Living shield

"I launched missiles against the Vagaari's living shields...." "I realize you didn't have any choice." "Which doesn't necessarily make it easier to accept," Thrawn said. "It is, unfortunately, the sort of decision all warriors must make."

- Chiss Ascendancy naval commander Mitth'raw'nuruodo (Thrawn ) explains to Corellian Maris Ferasi his pre-emptive attack decision on the living-shield bearing Vagaari, to prevent further loss of extra-galactic life.

Living shields were protective shields consisting of visibly encapsulated living beings (usually slaves) that were fitted to warships as deterrents against enemy combatants possessing varying degrees of what might be termed 'moral conscience'—by which a combatant force was compelled to refrain from attack, by virtue of certain core philosophies or beliefs (often taking the form of codified moral law) that were inextricably bound to its general world culture and which, therefore, could not be breached or violated. It follows that a culture that employed such shields would not themselves possess any such moral codes or philosophies, nor to any degree be bound by them in warfare.

The Vagaari, a nomadic pirate species from the Unknown Regions, was one such culture that used living shields extensively in their raids on other planets and cultures. Possessing no such moorings themselves that would cause such crippling hesitation in battle, they came to trust in the 'living shield' as an effective deterrent to employ against any world or culture bound by such restrictive moral codes or law.

Appearances

 * Outbound Flight