Were the Engineers using the black goo to make us weapons of mass destruction?

Interesting idea, Mr. Potter.

Hmmm....yeah, there's merit in that hypothesis.

LOVE this idea. It nods to the notion of the black goo being intended for more than just engineers. They knew of it's hyper mutation effects, so yeah, I'd say its very possible that they had at least toyed with the idea of using it to turn humans into WMD's.

We have had a few theories like this on here.... Gavin even had one a long time ago that the Xenomorph was intended to be used to Egg Morph People and then collect the Eggs after the Xeno dies out... and expanding on this that the  Black Goo creates the Xenomorphs or what will evolve into them for this purpose.

I do however think this is a Far Far Fetched idea as far as the amount of hassle and time it requires the creation of Mankind, to then just use the Black Goo to Evolve us into Horrific Mutated Weapons... or even down  the line Eggs.

How do you deploy and collect thousands of Hybrid Humanoids, and we know what threat they can pose, the eventual turning into Eggs could be a more ideal situation but still with its risks (as the Space Jockey found out).

The Black Goo is good enough Bio-Weapon as it is, i think its flawed to use Humans after the Black Goo to produce Bio-Weapons from the Hybrid/Black Goo effects.

The only ways this would sound more logical is.

1) If the Engineers simply alter the DNA of somewhat Primate or Humanoid related Organisms to become more like them and Humans... to then use the Black Goo to obtain for some reason Hybrid Organisms or Eggs. (pretty much similar creation process of Spaights draft which is infect Primates 50-70 thousand years ago), as opposed to the Prometheus method which seemed to show that Sacrificial Event to Mankind was Millions of years in the making like Hundreds of Millions if not a Billion etc.

2) The intention was never this until only many thousands of years ago, when the Engineers came across something else they was in awe of and saw as Perfection, that was created from their own... then they realized all those World with Humanoids could be Harvested to create this Deacon like Organism.

However maybe not....

If we maybe consider the Engineers were created for some Purpose, and this purpose was maybe to create horrific Organisms by use of Sacrifice.  Or even a mixing of this Organism and the Sacrificial Goo and then using the results on Engineers to create Deacon like Organisms.

Maybe if the Engineers Rebelled against being used like this we could see.

1) Engineers create us to Replace them for this Purpose.

2) Those who created the Engineers for this purpose, create us to replace them for this Purpose.

A) Maybe then the Rebellious Engineers or another Faction sneak off to Earth with some earlier Humanoids and then instead rule over us in a way that they are looking after us, saving us from the True Horrific Intention.

B) Or a different take on this, the Rebellious Engineers or a Faction take off to Earth and create Life in their image with the intentions of us worship them while they watch over us.

They then either get found out what they had done and either have to Destroy us to Cover their Tracks, or their Creators Destroy us..

Or simply we prove to be rebellious so they decide to replace us with something else.

The whole Reasons for our Creation and what role the Black Goo plays or how it came to be and why they wanted us Destroyed are indeed pretty open Questions... especially the Answer as far as Why we was created and what is the purpose for the creation of the Black Goo.

Given the nature of Black Goo, and that we have really only seen it in 'stored' format, it calls into question what it's full potential is like.

I suspect that we've only seen a tiny aspect of it's full abilities and that it requires proper Activation and can be Programmed.
Think of how we store weapons, like nukes?
Yeah a stored nuke can kill you by just the U-235 inside it if there's a breach in the casings, from radiation, but it really only becomes truly dangerous when the Plutonium core is installed, thus 'activating' the weapon.
Chemical weapons, many are stored as seperate chemicals inside a single casing within seperate compartments and all feeding into a mixing chamber. They must be combined to produce the weaponized chemical-weapon itself, and yes are toxic by themselves but pale in comparison to the genuine activated weapon they produce.

I see your point ;)

I hope they explain it as such, and this could leave the possibility of Radioactive Fall out Scenario if we use the Nuke Analogy and wonder,  while the Weaponized Dropped Exploding Urns have a different effect to those who come into contact with the Black Goo stored in none deployed Urns.

Could there be similar effects to Prometheus Urns as far as dispersion of any chemical residue that expands past the Blast Radius Effects?

I believe there is a book called Alien:original sin which has the earth corporations and governments in league with engineers from the beginning, and they are using humans, xeno to try and find an elixir of life to regenerate their own species, which would mean a huge twist in the tale if applied to the alien series.

what if davids learnings have been transmitted back to weyland, and they have sent walter, with dna aspects, to see what happens if you give him black goo? Would you get a controllable maniac lifeform? 

The androids in these series seem to have a completely different agenda to humans in these films, and always seem to double cross humans, who are expendable. 

Maybe the engineers, david, humans, all get turned on by elite engineers or other lifeforms as yet unknown.

I like bigdaves Speculation, if black goo were dropped on a population, a neutron bomb would stop an outbreak, but whoever triggers a neutron weapon would neutralise themselves unless launched from orbit. david could be shot down by escaping engineers and they dont look back because of the goo.

Of course, if shaw were piloting the juggernaut and a neutron weapon were used, it could take her out and crash the juggernaut.

Hey Bdub, I need to offer a correction regarding nuclear reactions from personal experience and give a general overview of how it works from the ground to EoL.   Plutonium is too unstable a material to use in Nukes.  Enriched Uranium is primarily used and is actually a rock.  It is inert when taken out of the ground.  The reaction isn't started until the rocks are hit with neutron radiation as a catalyst.  The rocks are stored in rods and then used in a nuclear plant as nuclear fuel rods for energy generation.  After use there they are then stored in cooling ponds for year at a time.  Then taken out west and either permanently stored or used for nukes.  I spent several years in a nuclear power plant and the family has all worked at the nuclear plant in various capacities.

 HappyXeno - LOVE this idea. It nods to the notion of the black goo being intended for more than just engineers. They knew of it's hyper mutation effects, so yeah, I'd say its very possible that they had at least toyed with the idea of using it to turn humans into WMD's.

What made me think this is the realization that he mural in Prometheus depicts the whole egg/face-hugger/alien process.  They knew what they were doing.  This wasn't an experiment of which they didn't know the outcome.  They just expected the outcome to go according to plan.  

Thank you Starlogger

Maybe, the engineer's had a plan, and some of them felt bad for us and decided to disobey the master - i.e, David type scenario and release the goo prior to take off. 

Also.  I believe in Prometheus, they indicate Weyland knew of the black goo and resulting alien creation.

The Black Goo might have a 'selection' aspect, in that any lifeform that won't be suitable for it's 'programming' for whatever reason it kills and carbonizes via an internal exothermic chemical reaction.
So, you'd end with a 100% Effect and no half-cooked failures creeping about.

Bdub,

I'm curious how do you explain Inquisitor Fifield?

Rick

Hmmm...speaking of which, haven't seen him around of late.

I dunno, maybe he decided to pull a 'Holloway' and then taste-tested some black goo hoping it was licorice-flavoured?? No one notices he gets back to the ship, folks are gaping at his new 'makeover', he just goes 'What?!" then proceeds to terorize the crew with snarky posts and nasty comments on their favorite forums and facebooks?

But that's just my hyposthesis. :)

Now if you mean Mr. 'Haz weed in my life support system'...well, un-activated black goo, he fell into it with a breached helmet with had residue of the hammerpede's acidic blood, so some got in and on him, and likely had trace-reactions with the acid which might have damaged the Black Goo, reducing it's effect potential, so it could well have 'merely' activated all the 'junk' DNA in the Human chromosome as well as slightly mutated it as well, giving you a uniquely double-jointed space-savage that could survive the CO2 levels of the atmo.

Rick

RE; Nuclear weapons. I don't mean to be an annoyance, but Nuclear warheads are made using enriched U-235 and a Plutonium core. The earliest ones (gun type) didn't use uranium, but all modern ones do.

In any case, I simply referenced modern nuclear devices as an example how weapons are stored in an 'un-activated' mode.
Nukes are stored without the plutonium core, making them 'safe' (as in they'll explode but won't explode Nuclear-style) as opposed to with the core installed which 'activates' them and means they can pop Nuclear.

Sorry if I confused the issue, guys, that was not my intent.

@Babylonxeno

My nuke reply was not really suggesting it works directly like a Nuke, i was wondering if the Weapon System Triggers a different reaction in these Urns and when they are released as intended and explode they have a different effect on Life within a Blast Radius (Burns Victims) but then outside this radius i wonder if any particles of Black Goo spread and have a effect on the Environment like how the leaked Urns in Prometheus do.

If i then considered this as far as Real Nukes, then indeed under the right conditions the Material inside can become unstable and result in deadly radiation exposure, which is why Fukishima was abandoned and will remain so for a long time.

But the intended purpose for the Nuke is to be dropped and act as  a Bomb where indeed a explosive reaction is required inside to activate the Atomic Capabilities.

@Blackwinter-witch

Now thats a Good Theory that can clear up Plot Holes... If the Urns can be programed to only affect certain life, but we did see it infect Worms and Humans in Prometheus.

But indeed a "what if it cant infect Engineers" as far as the way we saw it in Prometheus, and changes them into Burnt Corpses instead is interesting.... maybe this is why Mankind was created to create things from the Black Goo, and the resulting Trilobite  type events can affect the Engineers.

But i would still like to think the Black Goo can mutate all Organic Life, and this would indeed help to explain the Engineers in Prometheus.

I really do hope they have a reason why our beings on Paradise are not turned into Hybrids or Break down to nothing. Only reasons i can think of are.

*The Urns when used as intended to explode at high pressure cause a different reaction that Petrifies the victims.

*The Scorpion ship did the Bombardment and inside its Urns is a different type of Weapon.  (David still has the ones on the Juggernaught to experiment with).

*After the Bombardment some kind of Safety Device goes off, either from the Scorpion Ship or the Cathedral to Nullify the effects of the Black Goo by turning those beings into Fried Corpses.