Nagai

"Y'know, when I first met you, I thought you were unique…an' I gotta say, the thought of a whole race of your kind is really depressing. One of you was too much."

- Han Solo to Commander Knife

The Nagai, also called the N'Gai and the Knives, were a species from the Unknown Regions who invaded the wider galaxy in 4 ABY.

Biology and culture
The Nagai were near-Humans with pale skin, jet-black hair, gray eyes, and angular features. Their appearance gave the impression that they were dead rather than alive. They believed strongly in honor and battle and crafted small, short-bladed weapons called Tehk’la Blades. They lived on the planet Nagi, beyond the borders of both the Galactic Republic and the Galactic Empire in the Unknown Regions. Despite their isolation, a number of Nagai ventured into the wider galaxy, with some becoming Jedi Padawans in the days of the Republic.

History


The Nagai were the natural enemies of the Tofs, waging wars against them over a number of years. To aid in their fight against the Tofs, the Nagai allied with a neighboring species, the Maccabree, outfitting them with mechanical limbs for ground fighting. Slowly a pathological hatred and fear of the Tofs developed, intensified by the Tof conquest of their homeworld Nagi. This drove the Nagai and Maccabrees outward into the wider galaxy.

The Nagai attempted to restart the Wookiee slave trade on Kashyyyk. They were originally known to the Alliance as "Knives", due to the Wookiee mispronunciation of an individual Nagai encountered there. As a result, they were encountered by the Alliance of Free Planets in 4 ABY to stop their actions.

After being stopped by Han Solo, Lando Calrissian, and Chewbacca, they fell in with Lumiya and her faction of the Imperial Remnant in an attempt to destroy the Rebel Alliance and gain territory to re-establish themselves. After various skirmishes on Kabray, Kinooine, and Mandalore, they attacked Endor. With the aid of an inside agent, they learned all of the Alliance dogfighting maneuvers and were able to easily outfight them at first. Once the Rebels caught on, though, the tables turned; however, they were still driven off the moon.

The Nagai continued invading a number of other planets with their allies, such as Iskalon. Discovering a Tof force on the planet Trenwyth, they attempted to wipe them out but were defeated there. Launching an attack on Zeltros, the Tofs made themselves known. The Nagai's fear and hatred of the Tofs enabled them to form an unlikely alliance with the Rebels and Imperials to combat them. Repelling the Tofs from Zeltros, they signed a treaty with the Alliance and later ambushed the Tof crown prince at the planet Saijo and forced the Tofs to surrender, thus ending the Nagai/Tof threat to the galaxy.

After the surrender, the Nagai were given Saijo to settle on. Only a few did so, joining the Alliance; the others (accompanied by the Mandalorians) went to liberate Nagi from the Tofs.

Common Nagai names

 * Nir Kento
 * Sin Shai

Behind the scenes
Mary Jo Duffy named the Nagai after Japanese comics creator Go Nagai. "Nagai" (永井) is a common Japanese surname.

The Nagai and the Tof were originally supposed to be extragalactic, but were later retconed to have inhabited the Unknown Regions.

The Nagai also share similar appearances with the Farscape species the Nebari, of which race Farscape regular Chiana belongs. Most of the action of Farscape takes place in the Uncharted Territories.

Appearances

 * The Taris Holofeed: Prime Edition
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 1: Commencement, Part 1
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 4: Commencement, Part 4
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 6: Commencement, Part 6
 * Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 16: Nights of Anger, Part 1
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
 * Star Wars 91: Wookiee World
 * Star Wars 96: Duel With a Dark Lady
 * Star Wars 97: Escape
 * Star Wars 100: First Strike
 * Star Wars 102: School Spirit
 * Star Wars 103: Tai
 * Star Wars 104: Nagais and Dolls
 * Star Wars 105: The Party's Over
 * Star Wars 106: My Hiromi
 * Star Wars 107: All Together Now
 * Star Wars Legacy 8: Allies
 * Star Wars Legacy 1: Broken, Part 1
 * Star Wars Legacy 6: Broken, Part 5
 * Star Wars Legacy 7: Broken, Part 6
 * Star Wars Legacy: Claws of the Dragon
 * Star Wars Legacy 27: Into the Core
 * Star Wars Legacy 35: Storms, Part 2

Notes and references
Nagai Nagait