Myneyrsh

The Myneyrshi (singular, Myneyrsh) were a sentient species native to the arboreal planet Wayland located in the Outer Rim Territories of the galaxy. Myneyrshi were tall, thinly built bipedal humanoids; they had four arms, each pair corresponding to a torso one on top of the other, and also had a smooth layer of blue crystalline flesh. A primitive, warlike species, they were constantly at war with another of Wayland's sentient species—the Psadans. A Myneyrsh lived an extremely ritualistic life, with rituals for everyday actions such as walking, eating, and sleeping. Myneyrshi were excellent hunters and trackers, and could move through forested areas without making a sound. Their awareness of their environment was so responsive that Jedi Master Luke Skywalker likened their perception skills to those of a Force-sensitive when he visited the planet in 9 ABY.

During the Galactic Civil War, the Galactic Empire conquered Wayland, turning it into a secret storehouse for the Emperor. After the Emperor was deposed, the mad clone Joruus C'baoth took over a secret Imperial storehouse inside Mount Tantiss, enslaving the Myneyrsh and other species of the planet. They were freed upon C'baoth's death.

Biology and appearance

Myneyrshi were tall, thin, sentient, bipedal humanoids. They had two upper torsos, positioned in such a way that one was on top of the other. Females of the species had breasts far more pronounced than the males, and the males had nipples on theirs. Each torso had a pair of long, muscular arms, giving a Myneyrsh four arms. Myneyrshi had one primary hand and three off hands, although they could carry weapons in each hand, or use two hands to carry larger weapons such as a spear. Each had four fingers, one being an opposable thumb, with joints like a Human's. Having four arms also aided a Myneyrsh's ability to climb, and in one case it allowed a Force-sensitive Myneyrsh to utilize three lightsabers while dueling. They had small feet with several large toes.

Myneyrshi had upward-pointing ears, which they often pierced and hung things from. Instead of a nose, Myneyrshi had a short, downward-pointing snout. Their twin eyes were white and lacked obvious pupils. Averaging almost two meters tall, Myneyrshi were covered in a layer of smooth, crystalline flesh, which made them look as if they were made of a type of glass. The skin came in shades of blue that ranged from greenish-teal to almost purple. The crystalline skin acted as a sort of armor to basic weapons similar to their own—arrows, spears, and knives. New Republic scientists theorized that this layer existed as a result of a chemical reaction to the moisture and oxygen in the air. Myneyrshi usually had long, dark hair that came in shades of brown, green, and blue.

Myneyrshi aged and physically developed at a rate similar to most sentient species in the galaxy. Considered children until they were twelve standard years old, Myneyrshi became adults when they reached eighteen. By the time they were fifty standard years of age, Myneyrshi were regarded as middle-aged by society. They were thought old until they reached the age of eighty-five standard years, and those older than that was considered venerable.

Society and culture

Culture and ritual

Myneyrshi were a highly superstitious species and much of their life was steeped in ritualistic behavior. They had rituals for all sorts of everyday activities, such as walking, eating, and sleeping. When Jedi Master Luke Skywalker and the smuggler Han Solo met a Myneyrsh tribe during their attempt to infiltrate an Imperial base in Mount Tantiss, which Wayland's inhabitants considered forbidden, they encountered Myneyrshi ritual and participated in the offering of a fowl as "satna-chakka," or a peace offering. While the bird was elevated on a ritual staff, no physical or verbal conflict could be made. Once this ritual was completed, the Myneyrshi presented that staff to guests, a gesture to show unity and friendship. Skywalker received the staff, a sign signifying that his group had the Myneyrshi's permission to roam the planet freely.

Myneyrshi were excellent hunters and trackers—they had the ability to move through a forest without making any noise whatsoever. Luke Skywalker once compared their perception and awareness of their surroundings to those of Force-sensitives. The Myneyrshi had enough spiritual mettle to combat severe mental manipulations. When Joruus C'baoth, a clone of a Jedi Master that had gone insane, tried to force the Myneyrshi and the Psadan to cohabitate, the four-armed species resisted his rule long enough to form an alliance with their former enemies.

Myneyrshi wore simple clothing, usually donning robes from the waist down or tying up them up over their shoulders. These robes varied in color from dark brown to white and light orange. The robes often had intricate, golden designs and patterns on them. Myneyrshi usually wore quivers on their backs and pouches for storing items strapped to their waists. Members of the species did not wear footwear, and often wore gold bracelets around their arms. They sometimes wore their hair short and spiky, in dense braids, or tied it back into a ponytail.

Technology and inter-species relations

A Myneyrsh

"Any idea whether those alien species are hostile toward strangers?"
"Probably. Most alien species are. Shall we go?"

―Gilad Pellaeon and Thrawn, landing on Wayland

Due to their isolation from the galactic community, very little was known of the Myneyrsh by either the Galactic Empire or the New Republic. Myneyrshi never evolved past the stage of using weapons such as spears, daggers, and bows. Their only means of transport was the domesticated animals of their home planet, which also provided the small amount of power needed for local rudimentary agriculture.

The Myneyrshi were obstinate beings, much like their Psadan rivals, especially when dealing with Humans and other offworlders. They had a long-standing aversion to technology, which was heightened by the Imperial occupation of Wayland during which the use of exotic technology by Humans forced them into servitude. After the departure of the Imperials, Myneyrshi became actively opposed to the use of technology because it was seen as a representation of their Imperial conquerors. Myneyrshi shamans declared anything technological in nature as an "item of shame," and that they must avoid technology if at all possible.

The Myneyrshi hated and were constantly at war with Wayland's other native species, the Psadan. The Psadan were a more primitive species who worshiped nature and were always eager to fight. When the Empire arrived on Wayland, the two species attempted to unify and defeat their oppressors, though the attempt failed. When the Empire departed from their homeworld, the Myneyrshi ratified treaties with the other indigenous species of Wayland, though they remained wary of their neighbors.

Language

Myneyrshi spoke a primitive language of snorts, honks, and deep vocalizations known as Myneyrsh. While no written form of the language ever existed, the Myneyrshi passed on their knowledge and history orally. Most members of the species could also speak the Psadan. Although extremely rare, it was not unheard of for a Myneyrsh to speak Galactic Basic Standard. Sample Myneyrsh names included Chyresh, Eychani, Orychee, and Panaysha.

History

Early history and contact with the galaxy

"As you can see, Master Luke, we are merely the last in a long line of invaders."

―C-3PO, after explaining the history of the Myneyrshi to his master, Luke Skywalker

The Myneyrshi evolved on the planet Wayland, along with a second sentient species, the Psadan. The two species had a long history of inter-species hatred and violence. They engaged in many wars and bitter campaigns against each other. During the Galactic Republic's Expansionist Era, Human colonists were sent to Wayland and crash-landed on the surface. A clerical error in the Republic's planetary registry removed the planet Wayland, the colonists, and all knowledge of its native creatures from all known charts. For a short time, the forgotten Humans dominated the more primitive species, brandishing blasters and high-tech weaponry, which the Myneyrshi feared. However, with no way to replenish the power packs in their weapons, the colonists took up bows and arrows after a few generations, and the struggle became less one-sided. Eventually, the three species formed an uneasy peace after years of warfare.

When the Galactic Empire rose to power in 19 BBY, they built a secret storehouse for the Emperor on Wayland. The Myneyrshi and the Psadan once again joined forces to attempt to defeat the invaders; however, they soon found out that their crossbows, while powerful, were not strong enough to pierce Imperial Battle armor. The Empire conquered the planet easily, enslaving the Myneyrshi and their allies and putting them to work building an immense Imperial complex beneath Mount Tantiss. The Imperial occupation of Wayland ended shortly after the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY.

Luke Skywalker and the Myneyrsh

The Emperor had taken a special interest in the world—he had installed a Guardian to protect his facility inside Mount Tantiss. After the Emperor's death during the Battle of Endor, Wayland was again lost to obscurity. Growing bored after five years without Imperial contact, the Guardian decided to create a small kingdom and brought the Wayland's three ruling species together to build city to the southwest of the mountain over which he ruled. Eventually, the insane clone Joruus C'baoth defeated the Guardian and took his place. He used his mental manipulative powers to continue subjugating the city inhabitants, although the strong-willed Myneyrshi never truly submitted to his rule.

During Grand Admiral Thrawn's visit to their home planet, the Myneyrshi watched the Imperials work at Mount Tantiss, rather than returning to their warlike ways. They had learned from their mistakes of attacking better-equipped adversaries in the past and waited out the suffering. In 9 ABY, Jedi Master Luke Skywalker and a New Republic team arrived to stunt Thrawn's attempt at reviving the Empire. After being stalked by Myneyrshi during their long trek through the Wayland jungles, the team met with a tribe of Myneyrshi. The Humans used the protocol droid C-3PO as an interpreter and learned the species' history. The natives were, at first, wary of Skywalker, seeing his group as merely invaders. Skywalker was able to persuade them that he wished to free them from the Empire and was given free passage on the planet's surface. Skywalker's party was able to destroy the Mount Tantiss storehouse and kill C'Baoth in the process. After Thrawn was killed aboard his flagship during the Battle of Bilbringi, the Myneyrshi were free of their bonds to the Empire and were allowed independence. Shortly after the destruction of the Emperor's facility, the New Republic began researching the planet of Wayland and its history. Though it was true, New Republic researchers were unable to confirm Myneyrsh and Psadan tales of C'Baoth's killing the Guardian and they regarded these stories as mythic. A well-regarded theory posited that the Guardian and C'Baoth were the same person. At some point during the rule of the New Republic, the Shi'ido anthropologist Mammon Hoole included an entry on the Myneyrshi in his publication, The Essential Guide to Alien Species.

Behind the scenes

Although mentioned in the first two books of the Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn, the Myneyrshi only appear in the final book in that series, the 1993 novel The Last Command. Their earliest graphical depiction, by artist David Plunkett, is in The Last Command Sourcebook, the adaptation of that novel to the West End Games Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game. The book, written by Eric S. Trautmann, also expands on the species' background and culture.

The Myneyrshi, as depicted in The Last Command comic adaptation

The comic book mini-series adaptation of The Last Command, first published by Dark Horse Comics from 1997 to 1998, includes a variant appearance for the Myneyrshi. The comic, penciled and inked by Edvin Biukovic and Eric Shanower respectively with Pamela Rambo responsible for coloring, portrays the species in the fifth issue with tan skin, a square jaw that juts out from the skull, and only three fingers per hand. The mini-series has since been reprinted as a trade paperback dedicated solely to the The Last Command serial and another, which includes all issues from the Thrawn Trilogy comics; both reprints maintain the variant appearance for the species. Since then, as in the Ultimate Alien Anthology, the Myneyrshi's coloring has remained faithful to the West End Games sourcebook description.

In the supplements to the West End roleplaying game, Myneyrshi suffer a distinct disadvantage to their Human counterparts, as they are intended only as non-playable characters. Myneyrshi in the game have a much lower maximum level of potential at the game's various attributes, half that of Humans and many other species. Myneyrshi do, however, receive a bonus to their strength to represent their glass armor, making them more resistant to various blows. They also have the ability to wield several weapons at once, though with a single dominant hand and three off hands. The Wizards of the Coast version of the roleplaying game depicts Myneyrshi in largely the same way, but in a more specific manner. As a primitive species, characters of this species have less aptitude than Humans at intelligence and knowledge, but more for perception and willpower. They retain their natural armor and ability to use multiple weapons, but they suffer major penalties when attempting to use technology of any kind. Their alert, stealthy manner is also depicted in this version, giving them advantages in certain situations. Myneyrshi begin with the ability to speak their native tongue and the Psadan language.

In sources expanding upon Myneyrsh history, doubt is cast in-universe on whether or not Joruus C'baoth actually killed the Guardian that controlled Wayland. Alternatively, the sources speculate that the two were one and the same. This ambiguity persists in materials released long after the original novels, appearing in C'baoth's Databank entry. The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia of 2008 objectively establishes that the Mount Tantiss settlement had been controlled by two, separate regimes.

Appearances

• Heir to the Empire (First mentioned)
• Dark Force Rising (Mentioned only)
• The Last Command (First appearance)
• The Last Command comics
• Specter of the Past

Sources

• Heir to the Empire Sourcebook
• The Last Command Sourcebook (First pictured)
• A Guide to the Star Wars Universe, Second Edition, Revised and Expanded
• The Thrawn Trilogy Sourcebook
• The Essential Guide to Planets and Moons
• Star Wars Encyclopedia

External links

• A Tale of Two Bothans: Interpreting Star Wars Aliens on StarWars.com (backup link not verified!)