Boolan, an Ithorian male, existed during the High Republic Era. In the year 382 BBY, he belonged to the Path of the Open Hand cult, specifically as one of its Littles. He was the offspring of Tragor, a member of the Path. During the Night of Sorrow, The Mother, a leader within the Path, gave Boolan the mission to set up thermal detonators throughout the caves at the Path compound, but Yana Ro and Marda Ro, fellow Path members, intervened.
Eventually, Boolan rose to the rank of Baron and became a notorious Nihil scientist, functioning as the Minister of Advancement under Marchion Ro, the Eye of the Nihil. He commanded the Children of the Storm, Jedi hunters tasked with capturing Force-sensitive individuals for his experiments. Furthermore, he developed an obsession with the Nameless and their connection to the Force.
In the year 382 BBY, Boolan was a member of the Path of the Open Hand cult and was considered one of its Littles. Alongside fellow Littles Tromak and Naddie, he was tasked with delivering sustenance to Ric Farazi, a journalist who had become unwell while visiting the Path compound on the planet Dalna. During their investigation of the Path, Jedi Knight Oliviah Zeveron and Jedi Padawan Matthea Cathley also discovered Farazi. Boolan, Tromak, and Naddie encountered them in Farazi's dwelling, immediately recognizing them as Jedi and therefore, enemies. Boolan blamed them for the rain and Farazi's sickness. When Farazi lost consciousness due to her condition, Boolan and the others alerted the other Path members, claiming that the Jedi had killed her.
Later, during the Night of Sorrow, Elecia Zeveron, known as the Mother and a prominent leader of the Path, instructed Boolan to strategically place thermal detonators throughout the caves of the Path's base of operations. The Mother's intention was to place the blame for the ensuing disaster on the Jedi, allowing her to escape without consequence. However, Yana Ro, a Path member who had grown disillusioned with the cult and the Mother, discovered Boolan and confiscated the detonators. Eventually, Yana's cousin, Marda Ro, found her. Marda believed that Yana was plotting to plant the bombs herself. Marda refused to accept Yana's innocence until Boolan reappeared and Yana threatened him with a blaster, demanding he reveal who had ordered him to place the detonators. Boolan confessed that the Mother had instructed him, along with fellow littles Utalir and Tromak, to do so. Tromak, however, had refused. The Mother had told Boolan that it was the only way to avenge his father's death at the hands of the Jedi. Marda, who had witnessed his father's death, informed Boolan that the Jedi were not responsible and urged him to warn the other Littles to cease planting the bombs. He fled from her, repeatedly chanting, "The Force will be free."
At some point, Boolan became a notorious scientist, engaging in biological and medical experiments that violated the Galactic Republic's regulations, leading to his imprisonment in a prison near Ryloth. Following the Destruction of Starlight Beacon in 230 BBY, Marchion Ro, the Evereni leader of the Nihil pirates, recognized Boolan's name from a list of inmates and visited him in prison. Despite Boolan's mention of encountering other Evereni upsetting Ro, the Eye requested Boolan's assistance in refining and empowering the Nameless, a species that preyed on Force-sensitives and was being used by Ro as a weapon against the Jedi. Boolan eagerly accepted and requested funding, equipment, the prison guards for experimentation, and the title of Baron.
Ro and his aide, senator Ghirra Starros, subsequently established three new Nihil ministries, appointing Boolan as the leader of the Ministry of Advancement. Boolan established the Children of the Storm, composed of captured Force-sensitives whom he experimented on, transforming them into Jedi hunters. His obsession with the Nameless led the Children to capture more Force users for his experiments. He also took on Niv Drendow Apruk, an Umbaran youth, as his protégé, who contributed to Boolan's experiments on the Nameless.
Boolan's first appearance was in the 2023 novel The High Republic: Path of Vengeance, penned by Cavan Scott. The Databank lists Boolan's height as 1.7 meters, while Star Wars: The High Republic Character Encyclopedia indicates a height of 1.96 meters.
The fourth issue of the 2023 comic miniseries Star Wars: The High Republic: Shadows of Starlight—authored by Charles Soule, with illustrations by David Messina and Jethro Morales, and published by Marvel Comics on January 3, 2024—states that Boolan was recruited by the Nihil five months after the fall of Starlight Beacon, which, according to The High Republic Character Encyclopedia and the first issue of Shadows of Starlight, corresponds to 229 BBY. This contradicts flashbacks in the junior novel The High Republic: Escape from Valo—written by Daniel José Older and Alyssa Wong and published on January 30, 2024—which depict Boolan as a member of the Nihil during the attack on Valo. The novel indicates that the attack occurred a year prior to its events. Given that Escape from Valo takes place a year after the destruction of Starlight Beacon in 230 BBY, the attack must have taken place in 230 BBY. The audio drama The High Republic: Tempest Breaker, written by Cavan Scott, later referenced Boolan's recruitment by Ro during Shadows of Starlight 4.