# What was the most powerful starship ever to appear in any of the Star Trek series? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 21, 2003, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350 "2003-06-21T03:28:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/41 "2003-06-23T13:47:50Z")
The Jem’hedar ships from ST:DS9 were pretty bad ass. And how about the Brill? Still my favorite still was Admiral Riker’s flagship- the 3 nacelled, cloal-enabled, Klingon butt-kicking Enterprise from the series finale. ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/42 "2003-06-23T13:51:02Z")
The Jem’hedar ships from ST:DS9 were pretty bad ass. And how about the Brill? Still my favorite still was Admiral Riker’s flagship- the 3 nacelled, cloal-enabled, Klingon butt-kicking Enterprise from the series finale. ---
**Author:** ![mallocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f4b2a3/32.png) [@mallocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mallocks)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/43 "2003-06-23T14:09:25Z")
‘deus ex machina’? that’s the second time that’s been mentioned, and I have no idea what it is. Anyone care to explain? ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/44 "2003-06-23T14:16:44Z")
[Dues ex machina](http://www.humboldt.edu/~engl406/2002c/ORIGIN.HTML) “God from a michine” Seems to be used in sci-fi more than any other genre. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/45 "2003-06-23T14:19:24Z")
Machine Machine I liked _The Man Machine_ by Kraftwerk Dues ex machina is basically any plot cotrivance which wasn’t foreshadowed but which allows Trek writers to end the episode in the final 5 minutes of the show. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/46 "2003-06-23T14:24:14Z")
The OP is answered; it’s the whale probe. It appeared to be completely invincible. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/47 "2003-06-23T18:16:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RickJay \* > \*\*The OP is answered; it’s the whale probe. It appeared to be completely invincible. \*\* Yeah, it even killed Gregory Peck! [sub]Starbuuuuuck![/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/48 "2003-06-23T18:17:56Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by elf6c \* > \*\*The Jem’hedar ships from ST:DS9 were pretty bad ass. And how about the Brill? \*\* Trill? Brill-o? Breen? 😕 > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by RickJay_ > **The OP is answered; it’s the whale probe. It appeared to be completely invincible.** In your face, **NCB**. I’ve been validated! ;j ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/49 "2003-06-23T18:18:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by elf6c \* > \*\*The Jem’hedar ships from ST: DS9 were pretty bad ass. And how about the Brill? \*\* Trill? Brill-o? Breen? 😕 > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by RickJay_ > **The OP is answered; it’s the whale probe. It appeared to be completely invincible.** In your face, **NCB**. I’ve been validated! ;j ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/50 "2003-06-23T21:25:56Z")
Well, it’s about time! Though I couldn’t find a reference that showed it to be manned, er, whaled… I do remember a follow up non canon novel that expounded on the “there be whales here!” ship. Now, what are you going to do with all that money, **Aes**? ftr, though, concerning other ships, _Mirror, Mirror_ established that one starship (ISS or NCC) could wipe out an entire planet. So, planet killing capabilties are not much of a basis for judging… However, every Fed thing that went up against the flying space whale cigar was rendered inoperative, so… Well, that’s pretty powerful. Even the Borg cubes had to use weapons. The whale “ship” was so powerful, it’s mere existance was dangerous. So, I’ll join the ranks for the Whales. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/51 "2003-06-24T00:26:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NoClueBoy \* > \*\* > > ftr, though, concerning other ships, _Mirror, Mirror_ established that one starship (ISS or NCC) could wipe out an entire planet. So, planet killing capabilties are not much of a basis for judging… > > \*\* A NextGen ep involving a computer program hidden in DNA(“It could just be a recipe for biscuits.” “Then go home. I will send you my mother’s recipe”) had a Klingon ship destroy an entire biosphere in a fraction of a second without any effort. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/52 "2003-06-24T00:37:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NoClueBoy \* > \*\* > > ftr, though, concerning other ships, _Mirror, Mirror_ established that one starship (ISS or NCC) could wipe out an entire planet. So, planet killing capabilties are not much of a basis for judging… > > \*\* A NextGen ep involving a computer program hidden in DNA(“It could just be a recipe for biscuits.” “Then go home. I will send you my mother’s recipe”) had a Klingon ship destroy an entire biosphere in a fraction of a second without any effort. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/53 "2003-06-24T00:43:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NoClueBoy \* > \*\* > > ftr, though, concerning other ships, _Mirror, Mirror_ established that one starship (ISS or NCC) could wipe out an entire planet. So, planet killing capabilties are not much of a basis for judging… > > \*\* A NextGen ep involving a computer program hidden in DNA(“It could just be a recipe for biscuits.” “Then go home. I will send you my mother’s recipe”) had a Klingon ship destroy an entire biosphere in a fraction of a second without any effort. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2003, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/54 "2003-06-24T02:33:36Z")
“If she were still alive, I would kill her now!” _The Chase_ ---
**Author:** ![detop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@detop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detop)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/55 "2003-06-25T15:10:53Z")
If you play Star Fleet Battles and can read SSDs, it might be worthwhile to give this[site](http://www.smileylich.com/sfb/index.html) a look-see. It should settle lots of discussions. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/56 "2003-06-25T20:24:28Z")
I used to play VGA PLanets, which featured 11 races from ST, SW and other scifi TV shows, along with their fleets. Of course, the game designer had to change the names to avoid copyrighting anything, but he seemed to simulate each ship’s capabilities fairly well. The Evil Empire’s Death Star was pretty much equal to the Cyborg’s Biocide class cube ship. The big carriers were the most powerful ships, but they were expensive to make and used a lot of fuel. May look badass, but not always practical to have. Designing the biggest baddest ship wasn’t how you won the game. Managing your resources was. Probably the most powerful, if not most hated, race was the Privateers. They didn’t have any big bad ships, but they sure could steal them from other races. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2003, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/57 "2003-06-25T21:26:51Z")
No question the Whale Shit, err…I mean Ship, takes the cake as the most powerful. Just look at the way those windows were shattering in the command center!!! ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/58 "2003-06-26T02:57:39Z")
Damn, is there an echo in here or what? All the BS aside…think about it. Out of all the vessels named in this thread, there is but one that faced them all and somehow triumphed. Hmmm, I wonder which one it might be? I dare say, a ship’s “power” is found in it’s captain, not the machine. Now, if the Captain of the Enterprise had his choice of starships, which one do you think he would choose? ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/59 "2003-06-26T04:03:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lumpy \* > \*\*In Voyager they had the aliens who were descended from dinosaurs. A 65 million year old civilization, they had a super-warp drive that could cover in a few days the distance that took Voyager a year. \*\* I agree with this one. Super evolved cosmic beings/intelligences & alternate timelines/futures don’t count. Ok I’m not the OP but it’s my rule anyway. So among the not quite so evolved races… Voyager could fit inside a Borg Cube, Species 8472’s Bioship could take out a Borg Cube, but the Voth City-Ship from the _Distant Origins_ episode could swallow 'em all up. Not just swallow them, but transport their whole ship inside. And they were from Earth! Of course we never saw the full extent of their weaponry, but I’m pretty sure neither the Borg or 8472 would have a pleasant experience with them. ---
**Author:** ![bernse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2003, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350/60 "2003-06-26T04:12:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jayrot \* > \*\*No question the Whale Shit, err…I mean Ship, takes the cake as the most powerful. > \*\* Here is the question though: Whale-thingie - _Starship_ or _Probe_? I think it is a _probe_ and therefore disqualified. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-most-powerful-starship-ever-to-appear-in-any-of-the-star-trek-series/183350.md?page=4)