Striber

Last Updated: 12/15/2023

Name: Striber (or Iskalonian)

Humanoid: Yes

Classification: Amphibious

Homeworld: Julsujod III (and Iskalon)

Coloration: Blue

Biology: Stribers were an amphibious humanoid species originally found on the watery world of Julsujod III, and later among the schools on Iskalon. Their bodies were approximately the same shape and build as most humanoid species, is not slightly shorter on average. They had crystal-blue skin, and lacked any bodily hair. They were thin yet muscular, making them streamlined, excellent swimmers. Their heads were large and bulbous, but slightly angular, with no visible nose, large, red, oval, pupil-less eyes, and a small mouth located shortly above their chins. They also had three-fingered hands, although it is entirely unclear what their legs or feet appeared like, but we do know their backs were rather lumpy.

It is not known whether they had gills or not, but the Stribers could not breath above water. Stribers had the capability to speak Galactic Basic Standard, however, they usually opted not to speak at all. Instead, the entire species possessed innate telepathic abilities that have yet to be linked to the Force in any way. They utilized these abilities to communicate with other beings below and above the water, effective over long distances.

Lore: Similar to species like the Chistori, Stribers were regarded as one of the rarest sentient species in the galaxy. Unfortunately, unlike the Chistori, this was not due to their self-seclusion or desire not to be found, but instead, an unspecified natural disaster utterly decimated their watery homeworld of Julsujod III, killing the majority of the species. Members of the multi-aquatic-species conglomerate known as the “Iskalon School” were able to swoop in and rescue as many of the Stribers as possible, however, they only managed to save a handful.

After this event, the Stribers became one of the 17 different sentient aquatic species (as of the height of the Galactic Civil War) to fully integrate into the school-like society on Iskalon, where they adopted many shared cultural traits and lost the majority of their race’s individuality, even taking on the collective species name of “Iskalonian.” Even here, they were arguably the most primitive members of the school, never even choosing to wear clothing, and they were definitely the rarest Iskalonians, unfortunately dying out faster than they could reproduce. For around five millennia, they continued to live on Iskalon , interacting only with other members of the school until around 500 BBY, when the Iskalonians built a city called Pavilion, situated half above water and featuring a number of submerged tubeways, where they could interact with offworlders of all kinds.

This was ultimately required as their economy was failing, their benevolent nature spearheading their undoing as they could no longer support the ever-growing population full of diverse needs, diets, and living situations. Commerce would begin with the outside galaxy, although we’re not entirely sure what species, factions, or governments facilitated trade with the Iskalonian School. Still, imports were seemingly enough to stabilize the school once more and the collective was once again thriving by the end of the Republic.

Their world would continue to remain open until the Empire attacked and destroy the city sometime shortly after the Battle of Yavin. The ferocity of invasion, seemingly intended to break up the planetary alliance they perceived as a potential threat, resulted in the creation of a massive tidal wave that killed many of the planet’s inhabitants, including some of the few remaining Stribers. After this, the Iskalonians refused to interact any further with offworlders, and aside from a second attack, this time from the Nagai which killed even more of their kind, the Stribers continued to live out their days in relative peace. Unfortunately, because of the lack of suitable mates, it was predicted that the Stribers would go completely extinct after only one or two more generations following the collapse of the Empire.

From among the school, the Stribers were considered some of the most cautious but also the most gentle. They were generally playful, often swimming around quickly and occasionally communicating using their telepathic abilities. However, they were also known for being incredibly slow to respond when communicating as they needed to consider as many possible answers or replies as possible before choosing what they believed was the correct one for every single response. This could be seen as infuriating to some, however, they were remembered for being “well-spoken” in the long run.

Legends/Canon: The Stribers only exist within the Star Wars Expanded Universe.

Unexplored: So because they are non-Canon, you can really take the Stribers in whatever direction you want within a Canon-adjacent tale. However, we don’t always see a sentient species that is on the brink of extinction, and when we do, it always opens up a bunch of interesting avenues and storytelling devices that are just waiting to be explored so I would maintain their established lore if possible. You could treat them like the Lasat, where there is actually a whole separate colony of them living somewhere out in the galaxy. Or you could treat them like the Zeffo, where the only thing that will remain of them are some ornate statues and architecture, as well as the cryptic, old secrets of their ancient ways, which in this instance would be the mysterious source of their telepathy and the nature of the catastrophe that destroyed Julsujod III.

If you’re exploring them on an individual level, you could also move one offworld, and explore whether a breathing apparatus would allow them to survive above water. Then, you could have this completely isolated species interact with the galaxy, and see worlds that aren’t entirely oceans for the first time. This could shed some great perspectives from someone who had never seen anything so clearly before, or has never felt the heat of the sun or a nice breeze or a frigid tundra or the brush of leaves. There really are a plethora of ways you can explore this species more in depth that would be immensely interesting. And it doesn’t even have to be about their personal society, culture, or history, as their involvement with the Iskalon school is incredibly enrapturing in it’s own right.

Lastly, this species needs more artistic exploration. As of the initial publishing this article, there still is only one official illustration of the Stribers, as seen above. It’s not a very flattering angle, and it doesn’t give us much to work with or even observe. With a little work, you can really put a modern spin on such an fascinating one-off species and turn it into something truly great and memorable!

Additional Notes: This species was actually seemingly created to mirror the classic “gray alien” design, but with a spin on it, asking how they would evolve if they were instead born and raised underwater. I love me a good, rare species and the Stribers are no exception. I think their extinction would be sad but incredibly fascinating to witness, but there is potential here to tell a story of the preservation of their kind, or even exploring the galaxy to see if any more of them exist on some far off oceanic world. Explore interesting themes, tell good stories, and convey an intriguing and relative message via this endangered species, whether that means they have to die off, or get saved and reintroduced into the massive, fantastical universe that is Star Wars!

(This was one of the first articles I wrote way back when I first started posting species articles on Wattpad, and while it did require quite a bit of rewording to make it high quality enough to post here, it really is one of the main species that, when I first discovered them, encouraged me to take a deeper interest in sentient species lore which in turn inspired me to start doing all of this in the first place!)

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