What is "Star Trek Adventures"?

The Venn diagram of "people who like 'Star Trek'" and "people who play tabletop RPGs" probably has a pretty large intersection, but big, licensed games almost always draw in a new crowd. As such, it's possible that some Trekkies reading this piece have never played a tabletop RPG before. Here's how it works:

You and your friends gather together around a table, armed with some paper, pencils and dice. Three to five players take the roles of characters on a Federation starship. Perhaps one of them is an inquisitive Vulcan science officer, or a hardened Bajoran freedom fighter, or an even-tempered human captain; the rules allow for almost any kind of character you've seen on the shows, and then some.

The final player is called the Game Master. It's his or her responsibility to narrate the story, adjudicate actions, act out nonplayer characters and structure the overall adventure. In other words, the players are like the star actors, while the GM is like the writer, producer, director and supporting cast, all in one.