Borg

:This article is about the fictional race of aliens. For other uses, see Borg (disambiguation).

Overview

The Borg are humanoids of different races that are enhanced with cybernetic implants, giving them improved mental and physical abilities. Although the cyborg concept has long existed in science-fiction literature, it is probable that the general concept of the Borg – a ruthlessly efficient race of bio-mechanical beings bent on galactic conquest – was heavily based upon the Cybermen, which featured in the popular UK television series Doctor Who and who displayed similar rationales and methods as the Borg, including wanting to assimilate individuals to augment their race. They also bear significant resemblences to Fred Saberhagen's Berserker series. A very similar race of "positronic-biological" beings, nicknamed "Posbis", also features in the German Perry Rhodan series. Their spaceships, in particular, bear a striking resemblance to those of the Borg.

Related Topics:
Race - Cybermen - UK - Doctor Who - Fred Saberhagen - Berserker - Perry Rhodan

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The minds of all Borg are connected via implants to a hive, a collective mind, orchestrated by the Borg Queen and controlled from a central hub, the Unicomplex. According to themselves, the Borg only seek to "improve the quality of life in the universe" and add to their own perfection. To this end, they travel the galaxy, improving their numbers and advancing by "assimilating" other species and technologies, and forcing captured individuals under the control of the Hive mind by injecting them with nanoprobes. They harbor no ill will to anyone; they merely fulfill their biological or programmatic imperative to assimilate. As they say, "Resistance is futile – you will be assimilated." They make good on that threat by their ability to quickly adapt to any attack to render it harmless. Thus, any successful defense depends on the ingenuity of the opponent to find a method to stop the Borg completely before they can neutralize it.

Related Topics:
Hive - Unicomplex - Assimilating - Hive mind - Nanoprobe

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The first formal contact of Starfleet with the Borg occurs by interference from Q in ', episode "Q Who?". Q transported the Enterprise-D to System J-25, in the Delta Quadrant just long enough to expose them to the Borg. The Enterprise was hopelessly underpowered compared to the Borg vessel, and Q brought them home after their confrontation. Guinan tells Picard, "Now that they know of your existence..." and Picard realized that they would never stop until they find them. Later Picard realized that the Borg cube was already on a heading towards Federation space, and in effect Q gave them an advance warning, doing the right thing for the wrong reason. Prior to this contact, however, there was evidence that the Borg were already in the Alpha Quadrant since the episode "The Neutral Zone" had established that several planets had been destroyed in the same manner later attributed to the Borg.

Related Topics:
Starfleet - Q - Q Who? - ''Enterprise''-D - Delta Quadrant - Alpha Quadrant - The Neutral Zone

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There is evidence that prior to Picard's contact with the Borg, Starfleet and the Federation had knowledge of the species beginning with an incident in 2153 where a group of Borg was discovered in the Arctic Circle. The Borg in question were later speculated to have possibly come from the future as referenced by a speech Zefram Cochrane had given, stating what "really" had happened during in 2063. He said that there were "strange cybernetic creatures from the future who wanted to enslave the human race." He also revealed that there were people who stopped them who were also from the future. Captain Archer and Subcommander T'Pol talked about this, but T'Pol dismissed it, by saying "Dr. Cochrane was known to make outrageous statements."

Related Topics:
Arctic Circle - Zefram Cochrane

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The Borg incident of 2153 was quietly kept a secret, due in part that evidence had been uncovered that the Borg had managed to transmit the location of Earth to their home space in the Delta Quadrant. Since, however, the message would not reach Borg space for two centuries, Earth and Starfleet authorities were not overly concerned with the Borg. However, in the prophetic words of Captain Jonathan Archer: "We've only postponed the invasion until what? The 24th century?"

Related Topics:
Borg incident of 2153 - Delta Quadrant - Jonathan Archer

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In the late 23rd century, the crew of the newly-commissioned USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B) rescued a ship carrying El-Aurian refugees, fleeing from the Borg's decimation of their planet, although it is not known if Starfleet was aware of the cause of the El-Aurian plight at this time. (The El-Aurian Guinan mentions the Borg attack to Picard during his first encounter with them.)

Related Topics:
USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B) - El-Aurian

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In the mid 2350's, as the two hundred year time mark approached on Captain Archer's statement, Starfleet began a covert operation to learn about the Borg and hired several civilian scientists to perform "unofficial" research and to learn about this potential threat to the Federation. The family of Annika Hansen was one such group of scientists so employed. Thus, by the time Captain Picard and the Enterprise encountered the Borg at System J-25, certain areas of Starfleet (most likely Section 31) were already aware of the Borg and the danger they possessed.

Related Topics:
Annika Hansen - Section 31

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The second official contact occurred in the two-part episode "The Best of Both Worlds", which is widely regarded as one of the greatest episodes in Star Trek history. In that incident, Captain Picard was captured and assimilated by the Borg to become Locutus of Borg. With his knowledge, the Borg destroyed the massive Federation fleet in the Battle of Wolf 359 and proceeded to Earth. The Federation regards this battle as one of its worst military defeats in history. In the process, however, the Enterprise used an emergency transporter to rescue and capture Locutus. Data, with the help of Counsellor Troi and Dr. Crusher, managed to tap into the computer network of which Picard/Locutus was a part. Their actions managed to give Picard enough force of will to tell Data to give the command for the Borg to "sleep", that is, enter their regenerative mode. This caused the Cube to go quiescent and created a feedback loop in the cube's power systems that destroyed the ship.

Related Topics:
The Best of Both Worlds - Locutus of Borg - Battle of Wolf 359

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The Borg make frequent appearances in the Star Trek universe afterwards, being involved in the main plot of the ' movie, and even having one of their number become a crew member of the Starship Voyager – Seven of Nine.

Related Topics:
Starship ''Voyager'' - Seven of Nine

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The Borg suffered their worst defeat in the year 2378. The USS Voyager discovered a Borg transwarp hub inside a nebula, which allowed the Borg to send ships anywhere in the galaxy in minutes (it was one of only seven such hubs in the entire Milky Way galaxy). A future Admiral Janeway, who had travelled back in time, ordered Voyager to use the hub to get back to the Alpha Quadrant, but (present-day) Captain Janeway was determined to destroy it. Admiral Janeway entered the unicomplex and the Borg Queen assimilated her. However, the Admiral had infected herself with a neurolytic pathogen; now assimilated into the collective, the pathogen was disabling the neural links at the mind of the collective consciousness. As a result, the Borg Queen lost connections with her drones and ships, before being overcome and presumably killed, as her Unicomplex base exploded around her. Simultaneously, Voyager destroyed support beams while inside the transwarp corridor. The hub then collapsed, giving the Borg a crippling blow while Voyager was successfully returned to Earth. The "crippling blow" is not elaborated on. Since the collective nature of the Borg exists, it stands to reason that the virus could have affected every Borg linked to the hive mind. It was never elaborated on, but it is very possible the Borg have been destroyed.

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