Mirror universe Borg

[KillerWhale]

I was wondering if there had been canon references on the subject... And if not, that could be fun to discuss.

If I ever introduce that in my games, I see several possibilities:
- They are an all-benevolent information sharing technology ("We are the Borg, if you're okay, we will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own, but you'll add ours to yours. Resistance is superfluous.")
- They are uber-evil ("We are the Borg, surrender or not, for what we care!" Ka-boom!)
- They don't exist (the canon evidence we saw so far strongly suggest that IMHO)
- They are just normal, and as such could be considered as a constant among dimensions and universes (hey they can open passages between dimensions can't they? What if they already assimiliated several dimensions??)

[Balok]

There have been suggestions that the point of divergence of the mirror universe is around the time of First Contact. In the MU, the Borg were harder to fight off, and the Vulcans and humans got involved in an attempt to fight them -- resulting in a much more militant and harsh universe.

Of course, in my campaign, that's not the explanation at all -- as my players will shortly learn <eg>

[Erik Filean]

Originally posted by KillerWhale
I was wondering if there had been canon references on the subject... And if not, that could be fun to discuss.

If I ever introduce that in my games, I see several possibilities:
- They are an all-benevolent information sharing technology ("We are the Borg, if you're okay, we will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own, but you'll add ours to yours. Resistance is superfluous.")
- They are uber-evil ("We are the Borg, surrender or not, for what we care!" Ka-boom!)
- They don't exist (the canon evidence we saw so far strongly suggest that IMHO)
- They are just normal, and as such could be considered as a constant among dimensions and universes (hey they can open passages between dimensions can't they? What if they already assimiliated several dimensions??)

I don't know that the canon evidence (such as it is) suggests that the Borg don't exist in the mirror universe. I do strongly suspect that contact with the Borg was never forced the way it was in the prime universe--Q never had that point to make to the Picard of the mirror universe, after all. (The role of the Q in the mirror universe is a whole other ball of wax--I might really believe that the Continuum is a transuniversal constant.)

If the DS9 mirror universe is taken to really be the same mirror as the TOS one (which one needn't necessarily do, since we're starting with the many-universes interpretation), I see no reason why the Borg would automatically be any different. The Klingons and Cardassians were basically the same cultures in the DS9 episodes, with the changes being more circumstantial than fundamental. For that matter, the DS9 mirror implied to me that the Terran Empire of the 23rd century was a matter of variant history, not of a basically opposite human culture.

[JonA]

The Borg would probably be the same as we know and love but have not made it to the Alpha Quadrant yet. This can be sort of proven.

Jennifer Sisko was killed at Wolf 359 in the normal universe but was alive in the Mirror Universe.

This would suggest that the Borg never attacked and Wolf 359 never occured. Therefore it wouldn't be unreasonable to assume that Q never hurled the Enterprise-D (its never been proven or disproven that Picard's crew (except Worf), Q and the Enterprise-D exist in the Mirror Universe) into the path of that cube and therefore that cube never altered course to head for Earth and attack.

This would also mean that the Borg never attempted a second attack on Earth and didn't go back in time to attempt to stop Cochrane's flight.

As there was no time-travel incident the sphere wreckage did not crash in Antarctica.

Therefore the resurrected drones in that Enterprise episode (title escapes me) didn't send a message to the Delta Quadrant which is what caused the first cube to head for the Alpha Quadrant - the cube which the storyline implied was the one Q flung the Enterprise-D into the path of and therefore started the who Borg threat off with.

QED.

Of course you could just think of the Borg in the same way Rom thought of everyone in the Mirror Universe. A diametrically opposite person from their normal self. So the Borg would be all nice. As would the Romulans and the Dominion (another race unknown in the Mirror Universe as the wormhole was never found).

[strict31]

I agree that canon evidence suggests that it is unlikely the Borg had the same impact in the Mirror Universe as they did in the regular one. Like JonA says, we do see Jennifer Sisko alive and relatively well. This doesn't mean the Borg didn't come to the Alpha Quadrant, only that they didn't have the same impact. Additionally, the point of divergence theory was only spoken concretely in the Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens novels, co-written with The Shatner. In other words, interesting and maybe even cool, but not canon. That means, of course, the sky's the limit!

The natural reflex might be to make the Borg universally "good" or benevolent. That's arguable, but it seems to fit with the general pattern. Again, of course, in truth, the sky is the limit.

It could well be that instead of being "goody-two-shoes" that they became a chaotic collective, an ever shifting mass of techno-organic insanity infecting cultures like a virus quite unintentionally and quite without coherent planning. They do not seek perfection in order, but rather perfection in unchained, unchecked chaos. The ultimate expression of freedom; of constant evolution. It's likely that these Borg are avoided just as conspicuously by those who know them, but it's questionable whether they could ever get out of the Delta Quadrant...they certainly wouldn't have a single queen with any sort of interest in Earth...possibly no intelligence as we know it at all. Or, they could be the biggest threat either universe has yet faced. Imagine the regular Borg encountering these chaos Borg...The Queen calls up Janeway and Picard; "Look guys, I know we've had our differences and that, but uh...um...well, we've got these new neighbors and they are SOOOO TRAILER PARK...!"

Or, if you do wanna go the benevolent route, it could be done with a twist: the Borg are, in some ways like the Federation, but taken to an extreme. They are on a quest for perfection, just like the Fed of the regular universe is. They, like the Fed, spread across galactic territory like a machine...but they only contact cultures of sufficient advancement, not just technologically, but on all levels;mentally, physically...spiritually? Not because they wish to avoid corrupting development, but because insufficiently advanced cultures cannot add to their quest for knowledge and are essentially beneath their notice. You don't have a deep discussion with an ant because, well, it's an ant. It has nothing relevant to say. The Alliance and the terran Empire/resistance...they have nothing of value to contribute, and as such, are largely beneath notice. Perhaps the Borg actually did come to earth, for whatever reason, and simply found it lacking and disregarded it. Maybe the Fleet met them at Wolf 359, armed photons and whatever, and these Borg simply "shrugged" and warped away to the next culture. These guys would be a perfect synthesis of flesh and machine...so much so that the boundaries between the two would be indistinguishable. Maybe like angels glistening with telltale hints of chrome or silicon. When they assimilate a culture, they do so by taking a single individual who is the pinnacle of his or her race's development. Perhaps instead of the "Collective" they'd be the "Chorus." Voices united instead of poured into the same mold. They might even treat the A Quadrant like the Fed treats Talos IV. Until, that is, they detect matter vibrating at a different quantum frequency; the PCs from the regular universe. This might pique their curiosity, and convince them to become involved, peripherally at first. Observers, potential allies, whatever.

Or, the Borg could be fully realized individuals with a mandate to conquer; to satiate the hungers of their flesh. Perhaps they war with each other. perhaps each Borg cub is governed by an individual, that ostensibly swears "fealty" to the Queen, but struggles against their contemporaries to gain more favor. maybe they endlessly seek out new sensations and resources to further their wars and their quest. Perhaps the Borg visited Earth in this universe, but instead of trying to destroy the fleet, what if they made some behind the scenes deals? For mutual benefit? A single, ambitious BorgLord manipulating the strings of the fallen Empire (maybe its fall served his...or her purposes...hmmm...Anneka-Seven...?) as well as the plots and ambitions of the Alliance. All to gain dominance over an entire quadrant...maybe to even wrest control of the Borg from the Queen. In appearance, these Borg would resemble the spectrum of Borg we've seen in the regular Universe, and some individuals would even look more like Seven, or the Queen. Perhaps their Drones would not be assimilated beings, but rather conglomerates of vat-grown organic components grafted to ambulatory mechanical frames, each specialized to different tasks..like...oh...combat.


Strictly Speaking

[SuperDanny]

In our rpg-ing mirror universe, the Borg are more like the Federation. They are a co-operative. Instead of assimilating cultures. They go around helping others with technology.

[Owen E Oulton]

"The natural reflex might be to make the Borg universally "good" or benevolent. That's arguable, but it seems to fit with the general pattern."

Actually, the pattern I see in the various "Mirror" episodes isn't good=bad and bad=good, but rather good=bad and bad=badder - people take the word mirror way too literally.

It's been stated explicitly on screen that the TOS episode is the past of the DS9 Mirror universe. However, it's not IMNSHO the only future; there could be many branchings - ones where Spock was not overthrown, ones where he did not take over, ones where he became a worse despot, et cetera. Parallels established the mechanism whereby there could be a near-infinite progression of universes

For my campaign, I use a version of the Mirror universe based on the "historical records" in the Voyager episode Living Witness. In my Mirror, the Borg never attacked the Federation - they may have been wiped out by a certain numbered species from fluidic space, or they may have pissed off a Mirror Q - whatever (since they haven't been contacted, the reasons are, um... irrelevant). The Klingon/Bajoran/Cardassian alliance exists and is at war with the Terran Empire. The Dominion hasn't come through the Wormhole, etc...

That's my version, though. Yours may be different and probably is.

[Sea Tyger]

Another option is that the Mirror "Borg" seek perfection along a different path. Rather than creating the best of both worlds between machine and man, these mirror Borg seek spiritual perfection and unity, only using technology to link their spiritual energies (or convey themselves across the cosmos), as they believe that only through unity of thought and spirit will they achieve ascension.

Using this pseudo-psionic network of minds/spirits, they "assimilate" the willing, or those too weak to resist their power, and destroy the rest...the "infidels."

[Balok]

As originally depicted, the Borg were neither good nor evil per se. They were more like a force of nature.

So it's possible that the mirror Borg at *exactly like* the standard Borg. The chief difference would be that events did not (for whatever reason) unfold in a way that introduced them to the Federation.

Many of Kirk's encounters must have happened differently, or not at all, since he was still alive, and mishandling any of a number of encounters in the early going would have got him killed.

I use the term "mirror" to refer to the fact that there are analogues of characters from the standard universe in the mirror universe, and that characters who make the transition tend to interact with the mirror analogues of the same characters they would interact with on their own side. It's not guaranteed, but it's likely.

But that ties into my reason why the mirror universe exists at all, and I can't reveal that here, in case one of my players reads this forum...

[Tas II]

I cant think of any canon references of The Borg in the Mirror Universe. I dont think they'll have got to the AQ, as Q has not been interfering. Q has not had to prove a point to Picard. In my Mirror Universe he is a freedom fighter, using a decent sized ship. He fights dirty, and is on the 'Most Wanted' list as a rebel type. But, I digress. The Borg, if/when encountered will be as nasty as normal, but in smaller collectives. The Mirror Queen was killed, and the cubes are like warring petty kingdoms. The assimilate other cultures and races for troops and new tech in an effort to win the civil war. In that kinda situation it is gonna take them a long time to reach the AQ. maybe a rogue cube might have to run away.....all the way to the AQ!

Cheers

Tas

[Tricky]

Mirror Borg!
I'm surprised we haven't seen them, since there was this attempt to drag the Borg into all aspects of Trek.

Since the Mirror Klingons (who I always hoped would be a race of pacifist fighting monks), Mirror Ferengi (wouldn't it be funny for them to be altruistic, or the most feared warriors ever?), and Mirror Cardasians (I hoped they would be Philosopher poets) are all pretty much the same as their 'real' counter parts, i would assume that the Borg would follow suit.

As you can tell, I have my own ideas. I thought that the Borg would make a great CULT! Going from world to world, promising perfection and completeness if you "assimilate". They show up in your system; maybe they give you a taste of what they can do (i.e. orbital bombardment), then make the assimilation pitch.

Hard to not join up when your societies' infrastructure is destroyed!

[C5]

I'd say this depends on how you see the Mirror Universe.
Either it's really a Mirror world, where everything is reversed (and then the Borg are a sort of benevolent community, inviting anyone to find shelter and communion into their Collective).

Or it's an alternate universe, where Earth just happened to be much more brutal, Klingon more stupid and less honourable, and everyone much more horny than in the real universe. In this case, the Borg could be, well... a bit more cruel than they are, possibly using the horror of assimilation as way to scare people, maybe even enslaving races they deem unworthy of assimilation instead of simply turning away. They could even be a sort of Matrix-like organisation, the organic creatures being considered as material for creating the Chosen soldiers (the cyborged Borgs).

And I'll let to everyone imagination the different meanings Queen and Drones could take...