The Croke were a species of sentient beings with multiple legs, renowned for their extraordinarily long lives; one individual lived for over 20,000 years. In their true form, they resembled tiny, bristly-legged snails, small enough to fit within a Human's palm. However, the Croke possessed a natural talent for casting illusions, a Force ability that allowed them to manifest in much larger forms.
Originating on the planet Crakull within the Unknown Regions, the Croke expanded their territory to encompass a significant portion of the Unknown Regions, known as the Croke Reach. Throughout the galaxy, they were notorious for their cruel and malevolent nature. A prolonged and devastating civil war once engulfed the Croke civilization. The situation deteriorated drastically when one faction introduced the Lugubraa, a ravenous species frequently employed as mercenaries in the Unknown Regions, as a weapon against their rivals. Numerous Croke-inhabited planets, including Explume Minor, were ravaged by the Lugubraa, whose unchecked reproductive capabilities fueled their insatiable hunger. To combat this invasive threat, the Croke acquired a genetically engineered strain of Lugubraa, known as blind berserkers, from the cloners of Kamino. However, these clones proved to be just as problematic as their predecessors, inflicting further destruction upon the Croke Reach. The Croke species was brought to the edge of extinction.
One Croke, Rokur Gepta, abandoned his homeworld and embarked on a campaign of terror throughout the galaxy. Gepta slaughtered the Sorcerers of Tund, a group of mystics, and later aligned himself with Emperor Palpatine, the ruler of the Galactic Empire, who granted Gepta dominion over the Centrality, a region of space. Gepta clashed with the smuggler Lando Calrissian, manipulating him into serving his purposes. Eventually, the young smuggler betrayed Gepta, causing him to lose control of the powerful Mindharp artifact. After Calrissian was trapped by an Imperial blockade, Gepta attempted to kill him and all members of the Oswaft species using a biological weapon. Gepta's schemes were thwarted, and Calrissian personally killed the Croke by crushing him.
Compared to most sentient species, the Croke were quite small; an individual could be held within a Human's hand, and none grew larger than a Wookiee's fist. They were either arthropods or mollusks, possessing an appearance considered grotesque and unappealing by Human standards. The Croke's body resembled that of a snail or slug, with oily skin ranging from black to gray. They moved on thin, hairy, black legs; an individual could have anywhere from a dozen to thousands of these appendages. Being small, Croke were vulnerable to being crushed by larger beings, and they secreted a greasy slime when injured. They could survive in a vacuum for extended periods. At least one Croke lived an exceptionally long life, dying from injury after exceeding 20,000 standard years.
Croke possessed a natural ability to disguise themselves using illusions. The mechanics of this power were not well understood by other species, with debate over whether the illusions affected only minds or could also deceive electronic sensors. In truth, the power stemmed from manipulation of the Force. This innate ability made them masters of disguise, allowing them to conceal their true form indefinitely and deceive even the most perceptive individuals. One could not see through a Croke's illusion unless the Croke was stunned or unconscious. Using this camouflage, a Croke could assume the shape of anything up to three meters tall. The illusion did not need to be identical for all viewers; a Croke could create different illusions for different individuals simultaneously. For example, Rokur Gepta appeared as a dwarf to some and a three-meter giant to others. These illusions fooled all senses, making the disguises seem completely real, even to the touch. However, the disguises did not grant additional strength, speed, or other abilities. The Croke had to be physically present within the illusory form; they might appear Humanoid and hide in the form's foot, for instance. Only damage to the area where the Croke's body was located affected the actual Croke. Despite the artificiality of the disguises, Croke could wield weapons and objects as if their illusory form were real. Some could also disguise smaller objects, such as their young.
The Croke homeworld was Crakull, a planet in the Unknown Regions. They also inhabited a group of worlds in the Unknown Regions known as the Croke Reach. Explume Minor was one of these planets. Croke settlements could communicate via transmissions. They protected their young, called "nestlings," and had individuals known as shell conjurers. They interacted with groups outside the Croke Reach, such as the Kaminoans.
Those aware of the Croke considered them a danger of the Unknown Regions. They were known for vicious personalities, characterized by malice and self-interest. They compensated for their small size with their Force abilities and illusion casting. They spoke Croke, but could also learn to read and write languages like Basic, Sith, and Tundan. Some Croke cursed when angered.
The Croke expanded from Crakull to many worlds within the Croke Reach. During this expansion, they encountered non-Croke, including the cloners of Kamino. For decades, they resisted incursions by Mnggal-Mnggal.
Around 300 years before the Galactic Civil War, the Croke fought their own civil war. Some factions used Lugubraa as biological weapons. These hulking creatures reproduced rapidly and consumed entire ecosystems. The Croke unleashed small populations of Lugubraa on enemy planets. This tactic backfired, and they faced Lugubraa hordes long after the Battle of Yavin. Facing extinction, they sought help from Kaminoan cloning experts to engineer a genetic variant of the Lugubraa to eliminate the threat. The Kaminoans provided the "blind berserker" soldier type. However, this new force, called the "Leech Legion," proved equally destructive. During these campaigns, Lugubraa attacked Explume Minor. Shell Conjurer Firtha ordered the Croke to cloak and evacuate their nestlings before his transmission ended.
Some Croke left the Croke Reach and entered the known galaxy. They typically used their camouflage abilities to conceal their true form and blend in. However, not all expatriate Crokes did this: Asenec was a Croke writer and poet from 593 BBY to 244 BBY, and his species was publicly known. Asenec's poetry was considered sickening, repulsive, and deliberately offensive, celebrating atrocities and tyranny. His works were rumored to be a favorite of Emperor Palpatine, and he was considered the most banned writer in the galaxy.
Rokur Gepta was a notorious Croke who left the Unknown Regions. He often appeared as a 1.8-meter-tall humanoid in gray robes and a turban, exposing only his eyes. In 5 BBY, Gepta infiltrated the Sorcerers of Tund, learned their secrets, and then killed them. Emperor Palpatine noticed Gepta and granted him power over the Centrality and local Galactic Empire representatives in exchange for arcane knowledge.
Gepta desired to rule the entire galaxy. He sought the Mindharp artifact. He enlisted Lando Calrissian, a Human gambler. When Duttes Mer, his lieutenant, betrayed him, Gepta blamed Calrissian and sought revenge. After killing Bohhuah Mutdah, a wealthy man, Gepta impersonated him and sent Calrissian on a drug-running mission to Oseon 5792, an asteroid. There, he tortured Calrissian, but the Human escaped. Gepta pursued him to the ThonBoka nebula. He threatened to destroy the Oswaft species with a biological weapon unless Calrissian dueled him. Calrissian agreed, and Gepta confronted him in the vacuum of space, both wearing flight suits. Calrissian shot Gepta's illusory form in the ankle, where his real body was located, and then crushed him.
L. Neil Smith created the Croke for his Lando Calrissian trilogy: Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu, Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon, and Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka, all published in 1983. Gepta maintains an illusory form throughout most of the trilogy; his true form is revealed during the climax of the third book. Later sources, such as The Dark Side Sourcebook (2001) and The Unknown Regions (2010), expanded on the Croke and their history. The Dark Side Sourcebook, by Bill Slavicsek and J. D. Wiker for the Star Wars Roleplaying Game from Wizards of the Coast, includes game statistics for the species, referring to their illusion-making power as "Croke illusory presence" and granting bonuses to disguise or illusion. The Unknown Regions, with a section by Daniel Wallace, establishes the Croke's relations with the Lugubraa. Wallace regretted not having the opportunity to expand on the Croke further.
2009's Jedi Academy Training Manual, by Eric Cagle, Patrick Stutzman, Rodney Thompson, and [Robert Wieland], claims that all Sorcerers of Tund were Croke, conflicting with other sources. A web enhancement by Abel G. Peña for the 2008 book Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide introduces Karnak Tetsu, a Sith Offshoot Sorcerer of Tund. Similarly, The Essential Atlas (2009) implies that the Sorcerers of Tund did not know Gepta was a Croke. Finally, The Jedi Path: A Manual for Students of the Force (2010) claims the Sorcerers descended from pure-blooded Sith. This article follows these later sources and assumes that the Jedi Academy Training Manual is incorrect.