Kobayashi Maru
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In the Star Trek fictional universe, the Kobayashi Maru is a third-class neutronic fuel carrier-ship with a crew of 81 and about 300 passengers which serves as the basis of a graded training exercise in which command division cadets are presented with a no-win scenario as a test of character at Starfleet Academy. It was first depicted in the film .
The name is Japanese, and loosely translates as the ship named Kobayashi, with Kobayashi (小林) meaning small forest and being a common family name. Maru (丸) means perfection or purity and is a common suffix for Japanese ship names, implying a safe return always, or "round journey".
The simulation
The simulation takes place on a replica of a starship bridge, with the "testee" as captain and other Starfleet members, officers or other cadets, in other key positions. In the scenario of the 2280s, the cadet receives a distress signal, stating that the Kobayashi has struck a "gravitic mine" in the Organian Neutral Zone and is rapidly losing power, hull integrity and life support. There are no other vessels nearby. The cadet is faced with a decision:
- Attempt to rescue the Kobayashi's crew and passengers, which involves violating the Neutral Zone and potentially provoking the Klingons into hostile action or an all-out war; or
- Abandon the Kobayashi, preventing war but leaving the crew and passengers to die.
By the time of ', the Federation had reached an alliance with the Klingons, rendering the previous format of the scenario no longer suitable. In the ' episode "Learning Curve", Lieutenant Tuvok placed several former Maquis crewmembers in a similar scenario on the holodeck using a damaged Ferengi starship and Romulan warbird as the opponent in a tactical training scenario. While similar, this exercise was not a true Kobayashi Maru scenario, as there was a way to win: running away.
Notable Test Takers
Saavik's Test
At the beginning of viewers see the one instance of a Kobayashi Maru test that is actually shown on-screen. Lt. Saavik is taking her Kobayashi Maru test in the simulator. The mission - reported to be a training mission - seems to be routine. Dr. McCoy is standing by on the bridge, with Captain Spock acting as science officer, Uhura as communications officer, Sulu as helm officer, and other cadets fulfilling other roles on the bridge of the simulator. Engineer Scott is acting as chief engineer - although it is unclear as to whether Scott was actually present in another part of the simulator or if he too was also part of the simulation.Soon the distress call is received from the Kobayashi Maru, which has struck a mine and is rapidly losing life support. Saavik and her crew soon learn that the ship is in the Neutral Zone. Saavik decided to make a rescue attempt. Mr. Sulu tries to remind Saavik of the potential consequences of entering the Neutral Zone, but she tells him that she is aware of her responsibilities.
As the simulated Enterprise approaches the coordinates where the Kobayashi Maru was reported to be, Spock tells Saavik that they are now in violation of treaty, followed by Uhura who says to Saavik that she had lost the other ship's signal. Soon an alert sounds that three Klingon vessels are on an intercept course. Saavik requests the ships be shown on the main viewer, which shows three D7 cruisers approaching. She recognizes that the crew is in over their heads, and orders Sulu to get the "ship" out of there.
Soon the lead Klingon ship fires a torpedo at the Enterprise. When the simulated torpedo hits, the helm explodes, and Sulu "dies". Saavik asks for a damage report, and learns from Scott that the main energizer is hit. Another explosion takes place, which "kills" Uhura when her console explodes. She is soon followed by Doctor McCoy when another explosion takes place. At about the same time the cadet at the weapons console announces that the shields are collapsing. Saavik orders weapons to be fired, but Spock reports that there is no power. His science console then explodes behind him - which "kills" Spock. Scott reports that the Enterprise is dead in space. Saavik looks around to see her key officers have all been "killed". At that moment she orders the crew to escape pods, to send out the log buoy, and then gives the order to abandon ship.
Admiral Kirk, who had been monitoring the situation from the control room decides to stop the simulation. The main viewscreen slides aside as he walks into the room. Saavik asks for suggestions, to which Kirk replies that she should pray as the Klingons don't take prisoners. All the "deceased" officers begin to rise, the blowers begin blowing the smoke in the simulator room clear, and the trainees are ordered to report for debriefing. Saavik remains and protests that the test was unfair as there was no way to win. Kirk tells her that how a person faced death was as important as how they faced life.
The images of the Klingon ships shown during Saavik's test were reused from . The images shown were originally those of the three Klingon ships on their inital approach to V'ger.
Other test-takers and their solutions
James T. Kirk takes the test three times while at Starfleet Academy. Prior to his third attempt, Kirk surreptitiously reprograms the simulator so that it is possible to win. He justifies it by arguing that putting cadets in a no-win situation was cheating, and so he had to cheat in return. He receives a commendation for original thinking.
It is a fairly popular subject in Star Trek literature to depict the Kobayashi Maru test. Non-canonical examples of Kobayashi Maru tests have been shown in many Star Trek novels. Much like how Kirk cheated to win, frequently characters are depicted as coming up with very innovative or surprising ways of handling the situation. The typical themes depicted in solutions to the Kobayashi Maru test are self-sacrifice and innovation.
The Kobayashi Maru
The Kobayashi Maru by Julia Ecklar tells how each of these officers faced the problem:
- Chekov evacuates his ship and then crashed it into the three Klingon cruisers, destroying all four ships in the process and the evacuees as well.
- Sulu realizes it is probably a trap and refuses to cross the Neutral Zone.
- Scotty's performance clearly demonstrates that you should never send an engineer to do a captain's job (he too cheats, by employing a trick the computer incorrectly thinks will work).
- Kirk reprograms simulated Klingons to be afraid of "The Captain Kirk."
Stone and Anvil
In his Star Trek: New Frontier novels, Peter David suggested that future versions of the scenario would involve the Romulans; the novel Stone and Anvil has Mackenzie Calhoun destroying the ship because he determined that it was a trap laid by the Romulans to lure Federation ships across the Neutral Zone for sinister purposes.Star Trek: Avenger
In William Shatner's novel , Captain Christine McDonald of the U.S.S. Tobias tells Captain Kirk that in her time, the Kobayashi Maru scenario is no longer used to test character, but rather to evaluate the very "original thinking" for which Kirk had received a commendation. In the new version of the scenario, cadets are charged with coming up with ways to outsmart the simulation by reprogramming it to counter various moves made by the more advanced A.I. of the computer.Sarek
In A.C. Crispin's novel Sarek, Peter Kirk, James T.'s nephew, uses his experiences through the novel to come up with another way to defeat the unwinnable scenario. Upon entering the Neutral Zone he provokes the Romulans who are expected to destroy the Enterprise. Before the Romulans open fire, Peter challenges the Romulan commander to a ritual fight-to-the-death (using an obscure but still valid Romulan law predating their schism with the Vulcans), in which actual battle is prohibited until the contest is resolved. As Peter leaves the bridge to go to the simulation teleportation chamber, he instructs the crew to beam aboard the 'survivors' and escape, leaving him to certain death. The simulation ends with the Commodore ending the test in confusion. Upon learning of Peter's trick, he promises to change the scenario so to prevent it from being re-used. Peter is credited with coming up with an actual "winning" solution: saving the Kobayashi Maru and his own ship by sacrificing himself.Strange New Worlds
Three short stories in the Strange New Worlds anthologies series have also tackled it. In "The Bottom Line," by Andrew Morby (SNW III) and Shawn Michael Scott's "Best Tools Available," (SNW VI) cadet Nog solves it in two entirely different (and thoroughly Ferengi) manners. Kevin Lauderdale’s "A Test of Character" (SNW VII) depicts a different solution from Ecklar's, one in which Kirk's tampering is "cheating without cheating," since Kirk merely creates a level playing field, where success is not necessarily guaranteed.Dreadnought
In the novel Dreadnought by Diane Carey, the protagonist, a recent academy graduate named Piper, crashed the entire simulator program. She attempted to improvise an engineering solution to the problem through a very unorthodox series of computer commands and jury rigging. Her instructors admit that her solution might theoretically have been successful.Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
In the video game Star Trek: Starfleet Academy one of the missions given to the player is the Kobayashi Maru scenario. The player - who controls the character of David Forrester - has a choice to make prior to the test. The player can have Forrester reprogram the computer as Captain Kirk did when he took the test, or can have Forrester face the unaltered version of the test.If the player decides to face the unaltered version the ship is swiftly destroyed by overwhelming force. If the player decides to "cheat" this cheating is detected by academy staff. Forrester is offered a chance to avoid punishment by helping the authorities with an ongoing criminal investigation.
References in Other Media
A ship named the Kobayashi Maru appears in the manga Gundam F90, and proves to be just as ill-fated as its namesake, being destroyed in the prologue just before finishing up a tour of duty. Ironically enough, Gundam has sometimes been called "the Star Trek of Japan", given the similarities between the two franchises.In the American version of Godzilla, the Japanese freighter destroyed by the creature in the beginning is named the Kobayashi Maru.
See also
External links
- #redirect
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