Voss (species)

"The last Gormak must not die&hellip;"

- Decree of the Voss, enacted after a prophecy by the Voss Mystics

The Voss were a sentient, humanoid species native to the planet of the same name, in the Voss system of the Allied Tion sector of the Outer Rim Territories. Their capital city was Voss-Ka, a fortified settlement atop a mountain. Their totalitarian society was defended by commandos and ruled by Force-wielding mystics, who served as seers and healers and whom the other members of the species considered infallible. The Voss population was small, vastly outnumbered by their homeworld's other native group, the Gormak&mdash;a species who saw the Voss as an aberration to be eliminated. For centuries, the Voss fended off the assaults of the Gormak.

Following the Treaty of Coruscant in 3653 BBY, which ended the Great Galactic War and started the Cold War, off-worlders discovered the planet Voss by chance, becoming known to both the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic. The Empire attempted to conquer the planet, so the Republic moved in to defend the world from Imperial assault. The Voss Mystics, forewarned by their gift of prophecy, revealed themselves and were able to fend off both occupation forces. Following their mutual defeat, the Empire and Republic established embassies in Voss-Ka in an attempt to curry favor with the Voss.

Biology and appearance
Voss were humanoid sentients who displayed four different skin colors, including shades of red and blue, as well as four unique patterns of markings that covered the face, neck, and body. The compound eyes of a Voss were orange. Their voices had a slight mechanical tinge to it, making them sound somewhat like a droid or machine. Voss underwent a physical, developmental change during their marriage ceremonies and did not develop sexually prior to the performance of these rituals.

Society and culture
The Voss species resided in an isolated mountain-top city named Voss-Ka. They were vastly outnumbered on their homeworld by its other native sentient species, the Gormak, who were extremely hostile toward them. A totalitarian regime of Force-users known as the mystics ruled the Voss; that body was considered infallible, no matter their commandments. Voss tended to be reserved, speaking very little, except during funeral rites and times of hardship, when Voss became outwardly emotional.

The fortifications of Voss-Ka and the efforts of the Voss Commandos protected the Voss from attacks by the Gormak for centuries. Voss society was also aided by members of their native Force tradition, the Voss Mystics, who received Force visions that were consistently accurate. Such premonitions were so important that the Voss built the Tower of Prophecy, a prominent landmark in Voss-Ka. Although the Gormak sought the utter destruction of the Voss, Voss society held a strict law against attempting to wipe the Gormak out due to one of the visions of their mystics. Voss culture was such that that law was viewed as natural, and it was not questioned. Despite their reliance upon and veneration of Force prophecies, the Voss held no formal knowledge of the Force and were uninterested in learning from either the Jedi or the Sith. The Voss Mystics were considered to be gray by the Jedi and the Sith for their non-standard perspective on the nature of the Force, as they belonged to neither order nor fully embraced either the light or dark sides of the Force.

The Voss were great lovers of art, and their architecture featured a distinctive artistic style that had existed for thousands of years before contact with the Sith Empire and Galactic Republic. That aesthetic featured monochromatic patterns with heavy reliance on symbolism. Between the strong defenses and artistry of their home, as well as the guidance of their mystics, members of Voss society were generally pleased with the rule of the Voss Mystics, despite the totalitarian nature of their government. The species maintained a neutral stance in the Cold War between the Empire and the Republic, and both of these galactic governments established embassies in Voss-Ka to maintain diplomatic relationships with the natives. Some Voss did live outside their capital city, although the mystics who resided in the Nightmare Lands of Voss were driven mad by the forest's corruptive influence.

History
In a time long forgotten, the Sith came on Voss, they saw Gormak as beasts, unworthy to notice, then came the Jedi who founded a Gormak movement of resistance against the Sith oppressor, creating the first mystics of the planet Voss. Under the influence of the Force, the mystics evolved, losing their feral traits and becoming a full new species, the Voss.

Prior to contact with the rest of the galaxy, the Voss species was engaged in a centuries-long war with the Gormak, who outnumbered them by millions. The Gormak held an innate hatred for the Voss and their workings. Although the origin of that hatred was lost to time, the Gormak believed that the Voss must be destroyed so that they themselves could flourish. The Voss fortified their mountain city of Voss-Ka, trained warriors as commandos, and relied on the prophecies of their mystics in order to survive.

Not long after the Treaty of Coruscant in 3653 BBY, which ended the Great Galactic War and started the Cold War, the planet Voss was accidentally discovered by off-worlders. The Sith Empire planned to conquer the planet, and the Galactic Republic made plans to move in and defend the planet from Imperial assault. Warned of the occupation plans of both governments by the visions of their mystics, the Voss species intervened. The resulting skirmish resulted in a humbling defeat for the Empire, caused an entire fleet to go missing, and nearly reignited the Great Galactic War. The Voss species successfully maintained the neutrality of their planet, and the two galactic governments established embassies in Voss-Ka, hoping to win the favor of the Voss through diplomacy.

Behind the scenes
The Voss were first introduced in a Holonet article for the Star Wars: The Old Republic video game. They were the result of BioWare writers' desire to add something new to Star Wars lore in the game, although they selected an obscure planet rather than creating one from scratch. The appearance of the Voss species was inspired from that of poison dart frogs. The overall presentation of the Voss was designed to make them feel isolated and harried by outside forces, and to have a mystic culture. Originally, mystics were considered as a player-controllable class but were rejected in favor of the Imperial Agent because there were already four other Force-using classes planned for the game.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: The Old Republic