Changes: Chula

Revision as of 22:12, 30 January 2015

You might also be looking for the location on Romulus known as the Valley of Chula.

Chula was a game played by the Wadi race. The game board itself was a large abstract board, which however was portable; once the case containing it opened, the board, in a flash of light, automatically materialized in the room and the players were transported in a virtual world.

The exotic technology behind the chula board was not explained, but it is strongly implied that it was powered by a continuous transporter-like burst from another location, such as a starship.

There were two levels of participation for players of the game, each represented in a different way. The primary player played the game via a traditional physical apparatus with abstract structure to represent components of the game, including an inverted-pyramid shaped stack of horizontal planes representing each level (or shap), and small figurines representing the active internal players. The board also had a control panel where the primary players could program the hazards and other events indicated by the dice.

The internal players were transported to a virtual world generated by the game where they interacted in the same way that they would physically interact with the real world. The primary player and the internal players could be considered to be on a team together, but the primary player could not communicate with the internal players.

The primary player decided what paths would be available to the internal players and what challenges they would face. He made a wager on the outcome, with challenges of higher difficulty offering a shorter path towards home as well as higher returns. There was also a measure of randomness added by rolling dice, affecting the challenge. The internal players needed to defeat the challenges to progress in the game, moving along a path that was separated by levels called shaps. Along the way they could be harmed or even "die". However, this was only in the world of the game, and when it was over they were returned to the real world unharmed. The goal of the game was to get at least one player to the final shap, which was referred to as "home".

History

When the Wadi delegation visited Deep Space 9, they discovered that Quark was cheating the dabo board. Falow gave him a chance to play honestly in order to forget this, and allow him to win more of their gems. When Quark accepted, Benjamin Sisko, Jadzia Dax, Kira Nerys, and Julian Bashir were transported in the game as internal players. Their disappearance alerted Jake Sisko and Odo.

George Primmin located an energy flux on the Wadi starship, an intense bipolar current similar to a continuous transporter burst, and speculated it was responsible for the senior staff's disappearance. Odo transported on board the Wadi ship to investigate, but when he reached the source of the flux, he was instantaneously transported back to Quark's.

When thialo' occurred to Quark, he thought it was too much to choose whom to sacrifice, believing that his player would die. As a result Falow programmed a random hazard to be decided who would be killed. Sisko, Dax, and Kira were unable to stand and fell into a chasm, thereby being transported back to Quark's. This meant that Quark lost, but he was still interested in discussing a licensing agreement with them. (DS9: "Move Along Home")

Game terms

Allamaraine
Chandra
Home: The goal that the internal players must reach
Shap: A level of the game. It usually begins on the second shap; the first is used only by children
Thialo: Sacrifice a player to save the others

Background

According to one of the writers of the episode, Jeanne Carrigan-Fauci, the name of the game, "Chula", comes from and is a portmanteau of Chutes and Ladders, as the maze game is a "three-dimensional form" of the game. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion)

The script for the episode describes the appearance of Chula as "Falow opens the case and a flash of light obliterates the room. When it clears the dabo table has been replaced by a strange alien game board... there's a central start point from which a winding maze serpentines downward toward the end triangle. There are twelve shaps (levels). Within the board, there are short cuts between shaps, allowing players to move more rapidly to the end. Falow begins to put a variety of strange symbolic pieces (think hotels in Monopoly) at various intervals, elaborately "setting up" the board... there is also an electronic component to the board with switches and blinkies...". (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion - A Series Guide and Script Library)

External link

Template:NCwiki

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 :''You might also be looking for the location on [[Romulus]] known as the [[Valley of Chula]].''
-[[Image:Chula board.jpg|thumb|The chula board.]]
+[[File:Chula board.jpg|thumb|The ''chula'' board]]
-[[Image:Chula figurines.jpg|thumb|Chula figurines]]
+[[File:Chula figurines.jpg|thumb|''chula'' figurines]]
+'''''Chula''''' was a [[game]] played by the [[Wadi]] race. The game board itself was a large abstract board, which however was portable; once the case containing it opened, the board, in a flash of light, automatically materialized in the room and the players were transported in a virtual world.
-[[Image:Chula dice.jpg|thumb|Chula dice]]
+{{bginfo|The exotic technology behind the chula board was not explained, but it is strongly implied that it was powered by a continuous [[transporter]]-like burst from another location, such as a [[starship]].}}
-[[Image:Chula Corridor.jpg|thumb|A corridor within the chula game.]]
+There were two levels of participation for players of the game, each represented in a different way. The primary player played the game via a traditional physical apparatus with abstract structure to represent components of the game, including an inverted-[[pyramid]] shaped stack of horizontal planes representing each level (or ''shap''), and small [[figurine]]s representing the active internal players. The board also had a [[control panel]] where the primary players could program the hazards and other events indicated by the [[dice]].
-[[Image:Chula Chandras room.jpg|thumb|Chandra's room]]
-[[Image:Chula Partyroom.jpg|thumb|Partyroom]]
+The internal players were transported to a virtual world generated by the game where they interacted in the same way that they would physically interact with the real world. The primary player and the internal players could be considered to be on a team together, but the primary player could not communicate with the internal players.
-'''Chula''' is a game, played by the [[Wadi]] race. [[Quark]] was forced to play the game after rigging the [[Dabo]] table and getting caught by the Wadi.
+The primary player decided what paths would be available to the internal players and what challenges they would face. He made a [[wager]] on the outcome, with challenges of higher difficulty offering a shorter path towards home as well as higher returns. There was also a measure of randomness added by rolling dice, affecting the challenge. The internal players needed to defeat the challenges to progress in the game, moving along a path that was separated by levels called ''shaps''. Along the way they could be harmed or even "die". However, this was only in the world of the game, and when it was over they were returned to the real world unharmed. The goal of the game was to get at least one player to the final ''shap'', which was referred to as "home".
-Quark's objective — to move his four oddly shaped onyx figurines around the serpentine downward spiral of the board. Quark watches with apprehension as the board is set up and the Wadi begins placing bets. Meanwhile, [[Benjamin Sisko]], sound asleep in his quarters, turns over in his bed. He wakes up to find himself dressed in standard [[uniform]], lying on a hard stone floor instead of the bed. He is no longer on the [[space station]], but in an [[alien]] [[corridor]], empty but for a series of doors with strange markings — and totally alone.
+==History==
-Determining he is in no [[holodeck]] illusion, Sisko tries each of the doors, looking for escape. He finally opens one, only to find [[Falow]] on the other side, instructing Sisko cryptically to move along home, after which the door quickly closes. Then a piercing scream leads Sisko down the corridor, where he discovers a terrified Bashir, trying to wake himself up from what he thought was a bad dream. [[Kira Nerys]] and [[Jadzia Dax]] turn up next. Together, they try to find the way "home."
+When the Wadi delegation visited [[Deep Space 9]], they discovered that [[Quark]] was cheating the [[dabo]] board. [[Falow]] gave him a chance to play honestly in order to forget this, and allow him to win more of their gems. When Quark accepted, [[Benjamin Sisko]], [[Jadzia Dax]], [[Kira Nerys]], and [[Julian Bashir]] were transported in the game as internal players. Their disappearance alerted [[Jake Sisko]] and [[Odo]].
+[[George Primmin]] located an [[energy flux]] on the [[Wadi starship]], an intense bipolar current similar to a continuous [[transporter]] burst, and speculated it was responsible for the [[senior staff]]'s disappearance. Odo transported on board the Wadi ship to investigate, but when he reached the source of the flux, he was instantaneously transported back to [[Quark's]].
-Quark is forced to begin play on the new game, even though he does not yet know the rules. He places a minimum bet and rolls the alien dice. Falow states that the combination will cause Quark's pieces to meet the [[Chandra (Wadi)|Chandra]].
+When ''thialo''' occurred to Quark, he thought it was too much to choose whom to sacrifice, believing that his player would die. As a result Falow programmed a random hazard to be decided who would be killed. Sisko, Dax, and Kira were unable to stand and fell into a chasm, thereby being transported back to Quark's. This meant that Quark lost, but he was still interested in discussing a licensing agreement with them. ({{DS9|Move Along Home}})
-In the labyrinth, Sisko and the other officers follow a singing voice to discover a young Wadi girl chanting a rhyme while playing an alien game similar to hopscotch. A force field keeps them from getting to a door on the far side of the room, but the girl can pass through it without a problem. Dax determines they can get to the door that only by repeating the rhyme and performing the hopscotch-like moves. The four officers do it, and are able to exit, with the girl telling them they are at the Third Shap. As this happens, the Wadi group in Quark's goes wild because he has reached the next level. The befuddled Quark wins a nice payoff, not realizing the connection.
+<gallery>
-Falow proposes to Quark that he can progress faster by taking a shortcut on the board, although it doubles the risk to his game pieces. However, a successful move can also double his winnings. While he thinks, [[Odo]] arrives, asking Quark if he might know anything about the missing crew members. A knowing look from Falow causes Quark to make the connection with the four game pieces and the four missing officers. Realizing that the lives of Sisko and the others are literally in his hands, Quark chooses to move the pieces along the safer path. The four officers, meanwhile, continue along the alien corridors, slowly realizing that they may indeed be pawns in one of the Wadi games. A door opens revealing a Wadi party in a smoke-filled room. Falow and other revelers carry drinks. The officers begin to cough violently form the smoke, until [[Julian Bashir]] discovers the drinks are really an antidote. A back door to the room opens, and Falow announces the proclamation of Shap Four. The party vanishes and the officers exit through the door. Back at Quark's, huge reactions with the success. A larger pile of jewels is shoved toward a happy Quark, while Odo watches with displeasure.
+File:Chula dice.jpg|''Chula'' dice
+File:Chula Corridor.jpg|A corridor within the ''chula'' game
+File:Chula Chandras room.jpg|[[Chandra]]'s room
+File:Chula Partyroom.jpg|Party room
+</gallery>
+==Game terms==
-Discovering a strange [[bi-polar current]] aboard the Wadi vessel, Odo finds a room on the ship that emits a blinding light. He enters the chamber, and suddenly appears in Quark's. Odo tries to break up the game. But Falow, knowing that Odo is putting the pieces together, tells Quark the game must continue or he will lose his players. Quark, with Odo's prodding, decides to continue his game pieces along the safer path. He rolls the dice. The Wadi gasp, and Falow announces that it is an unfortunate roll. In the maze, the officers hear a weird energy surge building, which becomes an ominous swirling field which they try to elude. But Bashir is caught by it and swept away. Back to the game, the Bashir game piece is placed in a holding area on the board. Quark decides to gamble, despite Odo's protestations, and take the pieces on a shortcut, hoping to end the game in one move. The chance doesn't work, though. The resulting dice roll causes Falow to declare that Quark must sacrifice one game piece so that the other two may live. Quark begs to not be forced into picking a piece. Falow leaves it for the board to determine at random. As the final wagers are placed, Sisko, Dax, and Kira continue wandering through the corridors. They hear Bashir, shouting he's found the way home. Following his voice, they enter a cavern. The ground begins to shake, causing Dax to injure her leg. Falow again appears, telling them to go to Shap Six. Not finding Bashir, the officers try to escape, but massive quakes in the cavern open an abyss into which they fall helplessly. Suddenly, all four of them find themselves back in Quark's establishment. Falow then informs them that even though Quark lost, they were never in any real danger. It was only a game, after all. Sisko and the others realize this predicament wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for Quark's cheating. As for whether or not he learned his lesson ...
+;[[Allamaraine]]
-([[DS9]], "[[Move Along Home]]")
+;[[Chandra]]
+;Home: The goal that the internal players must reach
+;''Shap'': A level of the game. It usually begins on the second ''shap''; the first is used only by children
+;''Thialo'': Sacrifice a player to save the others
+== Background ==
+According to one of the writers of the episode, [[Jeanne Carrigan-Fauci]], the name of the game, "Chula", comes from and is a {{w|portmanteau}} of {{w|Snakes and Ladders|Chutes and Ladders}}, as the maze game is a "three-dimensional form" of the game. (''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion]]'')
+The script for the episode describes the appearance of Chula as ''"Falow opens the case and a flash of light obliterates the room. When it clears the [[dabo table]] has been replaced by a strange [[alien]] game board... there's a central start point from which a winding maze serpentines downward toward the end triangle. There are twelve shaps (levels). Within the board, there are short cuts between shaps, allowing players to move more rapidly to the end. Falow begins to put a variety of strange symbolic pieces (think hotels in {{w|Monopoly (game)|Monopoly}}) at various intervals, elaborately "setting up" the board... there is also an electronic component to the board with switches and blinkies..."''. (''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion - A Series Guide and Script Library]]'')
+== External link ==
+* {{NCwiki}}
-[[Category:Recreation]]
 [[de:Chula]]
+[[Category:Recreation]]