The Maladians were a cult of highly-skilled humanoid assassins from the Maladi system known to honor all their contracts, as well as being able to wound or kill Jedi Knights. In 52 BBY, the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, along with his aide Sate Pestage, had a female Maladian assassin kill the Chommell sector's Senator Vidar Kim on the galactic capital world of Coruscant. Later that year on Coruscant, around three dozen Maladians were contracted by Gran Senator Pax Teem and other Grans to kill the important Muun Hego Damask, who was secretly both the Sith Lord Darth Plagueis and Palpatine's Sith Master. However, the Maladians failed in the attempt on the Muun's life, after Plagueis managed to hold off the assassins long enough for Palpatine and Pestage to arrive in order to save him. Plagueis was nearly killed by the encounter, and was forced to wear a respirator for the rest of his life following the event.
By 52 BBY, the Maladian group had been founded and its members had become well known for their capabilities as assassins. That year, in an attempt to become the Senator representing the planet Naboo and the rest of the Chommell sector, Palpatine, who was secretly the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, hired the Maladians through his aide Sate Pestage to kill the Chommell sector's current Senator, Vidar Kim, on the galactic capital of Coruscant. For the assassination, Pestage did business with a Maladian commander, and later warned the female Maladian assassin chosen for the mission about Jedi Knight Ronhar Kim, the Naboo Senator's son. Instructed to make the assassination public, the female Maladian opened fire with a blaster on the Air taxi carrying Kim and the Jedi while it was on route to Coruscant's Mezzileen Spaceport, in full view of the security holocameras. The blaster fire killed Kim instantly, though the Senator's son was not hit and leapt from the vehicle to the Maladian's speeder, steering the speeder to the ground after forcefuly taking control of the speeder from the Maladian. The Maladian then spiked herself with neurotoxin, committing suicide to prevent the Jedi from forcing information from her. After Kim's death, Palpatine was appointed Senator for the Chommell sector as he was an Ambassador under Kim before the Senator died.
Darth Plagueis defends himself from the Maladians.
Over two months later that year, the Maladians conducted another assignment on Coruscant. A faction of Maladians was hired by Pax Teem, the Gran Senator from the world of Malastare, and other members of the Gran Protectorate to kill the Muun Hego Damask of important InterGalactic Banking Clan allied organization Damask Holdings, who was also covertly Darth Plagueis, the Sith Master of Palpatine. At the Lodge of the Order of the Canted Circle in Coruscant's Fobosi District, the three dozen Maladians hired for this assignment drugged members of the Order of the Canted Circle that were to take part in the initiation of Muun Larsh Hill into the order, and entered the ceremony that Damask was taking part in disguised as the members they had drugged. The Maladians launched their attack as the ceremony began. The Maladian disguised as the high official, after placing a pendant around Hill's neck as part of the ceremony, decapitated the Muun by pulling downward on the pendant, while other disguised Maladians threw multiple decapitator disks at Damask and the others attending the ceremony.
The volley wounded Damask in the neck, while many other Muuns attending were killed. Despite a counterattack from one of Damask's surviving Sun Guards, the Maladians continued to advance, cutting down those remaining standing with vibroblades before Damask unleashed the dark side of the Force. Multiple Maladians fell as they assaulted the Sith Lord, but were close to finishing the Muun off when Palpatine and Pestage arrived to save Damask. Pestage and Palpatine, who had learned of the attack from the Maladian commander Pestage had previously dealt with and Palpatine's sensing of the event, killed the remaining Maladians with a repeating blaster. Damask, despite his serious wounds, survived the encounter with the Maladians.
An organization split into factions, the Maladians were a cult of humanoid assassins that were very highly trained. They were known to always honor their contracts, and were respected for their professionalism. At least some of the Maladians wore armor in battle, had astounding agility, and were skilled with blasters, decapitator discs, and vibroblades. The Maladians were so good at fighting that they could wound or even kill Jedi Knights, and when confronted by the powers of the Muun Sith Lord, did not flee but attacked him instead, almost overwhelming the Muun.
After the Maladian commander that Pestage dealt with was humiliated by the way the Kim affair was dealt with, the Maladian informed Pestage of a Maladian contract that targeted someone allied with Damask Holdings, who turned out to be Damask himself. The Maladians were also prepared to commit suicide to prevent their information falling into the wrong hands, seen when the female Maladian did so after Ronhar Kim captured her.
In flashbacks of the Dark Horse comic book Republic 64, released in 2004, the female of a then yet to be unidentified organization appeared. That organization was first identified as the Maladians in 2012's novel Darth Plagueis, by James Luceno. The Maladians appear in The Essential Reader's Companion, also released in 2012.
- The Essential Reader's Companion