Dar'Or

Dar'Or
Astrographical information
Region	Outer Rim Territories The Slice
Sector	Jospro sector
System	Dar'Or system
Suns	1
Grid square	R-7
Physical information
Class	Terrestrial
Atmosphere	Oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide
Climate	Humid Subtropical
Gravity	Low
Terrain	Forests
Surface water	60% of the surface
Flora	Baloo vine Waza
Fauna	Elix Indola Insects Lizards Rodents
Other lifeforms	Fungi
Societal information
Native species	Ri'Dar

"Because it is the last home of the elix, Dar'Or has been declared an Imperial Species Preservation Zone, and travel to and from Dar'Or is restricted."

―Obo Rin, Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy, Revised Edition

Dar'Or, also known as OM973, was an Outer Rim Territories planet located in the Jospro sector. Its land surface was primarily covered in forests of two-hundred-meter-tall waza trees. The forests, which had multiple floor-like levels, were home to the predatory indola tree-sloths as well as the sentient flying primates Ri'Dar.

At one point, a group of planetary ecologists transplanted the elix birds of prey from the species' doomed homeworld to Dar'Or. Due to the former world having had higher gravity, however, the powerful elix became a dangerous threat to the Ri'Dar. The Galactic Empire declared Dar'Or an Imperial Species Preservation Zone, restricting travel to and from the planet. Nevertheless, smugglers violated the restriction in order to smuggle elix meat and live indola off-world, in the process also providing an avenue for individual Ri'Dar to leave their homeworld.

Description

"Over most of its land, Dar'Or has a subtropical, humid climate with large forests of waza trees."

―Obo Rin, Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy, Revised Edition

Dar'Or was situated in the Jospro sector.

Dar'Or, designated as "OM973" in the star-charts of the Galactic Empire, was a moderately sized planet located in the Dar'Or system, a part of the Jospro sector within the Slice portion of the Outer Rim Territories. It orbited an orange star and had low density and gravitational pull.

The planet's atmosphere was rich in oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide, and the climate over most of Dar'Or's landmasses was subtropical and humid. Water covered sixty percent of the planet's surface, and the rest of it featured expansive forests of waza—large coniferous trees reaching two hundred meters in height. The canopies of the waza trees were so thick that they blocked sunlight, casting the floors of the forests—which were covered in giant fungi instead of green plants as a result—into permanent shadow even on the brightest of Dar'Or's days.

In the waza forests' middle elevations, an entire distinct ecosystem developed due to networks of baloo vines catching and trapping falling needles of the large conifers. Over the span of millennia, the decomposing of the needles on the baloo levels led to the formation of a thick humus capable of supporting small plants. Consequently, the waza forests themselves appeared to have multiple different levels of forest floor. Other examples of Dar'Or's flora included plants that bore berries, fruits, and nuts. Dar'Or's wildlife included the predatory tree-sloths known as indola as well as flying insects, lizards, and rodents.

History

"The question of just what exactly is occurring on Dar'Or remains unanswered. No one understands why the Empire has put so much effort in isolating this planet from the galaxy."

―Obo Rin, Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy, Revised Edition

The Ri'Dar were native to Dar'Or.

At some point, a group of zealous planetary ecologists attempted to save the elix, a species of small birds of prey native to a forested world that was about to be destroyed by a supernova. The ecologists transplanted the elix on Dar'Or; however, they overlooked the fact that the new home of the elix had lower gravity, which led to the avians becoming powerful and fast apex predators that threatened the native sentients, the Ri'Dar.

By the time shortly following the Battle of Yavin, the Galactic Empire declared Dar'Or an Imperial Species Preservation Zone and restricted travel to and from the planet. It was ostensibly done to protect the last home of the elix; however, it was not well-understood why the Empire put so much effort into isolating Dar'Or from the rest of the galaxy, and certain individuals wondered what exactly did the government's interests on the planet entail. In addition, despite the travel restrictions, smugglers occasionally visited Dar'Or, where they hunted the elix in order to sell their meat to gourmets of the wider galaxy and sometimes transported the indola creatures offworld for animal trainers and collectors.

Several years after the elix had been introduced on Dar'Or, the sentientologist Obo Rin included the planet and the Ri'Dar in the Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy. In that work, Rin described the sentient species that he considered to be the most important in the galaxy and of the most interest to the Empire. When the trader To'iir consulted the Trader's Gamble feature of the Lantillian Spacers' Brotherhood's Free-Trader's Guide service for a possible hiding place from Imperial Moff Roff's forces, the service listed Dar'Or among fourteen planets with limited spaceport facilities in the Slice portion of the Outer Rim. After reading through the list, To'iir decided he and his partner, Liadden, would travel to the world Gamorr.

Inhabitants

"The Ri'Dar are flying, tree-dwelling primates approximately one meter in length."

―Obo Rin, Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy, Revised Edition

Dar'Or was the homeworld of the sentient Ri'Dar, a species of flying, tree-dwelling primates. Their technology level was primitive, consisting primarily of wooden spears, bows, and arrows as well as simple dwellings, and the species constantly fought for survival against their homeworld's natural predators. During the Galactic Civil War, an increasing number of Ri'Dar traveled off-world, primarily leaving Dar'Or aboard smuggler starships visiting the planet.

Locations

"All of the families inhabiting a single waza tree comprise a warren, and all of the warrens grouped together in a particular section of forest make a city."

―Obo Rin, Catalog of Intelligent Life in the Galaxy, Revised Edition

Dar'Or's native Ri'Dar lived in cities consisting of several waza trees, of which each was home to a single warren of Ri'Dar families.

Behind the scenes

Dar'Or was introduced in Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races.

Dar'Or was first mentioned in Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races, a 1989 sourcebook authored by Troy Denning for use with West End Games' Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game. "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, How I Wonder Where We Are," a 1990 roleplaying game source article published in Voyages SF 13, spelled the planet's Imperial star-chart designation as "OM 973." Since that article was released outside of the Lucas Licensing process, its canonicity within the Star Wars Legends continuity was never confirmed.

Dar'Or's first full appearance came in the 1998 video game Star Wars: Rebellion, which also provided the planet's only visual depiction—an image also used to illustrate twenty-one other world in the game. The game's accompanying Prima Games strategy guide misspelled Dar'Or's name as "Dar'or." The 2009 reference book The Essential Atlas subsequently placed the Dar'Or system, and therefore the planet itself, in grid square R-7.

Appearances

• Star Wars: Rebellion (First appearance)

Sources

• Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races (First mentioned)
• "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, How I Wonder Where We Are" — Voyages SF 13
• Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races, Second Edition
• "A Free-Trader's Guide to the Planets" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 10
• Star Wars: Rebellion: Prima's Official Strategy Guide (as Dar'or)
• Star Wars Encyclopedia
• Alien Encounters
• A Guide to the Star Wars Universe, Third Edition, Revised and Expanded
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia