You're a Captain,you get to pick your starship. Which class?

[Mikey]

I had thought that it was his fix specifically which made the Defiant a viable ship. Something about how all of Starfleet R&D couldn't get the SIF to work, but O'Brien pushed the "easy" button and presto.

[Teaos]

I thought the whole thing was over powered and just didnt work. A kind of fundamental problem that that needed a dozen roles of duct tape to fix.

[Mikey]

That was it - he reinforced the SIF with duct tape.

[Duskofdead]

I had thought that it was his fix specifically which made the Defiant a viable ship. Something about how all of Starfleet R&D couldn't get the SIF to work, but O'Brien pushed the "easy" button and presto.

Don't you mean the "IWIN" button? Oh, oops, that was the one they pushed everytime the Defiant had to fight. hehe

[Granitehewer]

well, the defiant didnt win every firefight,it did get totalled by the breen............

[Teaos]

Dues ex machina shouldnt count.

[Granitehewer]

The breen energy dampening weapon isnt an improbable contrivance in the story really,is it?

[Teaos]

Dominion was winning. Romulans Join.

Allies were winning. Super Secret Alpha quadrant Aliens show up with super weapon.

Dominion is winning.

There was no build up, nothing to show its coming just OMFG super weapon!

[Captain Seafort]

The breen energy dampening weapon isnt an improbable contrivance in the story really,is it?

Not at all, particularly since similar weapons have been depicted in the past. The minefield in "Booby Trap" and the effects of Borg tractor beams spring to mind.

Given the fact that the weapon's effect was blue, and it disabled the ships electrical systems without inflicting physical damge, I'd say someone had been reading rather a lot of Star Wars.

[Granitehewer]

lol!

[Captain Seafort]

There was no build up, nothing to show its coming just OMFG super weapon!

It's unusual, but not unheard of - the Japanese achieved a similar measure of surprise with the Long Lance, and the Germans with the V-weapons.

In-universe it makes a fair bit of sense, since the Breen had already been depicted as an isolationist and secretive race, with advanced technology (cloaks and type-3 disruptors for example). The revelation that they'd been able to develop such a weapon without detection doesn't exactly stretch SoD.

[Teaos]

I'm not saying the couldnt create it. I'm just saying its an over used story telling device.

[Captain Seafort]

I'm not saying the couldnt create it. I'm just saying its an over used story telling device.

As a matter of whether you like that sort of device, that's your opinion, which I have no problem with. I'm simply disagreeing with your description of it as deus ex machina, which I don't believe it was. The SoA conclusion certainly, which detracted from a good episode, but the importance of having Romulans on-side had been repeatedly refered to in season 5, and as I've said, the idea that a race established as secretive could develop a secret weapon isn't surprising. If they'd introduced a new species with said weapon, I'd agree with your point of view, but not with the Breen.

[Mikey]

I tend to think that it would be a deus ex machina only if the Breen weren't previously depicted as so secretive and mysterious. A species with whom the Feds had prior open relations with having such an unknown weapon would be a lot more of a stretch.

[Teaos]

In the plot line of DS9 it was unforseeable and random. I agree that it is plausable the Breen have the weapon but its introduction into the story is still random.