Aaris III Aaris III was a planet located in the Kathol sector of the Outer Rim Territories . Covered in jungle , it was connected to the worlds of Charis , Kolatill and Brolsam via hyperlane s . Aaris III was the homeworld of the Aaris species , a race of reptilian humanoids whose society flourished several thousand years before the Galactic Civil War . Their civilization was almost totally destroyed after a destructive civil war , perpetrated by the Plaque of Victory , an inanimate but sentient relic that could manipulate the feelings of those around it , turning them suspicious , violent and homicidal . The Aaris ' s cities fell into ruin and were reclaimed by the jungle , and their primitive descendants inhabited the hidden ruins . Four years after the death of Emperor Palpatine at Endor , Aaris III came to the interest of Moff Kentor Sarne , an Imperial warlord who ruled the Kathol sector following the fragmentation of the Empire . He dispatched a science team to the planet under the command of Doctor Lancer Brunou to investigate the ruins . While on the surface , the team uncovered the Plaque of Victory , and its influence slowly began to manipulate the team , increasing their paranoia and hostility . The team was attacked by descendants of the Aaris , and Doctor Brunou sent out a distress call to Sarne ' s capital on Kal ' Shebbol , hoping for rescue . After a few days , only three members of the team were left . Brunou ' s distress signal was intercepted by the " FarStar " , a New Republic CR90 corvette . During the time that the science team had been on Aaris III , Kal ' Shebbol had fallen to the New Republic . The commander of the " FarStar " , Captain Kaiya Adrimetrum , diverted to Aaris III to investigate the science team ' s presence on the world and render aid . During rescue operations , the crew of the " FarStar " came under the influence of the Plaque of Victory after it was brought aboard by one of the survivors . Unlike the science team , however , they soon realized the cause of the negative feelings running through the ship and jettisoned the artifact into space . Description . Aaris III was a planet located in the Kathol sector of the Outer Rim Territories , and was connected to the worlds Brolsam , Charis , and Kolatill via hyperlane s . It was the homeworld of the Aaris , a race of reptilian humanoids . The Aaris had established an extensive civilization on the planet several thousand years before the Galactic Civil War , but the society had all but destroyed itself in a civil war . By 8 ABY , the primitive descendants of the Aaris survivors inhabited the underground levels of the ruins of their cities . Covered in heavy jungles and oceans , Aaris III was a lush blue - green planet when viewed from space . Long mountain ranges ran throughout the landscape , punching through the jungle cover and rising to several kilometers in height . Immense ruins , which were remnants of the native Aaris civilization , were located all over the planet , covering hundreds of square kilometers and hidden under the jungle canopies . A vast desert was located in the middle of the planet ' s equatorial jungle . Fauna was widespread across the planet , and Aaris III played host to an abundance of animal life in both the jungles and oceans . The standard day on Aaris III lasted for nineteen standard hours , and the length of its year was two hundred and ninety - nine local days . History . The Aaris civilization . The Aaris civilization flourished thousands of years prior to the Galactic Civil War , establishing an industrial society and utilizing an oral tradition of communication . They built great cities across the face of the planet , and were an organized society with occupations including scholars and professional soldiers . A relatively peaceful society , they did nevertheless engage in occasional wars between one another . One of their more prominent citizens was the scholar Kastays , who resided in one of the planet ' s cities . One night , prior to 3643 BBY , a comet streaked through Aaris III ' s skies . Several days later , a military legion from an outpost entered the city in which Kastays resided with an artifact , a triangular - shaped metal ingot that they had dubbed the " Plaque of Victory . " Unknown to the Aaris was the fact that the artifact was sentient , albeit inanimate , and that it fed off the life - force of organic beings . The Plaque ' s goal was to destroy those around it , but not by any action of its own . It manipulated the feelings of individuals , causing them to act in paranoid , irrational , and homicidal ways . Six days after the arrival of the artifact in the city , civil unrest began to blight the population . A rise in violent crimes was reported , with many resulting in the death of the victim . It escalated quickly , with street gangs clashing in bloody battles throughout the city . Eventually , even units of the city guard turned on one another , and even killed innocent civilians , claiming to have been betrayed by them . Each faction had one thing in common — they claimed that the Plaque of Victory had spoken to them , and each claimed to be its guardian . One faction , who had access to the relic , removed it from its place in the gushaz , and took it to a tower in the city ' s government buildings , high above the city . It was hoped that it would soothe the population if it was high above the people . To safeguard it , the artifact was given over to Kastays , who hid it in a floor vault . The plan failed , and the Aaris civilization descended into civil war and anarchy , all but destroying itself in the process . Kastays recorded the events using bas - relief pictograph s that stored sound , mounting them on the walls of his chamber at the top of the tower where he had secured the relic . Despite the fall of their society , the Aaris continued to live on . As the jungle reclaimed their cities and achievements , the primitive descendants of the survivors made their home in the ruins of their cities . By 3643 BBY , during the Galactic War between the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire , many of Aaris III ' s cities stood abandoned . Scavengers were known to raid the planet ' s ruined cities for valuables , and had found well - preserved bunkers full of serviceable equipment such as weapons and military supplies . The Sith Empire maintained a presence on Aaris III during the war . The nature of the Empire ' s work on the planet was tied to Project Chimera , a Science Bureau initiative that was studying the effects that the Nightmare Lands on the planet Voss had on non - native lifeforms . Imperial interest . Discovery . Shortly after Moff Kentor Sarne assumed control of the Kathol sector in 2 BBY , he sent a scout mission to the system . The team charted Aaris III , deployed a standard Imperial marker beacon , and returned to the sector capital of Kal ' Shebbol to report their findings , although they found no evidence that the Aaris species had survived . Shortly after , all members of the team disappeared . Some time between the scout mission and 8 ABY , Sarne established a supply cache on the planet , filled with standard issue Imperial equipment . The Moff intended to use the cache in case Kal ' Shebbol ever fell to his enemies and he needed to resupply as his forces either fell back in retreat , or mustered for a counter assault to reclaim the capital . In 8 ABY , Sarne organized and dispatched a scientific mission to the planet . The team , designated as MS - 133 , was led by Doctor Lancer Brunou , a respected archaeologist who had taught at the University of Byblos before joining Moff Sarne ' s forces . Scientists Doctor Theda , Grigor Tansad , and Jelok were also assigned to the team , along with research assistant Solla Deremot , at least three technicians , and ten soldiers commanded by a lieutenant who doubled as the team ' s shuttle pilot . The mission was kept secret , and their assignment was to excavate the ruins of the planet for artifacts and information , paying particular attention to why the ancient Aaris died out . Setting up a base camp in a field of ruins , the team also deployed a subspace comm transfer satellite in orbit . Unearthing the Plaque of Victory . MS - 133 spent several months exploring the ruins around their camp and landing site . On the forty - ninth day of the expedition , Tansad discovered an entrance into one of the ruined metallic structures . The structure was the chamber at the top of the tower that Kastays had used thousands of years previously , and the team came upon the pictographs that had been created during the last days of the Aaris civilization . Doctor Brunou authorized the setting up of a second camp nearer to the chamber to further explore the find . Upon studying the pictographs — which emitted sounds when touched — it was discovered that they corresponded to a dating system , and the sounds emitted were a record of events . Tansad and Jelok worked to decipher the alien language , with support from Deremot . During their work in the chamber , Jelok and Deremot discovered the Plaque of Victory concealed within Kastays ' s floorsafe , where he had hidden it thousands of years previously . Not knowing exactly what it was , Doctor Brunou took the artifact back to the main base camp and examined it . The results showed that it was constructed of no metal known to Imperial science . The analysis equipment also picked up faint traces of energy emanating from it , and Brunou decided that it should be sent to Kal ' Shebbol for further analysis by Sarne ' s laboratories in case it was a new form of energy that the Moff could use . A day after the artifact ' s discovery , it began to spread its influence among the team , causing them to see and hear things . Members of the trooper detachment reported seeing " spies " watching them from the jungle . MS - 133 was unaware that the descendants of the Aaris still lived among the ruins of their cities , and believed that the planet was devoid of any intelligent life apart from themselves . The commanding lieutenant led five soldiers into the jungle in search of the beings they believed were watching them . An hour after they had left , the team at the base heard blaster fire in the distance ; believing the worst , weapons were issued to all members of the science team . The troopers who had gone into the jungle did not return ; believing them to be dead , Brunou began considering the possibility of recalling the expedition to save lives , although cancellation of the mission was against Sarne ' s standing orders . That night , the Aaris attacked the base camp , wounding Doctor Theda with blaster fire . The remaining troopers returned fire , although they never got a clear look at their attackers , and were unaware of who their assailants were . As day broke , an investigation of the area found the bodies of several of the troopers who had entered the jungle the day before . Brunou decided it was time to evacuate the planet , and he ordered the secondary base camp to be abandoned after Jelok reported Tansad missing and two technicians with him were shot by Aaris sniper fire from the jungle . Initially , Jelok refused , citing that his research into deciphering the chamber ' s pictographs was reaching a critical stage , but he was forcibly escorted to the team ' s shuttle by the remaining troops while the base camp was packed up . As night fell , a fireball erupted over the jungle as the team ' s shuttle was blown up using detonite . The remaining team members erected a defensive position at the main base camp , digging into one of the mounds in the ruins and raising makeshift fortifications . An E - Web heavy repeating blaster was mounted on the ramparts and Brunou sent a distress call to Kal ' Shebbol , hoping for some form of support or rescue . The following night , the camp was attacked again by the Aaris , prompting the remaining soldiers and technicians to charge over the barricades to confront the enemy . The survivors started to lose hope of rescue , wondering if the team ' s booster satellite in orbit had been destroyed so that Kal ' Shebbol had not heard their distress call . Rescue . Brunou ' s distress signal did not reach Moff Sarne , instead being intercepted by the New Republic CR90 corvette " FarStar " . Kal ' Shebbol had fallen to the New Republic in the months that the team had been on the planet , and the " FarStar " had been assigned to track down Moff Sarne , who had fled his capital following the New Republic ' s liberation of the world . While completing a mission in a nearby system , the crew of the vessel became aware of the team ' s plight . Lieutenant Jessa Dajus — a former Imperial Intelligence agent in Sarne ' s regime — knew of the expedition and believed that it was connected to the mysterious " DarkStryder " , an entity that Moff Sarne was known to be in league with . She recommended that the " FarStar " divert and answer the distress call to the vessel ' s commanding officer , Captain Kaiya Adrimetrum , stating that the expedition members may have held information as to Sarne ' s location . Adrimetrum agreed and organized a rescue mission led by the " FarStar " First Officer , Gorak Khzam . The team — including pilot Brophar Tofarain , scout Kl ' aal , and Lieutenant Dajus — descended to the surface in one of the corvette ' s shuttles . Landing in a clearing on the edge of the jungle , the rescue team had to trek through the foliage to MS - 133 ' s base camp . Arriving at the site , the " FarStar " crew members had to convince Deremot — who was manning the E - Web repeating blaster set up on the makeshift fortifications — that they were there to help the Imperial team . Nervous , tired , and afraid , Deremot initially believed that they were linked to the Aaris who had besieged them previously . The team managed to convince her of their intentions , and proceeded to render medical aid . However , Doctor Theda had died , succumbing to the blaster wounds . Brunou and Deremot were evacuated to the " FarStar " , although Brunou insisted on taking the Plaque of Victory with them , classing it as a significant archaeological find . On the corvette , the two Imperials were questioned over their activities on the planet , which they answered truthfully . The crew also examined the artifact . " FarStar " landing parties salvaged equipment and supplies from the science team ' s expedition , and investigated exactly what had occurred on the planet . A team scoured the wreckage of the Imperial shuttle , discovering the traces of detonite that had been used to destroy the craft . They also found Tansad ' s body hidden under rubble in the pictograph chamber of the Place of Kastays , along with evidence that he had been murdered — a fist - sized rock covered in blood that corresponded to a fatal wound on the back of the scientist ' s skull . Along with the body was a datapad with Tansad ' s translation of the pictographs , which detailed the last days of the Aaris civilization , and its descent into anarchy following the discovery of the Plaque of Victory . On the " FarStar " , the Plaque of Victory was starting to exert its influence over the crew . Paranoia and suspicion began to run rampant through the ship , although the crew soon realized that they could not all be going mad , or be the target of conspiracies and personal grudges . They linked the behavior of the crew to that of the ancient Aaris — as shown from the translation notes discovered on Tansad ' s body — and realized that they were having similar experiences , albeit on a smaller scale . The artifact brought on board by Brunou matched the description of the Plaque of Victory , and the crew came to the conclusion that it was responsible for their heightened aggressive attitude after observing the doctor ' s possessive behavior concerning it . Relieving him of the object , they ejected it out of one of the ship ' s airlocks on a course for the Aaris system ' s star . Shortly after , the crew ' s feelings of paranoia and suspicion faded . Inhabitants . The Aaris were meter - tall reptilian humanoid sentients indigenous to Aaris III . Thousands of years before the Galactic Civil War , they had developed an industrial age civilization that covered the planet . The Aaris never developed a written language , as they had a strong history of oral communication . Information was stored in bas - relief pictographs that emitted sounds when touched , and the translation of some of these in the Place of Kastays by the Imperial scientist , Grigor Tansad , was the only known surviving record of the species . The Aaris civilization fell into ruin with the arrival of the Plaque of Victory , as the society descended into in - fighting and civil war . The survivors inhabited the ruins of their cities ; thousands of years later , during the Galactic Civil War , their descendants lived underground in the remains of their civilization , as the native jungle had reclaimed the artificial structures and hid most of them from view . Locations . During the height of the Aaris civilization , many cities were constructed on the surface of Aaris III . One such city was the home of Kastays , who recorded the fall of the Aaris following the discovery of the Plaque of Victory . It had a tower where Kastays resided , as well as a gushaz . When Aaris society collapsed , their cities fell into ruin and were reclaimed by the jungle . Covered by jungle growth , the metallic structures lay undisturbed until 8 ABY , when they were excavated by Imperial science team MS - 133 . During his time as governor of the Kathol sector , Moff Sarne established a secret supply cache on the planet in case he ever had cause to retreat from Kal ' Shebbol , or needed a staging area to retake his capital in the event that it was lost to him . Ten large , pressurized cargo containers were buried in jungle foliage on the edge of the planet ' s vast equatorial desert , and covered over by vines , plants , and fallen trees . Each unit was code - locked and rigged to explode if the wrong code was entered , or if it was tampered with . The supplies within the containers were all Imperial standard issue , and ranged from food packets , to TIE fighter and speeder bike parts , and service droids . A group of outlaws also established a camp on the planet , using the dense jungle to cover their settlement . The base was located on the far side of the planet from the Place of Kastays , and used the jungle canopy to mask hangars and other buildings from aerial observation . Behind the scenes . Aaris III was created for the adventure " Artifact of Aaris " , which was part of " The DarkStryder Campaign " published by West End Games for use with " " . The events of the scenario were referenced in 2008 ' s " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " , and the planet and its civil war was later mentioned in 2011 ' s MMORPG " " as part of a Scavenging Mission in which the player can send their companions on various missions to gather supplies and resources . The outlaw camp on the planet is mentioned in an adventure hook at the end of the main scenario ; the population and purpose of the camp is deliberately kept vague , so that it can be tailored by the gamemaster to suit the needs of their campaign . Possible occupants include smugglers , slavers or pirates , and the encounter may be hostile or peaceful depending on the gamemaster ' s wishes . The adventure implies that , under the Plaque of Victory ' s direction , the members of MS - 133 turned upon each other , resulting in multiple deaths and the destruction of the shuttle . However , " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " confirmed that the team came under attack from the remnants of the Aaris civilization .