STAR WARS
Zoology: Rancor

Rancor

Natural Range:
Dathomir: forest?
Niche:
predatory carnivore.

Rancors are huge, voracious, long-armed predators which roam the forests of the remote and little-known planet Dathomir. They are also found on dozens of other worlds. The leathery brown hide is thick enough to allow a rancor to shrug off hits from hand-held blasters. Their maws are full of sharp, triangular teeth which are primarily used for gripping and rending prey; a rancor does very little chewing, preferring to swallow food in large chunks. The specimen owned by Jabba the Hutt was a juvenile in poor health, standing at only five metres tall. Wild rancors grow to greater dimensions.

On Dathomir local Force-sensitive witches use rancors as tame mounts. Although Jabba's rancor is clearly non-sapient, at least some of the rancors of Dathomir seem to approach intelligence. These rancors are social creatures, hunting in family-based packs.

It is not clear whether this is the natural state of the rancors, or whether they are have been altered by Force-based sorcery. The notion that rancors may be artificial or modified life-forms finds support in the fact that Emperor Palpatine kept an army of vicious sub-intelligent rancors at his Citadel on the Deep-Core resort world of Byss. These rancors were referred to as "crysalis beasts" and seemed to be among the menagerie of monsters deliberately created in experiments with the Dark Side of the Force carried out by Palpatine and his adepts. It seems possible that rancors might be one of the standard monstrousities available for creation via the ancient arts of the Sith. Indeed the Sith were infamous for the creation of abominations of nature, as seen in Dark Lords of the Sith, The Sith War and The Jedi Academy Trilogy.

*
The abuse rancor emerges into its public feeding area.

*
The rancor feeds on a gamorrean.

*
A closeup view of a rancor's head, with mouth agape.

*
The rancor SWCCG game card confirms Dathomir as the species' planet of origin.

SWRPG statistics:

Dexterity 4D
Perception 1D
search: tracking 3D
Strength 7D
Special abilities:
Armour: adds +3D to Strength for damage purposes.
Claws: Strength+3D damage.
Teeth: Strength+5D damage.
Move: 20


Acknowledgments


References


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Last updated 18 October 2000.

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