Dominion
Created by Commodore Wilkan Targaryen on Sat Feb 24th, 2024 @ 2:41pm
Dominion
 | |
| Founded: | 372 |
| Founders: | Changelings |
| Government: | Ethnocracy |
| Capital: | Empersa |
| Legislature: | The Great Link |
| Location: | Gamma Quadrant |
| Members: | Changeling Vorta Jem'Hadar Subjugated Races |
| Territorial Size: | 10,000 light-years |
| Language: | Dominionese |
History
Thousands of years ago the Changelings were a peaceful people who explored the galaxy; however, they were hunted and persecuted by "solids" and forced to return to their native territory. Facing extinction, the Founders created the Dominion to defend themselves from potential threats to their way of life and impose order upon the galaxy. To help manage their new government, the Vorta were genetically modified to serve as the Founder's administrators.Needing a military caste, the Dominion made contact with the Hur'q shortly after their formation. The Dominion began to modify the Hur'q; however, this led to the fall of the Hur'q civilization. Later, genetically manipulated Klingons were intended for use as a soldier caste, but the Dominion's plan to control them via addicting them to Ketracel White failed leading the Dominion to create the Jem'Hadar. Through their military might, the Dominion has subjugated hundreds of races.
Following the discovery of the Bajoran Wormhole, expeditionary missions were launched from representatives of the Alpha Quadrant to explore the distant Gamma Quadrant. Seeing these intrusions as an existential threat, the Dominion deployed the Jem'Hadar to destroy a number of colonies and starships established within the borders of their territory including the New Bajor Colony and the Starship Odyssey. Seeing that the Federation was undeterred, the Dominion began using espionage to destabilize the Alpha Quadrant with Changeling infiltrators replacing key representatives of multiple Alpha Quadrant governments. These infiltrations were responsible for a number of large-scale conflicts including the Battle of the Omarion Nebula, the Klingon-Cardassian War, and the second Federation-Klingon War.
Despite their efforts to destabilize the Alpha Quadrant, the Dominion identified that their efforts were not as successful as intended and chose to establish their own foothold in the Alpha Quadrant. Recognizing that the Cardassian Union was nearing defeat at the hands of the Klingon Empire, the Dominion chose to enter into an alliance with the Cardassian Union in 2373. With the Dominion transferring resources and vessels from the Gamma Quadrant to support their new alliance, Captain Benjamin Sisko petitioned Starfleet Command and was approved to place thousands of self-replicating mines at the entrance of the wormhole. The Dominion responded by sending a fleet of warships to attack the station, capturing it and igniting the Dominion War.
The early period of the War featured several decisive victories for the Dominion with the Federation Alliance taking heavy losses. It was not until 2374 when the alliance captured Deep Space 9 (with the help of the Prophets, who removed a fleet of 2,800 Jem'Hadar warships in transit within the wormhole) that the tide of war started to turn in the Federation's favor. Soon after the Romulan Star Empire discovered evidence that the Dominion planned to invade Romulus, leading the Star Empire to join the war against the Dominion. The Federation Alliance went on the offensive soon after, capturing the Chin'toka system.
Seeking victory through any means necessary, Section 31 infected the Founders with a morphogenic virus to weaken the Dominion's leadership. This led the Dominion to negotiate an alliance with the Breen Confederacy, who used their enhanced weapons technology to devastate the Alliance during the Second Battle of Chin'toka. The Cardassians, who had been relegated to second class citizens on their own world, became disillusioned with the Dominion and formed a resistance movement. Through the efforts of the Federation Alliance and the resistance - which included the Cardassian military - the Female Changeling surrendered at the Battle of Cardassia in exchange for the cure to the morphogenic virus. Soon after the Treaty of Bajor was signed at Deep Space Nine, officially ending the Dominion War.
Retreating to the Gamma Quadrant following the Dominion War, the worlds of the Alpha and Beta Quadrants would have little to no contact with the Dominion. In the interim, Laas formed a New Link in the Alpha Quadrant that served independently from and unbeknownst to the Great Link in the Gamma Quadrant, he allied himself with the True Way and conscripted the services of the Alpha Jem'Hadar. The Dominion transmitted a statement to the Federation disavowing the actions of any shapeshifters in the Alpha or Beta Quadrants and stating that any Changelings operating outside their authority were rogue.
No additional contact with the Dominion would occur until 2409 when the fleet of warships that were lost in the Bajoran Wormhole in 2374 reappeared, resulting in Deep Space 9's capture. As the Dominion Fleet refused to acknowledge the end of the war without a Founder, Starfleet launched a mission to enter the Gamma Quadrant to obtain the support of the Dominion. Locating the Vorta Weyoun, the Dominion agreed to assist with removing the occupation under the condition that the Female Changeling be released. The Federation agreed to the terms and the Dominion fleet eventually stood down and returned to the Gamma Quadrant. The Dominion would, temporarily, return to the Alpha Quadrant for peace talks in 2410; however, a relationship could not be established.
Location
Dominion territory extended through a large part of the Gamma Quadrant, with its space encompassing a territory that was several times larger than all of the interstellar entities of known space combined in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants in the late 24th century. By the late 24th century, Dominion Space had grown to be approximately 10,000 light years long and 5,000 light years wide and expanded out from the original location of the Changeling's homeworld in the Omarion Nebula. The Dominion established a new homeworld for the Founders in 2371 following the combined Obsidian Order/Tal'Shiar attack upon the Founders. Known as Empersa, the new homeworld for the Great Link was located at classified coordinates deep within Dominion territory and further away from the Gamma Quadrant terminus of the Bajoran wormhole.
Politics
The Dominion is organized under a strict hierarchy with absolute rule of the government in the hands of the Founders and their Great Link, whose decisions cannot be disputed under any circumstances. Despite their importance in the Dominion, the Founders, who were also known as the Changelings, are rarely seen, even by their servant races, as the Founders were largely apathetic towards the affairs of solids and were content to leave the administration of the Dominion to the Vorta. Because of their near mythic status, the Founders themselves are often treated as gods by the servitor races of the Dominion.The political culture of the Dominion, primarily, rests upon the philosophy of the Founders to enforce order upon a chaotic universe and to destroy all that cannot be controlled. This philosophy originates from the Founder's history of persecution at the hands of non-shapeshifting lifeforms, who they derogatorily call "Solids." This has made the priority of the Founders to be the survival of their own species by any means necessary, with the needs and whims of others being of little interest to the Founders themselves. Their desire to impose order, coupled with their extreme longevity, makes them look at their goals with a long-term perspective.
Aside from the Founders metamorphic abilities, the most distinguishing ability of their species is "linking" wherein they establish a combination physical and mental connection through touch. This allows the Founders to create a collective consciousness known as The Great Link, producing a unified species and viewpoint. Founders have rarely harmed one another, but they have had disagreements on how to handle situations facing them.
While the Founders have little interest in non-metamorphic life, they have genetically modified two races to serve their interests and needs. The Vorta and the Jem'Hadar were both engineered to fanatically worship the Founders, going so far as to believe that their lives belonged to the Founders and all actions taken by them were intended for the glory of the Founders. The Vorta were modified from simple lifeforms into administrators for the Dominion and various other roles while the Jem'Hadar have been bred to serve as the military forces of the Dominion, enforcing the will of the Founders and fighting in wars to expand the Dominion. Day to day operations of the Dominion fall under the discretion of the Vorta, the fanatically loyal, genetically engineered administrators of the Dominion. Should the authority of the Founders be questioned or the Dominion face a fundamental threat to its existence, the Jem'Hadar would be deployed to eliminate the threat. This arrangement was referred to as "the order of things" and deviation from it was punishable by death; nevertheless, the Dominion did have a judicial system, but charges and subsequent trials were often merely for show as the goal was to convict and execute the offender while giving a facade of a legal framework.
Despite the Dominion presenting itself as a highly ordered and united government, there were internal pressures between the Vorta and Jem'Hadar that often came into play as they were closest to the Founders. Vorta and Jem'Hadar outwardly tried to maintain the facade of unity, bu they would regard one another with barely disguised contempt. A delicate balance existed between Jem'Hadar troops and their Vorta overseers and, often, the Vorta's control of ketracel-white was the only thing that kept the Vorta in control of the Jem'Hadar in the field.
While the Founders, Vorta, and Jem'Hadar were the primary members of the Dominion, the nation includes a number of subjugated servitor races that have either voluntarily joined or were conquered during the Dominion's history. Despite being subservient to the Dominion, many of the member races are granted autonomy to handle their own affairs unless they are directly in opposition to the goals of the Dominion or were in defiance of the orders of the Vorta. Any disobedience would be punished by the Jem'Hadar.
Military
The Dominion prefers to eliminate threats through influence and espionage and to withhold the use its military capabilities during initial contacts unless their usual tactics proved to be unsuccessful. Due to its long life, the Dominion would frequently make short-term concessions to achieve a long-term victory, which could even be centuries after the fact. The Federation directly witnessed such an effort when the Dominion used espionage tactics to destabilize the Alpha Quadrant by causing a war between the Cardassian Union and the Klingon Empire. When the Cardassians faced defeat at the hands of the Klingons, the Dominion proposed an alliance with the Cardassians so that the Dominion could establish a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant.In situations where the Dominion was not able to rely on its guile to win the day, the government was not afraid to neutralize any potential threat to the Founders by whatever means necessary. Often, this led to the deployment of the Jem'Hadar against a target species. Due to their overwhelming strength and capabilities, the fear of Jem'Hadar reprisals was enough to keep most Dominion worlds in line.
During early encounters Dominion technology had significantly outpaced the capabilities of most Alpha Quadrant species, including the Federation. Dominion weaponry relies upon Polaron technologies, which could easily penetrate the defensive shields of most Starfleet and allied vessels. Effective countermeasures were eventually developed by Starfleet, helping Federation and allied forces to withstanding polaron weaponry the same as any other energy weapon. In their handheld form, Polaron pistols were just as deadly with a glancing blow as they acted as an anticoagulant in most humanoids, impeding the victim's natural healing process.
Most of the Dominion's technology was manufactured by Dominion member species, but the Jem'Hadar were engineered to understand complex engineering concepts in addition to their tactical acumen. Their fanatical loyalty to protecting the Dominion and its secrets will lead them to destroy their own bases, equipment, and vessels to prevent it from being captured by their enemies. While they were tactically advanced, Dominion warp capability was behind when compared to most major Alpha Quadrant species with their vessels having difficulty exceeding Warp 7. This, however, did not limit the military range of the Jem'Hadar as Dominion Transporters employed specialized transponders that allowed them to transport an individual as far as three light years away.
Starbases
Starbases are permanent support facilities operated by the Dominion and consist of a variety of components, including space stations, drydocks, and/or ground installations. Commonly, Dominion Starbases perform military functions on behalf of the Founders; however, some stations conduct civilian operations in support of the Dominion and its aims.While most governments employ large, fixed spaceborne facilities for their Starbases, the Dominion is more inclined to building planetary or asteroid based compounds to serve as starbases. Commanded by the Vorta and manned by a variety of Jem'Hadar, Dominion stations are responsible for the resupply of Dominion vessels and replenishing Dominion personnel. Because of this mandate, most Dominion Starbases incorporate cloning facilities to support the Dominion's Drai cloners.
Presently, the Dominion classifies its base stations in the following manner:
- Basestation: A small, fixed installation. Basestations are lightly armed and shielded stations that are constructed in areas where a permanent facility is needed but a full combat-ready station is not.
- Battlestation: Larger than a Basestation, Dominion Battlestations are more heavily armed and protected. Battlestations are typically built in areas where some combat may be expected, but the expense of a full Starbase is not required.
- Starbase: A large, fixed installation, Starbases serve to establish control points in space and to provide major staging areas from which to deploy starships. Dominion Starbases are heavily armed, heavily protected, dangerous facilities.
Noteworthy Starbases
 Callinon Station Battlestation |
 Internment Camp 371 Basestation |
 Kurill Station Battlestation |
 Omarion Station Starbase |
 Teplan Station Basestation |
Starships
Battleship
The most powerful vessels in the Dominion military, Battleships are large, heavily armed ships that serve as the flagships of entire fleets. While they have devastating weapons and heavy armor to protect them, Battleships typically lack maneuverability when compared to smaller ships, providing a dangerous weakness that an attacker can exploit. Currently, Starfleet employs no Battleships in its navy, but a Heavy Explorer stripped of its exploration-oriented equipment would be comparable to a Battleship.
 Jem'Hadar Planetary Defender Heavy Battleship |
 Jem'Hadar Vanguard Dreadnought Battleship |
 Jem'Hadar Dreadnought Light Battleship |
Carrier
A Carrier is an immense warship that serves as a mobile starbase and is equipped with large hangar facilities for supporting, arming, deploying and recovering spacecraft. First fielded by the Dominion during the Dominion War, Carriers perform diverse missions ranging including power projection, crisis response, and supporting planetary invasion. Due to their size and capabilities, a Carrier allows the Dominion to exert their power far from their home territory.
 Jem'Hadar Dreadnought Carrier Heavy Carrier |
 Jem'Hadar Vanguard Carrier Carrier |
 Jem'Hadar Support Carrier Light Carrier |
Cruiser
Cruisers are mid- to large-sized vessels that have been optimized for a variety of general or specialized mission profiles. Thanks to their heavy armament, Cruisers serve at the forefront of Dominion forces and are easier and less resource intensive to build, leading to many of these craft being built. Dominion Cruisers are designed for military/interdiction duties and have improved tactical packages or as long-range patrol craft with enhanced drive systems. Despite their military bent, Cruisers can be assigned to limited exploratory missions.
 Jem'Hadar Battlecruiser Battle Cruiser |
 Jem'Hadar Heavy Cruiser Heavy Cruiser |
 Jem'Hadar Vanguard Cruiser Cruiser |
 Jem'Hadar Raider Light Cruiser |
Destroyer
Smaller than a Cruiser, but larger than a Frigate, Destroyers are vessels designed almost entirely for military purposes. Dominion Destroyers are fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warships intended to escort larger vessels and to help defend them against a wide range of general threats. Because of these responsibilities, vessels of this classification are as heavily armed and defended as a Cruiser and are capable of delivering a devastating punch to their opposition.
 Jem'Hadar Strike Wing Escort Heavy Destroyer |
 Jem'Hadar Vanguard Warship Destroyer |
 Jem'Hadar Vanguard Destroyer Light Destroyer |
Frigate
A Frigate is a small to medium-sized vessel that has been designed to complete escort, patrol and rapid response missions on behalf of the Dominion. Frigates incorporate the latest technological developments, particularly in the fields of tactical systems, shields, and sensors, and are the most numerous ships within the Dominion Fleet. Jem'Hadar Gunboat Heavy Frigate |
 Jem'Hadar Attack Ship Frigate |
 Jem'Hadar Recon Ship Light Frigate |
Scout
Scout craft have a dual role within the Dominion military as reconnaissance vessels and as fighters. Dominion Scouts are small, heavily-armed ships that provide support for larger vessels and are crewed by five people. With their small bodies and large warp nacelles they often conduct system surveillance and reconnaissance missions, running observation missions into enemy territory and returning with valuable information. Jem'Hadar Fighter Scout |
Key Dominion Personnel
 Female Changeling Changeling |
 Odo Changeling |
 Weyoun Vorta Male |
 Yelgrun Vorta Male |
 Luaran Vorta Female |
 Eris Vorta Female |
 Borath Vorta Male |
 Kilana Vorta Female |
 Keevan Vorta Male |
 Gelnon Vorta Male |
 Taran'atar Jem'Hadar |
 Dukan'rex Jem'Hadar |
Categories: No categories found