Typhon Frontier

Typhon Frontier
Powers
Major powers	United Federation of Planets Romulan Free State
Minor powers	Zakdorn
Points of interest
Places	Typhon Expanse
Template:Region

The Typhon Frontier lies in the spinward-coreward stretch of Federation space, between the territory of the Romulan Free State and the unexplored reaches of the Beta and Delta Quadrants. As a region it includes the Typhon Expanse, which remains largely unexplored and gives the wider area its name. Because of these extensive opportunities for discovery within, adjacent to, and far beyond Federation space, the Typhon Frontier has received renewed attention from Starfleet as a launching point for missions of exploration. Task Force 17, based out of Deep Space 17, is one of the key Starfleet units focusing on such ventures.

History

Proximity to the Romulan Neutral Zone and the influence of local Zakdorn policies kept the Frontier as a strategic rather than scientific priority for many years. Even as relations cooled with the Romulans, the region became known as the first point likely to be hit by any Borg incursions, and thus its defensive and detection capabilities received the bulk of Starfleet support.

This did not exclude any missions of exploration. Any ventures deeper into the Beta Quadrant were launched from the Typhon Frontier, able to circumnavigate Romulan space, as were early investigations of the distant reaches of the Delta Quadrant. The density of stellar phenomena of the Typhon Expanse itself made it an item of curiosity for researchers, but also an obstacle in need of overcoming. While Starfleet dispatched exploratory operations into the area, even by 2385 it was estimated a mere ten percent of even the Typhon Expanse had been charted.

The region was all but abandoned as a hub of research after the Attack on Mars as Starfleet turned its focus on defence over science. Any resources for research nearby were poured into the political agreements with the Free State to study the Artifact.

When relations between the Federation and the Free State broke down after the Coppelius Incident of 2399, Starfleet began its return to its mandate of exploration and discovery. The Typhon Frontier was identified as an excellent launch point for such missions, both for research closer to home within the Expanse and deep space operations far beyond Federation borders, into the Delta Quadrant or even past Romulan territory into the depths of the Beta.

In 2400, as efforts began to repair relations between the Free State and the Federation, minor scientific research agreements committed to small operations to share exploratory opportunities in the Typhon Expanse and the unclaimed regions beyond Federation territory. The Romulan representatives in such research are usually civilian scientists, eager to return to the cooperation enjoyed from the Artifact, and the military has only minor involvement.

Key Locations

Typhon Expanse

The Typhon Expanse that gives the wider area its name is a dense region well-known for its spectacular stellar phenomena. While these are the wonder of any Starfleet astronomer, they are also poorly understood and potentially dangerous. Ships embarking into the Expanse are warned to be ready for any number of strange occurrences.

The Typhon Frontier In-Play

• The Frontier is a sparsely-populated region, home to more indigenous species than colony worlds.

• Starfleet operations use the Frontier as a launching point for deep-space missions beyond Federation borders, or local research usually focused around the Typhon Expanse.

• Relations with the Romulan Free State along this border are either silent or cordial; there is little worth fighting for, and the Typhon Frontier is the home of the first missions of scientific cooperation with the Federation since Coppelius.