Once Upon a Borg

by Chris Heard

The announcement that the expansion following Voyager would be The Borg conjured up images of giant, hulking cubes and legions of jack-booted drones marching in lock-step with the Borg Queen's plan to assimilate the entire Delta Quadrant and, ultimately, the entire universe into the Borg collective. And, of course, if you prefer the lighter shade of pale that cybernetic existence offers, you've got a lot to enjoy in The Borg expansion. But the expansion also offers some interesting possibilities embodied in Borg who aren't drones... at least, not any more.

Liberated Borg Personnel

The Cooperative. Voyager's first encounter with the Borg in the Delta Quadrant came indirectly, in connection with a group of former Borg who, having been unintentionally severed from their link with the collective, attempted to form a cooperative society on the edge of the Nekrit Expanse. Two of that group, Riley Frazier and Orum, are featured in The Borg expansion. Orum is a five-skilled Non-Aligned/Romulan dilemma-busting powerhouse, contributing Anthropology (along with CIVILIAN) to dilemmas old and new. Orum's combination of MEDICAL and Cybernetics is a nice storyline touch, allowing him to circumvent the occasional Borg Servo. Riley Frazier's mix of regular skills is perhaps not terribly innovative, but her function as a kind of walking PADD for other Borg makes her very helpful when facing dilemmas like Chula: The Drink, Spatial Rift, Twisted, and so on.

Seven's Former Unimatrix. An interesting set of repressed memories surfaced when Seven of Nine was reunited with three members of her former unimatrix who had also become detached from the Borg collective, though they remained linked to each other. This micro-collective of Lansor, Marika, and P'Chan was finally dissolved, though at the cost of shortening their lives. In game terms, the complex relationship between Lansor, Marika, and P'Chan is reflected in their ability to download each other (see their special skills), but also in their inability to live without each other (see their restriction boxes). Lansor's SECURITY skill makes this trio a tempting choice for jumpstarting a Non-Aligned deck with card draws and plays powered by Delta Quadrant Spatial Scission.

The Borg Children. Whether you love 'em or hate 'em, you must admit that the immature Borg rescued by the Voyager crew introduced some interesting wrinkles into the show's dynamic. The Borg expansion introduces the Borg children both as Borg drones and, with the exception of First, as former Borg. Rebi and Azan sport commonly available skills, though helpfully combined on a single card (though it's too bad that they can't special download Cloned Potato). Icheb's skill set is simply wonderful for decks oriented toward space sciences; with Physics and Biology along for the ride, he might even replace Dr. Telek R'Mor in some decks. But who would've guessed that, of the four, Mezoti would perhaps be the most powerful, with the ability to "unstop" your Borg once per turn?

One. It's unlikely that One will be the loneliest number in the Star Trek CCG. This unusual drone, forged in the union of twenty-fourth-century nanoprobes and twenty-ninth-century holo-emitter technology, can hardly stand alone. His built-in skill sharing emphasizes both his need for guidance and his quick assimilation (so to say) of skills and knowledge. Like the Borg children, One is a young drone, no doubt giving rise to visions of Delta Quadrant Spatial Scission + Icheb x2 + Mezoti x2 + Rebi and Azan x2 + One x2 + Ooby Dooby (10 card draws without a Rascals setup) dancing round and round in some players' heads.

Support Cards and Strategies

The presence of the characteristic "Borg" in the former drones' lore, and the subcommand icons their cards bear, generate some interesting possibilities. Players are already accustomed to using the Non-Aligned/Federation version of Seven of Nine to drive powerful personnel retrieval with Nanoprobe Resuscitation. Now One, Orum, P'Chan, Rebi and Azan, and Riley Frazier -- [Com] Borg all --e xpand those capabilities. The former Borg spice up dilemma busting, too; Seven of Nine, One, and Mezoti can defuse a Kazon Bomb, thanks to their [Def] icons.

Of course, The Borg expansion offers some new cards for the former Borg to exploit. Since Borg Data Node and Cortical Node Implant do not bear Borg-only icons, your former Borg can use them to good effect. With six Non-Aligned or multi-affiliation [Com] Borg personnel to choose from, you should have little trouble getting a [Com] Borg present with a Borg Data Node, giving you the equivalent of a free Long-Range Scan once per turn or unparalleled access to the top card of any draw deck (it's easier to set up than Jake Sisko, doesn't have to be earned like the Orb of Prophecy and Change, and is more flexible than either that Orb or Garak's Tailor Shop). Knowing whether your Borg opponent is up for a good probe, for example, could give you a strategic advantage, and the Borg Data Node goes quite well alongside Seven of Nine in a Visit Cochrane Memorial deck. Add a Cortical Node Implant to your [Com] Borg present with a Borg Data Node for card-drawing on demand. Moreover, any of your former Borg can use the very intriguing "regulate implants" function of the Cortical Node Implant to get past a variety of attribute-related dilemmas (Chula: The Drink, Lineup, and their ilk being prime examples).

If you favor the Delta Quadrant spaceline, you might want to try your hand at a former-Borg-centered deck. If so, you'll find several good mission choices. Assist Cooperative is of course the obvious choice, with its generous bonus for having a [Com] Borg present when you solve it. Speaking of the Nekrit Expanse, Icheb and Riley Frazier can Catalog Phenomena like nobody's business (if you can protect those universal missions from your opponent's mission solvers). Don't overlook the variety of [NA] and "any crew/Away Team" missions available in the Delta Quadrant. Icheb and Orum are particularly well-stocked with valuable mission-solving skills. Just by themselves, your former Borg should be able to make quick work of missions like Maintenance Overhaul (Seven of Nine + landed ship), Liberation (Lansor + Rebi and Azan), and Reinitialize Warp Reaction (Marika + Lansor). Add Chakotay's OFFICER, Leadership, Diplomacy, and Navigation to the mix, a la the episode "Unity," and you can finish off a still larger variety of missions.

With their compelling skill sets and intriguing support cards, the former Borg are sure to attract plenty of attention. Temper your enthusiasm with this warning, however: the Borg collective is not happy about losing its drones. Your former Borg will make tasty targets for your Borg opponent's Reassimilate Lost Drone objective. Can you maintain your non-[Borg] Borg's individual distinctiveness? Only time, and gameplay, will tell.

September 4, 2001