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#87-Admiral Riker, Federation, AU, Premium
"Commander of Strabase 247 in an alternate future. At odds with Governor Worf. Battled Klingons near Devron."
-VIP, Leadership x2, Diplomacy, Navigation, Music; Your leaders here may initiate battle against Klingon affiliation; Download any Enterprise (if aboard your matching facility); Command icon
-INTEGRITY: 7, CUNNING: 8, STRENGTH: 6

PICTURE: The gray beard, the alternate future uniform, the future Enterprise chair... it's all there, but it's not particularly cool. Admiral Riker has this same expression pretty much throughout the episode... a 2.9.

LORE: Shortened to allow for longer game text, it gets lame fast. One complete sentence, however limited in content, would have been better than the pithless (look it up) "Battled Klingons near Devron". Yawn. No more than a 1.5.

TREK SENSE: As far as regular skills go, he's the Riker of old without the Honor. He shows he's lost the skill by initially refusing to help Picard in "All Good Thing..."  His Integrity has likewise dropped one point from the Premiere Riker. Old age has also made him wiser (more Cunning) and weaker (less Strength). He's also traded OFFICER (Commander) for VIP (Admiral). Now, for the special abilities. I'll believe he can attack Klingons at will, since the Federation is at war with the Empire in the alternate future, but I'm less ready to accept that he can lead others to do the same in the (game) present. The card somehow subverts the Alternate Universe logic! Normally, an AU personnel drops into the normal (non-AU) universe. But here, Adm. Riker's location BECOMES an alternate universe where the Feds are indeed at war with the Klingons. That's gonna cost 'im some points later on. As for the Enterprise download, it's a nice play on the way the Future Enterprise just came out of nowhere on the show, and on how Riker had conveniently kept the ship for himself even after decomission. He has to be at a facility because that's where he starts off on the show (at a starbase). Unfortunately, there's no sense in having him download the other Enterprises. The E didn't even exist in his universe, the C is far afield of his story, as will be the original once it comes out. No go. so it's all fine until we get into the extra stuff that makes the card so powerful. Drops to a 3.4.

STOCKABILITY: A lot to like. Finally we have a matching commander for our Future Enterprise, boosting that ship's stats to alarming levels when you factor in both Captain's Log and Defiant dedication Plaque. Then we have the ability to download that ship at a moment's notice, from a character who is itself downloadable with Going to the Top, ot reportable for free at Office of the President. Add to that the ability to use the FE's now outrageous WEAPONS (plus those of any ships at the same location) against the Klingons, and you've got something for your money. I also appreciate the fact that Admiral Riker has a number of skills to go with his special abilities. The latter are fun, but the former are more useful when it comes to accomplishing the real goal of the game - solving missions. Now, grandpa Riker ain't the best of the new preview cards. Being able to attack the Klingons will only work if your opponent is actually using them, for example. But he's packs quite a wallop. A 4.6.

TOTAL: 12.4 (62%) While a very powerful card, it loses a lot of points in the preliminary rounds.

PICTURE: That cold stare makes him look most unBashir-like, which is usually something I look forward to on an infiltrator. Not a bad profile, but the background is pretty plain, and the rectangle of light is way too harsh. On the upside, it IS the first time we see the Bashir Founder after we KNOW he's an infiltrator, so the score goes up to 3.5.

LORE: Short because of the extra game text, everything important is there, such as which personnel he impersonates and a reason for the special skill. Not much more here. A competent 3.2.

TREK SENSE: This Federation infiltrator mimics Bashir's skills, but imperfectly. Usually all regular skills are represented, plus Treachery. Here, he loses one level of MEDICAL. I guess nobody's as good as the real Bashir. (The level loss seems to be standard.) The Treachery of course, is required to even be an infiltrator, something that also lowers the Integrity to the usual changeling infiltrator's 4. Other attributes are perfectly mimicked. (But wouldn't a changeling have higher Strength, even if it didn't show it when "in character"?) The mechanics of shape-shifting are something of a headache, and that'll turn up under Shape-Shift (like, how can a Founder with CUNNING 8 turn into the smarter Bashir Founder?). Other than that, you have that juicy special skill. It recreates the events of this Founder's last episode, in which he drives a ship right at the Bajoran sun, making it go nova and destroying the assembled fleets of the Federation, Klingons and Romulans (not to mention the Bajoran homeworld). Well, he doesn't succeed, but here he might. So the armada IS there (all those weapons, though a couple of Borg Cubes would constitute an armada here), and no Tox Uthat is required as it played no part in the events. The question we have to ask is: how does he make the star go nova? If he's alone on a shuttle or runabout, he can slam it into the star with whatever explosives he likes. Otherwise... how? No explanation. And what about those locations where there is no star (there are a few)? At least, the WEAPONS limit makes sense - the Link wouldn't sacrifice one of their own for less than that... maybe it should have been even higher? Not for the game, but for Trek sense? And while impersonating, a Staff icon makes sense, shouldn't he be Command with his own people? A lot of holes in this particular piece of cheese (or cheese-hoser): a 2.5.

STOCKABILITY: While the Dominion has gotten a little better MEDICAL-wise, a double MEDICAL with Exobiology isn't bad at all. Make him a Founder with its own missions and changeling support cards, and you've got a winner. Great CUNNING too. As an infiltrator, he can use all the attendant cards too. Counterintelligence for example, can put a real drain on a crew's MEDICAL resources. His special ability, however, could be a deterrent against armada decks, though I wouldn't count on it. If he were on the table, maybe it could keep someone from keeping his ships together. If not, I don't think anyone's really going to be running scared. Armadas are too strong a strategy to be abandoned just because of one personnel, even if he can report directly to your ship with The Walls Have Ears, etc. Indeed, you don't even need to be playing Dominion to report him (The Walls and In the Bag make no mention of your playing any affiliation). You don't need the rest of the Dominion if all you're going to do is Supernova a location with him dying in the same flames as that armada. 36 WEAPONS usually requires between 4 and 6 ships when not using attribute enhancers, so it doesn't seem to be so difficult to use most of the time. If your opponent even gets the idea that destroying your outpost could be fun, Bashir Founder could come to the rescue. At first, I'm sure, his mere appearance will scare the heck out of your opponent, but after a while, they'll see him as what he really is: a card you have to devote a lot of energy to JUST IN CASE it can be pulled off. Don't forget the location is entirely lost to the Supernova, so you might not even want to do it where the armada is now. (Lesson: keep your armadas at your opponent's homeworld or outpost.) A good personnel for the Dominion, a limited but dangerous infiltrator. A 3.9.

TOTAL: 13.1 (65.5%) Fresh off the shelves and only a little over average. Awww.

PICTURE: Kirk leering at... Benjamin Sisko?!? Actually, the scene between Sisko and Kirk was not taken from "The Trouble with Tribbles", but from "Mirror, Mirror". So Kirk is actually leering at a female lieutenant. Don't you feel real dirty now when you watch that scene? ;-) Anyway, it's Kirk in his old chair, looking like it's the only place he'll ever belong. An action shot would have been more fun, but Decipher didn't actually have all the original episodes to work from. Still better than anything from the Skybox STCG (ok... except Shirtless Kirk). A 3.7.

LORE: Unfortunalely cut because of the heavy game text, it only includes material from "Trials and Tribble-ations". Still hits a high note with "17 temporal violations". Anyone ever try to catalogue them? Fun, but a little too telegraphic for my taste. A 3.2.

TREK SENSE: I don't think I need to discuss any of the icons on the card, they all make sense, so let's go right into the game text. The only standard skill is Leadership x2. And aside from that (and OFFICER), I'm not sure we ever saw the Kirk of that era exhibit any others. He's no stellar cartographer, let's say. The rest is pure fun. Kirk's anti-diplomatic stance is revealed in his ability to initiate battle against any non-Federation affiliation. He's a shoot first, ask questions later kind of guy, unlike the Starfleet captains of today (well, "Trek today"). Since he affects only the ship he is on (or Away Team he's in), I won't buck like I did with Admiral Riker's more expansive ability. He downloads Captain's Log, a phrase he made popular. Though he can't use it himself right now, I think the ability goes hand in hand with his multiple Leadership. He gets the most out of his crew and ship. I suppose he even inspires other ships' crews to do the same. His stunning ability goes to his fighting style. A quick karate chop to the neck is as good as a Vulcan Nerve Pinch. We've seen Kirk go toe-to-toe with physically stronger opponents and still winning. Or maybe he's orating a stunning speech. Either justification fits. The female stopping skill is probably everyone's favorite. Though not that useful, it's very true to life. Kirk has a little romance on the side, no matter the affiliation or species. Hey, he'll pet Spot of noone else is around. Like I said, pure fun. His attributes are fair, if controversial. His INTEGRITY could have been a bit lower since he's never very fair to the Klingons (or to Sulu). His CUNNING goes to his cleverness - and I always felt Picard asked too many dumb questions, whereas 1960s writing gave Kirk amazing leaps of logic. His STRENGTH should be this high. He's a warrior alright. It's too bad he's not invited to the Reunion on Mars. Very cool, with few cracks in the cement: 4.2.

STOCKABILITY: All depends on your strategy since he's not going to be much on mission solving. If you're looking to have your Federation ships go after some tail, then he's your man. He'll attack any affiliation that moves. Better yet, report him directly to the Future Enterprise with Crew Reassignment, Captain's Log it of Admiral Riker is around, and go blasting at any ship in range (and th RANGE is big). His stunning ability will make sure he's rarely killed in personnel battles and he can even stop, stun and kill a female opponent. (Now, THAT's a bad date!) He's also got three different staffing icons and very high attributes. A 4.

TOTAL: 15.1 (75.5%) The legendary captain gets a very good score. We wouldn't have it any other way.

PICTURE: The confused and suspicious expression on R'Mor's face goes well with the events of the episode, but other than that... The background is actually distracting here. It's too bright and busy for the dark gray Romulan. A disapointing 2.5.

LORE: An adequate presentation of the facts. No fluff, but no errors. A 3.

TREK SENSE: A lot of it! As a member of the Astrophysical Academy, all his science/engineering skills make sense. His Honor is derived from the way he helped Voyager despite his Empire being at odds with the Federation. The special skill is pretty cool. It makes him report from the past via a transporter beam through a tiny wormhole. He reports anywhere like he reported to Voyager. A cool 4.8

STOCKABILITY: Eminently stockable. Most Romulan decks use him, and for good reason too. His mix of skills is excellent for solving space missions (and Romulan missions show a lot of skill duplication, so he's good for a few) and includes a double classification. Honor is a rare skill among the Romies. He can be reported directly to a ship, eliminating the long wait at the outpost for your key personnel. And when Royale Casino: Slot Machine comes out (mark my words), his 7-7-7 stats are gonna come in handy. A 5.

TOTAL: 15.3 (76.5%) A great card that's even got a theme deck named after him!

PICTURE: The uncertain look on Tuvok's face is explained in the lore (and on the show) as his being forced into Starfleet by his parents. Other than that, we get a snappy uniform from the old days and some of the Excelsior's monitors. Just about a 3.

LORE: Certainly sets regular Tuvok apart from this guy by placing him at a certain point in time. Little else and the special ability isn't explained. A 2.4.

TREK SENSE: We'll leave the Excelsior icon alone since it means nothing right now and go on to the rest. Science - that was his post. Astrophysics - his specialty. Youth - for a Vulcan, sure. Mindmeld - almost like saying Vulcan. Then, rough waters... AU? Yes, in that he belongs in a different time. Yes, in that we meet the character in a "dream". Not so much, in that it's just Tuvok at another time in his life, just like the FC bridge crew is the Permiere bridge crew at another time in their lives. Fuzzy Persona stuff. Then, there's the special ability. How do they figure Tuvok can cancel a battle at a nebula? The Excelsior did hide from the Klingons in the nebula, but that could be attributed to any number of personnel... Still, a 3.

STOCKABILITY: He's got pretty good stats and a fair mix of skills. His special ability is little used unless you plan for it by putting lots of nebulas on the spaceline. But are you really that scared of your opponent's Weapons that you need to do this? One possible use: seed your own Borg Ship under a nebula and harmlessly setit off with a Tuvok`s ship. Now, go hide in your corner while I give this card a 2.1.

TOTAL: 11.5 (57.5%) Not one of the best preview cards we've gotten, especially since the Feds have a LOT of Personnel to choose from, many more useful than Tuvok.

PICTURE: An okay pic, not very revealing. Kinda odd in that Garak seems to be looking straight as us. The lights in the background really darken his figure, probably too much. A 3.

LORE: A pretty good explanation of his place in the Deep Space 9 universe (or alternate universe). Nothing really fancy. The "Cardassian male" line has always forced me to look at the card to see if anyone would really mistake Garak for a woman. Another straight 3.

TREK SENSE: Our first affiliated Cardassian is also Non-Aligned because he can work with other affiliations on DS9 (in particular the Feds and Bajorans). Maybe he shouldn't have been Cardassian at all since he is an outcast. This is an illusiory Garak though, so he's only as close to the truth as the Dominion could make him. Among his skills, only Computer Skill and CIVILIAN are shared with any "real" versions of Garak, the rest is totally different. Civilian because he's a tailor after all, and Computer Skill for all those tasty access codes and ways of fooling Cardassian systems he's always showing off. The Security is probably due to everyone thinking he's a spy for the Obsidian Order (it is Sisko's mind that creates the particulars of the illusion). His Honor and special skill underline the sacrifice he makes. The staffing icon makes sense, AU too. As for the attributes, the illusion makes him out to be exactly like Plain, Simple Garak (the one who works with the Feds, so to speak). No real problem there. All in all, a success: 4.2.

STOCKABILITY: The one Garak that can be used alongside another, or by any affiliation for that matter. He's great for stealing Cardassian missions since, unlike Ziyal, he can be used by anyone. His two classifications are also helpful, and the rest of his skills, while fairly standard issue, are useful too. You don't want him to be too strong a mission-solver in any case, since you'd want to use his special skill with no regrets. He's a one-man Security Sacrifice. Only works for random selections though, so anything targeting specific personnel won't help here. Get him in the way of a bullet meant for Elim Garak and -blamo- instant Parallax. Big problem: Cardassian players have to seed an AU doorway just to play the one AU personnel they have. Of course, Space/Time Portal is the better option in this case, but still. A good card, not an excellent one: 3.7.

TOTAL: 13.9 (69.5%) So which Garak to use? You this one AND another one. :-)

PICTURE: The orange mood lighting works fairly well with this favorite of mine - yes, that was the Siskoid I named myself after - though the background is a little plain. How could you not think this is Sisko at his coolest? Looks like he was born to be Klingon. Well, there's not much to the pic beyond that, so I gotta give it an objective 3.5.

LORE: This is one of those that keeps to the facts, simply because 1) there wasn't much information on the personnel, and 2) when the facts are complicated enough, there's no room for anything else. Species and persona are here for mechanical purposes. Fair to good at 3.3.

TREK SENSE: A persona of Sisko, I'm of the opinion that he should have been an infiltrator. The party line is that infiltrators do nefarious things, and that someone like Sisko was helping the Klingons. Sure, it's true that Sisko using Dial Martok for Murder would be unbelievable, but his killing Federation members in Away Team battles is even worse! The simple sabotage of Inside Operation, Counterintelligence and Issue Secret Orders is much more benign than regular Klingon activity. A simple ruling that a Federation personnel cannot initiate battle even with Dial Martok could have taken care of things. It's just a matter of asking yourself if Sisko was really Klingon-affiliated in the episode. Even a dual-affiliation would have been preferable here. Okay, so how does Sisko change when he's in Klingon drag? He's much the same, expect he loses Leadership (since he couldn't afford to give an order and be discovered) and Diplomacy (the Klingon idea of Diplomacy is banging heads together anyway). Obviously, no Baseball download. The special skill goes more with his being a Federation "good guy", since he isn't a true violent Klingon, he merely stuns an opponent, probably to avoid killing him. Klingons (and others) with Honor being "good guys" too (relatively good anyway), the skill doesn't work on them. But there is that scene where he knocks down a Klingon with wrestling moves, so that could be the stun right there. The rest of the skills are fine - Honor being very Klingon, Navigation not usually impeachable, and ENGINEER perhaps attributable to his handling of the polaron thingamagigs. Attributes also remain the same, and that's fine. The infiltrator problem keeps this one at 3.5.

STOCKABILITY: Constantly referred to as the weakest member of the Second Anthology, I was hoping to demystify that since he was a personal favorite of mine. Will I succeed? Jodmos has a pretty good mix of skills - Honor is on lots of Klingon missions and support cards, Navigation is rarely wasted, and ENGINEER is one of the best all-around classifications. But this just makes him easily placed in a deck. What actually makes him better than other personnel with these common skills? (ENGINEER is getting common enough in the Empire for me to say that.) The special skill certainly gives him a place in any Klingon attack party, but it's no kill result. Still, a stunned personnel won't add its STRENGTH to the total which'll help you win the battle BUT, with a STRENGTH of 8 (plus assorted hand weapons usually carried by attack parties), he'll usually stun anyway... or better! There's some use to the stun/Bat'leth maneuver, but it really depends on the situation. Usually good against overpowered opponents. His hidden ability might be the key. He's actually human. That's right, he's a human ENGINEER. So there's the possibility of using Visit Cochrane Memorial with the Klingons. I dare say Klingon decks won't have many Feds, Objectives, NAs and Doorways, keeping most probe results at card plays and downloads (better than the other two results), and the stun ability might be enough to protect him from lone "opposers". It's doable, if you really want to go in that direction, but lose Jodmos and you lose your VCM strategy. There are no backups. Persona switching? Not entirely useful between affiliations, though you could turn Sisko into a one-man stunning juggernaut (right), or it he might be a good switch from The Emissary in a Bajoran/Klingon deck. Going back to the start of the paragraph, I'm afraid I only confirmed the general sentiment. Still an able mission solver, but not a super-personnel. A 3.5.

TOTAL: 13.8 (69%) Sigh.

PICTURE: Dangerous-looking as ever, the shadows on Koval's eyes make him an even darker figure. The background's weak though, as it looks like this Tal Shiar superman has his back turned on a crowd of potential assassins. Still good at 3.4.

LORE: All true things and not too telegraphic despite the writing style. On the card, each line starts with a C (plus capital Cs on Commitee and Cretak) - my eyes start seeing fuzzy after awhile. Pretty neutral on this one - a 3.2.

TREK SENSE: Conspired with Sloan, but is he really dual-aligned? Aside from the fact that Sloan is only marginally Federation (wink, wink), Koval follows in the steps of other traitors like the Sisters of Duras, so the answer has to be yes. Still, his being part of a Federation away team is kind of strange, especially since his affiliation membership is through someone the Federation has no actual knowledge of. As Chairman of the Tal shiar, he easily deserves VIP, a Command icon, double Tal Shiar, Security and Treachery. That all goes with the job. Furthermore, Tal Shiar agents report directly to him (or to any location "here"). Makes sense they would be at his beck and call (or hiding close by). Tal Shiar is lost, however, if Koval defects to the Feds. He loses his authority certainly (by the way, no Leadership on this guy?), but would regain it if he switched back. Hope he has a good cover story, because I don't think the Romulans are so forgiving. Also odd that the special skill isn't likewise suspended when he's a Fed. As for the Exobiology, it's a sensible skill for someone who's made a life out of spying on, and interrogating, personnel from other species. Plus, he was very interested in the Teplan Blight and its practical uses. The attributes look just right to me. Overall, a good feel for the character, but the whole Rom/Fed aspect does cause some problems. A 3.9.

STOCKABILITY: Romulans with Tal Shiar are all important, as their use with Plans of the Tal Shiar, Defensive Measures and D'deridex Advanced confirms. Koval is not only a double-Tal Shiar (one of two, Vreenak being the other), but he also allows your Tal Shiar to report to his spaceline location. For the Romulans, this means easy access to Lovok's many skills, Parthok's ENGINEER/MEDICAL combo, Telak's Cybernetics, Major Rakal's Empathy, Vreenak's Diplomacy (and Treaty download) and Vakis's... um... presence ;-). You can send them directly to a planet to supplement an Away Team, it certainly doesn't have to be at Koval's exact location. Also an easy way to report Advanced ship staffing after some catastrophe (and they can be sent to another ship in the armada). The Feds can use the ability too, to report a Federation Major Rakal. And with a Treaty with the Dominion, you can make Lovok Founder appear. Too bad there are no free reports here - except Koval himself who reports for free at the Continuing Commitee of course. SECURITY is now a good dilemma skill, as is Exobiology (fairly rare at only 5 Romulan instances). Treachery is always good on a Romulan simply for completing missions, but the Feds might use him to pass the exceedingly difficult In the Pale Moonlight (he's both a personnel with less than 4 INTEGRITY - watch out Firestorm - AND Federation Treachery). The doubled Tal Shiar can either be your first line of attack on Espionage Mission, or a back-up to Vreenak. And the dual-affiliation is not only good for going after the point-heavy Diplomatic Conference (as he is a VIP), but he can use it to steal Federation (or Romulan) missions from under your opponent's nose. Add Major Rakal and Ambassador Tomalak, and you have a pretty good foundation for doing this. Koval turns out to have a lot of the better attributes of his cousins. He gets a 4.2.

TOTAL: 14.7 (73.5%) We all knew he'd be cool, right?

PICTURE: I never thought we'd get a shot of a benevolent Damar, especially while he was still at Central Command, but here it is. A more determined look would also have been appropriate, but here we see him deciding that enough is enough. The Cardassian symbol in the back adds to the patriotism inherent in the card (just from the special download). Not the best colored pic, but high in drama. A 4 from me.

LORE: The title and lore are repititve in making him a legate, but it's a good follow-up to the original Damar. This chapter in his story is well-told, and I love the rumor about his stronghold. Enough to give it a 3.8. Still no "enjoys kanar", sigh.

TREK SENSE: Well, the new and improved Damar remains a Legate even though the lore makes it plain he was a turncoat, but I don't mind. He was a turncoat to the Dominion, not Cardassia. And his patriotic revolt is well featured in his special download of For Cardassa! even if we don't know what it does yet. How has Damar changed (except that he went from a totally heinous character to a beloved one)? Well, he's kept the Physics and Computer Skill (though why the former was kept instead of Engineer probably has more to do with not giving him too many classifications), but the rest is gone. He no longer concentrates on Engineer and isn't as Treacherous. Instead, Treachery is converted to Honor (he became a hero and even accepted to work with Kira). Legate makes him a VIP instead of an Officer. It also gives him Leadership (no longer a lackey). The x2 is not because of the high office in my opinion, it's in his rallying of the Cardassian people after he turned his back on the Dominion. Security is a more apt second classification because he had become a resistance fighter, a soldier, and in any case, had a lot to do with strategizing for the war. Tactical equals Security. Attributes? Only the Integrity changes - up by 3 points - again because of the Treachery-to-Honor thing. Anyone that thinks he should have had Resistance should realize that the skill isn't about guerilla tactics, but about contacts in the Bajoran resistance, which he still doesn't have. A good effort at converting him, with some less inspired moments - a 3.4.

STOCKABILITY: One thing's for sure, the new Damar is the king of reporting. I mean that in the sense that you have a lot of options as to how to report him. You can report him as Damar to Dukat's location then persona-switch. You can report him for free at Central Command. You can download him via Going to the Top. You can have him report to Guest Quarters. You name it. His double dose of Leadership will help on some Cardassian missions, and keep those 100 Tribbles at bay. Along with SECURITY, he almost passes Friendly Fire alone, and has all the skills required of HQ: Secure Homeworld (just get those attributes there). Computer Skill is an always important skill, and Physics is on a good number of Cardie missions, though on no dilemmas. SECURITY is getting to be a better and better classification, and his VIP does give him some tricks such as Open Diplomatic Negociations and Security Briefing, as well as excluding himself from battle with Bodyguards. Honor isn't as important to the Cardassians, but Protect Shipment (also requiring SECURITY and Leadership) comes to mind. The title also lends Damar some perks, namely that he can pass the difficult Executive Authorization. He's not the only Legate by far, but he's by far the best. Good attributes too, with excellent INTEGRITY for a Cardassian. Is the persona-switching a good idea? Usually only if the two versions are different enough, and these are. Legate Damar is the superior card, but switching for ENGINEER and Treachery could be useful, tightening up your mission solving strategies. As far as special abilities go, regular low-caffeine Damar's doesn't go beyond reporting, and Legate Damar has a broken link for a special download. It evens out, though you might as well consider reporting Damar, then switching. Up to you. This doesn't affect the score much. How cool will he be when the download works, I ask you. A 4.2 for now.

TOTAL: 15.4 (77%) The "superior card" actually comes 0.7 points under the inferior original.

PICTURE: The pose, the steepled fingers, the expression, the outfit, his location in Bashir's quarters, all seems fairly appropriate, doesn't it? Well, yes, but somehow the gree in the background and the material of his black suit scream out "garbage bag colors" at me. Good composition for the color-blind, but I have to give it a 3.4 only.

LORE: Operative or head of Section 31? Is there a difference? The skills seem to point to him being the head (more under Trek Sense), but not the lore. The issue is so obsfucated that we could say this ambiguity was deliberate on Decipher's part, but I'm not sure I can reason it that way. The two last sentences give some recent highlights from his career, good, and the one just before is a cute way of explaining the special skill. All in all, a 3.5.

TREK SENSE: As part of an intelligence agency, Security fits him. A double dose fits even more because said agency is totally covert, unknown even to the affiliation it serves. There is still no doubt Section 31 works for the Federation's interests, and though Sloan might be at odds with other Federation personnel, he still only belongs to that affiliation. Too bad his not working with others isn't adressed in the game text. Perhaps he's always using another identity? A mention of that somewhere would have been nice. Now, that double Section 31 (Section 62?) is akin to Tain's Obsidian Order x2 or Koval's Tal Shiar x2, and seems to take the idea that Sloan is the very head of the agency at face value. Fine by me, and he has the Command icon to go with it. The Treachery follows, given his actions against Odo and the Founders, and indeed, I find it hard to believe he would deserve Honor. The justification is no doubt that what he did, he did for his "country", but that's something to ponder when calculating Integrity, not for an extra skill like this. There's no way Treachery and Honor are so well balanced in this individual. The Computer Skill is a natural for such a personnel, as cryptography is a related skill for security agencies like Section 31. I might even have doubled his skill to represent how well he could alter records of his own comings and goings. Now comes the problematic special skill. It's problematic because no matter how I admire the neat idea of having him pop up anywhere without warning (like in the show), it's just not possible for him to do so, no matter what his resources. Other quadrants, Borg ships and Time Locations for example, all seem to be impossible destinations. Bashir's quarters is one thing, it's still on Federation grounds, but some other locations... no so much. I can see him getting aboard an enemy ship, or most any planet, even, by straining credulity, to another time (Section 31 must have access to time travel), but a Borg ship in the Delta quadrant (eventually a legal destination)? Anywhere in the Gamma quadrant in a Wormholeless universe? As is common with open-ended abilities, the card is hurt by being too general. Attributes look okay, from the low Integrity (that's more like it, though upping it here and removing the Honor would have been satisfactory since he was acting on behalf of the Federation and not for his own interests) to the high Cunning (you almost have to be this smart to keep all your records in your head) and Strength (I'm sure he knows how to defend himself, probably with deadly methods). A 3.7, all things considered.

STOCKABILITY: Sloan is the Federation's first double SECURITY personnel (one of only two), and in an affiliation which has been traditionally low on good SECURITY, that can really make a difference. Doubling up makes it much easier to pass dilemmas like Flaxian Assassin, Berzerk Changeling or Ferengi Bug, or overcome Autonomic Systems Parasites and Homefront. The Section 31 has no use in doubles yet, but it'll allow your Feds to easily download Brainwash et al. from Holding Cells, as well as make him a leader thanks to Defensive Measures. Not too hot there, nor is the Treachery except to pass In the Pale Moonlight. Honor isn't that useful to the Feds either. Only Computer Skill will be used on mission attempts with any regularity, and it's far from rare. Low INTEGRITY (covers In the Pale Moonlight a second time), but excellent CUNNING and STRENGTH complete this rather uneven mission solver. But that special skill is more than just a way to get Sloan to your ship mid-flight à la Crew Reassignment! That selection of skills is uniquely suited to working behind the lines on your opponent's turf. The Computer Skill alone is great for commandeering, especially for a personnel who can report directly to an abandoned ship or Nor. Federation Empok Nor made easy. The high CUNNING coupled with both Treachery and Computer Skill makes him a great way to toss personnel out an Airlock, from their own ship or facility! And the double SECURITY makes locations with only one SECURITY (or none at all) vulnerable to Captured. Of course, Sloan has to survive any ensuing personnel battles, but using guerilla tactics, you shouldn't have much trouble grabbing most any stranded personnel left alone without escort. Later, Sloan can Interrogate them etc. with his Section 31 downloads. Other uses include scoring points from The Walls Have Ears and stopping a ship from returning to hand. If you're feeling especially frisky, return a ship to hand using Space-Time Portal to get him back, and report him again to yet another location. It could be fun. A most treacherous Federation tool, he opens up an interesting can of worms for the Feds - a 4.1.

TOTAL: 14.7 (73.5%) One of the cooler Anthology personnel.

PICTURE: Not the orb, but its vessel. It looks nice, though the close-up is a little tight. The background is a little muddled and the candle a little silly, but don't you just love the way the orb itself is hinted at by that green glow coming from the vessel's seams? A 3.7.

LORE: There's a lot of text here, a lot of good information, and it avoids being dull. Lovely. It's really too bad the show's creators never showed us all 9, or else we could have REALLY negociated for orbs. ;-) A better than average 3.9.

TREK SENSE: Pretty darn close to beautiful. I like that, even though it's effect is conceptual (that is, affects the game and not its Away Team), it is still Equipment. It seems to me most Artifacts should be like this, carried as Equipment (they ARE objects, no?) until used as Interrupts, or having Event-like effects despite their spaceline-bound location. The real meat here is the whole Prophecy-Change concept. You glance at your future (the draw deck) and then may change that future (well, postpone it some; the Fates will not be denied) by reinserting that near future at a different point in time. All great, plus it's not duplicatable since it is quite unique. We can't say that about every artifact, and we can say it about some artifacts which aren't unduplicatable. The Orb is handled just right. A 4.9, if only because you don't need personnel to see the future with it, and some of the changes you can make probably don't follow Trek Sense.

SEEDABILITY: Finally a good reason for the Borg to seed artifacts. With the Orb, they can peak at the next card and check out what kind of probe they'll be getting. No good? Change it. Even better, if you see you're getting a card you can download later (say a drone or A Change of Plans), send it to the bottom of the deck, worry free. You can even peak when not probing and place a good probe exactly where you'll need it. For other affiliations, there are similar advantages, just not as great. It's certainly good for deck management. It can also be seeded with other Orbs at a couple of locations (Orb Negociations and Characterize Neutrino Emissions ). And it IS an Orb that can be Returned to Bajor for bonus points. Guess what? It's the most useful Orb available, so I'd use that way before the others. Acquire it for free, get some free points. A great one. 4.4.

TOTAL: 16.9 (84.5%) It's too bad more artifacts don't go as high as this.

PICTURE: While it's fun to see Quark in Klingon drag, the pic has to be one of the blurriest, fuzziest, darkest of all personnel cards. Quark's mouth is barely visible, as if the shot was taken before the camera had the Ferengi in full focus. I do acknowledge the very gold clasp in the middle of his chest, way more gaudy than most Klingon attire, as a positive. It reminds you that that IS Quark. But the card design is a little messy. A 2.9.

LORE: A lot of Klingon words, huh? Well, simply tells the story of one episode, and does it well, if a little obtusely for players without a good Klingon dictionary. Quark is of course a bold-lored persona, that almost goes without saying. I like the title that, like Worf Son of Mogh, is a good way to Klingonize a character. A 3.4.

TREK SENSE: Since Quark never renounced his Ferengi roots, and did become part of the Klingon Empire (through Grilka), he fits in well as this odd Klingon/Ferengi dual-affiliation personnel. Now, I usually compare a persona to its baseline personnel card, but here, there's no such baseline (and probably won't be any until Rules of Acquisition). So let's just make believe a little. He is a Civilian, that's a given. His Leadership comes from being the head of a House, and probably a little from running his bar. The double Computer Skill is shown off many times, especially in the Klingon episode where he uncovers fraudulent money management and fixes it via a computer. Honor probably won't be found on Plain Simple Quark, not that he's not honorable for a Ferengi - he is - but it's clearly a Klingon trapping. He's been instructed in the ways of Klingon tradition. Hard to swallow, but with a glass of water I can manage it. All powerful Greed had to be there of course. What, no Acquisition? Finally, the attribute boost when with Grilka is a standard for couples. They apparently work better with their loved one. For Quark, this is especially true since he can't function all that well in the Klingon Empire without her guidance. The attributes probably differ from the real Quark's in a number of ways. Integrity is no doubt higher while he's a Klingon, because he is essentially "helping" and acting as a policeman of sorts. Cunning, I imagine, is lower here because he's a little clumsy with those Klingon customs. He's still smart enough to uncover financial misdoings. And the Strength may or may not be higher than normal here. Pretty weak for a Klingon, but still on the upside from your average bartender. The staff icon, I have misgivings about, but anyone with Computer Skill x2 can probably make himself useful on a ship. Still, Quark staffing a bird-of-prey by himself might be more than I can accept. All in all, a 4.6.

STOCKABILITY: An odd Klingon, but also one of the only Ferengi we've got, Quark's usefulness depends on your needs. As a straight Klingon, he can man a K'Vort and engage in battle like all your other armada guys. His skills are useful, especially the double Computer Skill (commandeer that Empok Nor with a single personnel), and Greed is certainly a departure from the usual stuff found in Honor decks. It's less useful for solving missions (by far, for the Klingons), but is good for a few dilemmas like Skullduggery and Lockbox. He's a fairly good choice for a CIVILIAN if you're using Kurlan Naiskos, but unfortunately no longer the best. He's in the top three anyway. With Grilka, his stats shoot up to 8-10-7 (she to 11-11-10), but he'll otherwise be hard pressed to survive personnel battles, so don't count on him for keeping his commandeered Ops safe. Frankly, he's more useful as a Ferengi. I think the affiliation has appeal in a Ferengi/Non-Aligned mercenaries theme deck. His skills are insultingly bad at solving Ferengi missions (which almost all seem to require SCIENCE), but he'll be the one stealing Klingon missions with his hired mercs. Add Jake and Nog to do the same with Federation missions and that NA deck just became a lot more viable. And your Klingons can always steal Ferengi missions with Quark, especially the scientific ones. Cool concept, but difficult to work with: a 2.9.

TOTAL: 13.8 (69%) Why do "cool" cards not make themselves more useful? Well, some do. Just not Quarky boy here.

PICTURE: I think Seven's arrogance and haughty attitude is well represented here. The costume is a unique one for drones with cool green highlights and that pin (a badge of office?). Her obvious female attributes have to be questioned though. I mean, why have we never before this seen any female drones? We've seen women be assimilated, but never female Borg other than the Queen (probably the real basis for the the "gender is irrelevant" rule). My guess was their femaleness was hidden by the "rubber suit". Like, could Hugh have been a girl? ;-) With Seven of Nine, all of that changes. Maybe the Queen wanted a girlfriend to gossip with. In any case, I'm not holding it against Decipher. It's a case of Paramount not being consistent. Back to the pic: I give it a cool 4.

LORE: Short and sweet, like all Borg lore. I like Seven's ID, Proficiency Drone. It speaks volumes about her efficiency. And the tertiary adjunct stuff is spot on. An easy 4.2.

TREK SENSE: The skills are pretty standard for her. We know she has extensive engineering and computer skills. She's great in the physics department and will eventually build a really cool Stellar Cartography room on Voyager. It was probably a matter of which skills would have to be left out. She's almost a Data! (If only she learned how to play an instrument. Well, she does sing.) She's a Proficiency Drone, so able to hold a number of positions simultaneoulsy, that she is all at once a Communication, Navigation and Defense drone. Perhaps she's so high up (like the Queen), that she figures in the hierarchy before the subcommands are split. She's so good, she can staff a Borg ship using all three subcommands. I can believe it (like, how many posts does she seem to hold on Voyager?), but I'm a bit surprised that the Queen can't do this herself. As part of the Queen's entourage, she helps the Queen a lot, as we'll see under Stockability. That'll have to be the Trek sense basis for the last skill, because it doesn't work any other way. The Delta Quadrant icon is not an issue despite Seven's Alpha quad origins. As a drone, she'll be met in the Delta, where she was assimilated. The stats are great too. Since she has all three subcommand icons, she has the best of all worlds: the highest drone stat in each attribute, 7. 7? What a coincidence. A lot of great stuff here, with a few problems when we dig deeper into the special skills. A 4.2.

STOCKABILITY: The skills themselves are good, and she has more than most, but not that powerful. ENGINEER is a good all-purpose dilemma-solver. Computer Skill is also a great skill, but both of these are fairly common. Stellar Cartography is now necessary for Navigational Hazards, but not much elsewhere. And Physics isn't required much at all. So what, because she does really well with the rest. Her three subcommand icons aren't just great for probes, or for the usual reasons, they also enable her to staff half a Cube by herself! This will really speed up your Cube deck. Her other special skill is great card management for the Borg. When you've got nothing to play (after the initial wave of reporting), get some cards into your hand. Use this ability to control your probes, perhaps by playing Heisenberg Compensators on top of everything else. You always know what the probe will be, so get rid of bad ones at the start of the turn. Still in the reporting phase? To the Queen, a card draw is a card draw, and she can turn Seven's  extra card draws into drone downloads. A few drones have a "instead of your card draw" abilities, all of which can potentially be used in a combo with Seven. And guess what? 7 of 9 is still "only" a drone, so she can be downloaded by the Queen for immediate help. Add to that no weakness as far as attributes go (Borg-wise). It's just too bad there isn't a universal Proficiency Drone. At the risk of repeating myself, I'm gonna have to give this a 4.2.

TOTAL: 16.6 (83%) No wonder this one is sought after so much.

PICTURE: That look on his face, the funky shirt and vest, the badly colored Sandrine's in the background, the odd Mego doll pose... I don't know what to dislike most. It gets the point across, but that's about it. No esthetics at 1.2.

LORE: First, the title is off. While I understand the need for an AU Paris to have a different name, this rebel's even more of a "Tom" than our regular Tom Paris is. The lore is otherwise fine, if a little muddled. It starts off okay, then, all of a sudden, mentions the alternate reality. Would have worked better if that had been discussed first in my opinion. A 2.8 here.

TREK SENSE: In the "Non Sequitur" alternate reality, Tom Paris is a Civilian, not any kind of Officer, but he retains his Starfleet skills, chief of which is his awsome piloting abilities (Navigation x2). Transporter Skill is shown in the episode when he and Kim use site-to-site transport to evade the authorities, and Security probably stems from his working his way around security systems, locks, etc. As a traitor, he obviously requires Treachery, but his eventually doing the right thing is worked nicely into the card by allowing that skill to convert to Honor. After that, he remains Honorable for the rest of the game. Icons are fine, nothing to say here. The attributes seem sensical enough, though Cunning could have been a notch higher. He was able to evade Starfleet trained personnel after all. A good rendition, all in all. 4.5.

STOCKABILITY: While the AU icon is a double-edged sword (requires more cards to report, but flexible due to Crew Reassignment), Thomas Paris still makes a good personnel for a number of affiliations. Transporter Skill isn't the most common of skills, and two classifications is never bad (even though CIVILIAN isn't as strong). What's more, the double dose of Navigation will help out against a number of navigational hazards. Now, he looks a lot like a watered down Nick Locarno (big surprise) or Lore, but neither of those two can work with the Federation. Thomas can (although I'm not sure how useful he'll be since they have a lot of personnel all their own). The switchable skill allows for a little more flexibility, especially when working with more ambivalent affiliations (like the Klingons, for example). Attributes are a little lackluster. I'd have to say this guy was more useful back when he came out. These days, his skills are more commonplace. 3.6 here.

TOTAL: 12.1 (60.5%) Too bad I couldn't compare him with a "real" Tom Paris.

PICTURE: Looks a little artificial (maybe the lighting or something), but this is still the Defiant! Our favorite little ship ("little?!"), and we can even clearly see its name across the bow. The picture's really sharp, but lacks movement, which a more dynamic pose could have provided. Still, a rather likeable 3.8.

LORE: The Starfleet registry number (when are we gonna see a card that uses this?), pretty much the facts about its origins, and a matching commander mentioned. No real sparks, but some points for the MC. Total: 3.5.

TREK SENSE: While the ship could have easily been given WEAPONS boosts against the Borg and/or Dominion, as well as gotten some kind of SHIELDS bonus for ablative armor (a lot of people thought the Defiant would be able to be hit twice before being damaged, I seem to remember), there's just no room for that in the game text box. What's there is what's proven on the show - a Cloaking Device (Romulan in origin) and a Tractor Beam. Since the ship is too small to carry large shuttles, mention has been made that the Tractor Beam cannot be used to Engage Shuttle Operations. Not until we have shuttlepods that is, something we've seen the Defiant equipped with on at least one occasion. The staffing is peculiar and deserves a few words. Most ships only require one Command and then a number of Staff icons. Smaller vessels may only require Staff and no Command at all (or less). But the Defiant here, requires 2 Command! And we have to admit that it has two matching commanders (Sisko and Worf), but they don't have to be aboard together. The two Command icons are a lot for such a small ship, but as an experimental warship, with sensitive equipment aboard, the two Command personnel are required to get authorization to use more than half its systems. You don't let a ship like this (especially with cloak) in the hands of a pack of ensigns. The attributes are fair, with a 10 in WEAPONS really showing off how "over-powered" it is with its gonzo phasers. The SHIELDS are likewise high for a small ship (ablative armor and enhanced maneuverability making it hard to hit and damage). The RANGE looks fine. A good job on this one at 4.6.

STOCKABILITY: One of only two ships with Cloaking Devices in the Federation arsenal, it's much easier to staff than the Future Enterprise, and not that much weaker (only the RANGE is lower, and you didn't really need the Holodeck). It has two possible matching commanders, Sisko and Worf which are both fair-to-good personnel, which can potentially bring up the attribute totals to 11-13-12 (Plaque has a greater boost to Defiant-class ships). A choice of matching commanders is always better than having only one because it allows more flexibility in building your deck and, if playing with both personnel after all, more flexibility during the game. All sorts of little perks have been added over the expansions, including giving Nog a second ENGINEER while aboard, the Pulse Phaser Cannon Tactic, and the aforementioned Plaque bonus. Some deterrents: the Kraxon has bonuses against the Defiant, and Kudak'Etan can commandeer it as new matching commander. Still, it's hard to beat those weapons when using the battling abilities of the few Feds who allow you to do so. Worthy of having been so rare for a good while at an even 4.

TOTAL: 15.9 (79.5%) Almost hits 80% and same exact score as the Borg Sphere and Rotarran.

PICTURE: As far as CGI goes, this shot looks no more artificial than, say, the USS Defiant. A clearer angle on the hull design than the Thunderchild, but doesn't have the teeth of some pictures I've seen on the web here and there. In fact, it's remarkable how this overhead makes it plain the Akira class is a kind of Reliant for the 2370s ;-) (to be fair, the Thunderchild's did too). Looks real cool from any angle, doesn't it? A 3.7.

LORE: Everything except the matching commander (I take it) is from the Armada computer game, which is a little disturbing to me. While I'm ready to accept the ship, the game's storyline is non-canon information that is harder to ignore (and accept). Of course, what else are they gonna put there. The mention of a matching commander, as always, affords bonus points in this category. A full 3.

TREK SENSE: Well, it's a little difficult to gauge the relevance of non-canon concepts, since I'm not sure they belong to the same universe. There's no real problem with a simple ship, but stuff that's obviously video-gamey like the preposterous Chain Reaction Pulsar (present on this card) should probably go out the window as far as Trek Sense is concerned. That is, not being from canon Trek themselves, these concepts wouldn't really be acceptable in that context. Which is not to say that I wouldn't love to see New Frontier cards, for example, but that's beside the point - novels come a little closer than computer games to the right tone. All of that said, I don't think the Jupiter crosses the line too much. The choice of Satelk as captain makes some measure of sense. After all, he's a captain but we never knew of what ship, and the lore has the decency to avoid a phrase like "briefly captained". As a large warship-type, I can see the full staffing being required - the saucer looks big enough I suppose, though I'd guessed something closer to the Defiant originally. We don't know much about the ship class, but Tractor Beam's a sure bet, and given the level of technology available when it was commissioned, Holodeck makes sense too. The download of Chain Reaction Pulsar makes sense, in that the ship can use it in Armada. Of course, I doubt any such super-weapon could exist in the "real" universe, since it's just a computer game reward ability. The real success here is that the card proved you could download from the Battle Bridge side-deck which creates a lot of possibilities for future ships. That, I like. The specific download itself, I don't care for (even if it makes... Armada Sense). Finally, to the attributes: The download of a weapon and the fact it gets no special bonuses like the Thunderchild does would give approval to the higher Weapons. Lower Range, I dunno, can't see why or why not. I'd say 9 is probably a better assessment of the class anyway. Shields look fine too. Handicapped by its Armada origin, I give the Jupiter a 3.4 only.

STOCKABILITY: Everybody loves an Akira! But should they? They're basically big Galaxy-class ships with the same staffing requirements, basic attribute range and special equipment. That may be true of a possible universal Akira, but up 'til now, the unique Akiras all have a few bells and whistles attached. First of all, the Jupiter has a matching commander who can bring (with Plaque and Log) the already quite good attributes to a potential 11-11-11. Unfortunately, that matching commander is Satelk, and he'd pretty much only be included for this reason. Face it, he's not the most interesting OFFICER out there, even if you can download him aboard via Ready Room Door. An almost-DipHoLe (no Ho) with nevertheless high attributes... bah. The better advantage to using the ship is the special download which ingeniously makes sure you can grab the right Tactic at the right time. Since that Tactic doesn't give you a lot of hits, just itself, it can be used for a specific purpose - for example, derailing scanning strategies as a damage marker, or nullifying an Event boosting the ship (and possibly other ships if it's on the table, yum yum). Since it's an Akira class ship, Chain Reaction Pulsar will afford it a +6 ATTACK bonus, nothing to sneeze at certainly. Ironically, the Jupiter's download will work best against armadas, thanks to the Chain Reaction Ricochet which'll make your shot bounce off one ship and hit the next, and possibly the next, and the next. You can only do this once per game, but if you balance your side-deck well, maybe that's all you need to really cripple an opposing fleet. Let's say the ship shares in the stockability of its brethren. A 3.7.

TOTAL: 13.8 (69%) Hitting the two-year mark with a card I'll probably never own.

PICTURE: Dax looks quite different here, and I can't help but think about eggs when I look at this card, for some reason. The shape of the headdress, of Dax's face, and even the background colors, I guess. It's a very understated image, keeping her in shadow for the most part (she's skulking around disguised), but with some poetic value to it (the calm of the card on all levels, and the leafy relief next to her face). 3.5 should do.

LORE: The story is there, as is her true species (plural) and a title which happens to be useful in the game. And the final joke is a fun one, relating to a fun line. Very positive about this one at 3.8.

TREK SENSE: Affiliation is always an issue with differently-aligned versions of main personae. While Dax is acting like a Bajoran here, she's still working for the Federation. Yet, this doesn't show up on the card. The very short while she used this identity really doesn't help the situation. The fact that she's doing this to help the Bajorans forgives the lack of an infiltration icon (infiltration having been defined as hurtful to the infiltrated party). I would also balk at her status as a vedek. I mean, sure, reporting her to the Chamber of Ministers is fine (and from the episode), but could she really conduct services? It does cause problems. Dax once had an Orb experience, so the icon is okay. Dropping from the Command icon of her main persona to Staff is okay too, as she holds little weight with the Bajorans. Leaving her a Science personnel is an odd choice, since she's posing as a VIP (compare to Major Rakal or Beverly and Will). Science really should have been relegated to a skill. As for the rest, well, it's really a matter of comparing her to the original Jadzia Dax for similarities and differences, but where Dax is concerned, any additional skills aren't really a problem. She's like Data in the sense that all her skills can't possibly fit on a card, so different versions will highlight different abilities. Here, she keeps Anthropology (necessary to pose as a member of another species), Exobiology (possibly for the same reasons), and one level of Navigation (more on that in the next sentences). While she didn't spend a lot of time as a vedek, the card may represent the Dax that took part in the Circle three-part arc which could explain her skill discrepencies. Being surprised by Kira's use of "seat-of-pants" flying certainly isn't in keeping with a Navigation x2 personnel (which she will become by piloting the Defiant later in the series. In that little adventure, her role was to repair the craft as it was being attacked by Interceptors. That certainly deserves Engineer, and I think, Physics as well. It's more appropriate to the situation than her earlier Astrophysics is. Archaeology playing no part here, it was cut for space. Her attributes remain the same (sure-but-dodgy Integrity, high Cunning and Klingon-skilled Strength), and given the nature of her mission, I don't think anything needed to be changed (though I would have accepted a one point drop in any one attribute as legitimate). The skills themselves make sense, but the classification and affiliation (the basics really) need work. A 3.6.

STOCKABILITY: Vedek Dax has a lot going for her, and not just in the skill box. She's a vedek, which means she can report for free at the Chamber of Ministers, or directly report or download to the Bajoran Shrine. Not the best choice for solving Refuse Immigration given her skill list, but hey, if you happen to have her along... Her Orb icon can be put to great use as well, since she's one of only two Orb icon personnel that can report directly to the Shrine at a station sitting at Characterize Neutrino Emissions and immediately put her icon to work getting you any Orb Artifact to double the card's card draws without even solving the mission (you'll need Return Orb to Bajor). She'll help solve the mission too. She's one of the Trills with symbiont most likely to survive an encounter with a Palukoo since it's likely she'll be accompanied by Resistance personnel. Stil waiting for cool uses for that species though. As for the skills, she's dual-classification SCIENCE/ENGINEER which is very useful (none of that VIP/good classification stuff), though she's a prime target for Unscientific Method with those high attributes (an advantage in and of themselves). Bajorans have some very good ENGINEERs already, but their SCIENCE is merely fair-to-good. In any case, you can never have enough of those. Speaking of which, Bajorans are really lacking in Exobiology which is an important dilemma-buster these days. Her other skills fit well too (even Physics now), though they are more common. Not a wasted skill really. She has no other Bajoran-useable versions to her persona, though with Treaties she does. The natural enough Bajoran/Federation Treaty could give you access to an even wider bank of skills - 2 choices, baseline Jadzia or classic Trek Jadzia which really only gives you an extra download not useful to Bajorans - and the also natural Klingon/Bajoran Treaty gives you access to a Dax that can use Klingon Honor support cards. All depends on the kind of deck you're playing, but the flexibility is always nice. Not a game breaker, but certainly useful in a variety of ways. 3.9 here.

TOTAL: 14.8 (74%) I don't think the Bajorans were short-changed in the 2nd Anthology, but the lack of a special ability is disappointing.

PICTURE: Worf cuts a proud, barrel-chested figure on this card, and the askew background lends a moving dynamic to the image. The soft pink lighting has closer to a sunset than a Klingon feel, but this is nonetheless a very dramatic pic. I give it a 4.

LORE: The title is a natural for an all-Klingon version of Worf, and while I can't applaud yet another mention of the Klingon Civil War complete with the date, the lore put us in context rather well, and provides justification for a special skill. 3.3 here.

TREK SENSE: Since Worf had resigned from Starfleet to rejoin his people in "Redemption", it makes sense he would be Klingon-only here. The double Security is closer to what he should have been in Premiere (both versions of the persona are from the same time period), and I'm glad for it. He showed more Leadership here than he was allowed on the Enterprise, more freedom to attack certainly, and he keeps his basic "rank" of Command personnel. The Honor x2 is the same as in Premiere, and he deserves it as the Klingon more honorable than Klingons, especially in his native element like this. The special download could have gone to many personnel, since Qapla'! ("Success!") has been said by a number of Klingon leaders. He won a victory in the civil war, sure, but still. At least he has the Honor to back the card up. The special skill indeed has to do with that victory, boosting the Bortas' attributes by 3 if Gowron is also present. The justification is that Gowron trusts Worf enough to follow his ship-boosting advice, whereas other Klingons might be wary of a so recently discommended personnel. I don't mind the Weapons and Shields being boosted, but why the Range? That's a whole other area of the ship. Lastly we have attributes. Integrity remains high, which is fine, as is the 10 Strength (this guy's especially tough in the Klingon episodes). The Cunning though... if his tactical advice to Gowron was so good, why doesn't it take a small boost to 7? Methinks he was kind of ripped off on the Premiere one too. Not without its flaws, it's still a fair effort at 3.6.

STOCKABILITY: A strong "bridge crew" personnel for the Klingons, Worf Son of Mogh is not just the only super-SECURITY the Klingons have, but also the only super-personnel (those that have 2 of the same classification). That double SECURITY will come in handy when facing many of the more recent dilemmas, and helps with a few missions too. For missions though, it's hard to beat a double serving of Honor, the most requested skill on the Klingon spaceline. The Honor also allows him to make use of his special download which adds his INTEGRITY to his STRENGTH when attacked (that's an 18 before hand weapons), and the same goes for other Honorable Klingons present. Qapla'! is in fact better as a special download, because you never know when somebody'll attack your Klingons (unless you plan for it with Saltha'na Clock or something). The Leadership allows him to initiate battle himself, of course, and while we're on the subject, he can boost the IKC Bortas' attributes by a whopping +3. The effect does require Gowron to be present, but with him and Captain's Log in play, who needs an armada? A flagship deck will have no trouble defending itself with a 12-15-13 (14-15-13 with a Dedication Plaque). Fast and powerful for just a couple cards. If you ever miss Worf's old Diplomacy or Navigation, you can also use Kurn and Sons of Mogh in your deck; all are Klingon are can backup your skill base somewhat. A lot of nice tricks are attributed to this Worf, but the bottom line is, he's useful where he needs to be: battle and mission attempts. A strong 4.1.

TOTAL: 15 (75%) A pretty even number, wouldn't you say?

Away Team pack:

PICTURE: Sisko opening up an Orb artifact is a good idea for The Emissary though one where he's in the Prophets' domain, surrounded by white might have been even better. What's especially good is that the Orb's light casts a purplish color on Ben, bringing him in line with the card's overall color scheme. That potted plant in the background is a little distracting, but it's an otherwise fine pic, whose main theme is communion with the Prophets. A 3.9.

LORE: Short, but interesting. Aside from clearly making The Emissary a persona of Benjamin Sisko, it mentions the Bajoran Wormhole as the "Celestial Temple". How very Bajoran! Love it. The last sentence brings great color to the card too. A lot of little hints in this brief lore to what ultimately becomes game text. A 4.1.

TREK SENSE: Sisko as he is seen by Bajoran culture. He's still a Federation personnel, but he's been adopted by the Bajoran people. They see him as a VIP instead of an OFFICER, though it could be said Kira sees him as both. The Orb icon finally makes its appearance on Sisko. Some of you may remember my bashing the Benjamin Sisko card for not having it when he had his first experience in DS9's pilot! Since he discovered the Bajoran Wormhole, he can download it (discovering it for you every game if you want). His existence somehow boosts all Bajorans' Integrity by 2 points. This is because he validates or proves their system of beliefs. If the Emissary exists, so do the Prophets, so does the promised afterlife, and so on. It makes all Bajorans a little more likely to be good. (Exceptions: I don't think Riker Will would care one way or the other, some criminals probably wouldn't either, but even Winn's a better girl when he's around.) As for Bajorans reporting to his location, I see where it comes from - because Sisko is seen as the Emissary, people come up to him all the time. They come out of the woodwork, so to speak. The ability goes a bit far however. In the Bajor region, ok. Out in the Gamma quadrant or at Montana Missile Complex, it gets a little far-fetched. Diplomacy is the only skill Ben gets to keep in this version of himself. It's needed to bring the Bajorans and Federation together, or even to communicate with the Prophets. What about the other skills? Okay, the Bajorans don't really care about his ENGINEER or even his Honor (it's their perception, remember), but shouldn't he have kept Leadership? He's still their spititual leader. And speaking of spiritual leaders, what's with the Integrity lowered to a 7 from an 8? So he didn't always acknowledge his place in the Bajoran faith. Still, it made him more aware of what he did as a person and an officer. The Cunning stays the same (8). Strength gets a huge 2 point drop though, and again, I ask why? As the Emissary, he does a lot more in the way of weddings, and blessings, etc., but he's no weaker. Come on. Largely a success, but some details don't work for me. An even 4.

STOCKABILITY: VIP, Diplomacy... you've got all that elsewhere (though they turn up in quantity on Bajoran missions). The rest though... THAT's what you want this card for. For one thing, he's a moving Outpost. No matter where you are, you can report Bajorans straight to his location. Set him up at a Colony! Or, he boards a low-staffing ship, starts moving, and you can report personnel as you go along, arriving at your destination with a full load. The ability even works across the quadrants! And he can make that happen all the sooner with his Bajoran Wormhole download. If using the Gamma quadrant, you just increased your speed at getting access to it. The INTEGRITY boost may not seem all that important, and it isn't. There may not be a lot of ways to boost that particular attribute, but the Bajorans only have one mission requiring it (only 33+), and even one mission asking for LOW Integrity. There's always the dreaded Q dilemma of course... In Federation mode, he'll also affect Ro Laren and Sito Jaxa (and they can report to his location), but switching him with or from Benjamin Sisko should really be reserved for Treaty decks. The Emissary works best when Bajorans are around. The Orb icon allows for solving Orb Negociations as well as implementing Return Orbs to Bajor, so that's a plus. Two hidden abilities: gives Winn the extra skill of Honor, and allows for the Bajoran/Dominion Treaty to play for free. I'm guessing he'll keep being important to the Bajorans for a long time. For the Feds, send him to Diplomatic Conference with major Rakal and score 60 points without a Treaty! The reporting ability alone keeps this one in action... a 4.3.

TOTAL: 16.3 (81.5%) 1.2 points above his regular self (or +6%). Hey! My first true Siskoid!

PICTURE: A fairly standard headshot, with the Traveler obviously doing his thing. What's that dark spot on his forehead though? The guy's gonna bust a vein! Anyway, what really goes against this pic is the color scheme which is all yellows and grays, from the card design itself to the image. An average 3.

LORE: A short lore, but it explains the special skill quite well, even mentioning Wesley so that we get justification for the Youth requirement. It's really odd now that he's a persona of Lakanta (Lakanta being the root personnel) and not the other way around. I understand how the order of the cards' releases did this, but it's still... ugh. Goes as far as 3.4.

TREK SENSE: Non-Aligned, yes. Staff icon, yes. AU icon, um... He said something about being from the future in his first episode, well... he said it was the simplest way to explain it anyway. VIP may be over-stepping it a bit too. Sure, he's Wesley's idol, but he appeared to be only an assistant in "Where No One Has Gone Before", and has never been anything other than unassuming in all his appearances. Maybe ENGINEER or SCIENCE? That would at least have given him a useful standard skill. He's pretty out of place among the heads of state and diplomats. The special skill has lots of storytelling to it, but it falls short of the real Traveler's abilities. Ponder: The Traveler, if a young person (such as Wesley) is present, warps your ship instantaneously from one point in space to the other, and then, disappears because he's too tired (to a subspace domain?). Can you see the problems? In the episode, he managed to get to two other galaxies, including one on the fringe of reality, but in the game, he's limited to the same quadrant (spaceline)! In the show, he would phase out after a number of leaps, not after just one. And how much exertion on his part does it take when he's only jumping within a quadrant? There should be an "unless" around that Youth somewhere, so that the Youth could keep him from phasing out. There's no reason the Youth would ENABLE the Traveler to use his skill. Wesley helped him stay anchored to reality - and not necessarily because of his Youth, might I add - not leap through space in the first place. And maybe other skills would have been in order, like an inhuman comprehension of Physics or innate Stellar Cartography, or even Honor. Note that, despite all this, I find the hand to be the perfect place for him to disappear to. The attributes are okay, with an Integrity that could have been higher, but he did seem a little quick to give up at times, and lied about his powers. The Cunning is extremely high, which makes sense for a being who has traveled the universe, and can twist space/time with his mind (or is it an in-joke about this actor almost getting Data's role?). And the very low Strength goes with his pacifist and fragile image. The fact that The Traveler: Transcendence has very little Trek Sense makes me accept that the two could co-exist, but all the other problems only allow for a score of 2.6.

STOCKABILITY: With very few mission and dilemma-centric skills, he's basically a walking Interrupt card. Plop him on your ship, relocate it anywhere on the spaceline, and take him back into hand. He'll only really help with cards that require CUNNING. The big problem seems to be, how do I get my ship back to where it was earlier? Crew Reassignment is your best bet. Just make sure the ship is AU, and you can report either Lakanta or The Traveler directly there. Both personae have ship movement abilities (Lakanta gets you from one end of the spaceline to the other). Too bad it's not ANY ship, 'cuz you could have Opened Diplomatic Relations with an enemy vessel, sent over your VIP and relocated his ship to a Black Hole, The Traveler all the while, safe and cozy in your hand. Similarly, it's too bad you can't relocate a ship to another quadrant. With more spacelines in the future (at least the Delta quadrant), spacelines are bound to get shorter and shorter depending on the game. There might not be any advantage in boosting ship speed all that much. Speed decks will find The Traveler useful, and he's a good counter against pollution decks (just jump over stuff you don't like). He'll also grab you Cytherians points faster than you can say "I win!". But overall, a little overrated. A 3.7.

TOTAL: 12.7 (63.5%) Maybe he should have stayed a series of Events and Interrupts?

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