System Lord

From SGCommand

The System Lord heirarchy displayed on a Tok'ra device.

"They're posturing egomaniacs driven by an insatiable lust for power. Each one capable of unimaginable evil."

The System Lords are the few dozen of the ruling class in the Goa'uld hierarchy, who function as the leadership of the Goa'uld Empire.

[edit] Characteristics

"Our fellow System Lords are not to be trusted. Neither are their slaves."

—Yu

Usually the System Lords assume the persona of a god and rule many worlds by force through their armies of elite Jaffa warriors. The Goa'uld weakness is their feudal nature. Although they will reluctantly unite to defend against outside threats such as the Asgard or the Tau'ri, they battle among themselves for supreme domination. The greatest danger has been the threat of a single Goa'uld rising to dominant power and overtaking the System Lord collective.

One such instance is when Sokar had amassed a huge army and planned to launch a massive attack against six key System Lords, which would have overthrown the balance of power in the galaxy, however Sokar was eliminated by an alliance of the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra.

[edit] History

Membership among the System Lords has changed greatly throughout the millennia. Membership was decided by the High Council of System Lords, a rare gathering of their membership. Though they constantly warred amongst themselves for power, they did work together when it suited them.

For thousands of years, Ra was the Supreme System Lord, until he was killed in 1994 by the Tau'ri. They rarely trust each other, and very frequently battle amongst themselves, only holding council with regards to a mutual external or internal threat. (Stargate) (SG1: "Summit")

The Tok'ra usually try to keep the System Lords balanced so that no single System Lord can completely overpower the others. The Asgard also follow this strategy.

After the fall of Sokar, Apophis gained control of his forces instead. The shift in power resulted in Apophis and Heru'ur commanding the two largest armies of the Goa'uld. An alliance between them would overwhelm the System Lords; a war between them would decimate both sides and return the balance of power to the System Lords. Apophis and Heru'ur agreed to meet in the neutral territory of the Tobin System to discuss an alliance, however Apophis deceived his enemy, destroyed Heru'ur, and took control of his forces, giving him command of the largest of the Goa'uld armies. Apophis lost his fleet, however, when SG-1 created a supernova from the sun of Vorash, and Apophis himself was killed when his ship was infiltrated by Replicators and forced to crash into the planet Delmak. (SG1: "The Devil You Know", "Exodus", "Enemies")

The Hasara space station, a meeting place for the System Lords.

With the deaths of Ra, Hathor, Seth, Heru'ur, Sokar, Cronus, and now Apophis at the hands of the Tau'ri, the old order had fallen, and the resultant void created a power vacuum that the remaining System Lords fought to exploit. Seven key System Lords, Ba'al, Bastet, Kali, Morrigan, Olokun, Svarog, and Yu, declared a truce and arranged a summit on a space station in the neutral territory of the Hasara System to discuss the establishment of a new order. Threatened by the reemergence and increasing power of Anubis, the System Lords voted to return Anubis to the status of System Lord, and they formed an uneasy alliance to confront their greatest challenges: dissent and disbelief within the Jaffa ranks, infiltration and subversion by the Tok'ra, and the threat from the Tau'ri of Earth. However, as Anubis consolidated his power, he rose to a position of supreme domination capable of overtaking the System Lord collective, and the uneasy alliance began to crumble. (SG1: "Summit", "Last Stand")

Armed with the power of the six artifacts known as the Eyes of the Goa'uld, Anubis defeated the collective forces of the System Lords, led by Yu, and was left in possession of a powerful weapon that gave him clear superiority. As Anubis used his power to decimate the forces of the System Lords, SG-1 devised a plan to eliminate his superweapon, and Yu pledged to bring the full force of the remaining System Lords against him. However, with Yu's mental competence failing, Ba'al took command instead and led the combined forces of the System Lords against Anubis at Kelowna. Although Anubis escaped, his forces were defeated, and Ba'al rapidly began consolidating his power, taking control of the United Alliance of System Lords, a union for which the SGC was partially responsible. (SG1: "Full Circle", "Fallen")

Meanwhile, Anubis rebuilt his forces from his base on Tartarus where he created an army of Kull Warriors, synthetically created Goa'uld drone soldiers, and launched attacks against rival Goa'uld, absorbing their resources in preparation for battle with Ba'al and the System Lords. Through the cooperation of the Tau'ri, Tok'ra, and the Jaffa, more System Lords had fallen in the past seven years than in the previous seven hundred years, and Anubis next turned his attention to his greatest threat: Earth. He gathered the full force of his fleet and sent more than 30 Ha'tak motherships into Earth's orbit. In a massive battle over Antarctica, Anubis was defeated when Jack O'Neill drew upon the knowledge of the Ancients and activated the Ancient defense weapon which sent thousands of energy drones swarming into orbit and annihilated Anubis's fleet. (SG1: "Evolution, Part 2", "Lost City, Part 1", "Lost City, Part 2")

Anubis was presumed destroyed, and his defeat created a volatile situation among the remaining System Lords. The High Council of System Lords, an unstable and rather flimsy coalition of approximately a dozen of the most powerful Goa'uld in the galaxy who cooperate only when necessary, was unprepared for the sudden shift in power. In order to avoid open war, the System Lords came to an agreement to divide Anubis's territories and his armies evenly among them, but Ba'al broke the agreement, took command of Anubis's army of Kull Warriors, and tipped the balance of power in his favor. Many of the System Lords began to speak of capitulation, and three representatives, Camulus, Yu, and Amaterasu, approached Earth, seeking an alliance against Ba'al in the hope that the Ancient defense weapon in Antarctica would prevent his domination of the galaxy. The United States' President authorized Dr. Elizabeth Weir to pursue negotiations, however no agreement was reached, and the alliance failed. (SG1: "New Order, Part 1", "New Order, Part 2")

The Jaffa of the System Lords were no match for the Kull Warriors of Ba'al's army, and the war between Ba'al and the System Lords reached a critical stage when Bastet and Olokun were killed, Morrigan capitulated, and Lord Yu and Amaterasu rallied their armies for what would probably be their last stand. Unknown to the System Lords, however, Anubis had survived the battle over Antarctica, and he had returned to secretly rebuild his power base, using Ba'al to lead his forces, although Ba'al did not admit to taking a subservient position to the master he served. (SG1: "Reckoning, Part 1", "Reckoning, Part 2")

In addition, the System Lords faced the threat of the Jaffa Rebellion which had amassed a significant army as well as growing numbers operating as a Fifth Column within their ranks. The greatest threat of all, however, presented itself when the Replicators, led by Samantha Carter's Replicator duplicate, entered the Milky Way galaxy and launched a full scale attack against the Goa'uld. The Replicators began systematically eliminating the System Lords and absorbing their forces at a rate which would have guaranteed them complete victory within weeks. System Lords, Rebel Jaffa, and Replicators met in a devastating battle at Dakara, but through the cooperation of the Tau'ri and Ba'al, the Dakara superweapon was modified and the Replicators were eliminated. Anubis intended to claim the weapon on Dakara for himself, and to use it to destroy all life in the galaxy in order to repopulate the galaxy to his own specifications. However the intervention of Oma Desala spared the galaxy as she engaged Anubis in eternal battle on another plane of existence. (SG1: "Reckoning, Part 2", "Threads")

In eight years, the events of the Tau'ri-Goa'uld war had eliminated Ra, Hathor, Sokar, Heru'ur, Cronus, Apophis, Svarog, Nirrti, Osiris, Moloc, Ares and Ba'al among the System Lords, and Amaunet, Klorel, Marduk, Zipacna, Tanith, Seth, Imhotep, Mot and Sekhmet among the lesser Goa'uld. Following the defeat of Anubis and the success of the Jaffa rebellion, a handful of System Lords remained, but without the support of their Jaffa armies, the Goa'uld had lost most of their power. Among the former System Lords, Ba'al alone survived with his influence nearly intact, and he attempted to rebuild his power base by cloning himself, infiltrating the Trust, expanding his technological advantage, recruiting a Jaffa army, and seeking the knowledge of the Ancients and the Ori.

After the death of the final Ba'al clone in 2008 the hierarchy of the System Lord collective was no more. (Stargate: Continuum)

[edit] List of System Lords

Name	Status	"Divine" title
Anubis	Inactive	Egyptian God of the Dead (jackal)
Anubis, an ancient Goa'uld and once a very powerful System Lord, was banished by the other System Lords because of his unspeakable actions. In exile he tricked Oma Desala into helping him to ascend. The Others, however, forced him to a state of half-ascension after they discovered his true nature. Because of his acsended knowledge, Anubis amassed very advanced technologies, gathering strength for his returning to take revenge and to dominate the galaxy. However, when he was just a few steps to accomplish his goals, Oma Desala attacked him, forcing him to enter a never ending duel.
Apep	Deceased	Egyptian Demon
Apep was an ancient Unas-hosted Goa'uld System Lord and the physically superior son of Atok. He killed and usurped his father's position among his people 24 thousand years ago. He created a circle of Underlords, which consisted of many of the future System Lords, where nobody would be powerful enough to challenge him or anyone else. Apep eventually grew mad after continuous use of the sarcophagus. With the help of an ancient "superpower" Anubis was able to capture, and kill, Apep and declare himself Emperor. His power would not last, however, as Ra and the other Goa'uld rallied in Apep's name and drove him from power.
Apophis	Deceased	Egyptian Demon (Serpent)
Apophis was once an extremely powerful Goa'uld System Lord. The brother of the Supreme System Lord Ra, he originally commanded a minor fleet, but he grew in strength to command the power of multiple System Lords that had been killed during his reign, ultimately succeeding Ra as the dominant System Lord after his death. He held one human host in his life. His reign ended however, when the Tau'ri and the Tok'ra together managed to destroy his fleet in the Battle of the Vorash system. Apophis died in the aftermath at the hands of the Replicators.
Amaterasu	Unknown	Japanese Sun Goddess
Amaterasu was once a powerful Goa'uld System Lord. Amaterasu visited the SGC after Anubis' defeat to negotiate a new arrangement against Ba'al. The war against Ba'al goes poorly, and she and Yu rally their armies for a last stand. Her motherships are amongst the first to be infested by the Replicators. Amaterasu was not among the System Lords Ba'al sent a peace offering to, and her fate following the collapse of the Goa'uld Empire is unknown.
Ares	Deceased	Greek God of War
Ares was a Goa'uld System Lord grasping for power during Anubis' reign of terror. After Ba'al declared war on his fellow System Lords, Ares fled to his former planet, where the Tau'ri Maybourne is king. SG-1 went to Maybourne's planet to warn them that Ares was on his way and to help them evacuate, but they ran into opposition from the villagers. In the meantime, Ares sent a patrol of Jaffa to the planet. SG-1 and the Jaffa clashed and the Jaffa was defeated. The final battle against Ares was fought by Brig. Gen. Jack O'Neill using a Gateship that had been left on the planet by the Ancients long ago. A few strategically-aimed drones penetrated Ares' Ha'tak's defense shield and destroyed the ship, killing Ares.
Ba'al	Deceased	God of Fertility, Thunder, and Rain
Ba'al was once a powerful Goa'uld System Lord and the Supreme Commander of the Goa'uld Empire. After the first fall of Anubis, Ba'al took control of Anubis' Kull warriors, making him the dominant Goa'uld in the galaxy. With his new powerful Kull army, he started a war against the other System Lords, driving them to the brink of defeat. The return of Anubis destroyed his plans, however, and the defeat at Dakara destroyed his fleet and army. After the fall of the Goa'uld, Ba'al was the only known surviving System Lord and became determined to rebuild his power base, infiltrating the Trust to do so. He was however killed by the Tau'ri in 2008.
Bastet	Deceased	Goddess of the Sun, Moon, and Sexuality (cat)
Bastet was a member of the Goa'uld System Lords, Bastet did not come to power until the Goa'uld's second ruling dynasty collapsed. Uniting forces with the System Lord Kali, the two made a treaty with the Goa'uld Sobek. Then, at the celebratory feast, they moved against him. Rumor has it that Sobek's head still decorates Bastet's palace in Bubastis. Bastet, admitting to suffering heavy losses against Anubis, voted to allow the powerful Goa'uld back to his former position as a System Lord. Bastet was later killed when Ba'al gained control of the Kull warriors in 2008.
Belus	Unknown	Babylonian god
Belus was a Goa'uld System Lord who served under Ra. After leading a failed invasion of Oannes, he incurred the wrath of its native people, the Ohnes, and was punished for his failure by being sent to oversee Goa'uld forces in Babylon. When an Ohnes team followed him to Earth, they were able to encourage the local populace to rise up against Goa'uld rule, causing him to be further punished by demotion to an underlord of Ishtar, a position he continued to hold after Ra's death. He was later wounded by Kel and so took the Ohnes warrior as a new host, an act which he saw as revenge against the Ohnes.
Camulus	Unknown	Gaulish God of War
Camulus was a Goa'uld System Lord, who visits the SGC to negotiate a new arrangement against Ba'al. After the talks broke down, Camulus unexpectedly asked for asylum on Earth, revealing to Elizabeth Weir that his armies were one of the first to fall before Ba'al. Camulus later gave General O'Neill the location of a ZPM, but SGC scientists found out that Camulus had tampered with it so that it would explode if ever used. Camulus agreed to take the ZPM to Ba'al in an attempt to assassinate him. However, O'Neill wasn't confident that Ba'al wouldn't discover the sabotage and so he secretly gave Camulus an already depleted ZPM instead. His fate after going into Ba'al's custody is unknown ( although it is assumed that Ba'al killed him).
Cronus	Deceased	Greek Titan and Father of the Gods
Cronus was one of the most influential of the System Lords. He was the one who banished Sokar and he was the mortal enemy of Apophis. Ronac was Cronus's First Prime; Cronus ordered him to fight an unwinnable battle against a more powerful Goa'uld. After his inevitable defeat, Cronus executed him by crushing his symbiote, causing its blood to mix with his in a slow and painful death. Cronus also accompanied Nirrti and Yu to Earth to negotiate Earth's entry into the Protected Planets Treaty. Two years later, Cronus was killed by a Teal'c-like android on the planet Juna.
Egeria	Deceased	Roman water nymph
Egeria was once a high ranking System Lord. She felt it was wrong to take the Tau'ri as hosts and, as she was a Queen, she breeded the Tok'ra to rebel against the Supreme System Lord Ra 2,000 years ago. When Ra heard of her act he took immediate action. She was imprisoned by Ra on the planet Pangar where she was until the Pangarans, who used her progeny to produce tretonin. Egeria sabotaged her offspring in the hopes of stopping the Pangarans, which leads to a medical crisis after tretonin becomes widely used. After she is discovered by SG-1, the Tok'ra Kelmaa gives up her life so that her host can blend with Egeria. As her last act, Egeria gives the Pangarans the information needed to cure their people.
Hathor	Deceased	Egyptian Goddess, Eye of Ra
Hathor was once a System Lord, the Queen of Ra and mother of Heru'ur. After the Tau'ri rebellion she was imprisoned in a sarcophagus. After being freed by archaeologists, she traveled to the SGC and tried to take over the base. She was eventually defeated, and escaped through the Stargate. Hathor built a new army by brainwashing Jaffa, and captured all of SG-1 except Teal'c. She tried to extract information from them, but when this failed, she implanted a symbiote into Jack O'Neill, but he was saved by a Tok'ra. Hathor's base was eventually assaulted by the rebel Jaffa led by Teal'c, Bra'tac, and General George Hammond. Hathor was killed when O'Neill threw her unprotected into a cryogenic chamber.
Heru'ur	Deceased	Son of Ra
Heru'ur was once a powerful System Lord, the son of Ra and Hathor. Heru'ur invaded Cimmeria after discovering Thor's Hammer, an Asgard anti-Goa'uld device. SG-1 and Gairwyn contacted Thor, who arrived in his mothership and removed Heru'ur's armies and ships, forcing Heru'ur to retreat through the Stargate. He traveled to Abydos to seize Amaunet, but was defeated there by SG-1 and again forced to escape. Heru'ur eventually planned an alliance with Apophis; the Tok'ra and SG-1 sabotaged their meeting in the Tobin minefield hoping to incite a war, not expecting that Apophis has brought a fleet of cloaked motherships with him. Apophis destroy's Heru'ur's ship and absorbed his forces.
Ishkur	Unknown	Babylonian-Assyrian Storm God
Ishkur was an ancient Goa'uld System Lord who was alive five millenia ago, though his current status is unknown. He had an army of Jaffa warriors but many, as they rose through his ranks, soon discovered that he was not the god he claimed to be. Ishkur branded these Jaffa traitors and ordered them to be killed. The Jaffa tried to fight against him, but were overpowered by sheer numbers and so instead a small group set off to find the legendary planet Kheb. Although they did not find it, they instead settled on a world the Tau'ri came to designate P9G-844 and called themselves the Sodan. It is unknown what has happened to Ishkur since the rebellion of the Sodan, but it's assumed that he at some point has been killed or stripped of his power.
Isis	Deceased	Egyptian Mother Goddess of the Sky
Isis was an ancient System Lord. Isis' symbiote was found in a canopic jar that was among the Egyptian treasures from the ill-fated Stewart Expedition. The seal on the canopic jar had been broken during transit, rendering the creature inside it dead. An autopsy was performed on the symbiote at the SGC, and further examination of the canopic jar revealed that it was designed to function as a stasis chamber, imprisoning the symbiote. presumably by Seth, according to the Egyptian legend. Having found Isis in the Isis jar, it was presumed her companion, Osiris, was imprisoned similarly, however the Osiris jar listed among the artifacts was missing.
Kali	Deceased	Hindu Mother Goddess of Destruction
Kali was a System Lord. Kali is one of the System Lords in attendance at the Goa'uld Summit. Disguised as Lord Yu's Lo'tar, Daniel Jackson speaks of Kali and Bastet's having made a treaty with the fellow System Lord Sobek, only to move against him during the celebratory feast when Sobek let his guard down. Kali is among the majority who voted to allow Anubis back amongst the System Lords, even though he attacked one of her outposts on the planet Cerador.
Kur	Deceased	Sumerian and Assyrian Dragon/Dragon Lord
Kur was a System Lord who never rose to prominence on Earth, though many knew and feared him. He was one of the few System Lords who truly accepted his subject's image of him, and was intimidating and imposing even whilst dealing with his own Jaffa, ruling through violence and fear alone. He ruled from a hellish planet known as Herevah, an unstable world which was covered in mountain ranges and volcanoes. One day Kur joined his scouting party when they went to the planet inhabited by Unity as he was so eager to seize the crystals for himself, thinking that he could use them to enhance his technology. However, when he reached out to touch one of the crystals, it sent out a powerful blast of energy and killed the Goa'uld instantly.
Marduk	Deceased	Babylonian God of Creation and Fertility
Marduk was a System Lord so evil that his own priests rosed up against him and imprisoned him in a sarcophagus with a flesh-eating creature that would prolong his suffering. However, Marduk survived by possessing the creature and was released by a Russian SG team. He possessed Major Vallarin and tried to escape, but was buried when Jack O'Neill sets off C-4 explosives inside his ziggurat. Marduk possessed the Eye of Tiamat, a powerful weapon.
Moloc	Deceased	Sun God
Moloc was a powerful System Lord. 1973, Moloc had decreed that only male children would be allowed to live, as only they could strengthen his armies, and no female children were allowed to live. Ishta and the women Jaffa of the Hak'tyl secretly saved the female infants and raised them as warriors. The Hak'tyl also allied with the Rebel Jaffa on Moloc's worlds which were preparing for war against Moloc. A summit of Rebel leaders was ambushed by Moloc. Ishta was captured and tortured for information. Meanwhile, on Goronak, an uprising began as an army of 2000 Rebels marched on Moloc's temple. As Moloc prepared to crush the rebellion, the Tau'ri sent laser guided missiles through the stargate, which targeted Moloc himself.
Morrigan	Unknown	Goddess of Fertility, Battle, and Strife
Morrigan was a Goa'uld System Lord and Queen. Morrigan once had dominion over P3X-289. Historical records on the planet refer to the stargate as the Gate of Mahg Mar, believed to have been of ritual significance in the worship of Morrigan. As a System Lord, Morrigan had a reputation for manipulation. Her servants were known to draw out strategic information in seemingly idle conversation. As one of the System Lords to attend the summit meeting in the Hassara System, Morrigan voted to allow Anubis's return to the rank of System Lord, however, as the forces of Anubis and of Ba'al sought domination over the System Lords, Morrigan's forces were overwhelmed and eventually capitulated.