What was Worf's job before he became Chief of Security?
- Thread starter Bacl
- Start date
^ that. A jack-of-all-trades, strongly in the command path at that point I think. I liked how he would hop on any console or station as needed, or work in engineering. That's just what, in my mind, a Captain needs to have under his belt.
Worf seemed to function somewhat like the Officer of the Deck (OOD) on US Navy ships or as a Duty Officer.
Yeoman 
Utility Brige Officer. Considerin' he worked with Tasha in Security, and assumed both Ops & Conn whenever they were left open, he didn't seem to have a specific task, other than bein' a seat filler in command red.
This seems to be basically it.
Of course real world reason they did not really decide what everyone's job was until season 2. Making Geordi Chief Engineer then was a bit of a master stroke, now everyone had a defined position.
It is still silly that the kid became an instant Bridge Officer, but at least until season 3 he generally is not treated as senior staff.
Yeah, in the first season, they hadn't really figured out LaForge or Worf's role. They had a bunch of different chief engineers of the week, until they settled on Geordi in season two. Worf was just a token bridge officer in season one.
If we really want to invent a specific role for Worf (even though the writers had no clue), my vote would go for "Tactical Officer". Ships are supposed to have those, and it has always been a bit weird that the person in charge of internal security would be the one to operate the ship's guns, too. Perhaps the job was split originally, with Worf the Tactical Officer (as people in charge of the ship's guns did wear command colors previously, in TOS) and Yar the Security Officer - and the combining only came with the demise of Yar.
I mean, the chairs or consoles mean virtually nothing: the front portside station could be Tactical just as well as Ops, the back arch could be Ops just as well as Security or Sciences. Our heroes were probably experimenting with an optimal layout for the first year. But at least Yar did play the Security role more or less consistently, LaForge played the Helm role more or less consistently, and Data played the Ops or Sciences role more or less consistently. Since Worf is the odd man out, Tactical would be an ideal position for him - because Tactical would see the least onscreen use, as Picard in the first season did not engage in space battles much. Worf's "doing nothing" would thus get a perfect explanation!
Timo Saloniemi
I mean, the chairs or consoles mean virtually nothing: the front portside station could be Tactical just as well as Ops, the back arch could be Ops just as well as Security or Sciences. Our heroes were probably experimenting with an optimal layout for the first year. But at least Yar did play the Security role more or less consistently, LaForge played the Helm role more or less consistently, and Data played the Ops or Sciences role more or less consistently. Since Worf is the odd man out, Tactical would be an ideal position for him - because Tactical would see the least onscreen use, as Picard in the first season did not engage in space battles much. Worf's "doing nothing" would thus get a perfect explanation!
Timo Saloniemi
Worf always was a senior member, he always sat on staff meetings.
In season 1, he was the Tactical Officer, whilst Yar was Security Chief.
I always found it weird though, since it seems merging the two must have happened across the whole of Starfleet, and not just on the Enterprise. In Voyager Tuvok was both Security Chief and Tactical officer.
I suppose in a sense the two positions complement each other. I'd imagine security chief entails ensuring the physical security (in both safeguarding from intrusion and in a computer-sense) of the ship, as well as apprehending miscreants onboard. Offensive systems could be used, in a way, to enhance a ship's physical security.
In season 1, he was the Tactical Officer, whilst Yar was Security Chief.
I always found it weird though, since it seems merging the two must have happened across the whole of Starfleet, and not just on the Enterprise. In Voyager Tuvok was both Security Chief and Tactical officer.
I suppose in a sense the two positions complement each other. I'd imagine security chief entails ensuring the physical security (in both safeguarding from intrusion and in a computer-sense) of the ship, as well as apprehending miscreants onboard. Offensive systems could be used, in a way, to enhance a ship's physical security.
That doesn't convince me. Voyager was but one ship, not a representative example of Starfleet at large. And she was a ship making do with replacement personnel after suffering major casualties. Tuvok only assumed the combined Tactical and Security position after those casualties - until then, he was spoken of as the Security Chief, off to an assignment.
Really, those casualties were later said to have included at least one unseen Commander and two Lieutenant Commanders in addition to the XO, LtCmdr Cavit. One of those LtCmdrs might have been the Chief Medical Officer, but we would need other top positions to accommodate at least one LtCmdr and one Cmdr, and preferably the latter should be out of the chain of command since he or she outranked Cavit yet Cavit held the highest position in the chain of command below Janeway...
With Security already taken by Tuvok, the remaining LtCmdr could well be Tactical. Or then Chief of Ops, another known casualty because his or her loss allowed Ensign Kim to take over that position. Or Chief Engineer, who also was lost. And the mysterious Commander could be Chief Science Officer, to keep him or her out of the chain of command.
Timo Saloniemi
They never explained Gordi switching to engineering and they never really showed Worf officially take over for Tasha I would have liked to have seen that.
They sort of returned to the LaForge thing in "Next Phase" and "All Good Things", explaining that he had been a shuttle pilot (and later a helm officer on the Victory) but had always demonstrated aptitude and willingness to fix and tune the vessels trusted to him. So Picard might have always been grooming LaForge for an engineering position, knowing that he'd be good at it, even if the ship didn't have that position open during the first season yet.
Timo Saloniemi
Timo Saloniemi
MeanJoePhaser
Admiral
Top 10 Job Titles for Worf before he became Chief of Security
10- Wesley's Wet Nurse
9- Head of Operations that are too boring to show
8- Bandolier Fashion Model
7- Hostile Staring Contest Champion
6- Bearer of the Brunt of Q's Mockery
5- Riker's Cock Blocker
4- Bumpy-Foreheaded Alien Liaison Officer
3-Captain's Dog
2- Jar Opener for Dr. Crusher
1- Chief Boot Knocker
10- Wesley's Wet Nurse
9- Head of Operations that are too boring to show
8- Bandolier Fashion Model
7- Hostile Staring Contest Champion
6- Bearer of the Brunt of Q's Mockery
5- Riker's Cock Blocker
4- Bumpy-Foreheaded Alien Liaison Officer
3-Captain's Dog
2- Jar Opener for Dr. Crusher
1- Chief Boot Knocker
