How come Star Fleet didn't issue armor or portable shields to its crews?

[Kage Kisaragi]

Seriously, I know its kind of late to be questioning something like this now, but after playing other sci-games and watch similar shows. I have to question Star Fleets commitment to the safety of its officers. I mean, seriously all the away team would wear is the uniforms on their backs and their phasers, sometimes knowing that they were going to beam down into hostile situations. Are phasers really most heaviest ordnance a Star Fleet officer is permitted to carry when going into a hostile situation? When the enemy is crouching behind a large stone wouldn't been easier to throw a grenade over their and blow them up?

[Alex]

Seriously, I know its kind of late to be questioning something like this now, but after playing other sci-games and watch similar shows. I have to question Star Fleets commitment to the safety of its officers. I mean, seriously all the away team would wear is the uniforms on their backs and their phasers, sometimes knowing that they were going to beam down into hostile situations. Are phasers really most heaviest ordnance a Star Fleet officer is permitted to carry when going into a hostile situation? When the enemy is crouching behind a large stone wouldn't been easier to throw a grenade over their and blow them up?

If i recall right, didn't we occasionaly see them with big lazer guns?
They were still phazers but they sort of looked like rifles.

[Kage Kisaragi]

If i recall right, didn't we occasionaly see them with big lazer guns?
They were still phazers but they sort of looked like rifles.

I think your right, though i can't name any particular episode.

[Michael P]

Because that would make too much sense.

[The Black Guardian]

Seriously, I know its kind of late to be questioning something like this now, but after playing other sci-games and watch similar shows. I have to question Star Fleets commitment to the safety of its officers. I mean, seriously all the away team would wear is the uniforms on their backs and their phasers, sometimes knowing that they were going to beam down into hostile situations.

Thing is, it was mentioned several times that Starfleet did have personal force field generators. They really didn't do much good, long-term, against the weaponry of the time though. Phasers are bad-ass.

Are phasers really most heaviest ordnance a Star Fleet officer is permitted to carry when going into a hostile situation? When the enemy is crouching behind a large stone wouldn't been easier to throw a grenade over their and blow them up?

Why would you want heavier? Have you seen the power in just a tiny phaser? Pretty much everything is a phaser in Trek: those thing the starship uses all the time are phasers too. There were three types of hand Phasers: Type 1 were the size of a cellphone; Type 2 were handgun sized; and Type 3 were the rifles.

We did see grenade launchers at least once.

There were also disruptors, but they were considered barbaric.

[Simbob4000]

Because the rules of Star Trek were set by a cheap tv show. Also, why do the control panels on the ships blow up some much? That seems like something that shouldn't happen as much as it does.

[ChrisIII]

In the TOS movies we do see security officers wearing a sort of padded armor and helmet. I think TMP used them the most, but they show up here and there in the other movies.


The movies and TV shows also used field outfits here and there, but not sure if they were really armored or not.

Various non-canon spinoffs such as Elite Force and Star Trek online have also had armor and personal shields.

[Deep_Sleeper]

Speaking of Star Trek...I was watching the Abrams movie yesterday. Initially, I didn't think the movie was that great. I really enjoyed it every subsequent viewing.

As for the topic at hand, I think Starfleet is always after peaceful exploration and observation of worlds. The fact that their presence might be seen as hostile invasion by some cultures is an unfortunate but predictable effect of exploration and discovery.

Gearing up for each mission with heavy armour and powerful weaponry might be seen as an aggressive, when that is not their intent.

[Sighphi]

Because Shield technology isnt small enough to contain the powerful phaser and disruptor tech.
You know, like in real life where machine gun tech is always more advanced than body armor tech.

Shield tech in sci-fi games is just done as a game mechanic, it really isnt some story purpose to it.

[Simbob4000]

Because Shield technology isnt small enough to contain the powerful phaser and disruptor tech.
You know, like in real life where machine gun tech is always more advanced than body armor tech.

Shield tech in sci-fi games is just done as a game mechanic, it really isnt some story purpose to it.

Only they should have them, they came across them in the first season of TNG. They also seem to forget how they beat them when they later come across the Borg, because the things in The Arsenal of Freedom are just like the Borg, only they don't look like they came from Captain EO.

[Jared]

You would think that helmets would be a bear minimum for dangerous missions. But even the MACOs on Enterprise didn't have them, and they were military special forces!

If i recall right, didn't we occasionaly see them with big lazer guns?
They were still phazers but they sort of looked like rifles.

Phaser rifles show up fairly often.

[The Black Guardian]

Based on what we've seen little tiny phasers do, wearable armour would be worthless.

[Simbob4000]

Based on what we've seen little tiny phasers do, wearable armour would be worthless.

Not if it was made from any of the stuff we see phasers do nothing to in the show.

[Castel]

Honestly, there isn't much to do against phasers.

All depends the settings of course but if your opponent just want to knock you out he/she will set on stun and well, armor is not going to help you. If it's a fight to the death then it's disintegration and in this case too...an armor is pretty much useless.

I don't remember much about portable shields in this show. Was that stuff often used ?

[Mat001]

In the TOS movies we do see security officers wearing a sort of padded armor and helmet. I think TMP used them the most, but they show up here and there in the other movies.

The first four films really used the armored look. Mostly it was security personal that used them. I think it had to do with Robert Wise thinking it didn't make sense that the crew didn't have more of an armored look.