The Admiral’s Log: My Journey Through ‘Star Trek Online’ – Part LV

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

Andoria – A Galactic Winter Wonderland   

Well my fellow fleet members, we are now entering the home stretch of our second voyage through the galaxy and knowing that we are near the end is always a bittersweet venture indeed. Because nobody likes for the story to come to a close but alas, there are only so many places one can visit within the Milky Way Galaxy in Star Trek Online and well, we’ve just about done that. But while that sounds horrendously ominous in its own right, as though I’ll be closing out this Log in 2019, that is simply not the case. It just means that I need to look at new ways to play this game and write about it in 2020, because reinvention is never a bad thing and new challenges in creative writing are always welcome.
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But before I dive too deeply into the future, in the here and the now, there are still some lovely places we need to visit, and all of them are located within the Beta Quadrant. In fact, all that is left to explore are some of the core worlds of the United Federation of Planets. If anything, it’s a bit of a shame that we technically only have three worlds that we can beam down to in this part of the galaxy, but that’s okay. There’s not a storytelling need to travel to say, Babel, at this point in time, and quite frankly, the worlds that are left to explore are quite important and fascinating in their own right since they’re so incredibly diverse when all is said and done.

Take for example, today’s destination, Andoria. For this world which has brought about some colorful characters over the years, specifically the Shran clan from Star Trek: Enterprise, is also unique in its makeup as well. For starters this particular planet really isn’t a planet at all, it’s a moon that orbits a gas giant that resembles Uranus and to make matters more interesting, it’s also a hostile world, one where you don’t see a whole lot of sunlight. Which means this is a cold and barren place, one where snow rules over everything and everyone and honestly, I have to admit that I find this world quite beautiful. Mainly because, I am a huge fan of the snow, so the instant I transported down this mysterious world, I was instantly taken aback by this galactic winter wonderland.

Because in many ways, the glacial valley you arrive within, is peaceful and serene in its own right. For gentle snow falls all around you and there is that flawless silence that you’ll only discover mere moments after an actual snowfall in your own backyard. Yet while this is a lovely place to just glance at and soak up the atmosphere, there are activities and such to be found upon the surface. For the Andorians are an aggressive race that love to have their mettle tested and often. Which means if you so choose, you can get involved in a little scrum on this world and be challenged to a duel in either a safe environment or one where the stakes are a little higher. 

If anything, it is just different to see a Federation world like this, where beauty and brutality merge together in flawless fashion. And while there isn’t a heck of a whole lot to do down here, just taking the time to explore a founding world of the Federation is neat in its own right since there is so much history here. But while our visit was brief in its own right, it was definitely worth while since it leaves one nostalgic for Star Trek shows and stories of yesteryear and thankfully this journey toward home still has plenty of nostalgia and wonder to send our way since our next stop, brings to us the iconic home of the late and great Ambassador Spock and that’s where we will pick up, next time. Until then.       

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