20,000 BBY

The year 20,000 before the Battle of Yavin (BBY) marked the end of the Expansionist Era and the beginning of the Great Manifest Period in the Galactic Republic. Now approximately five thousand years old, the Republic began a period of rapid expansion out from the Core Worlds and into the areas of Wild Space "east" of the galactic center. Other cultures, such as the Etti, had already begun Rimward migration. Further development and exploration took place in the Core as well. The planet Metellos, suffering from a lack of trade and overpopulation, began its attempt to blaze a new hyperlane connecting it to both Coruscant and points westward to alleviate these issues. Once completed, the route stretched from Coruscant to Orooturoo.

Proem
The Expansionist Era had marked a steady but limited growth to Galactic Republic space. Primary galactic settlement was confined to the Core Worlds, Hutt Space, the Herglic Trade Empire, and the Republic worlds that mostly lined the existing hyperspace routes. Exploration into the regions colloquially known as "Wild Space" and blazing new hyperspace routes were regarded as incredibly dangerous. Nevertheless, the Etti had already begun migrating out of the Core Worlds as a response to persecution at the hands of the Republic's "oppressive" and "tyrannical" government. These people had terraformed the planet Etti IV and settled far from the reach of Coruscant's bureaucracy.

The galaxy in 20,000 BBY
The year 20,000 BBY marked the end of the Expansionist Era and the beginning of the Great Manifest Period, an era of expansion and exploration beyond the Core Worlds and the then–known galactic community which was nestled along the Corellian Run and the Perlemian Trade Route. The exploration was primarily contained to the "Wild Space" area, which later became known as the Expansion Region of the Slice. About this time, the planet Metellos was facing the domestic problems of overpopulation and a lack of trade. To remedy these, the planetary government commissioned the blazing of a new hyperspace trail to connect both eastward to Coruscant and to points westward. Upon its completion, the Metellos Trade Route connected Coruscant to Orooturoo.

It was also circa 20,000 BBY that the ancient Jedi Knight Roni von Wasaki was born.

Impact
The Galactic Republic saw massive settlement in the Expansion Region and broader areas of the Slice as the Great Manifest Period continued. The growth was fostered by government-backed, corporation-sponsored settlement. Coruscant and Corellia were among the most active and prosperous planets at this time, striking the ire of rival world Alsakan. This later became the impetus that led to the Alsakan Conflicts. At the same time, the corporate-sponsored settlement caused planetary resources to be exploited and settlers left in poor conditions; many worlds eventually revolted.

The goals established on Metellos to remedy its problems with trade and overcrowding were only marginally realized with the creation of the Metellos Trade Route. While the connection to Coruscant did increase some trade traffic, the largest gain was with planets westward, such as Orooturoo. At the same time, the opening of Metellos to the broader galaxy did relieve some of the overcrowding that had developed in the prior years.

Jedi Knight Roni von Wasaki became known as a peace-keeper in the frontier sectors who rooted out criminal activity in those areas. Various crime lords then issued a bounty for his capture. Notwithstanding his success fending off would-be captors, he was apprehended by Leshy Drobo, Gammid, and the droid XT-8. The Jedi was encased in carbonite, but a botched murder resulted in the destruction of the hyperdrive in the transporting vessel. The ship drifted through realspace for nearly twenty thousand years until it was found by a group of soldiers who fought in the Galactic Civil War as members of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. During this long period of drifting, Wasaki was driven to insanity.

Notable events

 * The Galactic Republic's Great Manifest Period began.
 * Metellos attempted to establish a hyperlane connecting it with Coruscant and points westward to alleviate domestic problems. The new route stretched from Coruscant to Orooturoo.


 * Roni von Wasaki is born.

Behind the scenes
The date 20,000 BBY was first alluded to in the roleplaying game supplement Coruscant and the Core Worlds, published by Wizards of the Coast in 2003 while discussing Metellos and the creation of the Metellos Trade Route. The Great Manifest Period, and its commencement in 20,000 BBY, was later mentioned in The New Essential Chronology and The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia. Further development of the events within the Great Manifest Period were then published in the 2009 The Essential Atlas.

Other sources make reference to events that happened "more than twenty thousand years" before the Battle of Yavin, such as the Shadows of the Empire Sourcebook, which discusses the Etti fleeing persecution in the Core and settling on Etti IV. Nevertheless, the text states that this event had happened sometime prior to 20,000 BBY, at an unidentified time.

The storyline of the Jedi Knight Roni von Wasaki is only published in the roleplaying adventure Disturbance in the Force in the magazine Challenge 66. As this source is not officially licensed, the canon nature of Wasaki and the storyline is ambiguous. This source lists the Jedi's birth year as approximately 20,000 BBY.

Notes and references
20.000 ABY