Ardennian

"Ardennian? You got a lot of nerve, pal. I'm an Imperial trooper!"
"Oh, really? A couple of your arms popped out of your butt and hiked up your pants, 'trooper'."

―Rio Durant and Han Solo^[6]

Ardennians were a sentient, simian-like species that were native to Ardennia. Due to their extra pair of arms and prehensile toes, the species was known for being extremely agile, nimble and quick-thinking under pressure. They were able to move about while operating multiple pieces of machinery simultaneously, thus being well-suited to careers involving the military or aviation, among other choices. Notable Ardennians include Rio Durant, who operated as a pilot and criminal with Beckett's gang, and Chio Fain, who worked as a slicer.

Biology and appearance[]

"Are all Ardennians good cooks? Their multiple limbs do seem to make tasks easier!"

―Comment from an Unidentified artist's journal^[5]

Native to Ardennia,^[5] the diminutive^[1] but stealthy Ardennians had six^[4] dexterous limbs, the lowest two of which were functionally "legs". They had a strangely fluid, steady gait, enhanced by the prehensile toes on their feet,^[7] and were extremely agile and quick.^[5] Their skin tones ranged from blue to tan^[1] and gray,^[2] and were covered in fur.^[8]

Society and culture[]

"I don't know, you've never been to a mynock roast on Ardennia. It's nuts!"

―Rio Durant^[6]

The Ardennians' prehensile toes and multiple limbs meant that the species was well-suited to military or aviation professions, as they could be extremely quick-thinking and self-sufficient in combat. These features also made other, mundane tasks much simpler, such as preparing food, suggesting that many, if not all, Ardennians were good cooks.^[5] Members of the species could be capable pilots, skilled tacticians, and all were lovers of good stories.^[1] Ardennians enjoyed mynock roasts on their home planet.^[6]

Ardennians in the galaxy[]

"Some folks with less than perfect pasts are suspicious of their own words, as if they might be traps. But Rio was the opposite, a six-armed Ardennian chatterbox who'd fill a room with words because he was afraid of silence."

―Tivoche Bilure, on Rio Durant in Midnight's book^[4]

ChioFain-TargetVader4 — The Ardennian Chio Fain

Several Ardennians were passengers aboard the Legacy Run when it became involved in the hyperspace accident known as the Great Hyperspace Disaster during the High Republic Era.^[8] Retar and other members of the Ardennian Guild of Technicians attended the Valo Republic Fair.^[9]

Rio Durant, a fighter with Freedom's Sons in his youth, operated as a criminal in Tobias Beckett's gang.^[7] He posed as an Imperial Army mudtrooper on Mimban during the Mimban Campaign, as part of a heist to commandeer a Y-45 armored transport hauler. Though Rio attempted to blend in as a humanoid, his strange gait and surprising number of arms were noticeable, and fellow mudtrooper Corporal Han Solo correctly identified him as an Ardennian after watching him use his lower arms to hike up his pants. Durant participated in a heist on Vandor, but was fatally shot by one of Enfys Nest's Cloud-Riders.^[6]

During the era of the Galactic Empire, the Ardennian Chio Fain worked as a slicer alongside his partner Rone until Rone's death in a skirmish with TIE fighters,^[10] after which Fain joined Beilert Valance's team in an effort to hunt down and kill Darth Vader.^[2]