The Ability to Fight at Warp Speeds

[Jeremy]

Could a Star Fleet ship, such as the Sovereign (circa Dominion War), fight effectivly at Warp Speeds in a battle?

[Howedar]

2 ships at warp can engage in combat, but a warp ship cannot fire on non-warp targets.

[Alyeska]

Could a Star Fleet ship, such as the Sovereign (circa Dominion War), fight effectivly at Warp Speeds in a battle?

Yes. There have been repeated examples of Trek ships fighting at warp using both energy and missile type weaponry (phasers and torpedoes).

[meNNis]

how the FUCK do missile type weaponry work at warp speeds???

[Alyeska]

how the FUCK do missile type weaponry work at warp speeds???

Warp sustainers. It allows them to stay at warp for a limited time. Warp drives are needed to move into and stay at warp. Warp sustainers allow an object to stay at warp for a short time while slowly decelerating. Torpedoes have enough forward momentum that they can still strike objects forward of the ship for a fair distance. Firing rearward is hardly a problem at all.

[Sea Skimmer]

how the FUCK do missile type weaponry work at warp speeds???

Trek torpedoes incorporate warp sustainers. They can maintain a warp field they take from the launching ship when fired at warp, but they can't create their own. The use of beam weapon is more questionable. Though the only example I can think off involved a ship firing phaser's at a pursuer and that should work just fine.

[Lord Pounder]

In the Ashes Of Eden Sulu's Excelsior was fired on by 3 Klingon Battle Cruisers while The Excelsior was in warp while the Battle cruisers where at a dead stop.

[Alyeska]

The use of beam weapon is more questionable. Though the only example I can think off involved a ship firing phaser's at a pursuer and that should work just fine.

In Message in a Bottle, a Nebula pursuing the Prometheus used it's phasers while at warp speeds.

Furthermore there have been instances of pursuing Jam'Hadar attackships firing forward at warp with their beam weapons as well as a Runabout firing forward with its phasers at warp.

[SPOOFE]

It's odd. In TOS, they routinely fought at warp, even engaging targets that were in realspace (like in The Ultimate Computer).

However, TNG+, this ability somehow vanished. I don't know why...

[Howedar]

But to answer the poor guy's question, warp strafing appears to be impossible.

[Alyeska]

Enough with the B5 talk. If you want to discuss the issue, take it to the Other Scifi forum.

[Jeremy]

thank you