Generis/Legends

"I grew up on Generis, where my parents owned and operated a wilderness ranch on a white-water stretch of the Atrivis River&hellip;The place attracted wealthy travelers who wanted to experience the wilderness in comfort. For my siblings and me, that meant catering to their needs all hours of the day and night. As more and more guests began to arrive with their children in tow, it became my responsibility to entertain them while their parents were out fishing, hunting, hiking, or running the rapids&hellip;I heard wonderful stories about Mid and Outer Rim worlds, which only reinforced my desire to escape Generis as soon as I could."

- Vistal Purn, a Generis resident

Generis was a high-gravity planet located in the Generis system of the Atrivis sector. It had rugged terrain and was covered with grassy plains and vast jungles. This natural beauty attracted offworld travelers keen to experience its wilderness. Prior to the formation of the Galactic Republic, the world was settled by the Rakata as part of their galaxy-spanning Infinite Empire. Following the collapse of their society, scattered temples were all that remained of their time on Generis. The planet was later settled by a mix of Humans and other species, as was another planet in the system, Atrivis 7.

The planet was within Separatist space during the Clone Wars, but remained neutral. During the Galactic Civil War, it became a hub of resistance against the Galactic Empire. Joint resistance forces in the Atrivis sector set up a centralized base in orbit over the planet before negotiating a treaty with the Alliance to Restore the Republic. As part of this accord, an Outer Rim Communications Center was constructed on the planet, protected by a small starfighter force. Generis became a strategic location for the Alliance, from where it coordinated forces stationed throughout the Atrivis sector. The base was later captured by the forces of Grand Admiral Thrawn during his sustained campaign against the New Republic. Eventually recaptured by the Republic, the base was again attacked, this time during the Yuuzhan Vong War. The assault by the extra-galactic Yuuzhan Vong invaders intent on conquering the galaxy destroyed much of the planet's surface, but when the Yuuzhan Vong were eventually defeated by the Galactic Alliance, the Generis Communications Center was restored to operating capacity.

Description
"The [ S9-series heavy power droid ]  is ideally suited for use on planets with rough terrain (like Tatooine or Generis); consequently, the Rebel Alliance is trying to purchase or capture as many of these droids as it can."

- Hkaeli, on Cynabar's Droid Datalog

Generis was a planet of stunning natural beauty located in the Generis system &mdash;sometimes alternatively known as the Atrivis system &mdash;a star system located in the Atrivis sector of the Outer Rim Territories. It was the primary planet in the system, which also contained Atrivis and Atrivis 7. The Generis day lasted 42 standard hours, while its year was 234 days long. Generis's gravity was 1.1 times the Imperial standard, and its atmosphere was Type I &mdash;a mix of oxygen, nitrogen and other gases that was suitable for Human and comparable species' respiration &mdash;with a hot and humid climate.

The terrain of Generis was rough; there were many rocky hills and mountains, and thick lush jungle covered much of its landmasses. Much of Generis remained untamed wilderness, with thick jungle foliage soon choking any trails blazed through it. The jungles were full of indigenous creatures and flora, including grasses and dense impenetrable groves of sallap trees. Much of Generis' surface was covered by large oceans, while lakes dotted the landmasses and rivers of white-water rapids crossed the landscape. The planet also had at least one outcrop of hiridiu crystal, located at its southern pole. Much of the planet's surface was destroyed by the Yuuzhan Vong in 28 ABY.

Generis was located on the Relgim Run, a hyperlane that ran through the Atrivis sector after branching off the Braxant Run at the Fedje system. Bracketing Generis on this route were the Devon system&mdash;on its coreward side&mdash;and the Markbee's Star system&mdash;on its rimward side.

Galactic Republic
"On distant Generis stands an especially dark, dense, and near impenetrable growth of sallap trees. For many generations it was necessary to travel a long distance around the forest to reach the glorious deep-water lake on the far side. But then a Sith Lord thought to blaze a trail directly through the trees, in the hope of providing a quicker route to the lake."

- Qui-Gon Jinn to Obi-Wan Kenobi

Around the year 30,000 BBY, the Rakata became a significant galactic power. Using Force-based hyperdrives, they traveled to many worlds around the galaxy that possessed significant signatures in the Force, uniting them to form the Rakatan Infinite Empire. Among these worlds was Generis, where they constructed large temples. After five thousand years of galactic dominance, plague caused the collapse of the Infinite Empire, and the species later became extinct on Generis. Their temples collapsed into ruins overtaken by the jungle, leaving no clues for later settlers as to how or why they died out.

The area of space around Generis was explored following the blazing of the Hydian Way, circa 3000–1000 BBY. Generis was lightly settled during the time of the Galactic Republic alongside another planet in the system, Atrivis 7. It was known to the ancient Jedi Master Yoda by 68 BBY, who used a parable based on the planet to educate his students about the dangers of the dark side of the Force. According to Yoda, a Sith Lord tried to blaze a path directly through a grove of sallap trees as a shortcut to a lake on Generis. However, while the path was shorter, it failed to reach its destination. This parable was later retold by Master Qui-Gon Jinn to his Padawan learner Obi-Wan Kenobi in 33 BBY. During the Clone Wars&mdash;a conflict that consumed much of the galaxy between 22 BBY and 19 BBY&mdash;Generis was located within Separatist-controlled space; however, in the year 20 BBY, Generis was one of the thousands of undecided worlds that had not made an out-and-out declaration for the Republic nor its opposing government, the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

Galactic Empire
"The place attracted wealthy travelers who wanted to experience the wilderness in comfort. For my siblings and me, that meant catering to their needs all hours of the day and night&hellip;Generis was far removed from the effects of Imperial rule, but guests at the ranch kept my family well informed of galactic developments."

- Vistal Purn recounts life under the Galactic Empire

During the period of the Galactic Empire, Generis was under the jurisdiction of an Imperial Governor, but its residents were far removed from the effects of Imperial rule. In contrast, the Atrivis sector in which Generis was located was foremost among the territories active in resisting the Empire, with many isolated groups of freedom fighters. After one such group was massacred on Mantooine, many of the resistance groups began to cooperate, eventually forming the Atrivis Resistance Group. The ARG leaders chose the Generis system as their base of operations, establishing a secret base on an abandoned space station there. From there, the ARG harassed the Imperial forces throughout the sector. They were eventually visited by Mon Mothma, a senator intent on forging a pan-galactic Rebel Alliance. Although at first hesitant to join her, the leadership of the ARG eventually signed the Treaty of Generis with Mothma, bringing the ARG into the wider Rebel Alliance.

As part of the treaty, the Alliance built a Communications Center on Generis, selecting a site at its southern pole. It was located next to a large deposit of hiridiu crystal, which, merely by proximity, had the capacity to boost modern communications signal strength by as much as 30%. The Alliance was also impressed with the rugged terrain of Generis, knowing that if the base was ever discovered by the Empire, any attempt to capture or disable the center would require an extended ground campaign. The Alliance sent a team of engineers and technicians to construct the communications facility, as well as some starfighter docks as additional protection. The Alliance also supplied a full wing of 36 starfighters to the Atrivis forces, under the command of Wing Commander Varth. Six of these craft were permanently stationed on Generis to protect the Communications Center. Within six months, with an influx of Alliance training and resources, the ARG had became a fully operational Sector Force. The Rebel Alliance also sought S9-series heavy power droids for service on the planet, as the model was particularly appropriate for its rugged terrain.

Some eight months after the Battle of Yuvern in the Oplovis sector, the newly-coordinated communications system in the Atrivis sector bore fruit. The Imperial fleet in the neighboring Oplovis sector moved to attack Rebel forces on Mantooine, passing through the Generis system en route. When the Imperial forces emerged from hyperspace, three Alliance cruisers ambushed them, taking them completely by surprise. They defeated the Oplovis fleet without any major Alliance losses.

New Republic
"I thought you were out in Atrivis sector, baby-sitting the Outer Rim comm center.''" "''You're behind the times, Generis fell three days ago."

- Wedge Antilles and Pash Cracken

In 4 ABY, the Empire suffered a critical defeat at the Battle of Endor, including the death of Emperor Palpatine. With fragmentation and infighting affecting much of the Empire, Grand Moff Ardus Kaine established the Pentastar Alignment, an Imperial faction that adhered to the principles of Emperor Palpatine's New Order but eschewed expansionism. Located with the New Territories, it included fifteen sectors within its borders, including Generis' own Atrivis sector, from 4–12 ABY. The Rebel Alliance, which transitioned into the New Republic after the Battle of Endor, did not engage with the Alignment, instead focusing their attention on other Imperial factions. They did maintain their presence on Generis, however, with its Communications Center becoming the prime New Republic communications nexus to and from the Outer Rim Territories, and shortly after Endor, they strengthened Generis base with the Cracken Flight Group led by Pash Cracken. For a short period, the Cracken Flight Group was left under the stewardship of Wing Commander Varth while Cracken volunteered with Rogue Squadron. Following the capture of Coruscant by the Republic in 7 ABY, Cracken returned to Generis. Later that year, all of the forces under Wing Commander Varth were temporarily moved toward the Core Worlds to cover some of the sectors formerly used by rogue Imperial warlord Zsinj, basing themselves out of Folor, a moon of Commenor.

They had returned to Generis by 9 ABY, at which time the New Republic had suffered numerous losses against Grand Admiral Thrawn, a Chiss strategic mastermind who had returned from an extended placement in the Unknown Regions. As part of his campaign against the New Republic, Thrawn personally planned an assault against Generis. Carried out on 44:8:19, and utilizing some of his clone troops, the Imperial ground assault won a fierce battle, capturing the Communications Center largely intact, along with most of the sector fleet supply deposits. Cracken and his Flight Group were able to provide enough resistance to allow General Kryll to sneak out Commander-in-Chief Travia Chan and her support staff, and were also able to deny the Imperial forces any new ships; however, overall, the loss of the unique broadcasting center was a significant blow to the New Republic. Among the Imperial casualties was the stormtrooper Grodin Tierce; ten years later, Tierce was impersonated by members of the Imperial Remnant in a bid to take control of that government. Thrawn's forces later destroyed the Communications Center.

Grand Admiral Thrawn was subsequently defeated by the New Republic, assassinated by his own bodyguard. His second-in-command, Gilad Pellaeon, worked to consolidate the Empire's control in the New Territories, but was eventually pushed back to a mere eight sectors, with the Republic regaining control of Generis and the Atrivis sector. The Communications Center was rebuilt, which, in addition to servicing the Outer Rim, also became an important link to the Unknown Regions. While this held some strategic importance, it was never selected for sabotage by the Imperial Remnant, as they considered the Chiss&mdash;the dominant power in the Unknown Regions&mdash;to be too isolationist for the Republic to make any successful overtures.

In 25 ABY, the New Republic again came under substantial attack, this time from an extra-galactic species known as the Yuuzhan Vong. For the early years of the war, Generis was a Republic stronghold; however, in 28 ABY, a Yuuzhan Vong fleet retreating from an assault on the Imperial Remnant attacked Generis, having been alerted to the base by the presence of a Yuuzhan Vong spy using a communications villip. Although pursued by Grand Admiral Pellaeon aboard the Right to Rule, the Yuuzhan Vong managed to destroy the Communications Center, ravaging much of the planet's surface in the process. The Yuuzhan Vong force then continued on to the planet Esfandia, which had been established as a second Outer Rim communications base at the start of the war to serve as a redundant link to the Outer Rim and into the Unknown Regions alongside Generis. Esfandia almost fell to the same force, but Pellaeon's ships and the arrival of a rag-tag fleet of Ryn-affiliated starships managed to defeat the Yuuzhan Vong forces. The New Republic was soon able to repair the Generis facility and restore its communications capacity.

In the decades after the Yuuzhan Vong War, the Empire expanded its territories again, gaining control of the Atrivis sector by 41 ABY. A century later, the Empire had regained control of the galaxy through an alliance with the Sith Order. After the Sith usurped the throne of Emperor Roan Fel, Generis was part of the territory that remained loyal to the displaced ruler.

Locals
"It'll beat what we've got out on Generis. It's backward enough that most folks there don't even realize the Old Republic has fallen.''" "''And they're wondering why nothing new is being shipped from Alderaan."

- Pash Cracken and Tycho Celchu

Generis was once inhabited by the Rakata. These humanoids had large, cone-like heads with eyes on short stalks on the sides. They built temples across the surface of Generis in a notably non-Human design. By the time of the Galactic Civil War, they were long extinct, with the temple ruins providing no evidence of what caused their disappearance.

The planet was later lightly settled by the early years of the Galactic Empire with a mix of Humans and a variety of other species, but it had no major cities; by 9 ABY, its population numbered only 2,000. There were some small population centers, as well as wilderness ranches on the planet. Wealthy travelers from off-world often visited the planet to experience its untamed wilderness, bringing along their children and staying at ranches such as that of Vistal Purn's family, located near the Atrivis River. These guests spent their time fishing, hunting, hiking, and rafting down the white-water rapids. Purn, one of the Generis locals, eventually left the planet and became the owner of a YT-1300 light freighter, a starship that later became famous as the Millennium Falcon, captained by Han Solo, a hero of the Rebel Alliance and New Republic.

The inhabitants of Generis utilized certain galactic technologies, such as airspeeders, but on the whole, the world was rather backward. The planet's inhabitants were distant from the effect and management of Imperial rule, and were only kept up to date on galactic affairs through news related by offworld guests. Even when the planet became a key Republic communications hub, the locals remained ambivalent to galactic affairs. Pash Cracken, stationed on the world for years, once joked that "most folks there don't even realize the Old Republic has fallen."

Military personnel
"And we were able to make enough trouble on our way out to let General Kryll sneak Travia Chan and her people out from under the Imperials' collective snout."

- Pash Cracken

During the Galactic Civil War, the Atrivis Resistance Group used Generis as their headquarters, first from an abandoned orbital space station and later from a base established at the planet's southern pole. The ARG was led by Commander-in-Chief Travia Chan, a Human invalid forced to remain near the base's medical facilities. She was often aided by Chief of Staff Loom Carplin and his Wookiee subordinate Busurra. Other members of the Generis command staff included General Kryll, an Alderaanian and former Imperial placed in charge of the Outer Rim Communications Center, and Wing Commander Varth, who was in charge of the starfighter forces. Serving under Varth for many years was Pash Cracken, son of the legendary Alliance General Airen Cracken. Pash Cracken commanded the Cracken Flight Group, a crack unit of RZ-1 A-wing interceptors, composed of pilots that had followed him when he defected from the Empire soon after graduating from the Imperial Naval Academy.

Locations
"I grew up on Generis, where my parents owned and operated a wilderness ranch on a white-water stretch of the Atrivis River. The ranch was a four-day walk from the closest population center, but most guests opted to pay extra to be delivered by airspeeder, which could make the trip in a little under a standard hour."

- Vistal Purn

Ruins of Rakatan temples, of a distinctly exotic and alien design, dotted the Generis jungle. On other worlds such as Lehon, these Rakatan temples were four-sided stone pyramids. Other notable locations on Generis included the Purn family wilderness ranch, located on the Atrivis River. It hosted numerous offworld visitors seeking a wilderness experience.

Generis base was the name of the Rebel Alliance facility on Generis. It contained the Outer Rim Communications Center, Atrivis Sector Headquarters, and the sector's starfighter base. The complex lacked sufficient mechanics and spare parts, and, as it was not originally designed for starfighters, had primitive maintenance facilities. Generis base was located at the planet's southern pole next to an outcrop of hiridiu crystal. The base also contained supply depots for the sector. The Communications Center was captured intact by Grand Admiral Thrawn, and later regained by the Republic which did some further expansion on the site.

Behind the scenes
Generis is first mentioned in the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, a roleplaying game supplement written by Paul Murphy and published by West End Games in 1990. The planet is mentioned by Timothy Zahn in his 1993 novel The Last Command. Since this time, it has been mentioned in novels and reference books, but has appeared directly only in the computer game Star Wars: Rebellion.

Inconsistencies
In both the first and second editions of the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, the planet's spelling alternates between "Generis" and "Gerenis." This source originally places the planet in the Generis system, which has been repeated in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia and the StarWars.com Databank. However, other sources have placed it the Atrivis system, and so these names must be alternatives for the same star system. Within The Essential Atlas there is also an error regarding Generis. On page 122, it is described as one of the systems on the Braxant Run, however, on page 202, the Braxant takes a different path, and Generis is instead located on the Relgim Run. This article has treated the placement on the Braxant as in error.

There is some ambiguity as to the nature of the Alliance presence on Generis. In the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook, the original resistance base is described as an abandoned space station. With regard to the new Rebel communications base, the book suggests it is continuous with the resistance base stating that "in its original incarnation, Generis base was not designed to house starfighters, and maintenance facilities are primitive," while at the same time referring to it as "the base on Gerenis," suggesting it is on the planet's surface. However, the Thrawn Trilogy Sourcebook cites the rugged terrain as a factor in building the communications center, placing it on the ground. As such, it is not clear whether the Rebel Alliance base was first integrated into the space station and then moved to the surface or built directly on the surface.

Another inconsistency occurs over the capture of the ORCC. The Last Command describes the center being lost "more or less intact," while The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia holds that "the center was destroyed by Grand Admiral Thrawn's forces just prior to the Battle of Bilbringi." This article tries to harmonize the sources, indicating the base was captured intact and then later destroyed.

The video game Star Wars: Rebellion provides travel times between Generis and other planets in its sector; however, these are often significantly longer than other canonical sources and thus seem to reflect game mechanics rather than canonical travel times. With this proviso, the times given for Generis are as follows:

Appearances

 * Cloak of Deception
 * Star Wars: Rebellion
 * X-Wing: The Bacta War
 * The Last Command
 * The Last Command 4
 * Vision of the Future
 * The New Jedi Order: Force Heretic III: Reunion
 * The New Jedi Order: The Unifying Force
 * Millennium Falcon