Star Trek medal for a workmate

[brotherofjake]

Hello, I´m new here and have a specific mater, I need help with.

A workmate of mine, who has become a good friend over the last years, is going to quit the job at the end of December. He always had my back, is a good an decent guy and can work hard. Often, he seems to be a bit on the quiet side ... so often the more up front colleagues get the honor, but he was the lad doing the work ... I hope you know, what kind of guy I mean.

Well, he´s a HUGE Star Trek Fan ... but I have not much clue. I may be 90% sure if it´s Picard or Skywalker, no ofense, so I hope, you can help me out here. I want to make a medal for him, honoring his merits. So my Idea was, to give him a medal, that is in line with the Star Trek lore and universe ... and here I struggel. I did some research, but got confused fast, what is "real" what is "fanfiction" if ther is a consistent system at all ( ... seems to be some similaritys to the Navy an the US Military) or if there are just some ceremonys and "made up" medals in the different epsiodes and films of all the series and films. Again, I mean no ofense, I´m just plain overstrained, to get things right for a fan who knows ...

So I hope, you can help me with recommondations, what medal would fit him and if there are pictures, drawings, models of that medal, that I could use to 3D-print and paint for him.

Thanks in advance, if you need more information, about what the medal should reward or the project, just let me know.

 

[Michael]

First of all, I think it’s cool that you want to gift your workmate something like that. You are correct that Starfleet, the organization we usually see in the various Star Trek shows and movies, is pseudo-military in nature and uses a rank system similar to that of the US Navy. In terms of medals, though, there’s not much I can think of off the top of my head.

There’s the Christopher Pike Medal of Valor, that was mentioned and shown in a couple of episodes. But you’d have to track down a 3D model of that to have it printed, and I don’t think it exists as a readily available merch item.

You know, my recommendation would actually be to get one of these beautiful golden Insignia Badges (the one in the link is for an officer in the command section of Starfleet, say a commander or a captain). They are made of metal, which means you could very well have something engraved on its back; maybe his name and position within your workplace. I believe practically every Trek fan out there would love and appreciate getting one of these, because they are quite nice to look at.

I guess my point is, I don’t think you’d have to 3D print something to make it a special gift for a Trek fan.

Edit to add: Here’s a list of more awards and medals that were mentioned or shown on Star Trek, but I would say none of these are well known enough (even among Trek fans) that I would recommend using that as a basis for what you have in mind.

 

[NCC-73515]

Starfleet decorations

Decorations were worn by Starfleet officers, generally on dress uniforms. In 2256, when Saru asked for a list of Starfleet's most decorated captains, the computer listed: Robert April, Jonathan Archer, Matthew Decker, Philippa Georgiou, and Christopher Pike. (DIS: "Choose Your Pain") By the year...

memory-alpha.fandom.com

 

[Tosk]

I don't have a good suggestion, but I think it's top notch what you're doing for him.

I believe practically every Trek fan out there would love and appreciate getting one of these, because they are quite nice to look at.

With the one potential problem of Trek preference. He may not be a Discovery fan. May even dislike it. So some acquired knowledge of his taste might be needed when it comes to something like that.

Edited to add: Speaking of stuff that might work but hard to be sure, a Klingon medallion or badge could be cool...seeing as honor is totally their thing...

 

[Michael]

With the one potential problem of Trek preference. He may not be a Discovery fan. May even dislike it. So some acquired knowledge of his taste might be needed when it comes to something like that.

Well, I’m not a particularly big fan of Discovery myself and I still would appreciate someone gifting me one of these badges. There’s something about their simplicity that’s very appealing. And I like that they made it out of full metal.

But of course you are still right, there’s a chance that it might represent just the show he doesn’t care for. So I guess the safer bet (and my recommendation to @brotherofjake) would be to either get a nice metal replica of the commbadge from The Next Generation or the later one from Deep Space Nine/Voyager, because there’s a much bigger chance he likes one of the 90s shows set in the 24th century of Star Trek.

Edited to add: Speaking of stuff that might work but hard to be sure, a Klingon medallion or badge could be cool...seeing as honor is totally their thing...

See, as someone who’s really tired of everything Klingon in Trek and doesn’t care at all for the whole “honor” schtick, getting a Klingon badge would totally bum me out.

 

[NCC-73515]

If you make the order of the bat'leth, pin it on his chest saying "Glory to you... and your hooouuuuuse!" while opening your eyes as much as you can, he will most certainly enjoy that

 

[brotherofjake]

Thanks to all of you and your suggesstions and links! My colleague was born in the 80s, so I think he will be fine with all Picard and TNG relatedt stuff, but I know, that he also enjoyed "Lower Decks", so I guess - even not knowing about his view on Discovery - he would be fine with a lot of things from Star Trek. After reading and comparing I think I´ll narrow it down as follows:

- Christopher Pike Medal of Valor could be one option. There is a good amount of lore and pictures, so I should be able to make a decent model for my 3D-printer. On the other hand it seems to be a pretty big and high ranking, so beeig the reluctant guy he often is, he might feel a bit uncomfortable with this one.
- Starfleet Medal of Honor or Star Cross Medal seem to me a littel "lower" and might fit quiet well ... I found pictures of both and there are like "old" and "newer" designes, so i can be more creative in making a model
- The golden Insignia Badges are a valid backup plan, if my modelling doesn´t go as planned, than I may purchase one of these and let it engrave.
- I think I´ll not go for Klingons ... I dont think they fit him well ... and there is a decent lack of grimlooking longhaired coworkers, open fire and drums at work, to make a propper ceremony

One last consideration: Another friend of mine suggested, I could make him a Tamarian dagger instead of a medal. The Episode it´s from would be well known and it supports the diplomatic / communicaition orientated side of Federation and Starfleet. What do youn think on that one?

 

[Avro Arrow]

Just thought I'd throw in some additional suggestions if you were interested!

It's not a military medal or award or anything, but I've always kind of liked the Federation badge from Star Trek IV. The people attending the Council meetings all wore them.

Another option would be, since you are planning to print your own medal anyway, just make your own medal design based on either the United Federation of Planets logo, or the Starfleet Command logo:

They wouldn't necessarily represent any specific award in universe, but a custom medal based on one of those could be fun. There are different variations of the logos depending on which show/movie they were used in, so you could Google them and pick the version you like the best.

The thing with the in-universe medals and awards is that they are usually just background props, and generally speaking, they might not be that recognizable to fans. I know Kirk's Medal of Honor was a minor plot point in one episode and got a close up, but it's just kind of a generic looking medal, and if someone showed me a replica on the street, I probably wouldn't recognize that it was from Star Trek. (To be fair, there are probably other fans out there who would recognize it!) But these logos are probably going to be more readily recognizable to fans. You could make a custom medal based on the Federation logo, for example, and then "award" it to him for "embodying the ideals of the Federation" or something like that. He would probably be happy you gave him something related to the show at all, it probably wouldn't matter that much that it wasn't something from in-universe.

Just a thought. But I also wanted to say that what you're doing is very kind and thoughtful, and I'm sure he'll be happy with whatever you come up with!

 

[NCC-73515]

From the 2009 JJ Abrams film

 

[Tosk]

One last consideration: Another friend of mine suggested, I could make him a Tamarian dagger instead of a medal. The Episode it´s from would be well known and it supports the diplomatic / communicaition orientated side of Federation and Starfleet. What do youn think on that one?

Personally I think that's a fabulous alternative. Especially as some Trekkies don't necessarily want to wear their geek flag out in the open, a knife is perhaps a more subtle display...and the significance is only apparent to another Trekkie.

All that said without knowing him of course.

 

[Avro Arrow]

One last consideration: Another friend of mine suggested, I could make him a Tamarian dagger instead of a medal. The Episode it´s from would be well known and it supports the diplomatic / communicaition orientated side of Federation and Starfleet. What do youn think on that one?

Personally I think that's a fabulous alternative. Especially as some Trekkies don't necessarily want to wear their geek flag out in the open, a knife is perhaps a more subtle display...and the significance is only apparent to another Trekkie.

I guess my counterargument might be that it's perhaps too subtle... much like the random Starfleet medals, would most Trek fans even recognize a Tamarian dagger on sight? I had to look it up on MA to see what it looked like.

Granted, I'm not into knives in any way, so maybe I'm an outlier and other fans would recognize it instantly.

 

[Shawnster]

https://www.bradfordexchange.com/products/924006_star-trek-starfleet-academy-challenge-coins.html

A challenge coin would work. This one isn't series specific.

The Starfleet Academy Challenge Coin Collection
Officially licensed! 24K gold-plated challenge coins feature Starfleet Command School imagery with enameled accents. Clear capsules, deluxe display.

This fine collectible is not legal tender and bears no monetary face value.
Coins measure approximately 2" in diameter; display box measures 8-5/16" W x 12-1/16" L x 2-1/2" D