The Quesoth were a sapient insect-like race indigenous to the Unknown Regions world Quethold, communicating via the Quesoth Common Speak tongue. Organized into various castes, multiple factions followed the current Quesoth ruling monarch, whether it be the Queen of the Red, White, or [Black](/article/queen_of_the_black], a cycle that shifted unpredictably. The Quesoth Soldiers, who comprehended the Quesoth Soldier Speak language used by their ruler, the Midli caste—who supervised the Workers—and the Circling, a caste comprised of various subgroups including the Queen's advisors and procreators, transported their respective Queens across their designated urban centers: the Red City, the White City, or the Black City.
In a bid for eternal dominion, the incumbent Queen of the Red in 8 ABY forged an alliance with extra-terrestrial military leader Nuso Esva—whose people were called "Storm-hairs" by the Quesoth—and pledged to assist him in his military endeavors against the Empire of the Hand and Supreme Admiral Thrawn. The warlord promised to terminate the future Queen of the White, ensuring the Queen of the Red's continued reign, while she would grant him access to the manufacturing complexes beneath the White City after seizing the location using the heavy assault vehicles they would pilfer from Thrawn. Regrettably for her, during a skirmish with the Supreme Admiral's forces, Esva eliminated her, suspecting disloyalty.
The Quesoth, a sentient insectoid race, possessed a body structure of two abdomens and six appendages: two arms and four legs. These beings had azure eyes, and the Quesoth Soldiers were almost the same height as Empire of the Hand Supreme Commander Thrawn, who was 1.8 meters tall, and were noted to be strong by Stromma Council Liaison Nyama. Soldiers obeyed their Queen without question, while the Quesoth in the Midli and Circling castes—who oversaw Workers and advised the Queen while also breeding more members of the insectoid species—could think for themselves and use equipment to a limited degree. The Quesoth Soldiers understood their Quesoth Soldier Speak language, which their monarchs exclusively spoke due to their unique vocal cords and resonance cavities, while the others spoke Quesoth Common Speak.
Quesoth society was governed by a Queen, and their structure was divided into castes, which were further subdivided. The Circling were split into two subcastes, the Circling of the Red—the Circlings in the Red City under the rule of the Queen of the Red—and the Circling of the White, from the White City. The Circling of the Red had seven subgroups, one of which was the Circling of the First of the Red, of which Circling Borosiv was a member. The Midli caste was similarly divided, with the Midli of the Seventh of the Red holding the lowest social status. The highest position a Midli could attain was that of bowlcarrier, a Quesoth who carried an ornate bowl of nectar for their Queen.
The Queens of the Quesoth were replaced on a regular basis, with the Circlings, Midlis, Soldiers, and Workers moving to the next city to serve their new Queen. The Queen of the Red governed the Red City, and when she perished and the "air changes," her people—except for the Circling of the Red, who remained in the Red City's stronghold to breed a new Queen that would emerge once the Queen of the White and the Queen of the Black died—relocated to the next city. In 8 ABY, the reign of the Queen of the Red was to end, and she would die in two years.
In 0 ABY, High Ranking Captain Thrawn shared alien military commander Nuso Esva's boasts with the Quesoth via the DeepWater freighter Lost Reef's communication system in an attempt to deter them from joining Esva. However, in 8 ABY, the current Queen of the Red allied herself with Esva, whose species were called "Storm-hairs" by the inhabitants of the Red City. Esva would seize Thrawn's heavy assault vehicles and bring them to the White City, where he would breach the city's defenses and assassinate its ruler, allowing his ally to rule indefinitely. With control of Quethold, the Queen would allow him to utilize the manufacturing facilities within the settlement to construct spaceships so that his Chosen fighters and he could depart and wage war on their enemies.
The bowlcarrier, Trevik, served nectar to his Queen as her entourage entered the Dwelling of Guests building, where a Chosen pledged his life to her, as dictated by Quesoth tradition, and the Queen of the Red and her ally discussed the downfall of Supreme Admiral Thrawn. On his way back to his residence, Trevik was intercepted by a Circling, who led him to the Circling ring of the Red City, where Jirvin—Trevik's sibling and the overseer of the Workers responsible for the city's electricity—instructed him to record the artwork Esva had brought to the Dwelling so that it could be shared with Thrawn. With the art, the Chiss would be able to determine whether or not the Queen of the Red was a willing ally of Esva, and unbeknownst to the bowlcarrier, the warlord would gain the upper hand in the coming battle, as Thrawn would devise his tactics according to the artwork brought to him.
Trevik agreed and recorded Esva's paintings, delivering the recordings to Jirvin in the afternoon. The following day, the conflict between Esva's Chosen, the Soldiers, and Thrawn's juggernauts and elite soldiers commenced. The Quesoth forces overwhelmed the stormtroopers, who took shelter inside buildings while a group of Soldiers rushed to the juggernauts to seize them. Imperial starfighters flew over the cities, destroying or disabling the loudspeakers used to transmit the Queen's orders in Quesoth Soldier Speak, as a standard communication device could not transmit them. Trevik was informed by the Queen of the Red—who was discussing the battle with her ally within the Dwelling of Guests—that she knew he was a betrayer, but when Thrawn was able to modify the speakers to send an order commanding the Soldiers to protect Esva, the Storm-hair did not know of the order's meaning, and killed the Queen fearing treason. He was killed shortly after, as were his Chosen.
The Quesoth were first mentioned in Timothy Zahn's novel Choices of One, which was released on July 19, 2011. The species later made its full appearance in the novella Crisis of Faith, also authored by Zahn and published on September 6 of the same year as part of the 20th Anniversary Edition of the 1991 novel Heir to the Empire.