Where was the Enterprise during the Dominion War?

[Destructor]

I'm currently on book 5 of the 'A Time To...' series, and the Enterprise crew are always alluding to the fact that they had a terrible time during the Dominion War. Now, I've read the Dominion War TNG books by John Vornholt, and I know that they have been somewhat over-written by the DS9 relaunch, but I certainly imagine that the Enterprise made a raid on an artificial wormhole generator at some point between 'Call to Arms' and 'Sacrifice of Angels'. I also recall 'The Battle of Betazed' and that the Enterprise had a small role to play at the end of that novel. But in both those cases the majority of the action was a small cell of people working to bring down the Dominion, not an action of the Enterprise crew as a whole. And that's just two events out of a war that lasted two years. What were they doing the rest of the time?

All I've got is:

* A diplomatic mission to the Evora (INS)
* A raid on Illarh (Tales of the Dominion War))
* Picard and Troy attend Starfleet Academy prior to the Breen attack (Tales of the Dominion War)

And uh... that's it! What were they doing all that time, exactly? They weren't involved in the final battle for Cardassia, which is fine I'm sure there were a million things to be doing, but it's surprising that Trek Lit hasn't provided any more answers for us. Does this get touched on in any of the TNG relaunch novels?

 

[captcalhoun]

nope.

 

[Sxottlan]

It's classified.

 

[Deranged Nasat]

Well, they participated in the Battle of Rigel at the beginning of 2375 ("The Battle of Betazed" starts with the Enterprise undergoing repairs in the aftermath, because a spiral-wave disruptor caused some major damage). We know that Rigel was a large battle - in "DS9: Section 31: Abyss", it's said that it was essentially a full-out attempted invasion of the entire Rigel system. The Federation won, though.

They were also involved (mid-2375) in the Battle of Rictor Prime, which was quite a bad one (if reasonably small). "The Sky's the Limit" showed their participation in that.

Oh, and in 2374 they were on a diplomatic mission to the Gorn homeworld (as seen in "The Gorn Crisis", which is mentioned in novels so often it has to "count" as part of the general continuity). They were trying to get the Gorn to join the war effort. Also, in "Immortal Coil", which takes place around the same general time, they apparently had a similiar mission to Tzenketh. And, in "The Sky's the Limit", they're orbiting over Romulus on Admiral Dougherty's orders soon after the Romulans join the war effort, to start the process of co-ordinating joint operations (Picard takes the time to visit Alidar Jarok's family while he's there). So it seems the Enterprise spent much of 2374 (at least between the recapture of DS9 and Chin'toka) on diplomatic missions, trying to rally allies or show the flag in various places. Then, in 2375, after Chin'toka, they start participating in the battles a lot more...Rigel, Betazed, Rictor Prime - but they still get pulled back to diplomatic duties like with Evora.

 

[C.E. Evans]

For me, the brief line of dialog in "Insurrection" was enough to cover what the Enterprise was doing during the Dominion War. Plus, I liked the idea that there was a major situation in which the Enterprise wasn't the star.

 

[Deranged Nasat]

I definitely think it's right to have Enterprise absent from much of the fighting in the first year or so, instead out doing the diplomatic flag-waving stuff - cashing in on its flagship status, as a "household name" and of course using Picard's diplomatic skills. Not as prominant or memorable, perhaps, but it seems right - and as you say, C.E. Evans, it avoids the tired "if it was major, a ship named Enterprise must be there!" idea. It reminds us that the rest of the Starfleet is actually there to do things, rather than provide a backdrop for "Adventures of Enterprise".

 

[FordSVT]

Admit it, we all just wanted to see Picard tear some Dominion ships apart on screen in the 1701-E.

It was a big war involving thousands of ships and multiple fronts, not even Enterprise can be everywhere at once. I could imagine her being a target of note for the Dominion, however, as the Founders were adapt in psychological warfare. Destroying the legendary flagship would be demoralizing to the citizens of the Federation.

 

[bok2384]

I maybe remembering incorrectly, but I think the first book in the Slings and Arrows saw the Dominion gain classified technical information about the Enterprise and all Sovereign-class ships in general. I think this was given as the reason why the Enterprise or any of her sister ships weren't involved in any of the major conflicts of the Dominion War.

On the other hand, FordSVT's suggestion works better for me.

 

[ProwlAlpha]

I maybe remembering incorrectly, but I think the first book in the Slings and Arrows saw the Dominion gain classified technical information about the Enterprise and all Sovereign-class ships in general. I think this was given as the reason why the Enterprise or any of her sister ships weren't involved in any of the major conflicts of the Dominion War.

On the other hand, FordSVT's suggestion works better for me.

I know you are just relaying information, but that explanation is really stupid. Especially, when the story takes place in 2372. That at least a year or two to implement some security measures. Besides, it didn't stop Starfleet Command from sending the Enterprise-D to various encounters with the Borg, after the Borg went through Enterprise's computers.

Personally, I think the Enterprise's Dominion War experience was the same for every command level (as in flagship) starship. Battles, coordination, missions, repairs, funerals, and other stuff. I would like to have seen the Enterprise and the other Sovereigns actually receive flag accommodations with Picard dealing with an Admiral and his/her staff, but I hope if we do see its not Picard-knows-all and the Admiral is a complete moron.

 

[ryan123450]

If IDW were to make an ongoing series on the Enterprise-E starting from the ships launch, incorporating all these points of knowledge, and all the adventures from the movies, it would be amazing. Use all these little tidbits as a basis, and go from there. Something akin to how, in Early Voyages, they took the mission Pike had just finished in "The Cage" and fleshed it out.

 

[Stevil2001]

One of the Shatnerverse novels claimed that the Enterprise's fame reputation if off the battlelines-- enemy intelligence would devote a lot of resources to finding out where it was, so if it wasn't with a battlegroup, that was better.

The real question is why none of the senior staff took a transfer to another ship to spread those skills around. It makes Riker look like a major jackass if captains are dying all around him and there's a shortage of trained officers and he's all "Well, I just don't feel ready to leave the Enterprise." Ditto Data and Geordi and so. Put that talent on the front lines!

 

[Joel_Kirk]

The OP's question reminds of a line from Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers where Aragorn asks if Gondor will join in the fight against the enemy at Helm's Deep.

I can imagine someone claiming ENT was off doing it's own thing when people were 'busting their ass' during the Dominion War.

To paraphrase King Theodin:

"Enterprise? Where was the Enterprise when the first line fell? Where was the Enterprise when our enemies closed in around us? Where was the Enterprise...

"No, [insert name], we are alone."

Not saying (as others have pointed out)that the ENT being present would have had things turn out different. It looked like the Defiant or DS9 was the 'flagship' for that moment.

Also, Starfleet has many, many, many, many other ships with capable crews...

 

[Destructor]

The real question is why none of the senior staff took a transfer to another ship to spread those skills around. It makes Riker look like a major jackass if captains are dying all around him and there's a shortage of trained officers and he's all "Well, I just don't feel ready to leave the Enterprise." Ditto Data and Geordi and so. Put that talent on the front lines!

It's possible that Starfleet (or Picard, pulling strings) felt that the strength of the vessel lay in the cohesion of it's crew, and that splitting the crew up would lessen that effectiveness. There's actually a genuine military phenomenon called 'Command Fatigue', which is when a Captain's leave rotation falls out of sync with that of his soldiers, and they have to get accustomed to a new style of command under the new Captain, which apparently takes several months and is not recommended from a unit cohesion point of view.

 

[Cicero]

. . . it avoids the tired "if it was major, a ship named Enterprise must be there!" idea. It reminds us that the rest of the Starfleet is actually there to do things, rather than provide a backdrop for "Adventures of Enterprise".

Oddly enough, that idea has some historical precedent. Excepting famous single-ship actions (two of which were fought by an Enterprise), outside the Civil War and Spanish-American War, (when no Enterprise was serving) only four major naval battles involving the US Navy didn't have a ship named Enterprise present: Lake Champlain, Lake Erie, and Coral Sea.

The histories of the Barbary War and the Pacific War at sea can be broadly told as histories of the contemporary USS Enterprises. (The World War II Enterprise even fought at Pearl Harbor; later, after all other US carriers had been destroyed or forced out of action, the crew hung a banner on the hangar deck that read "Enterprise vs. Japan.") Even the first Enterprise fought at Quebec and at Valcour Island, the naval battle which saved the American Revolution; it actually survived the destruction of the American fleet there (the battle was a strategic victory).

 

[TheAlmanac]

The real question is why none of the senior staff took a transfer to another ship to spread those skills around. It makes Riker look like a major jackass if captains are dying all around him and there's a shortage of trained officers and he's all "Well, I just don't feel ready to leave the Enterprise." Ditto Data and Geordi and so. Put that talent on the front lines!

This is a good point, especially when "lesser" events like the task force in "Redemption" called for someone like Data to temporarily assume command of another starship.

To be fair, this could also be raised about some of the DS9 crew, but they were at least shown occasionally separating and going off on different missions, as opposed to always sticking together on the Defiant and/or the station itself.

 

[KRAD]

What were they doing all that time, exactly? They weren't involved in the final battle for Cardassia, which is fine I'm sure there were a million things to be doing, but it's surprising that Trek Lit hasn't provided any more answers for us. Does this get touched on in any of the TNG relaunch novels?

Here's a list I made up of TNG stories and stories involving the TNG characters that took place during the time of the Dominion War (I compiled the list for the final eBook of the Slings and Arrows miniseries):

"What Dreams May Come" by Michael Jan Friedman in ST: Tales of the Dominion War
TNG: The Dominion War Book 1: Behind Enemy Lines by John Vornholt
TNG: The Dominion War Book 3: Tunnel Through the Stars by John Vornholt
"The First" by Peg Robinson in ST: Strange New Worlds
"Reciprocity" by Brad Curry in ST: Strange New Worlds II
TNG/X-Men: Planet X by Michael Jan Friedman
"Bedside Matters" by Greg Cox in The Amazing Stories
"The Soft Room" by Geoffrey Thorne in ST: Strange New Worlds VI
TNG: Immortal Coil by Jeffrey Lang
TNG: The Q-Continuum Book 1: Q-Space by Greg Cox
TNG: The Q-Continuum Book 2: Q-Zone by Greg Cox
TNG: The Q-Continuum Book 3: Q-Strike by Greg Cox
ST: Spectre by William Shatner, with Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens
ST: Dark Victory by William Shatner, with Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens
"Suicide Note" by Geoff Trowbridge in TNG: The Sky's the Limit
"Mirror Eyes" by Heather Jarman & Jeffrey Lang in ST: Tales of the Dominion War
TNG: The Battle of Betazed by Charlotte Douglas & Susan Kearney
Star Trek: Insurrection
"Four Lights" by Keith R.A. DeCandido in TNG: The Sky's the Limit
ST: Preserver by William Shatner, with Judith & Garfield Reeves-Stevens
"Home Soil" by Jim Johnson in ST: Strange New Worlds 9
"Eleven Hours Out" by Dave Galanter in ST: Tales of the Dominion War
"Solace in Bloom" by Jeff D. Jacques in ST: Strange New Worlds 9
"The Human Factor" by Russ Crossley in ST: Strange New Worlds VI

 

[JD]

I'm honestly amazed that they never at least made some kind of a reference to what the E-E was up during DS9's Dominion War episodes. I can understand not having the ship on the show, but you'd think they would at least want to say what they were up too. Were they afraid they might limit what would happen in the movies?

 

[C.E. Evans]

I'm honestly amazed that they never at least made some kind of a reference to what the E-E was up during DS9's Dominion War episodes. I can understand not having the ship on the show, but you'd think they would at least want to say what they were up too. Were they afraid they might limit what would happen in the movies?

It was a big war. If anything, the Dominion War was a reminder that the Enterprise wasn't the only ship in the fleet capable of doing anything, IMO.

 

[Cicero]

. . . it avoids the tired "if it was major, a ship named Enterprise must be there!" idea. It reminds us that the rest of the Starfleet is actually there to do things, rather than provide a backdrop for "Adventures of Enterprise".

Oddly enough, that idea has some historical precedent. Excepting famous single-ship actions (two of which were fought by an Enterprise), outside the Civil War and Spanish-American War, (when no Enterprise was serving) only four major naval battles involving the US Navy didn't have a ship named Enterprise present: Lake Champlain, Lake Erie, and Coral Sea.

That should have read "only three."

 

[Captaindemotion]

Admit it, we all just wanted to see Picard tear some Dominion ships apart on screen in the 1701-E.

It was a big war involving thousands of ships and multiple fronts, not even Enterprise can be everywhere at once. I could imagine her being a target of note for the Dominion, however, as the Founders were adapt in psychological warfare. Destroying the legendary flagship would be demoralizing to the citizens of the Federation.

I think one of the Shatnerverse novels suggested that the ENT-E was kept out of the frontline for that very reason - that the destruction of the flagship of the fleet would be to demoralizing for Starfleet and too much of a coup for the Dominion to risk it. I quite like the Shatnerverse, but I always thought that explanation was totally dumb. What's the point in having such an advances ship and experienced Captain if you aren't prepared to put them in harm's way?

I always thought it a shame that we didn't at least get a fly-by glimpse of the ENT-E or a cameo or voice-only appearance by one of the ENT bridge crew during any of the big battle episodes in DS9.