Heartwood

Heartwood was a type of wood that came from heartwood trees, native to the [Colonies] (/article/colonies) planet of Tholoth. Tholothian Jedi commonly constructed their lightsaber handles using timber harvested from living heartwood trees. To prevent decay and accommodate the lightsaber components, the wood underwent a special preservation ritual that involved adding resins, which increased its weight; this was typically done when a heartwood tree was nearing its end. Because of the increased weight of the wood, lightsaber wielders needed to exercise greater caution when using their weapon.

Near the end of the Clone Wars in 22 BBY, during its final days, the Tholothians began incorporating heartwood into the new Heartwood blaster as a solution to the difficulty of importing necessary war supplies. The wooden frame of the blaster was designed to evoke the Tholothian seedpod tradition and to remind the Tholothian community of their home. After the Galactic Empire imposed a blockade on Tholoth and seized control of its weapons factories, the remaining traditional Tholothian weaponsmiths, who were the only ones capable of producing weapons, turned to their cultural heritage and created the Timber Cuirass, a type of armor crafted from living heartwood. The armor was shaped and refined while it was still growing as part of a living heartwood tree, making the final product stronger than durasteel but significantly lighter.