Augment The term Augment was used to describe a group of genetically engineered Human s created by advances in DNA resequencing in the mid 20th century . In the 22nd century , Klingon s created their own Augments using the original augmented Human DNA . Traits . The Augments were designed to be remarkably agile , roughly five times stronger and more durable than an average Human , resistant to sickness and with enhanced senses , possessing heart muscles twice as strong and lung efficiency fifty percent better . Astonishingly , Augments didn ' t require oxygen to survive and their blood contained platelet s capable of regenerating from any disease or toxin , which could be used to cure or revive medical subjects via transfusion . They also had twice the average human lifespan . Even their resistance to directed energy weapon s was improved , as it took multiple shots with a phaser or a phase - pistol to stun one . They were even capable of resisting a Vulcan nerve pinch and mind meld . ( ; ; ) The intelligence of an Augment was exemplified by how , within a year of being awakened in the alternate reality , Khan Noonien Singh was already capable of designing entire advanced systems of mass destruction , including the , its advanced beam and missile weaponry , a propulsion system that enabled the interception of a ship while in warp , and torpedoes capable of eradicating large portions of a planet . He was able to do this despite having only outdated three - hundred - year - old technical knowledge , before being put in stasis . The ability to learn all of the latest technologies , beyond many post - doctoral qualifications , is a testament to how their artificially augmented superhuman intelligence was beyond the reach of even the most intelligent Humans . ( ) Despite their superior abilities , there were major defects in their genome as the Augments were belligerent , arrogant and ambitious , with a diminished sense of morality . One of the scientist s behind their creation said , " " Superior ability breeds superior ambition . " " Doctor Arik Soong later theorized that a defect in the genomes of the Augments created a malformation in the base - pair sequences that regulate the neurotransmitter levels in their brain s , causing them to be highly prone to aggression and violent behavior , and considered fixing this defect before incubating some embryos . ( ) History . The Eugenics Wars . In 1992 , the Augments born around the late 1950s seized power in over forty nations on Earth , leading to the conflict known to them as the Eugenics Wars , as they battled among each other and with " normal " Humans . The Augments were mostly horrible despots , treating their subjects like slaves . ( ; ) The Augments were finally overthrown in 1996 ; the last to be deposed was Khan Noonien Singh . After the end of the war some eighty Augments were unaccounted for , including Khan . ( ) Earth authorities collected the remaining Augment embryos and placed them into storage ; by the 2130s they were stored on the Earth Starfleet facility Cold Station 12 . ( ) As a result of the Wars , genetic engineering was banned on Earth ; scientist Stavos Keniclius who planned to clone Augments to create a master race of peace keepers , was exiled from the planet . ( ) Soong ' s Augments . In the 2130s , Arik Soong , senior medical director of Cold Station 12 , managed to steal several Augment embryos from the facility , which he took to the Trialas system , where he raised the resulting children as his own . A decade later he was captured by Earth forces , but refused to disclose what had happened to the embryos . ( ) In May 2154 the answer to this puzzle was discovered when Soong ' s Augments , led by Malik , seized control of a jettisoning its crew into space . ( ) The Klingons recovered these bodies , and discovering the Human DNA on them , threatened war . was launched to the Borderland to find these Augments and bring them back to Earth , and Arik Soong was recruited to assist the ship in doing so . Unfortunately , Soong managed to escape on Verex III and rejoin his Augments , who then planned to use their Bird - of - Prey to free the thousands of other embryos on Cold Station 12 . ( ) All of these Augments were killed when Malik destroyed their Bird - of - Prey to avoid capture . Soong , who " defected " to " Enterprise " , decided afterwards to switch his focus to cybernetic s . ( ) See also : The Augment Crisis Klingon Augments . After the Augment crisis , the Klingons attempted to create their own augments to combat the Humans , believing that Humans would place Augments on their ships and put the Klingons at a severe disadvantage , despite Vulcan ' s assurance that Earth had banned such genetic enhancement decades ago . They were able to retrieve multiple embryos left over in the debris of the Augment Bird - of - Prey and implemented their DNA in certain Klingons . However , due to the aggressiveness of Augment DNA , the cranial ridges started to dissolve and the Klingon Augments completely lacked ridges on their foreheads . These subjects did gain increased strength and intelligence , but they died when their neural pathway s degraded . Unfortunately , one of the subjects was suffering from Levodian flu , which was modified by the Augment genes to become a deadly , airborne plague that spread throughout the Empire . An early symptom of this plague caused victims to lose the ridges on their foreheads and to look more Human . Other symptoms included irregular heart beat , chest pain , and tingling in the cranial ridges . A cure was eventually created by Phlox which halted the virus in the first stage , retaining the changes in appearance but with no enhanced strength , speed , or endurance . This left millions of Klingons without their ridges , an alteration that was even passed on to their children , though it was hoped that one day gene therapy would be developed to reverse the effects . ( ; ; TOS " et al . " ) The effects of this virus were reversed in at least part of the population by the 2270s . ( ) The return of Khan . The fate of Khan and his Augments remained unknown until 2267 , when the discovered the , a sleeper ship . Aboard the ship was Khan and 72 of his fellow Augments ( twelve had died due to stasis unit failure in the interim ) . At first the " Enterprise " crew was unaware of the true identity of Khan , but when it was discovered , Khan attempted to take the ship , though he ultimately failed . " Enterprise " commanding officer James T . Kirk generously offered Khan and his followers voluntary exile to the uninhabited Class M planet Ceti Alpha V , and Khan accepted . ( ) Unfortunately , six months later the nearby planet Ceti Alpha VI exploded , causing the orbit of Ceti Alpha V to shift , which devastated the planet ' s environment . The dominant remaining lifeform was the Ceti eel , which claimed many of Khan ' s followers . In 2285 , Khan seized control of the , intending to use it to destroy Kirk in revenge for what had happened to him and his people . In the end , Khan died when " Reliant " was destroyed by the detonation of the Genesis Device after a heated battle in the Mutara Nebula . ( ) In 2258 of the alternate reality , Admiral begun a Militarization conspiracy . He sought and discovered " Botany Bay " , revived and using his crew as leverage , recruited him into Section 31 . Khan served Marcus under the identity of John Harrison . Marcus believed Khan ' s savage brilliance was required for an inevitable conflict with the Klingon Empire . In 2259 , after Khan thought Marcus had executed his crew , he went rogue and put his crew inside 72 advanced long - range torpedo es , but these were apprehended by Marcus . The Admiral covertly had them loaded to the with orders to fire them against Khan , but things went differently . The true nature of the torpedoes was discovered when and attempted to diffuse and examine one . Khan orchestrated a bombing in London and attacked Starfleet Headquarters . He eventually murdered Marcus and crashed the severely damaged into San Francisco . and apprehended Khan and he was placed back into suspended animation along with the rest of his crew . ( ) Appendices . Appearances . The term " Augment " itself was only used in the 22nd century episodes of ENT . The term was only known to have applied to those whose DNA was genetically engineered in the 20th century . The following episodes featured Human Augments : Apocrypha . Greg Cox ' " " novels depict the Augments as being created via . " The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh , Volume One " states Khan was born in 1970 . In contrast , the " " comic book series written by Mike Johnson depicts the Augments as children who were kidnapped and subjected to tests , where their genetic code was overwritten by DNA synthesized by their captors . The comic , a tie - in to , is closer to the timeframe given by the film for the Augments ' date of birth .