The devastating Death Seed affliction was a malady brought on by parasitic drochs, resulting in tissue decay and, ultimately, death.
Drochs, capable of draining the life force from their hosts, were responsible for the Death Seed. Upon attachment, the droch would infiltrate its host, replicating the host's electrochemical signals and tissue makeup. This allowed it to evade detection by essentially integrating into the host while simultaneously siphoning their life energy. With each host killed, drochs would mature and gain intelligence. Larger drochs could then absorb life from smaller ones, negating the need for direct host interaction.
Afflicted individuals would initially exhibit no noticeable symptoms—no signs of a virus, bacteria, poison, or allergy—only the swift deterioration of the skin as the disease progressed. The ability of drochs to remain undetected within a host meant the underlying cause remained a mystery. Bacta treatments only hastened the disease's progression, as the healing properties provided a fresh energy source for the droch. Victims could succumb to the disease within just thirty minutes of the first symptoms appearing.
A Death Seed outbreak transpired in 700 BBY, proving to be nearly unstoppable. When it manifested on a spaceship, the entire crew was doomed due to the disease's rapid spread, leaving no means of escape. While specifics of the pandemic are scarce, it is known that vast segments of the population on numerous worlds perished before the plague subsided on its own. Supreme Chancellor Anwis Eddicus played a role in bringing the outbreak to an end. The final death count was estimated to be in the billions.
In 702 BBY, the Grissmath Dynasty established a penal colony on Nam Chorios within the Meridian sector, intentionally introducing drochs to the world with the intent of eradicating the prisoners via a Death Seed outbreak. However, sunlight refracted through the sentient Spook crystals present on Nam Chorios weakened the drochs' electrochemical bonds. The light killed smaller drochs outright, while larger ones were rendered incapable of harming their hosts, being harmlessly absorbed into the bloodstream. As a result, a plague never materialized, and drochs could only thrive in darkness.
In 1 ABY, the Imperial Department for Epidemic Prevention discovered that some wild animals might be carrying droch eggs. All of these creatures were eliminated to avert a potential new epidemic.
In 13 ABY, Seti Ashgad, collaborating with a genetically modified droch named Dzym, initiated a second pandemic with the aim of weakening New Republic forces and enabling Moff Getelles to seize control of the Meridian sector. Dzym possessed the ability to control other drochs, allowing him to orchestrate the plague by both infecting and curing individuals.
Because the plague required living tissue for transmission, infected synthdroids supplied by Loronar Corporation were utilized to transport the disease from Nam Chorios and commence the infection of personnel at New Republic facilities. Ashgad assured his co-conspirators that only New Republic personnel would be affected and convinced them that the plague was unrelated to the Death Seed of centuries past. When Dzym gave the command, the plague erupted simultaneously across the sector.
Leia Organa Solo was en route to a diplomatic mission when Ashgad took her hostage after the entire crew of her ship succumbed to the Death Seed plague. Ashgad then took the infected Leia hostage and forced her ship to jump blindly into hyperspace. She was later cured of the disease by Dzym, potentially making her the first known individual to recover from the Death Seed.
The plague rapidly spread through New Republic bases, ultimately affecting three-quarters of the sector. Among the affected locations were the base on Nim Drovis, the orbital base at Durren, the majority of the population of Cybloc XII, and the entirety of the crews of the New Republic ships Borealis(borealis_(cruiser)) and Adamantine. All attempts to contain the plague proved ineffective.
The plague was eventually brought to an end when Luke Skywalker convinced the Spook crystals to be transported to other worlds to aid in curing the infected. Dzym and Ashgad were killed while attempting to flee Nam Chorios.