Nal Hutta and Nar Shaddaa
Nal Hutta (Glorious Jewel).
Hutta: Basic Information.
Allegiance: Neutral.
Native Species: Evocii.
Moons: Five.
System: Y’Toub System.
Region: Mid Rim.
Terrain: Boggy marshes and swamps (terraformed by the Hutts). Originally lush jungle and rain forests.
Atmosphere: Polluted, but breathable.
Landmarks: Palace of Nem’ro the Hutt.
System Information: The Y’Toub System contains six planets, but other than Nal Hutta only the moon of Nar Shaddaa which orbits Nal Hutta is relevant in The Old Republic Era.
Nal Hutta: Early History.
Before the Hutts came to this planet it was a beautiful place covered in jungle and known as Evocar, inhabited by the native Evocii. Around 15,000BBY the Hutts left their decimated home world of Varl, came to Evocar and lured the Evocii into trade agreements involving land for technology. Before long the Hutts owned much of the planet and although the Evocii appealed to the Galactic Republic the agreements they had made with the Hutts were legally binding and most of the Evocii were moved to the moon of Nar Shadda. The Evocii that remained on their home planet were reduced to slaves of the Hutts. The planet was renamed to Nal Hutta (which means Glorious Jewel in Huttese) and was terraformed into a swampy polluted cesspit with large Hutt palaces, cantinas and factories. Some Evocii existed outside the cities of Nal Hutta as rebel tribes around the time of the Old Republic Era, but at this point I cannot verify whether or not they have been exterminated by the year the game will be set in.
Nar Shaddaa (Smuggler’s Moon).
Nar Shaddaa: Basic Information.
Allegiance: Neutral.
Native Species: Ganks.
Terrain: Vertical City.
Atmosphere: Breathable.
Landmarks: Promenade. Undercity.
Nar Shaddaa: Establishment.
When the Hutts enslaved the Evocii they moved most of them off planet to Nal Huttas’ largest moon, Nar Shaddaa to build space ports, docking bays and the like to work their way out of slavery. In no time at all Nar Shaddaa was covered in city and the Evocii had paid their debt. Most died during the construction of Nar Shaddaa and most of those who survived ended up taking refuge in the Undercity. They became savage mutants due to various technologies practiced in the moon’s Undercity. Ganks, a species that are very friendly with the Hutts are believed to be native to the moon of Nar Shaddaa, but some contest this point believing that the Ganks moved to Nar Shaddaa due to their affiliation with the Hutts. For a long time trade grew on Nar Shaddaa and it began to rival Coruscant as an interstellar trade centre. however, in approximately 4,000BBY trade routes shifted and the Republic had less to do with the moon. Criminal activities prospered and the moniker “Smuggler’s Moon” came about.
Points to consider.
- Nal Hutta and its urbanized moon, Nar Shaddaa are run primarily by the Hutts.
- Both are full of dangerous people who are often there for sinister/illegal reasons.
- “Questionable” research and experiments take place on Nar Shaddaa.
- Power shifts between factions in places like these happen fast.
From a gameplay point of view I imagine Nal Hutta and Nar Shaddaa will have story lines based around the points listed above. Any world (or moon) controlled by gangsters would have to be politically unstable to say the least, and Bioware have a history of giving their players big decisions that effect the course of their story so I expect big things from the volatile Hutt controlled areas. It should be noted that Nal Hutta is the starting zone for the Bounty Hunter Class and might be purely low level content, but like I said in the Tython post, I am hoping that they give us end game content that takes us back to low level areas. Nar Shaddaa on the other hand is not a starting zone. I am hoping it is an end game zone so that it stays well populated by players. Due to its theme of casinos, cantinas and corruption this will be one of the zones that many people will probably naturally gravitate to. Above all, the main thing that I am crossing my fingers for is consistency with the theme. The Hutts are powerful gangsters, black market merchandise should be available in these areas, both Nal Hutta and Nar Shaddaa should be dangerous places and above all, actions and decisions here should have serious consequences.
-Gav.
