- "Once again, a Mid Rim world is sacrificed in the name of protecting the Core ... or Bothawui."
- ―Navik to Borsk Fey'lya
During their own conquest crusade against all worlds of the Galaxy, the extra-galactic race of invaders, the Yuuzhan Vong, attacked Rodia, Druckenwell, Falleen, and Kalarba in an attempt to cut off the Corellian Run. To further their conquest of Rodia, the extragalactic aliens terraformed the planet and then turned their attention to its native inhabitants. The Yuuzhan Vong shapers used the Rodians' genetic stock to create monstrosities such as the crab-legged Vagh Rodiek, a new race of slave soldiers.
History[]
Prelude[]
- "After all, Commander, business is business, and if anyone is to profit from the galaxy’s new circumstances, it may as well be the Hutts"
- ―Borga Besadii Diori, to Malik Carr
In 25 ABY, the extra-galactic race of invaders, the Yuuzhan Vong, launched a massive conquest campaign directed against all worlds of the Galactic community.[9] Less than a year later,[7] the Yuuzhan Vong had provided numerous examples showing that those populations who mounted resistance saw their worlds poisoned or devastated. Many inhabitants throughout the Expansion Region, the Mid Rim, and further to the edge of the galaxy were rapidly losing faith in the New Republic’s ability to bring the war to an end. At that time, the Yuuzhan Vong were preparing a major offensive – their first since the battle of Ithor – and required more worlds for resource gathering.[8] The Hutt species, who possessed vast territories in the Outer Rim Territories,[5] in an attempt to avoid bloodshed entirely, considered striking deals with the Yuuzhan Vong and were willing to cede some of their own planets to do so.[8]
Wishing to gain profits from their cooperation with the Yuuzhan Vong, the Hutts concluded a pact with the invaders
During the negotiations on Nal Hutta, Borga Besadii Diori, who had been vested with the authority by the leaders of the voting kajidics to represent the interests of all Hutts before the Yuuzhan Vong, agreed to cooperate with the invaders. In exchange for the granting of certain worlds, the Hutts were to request that the Yuuzhan Vong keep clear of Rimward Hutt Space in general, as well as avoid the worlds of Rodia, Ryloth, Tatooine, Kessel, and several planets in the Si'Klaata Cluster and the Kathol sector so as not to interfere with their trade in spice and other proscribed goods.[8]
Both sides of the negotiations assured each other of the reliability of the agreement, but the hidden motives on both sides were evident, and the fragility of the pact was apparent from the start. Intelligence agents of the New Republic were aware of the fact that the negotiations on Nal Hutta had taken place, but not of their content. Even the ruler of Rodia, Navik the Red, apparently did not know that the Hutts had secured immunity for his homeworld, and in the Advisory Council chambers on Coruscant he discussed with the Chief of State Borsk Fey'lya and other council members the necessity of defending Bothawui, due to its proximity to Rodia.[8]
Invasion[]
- "My homeworld is about to suffer the most terrible depredations—"
- ―The rules of Rodia, Navik
Under the terms of the agreement, the Yuuzhan Vong shared information with the Hutts about which planets they planned to attack next, on the condition that this knowledge remained confidential. Nevertheless, Borga and her fellow Hutts sought to act as conduits of information for the New Republic. After the extragalactic invaders were defeated at Fondor, the Hutts' double-dealing was exposed, and the Yuuzhan Vong Commander Nas Choka retaliated by swiftly conquering all of Hutt Space.[10] While Borga Besadii Diori stayed behind to defend Nal Hutta, many members of her kajidic had already evacuated to Gamorr, Tatooine, and Rodia,[1] even though these worlds could no longer avoid attack under the terms of the now-broken alliance.[8]
The Rimward planets along the Corellian Run came under threat of attack after the fall of Kalarba
In an attempt to cut off the Rimward leg of the Corellian Run, a vital hyperspace route,[1] the Yuuzhan Vong launched a blitz across the Doldur sector[5] and devastated Kalarba. The isolated worlds along the Corellian Run toward the Outer Rim Territories went on full alert as the Yuuzhan Vong captured them one after another. Confidence in the strength of these worlds had been low, and other star systems not yet touched by the war expected an influx of Falleen and Rodian refugees.[1]
Eventually, after the fall of Druckenwell and Falleen, and as a new wave of yorik coral warships struck the Corellian Run, it became clear that the invaders were advancing toward Rodia. Despite the growing threat to Rodia, Chief of State Borsk Fey’lya managed to keep the remnants of the Fifth Fleet stationed at Bothawui, to the powerless frustration of Navik the Red, the Councilor from Rodia. In turn, the Director of New Republic Fleet Intelligence, Ayddar Nylykerka, expressed doubts about the possibility of holding Rodia.[1]
Soon afterward, the New Republic withdrew from Rodia,[1] allowing the Yuuzhan Vong to occupy the star system with ease.[2] Senator Viqi Shesh, who sought to become the head of a new collaborationist government,[11] contacted the Warmaster Tsavong Lah in an attempt to bring the war to a peaceful end. She described the simultaneous withdrawal from Rodia and Kubindi as a gesture of goodwill, but her proposal was ignored. Some time later, Tsavong Lah briefly visited the surrendered world of Rodia aboard his flagship, the Sunulok, before departing the planet for Duro,[1] which the Yuuzhan Vong regarded as a primary staging ground for their push into the Core.[10]
Aftermath[]
Social influence[]
Many of the worlds and star systems conquered at that time, including Rodia, had been home to some of the most visible and active starfaring species. Whether by design on the part of the invaders or merely by coincidence, this strategy gave further fuel to the arguments of non-Human activists. The most paranoid believed that the New Republic leadership had somehow orchestrated a conspiracy to do what the Empire had failed to do – to kill all non-Humans.[2]
Rodia project[]
Equator City on Rodia was destroyed during the occupation
When Rodia fell, the Yuuzhan Vong shapers immediately descended upon the verdant sphere.[7] They terraformed Rodia itself, crumbling the urban blocks of Equator City to seed the forests with leathery, freighter-sized blossoms,[5] and obliterated other polluted Rodian cities with metal-eating microbes, then planting damutek laboratories in the open jungle.[7] Many Rodians did not cooperate with the invaders and withdrew into the trees. These freedom fighters continued to put up fierce resistance on their heavily jungled homeworld. Although the widespread industrial complexes around Rodian urban centers disgusted the Yuuzhan Vong, their warriors developed a grudging respect for the violence-loving Rodians. This opinion became so common that perhaps the Rodians might have been able to assume a role within Yuuzhan Vong society as favored slaves – once they had been subdued and properly shaped.[2]
The awful image of the Yuuzhan Vong occupation of Rodia manifested in dreadful beasts known as Vagh Rodiek
The Master Shaper Taug Molou received orders from Warmaster Tsavong Lah to create a tractable slave species on par with the reptilian Chazrach, as part of the «Rodia project» – an initiative aimed at developing a new class of obedient soldiers for the Yuuzhan Vong. Master Molou was not willing simply to control the Rodians with coral implants. He wished to shape a completely new species and was not above straining religious protocols to achieve it.[7] In a planetwide project, the Yuuzhan Vong shapers merged Rodian biological material with that of other creatures to create[6] monstrosities such as the crab-legged Vagh Rodiek.[3] Thousands of Rodians died in vivisection chambers before the first Vagh Rodiek emerged from its birthing blister. These former Rodians were nothing more than animals—mindless drones without guidance from their Yuuzhan Vong masters. The Vagh Rodiek were made available to military commanders, particularly those operating near Hutt Space, when Chazrach were unavailable. However, the Vagh Rodiek did not exist until some time after the fall of Rodia and did not become common until the fall of Coruscant.[7]
Further destiny of the planet[]
As the Rodians resisted the occupation on their homeworld, their representative in the Senate spoke out against the New Republic’s failure to come to their aid. Rodians across the galaxy armed themselves and prepared to return home. The Yuuzhan Vong were expected to face a far larger force than they had encountered before.[2] Nevertheless, the Rodian resistance did not attain success, and Rodia was not liberated before the end of the war,[5] when the surrender of the invaders was signed.[12] Afterward, Rodia joined the successor state to the New Republic, the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances.[13]
Despite the crimes of the invaders, Rodia continued to attract Yuuzhan Vong refugees long after the war and became home to one of the largest such populations.[5] After a little more than a hundred years, Rodia was regarded as one of the most dangerous planets in the galaxy. Its wildlife had been drastically manipulated by the Yuuzhan Vong, and the planet’s rainforests teemed with deadly predators previously unknown to the galaxy. Fortunately, this suited the Rodian people just fine, as it had given them new creatures to stalk and hunt. Over the following century, the people of Rodia reveled in the dangers introduced to their world and became even greater hunters than ever before.[14]
Behind the scenes[]
The capture of Rodia was first mentioned in the sixth novel of the New Jedi Order series, The New Jedi Order: Balance Point, which was published in 2000. The event was briefly described, providing only a tense backdrop for the narrative rather than detailed coverage. Later sources depicting Rodia and its inhabitants during the Yuuzhan Vong War referred only to events that occurred during or after the occupation by the invaders, while the specific details of the battle itself remained undisclosed.
Appearances[]
- The New Jedi Order: Balance Point (First mentioned)
- The New Jedi Order: Force Heretic III: Reunion (Indirect mention only)
Sources[]
"I, Yuuzhan Vong" — Star Wars Gamer 8- The New Jedi Order Sourcebook
- The New Essential Chronology
- The New Essential Guide to Alien Species
- The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- The Essential Atlas
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 The New Jedi Order: Balance Point
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 The New Jedi Order Sourcebook
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 The New Essential Chronology
- ↑ The Essential Reader's Companion places the start of Balance Point ten months after the Destruction of Sernpidal, which occurs in 60.5 per The Essential Atlas.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 The Essential Atlas
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The New Essential Guide to Alien Species
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5
"I, Yuuzhan Vong" — Star Wars Gamer 8
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 The New Jedi Order: Agents of Chaos II: Jedi Eclipse
- ↑ The New Jedi Order: Vector Prime
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- ↑ The New Essential Guide to Characters
- ↑ The New Jedi Order: The Unifying Force
- ↑ Dark Nest II: The Unseen Queen
- ↑ Legacy Era Campaign Guide