Lizard Warrior The Lizard Warriors were a species of sentient reptilians who lived in a desert region of the Forest Moon of Endor . Members of the species had green scales and yellow underhides with yellow spikes running down the spine . Their bodies were humanoid except for a long tail . Lizard Warrior culture valued both martial prowess and hunting skill , and they marked the borders of their territory with totem pole s . Sometime before 3 ABY , an Ewok named Graak was exiled to the Valley of the Lizard Warriors . When he taught his advanced martial skills to the reptilians , they selected him as their new leader . Graak instigated a new system whereby strength and fighting prowess were valued over other attributes . In 3 ABY , the Lizard Warriors captured two trespassing Ewoks , Teebo and Wicket W . Warrick , and made them the quarry of a species - wide hunt . Nevertheless , when Joddar , Graak ' s lead warrior , was saved by the pair , he promised to escort them out of the valley . Graak attempted to prevent their escape , so Joddar overthrew him and assumed leadership of his people . The following year , the Lizard Warrior Dracos represented his people among the members of the Alliance to Restore the Republic at Bright Tree Village , home of the tribe of Ewoks who had helped the Alliance overthrow the Galactic Empire . Dracos trained in military combat for a time under a member of the Alliance , the Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker . Biology and appearance . Lizard Warriors were sentient bipedal reptiles whose physiology was largely humanoid . The exception was a long tail , which began thick at its base and tapered to a point . The tail dragged the ground when the reptilians walked or stood , but it projected straight behind when they ran . The species ' short legs and stooped posture made them stand over 1 . 2 meters tall , making them slightly taller than an Ewok . Likewise , they were roughly twice as long as they were tall at around 2 . 4 meters in length . Nevertheless , at full height , some Lizard Warriors stood taller than an average Human . Their digits sported sharp claws , four fingers per hand and three toes per foot . Lizard Warriors were covered in green scales with a yellow underbelly . Nevertheless , their hides offered little protection from punctures from such hazards as burr ball s . Many Lizard Warriors had a row of yellow spikes running from the crown of the head to the tip of the tail , while others had two isolated spikes toward the back of the head . An additional spike grew from each elbow . The bulk of the Lizard Warrior head was given over to a long , pointed snout full of sharp teeth . Two nostril holes pierced this muzzle at its farthest extremity , and a red tongue lay within . A pair of narrow , yellow or brown eyes on the sides of the head flanked the snout at its base . At least some Ewoks found the Lizard Warriors ' appearance unattractive . Society and culture . A group of Lizard Warriors lived in a desert valley on the Forest Moon of Endor , where they kept to themselves and rarely interacted with other species . Their region , named the Valley of the Lizard Warriors after its inhabitants , lay several days ' journey from the forests of Happy Grove . Thus , the Ewoks of Bright Tree Village who lived there had little knowledge of the species . Nevertheless , Endor ' s Lizard Warriors spoke Ewokese . The Lizard Warriors had a martial culture that valued warfare and hunting . The pursuit of game was valued not only as a necessity of life , but as a sport . The species went to battle armed with relatively primitive weapons , such as recurve bow s , wooden arrows , and throwing spears with stone heads . Still , some Lizard Warriors had access to more sophisticated arms , like metal spear points and swords . What little clothing they wore was devoted to warfare : a quiver on the back for carrying arrows or a belt around the waist for holding a sword . The species followed the greatest warrior among them . Such an individual did not necessarily have to be a member of the species ; in fact , in 3 ABY , Endor ' s Lizard Warriors were ruled by an Ewok named Graak . Lizard Warriors adhered to a strict code of honor that compelled them to keep their word and repay any act of kindness . The Lizard Warriors were territorial and demarcated their lands with totem pole s : carved wooden posts decorated with such items as cloth , crossed sticks , feathers , bird wings , and skulls . If Lizard Warriors detected strangers in their lands , they ambushed the interlopers from behind rocks and brush . The warriors used a special capturing stick made of a length of wood with a looped cord attached to snag the intruders . Members of the species lived inside caves , the outsides of which were littered with bones . They had access to goods such as bowls , fruits , and jugs of liquid . History . The Lizard Warriors of Endor settled in a desert valley and set up their homes in caves there . At some point , they came into contact with the moon ' s native Ewoks , who named their territory the Valley of the Lizard Warriors after its reptilian denizens . The warrior Joddar eventually attained a leadership position in the culture . Years before 3 ABY , a one - eyed Ewok named Graak entered Lizard Warrior territory . He had been exiled from his home , Bright Tree Village , by the village chief , Chirpa . After he demonstrated his skill at combat and promised to train the Lizard Warriors in his techniques , Joddar stepped down to allow Graak to assume leadership with Joddar as second - in - command . Under the exile ' s leadership , the Lizard Warriors adopted a philosophy of survival of the fittest . In 3 ABY , the Lizard Warriors detected two Ewoks — Teebo and Wicket W . Warrick — wandering through their territory . They ambushed the interlopers , captured them , and brought them to their caves . Graak made the tresspassers a deal : if they could reach the edge of the Valley of the Lizard Warriors alive , they could go free . However , they would have to escape the Lizard Warriors , who would hunt them down for sport . Several low - level warriors pursued and confronted the Ewoks , but their prey survived . Joddar finally joined the hunt and tracked the Ewoks to a swamp at the border of the valley . Before he could kill them , however , Joddar came under attack himself from an Endorian swamp beast . Warrick chased the beast away with a well - aimed beehive and pulled Joddar from the swamp , an act of mercy that saved the Lizard Warrior ' s life and defied his expectations . Though confused , Joddar thanked his benefactors and swore them his life . The Ewoks asked only to be led to the edge of the swamp and out of Lizard Warrior territory , and Joddar gladly complied . However , Graak arrived on the scene and refused to let the younger Ewoks go . When he attacked and nearly killed Warrick , Joddar stepped in and stopped him . Joddar rejected Graak ' s protestations of supremacy and explained that the young Ewoks had taught him compassion , something Graak never could understand . He then ousted Graak from his position and assumed leadership of his people once again . Joddar and his Lizard Warriors parted with the younger Ewoks on good terms ; Graak , on the other hand , severed ties with his former underlings and cast off into the desert alone . At the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY , the Alliance to Restore the Republic defeated the forces of the Galactic Empire thanks in large part to the help of a tribe of Ewok allies on Endor . The Lizard Warriors sent a representative named Dracos to join the Alliance forces gathered at the Ewok settlement of Bright Tree Village . Dracos was present as the Alliance leaders formed the Alliance of Free Planets . Admiral Gial Ackbar later assigned Dracos to train with other Alliance recruits under a Jedi Knight , Commander Luke Skywalker . The Lizard Warrior and the others hoped to eventually learn how to use the Force to become Jedi . Nevertheless , Skywalker was still haunted by the memories of how his father , Anakin Skywalker , had fallen to the dark side , so he refused to teach the recruits anything beyond basic marksmanship , hand - to - hand combat , and meditation . Behind the scenes . Writer Dave Manak and illustrator Warren Kremer introduced the Lizard Warriors as antagonists to the Ewok characters of " . " The comic book was published by Marvel Comics in November 1985 . The character Dracos , who appeared in Marvel Comics " " later that year was identified as a member of the species in the article " , " written by James McFadden and published as part of the website in 2009 . " Valley of Evil " implies that the Valley of the Lizard Warriors was the reptilians ' homeland and that , thus , they were native to the Forest Moon . Nevertheless , later sources point to an origin on another unidentified planet . The roleplaying supplement " Geonosis and the Outer Rim Worlds , " for example , names only Ewoks and Yuzzums as native to Endor , and the article " Castaways of Endor " adds only Duloks to the list . According to such works and the roleplaying article " Endor and the Moddell Sector , " the majority of the sentient species who lived on the Forest Moon were survivors of crash landings caused by the main planet ' s massive gravity shadow and shield of space detritus .