Star Trek: 10 Ways The Klingons Have Developed Since The 1960s

The first two Klingons may have killed the gods, but, as first mentioned in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Klingons still had an afterlife.

Overseen by Kahless, Sto-vo-kor, the Klingon afterlife for the honorable dead, was a paradise, if your idea of paradise was fighting all day and feasting all night. Ninth century Norsemen would have enjoyed it just as much as the Klingons as it was similar to the Viking concept of Valhalla.

There were many paths a warrior could take to Sto-vo-kor. These included dying in battle, performing a heroic deed, and being ritually killed by a fellow Klingon. In cases where a Klingon died in a dishonorable fashion, the deceased's loved ones could perform a great deed in the deceased's name. This act was meant to show that the departed had lived a life that could inspire feats of courage.

Before the Klingon afterlife was mentioned on television, it was discussed in novels published by Pocket Books. The Honorable Dead would serve in the Black Fleet, their rank determined by their achievements in life. The Black Fleet and Sto-vo-kor were both mentioned in Star Trek: Discovery as part of the same belief system.