HURID-327, a loadlifter droid, served as both groundskeeper and luggage carrier at Pirate Queen Maz Kanata's castle situated on the planet Takodana. Despite being somewhat lazy, he possessed a cheerful disposition and diligently maintained the castle grounds, ensuring they were free of undergrowth. In the year 382 BBY, this droid witnessed a dispute within the castle walls, involving a heated exchange between lawman Raf Thatchburn and Alak, an employee of Kanata, which Kanata herself intervened to resolve.
Following the arrival of the Aloxian infant Qort at Kanata's doorstep, HURID-327 attempted to soothe the child. However, the infant responded by tearing off the droid's arm and using it to repeatedly strike the droid. After a vonduun crab skull had a calming effect on Qort's aggressive behavior, HURID-327 was amusing the infant inside the castle when Qort began to exhibit powers of the Force, ultimately leading to Qort's induction into the Jedi Order. In 34 ABY, HURID-327 encountered the humans Han Solo, Rey, Finn, and the astromech droid BB-8 as the groundskeeper was heading away from the castle toward its starship. Shortly thereafter, the First Order destroyed the castle.
HURID-327, sometimes called simply HURID, was a loadlifter droid in the service of Pirate Queen Maz Kanata. He was tasked with the dual roles of groundskeeping and luggage handling at her castle on the planet Takodana, which also served as his permanent residence. His responsibilities included maintaining the area around the castle, ensuring paths were free of unwanted undergrowth, and managing heavy luggage for certain guests. The loadlifter also aided in enforcing Kanata's rules and tending to the needs of her visitors.
During the High Republic Era, specifically in 382 BBY, HURID-327 was among those in the castle's common room who witnessed a dispute between lawman Raf Thatchburn and Alak, an employee of Kanata. The argument escalated when Savina Malagán, a Jedi Padawan, used the Force to throw a cup at Thatchburn, who wrongly assumed Alak was responsible. Kanata intervened to stop the fight. Subsequently, she noticed Dexter Jettster, a prospector, and embraced him, expressing that had she known of his arrival, she would have had HURID-327 prepare a tray of his favorite treats.
Sometime before 231 BBY, years earlier, the Aloxian infant Qort was left at the castle's entrance with a warning about his dangerous nature. Kanata took in the crying infant, placing him in his delivery box on a table. She then asked HURID-327 to try and calm the baby while she went to get milk from the pantry. HURID-327 protested that he was already unsuccessfully attempting to soothe Qort, but as soon as Kanata left the room, the infant jumped from the box onto the loadlifter's left arm and broke it off.
The now mobile baby then used HURID-327's severed arm to beat the groundskeeper, reducing him to a pile of still-active parts before fleeing to the castle's basement. Upon returning, Kanata found the damaged HURID-327, who told her where Qort had gone. Kanata discovered the infant wearing the skull of a vonduun crab, which calmed him. After finding the mask, Qort stopped causing destruction, but sometime later, as HURID-327 tickled the infant on a table in the castle, the young Aloxian began using the Force to lift small animals around the room, alerting Kanata to the fact that he was Force-sensitive. Kanata then contacted Malagán about the infant, and Qort left the castle to join the Jedi Order.
Centuries later, in 34 ABY, HURID-327 was still in Kanata's employ at the castle. As he was leaving the castle to head to his ship, the loadlifter passed a group consisting of the humans Han Solo, [Rey](/article/rey_skywalker], and Finn, along with the astromech droid BB-8, who were entering the castle in search of Kanata. Shortly after the group's arrival, the First Order arrived on Takodana and attacked the castle while searching for BB-8. The structure was destroyed, but Kanata, the group, and various patrons survived the incident.
After the castle's destruction, the B1-series battle droid R0-GR wrote about HURID-327 in the book he compiled, "droidography," claiming that a single glance at HURID-327 often caused potential visitors to Kanata's castle to turn around and go home. An image and mention of HURID-327 was also included in an artist's journal, which was restored, expanded, and displayed by the Graf Archive sometime after 34 ABY.
HURID-327 was a simple, older model of loadlifter with red plating. He could only communicate via a binary acoustic signaller, but this did not stop the droid from speaking Galactic Basic. He was an oddly jovial droid, with a gentle sense of humor, but was known to be a little lazy.
HURID-327's tall stature required repulsor supports that generated a counterweight, and the loadlifter had a repulsor anchor disc mounted on each shoulder. These counterbalances ensured that there was the same weight on both sides of HURID-327's body even when an item he was carrying shifted in transit, which helped the droid luggage porter stay upright when carrying off-balance items. HURID-327's body core was also gyrostablized, as suggested by the high position of its main receptors, which were red in color.
HURID-327 had reinforced articulation with two weight-distributing legs and two arms with cargo support joints at the elbows. Each of his strong, prehensile hands had three heavy-duty, jointed industrial manipulators fingers and a equally chunky thumb, meaning he rarely lost his grip.
HURID-327 was created for the sequel trilogy film Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens, released on December 18, 2015. The droid was first seen in a trailer for Episode VII on October 19, 2015, prior to the film's release. Luke Fisher, a senior sculptor, created concept art of the character titled "Castle Droid H027" on November 26, 2013.
Neal Scanlan, the creature creative supervisor, suggested using a stilt-walker inside the HURID-327 costume. Despite Fisher's initial skepticism, Katy Coleman, a circus performer known as "Katy Cartwheel," was chosen for the role. The fabricators and mechanical department then built the costume around her to ensure comfort, visibility, and sufficient time for a good performance. During production, the character was called "Big Red." His in-universe identification as HURID-327 was first given in Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary, a reference book by Pablo Hidalgo released on the same day as the film.