The pre-game cut scene shows the Galaxy-class vessel USS Dauntless in orbit of Vesuvi III on a re-supply mission for the Dreagos research and terraforming station there. It is located near Cardassian Union space over the borders from the Romulan Neutral Zone and the Klingon Empire. Taking place sometime after the Dominion War, this game introduces the Maelstrom, a section of space inundated with strange solar radiation, which makes colonization of planets almost impossible.