. As we get farther and farther away from Premiere, we might see Amanda and Kevin less and less, in favor of more balanced (and less risky) cards like Quinn, but if Oof! isn't gonna do anything, your Ref-Q can always recycle it, no problem. A nasty piece of work against the right deck, I'll give it a 4.2.

TOTAL: 13.9 (69.5%) Trek Sense hit me! Stockability never hit me!

PICTURE: An overhead set shot either digitally modified from one in "In the Hands of the Prophets", or pulled from a file photo from that same camera shot, it doesn't give us everything, nor could it, but it gives us a lot. The screens have a lot of detail for images that size, the Cardassian shapes keep the eyes busy, and the spots of color are pleasing. Due to the angle, a more dynamic shot than many site cards, I give it a 3.5.

LORE: N/A (score will be adjusted accordingly)

TREK SENSE: All Nors have an Ops section in their Ops Module, funnily enough. You can expect to find Officers here mostly, being commanders, execs and ops officers. Helmsmen are usually Officers too, and they'll have little to do here though. And what about "bridge crew" like Chief O'Brien or Lt. Dax? They're expected elsewhere, but their presence here would have been appreciated nonetheless. Ops is used to coordinate operations on the station (thus its name), and this is represented by more efficient reporting (through downloading) of cards at other sites (as well as this one). Ops allows a ship to dock, it reports to a docking site. It calls for Bashir to go to the Infirmiry, he does. Being of a matching affiliation makes sense except in the context of the show's Federation/Bajoran alliance, but it does keep the other player from downloading enemy troops to the station (though they may be of an opposite faction - remember people like Vedek Winn), though a player could drop hand weapons at a site for his intruders to "find". The site also has to be unopposed, to make sense "No card draw this turn" is a mechanical conceit which makes perfect sense as you've already pulled a card out of your deck this turn. The same can be said of using up a card play. To commandeer the station, you must "capture" Ops and make its computers your own. All this requires is Computer Skill. I'd have liked it to be x2, but that's me. Overall, the card does a good job, but only goes so far. A 3.8.

STOCKABILITY: Using a Nor? Then I bet you're using Ops. The sites divide among them the classifications they can report. For Ops, it's OFFICERs, often excellent personnel, matching commanders, etc. But Ops goes one step further by turning your card play into a download to any of those sites, so you can SELECT which personnel you report to the station this turn. Not just personnel either. Ships and Equipment cards too. There are limits: no NAs (unless you commandeered a Nor with NAs), no cards that are in your deck through Treaty. But Cardassians won't be troubled much, and Bajorans can do pretty well too. The review mostly deals with them, though of course, there are differences when you factor in commandeers and Empok Nor. Another limit is getting no card draw, but then your hand didn't lose a card. Still, it's clear you can't do this for long, but it's a great starting gambit to get your pawns into play. Three other built-in limits: Cards cannot be reported to opposed sites, so you need to keep the station policed, especially from intruders reporting there through Garak's, Quark's, or the Shops. Second, the opposing player can download cards via your Ops as well, but this will only work if using the same affiliation you are. Annoying, but opposing cards'll need Defensive Measures to initiate any attacks against their cross-table "cousins". Finally, you need to keep Ops protected from would-be commandeers who only need Computer Skill to take the station away from you, like sly Obsidian Order operatives getting through the back door of a Tailor Shop, or smugglers at a Cargo Bay. Their early reporting can mean the end of your control. Various cards protect from this. For the Cardassians, a juicy one is Automated Security Systems which kills non-Cardassians here, though if the Away Team is large and yours absent, the station may be commandeered before they are all killed. It can help you regain control, of course. For small commandeer teams, such as a lone Computer Skill personnel (like a tailor), there's Intruder Alert, which captures 1 or 2-man teams making the attempt. In a more general way, Sisko 197 Subroutine will prevent attempts (and moving) unless 4 Computer Skill nullify it. That's more like it. If you have a team present, you could do worse than play a Weapons Locker here to report free hand weapons to help protect it. Sometimes risky, there are enough failsafes to make the downloading bonuses worthwhile. It's a 4.8.

TOTAL: 16.13 (80.67%) The Ops Module does well for itself: the Commander's Office got the same score.

PICTURE: That apple green wash lacks contrast, but it's certainly unmistakeable. Still, I sometimes feel they missed the boat in not showing us the Experience from within. The tendrils of energy are mysterious and all that, but Sisko's dumbfounded expression and those alien candles just aren't doing it for me. Kira's ectsasy in "The Circle" would seem a better choice as far as expressions go. 2.7 here.

LORE: Tells the story plainly enough. It's all a bit dry, with dates and a dull two-sentence structure. Where's the mystery? Again with the 2.7.

TREK SENSE: The first function adds the Orb icon, actually giving a personnel an Orb Experience. Makes absolute sense as an effect since that's what the icon represents. Unfortunately, they stipulate that only personnel with high enough moral caliber will get an orb vision. When you look at the personnel who have already had one, we see a number that don't have the requisite Integrity: Borad, Grand Nagus Zek, Mirror Bareil, Quark and Barry Waddle. So it mechanically doesn't work. Second function: It gives a personnel a vision of the past, present or future by allowing a peek at any card in the game. I'd call Hidden Agendas the past (agreed upon some time back), ship crews the present, and draw decks, side-decks and dilemma piles the future. Again there's a mechanical issue: the personnel having the vision must be present with an Orb artifact (no problem there, except that they don't all give visions, in particular Orb Fragment) and have an Orb icon. Now, why would you need the Orb icon if the artifact could give you one anway? Are only personnel who are USED to visions able to interpret them this well? I'd say that was a fair explanation. You never really understand the first one. Trek Sense might have been fixed entirely by combining the two effects into one Event (after all, I don't think these experiences are always Interrupts like Dax's), but the card does pretty well for itself regardless. A 3.3.

STOCKABILITY: Being an interrupt certainly helps, and it being more than a Bajoran-style Mask of Korgano is a relief. The first function would have you add the Orb icon to your personnel. How useful is that? Well, Orb icons have a number of uses, from completing Orb Negociations and Returning Orbs to Bajor for points and cards (as well as Artifact theft) to using the Orb of Time and reporting personnel for free with the Orb of Wisdom. It also means a personnel can use the second part of this Interrupt, which we'll get to in a moment. Ok, the Bajorans have 6 Orb personnel already (one of them in the Alliance), the Ferengi have 2, the Feds and Cardassians each have one, and there's Barry Waddle who's Non-Aligned and happy to play with the highest bidder. If you're not one of those affiliations, or don't have the pre-fab Orb personnel, or want more personnel than Barry to carry the icon (in case you lose him, for example), then by all means, give other personnel an Orb Experience. It doesn't cost you a card play, just a card slot. It can be fun to run a Return Orb to Bajor strategy within a Romulan Archaeology deck, for example, and no one's expecting them to Espionage Cardassia Prime. Or maybe more than one card slot, if you include the card to also take peeks at whatever cards you like. Orb artifacts are easy to grab by Orb personnel anyway, and the Orb of Prophecy and Change can already peek at the top card of your deck. Peek at the second so you know if it's a good idea to to change the first. Or check out a Hidden Agenda, or the next Tactic in a Battle-Bridge side-deck, or a card in your opponent's hand. Information can be useful. The most useful information, however, is probably checking out dilemmas under missions like a Scan. As for the card, it's useful if you want to run certain strategies and to the Bajorans in general, and that's enough for a 3.7.

TOTAL: 13.4 (67%) Far from a Korgano.

PICTURE: Blurry, but what do you expect from such a close-up (or really, a close-up of a close-up)? The fingers give us more than a prop shot, but I'm not sure they're a great element. It does show how small the Fragment is, proving that artifacts come in all sizes. The blur keeps it at 2.8.

LORE: Just the facts, but the use of "Celestial Temple" keeps us in a Bajoran context. 3.1 should do.

TREK SENSE: Set on a bracelet, it can be used as equipment (just like the Sirrah did). It has one use: creating and controlling the Dal'Rok. It can create the "creature" without storytelling, which it does here as an Event. Controlling it requires some kind of storytelling, but that's not really acknowledged by the card. It's assumed to be done in conjunction with the first effect listed, that of keeping the Dal'Rok from killing. Oh, and yeah, it's not duplicatable... unless some Kai chipped at all the Orbs to put the fragments on eBay. By being so focused on another card, Orb Fragment manages to do better than most artifacts. At least 4.5.

SEEDABILITY: The Dal'Rok kills the personnel with the lowest total attributes at a location (all planets, ships and facilities there count) at the start of each turn, and the only way to nullify it is to have massive amounts of attribute points present, something that gets progressively harder as the killing continues. Mega-Away Teams can pass this dilemma without too much trouble, but Orb Fragment (which can be downloaded via Starry Night, by the way) allows you to play the dilemma as an Event instead. Go right up to your opponent's Outpost or other reporting facility and unleash the "beast" to kill reporting personnel as they turn up. Your opponent may never have enough personnel to go out to solve missions. Your own personnel also present are immune thanks to the Artifact. Obviously, it'll also help if you ever encounter a Dal'Rok yourself. As an Orb Artifact, you can use Return Orb to Bajor to get points, card draws and acquire the Fragment without solving a mission. It can also be used to draw more cards at the Bajoran Shrine, can be seeded with other Orb Artifacts at Orb Negotiations and Characterize Neutrino Emissions, and to peek at a card through Orb Experience. Kai Opaka protects it from nullification. Focused, yes, but it allows you to use a pretty nasty strategy. A 4.1.

TOTAL: 14.5 (72.5%) Orbs sort of have a leg up thanks to the Bajorans.

PICTURE: Cardassia Prime looks pretty polluted from this vantage point, though we don't see a whole lot of planet. Too bad they couldn't have made this homeworld a little more impressive. The slice of gray gets a dull ol' 2.1.

LORE: Simple, but clear, and it mentions the planet as the Cardassians' homeworld very organically. A 3.2.

TREK SENSE: The Cardassians aren't too keen on giving up the spoils of their occupation of Bajor, so loads of Diplomacy are needed to get those Orbs back. VIPs usually have diplomatic value (if not the actual skill) or some kind of bargaining power, so adding that to the list makes sense. Yet, I can't help but think that a Non-Aligned VIP could be just as valuable to the negotiations as a neutral party, so I don't accept that only a Bajoran can serve this purpose. Think of Sisko's role in "Life Support" or "The Storyteller". The mission's already Bajoran only (barring any Espionage). That an Orb icon personnel is worth all those requirements is something we have to explore a bit. I mean, so you had an Orb experience at some point. So what? Doesn't mean you have any push with the Cardassian government, or any real claim to the Orbs (Quark? Mirror Bareil? Borad?). The special game text makes perfect sense however, allowing you to "acquire" any number of Orb Artifacts (the Cardassians took almost all of them) without going through any kind of archaeological dig. No problem with that unless you factor in The Charybdis' implications, but if that card is in effect, you might just be using Archaeology to make sure the Cardies aren't returning fakes or something. Points are a little low for something this important to the Bajorans, though the Artifacts may make up for it. Span's a little long for a planet that seems so close to Bajor sometimes. Attemptibility icon and region are fine. A number of problems, so only a 2.4.

SEEDABILITY: This card is really two things - the Cardassian homeworld, and a Bajoran mission. Obviously, the Cardassians are going to want to seed it for its HQ properties: Free plays at Central Command and HQ cards. The Cardassia Region unfortunately isn't full of Cardassian missions, but Kressari Rendezvous and Orb Negotiations/Secure Homeworld can be seeded next to each other. Actually, playing an Espionage card on the homeworld is a better way to go, so Borad can solve it alone. Like the Bajorans, the Cardassians can load tons of Orb Artifacts here to get them all real early in the game. A couple can be real useful. For the Bajorans, those Artifacts are even more useful. Not only are they better set up to use them with all their Orb icons, the Shrine, etc., but Returning Orbs to Bajor can net them points and card draws. Return Orbs to Bajor also allows them to acquire the Artifacts without completing the mission (of course, Borad, or any other Orb icon personnel could also use this card). And while they could do this far from the Cardassian Union at Characterize Neutrino Emissions, Orb Negotiations is a lot easier. A single Orb icon? Done! If not, a VIP and 3 Diplomacy isn't too hard for them either. They have two missions in the Cardassia Region, so their Interceptors can do a quick run to Rescue Prisoners while in the system. For non-Cardassian, non-Bajorans, well, a Bajoran VIP is gonna be hard to come up with, but there's always that Orb icon. The Ferengi have a couple of appropriate personnel and the Bribery card to buy their Orb Artifacts, and the Romulans might give it a go with Barry Waddle. No other affiliations can spy on Bajorans. Between being a HQ, being easy, and storing multiple Artifacts, I can see my way to giving the card a 4.2.

TOTAL: 11.9 (54.5%) Hardscrabble indeed.

PICTURE: A likeable enough set shot, looking pretty alien and creepy with its grid lighting. The green highlights are also good. Maybe the junk in the lower left corner could have been more distinguishable. A 3.4.

LORE: N/A (score will be adjusted accordingly)

TREK SENSE: All affiliations may process ore at this site except the Feds and Bajorans, but that would merely be true of Deep Space 9. I mean, if the Bajorans were willing to render one of their moons uninhabitable in order to tap its energy, they'd be willing to Process Ore at somewhere other than Bajor. As for the Feds, they wouldn't exploit inhabited planets, but what about hunks of rock in space? Mineral Survey, for example. The restriction seems directly tied to the card's main reporting function. After all, if you're not using the OPU (like they don't on DS9), why would your Engineer ever report here? O'Brien was very rarely in this room. Even on a Cardassian Nor, it seems more likely that Security personnel would be here to keep watch on the slaves, than actual Engineers. So while the connection between Engineers (and Engineering equipment) and this site theoretically makes sense, it shouldn't be an option for the Feds and Bajorans if they're not going to do anything here. I do like how the Automated Security System closes off the site just like on the show. In "Civil Defense", we learned that this was so the Cardassians could more quickly contain a slave revolt. It omits any kind of poison gas that came later though. Nevertheless a cute bit, but the rest of the card suffers from being "too Cardassian". A 2.3.

SEEDABILITY: If using your Nor to report your personnel (instead of an Outpost), you'll need the OPU to get your ENGINEERs, that being one of the more important classifications. However, Cardassians have few ENGINEER-classification personnel, that skill appearing much more often in skill boxes. The Bajorans don't have many more, but they really lack ENGINEER-skilled personnel to compensate, so getting those ENGINEERs out through the OPU may be important, even more so since Ops allows you to download these personnel instead of reporting them normally. Alternatively, Engineer-related equipment can be reported to give other classifications the skill of ENGINEER. Now, the Bajorans can't Process Ore, but for the Cardassians, it's the main reason for using the OPU, never mind what reporting can occur there. Until Reactor Overload made that practice dangerous, it was the Cardassians' main strategy: recycling cards to get card draws (win-win). They might not be as eager to set this up because of Reactor Overload, but the baton has been passed to the Mirror Nors, where the Alliance as well as the Terrans can Process Ore with abandon. Alpha Quadrant affiliations (except Bajorans and Feds) can still use the card, but it's not as powerful. Still an effective recycling card though. For those that use Empok Nor, you can seed the station at Mining Survey, where you can Process Ore, but you'll need an OPU, of course. As for its connection to Automated Security System, the fact that it's in the Docking Ring can help you trap would-be intruders early, before they get to other parts of the station. You only need put the OPU between your docking site and the Habitat Ring. Of course, that means you may be cut off too. Being able to remove the Auto Sec Sys (perhaps with Mercy Kill) may be important to resuming normal operations later on. Could however keep your Process Ore in business while the station is under siege, since no one could come in and kill your ENGINEER or SECURITY there. Yes, the Ore Processing Unit isn't as pivotal as it once was, but it's still necessary to Process Ore, and that strategy is still good for a number of people. A 4.4.

TOTAL: 13.47 (67.33%) Process Ore's review would seem to be coming soon.

PICTURE: It always creeps me out when the personnel looks straight at us, and really shouldn't do so. Yeah, he's looking a bit to the side, but it's such a dead-on pic. The lights on the ceiling are interesting, but it can't really save this little known character. A 2.9.

LORE: Just the facts, and we don't really have any more. I'm not even sure all of these are "facts". Was he really an engineer? More on that under Trek Sense. More than a bit dull, it gets a 2.5.

TREK SENSE: Did Ilon Tandro actually bring an Engineer with him on this little kidnapping mission? I mean, Orren Ran seems to have "Nor" skills down pat, both Engineer and Geology, but did he need them? The Cardassians supposedly gave Tandro the station's schematics, and he's got Engineer himself. It just seems superfluous. I'd have brought somebody skilled in Security or something. At least I believe he's a Civilian. Staff icon is ok too. Integrity matches Tandro's, showing neither as a true bad guy, but both able to kidnap someone. He was more muscle than Tandro was, so a 6 in Strength is good. No trouble with the Cunning. One last question needs to be answered though. If the Klaestron are allied enough with both the Feds and Cardassians that their outpost is dual-aligned, and Ilon Tandro is dual-aligned, well, why isn't Orren Ran? This is a major discrepency. Slamming him down to 1.7.

STOCKABILITY: An easy to report Support Personnel, Orren Ran has a couple of interesting skills, namely the super-useful ENGINEER and the also good Geology. He's still a CIVILIAN though, so you might use him to fuel a Colony or use his dual-classification to enable your Kurlan Naiskos. Mr. Andrews is the only other similar Support Personnel with his MEDICAL. Yes, he's a Klaestron ENGINEER, so he can build a Klaestron Outpost, but it's nothing the superior personnel that is Ilon Tandro can't do. Furthermore, Tandro can do it for the Cardassians, Orren can't. He's not bad support, but not one of the best, and his connection to Klaestron Outposts isn't something particular impressive. A 3.

TOTAL: 10.1 (50.5%) While Tandro's one of the top Fed personnel!

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