Chaf family

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The Chaf family,^[4] also called House Chaf,^[2] and formerly known as the Fifth Ruling Family or Fifth Family, was a Chiss family in the Chiss Ascendancy. It was once one of the Nine Ruling Families which provided leadership for the Chiss people. In keeping with the Chiss custom of indicating an individual's role by the color scheme of their clothes, members and retainers of the Chaf family wore yellow costumes, ranging from ornate formal robes to utilitarian jumpsuits depending on their rank and duties. They controlled the planet Sarvchi.^[4]

The duties of the Chaf family, insofar as experienced by persons from the Old and later New Republic, were primarily diplomatic: from about 22 ABY onwards, in many high-level contacts with the New Republic, the Jedi Knights and the Empire of the Hand, the Ascendancy was represented by an Aristocra of the Chaf family, Chaf'orm'bintrano, also known by his core name, "Formbi". In 27 BBY, the Chaf family were said to have had no oversight role over the military, but in 22 ABY and later, Chaf'orm'bintrano held certain operational oversight over elements of the Chiss Expansionary Defense Force. As well as their public duties, the Chaf family also had special interests in areas of Chiss space; they controlled a fleet of their own combat-capable cruisers, crewed—at least in 27 BBY—not by CEDF warriors, but by personnel wearing the yellow uniforms of the Family.

The Chaf family retained their position at least^[4] until 22 ABY,^[3] but during the Yuuzhan Vong War, the Chaf were absent from a reduced list of four Ruling Families supplied in a report by the University of Sanbra. House Nuruodo occupied approximately the role that they had once filled,^[5] and they were apparently similarly absent when a Jedi mission visited Csilla^[6] in 28 ABY.^[7]

This discrepancy remained unexplained until 35 ABY,^[8] when it was asserted that five of the Nine Ruling Families had fallen from power due to a civil conflict in the Chiss Ascendancy.^[9] Such a thing was not unprecedented as the number of Ruling Families fluctuated between three and twelve over the course of Chiss history.^[10]