Cathar

Last Updated: 09/11/2025

Name: Cathar

Humanoid: Yes

Classification: Near-Human/Beastite (Felinoid)

Homeworld: Cathar

Coloration: Brown, Orange, Red, Tan, Gold, Yellow, and/or White

Biology: The Cathar were a sentient feline species hailing from the world of the same name. On the outside, their body structure appeared fairly similar to Humans. However, their internal biology supposedly more closely resembled another Star Wars species, the Bothans. Because of this, the could actually breed with Bothans and create hybrid offspring. The Cathar were split into three subspecies. The regular Cathar were incredibly common and what most know them as, while their two rarer counterparts, Juhani Cathar and Myr Rho Cathar, appear much less feline like, and are theorized to possess hints of Human and Bothan DNA respectively.

Cathar bodies were covered in a thin layer of fur, with females generally possessing more Human-like hair on their heads, while males usually spotted a full-fledged mane. Their outer fur could vary greatly in color, from white all the way to a dark brown or orange, and their mane or longer hairs were usually a few shades darker or lighter than that of their body. Some Cathar also possessed stripes on their body, making them apparently more tiger-like than lion-like, although the stripes were much more common among the two non-baseline subspecies.

The species stood roughly the height of an average, adult Human, with the females being slightly shorter than their male counterparts. They had wide noses, protruding lips, and feline eyes that granted them incredible eyesight. Their ears were pointed and almost elf-like, and they had incredibly sharp, retractable claws that were able to cut through the flesh of most other similar species. These claws could be clipped/removes with no real ill effect, and the Cathar possess an incredibly quick healing ability as well. Cathar mothers always carried and gave birth to multiple young at a time, usually between 3 and 6, which they referred to as their “litter.” Finally, they had the ability to pronounce Galactic Basic, but were more comfortable speaking their own language of “Catharese,” which incorporated many different grunts, growls, and roars.

Lore: Cathar society generally resembled that of the average Human bureaucracies. While they were hunters and warriors by nature, they were also a very rich species, with political power, and chose to exercise said power whenever possible. Early in the species’ history, they went to war with the mighty Mandalorian empire, and suffered a devastating loss. It is estimated that nearly 90% of their population was wiped out during this time and Cathar was entirely abandoned. After the Jedi drove back the Mandalorians, the Cathar refugees began resettling their homeworld and, although it took centuries or possibly millennia, they slowly regrew their power, influence, and people. This was when the two aforementioned subspecies were introduced into their as well society, although they were still generally quite rare and rarely held any political power.

They had completely restored their civilization by the start of the Galactic Civil War, and actually attempted to settle new worlds including the likes of Ord Mantell and Taris. Their homeworld itself consisted of three main biomes. The majority of Cathar was comprised of spacious plains, while the planet also had rocky mountainous terrain, and forests of incredibly tall trees, the latter being where many generally took up residence. These Cathar were split into clans based off of their localized “city forests,” and their representative politicians were referred to as “Elders.” Their houses and cities were carved into tree trunks, as well as sprawling through their forests lush canopies at times.

Cathar people as a whole worshiped heroism and the overall concept of “heroes,” and had many carvings made into their tree homes depicting the heroic acts of their ancestors. To be considered a hero by anyone was the greatest honor a Cathar could have, and so each strived to make their mark on their world and the galaxy. These beliefs were rooted in their widespread cultural religion, and they had frequent celebrations and ceremonies to honor their heroes, both past and present. They also had a religious ritual known as the “Blood Hunt.” These ceremonies saw Cathar warriors head out into the wild to hunt nests of Kiltik, large killer beetles that also roamed the various biomes of thei home planet. The surviving participants were said to have purged the darkness from inside of them, and were honored for their own heroic acts, both internal and external. These Blood Hunts were mostly abandoned by the rise of the Galactic Empire, as the remaining Kiltik population had been driven underground and nearly hunted to extinction.

Despite their fierce, predatory nature, Cathar were often captured and sold as slaves throughout their history. These slavers usually viewed the males too violent, unpredictable, and noncompliant, and they were abandoned or terminated, though some could seemingly end up as gladiators. However, female Cathar were apparently considered some of the most valuable and sought after slaves in the entire galaxy for a time, presumably, and unfortunately, for the vilest of reasons. The Galactic Empire did enslave some Cathar at one point, although they proved less efficient than Wookiees, and so most of their slavers were independent factions or organizations, almost certainly including the Zygerrians.

Continuity: I originally made the argument that the Cathar might not really have a place within the current Canon as there were already a plethora of similar felinoid races, but lo and behold, here we are now and the Cathar have made their Canon debut within the High Republic! Nothing has really canonically been revealed about them yet aside from the fact that their appearance remains seemingly the same, meaning all of the rest of their lore above is still relegated to the Star Wars Expanded Universe.

A lot of their information can still make the jump to Canon with little conflict should they so choose, however, one piece of their history that cannot be canonized, which I avoided mentioning above as such, was their involvement in the “Great Galactic War.” In Star Ware Legends, they allied themselves with the new Galactic Republic against Darth Krayt’s new Galactic Empire and Sith forces, and proved to be quite the formidable foe, as many Cathar seemed to have an affinity with the Force. This is, of course, an event that did never and can never take place canonically, but maybe we can see something similar within the post-TROS galaxy someday.

Unexplored: While they’ve mostly been well fleshed out, there are definitely unexplored facets of the Cathar, such as their revival after the Mandalorian purge and their involvement with the Clone Wars. If you are sticking strictly to Canon, than what were they doing during the High Republic era, and how much of their history above still exists within continuity? Knowing that will make exploring them a lot easier, as having multiple backstories may prove to be quite confusing in the lore department. Tackling minor elements of our usual list of worldbuilding concepts wouldn’t hurt either, just filling in little gaps and blanks where they can be found to make their history an existence airtight.

Additional Notes: I think maybe I’m still mixed on the Cathar, as they really are sort of THE generic feline aliens of the Star Wars universe, rival only by possibly the Togorians? The idea of the different subspecies, and their overall design, is pretty cool. I like the variation in appearance, as well as their idea of what a hero could and should be. They definitely have a lot of extra potential in the Legends, and in Canon they can be used to shed light on some interesting issues, like over-hunting and the rampant slavery epidemic that are going on in the galaxy, but only time will tell if anything else interesting is truly done with them in the franchise’s future.

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