Echani, along with Zavat and the Imperial Combat Exercises, was a martial art taught to all stormtroopers and Imperial officers within the Galactic Empire as a component of their standard training. Adea Rite, the assistant to Admiral Rae Sloane, tried to use her martial arts training on the planet Akiva to overpower the escaped prisoner Wedge Antilles. However, Antilles inadvertently shot her with a blaster during the fight, leading to her defeat. This martial art had the same name as the Echani species. The Elite Praetorian Guards of the First Order received instruction in Echani's unarmed combat techniques, in addition to other martial art styles.
The martial art Echani made its initial appearance in the Star Wars Legends comic book series titled Star Wars: Crimson Empire. This series, penned by Mike Richardson and Randy Stradley, was published between 1997 and 1998. Later, it was brought into canonized status through the novel Aftermath, authored by Chuck Wendig and released in 2015.