Changes: Trill symbiont

Revision as of 23:31, 21 October 2015

A Trill symbiont

A symbiont was a sentient vermiform lifeform from the planet Trill. It was transferred from one humanoid Trill host to another, upon the death of the prior host. The symbiont took with it all of the memories of the previous Trill hosts so, upon joining, the new Trill host gained those memories.

Society

The symbionts lived in the Caves of Mak'ala on Trill and were cared for by Trill Guardians. The symbionts communicated with each other via electrical impulses transmitted through milky water that they inhabited. They were long-lived compared to most humanoid species, and could easily live beyond 550 years.

Once a symbiont was joined to a Trill for over ninety-three hours, the symbiont became dependent on its Trill host and vice versa; the Trill would die within hours without a symbiont, and the symbiont could not return to the Caves of Mak'ala (if joined for the first time) nor survive a significant period of time outside of a host.

The Symbiosis Commission oversaw the joining of the vermiform symbionts and humanoid Trills. In the 24th century, about 500 symbionts became available for joining, each year, compared to approximately 5,000 Trill becoming initiates per annum. The relatively low quantity of symbionts resulted in Trill society hiding from their general populace the fact that virtually 50% of the population was suitable for joining, and the general belief in the 24th century was consequently that only one in every 1,000 Trills was suitable for joining. (DS9: "Equilibrium")

While about 500 symbionts became available each year for joining, this would naturally not represent the entire symbiont population, as at least some would have to remain un-joined in the Caves of Mak'ala in order to propagate the species. Regarding how a joined symbiont could possibly procreate in a natural fashion with its own kind, Ronald D. Moore stated, "We've established that the symbionts do return to the underground pools periodically and that's where they presumably procreate." (AOL chat, 1997)

Although Humans could be used as a host to a symbiont, the symbiont could not remain in their bodies for long without physically harming the Human host. (TNG: "The Host") A symbiont could survive normally in a partly Trill host, however. (DS9: "Children of Time")

Symbionts

Kaz
Odan
Dax
Peers
Kahn

Rites and ceremonies

Appendices

Appearances

TNG: "The Host"
DS9:
- "Emissary"
- "Invasive Procedures"
- "Equilibrium"

Background information

For TNG: "The Host", Michael Westmore based the design of the symbiont on a caterpillar's body attached to the head of an octopus. ("Michael Westmore's Aliens: Season Two", DS9 Season 2 DVD, special feature) A few convolutions were added to make the appliance look as if the symbiont had lots of brain matter. An air bladder was inserted into the symbiont's head and pulsated to give the impression that the symbiont was alive. The head was also colorized with a fluorescent paint, making it glow when exposed to black light during a surgery scene. (Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts, p. 117)

For the second appearance of a symbiont, in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine pilot episode "Emissary", Michael Westmore changed the design significantly. The symbiont was "still in a similar vein shape-wise," he stated, though the revised version was smaller than its predecessor. (The Official Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Magazine, Vol. 1, p. 28) "One [reason for changing the symbiont] was to give it more of a streamlined look [....] The way this [altered version] was designed, it was almost like a roundish type of a triangle, with these little feelers that would bend back," explained Westmore. "And by putting a lot of KY Jelly on it whenever we would do the effects, it would slide a lot easier." ("Michael Westmore's Aliens: Season Two", DS9 Season 2 DVD, special feature)

The series bible of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine states, "The symbiont is an invertebrate, androgynous lifeform that lives within the host. It looks like a short, fat snake. Many centuries ago, the symbionts lived underground [...] [until joining with the hosts] due to an environmental disaster." [1]

According to Star Trek: Star Charts (p. 33), the existence of the symbionts was not widely known until 2367 (the year in which "The Host" is set).

External link

Trill symbiont at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-[[File:Trill symbiont.jpg|thumb|Trill symbiont]]
+[[File:Trill symbiont.jpg|thumb|A Trill symbiont]]
-The '''Symbiont''' was a [[sentient]] vermiform [[lifeform]] from the [[planet]] [[Trill (planet)|Trill]].  It was transferred from one [[humanoid]] [[Trill]] [[host]] to another, upon the [[death]] of the prior host.  [[Human]]s could also be used as a host to a Symbiont; however, the Symbiont could not remain in their bodies for long, without physically harming the Human host ({{TNG|The Host}}). A Symbiont could survive normally in a partly Trill host ({{DS9|Children of Time}}). The Symbiont took with it all of its [[memory|memories]] of the previous Trill hosts.  Upon joining, the new Trill host gained those memories.  The Symbionts lived in the [[Caves of Mak'ala]] on Trill and were cared for by the [[Trill Guardian|Guardians]].  They communicated with each other via [[electricity|electrical]] impulses transmitted through the milky [[water]] that they inhabited.
+A '''symbiont''' was a [[sentient]] vermiform [[lifeform]] from the [[planet]] {{dis|Trill|planet}}. It was transferred from one [[humanoid]] [[Trill]] [[host]] to another, upon the [[death]] of the prior host. The symbiont took with it all of the [[memory|memories]] of the previous Trill hosts so, upon joining, the new Trill host gained those memories.
+=== Society ===
-The [[Symbiosis Commission]] oversaw the joining of the humanoid Trills and vermiform Symbionts.  In the [[24th century]], the general belief was that one in every 1,000 Trills was suitable for joining; however, the number was nearer to 50% of the population.  This was a closely guarded secret because every year about 5,000 Trills became initiates while only about 500 symbionts became available ({{DS9|Equilibrium}}).
+The symbionts lived in the [[Caves of Mak'ala]] on Trill and were cared for by [[Trill Guardian]]s. The symbionts communicated with each other via [[electricity|electrical]] impulses transmitted through milky [[water]] that they inhabited. They were long-lived compared to most humanoid species, and could easily live beyond 550 years.
+Once a symbiont was joined to a Trill for over ninety-three hours, the symbiont became dependent on its Trill host and vice versa; the Trill would die within hours without a symbiont, and the symbiont could not return to the Caves of Mak'ala (if joined for the first time) nor survive a significant period of time outside of a host.
-==Symbionts==
-* [[Kaz symbiont]]
-* [[Odan|Odan symbiont]]
-*[[Dax (symbiont)|Dax symbiont]]
-*[[Peers (symbiont)|Peers symbiont]]
-*[[Kahn (symbiont)|Kahn symbiont]]
+The [[Symbiosis Commission]] oversaw the joining of the vermiform symbionts and humanoid Trills. In the [[24th century]], about 500 symbionts became available for joining, each year, compared to approximately 5,000 Trill becoming initiates per annum. The relatively low quantity of symbionts resulted in Trill society hiding from their general populace the fact that virtually 50% of the population was suitable for joining, and the general belief in the 24th century was consequently that only one in every 1,000 Trills was suitable for joining. ({{DS9|Equilibrium}})
-==Rites and ceremonies==
+{{bginfo|While about 500 symbionts became available each year for joining, this would naturally not represent the entire symbiont population, as at least some would have to remain un-joined in the Caves of Mak'ala in order to propagate the species. Regarding how a joined symbiont could possibly procreate in a natural fashion with its own kind, [[Ronald D. Moore]] stated, "''We've established that the symbionts do return to the underground pools periodically and that's where they presumably procreate.''" {{AOLchat|Ronald D. Moore|ron068|1997}}}}
+Although [[Human]]s could be used as a host to a symbiont, the symbiont could not remain in their bodies for long without physically harming the Human host. ({{TNG|The Host}}) A symbiont could survive normally in a partly Trill host, however. ({{DS9|Children of Time}})
+== Symbionts ==
+* {{dis|Kaz|symbiont}}
+* [[Odan]]
+* {{dis|Dax|symbiont}}
+* [[Peers]]
+* {{dis|Kahn|symbiont}}
+== Rites and ceremonies ==
 * [[Rite of Emergence]]
 * [[Zhian'tara]]
+== Appendices ==
-==Background Information==
+=== Appearances ===
+<div class="appear">
+*{{TNG|The Host}}
+*{{DS9}}
+**{{e|Emissary}}
+**{{e|Invasive Procedures}}
+**{{e|Equilibrium}}
+</div>
+=== Background information ===
+For {{TNG|The Host}}, [[Michael Westmore]] based the design of the symbiont on a caterpillar's body attached to the head of an octopus. ("[[Michael Westmore's Aliens]]: Season Two", [[DS9 Season 2 DVD]], special feature) A few convolutions were added to make the appliance look as if the symbiont had lots of brain matter. An air bladder was inserted into the symbiont's head and pulsated to give the impression that the symbiont was alive. The head was also colorized with a fluorescent paint, making it glow when exposed to black light during a surgery scene. (''[[Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts]]'', p. 117)
+For the second appearance of a symbiont, in ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' pilot episode {{e|Emissary}}, Michael Westmore changed the design significantly. The symbiont was "still in a similar vein shape-wise," he stated, though the revised version was smaller than its predecessor. (''[[The Official Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Magazine]]'', Vol. 1, p. 28) "''One [reason for changing the symbiont] was to give it more of a streamlined look [....] The way this [altered version] was designed, it was almost like a roundish type of a triangle, with these little feelers that would bend back,''" explained Westmore. "''And by putting a lot of KY Jelly on it whenever we would do the effects, it would slide a lot easier.''" ("[[Michael Westmore's Aliens]]: Season Two", [[DS9 Season 2 DVD]], special feature)
-The series bible of ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' mentioned that "''Many centuries ago, the symbionts lived underground, while the humanoids were on the surface ... and due to an environmental disaster, they were forced to 'join' to survive.''"[http://leethomson.myzen.co.uk/Star_Trek/3_Deep_Space_Nine/Star_Trek_-_Deep_Space_Nine_Bible.pdf]
+The series bible of ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' states, "''The symbiont is an invertebrate, androgynous lifeform that lives within the host. It looks like a short, fat snake. Many centuries ago, the symbionts lived underground [...] [until joining with the hosts] due to an environmental disaster.''" [http://leethomson.myzen.co.uk/Star_Trek/3_Deep_Space_Nine/Star_Trek_-_Deep_Space_Nine_Bible.pdf]
+According to ''[[Star Trek: Star Charts]]'' (p. 33), the existence of the symbionts was not widely known until [[2367]] (the year in which "The Host" is set).
-For {{TNG|The Host}}, the design of the symbiont was based upon a caterpillar with an octopus' head, but when next seen in {{DS9|Invasive Procedures}}, the design had changed significantly, having what [[Michael Westmore]] refers to as a more "''streamlined''" design (''Michael Westmore's Aliens: Season Two'', [[DS9 Season 2 DVD]], Special Features).
+=== External link ===
-According to ''[[Star Trek: Star Charts]]'', on page 33, the existence of the symbionts was not widely known until [[2367]] (the year in which {{TNG|The Host}} is set).
+*{{mbeta}}
-==External link==
-*{{NCwiki}}
 [[de:Trill-Symbiont]]
+[[fr:Symbiote trill]]
 [[Category:Species]]
+[[Category:Trill symbionts| ]]