In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe....

[The Rock]

....that the Federation that was losing to the Klingons would eventually triumph over them, somehow.

I mean in the regular timeline, the Federation was losing against the Dominion, and they still found a way to win.

And in the alt timeline from Yesterday's Enterprise, even though they said that the Federation was losing against the Klingons and that the Klingons would win the war in six months, do you think that somehow, some way, the Federation would find a way to win?

 

[Hando]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

I don't want to crush your hope, but 3 off-screen sources (Star Trek Online, Q-Squared and All Our Yesterdays) show otherwise.

 

[BillJ]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

All Our Yesterdays was an episode of TOS.

Federation was toast in the alternate timeline.

 

[ATimson]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

All Our Yesterdays was an episode of TOS.

It was also the name of the time travel sourcebook for one of the pencil-and-paper Trek RPGs.

 

[BillJ]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

All Our Yesterdays was an episode of TOS.

It was also the name of the time travel sourcebook for one of the pencil-and-paper Trek RPGs.

Thanks. Was never into the pencil-and-paper RPG's.

 

[Anwar]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

Well, we don't know how bad off the Klingons were either. Most likely, the damage done by the War would've caused the Klingons to be a similar state of near collapse. They just hid it better.

 

[R. Star]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

I always figured that the Klingons just launched a wide scale surprise attack much like Pearl Harbor, eliminating a large portion of the fleet, it's bases and assets all along the border, and the Federation never completely recovered from that, and twenty years of attrition just wore them down to the breaking point.

A twenty year war is going to take it's toll on the victor too no doubt. I wouldn't be surprised if the Romulans were just licking their lips in anticipation at attacking whoever wins.

 

[Captrek]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

....that the Federation that was losing to the Klingons would eventually triumph over them, somehow.

I mean in the regular timeline, the Federation was losing against the Dominion, and they still found a way to win.

And in the alt timeline from Yesterday's Enterprise, even though they said that the Federation was losing against the Klingons and that the Klingons would win the war in six months, do you think that somehow, some way, the Federation would find a way to win?

Yes. The Federation found a way to “win” by sending the Enterprise-C back in time to Narendra III and preventing the war from ever happening.

 

[Praetor]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

Carrying through the Pearl Harbor metaphor, perhaps the Federation had a Fat Man and Little Boy up their sleeves? Genesis Devices ftw?

 

[R. Star]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

Given they weren't used during the Dominion War, despite how bad it got, it's likely Carol destroyed the knowledge of it after it didn't work and her son died over it. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if it was a treaty requirement in the Khitomer Accords given how antsy the Klingons were over it.

 

[The Rock]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

Carrying through the Pearl Harbor metaphor, perhaps the Federation had a Fat Man and Little Boy up their sleeves? Genesis Devices ftw?

Perhaps the Federation had developed a thalaron weapon and were willing to use it out of desperation?

 

[BillJ]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

It really seems like the Federation would've put all their cards on the table when they were that close to losing. Genesis device, thalaron radiation, sub-space weapons.

 

[Praetor]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

I imagine the Federation that fought a twenty-year war with the Klingons was on the whole a darker, scarier civilization.

 

[The Rock]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

It really seems like the Federation would've put all their cards on the table when they were that close to losing. Genesis device, thalaron radiation, sub-space weapons.

Indeed!

I imagine the Federation that fought a twenty-year war with the Klingons was on the whole a darker, scarier civilization.

Yup. I mean, in the REGULAR timeline, look at what the Federation did to beat the Dominion. They tricked the Romulans into being their allies so they could win the war. There's no telling the horrible (but perhaps necessary) things they would've tried in the alternate timeline with the war against the Klingons.

 

[P0sitr0nic]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

I imagine the Federation that fought a twenty-year war with the Klingons was on the whole a darker, scarier civilization.

Think of the admiral in the new movie... willing to do anything. I think a federation 20 years + at war with Klingons might be willing to use a doomsday weapon. Even one that looks like a paper mache cone....

 

[Lance]

Re: In the alt timeline in Yesterday's Enterprise, I'd like to believe

I like to theorize that the reason the Feds are losing the war in the Alt Timeline is because, by their very nature, the Klingons bounced back into "war mode" much quicker than the Federation did. So Starfleet probably were on the back foot from the very first moment official declarations of war were made. Both fleets had to demilaterize following the events of STVI, but the Klingons are a warrior people and their ships are much smaller and more "rough and ready" than Federation ships, ergo also easier to mass produce. With this in mind no doubt the Klingons regained a war fleet that was on pre-peacetime levels much faster than Starfleet could rebuild their own armada.


As a kind of thumbnail sketch, here's how I imagine the sequence of events:

Following the events of STVI, both sides demilitarize. Parts of both fleets are stood down, but an uneasy peace stands for a while on both sides, because it's impossible to forget past conflicts so easily. Perhaps the traitors from STVI agitate things a bit as well from behind bars.

After several decades of this kind of uneasy tension, comes Narendra III. This is the turning point which decides whether the future turns into outright war, or into the firm peace that we got in TNG. The sacrifice of the Enterprise C (to presumably save the outpost, although I don't recall if this was ever stated outright on screen) sees the Klingons finally admit the Federation are honorable friends. This is where we got the peace-time of the TNG era.

Alternatively, if the Enterprise C vanishes into the rift and Narendra is instead destroyed by the Romulans, then the uneasy tension escalates again into conflict. Details of what actually happened are sketchy, as there are no survivors other than the Romulans who, naturally, say nothing about what really happened, given it was them all along.

With certain elements in the Federation suspecting that the Klingons had something to do with the disappearance (assumed destruction) of the Enterprise; the Klingons believing Starfleet had something to do with the destruction of the outpost; and the Romulans sitting back and letting the other two sides fight it out amongst themselves without correcting either incorrect point-of-view, things errupt into the war we see in the Alt Timeline.