Skel

The Skels were a sapient species that dwelled on Hoth. Hunting in packs, they were a primitive people, attacking whatever they could find without warning. They could burrow under the snow and survive in extremely cold conditions. The Skels resided in caves, within the mountains of Hoth.

Biology and appearance
Skels were a bipedal species and could grow up to 1.2 meters in height. They were naturally agile, and featured protective tusks that grew out of their snouts. The hands of the Skels boasted tough, bony claws which could be used to burrow under snow and ice. Their fur was dense and thick, insulating them against extremely cold-weather environments, such as Hoth. Such was the effectiveness of the fur that they could survive without shelter in conditions far colder than the Hoth's average atmospheric temperature.

Society and culture
The Skels formed a primitive culture, and were aggressive by nature. They spent their time roaming the frozen wastelands of their homeworld, though they officially lived in caves located within Hoth's mountain regions, where they were provided with shelter against the harsh conditions outside. Skels communicated through a series of snarls and grunts and hunted in packs; they were brazen in their work, due to the scarcity of food on Hoth. As such, they would attack anything without provocation, including Imperial Viper probe droids. Some Skels were able to fashion clubs from severed hands of other Skels.

Behind the scenes
"The Skels of Hoth" were created by Brian Fraim, a 22-year-old Star Wars fan, through the "Design an Alien" competition held by Star Wars Galaxy magazine. The competition, which was launched in Star Wars Galaxy 3 (1995), called upon readers to create entirely new alien species' influenced by what had been seen in the original trilogy of Star Wars films. Fraim's entry was not published alongside the winners in Star Wars Galaxy 7 (1996), and was instead displayed in Star Wars Galaxy 10 (1997) as an "honorable mention." Keeper of the Holocron continuity database Leland Chee later stated that successfully published "Design an Alien" materials were considered canon.

The Skels were not referenced in any other Star Wars works until 2011 with the release of Star Wars: The Old Republic, however the word "skel" was used in Star Wars: Republic 65: Show of Force, Part 1 (2004), as a derogatory term.