Thargoid: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
ED: Premonition details |
||
| Line 5: | Line 5: | ||
=== First contact and conflict === | === First contact and conflict === | ||
[[File:Thargoid ship.gif|thumb|200px|A Thargoid ship in Frontier: First Encounters]] | [[File:Thargoid ship.gif|thumb|200px|A Thargoid ship in Frontier: First Encounters]] | ||
The name "Thargoid" was coined by humans shortly after the first reported encounters with the aliens. In a blurred holo clip of one such encounter, some argued that the term "THARG" was visible on the hull of an alien ship, but this was never conclusively proven. Nevertheless, "Tharg" came to be associated with the aliens, and most commentators extended it to "Thargoid".<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/53se4s/first_thargoid_contact_22_beacon/</ref> | The name "Thargoid" was coined by humans shortly after the first reported encounters with the aliens, which are believed to have occurred around the year 3125.<ref name="DW">[https://www.drewwagar.com/lore/elite-dangerous-lore-the-thargoids/ Drewwagar.com: Elite Dangerous Lore: The Thargoids]</ref> In a blurred holo clip of one such encounter, some argued that the term "THARG" was visible on the hull of an alien ship, but this was never conclusively proven. Nevertheless, "Tharg" came to be associated with the aliens, and most commentators extended it to "Thargoid".<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/53se4s/first_thargoid_contact_22_beacon/</ref> | ||
The events surrounding first contact with the Thargoids were mostly suppressed and forgotten, and by the 3300's the Thargoids themselves were generally regarded as fiction. According to [[Alliance]] [[Alliance Prime Minister|Prime Minister]] [[Edmund Mahon]], who is one of the few individuals with access to surviving records, the [[Intergalactic Naval Reserve Arm]], or INRA, fought a war against the Thargoids and eventually secured victory by deploying a bioweapon against the aliens. The Thargoids retreated, and for many years it was believed they had been driven to extinction or even never truly existed at all.<ref name="EDP">[[Elite Dangerous: Premonition]]</ref> | |||
In the course of the war, a number of Thargoid ships were captured by the [[Galactic Cooperative]], and later fell into the possession of the Alliance in the years after Galcop collapsed. By the 3270's, the Alliance was able to reverse-engineer Thargoid technology to produce the single most consequential hyperdrive innovation in centuries: the [[Frame Shift Drive]]. FSDs reduced travel times in [[Hyperspace]] from hours to mere seconds, opening the floodgates for human exploration and expansion. Due to the machinations of [[The Club]], however, the Alliance did not leverage FSD technology to gain superiority over the Federation and Empire; instead, the tech fell into the hands of [[Sirius Corporation]], which monopolized it and distributed it to all the powers and factions, ensuring no one gained an advantage.<ref name="EDP"/> | |||
=== Renewed activity === | === Renewed activity === | ||
In early 3301, [[Unknown Artefact]]s were discovered among the cargoes of secret Federal convoys. Their discovery marked the first indication that Thargoids yet existed in the depths of space, though the Artefacts, as well as the similar [[Unknown Probe]]s that would be found orbiting ammonia worlds in 3302, would not be conclusively linked to the Thargoids until later. Some CMDRs believed that the Artefacts and Probes originated from an entirely unknown alien race, while others asserted that they were examples of experimental human technology. Disputes and speculation over the objects continued for months. [[Alien Structure]]s, or "Barnacles", were also discovered in 3302, but their even more pronounced organic appearance also stymied analysis. | |||
On January 5, 3303, Commander DP Sayre reported the first known encounter with an [[Unknown Ship]], which was later confirmed to be a type of Thargoid vessel. The Unknown Ship interdicted the CMDR from [[hyperspace]] and apparently scanned him before departing to an untraceable destination. The acts of interdicting a target while in hyperspace and leaving an untraceable wake signature were both well beyond the capabilities of human technology. Previously, only the [[Alien Crash Site|wreckage of these ships]] had been documented. | On January 5, 3303, Commander DP Sayre reported the first known encounter with an [[Unknown Ship]], which was later confirmed to be a type of Thargoid vessel. The Unknown Ship interdicted the CMDR from [[hyperspace]] and apparently scanned him before departing to an untraceable destination. The acts of interdicting a target while in hyperspace and leaving an untraceable wake signature were both well beyond the capabilities of human technology. Previously, only the [[Alien Crash Site|wreckage of these ships]] had been documented. | ||
| Line 16: | Line 20: | ||
On June 2, 3303, CMDR Mobiusetti documented the first known interaction between an Unknown Ship and an [[Alien Structure]] on Pleiades Sector OI-T C3-7 A 6 at coordinates -42.77, -21.7. This confirmed suspicions that they were related.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8S-4Oq9Xvc</ref> | On June 2, 3303, CMDR Mobiusetti documented the first known interaction between an Unknown Ship and an [[Alien Structure]] on Pleiades Sector OI-T C3-7 A 6 at coordinates -42.77, -21.7. This confirmed suspicions that they were related.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8S-4Oq9Xvc</ref> | ||
===Identification and escalation=== | ====Identification and escalation==== | ||
[[File:Thargoids-Return-Message.png|thumb|200px|CMDR Edward Lewis' message]] | [[File:Thargoids-Return-Message.png|thumb|200px|CMDR Edward Lewis' message]] | ||
On June 12, 3303, [[Professor Palin]] issued a request for scan and wake signature data from Unknown Ships to be delivered to Orcus Crag in Pleiades Sector OI-T c3-7. Palin compared the collected data to older Thargoid samples and confirmed that Unknown Ships were Thargoid in origin. Shortly afterward, [[Federation]] military forces seized Palin's research for transport to a Federal research facility, but the fleet never arrived at its destination.<ref name="Return">[https://community.elitedangerous.com/en/galnet/uid/5943ed6837e29c184d38b29b Galactic News: The Thargoids have Returned]</ref> | On June 12, 3303, [[Professor Palin]] issued a request for scan and wake signature data from Unknown Ships to be delivered to Orcus Crag in Pleiades Sector OI-T c3-7. Palin compared the collected data to older Thargoid samples and confirmed that Unknown Ships were Thargoid in origin. Shortly afterward, [[Federation]] military forces seized Palin's research for transport to a Federal research facility, but the fleet never arrived at its destination.<ref name="Return">[https://community.elitedangerous.com/en/galnet/uid/5943ed6837e29c184d38b29b Galactic News: The Thargoids have Returned]</ref> | ||
| Line 32: | Line 36: | ||
With Unknown Ships conclusively linked to the Thargoids and in light of this major attack, a renewed conflict between humans and Thargoids appears imminent. | With Unknown Ships conclusively linked to the Thargoids and in light of this major attack, a renewed conflict between humans and Thargoids appears imminent. | ||
=== Thargoid Surface | ==== Thargoid Surface Sites ==== | ||
[[File:Thargoid_Surface_Site_above.png|thumb|200px|Thargoid Surface Site]] | [[File:Thargoid_Surface_Site_above.png|thumb|200px|Thargoid Surface Site]] | ||
Following the incident, CMDRs identified an unknown signal at a listening post in [[Maia]] this lead to heavily guarded relay posts. The final listening post had a Ceasar Cypher encrypted location for the "nest". They traced it to planet B 1 C in HIP 19026. There, CMDR Lightningwing of [[The Canonn]] discovered the first known [[Thargoid Surface Site]].<ref name="Mystery">[https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/6jmzs7/a_mystery_is_afoot/ /r/EliteDangerous: A mystery is afoot]</ref><ref name="Found">[https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/6jnvjf/spoilers_mysterious_structures_found_by_cannon/ /r/EliteDangerous: (SPOILERS) Mysterious Structures Found By Cannon group]</ref> | Following the incident, CMDRs identified an unknown signal at a listening post in [[Maia]] this lead to heavily guarded relay posts. The final listening post had a Ceasar Cypher encrypted location for the "nest". They traced it to planet B 1 C in HIP 19026. There, CMDR Lightningwing of [[The Canonn]] discovered the first known [[Thargoid Surface Site]].<ref name="Mystery">[https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/6jmzs7/a_mystery_is_afoot/ /r/EliteDangerous: A mystery is afoot]</ref><ref name="Found">[https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/6jnvjf/spoilers_mysterious_structures_found_by_cannon/ /r/EliteDangerous: (SPOILERS) Mysterious Structures Found By Cannon group]</ref> | ||
===The Return=== | === The Return === | ||
Thargoids will be the main focus of update 2.4, "The Return", of [[Elite Dangerous: Horizons]]. | Thargoids will be the main focus of update 2.4, "The Return", of [[Elite Dangerous: Horizons]]. | ||
== Biology == | == Biology == | ||
Thargoids are an insectoid species. Little is known about their physical appearance and biology. Their chemistry is carbon-based, but with ammonia as the solvent rather than water.<ref>http://www.rollingstone.com/glixel/features/elite-dangerous-creator-talks-sci-fi-politics-and-whats-next-w492781</ref> If the rumors are true that they come from Ammonia-based planets then their physiology is drastically different from humans. For example, ammonia boils at -33 degrees C. Thargoids may well be acclimatised to temperatures far lower than humans.<ref>https://www.drewwagar.com/lore/elite-dangerous-lore-the-thargoids/</ref> They are presumed to be highly intelligent, more than the average human due to their superior technological capabilities. Descriptions based on encounters centuries ago have yet to be verified. | Thargoids are an insectoid species. Little is known about their physical appearance and biology. Their chemistry is carbon-based, but with ammonia as the solvent rather than water.<ref>http://www.rollingstone.com/glixel/features/elite-dangerous-creator-talks-sci-fi-politics-and-whats-next-w492781</ref> If the rumors are true that they come from Ammonia-based planets then their physiology is drastically different from humans. For example, ammonia boils at -33 degrees C. Thargoids may well be acclimatised to temperatures far lower than humans.<ref>https://www.drewwagar.com/lore/elite-dangerous-lore-the-thargoids/</ref> They are presumed to be highly intelligent, more than the average human due to their superior technological capabilities. Descriptions based on encounters centuries ago have yet to be verified. | ||
According to [[The Club]], what humans consider to be a singular Thargoid species actually consists of two distinct "dynasties": the Oresrians and the Klaxians. How Oresrians and Klaxians differ biologically, if at all, is unknown.<ref name="EDP"/> | |||
==Society== | ==Society== | ||
Not much information has been obtained about Thargoid society or culture. The only known fact is that the society is hive based, with no sense of close family. It is thought that the society is divided into colonies, possibly along the lines of ant colonies. | Not much information has been obtained about Thargoid society or culture. The only known fact is that the society is hive based, with no sense of close family. It is thought that the society is divided into colonies, possibly along the lines of ant colonies. The Oresrian and Klaxian dynasties may be two such colonies.<ref name="EDP"/> | ||
Thargoids are thought to have a natural affinity with space, and with [[Hyperspace]] in particular. This is due to the fact that Thargoid warriors seem to spend a large amount of time in space. Naval pilots and crews report that the warships in the war zones are encountered on repeated occasions over a period of months often without respite. | Thargoids are thought to have a natural affinity with space, and with [[Hyperspace]] in particular. This is due to the fact that Thargoid warriors seem to spend a large amount of time in space. Naval pilots and crews report that the warships in the war zones are encountered on repeated occasions over a period of months often without respite. | ||
Following the initial conflict between humans and Thargoids around 3130, the Oresrians and Klaxians apparently became embroiled in a civil war. Sometime before 3303, the Klaxians gained the upper hand and forced the Oresrians into a slow, continuous retreat across the galaxy, a retreat which will take them directly through human space. [[The Club]] has learned that the Oresrians plan to use human civilization as a "bullet shield" to occupy the Klaxians' attention while they escape deeper into space. This poses a potentially apocalyptic threat to humanity's survival.<ref name="EDP"/> | |||
==Politics== | ==Politics== | ||
Nothing is known about internal Thargoid politics or government. | Nothing is known about internal Thargoid politics or government, or why the Oresrians and Klaxians have come into conflict. | ||
Thargoid relations with other species, as far as what is currently known, was frighteningly simple: war. The Thargoid invasions usually seemed to be prompted by the need for either agricultural or mineral resources, rather than a sociological or anthropological need to expand or colonise. In fact, the animal life on an invaded world was largely ignored unless it poses a threat to Thargoids. | Thargoid relations with other species, as far as what is currently known, was frighteningly simple: war. The Thargoid invasions usually seemed to be prompted by the need for either agricultural or mineral resources, rather than a sociological or anthropological need to expand or colonise. In fact, the animal life on an invaded world was largely ignored unless it poses a threat to Thargoids. | ||
| Line 61: | Line 68: | ||
[[Thargoid Surface Site]]s demonstrate the Thargoids construct and utilize vast surface installations. Passive drone-like devices called [[Scavenger]]s are present at these locations. | [[Thargoid Surface Site]]s demonstrate the Thargoids construct and utilize vast surface installations. Passive drone-like devices called [[Scavenger]]s are present at these locations. | ||
[[Unknown Artefact]]s and [[Unknown Probe]]s were also | [[Unknown Artefact]]s and [[Unknown Probe]]s were also confirmed to be related to Thargoids after it was discovered that carrying them allowed doors at Thargoid Surface Sites to open. The other functions of these objects remain an enigma, however. | ||
==Notes== | ==Notes== | ||