Asgard (Stargate)
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| Asgard | |
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| Species | Asgard |
| Homeworld | Othala (original), Orilla (destroyed) |
| Governing body | Asgard High Council |
| Alliances as of season 10 | Earth |
| Prior Alliances | Four Great Races, Protected Planets Treaty |
| Key episodes | "Thor's Hammer (humanoid hologram) Thor's Chariot (real form)" (first appearance) |
In the science fiction series Stargate SG-1, the Asgard are a benevolent, highly advanced and evolved race from another galaxy, called Ida, who have visited Earth on many occasions, giving rise to the Norse legends. They were part of the Alliance of four great races. They replaced the deceased and ascended Ancients as the Milky Way Galaxy's most advanced race.
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[edit] Technology
The Asgard possess a higher level of technology than the Goa'uld. Their ships are capable of traversing thousands of light years of space in minutes. They have also mastered advanced transporter and holographic projection technologies. Their ships are capable of operating with as few as one Asgard on board. This suggests that their ships possess many automated systems. However, this is not standard procedure as, in certain episodes, Thor has made references to evacuating the crew off the ship.
They do not reproduce in the strictest sense; continuity as a species is maintained through a process of cloning and mind transferral, although this has resulted in a decay of the Asgard genome which will eventually lead to their extinction as a race if the problem is not resolved. While the Asgard maintain a large fleet of ships with defensive capabilities, as a whole they are not a militaristic race, and they strongly disapprove of the use of technology for aggressive purposes.
The Asgard have at least 3 types of ships: the Beliskner-class cruiser, the Daniel Jackson-class science vessel and the O'Neill-class battleship. It was shown in Unending that Asgard beam weaponry is capable of destroying Ori Motherships.
All Asgard Technology and Knowledge now belongs to the Tau'ri, a gift to them before their destruction.
[edit] Language
The Asgard language is considered to have influenced the formation of the Germanic languages. Their written language is runic in styling, and the Norse inherited it from them.
In Stargate Atlantis, the Asgard Hermiod speaks infrequently in Asgard, which is simply English speech played backwards. This is a trait seen exclusively from Hermiod, and all other Asgard speech in the Stargate universe is not a reverse of English.
[edit] Asgard as Deific Benefactors to Humanity
As the Goa'uld posed as gods from the pantheons of many mythologies in order to enslave humanity, members of the Asgard race positioned themselves as deities to the Norse in order to give them a moral code and guide their development. They used human-form holograms as their façades. The name of their species came to mean the home of the gods: Asgaard, connected to Midgaard, the world of men, by a rainbow bridge. Some of the Norse gods who are actually Asgard:
| Name | Origin | Traditional appearance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thor | God of Thunder | Powerful Viking | Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet |
| Heimdall | Guardian of Bifrost Bridge | Powerful Viking | Scientist[1] |
| Loki | God of Mischief | Weak, cunning man; capable of shape-shifting | Rogue geneticist[2] |
| Aegir | Lord of the Sea | Giant | Commander of the Valhalla who orchestrated the defense of the new Asgard homeworld, Orilla |
| Kvasir | None | Powerful Viking | Scientist |
| Hermiod | Messenger of the Gods | Powerful Viking | Engineer[3] |
| Freyr | Male fertility God | Unknown | Member of the Asgard High Council |
[edit] Asgard High Council
The Asgard High Council is the governing body for the race. The size and structure of the council is unknown, but there are at least seven sitting members, including Freyr, Thor, and Penigal (Red Sky, as well as New Order). It appears as though most of the Asgard high councilors' names are those of the various Norse Gods. Also, based on this, it stands to reason that other Norse deities such as Woden, Freyja, etc. would be members of the council. The Asgard High Council makes decisions that will affect the whole race. In addition, it enters negotiations on behalf of the Tau'ri, most notably the Protected Planets Treaty.
They gather in a large meeting hall equipped with holographic projectors.
[edit] The Protected Planets Treaty Amendment
One of the most notable occasions when the Asgard came to Earth's assistance occurred when it was learned that the Goa'uld System Lords had decided to attack Earth ("Fair Game"). The Asgard called a meeting between delegations representing the Goa'uld, the Humans and the Asgard, the purpose of which was intended to include Earth under the protection of the "Protected Planets Treaty". This treaty has served to maintain a millennia-long, if fragile, peace between the Goa'uld and the Asgard.
Where questioned by O'Neil as to why the Asgard even had a treaty with the Goa'uld despite the fact they are much more technologically advanced and hate them, Thor reveals that while the Asgard could defeat the Goa'uld, the Asgard fleet was engaging a far more dangerous enemy in their home galaxy (later revealed to be the Replicators), tying up the Asgard fleet to the point where they were largely powerless to interfere in the Milky Way Galaxy. In effect, the Asgard were bluffing the Goa'uld.
Attending on behalf of the Goa'uld were the System Lords Yu, Nirrti and Cronos. Thor represented the Asgard and chose Colonel Jack O'Neill to represent the Humans.
Although events did not start off well, an accommodation that satisfied all parties was eventually reached after the attempted assassination of Cronos by Nirrti.
The treaty for Earth was that the System Lords should not attack Earth and that the Council of System Lords would be responsible for preventing any rogue Goa'uld from attacking earth. However any Tau'ri found offworld were fair game.
[edit] History
The first planet settled by the Asgard was Othala, or Hala, in the galaxy of Ida.[4]
[edit] 30 000 years ago
An Asgard ship along with its crew left the Asgard homeworld. The crew was placed in suspended animation, but the navigational computers were damaged and the ship drifted across galaxies eventually finding its way to the Milky Way. The ship was recently found, and within it one perfectly preserved Asgard ancestor. Heimdall started research on it because the clone was from a time when their cloning program was "not yet irreversible" (i.e. leading to the contemporary problem of cellular degradation through reclonings).[5]
[edit] 10 000 years ago
The Asgard were part of the Alliance of four great races in the Milky Way galaxy (the others being the Ancients, the Nox and the Furling). [6]
[edit] Between 10 000 years ago and 21st century
For a little while, the Asgard have been making deals with the Goa'uld to leave some worlds alone. Some of these specific planets are inhabited by humans who were transplanted by the Goa'uld and some (probably) by the Asgard. The Asgard are now extinct but have passed on all of their knowledge to the fifth race, The Tau’ri, in the episode "Unending".
[edit] The Replicators
The Asgard have been largely unable to help Earth with their fight against the Goa'uld due to a war with a greater enemy, the Replicators. Asgard weapons had largely proven ineffective against Replicators because they were energy-based, which the Replicators were able to develop sophisticated technological countermeasures against. Human weapons, on the other hand, used simple chemical reactions to propel inert projectiles (ballistics) -- a crude method that proved difficult for the physically small and weak replicators to adapt to. SG-1 has provided assistance to the Asgard on several occasions. One time when Major Carter suggested flying their newest incomplete ship, the O'Neill, into hyperspace to lure the Replicators and explode.[7] Thor made a promise that when they defeat the Replicators, the Asgard will dedicate all their resources to help defeat the Goa'uld. With the help of SG-1, the Asgard were able to lure all of the Replicators into a time-dilation field.
Unfortunately, escape was later made possible; two years later, the Replicators escaped the black hole created by the Asgard using the time-dilatation device and launched an attack on the Asgard's new home world, Orilla. An attempt to prevent this was led by Aegir attacking the ship as it emerged from hyperspace, before it could raise its shields. Not all the Replicators were destroyed, a party led by the human-form Replicator known as "Fifth" managing to land on the planet. Colonel O'Neill, with the knowledge downloaded from a Repository of the Ancients, was able to devise a weapon that permanently jammed the Replicator intercellular communications 'network', rendering all Replicators affected by this weapon unable to self-assemble and simply fall apart into their constituent components. Thor was able to engineer a larger version and thus fire a planet-wide shot that would disable all replicators on Orilla.
When the Replicators turned their attention to the Milky Way, made themselves immune to the Disrupter and began to attack the Goa'uld System Lords. The Asgard could only send Thor and still they couldn't eliminate the Replicators. However the Tau'ri and Jaffa used the Dakara Superweapon to defeat them once and for all.
[edit] Post-Replicator years and extinction
The Asgard in the season nine finale "Camelot" assisted the united attack against the invading fleet of the Ori however with little success. They provided Earth's new battlecruiser, the Daedalus, with significant technological upgrades, and an Asgard engineer named Hermiod to help them understand and operate their technology. Another Asgard named Kvasir has appeared in SG-1 many times and helped the SGC overcome the dilemmas encountered in the episodes "Ripple Effect" and in "Camelot". The Asgard also sent an O'Neill class battleship to the Battle of P3Y-229, which fared much better than the other ships and was not seen among the debris field and other destroyed ships. Its fate in the battle was not revealed.
In the Stargate SG-1 series finale, "Unending", the Asgard told the Tau'ri that their species' irreparable genetic flaws would lead to the Asgard's imminent extinction, due to a rapidly progressing genetic disease spreading across the entire Asgard race. The Asgard therefore chose to commit mass euthanasia in order to avoid the pain of death and in the process destroy all their technology lest it fall into the wrong hands. However before their civilization died, the Asgard gave all of their knowledge and technology to the Tau'ri, because they believed them to be the "Fifth race".
Shortly after installing their technology onto the Odyssey, three Ori motherships attacked the Asgard homeworld and the Odyssey. With the new Asgard weapons technology the Odyssey managed to put up a valiant defence against the Ori ships, but was forced to retreat with the technology onboard. Their last act completed, all the Asgard teleported to the surface of Orilla whereupon the planet self-destructed in a massively powerful explosion. The Asgard race is most likely now extinct. However, it is unknown what has happened to the Asgard in the Milky Way galaxy, or to Hermiod, who is a recurring character on board the Daedalus.
[edit] Physiology
[edit] 30000 BC
The Asgard were a tall humanoid species. At the time they reproduced in the same way as humans, sexually. They have since lost this capability.
[edit] Present time
Due to decay in the Asgard's genome, they have lost the ability to reproduce sexually. They survive by cloning their bodies and transferring their minds, Thor states in the Stargate SG-1 finale episode "Unending", "The final attempt to solve our physiological degeneration has left each of us with a rapidly progressing disease" (and Daniel states that since they have cloned themselves for so long, the evolutionary process it takes to ascend is no longer possible for the Asgard), "everything that can be done, has been done", and so wish to give the Tau'ri everything, all their knowledge and all their current technology (even though many Asgard still believe humanity is too young), also stating "you are the fifth race, your role is clear", so essentially bestowing upon humanity the title as the new protector of this galaxy and others. Much as the Ancients apparently passed the role onto the Asgard, so the Asgard passed it onto the new generation of humans.
Afterwards a flotila of Ori ships arrive. It's unknown exactly how they found the Asgard homeworld 'out of the blue', though outside of the Milky Way its not impossible the Ori themselves saw the Asgard's endgame plans and sent their ships to interfere. Regardless, the Ori drop out of hyperspace and attack the Odyssey. Thor beams down to the planet with the rest of his people urging the Odyssey to leave at once. As two Ori ships settle into orbit, the Asgard pass from reality into the realm of legend, destroying their planet in a massive explosion. The entire legacy of the Asgard leaves with SG-1 on the Odyssey and is returned to Earth.
They look very much like the Roswell Greys with webbed hands and feet. The Asgard admitted to visiting Earth multiple times, so it can be assumed that they are the Roswell Greys. If in fact there WAS a Roswell incident in the Stargate universe that did involve the Asgard is still not entirely clear.
[edit] References
- ^ Stargate SG-1 episode "Revelations"
- ^ Stargate SG-1 episode"Fragile Balance"
- ^ Stargate SG-1 episode "The Siege"
- ^ Unnatural Selection (Stargate SG-1)
- ^ "Revelations".
- ^ "The Torment of Tantalus".
- ^ Stargate SG-1 episode "Small Victories Part 2"
[edit] See also
| Alien races in the Stargate universe | Edit | |
| Five Great Races | Ancients, Asgard, Furling, Nox, Tau'ri |
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| Humans | Tau'ri, Tollan, Aschen, Genii, Athosians, Prior | |
| Jaffa | Sodan, Free Jaffa, Hak'tyl, Illac Renin | |
| Ascended beings | Ancient, Ori | |
| Goa'uld | System Lords, Tok'ra, Kull Warrior | |
| Other | Asurans, Iratus bug, R-75, Re'ol, Re'tu, Replicator, "Spirits", Unas, Wraith | |
| Topics in Stargate | ||
| Story of Stargate | Stargate, Stargate SG-1 (episodes), Stargate Atlantis (episodes), Stargate Infinity (episodes), Stargate Universe Stargate: The Ark of Truth, Stargate: Continuum, Comics, Literature |
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| Stargate Universe | Alien Races, Planets, Technology, Characters, The SGC, SG-1, SG Team, Atlantis, The Stargate, Ascension | |
| Factions in Stargate | Tau'ri, Jaffa Resistance, Tok'ra, Asgard, Ancients Goa'uld, Jaffa, System Lords, Replicators, Ori, Asuran, Wraith, Lucian Alliance, The Trust, NID, IOA |
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