Entechment rigs were devices used for the Ssi-ruuk process of entechment, in which an individual's life energies were drained to supply energy for powering various technological devices used by the reptilian aliens.
A subject was strapped into an entechment chair, where a catchment arc was positioned. Prior to entechment, a magnetic solution, known as magsol, was injected into the subject's carotid artery. The catchment arc then applied a powerful magnetic field which charged the magsol and drained the subject's life energy, causing grievous pain to the subject and eventually killing him or her.
The Ssi-ruuk used the captured life energy to power Ssi-ruuvi ion paddle beamers, battle droids and other technological devices.
Because of the misery of their occupants, entechment rigs were surrounded by slight concentrations of the dark side of the Force.
A Ssi-ruuvi entechment rig
The Ssi-ruuk developed this technology for use on a slave species known as P'w'ecks. When the Ssi-ruuk came into contact with the galaxy, they discovered that Humans were a far more powerful source of energy than the P'w'eck. However, an echo of the Human's memory accompanied the electricity into the catchment arc. This echo perceived itself as alive and often suffered from psychosis caused by the entechment process, thus reducing the life energy's sustainable period to a few days.
The Ssi-ruuk claimed that the entechment process was painless, although subjects always screamed as if in severe agony when hooked up to the entechment rigs. The Ssi-ruuk employed the Force-sensitive Human Dev Sibwarra to calm those being enteched, although they told even him that it was a painless process, even promising that he would someday be "allowed" to be enteched. This helped in the entechment process, since the life energies did not degenerate too rapidly.
During the Invasion of Bakura in 4 ABY, Dev sensed the arrival of Luke Skywalker through the Force and surmised that his Jedi powers would allow him to entech subjects from far away. After the Ssi-ruuk agreed with the project, they arranged for a special reclining entechment bed to be built. This was equipped with locking arms, leg bands and twin tubes which would pump both magsol and nutrients into the individual's bloodsteam, pacifying his nervous system for the bed's catchment circuits.
This nutrient flow allowed the Ssi-ruuk to leave the subject on the entechment bed for several days. The upper spine beamer could also numb the person from thirty-five minutes to two hours to counter resistance. The reptilian aliens also developed a mind-control drug that would force a Jedi against their will to entech subjects in a process that was excruciatingly painful for both the captive Jedi and the entechment subjects.
This bed was first tested on Dev, who enteched a subject a few meters away from him. The Ssi-ruuk believed that Luke Skywalker's Jedi powers would allow him to entech subjects even thousands of kilometers away. They managed to capture him and attempted to prepare for their project. However, Dev overcame his indoctrination and then freed Skywalker. They then defeated the Ssi-ruuk on the ship Shriwirr and forced them to flee.
- The Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology
- The Official Star Wars Fact File51
- The New Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology