A Star Wars idea...

In Journey to Babel, the Enterprise was strafed by an Orion ship at high warp. In the Elaan of Troyius the Enterprise has to fight a Klingon ship that is attacking it traveling at warp speed while its crippled to impulse: the Enterprise turns the tables when it restores warp speed and maneuverability. In the Ultimate Computer its not explicitly stated but the faux-wargame that takes place at the end is likely happening at warp speed because the Enterprise is traveling at warp speed when it engages the battle group and does not specifically drop out of warp.

Its also never specifically stated that phasers move at the speed of light, and furthermore it was eventually revealed that objects that leave a warp field can be, in at least some circumstances, left with a residual warp field that takes a little time to decay. Saucer section separation while at warp in TNG, for example - the saucer doesn't have a warp drive.


It was old even when it was old. It was going on back when we had to do it with text based USENET readers. But its more interesting to speculate upon the issues than it is to debate the specifics. In a hard core debate both universe's depictions have enough internal contradictions to make any air tight argument impossible. But thinking about the technical and tactical limits themselves is just musing about the limits of extrapolating both fictional universes to their logical conclusions. The Star Trek universe was one based on the premise that humanity would one day master technology and mostly themselves, and use that mastery to conquer all of the external challenges in the universe. The Star Wars universe is based on the premise of a static or cyclical but grand universe where epic stories have a timeless quality. They don't have the same strengths and weaknesses, and so military forces from each would probably never actually fight in the kind of straight-up fight the premise of the "who would win" question tends to assume.

Lets face it; here's how that war would turn out. The Empire would strike first, and cause lots of casualties. Starfleet would regroup and their technological superiority would hold to a point, but they would be fighting a slowly losing battle of attrition. Then Scotty/Spock/Data/whoever would devise a technobabble hyperspace disruptor that would allow the Federation to prevent hyperspace incursion into the Alpha quadrant, preventing Imperial reinforcements and trapping the Imperial expeditionary force in the Alpha quadrant. And the Klingons would arrive and eat them.

So you reversed the normal (mandatory even) story dynamic mandated by Lucas?

i must admit the Sith must be a pretty impressively badass species/civilization leftover to require that only two ever exist.

Okay, i'm lying. i always thought that was the dumbest thing the post-Sith species wannabe Sith like the Emperor and his predecessors could have decided to do. Or has that been changed? i don't pay that much attention to the ever shifting details of Star Wars canon.

I don't know...I wrote it for fun...geez...you act like my short story that I only ever showed to a friend is the end of Star Wars...

I remember it being suggested that there are only two Sith because if there are ever three, two of them will inevitably ally to backstab the third. No idea now if that's remotely canon.

Actually i'm fine with you doing anything you want in your fanfic. Any irritation or contempt you might be sensing is directed at Lucas' hack storytelling/worldbuilding. (Yeah, i'm being kind to GL in consideration of the feelings of his fans.)

Makes you wonder how the original species/civilization to bear the name Sith ever got off their planet. Not that it stopped one of the Sith duo from planning to backstab the other anyway. *looks meaningfully at Vader* By that logic there should never be more than one to zero Sith around.