Being a look back at cards from the Star Trek CCG, and what I thought of them back when they were fresh and new... in EPISODE order. So how does the game handle holoprograms?
PICTURE: If the world of Dixon Hill is to be accessed through his Office, then the door is the gateway to that world. Simple, even a little dull, but appropriate (despite not being a Doorway card), with a color scheme very much reminiscent of that world. A 3.
LORE: N/A (score will be adjusted accordingly)
TREK SENSE: Get ready for some conceptual business here. In the first place, while the version of this program we saw was on the Enterprise, there's no reason it couldn't be found in a facility's database, tsk tsk. The two personnel cards than can either download or report aboard are both holograms from the program, no flesh and blood, so that's good. From there, Cyrus Redblock has a bit of business about requesting "the item", as per the plot of "The Big Goodbye" (the Dixon Hill scenario, not the episode). From there, it's a dovetail into conceptuals. The "item" is apparently a card from hand, played face down on the table (we don't know what the "item" is). If you give Redblock the "item", you are rewarded with something (a card draw). If you destroy the "item" (place the card out-of-play), you win the scenario and score points. At least, that's how I see it. You could go vice-versa, it matters little. It's not a bad thematic idea, but of course, the fact that the "item" could well be a personnel or an abstraction, and that Redblock can do this from any Holodeck without really interacting with anyone, means it doesn't really go beyond that. In reality, a Holoprogram would have very little effect on the "real world". I can see it get a 1.5, but no more.
STOCKABILITY: If you use "murderous" dilemmas, you don't need to be sold on the idea of using Cyrus Redblock to give them a lot more bite. Well, he reports directly here where he can do a little more. You don't necessarily need to wait for him either, since Felix Leech can be downloaded here, and then if you've been attacked by your opponent, you may download Redblock. Leech can be useful too. If you can get him to opposing personnel's location, he'll suspend their classifications. Going back to Redblock, once each turn, you can use him to get a card out of your hand and either into play or completely out-of-play. If you're good at bluffing, this is a card for you. If your opponent thinks the card you want to play for free is a powerful one, they might be willing to let you have the 5 points. If they don't, they might deny you the points to allow you to play a weak card. Whether they're calling your bluff or not, you do get a card draw it this call is made, so your opponent's real dilemma is to give you points or not. They can't possibly let you have 5 points each turn in addition to whatever else you're racking up, but at the same time, denying you the points will help you get away with plenty of things and replenish your hand. The risk to you is that you could be permanently losing cards you need, so a large draw deck may be in order, with more multiples than usual. Cards you don't really need are simply recycled into the "item" request (make sure it's always playable, so no unique personnel already in play, etc.). Not altogether the most dependable of strategies, but it can distract your opponent to no end. Throw in some Parallax Arguers to keep your opponent concentrating on your strategy rather than their own. About 3.6.
TOTAL: 10.8 (54%) Now, if it'd been completely written in "Dixonese"...
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