Rodia/Legends

"A jungle world. Domed cities I see. Rodia it is."

- Yoda

Rodia, an industrial planet in the Tyrius system in the Outer Rim, was the homeworld to the Rodians.

Geography


Rodia was a hot, humid world which was covered in dense tropical jungles as well as sprawling cities, industrial areas and swamps. A large area of the planet also had a few oceans and there appeared to be two polar regions on the extreme latitudes. A known body of water on the planet was the Wesessa Sea where the An'yettu Islands were located.

The Rodians built their cities on waterways and protected them with environmental shields, bubble domes that surrounded all habitation structures and allowed entry and exit for vehicles and vessels. These domes also protected from the extreme temperatures of the planet.

Two major cities on the planet were Equator City and Iskaayuma which were the planetary capitals at different periods in Rodia's history. Equator City was the traditional capital until Navik the Red usurped control over the planet and moved the capital to his clan's settlement at Iskaayuma. Two known continents were Encheeko and Betu.

Rodia's jungles used to host a variety of fauna and flora which were wiped out or made endangered over the millennia as the Rodians improved their technology and increased their population. The Rodian Karstag, newoongall and the ghest were native predators of Rodia. As the jungle terrain was unsuitable for agricultural purposes, many Rodians were forced to hunt to sustain themselves and their communities.

History


The Rodians originated on their homeworld as hunters.Their jungle-covered homeworld was ill suited to agriculture, requiring Rodians to compete with vicious predators for most of their food. Some of these predators, such as ghests, could wipe out entire Rodian villages. As the Rodians developed cunning hunting tactics to survive, the hunt became central to their culture. Eventually, having driven most of the other predators on the planet to near-extinction, they began to hunt each other in various wars and gladiatorial contests. Thus, Rodian culture had become obsessed with violence and death.

As Rodian society developed and their technology improved, all of Rodia was dominated by a handful of large, powerful clans, which had eliminated or enslaved their smaller neighbors. The leader of the most powerful clan, the Soammei Clan, eventually proclaimed himself Inta'si'rin'na, or Grand Protector of the Rodians. Through the rest of Rodian history, the title of Grand Protector shifted from clan to clan as loyalties and power shifted. Some Grand Protectors were able to rule all of Rodia as dictators, while others were limited to domination of one or two major clans.



When the first scouts from the Galactic Republic arrived on Rodia, they too were hunted, until a clever Grand Protector realized the advantages of contact with galactic society. The hunts were called off, and a new policy was implemented. The Grand Protector declared that the best hunters, as proven by success in various gladiatorial contests and hunts on Rodia, would be allowed to leave the planet for work as bounty hunters, mercenaries, slavers, or similar occupations. The Grand Protector's Hunters' Guild, or Goa-Ato, instituted annual awards (or Atiang) for the best hunters, with such categories as "Best Shot", "Longest Trail", or "Most Notorious Capture."

Rodians were also famous for their drama. Rodian theater began as a simple series of staged fights, encouraged by Grand Protector Harido Kavila as a way for Rodians to burn off their aggression. Over time, it developed into a vibrant, though violent, theatrical tradition. Though not as honored a profession as hunting, each clan had at least one company of actors that performed clan legends. Though actors were barred from directly seeking political power at home, drama also became an acceptable way for dissident elements to challenge established ideas.

Of course, not all Rodians found off-world were bounty hunters or artists. Some were refugees from clan feuds who illegally left Rodia in search of refuge. Illegal emigrants and their descendants born off-world could travel the galaxy freely and work in a variety of professions, from peaceful merchants and technicians to arms dealers and criminal henchmen. While the Rodian authorities treated off-world born Rodians as though they were alien galactic citizens, illegal emigrants were generally not allowed to return to Rodia (though some used forged or legitimate documents to claim off-world status.) Rodian politicians, such as the Clone Wars era Senator Onaconda Farr and Palpatine's aide Dar Wac, were often seen on Coruscant.



During both Great Sith War and the Mandalorian Wars Rodia remained neutral, but during the Jedi Civil War it was drawn into the full-scale conflict. Sith forces attempted to destroy the planet using the massive firepower of the Star Forge fleet, hoping to deny the Republic its greatest source of scouts and explorers. But the Jedi uncovered the plot and signaled the Republic fleet for help. The Battle of Rodia was an important battle of the Jedi Civil War, and after the Republic drove away the Sith fleet, Rodia officially joined the war on the Republic side, though individual Rodian mercenaries still worked for the Sith and other factions. Following the Great Galactic War, Rodia was annexed by the Sith Empire under the partial Treaty of Coruscant. This was received with much bitterness and outrage by the Rodian senator Mareesh who saw this as a betrayal by the Republic.

During the last days of the Republic, the planet was represented in the Galactic Senate by Onaconda Farr - who was later appointed to the Loyalist Committee as the Separatist Crisis worsened. During the Clone Wars, Farr bribed Ronet Coorr to divert naval forces from Iseno to Rodia rather than to Duro as should have been done, resulting in Duro being taken by the Confederacy of Independent Systems in Operation Durge's Lance. Farr was forced to resign in disgrace. At some point during the war, he betrayed Senator Padmé Amidala by luring her to Rodia and into the clutches of her old enemy, the Trade Federation viceroy, Nute Gunray.

During the time of the Galactic Empire, the Rodians were ruled by the Grand Protector Navik the Red, of the Chattza clan. After instigating an inter-clan war and seizing power in 17 BBY Navik tightened restrictions on emigration and built ties with Black Sun and the Galactic Empire. Navik ruthlessly persecuted his rivals, sentencing the entire Tetsu Clan to death. Even Tetsu refugees outside Rodia, such as Greedo the Elder and his family, were pursued by Chattza hunters. When the New Republic came into power, Navik represented Rodia in the Senate until the planet was invaded and conquered by the Yuuzhan Vong during their invasion.



Rodia was seized as part of the campaign to gradually move towards the Core Worlds. As on many worlds, the Yuuzhan Vong conquerors began enslaving the population. The alien invaders planned to forge their Rodian captives into deadly warbeasts, under the direction of Master Shaper Taug Molou. He took his Rodian experimental subjects apart on a cellular level, reassembling their genetic code with bits from other creatures. This experiment resulted in the creation of the Vagh Rodiek, mindless warbeasts that moved on crab-like legs with sharp half-meter long scythes of bone in place of arms. The Rodian natural head-spines were mutated into razor-sharp quills.

Again, the Rodians that managed to flee Rodia found themselves refugees from persecution. The Rodians managed to return to Rodia after the war and were represented in the Galactic Alliance Senate by Moog Ulur. Yuuzhan Vong terraforming made Rodia one of the most dangerous planets in the galaxy, filling its rainforests with deadly predators previously unknown to the galaxy. Over the next hunders years the Rodians have reveled in those new dangers and became even greater hunters than before. Under the Darth Krayt's Galactic Empire the planet claimed more Jedi bounties than any other, earning itself a favorable treatment from Darth Krayt.

Behind the scenes
The Roleplaying Game: Saga Edition Core Rulebook claims Rodia has only two moons, but this was later corrected to four in their Errata and Official Clarifications.

The settlements on Rodia in Star Wars: The Clone Wars were loosely-based on the design aspects of Otoh Gunga, as they both utilize similar bubble domes.

Notes and references
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