Challenging the Pack: Universus and Lower Decks

Recent months have taken me away from writing for a variety of reasons however with the arrival of UVS' Universus card game there's a lot to talk about.

And while we await the arrival of Magic: The Gathering's new Star Trek line it's worth not forgetting another card-based entry into the sci-fi gaming market.

Launched at the end of 2024, the Lower Decks series has been fully utilised to create four new character packs which are ready to play straight out of the packaging. Mariner, Boimler, Tendi and Rutherford are all here along with a full stack of cards meaning you're ready for combat straight away.

Each 60 card deck also comes with a foil wrapped 6 card booster pack which contains a random selection of alternative art and foil cards to supplement the packs.  For note, these seem to have dropped in price significantly in recent weeks at some retailers so now is the perfect time to grab the set.

At the centre of the packs are the character cards. Each of the Lower Decks characters has two options as their character plus a lenticular version of their "main" version. A Universus deck also comprises of Attack and Foundation cards with which to build and launch your attacks however the Challenger series also packs in two further card types with Asset and Action variants.

Each of the two character options is itself varied providing a trade off between hand size (number of cards you can have at your disposal) and health. More options means a lower health bar but that can all change depending on how you play out your rounds.

Each character will also have traits to enhance your defence or attacks as you move further into the game.

I'm not going to detail the rules of this because, honestly, they are a whole post in themselves and the videos online from Universus are far better at explaining the systems and dynamics of the game but I can say that there are multiple variations and possibilities that I'm only beginning to scratch the surface of.

The benefit is that you can mix and match across the ranges to provide better and more apt abilities to your characters. That said, I'm more than likely to stay Lower Decks pure. With four packs detailing each of the four main characters that offers 2 x 2 player games running at the same time. Each of those characters has their own tweaks and traits starting right back at their character cards.

These sets also come with a bonus blind booster pack which features alternative versions of some of the cards in the main deck. These might be foils or alternative artwork and can be tracked using the leaflet included that details all of available options. Across the four boosters of the four characters here I didn't get a duplicate which was lucky and added extra cards to each of the four basic packs.

The only thing I could grumble about here is that a search of the ol' internet turned up very little hopes of locating any more of the booster packs if you were determined to locate all of the variant cards.

One more point to note, unless you're a totally hardcore Universus player it's unlikely you will have purchased one of the table mats which provide health points and reminders for actions. In that case make sure you have a pencil and some paper to hand in order to keep track of your health points and potentially a few pointers on what order to complete actions. Unfortunately there are no instructions included for quick reference so if you do want to check a point you'll have to skip through one of the online vids to jog your memory.

While this isn't multi-player and therefore not a good one for group gatherings, it's a gem to play if you have a spare half hour to kill with a friend or sworn enemy. The variations in results, character combinations and choices certainly ensure that no two games will play out the same although I would say you do need to confirm a deck size limit especially if you happen to have added s few more options thanks to the blind boosters.

Whether of not it will survive the onslaught of the highly recognised Magic: The Gathering is a point I would rather not dwell on but given the size of that licence I tend to believe it will overshadow this entry into the Universus catalogue. A big shame yes, but with only these four packs in existence the lifetime of Lower Decks Challenger Series seems limited. Had there been further packs from Strange New Worlds or Picard for example it might have extended the interest but as of now I'm unfortunately convinced this will be it. 

Go out and grab a few packs or the full set while you can because it's still worth playing and an enjoyable way to delve into a bit of Lower Decks antics while you have the opportunity!

USS Cerritos Crew Handbook

No secret, I love Lower Decks so after a recent acquisition of the Beckett Mariner Funko Pop, the Crew Handbook was always going to be on the list.

Taking a more light hearted look into the Star Trek universe, this is the ultimate guide to the USS Cerritos rather than as a series companion. With the overview of a guide for new Lower Deckers, readers are taken through every crucial area of the ship, introduced to the crew and given notes on potential foes and allies from across the Alpha, Beta and Delta Quadrants.

Realised in print by Chris Farnell, the book is a weighty 175pages in paperback and you want to keep on turning them.

The text itself isn't a trawl to read and instead the necessities of the Cerritos are broken down into more manageable chunks coupled with the stunning animation from the show itself. It's also incredibly current with the lieutenant ranks of Boimler, Mariner, Tendi and Rutherford in place. 

But what adds to this perhaps in a different way to the more "serious" technical manuals and other reference works is the asides (proof reader notes in-universe) from the crew. Adding a level of character to the handbook and keeping in line with the personalities of those characters at the same time!

Lower Decks has always been a little more sartorial when it comes to the Star Trek universe and the handbook is no exception. It doesn't take itself too seriously and the balance of information and humour means that this is accessible to fans of all knowledge levels and interest. A highlight for you ship connoisseurs is a potted history of the Cerritos' namesake which you may or may not take with a pinch of salt and in a way helps put a little substance into the series backstory.

In fact that's one of the big wins for me here. While there's a lot of suggestion and intimation it still leaves fans without 100% clarity and allows your imagination to fill in some of the blanks. Bits you might be able to join the dots thanks to episodes (certainly An Embarrassment of Dooplers) but in other instances it leaves a good amount of room for future developments. However, according to the author, the wonderfully UK-based Chris Farnell, the matter surrounding Admiral Jellico's circulatory system IS canon. Period. Fight him.

But that's not to say that the book ignores the canon of the show's episodes so far. Readers get nods to all types of stripy tricorder, the best holodeck programmes to run and even a Strange New Worlds homage with Cerritos bingo which might be a tad more extreme and expectedly curveball. 

Indeed, Farnell might have been given the reins to do as he wished with the handbook but he's absolutely kept it under control and well within Star Trek specifications especially since it still had to get the seal of approval from The Top Man Mike McMahan before printing (as Chris noted to me during a brief chat!).

If you're expecting a detailed technical piece of literary wizardry a la the TNG Technical Manual then this isn't the book however if you are looking for something that acts as a side guide and extremely entertaining companion to Lower Decks then this will definitely hit the spot.

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Lower Decks: Ship Shot

The characters have been revealed; now we have both a launch date confirmed and our first look at the feature starship. 

Set to debut on August 6th via CBS All Access, Lower Decks will be the first animated Star Trek series since 1975 - we’re not counting the two Short Trek's in there! 

Google Images

Along with that announcement, we know there will be a total of ten episodes with one released weekly and that a second series is already well into production. Along with this, there's also the rumour that we might get to see a few regular characters drop in from time to time - but nothing so far on this has been set in stone. But that's not what’s really causing the rumblings in the forums this week because Lower Decks also gave us the first pass on the California Class USS Cerritos (pictured right on this latest teaser poster)

Used for ‘second contact’, these guys are rarely going where no-one has gone before, more often than not being the follow up team behind the Picard's of the galaxy once communications have been established.  Now what you might not know about the name is that Cerritos is a suburban city in Los Angeles County and is also known as Dairy Valley (hope I got that right). I'm getting the sense that the producers have gone for a very "average" place to reflect the more average and "normal" routine that we can expect from the latest starship to hit the small screen.

Set in 2380 just after Nemesis, the USS Cerritos definitely captures the era with that distinctive oval saucer section and the eye-shaped navigational deflector both reminiscent of the Galaxy Class and the kitbash that came from it, the Nebula Class. 

The California Class however seems to have taken that step further and added a spin on the Oberth Class with there seeming to be no logical way to move from the primary hull to the secondary hull without either a) the use of a transporter or b)a turbolift that would need to be heavily protected from the effects of travelling through a warp engine. Looks like there could be some fun times ahead for the feature group of lower deck ensigns we’re set to meet. 

Google images

Looking at the saucer though there are a few differences to the Galaxy Class - those cut-outs at the edge for one and the quartet of dips just forward of the yellow stripe. Gone too is the captain's yacht, replaced with a darker grey wedge shape that extends to the rim of the saucer. We can also see through the reflection dancing on the surface that there are rings of lifeboats so life preservation has been a consideration in its design!

At this point there's no ship name or registry emblazoned on the hull which is unusual but that number might be something they're holding back a reveal on.

The pylons are of a unique style too, resembling motorway bridge supports , attaching to the warp nacelles just behind the bussard collectors. Rather than being oblongs though, these two engine units seem to be octagonal in shape with the top four sides more elongated. Both the bussard collectors and the warp field grilles are of a totally new design with a lot more luminescence than we've experience in similar ships of the time. 

Now while we have been making a serious note of the choice to have the two hulls separated and seemingly impossible to step between, we may be overthinking this with more automation and the possibility that the secondary "hull" is really just jammed full of sensory equipment meaning the crew have no real need to ever go in there except for repairs. Again, this is just conjecture from myself and not actual scripted fact.

We haven't had a look to the back and top of the Cerritos so there's still a bit of mystery to the design. For one, where's the shuttlebay? Is the bridge the same style  as the Enterprise-D??  

It's a radical departure from the usual collection of bits we saw in The Next Generation especially with those girder-esque pylons but it's got us all talking because it is different, striking and isn't afraid to be different even though there are so many recognisable elements included. 

Whether I'll come to love it I can't say at the present time since there's only this one view to consider and it, as noted, leaves a lot unresolved. However, if the series is as unique as this, it will be an entertaining ten weeks!

In just over a month we'll be able to talk even more about the latest Star Trek series.

But what do you think to the new step in starship design? What's great? What would you want to see altered?

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Kelvin Out/31 In

SJ Clarkson is now assigned to the upcoming Game of Thrones prequel and with no resolution to the Pine/Hemsworth contract dispute (probably) among other things, Star Trek 4 is now officially shelved. 

I'm not hugely shocked by this news as it seems none of the puzzle pieces were fitting together well and there was zero sign of a script.

It means that the Kelvin Timeline may well become known as the Kelvin Trilogy and remain one of Star Trek's more unique spin off elements. 

But the influence of those films, or at least a key part of them will live on in the Kurtzman Era as the destruction of Romulus is set to have had a profound effect on Picard in his as yet unnamed series which will, along with the transference of Prime Spock over to that timeline, cement the three movies firmly as part of canon.

While it seems like the behind the scenes dilemmas are the reason for the seeming end to the adventures of alt-Kirk and co, it's been a pretty good run. While I openly admit that Into Darkness isn't a masterpiece and borrows chunks from another Star Trek movie you have to admit that the visual quality, the acting and the very feel of these three stories has been exceptional. 

The 2009 movie is one of the best Star Trek movies to have ever been made. Doing something that was a possibility back in the days of The Undiscovered Country, it took the crew back to the Academy and their first meetings. It reset our expectations of Star Trek while simultaneously and subconsciously updating it for a new generation of fans. In fact this would be a generation of fans that would have never seen The Original Series or heard of Deep Space Nine. At its heart it was just a damn good sci-fi movie that happened to be Star Trek at the same time. 

Beyond rounded out the three with the destruction of the Enterprise which kind of means these three films become the story of that singular ship but of the trilogy its probably the one closest to the feel of The Original Series in its look and feel. 

However as one door appears to have closed, another one has sprung open with the official announcement that we've all been expecting for a little while; that Michelle Yeoh is getting her own series as Mirror Georgiou in a new Section 31 show.

Hardly surprising which means there must be some meat on the bones that we'll be getting a second animated series plus something to do with Starfleet Academy in the (very close) years to come. Due to be produced by Discovery writers Yeon Kim and Erica Lippoldt who were responsible for the Saru episode Into the Forest I Go in season one. 

That now brings the confirmed series total to four including Discovery, Picard and Lower Decks. plus there are supposed to be seven in play by 2020. So...we're just over half the planned amount of shows which will definitely solidify Star Trek's place back on the small screen.

From chatrooms/boards it's clear that fans are naturally concerned about the number of shows online and are having flashbacks to the mid-'90's "Golden Age". If managed well then there shouldn't be a problem - but look at the diversity too.

In the '90's the style of the shows and movies were all very similar visually, in the way they told their stories and most notably in their focus on Starfleet. What we seem to be getting from the Kurtzman era is a galactic sandbox in which we are going to see different aspects of every corner of the Alpha Quadrant (and maybe more) with neither Picard nor Georgiou part of Starfleet directly. This new Section 31 show will certainly be exploring the darker corners of the galactic landscape away from the sharp, duty bound lines of the Federation.

But does this mean that our Star Trek is going to be less Star Trek? Will this massive expansion dilute the brand and the strength of the storytelling? If they are going to branch out I believe this will be a bold and brilliant step to offer something refreshing to the franchise. If every series was, as you might recall from 20 years ago, a Starfleet crew out exploring the galaxy then yes, we'd be in some serious trouble but this new approach has chosen to give each new show a completely fresh identity and path to travel. Wise move and a very sensible one to boot.

Which of the new shows are you looking forward to? Are you lamenting the potential end to the Kelvin Universe?

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Predicting 2019

Once more we’ve completed a spin around the Sun and welcome in 2019. But what will this year hols in store for Star Trek?  Here's our top ones to watch

1. Discovery

The item at the top pf any Star Trek list has to be the continuing success of the latest series. Frankly, screw the doubters because its back for a second series and treading into the territory of recognisable characters with Pike, Number One and Spock all showing up this year. The premiere for season two is but 15 days away so how can this show be failing especially as there are at least two shows in the pipeline that will launch in the next 18 months. I'm predicting a renewal for the show for season three with a 2020 launch date probably announced at the midpoint in the 15 episode run but I also think that we won't be getting any more Short Treks past the four we have received this time around. Nice placeholder and I hope they use the material contained therein within the show itself.

2. Picard

Probably timed to coincide with the end of Discovery’s second season I believe that we will have the first teaser trailer for the new Picard series by mid-year. 2019 will most likely see further main castings for the show plus hints at what the future holds for the former Enterprise captain. Can we be more specific than this? Not at this time. What we do know is that Patrick Stewart was heavily involved with the initial talks about the direction of the series and how Jean-Luc would be treated within its framework which was part of the reason that he agreed to come back to the franchise after a 20 year gap.

3. Lower Decks

As with Picard's return we'll be getting more hints on what the future holds for this spin off from the franchise. I think this one might be set between the original six movies and The Next Generation since there's a good 70 year gap we've never explored. Big concerns are that this is going to be a humorous animated encounter like nothing we've seen before in the Star Trek universe. Truly the unknown - also well worth paying attention to the last of the Short Treks; The Escape Artist which was written by Mike McMahan and might give a hint at what this new show will be like tonally. Plus, any excuse for a Rick and Morty pic...

4. Novel Series Restart

Yay! So 2018 was a bit of a dud year for the Star Trek novel series but with a new deal completed we are going to be seeing a good flood of Star Trek book titles in the new year from all aspects of the franchise and that, it seems, includes the Kelvin timeline as well as the Discovery era. I'm predicting a return of the time travellers from Dayton Ward plus the continuation of the Deep Space Nine Gamma Quadrant saga which kicked off so well late in 2017. 

5. DST 2019

George Takei and Michelle Forbes are already confirmed for the 2019 event which nobody expected since it took two years for the event to return to the UK after the 50th anniversary. Last year's October-fest was a much more streamlined and organised celebration of Star Trek than before with much more for fans to get involved with across the weekend including tabletop and video gaming, talks, fantastic displays from Discovery and the first 50 years. The 2019 event has to equal this so I'd expect more props from the latest TV series as well as guests from the show (Anson Mount must be top of that list with Ethan Peck). Personally I'd love to hope Avery Brooks drops in but that's a long shot at best. What about an appearance from John de Launcie? Is a drop in from Patrick Stewart an option?

6. End of the Starships Collection?

Is it finally time for The Official Starships Collection to call it a day? I think this is the year it could come to a close with the Discovery collection striding on plus the Graphic Novel and Busts series also still in play. It's been going for a fair few years now and the majority of the craft from the show that anyone generally cares about have all but been announced. Recently it was confirmed that the Fesarius as well as Baran's Raider and the Scimitar would be included so I'd give this one a maximum of 12 months before it's closed up. Watch me be horrifically wrong on this one.

7. Confirmation of Star Trek 4

As in if it’s on or off. The lack of news on this makes me think that the Kelvin timeline may have drawn its last breath with the 2016 Beyond and, honestly, that's not a bad way to go out. The quality of the three films has been on the whole decent but another year without any progress on story at the least will kill it off and leave the way very open for the vaunted R|-rated Quentin Tarantino movie. Prediction for 2019 on this one is that we'll be in exactly the same position in a year's time. Neither of these projects will move forward and they'll be rotting in Development Hell for a little bit longer. Almost certain we'll have no action in regards to big screen Trekking this year.

8. 30 Years of The Final Frontier

 Who isn't going to want to celebrate this gem of an anniversary?! Yes, 2019 will mark 30 years since William Shatner asked God what he needed with a starship. A highly maligned Star Trek movie that's never mentioned anywhere else in any context ever and is almost considered the most un-canon item of canon just ahead of Threshold. I'd look forward to lots of reminiscing over filming of The Final Frontier, what went wrong, a ton of comparisons to Discovery and a few oddball rants about how this was the sign that the franchise was failing before the year is out.

9. 25 Years Since The Sky Was the Limit and It Was Fun 

...And on a more positive note, it's 25 years since The Next Generation drew to a close on TV before stepping in front of another set of cameras to take the voyages of the Enterprise-D to the big screen with Generations back in 1994. Definitely an opportunity for the cast to get back together and maybe a reason to get Malcolm McDowell along to Destination Star Trek along with Shatner and Stewart for a rather expensive but damn fine photo shoot?

Expect 2019 to revisit best episodes from the show's run as well as offer up potentials for what could have been the eighth season. Remember too that this will also mark 25 years since Shatner's last onscreen appearance as Captain James T Kirk.

10. Axanar Rolling On

It's off, it's on, it's off, it's... who knows. Even now we're two years down the line from THAT decision which changed the face of Star Trek fan films as we knew them, Axanar still exists and I think we'll be hearing more from this one in 2019. The plan, apparently, is to launch two 15 minute slices of the story rather than the epic independent movie we were initially promised. Maybe 2019 will see the first footage from Alec Peters other than the now infamous "Vulcan Scene" filmed oh-so long ago.Love it, loathe it, despise it more than anything ever, you still can't get away from it and this story will continue!

What do you predict to be the big Star Trek stories of 2019? Will we be wrong on any of these?

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