Massassi

The Massassi were the subspecies of the ancient Sith race that was enslaved by the exiled Dark Jedi on Korriban. Massassi were fearsome, loyal, and formidable warriors, and as such comprised the warrior class in the Sith caste system. They lived solely to serve their Sith masters, but when on their own, dedicated themselves only to whatever life they chose.

Biology and appearances
Like the rest of the Sith, the Massassi subspecies were native to the planet Korriban, within the isolated Stygian Caldera in the Outer Rim Territories. They, like the few other creatures that inhabited Korriban, derived sustenance directly from the dark side of the Force, in part of a natural symbiotic relationship where Sith—like the Massassi—fed on the dark side, and empowered it in turn. With this in consideration, the entire Sith race, including the Massassi, had such a high rate of Force-sensitivity that they were considered a naturally Force-sensitive species.

Phenotypically, Massassi were quite similar to the rest of the Sith species. Common to all Sith, the Massassi possessed skin of a red hue, ranging from florid crimsons, to lighter pinks. Massassi had fierce, predatory profiles, and sharp bone spurs protruding over their bodies in various locations—especially the elbows. Other facial features included a pair of tendrils that hung from their cheekbones, and cartilaginous eyebrow–stalks that covered their eyes. They also had simian mouths, small noses and ears, and a slightly receding chin. Like other Sith, Massassi also shared the traits of having triple–digits on each of their hands and feet.

Exclusive to their subspecies however, Massassi possessed large glowing yellow eyes. Unlike mainline Sith, the eyes of Massassi did not display details such as pupils or whites of any sort—instead the yellow seemed to cover the whole of each eye. Massassi were also taller, larger and more hulking humanoids than the species they hailed from, reaching between two and three meters in height, and an average weight of ninety-five kilograms. Massassi were known to have very acute senses compared to the senses in Humans as well— particularly in their hearing. Massassi also had an extremely tough skin; powerful cauterizing agents such as cyanogen silicate were needed to provide Massassi with medical assistance. Nothing weaker was capable of corroding their resistant hides.

Relative to other species, Massassi were quite short lived. The typical Massassi childhood would be defined by ten standard years of life, and a young adult from eleven to thirteen standard years. Massassi adulthood typically began at around fourteen standard years of age. Middle age started after twenty-five standard years of life, and old age after thirty-five years. Any Massassi over the age of fifty standard years were considered to be venerable.

The Massassi under the command of Naga Sadow that relocated to Yavin 4 after the Great Hyperspace War underwent alchemical alterations under the supervision of Sadow. These individuals and their descendants became more hunched and monstrous than the original Massassi species, and were gradually considered more like savage brutes than the warriors they once were. At this point, they became large creatures with sharp claws and grotesque fin-like growths on their head and back.

Society and culture
The Massassi were fearsome, ruthless and efficient soldiers. Though the Massassi engaged in supposedly primitive practices such as sentient sacrifice and held a strong caste system, their civilization was quite sophisticated; they saw these acts not as cruel or barbaric, but simply basic aspects of existence. The Massassi language may have been related to the Sith and they also made use of hieroglyphs which were written on their artifacts as well as structures. During the reign of Exar Kun, the race had largely devolved into mindless brutes that followed the commands of their master. There were notable elements within their culture, however, such as the presence of priests and elders.

The Massassi warriors who had accompanied Naga Sadow in exile had come to regard the gas giant Yavin Prime as a fearsome but fascinating deity they called Yavin. The warriors felt humbled by their new god's all-dominating presence. As they couldn't withstand their own hubris, the Massassi made a vain attempt to achieve godly status by assembling temples and monuments for their worldly masters.

As with the Sith, war and violence were just as much a part of the natural order of life as peace or serenity for the Massassi. They were not only fearsome, but were both loyal and formidable warriors that were dedicated to their Sith masters. In addition to the focus on war and fighting, the Massassi were also loyal and organized. They were bred to blindly follow orders and to live for the glory of battle. Even though they were not extremely intelligent, they could be trained well enough to carry out complex battle plans and maintain their equipment, starships, and weaponry. The Massassi also used alchemically hardened armor and a more primitive version of the Sith lanvarok which could also be used as a battle axe; this variant was known as the Massassi lanvarok.

In battle, the Massassi typically had a keeper who watched over them as these nasty lumbering bipeds were normally prized by the Sith as instruments of terror on the battlefield. As such, they were known as pliant and obedient warriors but answered more to force rather than words.