Star Trek: Klingon Academy is a space flight simulator video game developed by 14 Degrees East, an internal development house of publisher Interplay Entertainment. The game follows a young Klingon warrior named Torlek as he attends the Elite Command Academy, a war college created by General Chang to prepare warriors for a future conflict with the United Federation of Planets. Christopher Plummer and David Warner reprised their respective roles as Chang and Gorkon for the production of Klingon Academy.
Klingon Academy is the successor to Interplay's Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, this time played from the viewpoint of the Klingon Empire. The change is similar in style to the PC game Star Wars: X-Wing and its sequel, Star Wars: TIE Fighter.
Story
Setting Klingon Academy takes place in 2291 (Klingon year 1666 IR, Imperial Reckoning), after the events of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier and prior to those of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. The Klingon Empire is led by Chancellor Lorak, a noble but ailing ruler, and maintains a peace with the Federation much like the Cold War-type situation presented in Star Trek VI. The Empire's energy production needs are met largely by dilithium and other important resources in the Tal'Ihnor Gates system, near Romulan space. Praxis, the sole moon of the Klingon homeworld Qo'noS, is only a secondary energy production facility at this time. The Klingons have a limited non-aggression and technology exchange treaty with the Romulan Star Empire, although neither side has high regard for the other. There are no significant tensions with the Gorn Star Kingdom, the Tholian Assembly or the Sha'kurian Duchies (a new race created specifically for this game) at this time.
Just prior to the events of the game, General Chang defeats a would-be usurper named Kalnor, head of the powerful House of G'Iogh, and halts his attempted coup d'état against the Klingon government, at the cost of his eye. He then convenes the eighteenth term of the Elite Command Academy as dean and head instructor; additional field instructors are Colonel Poktarl, Brigadier K'mak and Commander Thok Mak (younger brother to Colonel Worf, voiced by Michael Dorn), all prior graduates and seasoned warriors. An Academy lesson consists of a lecture by Chang followed by a simulated starship mission, in which cadets play a vital role during an important stage of a fictitious future war between the Federation and the Klingon Empire. Only five percent of cadets graduate from the prestigious but unforgiving institution.
Plot
The Academy Cadet Torlek, son of Ro'vagh, reflects upon his invitation to the Elite Command Academy and his desire to honor his family name through his success, as his first classes begin. General Chang begins each session with a personal address to his students, lecturing the Klingon virtues of honor, loyalty and duty, and how a warrior is supposed to live up to these virtues, before continuing onto the day's strategy lesson and mission briefing, the term consisting entirely of a hypothetical war with the Federation.
Starting with a blitzkrieg across the Neutral Zone, the war shifts deeper into Federation space, leaving behind many failed Academy cadets. Torlek exhibits exceptional leadership skills and tactical acumen during these trials, all within the overall strategy of exploiting the weaknesses inherent in the Federation's greatest strength - diplomacy - which renders the enemy "a brittle unity" in Chang's eye. He also proves his loyalty and reliability to Chang during two real-world espionage missions against the House of G'Iogh, now led by Kalnor's half-brother Melkor. During one simulation, a Klingon version of Starfleet Academy's Kobayashi Maru scenario tests Torlek's resolve in the face of a situation where either duty or honor can prevail, but not both. The war culminates on Earth's doorstep, as the Federation's response to the diversionary blitzkrieg and to its diplomatic weakness leads to conflict within the Sol system itself - and the unleashing of one of humanity's "greatest scientific achievements", (Project Genesis), on Earth itself. During this final simulation, Torlek destroys the Starship Enterprise under James T. Kirk's command, an incredible accomplishment even in a training scenario. Torlek graduates from the Elite Command Academy with top honors but is not assigned a command as his fellow cadets have been.
Just as the Academy term ends, Chancellor Lorak dies. Gorkon, at this time Lorak's Chief of Staff and the legitimate successor to the position of Chancellor, is blocked from ascension by Melkor, who gathers a large fleet and plunges the Empire into civil war. Gorkon's pacifist leanings towards the Federation are well-known, and General Chang, believing a war with the Federation to be inevitable, refuses to back him despite their past friendship. Chang recruits allies of his own to become a small but formidable third faction in the civil war, including Thok Mak (as his Theater Operations Controller). Torlek, in full agreement with Chang, is recruited to serve as one of his commanders.
Klingon Civil War Torlek performs his duties in the field as exceptionally as he did in his training missions, becoming a vital part of Chang's war effort against Melkor. Melkor's treachery becomes explicit as his undercover agents sabotage a starbase just captured by Chang deep in his territory and kill thousands just to prevent a direct assault on the heart of the House of G'Iogh, as well as a traitorous offering of the Tal'Ihnor Gates to the Romulans in exchange for their military support in the war.
As Chang's forces intercept Melkor and the Romulans in the Tal'Ihnor system, Brigadier K'mak, one of Torlek's former instructors from the academy, reveals his unfortunate alignment with the Usurper - his brother, leader of his house, pledged support to Melkor, and K'mak was duty-bound to do the same. Having been tasked with destroying the entire system with a fabricated supernova rather than let it fall into Chang's hands, he still warns Torlek, allowing him to warn Chang and retreat the system on time. The Tal'Ihnor system and most of the enemy warships present are obliterated.
The destruction of the Tal'Ihnor Gates by Melkor makes his victory by conventional means all but impossible, making him turn himself completely to Romulan support, setting a trap for Chang in the newly formed Tal'Ihnor Nebula in the guise of a blood duel to avenge his brother's death. Although aware of the possible deception, Chang accepts the duel, reasoning that even if it is a trap he will still die an honorable death. However, as he falls to the trap, Chang finds Melkor's Romulan support larger than conceived, and thus implores Torlek to gather whatever forces he can, stop the Romulans and kill Melkor by any means necessary. Because Chang's fleet was spread thin trying to hunt Melkor down, Torlek turns to Gorkon for assistance, allowing them to stop the Romulans, but failing to track down and kill Melkor whom escapes again. Due to Gorkon's assistance, Chang is now indebted to him and cannot fight his peaceful policies, assuring Gorkon's ascension to the Chancellorship. Furious for this, Chang demotes Torlek and sends him on routine patrol duties along the Federation Neutral Zone.
During his first patrol, Torlek discovers a ruse by forces still loyal to Melkor, whom create the appearance of a Federation invasion to draw Chang and the bulk of the Klingon fleet away from Qo'noS, while a massive Romulan invasion force advances towards the Klingon homeworld. Chang's deep-seated hatred of the Federation leads him to fall for the trick, but Torlek, ordered by Gorkon, convinces him to place the needs of the Klingon people first. They warp back to Qo'noS together, defeat the Romulans a second time and, with the nearby presence of a then-captain K'mpec, finally kill Melkor.
The final cutscene shows the Klingon Empire stabilized under Chancellor Gorkon but desperate for energy production. Following the Tal'Ihnor Gates debacle, the Klingon moon Praxis is far more exploited than before for more energy. Chang's last meeting with Torlek forebodes the dark turn of events in Star Trek VI. He assigns his "conscience" - Torlek - to a long-term mission searching for new sources of energy, so that he may be free to enact a treacherous conspiracy of his own: to assassinate key interstellar figures and ultimately plunge the Federation and Klingon Empire into full-scale war. Torlek holds his mentor in high regard even after these tragic events come to pass.
Gameplay
Klingon Academy is a 3D space flight simulator, allowing players to command Klingon starships in the single-player campaign. Starships and facilities of all featured Star Trek races are available for quick battles and multiplayer matches. Even the lightest escort classes are much tougher and slower to maneuver than the fighters and bombers commonly featured in space simulator games. Larger starships are even slower, stronger and less agile, emphasizing their massive frames and impressive firepower. Ships are controlled through keyboard shortcut commands, with the mouse as an option for directional control. A joystick may also be configured.
The ultimate objectives of most missions are to warp to a target system, destroy or capture enemy starships or installations, and return to a home base. Elements of stealth, espionage and survival or guile against overwhelming forces are sometimes featured. As one plays through the game, progressively larger and more powerful starships are awarded to the player, with enemy forces to match. Many missions offer the player escort ships of equal or lesser class to their own, which must be managed through the HUD interface.
Gameplay is entirely tactical in nature, as one's list of mission-related star systems are given at the start of each mission, or changed during the mission. All starships have shields and a variety of combat systems, including weapons, tractor beams and ECM. Shields are divided into six faces, one for each fore, aft, port, starboard, dorsal and ventral side of the ship, and must be battered down before significant damage can be inflicted to the ship's hull or subsystems.
Once a shield currently facing the player's starship is dropped, a boarding attempt may be made. Marines are beamed to the opposing ship, and can either attempt to destroy various internal systems or attempt to capture the ship. A captured ship in single-player is immediately converted to friendly status and becomes an escort, while multiplayer ships are immediately destroyed and double points are awarded to the player.
Interface The HUD displays the player ship's current status, including a percentage-based damage report on all shields, subsystems and hull strength. A radar-like sensor display gives the position of ships and celestial objects in range, while the ship or object currently targeted appears in a tactical damage display and a 3D picture-in-picture window.
One of two key features in the Klingon Academy interface is the VOS or Verbal Orders System. A list of substations along the bottom of the HUD correspond to number keys on the numpad. Pressing each number brings up a submenu for the corresponding subsystem, with possible additional submenus available for many commands. For example, pressing the numbers 1, 4, 1, 1 might bring the ship to full power and run weapons and shields at eighty percent, with a corresponding verbal acknowledgement from the crew.