Nil Spaar

During the Galactic Empire's rule under Palpatine, they invaded the Koornacht Cluster, seizing control of the planet N'zoth after intense combat. The Yevetha were enslaved by the Imperials, who based the Black Fleet's naval forces and associated facilities, collectively known as the Black Sword Command, within the cluster, including several shipyards. However, many Yevetha used their enslavement as an opportunity to learn extensively about shipbuilding. After the Imperials had been in control for several years, they began planning a rebellion, with male Nil Spaar of the Spaar clan as one of its key figures. During his involvement, he stopped minor acts of sabotage, instead encouraging the Yevetha to gain the Empire's trust so they could later betray them. Eventually, after the Yevetha had almost complete control of the shipyards, Spaar saw his chance. Eight months after the Battle of Endor, where Palpatine died and the Empire began to decline, the Yevetha seized the moment. The Imperial fleet at the shipyards was understaffed and poorly defended, with many ships incomplete or damaged, creating an ideal opportunity for a surprise uprising. Imperial forces were being withdrawn from the Koornacht Cluster to help defend the Core Worlds, and security was relaxed, so much so that Spaar was aware of the circumstances, procedure, and schedule of the supposedly sudden Imperial departure.

As the Black Fleet prepared to leave the N'zoth system and the Yevetha to assist Ysanne Isard, the Director of Imperial Intelligence and de facto Emperor, in defending the Imperial capital of Coruscant, Imperial commander Jian Paret ordered an evacuation, removing all Yevetha from the Imperial ships and facilities. He considered the aliens despicable and was happy to leave the Koornacht Cluster. Paret kept this a secret from the Yevetha, knowing they would interfere if they learned of the Imperials' plan to leave. Instead, Paret hoped that keeping the departure secret would allow a smooth withdrawal for the Imperials on the surface and give him time to destroy the shipyards and abandoned ships so they would not fall into enemy hands. However, Spaar knew about this, and his engineers had modified the sensors on the Executor-class Star Dreadnought Intimidator, the fleet's flagship, so some hatches would appear closed when they were not. A Yevethan task force under Spaar then invaded the ship through the rigged hatches and advanced toward the bridge with cold efficiency, killing or capturing any Imperials they encountered. Spaar had several other contingency plans in place, including a series of bombs that would destroy the Intimidator if it activated its shields.

Spaar's team easily reached the bridge and seized control of the ship, catching Paret and his men completely by surprise. As Imperial troops rose from the surface of N'zoth in transports, following Imperial orders to withdraw completely from the system, Spaar ordered the batteries on the Intimidator to destroy them. The Yevethan commandos complied, horrifying Paret, whom Spaar then executed.

The Yevetha repeated their operation across the Black Fleet and took command of the entire armada. They renamed the Intimidator, the largest captured ship, the Pride of Yevetha. More importantly, they brought the Koornacht Cluster fully under Yevethan control. Spaar's actions made him very popular, and soon after, he killed Viceroy Kiv Truun of the Duskhan League, becoming viceroy himself. Spaar became known as the darama, the chosen one of the Yevetha. As viceroy, his rule over the Duskhan League of all Yevethan worlds was absolute.

Some time after the Yevetha took control of the Imperial vessels, Spaar toured the outer regions of the Koornacht Cluster in the Beauty, a captured Imperial CR90 corvette. The trip was enlightening to Spaar, who realized how close outsiders were to Yevethan settlements, as well as the extent of galactic development near the Koornacht Cluster.

Thirteen years later, Spaar initiated discussions with the New Republic by sending a Yevethan delegation to Coruscant, which was actually a deception to create distrust of Chief of State Leia Organa Solo in the New Republic Senate and gather intelligence on the New Republic. Spaar's arrival was well-publicized among New Republic diplomatic circles, and he deliberately created a ten-day delay between his landing and his first meeting with Organa Solo to explore the New Republic's capital. When the meetings with Organa Solo started, Spaar's appearance and behavior were carefully planned, and he was friendly and cordial towards Organa Solo, as part of his plan. Entering into private talks with her in the administrative complex of Imperial City, Spaar declined membership into the New Republic, instead suggesting a type of alliance, despite Organa Solo's efforts to convince him of the benefits of full membership. He used stories of Imperial brutality against the Yevetha to justify their caution and desire for independence.

During a lunch break in their first meeting, Spaar returned to his ship, the Aramadia, where he removed all traces of the New Republic world from his body and ensured that a recording of his conversation with Organa Solo was secured. Unlike Organa Solo, who kept her word to keep the meetings private, the deceitful Spaar was already breaking the conditions of his conferences with the Chief of State. Consulting with his aides, Spaar felt that the dialogue with the "vermin" was progressing well and extended the meetings for a month, deliberately failing to reach any agreement or alliance with Organa Solo. His negotiations with Organa Solo revealed much about the New Republic, and he was surprised to find that dissent towards leaders was tolerated. The free will and lack of unity among New Republic members contrasted sharply with Spaar's absolute authority over the Yevetha, and he saw the discord as a weakness to exploit.

On Coruscant, the New Republic was facing difficulties. They had recently discovered a complete Imperial Order of battle, which contained a list of Star Destroyers assigned to different systems. Although the New Republic could account for most of the ships, they did not know the location of one fleet—the Black Fleet, which the Yevetha had secretly seized when they overthrew their Imperial rulers. Concerned that the ships might be in the Koornacht Cluster, where New Republic patrol ships could not go, Admiral Gial Ackbar brought this to Organa Solo's attention. She reluctantly agreed to ask Nil Spaar about the missing ships. When Organa Solo questioned him in their next meeting about the status of Imperial ships and shipyards once located in Koornacht, Spaar told her a story of Yevethan slavery to Imperial rule under the shipyards, which was partially true; Spaar falsely agreed to consult his historians about the fate of the ships on the list she gave him. At their next session, Spaar told her that all of the warships had been destroyed or withdrawn—a complete lie—but also gave her the names of the 6,405 Yevetha who had died on the day the Empire withdrew to add emotional weight to the information. Upon returning to his ship, he instructed his aides to prepare for the Yevethan takeover of the Koornacht Cluster, realizing that the New Republic's knowledge of the Black Fleet's existence meant he had to accelerate his plans.

Growing tired of his meetings with Organa Solo and feeling that his negotiations were over, Spaar finally canceled their sessions for three days straight while spending time at a diplomatic hostel and receiving Senators Tig Peramis, Cian Marook, and Hodidiji aboard the Aramadia, much to the dismay of the New Republic government. Knowing that he could use the Senators' discontent with their leadership to his advantage, he made arrangements with them to carry out instructions from him. With his last preparations on Coruscant complete, Spaar ordered the Aramadia to suddenly lift off from Eastport, causing numerous casualties on the ground. The ship then hovered inside the planetary shield barrier for several hours, shadowed by the New Republic warship Brilliant.

During a session of the New Republic Senate, Spaar's accomplice, Senator Tig Peramis, was granted permission by chairman Behn-kihl-nahm to display a broadcast from the Aramadia to the Senate and from there across the New Republic. The chairman, a strong supporter of Organa Solo, was unprepared for this; the original claim to the floor had been made by another Senator sympathetic to Spaar, Hodidiji, who then ceded his time to Peramis, allowing Peramis to display Spaar's transmission. In this speech, Spaar planned to exploit the public's mistrust of their central government to not only effect his escape but also weaken Organa Solo's position. By this point, Spaar was confident in his knowledge of the New Republic's weaknesses, particularly what he saw as their ineffective and disunited form of government. He had successfully drawn out the negotiations with Organa Solo for weeks and was now ready to sow dissent in the Senate—dissent that was unheard of among the Yevetha.

Spaar began his address by apologizing for his evacuation and the casualties it caused, but justified the action by saying that he sought to avoid a confrontation. He also claimed that Organa Solo planned to attack his ship and that the New Republic intended to seize control of the Koornacht Cluster, and had already sent spies into the area. To support his claim, he showed a piece of wreckage from a ship that bore the New Republic insignia. This wreckage came from a scout ship, not a threatening spy ship as Spaar claimed, although almost no one in the New Republic knew this. The scout ship was part of a survey team sent to the system to explore the area under the order of Kiles L'toth, director of the Astrographic Survey Institute. L'toth had sent the team at the request of his friend Etahn A'baht, commander of the Fifth Fleet, who had received the order from Hiram Drayson, leader of the top-secret intelligence unit Alpha Blue. A'baht's fleet had been surveying the space near the Koornacht Cluster, but his orders prohibited him from sending New Republic assets into Yevethan territory.

Spaar insisted that all the Yevetha wanted was to return to their homeworld. Faced with the public relations disaster, Organa Solo relented, lowering the planetary shields and allowing the Aramadia to leave Coruscant. Furthermore, the fallout from the alleged spy ship incident caused Organa Solo to immediately recall the Fifth Fleet, ensuring that no New Republic warships were near the Koornacht Cluster.

Once the Republic was paralyzed by political infighting, Spaar ordered the Yevetha to begin the purge of the Koornacht Cluster, killing or enslaving most remaining non-Yevethans in the Cluster. Spaar personally directed several bombardments from his flagship, the Pride of Yevetha, accompanied by his darna, breeding mates, and loyal second, Dar Bille. Spaar also had informants on Coruscant, including Belezaboth Ourn, a consul for the Paqwepori, who informed him of the Fifth Fleet's redeployment to Koornacht after the New Republic learned of the Yevethan Purge. Organa Solo had decided that no other worlds would fall to the Yevetha unchallenged, and the Fifth had been sent as a strong show of force. Ourn provided Spaar with information about the divided state of the New Republic Senate. Spaar's thrustship had damaged the Paqwepori's diplomatic vessel, the Mother's Valkyrie, and Spaar had promised Ourn a new ship in exchange for his information. Meanwhile, Spaar's counterparts in the New Republic, such as Admiral Ackbar and Hiram Drayson, had only a few scattered reports to work with.

To create even more division in the New Republic's public opinion of their leadership, Spaar and his agents hijacked the official holofeed of Channel 1, allowing him to address the entire New Republic at once. Spaar told the citizens that the Yevetha had been attacked and even claimed that attacks on all non-Yevetha in the cluster, which had killed millions, had been orchestrated by the New Republic against the Duskhan League. In reality, the Yevetha, who considered all other species as vermin, had begun eliminating all others in the Koornacht Cluster. Only one being escaped the purge: a Grannan from Polneye named Plat Mallar. Mallar, a pilot-in-training, managed to fly a TIE/In interceptor away from Polneye as the Yevetha raided the planet's supply of droids and equipment for their own purposes. A New Republic patrol ship encountered his fighter near the edge of the Koornacht Cluster and took him to Coruscant, where Mallar informed the New Republic of the purge.

Many believed Spaar, and the New Republic Senate was divided as a result. Organa Solo, who knew Spaar's allegations were false and that the Yevetha were aiming for dominance of Koornacht, faced immense pressure. She blamed herself for speaking with Spaar for so long without recognizing his true intentions.

Following the purge, Spaar and the Aramadia returned home. Thousands of adoring Yevetha greeted Spaar, now viewing him as a god. Once on N'zoth, Spaar traveled to Giat Nor, the planet's capital city. As the ruler and hero of the Yevetha, he was free to choose anyone as a mate. In addition to his darna, he chose fifteen females to be his mates and accepted the blood sacrifice of several nitakka, who willingly gave their lives for the viceroy.

Following the failure of the previous mission, the Fifth Fleet was sent deeper into the Koornacht Cluster, a step up from their previous role as peacekeepers. Organa Solo issued an ultimatum to the Yevetha, giving them three days to surrender or risk war. The Yevetha ignored her order, and she instructed General A'baht to prepare the fleet to engage the Yevetha. Spaar's spy, Ourn, kept him informed of these details, but Spaar told the Paqwepori consul that the impending threat of war prevented him from sending a replacement ship, much to Ourn's dismay.

Inside Koornacht, the Fifth Fleet was suddenly attacked by several Star Destroyers and thrustships at the planet Doornik-319. The New Republic fleet, caught off guard and hesitant to engage ships carrying hostages, suffered a defeat. During the battle, a reconnaissance X-wing pilot destroyed himself and his ship near a Yevethan corvette after they tried to capture him, destroying the Yevethan ship. Angered, Spaar sent the officer in charge home in disgrace, refusing to taint himself with the blood of someone he considered incompetent.

After this, Organa Solo decided to send her husband, Han Solo, into the Koornacht Cluster, piloting a spy shuttle to the Fifth fleet. However, the Yevetha were ready for this move. Tig Peramis, feeling that Organa Solo had overstepped her authority, had learned of her plan. Peramis feared Organa Solo was seeking absolute power and secretly contacted Spaar, informing him of Solo's shuttle's location. The Yevetha used their captured interdictor, Imperator, to pull his shuttle out of hyperspace. Escorted by only a few fighters, the shuttle was easily captured.

Solo was brought before Spaar, interrogated, and then beaten by the darama. As advised by Tal Fraan, he sent Organa Solo a message informing her that her husband was a captive of the Yevetha and would die if she did not call off the Fifth Fleet. Organa Solo was already under pressure from the Ministry Council. Some members, such as Borsk Fey'lya, called for her to step down, believing she would be influenced by the Yevetha's ultimatum and make a decision that would harm the New Republic. The Council eventually passed a Vote of No Confidence, an event that further divided the government and even threatened the survival of the New Republic.

After being imprisoned for days, Solo and fellow hostage Barth were brought before Spaar again, who showed Solo the Yevethan fleet—dozens of thrustships in addition to the Star Destroyers from Black Sword Command. Spaar gave Solo a choice: tell his wife to call off the New Republic fleet and leave the Yevetha alone in control of the Koornacht, or suffer the pain of war. Spaar warned Solo that the Yevetha were not like other species; they did not surrender until they were completely crushed. Solo boldly told the Yevethan leader that the New Republic would fight to prevent the Yevetha from keeping the worlds they had taken. Angered, Spaar killed Barth before Solo's eyes. Later, after the Battle of ILC-905 destroyed a Yevethan shipyard and several thrustships, Spaar personally beat Solo in a recorded transmission to the New Republic, tersely demanding that they leave Koornacht immediately.

Organa Solo, faced with a difficult decision, chose not to order a surrender or withdrawal. Solo would later be freed by a group of Wookiees led by Chewbacca, who boarded the Pride of Yevetha and made their way to the cells. The Wookiees accepted the aid of a Fallanassi prisoner on board, who used her illusions to mask the group. Spaar's breederies were damaged in the escape, infuriating the darama. Spaar was even more angered when he learned that Organa Solo had chosen to fight.

The New Republic geared up for a crucial battle, dispatching the Fifth Fleet to engage the Yevethan armada. Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker, who had been absent throughout the entire war, searching alongside a Force-sensitive individual named Akanah for his mother, dramatically returned, accompanied by the Fallanassi Force Adepts. These Fallanassi aided the New Republic by employing their Force powers to generate illusions of New Republic warships battling the Yevetha during the Yevetha conflict. The Yevetha eventually broke through the deception when a key Fallanassi, Wialu, the architect of the illusions, buckled under pressure, causing the mirages to dissipate. The combat persisted fiercely until the Yevetha were struck by an unexpected assault.

The surviving Imperial slaves, who had been secretly plotting a revolt for a decade, initiated their plan, seizing control of the Black Sword Command vessels. The Yevetha were completely surprised, and the Imperials successfully commandeered the ships, mirroring the Yevetha's actions from thirteen years prior. Following this, the Imperials announced their departure to the New Republic, setting course for Byss in the Deep Core. Sil Sorannan, the highest-ranking surviving officer, forced Spaar into an escape pod and launched him from the Intimidator while still traveling at hyperspeed. Because the escape pod lacked a hyperdrive, Nil Spaar was marooned in hyperspace, unable to revert to realspace, essentially left to perish. The Yevetha fleet continued the fight, but without Spaar and the Black Fleet, they couldn't overcome the New Republic's forces.

Nil Spaar's campaign of ethnic cleansing in the Koornacht Cluster, coupled with his subsequent defeat by the New Republic, left the Yevetha demoralized, disarmed, and filled with resentment for many years. The Viceroy's palace remained untouched, exactly as Nil Spaar had left it, with many Yevetha clinging to the hope of their leader's return. However, New Republic oversight prevented them from rebuilding their fleet. When the extra-galactic Yuuzhan Vong invaded, the Yevetha were thrust into a war against an enemy whose xenophobia mirrored their own. However, the Yevetha largely lacked significant military power, and their homeworld of N'zoth fell within hours. Most Yevetha were exterminated during the conflict.

Like all members of his species, Nil Spaar possessed extreme arrogance, firmly believing in the Yevetha's superiority over all other races. He regarded all non-Yevetha as pests deserving of extermination. His intense hatred and bloodlust were evident when he ordered the Great Purge. Spaar demanded absolute obedience from his followers and frequently tested their loyalty. He often executed subordinates who failed in battle or showed signs of wavering loyalty, a common practice among the Yevetha. As the viceroy, he held the power of life and death over any Yevetha who dared to question him. Consequently, he couldn't comprehend why the New Republic allowed senators and the media to question their leader, Leia Organa Solo, whom he deemed weak and believed would crumble under pressure.

As the viceroy of the Duskhan League, Spaar commanded immense personal and political authority over the Yevetha. Their culture mandated that every eligible young male nitakka offer his life to feed Spaar's children, and every Yevethan female with a mara-nas, or birthing cask, offer herself as his broodmate. Throughout his reign as viceroy, Spaar accepted the ritual offerings of numerous males and females, amassing a substantial harem. However, he held genuine affection for his darna (first mate), Kei, honoring her and the loss of her birthing cask to the gray death by maintaining an empty space in his breeding alcove.

Spaar was adept at public speaking and diplomacy, capable of deceiving even seasoned diplomats like Organa Solo. His skill in manipulation and maintaining a favorable public image greatly contributed to his rise to viceroy and the admiration he received from the Yevethan population. However, towards those he considered inferior, Spaar was cold, if not openly hostile. When necessary, he could mask his ruthlessness and appear affable, even as he plotted the annihilation of all other inhabitants of the Koornacht Cluster.

Nil Spaar was initially conceived by author Michael P. Kube-McDowell as the central antagonist in The Black Fleet Crisis. Spaar has also been featured in various reference materials that discuss the events of the Black Fleet Crisis, including The New Essential Chronology, Cracken's Threat Dossier, and The New Essential Guide to Characters.

In The New Essential Guide to Characters, Spaar is depicted holding an eyeball in one hand. Fans questioned this image, and author Daniel Wallace clarified that artist Michael Sutfin didn't base it on any specific event from the novel but included the eyeball as a suitably disturbing element for Spaar's character.