Utapau


Utapau is a planet featured in the Star Wars fictional universe. Located in the Outer Rim, it orbits a star of the same name. It is most famous for being the scene of the Battle of Utapau, marked by the duel where Obi-Wan Kenobi kills General Grievous. It is also known as the homeworld of the Grand Inquisitor of the Galactic Empire, an agent under the orders of Darth Vader.
Despite its mostly desert surface, Utapau is the home world of the Utais, Pau'ans and Amanins. Historically neutral during the major galactic conflicts, the final moments of the Clone Wars saw Utapau occupied by the Confederation of Independent Systems and then by the Galactic Empire.
The planet was created for the film Revenge of the Sith. It was created using a number of cinematographic disciplines, largely using computer-generated images, but also models, live-action shots and inset actors.
Utapau is also featured in the TV series The Clone Wars, in the novelisation of the film, and in a number of novels, video games and comic strips.

Context

The Star Wars universe is set in a galaxy that is the scene of clashes between the Jedi Knights and the Dark Lords of the Sith, people who are sensitive to the Force, a mysterious energy field that gives them parapsychic powers. The Jedi master the light side of the Force, a beneficial and defensive power, to maintain peace in the galaxy. The Sith use the dark side, a harmful and destructive power, for their own purposes and to dominate the galaxy.
Although the Galactic Republic and the Jedi Order seem to have succeeded in securing peace across the galaxy, the discovery of a Sith apprentice on Naboo in 32 BBY leads Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi to take young Anakin Skywalker, who possesses a previously unseen affinity for the Force, under his wing. A war then begins between the Galactic Republic, led by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, and the secessionists of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and their droid army. As the war comes to an end, the separatist leaders are forced to retreat to the remote planet Utapau.

Geography

Spatial location

Utapau is located in the Tarabba sector of the Outer Rim. The planet, in the system of the same name, orbits the star of the same name. Of the seven planets in this system, Utapau is the fourth from the star. Nine satellites orbit the planet, making it the second planet in the sector with the most natural satellites.
More specifically, it is part of the greater Sarin sector, a group of sectors including Qeimet and the surrounding areas, including Tarabba. This spatial region is the result of a military division of the galaxy made by the Galactic Republic, with each sector associated with a clone sector army. The sector army to which Utapau belongs is the 15th clone army of the Republic, also known as the "Nebular Hook ".

Topography

Utapau is particularly arid. Its surface is covered with desert plains. However, it is also covered by numerous chasms, faults, fossilised dunes and sinkholes. While violent winds batter the surface, the bottoms of the sinkholes shelter bodies of water, as well as a large subterranean ocean. Utapau's nine moons exert a strong gravitational pull on the planet, giving rise to strong tides that erode the planet's rock and cause major earthquakes.

Forms of life

Intelligent species

This planet is home to two intelligent species: the utai and the pau'ans. Collectively known as "utapauns", most of them live in cities within the chasms.
The Utai make up the majority of the Utapau population. Humble by nature, they form the working class of the planet. They generally live in underground caves, thanks to their night vision. They have pedunculated eyes and are small.
The Pau'ans are nicknamed "Ancients" because of their long life expectancy, which is counted in centuries. Carnivores, they have sharp teeth and are large in stature. They have long limbs and no ears. Their eyes are ringed with red, while their skin is grey and cracked. They are closely related to the Utapau fauna, which they have mostly domesticated, and which they use to move around Utapau's rugged surface, or to defend themselves. Although they are a minority on the planet, they are its ruling elite, acting as administrators, diplomats and bureaucrats. They prefer darkness to light, and raw meat to cooked meat. Despite their gruff appearance, they are peaceful and conciliatory. Cooperation between Utais and Pau'ans is essential in Utapau societies, and each species respects and appreciates members of the other.
Utapau is also home to another intelligent species, the amanins. Although they originated on Maridun, many tribes settled on the plains of Utapau, with a more primitive lifestyle, close to that of hunter-gatherers. They rarely ventured into the towns. Tall, lanky bipeds, their skin secretes a poisonous mucus, and their small mouths are filled with sharp teeth. They possess several strange abilities, such as the ability to roll into a perfect ball, enabling them to pursue their prey over long distances, or the ability to give birth to two identical individuals if cut in half.
Some of the most famous people in the Galaxy are from Utapau. One of the best-known representatives of the amanin species is the bounty hunter Amanaman, who frequented the court of the crime lord Jabba the Hutt. As for the pau'an species, one of its best-known representatives is the Grand Inquisitor of the Galactic Empire, formerly a guard at the Jedi Temple.

Animal species

In addition to the intelligent species that inhabit Utapau, several animal species are endemic to the planet.
Giant spiders, known as ginnthos, can be seen all over the rocky planet, even in the cities of the Utais. They are large, black and purple in colour, and capture their prey.
Other, more peaceful, species of animal were domesticated by the Utais, such as the varactyls, giant lizards with clawed feet that served as mounts for the peoples of the planet. Cold-blooded herbivores, they sport numerous multicoloured feathers.
Winged mounts are also used by the Pau'ans: dactillions. Similar to pterosaurs, they soar through the planet's air using the winds that sweep across it and cling to the walls of wells using their powerful claws.

Living and technology

Despite the inhospitable surface, the inhabitants of Utapau created cities built on the walls of the underground Utapau caves. These cities grew rich mainly through mining. Precious minerals are found beneath the surface of the planet, in the large underground ocean. The Pau'ans are also experts at harnessing the wind, which they use to power their vertical cities
The planet's main astroport is that of its capital: Pau City. During the Battle of Utapau, the administrator of this port was the pau'an Tion Medon, descendant of the man who unified the different populations of Utapau. Due to the lack of vegetation on the planet's surface, bone is the main building material. This architectural style, known as "ossic", uses the skeletons of various gigantic creatures inhabiting the subterranean ocean to construct the planet's buildings. The bones are used in their raw state, dried or fossilised as required. Utapau's cities, located on the surface of the large chasms covering the planet, often extend several levels below the surface. Several underground passages link the various cities together.
To make it easier for the inhabitants to get around between the planet's crevasses, the large vertical shafts and the rocky mountainsides, Utais and Pau'ans use "motor-wheels ", made up of two cylindrical discs covered with toothed teeth. Generally for civilian use, a motorbike was hijacked by General Grievous for use as a combat vehicle during the Battle of Utapau. The planet also has a space defence force, managed by the administrator of Pau City.

Official universe

Clone Wars and the Battle of Utapau

During the Clone Wars, the Jedi learn that a Jedi Master has been found dead in Pau City. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker go there and discover that the Confederation of Independent Systems, an enemy of the Galactic Republic, is linked to the incident. The separatists, led by the cyborg general of the droid armies Grievous, wanted to buy a gigantic kyber crystal from Utapau, the main component of many weapons, including lightsabers. However, the two Jedi decide to destroy the crystal rather than let General Grievous escape with it. This allowed them to deprive the enemy camp of such an advantage.
In 19 BBY, in the final moments of the war, after the Battle of Coruscant and the rout of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, the survivors of the Separatist Council, such as Nute Gunray and Shu Mai, temporarily fled to Utapau. The Confederation's secret leader, Darth Sidious, then orders General Grievous to relocate the Council to Mustafar. Grievous was unable to get there, but the rest of the Council left Utapau for Mustafar.
Chancellor Palpatine, still hiding his secret identity as Darth Sidious, reveals to the Republic the location of the Separatist general and the other leaders of the organisation: the remote world of Utapau. The Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi was therefore sent there on a mission to stop Grievous. Landing in Pau City, Obi-Wan is informed of the presence of the man he is tracking by Administrator Tion Medon. Medon wants to repel the Separatist presence with the help of the Republic. The Separatists has been occupying Utapau since its recent arrival, although the planet prefers to remain neutral.
The Battle of Utapau, which takes place in the final moments of the Clone Wars, should mark the end of the war. When the Jedi arrive at Utapau to defeat Grievous, the two generals engage in a lightsaber duel that leads to a chase. While Grievous travels by wheel bike, he is chased by Obi-Wan, who has the varactyl Boga as his mount. Having lost his weapon, the Jedi grabs that of his enemy and forces his adversary to leave his vehicle. He ends the confrontation by firing a blaster at the cyborg general, destroying his armor.
Although Grievous' death seemed to mark the end of the war, the leader of the Republic army at Utapau, Commander Cody, was nevertheless ordered by Darth Sidious to betray the Jedi, who were now considered enemies of the Republic. However, Obi-Wan Kenobi, who had fallen into a crater on the planet, managed to escape the soldiers' betrayal. He then left Utapau aboard Grievous' ship, the Soulless One, to go to Coruscant.