Gorn
The Gorn are a species that feature in Star Trek.
Contents |
History
The Gorn were a race of bipedal reptilians that were known to had inhabited the Milky Way galaxy.
Before the Vezda were sealed inside a prison on Vadia IX, a mutual enmity developed between their species and the Gorn. As a result, those with Gorn genetics inside their DNA had a mental trigger that compelled them to exterminate individuals who hosted the malevolent lifeforms on sight. Even when a member of their foes had taken humanoid bodies, a Gorn could recognise them and would attack, regardless of their previous relationship with the host. The Vezda, in turn, reacted in an aggressive manner when interacting with a Gorn. (SNW: Through the Lens of Time)
The Gorn also became familiar with the 'Destroyer of Worlds' that was a mysterious starship that had risen to develop an evil reputation on planets and populations that dwelt on the frontier of known space, preying upon others to sustain its avaricious nature. Though their kind had never determined the species of those who crewed this bogeyman, even the Gorn considered them monsters, and this opinion was known to others that colonised the outermost fringes of Federation star maps. (SNW: The Sehlat Who Ate Its Tail)
Although unconfirmed at the time, the first encounter between the Humans and the Gorn occurred in the 2230s or 2240s, when the colony ship SS Puget Sound was captured and the entire ship's complement was deposited on a planetary nursery. According to La'an Noonien-Singh's accounts, the Gorn would eat some of their captives alive, while other captives would have their bodies slit open and used as "breeding sacks,” and some captives would be hunted as a sport before being fed to infant Gorn. In accordance with some sort of ritual, the final survivor would be spared, only to be placed in a life raft and abandoned in space. The survivor was not expected to live. (SNW: Strange New Worlds) La'an explained to Captain Pike that there had in fact been multiple contacts with the Gorn by 2259 – including the attack on Finibus III that the USS Enterprise dealt with in that year – but they hardly ever left survivors and were therefore still listed as never officially encountered. (SNW: Memento Mori) That same year, the USS Peregrine fell victim to Gorn hatchlings that unexpectedly emerged from refugees rescued by the crew. The hatchlings were neutralized by a landing party from the Enterprise. (SNW: All Those Who Wander) La'an, who had survived being hunted on one of their planetary nurseries, described the Gorn as 'plain evil' and impossible to empathize with or come to an understanding with them, unrelenting when they hunt. Gorn considered warm-blooded species their prey. They employed ambush tactics and used injured prey as bait to lure in more. For example, they would allow a group of survivors to escape while attacking a Federation colony so they would call for help and bring in more prospective prey. They were even willing to sacrifice one of their own to force their prey to reveal itself while it was hiding from them. Gorn were also willing to kill their own if they became weak or one of their ships became compromised by an enemy, making sure only the strongest survived. (SNW: Memento Mori)
They were shown to hold territory near Federation space. A Gorn ship came into conflict with the U.S.S. Enterprise after they destroyed a Federation colony on Cestus III (they saw the world as their territory, and the colony as an incursion therein), but the conflict was indirectly resolved by the Metrons.
Overview
In appearance, the Gorn were green-skinned bipedal reptilian humanoids that stood taller than humans. (TOS: Arena)
Even adult Gorn were able to run across walls and ceilings allowing them an extra degree of mobility to get to their quarry. (SNW: Hegemony, Part 2)
Their claws were strong enough to pierce through skin and through their sheer strength they were able to raise humanoids off the ground in the process. (SNW: Hegemony, Part 2)
Gorn pregnancies could result in as many as eight children being born who were noted to bite directly after birth with a caesarean section being a possible means of delivery. (TOS: Star Trek Into Darkness)
They were said to brew the finest meridor in five systems. (ENT: Bound)
Gorn ships would employ visual communication in the form of light signals when in visual range of each other. (SNW: Memento Mori)
It was believed that stellar activity triggered periods of aggression and long hibernation in the Gorn with X-class flares and super arcade downflows from stars preceding these hibernation cycles. This data indicated periods of long cycles of Gorn aggression with the attacks signaling what could be a full-scale Gorn expansion and invasion across space. (SNW: Hegemony, Part 2)
Captured sentients were shown to get cocooned where machinery was used to slowly digest them consumption by the Gorn crew. (SNW: Hegemony, Part 2)
Their interstellar civilisation was known as the Gorn Hegemony. (ENT: Bound)
Members
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Notes
- The Gorn were created by Gene L. Coon where they featured in the setting of the Star Trek universe.
- According to the Starfleet Technical Manual, the Gorn are from Tau Lacertae IX.
Alternate Versions
- In Star Trek: Enterprise, the Gorn were shown in the episode "In the Mirror Darkly" to exist within the Mirror Universe. One Gorn named Slar was shown to had been allied with the Tholian Assembly where he served as a slave master forcing captured humanoids to work at a dock side that had brought in the main reality's version of the U.S.S. Defiant.
In other media
Video games
- In Star Trek: Klingon Academy, the Gorn appeared as antagonists in the setting of the space-based flight simulator video game. Their government was referred to as the Gorn Star Kingdom that were a civilisation in decline as the fire to explore and conquer had gone out of their hearts. It was said that this was because of a lack of strong leadership with the Gorn King being old to the point that he had delegated responsibilities to several vassals that were at odds with one another. Well-meaning family members sheltered the king from the political intrigue surrounding them but this only worsened the situation which meant that their empire continued to decline and potentially could fall into a civil war. Despite that, their military forces ferociously defended their
- In Star Trek Online, the Gorn appeared as a playable race in the setting of the MMORPG video game with them being part of the Klingon Empire faction.
- In Star Trek, the Gorn appeared as antagonists in the setting of the 2013 third-person action adventure video game that was set in the rebooted movie Kelvin timeline. These versions were referred to as an extragalactic race of conquerors who were looking to invade the Milky Way after the destruction of Vulcan.
Novels
RPGs
Appearances
- Star Trek: The Original Series:
- Star Trek: Enterprise:
