Houk–Weequay conflicts

The Houk-Weequay conflicts referred to a series of wars and skirmishes between the two species living on Sriluur, the colonist Houk and the native Weequay, that spanned many years, with the last and most bloody civil war occurring for a decade before the Battle of Yavin. The Weequay evolved on Sriluur, but the Houk colonists only arrived there in 282 BBY, establishing the Houk Territories close to the Weequay city of Dnalvec. Although the Houk were not the first colonists on Sriluur, they became hated cultural enemies of the Weequay. Tensions ran high and several times all-out war erupted; hostilities between both groups gained prominence after a Weequay-Houk brawl on Coruscant was documented on the HoloNet.

In approximately 10 BBY, relations between the two species again broke out into civil war. During the conflict, the Houk Territories were constantly under martial law while Houk forces advanced on Weequay territories to Sriluur's south. Weequay armies such as the Dnalvec Militia fought them off, with many casualties, and ultimately protected their territories. Peace was arranged by the Houk, though hostilities never fully ceased; shortly after the decade-long war ended just prior to the Battle of Yavin, the Galactic Empire arrived on Sriluur and subjugated the world, stopping any further conflicts.

Prelude
The Weequay species were native to the harsh, rocky Outer Rim world of Sriluur; though technologically primitive compared to the galactic norm and known for their violence and thuggery, many Weequay left Sriluur to venture into the wider galaxy. Sriluur was almost entirely self-sustainable, but offworld interest in the planet was common, with hordes of smugglers, pirates, and crime lords taking residence there, because of the world's close proximity to Hutt Space. Foreign species eventually came to comprise almost 10% of the world's total population.

In 282 BBY, thousands of Houk colonists from Lijuter took up residence on Sriluur and settled in the remote Lesser Cueva region along the world's equator, forming what became known as the Houk Territories. The Houk Territories were located just thirty kilometers away from the northern city limits of Dnalvec, the largest Weequay city, with many Houk taking up residence in Dnalvec itself. Relations between the Weequay and the Houk were always tense, but the two groups lived in relative peace for many years, "sharing" the planet. However, the two became fierce cultural enemies, and, with both species considered to have a penchant for violence, rising tensions erupted several times into all-out-war. Because of the Houk's close proximity to the Weequay city of Dnalvec, the well-trained Dnalvec Militia was formed to combat any Houk advances. Many members of the militia, which was comprised of both male and female warriors in equal number, became soldiers and mercenaries for the Hutts and other crime lords during peacetime on Sriluur. The Dnalvec Militia was not the only Weequay army formed, but it was the most respected. Even during times of relative peace on the world, Sriluurian dark wolves, creatures who had a place in the Weequay religion and were often trained by the Weequay, frequently attacked the Houk Territories, making them very popular creatures among the Weequay.

Buildup
During the last decades of the reign of the Galactic Republic, relations between the Weequay and the Houk were relatively good, though occasional violence between the two groups was inevitable. In 22 BBY, the two species' anger toward each other became more well known in the wider galaxy, after the Holonet reported on a brawl between Weequay and Houk on Coruscant. Groups of each race were entering Eastport as immigrants, and were placed in adjacent holding rooms while waiting to be processed. Neither the Weequay nor the Houk wanted to wait near their hated enemies, and after their complaints to staff fell on deaf ears, they began to verbally abuse each other. The argument eventually broke out in a fight between two of them, Ker-Zakk and Egome Fass, culminating in a massive brawl. Many of the combatants were armed with makeshift shivs and concealed blades, and the brawl quickly spread from the processing center to a local food court. Many passersby, as well as citizens who attempted to intervene and stop the fighting, were badly injured.

Despite the injuries suffered by bystanders, many individuals found the fight entertaining, and hordes of spectators were attracted toward it. Eastport Security eventually arrived to stop the brawl; they initially fired shots in the air to try and clear the area of spectators, before eventually firing stun blasts at the fighters. The resilient Houk were at first unaffected by the blasts, and believed the Weequays' falling to the ground merely meant they were winning the fight, and fought on even harder. Eventually, three hours after the fight began, Eastport Security was able to stun the Houks and clear the area; the total death toll was fifteen, with forty-five individuals injured. The violence did not even end then, as, during a Judicial hearing, the two instigators of the brawl, Ker-Zakk and Egome Fass, overpowered the bailiffs and traded punches, until they were stunned again.

All-out war
During the time of Palpatine's New Order, Houk-Weequay hostilities reached their worst point in many decades. Approximately ten years before the Battle of Yavin, an all-out civil war broke out between the two groups. Houk forces attempted to capture Weequay territories, and the Weequay fought fiercely in defense of them. The Houk Territories were placed under constant martial law, with Houk militants attacking various Weequay cities south of the Dnalvec and the Houk Territories. The Dnalvec Militia fought against the invading Houk, with many giving their lives for the cause. Among the warriors who fought in the militia against Houk forces was Adazian Liebke.

Both species were relatively primitive, and predominantly used simplistic weapons. Because of their immense physical strength, which was often compared to that of the Wookiee species of Kashyyyk, each Houk was able to take on several Weequay at a time. The Weequay used blades against the Houk, who often fought unarmed, relying only on their brute strength. The Weequay used the native dark wolves against the Houk during the conflict. Adazian Liebke, a member of the Dnalvec Militia, became a dark wolf handler. The fierce creatures were nocturnal, and so were deployed against the Weequay's enemies at night. Both species were fixated on winning the war, and each focused on importing military goods and weapons from offworld. Eventually, after around ten years of grueling warfare, the Weequay were successful in defending their territories from the Houk, though they had lost many soldiers in the process. The Houk brokered the peace.

Aftermath
The conflicts were officially ended, but that did not completely stop the fighting, with both species' youth in particular still aggravated. The minimal continuing conflict was quelled when the Empire arrived on Sriluur and began to subjugate both species. Sriluur was brought under Imperial control, and used as a staging area for the distribution of the region's raw materials bound for Kuat Drive Yards&mdash;the world was chosen because it was the most accessible waypoint from the nearby Ka'Dedus system and Verde systems to the Core Worlds. The Empire installed garrisons of soldiers in Meirm City and took over some of the land the Dnalvec Militia had so recently defended from the Houk. Some former Weequay soldiers, including veteran Adazian Liebke, were disgusted at this, and many took to the stars and left Sriluur altogether. With their military services no longer needed, hordes of Dnalvec Militiamen became mercenaries and bounty hunters, working primarily for the Hutts. What remained of the militia indirectly supported the Alliance to Restore the Republic, while some former members, such as Adazian Liebke and two of his comrades, officially joined the Alliance. However, the Empire punished the Dnalvec Militia for its political leanings, and bombed most of its outposts in the Lesser Cueva region.

With the Houk-Weequay conflicts ended, both species refocused on galactic trade, turning away from the military imports that dominated the planetary economy during wartime. While the twelve-year war prior to the Battle of Yavin was the last Houk-Weequay conflict and signaled the start to real peace between the two species, simmering hostility between the two species remained. The Houk and Weequay youth, in particular, often clashed; street gangs of each race often rumbled with each other on the streets, using deadly weapons such as blaster pistols and grenades, in addition to vibroblades and other similar weapons. Some individuals sought to profit from these street fights; Kutuab the Hutt sold arms to both Weequay and Houk youths. Houk militants also attempted to topple idols in Meirm to undermine Weequay faith. Additionally, Houk and Weequay populations were never integrated within cities that housed both groups; in Meirm, the Weequay and Houk enclaves were separated by a major speeder thoroughfare, known as the "front line."

Some time after the Empire left Sriluur, the extragalactic Yuuzhan Vong arrived and overran the primitive Weequay defenses, leaving many of the world's inhabitants enslaved. The aggrieved Weequay felt that the arrival of the Houk colonists in 282 BBY marked the beginning of the calamitous changes and constant conflict that had plagued the world since.

Weequay
The Weequay were a rugged species, with coarse and gnarled skin, a result of having evolved on the harsh desert planet Sriluur. They were initially Sriluur's only sentient inhabitants, though many, including the Houk, arrived on their homeworld in due course. Weequay often found work as bounty hunters, soldiers-for-hire, and pirates, and thus were considered by many to be dangerous. They possessed what were commonly viewed as explosive, violent tendencies, but at the same time seemed very unemotional and quiet. The Weequay were highly religious, worshiping a multitude of gods, such as Quay, the "god of the moon," whom they contacted with various trinkets and totems.

Although the Houk were not the first foreign species to come to Sriluur, they had many differences with the Weequay, and the two quickly became cultural enemies. During the conflicts, the Weequay had to make up for their smaller stature in comparison to the hulking Houk with sheer numbers, and a single Houk could take on many Weequay simultaneously, especially where only bladed weapons were used. The Weequay also used nocturnal dark wolves against their enemies. Many Weequay gave their lives to protect their lands against the Houk.

Houk
The Houk originated from the planet Lijuter in the Ansuroer sector, but after making contact with spacefaring Vaathkree traders, they founded a number of colonies in the nearby sectors. The Houk were hulking humanoids, on average over two meters tall, known and feared for their strength and their consistently violent tempers. The Houk saw violence as the ideal solution to any problem, and on many occasions during their history, they waged war on other groups where diplomacy might have fared better.

Each of the thirty-one Houk colonies that survived until the New Order, including the one on Sriluur, evolved in their own unique ways, adapting different forms of government, different customs, and different standards of behavior. Despite this, all ultimately answered to the Lijuter Congress, though internal Houk politics were considered to be deceitful. However, one thing many Houk colonies had in common was that they were a source of continual strife with local populations, and Sriluur was no exception. The Houk established their colony very close to the Weequay capital city, Dnalvec, which, coupled with the two species' cultural differences, infuriated the natives.

Behind the scenes
The Houk-Weequay conflicts were created by Craig Robert Carey, and first mentioned briefly in The Greel Wood Haven, an article in published in the Star Wars Adventure Journal 6 in 1995. One month later, in June 1995, Alliance Intelligence Reports, written by Carey and several other authors, also briefly mentioned the conflicts. They were subsequently elaborated upon in Galaxy Guide 12: Aliens - Enemies and Allies (1995), which Carey also contributed to, along with Pablo Hidalgo and several others, as well as Secrets of the Sisar Run (1997), written by Carey and Hidalgo among others.

Pablo Hidalgo and Paul Ens' HoloNet News Vol. 531 46 became the first non-West End Games publication to feature the conflict between the two species in 2002, and also referenced it briefly in Vol. 531 49. The conflict was subsequently detailed in Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds (2004), with Craig Robert Carey once again part of the writing team. The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia (2008), authored by Pablo Hidalgo, Stephen Sansweet, Daniel Wallace, and Bob Vitas, mentioned the conflicts in both the Houk and the Weequay entries of the encyclopedia.