Star Trek is a wide-reaching franchise that has seen a huge volume of content. Even if books and comics are discounted, the numerous movies and TV shows which build the giant universe of Star Trek are incredibly hard to keep track of and to watch in their entirety.
Nevertheless, many fans have achieved just this, and have seen much in that time of the Klingon Empire. From their initial hostility with the Federation to the destruction of Praxis and the ensuing peace between the superpowers, the Klingons have a long history, rich culture, and even their own language. They also have some extremely powerful starships which were able to rival the Federation’s for a long time, as Klingon ships were always more focused on speed and combat than those of the Federation.
7 IKS Klothos
A battle-cruiser of the Klingon D-7 Class, the IKS Klothos appeared multiple times in the Star Trek franchise. One of the most notable appearances was in the Star Trek: Animated Series when the Klothos opened fire on the Enterprise and might even have managed to defeat the Federation ship if it had not been stopped.
The Klothos was stopped when both ships were caught in a tractor beam by the Elysian Council. This group trapped both ships in a region called Elysia where time passed more slowly and violence is impossible. Without their intervention, the Enterprise and Kirk’s crew could have been beaten by this battle cruiser.
6 Kruge’s Bird Of Prey / HMS Bounty
One of the most notable aspects about this particular Bird of Prey is that it has the notable distinction of having been under both Klingon and Federation control. After Kruge nearly destroyed the Enterprise and completely disabled it, his ship was taken by Kirk’s crew due to trickery and Kirk beating him in single combat.
Nevertheless, Kruge’s Bird of Prey was excellently manned and completely able to take down the Enterprise. Kirk and his crew would have been wiped out if Kruge hadn’t been trying to get the secret of Genesis. When the Federation crew later manned the ship, renamed the HMS Bounty, they were able to fly it around the Earth so fast they could reverse time, going at an almost unheard-of speed, Warp 10.
5 IKS Gr’oth
Another of the D-7 Battle Cruiser class which ruled the armada of the Klingons in the 23rd Century, the IKS Gr’oth was a dangerous ship that managed to do a lot of testing of futuristic (for its time) technology that would advance the Klingon combat capabilities even further than they already had done.
Unfortunately, despite being a dangerous ship with a great deal of history behind it, the Gr’oth was never able to live down the infamy of being completely infested with tribbles by the USS Enterprise after the small creatures became a danger to the deep space station where they had been staying for a time.
4 General Chang’s Bird of Prey
General Chang was able to use the advanced cloaking capabilities of his prototype bird of prey ship to do heavy damage to potential peace talks between the Federation and the Klingon Empire. In a renegade move, he assassinated Chancellor Gorkon and framed the USS Enterprise and Captain Kirk for the murder.
Chang accomplished this astonishing feat by hiding directly under the Enterprise. Being so far advanced for its time that it would have been impressive even a hundred years later, this Bird of Prey was the most dangerous version of this style of Klingon ship seen anywhere in the Star Trek franchise.
3 IKS Bortas
The Vor’cha class of the Klingon fleet was an excellent weapon for the mid-24th century. Proving impressive on several occasions shown throughout Star Trek: The Next Generation, the IKS Bortas was able not just to serve in the Romulan Neutral Zone and later the Klingon Civil War, but it is also unknown to have ever been beaten in battle.
Even surviving a surprise attack at the beginning of the Civil War against the forces of the House of Duras, the Bortas is a powerful ship and one of the prime examples of a 24th-century Klingon vessel. Commander Worf even served on the Bortas after resigning from Starfleet to fight alongside Chancellor Gowron.
2 K’t’inga-Class Battle Cruiser
The K’t’inga Class was a special kind of battle cruiser. Commissioned as part of the Klingon Imperial Fleet in the 2270s, the K’t’inga managed to stay relevant enough to the other ships in the Klingon forces and against those of every other race for an astoundingly long time.
The K’t’inga Class was in commission for a full century, under the command of the Klingon Defense Force later. The K’t’inga-Class was even the flagship of the Imperial Fleet at one stage, and this sturdily designed ship-class was one which saw continuous use by the franchise as a front-line warship.
1 IKS Negh’Var
Essentially a replacement for the K’t’inga Class, the Negh’Var Warship class, and more specifically the IKS Negh’Var itself, is a huge starship with a traditionally strange Klingon bridge. These warships came with cloaking devices and a huge range of capabilities that could devastate enemy starships.
First shown leading the force which invaded the Cardassian Union, the Negh’Var was later seen leading the attack on the Deep Space 9 space station. On both occasions, it was made clear that the capabilities of the Negh’Var were the most devastating sides of the speedy stealth ships and the large warships of the Klingon past put together.