- "You've gotta see this guy in action. He is an incredible shot, none of my guys can beat him in a fight, and he's ex-military."
- ―John Sheppard[src]
Ronon Dex is a Satedan from the planet Sateda in the Pegasus galaxy, who was forced for a time to act as a Runner which later brought him to the attention of the Atlantis expedition. He soon became a member of the Atlantis expedition on a permanent basis and later joined the First Atlantis Reconnaissance Team, replacing Lt. Aiden Ford.
Biography
Background information
Ronon was a native to his homeworld of Sateda, an industrialized planet. Little is known about his childhood. He had a grandfather, who was suffering from the Second Childhood when Ronon was six years old. He was taken to the shrine on Talus, where his grandfather was temporarily cured. There, his grandfather taught him hand-to-hand combat tactics until he died. He also had the Kirsan fever when he was ten years old and claims he played with a triple barreled shotgun when he was little as a childhood toy. He also wrote poetry and did art when he was younger. (SGA: "Sateda", "Reunion", "Doppelganger", "Tabula Rasa", "The Shrine")
When he grew older he became a member of the Satedan military where he held the rank of Specialist. It is likely that this is their version of the Specialist in the United States military, yet it is unclear exactly what this position does. He was also very close to a woman named Melena, although it is unclear what their relationship actually was. When Lt. Colonel John Sheppard asked if he had had a wife on Sateda, Ronon replied "close enough." (SGA: "Sateda", "Sunday")
1998
Defending Sateda
About seven years before his first contact with the Atlantis expedition, the Wraith attacked Sateda because the people showed resistance. He tried to get Melena through the Stargate before the Wraith attacked. Her refusal to leave the Satedans that would be unable to evacuate forced him to remain behind and fight the Wraith. Unfortunately, his efforts were in vain, as the Wraith defeated Satedan forces and Melena was killed before Ronon's eyes in an explosion.
After that point, he was captured by the Wraith while they wiped out the planet. Ronon was placed in a cocoon and a Wraith started to feed on him but stopped for some reason. Instead they made him into a Runner and implanted a tracking device in his upper back and set him loose to be constantly hunted. During the first few years of this, however, he learned several new tricks and decided to hunt them back. He survived for seven years, until he eventually met up with the Atlantis expedition. (SGA: "Runner", "Sateda")
2005
- "You know your way around; you can take care of yourself in a fight; you hate the Wraith as much as we do ... OK, maybe more than we do. But the point is, we could use a guy like you around here and you look like you could use a place to stay."
- ―John Sheppard[src]
His journey brought him to the planet P3M-736 where he was pursued by a single Wraith. While trying to evade the Wraith, he came face to face with Lt. Aiden Ford. While they aimed their weapons at each other the Wraith shot him in the back with a Wraith stunner and Ford killed it with his FN P90 Personal Defense Weapon. Ronon managed to escape into the forest. During the night, he stunned Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan, who were tracking the missing Ford. He brought them to a cave and Sheppard was able to convince him they were not his enemy. He made a deal with them; if Dr. Carson Beckett could remove the tracking device in his back, he'd help them capture Ford. Beckett managed to extract the device despite the fact that he refused anaesthesia. After the surgery, he passed out but not for long. He escaped the cave and attacked Ford, who was about to kill Dr. Rodney McKay. The two of them both pulled knifes and attacked each other. Sheppard interrupted them and Ford ran off. Sheppard followed Ford and Ronon cut McKay out of the trap. He returned with them to Atlantis. When they sent a MALP to the gate address he gave them, he discovered that his civilization had been completely destroyed. (SGA: "Runner")
Lt. Colonel John Sheppard offered Ronon a place on his team after he proved his worth against the Marines and Teyla Emmagan in hand-to-hand combat and passed the shooting range tests without any signs of hesitation or inexperience with various firearms presented to him. Dr. Elizabeth Weir was initially hesitant but ultimately agreed. (SGA: "Duet")
During his first mission as part of Lt. Colonel John Sheppard's team, the team landed their Puddle Jumper on the penal island on the planet Olesia. When the prisoners attacked, he was shot in the ankle with an arrow. Fortunately, the Poros came and drove the prisoners back allowing the team to retreat to the Jumper. They were then lead to the city and greeted by the Magistrate. On their way back to the Stargate, their Jumper was shot down by the prisoners. They are captured and restrained by the leader Torrell. He intended on escaping and killing Torrell but Sheppard ordered him to release them and escape quietly. Eldon, the prisoner who designed the explosives and was assigned by Torrell to help Dr. Rodney McKay fix the Jumper, offered to free them if they take him with them. When Eldon freed Ronon, he took his knife and put it against his throat but Sheppard ordered him not to kill him. On the way to the Jumper, a Wraith Dart came through the gate. This forced the prisoners to abandon the Jumper and go into hiding. The team is then able to retake the Jumper and McKay works on the Dial Home Device. Unfortunately, the prisoners returned and attacked. He, Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan attempted to fight them off but were overrun. Torrell tries to force them to take the prisoners with them at gunpoint but Sheppard refuses. Suddenly a Wraith cruiser approaches and McKay attempts to dial the gate but the power has cut out. Sheppard has him divert power to the Drone weapons and fires at the cruiser. Dr. Elizabeth Weir radios from a cloaked Jumper that the cruiser is damaged but two more are closing in. Sheppard tells her to dial one of the backup planets to the Alpha Site and the prisoners escape. She then dials Atlantis and the team along with Eldon escape the planet. (SGA: "Condemned")
On a mission to Doranda the team discovers an Ancient outpost. While Dr. Rodney McKay and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard worked on the outpost to prefect Project Arcturus, he joined Teyla Emmagan on a trading mission to Belkan. Once there, he learned that a fellow Satedan had survived the destruction of Sateda. They track down the man and it turns out to be his former regiment mate Solen Sincha. He tells him that 300 more Satedans managed to make it to the shelters west of the capital, and later moved to other planets like Belkan and Manaria. He also informs him that Kell, his Task Master during his military training, was among the survivors. Soon after, when Kell came to Belkan to trade, Ronon had Teyla set up a meeting and shot him on sight. In his own words, "Kell commanded several infantry divisions on Sateda. When the Wraith came, he ordered thousands to their death just to save himself. He was... he was a traitor and a coward. My only regret is that his death was quick." (SGA: "Trinity")
On a mission to an unnamed planet, he learned that the villagers were being terrorized by what they call the Daimos. Their description was very similar to that of a Wraith. He offers his help in killing it but Lt. Colonel John Sheppard orders him to wait until morning and the whole team would go. The next day, he successfully tracks a female Wraith into a cave. The team chases her inside but she hides behind a man named Zaddik. Zaddik explains that her name is Ellia and she does not feed because of a serum he created. Ronon still didn't trust her but she used her telepathic abilities to locate the adult Wraith that was killing the villagers. He, Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan left to kill it. When Ellia took Dr. Carson Beckett's retrovirus and transformed into a creature closer to that of an Iratus bug, he and Sheppard were forced to kill her but not before she fed on Sheppard's arm. Back on Atlantis, Beckett discovers that he was infected by the retrovirus and began to change into creature like Ellia. When Sheppard escaped from his quarters, he helped track him down and stunned him with his Particle magnum. Beckett came up with a plan to use Iratus bug embryonic stem cells to replace Sheppard's mutating cells. He and the team traveled to a planet with Iratus bugs but they were unable to get close enough to get any eggs without the bugs attacking. Beckett then realized that Sheppard was producing pheromones and could enter the cave unharmed. Sheppard succeeded in gathering the eggs and Beckett developed a cure. (SGA: "Instinct", "Conversion")
He and his team traveled on the Daedalus to the Ancient ship Aurora. Since there was no life support they were forced to wear space suits when they beamed over. After Dr. Rodney McKay got life support functioning, he and Teyla Emmagan searched the ship and counted the stasis pods. (SGA: "Aurora")
He and the team were taken by Lt. Aiden Ford's Coalition, to formulate a plan to destroy a Wraith Hive ship. He, Teyla Emmagan and Dr. Rodney McKay were dosed with the Wraith enzyme. Lt. Colonel John Sheppard beamed everyone into the Wraith Dart and headed through the Stargate. While approaching the Hive the Dart went on Autopilot and forced Sheppard to unload his cargo blind. Most of Ford's men were beamed off a ledge. Believing Sheppard did it on purpose, Ford turned off his radio against Teyla's wishes. When Sheppard landed the alarms sounded and they were captured as was Sheppard. Once in a cell the group managed to escape by using his knives to hit the door controls but they were quickly captured. The Wraith separated the team this time and put Ronon in a cell with Teyla and Kanayo. While in the cell, Kanayo began to experience withdrawal and died. After Ford escaped and saved Sheppard from the Wraith Queen, Sheppard freed them and beamed them into a Dart. After firing on the other Hive and forcing them to fight, Sheppard headed for the Spacegate and traveled to an uninhabited planet to release him and Teyla. They then headed back to Atlantis. (SGA: "The Lost Boys", "The Hive")
On a mission to an unnamed planet, his team discovered a doorway. Lt. Colonel John Sheppard attempted to cross the threshold and was pulled in. He and Teyla Emmagan tried to pull him out but were unsuccessful. Dr. Rodney McKay discovered the door way was to a Time dilation field. After McKay returned to Atlantis and used a probe to find the location of the Zero Point Module, they entered the field and retrieved Sheppard. (SGA: "Epiphany")
When Stargate Command informed the Atlantis expedition that The Trust planted a bomb in Atlantis, he assisted in the search. Later, he offered to “coarse” Dr. Peter Kavanagh to give up the failsafe code and Dr. Elizabeth Weir hesitantly agreed. Fortunately, Kavanagh fainted before he even touched him. When Dr. Rodney McKay and Lt. Laura Cadman discovered that Colonel Steven Caldwell's password was used to remove the failsafes, he and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard confronted him. The Goa'uld inside him revealed itself and Ronon attacked him and threw him to the ground. Sheppard then shot him with a Taser forcing the Goa'uld to lose control and Caldwell told them the code. (SGA: "Critical Mass")
On a mission to the Lord Protector's Planet, he stopped the Lord Protector's Guard from raping Petra. The guard attacked him and Ronon slit his throat. When Otho prepared to wipe out the village, he organized the villagers to defend themselves. Otho fired Drone weapons at the village but they shut down after Dr. Rodney McKay drained the Zero Point Module. (SGA: "The Tower")
2006
After his team discovered two stasis pods in orbit in the Kohal system and the inhabitants consciousness were transferred into Dr. Elizabeth Weir and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, they began to fight each other. He and Teyla Emmagan went to search for them but were evaded by Phoebus, the consciousness in Weir, and he decided to search for Thalan, the consciousness in Sheppard, because he knows how he thinks but doesn't have a clue how she thinks. He cornered him but Thalen was able to convince him that he was Sheppard and they teamed up to stop Phoebus. When they cornered Phoebus, he was shot in the stomach with a FN P90 Personal Defense Weapon. Thalen radioed for a medical team and Dr. Carson Beckett removed the bullet. (SGA: "The Long Goodbye")
When Major Evan Lorne's team were thought to have died on M1K-177, he and Teyla Emmagan headed the investigation. They questioned Dr. Lindsay and some villagers on 177. One of the villagers gave them a set of photographs of several Atlantis expedition personnel including Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Dr. Rodney McKay. They brought their evidence to Dr. Elizabeth Weir. (SGA: "Coup D'etat")
His team captured a Wraith, later to be known as Michael Kenmore and tested the Iratus bug retrovirus on him. He was distrustful of him and the two got in several physical altercations. When Micheal discovered who he really was Ronon followed him around waiting for Michael to give Ronon an excuse to kill him. Michael then thanks Ronon for being the only one that was honest with him. After Michael escaped from the Alpha Site with Teyla Emmagan as a hostage, he and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard chased him to a planet and were able to rescue Teyla but Michael returned to the Wraith. (SGA: "Michael")
When the supervolcano on Taranis was about to erupt and the Stargate fell into the lava, he assisted people to the Daedalus beam out locations and to the Ancient ship Orion. He and Teyla Emmagan were cut off from the Orion while waiting for the last family. They began to suffocate from the ash but were beamed to Daedalus on its return. (SGA: "Inferno")
A few weeks later, Michael Kenmore brought a Hive ship to Atlantis, so that they can use Dr. Carson Beckett's retrovirus to spread amongst their rival Wraith factions, and an alliance was formed. After the Hive was damaged during the first test, he accompanied Dr. Rodney McKay aboard the Hive to help repair the damage and during the second test. Once they arrived at the other Hive, they were stunned and placed into cocoons and told by the Wraith Scientist that they were on their way to Earth. On the way there, they escaped and attempted to overload many key systems. When the Daedalus and Orion attacked, they met up with Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Michael. Michael disabled the Jamming code and they escaped in a Wraith scout ship. Once they exited the ship, they were fired upon by the Hive. They contacted Daedalus and were beamed aboard. The Daedalus then took severe damage including losing life support but were able to disable the Hive's weapons. They beamed the retrovirus on board and a strike team beamed over. They searched the ship and found all Wraith had been transformed. They approached the Queen and she was not transformed. She attacked Major Evan Lorne and he and Sheppard killed her. Michael then piloted the Hive back to Atlantis with the Daedalus in tow. After returning, he stunned Michael so Beckett could administer the retrovirus. When Lathan went missing on M8G-352, he helped search for him. After a Hive ship was detected heading towards the planet, he and his team used their Hive and rescued Beckett. (SGA: "Allies", "No Man's Land", "Misbegotten")
When Lucius Luvin came to Atlantis, he came under the influence of Lucius' herb. He was part of the team sent on a mission to M6H-491 to retrieve more herb for Lucius. When Lt. Colonel John Sheppard kidnapped Dr. Carson Beckett, he, Teyla Emmagan and Dr. Rodney McKay searched the mainland for them and brought them back to Atlantis. He was later cured by Beckett. (SGA: "Irresistible")
Ronon fighting the Wraith Leader
On a mission to an unnamed planet, he and his team were attacked by the villagers. Headed back to the Stargate but everyone but Dr. Rodney McKay were shot with tranquilizer darts. Fortunately, McKay was able to return to Atlantis after being shot in the glute by an arrow. He and the team woke up in a cage and remembered having come to his planet as a Runner. Having stayed on this planet for too long caused the Wraith to attack it. The leader of the village, Keturah, was led to believe that the Wraith would no longer cull them in return for Ronon. He grabbed a knife and threatened to kill himself if they didn't release his friends. Ketutah complied and released Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan. After being turned over to the Hive ship, the Wraith Leader who originally turned Ronon into a Runner implanted a new tracking device and resumed the hunt in the ruins of Sateda. The Wraith Leader sent a single Wraith after him. He used pieces of scrap to construct a knife and waited in a dark room for the Wraith. When it entered he attacked it and the two fought hand to hand with Ronon the victor. The Leader then sent a Wraith tracking drone to track him. He killed the second Wraith by hiding on the ceiling and shooting it with a Satedan pistol. The Leader then sent a group of five Wraith and Ronon set an ambush in a warehouse. Ronon managed to kill them but one activated a self-destruct and destroyed the building. He survived but his leg was badly injured. He retreated to the hospital where he had watched Melena die and the team came to rescue him. He refused to leave without killing the Wraith Leader. Sheppard and Teyla, helped him fight off more of the Wraith hunting party, with Ronon leading the charge. Eventually, the entire Wraith hunting party composed of at least twenty-five individuals was wiped out with Ronon killing around eleven single-handedly. His wish was granted when the Wraith Leader came down to the planet's surface to fight Ronon one-on-one with Ronon warning that if Sheppard or Teyla killed that Wraith he'd kill them. Ronon was almost defeated until the timely intervention of Beckett and a Drone weapon. (Beckett had enough of seeing Ronon go through that and killed the Wraith saying "if he doesn't like it he can shoot me".) Beckett killed the Wraith, saving a grateful Ronon and he returned to Atlantis with the rest of the team. (SGA: "Sateda")
On a mission to Asuras, he was mind probed by the Asurans. They forced him to fight hand to hand for hours to test his responses. When they were released by Niam, his Particle magnum proved to be the only weapon capable of slowing the Asurans down. They escaped to a Puddle Jumper and the Asuran city-ship exploded. On the way back to Atlantis, Niam was reset by the other Asurans and he and Sheppard forced him into the rear section and jettisoned him into space. (SGA: "Progeny")
When Lt. Colonel John Sheppard was captured by Commander Acastus Kolya and feed on by a Wraith, he threatened to turn Ladon Radim over to Kolya. When Ladon and Dr. Rodney McKay came up with the Stargate address to a suspected Genii safe house, he lead the team to raid it but it was empty. When the traitor in Ladon's ranks turned over the gate address, he once again led the team and rescued him. (SGA: "Common Ground")
When Rod came to Atlantis from an alternate reality, he had a sparring match with him. (SGA: "McKay and Mrs. Miller")
When Major Leonard's team went missing on M1B-129, he and his team were sent in to search for them. After finding the bodies of several of the team as well as several Genii, they found a Wraith device. They headed back to the Stargate but Leonard used C-4 to blow up the Dial Home Device and then shot at them from the tree line. He perused him into the forest but was unable to catch up with him. With the DHD destroyed they headed back to the Wraith device so Dr. Rodney McKay could shut it down. Once there the device began to effect him and he began to see Wraith. He chased the figures into the forest and ran into Leonard who he saw as a Wraith. He also began to see Lt. Colonel John Sheppard as a Wraith and shot down a Unmanned Aerial Vehicle believing it was a Wraith Dart. He attacked Sheppard and Sheppard shot him in the arm. He then chased Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan to the device but Teyla shut it down before he fired on Sheppard and they were rescued by the Daedalus. (SGA: "Phantoms")
After the Lanteans were rescued from their ship, the Tria, Captain Helia retook control of the city. The entire expedition were requested to leave and returned to Earth and the Athosians were relocated to a new planet. He assisted in building the village and planting crops. When Ladon Radim requested he and Teyla Emmagan work with the Genii in fighting the Wraith, he refused but Teyla was open to it. After learning that the Asurans took control of the city, Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, Dr. Elizabeth Weir, Dr. Rodney McKay and Dr. Carson Beckett came to New Athos to request their help in retaking the city. After returning through the Stargate, they went into orbit and retrieved Niam in order to use him to freeze the Asurans. Upon returning to the city, the Asurans fired Drone weapons at their Puddle Jumper. Sheppard did his best to evade them but had to submerge the Jumper and enter the underwater Jumper bay. Once inside, McKay discovered he could not drain the water and the outer door was jammed. Fortunately, Major General Jack O'Neill was able to manually drain the water but he and Richard Woolsey were captured by the Asurans. After Niam was reactivated and destroyed by McKay, the team paired off and headed for the shield emitters. He teamed up with Weir and planted C-4 and an Anti-Replicator gun crystal in the emitters. After completing the task they were captured. Once in the brig, the Asurans activated the shield and were destroyed by the Anti-Replicator field. After that was accomplished, he joined the rest of the expedition returning to Atlantis. (SGA: "The Return, Part 1", "The Return, Part 2")
He accompanied Dr. Radek Zelenka on a camping trip to the mainland to hunt for game while Zelenka preformed ground penetrating radar tests to test the dielectric permittivity of the region's subsurface. Unfortunately, the sound of the machines scared off all the game. Once back of Atlantis, he joined Teyla Emmagan in a meditation session but fell asleep. When several expedition members began to see visions of Lanteans, he was skeptical at first but later saw a vision himself. Luckily, McKay and Sheppard were able to divert the Coronal mass ejection with the Daedalus shield boosted by the Zero Point Module. (SGA: "Echoes")
When the team encountered Lucius Lavin again, he took up Lucius' offer to hit him and almost broke his hand on his Personal shield emitter. Later, while trying to retake the village from Commander Acastus Kolya, he, Teyla Emmagan, Dr. Rodney McKay and Dr. Carson Beckett were captured. They were rescued by Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Lucius with the help of the villagers. (SGA: "Irresponsible")
After Dr. Rodney McKay was zapped by the Ascension machine, he was assigned to keep an eye on him. Later, McKay used his Healing power to heal the scars on his back from the Wraith tracker. (SGA: "Tao of Rodney")
He assisted Dr. Rodney McKay in trying to convince Nola to make peace with the Hallonans. When the Daedalus arrived and simulated a battle, he convinced Nola of the ruse by telling her people were being slaughtered. (SGA: "The Game")
2007
While trapped on the Moon Base that was losing orbit, he separated his shoulder. Luckily, he escaped on the rescue Puddle Jumper while Lt. Colonel John Sheppard piloted the Shuttle. (SGA: "The Ark")
On the mandatory rest day, Lt. Colonel John Sheppard attempted to teach him the sport of golf and he taught Sheppard a Satedan hand to hand combat game. Later, they returned to Sheppard's quarters and drank beer and listened to music. After Dr. Carson Beckett was killed in an explosion, he was one of the pallbearers at his funeral. (SGA: "Sunday")
After Dr. Rodney McKay discovered a Geothermal Mobile drilling platform, he and his team along with a group of scientists traveled by Puddle Jumper to the ocean floor. Once on station, Teyla Emmagan began to sense a Wraith presence. She reached out with her mind but found nothing. While McKay and the scientists worked in the control room he paired with Teyla and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard paired with Dr. Elizabeth Weir to search the station. Once he was alone with Teyla, she attacked him and knocked him unconscious. He was found and awoke by Sheppard and Weir. They found Teyla disorientated with no memory of attacking Ronon or shutting down power throughout the station. She revealed that there was a Wraith Queen and it took control of her. He and Sheppard went to search for her but were cut off by the forcefields. When Dr. Radek Zelenka disabled the field, he came upon the queen about to feed on Sheppard and attempted to shot her. Unfortunately, he missed and shot the front window of the Jumper causing the station to flood. Luckily, McKay was able to stop the water with the forcefield. The force of the water knocked the Queen out and they restrained her. After Teyla let her escape and tricked her into disabling the self-destruct on her Wraith cruiser, they returned to Atlantis. (SGA: "Submersion")
After Atlantis lost contact with that Taranian settlement, his team was sent in to investigate. They discovered the Taranans were experimented on and killed by allowing Iratus bugs to feed on them. They also discovered Bug Pods and were attacked by Bug People. When it was discovered that Michael Kenmore was responsible for the creatures, he was adamant in his desire to kill him despite Lt. Colonel John Sheppard insistence that he be taken alive. When Michael released the rest of his creatures, he was able to escape in Michael's Wraith Dart. (SGA: "Vengeance")
When Atlantis came under attack by the Asurans with a satellite, Ronon said that he needed to learn some science to be more useful in these sorts of situations. He was in Stargate Operations when the city took off and ended up with a shard of glass in his shoulder when the Asuran laser beam grazed the tower. Ronon at first refused to be treated and spoke to a badly injured Dr. Elizabeth Weir, thanking her for essentially saving his life by letting him join the team as he realized he likely would have eventually died if he hadn't. Ronon joined the mission to Asuras despite his injury and accompanies Sheppard in retrieving a Zero Point Module and reactivating the Wraith attack command. Ronon attempts to save Weir by killing Oberoth, but Oberoth proves to be immune to his Anti-Replicator gun and he has to leave her behind. When the Apollo shows up to rescue the team he is as shocked as Dr. Rodney McKay and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and is devastated to learn that the ship can't locate Weir and beam her out. (SGA: "First Strike", "Adrift", "Lifeline")
Ronon eventually met with three of his old Satedan friends; Ara, Rakai and Tyre, and for the first time seriously considered leaving the Atlantis expedition, believing that he can never befriend any of the Humans on Atlantis. However, he quickly learns that his friends are actually Wraith worshipers, driven by the Gift of Life in exchange for their service. In his fury he rejected them, which resulted in a brutal fight. He killed Rakai after Ara was killed attempting to stop Rakia from using a knife in unarmed combat. After this, Tyre is asked by Ronon if there has been "enough killing." He then walked away. In the end Ronon remained with the Atlantis team, saying that his friends were "Right here." (SGA: "Reunion")
2008
For a short time Ronon developed a romantic interest in Dr. Jennifer Keller, an interest that appeared to be mutual, as is shown while the two were locked in the infirmary during a malfunction of Atlantis' automated lock down procedures. (SGA: "Quarantine")
When Teal'c came to Atlantis to teach Ronon how to deal with the International Oversight Advisory, he and Teal'c went through a sparring match. After an hour of intense fighting, neither had made any progress, and the match was declared a draw by Colonel Samantha Carter. After traveling to the Midway space station together, they encountered a large group of Wraith that had managed to infiltrate the station. Following the Wraith through the gate to Earth, the two proceeded to systematically kill them off. After a call from the head of the IOA to have the base destroyed, Ronon and Teal'c finished off the Wraith and bonded over the fighting and he finally took Teal'c's advice on dealing with the IOA. Later during Ronon's meeting, the IOA gladly gave their approval to Ronon as he'd proved himself to them. Ronon returned to Atlantis on the Daedalus and picked up the survivors of Midway in their Puddle Jumper on the way. Ronon was amused that Lt. Colonel John Sheppard locked himself in the Jumper's cockpit after two days with the others and was sleeping with headphones on. Ronon woke him up and sympathized with his desire to shoot the others before informing him that Earth was secure and that he and Teal'c had taken care of all the Wraith. (SGA: "Midway")
Ronon had another run-in with Tyre a year after he last saw him. Ronon was captured and sent to Sarif Sur, where he was picked up by a Wraith, who thought it would be perfect if he was turned into a Wraith worshipper. He was taken to a facility, where he was constantly fed upon and given his life back, before he swore allegiance to the Wraith. After Lt. Colonel John Sheppard's team found that out what had occurred, they came after him with an apparently rehibilitated Tyre who betrayed the team. Tyre revealed his true colors, freeing the team and fighting Ronon who proved to be more than a match for him until Teyla Emmagan stunned him. Ronon was brought back to Atlantis where he went through brutal withdrawal from the Wraith enzyme and recovered, returning to his old self. Sheppard revealed to him that Tyre sacrificed himself to kill the Wraith and save him and gave Ronon Tyre's sword. Ronon mourned Tyre who he finally accepted as his friend again. (SGA: "Broken Ties")
When Dr. Rodney McKay was infected by the Second Childhood, Ronon did all he could to help him, suggesting they go to the Shrine of Talus like he did with his grandfather to give McKay a day as himself before he died. Ronon admitted to Jeannie Miller that seeing McKay in that condition was hard on him and he was willing to risk his life to get McKay to the Shrine even though a major Wraith base was on the planet. When they arrived at the Shrine and McKay returned to himself and Dr. Jennifer Keller operated to remove the parasite, Ronon stood guard and killed the parasite with his Particle magnum after Keller removed it. (SGA: "The Shrine")
When Dr. Jennifer Keller went to a planet to treat the people for an influenza like illness, he went with her and Dr. Rodney McKay in order to be closer to her. After she was kidnapped by Kiryk, he began tracking her and was constantly annoyed by McKay who joined him. He recignized that Kiryk was another Runner when Hunter Wraith showed up to get him. When the two finally caught up to Kiryk and Keller, Ronon attacked him until Keller broke the fight up and explained that Kiryk had kidnapped her to get her to treat an injured little girl. After seeing two Wraith Darts nearby, Ronon agreed to work with Kiryk. The two worked together to fight two Wraith that attacked while Keller and McKay dealt with another. Ronon and Kiryk talked about their similar experiences as Runners on the way to the Stargate and Ronon sympathized with Kiryk when he learned that Kiryk was responsible for the culling of a villiage also. When Kiryk ran off to fight the Wraith at the Stargate, Ronon rushed off to help him, but arrived too late as Kiryk drew the Wraith through the Stargate. Back on Atlantis, McKay confronted him over his feelings for Keller as McKay had them too. Ronon admitted to them and the two men came to an agreement not to fight over Keller but to let her decide which one of them she wanted. (SGA: "Tracker")
During the alliance with Todd to get the Wraith to take Dr. Jennifer Keller's gene therapy, Ronon went on the Daedalus as Keller was going and he wanted an opportunity to get to know her better and didn't trust Todd. When Todd took over the ship, Ronon quickly got Keller and led her away. He disabled the ship, but Keller surrendered to Todd to trick him. Ronon rescued Keller and the two rescued the crew, but the Wraith gave up the ship without a fight after that and abandoned it in their scout ship after arriving at M6H-987. Ronon later asked Keller out for dinner, but she refused, having been put off by his agressivness during the situation, admitting that she liked McKay. Ronon claimed that he didn't like her like that and refused her invitation to join her once he told her that. (SGA: "First Contact", "The Lost Tribe")
2009
Ronon was approached by Richard Woolsey who was annoyed that he never filed mission reports. When Michael invaded Atlantis, Ronon was stunned by the stun bubble and held captive in another room. Ronon woke up first with Amelia Banks who opened the door for him. Ronon and Amelia fought a Hybrid outside and Ronon stunned it. Ronon was surprised and impressed by Amelia's fighting skills and headed off to fight Michael with Woolsey following him. Ronon fought Michael and although he was defeated, his attack allowed Woolsey to get Teyla Emmagan and her baby to safety. Ronon was thrown over the railing of the Control Room and knocked out, and Michael attempted to kill him as he left as a trophy, but Dr. Rodney McKay destroyed Michael's Puddle Jumper, distracting and stopping him. Ronon later recovered in the infirmary and gave a digital recorder with his report to Woolsey. His report was just him narrating that Michael invaded Atlantis and they defeated him and it left Woolsey amused. (SGA: "The Prodigal")
After the discovery of the Super-hive, Ronon stays on Atlantis to travel to the Milky Way and help out in the battle despite offers from Richard Woolsey to allow him and Teyla Emmagan to stay behind. He travels through the Stargate to the Hive with Teyla, Dr. Rodney McKay and Major Evan Lorne and is stabbed in the side by a Wraith warrior and was mortally wounded. He is revived by the Wraith underling so he can be questioned. After the team discovers Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, they come back for his body and find him alive. They shoot the Wraith underling and help Ronon up. They then escape through the ship's Stargate to the Milky Way Alpha Site just before Sheppard detonates a Nuclear warhead he snuck on board the Hive, destroying it and saving the Earth. Ronon is patched up in the Atlantis infirmary and is visited by Sheppard and Amelia Banks who asks if he would like to go for a walk. They head to the Atlantis balcony overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge with the rest of the senior staff and admires the view. (SGA: "Enemy at the Gate")
Alternate realities
- In an alternate reality, the one that is home to Rod McKay, he told our McKay that their Ronon is very similar to his own. (SGA: "McKay and Mrs. Miller")
An alternate version of Ronon and his team dead.
- In an alternate reality, Lt. Colonel John Sheppard's team went onboard the alternate Daedalus and starved to death onboard the runaway ship in 2008. (SGA: "The Daedalus Variations")
Alternate timeline
Alternate Ronon.
- In an alternate timeline, when Michael Kenmore took over the Galaxy, Ronon no longer felt wanted in the expedition, when they pulled back all resources to protect Atlantis. He made and trained his own army to take down Michael's forces. He convinced Colonel Samantha Carter to bring him supplies including C-4 and FN P90 Personal Defense Weapons. When he took his forces to a Wraith outpost, under Michael's control, he crossed paths with Todd. Ronon made his group evacuate whilst he and Todd later destroyed the outpost, with them inside it. (SGA: "The Last Man")
Personality and traits
- "I was just going to blow it up."
- ―Ronon Dex[src]
Initially, Ronon appears violent and uncouth, likely due to having been hunted for seven years that were almost completely devoid of human contact. However, later his character is shown as very laid back, except when confronted by an enemy. The only times that Ronon has shown irrational, violent, and impulsive behavior is when confronted by the Wraith, or when he or a team mate is threatened. His gruff look and perpetually scowling face tends to intimidate others. In 2007, his Satedan friend, Rakai, inked a tattoo on Ronon's left forearm while sitting at a bar table (which was really done because the actor received the tattoo). Ronon has proven himself extremely resistant to Wraith stunners. It has taken as many as three shots to incapacitate him, where most people would be rendered unconscious after a single blast. (SGA: "Reunion")
Throughout his time as a member of Lt. Colonel John Sheppard's team, Ronon's incredible physical abilities and fighting instincts have set him apart. In fact, the only enemies (Wraith/hybrids and Asurans excluded) who have ever given Ronon a good fight have been: Teyla Emmagan, Lt. Aiden Ford (while on Wraith enzyme), Teal'c, Tyre, and Michael Kenmore. He consistently subdues his enemy with relative ease in hand-to-hand combat or with his trademark gun, a Particle magnum. Ronon is fond of gun play, spinning the pistol around rapidly. In addition, he carries a sword. He also has a number of knives for use in emergencies, most of them hidden about his person. The exact number of knives and from where he gets them (or whether he fashions them himself) has never been revealed, and Ronon's seemingly unlimited supply has been a source of the occasional comic relief. (SGA: "Runner", "Duet", "The Hive", "Sateda", "Midway", "The Prodigal")
Ronon is known to always have a serious face and to always be on edge. However, under the influence of Lucius Lavin's drug, Ronon laughs when Lucius tells a story. He has once been shown to have amiable capacities when he gave Dr. Rodney McKay a hug after he survived near-Ascension after healing him of his scars from days as a Runner. Also, he hugs Dr. Carson Beckett after he saved his life and killed a Wraith that Ronon had a personal grudge against (although at first it looked like he might hurt Beckett). (SGA: "Irresistible", "Sateda", "Tao of Rodney")
His bond with Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, in particular, is a close one - an almost brotherly relationship. Ronon led the search for Sheppard when he was captured by Commander Acastus Kolya and accompanied Sheppard back to Earth for his father's funeral. Sheppard even refers to Ronon as "Chewie" on many occasions. They jog through the city together, and have been known to box in the middle of night. Ronon was attracted to Dr. Jennifer Keller for a time, though ultimately nothing came of that. He is now interested in Amelia Banks and she shares a mutual attraction. (SGA: "Conversion", "Common Ground", "Doppelganger", "Quarantine", "Outcast", "Enemy at the Gate")
He cares a lot about his team mates, despite appearances - as when McKay went through Second Childhood, he admitted to Jeannie Miller that it was very hard for him to see McKay that way and was willing to risk his life against the Wraith, just so McKay could have one day as himself, even though he was ordered not to go at first. In contrast to his less close relationship with Ronon's 'predecessor' Lt. Aiden Ford, McKay once stated that he considers Ronon a brother (Albeit "a brother who got all the gene sequences that he didn't," in Beckett's words). McKay once was willing to risk his life to help Ronon against a group of Wraith despite barely being able to stand. (SGA: "Sateda", "The Shrine")
He also passionately despises the Wraith, especially for what they've done to his homeworld and to him, personally. He once said that he can't leave the Pegasus galaxy until every last Wraith is dead. (SGA: "The Return, Part 1")
The archetype Ronon most closely resembles is that of the Vikings, since in addition to his at times rough and warlike behavior, on a few occasions he is depicted as an unruly drunk whenever he is with fellow Satedans. Although they are both warriors, he is a very different type to Teal'c, who ultimately had less rough edges, since the Jaffa were ceremonial soldiers who were partly intended to complement the classical refinement of the Goa'uld. (SGA: "Trinity", "Reunion")
Relationships
Jennifer Keller
- "Maybe I do…have…intentions."
- ―Ronon Dex[src]
For a while Ronon had been competing with Dr. Rodney McKay over the affections of Dr. Jennifer Keller. However, McKay had previously admitted to being in love with Keller, and after spending time with Ronon on the Daedalus while it was under the control of Todd, Keller clearly didn't like the more aggressive aspects of Ronon's personality. She eventually chose McKay over Ronon. (SGA: "The Shrine", "Tracker", "The Lost Tribe")
Amelia Banks
- "I heard you died and came back to life"
"Pretty much. There's a...few things I still need to do." - ―Amelia Banks and Ronon Dex[src]
During Michael Kenmore's invasion of Atlantis, Ronon and Amelia Banks were the first two people to wake up after an expanding Stun bubble rendered many members of the Atlantis expedition unconscious. With her help, Ronon was able to open the locked door and a fight ensued with the Hybrid guard outside. Ronon was knocked down, but Amelia was able to fight the Hybrid alone, long enough for Ronon to grab the guard's gun and stun him. Amelia revealed that she had been taking kickboxing for the last five years. Ronon, clearly impressed, left her in charge while he went in search of Michael. A few months later, Ronon was fatally wounded by a Wraith warrior and subsequently revived by the Wraith underling. Amelia visited him as he recovered in the Atlantis infirmary, and after a bit of flirting, asked him to take a walk with her. She led him by the arm to a balcony overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. (SGA: "The Prodigal", "Enemy at the Gate")
Atlantis Team
The most obvious bond Ronon has formed on his team is his friendship with Lt. Colonel John Sheppard, which has been compared by many to the bond between Colonel Jack O'Neill and Teal'c, both featuring human military leaders forming close bonds of respect and loyalty with alien soldiers who obey the other out of respect rather than adherence to the chain of command. The two men have been seen as having an almost brotherly relationship, Ronon leading the search for John when he was captured by Commander Acastus Kolya and later accompanying Sheppard back to Earth for his father's funeral. He has also demonstrated a close friendship with Teyla Emmagan due to them both being 'aliens' amongst the humans of Earth, the two regularly working together when the team is required to split up; when Ronon killed Kell, his old Task Master, for crimes the man had committed back on Sateda, Teyla admitted that she understood why he had done it but warned him that others on Atlantis would be less understanding. Ronon originally felt that he couldn't have real friendships with his teammates despite all their experiences together and was willing to leave them for his fellow Satedans, but when his "friends" betrayed him he accepted that McKay, Sheppard and Teyla were his true friends saying that his friends were "right here" when asked by Samantha Carter. (SGA: "Trinity", "Common Ground", "Reunion", "Outcast")
Although, on the surface, Ronon has very little in common with his remaining teammate, Dr. Rodney McKay, the two are nevertheless surprisingly good friends. When Ronon was briefly recaptured by the Wraith Leader, McKay defended his strong desire to find Ronon by stating that they had a very close bond despite the lack of social time they spent together, claiming that he sees Ronon as a brother (Albeit a brother who got all the genes that he didn't). McKay even tried to get a gun to come help him against 25 Wraith despite being injured and flew a Puddle Jumper down so Beckett could kill the Wraith Leader even though Ronon threatened to kill anyone that killed that particular Wraith before him. Although less demonstrative about it, Ronon has indicated that he reciprocates this bond, stating that he was willing to take the risk of taking McKay to the Shrine of Talus when McKay suffered from Second Childhood just to give McKay one more day as himself. Ronon even admitted to McKay's sister Jeannie Miller that it was very hard on him to see McKay like that. Also, when McKay has a brush with near-Ascension and nearly dies, Ronon has a hard time with it as well. He admits to McKay that his scars are something he just doesn't dwell on as there's nothing he can do about them, and is shocked but happy when McKay uses his new powers to heal them. Afterwards, Ronon is extremely happy by McKay's survival and even hugs him, which is rare for Ronon to do as the only emotion he tends to display is anger. The two men also agreed to simply let the best man win when they both learned that the other was attracted to Dr. Jennifer Keller (Although she eventually chose McKay). Ronon seems to have accepted this gracefully and seems to have switched his attractions to Amelia Banks. (SGA: "Sateda", "Tao of Rodney", "The Shrine", "Tracker", "Brain Storm", "Enemy at the Gate")
Teal'c
- "Yeah, well, I had a good coach."
- ―Ronon Dex[src]
Teal'c and Ronon in a sparring match.
When Ronon was ordered to attend a meeting with the International Oversight Advisory on Earth, Colonel Samantha Carter arranged for Teal'c to come to Atlantis to help give Ronon some pointers for his interview. Although the two initially had some trouble getting along- due mainly to Teal'c deliberately provoking Ronon to prepare him for his meeting with the IOA, spending the better part of an hour fighting with each other as part of a bet, the two nevertheless formed a deadly duo when a group of Wraith took control of the Midway space station as part of an attempt to gain access to Earth, Teal'c complimenting Ronon's Particle magnum as they single-handedly defeated the Wraith currently occupying Stargate Command. The two seemed to become friends during this and Ronon seemed to take Teal'c's advice about dealing with the IOA when it was over which the two good-naturedly joked about. Ronon even pointed out Teal'c's habit of responding with the word "indeed", which Teal'c admitted was something he didn't realize. When alone with Carter during a point where he wasn't getting along with Ronon, Teal'c showed that he really was on Ronon's side and wanted him to pass the IOA evaluation feeling that he was a valuable resource and a good man. (SGA: "Midway")
Wraith
Ronon has a fierce hatred and mistrust of Wraith as shown in many episodes. This stems from them having destroyed his homeworld Sateda. He also seems to have a particular hatred of Michael Kenmore, always wanting to kill him and at one point saying that he hates Michael in particular out of all the Wraith. Another Wraith he has a personal grudge against is the Wraith Leader who commanded the Hive ship that destroyed Sateda. It is indicated that he was the Wraith responsible for Ronon becoming a Runner the first time and he was responsible for it a second time. Ronon, after hooking up with Lt. Colonel John Sheppard and Teyla Emmagan, hated that particular Wraith so much he was determined to kill him before escaping. Ronon, after drawing the Wraith to the surface of Sateda, was determined to kill him himself and satisfy his grudge and threatened to kill anyone who killed the Wraith before him. Sheppard and Teyla reluctantly respected his wishes, but this grudge nearly led to his death as he was no match for the powerful warrior. Ronon only survived because Dr. Carson Beckett and Dr. Rodney McKay intervened and Beckett killed the Wraith, saving his life. Instead of harming Beckett, he thanked and hugged him apparently forgiving him for killing the Wraith and satisfied that he had his vengeance. He also shows serious mistrust of Todd, although he doesn't seem to hate him quite as much as other Wraith, such as once expressing doubt that Todd would feed on the crew when Todd stole the Daedalus to go after the Vanir where he would have taken that threat seriously from any other Wraith. In one alternate future Ronon fought side by side with Todd against Michael's forces and even died together with him, having apparently put aside his mistrust and hatred of him. (SGA: "No Man's Land", "Sateda", "The Last Man", "The Lost Tribe")
Carson Beckett
Ronon ends up developing a friendship with Dr. Carson Beckett. At first he mistrusts Beckett when Beckett removes the Wraith tracker from his back, refusing to even let Beckett sedate him, but the two later become friends. During the rescue of Ronon on Sateda, Beckett volunteers to go on the mission (something he doesn't usually do) and even tries to go and help him when he's facing 25 Wraith despite being a doctor and having no combat experience. That ultimately proves unnecessary, but Beckett later saves his life and kills a Wraith that Ronon had a personal grudge against. Instead of killing him like he threatened to do to anyone else that killed that particular Wraith, Ronon hugged and thanked him. When Beckett is tragically killed in an explosion, Ronon is clearly hurt by his death and is one of his pallbearers. (SGA: "Runner", "Sateda", "Sunday")
Clone
When the clone of Carson Beckett is put into a stasis pod, Ronon has trouble saying goodbye and admits that what's happening to Beckett is a fate he always feared; he finishes with a somewhat awkward hug. (SGA: "The Kindred, Part 2")
Behind the Scenes
- Ronon's forearm tattoo is real. The actor who plays Ronon, Jason Momoa, had it applied during a visit to Hawaii. The tattoo is an Aumakua and the design is the "manō" (shark). It took 8 hours to complete; 2 hours to draw, and 6 hours to ink and Jason got it without permission from the Stargate crew, so it was written into the episode "Reunion" for continuity.
- Ronon's name may be a reference to Rōnin, a samurai in the feudal period (1185–1868) of Japan who had failed to protect his master and wanders in shame searching for work.
External links
- Ronon Dex on the official MGM website. (backup link)
- Template:SciFi
- GateWorld's article on Ronon Dex in The Stargate Omnipedia
- Ronon Dex article on Stargate SG-1 Solutions' The StargateWiki
- Ronon Dex on Wikipedia
| Current members | John Sheppard · Rodney McKay · Teyla Emmagan · Ronon Dex |
| Former Members | Aiden Ford · Radek Zelenka |