Charis existed as a planet within the system of Charis, situated along the Trition Trade Route. This location placed it in the Kathol sector of the Outer Rim Territories. Functioning as a significant manufacturing hub for the sector, the inhabitants of Charis initiated a rebellion against the local Imperial warlord, Moff Kentor Sarne, and his military units during 4 ABY. Sarne's military attacked the planet, causing widespread destruction to numerous major urban centers and decreasing the planet's population from one billion to 850 million. After Sarne's authority crumbled in the sector due to the New Republic's liberation of the sector's primary world, Kal'Shebbol, in 8 ABY, the people of Charis started preparing for a second uprising to liberate their world.
Charis was a world found in the Charis system along the path of the Trition Trade Route inside the Kathol sector of the Outer Rim Territories. It sat at the intersection of five hyperspace lanes connecting the planet to the Kolatill, Ott, Aaris, Corjain, and Mairne systems. Travel times from Charis were twenty-one standard hours to Kolatill, fourteen hours to Corjain, twelve hours to Mairne, thirteen hours to Gandle Ott, and one standard day and three hours to Aaris III. Charis was viewed as a critical planet within the Kathol sector, with industries focused on both manufacturing and information technology. The Imperial sector Moff, Kentor Sarne, who proclaimed himself a warlord after the passing of Emperor Palpatine during the Battle of Endor, maintained a substantial starship group, called the Charis Fleet, in the planetary system under the leadership of Admiral Pertaal Logris. By 8 ABY, Charis had a population of 850 million people.
As a key world in the Kathol sector, Charis came under Imperial control when the Empire gained control of the Kathol sector. Later, it fell under the control of Imperial warlord Moff Kentor Sarne when he separated the sector from the Empire following the Battle of Endor. By 4 ABY, the planet had approximately one billion inhabitants, until the population mounted a violent insurrection against Sarne's rule. Sarne's response was incredibly harsh; Imperial military units—including the CR90 corvette Renegade—attacked the world, turning many cities into smoking ruins and killing around 150 million individuals.
Following the freeing of Kal'Shebbol by New Republic military forces in 8 ABY, insurgents and sympathizers on Charis began to scheme a second rebellion. However, because of the Imperial counterattack they endured four standard years prior, they needed support and encouragement from the New Republic to put their plan into action.
Charis was detailed in The DarkStryder Campaign, a 1995 sourcebook for Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game by West End Games. Charis was later referenced in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia—in the entry for the Kathol sector—and The Essential Atlas.