#bioware pls we want dathomir

[a-master-procrastinator]

Dathomir Headcanons

Since we know little to nothing about Dathomir during SWTOR timeline, I’ve decided to come up with my own ideas for this beautiful planet and its famous Zabraks.

I tried to consider a few little things I know about Dathomir in general (spoiler - I don’t know much, and I won’t take stuff from new canon not to confuse things, aside from red mist, because i love red mist. no, I don’t hate new canon), and my ideas probably don’t make sense outside of my head, but hey, a fella can dream. What do we know (or can guess) about Dathomir in this time period?

There probably was a battle during the Great Galactic War on Dathomir (probably because the mention of that battle was removed in 2011).

According to this map (even after in-game updates), Dathomir is in Imperial space, which would explain why Dathomirian Zabraks initially are available on Empire side only in game

Nightsisters (and Witches of Dathomir) as a group are not present on Dathomir during the events of SWTOR (and, as far as I understand, won’t be until around 600 BBY or later)

Dathomir is home of rancors! Isn’t that cool?

That’s pretty much everything. Of course, Dathomir has a very interesting history that takes place thousands of years before the Great Galactic War, but these are the most important things to know at this point. All the fun stuff happens either before or after SWTOR, so there’s much space for headcanons.

So, here are my (stupid) ideas:

Since Dathomir was under the control of the Infinite Empire and Rakata basically created some of the species, including Zabraks, this is how they ended up on Dathomir. Basically, Zabraks are the closest thing to native sentient species this planet has at the moment (Kwa were before).

Dathomirian Zabraks have a lot in common with their Iridonian siblings, but there are still a few differences. The most noticeable, their skin color, is the result of the environment (and partially Rakata experiments). I’m not sure if the red mist is a thing on Dathomir in Legends, but for this one, I’m going to ignore it, sorry. I like red mist, and I don’t think it’s just mist. It might as well be the reasoning behind Zabraks’ red and orange skin colors. Dathomirian Zabraks are also somewhat taller than Iridonian due to the planet's lower-than-standard gravity (90% standard). Not much taller (they are not walking giants), but the tendency is there.

Screw this, during SWTOR time period, Zabraks are the dominant species on the planet and represent the most of its sentient population.

The environment is pretty harsh on Dathomir, so just as their Iridonian brothers, Dathomirian Zabraks are quite strong. They have a warrior-like culture due to having to fight against dangerous fauna and flora. Yes, even some of the plants are hostile. 

They have several clans that originally formed because of geographical reasons, but later have become responsible for different aspects of life, like hunting, protecting, gathering and keeping knowledge and etc. 

There are also a few authoritative families (they are pretty close to royal or ruling families, but not exactly that). Their prestige is higher than that of the clans, and different members of those families can belong to different clans. Most of the Zabraks are not members of those families.

Their tattoos have meaning. Facial tattoos represent their family (that applies to all families, not just authoritative ones) and clan - part of the tattoo represent clan, another part - family, and together they form a pattern. Those tattoos are applied after the initiation process (into a clan). Some important things, like titles, would be represented in facial tattoos as well. But! there are also tattoos on other parts of the body that represent each individual’s achievements, either it’s hunting an extremely dangerous beast, inventing a tactic, winning a traditional fight, performing a cultural dance, or something else.

A lot of their hobbies include hand-made stuff. Idk, I just thought it’s neat.

The planet has a certain connection to the Force, like Tython with the Light Side or Korriban with the Dark Side, though on Dathomir this connection allows the witches to use their magic (this is later, not in SWTOR) and results in some sorts of mysterious stuff, like special areas, animals that can be controlled only by using magic (with planets connection) - let’s just say this one goes specifically to rancors - and other stuff. Was this connection the result of Kwa technology, Rakata experiments or is it something natural is unknown. Because of this “dark spooky energy”, Zabraks settle in the least affected areas (because in some regions this energy is stronger, and in others it’s weaker).

Force sensitivity was a rare thing among Zabraks (not extremely rare, but chances of finding a Force-sensitive Zabrak on Dathomir during this time period are low). Later, after Nightsisters have taken control over the planet, there were more Force-sensitive Zabraks, though they were not necessarily aware of that (like Savage). But this happens long after the time period we’re interested in right now.

It seems like there was a battle during the Great Galactic War between the Republic and Sith Empire, as I’ve mentioned above, and the Sith seem to have won. Dathomir was an interest for the Sith primary for two reasons - Zabraks would make excellent slaves, and planet’s mysterious energy. Zabraks didn’t give up without a fight, but some of the authoritative families understood that they are more likely to lose, so they offered Zabraks’ service to the Sith Empire, as well as help with exploring nature of Dathomirian Force energy for not being enslaved. The Sith agreed (not without complaining though), and kept Dathomir relatively untouched.

Dathomirian Zabraks weren’t popular in the wider galaxy.

This is all for today. I might be able to expand those ideas, add some more, and maybe even work on the tattoo designs and the whole clans/families system. Maybe. If my brain suddenly decides to do that again.

A reminder that this is all my headcanons, that could be stupid or go against canon in some places.