Ranger (Babylon 5)
Encyclopedia
Rangers are a fictional class of warrior
s that play a prominent role in the science fiction
television series Babylon 5
.
during the First Shadow War
. When the 3 castes refused to work with him to defeat the Shadows, he went outside the caste system. He used the creation of the Anla-shok to teach the Minbari his first lesson: When fighting a war, you fight a war, not get into an argument about the supremacy of castes. The word "Anla-shok" comes from the Minbari term for "The Application of Force".
After the First Shadow War, the Anla-shok went into something of a dormant state while awaiting the prophesied second Shadow War that Valen warned would occur in the future.
As the centuries passed, the Rangers status seriously declined as the Minbari government, particularly the Minbari Warrior Caste members of the Grey Council, grew to doubt the validity of the prophecy. As such, the organization became seriously undermanned and underfunded, especially by the time of the 23rd Century (Terran Calendar) when the predicted signs of the Shadows'
return were starting to become evident.
During the interim between the Shadow Wars, the Anla-shok were usually led by the Anla-shok Na or Ranger One until the reappearance of Jeffrey Sinclair
, who took Valen's title of Entil'zha or the One Who Creates The Future. After Sinclair's disappearance, Ambassador Delenn
took over the leadership of the Rangers until her election to the Presidency of the Interstellar Alliance
, at which point she passed on leadership of the Rangers (and the title of Entil'zha) to Sheridan. After Sheridan was taken from the galaxy by Lorien
, Susan Ivanova
became the new Anla-shok Na/Ranger One, although she did not inherit the title Entil'zha.
broke out, Lenonn (the leader of the Rangers at the time) attempted to reach a peaceful settlement to the conflict, with the help of the Narn Regime, but was killed when a Centauri sneak attack hit the meeting after they mistook it for a weapons transfer between the Narns and Humans.
After the war's conclusion, the Rangers were largely dormant, but were soon reorganized and strengthened as evidence of the Shadows' reappearance became obvious in certain circles.
After the resolution of the conflict, the Rangers became a prominent peacekeeping force in known space and would still be existent one million years
in the future after the humans
and probably the Minbari became beings like the First Ones
.
Warrior
A warrior is a person skilled in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based society that recognizes a separate warrior class.-Warrior classes in tribal culture:...
s that play a prominent role in the science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...
.
History
The Anla-shok (Rangers) were originally created by ValenValen
Valen is a character in the fictional universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5. Although he has only one scene in the show, he is an important character in the history of the Minbari, and is frequently mentioned...
during the First Shadow War
Shadow War
The Shadow Wars are a fictional series of wars involving the Shadows in the television science fiction series Babylon 5. There have actually been many Shadow Wars since ancient times in the galaxy. Roughly every thousand years, the Shadows begin a new Shadow War to promote chaos in the universe in...
. When the 3 castes refused to work with him to defeat the Shadows, he went outside the caste system. He used the creation of the Anla-shok to teach the Minbari his first lesson: When fighting a war, you fight a war, not get into an argument about the supremacy of castes. The word "Anla-shok" comes from the Minbari term for "The Application of Force".
After the First Shadow War, the Anla-shok went into something of a dormant state while awaiting the prophesied second Shadow War that Valen warned would occur in the future.
As the centuries passed, the Rangers status seriously declined as the Minbari government, particularly the Minbari Warrior Caste members of the Grey Council, grew to doubt the validity of the prophecy. As such, the organization became seriously undermanned and underfunded, especially by the time of the 23rd Century (Terran Calendar) when the predicted signs of the Shadows'
Shadow (Babylon 5)
The Shadows are a fictional alien species in the science fiction television series Babylon 5. Their homeworld is Z'ha'dum. In contrast to the Vorlons, whose philosophy is represented by the question "Who are you?", that of the Shadows is represented by the question "What do you want?", centering...
return were starting to become evident.
During the interim between the Shadow Wars, the Anla-shok were usually led by the Anla-shok Na or Ranger One until the reappearance of Jeffrey Sinclair
Jeffrey Sinclair
Jeffrey Sinclair is a character in the fictional universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by actor Michael O'Hare. He was a regular in the first season of the show, as Commander of the Babylon 5 station, and made a number of guest appearances afterward.-Early life and...
, who took Valen's title of Entil'zha or the One Who Creates The Future. After Sinclair's disappearance, Ambassador Delenn
Delenn
Delenn is a fictional lead character in the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Mira Furlan.-Overview:Delenn, an alien ambassador and leader from the planet Minbar, is one of the pivotal characters in Babylon 5....
took over the leadership of the Rangers until her election to the Presidency of the Interstellar Alliance
Interstellar Alliance (Babylon 5)
The Interstellar Alliance is a fictional interstellar government of civilizations in the Babylon 5 universe.Formed in 2261 AD in the aftermath of the liberation of Earth and the Shadow War, the Interstellar Alliance was formed between the Minbari, Narn, Centauri, the Earth Alliance and the...
, at which point she passed on leadership of the Rangers (and the title of Entil'zha) to Sheridan. After Sheridan was taken from the galaxy by Lorien
Lorien (Babylon 5)
Lorien is a fictional character from the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. He appears at the start of season four and again in the last episode of the show. Lórien is also a name given to one of the Valar, god-like beings in the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien, of whom series...
, Susan Ivanova
Susan Ivanova
Susan Ivanova is a fictional character in the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Claudia Christian.-Character overview:...
became the new Anla-shok Na/Ranger One, although she did not inherit the title Entil'zha.
Earth-Minbari War
When the Earth-Minbari WarEarth-Minbari War
The Earth–Minbari War is a fictional war that formed a major part of the back story of the science fiction television series, Babylon 5. The war was fought between the Earth Alliance and the Minbari, an older alien race that overwhelmingly outmatched Earth in terms of technology and weapons...
broke out, Lenonn (the leader of the Rangers at the time) attempted to reach a peaceful settlement to the conflict, with the help of the Narn Regime, but was killed when a Centauri sneak attack hit the meeting after they mistook it for a weapons transfer between the Narns and Humans.
After the war's conclusion, the Rangers were largely dormant, but were soon reorganized and strengthened as evidence of the Shadows' reappearance became obvious in certain circles.
Shadow War
When the Shadows finally made first openly aggressive acts, the force swung into action under the command of Jeffrey Sinclair (Known as The One who was), Delenn (The One who is), and John Sheridan (The One who will be), and became a central part of the opposing alliance.After the resolution of the conflict, the Rangers became a prominent peacekeeping force in known space and would still be existent one million years
The Deconstruction of Falling Stars
"The Deconstruction of Falling Stars" is the final episode of the fourth season of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5. This was the final episode of Babylon 5 to air on PTEN.-Synopsis:...
in the future after the humans
Human (Babylon 5)
Humans are one of the many races in the fictional Babylon 5 universe. They appear in all seasons of Babylon 5, and all of its spinoffs. Their homeworld is Earth, from which the interstellar Earth Alliance is governed...
and probably the Minbari became beings like the First Ones
First Ones
The First Ones is the collective name of a group of aliens from the television science fiction drama Babylon 5.-Overview:The First Ones are the ancient alien races of the galaxy, the first organisms to achieve sentience and the first to become spacefaring. Of these races, Lorien's was the first,...
.
Characteristics
- After Sinclair was given command of the Rangers, many races were admitted who were previously forbidden from joining, such as aliens and worker-caste Minbari.
- The badge of their office is their black and grey robes that include a large pin that has a large green crystal in the center, which is surrounded by a human and a Minbari at either side with the crystal symbolizing the Future or Isil'zha. This is a recent style, however. The original badge used had a pair of Minbari hands holding the gem, but the two heads design was chosen to symbolize the unity of the two races. According to the book To Dream in the City of Sorrows, which is considered canon, the crystal is partly created by the blood of human and Minbari, and is highly prized by its bearer.
- Their preferred weapon in close quarters is the Minbari Fighting Pike, also known as the Denn'Bok. It is quite compact and easy to carry, but can open up to be a formidable weapon. The weapon is not dependent on an energy source, unlike the PPGPhased plasma gunThe Phased Plasma Gun is a fictional weapon from the television series Babylon 5. It fires a small charge of superheated helium. This gas retains both its shape and small volume via a residual magnetic field. Upon impact with an object, the magnetic field is dissipated and the heat discharged...
pistols carried by Earthforce personnel. It takes a great deal of training and skill to use the weapon in an effective and in a relatively safe manner. Most weapons are quite old - the pike Marcus Cole carried was at least 700 years old. As the weapon is handed down from generation to generation, production of new pikes is rather limited. Because of the effort to keep the fighting pikes from falling into the wrong hands, they can fetch a considerable price on the black market.
- Their main space vehicles are the White Stars, medium sized starships that are made up of combined Minbari and VorlonVorlonA Vorlon is a member of a fictional alien species in the Babylon 5 television series and fictional universe. The Vorlon species is a member of the First Ones, a group made up of the earliest species to gain sentience in the galaxy...
technology to produce a superior small fighting ship.
- As depicted in the TV movie, Legend of the RangersBabylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers-External links:* at...
, the organization traditionally takes a dim view of retreating from a battle under any circumstances, even when it is prudent to do so. For instance, Ranger David Martel had to assume command of his ship and decided to disengage from battle when his ship was severely damaged. Even though his ship's fighting ability was completely disabled beyond field repair and staying would have been uselessly suicidal, Martel was court martialed by the Ranger governing council and was in peril of being expelled for retreating. Fortunately, Ambassador G'Kar ably spoke on Martel's behalf to prevent his dismissal by noting that the council's stance is unreasonable. When Martel and his crew became the heroes of the hour by saving an ambassadorial party from The Hand, the council was apparently willing to reconsider their previous inflexibility. However, when compared to several on-screen occasions where the Rangers have been seen retreating, this should perhaps instead be viewed as a simple and inefficient plot device simply to move the story along.
- Their Oath: "We walk in the dark places no others will enter. We stand on the bridge and no one may pass. We live for the One, we die for the One"