Dominion

The **Dominion** is an interstellar state in the Gamma Quadrant and a major galactic power. The Founders of the Dominion were convinced that they had to "guide" the other civilizations of the galaxy. The Dominion was dedicated to imposing this vision of "order" upon the universe by bringing all species under its control.

## History of the Dominion

### **Domination of the Gamma Quadrant**

The official founding of the Dominion was 2,000 years ago (in roughly 372 A.D.), though evidence exists of the Founders having a civilization in the Gamma Quadrant as early as 10,000 years ago. The Founders genetically engineered two species to help them in their goal to impose "order" on the "chaotic universe". First, the Jem'Hadar: created for warfare as the Dominion's first line of defense. Next, the Vorta: who became the Dominion's diplomats, civil servants, scientists, and viceroys on behalf of the Founders. Both were genetically implanted to identify any Founder as a god, ensuring obedience through reverence. In addition, the Jem'Hadar were bred with an innate addiction to ketracel-white, a narcotic, further ensuring their dependence on the Founders.

Over the following millennia, the Dominion annexed world after world in their native Gamma Quadrant. Dominion imperialism operated on a "carrot-and-stick" method. First, the Vorta would arrive as businessmen to negotiate a peaceful annexation of the planet. The Dominion at first contact always appears to be helpful, or even benevolent. But if the inhabitants rejected the offer, or refused to toe the line, the Jem'Hadar would invade and conquer the population.

One such race, the Teplans, believed that nothing was beyond their ability...including resisting the Dominion. To serve as an example to other subject races, the Jem'Hadar crushed the Teplans and then released a biological weapon (the "blight") on the Teplan homeworld.

### **Contact with the Alpha Quadrant**

One year before first contact with the Dominion, the Federation discovered the Bajoran wormhole near Bajor. Almost immediately, ships from all Alpha Quadrant powers began exploring and colonizing the Gamma Quadrant.

Unofficial first contact with the Dominion occurred in 2370 when two Ferengi representatives of Grand Nagus Zek were sent through the Bajoran wormhole to purchase large quantities of tulaberry wine from the Dosi. When the Ferengi learned of the Dominion, they deliberately exaggerated the quantity in order to make contact and secure commercial opportunities in the Gamma Quadrant. The Dosi eventually offered to put the Ferengi in touch with the Karemma, an important Dominion member, and trading relations between the Ferengi and both the Dosi and the Karemma were soon established.

Unfortunately, these trade deals alerted the Dominion leaders to the Alpha Quadrant presence in the Gamma Quadrant. Official first contact with the Dominion occurred when the Jem'Hadar destroyed a number of Federation ships and colonies in the Gamma Quadrant (most notably the USS Odyssey, and the Federation-allied colony of New Bajor), as well as taking Commander Benjamin Sisko of Deep Space 9 as a hostage. The Jem'Hadar claimed the attacks were in response to the supposed "Federation incursion" into the Gamma Quadrant (the whole quadrant being seen as Dominion territory). Actually, the hostage-taking was a cover to plant Eris (a Vorta posing as an anti-Dominion refugee) as a spy in the Federation. Though the attempt failed, Eris was able to escape back to Dominion space.

### **The Dominion Cold War**

The Jem'Hadar overtly threatened that the Dominion would no longer tolerate Alpha Quadrant encroachments into anything beyond the Gamma Quadrant terminus of the Bajoran wormhole. Though the Federation had by now recovered its losses from the Battle of Wolf 359, it hoped to avoid all-out war by convincing the Founders that the Alpha Quadrant posed no threat to the Dominion. The Dominion, on the other hand, concluded that they would be met with strong resistance and suspicion by the Alpha Quadrant, and thus sought a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant to spread Dominion influence. Realizing a Dominion invasion was only a matter of time, the Federation and its neighbors began preparations.

## Government and Society

Dominion government is a strict hierarchy: The Founders at the top, then the Vorta, then the Jem'Hadar, and then any subjugated "member" races. This hierarchy is referred to as "the order of things".

The Founders hold ultimate authority in the Dominion: their decisions were unquestionable under any circumstances. However, in most cases, the Founders are apathetic towards government affairs and the day-to-day administration of the Dominion is left to the Vorta. As the Founders are rarely encountered by their subjects, most consider the Founders to be myths invented by the Vorta. Some even go so far as to worship the Founders as gods, as the Vorta and Jem'Hadar do.

The criminal justice system in the Dominion is extremely simple. Whether it's deviation from the order of things or questioning a Founder, the punishment is always the same: death.

Though the Vorta commanded the Jem'Hadar and disseminated the ketracel-white crucial for Jem'Hadar survival, the two servant races regarded each other with barely disguised contempt. Their shared loyalty to the Founders is what officially kept them at peace, but in reality, it was the Vorta's control of ketracel-white. Even that form of control has been known to fail: a Jem'Hadar killing a Vorta is rare, but it is not unheard of.

## Military and Technology

Dominion strategy prefers to take over via influence and espionage, rather than military might. However, the fear of Jem'Hadar reprisals is enough to keep most planets in line.

Instead of phasers or disruptor beams, Jem'Hadar weapons use powerful polaron beams. As antipersonnel rifles, they had the side effect of acting as an anticoagulant, disrupting the natural wound healing process in some races. As ship-mounted weapons, phased polaron beams displayed more impressive firepower than their Alpha Quadrant counterparts.

Though Dominion technology was in many ways more advanced than the major Alpha Quadrant powers, Dominion warp capability was less advanced. A Dominion fighter was capable of Warp 7 at most, but a Jem'Hadar battle cruiser was capable of no more than Warp 4.7.

## Trivia

The Dominion was created as the main antagonists for "Star Trek: Deep Space 9", to be introduced in the show's second season. The writing team sought to create three sets of villains "as scary as any villains you can possibly find", unified as "a very specific, dangerous, nasty Other". The result was the Founders, the Jem'Hadar, and the Vorta. The writers used Isaac Asimov's "Foundation" trilogy as inspiration. The Dominion was designed as the "anti-Federation". Similar to the Federation, the Dominion represents a wide array of alien races...but as a fascist (rather than democratic) government. In contrast to the cooperation and freedom of the Federation, the Dominion rules by coercion and domination.

Much as the Dominion were the main villains for Season 3 of "Star Trek: Deep Space 9", the Dominion was expected to be the primary antagonists of the crew of the USS Sally Ride as Starfleet attempts to counter the rising threat of the Dominion Cold War. This turned out not to be the case as the show largely focused on the Federation-Klingon War and the rising threat of Captain Malgog in the Shackleton Expanse.