History DeepSpaceNine / KlingonEmpire

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[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:General Martok]]
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/martok_2373_3633.jpg]]
->'''Played By''': J. G. Hertzler

Another ProudWarriorRaceGuy, but unlike Worf, Martok has lived in the Klingon Empire all his life, and thus a more authentic representative of the culture. He was the chief military commander of the Klingon Empire and was usually seen right next to Chancellor Gowron. Arguably the Klingons' most ReasonableAuthorityFigure (if not the ''only'' one) since Chancellor Gorkon of Film/{{Star Trek VI|The Undiscovered Country}}.

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* AscendedExtra: He originally was a rather minor antagonist here for a couple of episodes before his death. But Hertzler's performance was so great, the writers brought him back. Which was not difficult since the Martok who was killed as planned turned out to be a [[spoiler: doppelganger]].
* BeenThereShapedHistory: It was established on [=DS9=] that Martok was Gowron's military leader during the Klingon Civil War, personally commanding his forces during the Battle of Mempa (which was partially seen on TNG) and preventing it from becoming a complete rout for Gowron.
* BerserkButton: Kor (see SelfMadeMan). When Worf tries to talk to him about it, Martok warns him to shut up before Martok "forgets that [they] are brothers."
* BigFun: The crew of [=DS9=] (particularly Bashir, O'Brien and Dax) seem to think of him in this manner. It helps that he's one of the more approachable Klingons in the franchise.
* BigGood: For the Klingons from his very first introduction. It helps that he's the most honorable and moral Klingon besides Worf. By the end point of the war, most Klingons look to him for leadership rather than Gowron.
* BloodBrothers: He makes Worf a part of his house after Worf risks his life to help him regain his warrior spirit.
* BloodKnight: As with most Klingon warriors, he revels in battling the Dominion. He is somewhat dissatisfied when his human allies lose their taste for celebration after witnessing the full extent of the carnage wrought by the final battle on Cardassia Prime.
* CaptureAndReplicate: During Season 4, Martok is [[spoiler: actually a Changeling Doppelgänger, a mole inside the Klingon High Command, unmasked and]] killed in the Season 5 premiere "Apocalypse Rising"), [[spoiler: while the real Martok is being held in a Jem'Hadar prison camp.]] WordOfGod is that positive fan response and Hertzler's performance induced the writers to bring him back.
* CowardlyLion: His experiences in the Jem'Hadar prison camp left him more shaken than initially thought. On his first command afterwards, he passes up opportunities for victories and his crew starts to consider him a coward. Worf manages to find a way to restore Martok's confidence, [[CruelToBeKind by antagonizing him over his cowardice]] and then deliberately invoking TheWorfEffect when Martok throws down the gauntlet.
* DeathOrGloryAttack: In "The Way of the Warrior," Martok keeps urging Gowron suicidally to continue the assault on Deep Space 9, despite the fact that, as Sisko points out, the Klingon fleet is decimated, the station's shields are holding, the boarding parties are contained, and the Federation's reinforcements are closer than theirs. [[spoiler: only a full season later is it revealed that this "Martok" is a Changeling imposter, working to wreck the Klingon Empire as well as the Federation.]]
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: He gives an excellent demonstration of the differences between human and Klingon in the finale. [[spoiler:When Sisko and Ross refuse to drink a toast over Cardassian corpses in burning rubble, he shakes his head over their sentimentality and swigs from the bottle with obvious enjoyment]].
* EyepatchOfPower: Though unlike [[Film/StarTrekVITheUndiscoveredCountry General Chang]], he doesn't actually wear an eyepatch.
* FireForgedFriends: With Worf.
* FourStarBadass: He can definitely hold his own in a knock-down fight and is highly respected by his troops as a warrior.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: From AscendedExtra to [[spoiler: Chancellor of the Klingon High Council]]. Now, ''that's'' a character arc. And in-universe, he was the son of a peasant-class family. Not a drop of noble blood in his veins.
* HappilyMarried: He seems a bit of a HenpeckedHusband, but when he describes his marriage to Sisko, it's clear he would have it no other way... when his wife sweeps imperiously onto the station, Martok watches with clear love and admiration.
--> "Magnificent, isn't she."
* HeroOfAnotherStory: It's made clear that Martok has had trials to overcome in his life and continues doing badass things when he's not onscreen.
* HumbleHero: At least, as humble as a Klingon can be, mostly demonstrated by his refusal to challenge Gowron and take the chancellorship for himself.
* MyMasterRightOrWrong: He follows Gowron's increasingly bad orders in Season 7 without question, despite the embarrassing defeats and rising death count. He later learns that Gowron is setting him up to fail, and he still follows orders.
* NiceGuy: It's noticeable that Martok is one of the few Klingons that Worf encounters who ''never'' tosses his Federation upbringing in his face.
* OddFriendship: With Nog of all people. After Nog stands up to Martok and shows he's willing to enforce station regulations even to a Klingon general, they continually show respect to each other for the rest of the series. Whenever Martok shows up in Ops when Nog is on duty, Martok always acknowledges him first.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: "We ''are'' Klingons, Worf! We don't respect other cultures, we ''conquer'' them!"
* ReluctantRuler: Martok ''really'' didn't want to become [[spoiler:the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire and tried his best to avoid it. In the end, he accepts the position with great reluctance solely because he has no choice in the matter]].
* ScarsAreForever: Subverted. He refuses a prosthetic eye when its offered, wearing the scars as a badge of honour from having recieved them in battle with a Jem'hadar. Its also possible he knows that they make him even more intimidating to his opponents.
* SelfMadeMan: Blacklisted by Kor, a noble who feels his lineage was unacceptable. Serves as civilian auxiliary, wins promotion for heroism and then claws his way up to flag rank. In other words, he is a badass even by Klingon standards.
* ServileSnarker: Darok, an old hand on the ''Ch'Tang'', and Martok's personal assistant.
-->'''Martok''': [fed up] There will come a day, Darok, when your services as my aide may no longer be required.\\
'''Darok''': I look forward to that day with great anticipation.
* UndyingLoyalty: In "Tacking Into the Wind," Gowron is DrivenByEnvy that Martok will parlay his war success into a political grab back home. The thought never once entered Martok's mind. When Worf tells him that's what Gowron is up to, Martok completely rejects opposing him, saying he is just a loyal soldier.
* UpThroughTheRanks: A commoner who fought his way to flag rank, even after being blacklisted by Kor.
* WellDoneSonGuy: Martok hates Kor not just because he was rejected as an officer, but also because by the time Martok achieved promotion on his own merits his father had died. He is so glad to rub his SelfMadeMan success in Kor's face, [[ButForMeItWasTuesday but Kor didn't even remember rejecting his application in the first place]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Kor]]
->'''Played By''': John Colicos

Legendary Klingon warrior, ''Dahar Master'' (A rank for legendary Klingon Warriors) and former enemy of a certain equally-legendary [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries James T. Kirk]]. Old Klingon battle comrade of Jadzia's who goes on revenge quest with her over the loss of his friend Kang's son. Enemy of Martok's because of career rivalry. Forgiven by Martok at his death.

* TheAlcoholic: First seen in Odo's drunk tank, to the disgust of Koloth.
* AlmightyJanitor: Third officer on the ''Ch'Tang'', because Martok will wear a dress before he starts taking orders from him.
* BloodKnight: He's really eager to come out of retirement and fears that he might not be able to die in battle.
** Notable in that he was pretty much the ''only'' Klingon with this attitude in the original series; even for this era it's notably more than the Klingon norm.
* BlueBlood: The source of the quarrel between Martok and Kor. Kor didn't believe a commoner had any place as an officer.
* BoisterousBruiser: He came from a generation of Klingons who "ate when they were hungry, fought when they were angry". They didn't stand on ceremony as politicians (Gowron) tend to do.
* BookEnds: Kor's speech to the younger Klingons before his death is reminiscent of what he said to the Organians in his first TOS appearance: "I hope you will continue to savor the sweetness of your life."
* ButForMeItWasTuesday : Doesn't recall blacklisting Martok, but acknowledges that it's the kind of thing he'd do.
* CluelessBoss: His age and senility have made him this. Because of his legendary status and past rank, he is still given command during the Dominion War, but he bungles the operation when he comes to believe that he is fighting the Federation rather than the Dominion.
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: Takes on a number of Jem'Hadr ships in one little, undermanned Bird-of-Prey as a HeroicSacrifice.
* GrumpyOldMan
* HowTheMightyHaveFallen: "The only weight I carry now, dear comrade, is my own bulbous body. I was once, if you remember, far less than you see, and far more than I have become."
* [[MasterSwordsman Master Bat'leth-man]]
* MythologyGag: Jadzia and Worf both regard Kor highly, as the quintessential noble Klingon, compared to the current Klingon society which is rather lacking in honor. Kor was the first major, named Klingon seen on TOS, and his Genghis Khan-inspired look would serve as the basis of all future Klingons on TOS. He is the quintessential Klingon in more ways than one.
* NoHeroToHisValet: Martok despised him because Kor refused to allow him into military service because Martok was low-born. After being blackballed by a Dahar master, Martok was only able to get into the military by signing up as a civilian auxiliary and proving himself in battle.
* OldMaster: His farewell episode, "Once More into the Breach", draws a comparison to UsefulNotes/DavyCrockett. [[AC:In space!]]
* RoleReprisal: John Colicos portrayed Kor in ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'' and returned to portray Kor in Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine.
* ShroudedInMyth: Young Klingons are awed with the many tales of his exploits, which Kor is happy to recount and occasionally embroider.
* [[HeroOfAnotherStory Villain Of Another Story]] : Rival of Kirk's in TOS.
* WarriorHeaven: Promises Worf that he will say hi to Jadzia when he [[SuicideMission gets to Sto-vo-kor]].
* WartsAndAll / PerilousOldFool: Reliving his glory days (literally, his senility made him believe he was in the middle of a battle with the Federation while attacking a Dominion supply base) cost a large number of troops and several ships on what was supposed to be a simple raiding mission. [[BrokenPedestal The crew quickly realizes that his best days are behind him]] and start to shun him. But a fellow old warrior reminds him of who he used to be, and he makes a HeroicSacrifice [[YouShallNotPass keeping the Dominion ships at bay.]]
* YouShallNotPass: Dies holding the rear guard for the Klingon fleet.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Koloth and Kang]]
->'''Played By''': William Campbell and Creator/MichaelAnsara

Peers of Kor and fellow ''Dahar Masters'', also ex-enemies of Kirk and friends of Dax. Kang is the de-facto leader of the old trio, while Koloth is more the brains of the three.

* BadassBoast: Koloth to Odo:
-->'''Odo:''' How did you get in here?
-->'''Koloth:''' I am Koloth.
-->'''Odo:''' That doesn't answer my question.
-->'''Koloth:''' Yes, it does.
* BlingOfWar: Koloth always wears his full Klingon dress uniform, covered in many, many decorations.
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: They decide to subvert the Albino's EvilPlan and fight him to the death, but still die in the process.
* GrumpyOldMan: Koloth in particular has little patience with Kor's drunkenness.
* OldMaster: They're both Da'har Masters, honored elder warriors in Klingon society.
* RoleReprisal: They were rivals of Kirk's in [=TOS=].
* [[YouKilledMyFather You Killed My Son]]: All three old warriors, plus Trill Curzon Dax, swore a blood oath to get revenge after The Albino killed Kang's son. Kor and Koloth because they considered Kang a blood brother, Curzon because the boy was his Godson. Jadzia feels compelled to honor Curzon's blood oath, but Kand angrily tries to relieve her of any obligation to the oath made by her symbiote's prior host. Jadzia eventually convinces him to let her do as she feels she must and the four head off to kill the Albino..
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Gowron]]
->'''Played By''': Robert O'Reilly

Chancellor of the Klingon Empire.

* {{Antivillain}}: Generally villainous, but not without redeeming characteristics.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: He's on the flagship of the invasion force to Cardassia and doesn't back away from duels to the death.
* BecameTheirOwnAntithesis[=\=]NotSoDifferent: Despite starting out as an honorable, reasonable leader on TNG, by the time of [=DS9=] Gowron has essentially become no better than Duras, his political rival and opponent for the chancellorship of the Klingon Empire. Both men let the power of their position go to their heads. Both strip Worf of his family honor for wrongful reasons. Both try to use dishonorable means to destroy their political rival. Both men are hardliners of the Klingon Empire, bent on returning the Empire to old days of conquering and pillaging their neighbors. Gowron even leads the Empire into a war against the Federation, something that Duras was predicted to do if he became chancellor. [[spoiler: Both men die in honorable combat against Worf, leading to their rival being appointed chancellor.]]
* CorruptPolitician: Ezri singles him out as an example of what's wrong with the Klingon Empire. He wasn't so bad in [=TNG=] (certainly compared to his rival, Duras), but his growing paranoia - fueled by Martok's popularity - leads him to put the entire war effort in jeopardy.
* DeathEqualsRedemption: [[spoiler:Ultimately, despite his callous actions and cavalier attitude to the lives of his men, Gowron dies an honourable death in combat, meaning his people remember him as a brave warrior. Inverted as far as the Federation are concerned, as they regard him having been a power-hungry moron who drove the Cardassians into the Dominion's hands when he originally declared war on them, then nearly crippled his own forces out of spite, with the fact that Worf had to ''kill'' him only being more proof that Gowron was never really the shrewd leader they originally took him to be]].
* DrivenByEnvy: His undoing. He gets jealous of the attention and glory heaped on general Martok in the Dominion War and pushes him aside to take command and that glory for himself. Disaster ensues.
* DirtyCoward: Played with. From a political standpoint, oh yes, very much so. He's not above stripping opponents of their honor for petty reasons and is willing to use a UriahGambit against Martok to prevent a challenge to his chancellorship. However, when it comes to actual physical combat, Gowron's no slouch. He personally leads the invasion and later retreat from Cardassia and [[spoiler: dies in honorable combat against Worf. Worf himself acknowledges this by performing the traditional death rite over Gowron's body.]]
* ItsAllAboutMe: Once he sees how popular Martok is getting, he's willing to throw away any semblance of strategy at a point when the Klingons are literally the only people able to fight the Dominion, just to make Martok look worse and himself look better.
* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler:Worf kills him because he abuses his position as Chancellor; he only got the job in the first place because Worf killed his corrupt rival during the election.]]
** [[spoiler:He was fighting tooth and nail to ensure that Martok didn't get enough fame to challenge him for the Chancellorship. This leads directly to his death and Martok being appointed Chancellor by Worf.]]
* LargeHam: As his actor put it, you're not acting like a Klingon til you're getting spittle on other people from your shouting.
* TheNapoleon: At 5'10", he's average for a human, but a runt by Klingon standards. As a result, he tends to be louder and more bombastic than most others of his race.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Played with. He is corrupt and reckless, but also smart and cunning, and can give sound judgments in disputes between houses. Tends to be more reasonable when his own ambition and self-interest aren't on the line. Nor is he a coward, being willing to face Worf in a duel to the death with the Empire at stake.
* TookALevelInJerkass: While TNG had already implied that he was just the better of two bad options next to Duras, here he ends up starting a war against the Cardassians, thereby driving them into the arms of the Dominion, also starts a war with the Federation when they oppose him, and later on deliberately screws up military operations in the latter stages of the war -- when the allies are already on their ropes thanks to the Breen energy weapons being able to OneHitKill Federation and Romulan ships -- just to discredit Martok. It's honestly enough to make you wonder whether Duras could really have been much worse.
* UngratefulBastard: He repeatedly backstabs Worf and the Federation despite owing his chancellorship to their covert assistance during the Klingon Civil War.
* TheUriahGambit: He pulls this on Martok, fearing that the general's skill and growing popularity will be a threat. Gowron orders him on impossible missions with the intention that he will either get killed, or that his repeated, inevitable losses will disgrace him.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: His invasion of Cardassia would have been, somewhat, vindicated if the Detapa Council had been replaced by changelings. But they weren't and the invasion quickly bogs down into an excuse to try and rebuild the Empire's fading glory.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Grilka]]
->'''Played By''': Mary Kay Adams

Klingon noblewoman in "The House of Quark" and "Looking for Par'mach in all the Wrong Places." Abducted and married Quark to save time while she gets a dispensation to rule as a female. Meets him again in "Looking for Par'mach."

* [[AbductionIsLove Abduction Is Friendship]]: To Quark, as abductor rather then abductee.
* AmicablyDivorced: To Quark.
* ArrangedMarriage: To Quark.
* BotheringByTheBook: Klingon law doesn't ''quite'' say a Ferengi can't rule a Klingon house.
* InterspeciesRomance: In "Looking for Par'Mach"
* IronLady
* LadyOfWar
[[/folder]]

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* CowardlyLion: His experiences in the Jem'Hadar prison camp left him more shaken than initially thought. On his first command afterwards, he passes up opportunities for victories and his crew starts to consider him a coward. Worf manages to find a way to restore Martok's confidence, by antagonizing him over his cowardice and then deliberately invoking TheWorfEffect when Martok throws down the gauntlet.

* TookALevelInJerkass: And he wasn't exactly the nicest of people on TNG to begin with.

* EyepatchOfPower: Except he doesn't actually wear an eyepatch.