Grysk Hegemony

> The Grysk are not to be underestimated. If they fled from combat today, it is because they chose to do so.
>
> Thrawn, sharing his deductions of the Grysk

The **Grysk Hegemony** was the hegemony of the warlike and nomadic Grysk located inside the Unknown Regions of the galaxy. Grysk civilization was mysterious and alien, even within the Unknown Regions, regarded as half myth. As a species, they were only known and seen by a few outsiders, instead choosing to twist the minds of entire species to their will. These Client species would then be willing to die for their new masters. Throughout its existence, the Grysk Hegemony fought against the Chiss Ascendancy, as well as other factions and species. By the reign of the Galactic Empire, the Grysk began to make advancements into Imperial territory.

## History

### Establishment and Conquest

> These are some of the artistic pieces that have been created in memorial by survivors of Grysk conquests.
>
> Thrawn, to his Imperial subordinates and colleagues

The Grysk Hegemony was an empire established and controlled by the Grysk. Located in the Unknown Regions of the galaxy, their empire established the Grysk military and fought against the Chiss Ascendancy and other groups and species, scourging a series of conquests throughout the region. At times, the Chiss Ascendancy only observed battles, instead of participating in them. In the aftermath, survivors of the conquests created art pieces in memorial, while Grysk warriors degraded the right side of their helmets and armor.

### Clone Wars

> I propose two questions. First: How did the Grysks know that cortosis would be an effective defense against blasters and lightsabers?
>
>
> You suggest they were studying us as far back as the Clone Wars?
>
>
>
> I do, my Lord. After all, the Chiss were watching you. Why not the Grysks? My second question: Once the Grysks knew the value of cortosis against blasters and lightsabers, how did the Separatists gain that knowledge?
>
> Thrawn, explaining to Darth Vader Grysk activities during the Clone Wars

When the Clone Wars erupted in the wider-known parts of the galaxy between the Galactic Republic and Confederacy of Independent Systems, the Grysk Hegemony began and conducted surveillance on both the galactic government and the secessionists in order to study them, and later deduced that the Galactic Republic was more dangerous to them than the Confederacy.

In order to weaken the Republic, the Hegemony supplied Confederate Head of State Count Dooku with information on cortosis, an element that was provided an effective defense against blasters and lightsabers. The Confederacy then established a factory on Mokivj and produced B2-series super battle droids with cortosis armor.

### The Plot Against the Chiss

> The Grysk lay blame only where it’s deserved, and only on those who fail us. Each of our servants is responsible solely for his own decisions and actions, not for another’s.
>
> Jixtus reassuring his agent Qilori that he would not be held responsible for the failures of Haplif

By 18 BBY, the Grysk agent Jixtus had begun a plot to destroy the Chiss Ascendancy and thus facilitate the Hegemony's conquest of the Unknown Regions. Jixtus employed agents including the Pathfinder navigator Qilori and the telepathic Agbui named Haplif to help conduct his schemes. The Grysk had correctly predicted that the Nikardun Destiny's efforts against the Chiss Ascendancy would fail, and resorted to a less direct and more covert approach based on infiltration and sabotage of the Chiss from within.

### The Coming Invasion

> The invasion is coming, Lord Vader. But I have now bought the Empire time to prepare.
>
> Thrawn, to Darth Vader

The Grysk embanked on a expedition to the Outer Rim, and started to colonized the moons surrounding the planet of Mokivj; this action led the Galactic Empire to push back the Grysk. In the campaign aftermath, Imperial Grand Admiral Thrawn believed an Grysk were planning an imminent invasion of the known galaxy and believed he had tricked the Grysk into possibly attacking the Chiss Ascendancy before the Empire, as Thrawn believed that the Grysk would continue with their bias of attacking the nearest enemy first.

## Organization

### Government

The Grysk Hegemony was a hegemony, which is an authoritarian government similar to an empire.

### Military

The Grysk Hegemony maintained a military, which played a key-role in their conquests within the Unknown Regions. It was later locked into conflicts against the Galactic Empire and the Chiss Ascendency before disappearing into the Maze.

It was rumored that their forces attacked with overwhelming numbers. Grysk warriors commanded legions of Client troops, which utilized lightning guns and slugthrowers.

### Foreign Affairs

> The Grysk Hegemony has intruded into the Galactic Empire and has furthermore committed multiple criminal acts against it. You are hereby ordered to withdraw immediately from this system and from the Empire and return to your own territory.
>
> Admiral Ar'alani

The Grysk Hegemony was an enemy of the Chiss Ascendancy, as well as other organizations and species. Despite this, the Hegemony had active alliances with other factions. The Hegemony also allied itself with the Confederacy of Independent Systems by supplying it with critical information in an attempt to weaken the Galactic Republic. When the Republic transitioned into the Galactic Empire, the Hegemony maintained previous hostile relations and remained in conflict with them, and also intruded on Imperial territory.

Because the Hegemony had been surveying the Empire, they were aware of Imperial-class Star Destroyers, the capabilities and limits of TIE starfighters, and other Imperial weaponry and technology. As such, they utilized that knowledge in combat against Imperial forces.

## Society and Culture

The Grysk were considered a warrior based society with the characteristics of being a settled and centralized people but were described as generally nomadic. This was due to an outsider's view of no real fixed home, a perception born out of their unfamiliar technology, alien cultural customs, and reliance on rogue planets.

Grysk society was built around the subjugation of any non-Grysk life forms that were encountered by them, called Clients by the Hegemony. Bio-mechanical implants were used to subjugate these Clients, maintaining them as cyborg-type hybrids between machine and biology. These implants were generally linked to form planetary hiveminds that the Grysk used as vast supercomputers for reasons known only to them. These hiveminds granted each individual Client a belief of immortality as their memory would continue in the hivemind after their death, allowing these Clients to throw themselves into battle with abandon at the will of their Grysk masters.

Grysk tactics focused around inducing fear to cause chaos in enemy ranks. These tactics developed in their Clients as a desire to cause fear and chaos as part of any attack, military or personal. Whether this desire to cause fear was programmed into the implants, designed by the Grysk, or developed naturally in the hiveminds is unknown.

## Astrography

> Grysks are a species living somewhere in the Unknown Regions. Creatures half of myth, whom few have ever seen. It is said that they are nomads, with no fixed home, traveling in spacecraft so numerous they blot out the stars. They are said to be terrifying warriors, overwhelming their opponents by sheer numbers and ferocity.
>
> Thrawn, to Darth Vader

The Grysk Hegemony was located in the Unknown Regions of the galaxy, and although they maintained colony worlds and displayed characteristics of a central government, they were described as nomadic with no one fixed home due to perceptions born out of their unfamiliar technology, their tactics during war, and rumors of colonies hidden on rogue planets. The location of the Hegemony's area of influence and control brought them into conflict with the Chiss Ascendancy and other groups and species, and during the Imperial Lothal campaign, had already begun intruding on the Galactic Empire's territory.