According to Memory Alpha:
Memory Beta adds:(T)he D'Kora-class was equipped with a form of energy weapon emitted from the aft of the ship, detectable by a marked power surge prior to discharge. The resulting electromagnetic pulse was capable of weakening the deflector shield power of a Galaxy-class starship, as well as the capability of depleting the fusion generator and batteries by as much as thirty percent in a single discharge….
The script described the weapon as…“an electric-wave arc [that] ripples out and back from the trailing sides.” Aside from the script, the only other clues describing this weapon include a notation in the Star Trek Encyclopedia, which described it as a “powerful plasma energy burst,” and the various Star Trek writer's guides, which state a similar description, describing “a very powerful energy/wave weapon.”
This reference to the Breen caught my attention. I, of course, went to our own DITL entry first, supplemented by Memory Alpha’s entry, “Energy dissipator”.Some versions (of the D'Kora-class) were known to use a disabling weapon that was similar to the one the Breen used.
First, the entry reminded me that the Tholians had such a weapon as early as the 22nd century. Continuing with notes on the Breen weapon:
Memory Beta added:The weapon works by draining the energy of targeted ships, disabling their engines, weapons, and shields, thus making them easy targets for conventional weapons.
Of course, this is not canon, but is interesting nonetheless.The Breen energy dampening weapon was based on a forgotten Tholian type of technology.
While not attested in canon, it is plausible to assume that the Breen energy dissipater had its origins, to some extent, in the Tholian energy dissipater.
Where did the Ferengi get their “disabling weapon”? While they could, of course, have developed it themselves, it would seem much more likely that they acquired the technology. The Memory Alpha entry on the Breen notes:
Memory Beta notes:The Breen also manufactured a portable hand-held cannon, the CRM 114. It was designed to target moving objects and surface emplacements. It was among the weapons dealt by the Ferengi arms dealer Gaila in the mid-2370s.
If we assume a trading relationship between the Breen and Ferengi, including trade in defense systems, it would be reasonable to assume that the Ferengi acquired their “disabling weapon,” or some earlier version, from the Breen, who clearly had this or a very similar technology. (I found no reference to a Ferengi – Tholian trade relationship, so that avenue for transmission seems unlikely.) That being the case, why didn’t the Federation, Klingons and Romulans approach the Ferengi about their “disabling weapon” when the Breen energy dampening weapon was first encountered? (Easier than approaching the Tholians, I should think!) If the Ferengi weapon evolved from the Breen weapon, it would seem the ideal model to study in an attempt to find a countermeasure to the Breen weapon.The Breen also had early contact with the Ferengi, and were responsible for selling that race modern warp drive technology...The two races became regular trading partners....
Even if the Ferengi and Breen weapons weren’t directly related to each other, they were generically similar. Studying the Ferengi weapon should have given the Federation, Klingons and Romulans a little better idea as to how the Breen weapon worked. This would seem to be a much more “pro active” and reasonable approach than waiting for a solution to be delivered by a deus ex machina, as it was.
It’s hard to imagine the Ferengi not allowing the Federation, Klingons and Romulans to study their “disabling weapon.” Knowing the Ferengi, they probably would have sold the entire technology suite, for the right price.
Was their some good reason the writers didn’t follow this much more reasonable storyline? Did they just forget about the Ferengi “disabling weapon”?