Shimmra

A member of Domain Jamaane, this Yuuzhan Vong was the Supreme Overlord during the initial invasion of the known galaxy. It was Lord Shimrra's vision that led the Yuuzhan Vong to leave their own galaxy and seek out the New Republic. He believed that he was given a vision from the gods, of an unclean galaxy which needed to be cleansed. Yuuzhan Vong priests agreed that his vision was true, and approved the generation-spanning mission to cross the galaxies.

Shimrra was an enormous individual, and spent a great deal of his time secreted in a vast chamber aboard an unspecific worldship, surrounded by all the trappings of the Yuuzhan Vong elite. An immense hau polyp dais supported his weight, and rare paaloc incense burned in his chamber. Shimrra was distinguished among the Yuuzhan Vong by the fact that he was born with a twin sibling, a rare event that was supposedly pre-ordained by the gods whenever a strong leader was needed.

As lore required, Overlord Shimrra killed his twin brother, thereby allowing him to grow powerful and worshipped as the favorite of the gods. Shimrra developed his base of power by killing Quoreal, the former Overlord, claiming that the gods had chosen him as the new Overlord. Shimrra did much to cover his tracks, and he continually claimed that his power came from the gods. In reality, he developed much of his power through subtle manipulation of the Yuuzhan Vong religion and the cortexes of knowledge they maintained. As the battle to control the galaxy raged on, Shimrra began to panic as early victories gave way to a grudging stalemate, then turned to defeats. He continued to manipulate religion to secure his position, but many of his subordinates began to question his authority, primarily Nen Yim and the Shapers.

When it was discovered that Shimrra had killed Ekh'm Val to cover up the existence of the plaent Zonama Sekot, Shimrra's position began to crumble. His fear of the planet, which seemed to tie the Yuuzhan Vong to the galaxy, became more and more public knowledge, despite his efforts to cover it up. After many months of watching his forces lose ground to the flesgling Galactic Alliance, Shimrra had tired of the growing opposition to his rule, as well as to the unusual problems that kept the dhuryam on Coruscant from functioning properly. Using his people's desire to please their gods as a base, Shimrra told the Yuuzhan Vong that their lack of faith in his leadership was actually a lack of faith in their gods, who had appointed Shimrra in the first place. He then went on to say that the problems on Coruscant and the mounting defeats in battle were caused by the gods' desire to show the Yuuzhan Vong that they had failed to maintain the proper levels of devotion.

The situation, he explained, was based in the generations-long migration from their original galaxy, during which time a lack of wars and combat made the Yuuzhan Vong forget about their gods and focus on their own glorification. As if to prove himself, Shimrra created the Slayers, a mingling of warrior and priest to develop a Yuuzhan Vong version of the Jedi Knights. He surrounded himself with Slayer guards, and retreated into The Citadel. Secretly, Shimrra believed that the gods had abandoned the Yuuzhan Vong bcause they were angry at being cast aside, and jealous that Shimrra had gained so much power over them.

He seemed to have his beliefs confirmed when Zonama Sekot arrived in orbit near Coruscant, as he raged to Nom Anor that it was the gods who brought the living planet from the brink of disaster to harrass the Yuuzhan Vong. It was an act of war, he claimed, against the beings who had decided they no longer needed the gods. By destroying Zonama Sekot, Shimrra believed he could destroy the gods themselves, thereby gaining absolute power over the Yuuzhan Vong. To accomplish this goal, Shimrra held the dying ship that had returned from Caluula in orbit around Coruscant, then dispatched it to land on Zonama Sekot. Shimrra reasoned that the Alpha Red virus would affect Zonama Sekot much the same way it had affected the Yuuzhan Vong.

Ensconced in the Moonbeam Throne, Shimrra commanded the World Brain that controlled Coruscant to begin destroying the planet's surface. Couched in commands that made it seem as if such destruction was necessary to save the planet, Shimrra's words were directed toward a less-noble goal, for Shimrra simply wanted to destroy the planet and make it unusable to either side of the war. This plan was thwarted when Jacen Solo arrived on Coruscant with his sister Jaina and their uncle, Luke Skywalker. The trio infiltrated the Citadel after Jacen gained control of the World Brian's mind, but Shimrra dispatched fifteen of his best Slayers to attack them. The three Jedi held their, in part because the World Brain was tossing the Citadel around like a ball. Shimrra remained in his throne until it appeared Luke as exhausted from the battle. Descending the throne and unfurling the Scepter of Power, Shimrra easily overpowered Luke and wrapped him in the amphistaff's coils. Shimrra then drew a lightsaber from his cloak, laughing as he revealed that the weapon had once belonged to Anakin Solo.

As Shimrra prepared to kill Luke with the weapon, Luke allowed the Scepter of Power to stab him in the side, momentarily distracting the Supreme Overlord. With this small chance, Luke gained possession of his own lightsaber, as well as Anakin's. In one swift motion, Luke drove both weapons into Shimrra's neck, then drew them apart to decapitate the Supreme Overlord. It was only after Shimrra's death that the forces of the Galactic Alliance came to realize that Shimrra was not actually in control of the Yuuzhan Vong throughout the invasion. Shimrra, it seemed, had been merely the puppet of his familiar, the Shamed One known as Onimi. It was Onimi who had managed to re-establish a connection with the Force, giving him powers that the other Yuuzhan Vong could never have. His position as a Shamed One had given Onimi the opportunity to take control of Shimrra's mind, using the Supreme Overlord to do his bidding. With the death of Onimi at the hands of Jacen Solo, the true Overlord was indeed killed.