During the Galactic War between the Galactic Republic and the reconstituted Sith Empire, Deena Riss was a female human operative within the Republic Strategic Information Service, dedicated to hunting down the infamous spymaster, the Shroud. Discovering the Shroud's plans for a major operation, Riss enlisted a Republic agent, equipping them with the Shroud's own EV2 discreet reconnaissance macrobinoculars to locate Shroud agents and relay points across the galaxy.
Information gleaned from the Shroud's facilities on Coruscant, Quesh and Belsavis ultimately exposed the Shroud's plot to deploy a hyperspace beacon in Galactic City. This beacon was intended to guide a dreadnaught past planetary defenses, causing it to crash into Coruscant. The Republic agent subsequently tracked the Shroud to his base on Nar Shaddaa, eliminating him and disabling the beacon, which diverted the dreadnaught into Coruscant Prime. Furthermore, encrypted data was recovered from the Shroud's databanks by the agent.
Upon the agent's return to Riss's office, they discovered a Shroud replicator droid had attached an explosive collar to Riss's neck, set to detonate upon approach. The droid then assumed the Shroud's form, revealing that he had used a decoy in his place. The Shroud stated his decoy had obtained unauthorized information, and demanded the agent erase it from Riss's console in exchange for her life.
The agent chose to prioritize Riss's survival, complying with the Shroud's conditions. Keeping his word, the Shroud released Riss, said goodbye to the agent, and destroyed the replicator droid. Initially frustrated by the Shroud's escape, Riss ultimately rationalized that the agent's actions were beneficial, preventing the attack on Coruscant.
Deena Riss made her debut in Star Wars: The Old Republic: Rise of the Hutt Cartel, an expansion released in 2013 for the 2011 massively-multiplayer online roleplaying video game Star Wars: The Old Republic. Her character is featured in "The Shroud" questline.
The conclusion of "The Shroud Revealed" quest presents two possible outcomes for Deena Riss. Choosing the light side path and returning the data results in the Shroud honoring his agreement and freeing Riss. Conversely, selecting the dark side path and uploading the data to SIS servers leads to the Shroud murdering Riss in a fit of rage.
Republic-aligned players, regardless of gender, have the option to flirt with Deena Riss during the initial conversations of "The Shroud's Gambit" quest. Riss declines the advances, citing the urgency of the Shroud situation as "far more important."
If Riss is saved at the questline's conclusion, players can attempt to flirt with her again, suggesting a celebration "at a cantina or somewhere more private." While Riss acknowledges the appeal, she declines due to her obligations with briefings and report filings. After this point, no further interactions with Riss are possible, and romantic options are unavailable.