Kang Kang was among the most influential leaders and feared diplomats in the Klingon Empire during the late 23rd and early 24th centuries . As a product of 22nd century genetic engineering , Kang was a descendant from Klingon s affected with the Klingon augment virus created in 2154 . ( ) By the 2290s , Kang was outwardly cured of this affliction either through medical treatment , cosmetic surgery , or a combination of both . ( ) Throughout his illustrious career , Kang played key roles in many legendary battles against the Federation , both on the battlefield and at the negotiation table . As a result of his prowess , Kang ' s status within the Empire was revered to the extent that he achieved the status of a Klingon " Dahar " Master . His glory further succeeded him , after his death in 2370 , when he earned his own statue among the Hall of Heroes on Qo ' noS . ( ) Kang wed his wife , Mara , prior to 2268 ; she later served as Kang ' s science officer aboard his battle cruiser during the late 2260s . By 2290 , Kang had his first son , whom he named Dax , in honor of his friend , the Federation ambassador to Qo ' noS , Curzon Dax . ( ; ) Military career . Much of Kang ' s early career is unknown . However , by the 2260s , he had achieved the rank of commander , and was assigned the command of his own battle cruiser . ( ) Conflicts with the Federation . While responding to a distress call at Beta XII - A in 2268 , Kang ' s battle cruiser sustained massive internal damage after the ship became disabled , resulting in the deaths of 400 of his crew . As the ship drifted towards Beta XII - A , Kang beamed down to the planet to discover Captain Kirk on the surface . Kang accused Kirk of attacking his ship and took Kirk prisoner , while claiming the orbit ing for the Klingon Empire . Kang convinced Kirk to beam the group up to the " Enterprise " , where he and the remaining thirty - seven survivors were transported aboard as prisoners . Kang ' s wrecked ship was destroyed by the " Enterprise " , because of the danger it posed by emitting a massive amount of hazardous radiation . Aboard the " Enterprise " , intense fighting broke out between the two groups , as the ship mysteriously hurtled toward the galactic rim . The emergency bulkhead s of the " Enterprise " , soon after , sealed themselves , trapping 392 members of the " Enterprise " crew below decks . The entire situation – including the phantom Beta XII - A colony , imaginary distress calls , and transmutation of the weapon s aboard the " Enterprise " – were discovered to have been engineered by an unknown energy being that thrived on the belligerent emotion s precipitated from the ingrained hatred between the Klingon Empire and Federation . Through the cooperation of Mara , Kirk was able to cooperate with Kang to drive the lifeform away by generating positive emotions . ( ) Relations with the Federation continued to periodically flare up , throughout the latter half of the 23rd century . On one such occasion , Captain Kang , together with Captain Kor , lead two divisions of warships in an ancient Earth cavalry - style attack on a Federation outpost at Caleb IV . During the attack , Kang and Kor successfully tricked their opponents by first launching a small initial attack , and then striking with the bulk of the forces when the Federation began repair efforts . ( ) In 2289 , Kang represented the Klingon Empire in negotiations with the Federation , represented by Curzon Dax , on the Korvat colony . ( ) Later career . Kang , Koloth and Kor , who originally set out with forty legions , together held the Korma Pass against T ' nag ' s army in a glorious battle in a trinary star system . The three warriors forced the enemy to fight with the blinding light of three sun s in their eyes . The battle ended with the mountainside covered with so many dead that there was not a square meter of ground to be seen . They together feasted on T ' nag ' s heart , in celebration of their victory . ( ) In 2293 , after having met at Beta XII - A , Kang once again encountered Captain Sulu , now in command of the , in the Azure Nebula , as Sulu attempted a foray into Klingon space . After congratulating Sulu for his well - deserved captaincy , he threatened him to " not let it end prematurely " . Sulu claimed to have gotten lost ; Kang " insisted " he escort " Excelsior " to Federation space , but Sulu was determined to continue his unauthorized mission to rescue Kirk and Dr . Leonard McCoy from Rura Penthe . To evade Kang , Sulu ignited the volatile sirillium gas inside the nebula , which his ship had exited first , disabling Kang ' s battle cruiser and ensuring the " Excelsior " s escape . ( ) Kang commanded many ships in his career . In 2372 , Kang ' s friend Kor had a dream about discovering the Sword of Kahless . In the dream , the statues of Kang and Koloth in the Hall of Heroes would turn to flesh and blood , as the trio presented the Sword to Emperor Kahless . Kang ' s ship then uncloaked above , a swirl of song transported the trio into its embrace , and the ship streaked away into the golden light to the gates of " Sto - vo - kor " . ( ) During the late 2280s , a band of depredators , led by the Albino , began raiding Klingon colonies . Three Klingon warship s , commanded by Kang , Koloth and Kor , were sent out to stop him . Their mission was successful in capturing most of the depredators . However , the Albino was able to escape . In the Albino ' s last message to the Klingons , he promised to take his revenge on the firstborn of each of the three captains . Within a few years , the Albino kept his word and managed to infect the warriors ' three innocent children with a genetic virus that eventually killed them . ( ) The blood oath . In 2290 , Kor , Kang , Koloth , and Curzon Dax pledged a blood oath to avenge the deaths of their sons , the offense committed by the Albino . They nearly caught the Albino at Galdonterre , but one of their subspace messages was intercepted and he , once again , was able to escape . In 2363 , after decades of searching , Kang discovered one of the Albino ' s discarded wives on Dayos IV . Kang fed and clothed her . He later told her the story of his murdered son and his quest for the Albino . Although she said nothing of the Albino ' s location , Kang suspected that she knew where he was . In early 2370 , Kang received an amulet , sent to him through the recently deceased former wife of the Albino . The amulet revealed to Kang the whereabouts of the Albino , who had a compound located on Secarus IV . Kang traveled to the Secarus system to confirm the revelation , only to be immediately contacted by the Albino , who , unexpectedly , invited the trio to a " fair fight " and one last glorious battle – forty of the Albino ' s best warriors against his four pursuers . Not expecting victory but willing to settle for an honorable death in battle , Kang accepted . Three months later , the Klingons assembled at Deep Space 9 , where ' s then - current host , Lieutenant Jadzia Dax , was assigned . Kang informed the others of the Albino ' s location but not of what happened when he had gone there . Kang objected to Jadzia ' s inclusion , believing she was not bound by Curzon ' s blood oath . Though she convinced Kor and Koloth to support her , Kang continued to resist until he reluctantly relented . En route to Secarus , Dax pressed Kang on the matter until he finally admitted the truth to her and , eventually , the others . It was later discovered that the Albino had never had any intention of honoring his word and had laid a trap by planting a gravitic mine at the threshold of his compound . Dax suggested using the Albino ' s expectations to their advantage and plan a new strategy . Using the element of surprise , they bombarded the compound with tetryon particles , rendering any energy - based weapons useless , and forcing the Albino and his sentries into face - to - face , hand - to - hand combat . Koloth was fatally wounded fighting the Albino ' s personal guard . Kang ' s " bat ' leth " was shattered during a fierce battle with the Albino and Kang was mortally wounded . However , Kang managed to kill the Albino ( held at bay by Dax ) , by stabbing him in the heart with a " d ' k tahg " , before Kang died as well . Having fulfilled their blood oath , both Kang and Koloth died glorious and honorable deaths . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Pronunciation . According to the script for " Blood Oath " , his name was pronounced as " KANG " . Conception . The role of Kang , as written for , was actually first intended to be a reappearance of Kor . Once it was determined that Kor actor John Colicos couldn ' t play the part ( much to his frustration ) , the character ' s name was changed and a suitable actor was sought . ( " The Star Trek Interview Book " , p . 147 ; " " # 164 ) Portrayals . Joseph Campanella was nearly accepted for the part of Kang but was rejected out of fears that he wouldn ' t be able to draw " enough fire . " ( " The Star Trek Interview Book " , p . 147 ; ' # 164 ) Next , Michael Ansara was considered to play Kang . Ansara was attracted by the nobility embodied in the role , finding Kang " a " magnificent " character to play ! " He later said , " " Immediately , just from reading the script , I knew how special the role was and how rare it was to find a character like this in either television or film . " " Ansara was also interested in playing Kang because the character reminded him of several of his previous roles , two of which had many of the same qualities as Kang . Ansara was finally cast as Kang and found that appearing as the Klingon in " Day of the Dove " was " a pleasure to do . " ( ' # 138 , p . 32 ) The actor tried to avoid turning Kang into a villainous caricature by not thinking of him as evil , just a misunderstood , passionate leader . " " When I did that first " Star Trek " episode , " " Ansara reflected , " " I played Kang as a dynamic character [ . . . ] I never thought of Kang as a bad guy – he was doing what he thought was right . " " ( ) Michael Ansara portrayed Kang in all of his appearances . Though Ansara would have been willing to return as Kang on , that opportunity never presented itself , as the series was canceled shortly after " Day of the Dove " was first broadcast . The performer was disappointed not to be asked back for the subsequent featuring the TOS cast , commenting , " " I must admit , I missed seeing myself up there on the big screen as Kang . " " ( " " # 138 , p . 32 ) Kang was originally intended to be commemorated , by Robert Hewitt Wolfe , in the naming of a poem called " The Fall of Kang " from the episode . In retrospect , Wolfe recalled , " " I thought , ' It ' s been eighty years and he was a real cool guy ; he probably went out in a blaze of glory . " " The fact Kang reappeared in later caused the DS9 writing staff to suggest several alternatives to explain how the Kang referenced in the poem was a different person to Michael Ansara ' s Kang . ( " " , p . 104 ) Peter Allan Fields , writer of " Blood Oath " , based Kang ' s persona in that episode on ' s character of Chris Adams from . When required to reprise the role of Kang in " Blood Oath " , Michael Ansara turned out to be an easy find for " Deep Space Nine " s casting personnel , though he was surprised to be asked back to " Star Trek " . ( " " , pp . 131 & 132 ) He was once again thrilled to portray the Klingon , thinking it " still was a good role . " ( ) On the other hand , Ansara discovered that reviving the role for DS9 " was strange , really strange . " Despite the fact that Kang had clearly undergone some physical changes , Ansara still played him as the same character . " " I gave him the same kind of voice and personality , " " the performer explained . " " I felt the same way about the character – Kang is a very powerful outer space being . " " Additionally , owing to the amount of makeup involved , Ansara thought that playing the Klingon again was challenging . " " It was a long , hard day every day , " " the actor critiqued . ( ) Director Winrich Kolbe decided that Kang ' s death was to take place at the top of a flight of stairs , but Fields was disappointed that a close - up shot of Kang dying was not used . ( " " , pp . 131 & 132 ) Even though Kang had appeared in both " Day of the Dove " and " Blood Oath " by the time his involvement in was devised , that episode ' s script mentioned only his appearance in " Blood Oath " . The scripted scene description for when Kang first appears in " Flashback " stipulated that Kang was to look younger than he had in the DS9 episode . Reception . Some production staffers very much enjoyed Michael Ansara ' s performances as Kang . Jerome Bixby , who initially conceived Kang , was highly pleased with Ansara ' s first portrayal of the character in " Day of the Dove " , exclaiming , " " Ansara ' s great in it ! " " and further remarking , " " [ He ] just ate up the part . " " ( ' # 164 ; " The Star Trek Interview Book " , p . 147 ) Bixby was also interested in being paid a royalty for the reuse of Kang in DS9 , commenting , " " In the long run that may be more damaging to them because they used the same character . Kang will probably mean some bucks for me . " " ( " Captains ' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages " , p . 74 ) Fellow Klingon - playing actor Mark Lenard , who featured as a Klingon captain in , characterized Ansara as " a great Klingon . " ( ' # 138 , p . 35 ) Ansara himself considered Kang to be " one of the best characters I ' ve ever played . " ( " " , p . 131 ) Fan response to Kang was extreme . In a interview , Michael Ansara mused , " " What ' s amazing is that even today , I still get recognized for that part . It is pleasurable and always positive , but surprising . I played that character almost 20 years ago , but people still remember . " " ( " " # 138 , p . 32 ) The actor once speculated that people responded to Kang because he was a natural leader and because Ansara played him not as a simple bad guy but as an individual who believed in what he was doing . ( ) Trivia . In Marc Okrand ' s " tlhIngan Hol " language , Kang ' s name is properly rendered as qeng . ( " The Klingon Dictionary " 2nd ed . , p . 58 ) Matt Groening , creator of , named his recurring alien characters , after Kang the Klingon and Kodos , a character in . " Rage of the Red Lanterns " , a 2017 episode of the animated series ' Justice League Action ' , contains an homage to Kang . The character of Atrocitus , voiced by Michael Dorn , echoes Kang when he utters the line , " But for today , only a fool fights in a burning house . " That animated episode also featured Armin Shimerman .