Jem'Hadar
| SPECIES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Jem'Hadar
| |||
| Homeworld: | Unknown | ||
| Quadrant: | Gamma | ||
| Affiliation: | Dominion | ||
| Biology | |||
| Average Male Height: | 178 cm (5 ft. 10 in.) to 208 cm (6 ft. 10 in.) | ||
| Average Male Weight: | 72.6 kg (160 lb.) to 127 kg (280 lb.) | ||
| Average Female Height: | 178 cm (5 ft. 10 in.) to 208 cm (6 ft. 10 in.) | ||
| Average Female Weight: | 72.6 kg (160 lb.) to 127 kg (280 lb.) | ||
| Minimum Academy Age: | 18 | ||
| Life Expectancy: | 145 | ||
| Distinctive Features: | |||
| Playability | |||
| PRC Rated: | No | ||
| NPC Rated: | No | ||
 | |||
- Note: This is NOT a PC and NPC rated species.
- "Obedience brings victory, and victory is life."
A genetically engineered humanoid race from the Gamma Quadrant, the Jem'Hadar are the military arm of the Dominion and one of the most powerful military forces in the galaxy.
Physiology
The Jem'Hadar are bred in hatcheries. This fact, and their reptilian appearance, indicates that the species that acted as the progenitors to the Jem'Hadar likely hatched their young from eggs prior to the genetic modifications forced upon them by the Founders.
For humanoids, the Jem'Hadar have an incredibly fast metabolic rate due to modifications made on their genetic structure by the Founders. The Jem'Hadar are bred in birthing chambers and have been known to be placed in stasis chambers until their awakening. Because of this, there are only males in the Jem'Hadar species.
A Jem'Hadar is mature within three days of leaving its birthing chamber, allowing for very rapid replacement of casualties. Within a day of maturation, Jem'Hadar children already have advanced language skills and cognitive reasoning. Adolescent Jem'Hadar require food for consumption.
Adult Jem'Hadar do not require sleep or nourishment; any form of relaxation is shunned on the belief that it would only make them weak. The only form of sustenance required is Ketracel White, which contains a key isogenic enzyme deliberately omitted from their blood chemistry by the Founders to ensure their loyalty. Without large quantities of the White, Jem'Hadar circulatory systems begin to shut down, beginning with muscle spasms.
As a result of advanced genetic engineering and combat breeding, the Jem'Hadar have excellent vision, and are several times stronger than Humans. All Jem'Hadar have cybernetic implants that allow them to 'shroud' themselves, a form of camouflage which effectively hides them from both sensors and the naked eye. Another result of the genetic engineering and breeding is a 'natural' resistance to energy based weaponry. The stun settings of Federation phasers do not affect the Jem'Hadar at all.
Most Jem'Hadar die young in battle; as such, it is rare for them to live past 15 years of age. Few ever live to the age of 20. Those who do are awarded the title "Honored Elders." No Jem'Hadar has ever lived to the age of 30.
Cut off from reinforcements in theGamma Quadrant during the Dominion War, the Founders began to breed Jem'Hadar soldiers in the Alpha Quadrant known as "Alpha Jem'Hadar", in 2374. The Alphas were regarded - largely by themselves - as being superior to original "Gamma Jem'Hadar”, so their introduction led to considerable friction with their Gamma Quadrant counterparts. The primary difference between the two was that the DNA and psychological profile of the Alphas were specifically designed for combat in the Alpha Quadrant. The Founders believed this made them better leaders over the Gammas.
Life Stages
Infant
Child
Adolescent
Young adult
Culture and Tradition
Although the Jem'Hadar worship the Founders as gods, the vast majority of the Jem'Hadar have never actually seen a Founder, and some doubt that they even exist. Yet they have built their service to the shapeshifters into a religion, literally regarding the Founders as living gods, to the extent that the Jem'Hadar ritualistically commit suicide if they fail to protect a Founder from harm.
The Vorta, as the representatives of the Founders, are also given immense loyalty by most Jem'Hadar—even when such loyalty seems unwarranted. Absolute obedience from the Jem'Hadar is further guaranteed by the Vortas' control of the Ketracel White.
Although the glory of the Founders means everything to the Jem'Hadar, they also show a strong sense of honor for themselves. Ikat'ika, First of Dominion Internment Camp 371 showed this, when he refused to kill Worf, whom he could not defeat without killing him, even after he was ordered to by his superior Vorta. He chose rather to yield the fight than to kill Worf because it "no longer ... [held his] interest". He was ordered to be shot for this insubordination. That means, a Jem'Hadar might prefer insubordination and therefore death to doing something he considers to be dishonorable.
Jem'Hadar combat units follow a very specific hierarchy. Normally, a Vorta commands one or several units. Every unit contains a Jem'Hadar First, who is in command. Each Jem'Hadar after the First is also given a number rank (Second, Third, Fourth, etc.). In the event the First is killed, the Second shall take over for the First, the Third will take over Second, and so forth. Although the succeeding Jem'Hadar will take over the duties of his superior, he will only receive the higher number rank if his Vorta commander allows it.
Before each battle, the First states the following speech to his unit:
- "I am [Rank] [Name], and I am dead. As of this moment, we are all dead. We go into battle to reclaim our lives. This, we do gladly, for we are Jem'Hadar. Remember - victory is life."
The rest of the unit then responds:
- "Victory is life."
A similar exchange states: "Obedience brings victory, and victory is life."
The dispensing of Ketracel White has a ritual statement, spoken between the Vorta and the First. The Vorta presents the vials of white and asks:
- "[Rank] [Name], can you vouch for the loyalty of your men?"
The First responds:
- "We pledge our loyalty to the Founders from now until death."
The Vorta then replies:
- "Then receive this reward from the Founders. May it keep you strong."
Jem'Hadar Firsts were also capable of distributing the White among those under their command. By 2374, Alpha Jem'Hadar no longer recited the ritual disperal statement, as they demonstrated their loyalty by their actions, not their words.
Technology
The uniforms Jem’Hadar soldiers wear allow them to be almost completely unaffected by many forms of containment fields. Their energy weapons contain anticoagulants that are designed to slowly kill their enemies if the energy discharge did not. The rifle and pistol weapons used by the Jem'Hadar have at least three settings, able to stun, deliver a generally lethal pulse laced with the anti-coagulants, and a more powerful pulse capable of vaporizing a humanoid target.
This information taken from Memory Alpha
