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The noble Miranda class Starship. Best known for its ability to explode and kill hundreds.
Hang on...
Yeah Yeah, I know, this has nothing to do with Klingons. So, it turns out I actually have a fair few of these rants just... hanging around on my hard drive and I figured "what's the point of coming up with unnecessary answers to imaginary problems if you have no one to share it with?". So yeah, same rules apply, feel free to call me the worst or whatever.
Starfleet is huge and tiny, depending on who you ask.
Starfleet varies wildly in size from show to show. In TOS, we only ever hear about a few "Starship class" vessels. These are of course the original Constitution class Starships. And if the show is to be believed, they represent the bulk of the fleet at that time. And most of them end up being destroyed or suffering horrendous casualties. The Enterprise makes out okay with the exception of a few dozen Redshirts. But lets run down the list of other 1st wave Constitution class ships that weren't so lucky, shall we?
USS Constellation NCC-1017: Destroyed by the Planet Killer. All hands Lost.
USS Defiant NCC-1764: Captured by alternate time-line Tholians. All hands Lost.
USS Excalibur NCC-1664: Attacked and crippled by M-5 computer. All hands Lost.
USS Exeter NCC-1672: Abandoned by crew. Crew then killed by disease. All hands Lost.
USS Intrepid NCC-1631: Psychic murder space. All hands lost.
USS Lexington NCC-1709: Attacked by M-5 computer. 53 crewmen killed.
USS Hood NCC-1703: Attacked by M-5 computer. Unknown casualties.
USS Potemkin NCC-1657: Attacked by M-5 computer. Unknown casualties.
So that's 5 ships, 5 whole crews lost out of 13. It seems impossible that Starfleet could suffer 40% casualties and still function. The obvious answer to this is that the Constitution fleet represented the bulk of their deep-space fleet. Whereas the federation itself was being protected by a coalition fleet of member world fleets. Vulcans, Andorians and Tellarites using their old military vessels and Starfleet using older era vessels (Axanar/Kelvin). There are also a number of semi-canon classes that would be contemporary with the Constitution class which likely would have provided functions closer to home.
USS Constellation NCC-1017: Destroyed by the Planet Killer. All hands Lost.
USS Defiant NCC-1764: Captured by alternate time-line Tholians. All hands Lost.
USS Excalibur NCC-1664: Attacked and crippled by M-5 computer. All hands Lost.
USS Exeter NCC-1672: Abandoned by crew. Crew then killed by disease. All hands Lost.
USS Intrepid NCC-1631: Psychic murder space. All hands lost.
USS Lexington NCC-1709: Attacked by M-5 computer. 53 crewmen killed.
USS Hood NCC-1703: Attacked by M-5 computer. Unknown casualties.
USS Potemkin NCC-1657: Attacked by M-5 computer. Unknown casualties.
So that's 5 ships, 5 whole crews lost out of 13. It seems impossible that Starfleet could suffer 40% casualties and still function. The obvious answer to this is that the Constitution fleet represented the bulk of their deep-space fleet. Whereas the federation itself was being protected by a coalition fleet of member world fleets. Vulcans, Andorians and Tellarites using their old military vessels and Starfleet using older era vessels (Axanar/Kelvin). There are also a number of semi-canon classes that would be contemporary with the Constitution class which likely would have provided functions closer to home.
But TOS isn't the real issue. We'll just blast through the TMP/WOK era real quick so we can get back on track.
So we reach the the 2370's and Starfleet has gone under a bit of an overhaul. The days of individual species operating their own fleets are well and truly over. It's now Starfleet or nothing. A new round of Constitution classes have been built and the surviving originals are undergoing Refits. On top of this there are a slew of new designs being produced alongside the Constitution. The Miranda class offers a robust multi-mission platform, making it more versatile than the Constitution. Smaller craft like the Akula make excellent excorts and patrol craft. And the Excelsior class is setting itself up to be the next big thing in Stafleet's arms race with the Klingon Empire.
But then Praxis exploded. Some things did or didn't go down. And eventually peace was made. No longer requiring a massive fleet to deter the Klingons, Starfleet chose to downsize. The Constitution class, having a relatively poor track record of survival, was mothballed alongside some older designs and more combat oriented ships. The Excelsior and the Miranda, however, lived on. They were robust designs that could easily be modified and upgraded.
And then follows the "forgotten era". Not much happens here. The Excelsior class gets its very own Enterprise, replete with fancy new livery and extended chassis. And then there's the Ambassador class, which doesn't really gain much traction as the new trend-setter. Sometime around the 2340's, Starfleet decides they need a big new ship with all the bells and whistles. They set to work on Project Galaxy.
For this next bit, it's important to understand where the Federation is, as an entity. Starfleet has fought wars. But none of them have had quite the impact that the Klingons did. And now, with the Klingons on side, Starfleet isn't really looking for a new generation of warship. They want explorers. They want a symbol of the Federation.
So, when Project Galaxy stalls and runs into roadblock after roadblock, they need a plan-B. Numerous design teams around the Federation set to work with some of the technology produced for Project Galaxy. Some of the designs produced are like the Galaxy class, but smaller in scale. The New Orleans and the Springfield classes are an attempt to overcome the the energy problems of the Galaxy class by reducing strain on the system. Some of the designs are complete garbage and don't get anywhere. The Freedom and Niagara classes are a flop. All of these designs only enjoy limited production. They are too specialised or not specialised enough to meet the current demands demands of Starfleet. the New Orleans is sent to combat the emerging threat of the Cardassian Union. Other ships paced into generic patrol missions.
But one of these "Plan-B" designs is a success. Not only is it an excellent fusion of the new technology with a more traditional chassis, but it also manages to outstrip the venerable Miranda class as a multi-mission platform. I am of course talking about the Nebula Class. Now, even if Project Galaxy turns out to be a humongous failure, Starfleet has a new trend-setter in it's place.
Eventually the Galaxy class is finished and overshadows the Nebula as the literal and metaphorical flagship of Starfleet. But all the same none of this has even begun to explore our primary topic. How can the Federation go from essentially being crippled by the loss of 40 ships at wolf 359, to shrugging off the loss of hundreds of vessels during the Dominion war. I have a theory on that...
So, enter Starfleet of the early 2360's. Their ships have gone from resembling submarines to luxury liners. The closest thing to a dedicated combat vessel they have is the Excelsior class, which makes sense, seeing as she was designed in part to fight the coming war against the Klingon Empire. But the Workhorse vessels of Starfleet, the Excelsior and the Miranda, are coming up on a century of service. They were originally designed for a century of active duty with 5 refits, spaced a 20 year intervals.
Fortunately, Starfleet has it's replacements for both ships. The Galaxy and Nebula classes are to undergo a similar century of service and upgrade. However there are very few Galaxy class ships. Before the dominion war, only 6 of the 12 Galaxy space-frames are ever completed. That is, the USS Galaxy, USS Yamato, USS Enterprise, USS Odessy, USS Venture and 1 other ship (possibly the USS Dauntless).
That's an even more limited run than the original Constitution. And the Federation is a much bigger place now. So how can a fleet of agueing battleships and a few limited-run luxury dreadnoughts police the UFP?
The answer is, in my estimation, that Starfleet has decentralised, back to a pre-TOS level of autonomy. Numerous worlds operate their own defence fleets while Starfleet itself does the primary job of diplomatic operations and Exploration.
So now we have a perfect storm of circumstances coming together. Starfleet no longer sees internal defence as one of their primary goals. Sure, they have the most powerful ships, but those ships are primarily outside of the Federation's borders. On top of this the Federation has been disarming for a long time now. At it's height, Starfleet has a force large enough to invade and pacify the Klingon Empire. Now? They have enough to handily win the various border wars that the Federation gets into.
So lets say that, at most, Starfleet is presently operating 500-600 vessels. Most of them are older than the crews serving on them while the rest are designed to accommodate families. Those ships are spread over hundreds of light-years with maybe only 50 or so of them operating withing the Federation.
And then there are some setbacks. Brain slugs go and scuttle a few ships as well as wiping out a good portion of Starfleet's admiralty. The Yamato, one of their fancy new Galaxy class ships gets the old 1-2, Iconian-tech-flu. And numerous other vessels go missing or are otherwise lost outside of Federation borders. Deep space exploration is an inherently risky prospect after all.
And then wolf 359 happens. The Borg send a single Cube into the heart of Federation space and Starfleet scrambles as many ships as it can to intercept that cube and Stop it. And with so much of Starfleet in far flung corners of the Quadrant, they had a mere 40 ships able to muster in time . Albiet a large chunk of Starfleet at the time, having so few ships ready to defend the capital of the Federation highlighted a major fault in Starfleet's defensive strategy. What's more, they got their asses handed to them. Of the 40 ships, only 1 survived. It then fell to the Enterprise to save the day.
Almost overnight, every problem with Starfleet's strategy has been laid bare. Too few ships, an ageing fleet that has become noncompetitive, an over-devolved system of territorial defence. The fleets are recalled and the Federation Council demands Starfleet get its shit together. something has to be done.
First off, Starfleet has the nasty job of ensuring no foreign power takes advantage of their losses. That means projecting strength. So you can bet every Galaxy, Nebula and Excelsior class ship in the fleet is being sent right back to the border. Special care is no doubt given to dissuading the Cardassians and Romulans from starting shit.
Secondly. Starfleet has seen only 1 ship defeat the Borg. The Enterprise. Suddenly everybody is super interested in those 6 unfinished Galaxy spaceframes just hanging around the shipyards. This is part of their short term plan to get Starfleet back to fighting readiness. More spaceframes are commissioned.
But something more concrete needs to be done. Shipyards begin the development of a "Borg-Killer" fleet of ships. A breed of combat ship not seen since the end of the Klingon Cold War. Ultimately this project will spawn the Akira, the Defiant, the Steamrunner, the Norway, the Sabre and the Sovereign classes.
All in all, it might be a bit late, but Starfleet are moving in the right direction. All they need now is a few years of relative peace and they can properly shore up their defenses.
But of course that didn't happen. Instead the Federation went and pissed off a powerful empire in the Gamma Quadrant, ended up at War with the Klingons and then found themselves trapped in a downward spiral towards a war with the Dominion/Cardassians. And of course the Borg tried to invade, again.
In the intervening time, operation "place all of our hopes on the Galaxy class" went to hell in a basket. The Odessy and the Enterprise were both destroyed. So the next generation (aaaah i said it) of Galaxy class ships were rushed into production, this time without a lot of the creature comforts of the originals. They were built to fill the role of Battleships rather than explorers.
Instead, the sleeker, more effective Sovereign would be the Diplomatic ship of choice, while also packing one hell of a punch. however the Sovereign class wouldn't see much active duty in the war as the design was costly to manufacture. It made much more sense to use the same rescources it would take to build a Sovereign and use them instead to build a squadron of Defiants, or a pair of Akiras.
But even with new designs, even with Federation shipyards churning out new ships as fast as possible. The Federation is looking conspicuously outgunned by the Dominion and her allies. With war looming, Starfleet needs more ships to make up the numbers.
So they make the best (and worst) choice that they could. Around worlds like Zakdorn, there lay massive graveyards of mothballed ships. Among them are dozens of Miranda's, Constitutions and Excelsiors, as well as failed variants. Starfleet reconditions these ships, gives them new weapons, skeleton crews and throws them on the front line. When the Shooting starts, this goes about as well as you could expect.
These ships, rushed into service, as well as other older ships already serving within Starfleet, make up the bulk of Starfleets losses throughout the War. They were once top of the line, but now they're simply too flimsy to withstand massed firepower.
So, taking into account reports of hundreds of ships being destroyed in individual engagements, with the majority of ships lost by Starfleet being 23rd century vessels, we can assume that, by the end of the war, Starfleet has a chronic manpower shortage. On the bright side they've probably just about broke even with pre-Wolf-359 fleet sizes. Around 500-600 ships, but now mostly no more than 30 years old.