Yuuzhan Vong The Yuuzhan Vong — " Children of Yun - Yuuzhan " , also called the Chosen Race , known to the Chiss and Ferroan s as the Far Outsiders , and sometimes incorrectly abbreviated to Vong ( which implied that one was disowned by their family and their gods ) — were a sentient species that nearly destroyed the New Republic , and were responsible for the deaths of nearly 365 trillion sentient beings during their invasion of the galaxy . The Yuuzhan Vong and their Chazrach slaves were among the few alien species known to originate outside the galaxy ( the only known others being the Silentium and the Abominor ) . A typical Yuuzhan Vong resembled a Human in form , though they were taller and heavier than the average Human and had less hair on their heads . The Yuuzhan Vong were religious zealots , who viewed mechanical technology as blasphemy . Their technological innovations were genetically engineered and purely organic . Additionally , the Yuuzhan Vong deeply respected pain to the point of masochism , and strove to improve their physical capabilities through organ grafting . Such grafting was a status symbol within Yuuzhan Vong society . Perhaps most notably , the Yuuzhan Vong were unable to be sensed through the Force . This confounded the Jedi who first encountered the Yuuzhan Vong . However , they were susceptible to some Force based attacks . Biology and appearance . The Yuuzhan Vong were a humanoid species — initially leading some to believe that they were a Human offshoot race — but there were differences between Humans and Yuuzhan Vong . For example , Yuuzhan Vong typically lacked kidneys . The Yuuzhan Vong were also much taller and had heavier builds than the average Human , though this could be a result of selective breeding . Yuuzhan Vong also had a longer life span than the average Human , generally around three times that of a Human ' s . Genetically , they shared many elements that made them similar to Humans , which was considered unusual as they were an extragalactic species , but one notable difference was one element of their genetic structure that was present in all their biotechnology . Yuuzhan Vong had sloping , almost ridge - like foreheads . Several Yuuzhan Vong had been seen with pointed ears , while just as many had been seen without them . These could have been ritual mutilations , or a genetic variation ; there is no conclusive evidence as to what the species ' norm was . Yuuzhan Vong also had short , stub - like noses , making their faces appear skull - like . The Yuuzhan Vong usually had black hair , though in lesser amounts on both the head and body than Humans , but often wore it much longer than them ( in many cases , they were also completely bald ) . Small blue sacks could be found under the eyes of the Yuuzhan Vong , and they were often considered a mark of beauty . These eyesacks expanded and contracted to reflect a Yuuzhan Vong ' s mood , as the species did not use the facial expressions preferred by Humans . Through the blue sacks under their eyes , they were capable of telling if an individual was in delight or were suffering from rage . The most common skin tone among the Yuuzhan Vong was gray , with the second most common being yellow . Another major characteristic was their jet black blood . The Yuuzhan Vong nervous system was very conductive , as if it was made specifically for feeling pain . This nervous system was noted as containing aspects that were not found in Humans and likewise , there were elements within a Human nervous system that were not found in a Yuuzhan Vong . It was also noted that their tissue was very different from a Human ' s , which made the use of the Yuuzhan Vong Qah cells difficult on them as the Human brain eventually rejected the cells . Perhaps the most notable and most objectionable trait of the Yuuzhan Vong was that they were outside of the Force as the Jedi knew it . They had no Force presence that could be sensed , and were unaffected by most Force powers that were targeted directly at them . This meant that any attempt to sense their motivation , truthfulness or determine their next course of action were futile , although it did mean that one was capable of detecting them by reaching out in the Force and determining if the person had no presence within it . Even a normally powerful telekinetic blast that was capable of launching an ordinary opponent off their feet at high speeds simply caused a Yuuzhan Vong either to stumble , or lose balance temporarily . While it was not possible to affect the Yuuzhan Vong directly through the use of the Force , it was possible to use indirect means to accomplish such a task , such as manipulating an object through telekinesis and throwing it at a Yuuzhan Vong , which would injure them , or by controlling the air in an attempt to increase the pressure , thus allowing a Jedi to , in effect , crush the Yuuzhan Vong . The only known Force techniques that seemed somehow exempt from this limitation were variations on Force lightning and the Sith technique Force net . A small number of Jedi developed another ability , the Vongsense . In some ways , this ability worked similarly to the Force , but only relating to the Yuuzhan Vong and their biots . Culture . Yuuzhan Vong culture was centered on sacrifice and their gods , although warriors in particular were centered on the philosophy of pain . They tended to glorify pain ; not as a motive for action . but rather as a state of living . This was because they believed that , just like their gods had sacrificed their bodies to create the galaxy , the Yuuzhan Vong themselves were to sacrifice parts of their body for a greater purpose . As such , they believed that , by remaking their own bodies , they were becoming closer to their deities . While this was the case , they never maimed their bodies in a manner that would permanently hinder their ability to function . This resulted in individual Yuuzhan Vong having mottling or scarring , and sweeping tattoos . The more elite individuals were even known to graft organs from other creatures into their bodies . Devotional practices to the gods called for bloodletting at prayer times . Shamed Ones were forbidden from attending religious ceremonies . As a Yuuzhan Vong grew more successful in their life , they began the process of sacrificing body parts and replacing them with organs from another creature , thus enhancing their abilities . This was done so during the Escalatier Ceremony , where an engineered organism related to an Implanter began to make cuts and incisions , and place the implants . At times , the implant was accepted into the body and the Yuuzhan Vong was promoted to a higher rank . However , there were occasions where the implant failed to be accepted into the body . This resulted either in death or the individual becoming a derided Shamed One . Such failures were believed to have been the work of the Yuuzhan Vong gods , though there were times that such a happenstance was due to the failure of the Shaper in charge of the Escalation ceremony . Family was noted as being a strong element within their society . A member of the Yuuzhan Vong was typically associated with a family group , known typically as a Domain . Some Domains were more powerful than others . In addition to this family structure , the Yuuzhan Vong also employed a caste based system which included respective castes for warriors , shapers , priests , intendants and workers . Love affairs between two different castes was considered forbidden . In fact , domain loyalties ran deep , and went far beyond simple likes or dislikes . There were a series of ritual statements that a Yuuzhan Vong was required to utter as part of protocol from a member of lower ranks to a member of a higher rank . While this was the case , members of one caste were not obligated to salute a superior from another caste , which was the case with intendants to higher ranking members of the warrior caste . Yuuzhan Vong children were raised in caste - specific crèches by designated caretakers , and likely did not know their biological parents until they were older . Their crèche parents named them . Deformed children were killed at birth , but , if the deformity was mild enough , as was the case with one Ona Shai , the child was spared . A useful survival trait for these children in order to live through such a harsh and competitive environment was paranoia . Twin births were uncommon events ; only a handful of cases were known to the New Republic , in which each was thought to be a portent of a great event . In each case , one twin killed the other as a prelude to a great destiny . Funeral processions were typically carried out in a way that did not preserve the dead , and Yuuzhan Vong mortuaries often consisted of Yuuzhan Vong mourners who met with assigned priests . During such conditions , priests were involved in removing various body parts of the dead in order to dedicate them to the various gods . According to the insights of an Imperial officer , the Empire and the Yuuzhan Vong had some elements that were common to one another . These included the need for strict discipline and the obedience to one ' s superior officer . However , at the time of the invasion , it was believed that their ultimate goals were completely different , with the Yuuzhan Vong desiring to change the way of life of the inhabitants of the galaxy . One of their goals was the destruction and removal of all forms of manufactured technology , which was one of the key strengths of the Imperial Remnant . This great belief in discipline and obedience in one ' s superiors meant that subordinates never contradicted their leaders ; they were capable of subverting or altering the will of their commanders , but did not point out errors in that will . They were ultimately highly skilled warriors who never retreated in the face of defeat , as they feared this would insult their gods . While this was largely the case , it was known that certain Yuuzhan Vong were capable of cowardly actions . For actions like this , they became Shamed Ones . Yuuzhan Vong beliefs highly influenced their actions and personality . According to their religion , life was suffering , and death was the ultimate release from that suffering . As such , the Yuuzhan Vong felt that nothing could be learned unless it was purchased in pain , and were resigned to and willingly went to their deaths . Some amongst their race , such as Domain Shai , went as far as to inflict pain on themselves to the point that they enjoyed it . Such groups felt that the infliction of pain was a means of earning the favor of their deities . Furthermore , it was believed that the greatest glory was death in battle . This fixation on death varied depending on the circumstances , as dying in the cold void between galaxies was considered a disgraceful death . Consequently , this meant that most Yuuzhan Vong fought to the death and thus also meant that other empires had very few opportunities of exploring the extragalactic aliens ' organic warships . In addition , the priests claimed that they did not ask of others what they themselves did not accomplish , meaning that they equally sacrificed their own numbers as well as " " infidels " " . This was an act of service to their deities , who were believed to have sacrificed their body parts in order to create all of existence . The species also greatly believed in honor , with that subject ranking quite high in the beliefs of certain members of the race . Even under interrogations , the word of a Yuuzhan Vong was high , and , if they promised respite to their victims for revealing information , they typically kept their word . In one case , a Yuuzhan Vong commander agreed to a personal duel over the fate of a planet and , if defeated , he agreed that his forces would spare that world . While the Yuuzhan Vong himself was sincere , his subordinates worked with the Warmaster to subvert that honorable combat . Furthermore , the denial of the right to honorable combat was seen as a disrespectful act , worthy of scorn from the warrior caste . In fact , warriors would even consider a single worthy opponent of fighting a single Yuuzhan Vong warrior at a time worthy of respect in regard to their bravery as well as their fighting skills . There also existed a similar concept to the Wookiee Life debt , which was known as Us - hrok . This was a display that showed eternal gratitude and loyalty to another for something they had done , and meant that the Yuuzhan Vong in question would fight to the death on that person ' s behalf . In regards to food , the Yuuzhan Vong held no great joy of eating and thus felt indifferent about gastronomic tastes . The only exception of this was if the enjoyment came from an event such as the slaying of a great beast during a ritual . The psychology of the Yuuzhan Vong during wartime engagements was based around attack , and involved the use of high levels of aggression . This made them dangerous , though at times their actions were somewhat predictable . The Yuuzhan Vong were often encouraged by an enemy ' s resistance to them and tended to see such foes as being worthy of fighting . Internally , the Yuuzhan Vong greatly believed in the concept of competition as a means of breeding strength . However , this had the side effect of bringing about internal feuds between Domains and castes , who would attempt to escalate their positions above their kin . This resulted in civil war in the past , and it was believed that the Invasion would allow the Yuuzhan Vong an external enemy to fight , but after some time the same divisions began to appear once more . They also believed deeply in the concept of revenge , and had no reservations to the use of aggressive emotions — unlike the Jedi . This often meant that the Yuuzhan Vong engaged in suicide attacks or ritual suicides when facing defeat in order to attain glory , which was a source of pride of the warrior caste . This aggressive and warlike nature meant that they did not have any concept of peace or remorse . In their language , peace meant the willing submission to a conqueror . Furthermore , within their society , the use of profanities meant that the individual in question was capable of calling out a blood challenge to his opponent ; the two would fight in a battle to the death . In addition , the use of particular insulting words , such as calling the other a " " fool " " , meant that the wounded party was perfectly within their rights and even expected by their comrades to kill their opponent . This meant that an attack on a Yuuzhan Vong ' s pride was the grounds for demanding satisfaction , which was also capable of being accepted as a sacrifice to their gods . The Yuuzhan Vong had a fanatical hatred of machines , believing them to be abominations and an affront to their gods . According to their beliefs at the time of the Invasion , they believed that combustion , the creation of fire through a machine , was the first abomination . This was because the Yuuzhan Vong believed deeply in life , but also felt that all life ended as in the wild ; one type of lifeform was eaten by another , who in turn was devoured by another predator until it died , which replenished the ecosystem . This meant that death was prevalent constantly , but allowed new life to grow while machines did not die , meaning that they were capable of replacing organic life — which was something the Yuuzhan Vong would never allow . The species possessed a saying : " " Let the enemy fight " " , which was one of the aspects of their racial psychology . They often expected combat and arranged ambushes for their enemies , after which they baited targets into their traps . Their interdiction forces often remained outside their designated routes in order to jump onto a target , thus trapping them as a type of ambush . Another saying included " " A fleet that fights two battles loses twice . " " Ultimately , the Yuuzhan Vong ' s earlier relations with other races was based on domination of the lesser species , as they felt most other races were unworthy . Those that managed to impress the Yuuzhan Vong and were considered worthy were often provided a clean death while the others were relegated to slavery . Despite elements of their society which were seen as being barbaric , the Yuuzhan Vong truly revered life and all its forms . Among the few " infidel " races of the ' Promised Land ' , they tended to favor the Ho ' Din , whose natural senses meant that they did not like the presence of advanced technology . Some primitive races who did not make use of technology were also known to have willingly allied with the Yuuzhan Vong , such as some of the inhabitants of Wayland . These " " Wish - To - Bes " " believed that the Yuuzhan Vong were like them in that they respected life , while the majority believed that this was not true , as the " " Cut - Up - People " " simply wished to harm as well as twist things to suit their needs . According to their religion , they had to prove themselves worthy creations of their deities , and if they did not do so then they would be destroyed — after which they would be replaced by a more worthy species . Their beliefs stated that this had happened three times in their religion , with a new species created , eventually leading to the gods creating the Yuuzhan Vong . In the post - War period , the Yuuzhan Vong became a deeply spiritual as well as introspective people . Many felt that they would never be able to mend relations with the inhabitants of the galaxy due to the Yuuzhan Vong War , though a few heroic members of this race believed that they needed to evolve in order to survive . Thus , they felt that the journey to better relations was one that was worth the effort . They still retained their different form of honor in this age , with both custom and ritual still being an important aspect of their culture . Society description . The Yuuzhan Vong functioned in a caste system . This ranged from the powerful one - person Supreme Overlord to the lowly , oppressed Worker caste . Not much was known of their economic system , but it appeared to be a . The political system of the Yuuzhan Vong was a theocracy , with the Supreme Overlord deriving his authority directly from his status as the voice of Yun - Yuuzhan . By the time of Darth Krayt ' s Sith Empire , the caste - based system was still present , with warriors and Shapers included . Supreme Overlord . The highest caste was Supreme Overlord , who had control over all other castes . During the Yuuzhan Vong ' s invasion of the galaxy , the Supreme Overlord was Shimrra Jamaane ( or so it was believed , as he was secretly being controlled by Onimi ) . Only the Supreme Overlord had direct communication with Yun - Yuuzhan , the supreme god and creator of the Yuuzhan Vong . Shaper caste . Shapers were scientists who supervised the biotechnology of the Yuuzhan Vong . They focused on the creation and development of their organic technology and , together with the priests , observed the arcane developments related to it . Shapers were typically described as shorter than the average Yuuzhan Vong and were notable for their intricate tendril headdresses and Shaper hand s . A Master Shaper ' s hand had 8 fingers , while that of an Adept had only 5 . Each finger contained a different tool used in their work . Some Shapers , like Mezhan Kwaad and Nem Yim , hid weapons in their Shaper hand . Their headdresses appeared to have been tied directly to their nervous systems , and were used for ceremonial purposes to represent genuflection or compliance . They could also change shape to show the wearer ' s mood . The shapers ranked very highly in Yuuzhan Vong society ; their ranks included the Master Shaper , Shaper Adept , and Shaper Initiate also known as Shaper Novices . Priest caste . The priest caste was considerably powerful in the Yuuzhan Vong ' s rigidly theocratic society . The members of the priest caste served the many lesser that ruled the Yuuzhan Vong . There were several sects , each for the worship of a different Yuuzhan Vong deity . Ranks of the priest caste included the Most High Priest ( ess ) , High Priest ( ess ) , Priest ( ess ) , Seer , and Novice . Warrior caste . The warrior caste served as the armies of the Yuuzhan Vong and was one of the largest castes who essentially served as the military branch of their race . Members of the caste were trained from an early age to excel in combat . Warriors were also more aggressive than other Yuuzhan Vong . Notable members of this caste included Tsavong Lah and Nas Choka , both of whom became Warmaster of the Yuuzhan Vong at various points . Their chief weapon was the amphistaff , which resembled a deadly serpent capable of spitting venom or coiling around foes . The warriors were devotees of the Slayer , Yun - Yammka , and sought honor in combat . They wore the living vonduun crab armor which was capable of resisting blaster fire or lightsabers . This armor did have weak points , such as points at the armpit and areas of the inner hip where the shell ' s segments joined . Ranks of the warrior caste included the Warmaster , Supreme Commander , Commander , Subaltern and Warrior . Intendant caste . The Intendant caste worked to keep Yuuzhan Vong society functioning and was as such responsible for the Yuuzhan Vong economy . They were noted as being the smallest of the castes who lacked a patron deity or a specific war cry when compared to the others . It was this caste that were in charge of matters of commerce , bureaucracy , trade and the management of the sizable slave work force employed by the Yuuzhan Vong . Notable Intendants included Nom Anor , the deadliest enemy of the Jedi . Members of the Intendant Caste could come from either the Shaper or Warrior castes . Shimrra Jamaane was formerly an Intendant , before becoming Supreme Overlord . They were the government and politicians and favored Yun - Harla the Trickster godess . Ranks of the Intendant caste included High Prefect , Prefect , Consul , Executor , and Attendant . Worker caste . The worker caste was the largest , yet lowest , caste and served mainly as servants , slaves and laborers . The worker caste included Shamed Ones , Yuuzhan Vong whose bodies had rejected any organic implants and modifications , Yuuzhan Vong born outright into the worker caste , Yuuzhan Vong who had failed to succeed in other castes , and conquered or shaped species such as the Chazrach . Slaves and the Shamed Ones ( fallen members of society ) were part of the worker castes , but they were treated with contempt even by their fellow workers , though Yuuzhan Vong born into the worker caste were actually descended from Shamed Ones . Deities . The Yuuzhan Vong religion , called the True Way , was very important to the Yuuzhan Vong . They were devout and had many gods and , prior to their defeat , believed it was their duty to appease their gods ' desires through conquest and genocide . Yun - Yuuzhan . Yun - Yuuzhan , the creator , was the most powerful deity of the Yuuzhan Vong religion . He sacrificed most of his body parts to create the lesser deities and the Yuuzhan Vong galaxy . Only the Supreme Overlord had direct contact with him . Yun - Harla . Yun - Harla was the Trickster , the Cloaked Goddess and goddess of deception and aggression . Yun - Harla represented the political caste . Having learned this information , the New Republic military had their top pilot , Jaina Solo , codenamed " Trickster " and " Goddess " in an act of psychological warfare against the Yuuzhan Vong invaders , who would believe they were fighting the living form of one of their most powerful deities . Yun - Yammka . Yun - Yammka was the Slayer , and the god of war . His image was of a multi - tentacled being , and was the inspiration for the form of the yammosk . He was primarily worshipped by the warrior caste . He was in actuality created by the priest caste when the Yuuzhan Vong turned to war . Yun - Ne ' Shel . Yun - Ne ' Shel was the Modeler . She oversaw natural life cycles and was worshiped by the shaper caste . Yun - Txiin and Yun - Q ' aah ( The Lover Gods ) . Yun - Txiin and Yun - Q ' aah were the Lover Gods and twins . Having a relationship outside one ' s caste was forbidden in Yuuzhan Vong society , and disobeying automatically led to sacrifice to the Lover Gods . Yun - Shuno . Yun - Shuno was the Pardoner . She had a thousand eyes and watched over and spoke for the Shamed Ones , who were shunned by every other Yuuzhan Vong deity . She was the only deity the Shamed Ones were allowed to worship . History . Early history . The Yuuzhan Vong were refugees from a distant galaxy . Their original homeworld , Yuuzhan ' tar was a tropical planet that had a large asteroid belt around it . It was destroyed thousands of standard years before they invaded the galaxy . In Yuuzhan Vong , Yuuzhan ' tar meant " Crèche of the gods " , and the living planet was a template for the Yuuzhan Vong deities . Yuuzhan ' tar may have been the basis for Yun - Yuuzhan , the creator god of the Yuuzhan Vong . Little was known about their early history , but the Yuuzhan Vong had apparently once lived as symbiotes with their homeworld and were Force - sensitive . Their technology was also largely organic . At some point in their history , the Yuuzhan Vong were caught in the midst of a devastating galactic conflict between two droid civilizations — believed to be the Silentium and the Abominor — which solidified their hatred of mechanical technology and xenophobia towards other sentient lifeforms . The Yuuzhan Vong ' s living homeworld aided them in the war by bestowing upon them the knowledge of creating living weapons . However , as the war dragged on , the Yuuzhan Vong as a species became increasingly violent and warlike . Eventually , they were able to defeat their enemies , and forced both droid powers to flee their galaxy . Following the war , the Yuuzhan Vong went on a crusade to cleanse their galaxy of all forms of mechanical technology . They conquered much of their galaxy and either exterminated or enslaved conquered species . Among those species they conquered were the reptilian Chazrach , which became slave soldiers for the Yuuzhan Vong . With much of the galaxy in their hands , the various Domain s ( what the Yuuzhan Vong called clans or families ) fractured and turned against each other , resulting in the devastating Cremlevian War . During the conflict , much of the Yuuzhan Vong ' s galaxy was destroyed , including their homeworld , Yuuzhan ' tar . The exact details of the destruction of the planet were lost to the passage of time . However , Yuuzhan ' tar did produce a seed which eventually became Zonama Sekot , later colonized by the Langhesi and Ferroan s . Separated from their original symbiosis with their homeworld , the Yuuzhan Vong were stripped from the Force , and experienced great pain . Thus , the species saw pain as the only way to return to that symbiosis and practiced body modifications on themselves . In place of their homeworld , the Yuuzhan Vong took up belief in several deities , which subsequently governed nearly every aspect of their civilization . Towards the end of the war , Steng emerged as the first Warmaster . A rival Warmaster , Yo ' gand , invented the Yo ' gand ' s Core tactic , which he used to destroy the planet Ygziir and its moon . The destruction of Ygziir resulted in the death of Steng and the end of the war . Eventually , Yo ' gand united the Domains into a single socio - political entity and became the first Supreme Overlord of the Yuuzhan Vong . With much of their galaxy ruined , the Yuuzhan Vong began a long trek to another galaxy in search of a new home . For a long period , perhaps centuries , the species was forced to travel through the Intergalactic Void in massive worldships . During this period , the Yuuzhan Vong nearly destroyed themselves . Violence and competition had been inevitably built into their society and , without an external target , they focused their aggression against each other . Though there were no all out wars in the magnitude of the Cremlevian War , the Domains continued to fight each other for the favor of the Supreme Overlords . Pre - invasion . When the Yuuzhan Vong left their galaxy , how long their voyage took , or if they even knew what their destination would be , was unknown . At least one account spoke of their journey taking at least several millennia ; however , by 26 ABY , one of the oldest worldships ( old enough to be dying , and considered to be ' ancient ' ) was less than 1000 years old . It would appear that by 3997 BBY , sometime after Exar Kun became the new Dark Lord of the Sith , the Praetorite Vong ' s slivilith probe creatures had arrived , and as of 3963 BBY , at least one scout had reached the Wild Space region of the known galaxy . In that year , a group of Mandalorian Neo - Crusaders under the command of Canderous Ordo encountered what would later come to be known as a Yorik - stronha , disguised as an asteroid in the Crispin system , while chasing a group of pirates in the system ' s asteroid belt . When Ordo used a thermal generator to melt the frozen methane covering the " asteroid " , the Yorik - Stronha , in Ordo ' s words , " woke up " . The asteroid began to spin quickly and then proceeded to fire plasma at the Mandalorians . The extragalactic weaponry was able to melt through the Mandalorian ' s armor " like wax " . The attack on the Mandalorians became the " first contact " with the Known Galaxy . The probe fled soon after the brief battle with Ordo ' s Mandalorians . Ordo followed in hot pursuit , but was unable to keep up with the probe . The Mandalorians were able to track the probe ' s hyperspace wake to the edge of the galaxy , where the Neo - Crusaders turned back , apparently thinking that the mysterious ship was going on a suicide run into the great void outside the galaxy . Also in this general time frame , a female Shaper arrived in the galaxy in suspended animation , crashing on Lorrd and surviving there for several decades , interacting with locals who believed her to be a demon . Between 229 and 89 BBY , the living planet Zonama Sekot — a seed of Yuuzhan ' tar — arrived in the Gardaji Rift . In 33 BBY , a Yuuzhan Vong was captured and ended up in Cog Hive Seven , a prison colony wherein deadly gladiatorial matches regularly took place between inmates . The Yuuzhan Vong , who had already killed two fellow inmates in transit to the colony , quickly emerged as the station ' s most recent champion . For six months , the warrior systematically defeated every opponent pitted against the Yuuzhan Vong , until the champion was matched with Sith Lord Darth Maul , who was on an undercover mission on Cog Hive Seven . After a brutal fight , Maul killed the warrior . As the Yuuzhan Vong had only spoken in the species ' native language , the colony ' s systems had failed to classify its species , point of origin , or even gender , although some of the guards suspected that the individual was a female . In 32 BBY , at the time of the Invasion of Naboo , an advance force of Yuuzhan Vong — termed " Far Outsiders " by the planet ' s inhabitants — discovered Zonama , and noting the similarity to Yuuzhan ' tar ( though not drawing the connection ) attempted to colonize it . However , when the Yuuzhan Vong attempted to settle , Zonama Sekot ' s biosphere killed off the Yuuzhan Vong flora and fauna , provoking them . Although Sekot attempted to negotiate with them , they began an assault upon the planet . After two years of costly fighting , the assault was called off with the arrival of the Jedi Knight Vergere , who convinced the Yuuzhan Vong to leave on the condition that she would travel with them . The Galactic Republic received only shadowy news at the attack ; even after Jedi Knight Obi - Wan Kenobi and his Padawan Anakin Skywalker went to investigate Vergere ' s disappearance , all that they discovered was that an unknown race of biotech - based aliens from a distant place and armed with weapons that the planet ' s inhabitants had never seen before had attacked the world . In 29 BBY , after learning of Zonama Sekot , Supreme Overlord Quoreal ' s determination to invade began to waver . The Yuuzhan Vong soon learned that Zonama Sekot was no longer in its original system , and there was no evidence that it had been destroyed . Worried about the threat presented by the powerful planetary entity , he announced to his people that it would be best to move on to another galaxy . However , Shimrra Jamaane , under the influence of Onimi and with the support of some of the more aggressive domains , launched a coup , murdered Quoreal and took his place , ensuring that the invasion would go forth as planned . But it would still be some time before they were ready . Information of Yuuzhan Vong activity within the galaxy for the next few decades is scarce . It is known that , by 27 BBY , at the start of the Outbound Flight Project , Palpatine had somehow gained knowledge of the incoming Yuuzhan Vong fleet , though he planned to withhold it from the Republic until after his New Order could be instituted . At least one of his subordinates , Kinman Doriana , was informed , however . The distant threat of invasion was also part of the reason Palpatine ordered the destruction of " Outbound Flight " in order to prevent its occupants from falling into the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong ( and also to eliminate six Jedi Masters and 12 Jedi Knights ) . Following the end of the Clone Wars , Emperor Palpatine let out hints of the Yuuzhan Vong to the public . One of his official justifications for maintaining the Imperial Navy even after the war had ended was to ward off the threat of extra - galactic invasion . It was also around this time that another small advance force of Yuuzhan Vong engaged the Chiss Expansionary Defense Force , on the edge of the Chiss Ascendancy . Although the Chiss Admiral Ar ' alani managed to defeat them , the Yuuzhan Vong fought much better than the Chiss had believed such a small fleet was capable of . The appearance of the " Outbound Flight " shortly afterwards led the CEDF high command to wonder for a short time if the invaders and the Republic were allies . Sometime between 27 BBY and 22 ABY , it was speculated by some Chiss that the Yuuzhan Vong had made a pact with the Vagaari against the Chiss . Yuuzhan Vong scouts returned dozens of kidnapped sentients to the fleet from the galaxy . Among them were Humans , Verpine , and Talz . They were interrogated and experimented upon , with many dying and others being sacrificed . Those who survived ( such as Vergere ) were awarded as familiar s . Around 25 BBY , three years before the Clone Wars , the Yuuzhan Vong also established a small outpost on the planet Bimmiel . After the formation of the Galactic Empire , Imperial scientists established a base on the same planet , suggesting that Palpatine might have had direct contact with the invaders . However , the remains of the Yuuzhan Vong occupying the outpost went undisturbed until their discovery shortly into the Yuuzhan Vong invasion . It is also known that Yuuzhan Vong scouts were active in the galaxy during the Clone Wars . Sometime between being dispatched to the Unknown Regions in 3 ABY , at the time of the Battle of Hoth , and his return in 9 ABY , now - Grand Admiral Thrawn apparently encountered the Yuuzhan Vong advance force hiding in the Unknown Regions . The threat of the advancing invaders was one of his primary motivations for trying to reunify the Empire , as he felt that the Empire stood a much better chance against the Vong than did the New Republic . The Yuuzhan Vong advance scouts themselves shared that sentiment . After the formation of the Imperial Interim Council in 11 ABY , following the final death of the reborn Emperor Palpatine , Yuuzhan Vong executor Nom Anor was tasked to infiltrate the Council . He did so and manipulated its leader , Xandel Carivus , arranging the deaths of many Councilors and furthering the internal strife between the leaders of the fracturing Empire . Meanwhile , the Yuuzhan Vong also began meddling in the high politics of the Ssi - ruuvi Imperium . They installed one of their own agents , E ' thinaa , in a high - ranking military position , and manipulated the rise to power of the Keeramak , with the goal of eventually using the Ssi - ruu vi to create confusion and disorder during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion . In 24 ABY , Yuuzhan Vong agent Yomin Carr infiltrated the ExGal Society , stationing himself at the ExGal - 4 base on Belkadan located along Vector Prime . In 25 ABY , Yuuzhan Vong executor Nom Anor struck a deal with Boba Fett to have him and a select group of Mandalorian aid the invasion force . Fett realized that openly resisting the Yuuzhan Vong would result in the enslaving of Mandalore and so he agreed . He secretly carried out a plan to aid the New Republic by allowing New Republic personnel to escape with information from doomed worlds . This resulted in the escape of the Jedi Knight Kubariet on the world of New Holgha . Invasion of the galaxy . On the world of Rhommamool , Yuuzhan Vong executor Nom Anor , disguised as the leader of the Red Knights of Life , stirred up a war between Rhommamool and its neighboring planet , Osarian . He was also responsible for infecting Mara Jade Skywalker and a hundred other diplomats with a deadly Yuuzhan Vong disease . As a result the New Republic did not take notice when the first of the invasion force , the Praetorite Vong , made planetfall on the distant world of Helska IV and also brought down Sernpidal ' s moon upon the planet , killing millions of beings including the famous Wookiee Chewbacca , and leaving the planet itself in pieces . The Yuuzhan Vong also encountered the Jedi , whom they started to consider the worst of a galaxy full of infidels , due in no small part to the Jedi ' s ability to control a supernatural force that Yuuzhan Vong had been denied . The Praetorite Vong were eventually defeated by galactic heroes Luke Skywalker , Han Solo , Leia Organa Solo and Lando Calrissian . The main Yuuzhan Vong fleet arrived soon after though , and had in short order conquered many of the worlds in their invasion corridor . Bimmiel , Dantooine , Dubrillion and Obroa - skai were among the many worlds captured while Ithor was consumed by firestorms and rendered uninhabitable . Sheltering the refugees from planets in the invasion corridor quickly became such a problem that the New Republic government could no longer ignore the threat of the Yuuzhan Vong . The political leadership was ineffectual in countering the invaders though , and initially tried to blame the Jedi for starting the conflict with the aliens . The Yuuzhan Vong , considering the Jedi their worst enemies , capitalized on this by luring natives of the galaxy into turning in Jedi with the promise that they would be spared from the invasion . The Peace Brigade appeared as an organization of such individuals . The Yuuzhan Vong also struck a deal with the Hutts that allowed them to pass through Hutt Space unmolested . But the Hutts secretly played both sides by passing information on Yuuzhan Vong fleet movements on to the New Republic . In return the Yuuzhan Vong ruthlessly conquered their worlds . In any case , moving through Hutt Space allowed the invaders to launch an attack against Fondor on the far side of the galactic core . However , they suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Fondor when Han Solo ' s cousin , Thrackan Sal - Solo , fired Centerpoint Station against them , destroying much of the defending Hapan fleet too . Following the conquest of Duro , Warmaster Tsavong Lah offered the New Republic a cease fire if they turned over every single Jedi in the galaxy . The Jedi became hated as never before , with several planetary governments collaborating with the Yuuzhan Vong in hunting them down , and even resulting in the New Republic temporarily issuing an arrest warrant for Jedi Masters Luke and Mara Jade Skywalker . The Peace Brigade also launched an attack on the Jedi Academy on Yavin 4 in an unsuccessful attempt to capture the children being trained there . The Yuuzhan Vong themselves arrived shortly after though , complicating the situation for the few Jedi remaining on the moon . The Yuuzhan Vong captured the Jedi trainee Tahiri Veila and started shaping her like the rest of their biological creations . However , before the experiment was completed , she was rescued by her best friend , Anakin Solo , with the help of the shamed Yuuzhan Vong , Vua Rapuung , redeeming the Shamed One in the process . As a result , a heretical movement that worshiped the Jedi as saviors gained popularity among the Shamed Ones ( later led by Nom Anor ) , despite the efforts of the ruling castes to exterminate it . A short while later , the Yuuzhan Vong broke the cease fire by launching a surprise attack on Yag ' Dhul . Two years into the war , the Yuuzhan Vong unleashed a new biological creation , the voxyn , for the purpose of hunting down the Jedi . In response , Anakin Solo formed an all - Jedi strike with the intent of hunting down the Voxyn Queen from which the Yuuzhan Vong cloned all the other voxyn . The mission was a success , but came at the cost of the lives of nearly half the team , including Anakin Solo himself , and also left his brother , Jacen Solo , captured by the Yuuzhan Vong . Meanwhile the Yuuzhan Vong launched an immense attack on Coruscant , conquering the capital of the New Republic and killing Chief of State Borsk Fey ' lya . Following that , they renamed the planet Yuuzhan ' tar , and started Vongforming the planet in the image of their long lost homeworld . The Vongforming of Coruscant was sabotaged by Jacen Solo before he escaped from captivity with the aid of Vergere . The Yuuzhan Vong began to also suffer from internal problems , as the stresses of maintaining an Empire began to tax their resources . The New Republic , having moved its capital to Dac , elected Cal Omas to replace Fey ' lya , who also created the High Council , which would coordinate the Jedi ' s role in the war . At the same time the Jedi also found out about the NRI ' s secret project to create Alpha Red , a biological weapon that would wipe out the Yuuzhan Vong and all of their creations . The Jedi were unable to convince Cal Omas to ignore the weapon as a viable option for countering the invaders , but the rogue Jedi Knight Vergere saved them the trouble by destroying the project herself . However , the incident strained the relationship between the Jedi and the New Republic . Forced to pursue conventional warfare while the Alpha Red team started from scratch , the New Republic hatched a plan to lure the Yuuzhan Vong into a trap in the Deep Core , centered around the moon , Ebaq 9 . Using Jedi Knight Jaina Solo as bait , the trap was successfully sprung on the Yuuzhan Vong fleet , destroying it . On Ebaq 9 , Warmaster Tsavong Lah himself was slain by Jaina Solo and Vergere sacrificed herself to eliminate the rest of the Yuuzhan Vong troops that had landed on the moon . Omas , using the political clout and fearing that the Senate would try to hijack control of the war , drafted a new constitution which stripped the Senate of executive power , turning the New Republic into the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances ( Galactic Alliance or GFFA for short ) . After the victory , Luke Skywalker put together a team to follow up on Vergere ' s information about the living planet of Zonama Sekot . They traveled into the Unknown Regions , receiving help from both the Imperial Remnant and the Chiss , though only after having provided a service in return . Eventually they found the living planet and entered negotiations in an attempt to convince it to help end the war . Meanwhile , Executor Non Anor , disgraced for his role in the disaster at Ebaq 9 , disguised himself as the prophet Yu ' Shaa and began stirring up heresy on Yuuzhan ' tar ( formerly Coruscant ) . He heard about Zonama Sekot and succeeded in putting together a mission to the living planet consisting of himself ( still in disguise ) , the Shaper Nen Yim , the Yuuzhan Vong priest Harrar and the two Jedi Knights Tahiri Veila and Corran Horn . The five made it to Zonama Sekot where Nom Anor showed his hand and killed Nem Yim and pushed Harrar over a cliff before trying to sabotage the planet ' s hyperdrive . The two Jedi were unsuccessful in undoing his sabotage or preventing him from escaping the planet , but Zonama Sekot appeared to know what to do as it launched itself into hyperspace and traveled to Yuuzhan ' tar , taking up orbit around the same star as the former capital of the galaxy . During this time , the Galactic Alliance had prepared to make a push for Yuuzhan ' tar and take the planet back , and hopefully also break the Yuuzhan Vong ' s ability to wage war by taking out the Supreme Overlord . In the end , Supreme Overlord Shimrra was revealed to be nothing but a puppet for the real leader of the Yuuzhan Vong , the Force - sensitive Shamed One Onimi . Shimrra was killed by Luke Skywalker and Onimi was later killed by Jacen Solo during the second battle of Coruscant . Nas Choka , Lah ' s successor as Warmaster , became de facto Supreme Overlord , and ordered the remaining Yuuzhan Vong warriors to surrender . Post - invasion . One of the terms of the Yuuzhan Vong ' s surrender was also that they help rebuild Coruscant to be suitable as the capital of the Galactic Alliance . The Galactic Alliance settled on Denon while construction went on , and eventually back to Coruscant after the rebuilding was complete . Zonama Sekot also revealed itself as the seed of the long - dead original Yuuzhan Vong homeworld . After the end of the war , the remaining Yuuzhan Vong were recalled from across the galaxy to Zonama . Zonama Sekot , with its new Yuuzhan Vong population , then disappeared back into the Unknown Regions , so that the Yuuzhan Vong could live in peace and renew their relationship with Sekot . Among other things they planned to attempt to abolish their caste system , and had already eliminated the posts of Warmaster and Supreme Overlord ( though Choka seemed to remain the " de facto " leader of the species ) . The Bothans , however , were unforgiving for the death of Fey ' lya , and continued to uphold their declared state of " ar ' krai " genocide against the Yuuzhan Vong , sending ships into the Unknown Regions to hunt for Zonama . By 36 ABY their efforts had been somewhat foiled by the Galactic Alliance , which had impounded the ship detailed for the expedition . The Yuuzhan Vong war was possibly the most devastating crisis the galaxy had faced . The cost in lives were staggering ; the number of deaths over the known galaxy were estimated at about 365 trillion sentients . The Fel Empire and the One Sith . The Galactic Alliance gradually finished rebuilding itself a few years later , but it never would be the same as the pre - invasion New Republic . Some time after 41 ABY , as part of a move to improve relations between the Yuuzhan Vong and the rest of the galaxy , the Galactic Alliance ' s New Jedi Order permitted Yuuzhan Vong Shapers , headed by Master Shaper Nei Rin , to use a desolate portion of Ossus , one of the order ' s most ancient strongholds , as a test site . The intent of those who championed the project — such as Jedi Master Kol Skywalker , a leading member of the Jedi Council — was to see if Vong terraforming methods , such as those that had once transformed Coruscant into the species ' temporary homeworld of Yuuzhan ' tar ( 27 - 29 ABY ) , could restore the barren and devastated world . Though most of the species had left for the Unknown Regions on Zonama Sekot , enough shapers remained to start a pilot program on the world . The experiment appeared to work , returning vibrant life to Ossus , and when the Jedi revealed the results to the outside galaxy , other worlds vied for the chance to restore planets the Yuuzhan Vong War had left devastated . Ultimately , one hundred planets were chosen for terraforming . Yuuzhan Vong Shapers , accompanied by Jedi , set to work , and at first the results were wondrous to behold . Unfortunately , none had reckoned with interference by the One Sith . On the command of the cult ' s leader , Darth Krayt , the Sith secretly sabotaged the terraforming process on these worlds . Plants grew deformed , and painful bony growths , of a kind not seen since the Vong forcibly took populations as slaves , sprouted from the skin of the inhabitants , killing millions in the process . The Jedi suspected sabotage , but did not know who was responsible . All across the galaxy , however , blame fell upon the Yuuzhan Vong . Far too much animosity still existed against the former invaders for many to believe they had truly given up their ambitions of conquest . The Jedi however , were certain that the Yuuzhan Vong were innocent , and convinced the Galactic Alliance to support the Yuuzhan Vong against domestic criticism . This turned out to be too much for the Empire . The signing of the Pellaeon – Gavrisom Treaty ( 19 ABY ) , had brought peace between the Imperial Remnant and the New Republic , and the war against the Yuuzhan Vong had all but united the former rivals . However , the Moff Council still contained many hardliners who sought to restore the Empire to primacy as the dominant galactic power . Calling for retribution and invoking the Treaty of Anaxes , they declared war on the Galactic Alliance . The peace that so many had fought and died for in decades past was undone in a stroke , as the Sith had planned . Fearing what could ultimately happen , the Jedi High Council ordered the creation of the Hidden Temple at the start of hostilities , its location chosen by Nat Skywalker so the Jedi could have a refuge . From the start , the Alliance was handicapped . Its defense of the Yuuzhan Vong had alienated numerous member worlds , whose populations still nursed bitter memories of the Vong invasion , and many of them refused to support the GA . Suddenly , the Alliance found itself facing a secessionist movement as well as general war . The Empire used this to its advantage , luring some of these disaffected worlds into the Imperial camp and weakening the GA government . Other worlds , like Hapes , declared neutrality . Thus , the war started with the Empire having all the advantages . Despite this , Emperor Roan Fel himself was less than enthusiastic ; he had only reluctantly declared war and thus never threw his full support behind it , even going so far to prevent his Imperial Knight s from participating . It was at this time that things were not going smoothly for the Fel Empire : despite the Alliance handicap , the Jedi were more than making up for that . Also , because Roan Fel refused to let the Imperial Knights enter the war , the Empire didn ' t have the strength necessary to counter the Jedi . Soon , the Sith inserted themselves into the war . Through Moff Nyna Calixte , the ruthless and ambitious Director of Imperial Intelligence , the Sith approached the Empire and allied themselves with the Imperial cause . When the Sith then declared themselves openly , the Jedi quickly realized that it was they who were responsible for sabotaging the Yuuzhan Vong terraforming projects though the Order was never able to definitively prove it . As events progressed , even members of the Imperial regime — including Emperor Fel himself — realized the truth , that they had been used as pawns in the One Sith ' s plan for galactic domination . Sadly by the time the true motivations of the Sith had been made clear to Emperor Fel it was far too late to halt the designs already set in motion . The Yuuzhan Vong , upon learning the truth , were at first relieved that it was not the work of their gods , were then determined to reverse the damage the sabotage had caused . Shaper Nei Rin journeyed from Ossus to try to discover the Sith ' s method of sabotage , hoping that this knowledge could help discredit the Sith and end the war . After three years of bloody warfare , the Galactic Alliance was a spent force , while the Sith only grew in power and strength , even independently manufacturing and fielding their own starfighters . Imperial forces had even retaken Coruscant after more than a century . The Alliance finally surrendered , and its territory was absorbed into the Empire . It is unknown if the Empire made any efforts to exterminate the Yuuzhan Vong . The Emperor called on the Jedi Order to surrender and subject itself to the will of the Empire . Some of them did , becoming the Imperial Knight s . But the rest , remaining true to the will of the Force , refused to ally themselves with the Sith and withdrew from Coruscant to their temple on Ossus . The Sith eventually followed the Jedi there . Darth Nihl , former Nagai warlord turned Sith , led a brutal attack on Ossus , aided by Imperial forces led under Moff Rulf Yage . The Massacre at Ossus scattered the Jedi across the galaxy , though the order was not yet entirely defeated . Nei Rin returned to Ossus the day after with proof that the Sith had been behind the projects sabotage , but unfortunately too late to stop either the war or the massacre . Shortly after , the Sith , determined to rule the galaxy themselves , turned against Emperor Roan Fel and his Imperial Knights . After killing what he later determined to have been a double of the Emperor , Darth Krayt assumed the Imperial throne himself , restoring , for the first time in over a century , the rule of a Sith Lord over most of the galaxy . Though most of the Yuuzhan Vong who accompanied the Jedi in the Ossus Project were slain , three managed to survive where they remained beneath the Jedi Temple and guarded the remains of the dead Jedi out of respect for the Jedi Order . Master Shaper Nei Rin had been off planet investigating why the project had gone wrong , but arrived back at Ossus with her findings too late to stop the War or the massacre . Shortly afterwards , Rin , her guards , and a few Jedi who had returned to the world were hiding from an Imperial patrol under the temple when the patrol ' s Sith commander ordered the Academy destroyed from orbit . Luckily , thanks to Jedi Master K ' Kruhk , the occupants managed to survive . After some time , it was revealed that a fanatical Yuuzhan Vong named Zenoc Quah had survived the war and had hid on Wayland for over a century before allying with the One Sith to sabotage the Ossus Project . Seven years later , he was a part of Darth Maladi ' s plot to overthrow Darth Wyyrlok from the rule of the Empire as well as put a new , more powerful Dark Lord at the helm . Quah and Maladi worked at creating a new weapon that would secure their hold on the galaxy from dissident Sith . For this purpose , Maladi and Quah set up a trap to capture Cade Skywalker as their test subject . Technology . Due to their beliefs , the Yuuzhan Vong were opposed to technology , ranging from simple machines to droids , which they believed were a polluting influence . As such , all examples of their technology consisted of living biot s : creatures that were born and bred for their tasks . They preferred the use of such creatures over lifeless machines which lacked any form of spirit . All Yuuzhan Vong technology , whether it be starships , weapons , or simple everyday objects , was entirely biological . They hated droids , machines , electronics , and anything manufactured . This biotechnology was coaxed into growth by the Shapers and seemed to be more resilient when compared to conventional technology . Notable pieces of technology included their feared yammosk s , which were called war coordinators due to the fact that they served as a biotic Battle Analysis Computer and had the capacity to coordinate Yuuzhan Vong forces to a frightening degree . Through their villip s , they had managed to create a communication system that rivaled the galactic HoloNet . Different breeds of such organisms were also capable of producing living light holograms which the Yuuzhan Vong had mastered for centuries . It was known that their collision avoidance systems were as good as those of the inhabitants of the galaxy . Furthermore , their equivalent of an antenna consisted of spiral fibers embedded in a yorik coral hull to regions which were sensitive to receiving communications . In addition , they made use of nutrient feeds for various biots which served in a similar capacity as power lines did for their technological equivalents . Similar to navigation computers , the Yuuzhan Vong vessels possessed navibrain s that were required to plot hyperspace jumps . Their vessels were also required to rearm themselves after combat with the process noted as being marginally better than those of the technological inhabitants of the galaxy . Yuuzhan Vong personal weaponry included living serpentine weapons called amphistaffs that were able to alter their form allowing their user to use them as a spear or a whip . Furthermore , they wore Vonduun Skerr Kyrric armor which was capable of protecting them from weapon fire as well as lightsaber strikes . Their larger coral shaped craft made use of Yaret - Kor plasma weapons that ate through the hull of enemy ships while shielding was provided by the gravity manipulating dovin basal s that generated singularities that were used to protect the craft from enemy weapon fire and were also capable of stripping the shields of enemy vessels . These organisms were grown independently and later grafted onto other organisms in an imperfect symbiosis In addition , they generated powerful gravitic fields that could also create interdiction fields that left living occupants unconscious after being pulled from hyperspace . Larger , more insidious weapons included biological plagues capable of destroying entire worlds . Some plagues were unleashed that left planetary systems barren and incapable of growing food . The primary construction method through which the Yuuzhan Vong created their living vessel was through the use of yorik coral . This coral - type substance formed the hull and internal anatomy of their vessels . While several other races had mastered bioengineering , the Yuuzhan Vong were one of the few that had developed a mass production means of creating such organisms . They were capable of growing coralskippers in less than a month ' s time , which matched the production rate of the Incom Corporation X - wing but had the benefit of not producing any waste material from normal industrial techniques . The outer " skin " of such craft , despite being alive , did not feel anything in the vacuum of space as the nerves were not exposed to the cold of the void . They were created to lack any nerve endings at such locations . Though the outer hull did not possess any nerve endings , the inner hull did and any breach led to alarms being raised , thus alerting the Yuuzhan Vong of intruders . Something not commonly known was that the nerves near the dovin basals were compromised due to the creatures ' gravitic nature . As the dovin basals were independently grown , they were nursed separately and later grafted onto their host vessels . However , the symbiosis was not perfect and the gravitic distortion created by the dovin basals desensitized the nerve clusters that were adjacent to it . Amongst warships or any other vessels , the Yuuzhan Vong compensated this problem by implanting special nerve biots around the dovin basal in order to create a complete tactile net that would not be confused by the gravitic anomaly . However , certain low priority ships were not afforded this amenity and thus created blind spots for a breaching action . Inside these ships , much of the systems had technological equivalents such as a central biotic computer like the targeting brain . However , it was sensor systems that were the most different as instead of any externally mounted observatory sensors , the Yuuzhan Vong employed a means of sensing the gravitational distortions of distant objects as a means of scanning . A key interface element within Yuuzhan Vong biots that linked them to their organic ships and technology were cognition hoods . These organic helmets simply slid on top of an individuals head and were connected by an organic cord linked to the ship itself . Through this contact , a pilot was capable of making a direct interface with the ship and communicating with it . This was the case either with organic pilots and droids which were capable of processing the data being sent to the hood . Onboard larger carrier ships , a central cognition hood was used by the ships commander to deliver commands to the vessel . However , should this hood be severed , then secondary cognition hoods located on smaller craft such as coralskippers were capable of sending commands from the fighter to the carrier vessel thus allowing some level of control . By wearing the hood , a pilot was capable of experiencing the memories of the ship they were linked to thus allowing them to be a part of the ship in question . Yuuzhan Vong ships communicated in the Yuuzhan Vong language which left a language barrier between foreign pilots and the vessel . However , it was possible to impart images and thoughts through the hood to the ship , thus allowing it to be controlled . A much more larger and powerful version of these biots was the cognition throne . Some of their more famous technologies were the amphistaff , the yorik - et , the dovin basal , the gnullith , the grashal , the ooglith cloaker , the ooglith masquer , the villip , and the yammosk . Behind the scenes . Origins of " Yuuzhan Vong " . The name " Yuuzhan Vong " was developed at a French - Thai restaurant in New York City , called Vong , which several Del Rey employees were patronizing . The Yunnan region was mentioned in a list of teas on a menu that Shelly Shapiro — who was present — was reading , and the first draft of the name that would eventually be given to the intergalactic invaders was born of " Yunnan Vong . " It is rumored that the Yuuzhan Vong were originally intended to be exiled Sith , but that the idea was changed part - way through the series . The published with " " confirms that they were originally planned to be dark - side users . Also according to the interview , the concept of the Yuuzhan Vong ' s exclusive use of biotechnology came from R . A . Salvatore , and their love of pain was originally confined to Domain Shai , but later authors misunderstood and applied it to the entire species . Yuuzhan Vong and the Force . As discovered by the Jedi during the war with the Yuuzhan Vong they are apparently " absent " from the Force . In the book " " by James Luceno , the reason for this is given . The Yuuzhan Vong are not " absent " from the Force ; their entire species has been cut off from it . It is surmised in the novel that this was implemented by the intelligence of their homeworld , the seed of which would one day become Zonama Sekot , because of their war - mongering and hostile conquering of other species . Real world inspirations . Yuuzhan Vong culture and religion was heavily influenced by that of the Meso - American cultures , such as the . This includes the concept of gods who have sacrificed themselves in creation and require constant sacrifices of blood and pain ; a strong emphasis on honor and a ruthless approach to war and genocide ; and total devotion to a temporal and religious half - divine supreme leader , among other things . Other possible inspirations are the of New Zealand , whose tattoos ( called ) signaled status and rank . Similarities to other EU species . The Yuuzhan Vong possess a number of similarities to other species that were introduced within the novels . They share the same fanaticism as the Yevetha , a caste system similar to the Ssi - ruu , and the same exclusive use of biotechnology as the Charon . The Clone Wars . At Celebration Anaheim in 2015 , Dave Filoni and Pablo Hidalgo revealed at their " The Untold Clone Wars " panel that before the show was canceled , there had been plans for the Yuuzhan Vong to potentially appear in the " " television series . Sketches of the species drawn by Filoni for the show were shown at the panel .