STM: Tanner van Zandt

ENSIGN TANNER VAN ZANDT – Navigation Officer, USS Mercury (NCC-1946)

Species: Human Homeworld: Earth (Sol III)

EARLY LIFE: Tanner Van Zandt was born and raised in West Yellowstone, Montana. He was the middle child of two geologists/volcanologists who made a career of studying and documenting the Yellowstone caldera. Tanner’s parents were what would have been considered stereotypical academics two or three centuries ago. They were dispassionate people who looked upon most facets of life with scholarly detachment, and they expected the same from their children. Much like in Vulcan households, overt displays of emotion were frowned upon as “distasteful”. This led Tanner to harbor a grudge against his parents and siblings as he felt that his emotional and social development was stunted in such an environment. In later years, he would develop his own brand of empathy towards others in their emotional times of need – an empathy that he was denied.

Tanner’s parents also expected excellence from their children, especially when it came to academic pursuits. But Tanner’s test scores showed him to be of merely average intelligence. His interests gravitated more towards physical and outdoor pursuits. As a teenager, he joined a volunteer search-and-rescue outfit, responding to stranded hikers and mountain climbers in the Montana/Wyoming/Idaho area. In the course of these duties he learned mountaineering and advanced trauma treatment skills. As he spent much time outdoors in an area relatively free of light pollution, he also developed an interest in astronomy.

In his home life, Tanner chafed under the strictures of his parents and the attitudes of his siblings. As a result, he could not wait to leave home. He applied to a number of schools, including Starfleet Academy, but with only slightly-above-average grades he did not expect any prestigious placements. He was on the verge of enlisting in Starfleet when he received word that he had been accepted into the Academy. Despite his grades, Academy Admissions were more impressed with his search-and-rescue experience and deemed him “Star Fleet Material”.

ACADEMY EXPERIENCES: Tanner took well to Academy life and the variety of sophonts he had the opportunity with which to interact. His roommate through most of his time there was an Andorian with whom he had much in common. They practiced martial arts together (Starfleet-style as well as the Andorian art of Vershaan**) and Tanner learned to speak fair Andorian without the use of a universal translator. Tanner’s love of exploration and his interest in astronomy led him towards the helm and astronavigation course track. And though he did not take anything but basic courses in the Engineering program, he did demonstrate a knack for that sort of thing (and briefly entertained the notion of switching majors). It was also during his early semesters at the Academy that he realized that he did not miss his family at all.

A noteworthy incident occurred on the phaser range during his junior year. An officer brought with her a captured Klingon disruptor pistol and she afforded the cadets present the opportunity to fire it. But the weapon had faulty power couplings and power cells that were sub-par by Federation standards. When it came time for Tanner to fire it, the weapon exploded in his hand. He was rushed to medical, where it was determined that Tanner would have to have his left arm amputated below the elbow. He suffered an adverse reaction to tissue regeneration therapy, so he was fitted with a prosthetic left hand and lower left arm.

CADET CRUISE: Tanner’s cadet cruise aboard USS Tarawa was relatively uneventful. He spent his year honing his skills at the Navigator’s bridge station and adapting to shipboard life.

• All of this is assuming that by the mid-late 23rd century, the Yellowstone caldera hasn’t exploded and covered a third of the continental United States in ash. We’re 30,000 years overdue for such an eruption.

• • ’Vershaan’ comes from the Memory Beta website. Memory Alpha had no direct reference to any specific Andorian martial arts.

DISTINCTIONS (d8 / or d4 + PP)

-Black Sheep of the (Academic) Family (brought up in an atmosphere of scholarly detachment & pressure to succeed… not much tolerance for foolishness)

-Saint Bernard of the Grand Tetons (Find yourself lost on a mountainside in hip-deep snow with a broken leg? Tanner is who you want to find you!)

-…and a star to steer her by (I just have to find it first!) (Tanner is a new ensign – direct from the navigator’s chair of his cadet cruise)

VALUES

AGENCY d8 “Independence is a new experience. I like it.”

CREW d10 “Starfleet is my family now”

DISCOVERY d8 “That’s why we’re out here, isn’t it?”

LOGIC d6 “’Analysis Paralysis’ is to be avoided when necessary.”

PASSION d4 “You mean I can express myself & *NOT* get punished for it?”

PEACE d6 “I’m not looking for a fight, but I’ll be ready when one comes ‘round.”

DISCIPLINES

COMMAND d6

CONN d8

 Focus: Astronavigation d8

ENGINEERING d6

-Focus: Repair d6	

SECURITY d6

-Focus: Martial Arts d6

SCIENCE d10

MEDICINE d4

TALENTS

--“MEDIC!” If another PC in the same scene takes ‘INJURED’ stress, Tanner may spend up to 3 PP to reduce the injured PC’s stress by up to 3 die steps (on a 1 PP for 1 stress step basis). Step up Tanner’s EXHAUSTED stress (starting at d6) for each additional player character in the scene he wants to treat in such a manner with beyond the first.

--“I’m such an idiot! I know what that thing on the viewscreen is!” When the SCIENCE discipline is used in situations dealing with astronomy or astronomical phenomena, increase the die type of one die in the dice pool in exchange for a 1-step increase of INSECURE stress.

RESOURCES

--Cybernetic Left Hand 2d8

--23rd century Mul-T-Tool (for Engineering/Repair dice pools) 2d6

MILESTONES

Navigation

1XP - for successfully navigating the ship from one star system to a nearby star system -or- between two planets within a star system

3XP - for successfully navigating the ship to a destination several sectors away -or- to a destination deep within a non-UFP polity (Qo'noS, Romulus, etc.)

10XP - for successfully navigating the ship safely to an unknown, uncharted, or unexplored destination and back to friendly space.