Nausicaan
The Nausicaans were a humanoid species from the Beta Quadrant. Their homeworld was Nausicaa. (; ) They occupied a region of space located in the Alpha Quadrant. ()

Physiology 
Nausicaans were typically observed to have a large and muscular physique, generally surpassing two meters in height, with great physical strength. Their faces were commonly ashen in color and were distinguished by a prominent bone structure, with sharp tusks protruding at either side of their mouths. Some Nausicaans also had a line of four small horns that ran vertically down the forehead. (; , et al.) At least some individuals had eyes with black sclera and yellow irises, the latter of which glowed red when they were angered. ()

According to Doctor Phlox in 2151, the Nausicaan adrenal gland gave off a fragrance not unlike the scent of some female Humans' sweat after performing exercise. ()

The Nausicaan speaking voice could be both comparable to Human voices or be much deeper, with a distinct Nausicaan accent. (; )

History 
During the 22nd century, the Nausicaans were well-known pirates, attacking freighters in various sectors for years. The  had a run-in once with some Nausicaan pirates.

In the year 2151, Starfleet made first official contact with the Nausicaans when the Earth starship  intervened in a conflict involving the  and a force of Nausicaan pirates. () 

In the mid-2320s during his sophomore year, Cadet Jean-Luc Picard was assigned to training on Morikin VII where he had his first encounter with Nausicaans, who had an outpost on a nearby asteroid. ()

In 2327, the newly graduated Picard and two of his friends, Cortan Zweller and Marta Batanides, became involved in a fight at the Bonestell Recreation Facility on Starbase Earhart after a trio of Nausicaans cheated during a game of dom-jot. During a melee, one of the Nausicaans stabbed Picard through the heart with a Nausicaan sword, severely injuring him and necessitating the implanting of an artificial heart. ()

A Nausicaan was seen in a bar on Dessica II in 2370 while the senior staff of the  was searching for clues about the whereabouts of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in that establishment. ()

In 2371, a group of Nausicaan raiders used an ultrasonic generator to break in and rob the Central Museum of Remmil VI by breaking down one of the walls. ()

Nausicaans were a common choice as bodyguards or mercenaries – FCA liquidator Brunt used two Nausicaans as bodyguards in 2372, when he investigated a labor union set up by employees of Quark. The Nausicaans severely beat Quark in an unsuccessful attempt to force Rom to shut down the union. ()

In 2374, Quark proposed using Nausicaans to break his brother out of his holding cell on Terok Nor. For five bars of gold-pressed latinum, Quark could hire five Nausicaans, a fast ship, and very few questions. Breaking Rom out of the holding cell would have been child's play compared to the things Nausicaans are used to doing. () When discussing how to rescue Ishka from the Dominion, Rom suggested to gather the toughest mercenaries available, including Nausicaans, Breen and Klingons. () Later that year, Quark made 200 bars of gold-pressed latinum by selling Denevan crystals to a Nausicaan entrepreneur. ()

The Orion Syndicate was also known to hire Nausicaans. Miles O'Brien was attacked by several of them on New Sydney in 2375. ()

A Nausicaan representative was part of the holographic diplomacy scenario 12-alpha aboard the , in which  was to act as a mediator. Here, amongst other species, Nausicaans and Bolians were fighting over the mining rights to a dilithium-rich planetoid. The holographic Nausicaan claimed that the planetoid was within Nausicaan space and warned that they would attack anyone who came near it. ()

When he was attending Starfleet Academy, Bradward Boimler had a run-in with a group of Nausicaans who wanted to eat his heart. His friend  was able to talk them down to spitting in Boimler's face instead. ()

Technology and culture 

During the mid-22nd century, Nausicaans committed acts of piracy against freighters in the same sector for several years. Hunting parties of several warp-capable starships, armed with plasma cannons and protected by shields, worked out of Nausicaan cargo stations. The pirate crews were armed with hand-held directed energy weapons. ()

In the 23rd century, Nausicaan disruptor pistols were items which were readily traded by arms dealers. ()

A Nausicaan game, played by Brunt's bodyguards, involved tossing darts at each other's chests', as causing pain was a theme present in most Nausicaan games. ()

People

Appendices

Appearances 
 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 (hologram)

Background information 
There were at least two pronunciations of this species' name. One pronunciation, from the script for "Samaritan Snare", was "NAW-sik-can".  The other pronunciation, from the script for "Bar Association", was "NAW-si-can". 

According to the , this species was "named for the Greek  of the wind, as well as for the 1984 animated fantasy film ." Coincidentally, Patrick Stewart later lent his voice talent to an English redubbing of that  film in 2005.

In the final draft script of , this species was introduced with the description, "The Nausicaans are large, burly with hideous features."  The Nausicaan makeup consisted of a facial mask which was painted virtually the same color as bones. (Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts, p. 120)

In the audio commentary for "Tapestry", Denise Okuda erroneously told Ronald D. Moore that a Nausicaan appeared before that episode, in the installment ; she was likely thinking of the Chalnoth instead, due to the similarities in their physical appearance. As the commentary proceeded, Okuda referred to the Nausicaans as "great" and agreed with Moore that the Nausicaan mouth appliance looks especially good.

The depictions of Nausicaans as thugs and enforcers on  was partly due to their introduction in "Tapestry", as it was considered effective, and because they had considerably striking makeup. (Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts, p. 120)

In , the Nausicaans were originally to have captured Grand Nagus Zek and held him prisoner. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 29, Nos. 6/7, p. 55) Ira Steven Behr commented, months before that, "We'll do a show about [the Nausicaans] being an enemy for an episode." () Zek's captor was instead ultimately changed to being the Dominion.

In the stage directions from the script of , the Nausicaans were described as "tall with crab-like mandibles and a bad attitude." In an ultimately unused line of dialogue from the first draft of that script, Travis Mayweather commented Nausicaans were "the last people you want to meet out here." They were referred to as "a nasty-looking species" in the script of , which also noted they had last been depicted in "Fortunate Son".

A Nausicaan knife from "Tapestry" was sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay.

Apocrypha
Nausicaans appear as enemies in the video game Star Trek: The Next Generation - Klingon Honor Guard, where they are called "Nausicans".

The DS9 novel Warpath established that the Nausicaans believe in gods known as the Four Winds and when a Nausicaan dies, their soul, or tegol is brought to an afterlife called the Heart of the Sky where the Four Winds dwell, as well as the Nausicaan's friends and family. Author David Mack stated this was a tribute to the Greek myth of  and to the 1984 anime film  of which the Nausicaans are named after. 

In Star Trek Online, Nausicaans are a playable species for the Klingon faction. The Nausicaans were mercenaries allied with the Gorn during the Klingon-Gorn War and when the Gorn surrendered, the Naussicaans did too, becoming formal allies with the Klingon Empire. A few episodes in the game feature the Nausicaans as the player's opponents.

External link
 

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Species