The Federation often faced conflict, both physical and philosophical, but humanity at this point was so advanced that nothing posed too much of a threat to them. The Next Generation appeared to follow the same mindset. The iconic Enterprise D was at the forefront of what was possible, both technologically but also in terms of intelligence wise, being home to the minds of thousands of the Federation’s best and brightest in their mission to explore new lands and new civilizations. It became a major plot point right from the start, where Picard and the crew are transported thousands of light years away by the nefarious Q entity, forcing them face to face with a single Borg cube. The results were catastrophic, and made Picard realize how ignorant and arrogant they were, that they could think they were ready to blindly (but boldly) venture out from safe federation space.

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The Borg remained a real threat, often lingering ominously at the sidelines for the first three seasons, like a shadow slowly but surely creeping across the room. During the last few episodes of Season Three, however, their presence as a serious threat became all too real. A single cube swooped in to attack various Federation colonies scattered around the borders of their space. The attacks were severe, and the only thing to remain was enormous craters where the colony once stood. Baited by these attacks, Starfleet sent various ships to investigate, until a distress signal was sent out from the USS Lato, reporting that they had come across a cube-like ship, before their transmission was abruptly cut off. The USS Enterprise was the closest and was asked to investigate, Starfleet reinforcements being at least six days away. Upon arrival, Picard was hailed by the Cube, who demanded that they beam Picard himself aboard their ship.

The Enterprise put up a good fight, evading the cube until they could do so no longer. But while they were under attack, the Borg managed to get through their shield systems and transport Picard aboard their ship. As soon as they did this, they left at high warp, leaving the Enterprise damaged but still alive. There followed a long chase trying to stop the cube, with more and more Starfleet ships joining, until they finally manage to pull the cube out of warp. It’s here that it is revealed that Picard has been assimilated, becoming not just another Borg drone, but Locutus of Borg, a pivotal commander for the Borg. Using his knowledge of Starfleet ships and systems, the Borg is easily able to disable their ships and again jumps back into warp, heading straight for the heart of Federation space.

The battle itself happened shortly after, the cube entering the Wolf system. This single cube was met by approximately 40 Starfleet ships, a fleet of their most powerful vessels with some of the best tactical leaders on board. Locutus hailed them all, ordering them to stand down and let them pass into the Sol system where Earth is. But of course, Starfleet is having none of this, and they open fire. What followed was one of the biggest losses in Federation history prior to the Dominion war.

The cube was easily able to disable and destroy almost all the fleet with relative ease. Picard’s Locutus was at the center of this. With his deep understanding of Starfleet tactics and a good grasp of each ship and captain’s weaknesses, it was never a fair fight, especially when considering the advanced weapons the Borg had. The Enterprise D, captioned by Riker in Picard’s absence, arrived just after the battle commenced, only to find a battlefield strewn with the remains of 39 destroyed starships. It was calculated that nearly 11,000 officers had lost their lives during this battle, including some of the best captains and officers Starfleet had.

They did eventually manage to defeat the Borg, and get Picard back from their clutches, but this brutal attack was devastating for not just Starfleet, but the federation. They had lost the majority of their best ships, and their best commanding officers, and it left their entire operation in complete disrepair. They were in a terrible, weakened state, but while this might seem that this would have made them vulnerable, this is not exactly the case. Pre-existing foes such as the Romulans, and the Cardassians, who have always posed a threat to the Federation, would still not be in a position to swoop in and wipe them out, because while their losses were great, the Starfleet and the Federation was still the biggest force in the quadrant.

It’s important to remember as well that Starfleet was not alone. At this point in time, they were backed up by not only the Vulcans, but the Klingons too. They were a force not to be messed with, and thanks to the Khitamer accords, any act of war on the Federation would also be a direct attack on the Klingon empire — a thought that would make any Cardassian quiver in their boots. The Romulans might have stood a chance, but as is shown later in Deep Space 9 during the Dominion war, although they are quick to anger and aggression, they are thoughtful and tactical when it comes to choosing the right time to pick a fight. The risk of provoking not only the Federation, but the mighty Klingons, was not a good idea. The Borg were able to do what no other civilization could have done to the Federation at this point in time.

While the battle of Wolf 359 was a devastating blow to Starfleet, it seems to have caused more damage to their sense of pride than it did to their infrastructure. One single cube almost mockingly wiped them all out with seeming ease. It was a harsh reminder that they were not the most powerful players in the galaxy anymore, and that they had to start taking their space-faring exploration more seriously if they had any hope of surviving. The Borg taught them that their complacency almost got them all killed, a lesson that was much needed for the Dominion war they fought a few years later.

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