Borg sphere model Following on from the sophisticated Borg type 03 , showcased once in the season seven episode , the Borg sphere was the first " simple shape " devised as an alternative design of Borg spacecraft to the Borg cube and cubical Borg scout ship . The writers of , in which the sphere was introduced , were originally very eager for the visual impact of a brand new form of Borg ship and it was thereafter decided that a sphere - shaped vessel was the way to go . ( " " , issue 10 , p . 12 ) Brannon Braga , a co - writer of " First Contact " , mused , " " The idea that we would introduce that Borg ships had different shapes . They weren ' t all cubes . We have a sphere . It was like this great new idea , you know ? " " ( DVD / , audio commentary ) Design . Designers of the Borg sphere were concerned it might look too much like the from " Star Wars " . Many discussions were had about this issue , conversations in which illustrator John Eaves , who was ultimately most directly responsible for designing the Borg sphere , participated . ( " The Borg Collective : Design Matrix " , DVD / ; " " , issue 10 , p . 12 ) Someone else present sarcastically commented that nobody would remember the Death Star . Joking aside , anxiety about the Borg sphere ' s resemblance to that iconic , militaristic space station remained , especially considering that the much - hyped movie " " was also being made at the time . " " The sphere came out where we had to redesign it , where it wouldn ' t be Death Star - ish , " " noted Eaves . ( " The Borg Collective : Design Matrix " , DVD / ) Production Designer Herman Zimmerman described this issue as " our biggest problem " and " our biggest challenge . " ( " " , p . 71 ; " " , issue 10 , p . 12 ) In essence , everyone was determined to ensure the Borg sphere looked unique . ( ) Initially , an alternative design of Borg sphere was suggested in artwork by illustrator Ricardo Delgado , who made his version look radically different to anything seen before . One half of the sphere ' s hull would be composed of traditional Borg panels , whereas the other half would be a force field containing a gaseous energy that the sphere used for fuel . ( ) The design team ' s interest in distinguishing the Borg sphere from the Death Star became a central influence in devising the former vessel ' s configuration . " " So we came up with a shape that has very , very deep facets , " " said John Eaves , toward whom the design work gravitated , " " More like sections of an apple , cut , with big open cores on either end . And that ' s kind of where the design essence came from . " " ( " The Borg Collective : Design Matrix " , DVD / ) The minute detailing on the Borg sphere ' s hull , however , took its cue from that on the hull of the Borg cube from . Stated Eaves , " " We [ . . . ] left cylindrical openings at the north and south poles where all the detail comes to an edge , then cascades down into a half sphere . Looking down on it , you can see a ' dome inside a dome . " " ( " " , p . 204 ) Eaves presented a series of concept drawings for Herman Zimmerman and Producer Rick Berman to review . These sketches , at least the first two of which were dated January 1996 , were drawn and submitted during pre - production on " First Contact " . ( ; " " , pp . 204 - 206 ) The design process was a fairly short one , though it explored several directions that were ultimately rejected . " " At one point , it was going to be little spheres inside of a sphere , " " said Eaves , " " then it grew away from that . " " The original illustration John Eaves drew of the Borg sphere was a sketch in blue ink . " " My first drawing was of a staggered puzzle - piece looking sphere , " " he remarked . " " It had a little escape pod inside of it and you could see this kind of undersphere under the surface . That was a good direction ; Herman and Mr . Berman liked it . They told me to keep going and to keep the shapes really irregular ; they didn ' t want any mathematical patterns whatsoever . " " ( ) John Eaves proceeded with his second pass , making the detailing on the hull slightly more random than first conceived . " " I took it a little bit further , and made the next one with really raised surfaces and very inset surfaces , " " explained Eaves . ( ) In the same concept illustration , he hid the names of his wife Diane and his two daughters , Olivia and Alicia , among the sphere ' s extremely intricate outer details . Eaves added , " " What ' s funny about this is that Playmates put out a toy Borg sphere – which just happens to contain the first initial of everyone ' s name . " " ( " " , pp . 205 & 215 ) Based on the plot point that the sphere was to be depicted as firing on Bozeman , Montana from overhead , John Eaves outfitted his second sketch of the sphere with a large weapons platform , represented by a series of rings on the hull that appeared to recede deep inside the vessel . Although this second drawing was generally almost exactly what the quality control group was looking for , everyone had an issue with the illustration of the weapons platform . " " They wanted an open hole with some rings , but that did look too like the Death Star , " " remembered Eaves , " " so we got rid of it . " " ( ) John Eaves did one final drawing of the Borg sphere . Featuring heavy paneling and exposed pipes , this illustration was colorized and , as far as Eaves could see , it seemed to please Herman Zimmerman and Rick Berman . ( ) The final design of the Borg sphere retained the " sphere inside a sphere " concept as well as the circular opening for the ship ' s firing mechanism . However , both are considerably difficult to identify and the weapons port was covered by paneling . ( ) Apart from the layout of the vessel , another method used by the designers in their efforts to individualize the Borg sphere related to its movements . John Eaves explained , " " We thought if we added a a little bit of a spin to it , it would take away from the static , locked - off shot ; the Death Star , you always see coming in . So we thought if we add some motion to it , maybe change the colors , and the deep facets would take it away from being an easy , recognizable shape . " " ( " The Borg Collective : Design Matrix " , DVD / ) In the end , the team tried to contrast the Borg sphere from not only the forenamed facility from " Star Wars " but also another spherical craft from the film . Eaves recalled , " " Finding a new way to execute a spherical design that wasn ' t reminiscent of either film was difficult , but I did my darnedest to make it as different as possible . " " ( " " , p . 204 ) Herman Zimmerman concluded , " " I think we managed that successfully . We just made it look completely different . The Borg , of course , have a unique look , and we Borgified that sphere . " " ( " " , p . 71 ) Studio models . The Borg sphere started out as a traditional , physical studio model . However , advances in computer technology resulted in the addition of a digital one as well , especially once it was decided that the Borg were to play a major role in the television series . Physical studio model . The external complexities of the Borg sphere meant it was easier to depict realistically with a studio model than with CGI . ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 28 , No . 6 , p . 23 ) Shortly after Industrial Light & Magic model - maker John Goodson was appointed to lead the task of constructing the model , he received a phone call from John Eaves , in which Eaves expressed that they needed to do everything they could to make the sphere look new and interesting . ( ) The model of the Borg sphere was two feet in diameter . " " We vacuformed about fifteen different patterns that conformed to this spherical curve , and covered those with a lot of molded and cast pieces , " " explained John Goodson . " " Then we added tons of acid - etched brass over it , just like we had on the cube . " " ( " Cinefex " , No . 69 , p . 109 ) As well as Goodson , team members Barbara Affonso and Giovanni Donovan also worked on the model . ( " Cinefex " , No . 69 , p . 108 ) Despite appearing dark gray on screen , the model was actually painted mainly dark indigo ( with silver and gold details ) . ( " " , p . 204 ) As of , the original " Borg Sphere " physical studio model , virtually unmodified and having escaped the " " and " It ' s A Wrap ! " auctions , is still in the possession of Paramount Pictures . The miniature has been on tour displays ( such as " Star Trek World Tour " , " " , and " " ) as late as 2012 . CGI studio model . The depictions of Borg spheres in " Star Trek : Voyager " were impacted by a quickly made decision to portray all of the series ' Borg vessels with CGI models . The first time the sphere was called upon to make an appearance in the " Voyager " series was in the fifth season episode . It was Koji Kuramura of Foundation Imaging who digitally revamped the vessel as a CGI model which made its premiere in that episode . ( ) The schematic of a Borg sphere , a pre - production wire - frame CGI model – shown as a operations graphic in " Voyager " s later fifth season double episode – depicted the craft ' s most striking resemblance to the Death Star .