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Stone of gol

T'Paal wields the reassembled Stone of Gol

Stone of Gol artifact

One of the three fragments, depicting the Vulcan God of War (left) and Death (right)

Stone of Gol used on Vekor

Psionic blast from the resonator

The Stone of Gol was an ancient weapon conceived on Vulcan during the turbulent times before the Time of Awakening. It functioned as a psionic resonator which focused and amplified telepathic energy, specifically any violent thoughts and emotions many hold and then turned them back upon the person experiencing them. However, if the target was able to empty their mind of violent thoughts, the resonator had nothing to amplify and so was unable to operate. Since the teachings of Surak were aimed at precisely this kind of emotional control, the psionic resonator subsequently became useless against his followers during the Time of Awakening.

The glyphs and pictograms on the resonator were consistent with the early Vulcan language. On the posterior side of the resonator, there were warnings to anyone who opposed the resonator that they would know death and destruction. On the anterior side of the resonator, there were three symbols representing the ancient Vulcan gods. The outer symbols were war and death, with the symbol for peace standing between the two. According to Jean-Luc Picard, "It's a warning that the power of the resonator can be overcome by peace."

Following Surak's success at bringing logic to Vulcan, the resonator was largely forgotten. Over time it became known as the "Stone of Gol", known only as a myth and it was believed to have been destroyed by the Vulcan gods when Vulcans found the way towards peace. In truth, the weapon became disassembled in the Time of Awakening and its three pieces became scattered over large distances of space.

The Vulcan Isolationist Movement stole the first fragment in 2369 from a heavily guarded museum on Vulcan and hired mercenaries across the quadrant to find the two remaining pieces. Captain Picard managed to infiltrate the crew of Baran's ship and located all three pieces. T'Paal, a member of the isolationist movement, had also infiltrated the crew as Romulan mercenary Tallera and attempted to steal the resonator. She successfully reassembled the Stone of Gol in the T'Karath Sanctuary and used it against the mercenaries, but Picard was able to interpret the Vulcan symbols on the resonator to work out how to withstand an attack.

Minister Satok of the V'Shar took custody of the resonator and assured Picard that it would be destroyed. (TNG: "Gambit, Part II")

Ronald D. Moore named the Stone after the plateau where Spock studied in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. (Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion (2nd ed., p. 267))

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