Aaris

The Aaris were meter-tall reptilian sentients native to the planet Aaris III in the Kathol sector of the Outer Rim Territories. Thousands of years prior to the Galactic Civil War, the Aaris built an industrial society across their homeworld, raising large cities, and had a strong tradition of oral communication, to the extent of developing a unique method of recording their knowledge. Although a peaceful race, the Aaris tore their society apart in a civil war, a conflict perpetrated by the arrival of the Plaque of Victory on their planet. The Plaque was a sentient lifeform, although it was inanimate and held within a metal ingot, that sought to influence the minds of other beings into doing its bidding. The Plaque caused the Aaris people to become violent and homicidal, turning factions against one another as they all sought to gain possession of the artifact. Eventually, the Aaris fell into decline, and their cities became ruins reclaimed by the jungle. By 8 ABY, the primitive descendants of the Aaris lived in warrens tunnelled through the ruins of their former cities.

Society and culture
The Aaris were a relatively peaceful race, although they did occasionally wage war among one another. By the height of their civilization&mdash;several thousand years before the Galactic Civil War&mdash;the Aaris had developed into an industrial society, building great cities across the face of their homeworld of Aaris III. They had knowledge of governmental structures, as well as formal learning systems, resulting in scholars. They also maintained professional soldiers, organized into both city guard companies, and legions.

The Aaris language was tonal in nature, utilizing beeps, rumbles, notes and chirps to convey meaning. Because of this, the Aaris had a strong tradition of oral history, and did not develop a true written language. Instead, they developed a form of oral recording that served a similar purpose. The Aaris created bas-relief pictographs that, when pressed, emitted sounds emulating their language. They used these to record their history, and to store knowledge.

By 8 ABY, the Aaris had fallen into decline, having torn their society apart in a civil war. Their descendants inhabited the ruins of their cities, living in warrens burrowed through soil and rock. These Aaris were primitive compared to their ancestors, wielding crudely made weapons and defending their territory against outside invasion.

The Aaris were not known to the galactic community; no records of a civilization on the planet existed before Imperial science team MS-133 conducted an archaeological expedition to the planet in 8 ABY and began translating the records that the Aaris had left behind.

History
The Aaris were a species of reptilian humanoids, covered in warts, who generally stood one meter tall. Their civilization reached its height several thousand years before the Galactic Civil War. Based on the planet Aaris III in the Kathol sector, the Aaris established an industrial society that resulted in the construction of cities across the face of the planet. Although generally peaceful, they did engage in occasional wars between one another. One night, a comet streaked through Aaris III's skies. Several days later, a military legion from an outpost entered one of the Aaris's cities with an artifact, a triangular metal ingot they called the "Plaque of Victory." Unknown to the Aaris was the fact that the artifact was a sentient inanimate lifeform which fed off the life-force of organic beings. The Plaque's goal was to destroy those around it, but not by any action of its own; instead, the Plaque manipulated the feelings of individuals, causing them to act in paranoid, irrational and homicidal ways.

Six days after the arrival of the artifact in the city, civil unrest had increased, with a rise in violent crimes which often resulted in the death of the victim. The situation quickly escalated, as more citizens began to become involved in violent acts, including street gangs and even units of the city guard. Each faction had one thing in common&mdash;they claimed that the Plaque of Victory had spoken to them, and each claimed to be its appointed guardian. One faction, who had access to the relic, removed it from its place in the gushaz, and took it to a tower in the city's governmental complex, high above the city. There, it was given over to Kastays, a noted scholar, with the hope the if the artifact was high above the population, its effects would be diminished. To safeguard it, Kastays hid it in a floor vault. The plan failed, and the Aaris civilization descended into civil war and anarchy, all but destroying itself in the process. Kastays recorded the events using the Aaris's bas-relief pictographs, call it "the last days."

Despite the fall of their society, the Aaris continued to live on. As their cities fell into ruin, reclaimed by the jungle, the primitive descendants of the survivors made their home in the lower levels. They tunnelled large warrens throughout the ruins, digging into the rock and soil that surrounded them. Fashioning crude weapons, they vigorously defended their homes from all invaders.

Behind the scenes
The Aaris were created for the roleplaying adventure Artifact of Aaris, which was published in The DarkStryder Campaign by West End Games. The Aaris were not encountered directly in the scenario, as their society had fallen into ruin during the time period in which it was set, although an adventure hook for further missions on their homeworld, Aaris III, provided a way to meet their primitive descendants.