[FranklinKenter]

50 Dilemma Gauntlet: Research Phage

Overview

Your mission: Assemble your away team of FIFTY personnel cards, overcome FIFTY random dilemmas, and solve the mission Research Phage. The one that scored the most points wins (each dilemma encountered also earns 1 point).

Post your away team and supporting Q's Tent cards by June 10th (you have nothing else in play). Dilemma encounters begin June 11th. We will resolve one effective dilemma per day until we have a winner; you will be responsible for adjudicating your own dilemma encounters.

Prize: A sealed Voyager starter.

Technical Details:

The scenario begins at the start of your turn with your personnel on the planet. How they got in that position is irrelevant.

Your chosen away team may initially only consist of up to 50 personnel cards. You can't include equipment, ships, facilities, or any other cards. Though, you may download non-personnel cards using your chosen personnel as desired.

For emphasis, you are not limited copy of each card in your away team.

You don't have to worry about how the personnel got into play or how they ended up where they are. For instance, you don't need an enabler for your fifty personnel, but you will need on for any subsequent cards you play.

You can't be playing Borg.

Modern rules apply (e.g., at most one personnel download and you can't use banned cards.

You have no hand, no draw deck, and no other cards in play, except an open Q's Tent and The Gauntlet:
The Gauntlet
Seeds or plays on table. When you overcome a dilemma, score 1 point.

There are no other missions in play (don't ask how this happened).

You still have a normal card play and an opportunity to play cards "for free" if you can possibly find a way to make use of them.

You may take any actions you would like prior to attempting the mission. However, you may only attempt the mission once even if you have a way of re-attempting the mission.

Thereafter, you will attempt the mission. Every day, one randomly generated dilemma will be selected for all participants to encounter. You will be responsible for adjudicating each dilemma for each day. (If a dilemma is selected that is clearly ineffective, dilemmas will be selected until an effective one is selected, though all will count toward the 50 limit).

The opponent is an idiot. They have nothing in play, they have no hand, and their draw deck is full of Barber Poles. They never had cards for you to steal and they haven't done anything all game. Where practical, all choices they make are "random." If there is a choice to be made that isn't clear how to adjudicate "randomly" this idiot will arbitrate how to do it. The guiding principle will be "effective but random."

You still need a matching personnel to attempt the mission and to solve the mission. (unless you have an enabler of some sort).

Your score is the total number of points scored (plus the 1 point for each dilemma overcome) regardless of whether they count toward winning or not at the end of the mission attempt. Specifically, you won't have an opportunity to unstop your away team afterwards and any stopped cards will not be unstopped (nor present with each other) at time of scoring (e.g., Vic Fontaine).

Tips and tricks:

Bonus points will likely be key to outscoring your competitors. Any way you can score points or might have an edge at scoring points (e.g. Mickey D.) will be advantageous.

Keep in mind a few special dilemmas that you may want a way around just in case they come up: Crisis, Q's Vicious Animal Things, Eye to Eye, One to One, Dead End etc. If they come up, you may be able to win the whole competition just by overcoming them!

Your attempting away team must be compatible. However, you are not required to make your entire away team compatible; you can leave some personnel in house arrest to take advantage of their other abilities.

[Takket]

our chosen away team may initially only consist of up to 50 personnel cards. You can't include equipment, ships, facilities, or any other cards. Though, you may download non-personnel cards using your chosen personnel as desired.

So to be clear, I can only start with 50 people, the only resource I have is the Q's Tent with 13 cards in it (since I have no draw deck), but I can, even though I can't start with equipment, start with someone like Lopez and a Federation PADD from my Q's Tent?

And what happens if the day's dilemma is something like Buried Alive that immediately ends a mission attempt. The contest ends at that point?

Can i use Surak to download Only Logical and if so how do i communicate to the gamemaster which dilemma I am picking? I assume I'd have to post here every day before the next dilemma is announced?

Normally on a planet are erased. If I start with Curator Quarren on the planet can he Holo-Projectors quick enough to prevent any Holograms from being erased?

[phaserihardlyknowher]

The opponent is an idiot. They have nothing in play, they have no hand, and their draw deck is full of Barber Poles. They never had cards for you to steal and they haven't done anything all game. Where practical, all choices they make are "random." If there is a choice to be made that isn't clear how to adjudicate "randomly" this idiot will arbitrate how to do it. The guiding principle will be "effective but random."

Can we assume this means they have no Q-Continuum as well? I realize that the doorway is "in play", so probably not, but then so are dilemmas once they are face up. Incidentally, if the opponent does have a Q-Continuum, is there a chance that we could face Gift of the Tormentor?

[FranklinKenter]

The opponent is an idiot. They have nothing in play, they have no hand, and their draw deck is full of Barber Poles. They never had cards for you to steal and they haven't done anything all game. Where practical, all choices they make are "random." If there is a choice to be made that isn't clear how to adjudicate "randomly" this idiot will arbitrate how to do it. The guiding principle will be "effective but random."

Can we assume this means they have no Q-Continuum as well? I realize that the doorway is "in play", so probably not, but then so are dilemmas once they are face up. Incidentally, if the opponent does have a Q-Continuum, is there a chance that we could face Gift of the Tormentor?

The opponent has no Q-Continuum.

[FranklinKenter]

So to be clear, I can only start with 50 people, the only resource I have is the Q's Tent with 13 cards in it (since I have no draw deck), but I can, even though I can't start with equipment, start with someone like Lopez and a Federation PADD from my Q's Tent?

Correct.

And what happens if the day's dilemma is something like Buried Alive that immediately ends a mission attempt. The contest ends at that point?

As you allude below, Buried Alive is, in theory, passable. If it comes up, and it would decimate the competition, we will continue the contest with a consolation pool ignoring that dielmma with another of the same prize.

Can i use Surak to download Only Logical and if so how do i communicate to the gamemaster which dilemma I am picking? I assume I'd have to post here every day before the next dilemma is announced?

Presumably, you could announce it as you adjudicate the previous dilemma.

Normally on a planet are erased. If I start with Curator Quarren on the planet can he Holo-Projectors quick enough to prevent any Holograms from being erased?

Yes. I don't know if this works in real-life, but we are going to roll with it here.

[Rachmaninoff]

This is a very interesting puzzle. Not being able to seed an AU enabler is making my life somewhat complicated, but your answer to the hologram question makes some other things easier! A few more questions.

How are effects that allow dilemma peeking handled?

If the mission attempt will end because I can't get past a dilemma, can I still apply suspend-play actions before the contest ends with my final score?

Seeds or plays on table. When you overcome a dilemma, score 1 point.

Does "overcome" mean that the dilemma has to have requirements that you meet? Or is "The Gauntlet" really just counting how many dilemmas I get through, so I score a point as long as the mission attempt continues even if the dilemma has some effects. (e.g. a Love Interest; or a "mission continues" dilemma like Armus: Roulette)

You don't have to worry about how the personnel got into play or how they ended up where they are. For instance, you don't need an enabler for your fifty personnel, but you will need on for any subsequent cards you play.

By the same reasoning, can I also have multiple copies of the same persona in play? (I can reconstruct past game actions that would enable me to control more than one copy of a unique personnel at the start of the scenario, even if I couldn't play another from hand now.) Wondering how far I can stretch the "don't worry about how the personnel got there" rule.

The opponent is an idiot. They have nothing in play, they have no hand, and their draw deck is full of Barber Poles. They never had cards for you to steal and they haven't done anything all game.

Is the Barber Pole thing meant literally? That is, if any effect requires the opponent to draw a card or probe or whatever, it is an actual Barber Pole card? Or are you just using this as a placeholder for a blank piece of cardboard.

Where practical, all choices they make are "random." If there is a choice to be made that isn't clear how to adjudicate "randomly" this idiot will arbitrate how to do it. The guiding principle will be "effective but random."

To clarify: whenever the opponent has to make ANY choice, whether from a dilemma or any other effect, they will select among the available options randomly and uniformly if possible? (I assume "where practical" means that the options can be easily and finitely enumerated) How will this be handled logistically if such a choice happens before I attempt the mission, or in between dilemmas due to a suspends-play effect?

[FranklinKenter]

How are effects that allow dilemma peeking handled?

I guess I just tell you what that dilemma will be, privately. Hopefully, that would be limited to before the attempt.

If the mission attempt will end because I can't get past a dilemma, can I still apply suspend-play actions before the contest ends with my final score?

Yes.

Seeds or plays on table. When you overcome a dilemma, score 1 point.
Does "overcome" mean that the dilemma has to have requirements that you meet? Or is "The Gauntlet" really just counting how many dilemmas I get through, so I score a point as long as the mission attempt continues even if the dilemma has some effects. (e.g. a Love Interest; or a "mission continues" dilemma like Armus: Roulette)

Let's change it to 1 point per dilemma just encountered.

By the same reasoning, can I also have multiple copies of the same persona in play? (I can reconstruct past game actions that would enable me to control more than one copy of a unique personnel at the start of the scenario, even if I couldn't play another from hand now.) Wondering how far I can stretch the "don't worry about how the personnel got there" rule.

You can use as many copies of whomever. (I hate you Clone Machine). But if you are a Miracle Worker and come up with something mondo broken, I will just hand you the same prize and ask you to resubmit.

Is the Barber Pole thing meant literally? That is, if any effect requires the opponent to draw a card or probe or whatever, it is an actual Barber Pole card? Or are you just using this as a placeholder for a blank piece of cardboard.

The intention is that it is supposed to be a blank piece of card that doesn't do anything as to prevent the game from ending. As of now they are literal Barber Poles. I do not foresee how one would severely leverage that. But again, if you are a Miracle Worker and come up with something mondo broken, I will just hand you the same prize and ask you to resubmit.

To clarify: whenever the opponent has to make ANY choice, whether from a dilemma or any other effect, they will select among the available options randomly and uniformly if possible? (I assume "where practical" means that the options can be easily and finitely enumerated)

I do not have a universal answer to this, hence the guiding principle, "effective but random". If you have a specific example in mind, then perhaps ask . I would be hesitant to say "uniform" because some in the strict probabilistic sense the final outcome may not uniform. For example, for Yuta, I would choose a random personnel in the game and choose the Yuta number for that personnel.

How will this be handled logistically if such a choice happens before I attempt the mission, or in between dilemmas due to a suspends-play effect?

By and large, you can adjudicate things yourself. There will be a sense of Honor in the competition. Where applicable, I will provide a random seed that you can use to make your selections.

[AllenGould]

You can use as many copies of whomever. (I hate you Clone Machine). But if you are a Miracle Worker and come up with something mondo broken, I will just hand you the same prize and ask you to resubmit.

Just to confirm - this isn't "you can use multiple universals", this is "you can have multiple uniques, ignoring personas etc"?

[FranklinKenter]

You can use as many copies of whomever. (I hate you Clone Machine). But if you are a Miracle Worker and come up with something mondo broken, I will just hand you the same prize and ask you to resubmit.

Just to confirm - this isn't "you can use multiple universals", this is "you can have multiple uniques, ignoring personas etc"?

As of now, yes, but I am probably going to regret that.

[Kaiser]

This sounds super fun, I always had great a blast working out/preparing such things. It's a shame that the deadline is so soon, because this month is just awful for me. I might submit a just-for-fun or purely thematic entry, but I'm already looking forward to seeing everyone's strategies.

[Tosk]

Normally on a planet are erased. If I start with Curator Quarren on the planet can he Holo-Projectors quick enough to prevent any Holograms from being erased?

Yes. I don't know if this works in real-life, but we are going to roll with it here.

Would treaties be handled similarly? I'm assuming the away team has to follow normal compatibility rules, but if my away team includes someone who can download a treaty from my Q's tent, can this be done before the start of the attempt?

[Takket]

the answer is... it doesn't matter. you can have as many incompatible people as you want on the same planet. they form separate away teams. the moment you a treaty, they become compatible, and combine to form a single away team.

[Rachmaninoff]

Are Lifesigns cards legal to use? They aren't allowed in Modern until 6/14 but the images are all up and the expansion fits the contest theme.

[FranklinKenter]

Are Lifesigns cards legal to use? They aren't allowed in Modern until 6/14 but the images are all up and the expansion fits the contest theme.

Yes. That was the intention.

[FranklinKenter]

the answer is... it doesn't matter. you can have as many incompatible people as you want on the same planet. they form separate away teams. the moment you a treaty, they become compatible, and combine to form a single away team.