Metanecrons

"This power, known as mechu-deru, was responsible for the creation of Belia Darzu's infamous Technobeasts, which were capable of rewriting an organism's entire genetic code."

- Tam Azur-Jamin

The Metanecrons were an army of mutated cyborgs—technobeasts—formed by the Dark Lord Belia Darzu during the New Sith Wars. Using Sith alchemy and mechu-deru, Lord Darzu created this army by means of a technovirus called the nanogene spore. Contained inside a hidden stronghold on the planet Tython, living victims from a number of different species were assimilated into the Dark Lord's forces. As the leader of a resurgent Sith faction, Lord Darzu unleashed her technobeasts upon the Galactic Republic and the Jedi during the Sictis Wars. At the end of this period, the assassination of the Dark Lord ended the creation of the mutated hybrids, sabotaging her cyborg army. Centuries later, the remaining bulk of Darzu's technobeasts dwelled inside her fortress on Tython, only to be wiped out at the hands of the Sith Lord known as Darth Bane.

Sictis Wars
"She was a student of Sith alchemy; it was said she learned the secrets of mechu-deru, the ability to transform the flesh of living beings into metal and machinery. She used this power to create an army of technobeasts: organic-droid hybrids bound to her will."

- Hetton, regarding Belia Darzu

In 1250 BBY, a female changeling known as Belia Darzu had assumed the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith, becoming the leader of a resurgent Sith faction operating during the Draggulch Period. Around this time, Lord Darzu used a hidden fortress on the planet Tython to experiment with the creation of part machine, part organic hybirds called technobeasts. Exploring Sith alchemy and the Force technique of mechu-deru, Dazu concocted the nanogene spore, a technovirus capable of irreversibly transforming living victims into the Sithspawn mutants. Inside the fortress of Tython, living subjects from a number of different species were exposed to the effects of the virus, including humanoids, rancors and banthas. Victims of the nanogene spore were assimilated into an army of technobeasts known as the Metanecrons.

The technobeasts of Belia Darzu were designed for combat, possessing arm-mounted saws and skewers, as well as blaster cannons and armored hides. In addition, the creatures were capable of dispersing the nanogene spore itself, infecting other victims with the virus and spawning additional hybrids as a result. Imbued with the power of the dark side, the technobeasts were bound to the will of Belia Darzu and housed inside the barracks of her fortress. The Metanecrons formed the frontline of the Dark Lord's forces during the Sictis Wars, a two-decade subset of the New Sith Wars. In this period, the technobeasts were unleashed upon the Galactic Republic and the Jedi Order, becoming recognized as the defining threat of the Sictis Wars. By the final year of this period, Darzu's army was sabotaged following her assassination at the hands of the secretive Mecrosa Order, ending the creation of her Sithspawn hybrids.

Remnants
"I need a new Master—one with the power to penetrate the defenses of Belia's stronghold and lay claim to her secrets."

- Hetton

Centuries after Belia Darzu's death, the remnants of the technobeast army continued to inhabit her fortress on Tython. In the absence of their creator and leader, the mutants wandered aimlessly throughout the halls of the stronghold. During this time, the creatures fell victim to the long-term degradation caused by the nanogene spore, becoming dilapidated and dysfunctional. In addition, they were drawn towards the dark side energy radiating from the holocron of Belia Darzu, the final vestige of the Dark Lord's power. Compelled by a primal urge to obey their mistress even after her death, the technobeasts congregated around the holocron within the underground inner sanctum of the fortress.

In 990 BBY, the remnants of the technobeast army were encountered by Darth Bane, a Sith Lord who sought Darzu's holocron for the secrets to constructing such a device of his own. While the creatures initially ignored Bane, they immediately turned against the Sith Lord when he attempted to seize the holocron of their deceased mistress. While swarming against Darth Bane with superior numbers, the mutated cyborgs were unable to break the defences of his orbalisk armor. In addition, their attempts to infect the Sith Lord with the nanogene spore were thwarted; the orbalisk parasites on Bane's armor purged the virus from his body. Despite their relentless aggression, the remnants of the technobeast army were eventually wiped out by Lord Bane.

During the era of the Yuuzhan Vong War, the technobeasts of Belia Darzu were briefly mentioned in Droids, Technology and the Force, an essay written by Jedi Knight Tam Azur-Jamin.

Behind the scenes
The technobeasts of Belia Darzu were first mentioned in an adventure seed—"The Lost Art"—featured in the The Emperor's Pawns, an article published in 2001. Despite this, the creatures remained unnamed and unaffiliated with Darzu at the time. The technobeasts and their association with Darzu were later identified as such in Droids, Technology and the Force, a Hyperspace fan club article released in 2005. In a subsequent article called Evil Never Dies: The Sith Dynasties, the technobeasts created by Belia Darzu were referred to as "the Metanecrons". The technobeast army made their debut appearance in Darth Bane: Rule of Two, the second adaption of the Darth Bane trilogy.

Appearances

 * Darth Bane: Rule of Two
 * Darth Plagueis