Ghost Academy
training center of the Terran ghost programs
The Ghost Academy was the administrative and training center for the ghost programs of the Terran Confederacy and later the Terran Dominion, where psychically gifted recruits were forged into covert operatives over years of conditioning.
The Ghost Academy was the administrative and training center for the ghost programs of the Terran Confederacy and, after the Confederacy's fall, the Terran Dominion. It was the institution through which psychically gifted recruits, including Nova Terra and Gabriel Tosh, were conditioned into the covert operatives known as ghosts over years of training that ended, for most, in the erasure of their former lives.
Admission and training#
The Ghost Academy admitted trainees who held a psionic index rating of at least 5 and who were literate before training could begin. Where a recruit lacked literacy, formal training was delayed until reading was learned. Ghosts spent an average of four years at the Academy, and attempts to speed the process resulted in what were termed "bad" ghosts. Most of the instructors, including the program director, were non-psychics. Under the Dominion, much of the teaching was carried out by preceptors who covered various topics.
Students were assigned class ratings, ranging from first through fourth. First-class students had more experience and were responsible for training those of lower class. The structure made the senior trainees part of the teaching apparatus, passing their conditioning down to newer arrivals.
Reform under the Dominion#
Following the escape of Corbin Phash and the propaganda campaign he waged against the program, the Academy began training students in groups, a change recommended by Superintendent Sarco Angelini. Angelini believed the group method produced a superior training technique, but Emperor Arcturus Mengsk was interested chiefly in its public relations value.
The Dominion also ordered a new graduation exercise component for the program. Nova Terra was the first trainee to undergo it. She was ordered to terminate a rebel movement, and she succeeded.
Severance from the past#
Upon entry to the Academy, a recruit's past life was considered irrelevant. Under the Dominion it remained possible for a trainee to maintain correspondence with family before the mind wipe, but the wipe itself ended that connection. Most who emerged from the Academy's training did so with a grim outlook on life, shaped by years of conditioning and the deliberate erasure of who they had been before they arrived.
Frequently asked questions
- What was the Ghost Academy in StarCraft?
- The Ghost Academy was the administrative and training center for the ghost programs of the Terran Confederacy and, after the Confederacy's fall, the Terran Dominion. It conditioned psychically gifted recruits into the covert operatives known as ghosts.
- What were the requirements to enter the Ghost Academy?
- Trainees had to hold a psionic index rating of at least 5 and had to be literate before training could begin. Where a recruit lacked literacy, formal training was delayed until reading was learned.
- How long did ghost training take at the Academy?
- Ghosts spent an average of four years at the Academy. Attempts to speed the process resulted in what were termed bad ghosts.
- How did training change under the Dominion?
- Following the escape of Corbin Phash and the propaganda campaign he waged, the Academy began training students in groups, a change recommended by Superintendent Sarco Angelini. The Dominion also ordered a new graduation exercise, and Nova Terra was the first trainee to undergo it, ordered to terminate a rebel movement, which she succeeded in doing.
- What happened to a recruit's past life at the Ghost Academy?
- Upon entry a recruit's past life was considered irrelevant. Most who emerged from training did so with a grim outlook, shaped by years of conditioning and a mind wipe that severed them from who they had been before they arrived.
Sources
- WikiGhost Academy (installation) — StarCraft Wiki entry
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
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