Pau'an
pau-an
Special Abilities: Pau’ans begin the game with one rank in Negotiation or Coercion. They still cannot train Negotiation or Coercion above rank 2 during character creation.
Sensetive Hearing: Pau’ans add to all Perception and Vigilance checks they make as long as they are wearing their protective earpieces. If they are not wearing these earpieces, they do not gain the bonus, and they add [1 Threat] to Perception and Vigilance checks they make instead.
Gaunt, ghoulish, and towering over most other sentient species of the galaxy, Pau’ans are easily recognizable by their intimidating presence. Their ferocious features, combined with the remote location of their homeworld of Utapau, used to mean that few Pau’ans were found in galactic society. However, after the Clone Wars, the Empire claimed Utapau for itself. Most Pau’ans left the planet, fleeing to all corners of the galaxy. Now, decades later, nomadic clans of Pau’ans wander the hyperlanes, looking for a place to call home. Unfortunately, in a galaxy consumed by war, few worlds are willing to take in hordes of refugees; the Pau’ans rarely stay in one place for long.
Those who do interact with Pau’ans directly find I them to be surprisingly friendly for a species that has been so badly wronged at the hands of the Empire. Beyond their frightening appearance, Pau’ans tend to be soft-spoken, diplomatic, and quite amicable. Whether this is an inherent trait of the species or a conscious effort on the part of the Pau’ans is unknown, but their desire to treat those they encounter with dignity and respect makes them excellent diplomats and negotiators. Now that Pau’ans live as displaced nomads, these skills help avoid hostilities and keep their clans safe from harm.
Pau’ans tower over most other sentient beings of the galaxy and typically stand at a height of two meters. They are lean and gaunt, with sharp features and long limbs. Elongated fingers end in sharp, clawlike nails. Their bodies are hairless, with gray skin and deep-set eyes rimmed in red. Their appearance is that of a predator and instantly strikes fear into most other beings. This is accentuated by a lipless mouth filled with a row of sharp fangs.
Pau’ans have extremely sensitive hearing and typically wear circular coverings over their small ears to provide protection from high volumes. They wear this protection at all times. Loud noises, such as sudden explosions or the din of music blasting from cantina speakers, tend to make them uncomfortable or even cause them pain if they are unprotected. Countless generations of living in the dark underground cities of Utapau have provided them with sharpened vision as well, allowing them see with ease in all but pitch darkness.
Pau’ans are sometimes called “The Ancients,” due to their extraordinarily long lifespans. They are capable of living seven hundred years or more. By some accounts there are a few Pau’ans who have lived over a thousand years.
While still on Utapau, Pau’ans coexisted with another species, the diminutive laborers known as the Utai. The Pau’ans acted as administrators while the Utai served as the planet’s workforce. Though there was a clear divide between the two species, and though the Pau’ans occupied the leadership position, the Pau’ans did not view themselves as superior to the Utai. They took their roles very seriously and recognized that both halves of their society were equally important to the prosperity of Utapau.
Now, with the Pau’ans’ exile from their homeworld, that symbiotic relationship has been thrown into turmoil. Pau’ans no longer live alongside Utai; most are unsure what happened to their former neighbors after the Imperial occupation, and information out of Utapau is scant at best.
Much like the few surviving citizens of Alderaan, Pau’ans have tried their best to maintain their ancient culture in the face of a barrage of influences from the rest of the galaxy. This, combined with their already conservative nature, means many of the wandering clans have grown increasingly insular over the years. To enter a clan encampment or board a Pau’an ship is to step into a small, carefully preserved slice of Utapau. Many Pau’ans go so far as to dim the lights and cover the walls in gray and tan hangings to simulate the feeling of being below the surface of a planet. Unfortunately, this self-imposed isolation has only made it harder for clans to gain acceptance on a world for any length of time.
The planet of Utapau is located in the far reaches of the Outer Rim Territories, in the Tarabba sector. The planet’s rocky, arid surface is constantly buffeted by ceaseless winds of prodigious strength. Nine moons orbit Utapau and are likely the cause of these great windstorms. Deep fissures and sinkholes dot the planet’s surface like pockmarks; many reach to the very heart of Utapau, touching the planet’s metallic core. It was in these sinkholes that both the Pau’ans and Utai made their homes, carving endless passages into the rocky walls, where they mined veins of ore and drew water from great underground seas.
Now, Imperial fortifications dot the surface of the planet and guard the entrances to the sinkholes. What goes on below is unknown.
The Pau’an language (simply called “Pau’an”) further enforces the species’ predatory appearance. It is spoken in a low, whispering hiss not commonly encountered by offworlders. It can seem muted to other species but comes across as gentle and pleasing to the sensitive auditory organs of the Pau’ans. To outsiders, it sounds like the long warning of some serpentine beast, rising and falling in volume at what seem to be random intervals. Unlike in Basic, words are not broken by moments of silence. Pau’ans convey a complex idea in a single prolonged sound. Pau’ans are quite capable of speaking Basic. Though their elongated teeth mean they speak it with a bit of a lisp, they recognize the importance of its universality for communicating with and understanding other beings in the galaxy.
It was once believed that the first Jedi Temple was built on Utapau, though neither the Pau’ans nor the Utai have found any evidence in support of this. In the days of the Republic, the Jedi Order did take the occasional Pau’an into service, however. The Pau’an desire for diplomacy and understanding means that those who are strong in the Force often recognize it as evidence of a core truth that connects all beings. Pau’an Force users typically sense the deeper connections in the present moment, concerning themselves less with the past or the future. As such, they often seem to have a kind of serene detachment. This, combined with their frightening appearance, can unnerve some—but these Pau’ans are simply drawing upon the Force to find the great truth that unites all beings. Because of this, Pau’ans make excellent Consulars and Mystics, though it is said that in the days of the Republic some Pau’ans became Sentinels and even Temple Guards who fought with a disconcerting serenity.
The Pau’an clans of the diaspora have tried to remain in contact with one another whenever possible. Fortunately, even in a period of civil war, the galaxy maintains a web of communications through the HoloNet and fleets of private and corporate courier vessels. Clans often arrange to be on the same world at the same time in order to swap stories, trade, and reunite with long-lost friends and family members.
This makes the Pau’an clans a valuable source of clandestine information. Though Pau’ans’ insular nature means they are unwilling to talk with outsiders, those who gain their trust can learn interesting secrets that have been passed from clan to clan.