Speculate: Why wasn't DS9 retrofitted w/Quantum Torps?
- Thread starter Photon
- Start date
There are quite a few inconsistencies in trek this is just one of them. You have the most strategic point which happens to be a station near the wormhole and the federation doesn't keep a garrison of troops or fleet close enough in the event of an attack (it's unlikely a real federation wouldn't have a small task force or fleet stationed at or nearby within minutes or hours).
Think of DS9 like Germany and parts of western europe during the cold war. There were plans and the logistics of supply and troop movements were planned very thoroughly.
DS9 itself as a series you would have wagered they would have mass produced defiants considering the success it had versus jem hadar ships and cardassian in general. You have a small ship with a small crew that is easy to fill compared to even a reliant or excelsior class. There are what three fairly large shipyards that are commonly known.
The dominion again while they stress how strong they are can't build ships faster than they can acquire the resources. The only advantage they really have realistically is they can garrison and furnish troops and crew much much faster than any other empire. This further illustrates the big hole in the federation ship priorities as shown in the series.
General backstory on federation and alpha quadrant since discovering warp is that ufp has been able to to use diplomacy and economics to force the other empires to remain defensive. Klingons being an example ufp has been dominant over them mainly due to better quality and technology as well as acquiring raw materials and resources much more efficiently.
It just seems like nothing has changed in the 24th century as if all the combatants have the same level of advancement through technology then the ultimate test will come through training and economics. Japan during ww2 is a good example as the major difficulty with their empire was economics and lack of resources.
Think of DS9 like Germany and parts of western europe during the cold war. There were plans and the logistics of supply and troop movements were planned very thoroughly.
DS9 itself as a series you would have wagered they would have mass produced defiants considering the success it had versus jem hadar ships and cardassian in general. You have a small ship with a small crew that is easy to fill compared to even a reliant or excelsior class. There are what three fairly large shipyards that are commonly known.
The dominion again while they stress how strong they are can't build ships faster than they can acquire the resources. The only advantage they really have realistically is they can garrison and furnish troops and crew much much faster than any other empire. This further illustrates the big hole in the federation ship priorities as shown in the series.
General backstory on federation and alpha quadrant since discovering warp is that ufp has been able to to use diplomacy and economics to force the other empires to remain defensive. Klingons being an example ufp has been dominant over them mainly due to better quality and technology as well as acquiring raw materials and resources much more efficiently.
It just seems like nothing has changed in the 24th century as if all the combatants have the same level of advancement through technology then the ultimate test will come through training and economics. Japan during ww2 is a good example as the major difficulty with their empire was economics and lack of resources.
What they should have done is load the crud out of the station with quantum torps, reinforce it with regenerative ablative armor, convert the pylons into super awesome phaser arrays and replace the fusion core with a wave motion gun, and then have that baby warp into a battle all spinning and firing all weapons. Spasms of ecstasy indeed! 
...And after reading through all that, one finds that it doesn't say anything about the quantum torpedoes being more powerful than the photon ones, or about any ship or installation other than E-E and Defiant using them. Everything about quantums is noncanonical backstage gossip, save for the fact that they are used by those two hero ships and that Quark claims they are better than photons in some ill-described way (and thus naturally cost more).
Also, since we only ever see quantums fired by dedicated launchers of select ships, they are probably incompatible with photons somehow. Which would mean depriving the launch platform of photon capability if an all-quantum arsenal were installed. Of course, DS9 could mind its ps and qs easily enough, devoting three defense sails to each type... but quantums don't seem to be worth the fuss. Mainly, we've seen them used in close combat, while the station would want to keep its opponents at an arm's length because it can't withdraw much.
Why should a space war have front lines?
Bajor was only important as the strategic passage to the Gamma Quadrant. After "Sacrifice of Angels", that passage no longer existed. OTOH, the Alpha powers had moved disproportionate forces to that system, making it more or less impregnable. It would certainly be in the Dominion's interest to keep things unchanged, with major Alpha forces tied down in a worthless star system by token strikes while the actual war proceeded elsewhere...
Timo Saloniemi
I have never seen or heard of the series mentioning quantums in detail. Who knows what the scoop is besides what others have been dreaming up?
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