<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

In the Stargate universe, Ancient drone weapons are powerful guided missiles invented by the Ancients. These weapons are a combination projectile/energy weapon with enormous destructive potential. They are controlled by the Ancient Control Chair and can only be activated by someone who has the ATA gene. They are commonly found in Ancients war ships, city ships, puddle jumpers, and outposts.

The weapons were first seen in the Stargate SG-1 episode "Lost City, Part 2." Jack O'Neill, under the influence of Ancient knowledge, uncovered the Antarctic outpost left behind by the Ancients. He successfully activated the control chair and fired thousands of drones, destroying Anubis's fleet. In the episode, the drones appeared to be made of energy, but in the Stargate Atlantis episode "Rising (Part 1)," a single drone was seen for the first time when Dr. Carson Beckett, a medical doctor with the ATA gene, accidentally fired one. The drone, undirected by his thoughts, sought out the nearest possible threat and attempted to destroy it. A drone resembles a squid, slightly translucent with flexible tentacles.

The weapons were used again in the episode "The Siege," during the Wraith attack on Atlantis. Major John Sheppard was able to fire several of Atlantis's remaining drones; the weapon had been depleted during the Ancients' war with the Wraith. In the episode "The Tower," Atlantis replenished her supply of drones when they came across a sister city that still had a nearly full complement of drones. In the episode, a ruthless ruler used the weapons to terrorize and ultimately destroy a nearby village. When the ZPM powering the city ran out of power, the drones, in the midst of being fired, also lost power and fell out of the sky.

The episode "Harmony", showed an example of further Ancient experimentation with drone weapons. Ancient ruins held a device that activated mini drones that operated in a swarm.

Operation

The drones are directed by the mind of the controller and, using the knowledge of the controller, they find their target and destroy it. The drones are released in a swarm of bright yellow lights and are extremely powerful, cutting through shields with no visible resistance. A single drone is capable of destroying a Ha'tak if it hits the right part of the ship.

The drones can also tunnel through solid material and continue on to their target. In "Lost City, Part 2," the drones are seen cutting through the Antarctic ice to reach their target. The drones also cut through Anubis's fleet, each drone destroying more than one ship.

Drones have an intelligence of their own and, after being fired, they can find and destroy their selected target without further user input.

The control chair is usually powered by a ZPM. In "The Siege," the Atlantis expedition uses a Mark II Naquadah Generator to power the chair.

Key Episodes

• "Lost City, Part 2"
• "Rising, Part 1"
• "Rising. Part 2"
• "The Siege"
• "The Tower"
• "No Man's Land"

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