Sebiris

"Several weeks ago, my sources on Pembric II hinted that one of Sarne's operatives, a saboteur and assassin who operates under the alias Klendost Petrivoor, makes frequent visits to this undeveloped planet. This sounded like the Wraith, so I visited Sebiris myself."

- Breslin Drake's datapad entry

Sebiris was a planet located in the Sebiris system of the Outer Rim Territories' Kathol sector. A hot jungle world, it was the homeworld of the Sebiri, a primitive species of scaly-hided humanoids. At some point, Sebiris had been visited by an advanced species that the Sebiri refered to as "those who came before" who they believed created the jungle and performed miracles through the use of glowing charms. The only evidence of their passing was the ruins of a stone temple located within the planet's equatorial region.

During the early years of the New Republic, the Imperial saboteur and assassin known as the Wraith visited the planet on a number of occasions to acquire a virulent toxin that he used in the course of his assignments. In 8 ABY, the New Republic CR90 corvette FarStar traveled to the Sebiris to obtain a cure to the toxin, after their commanding officer, Captain Kaiya Adrimetrum, had been afflicted with the poison.

Description
"My original supposition that there are no major structures on Sebiris other than the locals' wattle-and-daub huts is apparently in error."

- Breslin Drake's datapad entry

The planet Sebiris was situated in the system of the same name, at grid coordinates M-21 in the Kathol sector of the Outer Rim Territories. Hyperlanes connected Sebiris to the Pembric, Galtea and Dolstan systems. Travel via a Class One hyperdrive to Pembric II took two days and fourteen hours, Galtea was a day and three hours distant, and transiting to Dolstan along the Sebiris Run took fourteen days and nine hours as starships had to cross the empty region of space known as the Marcol Void.

A hot, terrestrial world, Sebiris was home to the Sebiri, a species of primitive humanoids who lived in small tribal villages. The atmosphere was breathable, and the gravity was 1.2 of standard. A day on Sebiris lasted 22 standard hours, while a year lasted 277 local days. Abundant plant life was present on the planet, including herbs that could be used to counteract a poison found on the world that was fatal to most humanoids. Dangerous animal predators were also present on Sebiris. Thick jungle terrain covered the planet and Sebiris had no major cities or spaceports due to the primitive nature of the inhabitants. However, a hexagonal structure with a domed crest was located in the planet's equatorial region. The structure had not been built by the Sebiri, who told tales of beings called "those who came before" who had constructed it without the use of tools. Visitors to the world often traded low technology goods to the natives, including luxury and exotic foods, spices, fabrics, and weapons.

History
"I know this may be a long shot, but awhile ago I followed a lead down to find one of Sarne's agents. This agent supposedly made regular visits to an outlying system."

- Breslin Drake briefs the command crew of the FarStar on Sebiris

By 3,643 BBY, during the Second Great Galactic War between the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire, the Sith maintained a presence on Sebiris. The nature of the Empire's work on the planet was tied to Project Chimera, a Science Bureau initiative that was studying the effects that the Nightmare Lands on the planet Voss had on non-native lifeforms.

At some point in Sebiris' history, an advanced species&mdash;who would be refered to as "those who came before" by the Sebiri&mdash;arrived at the planet as they were colonizing worlds and spreading themselves throughout the region. They performed miracles through the use of small charms and devices that glowed when activated. The Sebiri believed that they had created the jungle that covered their homeworld, and had constructed a large hexagonal structure without the use of any tools. The building was constructed out of a single piece of stone native to the planet's southernmost continent, meaning that it had been moved some 2,000 kilometers from its previous location. Over the years, the structure was abandoned, and it was recovered by the jungle, covered in vines and foliage.

The native Sebiri established a tribal culture, based around villages lead by a headman. They were aware of other races in the galaxy, and off-worlders visited the planet to occasionally trade with Sebiri. By the time of the Galactic Civil War, a Sebiri village had been established half a kilometer from the hexagonal structure. The inhabitants viewed the structure, which now resembled a mound due to the growth collected on it, as sacred ground as it had been constructed by "those who came before" and allowed no off-worlder near the site. Any attempt visitors made to approach the ruin was met with violence.

During the early years of the New Republic, an Imperial saboteur and assassin known as the Wraith traveled to Sebiris frequently. Using the alias "Klendost Petrivoor", he traded flintlock slugthrowers to the natives and used his time on the planet to acquire the virulent poison produced on the planet. He would then use this poison during assassinations carried out for his current employer, the Imperial warlord, Moff Kentor Sarne. At some point, the agent stashed a freighter on the surface of the planet.

The Wraith was being tracked by Major Breslin Drake of the New Republic Intelligence Service, who was pursing a personal vendetta against the Imperial agent after he had several compromised an intelligence-gathering and collation network known as the "Archive system." During his investigation, Drake learned of Petrivoor's visits to Sebiris and that he was an agent working for Sarne. Since Petrivoor's skill sets matched with the Wraith, Drake decided to investigate. Drake visited the same village that the Wraith had, and discovered the hexagonal structure. When he asked the village's headman to provide him with a guide to investigate the ruins, the headman flatly refused and advised Drake to stay as far away as possible. Drake, however, decided to investigate anyway and was subsequently caught trying to sneak out of the village. The village's hunters turned hostile and started to throw spears at Drake which were deflected by his blast vest. Drake then managed to scare the Sebiri off with shots from his blaster pistol before fleeing the planet.

In 8 ABY, the New Republic CR90 corvette FarStar arrived at the planet in search of an antidote to the poison produced by the plants on the world. Their commanding officer, Captain Kaiya Adrimetrum, had been struck with a dart coated in the toxin, and was in a coma. Drake was part of the ship's crew, as was the Wraith, who was posing as a bouncer named "Drenn." Drake and the Wraith had been working together for several months at the ThrusterBurn Tapcafe on Pembric II, each unaware of the other's identity. Drake had suggested Sebiris as a possible destination for acquiring an antidote to the poison, and shared his information on the Wraith with the crew, tipping the Wraith off to Drake's true identity. A large, well-armed mission group was dispatched to the surface on Drake's advice as he was concerned by both the presence of dangerous wildlife in the jungle, and the possibility that the outcome of his last visit had changed the Sebiri's attitude towards off-worlders. Drake's fears were unfounded, and they met with headman of the village that he and the Wraith had visited previously. The team was escorted to the Sebiri village where the headman recounted the tales of "those who came before" and revealed that an antidote to the poison did exist, but that the herbs grew near their sacred ground. Initially, the headman resisted all efforts the delegation made to acquire an escort to the ruins, but after an appropriate number of gifts were present to the headman, he agreed to personally lead them to the site with twelve of his hunters.

Arriving at the site, the headman gathered the required herbs and passed them to one of the New Republic delegates. At the same time, one of the hunters addressed Drenn&mdash;who had volunteered for the mission&mdash;as "Petrivoor" within earshot of Drake. The Wraith, realizing he had been found out, drew his blaster rifle and opened fire on the hexagonal mound, enraging the Sebiri. The Wraith fled into the jungle, pursued by several Sebiri, while the rest turned on the New Republic team. The delegation was able to extradite themselves from the situation, returning to the FarStar where they were able to cure Captain Adrimetrum, bringing her out of her coma.

The crew of the FarStar were unable to stop the Wraith from escaping the planet, as he used the freighter that he had hidden on the world to escape. While convalescing in the FarStar sickbay, Adrimetrum mused that the stories the Sebiri told of "those who came before" and the devices they used sounded similar to the exotic technology that Moff Sarne was in possession of. Sarne had used the devices during his escape from his capital on Kal'Shebbol during the New Republic's liberation of the planet, and Adrimetrum wondered if Sarne was using technology left behind by a previous species that had inhabited the region several centuries earlier.

Inhabitants
"This planet was the source of a toxin that the agent favored for political assassinations. I never found the agent on the source of the poison, but the natives of the planet relatively friendly."

- Breslin Drake briefs the command crew of the FarStar on Sebiris

Sebiris was the homeworld of the Sebiri, a humanoid race with scaly skin. A tribal culture, they lived in primitive wattle-and-daub huts organized into villages led by a headman. Although primitive, they were aware of life on other planets, and were generally friendly towards off-worlders&mdash;especially those that brought them gifts&mdash;and looked forward to their visits.

Locations
"While visiting the locals, I noticed what appeared to be a large, vine-and-mud choked hill, roughly a half of kilometer from the village I'm visiting. The hill had an oddly regular shape, however, as if the vines were draped over some kind of man-made structure rather the result of geological upheaval."

- Breslin Drake's datapad entry

In Sebiris' equatorial region, a village was established that was visited several times by the Wraith, Breslin Drake, and a mission group from the corvette FarStar. Half a kilometer from the village was a hexagonal structure with a domed crest built by an advanced race. Constructed out of a single piece of stone, the exterior was covered in intricate carvings while the interior was smooth with no evidence of its origins.

Behind the scenes
Sebiris first appeared in Traitor in our Midst, the sixth RPG adventure in The DarkStryder Campaign in 1995. It was written by Eric S. Trautmann and Paul Sudlow with illustrations by Philip Tan. Sebiris was later mentioned in 2011's ''Star Wars: The Old Republic.

In the adventure, the players have several ways of resolving the confrontation between the crew of the FarStar and the Sebiri. If they choose to fight, then after killing or stuning five of the Sebiri hunters the rest will retreat allowing the crew to escape. They have the option of simply running from the fight, but it is noted that due to the thick jungle foliage, they will be at a huge disadvantage against the Sebiri. The natives suffer no movement penalties while moving through the undergrowth, unlike the player characters, who will find their movement speeds cut in half. Finally, the players may attempt to broker a truce after the Wraith flees. If successful, the headman demands more gifts, and then banishes the characters from the planet forever. It is also noted that if this option is taken, then the headman refuses to hand over the antidote, and the characters will have to take it by force. However, earlier in the narrative, the headman is stated to have already passed the necessary herbs to a member of the landing party. As the adventure ends with Captain Adrimetrum's successful recovery from the herbal remedy, this article assumes that the characters obtained the cure, but makes no assumptions as to how this was achieved.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: The Old Republic