Battle hydra The Battle Hydra was a type of large reptilian dragon - like Sithspawn that was created by the Sith Lord Exar Kun . Biology and appearance . Physically , a battle hydra was a sinuous reptile with leathery wings . It should be noted that no two of these animals were identical though all shared the same general description . Typically , they were known to hold two heads that sat atop long , fluid necks . The heads held a pair of yellow slitted eyes . Whilst this was usually the case , there were some varieties of these beasts that had more than two heads . At the back was a long wicked , whip - like tail that held a hooked stinger . The stinger glistened with a strong and acidic crystallized poison that dripped from the tail . Four powerful legs were tipped with hooked claws that were both tough and sharp as well as easily capable of ripping the flesh from the beasts victims . The body of the beast contained muscular torsos that were sheathed in iridescent scales . This was forever altered at a molecular level by the Sith alchemy that had altered their physiology . The skin was infused with ancient Sith alloys that reduced the damage sustained by the beast . The armor alloy introduced into their basic physiology even reduced the damage from a lightsaber attack . When left to their own devices , these beasts were mindless and shy creatures that was a contrast to their fearsome appearance . When searching for food , battle hydras were known to be solitary animals that hunted alone . Much of their existence involved them being aloft where they rode thermal currents in search of prey or threats . When these were spotted , the battle hydra dove through the air where they snapped with multiple jaws as well as attacked with their teeth , claws and poisoned stinger . Once prey succumbed to either the attack or poison , the beast took the corpse back to its lair where it was torn apart and devoured . They only ever attacked with their claws once they landed and were beginning to feed . These animals were , however , susceptible to influence or commands from Force - sensitive dark side users . Normally , they did not attack an individual unless cornered or spurned by the will of a Sith Lord . Many of them used their battle hydra as their own personal shocktroopers and it was only on such commands did they ever attack in numbers . Battle hydras were known to be particularly attracted to sites that were strong in the dark side of the Force . It was believed that perhaps these beasts perhaps drew some form of nourishment from these locations . History . Many centuries ago , the Sith Lord Exar Kun studied the dark Sith sciences within the depths of the planet Yavin 4 . His experimentation in the arts of Sith alchemy resulted in the creation of the battle hydra . This alchemical creation was formed as a fierce guardian creature to test his theories . After Kun ' s death in the Great Sith War , the battle hydras retreated into deep mountain caverns where they dwelt in the shadows . They became a rare sight on Yavin 4 . In time , the beasts regressed to typical predator behavior where their small population only emerged from the mountain caves in order to hunt . Normally , they prowled the skies of the steamy jungle moon , though their creator ' s travels did leave the possibility that some were located on other planets so long as there was an abundant supply of food . Battle hydras were forgotten for millennia until the early days of Jedi Master Luke Skywalker ' s Jedi Praxeum . In this time , the dark shade of Exar Kun ' s spirit summoned the mutated hydras to attack the comatose body of Skywalker . His Jedi students had encountered a variant of the creature that had three heads and possessed no forelegs . The beasts would have succeeded in their goal had Master Skywalker not acted through his nephew Jacen Solo to fight off the animal with a lightsaber . Another swarm of hydras were summoned to complete their master ' s will but were destroyed when Rogue Squadron pilot Corran Horn borrowed a Z - 95 Headhunter . After this event , the New Jedi Order only rarely encountered battle hydras . Without Exar Kun ' s will to control them , the animals avoided all contact with sentient beings , except for rare attacks on those who seemed to threaten them . With Exar Kun destroyed , the creatures were believed to either have reverted to their more natural forms or simply to have died out .