Zodoh

"...But I've moved to this sector to stay As if this place didn't stink enough without you."

- Zodoh and a captive Captain Jenn Zodoh, commonly known as Zodoh the Hutt or High Hymmensity Zodoh, was an atypical Hutt mastermind living in the Grumani sector during the New Sith Wars. He had accumulated a substantial crime empire based on slavery and munitions production. In 1,032 BBY, he attempted to expand his influence into the Sith-dominated Grumani sector by testing his Stormdriver superweapon on Aquilaris, intending to browbeat the Sith into submission. These machines were capable of harnessing moisture from planetary atmospheres and unleashing them as storms and floods. Having successfully tested his Stormdrivers during the Aquilaris campaign, he launched an attack on Darkknell, capital of Sith Lord Daiman's realm known as the Daimanate. However, he was defeated by the Jedi Knight Kerra Holt and his former slave-turned Grace Command Captain Jenn Devaad who destroyed his flagship Voracious, effectively disabling his entire fleet of Stormdrivers. Stranded in zero-gee space, Zodoh was recovered and captured by Daiman's forces. In an ironic twist of justice, the Sith Lord then had him personally executed with a miniature Stormdriver.

Crimelord
"We're always on the hunt for Zodoh!...We were their slaves for five years!...Now it's time to even the score"

- Jenn Devaad

Zodoh was a Hutt Lord during the Republic Dark Age who had accumulated a substantial crime empire built on slave trading and munitions production. At some point, he captured an entire Republic Navy task force and enslaved the crew including Captain Jenn Devaad. After five years of captivity, Devaad and other survivors escaped and joined Grace Command, a mercy organization affiliated with the Galactic Republic. Thus, Devaad and other members of the Devil Squadron bore a deep grudge against Zodoh. Due to the breakdown of the Republic's authority in the outlying regions, Zodoh and other Hutts were able to expand their operations beyond Hutt Space, competing with the squabbling remnants of the New Sith Empire.

Imperial Ambitions
"I'come here to sprad the franchise. Make room for Zodoh and you'll gain a key supplier of slaves and munitions. Resist and you'll see I play even rougher than you do..."

- Zodoh trying to intimidate his Sith rivals

By 1,032 BBY, Zodoh had consolidated a substantial fleet of military starships which he used to invade the Daimanate, a Sith principality within the Grumani sector ruled by the Sith Lord Daiman. Leading a strike force consisting of Intruder-class starfighters, he attacked the Daimanate subject world of Aquilaris Minor, wiping out a weak Daimanate military garrison at the oceanic port of Capital Cay. His attacks coincided with a covert operation by the Jedi Knight Kerra Holt which had succeeded in liberating slave miners in that port city. Zodoh's invasion fleet also included several Stormdrivers, capital ships equipped with weaponized vaporators capable of generating downpours by squeezing moisture from the atmosphere. One of these was used to wreck havoc on Daiman's defense forces by creating floods which swept them into the sea. However, Holt attacked the Stormdriver, using a blaster pistol to ignite one of the weaponized vaporators, causing the starship to explode. With the crew preoccupied, the Stormdriver was ambushed and destroyed by the Devil Squadron, a paramilitary squadron affiliated with the pro-Republic mercy organization Grace Command. Facing superior opposition, Zodoh's forces were forced to retreat to his starfighter carrier Voracious in deep space.

Still, Zodoh managed to identify the young Jedi woman Holt as a threat to his goals. Back at his space station, the Hutt convened a live hologram conference with several Sith warlords including Arkadia Calimondra and Odion, who was still recuperating from his wounds during an earlier battle on Chelloa. By expanding into Sith territory, Zodoh had incurred the wrath of these Sith warlords particularly Odion who swore at Zodoh. Standing by Odion, Calimondra expressed her anger at the inauspicious timing of the holo-conference, accusing Zodoh of treating her as a mere gangster as opposed to a Sith ruler. In response, Zodoh countered that the Sith Lords were indeed a bunch of petty crooks, arguing that they were more interested in short-term gains than long term strategic goals. He also stressed their incompetence by claiming the Sith had been reduced to petty rivalries after the Galactic Republic severed all Holonet comm relays. This power vacuum had allowed the Hutt crimelords to establish greater control in these outlying regions. According to Zodoh, Sith survival was dependent on cooperation with the Hutts. Those who did not had been wiped out effectively.

Returning to the objective of his conference, Zodoh reiterated he was in Sith space to expand his business franchise, selling slaves and munitions to the Sith warlords. Those who cooperated would benefit as business partners while those who resisted would be effectively eliminated from the political stage. Concluding the conference, Zodoh ordered the Sith lords to inform their spies in the Daimanate to watch for future developments on Aquilaris from a "safe distance." After dismissing the meeting, he confered with his trusted advisore Oon Garat who express his distrust of Zodoh's new Sith business partners. Zodoh replied that the Sith could be trusted to covet what they saw and that they did not know his real intentions. Despite the destruction of the Stormdriver at Capital Cay, the starship had still managed to gather the necessary data on Aquilaris Minor's atmospheric systems. Dismissing Holt as an old nemesis, Zodoh ordered Garat to send a courier informing Nal Hutta that he was ready for the next step in the operation. While he realized that his presence was opposed by the Sith, Zodoh envisaged them working under him by the time he had finished reasserting control over the Grumari sector.

Following the Aquilaris campaign, Zodoh had gathered enough data on the planet's atmospheric systems which indicated there was enough moisture in the atmosphere for an entire fleet of Stormdrivers to trap as floodwater. Zodoh planned to wring all moisture from Aqualaris' atmosphere and flood the entire planet, submerging all its landmasses in water. Zodoh intended to use these new superweapons to coerce his Sith partners into a hegemonic relationship with the threat of force. Meanwhile, Death Squadron and Holt had finished pacifying the remaining Daimanate forces on Aqualaris Minor. With Republic relief and supplies due to arrive, Grace Command now planned to launch an attack on Sith Lord Malakite's forces on Heptooine. Enroute, they encountered Zodoh who was piloting his Infiltrator starfighter. Overcome by rage stemming from her period in captivity, Captain Devaad pursued Zodoh on a heated dogfight despite Holt advising caution. During the pursuit, he taunted Devaad via intercomm by asking her if she wanted to work as his slave again. In hindsight, Zodoh had intended to lure his Republic foes into a trap. Soon, Death Squadron was engaged by Zodoh's flagship Vociferous and its starfighter complement. With the tables turned on the pursuer, Devaad ordered her starfighters to disengage and make for any jump point. At this moment, a large fleet of Stormdrivers emerged from hyperspace, revealing Zodoh's true intentions which he boasted through the intercomm system. In his eyes, Aqualaris was merely a testing ground for his war machines.

Reunion with an Old Foe
"They were escaped slaves just like you. An entrepreneur must set certain standards. I am sursprised Devaad -- you really should've known what to expect from me. I did know. So while I was flying back here -- I borrowed someone's idea, too. Kerra's."

- Zodoh and Devaad

In the ensuing dogfight, Devaad's fighters attempted to attack Zodoh's fleet of Stormdrivers against Kerra's advice. The Jedi Knight was preoccupied with her mission of saving Aquilaris' people from Zodoh's impending deluge. Zodoh was not unprepared for starfighter opposition and his Stormdrivers were each equipped with defensive systems for flight configuration which prevented the outnumbered Republic fighters from inflicting serious damage. Within minutes, several Grace Command starfighters were destroyed and pilots were killed including Vahss. Seeing little strategic gain in assaulting Zodoh's fleet and unable to persuade Captain Devaad from supporting her mission, Holt disengaged her starfighter Devil Seven from the firefight. As a finale, Zodoh ordered the crew of the Voracious to activate the tractor beam projector. Within seconds, the entire Death Squadron with the exception of Kerra Holt were re-captured by the Hutt. Aboard Zodoh's flagship, the squadron members were disarmed, imprisoned and tortured within the massive warship's holding cells.

Zodoh had Captain Devaad brought into his presence and gloated over his recent victory. His quarry was bound and held suspended within a force field. He revealed his imperial ambitions of annexing the Grumari Sector including Aquilaris Minor, traditionally regarded as Sith domain. Zodoh planned to oust the Sith by intimidating them with his Stormdrivers. He succeeded in coercing Devaad into his services by threatening to torture her squadron crew while offering to free them if she cooperated in retrieving Grace Command's remaining stocks of Deluge on Aquilaris. As a final gesture of humiliation, he activated his jetpack and licked the bound Devaad. Trapped in a dilemma, Devaad reluctantly complied with his wishes and was dispatched to the planet in a shuttle. Zodoh held his fleet of Stormdrivers in orbit while Devaad went about her task.

Landing on Aquilaris, she forced the locals at gunpoint to bring their orange 'food containers' which were in reality carrying Deluge spice. In the process, she was ambushed and confronted by Holt who had discovered the dark secret behind Operation Deluge. Devaad justified her actions by defending the deliberate distribution of narcotics as a necessary part of the Republic's war effort against the Sith and that she was selfless in trying to save her crew. However, Devaad still conceeded that Zodoh could not be trusted. Following a stormy enstrangement with her former ally Holt, Devaad returned to Zodoh's flagship in the shuttle. Having achieved his objective of retrieving the remaining Deluge spice stocks in Capital Cay, Zodoh gave the green light for his fleet of Stormdrivers to submerge Aquilaris in water. Within hours, the entire planet's surface was flooded and much of its population had been drowned. The survivors led by Kerra Holt had managed to escape in a submarine that had been reactivated by Joad Kreel, who had finally abandoned Deluge and undergone the first steps of detoxification.

In another holo-conference with his Sith rivals, Zodoh gloated over his new superweapon which had resulted in the submergence of Capital Cay. He threatened to flood all of Lord Daiman's worlds including his capital Darkknell which he intended to recquisition as his own following Daiman's capitulation. He offered these Sith Lords the opportunity of becoming his trading partners if they agreed to keep Daiman's forces busy. While intending to destroy the planet's population, Zodoh still planned to exploit Aquilaris Minor as a newly-found supply of seafood. Since the sea levels had risen, the planet's aquatic fauna would be able to breed faster and increase their population. With sufficient numbers, they could be exploited commercially. At the end of the holo-transmission, Captain Devaad interjeted by commenting that drowning the planet's seacroppers was an 'uncommercial' decision.

Zodoh responded by commenting that Devaad's cover as a relief worker to further her goal of spreading Deluge into the Sith population was an idea worthy of the Sith or a Hutt. He revealed his intentions of using Devaad's sample of Deluge to synthesize his own stock of drugs so that he could inundate entire populations with the narcotic by lacing food supplies with the drug. Zodoh intended to turn entire planetary popualtions including adults and children into drug addicts while making a profit from food relief. By then, Devaad had realized the detrimental effect that her 'relief actions' were having on populations oppressed by the Sith. Devaad then demanded that Zodoh honor his side of the bargain by releasing her captive squadron crew. Zodoh sarcastically replied that he had already killed the crew by releasing them into space through the airlock.

When Devaad reacted, Zodoh defended his actions by dismissing her crew as escaoe slaves who had violated his standards and chided her for her naivety. However, Devaad had prepared for this development and revealed she had one more trick up her sleeve. In reality, the orange containers of Deluge were actually rigged with remotely-controlled explosives. Remarking that she had merely borroweed one of Kerra's ideas, she activated the explosives which created enough damage throughout the warship that allowed her to escape by stealing one of Zodoh's twin-seater starfighters. Zodoh himself survived due to his protective armor but several of his entourage and crew were killed or maimed in the ensuing series of explosions. While the bombs destroyed all of Zodoh's newly recquistioned stocks of Deluge and presumably killed or maimed several of his crew members. However, it did little damage to the Voracious with the exception of disrupting the coordination of the Stormdrivers which had already completed their task. Unconcerned at these losses, Zodoh ordered his fleet to depart for Darkknell, capital of Lord Daiman's princedom.

An Untimely Demise
"Ah. So Zodoh has cheated death again... Death can't be cheated, Hutt. Death always settles its accounts-- as do the Sith."

- Zodoh confronted by his Sith captors including Odion, Malakite, and Arkadia Calimondia

Zodoh's fleet blockaded Darkknell, overwhelming Daiman's understaffed defence force. Within hours, much of the planet was submerged in flood waters, creating much widespread damage and many deaths. Daiman was caught unprepared and off-guard since he had purged more than half of his defence force due to the Deluge drug epidemic. Meanwhile, Daiman's remaining forces were tied up in protracted engagements against his Sith rivals. Despite worldwide broadcasts by the Sith Lord trying to allay his subjects, Daiman was effectively powerless against the onslaught. Despite this, his advisors including Uleeta dared not criticize his governance due to his twisted beliefs of being the omnipotent Creator of the Universe. The Southern Reservoir was unable to cope with the denudation and burst its banks, flooding Daiman's palace. An exasperated Daiman could only vent his rage against his estranged older brother Odion for allowing Zodoh to attack his realm.

While Zodoh's victory seem almost complete, he had underestimated Kerra Holt and Jenn Devaad. The Jedi Knight and Republic starfighter pilot had teamed up to stop Zodoh's genocidal onslaught. They infiltrated Zodoh's fleet by flying a stolen twin-seater Hutt starfighter. Based on her time aboard the Voracious, Jenn had correctly deduced that the Hutt lord's flagship contained a command centre with a massive data processor for coordinating the Stormdriver fleet. They flew the starfighter into the hangar bay of Zodoh's flagship to allow Kerra to eject and infiltrate the vessel. The Jedi Knight quickly wiped out Zodoh's guards and made her way to the data processing chamber, a massive dome in the heart of the Voracious. Meanwhile, Jenn harassed Zodoh's starfighter defenses. Kerra located her quarry only to be surprised by Zodoh who had donned his armour and jetpack. Having surprised her with electrical lightning, he then duelled with the Jedi Knight using a Mandalorian vibroblade. To place his foe at a deliberate disadvantage, Zodoh also deactivated the artificial gravity field and activated his jetpack.

Following a one-sided battle, Zodoh had the young Jedi woman locked in a neck grasp. However before he could deliver a killing blow, he was interrupted by Jenn's hijacked starfighter which shot a hole through the command dome, exposing the ship to zero-gravity. The ensuing explosion set of a series of blasts which destroyed the Voracious in a radiant firestorm. Zodoh was blasted into space but survived since his Hutt physique was tough enough to withstand zero gravity. Meanwhile, his two Jedi foes escaped into hyperspace. With the destruction of the Voracious, the Stormdrivers were unable to coordinate their global storm and were presumably disable or wiped out by Daiman's defence forces who were able to regroup and reform their formations. Zodoh was subsequently captured by Daiman's cruisers, stripped of his armor and brought as a captive before the Sith Lord. He was bound in a purpose-built metal cradle.

With the tables turned, Daiman encountered his Sith opponents including his nemesis Daiman. Also present via hologram were fellow Sith Lords Odion, Malakite and Arkadia Calimondra who gloated over the change in fortunes. Zodoh tried to plead with Daiman for his life by proposing a deal. Daiman however was unwilling to cooperate since he wanted to get revenge for the brief spell of ignominy that he endured during the Battle of Darkknell. Daiman added that the flow of Deluge spice had stopped since his capture and mocked the Hutt crimelord by highlighting the flawed nature of the Stormdriver system due to their dependency on a large data processor. However, Daiman had developed a miniature Stormdriver which was capable of completely dehydrating individual lifeforms including Hutts. Dismissing Zodoh as an imperfect creation, Daiman proceeded to dehydrate Zodoh, effectively executing the Hutt crimelord and ending his imperial ambitions.

Personality and Traits
"Devaad -- Here? now? I hate wasting firepower. Recall all Intruders to the Voracious -- anyway, we've done what we came to do!"

- Zodoh

A maverick among the Hutt species, he enjoyed close-quarters combat and flying, whether by starfighter or jetpack. He was not easily impressed, and spoke of the Sith Lords in the Grumani sector as equals rather than superiors. Zodoh also took a disparaging view of the Sith Lords, dismissing them merely as selfish petty crooks more concerned with short-term gains than long-term objectives. Zodoh was also blunt and direct in his interaction with other sentients, not being bothered with receiving or dispensing with insults. As with most of his species, Zodoh was involved in crime, primarily slave trading and munitions production. However, he justified his actions by viewing himself as a businessman providing services to associated partners.

Zodoh was also cunning and patient, willing to accept small losses to achieve long-term major objectives. This was evident in his acceptance of the loss of one Stormdriver during the Battle of Capital Cay in return for gaining the necessary intelligence on Aqualaris' atmospheric systems and his foes: Kerra Holt and Jenn Devaad. However, this also led him to regard his subordinates as expendable. He expressed little concern for any deceased and maimed members of his crew following a series of bomb explosions that allowed one of his captives Captain Jenn Devaad to escape his flagship Voracious.

As with all Hutts, Zodoh was still a hedonist and had little regard for the lives of other sentients provided it did not interfere with his goals. His callous regard for the lives of sentient beings was best exemplified by testing his artificial storm-creating Stormdrivers on two planets: Aquilaris Minor and Darkknell. Zodoh was also manipulative and deceptive in dealings with his inferiors. This was exmplified by the murder of the entire Devil Squadron fighter pilots with the exception of Captain Jenn Devaad without any hesitation. Ultimately, his arrogant disposition led him to underestimate his opponents on several occasions which ultimately cost him his life at the Battle of Darkknell.

Powers and Abilities
As opposed to most other members of his species, Zodoh was a physically-fit fighter who took a keen interest in military strategy and tactics. He enjoyed duelling with his opponents with his choice weapon being a Mandalorian vibroblade. He was capable of using his large physical mass to subdue and overpower his opponents. His Hutt pyshiology allowed him to survive in zero gravity space whereas most species succumbed to decompression in space. However, his physical mass was not enough to save him from having the moisture literally sucked out of him by one of Daiman's miniature Stormdrivers.

Behind the Scenes
Zodoh was first introduced as a key antagonist in the Deluge story arc of the Star Wars: Knight Errant comic series which debuted on August 2011. Miller developed his story background while he was drawn by Ivan Rodriguez and colored by Michael Atiyeh. He is one of the characters to appear in all issues within the Deluge story arc.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Knight Errant: Deluge