Red Nebula species
Species: Red Nebula species
Home Planet: Planet of the Red Nebula
Red Nebula species
A sentient species inhabited a planet in the Red Nebula, an area of space that was separate from the main body of the galaxy. They were humanoid beings who resembled Humans with pink or pale skin and large, pointed ears. Members of the species were deeply religious, and followed a faith centered on a pair of gems known as the Great Life Jewels. According to the species' legends, the jewels came to their world during an awesome cataclysm that created the Red Nebula and forced it to drift away from the galaxy, taking their homeworld with it. The gems, the legend claimed, shielded a valley on their planet from the destruction wrought by the nebula on other celestial bodies within it. However, rather than unifying the species' culture, the belief split them into rival factions. One side, represented by an order of crimson-robed priests, considered the Great Life Gems a boon to civilization and thus venerated the stones. Their rivals, however, believed that the gems had thwarted fate, and kept the species alive when it should have been destroyed. The nihilist group was eventually cast off the planet and forced to roam the galaxy as exiles.
In 1 ABY, the outcast faction, under the leadership of Klysk, kidnapped scoundrels from the galactic fringe to mount a raid on the temple where the gems were kept. Klysk hoped to steal the jewels and destroy them, thus hastening what his faction believed to be the species' true destiny: extinction. One of their abductees was the Human smuggler Han Solo, who managed to pilfer the jewels from the temple and then con Klysk into taking a sackful of rocks into the system's sun instead of the jewels. Two years later, Domina Tagge led a mission to the world to steal the gems in a bid to spread a plague to the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the Galactic Empire. She razed the species' main city and removed the gems.
Biology & Appearance:
The members of the sentient Red Nebula species looked similar to Humans in most respects. They had humanoid bodies, five-fingered hands, and faces that featured two small eyes, a nose, and a mouth. They differed from Humans in that their craniums were bald, and they had large, pointed ears. Some members of the species had pale-colored flesh, while others had pink skin. At least one member of the species had sharp nails on his fingers.
Society & Culture:
The pointy-eared humanoids were native to a planet located within the Red Nebula, an astrological feature far from the main body of the galaxy located in a field of comets, meteors, and other navigational hazards. Their planet was routinely barraged by debris, but one valley was spared the impacts due to the provenance of a pair of vermillion gems known as the Great Life Jewels or the Twin Gems. Because it was the only safe area on their homeworld, the species lived in a city in the valley and guarded the gems in a domed temple. This structure was monumental in scale, built with huge columns with carvings along their plinths and with an arched entrance. The Life Jewels were kept high atop a pair of pillars.
Although their technology was underdeveloped compared to that of much of the galaxy, the species did have access to some advanced items. For instance, they knew how to use tracking devices, which they could monitor from fineband scope viewscreens. They also maintained a small fleet of starships that were capable of leaving the Red Nebula. The species' home planet appeared on no star-charts, and it was a long distance from the next star system by hyperspace. Nevertheless, the species did receive the occasional visitor. From such contacts, at least some members of the species learned to speak Basic.
The members of the Red Nebula species were highly religious. However, they were divided into two rival religious factions. One group, represented by an order of priests distinguished by their crimson robes, believed that the Life Jewels were holy artifacts that protected their society from destruction and allowed them to live in harmony with the Red Nebula. The other faction, led by a member of the species known as Klysk around the time of the Battle of Yavin, held that the Life Jewels were abominations that only forestalled the destiny of the species: to be destroyed by the Red Nebula. Both groups agreed that the gems were alive and had come from another universe during the awesome cataclysm that had created the Red Nebula; if the gems were ever separated, the belief went, they would become angry and harm those around them. The members of the latter group wished to destroy the Twin Gems to allow the species to meet its predestined fate. They were considered fanatics and unbelievers and forbidden to live on the species' homeworld by the priestly group.
The faction led by the priests tended to the jewels and defended the temple from thieves with laser cannons. Their protection also prevented the Twin Gems from being separated, a situation that would cause both gems to inflict a plague known as the crimson forever. Although the clerics carried no personal weapons in the event an intruder made it into the temple, they were aided in their sentry duty by a giant, hairy creature who served as the temple guardian and attacked intruders. The priests also had access to a series of underground shelters throughout the valley.
The doomsday faction traveled through the galaxy in a starship called the Nova Prince. In contrast to the priests' proclaimed non-violence, the doomsday faction had no compunction about using force as a means to an end. At least one member of the group wore a green tunic with a belt around the waist over basic leggings. The members of the doomsday faction were able to speak Basic.
History:
Although they evolved on the single habitable planet located in the Red Nebula, the species' legends told of a time long before when their star system was part of the main body of the galaxy. They believed that a tumultuous cataclysm had created the Red Nebula, simultaneously casting it into the depths of space and taking their sun and planet with it. A religion developed among the species that claimed that only the blessing of the Great Life Jewels protected them from the same destruction as the other astral bodies located in the nebula.
Despite their isolation, the species' world received occasional visits from offworlders, and it came to be considered part of Wild Space. At least some members of the species learned to speak Basic from those encounters, and the visitors' frequent attempts to steal the Great Life Jewels prompted the species to set up defenses to protect their treasures. The species also achieved some elements of high technology, such as spaceflight. They constructed a small fleet of vessels and considered fleeing their world to settle elsewhere, but in the end, they had too few ships to carry all members of the species.
Over time, a fissure developed among the members of the species. Some individuals maintained that the red gems were sacred and had to be venerated and protected if the species was to continue to live in the Red Nebula. Others, however, believed that the jewels were diabolical and only prevented the species from meeting the fate meted out to them by destiny: to die in the Red Nebula. The former faction gained the upper hand, and the nihilists were banished from the world in a small ship.
Red Nebula species in the Galaxy:
The members of this species maintained a small group of ships for trips into the main galaxy. The exiled faction that sought to destroy the Great Life Gems roamed the galaxy for years, eventually gaining possession of the Nova Prince.
Attribute Dice: 12D
DEXTERITY 2D/4D
KNOWLEDGE 2D/4D
MECHANICAL 2D/4D
PERCEPTION 2D/4D
STRENGTH 2D/4D
TECHNICAL 2D/4D
Special Abilities:
- None Listed
Story Factors:
Rare Species: Very few of the species travelled and received very few visitors on their planet.
Deeply Religious: They are a very religious species with two factions dividing the population.
Move: 10/12
Size: 1.5-2.0 meters tall
Source: Wookieepedia (For the Red Nebula species Description)