Kobayashi Maru Vol. 17

[jblancato]

This week's scenario is brought to you by undersquiggle. Good luck!

You’re in a Federation starship and patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone when you receive a distress call on a Federation Coded frequency. It comes from a small civilian ship barely on the Romulan side of the border. They’re being chased by two Romulan Warbirds and have suffered significant damage. They’re running on auxiliary power, life support is failing and the ship can’t enter warp.

The crew claims they wandered into Romulan space when their navigation computer experienced a catastrophic failure, and in the process of merging the ship’s navigation with its communications system, the ship’s engineer stumbled on an errant Romulan transmission that detailed their plans for a new ship. The ship not only has a perfect cloak, it can also fire weapons through the cloak. They also claim that in the ship’s weakened state, the crew is unable to transfer the plans to you.

The Warbirds are closing fast and have hailed you, warning that the crew isn’t who they say they are, and if you interfere with the Romulans’ official duties, you’ll be fired upon. You wouldn’t be able to transport the crew of the civilian ship out without crossing the border, and doing so could spark all-out war with the Romulan Empire.

[hendo001]

damn this is evil.

I would cross the border and claim we were acting on the distress call.

tell the romulans to stand down and that you would want to inspect the ship and take its crew back alive, download the plans and hide them, then hand the ship over to the romulans to do whatever with the ship and take the crew back home for a debrief.

Hopefully this will keep the romulans from declaring war and give us a chance to see their plans :)


Woot First!

[surrogate]

I'd nod and trust the Rommies on this one.

[MetroidNut]

I think this scenario depends largely on whether the civilian ship is, in fact, Federation. If it isn't, the only way to prevent war is to simply let the Romulans have their target.

If it is a Federation vessel, however, the rescue of its crew is of the utmost importance. I would have no choice but to breach the neutral zone, all the while trying to convince the Romulans to let me take the crew of the ship. I'm quite sure they decline, but I also suspect they're so busy firing on the civilian transport that when I lower my shields and beam the civilians aboard withOUT the plans they intercepted, the Romulans don't react in time to destroy my vessel.

After that, I run back for the border and hope the Romulans are appeased by the plans still being in their grasp. If they do pursue, I simply hope I can outwarp them - attempting to engage them will start a war.

[cjfs]

Given PvP is consensual I fly right in and take a closer look.

[Manx]

Moving to assist the vessel would be openly implicating Starfleet in the theft of classified military secrets.

I don't see that there is anything I could do besides monitor the situation and send Starfleet a report.

[MetroidNut]

But if the crew of that vessel is, indeed, Federation, Starfleet won't look kindly upon them being abandoned within range of a ship that could help.

Again, I say take the crew and leave the plans.

[admicoker1]

I would send the Romulans a message stating they are approaching federation space and must back down immediately. Completely ignoring there message. When they respond I would have the Chief engineer distort the incoming and outgoing transmissions to make it look like we are having technical difficulties. Then order full impulse ahead to cross the boarder to get within range of the ship. Once in range I would beam the crew to my ship and activate the tractor beam to start hauling the ship as a cover for the data transmission stream that is hacking into the civilian transports computer downloading the schematics for the new Romulan bird. As the Romulans approach I should power up shields, assuming the romulans open fire I would implant a program into the transports computer that causes the ship to dump is warp core. Once the core is exposed I would set course for federation space full warp, detonate the transports warp core causing a large explosion while warping before the shockwave hits the ship. With the plans on board and the crew safe I would re-establish comms with the Romulans informing them of there aggressive act of war and suggest they stand down or face all out war with the federation. Since the Romulans know the information has allready been transmitted to Starfleet Command and they no longer have the leg up on technology they stand down on orders from Romulus. Of course after things have settled down my first officer will have hooked up with one of the rescued crew members, my chief engineer will have collaborated with the engineer of the transport and my doctor will be treating the civilian crew for radiation exposure. All while im sitting in my ready room sipping Earl Grey Tea and playing chess with my android helmsman.

[Veroku_Chan]

Considering the facts that the distress call came on a federation frequency, life support on the ship is failing, and the breach into the romulan zone is minor. I would not leave the crew to certain death by chance.

My likly solution would be first to attempt negotiations with the romulan fleet to stop attack on the ship for their safe transportation to my ship while setting the Auto-Destruct on the vessel to keep any federation technology out of romulan hands.

If this course of action did not work I would first retransmit the distress call and romulan transmission to any nearby federation ships, and be forced to enter romulan space, place my ship between the fleeing vessel and the romulans. Buying them time to enter federation space, or otherwise transport any surviors from the ship with or without said plans for romulan vessel. Also in this scenario ensuring the destruction of the ship either by Auto-destruct or by firing on it myself. I would continue to flee back into federation space either escorting the ship, or with the 2nd crew onboard.

The plans for the romulan ship are a 2nd objective here, if a forceful incursion into romulan territory is needed. Claiming them would be important (due to the possibility of war), but still not as important as responding to the distress call and rescuing the crew from a certain death scenario.

[erriku]

It is a civilian ship being attacked by a military vessel and is requesting my assistance. I would warp right into the situation and intervene in the battle. If they are Federation civilians, then I would risk an engagement with the Romulans should diplomacy fail. If they are not Federation but request sanctuary, I am obligated to assist in anyway I can. If they are not Federation citizens, since they are in Romulan space I cannot prevent their arrests, but I could prevent their immediate deaths.

But if push comes to shove, the Romulans are a crumbling faction that lost two planets worth of people just 22 years ago. Transport and warp away.

[GambitAce]

As I begin to move into range to trasport the crew from the ship, as we are to respond to a distress call, I hail the ship to see who I am attempting to rescue and tell them to download the plans to a padd, set the self-destruct, and prepare to be beamed out. As soon as I am in range I beam the crew away and warp back into Federation space heading to the nearest starbase. The ship blows up leaving no federation technology in the hands of Romulans and the crew and plans are safely aboard.

[LandoGriffin2326]

Being on the brink of war I would first assist the Romulans and disable the civilian ship. I would then immediately beam the ship's passengers onto my vessel still trying to make it appear that i am helping the Romulans who I'm sure will still be hostile and angry I interfered in the first place.

At least that would give me a little more time to find out what's really going on. They are most likely federation spies. Even though they were on a civilian ship, they used a federation coded frequency and happened to stumble upon some pretty top secret information.

So if that were to be the scenario i would gladly leave the ship and the plans w/ the Romulans and hope they would be satisfied leaving the passengers w/ me. But that seems way too easy. If the ship at question really is guilty then there would be no choice but to leave them to the Romulans.

[drays917]

Much as I hate to say it, there's nothing I could do. Traveling into the Neutral Zone to retrieve who the Romulans regard as criminals would be an act of aggression, especially if classified military plans were involved. I would try to persuade the Romulans to either detain the crew themselves or to allow us to hold them and await a trial. The ship (with whatever plans it may hold) would be immediately given over to the Romulans.
Whether the Romulans agree or (more likely) not, my report would be sure to include everything the civilian crew told us, and it would be up to Starfleet to pursue it further if necessary.

[warcrow]

I would take the ship on the edge of the neutral zone. It sounds like the Romulans could be right and acting without knowing more would be foolish. I would hail the romulan vessel and tell them that we received a distress call on a federation frequency. I would tell them that we cannot allow a potential federation citizen to be harmed. I would tell them that committing any acts against the vessel could result in a war that nobody really wants and an easy way to resolve this is to the federation assist to apprehend the criminals. :D

If the romulans refuse then we would have no choice but to call starfleet to ask for further instructions. Risking war with the romulans should not be decided by one captain.

[walker555]

Okay, here we go....


First I would transport the crew of the civilian ship to my ship. Then, I would Hail the Romulans and ask them to show me proof of what they are saying (Say some kind of half epic stupid thing like "in our society you are innocent until proven guilty). This is when my option scews off into different things depending on what they say.


REFERENCE: please follow them in this order A(capital letter)-->1(number)-->i(roman numeral)-->a(lowercase letter)
queue music=done


A. If they prove what they say:

Return the "civilians" to them. queue music

B. If they refuse to prove what they are saying

begin to leave (this leads to 2, just without the fight)

C. If they attack (this is for both after B and as a separate action all together)

Engage them in a massive firefight

1. If its the end of the episode

one gets destroyed and the other decloaks we learn some kind of lesson, the captain of the civilian freighter thanks us, queue music.

2. if its not the end

we start to win they cloak and retreat. we head back.

i. story line 1

we continue home, then along the way find out the romulans were telling the truth then we return the 'civilians' and beg forgiveness, all is well queue music.

ii. story line 2

we continue home, more romulans/klingons/any other race attack us (if its klingons its because they want the technology)

a. we start to lose the fight

help arrives just in time/ we use the cloaking tech to escape, queue music.

b. we start winning

we destroy a few of the attackers the rest re cloak and we continue home, queue music.

[Trekkie]

Honestly, since there is no way of telling what the true intentions of the civilian ship are, I would have to remain loyal to the Romulans in this situation -- although I would try to work out some kind of agreement between the two that could act as a compromise. Even if the plans that the civilian ship retrieved are legitimate, I feel as though it is their duty to return them to the Romulans, so I would definitely make that an objective in dealing with the conflict. Essentially, I do not think that helping a civilian ship of which I am unsure of the crew's motives is worth risking potential war with the Romulans -- although I would like to assist the crew of the civilian ship, possibly transporting them to a different ship in the meantime while the Romulans reacquired their plans.

[DarkOrion69]

Logically, if the civilian ship was having communications problems that prevented transmission of the data on this new Romulan vessel...they would not have been able to establish communications with my vessel in the first place. It is highly probable that there is more to this situation than I understand. My best guess is that the civilian ship is crewed (at least in part) by Starfleet Intelligence operatives operating covertly in the Romulan Neutral Zone. In my opinion, the approaching Romulan vessels are likely Tal'Shiar counter-espionage agents trying to contain the evidence of this new vessel.

My duty to Starfleet is to uphold the validity of the Neutral Zone to prevent Romulan aggression. However, these are likely Starfleet officers, and I have fair concern for my fellow officers. I would ask the civilian vessel to surrender to the Romulan vessels. I would then ask them for a passenger manifest ostensibly for Federation ambassadors to negotiate their eventual release. I would check these names against the Starfleet Agent Database I memorized before this assignment.

If there were intelligence operatives aboard, I would signal the Romulan commander and tell him that he is well within his jurisdiction to detain the civilian vessel for questioning. I would falsely claim that certain personnel on the vessel were wanted Federation criminals. If he would be willing to turn over those criminals then I would agree to the Romulans taking custody of the remaining crew (and their vessel) pending a joint Federation/Romulan investigation into this incursion into the Romulan Neutral Zone. I would give him time to consider my proposition.

It would be clear to a Tal'Shiar agent (their commander?) that close investigation of this situation would lead to uncovering closely guarded Romulan secrets. If the Romulans thought they could easily defeat my ship, they would never have tried to warn us off. He would recontact me and offer a solution to the problem, giving away as little as possible about these supposed ship plans.

He would suggest that certainly this was all an unfortunate misunderstanding. He would explain that the remnants of the Romulan Star Empire regrettably don't have the resources, or the political support of the people, to warrant a full scale investigation into a minor mistake by an overenthusiastic engineer. If we would simply allow him to scan the civilian vessel to determine that no contraband data was present, he would be happy to just forget the whole incident. I would agree to this graciously, praising him for his fairness in this regrettable incident.

The Romulan scan of the civilian ship would 'accidentally' infect the data core and erase all data. I would pretend to believe this was just another unfortunate accident, in the interest of interstellar peace. I would offer to tow the damaged vessel from the Neutral Zone and apologize for wasting the Romulan's time and thank them for their patience. The we would fly off, secure in the fact that all Starfleet Intelligence Operatives possess Eidetic Memory and memorize critical data instead of recording it on computers :)

[UnholyMisfit]

This one seems easy to me.

Cross into the neutral zone and rescue the crew of the civilian vessel.
Attempt to retrieve the plans (this is secondary to the rescue).
Never trust the Romulans.

[Collier79]

Why is this ship not jammed or destroyed at this point?

Let the Romulans have them, send up a report.

(Out of Character) WOOT GO ROMULANS!!! Can't wait for the Romulan faction to be added as a playable faction!!!

[cjfs]

Message the Romulans that we're on our way to help, ignore any reply as we're having comm difficulty. Fire on the federation-signaling craft for violating the neutral zone. Beam the survivors on board as prisoners. Invite the Romulans over for lunch so we can celebrate our joint victory.

[Raibart]

It's the Neutral Zone,Neutral meaning a buffer or no mans land So the Romulans have no more right to be there then we do. So yes I could cross it if 2 Rom Warships have already done so. The real problem is the Romulans may be right about the crew not being who they say they are .Set course to intercept the ship,check to see if the ships registry is legitamate if it is a cargo vessel that went off course and the Romulans VIOLATED the treaty by entering the neutral zone to intercept it. I would raise shields and fire on the warbirds. It doesn't matter if it contains classified intel or not the Romulans should not have entered the zone and they are attacking a obvious civian ship.

[redbeard1682]

I would warp into the neutral zone to investigate the Romulan Warbird's claims and intentions and escort them as they travel through the neutral zone; however, I would set an intercept course just behind the smaller civilian ship and coordinate our maneuvering. I would then have my engineers expand our shields farther out into space to create a larger buffer in between the Romulans and the civilian ship. Once the civilian ship is into Federation territory, I would hail the Romulans and tell them to discontinue their pursuit lest they care for a true battle. Then I would request the civilian ship stand to and prepare for boarding. If their claims are factual, then I would escort them to the nearest Star Base, and if not, and they are truly criminals, I would take them back to the neutral zone and hand them over to the Romulans.

[Robosham]

"You’re in a Federation starship and patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone when you receive a distress call on a Federation Coded frequency. It comes from a small civilian ship barely on the Romulan side of the border. They’re being chased by two Romulan Warbirds and have suffered significant damage. They’re running on auxiliary power, life support is failing and the ship can’t enter warp.

The crew claims they wandered into Romulan space when their navigation computer experienced a catastrophic failure, and in the process of merging the ship’s navigation with its communications system, the ship’s engineer stumbled on an errant Romulan transmission that detailed their plans for a new ship. The ship not only has a perfect cloak, it can also fire weapons through the cloak. They also claim that in the ship’s weakened state, the crew is unable to transfer the plans to you.

The Warbirds are closing fast and have hailed you, warning that the crew isn’t who they say they are, and if you interfere with the Romulans’ official duties, you’ll be fired upon. You wouldn’t be able to transport the crew of the civilian ship out without crossing the border, and doing so could spark all-out war with the Romulan Empire. "
---------------------------------------------

First the Romulins must prove that the other ship isn’t who they say they are.
Second I would assist the other ship, investigate to see the truth.
Third why was civilian ship so close to the natural zone to begin with?

If the Romulins don’t agree to investigate this in mutual Co-operation, I would engage the Romulins for firing on and threaten an unarmed civilian ship.
If the Romulins are right they can have there prisoners and go on there way.:o

[Zionixion]

It is a civilian ship being attacked by a military vessel and is requesting my assistance. I would warp right into the situation and intervene in the battle. If they are Federation civilians, then I would risk an engagement with the Romulans should diplomacy fail. If they are not Federation but request sanctuary, I am obligated to assist in anyway I can. If they are not Federation citizens, since they are in Romulan space I cannot prevent their arrests, but I could prevent their immediate deaths.

But if push comes to shove, the Romulans are a crumbling faction that lost two planets worth of people just 22 years ago. Transport and warp away.

Quite the point you make there, good job.

[Jagdraben]

Overriding Objectives:
-Prevent a war between the United Federation of Planets and the Romulan Star Empire.
-Protect the lives of Federation citizens.

What we know:
-The starships are on the far side of the Romulan Neutral Zone.
-A number of Romulan Warbirds are engaging a single vessel (which is not resisting, but is running).
-The single vessel claims to be a Federation-flagged vessel, a civilian transport, and bearing intelligence concerning a Romulan Wunderwaffen, which could prove to be vital to the security of the Federation.
-The Romulans claim that the vessel is not what it appears to be.

Thusly, we must find a way to ascertain the veracity of the alleged civilian vessel's claims. This is the most important aspect, for if the vessel is lying, then it should be left to the Romulans to do with as they please (unless the vessel is a Starfleet Intelligence "black ship" that got a little bit too adventurous. But if that is the case, they have plans for all eventualities to protect Starfleet and the Federation from accusations of openly supporting subterfuge within the Empire and interfering with the internal affairs of the Empire). If the vessel is, in fact, what it claims to be, then it must be protected at all costs, without provoking a war. The question then becomes one of whether national pride should be placed before peace.

With or without a judgement there, the lives of the Federation citizens aboard the alleged Federation-flagged transport should be protected at all cost. The intelligence that they are alleged to have should be a priority, but the civilians comes first and the intelligence second. Of course, avoiding a war is important, but putting up a heavily armed and angry facade for the Romulans will garner their respect and show that the Federation is not to be taken lightly.

Regardless, the entire situation requires knowledge of the civilian vessel's true identity. And it must be done rapidly in order to protect the lives of those civilians, if they are, in fact civilians. However, the Federation cannot be seen as trespassing into Romulan territory, lest a war be started.

Therefore, the following audacious course of action is suggested:

-File a report of the situation with Starfleet (with an attachment allowing the Federation to establish plausible deniability by saying that you and your vessel went rogue).
-Engage cloaking device and set a course at maximum warp for the allegedly civilian vessel.
-Upon reaching the civilian vessel, ascertain the veracity of the vessel's claims to be a Federation-flagged vessel.

If the claim is true:
-Transport the crew and the Wunderwaffen evidence directly into the brig. And the warhead from a photon torpedo near their anti-matter storage tanks to destroy the vessel and make it appear to be a simple containment breach at first glance.
-Tuck tail and run for the border. Do not decloak until such time as arriving at a starbase beyond the reach of Romulan telescopes and long-range sensors is reached.

If the claim is false:
-Decloak and destroy the offending vessel. Hail the Romulan warbirds and express frustration at their impotence to destroy a simple transport and bemusement at their inability to protect their own borders from transgression by such a ship. But thank them for bringing it to the attention of Starfleet before it could enter Federation space.
-Leisurely turn about and return to Federation space.
-Send the Romulan commander a bill for the torpedoes used to destroy the offending vessel.

[masterofmerc]

whats left of the empire after the home world being destroyed can't stand before the might of the federation save the crew get back to federation space and hi-tail it to the nearest star base

[qoona]

First i would signal command and get some reinforcements on way. Than I would wait on border and transport crew right to holding cell. Hail romulans and ask them if they want to press charges against them on fedration court. Would require some smarttalk, and probably running away, but thats the best way to get along, the transmission story is just inprobable, but cant be full threw away. So crew will be tansported to nearest starbase to be interrogated, if possibel i would try to get some proofs for or against them, Also when they will be in transporter range i would ask them to either send data, or copy them and take with them.

[Avenger_Dragon]

Time is of the essence so...

I'd give the romulans every chance to make idiots of themselves

Set course for the ship and engage at maximum warp, send message to the brass so i can legally be 'reigned in' before it would be too late.

Have the ship analyzed for federation registry and flight plan. Anything that says without a doubt this is federation. If it is not, then stop the ship and let the romulans have at it.

If it is Federation.

Send a message to the romulans "As a representative of the federation, i accept your claim this ship is under false identity, however i cannot allow you to destroy a federation ship without due cause. I request authorization to enter and transport a small away team to inspect the ship. I ask that you also send a team of your own to ensure our good intentions. Neither of us want an 'incident' on our hands because the other was too rash. You have your orders, i have mine."

If the romulans reject the proposal (and very likely they will) i'll warp in anyways, beam off anything and everything i can, and get the hell out of dodge back over the border. After which i will conduct my own investigation of what i could get and report everything to starfleet. If the civilians are clearly criminals or worse, i will load them all into a cargo bay, warp back to the romulans and hand everything over on a silver platter apologizing to the romulans for them being too arrogant to allow the federation to give them the 'ok' to act against a federation ship.

If everything turns out and we ended up doing the right thing in the first place, flip off the romulan warbirds and keep running until the romulans give up or i reach a stronger position with support.

[jimelfman]

First, while talking to the Romulan commander (as he/she has already hailed my vessel), I would diplomatically and politely point out that these two individuals, whoever they may be, have involved both of our governments in this affair. They have also possibly brought both our peoples to the brink of war, and I would offer to help the Romulan contingent in their investigation of the matter.

Priorities:

1. Discover, cooperatively if possible, the veracity of BOTH parties' claims. If the civilian crew are who and what they say they are, rescue them and, to help prevent a major diplomatic incident, suggest to the Romulans that I be allowed to rescue the crew and take them back to Federation space . And, as per the treaty, the ship and its contents (including the data files) revert to Romulus.

2. If the civilian crew is lying, it's the Romulans' problem, let them deal with it. It could be arms smugglers, it could be information brokers. Reliable information is paramount in this whole situation, regardless.

3. If the Romulans are lying, then rescue of the ship AND its crew is paramount. Red alert if necessary.

Of course, the preceeding is mere conjecture without first requesting of the Romulan commander that they do nothing until I have had a chance to contact Starfleet command. There may, after all, be warrants or intelligence briefs that may help clear up the situation. Mainly, you want to do the most good for all concerned without ruffling too many feathers...if possible.

[Mojo]

With no other information available, it would be necessary to treat this as a diplomatic situation.

I would require that all ships stand down, and hold position while the negotiation was underway.

There is no way to know if the civilian ship is a spy or not. The Romulans will not under any circumstances walk away from this.

I would suggest to the Romulan commander that they and we would each send a team to the civilian ship to investigate the claim. If the civilians were in fact spying, they would have to be handed over to the Romulans, according to interstellar law. However, it would have to be done through diplomatic channels. That is, they would be arrested and extradited back to the Federation. If not, they would have to be released to us.

If this was unacceptable to the Romulans, then the negotiations would have to be drawn out and legal counsel would have to be acquired from the Empire and the Federation.


The point here is that no one should do anything until the legality of the situation was determined.


If the Romulans were insistent on pressing their attack in defiance of this, then it would be required that I defend the civilian ship. Engaging us in battle would be an act of war. I would be sure to make this clear.

Outnumbered, it might be necessary to withdraw, but the defense would have to be made. In other words, it depends on how gung ho the Romulans are.

[coolzero]

use the transwarp transporter, to beam a away party to the ship and rescue the crew and get the plans. Fool the romulans by letting then think that the warpcore of the ship explode.

[lvjayman]

Would order my science or comms officers to determine if the transmission is indeed Federation, and to try and locate the vessel in Starfleet registry to determine if it is indeed a Federation ship. While they are researching that, would order the helm to proceed at best possible speed towards the vessel without yet crossing the border. Like the Kobayashi Maru seen in ST2, would be wary of a potential false distress scenario and possible ambush. Or that this could be a Romulan ale smuggler trying to use a Federation ship to escape justice. Would increase scans to make sure there really are ONLY 2 ships out there, in case they have cloaked buddies and order yellow alert.
During approach would inform the Romulans that this ship is broadcasting as a Federation vessel and that I am proceeding to render aid to a ship in distress. Hopefully by this time scans or data would be able to determine if the ship is Federation or not. I would NOT violate the border or treaty for a non Federation vessel, since it is in Romulan space and subject to there laws.
If it is Federation, and there is time before the Romulans could destroy it, would offer to jointly board the vessel with the Romulans, to determine the nature of its crew and any guilt or innocence. If that is refused, would ask them to cease pursuit while all ships hold position pending actions from both governments higher command, simple rendering humanitarian aid to the civilian crew while we wait.
If there is no time, or the Romulans refuse to cooperate, then I would attempt to reach the ship and rescue its crew (and data if possible), transporting them to my vessel if necessary. I would not fire on the Romulan ships, unless absolutely necessary for my ships survival. Once the civilians were aboard, would proceed at maximum warp back to Federation space, informing the Romulans that the civilian crew would be transported to the nearest starbase, and that they would be held there until both governments could determine the nature of the issue.
As a side note, I find it highly unlikely that a civilian vessel would just happen to wander of course and intercept critical plans out in the middle of the neutral zone, That is why I would be greatly on guard to ambush or deception. Maybe its a plot discredit Starfleet by showing a Federation ship violating there border. However, it would be a captains duty to preserve the lives of federation civilians so the attempt would have to be made.

[lvjayman]

one important fact also is that the class of vessel under our command is never specified, so all the responses of 'I'd just blow them away' might not be possible. For all we know were in an Oberth class ship. Wouldn't want to fire on 2 Warbirds then.:eek:

[lvjayman]

It's the Neutral Zone,Neutral meaning a buffer or no mans land So the Romulans have no more right to be there then we do. So yes I could cross it if 2 Rom Warships have already done so. The real problem is the Romulans may be right about the crew not being who they say they are .Set course to intercept the ship,check to see if the ships registry is legitamate if it is a cargo vessel that went off course and the Romulans VIOLATED the treaty by entering the neutral zone to intercept it. I would raise shields and fire on the warbirds. It doesn't matter if it contains classified intel or not the Romulans should not have entered the zone and they are attacking a obvious civian ship.

except that in the problem it states that the ship is on the Romulan side of the border, so we would be violating there space.

[Merciful_Death]

Well, if in scanning range, then verify the ID of the endangered ship. If i actually IS a non-Romulan, civilian ship, then communicate with the Romulans for the lives of the crew, let them have the ship. Back this up with a course toward the situation, after sending a log-to-date via subspace back to he nearest starbase.

If not in scanning range, get there, even if it means wandering a little into the buffer zone (cause that region hasn't been all to "neutral" in a very long time), then proceed as above.

[ruggedjohn]

My approach would be to go in and attempt a rescue. If i caught any hint that the Roms were right then then i destroy the ship myself, appologise and warp home, let the diplomats sort it out. If they are who they say they are then I have performed my duty.

[Angelwithsoul]

You’re in a Federation starship and patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone when you receive a distress call on a Federation Coded frequency. It comes from a small civilian ship barely on the Romulan side of the border. They’re being chased by two Romulan Warbirds and have suffered significant damage. They’re running on auxiliary power, life support is failing and the ship can’t enter warp.

The crew claims they wandered into Romulan space when their navigation computer experienced a catastrophic failure, and in the process of merging the ship’s navigation with its communications system, the ship’s engineer stumbled on an errant Romulan transmission that detailed their plans for a new ship. The ship not only has a perfect cloak, it can also fire weapons through the cloak. They also claim that in the ship’s weakened state, the crew is unable to transfer the plans to you.

The Warbirds are closing fast and have hailed you, warning that the crew isn’t who they say they are, and if you interfere with the Romulans’ official duties, you’ll be fired upon. You wouldn’t be able to transport the crew of the civilian ship out without crossing the border, and doing so could spark all-out war with the Romulan Empire.

Seeing as the crew of the civilian ship just gave us the basics about this new ship, I won't risk an all out war with the Romulans. We'll get the new ship specs another way. And I don't really trust those civilians either, Something about the description makes me think the Romulans aren't kidding around.

However, I will set course for the Federation side of Romulan Neutral Zone and wait for the civilian to cross into Federation space, Obviously the Romulans can't enter our side just as much as we can't enter theirs. I will then escort the civilian ship to the nearest starbase where Starfleet Command can handle the situation further.

[deeboboy]

chase after the ship beam all data and crew back aboard to my ship and jump to warp and not stop till i get back to star4flert

[bevr36]

1st: I'm gonna' be Klingon
2nd: if I was federation, I'd send a transmission to the Romulans saying I just want the crew and they can go on, get the plans, and then I get the crew and blow up the civilian vessel

[Greenomen]

You got three choices here.
1. You could take the “Oh what the hell” approach, charge in firing at the Romulans.
2. Hail the Romulans with “Have a nice day. Do you all have any extra Romulan ale you would be willing to part with?”
3. Fly in and take out the ship before the Romulans do. Then hail the Romulans, “LOL too slow sloppy joe!”.

Hmmm… hard choice. Oh wait... “You’re in a Federation starship” and “doing so could spark all-out war with the Romulan Empire” that changes everything. You got only one choice now.

1. Hail the Romulan, then whimper and whine… “Stop you bullies… can’t we talk about this? Blah, blah, blah, can’t we just be friends?”

(lol just joking. In a bit of a PvP mood today)

[Hyperion2206]

I would go in rescue the crew and at least try to get my hand on the plans. If the Roumlans open fire I would return the favor and get out of there as soon as the crew and the plans are on board.

The risk of open war would be minimal because the Romulans don't have the capacity for that anymore. And if I didn't try to get the plans the Romulans would have a ship type at hand pretty soon that would make an attack on the federation a piece of cake.

[Kolov]

Bah, Federaton weeklings, all of you!

The military secrets are all that matters. And if they are true Kli... ehm Federation, the civilians will understand and accept their fate.

Only thing that matters is to get the plans, if the outcome will be war, then let it be this way.

The idea of the exploding warp core of the civillian ship is certainly excellent but first priority has to be to get the plans not the civilians.

So, establish communication with the Romulans, offer a diplomatic eschange, anything that can lower their guard, meanwhile get one civilain to prepare the plans.

Lower your shields, beam as many civilians over as you can without endangering the mission, then explode their warp core and warp away as soon as you can.

[ryan218]

According to starfleet regs, my ship would have to respond to the distress call, Therefore I would intercept the transport & warbirds while notifying starfleet of the situation. I would negotiate with the Romulans to allow us to take the ships crew back and let them take the ship, but not before erasing the transports datacore exept the Self-destruct threading it through every access point on the ship to keep tech out of the Romulan Star Empire's hands, beaming onboard the plans. In the event that they refuse however, I would make it seem that I were allowing them to do what they want with the transport then lower my shields and signal my engineer to extend the transporter range so i could beam the crew off the transport and plot a course to get out of there and destroy the transport. If this scenario took place instead of the first one, the crew of the transport is 1st priority, either way I would report the outcome to starfleet.

[bevr36]

I would try to peacefully getthe crew of the ship and maybe stealthe plans. I would also tell one of the crew members to hit the self destruct button sequence on civian vessel so the Romulans would not get our technologies.

[typhoonjim]

I would report to STARFLEET COMAND of the possable perfect cloaking WARBIRD and its ability to fire weapons while cloaked and of the probable loss of the ship that prvided this info. And this ship will not
be entering ROMULAN space to face 2 or more ROMULAN WAR BIRDS but will be remaining on station and monitoring the situation.


TYPHOONJIM

[bmcaleb]

as some previously said the romulans are not capable of open war but with the new warbird they would be able to kill feds without warning and having those plans would be invaluable so i say go in yellow alert and attempt diplomacy to retrive the ship and the crew and if they refuse well lets just say running is a big option after disabling the romulan ships and any way with the crew and plans aboard they intel would be a secure as i can make it

[dannylee1701]

It is a federation coded message. We have an obligation to help in this matter. I would send out a distress call for back up and warp to the rescue. With the presence of my ship and weapons I would do my best to barter for the life of the people without taking the plans, but if that doesen't work the only recourse would be to fight. I would extend my shields around the ship and beam them aboard, probably while taking a pounding and high tail it back to federation space at top speed.

[redsky86]

as i am in the federations newest and most powerful warship to date i would fly in and take the civilian ship if the romulans decide to fight back their funeral. take the plans and depending on the crews backgrounds either take them to the federation or leave them on their original ship to the romulans.

[DrysonBennington]

You’re in a Federation starship and patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone when you receive a distress call on a Federation Coded frequency. It comes from a small civilian ship barely on the Romulan side of the border. They’re being chased by two Romulan Warbirds and have suffered significant damage. They’re running on auxiliary power, life support is failing and the ship can’t enter warp.

The crew claims they wandered into Romulan space when their navigation computer experienced a catastrophic failure, and in the process of merging the ship’s navigation with its communications system, the ship’s engineer stumbled on an errant Romulan transmission that detailed their plans for a new ship. The ship not only has a perfect cloak, it can also fire weapons through the cloak. They also claim that in the ship’s weakened state, the crew is unable to transfer the plans to you.

The Warbirds are closing fast and have hailed you, warning that the crew isn’t who they say they are, and if you interfere with the Romulans’ official duties, you’ll be fired upon. You wouldn’t be able to transport the crew of the civilian ship out without crossing the border, and doing so could spark all-out war with the Romulan Empire.

"Open her up."

First off you would need to establish whether or not the civilian ship design has been registered as a complement to the Romulan Empire through the ships registration designation database. This database is maintained on a weekly basis by StarFleet and sent to every Starship in the fleet regardless of its class via FTL encrypted protocol channels to the ships computer. This is to ensure that each security officer and captain will have the ability to recognize any current known ship design within a week of the ship being found and not yet recorded. You would have to cross index the design with every type of design known to be in use by the Romulans in any role regardless of how minuscule the role would seem to be.

If the ship came back as not being a Romulan design you would then cross index the design with any ship design that have or may have had relations with the Romulans at one time or another based on the race of the civilians piloting the ship. If the results of the scan came back that the two civilians were in fact notorious throughout the Romulan Empire then an extra amount of caution would be added.

Next you would run a complete scan of the ships systems. This scan would be run concurrent with the ship's design blueprint's. Although the scan would be performed by the ships sensor pallets as the scan itself would go into every minute detail of the area said to be damaged and cross referenced with the ships computer database that related to the system being scanned blueprints or schematics and would be looking for following:

The portion of the ship that is said to have been damaged would be scanned.

The scan indicates that in a certain section that a solid sheet of titanium two feet by two feet by three inches thick is supposed to be there, but on the actual scan itself the reading says that only twenty percent of the solid titanium sheet is present. The amount that is present however is jagged, indicating a explosive release of energy has been used against the sheet of titanium. The next part of the scan would be to determine whether the blast was purposely created or random. A purposely created blast will always be molded to affect certain systems as well as the bomb maker always leaving behind a signature of theirself in the placement of the explosive. This type of explosion would be molded to avoid key ships systems, warp drive, weapons, communications, life support. A random explosion would not discern about what systems were affected.

If the ship comes back as being registered as either a Romulan ship or having relations with the Romulan Empire or the crew is Romulan or has that the database has determined that the crew has had relations with the Romulan Empire based on their race then it can be safe to say that it may be a trap.

Another part of the criteria to make the decision whether or not to intervene is what faction are the ships trailing the civilian ship part of? Are they aggressively hostile towards the Federation? Who is the Commander of the pursuing group of ships? Is he are she the type of Romulan that is looking to impress their seniors by trapping a Federation, destroying both it and the civilian ship and guilefully covering all tracks in typical Romulan subversionary methodology? If they are unknown, are they part of the Romulan
special operations community that will destroy the ship regardless of what the civilians say happened just to cover up any loss of data? Another aspect that has to be looked at is whether or not any high ranking or people of status OR ships are within the general vicinity of the area where the stranded ship is located. The weakened ship could be a ruse to draw several key ships away from protection duty for a delegation dealing with local politics. If the Romulans decided that it was not in their interest to have a new station built at a planet within five light years of their border and may be using the crippled ship as a means to covertly send an assassin to the meeting to kill the delegates by using a faction aligned with the Romulan's that secretly despise the Federation but are actual Federation members. Any loss of these people or ships would have a demoralizing effect on the Federation which the Romulans could use at another time to stage an invasion of the Federation for information gathering or all out war.

If this is the scenario then the chief security officer in charge with local security would have to make the decision on whether to intervene or not which would be ordered by the highest ranking officer present.

If the above scenario is not present and the Romulans arrive first, then the main factor to consider is whether or not the ship is a Federation ship. If the ship is not a Federation ship then comms would need to be opened with the Romulan ships stating that your ship was on standby for assistance if needed. If the Romulans destroyed the ship then scanner and visual information could then be used against the Romulan Empire in any dispute that may evolve from the situation. If the ship is destroyed then all communications from the Romulan ships back to Romulus or their superior would be monitored and recorded for archival purposes.

If you arrive first to the scene and if possible given the size of the ship, a medical team with the appropriate medical equipment would transport to the ship to render aid first. Once the civilian ships crew has been treated the medical team would return to the ship and a engineering team sent to the civilian ship with the appropriate engineering equipment to repair the ships systems. During this time the ship would be tractored by your ship and any extior damage repaired.

If the Romulans dispute the breach into their territory then the proper response would be that to allow the possible destruction of the ship and the loss of the crew without intervening would go against the protocol and fabric that is the Federation ideal and that you were acting not in an aggressive manner towards the Romulan Empire but in a humanitarian effort to save the lives of the two civilian crew and a complaint can be filed with the closest Federation Starbase.

After returning to the ship a transporter lock would be kept on the two civilians with the sensors focusing on all parts of the Romulan ships that relate to weapons. What you are looking for is any surge in a system that may relate to the Romulan ships firing on the civilian ship. You would then transport the civilians to the ship and contact StarFleet HQ via secure encrypted communications protocol. In this type of breach scenario a heightened level of green alert would be maintained with crews ready to goto red alert at any second with the security officer's mind being set to lock and fire and disable the first Romulan ship within weapons range.

There are many different outcomes to this type of scenario. The key to winning this scenario is to be able to control your emotions and not let the Romulans see you sweet. We all know Romulans are cunning and will at any chance destroy a Federation Starship to increase their status back home. Romulan Starship commanders are like children, they cause of problem and then run to the Senate for protection.

[ussequinox]

First I'd enquire as to what type of ship I was commanding. If I were in something the size of a Nova, than a rescue attempt would be out of the option. Perhaps if I were in an Intrepid or larger it might be possible.

Most likely this is a trap, I'm not buying the story that the 'civilian' ship which is under attack cannot send at least part of the data as proof of what they claim to have found. And it would not be unlike the Romulans to fire upon one of their own transports to creat a trap. If I were in a sufficient ship I would attempt to get close enough to scan their biosigns, and determine their true identity.

If they are indeed Federation or allies of the federation than a rescue attempt would be worth the risk. I would tractor their ship into warp and blast out of their as fast as possible. If my vessel was not equipped with warp-tractor cabaility I would scan for a nebula of some sort within a short distance and attempt to draw fire from the warbirds as the civilian ship escape, and then rendez-vous with it tractor it into the shuttle bay, and verify the plans to the Romulan's new ship.

[spacecadet22]

I am a huge fan of Star Trek. I can't wait until STO. What I would do, I would have 2 or 3 more ships with me. We cross the border and the Romulans can come 2 us and the 1st 3 ships can be chased by the Romulans. While they're distracted, I go over 2 the civi ship and do what I call an In-and-Out mission. If the civis r Federation, I beam them onto my ship and quickly go over 2 the ship and download the plans, get back onto my ship and warp back 2 the nearest station. Poof!

[Vlherg]

Advise the Romulans that they may continue pursuit into the neutral zone but must not enter Federation space. If the transport crosses our border we will intercept it and consider any request for extradition.

If the transport is some kind of Federation black ops mission then plausible deniability requires that I do not intervene. If they really do have the info and are Federartion they'll transmit the data.

[Raktus]

Enter The Neutral Zone at high warp on a trajectory to place me behind the Warbirds. Block their communications with a high energy frequency, target their cloak/engines and if all goes well leave them dead in space. I would then selectively target vulnerable outer systems (such as Comm arrays and exhaust ports) with low powered phaser blasts.

With their communications down without energy expenditure from my own ship I could take my time to bring the Civilians into my Brig, where they would be treated for wounds and then interrogated, yes I mean interrogated, as to their intelligence and possible excuses for being in the Neutral Zone. Those that survive the questioning will recieve treatment for their wounds depending on the results of the interrogation. I would then take this into consideration when it came to the Romulans themselves.

Assuming I have disabled their ships in an appropriate manner (Romulan vessels do tend to have forward arching weapons design, thus the small concern about targeting weapons and more about being on their right side when they lose mobility). I then send in MACO squads to capture prisoners for interrogation as well, random crewman from one vessel before I destroy it. Letting the other vessel bear witness to these deeds allows me to ask them more directly, Romulans being creatures of passion and all.

If directness also does not work, I will repeat the process again, sending in MACO squads to capture prisoners for interrogation. This time I ensure they are command level prisoners, which may have information regarding any such cloak. Either way the Romulans all die, one does not threaten an ISS vessel and live. If the information is valid, there will be an assault launched on the faculties developing/building said cloaking ship in order to steal it.

Kobayashi Maru is alot easier in the Terran Empire....

[Zepath]

For me, the data is a ruse in this scenario.

The crew could be lying just to get a Star Fleet ship to respond to their situation.

The crew may not even have what they think they have. They could have misunderstood the what they were looking at, or it could be false information disseminated by the Romulans for whatever purpose.

If they really have the information, it has to be understood by star ship Captain that the Romulans cannot, under any circumstances, allow that information to get into Star Fleet's hands. Even if it means going to war. And at the slightest hint you are downloading the information, you must be destroyed before you can relay that information to Star Fleet.

I would hail the Romulan Captain and make him aware I was entering the zone to extract the crew. I would inform him we had no interest in their ship, and he was free to monitor our ship to assure we were not transferring any data.

I would make it clear I believed it was our duty and obligation to respond, and defend if necessary, these individuals. I would give him my word as a Captain if it turns out the crew is not who they claim to be, they will be returned to the Romulans.

I would then make Star Fleet aware of the situation and my decision, asking them for guidance. I would then move in.

What happens next is up to the Romulans ... of course I can always hope the crew is smart enough to have offloaded the information, if they really have it, so its beamed aboard with them on to my ship.

[Archangelwoghd]

I would intervene.

[Spire]

Seeing as the Romulans no longer have a homeworld and lost billions of their citizens, go in guns blazing. Get in, get the crew and plans, and get out as fast as my I can. Once on my side of the line full warp into Federation space. They won't follow too far in or backup will get them. If I'm in a very powerful ship, I would attempt to block their communication and shoot them down to stop the Romulan government from hearing of this. Besides, the spy/civilian ship seems to already have threatened them enough to start a war if they are going to declare one. How much more upset can I make them?

The chance that we can get some super-secret Romulan plans is just icing on the cake. That weapon would be very dangerous in the hands of the Romulans, and I'll take any risk necessary to find a defence. And if we do go to war, that information will be vital.

[weswebb04]

I would inform the ship that they take the data and crew and enter into an escape pod or pods depending on the number and then blast towards the border then when they are close enough beam them and the data from the pods and then blow up the pods and tell the romulans that they were planning to sacrifice themselves by rigging the escape pods to explode when the romulans picked them up.

So I end up with the crew who will be beamed into holding to determine if they are truly who they say they are and if the data can be verified and the romulans believe that we have thwarted a plot to destroy their ships.

[Jacar]

I say if they are civilains, they are worth rescuing.
LET NO ROMULAN TELL THE TALE OF THE DESTRUCTION OF THE WARBIRDS!!!!:mad:

[johnniel]

it is starfleet code that you intervein and tray to settle the problem peacefully
if it fails then id pull the civilian ship into cargobay and kick it into warp 8 to the nearest starfleet outpost that way if your followed theyll be extremely out numbered

[Admiral-Darren-Wright]

id mask my warp signature and then i would plot a 190 degree course along the inside edge of the Romulan Border,

As my ship passed the Federation vessel at warp 9.85 my cheif Engineer would beam the crewe aboard at high warp with the intercepted plans and details on a data pad held by the Transports Captain all safely aboard,

As we beamed them over at high warp and had masked our warp signature we would have a massive head start on the Romulan vessels who would not be able to catch us unless they then entered Federation space and headed to the Well defended Star base where by the time they got to it,we would be safely docked inside with the Transports crewe given medical attention and a complete debreifing by the Station Commander and an Admiral via subspace link with Starfleet Intelligence.

Thus avoiding any deaths and an inncident with the Romulans while also updating Starfleet on possible future threats at the same time.

And a crewe commendation for Valour for such outstanding action in the face of near impossible odds.

[wesleysnipez]

In a pervious Kobayashi Maru we had decide what we had do over certain particle. Will I decided save a study it and use to better the ship. When they figure what kind uses for it the science team figure out a way to make the federation ship I captain to able to cloak and go faster since partial is tied into warp core and other system. So I would cloak and go in at high rate speed then when near the ship that is in distress I would then beam aboard a small security crew and engineer crew along with my second in command. Then they head to the bridge to tell captain of ship to get there crew to transporter station and beam aboard. Then have 4 2 man team engineer and security team sweep the ship for stragglers and any useful that we could use on our ship. While they doing that sweep we downloading all stuff they have about new ship they want to have to tricorder.

Once that done then would have captain of that ship set the self destruct for 10 minutes and then head out to federation space where we safe. Then we head home to earth to drop of crew of distress ship so there captain can report his or her findings to federation fleet command. But in end we keep copy of the plans so our engineer team and science team outfit our ship with exact same tech to make use best ship in starfleet. With all black market tech we got on the ship we never berth in starfleet repair bay so they never know what we did to our ship. Because if we did I would be court marshaled like captain kirk has been may of times along with my officers.

[abergy32]

The only way to not risk startin an all out war is to lure the romulans to the federation side of the neutral zone first. Have the cargo ship transfer all power to shields and cross into the federation side have them lure the romulans ovr drop your shields and beam the survivors and computer core to your cargo bay, then warp to the nearest starbase.

[ccalhoun]

Cross the border, this is now a mission of aid as their life support is failing... beam the crew into a guarded, sealed hangar, sched a meeting with the Romulans to discuss WTF is going on...

Have shields up but no weapons.

[MajorD]

They also claim that in the ship’s weakened state, the crew is unable to transfer the plans to you.

The Warbirds are closing fast and have hailed you, warning that the crew isn’t who they say they are,
The Romulans are telling the truth, because the small ship's crew is obviously lying. They say they can't transmit the plans, yet they are communicating, ie transferring data. I inform the Romulans that their violation of the Neutral Zone will be reported to Federation authorities, and I go on my merry way, happy to have avoided an obvious Romulan ploy.

[wanderhome]

If they are transmitting on a Federation coded fequency it can only mean one of two things, that it's a federation ship, or that the ship is helmed by members of the Federation.
And since their communicating, they can send the plans.... but whatever.... I hate me some rommies...
Either way it's my duty as a Starfleet officer to save all members of the federation, and Kobiyashi Maru as my guide, i'm going in!!!! Let the diplomats work it all out!!

While on the line with the rommies I tell them straight out that I'm having trouble recieving their message, that I see them on approach to our damaged ship and thank them for assisting our people, I go to yellow alert, engage full warp, raise shields, ready my weapons to go maximum power.

I hail the damaged ship have the crew on the copy the data to a databank, put it into a escape pod, and launch it then direct some of their remaining power to shields, the moment i'm in range i'd transport ithe databank aboard.

The Rommies either have to let me take the Feds aboard and leave, or go down in flames... victims of the Uss Awesome, I know they'll do the right thing.

[Finishthis]

I'm not going to trust the Rommies on this one. I claim to go in on a mission to rescue the crew of the ship. Shield are up but no weapons are activated. If the Rommies fire at me, I fire back. I communicate to the ship to copy the data and store it on a person. I tell them to shuttle out to the USS Hjmal. Rommies will have to decide to fire or not because I'm going to get the crew of the failing ship.

[NGD]

first i would hail the romulins then tell them thatif they dont stop fiering on the civilian ship that they would would be opening war since it is a civilian ship then i would cross over the border acting on the distress call and would transport them and tell them that there data would be returnd and (but not after it gets copied) and if they dont belive or stil want war then let them cross the border with no excuse

[Ravain]

while this scenario has missing Data, let's try and roll with it.

"You’re in a Federation starship and patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone when you receive a distress call on a Federation Coded frequency. It comes from a small civilian ship barely on the Romulan side of the border. They’re being chased by two Romulan Warbirds and have suffered significant damage. They’re running on auxiliary power, life support is failing and the ship can’t enter warp.

The crew claims they wandered into Romulan space when their navigation computer experienced a catastrophic failure, and in the process of merging the ship’s navigation with its communications system, the ship’s engineer stumbled on an errant Romulan transmission that detailed their plans for a new ship. The ship not only has a perfect cloak, it can also fire weapons through the cloak. They also claim that in the ship’s weakened state, the crew is unable to transfer the plans to you.

The Warbirds are closing fast and have hailed you, warning that the crew isn’t who they say they are, and if you interfere with the Romulans’ official duties, you’ll be fired upon. You wouldn’t be able to transport the crew of the civilian ship out without crossing the border, and doing so could spark all-out war with the Romulan Empire. "


Well first off I would answer the hail, informing Starfleet.
(As it does not state what kind of federation starship i am in, I assume mid range, aka Intrepid/Nebula/New Orleans/Akira/Norway/defiant/etc)

Respond to the Romulans , that if what they say is true, that it not a federation ship, we can deal with it together. If this is unacceptable, then perhaps they think they can wage war on two fronts if they so desire. Stop with the stupid threats.
(assuming in these cases that the next closest federation ship is hours away)

If i can get confirmation from starfleet of any federation ships was in fact in the area, then i would attain that information and do long range scans to determined if this ship is one of ours. If it is and the Romulan send a threat again, then it simple. Their $5 butt can't cash the $50 check they wrote. Once the ship in range, extend our shields. Do an emergency beam out as the life support is failing and no time to fix them while facing 2 warbirds. If attack target the engines and weapons array of the Warbirds.
If certain information is attained, this respond may change.

[billybob442]

It's a little slimy but here's what I'd do :

After a pensive and VERY dramatic pause, I'd straighten my tunic and order my ship into Romulan space taking a course that will meet up with the civilian vessel as near to the border as I can. Next I will hail the lead Warbird and assure them that as a servant of the Federation I am honor bound to uphold its treaties. Secondly, I'd tell them that as a Starfleet captain I have been entrusted with the authority to take whatever actions I deem necessary to maintain the integrity of the Neutral Zone, so they can stand down as I am moving to intercept and ensure that these law breakers are unable to escape into Federation space. - The Romulans won't of back off of course, but this was all a ploy to buy time anyway.

As soon as I come upon the civilian vessel I'd beam their computer core and crew over to my ship, where they will be arrested for violation of an inter-specie treaty. Then I'll lock a tractor beam on the civi ship and begin backing away toward the Neutral Zone while my engineers copy & replace the computer core as quickly and discreetly as possible. No doubt the Romulans will demand that I immediately hand over the crew and vessel. I'll remind them that they should thank me because with a failing life support system there'd be no one left to argue over had I not intervened. However after a bit of stalling and negotiations I will give in and allow their ship & crew to be taken into custody provided I'm allowed to go merrily along my way. This way I receive a copy of the ship plans (though it's prolly a plant or virus - and will be treated as such till the boys back at Intel get a look see) and my actions are politically defensible since I did act only to apprehend criminals and then return them to the proper authorities, all to protect the Neutral Zone Treaty.

Unfortunately, the civilians are going to have to take one for the UFP, though I will try to negotiate a fair trial and some kind of oversight to ensure humane treatment.

[Kheren]

- '' What do we do, Captain? ''

The ship's counselor answers for the commanding officer:

- '' May I remind the Captain our standing orders:

General Order 6 : The request for emergency assistance from Federation citizenry demands unconditional priority from Starfleet personnel. Such personnel shall immediately respond to say request, postponing all other activities.

and also:

General Order 32: Federation officers may violate Neutral Zone areas as designated by treaty only if such action is required to save the lives of Federation citizens under conditions of extreme emergency as required by General Order 6. ''

- '' Thank you Counsellor, but I am aware of my responsibilities. Comm, open a channel to the Romulans. ''

- '' Channel open, Captain. ''

- '' Romulan ships: this is Captain Kheren Kalel of the USS Odyssey representing the United Federation of Planets. Be aware that our own duty demands unconditional response to a distress call from our own people. Moral obligations would even require of us to answer your own distress call, would it be the case. Treaty stipulations authorize us, as well as you, to enter the zone in such emergencies... but not to simply pursue alleged spies. ''

After a pause, the Captain continues:

- '' Therefore you are at the moment in clear violation of treaty. But we are willing to overlook this if you allow us to rescue our citizens. Those citizens, if found guilty of espionage, will be prosecuted, along with their possible violation of the Treaty, by the Federation Judiciary. The alleged data they have stolen will be released to you unconditionnally without keeping any record of it. Please acknowledge to these terms... or a useless war will start between us over your proven guilt. ''

- '' Captain... asked the first officer, you are ready to deliver sensitive data to the enemy? ''

- '' You should study more History, Number One. It has no value at all to us... since we have learned to detect such a ship at the first Khitomer Conference... almost a century ago. During Earth's 2nd World War, the Germans, the Italians and the Japanese had way more submarines than all the rest of the world combined... but they lost anyway.''

- '' Indeed, added the tactical officer, any good targeting computer can react to detected incoming fire, at the moment of launch, and send returning fire before the firing ship can move out of range of a standard torpedo spread. They would at best get the first shot... and you can't destroy any good sized ship with shields up with just one shot.''

And the Captain concludes:

- '' We are Starfleet: Lives always take precedence over any tactical consideration. Let the Romulan have their illusionary tactical advantage and be content. They, and the Klingons, had the cloaking advantage for almost 200 years and they still both failed to defeat us every time. It's time that we realize it.

Helm, plot a direct course to the civilian ship, maximum warp. Engage. ''

[Vampt]

I would tell the Romulans we were going to assist them. Before they could respond i would have the transmission distorted, then quickly fly in and beam the crew to our ship seconds before firing upon their ship. Giving the Romulans the idea that the crew has been eliminated and we have assisted them. After we had gotten away, i would find out the facts of what they intercepted and report them to Starfleet for further questioning.

IMO - Never engage in combat in such a fragile situation without full information as to why your doing so.

[BillytheCrayon]

I'd say Plan A. Hail the Romulan ship from across the neutral zone, and try to reason with them. tell them they can have their ship, and whatever information if the federation ship can get the crew to safety. However the federation ships transporter is currently inoperable, so they are required to board the vessel and have the crew swap over. While this is happening, download all the information you can. If the Romulan ship then fires on either vessel while they are connected, then the Romulans attacked a federation vessel they invited across the neutral zone on the distress call.

If they refuse Plan A all together, then go to plan B

Plan B. hail the civilian vessel on your way to them, get them to start transferring data immediately and beam the crew aboard the starship, once across the zone, activate tractor beams and drag the ship across to federation territory. If the romulans follow, across the neutral zone they are then in violation of the neutral zone. Hail them, and tell them we were both in violation of the neutral zone. They just wanted to get the crew back. We don't want to open fire, but will do so if you don't return to your side of the neutral zone immediately.

[CaptainChristopherTaylor]

i would use a modified probe. launch it across the border and use the probe to piggy-back a transporter signal. this will allow you to transport the crew of the civilian ship, interface with its computer, download the plans for the new Romulin ship and never set foot outside federation space. simple!

[Captian.DeGraw]

I would contact Starfleet and ask them what to do.

[Unseenlight]

Being they out of federation space my hands are tied. but i would send a message to the Romulan ships letting them know this is a fedreation crew and we will not stand to have them killed out right. They can keep there ship and what ever plans are on it if there are plans on it if they would agree too a meeting in neutral space to talk over the handing over of the crew if they turn out to be federation. We are sorry for the problem they have caused. We have no desire to start a war but we will also NOT stand by and watch them die. Next we will tell the crew of the other ship to Surrender and not to enter federation space or we will be forced to open fire.
Noone wants war and if they are in Romulan space its not because they got lost. The Romulans said there not who they say they are and they are in Romulan space. Logicly we have No right entering there space.

[CaptainMikey]

i would save the stranded ship and fire on the romulans,not only do we have plans of there ship,but it gives us a chance to hurt them like there constantly doing to us lol Damn romulans.

after all are they not allwasy stealing our battle plans and such using spies?

[SenatorPardek]

This situation seems dubious. My gut reaction is its some kind of trick. A civilian ship "happend" to discover plans for a new Romulan vessel? Also, its a violation of the neutral zone for the ship to be there in the first place, however, considering the warbirds are chasing it IN the neutral zone already I would hail the Romulans, and ask them to stand down, so we can find a peaceful, more diplomatic solution to the situation. Warning them that destruction of the ship would provoke an interstellar incident. I doubt in with the Empire in their state they would want to provoke war with the Federation as little as the Federation would like to wage war against them and the Klingons simultaneously. Best to have my ship and the warbirds hold the ship where it is, secure the crew. And then negoiate a settlement from there.

-Senator Pardek.

[The_Padre]

This week's scenario is brought to you by undersquiggle. Good luck!

I would position my ship on our side of the border at a safe distance from the Romulan Warbirds. Then I would launch a series of modified class-3 probes, each would maintain a distance of about 40,000 kilometers from each other and the civilian vessel. I would then signal the other ship to prepare to lower its shields and prepare for emergency mass beaming on my next transmission, at this time I would already be using the interlinked probes to interface with the civilians ships and bridge both of our transporter systems, the transporter sequence can then be programmed to remotely activate their own transporter at the same time as ours. The transporters being connected to each other would also aid in the event that beaming was not possible due to some type of interference from the Romulans.

Sending my next signal, the civilian vessel drops her shields and we begin the transporter sequence, once the pattern buffers of both transporters are synchronized. If all works out as planned the crew and the information that they possess will be transmitted along the probes and would materialize aboard my ship in all available shuttle bays and cargo holds. I would then set a course away from the border at maximum warp, I would also send a subspace signal to Starfleet command as well as launch a class-8 probe with the same information detailing the entire scenario in case the Romulans are feeling brave and wish to cross the border in pursuit.

[McCloud]

coordinate something along the lines of the Picard manuever. Warp into transporter range and transport then warp out or warp to another area in transporter range until all have been transported. Then exit stage left or maybe a right even.

[Spock342]

This week's scenario is brought to you by undersquiggle. Good luck!
I would cross the border! I would ask for nagotiations to take place

[wareve]

Simple. Warn the romulans that you are saveing the ship and if thay are right, thay can have them. Then go save them.

Allso, The romulan empire is in the crapper, thay could barely fight the bajorins let alone the federation. That ship is yours no matter what thay do.

[merlinsorca]

First, I would ask whether or not my crew would be comfortable with crossing the neutral zone, since a message to starfleet would take too long. If my bridge crew agrees with an atempt to save the Federation ship, I would give the order to move in and put shields up, along with a yellow alert. When the Federation ship is close enough, I would extend shields so it would be protected. Then, I would immediatley have a tractor beam lock onto the ship, go to maximum warp, and save the crew and their ship. We'll deal with the consequences later.

[Velociraptor]

What if I fired on the Romulans from my side of the border? I could retreat real quick so they couldn't hit me, they'd turn back to the civilian ship but then I'd come buy again right up to the border and shoot them silly. Now that I think about it, my ship is so big with shields and everything the civilian vessel could probably lurch it's way across to federation space while I take the brunt of it, then we'll see who they really are!

Turns out they're killer romulan suicide ships that romulus was trying to stop from killing their new buddies the federation but NOOOOO you had to help them! Either way, you could just run away if they turn out not to be friendlies and tell starfleet to quietly turn a blind eye to the romulans trying to kill the ship even after it's in federation space.:D

[Velociraptor]

Sorry for the double post but what's this thing with the whole Neutral zone!? doesn't that mean it's NEUTRAL? like both of us can go in it, or nobody's supposed to be in it or something? Like, why are the romulans always allowed to patroll the neutral zone but the federation can't go in? they got cheated out on that deal if you ask me.

[J.E.Cook]

Raise shields, Arm phasers and torpedoes. Stand by, transporter room, prepair to lower shields on my mark. Advise lead Romulan Commander that we are on a rescue mission and that any hostile act commited against the civilian ship or this ship will be met with equal force. Advise Star Fleet Command of the situation, and proceed to beam the civilians off the ship, or if possible, lock tractor beams and tow the ship out of the Neutral Zone. If the Romulans offer no resistance, I would suggest a diplomatic salution. If the Romulans choose to attack, I will advice StarFleet Command, and fight the fight as far inside our border as possible. If renforcements arrive in time, the option for a diplomatic salution still exsist.

[p4tchw0rk]

What type of ship am I Captaining in this scenario? It helps to know all the possible little tricks...for example if I've got a ship with a couple of quick-enough shuttles aboard, putting some sensor scrambling wild weasel-esque ecms on them and launching them (unmanned of course) while breaching the the neutral zone becomes an option. Scramble the Romulans for just long enough for me to gather the crew of the frieghter and get back on my side. Or, rig small tractor-beam devices (think tow-ropes) onto the shuttlecraft, pilot them remotely to help tug the frieghter to the correct side of the neutral zone(two or three shuttlecraft "pulling" would add a pretty hefty momentum change to a freighter that is travelling at impulse)....etc, etc, etc.

Or...if I've got a ship that can take a beating, again...running in and grabbing the crew of the freighter is a possiblity....since we're really talking a quick brief bounce into the neutral zone and not actually crossing into Romulan space.

On the other hand, if I'm in something small and not really equipped to take any sort of attack from the Romulans, pretty much attempting a diplomatic dialogue with the Romulans *while* sending a call for a bigger ship to come scoop up the frieghter seems like the way to go.

In short, a lot of options and strategies are entirely based on what ship I have and what inherent bells and whistles it's equipped with. Compare, if you will, an Akira class ship to say a Defiant or a Galaxy class.

[Endow]

I would hail the Romulan ships indicating I am on a rescue mission and do not wish to be fired upon. I would also let them know since it is a civilian vessel and on the border to the neutral zone they should stand down. Yellow alert status will be set with raised ships but no weapons armed so, not to seem threatening when going on a rescue mission. I would try diplomacy first and ask that each of are vessels prepare an away team to help the survivors, whether by transport or shuttle. Whether they will be taken into custody by the Romulans or my vessel remains to be seen. But, if they ask for sanctuary I might be hard press to obliged especially if they are apart of the federation. If that fails then it's down to guts and bones.

[Foxhound300]

If the ship is not a Federation ship, then we shouldn't do it because it is not worth the war. The Romulan Empire is in disarray as it is, and them suddenly having this new power may help reunite the Klingon and Federation relations. Our scientists can figure out how to take down perma-cloaked ships. We've done it before.

If it IS a Federation ship (or the crew can some how varify that they are Starfleet) then the Neutral Zone has been crossed anyway and we're in a war eventually regardless. Assuming that they are Starfleet or the ship is Federation, then they are probably telling the truth and are worth the risk of starting a war that would start anyway as soon as the Romulans capture and interrogate the prisioners.

[jamerncc1701]

if your drew had the experience it maybe possible to alter the romulans navigation enough to where they believe that the ship is on your side of the neutral zone. After that you should move close enough to the ship to beam the crew aboard and the plans while firing at the endangered ship. Then say, its destroyed and they have nothing to worry about, or something of the sort. Then discuss the affair yada, yada, and head home keep them confined to quarters in case the romulans were right about them not being who they claimed to be.:)

[tarengrim]

Hm, let's see, this ship crossed the border, thus executing an illegal act.
They claim they have some top secret plans for a ship that can fier while being cloaked, something the Klingons developed some years ago already, but interesting never the less, should they really be telling the truth.

Alright, hail the romulans, tell them the situation about their damaged NavCom. Should they not agree to let the ship go in peace, offer the crew as sign of good will, but claim the ship in order to investigate the claims of the Civilian vessel at Starfleet Command.

Should they be telling the truth Starfleet will find a way to get them out of Romulan prison. If they were lying, well, my Grandfather always told me that you should not lie and never cross the neutral zone.

[jamerncc1701]

tractor beams cant work at warp memberz, duh

[fistorm]

I would use the information on thier improved cloaking device in order to negotiate a release of the crew. Aqure release and transport of crew onto my ship, and allowing the romulans to destroy the ship that contains the information on thier device.

Tell the Romulans that the ship that is out there is orderd to, and will transmit all data on thier new device if they do not cease all attacks and that if they cease all attacks and allow the crew to be saftly transported to my ship, that I will order the distressed vessel to hold all transmitions and allow thier vessel containing the critical data be destroyed by the romulan warbirds after the crew has been safely transported. Romulans may be brutal, but they do not lack logic. Expecially when its over a secret device that could ultimatly tip the balance of power in thier favor.

[Kheren]

tractor beams cant work at warp memberz, duh

Neither does the Picard Maneuver against Romulans... or any starship using FTL sensors, by the way.

[lkjhg631]

This week's scenario is brought to you by undersquiggle. Good luck!

talk it out then if they didn't give it up i would let the roulmens have it than start an war

[Levry]

Your duty as a Starfleet office is to protect the Federation and it’s citizens. Assuming you are able to determine that the passengers are human, you cross the Neutral zone, transport the crew and return to the Federation side of the Border.

Once completed, you begin your investigation into the details of how an inexperienced crew obtained secret data. You tell the Romulans they will be involved and kept up to date. Use interstellar law and if the crew acting inappropriately than they may be subject to extradition for trial and punishment from the Romulans.

And of course if the Romulans don’t agree, drop a reconfigured torpedo with a shape charge to disrupt the Romulans ability to create a warp field and beat it to the nearest Starbase.

[ithryui]

it is very simple. u would fly into their space beam the crew and info aboard and leave their space at max warp. if getting to warp speed is stopped, then u blast the guts out of them then fly away back to a starbase

[Beowulf2525]

The first thing to do is notify Starfleet Command and any other Federation ship in the area and request support while warping to the area while in Red Alert.

Scenario 1: After arriving, seize the vessel while informing the Romulans you are doing so to 'investigate' the identity of the crew of the vessel. If the crew is Federation citizens, then get the plans and the survivors off the vessel. If they are Romulan dissidents, do the same under the pretense of 'sanctuary' and I'd let the diplomats hammer each other out over it.

Scenario 2: After arriving, scan the vessel to find what species the crew is and whether or not they are Federation citizens. If the crew is indeed Federation, refer to scenario 1. If not, attempt a hack into the database for the plans, but don't interfere with the Romulans. Federation scientists will find a counter to the cloak given time. Or if that fails, just get Data and Jordy on it and they'll solve it :D

[baileyw75]

WWJKD? (What Would James Kirk Do?)

Fly into Romulan space for the distress call (as our duty would be as Starfleet) and destroy the Warships if they attack, making sure to hide behind the distressed ship as you teleport off the people you need to interrogate for questioning.

Warp out of danger before reinforcements arrive with the hostages because they are asking for 'asylum' and send them back if they threaten your crew.

You can't help but have a copy of the data to corraborate the attacked vessels story. Tell the Romulans to suck it up and act more like Vulcans if they start to complain.

[israil]

given the circumstances, the crew of the civilian vessel are obviously spies. the incident starting a war is unlikely given the Empire's weakened state and their dependence on Fed humanitarian aid. If its true the spies are carrying plans for a new warbird with advanced cloaking abilities, the design is likely designed to be a deterrent to the growing Klingon threat. Taking all of this into consideration it becomes clear that these spies are not federation spies. Since Klingons prefer open conflict to espionage, klingon spies are unlikely, leaving their identity to be information brokers, possibly former Obsidian order or Tal Shiar agents, hoping to sell their acquisition to either the Federation or the Klingons.

Even with the threat of war off your shoulders you've still got your crew and ship to be worried about, being out gunned 2 to 1. However designs for a new class of warbird is too great of a prize to pass up. since they claimed to be federation citizens you're pretty much given a get out of jail free card. Cross the Neutral Zone and intercept the transport, locking it in your tractor beam and come between them and the attackers. Inform the Romulans that, despite what they claim about the civilians not being whom they appear, it is your duty to verify their identities since they say they're federation citizens. Remind them how generous the Federation has been in assisting the empire in its troubled times and that firing on your vessel would likely result in the cancellation of all aid. This will likely cause them to back down. You inform the Romulans that you're sending an away team over to the transport to gather biometric data to verify their identities (they've probably been surgically altered to look human if they aren't human), and they're welcome to send they're own team over to supervise since you are in Romulan Space. While on route you had your science officer modify a bio scanner to covertly download the data from the transport's computer core.

Your team and the Romulans beam over and scan the crew for their identities while secretly downloading the warbird plans. The scans conclude that the civilians are in fact not Federation citizens but are actually surgically altered Romulans. With the download in hand you apologize for crossing the neutral zone, but the Romulans are very understanding considering your appeared "fairness" in the matter and your concern for every Federation citizen. You leave the transport and spies in the hands of the Romulans and head back to the nearest starbase to report your find to starfleet command.

[KLBushway]

Look, what war does the Federation have to worry about, the romluan home world was destroyed there is hardly enough romulans for you to be afraid of. Second if your ship is federation, it can certainly take on 2 romulan ships no problem with little damage. So i say go across take out the their sheilds, then hit their reactor, that will distract them long enough for you to tractor beam the ship and cross over to your side.

[scotth]

its a trap they want you to start a war id send a report to starfleet command and be on my way

[JadenKatrell]

First off, notify Starfleet of the situation. Secondly try to negotiate if at all possible with the Romulans. If a peaceful resolution cannot be agreed on, I would have 2 options.

1. Depending on the class of the ship I am in command of, attempt to disable the Romulan Warbirds. Beam the crew on over and tractor the ship out of Romulan space. (Dispite the consuquences, im sure Starfleet would LOVE to get their hands on information like that, and with the distruction of Romulus, their economy would not be able to support a long term war.)

2. If my ship is not capable of disabling the Romulans, then I would have my engineer open an window in the shields in order to beam the crew out, dump all power to the shields and engines and get out of town ASAP. Maybe even fire off a photon at the disabled ship so that the Romulans can be denied their spoils.

[Venturis]

Hale the Romulens and propose a joint away mission to responde to the distres call,
in which all crew on the ship would be searched by both federation and romulens, then we get the crew the romulens can have the ship and any information hidden or otherwise.

[Fracsid]

I would demand the Romulans tell me who the ship really is if they don't want me to cross their borders, and if they hesitated at all I would cross and save the crew to the best of my ability. It's likely, based on the fact that they did "acquire" the specifications for the new warbird, that they aren't at all civilians, but if the Romulans fail to give me a convincing explanation then it seems like just an excuse to keep the plans from falling into Federation hands. If I do cross, the war is the Romulans' fault, and not my own.

[jmooney1]

First I would send a signal to starfleet informing them on the situation at hand and ask them for additional support, then I would cross into the neutral zone and extend the ships shields over the small ship and tell the romulans the crew of the small ship demands sanctuary and that because they are citizens of the federation they have our full protection. I realize that this would lead to war but lets face it, war with the romulans was inevitable and with this information the balance of power would be set evenly again.

[tyberius54]

Well the first thing I would do is rely the whole thing back to star fleet go to red alert . Then transmit this signal to all the ships If they cross the border then they will be detained if they resist then they will be destroyed any unauthorized crossing is in valuation of the treaty and will be consider an act of war. That way the federation will be covered later when this becomes a diplomatic incident. While that was being sent I would move to the vary edge of the boarder but I would NOT cross. If this is what we thing it is a federation spy mission they know the risk if they don't make the boarder they die. But another theory might be that there a plant to get us to violate the treaty giving them grounds to attack the federations. Or it could be as they say I just don't know so I will not risk saving a few lives while maybe starting a war that would cost the lives of thousand or probably millions. If they make the boarder I will have no problem blowing the warbirds to kingdom come if the romulans don't brake off the chase. To be honest I don't trust it I believe its a set up. There is to many it just so happens for me.

[CJSmith411]

This week's scenario is brought to you by undersquiggle. Good luck!

This is where being Section 31 comes in handy.

Nothing in 'standard' Star Fleet regulations would seem to justify crossing the neutral zone (an act of war) even on the unverifiable claim of critical information that potentially could affect Federation Security. I would advise the captain of the vessel that we cannot cross the neutral zone but will stand by on the Federation side of the zone. They should set course at best speed for Federation Territory where we will provide assistance if they can make it that far.

Should the 'distressed' ship be lost, and the information they claim to carry. Enough information has already been provided (ie. that the Romulans may be working on an improved cloaking device) the contact Section 31 and initiate a subsequent investigation and/or operation. Even still, it's enough information for Starfleet R&D to start a project on improved sensor systems specifically geared toward countering cloaking systems.

[pirateslovebooty]

As long as it is a federation ship then ill be well with in my rights to cross the neutral zone before doing this i would dispatch two shuttles these shuttles will be tasked with transporting the crew off the stricken vessel once the shuttles are launched and in position (within my ships modified warp bubble) i would enter the conflict as always i would try to find a diplomatic solution with the romulans but this would probably just act as a delay or annoyance to the romulans once the shuttles have beamed off the crew and plans it would be a simple matter of again getting the shuttles within the ships warp bubble and beating a hasty retreat.:p

[tom_riker01]

Well, let me see if I have this right: A civilian ship, convienently wanders into Romulan space, has no warpdrive and are just out of range so that any rescue on my part draws me into Romulan territory. Oh yes, and the civilian ship miraculously stumbled onto the holy grail of Romulan military secrets WAY out here along the border by simply cross-wiring a few systems.

This has got to be either the luckiest civilian crew that ever drew breath with a ton of lousey coincidences stacked against them or else (most likely) it's a trap.

I'd attempt to verify the civilian ship's registry and identity and monitor the situation. I would also contact the Romulan flagship and request that they not destroy the civilian ship, but rather take the crew into custody until our respective governments could discuss the ramifications.

If it's a trap, then there's nothing lost. And if it's not a trap, then I've just upped the ante by giving the Romulans a non-violent diplomatic solution while respecting their borders, which means destroying the Federation civilian ship would likely severely damage relations between the two powers, especially given the number of Romulan encrochments into Federation territory, which never resulted in the wanton destruction of Romulan ships.

[Terradoct]

Red alert

Order comm officer to report about this situation to the starfleet. Order my helm to put ship on the brink of Neutral zone\Romulan border from neutral zone side, right on the way of 2 warbirds and a civilian ship. As soon as they enter targeting range I will order to target all three ships and hail all of them to slow down, tell them that only 1 of warbirds can be in neutral zone in a counterbalance to federation ship. Tell them that we will stop civillian ship in neutral zone and together with commander of one of there warbird will conduct examination of a civillian ship to reveal true identety of that ships crew....

A) It is a trap.
Nothing will happen, civillian ship will disapper and on his place will be another warbird, two more will decloak nearby, all of them will turn around and warp away.

B)If it is not a trap.
They must agree on my terms , If not and they open fire , I would regard such action as attack on my ship, and can make decisions according to that. I will put my ship between civillians and warbirds expand my shield to protect them, maximum power to shields and traporters, minor power to weapons. Order weapon officer to shoot down any incoming torpedos and make all shots count , beam all crew and data on new romulan warbird from civillian to my ship, and warp away back to federation space.

99% that it is a trap and an excuse for starting a war with federation.
1% that civillian ships crew is a lucky beyond any rules.

[Tacticalchief]

First of all, the unidentified civilian ship is in "Romulan Space" not the neutral zone, there is a difference so remember that when posting. I would adjust my Phasers to fire a variant of a polaron pulse. I would transmit a messege to the Romulans saying that there Starfleet has ordered us to track down that vessel because there is a traitor who stole Federation secrets. I would continue to tell them "You are to stand down" and that "interference in the apprehension of these criminals is an act of war".

I think that deception is an appropriate tactic and almost ironic considering who you are decieving.

Without waiting for a response I would fire my altered Phaser on the civilian ship but I would not be damaging it ... I would be boosting thier shields and disrupting the sensors of the Warbirds most likely inhibiting thier chance of landing a critical hit on the ship. It would appear that I am attacking but I am in fact helping. Since the polaron discharge disrupts sensors (at least thats what it did in a VOY episode) the Romulans would not notice that as I fire upon the vessel I was actually beaming the crew out of the civilian ship and sending an engineer over to gather the ships logs and initiate a warp core breach. Once that is complete I disenguage.

I have saved the crew, stopped the Romulans from attaining or regaining any information and decreased the likelyhood of conflict with the Romulans.

[Capt.Sundarian]

This sounds like Romulan Manuever Prerequsite, call your enemies to see if they will cross the border, giving you just cause to war. You mean to tell me a CIVILLIAN ship entered enemy space, survived long enough to download a brand new state of the art Romulan Warbird when their models in the last TNG movie were only months old. Who do they have piloting that ship, Han Solo and Chewbacca, Hoban Wasburne and Malcolm Reynolds? I smell a trap. No risk causing war when we are already tense with the Klingons, Gorn, Cardassians, Borg, by risking it we risk wars on five fronts and look how we narrowly survived the Dominion War.

[Jermbot]

I am highly suspicious of this story. Romulan space is big and there is no way they are working on such an experimental ship that close to Federation space.

On the other hand, it did come in on a Federation coded frequency and two whole Warbirds are a bit much for a simple border patrol or anywhere near a proportional response for any type of criminal activity. I'd move in fast and beam the crew aboard. If the Romulans blow their shuttle apart before demanding the crew, than they're on the level, if the Romulans ignore their shuttle than I honestly pity the *******s, as they're getting handed straight over to the Warbirds.