Nar Shaddaa - Star Wars: The Old Republic

The so-called "smuggler's moon" is best known for one thing: anything can be bought here if the price is right. Nar Shaddaa orbits Hutta, homeworld of the Hutt Cartel, but exists as a power in its own right. Criminal organizations and legitimate enterprises operate side-by-side, regulated only by the Hutts' whims. Gleaming skyscrapers house corporations, casinos, technology shops, spice houses and every other type of business imaginable.

Although no other world offers Nar Shaddaa's unique services, the city has a notorious murder and disappearance rate. Gangsters, pirates, slavers and worse crowd the streets, and Republic and Imperial representatives compete for influence with the local powers. Strangers should be extremely cautious.

• faction: Neutral: Controlled by the Hutts, levels: 20 - 24
• location: Hutt Space, status: Nar Shaddaa has profited greatly from the war, rampant crime, and chaos
• terrain: Vast cityscape, ranging from neon towers to squalid dens
• key facts: Due to the lack of regulation, many corporations conduct testing on Nar Shaddaa

Companions from this world: Theran Cedrex (Jedi Consular companion, M1-4X (Trooper companion), Bowdaar (Smuggler companion)

Locations

Club Vertica Casino

On a world full of bright lights and glamorous casinos, Club Vertica was quick to establish itself as an exclusive experience. Run by a mysterious wealthy backer, Club Vertica strictly monitored admittance for its first several years. As a rule, only the wealthiest, best-dressed and most beautiful patrons were allowed entrance; exceptions were made only as they suited the fancy of Club Vertica's owner.

Recently, the restrictions were loosened, sparking rumors that Club Vertica had been sold. Still, much of its old reputation remains; if you want to seem important on Nar Shaddaa, you talk about going to Club Vertica.

Corellian Sector

Although individuals from many planets and species live in the Corellian Sector, it's humans of Corellian descent who made the area what it is today: a pro-Republic criminal's paradise. There is no cargo that can't be offloaded here and no job so dirty that someone won't take it. The families of migrant workers live alongside grizzled Republic veterans who settled on Nar Shaddaa to retire in style, happily turning a blind eye to the darker activities around them.

Over the past decade, the gangs and pirates of the Corellian Sector have become overshadowed by the presence of the Exchange. Once a group mentioned primarily in HoloNet information crime reports, the Exchange crime syndicate has found an army of able recruits on Nar Shaddaa willing to back its slicers and spice-refiners with muscle--much to the dismay of the Hutt Cartel.

Duros Sector

The glitz and glamour of Nar Shaddaa hides an uglier side. One of the poorest sectors on Nar Shaddaa, the Duros Sector hosts men and women who've been exploited and left behind--refugees of war and casualties of the immense wealth hoarded by Nar Shaddaa's Hutt masters.

The peoples of the Duros Sector--the majority Duros, but with a mixed minority of Evocii and other alien species--have watched Nar Shaddaa's wealth grow and seen none of it for themselves. Some have lived in the sector for generations, while others are recent immigrants desperate for any work they can find. The residents' unrest has been stirred by charismatic leaders in the past, from Jedi Masters to would-be warlords.

Lower Industrial Sector

Factories and corporate offices cover much of Nar Shaddaa's surface, and the Lower Industrial Sector houses some of the oldest industrial facilities and warehouses still in use--some dating back hundreds of years to the Evocii's construction of the city. But layers of rust haven't prevented new tenants from making use of these resources.

The Empire operates a series of front corporations out of Nar Shaddaa, concentrated in the lower levels. These companies are used to provide experimental weaponry and technologies to the Empire at a discount rate, facilitate the slave trade that fuels Imperial labor across the galaxy, and serve as a clearinghouse for cargo, credits and individuals being moved through non-Imperial space.

The Hutt Cartel also maintains an interest in the sector --buildings not leased to the Empire store spice, adrenals and implants. The warehouses are heavily guarded, and some are rumored to hide the special projects of individual Hutts from their rivals.

Network Access

As the technological heart of the galaxy, Nar Shaddaa is home to Network Access, a vital HoloNet hub that governs all HoloNet operations on Nar Shaddaa and much of Hutt Space. Billions of transactions and communications are processed each second by Network Access computer systems, ensuring the proper functioning of communications throughout the sector.

Boasting the galaxy's most state-of-the-art security protocols, Network Access is the ultimate challenge for enterprising slicers. The wealthy and powerful pay good money for information pirates to break into Network Access and recover data, redirect communications or simply "tweak" the truth. As one of the most heavily guarded places on Nar Shaddaa, anyone who manages to infiltrate Network Access's inner workings earns the status of legend.

Nikto Sector

Nar Shaddaa has ever been an attractive world for Nikto enforcers seeking employment with the Hutt Cartel. The Nikto Sector, as it is now known, began as a place where Nikto warriors came to attract the attention of prospective employers, but the sector was formally bequeathed to the Nikto Horoth Gendi by his Hutt master when he saved the Hutt's life and business in an act of quick-thinking bloodshed.

Horoth Gendi used the opportunity to found his own gang and free himself from servitude to higher powers. Since that time, the Nikto Sector has fallen under the control of a succession of Nikto gangs seeking a bigger piece of Nar Shaddaa's underworld business--the latest of these gangs being the formidable Kintan Kings.

Red Light Sector

For this year's proven, high-quality implants and neuro-stim technology, visitors to Nar Shaddaa go to the Promenade. For next year's innovations, they go to the Red Light Sector. The bodily enhancements available in the Red Light Sector are almost uniformly illegal, untested, highly dangerous or all three.

Athletes looking for an undetectable edge, opportunistic gang members and adrenaline junkies alike all come in search of the new and death-defying. Some of the technologies sold in the Red Light shops eventually make it to market in legitimate form, while others become staples of the high-risk, high-reward underground implant scene.

Alongside the surgical and bioenhancement shops, other shady businesses preying on sentient appetites tend to bloom. In particular, slavers and spice dealers often offer products here, taking advantage of Red Light Sector customers' wealth, desperation or moral flexibility, as appropriate.

Shadow Town

At first glance, Shadow Town resembles an ordinary Nar Shaddaa slum. Its population makes it unique. Rather than housing underworld gangs or powerful Hutts, Shadow Town is home to imprisoned individuals who were once useful to the Empire and who may be useful still--scientists, assassins and genetic experiments too valuable to kill and too dangerous to release.

Cranial implants designed to explode upon leaving Shadow Town's borders are implanted in prisoners' heads. Secondary prisons manned by Imperial personnel store prisoners who must be kept docile. Many residents of Shadow Town make the best of their early, forced retirement, cooperating with Imperial authorities and living relatively "ordinary" lives... but nearly all would flee, given an opportunity.

The Empire pays the Hutt Cartel a considerable sum to keep Shadow Town running. For the Hutts, the risk of keeping prisoners even the Empire doesn't want inside its borders is offset by the considerable rewards.

Star Cluster Casino

The Star Cluster Casino certainly wasn't the first casino to be built on Nar Shaddaa, but every casino since has tried to match its sleek design, pulsing lights and various entertainment options. The Star Cluster was the first to debut live dancers, the first to feature sabacc and the first to hire scantily clad girls as waitresses.

Owned by a conglomerate of Nar Shaddaa industrialists (including Czerka Corporation executive Yem Leksende), the Star Cluster Casino is an attraction for tourists and weary working stiffs alike. Some have derided it as just another way in which the rich steal from the poor on Nar Shaddaa, but that hasn't stopped business from booming.

The Promenade

The Promenade is Nar Shaddaa at its most lavish and inviting. Divided into upper and lower levels, the area is covered by the Hutts' strict no-fighting policy and offers a rare respite from the conflict that wracks the rest of the galaxy. Rivals and sworn enemies are expected to put aside their differences here--or else be brutally handled by Hutt Cartel enforcers.

Clubs, entertainment venues and high-end shopping line the arrival points from Nar Shaddaa's spaceports, and casual visitors can find everything they need at Promenade vendors. Speeders are available to many of Nar Shaddaa's districts, but by far the most popular routes lead to the Club Vertica and Star Cluster casinos.

Upper Industrial Sector

The Upper Industrial Sector is the center of manufacturing and industry for Republic corporations on Nar Shaddaa. Here, centuries-old droid construction facilities stand next to the cluttered offices of startup firms desperate for resources and space. The companies share a common need for heavy security and compete for similar clientele, ensuring that this sector remains a choice location--but are otherwise wholly independent.

For a corporation headquartered in Republic space, Nar Shaddaa is a convenient place to develop technologies restricted by Republic laws--or from which to deal with foreign parties. The Senate frowns on these activities, but just as often turns a blind eye when these same corporations bring their innovations back to Republic worlds.

Datacrons

Galactic History 33: Dromund Kaas

Galactic History 34: The Discovery of Ryll

Galactic History 35: The Gank Massacres

Galactic History 36: The Quarren-Mon Calamari War

Galactic History 37: Freedon Nadd

Organizations

Hutt Cartel

Officially, the Hutt Cartel is a business alliance between several different Hutt clans, working together towards the common goals of wealth and prosperity. Between its members, the Hutt Cartel controls vast resources, countless credits and many independent worlds--not least among them Hutta, their adopted homeworld, and Nar Shaddaa, the crown jewel of the underworld. Although the Hutts have no formal government, the Hutt Cartel acts as a loose governing body on these worlds and others.

Unofficially, the Hutt Cartel is a ruthless crime syndicate whose goals are not always so united. Turf wars and clan infighting have often left the Cartel in splintered uproar. Personal grudges and cutthroat competition can result in two rival clans warring in the streets one day and feasting together the next.

While historically the Hutt Cartel has remained neutral in galactic affairs, both the Republic and the Empire have made recent attempts to secure the Hutts' loyalty. It remains to be seen what the outcome of these attempts will be--and what effect the Hutt Cartel will have on the galaxy at large.

The Exchange

One of the galaxy's most prominent crime syndicates, the Exchange is the sleek, tech-savvy competitor to the Hutt Cartel. Where the Hutt Cartel has a clear, centralized authority in Hutt Space, the Exchange is a distributed network of gangs coordinated via the HoloNet; where the Hutt Cartel favors galactic neutrality, the Exchange sees the Empire as an untapped resource ready to bleed credits and the Republic as a living shield protecting its gangsters from Imperial retaliation.

Three centuries ago, the Exchange was arguably the most influential criminal organization in the Republic. However, an internal power struggle to claim the territory of the infamous Davik Kang after his death left the Exchange in disarray, allowing the Hutt Cartel to seize control over many of its operations. It took many decades before the "new breed" of Exchange criminals arose, and the current syndicate is a different animal than the old.

Active in slicing, extortion, spice dealing and weapons running, the Exchange is rapidly reclaiming lost territory, taking advantage of riots, gang wars and other acts of blatant violence to gain ground even on Hutt worlds like Nar Shaddaa. But the Empire is swiftly becoming a greater adversary than the Hutts--the Exchange wants to be the first crime syndicate to make solid inroads into Imperial space and is willing to kill whoever it takes to get there.

Persons of Note

Bowdaar (Smuggler)

• Companion of: Smuggler
• Melee Tank
• Crew Skills Bonus: +10 Cybertech Efficiency, +10 Scavenging Efficiency
• Primary Weapon: Vibrosword
• Secondary Weapon: Shield Generator

The mighty Wookiee gladiator named Bowdaar has spent over a century facing countless opponents without ever losing a match. He solidified his title as the galaxy's greatest gladiator when he defeated notorious Wookiee-hunter Karssk on Ord Mantell. The more gullible underworld scum whisper that Bowdaar is an immortal creature who can't be killed, but those who have faced him and lived know that he is simply the best there is.

On the surface, Bowdaar may seem like a simple-minded brute, but nothing could be further from the truth. Case in point: Bowdaar eventually discovered the identity of the Transdoshans who first captured and enslaved him. One night in an arena on Loovria, Bowdaar learned that his former captors were sitting in the stands. An unfortunate "weapons malfunction" caused the drunken Trandoshan slavers to meet an untimely--and extremely messy--end.

Destris Veran and Rylee Dray (Sith Inquisitor)

Former cultists of the powerful and charismatic Sith Lord Paladius, Rylee Dray and Destris Veran fled into hiding on Nar Shaddaa to escape the Sith Lord's wrath.

A clever but shy slicer, Rylee is drawn to power, while her companion Destris imagines himself someday becoming the ruler of his own cult. They are an unlikely pair, drawn together only by their disillusionment with the false promises of Lord Paladius and eager to find a new leader to follow.

Drooga the Hutt (Smuggler)

"The Great Feastmaster"--as Drooga the Hutt is popularly known--throws the most lavish parties on Nar Shaddaa, hosting celebrations his guests remember for the rest of their lives. Where the Hutt obtained his immense wealth remains a mystery, but everyone agrees that he knows how to spend it. Drooga's luxurious pleasure barge is one of the few places on Nar Shaddaa where the only barrier to entry is a person's entertainment value. So long as Drooga finds a guest amusing, the party never ends.

Sadly, Drooga is fickle even for a Hutt. He quickly tires of even the most provocative and outrageous individuals in his entourage. It is fair to say that Drooga has no friends, only temporary acquaintances. Guests who overstay their welcomes tend to suffer unfortunate accidents requiring long-term stays in a kolto tank.

Gele'ren (Bounty Hunter)

Unlike the majority of Twi'leks living in Hutt Space, Gele'ren has had the rare privilege of enjoying freedom since the day he was born. That point of separation gave Gele'ren an advantage his enslaved peers could never conceive of: ambition, and the chance to pursue it.

Displaying a cutthroat ruthlessness and audacious cunning that would be the envy of any Hutt, there was nothing Gele'ren was above doing while clawing his way to the top--even selling his own kind. Currently a successful underboss in the Hutt Cartel, Gele'ren is closer than ever to reaching his ultimate goal of being the first non-Hutt cartel boss in galactic history, and he's not about to let anything stand in his way.

Halidrell Setsyn (Sith Warrior)

The sharp-tongued Halidrell Setsyn runs Darth Baras's slaving operation on Nar Shaddaa. A witty flirt and able liar, she's able to talk her way both into and out of trouble. She has a tendency to overreach but has become proficient at escaping death as a result.

Halidrell Setsyn came into Baras's service unexpectedly after taking over from his previous operative--she tricked the slaver out of a large number of credits and some of his stock, not knowing who he worked for. Before Halidrell could escape the planet, Baras contacted her and offered her the position that had suddenly opened up.

Intelligence Profile: Watcher X (Imperial Agent)

• Name: Classified
• Alias: Watcher X
• Gender: Male
• Species: Human (enhanced)
• Age: 42

Background (Summary): Watcher X was genetically altered while in the womb as part of a joint Imperial Intelligence-Science Bureau initiative. His family was chosen by the project, and he was subjected to a series of additional procedures during maturation. By adolescence, he showed a keen mind and strong physical aptitude.

Watcher X joined Imperial Intelligence at the age of twenty-one and worked at several high-profile positions within the organization before Operation: Undertow caused his service to be re-evaluated. Despite his past successes, Undertow's bloody end marked Watcher X as a danger to fellow personnel. He was redesignated and assigned to Shadow Town.

Personality: Watcher X suffers from an inability to control his own intellect, compulsively analyzing situations and studying even the most unlikely outcomes. This manifests in acute paranoia and sociopathic tendencies. Watcher X feels betrayed by the Empire, and agents dealing with him should not rely on Watcher X's sense of duty.

Jonas Balkar (Trooper)

A talented field operative for the Republic's Strategic Information Service, Jonas Balkar has led an impressive career despite his young age, earning him undercover placements on high-risk worlds such as Nar Shaddaa and Balmorra. His exceptional planning and investigatory skills have led to numerous Republic successes, both seen and unseen.

Personnel records also make particular note of Balkar's charming demeanor, encouraging his assignment to operations where personal interactions are key--particularly interactions with female subjects.

Lord Paladius (Sith Inquisitor)

For much of his youth, Lord Paladius led an undistinguished career as a charismatic but petty Sith Lord. Uninterested in conquest or the pursuit of dark side knowledge, he left Imperial space for Nar Shaddaa and found a world ripe for his brand of manipulation.

Becoming the leader of the Cult of the Screaming Blade has allowed Lord Paladius to enrich himself personally, expanding his collection of art and antiquities and living off the fruits of his cultists' mad devotion.

Lord Rathari (Sith Warrior)

A young and ambitious Sith Lord, Rathari has been placed in charge of Sith interests on Nar Shaddaa by order of the Dark Council. Quiet and confident, Lord Rathari prefers the direct approach to dealing with opposition, using strength over finesse and subtlety.

Darth Baras and Lord Rathari share a bitter hatred of one another. Baras considers the young Sith a disrespectful upstart, while Rathari openly criticizes Baras's methods and sees him as an overrated meddler. Fed up with Rathari's interference, Baras has at last called for the lord's death.

Lord Sadic (Jedi Knight)

Lord Sadic is one of Darth Angral's most powerful--and power-hungry--apprentices. Born to lower-class parents barely one step above Imperial slaves, Sadic quickly demonstrated a strong will, Force sensitivity and unrestrained ambition. He was the only acolyte of his group to survive the Sith trials on Korriban. Some say this was more than just luck. A string of unexplained murders at the Sith Academy abruptly ended when Sadic finally left Korriban.

Initially apprenticed to Lord Umbriss, Sadic served as his master's personal assassin for several years. That apprenticeship ended the same day Umbriss crossed Darth Angral, who "inherited" Sadic along with Umbriss's estate and wealth. Although Sadic pledged eternal loyalty to his new master, Darth Angral kept his apprentice on a tight leash. Angral recognized that of all his servants, Sadic was the one most likely to kill him.

M1-4X (Trooper)

• Companion of: Trooper
• Ranged DPS
• Crew Skills Bonus: +5 Cybertech, +5 Critical Scavenging
• Primary Weapon: Blaster Rifle or Blaster Pistol
• Secondary Weapon: Shield Generator

M1-4X is a highly advanced war droid designed and built specifically to serve in Havoc Squad. As such, his engineers programmed him to be a perfect soldier: completely loyal, fervently patriotic, and willing and eager to go to any length or face any risk in order to destroy the Republic's enemies.

M1-4X's armor plating, weapons systems and processing power are significantly advanced over typical military droid standards, due in large part to his unusual power core. Constructed by an unknown group or organization, the core was recovered during a classified operation and has output capabilities far beyond conventional models.

Tharan Cedrax (Jedi Consular)

• Companion of: Jedi Consular
• Ranged Healer, Techie Companion
• Crew Skills Bonus: +10 Cybertech Efficiency, +10 Slicing Efficiency
• Primary Weapon: Blaster Pistol
• Secondary Weapon: Scattergun

Although not a household name, Tharan Cedrax is well-known in several circles. In the casinos of Nar Shaddaa, he is cursed as a card-counting mathematical genius. To the eligible women of the galaxy, he is a famous charmer who sees rejection as an intriguing challenge. Among technologists, he earned accolades for solving a technical paradox that revolutionized computer slicing; despite his achievements, however, Tharan isn't taken seriously by the galaxy's scientific community, which looks down on him as a playboy rather than a serious researcher.

In recent years, Tharan has taken an interest in "exo-technology," an almost unknown field involving esoteric alien sciences, and gone into business making custom gadgets for wealthy clients. Often accompanied by his lovely holographic companion, Holiday, Tharan has spent his credits freely, enjoying the very best Nar Shaddaa has to offer while staying just shy of its dangers.

The Eidolon (Bounty Hunter)

The assassin known as the Eidolon is a figure shrouded in mystery--so much so that it's not entirely certain that the Eidolon is only one figure at all. Despite being employed by the Hutt Cartel for more than a decade, the assassin has never been met in person or even seen. Nor has any clue as to the assassin's identity been discovered--no calling cards, no flashy displays, no consistent modus operandi. The only concrete thing that can be said about the Eidolon is that his targets are not long for the world.

Species

Gen'Dai

A rare and reclusive species, Gen'Dai are virtually immortal. Living for thousands of years, they possess distributed nervous and vascular systems and lack any vulnerable vital organs. Combined with their natural regenerative abilities, they can survive almost any injury, including total dismemberment. Despite their resilience, Gen'Dai typically wear heavy armor to give structure to their sinewy, boneless forms.

Abandoning their homeworld millennia ago for unknown reasons, most Gen'Dai now lead a nomadic existence. Believing in the perfection of permanence, these nonviolent philosophers see change as an illusion; as a result, Gen'Dai rarely take an active role in anything, preferring to remain unobtrusive observers as galactic history unfolds.

Some Gen'Dai suffer mental deterioration as they age. This leads to a pronounced increase in violent tendencies, and some of the afflicted eventually become mercenaries or bounty hunters. Most documented Gen'Dai encounters involve these rogue individuals, giving the species a somewhat unfavorable and undeserved reputation for viciousness.

Bestiary

Gundark

The gundark is among the most feared of all species. Its strength is matched only by its resilience and keen senses, and it is a favorite target of big game hunters and a featured attraction in gladiatorial arenas galaxy-wide. Gundarks rarely last long in captivity, however; many beast tamers tell of letting their guard down for a half-second in the presence of these mighty creatures, only to be attacked and horribly mauled. They are the lucky ones. Anyone encountering a gundark in the wild knows to give this monster a wide berth or else be prepared for a fight; the gundark is known to attack unprovoked.

Vrblther

Indigenous to the planet Varl, vrblthers were often kept as pets by rich and powerful Hutts. When Varl was vaporized over ten thousand years ago, the species survived only because many of the fierce bipedal predators had accompanied their owners to Nar Shaddaa and Hutta.

The beasts proved resilient to the pollutants and toxins commonly found in their new environments, and their numbers grew rapidly. Packs of vrblthers are known to roam the lower levels of Nar Shaddaa, in constant search of their next meal.

Lore

Data Slicing

Data slicing is one of the less advertised, though very profitable, industries thriving on Nar Shaddaa. For the right price, computer and electronics experts can be hired for a variety of services. Traditionally, these include corporate espionage, personal information-gathering (whether as part of an investigation or for use in blackmail) and security enhancements. However, with the escalating tension between Republic and Imperial forces, skilled slicers are now often employed as code breakers and saboteurs.

Some of the best slicers in the galaxy are self-taught independent operators. Advantages of employing outside experts in covert military operations include plausible deniability and the option to forego rescue operations when a mission asset is compromised or captured. Whether this offsets the risk of a slicer switching sides for a better offer is a matter of debate.

Exo-technology (Jedi Consular)

A very rare and highly specialized field, the study of exo-technology focuses on items or devices believed to originate somewhere beyond the borders of the galaxy. Understandably rare, these advanced and complex items are constructed using unique materials and radical engineering otherwise unknown to Republic and Imperial scientists.

Whether these items are relics of ancient civilizations that disappeared long ago or artifacts from thriving cultures waiting to be discovered is almost always unclear, as are the explanations for how the technology found its way to known space.

Operation: Glass Echo (Imperial Agent)

• Category: Information Gathering / Threat Elimination
• Location: Nar Shaddaa
• Date: Classified
• Primary: Cipher Nine
• Secondary: Watcher X

Operational Summary: Chatter indicated that Nar Shaddaa was the source of weapons, supplies, stimulants used by the Eagle's terrorist network. Retired asset Watcher X was chosen to assist primary (Cipher Nine) due to extensive local knowledge.

The terror cell was identified as operating out of VerveGen, a local medical corporation. Leadership was eliminated and data retrieved.

Notes: Watcher X's part in this operation is covered in [redacted].

Cross-reference: Watcher X, VerveGen, Eagle, Dominator, Shadow Town, Cyclone, Protean

Power Guards (Jedi Knight)

Power Guards are synthetically augmented supersoldiers created by a secret Republic research project. Ethical and legal restrictions against experimenting on living soldiers required the Republic military to conduct the research as a black ops project on Nar Shaddaa; on the virtually lawless Hutt moon, those in charge could easily acquire technology and resources that were banned in the Republic without raising suspicion in the Senate. However, being located on a non-Republic-controlled world left the project vulnerable to enemy attack or infiltration in the event of discovery.

Slave Trading on Nar Shaddaa

The slave trade is one of the most profitable and pervasive industries on Nar Shaddaa. Although slavery is officially condemned by the Republic, rapid Imperial expansion has caused a boom in the number of potential buyers. Recognizing the demand, the Hutt Cartel, the Nar Shaddaa Labor Alliance and others established Nar Shaddaa as the galaxy's premier location for slavers to display and sell product.

In addition to the expected slave markets and auction houses, entrepreneurs have built up an entire business infrastructure to facilitate the practice of buying and selling living beings as property. Intrepid businessmen offer inspection and appraisal of goods, security and transport services, and even long-term carbonite storage facilities.

The Spice Business

The term "spice" refers to a wide variety of substances trafficked throughout the galaxy. Some types of spice are primarily medicinal, refined into lifesaving painkillers or used to treat mental illness; more often than not, however, spice traders deal in addictive, recreational chemical compounds with unpredictable and dangerous physical and psychological effects.

Spice is tightly regulated--or completely banned--on most Republic and Imperial worlds. On the Hutt-controlled moon of Nar Shaddaa, however, spice is openly imported, processed, refined and packaged for both local and offworld distribution. Nar Shaddaa's spice trade is split among numerous gangs and petty crimelords who use the profits to fund other, often violent, activities.

In recent years, the Exchange crime syndicate has offered several key players cut-rate distribution of product on Republic worlds through their existing criminal networks. The newly forged alliances have finally given the Exchange a foothold in the spice trade, much to the chagrin of the Hutts.