Adarian

Last Updated: 05/06/2026

Name: Adarian

Classification: Alternative/Humanoid

Homeworld: Adari

Coloration: Brown, Tan, Gray, Pink, or Purple

Biology: Adarians were a humanoid species hailing from the planet Adari. They stood approximately the same height as the average adult Human, if not slightly shorter, but with taller heads that made up for any difference. They also had similar proportions, including weight, build, and frame, as standard Humans, additionally possessing five fingers and five toes on each appendage. Their skin was generally wrinkled tin texture, with numerous small folds around their necks (for a purpose we’ll discuss further below), as well as uniformed creases on their faces and heads. usually being tan or gray in coloration, though occasionally they could also be brown, pink, or purple.

Their craniums differed from the more near-Human humanoids, however, as they were fairly elongated and contained a hole going directly through the center on the sides, making their skulls take a forward-facing elliptical shape. They lacked both visible noses and ears as well, possessing other sensory organs instead. Their head was actually covered with incredibly fine hairs which were sensitive to most sounds and frequencies, allowing them to actually “hear” better than most species despite lacking traditional aural cavities. There were also glands situated underneath their skin that allowed them to detect surrounding odors, but their unique sense of “smell” was not quite as refined as their superb hearing.

Adarians lacked traditional lips surrounding their mouths, and instead possessed strange boney sub-skin plates that could move similarly to lips. Despite the unique nature of their mouths, they were still capable of pronouncing Galactic Basic Standard, as well as their own native tongue, Adarese, which consisted of a series of sharp tonal inflections. Additionally, their eyes were generally glossy and solid black, gold, or sometimes blue in coloration. They had large throat pouches that they could fill with air and dispel to create a subsonic call that could be heard by other Adarians over 20 kilometers away. Their sensitive hairs allow them to pick up these calls and communicate back and forth with each other over long distances. Adarians only had lifespans of around 65 years, though it was possible for them to live a little bit longer due to a number of factors.

Lore: By the time the Adarians were discovered around 25,000 BBY, they were already an advanced civilization, having already developed interstellar travel and similar technologies. They were quickly invited to join the budding Galactic Republic, which they accepted enthusiastically. However, being a major part of the Republic, the Adarian planetary government consistently and notably remained very untrusting of everyone, maintaining a network of their own as spies and informants throughout the galaxy. This government operated out of a grand multi-tiered structure known as the “Hall of Decisions,” where small groups of aristocratic parties debated each other over ideologies, though over time these groups would evolve from philosophers into corporation heads. Because they had a long history of producing incredibly covert operatives, many Adarians were hired by private corporations or even pirates crews to work as undercover agents or stealthy mercenaries.

The planet of Adaria and its people maintained this wary state of being until the end of the Clone Wars, when the Republic transitioned into the Galactic Empire. In a somewhat surprising twist, the Adarians actually quickly struck a deal with the new Empire, buying their neutrality in exchange for all of the materials previously mined and stockpiled on their homeworld, as well as a resource royalty, though what percentage is unclear. The Empire accepted this deal under the contingent that the Adarian people would never rebel, which serves as an explanation as to why there were almost no Adarians present within the Rebel Alliance, nor even the New Republic at first. It seems that the Adarians took this agreement very seriously, though its unclear for how long or to what degree the Empire held up their side of the bargain, as they notoriously did not honor similar agreements such as these. It would appear the Rebel Alliance did establish some form of presence on the world towards the very end of the Galactic Civil War, and though it was presented as the start of great change for the Adarian people, we were never really given a glimpse at the results, only believing they were eventually brought into the folds of the New Republic.

It is believed that Adari is not actually this species’ homeworld, and that they only adopted it as their own before they were discovered in order to claim the abundant minerals and metals found within the planet. This was never proven, if it was true, they had long since adopted the planet’s name as their own, and all records of their original homeworld or species name are lost. Archeologists working on the world proposed this idea after finding no fossil record of Adarian predecessor species, though the Adarians did not agree with any opinions accusing them of past colonialism. Because of their mining and espionage industries, the Adarians who stayed on their homeworld were an incredibly rich people, and most of the upper class citizens were never forced to leave Adari for any reason. Only the lower class individuals went out to find employment under other private or galactic corporations, often attempting to escape their harsh caste system, a system which, though some tried to fight, would not change, at least not until after the fall of the Empire if at all.

The Innder Rim world of Adari itself was actually somewhat uninviting at a glance, being mountainous, specifically covered in volcanoes, with few locations boasting lush vegetation. Despite the open lava flows, the planet was known for being rather cold, plunged into a full-on wintery season for approximately a third of their 409 day-years. Still, the Adarians managed to make it work, establishing massive mining operations across the world over the years, which seemingly fueled their early technological boom, potentially even allowing them to independently develop hyperspace-capable technologies. They apparently established their civilizations around the large freshwater lakes found at various areas across the surface, and built grand cities with massive skyscrapers and ornate architecture. Since they were some of the first to trailblaze the Adari Sector, they managed to settle on worlds all throughout their Adari System, seemingly undisputed, using these other worlds to import the resources not found readily on Adari itself.

Continuity: The Adarians were originally set to make their first appearance in the Jabba’s Palace segment in “Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.” Unfortunately, even though a maquette was created (see below) they, like a handful of other species, did not make it into the finished product. Thankfully the design was recycled and reused somewhat consistently across the Star Wars Expanded Universe, which is where we got their name and like 99% of the information above. They would linger outside of the current Canon for some time following Disney’s acquisition of the franchise, but fortunately they were finally canonized in the “Smuggler’s Guide Reference Book,” and their appearance was reinstated in the Lando ROTJ one-shot comic a few years later, although there is still next to no lore surrounding them canonically.

It is worth noting that, in Legends, the Adarians also interacted with Grand Adrmiral Thrawn after the Battle of Endor, first supporting him but eventually swapping their allegiance to the New Republic. This was short lived, as they were quickly conquered bye the Yuuzhan Vong. Not long after they had recovered from the otherworldly occupation, they were again invaded and became a part of Darth Krayt’s ever growing New Empire. While most of the information in the main Lore tab above could be Canonized eventually, this bit of information never will be, relegated forever within Star Wars Legends, which is why I chose to omit it and instead include it as a note here.

Unexplored: I guess the first question to ask in regards to the current Canon specifically is “how much do we want to bring over from Legends, and how much do we want to create from scratch?” Even then, their Legends info is fairly sparse itself, so it would be beneficial to lay some extra groundwork in regards to their economy, society, traditions, and history. I would almost advise avoiding exploring too much into their original homeworld, as that was seemingly intentionally left unanswered as to add some mystery and historical characterization to the species. Instead, it would be cool to explore their various interactions with the Galactic Republic and Empire, and whether Adari was ever the location of any battles for their resources, as well as their caste system, the gradual evolution of their government, their cover-up of any events in their distant past, and the outliers of their society who did not approve of their leaders or the Galactic Empire, as well as the members of their network of spies.

You could also look deeper into how they convinced the Empire to allow them to remain neutral and strike up the trade bargain in the first place (if that lore route is even canonically chosen) and explore their thoughts on the Galactic Civil War and if they saw the average Adarian saw the Rebellion as heroes or nuisances who were messing up their perfectly satisfactory arrangement. What happened to them after the fall of the Empire, and were they pulled into Thrawn/the Imperial Remnant’s Canon shenanigans, or were they subjugated by the First Order seeking payments from those previously loyal to the Empire, or did something else happen to them entirely? Lastly, you can explain their role within the New Republic, what finally convinced them to severe all ties with the Empire (or at least the Remnant), and whether they regretted their past decisions and viewed themselves as cowardly, or still held fate to the idea that they simply did what was best for the survival of their people, that is if the existing government even remained, as it seems like they were almost setting up for a revolution which would see the lower castes over throw the current leaders and corporations in an attempt to develop a much more modern and equal society?

Additional Notes: When I first wrote this article I noted that I wasn’t a bit fan of the original maquette, but I’ve definitely come around to it over the years! I mistook the ornate pipe included as some sort of weird mangled tongue or that thing camels do with their stomach, and it kinda grossed me out, but honestly, I suppose it would’ve just added to the alienness anymore. The handle-head is just so fun, and the design overall has now become one of my favorites. Both their anatomy and EU lore open up tons of avenues for fun stories, characters, lore dives, etc. and I do hope to see them explored in Canon again someday, though I’d also enjoy seeing fans put their own take on it in one of their works, so feel free to try and include one in your next applicable Star Wars fan work!

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