“I am dead. As of this moment, we are all dead. We go into battle to reclaim our lives,
This we do gladly because we are Jem’Hadar. Victory is Life.”
The Jem’Hadar. The forces of the galaxies mightiest military power, the Dominion. Genetically
bred warriors fit for only one purpose, to war and to win. Hi all, Ric here with another
cultural index this time on the scaled soldiers bound to the will of their Gods from the Gamma
Quadrant and one of the races that caused the most trouble to the Federation. So let’s
look at the Jem’Hadar shall we? The Jem’Hadar are another species whose
natural evolution has been completely overwritten by the Dominion’s control. Like the Vorta,
the Jem’Hadar are an all cloned race under the complete control of the Founders. They
are an all-male species which is by the Founder’s design, they can no longer reproduce outside
of the cloning facilities under Dominion control. They reach full adulthood within around three
days and during this period their digestive system processes food in the same way as many
species. Upon maturation however, they no longer require sleep nor ingest food. Their
whole metabolism is fuelled by Ketracel White. Physiologically, the Jem’Hadar are a sort
of a mix between a Reptilian and mammalian species with traits from both. Their skin
is scaled and grey yet they are warm blooded and far more mammalian in infanthood than
adolescence. The tougher scales and horns develop as they age with older Jem’Hadar
sporting longer horns around their head. They are stronger than humans too and have excellent
vision. An interesting fact is that stun settings have little effect on them and most weapons
have to be tiered up to lethal, a side effect being that capturing them is very difficult.
They also have a biological ability to shroud themselves, a sort of cloak that allows them
to camouflage themselves. They are able to detect one another through their enhanced
eyesight that allows them to see, what they call the Di’teh aura. In terms of mental
ability, they are very tactically minded and can learn languages rather quickly, which
they often do as it allows them to understand their enemy’s commands in the heat of battle.
The Ketracel White is a chemical compound supplied by the Dominion hierarchy and produced
by factories controlled by them. This substance contains all the nutrition needed for a grown
Jem’Hadar as well as a critical enzyme that the Jem’Hadar lack. This was another form
of control from the Dominion who deliberately engineered this lack within the genetic makeup
of their soldier and the Founders were the sole provider of the drug. Without the White,
a Jem’Hadar would begin to suffer a breakdown, both physical and mental as their organs shutdown.
This led to them becoming increasingly erratic and hostile against anyone until they go mad
and finally pass. The original homeworld of the Jem’Hadar
has been long buried by the Founders but some describe it as a world shrouded by clouds
and a rather bleak M class surface. It is also rumoured that the pre-Dominion Jem’Hadar
volunteered themselves to the alien superpower in order to become better warriors. The extensive
genetic modification of the Jem’Hadar has eliminated much of their natural traits so
it’s also impossible to speculate on how their environment shaped them. They had been
brought into the Dominion by 2100 although they were in the midst having their genome
refined still. A series of rebellions occurred during this time from some Jem’Hadar who
were too independent but this was all quashed and buried by the Dominion.
Now they serve as shock troops and ship crews making them the bulk of the Dominion’s military
and naval might. This is their sole function and as such entirely developed around a military
lifestyle but without any R and R. They had no entertainment, no arts or relaxation as
they had no need of it, their entire existence was designed to serve the Dominion and the
Founders. Jem’Hadar units are entirely rank based
and one of the only things that the Jem’Hadar themselves have control over. After being
“born” and matured they are assigned to a unit where they earn rank based on merit
and experience. Every member of the unit is assigned a level, Fifth, Fourth, Third culminating
in the top rank of First. They unquestioningly follow the orders of their superiors but can
be demoted and promoted in tier by the First (or acting first) of their unit. Each unit
answers to a single Vorta, the Dominion’s middleman species who relay the orders of
the Founders to the Jem’Hadar and manage the day to day operations of the organisation.
I’ve already done a video of them, sufficed to say that the Jem’Hadar have no love for
the Vorta, who treat them as disposable slaves. They only obey the Vorta’s orders as they
have been conditioned to believe that the Vorta act on behalf of the Founders, whom
the Jem’Hadar are genetically compelled to obey.
Jem’Hadar did name themselves however, despite being clones and ranked by number. Such names
were two words however they were not familial names as the Jem’Hadar had no family units.
Again, nothing to conflict with their loyalty to the Founders.
Despite all this restriction imposed on them a culture has evolved among them based around
the life that they know. First off, their genetic compulsion to obey the Founders has
led to them deifying the Changelings into gods. As their literal creators and sculptors
of their genetic code, in a way, they are correct. A light ritualistic mindset grew
around their interactions with the Founders, however indirect, and this applied to the
taking of the Ketracel White too. Bred for combat and fanatically loyal to the
Dominion, they enter combat with a pledge to win or die. Victory is Life. To get them
in the mind-set, they stated that they were dead on the eve of battle and only through
victory would they live again. This was all bolstered by their natural taggression; they
lusted for combat and were driven to pit themselves against an adversary with some enjoying combat
or the prospect of engaging a new opponent. With the amount of combat that the Jem’Hadar
see, their average lifespan is around 15 years although they are capable of living much longer.
Those over the age of 20 were seen as honoured elders, proof of their ability in combat to
survive and win, worthy of respect. This level of appreciation for combatants
also extended to other races, often to the chagrin of the Vorta. Being an entirely military
society, they are judgmental of their opponent’s tactics, courage and warrior ethos, the only
criteria they are familiar with. To this end, they seem especially respectful of the Klingon
society and show this by beating their Klingon prisoners. Not great and perversely this mistreatment
of prisoners of war was in their mind, a sign of respect although many other races would
disagree. The Jem’Hadar are trusted with the operation
of the Dominion starships and fighters which strike fear into many of the Dominion’s
subjugated races. The Dominion fleet included Fighters, battleships and battlecruisers which
could be produced at an alarming rate, mirroring the rapid repopulation of their Jem’Hadar
crews themselves. They favoured Polaron based weaponry for ship
to ship combat as many species had a deflector shield weakness for this specific energy type
and would routinely sacrifice their lives and vessel to take out an enemy ship, employing
collisions even when there were alternatives available. On board Dominion ships, they had
no windows nor viewscreen with only two personal eye-screens for the Vorta and First so that
no other on the ship could question orders as they did not have the full picture of events
and had to trust in their commanders. The Jem’Hadar military outfit is lightweight,
dark and has several modifications for the Jem’Hadar’s biology. The uniform can be
shrouded when its user cloaks and has a special intravenous connection to which the Ketracel
White could be affixed. The Dominion wanted the other races to see
the Jem’Hadar as just another weapon of the interstellar superpower, a living extension
of the Dominion’s might and as such sculpted their technology and tactics to reflect this.
If the Jem’Hadar were deployed en masse, the Dominion wanted you dead. They were completely
fine with the use of biological weapons and even their plasma rifles left behind an anticoagulant
to ensure their target’s death. Ultimately, the Jem’Hadar are soldiers,
but nothing more and without choice. Everything about them is artificially amped up to 11
at their expense as a culture, but they would have it no other way. Genetically they have
no choice but to fight, they need to, they need the structure even when raised away from
the Dominion’s influences and for the most part, only further genetic tampering would
allow them the ability to grow naturally as a species once again. Occasionally, there
are Jem’Hadar that, due to the required genetic diversity to maintain the clone race,
are born without the need for Ketracel White, however such individuals are usually never
aware of their naturality as they too are supplied with the White and folded into the
regimented units of the Dominion. I wonder if it’s true that the early Jem’Hadar
did indeed volunteer to be augmented by the Dominion so they could become fierce warriors.
If it is true, I have to question whether it was worth it? When you strip away everything
deemed unnecessary for warfare, what you are left with is a warrior, but nothing else.
Some semblance of a culture can be seen in their strange honour system, but even that
is all orbiting their singular purpose. What is left of them to fight for aside from the
Dominion’s goals? These soldiers never return to their homes, they only find fulfilment
in combat and even that isn’t their choice. Only Victory is life.
Thanks for watching this index on the Jem’Hadar, the super soldiers of Star Trek. So the next
index video can be aimed to explore one of two more sci-fi soldier species, the Vaadwaur,
the out of time military from the Star Trek universe, or the Unggoy Grunts as used by
the Covenant military in from Halo. Votes are over on the community tab now so let me
know or leave suggestions for more species. Until the next video, I’ve been Ric, thanks
again for watching and goodbye!