Post by Board Keeper on Jan 3, 2011 9:30:21 GMT -5
The Jaffa
The Jaffa are descended from humans of earth, or from humans taken from earth and seeded throughout the galaxy. They are essentially human, though selective breeding and perhaps genetic engineering have made them exceptional.
They are the prime servants of the Goa'ould, and comprise their personal guards, servants and armies. The Goa'ould implant the Jaffa with their larval young which are removed when they reach maturity. Only a small percentage of the young naturally evolve past the larval stage, though the introduction of Naquida makes this an almost certainty. Naquida induced larvae are often raised to maturity in aquatic tanks.
Mature Goa'ould retain the memories of their ancestors, and can readily take control of their host body.
Jaffa, with the aid of their symbiotes (which, in the larval stage, they really are), are extremely long lived, resistant to disease and capable of fantastic healing rates.
Less than one percent of mature Goa'ould further mature to become Queens. Cloning is a common method of larval goa'ould creation by system lords lacking a queen - especially for use by the Jaffa.
Larval Goa'ould inhabit the abdomin while mature Goa'ould layer themselves over the spine with heads in the back of the throat and tendrils going up into the skull through the brain stem.
Some Jaffa have the larvae introduced via abdominal incisions. Others are introduced 'the old fashioned way', via the mouth.