Wookieepedia:Featured article queue/Week 19, 2012/1

The Jungle Felucians, more commonly referred to as the Felucians, were an amphibious sentient species native to the planet Felucia. Viewed as strange and unusual by other species, the Felucians possessed two sets of arms&mdash;one ending in four webbed digits, and the other in three agile fingers&mdash;as well as a head consisting of a thick mass of tendrils. Members of the species usually stood 1.9 meters tall and weighed ninety kilograms. The Felucians were naturally sensitive to the Force and were in tune with their home planet's ever-changing balance of that energy field. The Felucians possessed no advanced technology and lived a somewhat primitive lifestyle. Unlike many other primitive species, the Felucians were not divided into multiple tribes; rather, they were all members of a single tribe spanning the entirety of Felucia. However, the species did have strict class stratification. Three of their most prominent classes were the warriors, the shamans, and the chieftains.

The Felucian warriors were responsible for hunting and protecting their people, using their burgeoning Force powers and their traditional weapon, the Felucian skullblade. The Felucian shamans were the most exceptional Force-users in the species. They were the mentors, the spiritual guides, and the watchmen for their kin, ensuring that every Felucian who fell to the dark side of the Force was fed to the giant sarlacc creature nested in the Ancient Abyss, a sacred Felucian sacrificial ground. Tall and commanding, the Felucian chieftains were the leaders of their people and wielded ceremonial staffs and shields hardened with the help of the Force. Thanks to their Force-sensitivity, the species was also able to domesticate their homeworld's vicious rancor predators, painting them with phosphorescent dyes and using them as war beasts. The Jungle Felucians lived in seclusion from the rest of the galaxy until 27,000 BBY, when Gossam colonists settled on Felucia. As eons passed, the Gossam took over most of the planet, driving the Felucians deep into the planet's dangerous jungles. During the Clone Wars, Felucia was ravaged by battles between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems that took place there. After the end of the conflict, the Felucians set off to rebuild the planet's damaged ecosystem.

During the Great Jedi Purge, the Felucians harbored fugitive Togruta Jedi Master Shaak Ti and her Zabrak Padawan Maris Brood. Ti trained the Felucians in the use of the Force, helping them to overcome the temptations of the dark side. In 3 BBY, however, Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader dispatched his apprentice Starkiller to kill Ti. The Felucians fought the apprentice, but he made his way to the Ancient Abyss, where he confronted and killed the Jedi Master. Brood survived the slaughter since she had been ordered by Ti to go into hiding. Stranded on Felucia without a Master to help her contain her anger, Brood fell to the dark side, and her influence corrupted the entire planet and the Felucian species, the members of which mutated into deformed, bloodthirsty monsters. At the same time, the Galactic Empire began a full-scale campaign on the planet to eradicate the Force-sensitive species entirely. In 2 BBY, a strong opposer of the Empire, Senator Bail Organa, arrived on the planet in search of Shaak Ti, but he was captured by Brood, who hoped to use him as a bargaining chip in case the Empire found her. However, Starkiller, on a mission to band together the Empire's foes, returned to the world, rescued Organa, and defeated Brood, although he let her live when she promised to abandon the dark side and leave Felucia.