10 Coolest Starships From Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Highlights

• Jem’Hadar Battleship: Big, bold, brutish. More powerful and unique among tough competition.
• Prakesh (Galor Class): Small, charming, unique design with an unusual look that stands out.
• Romulan D’Deridex Class: Fear-inspiring, unique design, powerful and feared in battles.

One of the things that makes any sci-fi series memorable is its starships. These often vast constructions are iconic, having pride of place in the hearts and minds of many fans. Whether it’s the titular Battlestar Galactica, the USS Voyager from Star Trek: Voyager, or one of any number of other truly iconic ships from many other franchises, starships have the power to inspire awe and love in fans.

The Star Trek franchise is no different, with many of its most important and emblematic settings being the starships themselves. These are some of the coolest starships or classes of ship from Star Trek: Deep Space 9.

1 Jem’Hadar Battleship

Big, Bold, Brutish

• Appearances in DS9: 3
• Weapons: 10+ torpedo launchers

More powerful than the Jem’Hadar Fighters, the Jem’Hadar Battleship was a masterpiece in Jem’Hadar military engineering. These large battleships were said to be at least twice the size of the Federation’s Galaxy-class starships, and three times as powerful.

With its bold purple design features and its incredibly different design philosophy compared with Federation or even Klingon ships, the Jem’Hadar Battleships stand out among a very tough competition. And despite only being featured three times in DS9 – in comparison to the Jem’Hadar Fighters’ 32 – the Jem’Hadar Battleship is an impressive ship well worth its place in the Star Trek canon.

2 Prakesh (Galor Class)

Very Cool, Unique Design

• Appearances in DS9: 20 (Galor class)
• Weapons: 4 phaser banks, disruptor

The Prakesh, a member of the Cardassian Union’s Galor class of starships, isn’t as immediately visually impressive as some of the other ships featured in the expansive Star Trek franchise. But it’s a small, charming ship that looks similar to a mudfish or a skate from certain angles.

In a universe like Star Trek’s, where there are many massive ships of the line with all sorts of cool features; sometimes it pays to stand out by looking a little goofy. The Galor class of ships, while smaller and less powerful than some of the series’ harder-hitting warships, was no pushover. There’s definitely a reason the Cardassian Union kept producing them.

3 Romulan D’Deridex Class

Romulan Star Empire Engineering At Its Finest

• Appearances in DS9: 10
• Weapons: Phaser arrays, disruptors, photon torpedo launchers

The Romulan D’Deridex Class Warbird, also known as the B-type Warbird, was one of the largest and most powerful starship classes in use by the Romulan Star Empire. This was a ship that inspired fear, so it’s no surprise they were used to great effect against the Dominion during the Dominion War – and even against the Borg.

With an unusual design compared with Federation or Klingon ships, the Romulan D’Deridex Class ships stand out. The unusual shape paired with the green lighting effects makes the Romulan ship easily recognizable to fans even during chaotic space battles, while its technical specs ensure it ranks very well against the other ships of its day.

4 Negh’Var Battleship

Biggest Klingon Empire Ship

• Appearances in DS9: 5
• Weapons: Disruptors, torpedos

The Negh’Var Battleship is the largest type of Klingon Empire ship fielded during the period in which Deep Space Nine is set. This is a ship designed to be intimidating, whether due to its massive size or its armaments.

The Negh’Var has a more standard Klingon-type design, looking vaguely and abstractly bird-like. It doesn’t have as interesting a design as some other ships, which have funkier or more unique features, but the design is one of a no-nonsense warship designed purely for combat. Although it was only used sparingly in DS9, with a small five appearances, the Negh’Var Battleship was said to be powerful and fast, and a real terror to fight – once even breaching Deep Space Nine’s shields long enough to land a boarding party.

5 K’T’inga Class Battle Cruiser

Stalwart Defender Of The Klingon Empire

• Appearances in DS9: 9
• Weapons: Disruptor cannons, concussive charge launchers, torpedo launchers

The K’T’inga Class Battle Cruiser was considered to be one of the Klingon Defense Force’s most powerful ships – and for very good reason, as it has disruptor cannons, torpedo launchers, and even a concussive charge launcher.

Not as fast as some ships – capable of only Warp 5 – the K’T’inga class nevertheless can take hits and dish them out in return. It’s also got a funky, unique design – head-on, it looks like it’s wearing a hat. What’s cool about the K’T’inga is that it’s unique while also following the overall Klingon design aesthetic, giving the ship its own identity that fits nicely within the larger grouping. And it packs a powerful punch, too.

6 Jem’Hadar Fighters

Small And Effective

• Appearances in DS9: 32
• Weapons: Phased polaron beams, torpedos, disruptors, energy dissipator

The Jem’Hadar Fighters are the workhorse of the Dominion forces: small and agile, these ships pack a serious punch and are deployed very often in combat against the Federation. Jem’Hadar Fighters have a sleek, almost firefly-like design complete with glowing parts, features that set them apart from most other ships in the Star Trek canon.

This gives Jem’Hadar Fighters their own identity and makes them instantly recognizable, which is massively important when they play such a large role in space fights around DS9‘s space station setting – with thirty-two appearances in episodes, these fighters really put the work in.

7 Galaxy Class

Power Without Compare

• Appearances in DS9: 14
• Weapons: 14 Phaser Arrays, 2 torpedo launchers (250 photon torpedo launchers)

The Galaxy-class of starships ranks among the most powerful and the best ships that Starfleet Command and its engineers have ever put into service. These gigantic capital ships boast massive firepower and a crew complement to match – capable of hosting up to 15,000crew/passengers within its huge hull.

This is an impressive ship by any definition, and it saw prolonged and extensive use during the Dominion War. A Galaxy-class ship was even pressed into service against the Borg. Taking its design cues from the Federation design aesthetic, the Galaxy class has everything about Starfleet ships that make them iconic: smooth lines, a big disk, and almost unmatched power.

8 Intrepid-Class Ships

Simply Iconic

• Appearances in DS9: 1
• Weapons: Phaser arrays, phaser banks, spatial charges, torpedo tubes, photon torpedos, quantum torpedos, tricobalt devices

The USS Voyager was the face of its own series, Star Trek: Voyager, where the ship and its crew of intrepid explorers charted locations entirely new to the people of the Federation.

But the Intrepid class of ships did make an appearance in Deep Space Nine as well – although not the USS Voyager itself. The simplicity of the design, and its iconic look, make it one of the coolest starships to make an appearance in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

9 Klingon Bird-Of-Prey

A Warrior Ship For A Warrior People

• Appearances in DS9: 27
• Weapons:

The Klingon Bird-of-Prey isn’t necessarily the most elegant-looking ship, missing a lot of the sleek lines and curvature associated with many of the Federation’s most iconic ships. But the Klingon Bird-of-Prey has an elegance all its own and is the perfect ship for a war-like empire such as the Klingon Empire.

With twenty-seven different appearances in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the Klingon Bird-of-Prey has earned its place among the best and the brightest ships to feature in DS9. Small and sleek, the Bird-of-Prey has no space for vast amounts of crew or passengers, being designed for a small crew with an equally small complement of passengers. This is a warship, and it looks and feels like one.

10 USS Defiant (Defiant Class)

So Good They Made It Twice

• Appearances in DS9: 68
• Weapons: Four phaser cannons, two photon torpedo launchers

The USS Defiant featured in Deep Space Nine was a prototype for the whole Defiant class of ships, and it was a fantastic example of the military, industrial, and scientific might of the Federation. A later Federation ship was even renamed Defiant, so this ship wasn’t just a cool piece of tech – it had an important cultural place to the people of the Federation. Featuring a compact, disk-like structure, Defiant-class ships weren’t exactly beauties. But they packed a powerful punch.

The USS Defiant was a marvel of the Star Trek world’s futuristic modern industry. Specifically designed for combat, the Defiant and other ships in its class didn’t have a massive complement of crew, nor were they designed as spaceborne cities like some ships in the Federation fleet. But the Defiant-class ships and the Defiant itself saw great use against the Klingon Empire, the Borg, and even the Dominion War. There’s a reason the Defiant featured heavily in DS9.