Raxus Secundus

Description

Raxus, a planet, was situated within the Raxus system, a star system located in the Outer Rim sector of space known as the Tion Hegemony. This flourishing terrestrial world orbited a sun, and its temperate climate and atmosphere were suitable for breathing by numerous humanoid species. Despite a challenging ecosystem and the presence of dangerous predators, the climate remained comfortable. Its surface was characterized by expansive oceans and landmasses, featuring forests, plains, and hills.

The planet's lush environment contributed to its reputation for beauty. By the time of the [Clone Wars](/article/clone_wars], certain areas had undergone significant development, such as the sprawling urban landscape of its capital city, Raxulon, while regions further from the city center retained a more rural character.

History

Under the Republic

At some point well before the Clone Wars, Larik assumed the role of Senator for Raxus. In his capacity as senator, Larik exploited his position for personal enrichment, enticing off-world companies and industries under the guise of promoting industrialization. When Larik's bodyguards discovered his true intentions, Semage, Hanel, and several other bodyguards attempted to coerce him into advocating for the bodyguards' own agenda at the upcoming Senate Hearing. During this confrontation, Jedi Master Katri lost her life.

Prior to the Senate Hearing that the bodyguards anticipated, the Jedi Council dispatched Jedi Masters Dooku and Mace Windu aboard a T-6 Shuttle to Raxus to retrieve Master Katri's remains for a proper burial on Coruscant.

Upon arriving at a building that would later become the Separatist Senate Building, Dooku expressed his desire to hear Senator Larik's account of the attack that resulted in Master Katri's death before retrieving her body. Under duress from his bodyguards, Larik fabricated a story for the Jedi, claiming that a group of rebellious individuals threatening war had led him to visit them in a nearby forest, where they ambushed him, resulting in Master Katri's death. Unconvinced, Master Dooku insisted on seeing the site of the alleged attack. The bodyguards, hesitant to comply, interjected and offered to guide them to the location of the ambush.

Upon reaching the designated area, Dooku and Windu interrogated the Senator about the attack. Sensing the Senator's deceit, Dooku activated his lightsaber and declared that he "will have the truth." In a state of panic, Larik sought refuge with the Jedi, claiming that the bodyguards had killed her before being killed by the guards themselves. This led to an exchange of blaster fire, during which the two Jedi successfully eliminated all the Security Droids sent to kill them and apprehended Semage and Hanel. Undeterred, Hamel reached for his blaster but failed to kill Windu and died. Devastated, Semage revealed the truth to the Jedi. When Windu inquired as to why Semage had not reported this to the authorities, he asserted that the Jedi were subservient to the Galactic Senate and only protected the wealthy and powerful, neglecting the needs of the poor.

Windu and Dooku proceeded to arrest Semage and several other bodyguards, imprisoning them in a building that would later serve as the location of the Separatist Senate during the Clone Wars. While in the prison, Dooku engaged in a conversation with Semage, acknowledging that his "ideology, while faulty does have its points." Windu, after entering the prison cells block, requested that Dooku accompany him, and they returned to their T-6 Shuttle with Master Katri's coffin.

Capital of the Confederacy

Two years before the outbreak of the Clone Wars, Raxus and its system gained galactic attention when Dooku, previously a Jedi Master who had largely withdrawn from the galactic limelight, resurfaced by seizing control of a HoloNet station within the system. Through a passionate rhetoric, he denounced the pervasive corruption within the Galactic Republic and established a separatist state known as the Confederacy of Independent Systems, effectively initiating a Separatist Crisis that prompted numerous worlds, including Raxus, to align with his new government.

As the Confederacy's capital world, Raxus became the headquarters of the Separatist Senate, a legislative body comprised of representatives from the Confederacy's member planets. Several Confederate senators, including Mina Bonteri of Onderon, who had previously represented their planets in the Republic Senate, relocated to Raxus to participate in Senate sessions within Raxulon's Separatist Senate Building. Although Dooku primarily remained off-world to oversee the Confederacy's war efforts, he presided over Senate sessions via hologram and returned to Raxus for significant events.

Due to its strategic importance, a substantial armada of warships belonging to the Confederacy navy maintained a blockade around Raxus for the majority of the war, restricting access based on a clearance code system. At one point, the blockade consisted of a Providence-class Dreadnought, a Recusant-class Commerce Guild destroyer, three Munificent-class star frigates, and three Droid Control Ships.

Republic–Confederate peace talks

Approximately one year into the war, Republic Senator Padmé Amidala traveled to Raxus with Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano to meet with Bonteri, who had served as Amidala's mentor in politics, with the aim of achieving a peaceful end to the conflict. Bypassing the Republic Senate's law prohibiting communication with the Separatists, Amidala and Tano arrived on Raxus aboard a transport from Mandalore. Upon reaching a spaceport in Raxulon, Bonteri assisted them in evading the spaceport's B1-series battle droid security and escorted them to her palatial estate, located away from the city center. After agreeing with Amidala on the necessity of reestablishing diplomatic channels between the Republic and the Confederacy, Bonteri invited Amidala and Tano to an upcoming Senate session in Raxulon, where Bonteri persuaded her fellow delegates to initiate negotiations with the Republic's Supreme Chancellor, Sheev Palpatine. With their objective accomplished, Amidala and Tano prepared to return to the Republic capital of Coruscant, and Bonteri and her son, Lux, bid them farewell from the Raxulon spaceport. However, Dooku undermined Bonteri's peace initiative by instructing General Grievous to carry out a bombing on Coruscant, ensuring that the Republic Senate rejected the offer for negotiations, and the Sith Lord subsequently had Bonteri murdered.

Near the conclusion of the war's third year, the Confederacy selected Dooku as the recipient of the Raxian Humanitarian Award and subsequently organized an elaborate gala on Raxus in his honor. By that point, the Jedi High Council had marked Dooku for assassination and entrusted the task to Jedi Master Quinlan Vos, who—under the Council's directives—sought the assistance of Dooku's former apprentice–turned–bounty hunter, Asajj Ventress, for his mission. Upon learning of the award ceremony from the informant Sumdin, Ventress voyaged to Raxus with Vos aboard her starship, the Banshee, to accomplish their goal. After circumventing the Confederacy's orbital blockade and acquiring suitable attire in the Raxian city of Tamwith Bay, Ventress and Vos proceeded to Raxulon and, utilizing passes provided by Sumdin, infiltrated the plaza square hosting the event. They waited until Dooku had delivered his acceptance speech for the award before engaging the count in a fierce lightsaber duel. However, with assistance from General Grievous, Dooku defeated his attackers, capturing Vos and forcing Ventress to flee Raxus.

Imperial Occupation

At some stage during the war, Raxus became a battleground. Following over three years of active conflict, the Clone Wars came to a close. The deaths of Dooku and Grievous, along with the execution of the Separatist Council and the deactivation of the Separatist Droid Army, solidified the Confederacy's defeat. Meanwhile, the Republic underwent a reshaping into the first Galactic Empire under the newly appointed Emperor Palpatine.

In 19 BBY, the newly established Galactic Empire occupied Raxus. Due to an increase in incursions on Raxus, Captain Bragg addressed the inhabitants in the city Raxulon on a podium located at the former Separatist Senate Building that the inhabitants shouldn't fear the empire. Knowing that the inhabitants listened to Senator Avi Singh, the Empire forced the Senator to become a puppet for the empire where he was forced to tell the inhabitants to listen to the Empire. Unable to do this, the Senator instead said that he could no longer condone the Empire's unjust occupation. This led to Captain Bragg forcibly removing the Senator. The speech the Senator made sparked protests among the inhabitants leading to the Empire using All Terrain Tactical Enforcer's to force the citizens to comply.

After the incident, GS-8 contacted Ciddarin Scaleback and required her assistance leading to the Bad Batch being sent to Raxus. The Marauder when entering Raxus's airspace was pursued by 2 Alpha-3 Nimbus-class V-wing starfighters demanding that they send their clearance codes provided by GS-8. The codes worked and the Bad Batch landed in a forest close to the city Raxulon. After meeting with GS-8, the Batch entered Raxulon undetected and reached Avi Singh's residence. They later infiltrated the building and freed Avi Singh before being tortured by an IT-O Interrogator under the orders of Captain Bragg. While freeing the Senator, the clone troopers stationed in the city were notified of intruders leading to several clone troopers and AT-TE's attempting to corner the Batch. This failed with the Batch infiltrating an AT-TE. After being pursued by the Empire and no way to escape, the Batch went into an alleyway and used a thermal detonator to blast their way into a subterranean passage that led to a forest far from Raxulon. The Batch managed to reach to the Marauder and after a few heartful words from Echo, convinced the Senator to come with them to the planet Ord Mantell.

Imperial Target

Raxus, along with other former Confederate worlds such as Kooriva and Murkhana, remained home to numerous ex-Separatists and became a target of the emerging Empire. As a result, Moff Wilhuff Tarkin was dispatched to make an example of Antar 4, a moon that had been allied with the Confederacy throughout the Clone Wars, one year into the Empire's reign. Following his orders, Tarkin made no distinction between Antar 4's Separatists and Imperial-loyal intelligence agents and resistance fighters awaiting exfiltration. His forces subdued the moon, subjecting its entire population to widespread arrests and massacres. The Antar Atrocity, as the media labeled the event, served to compel Raxus and other worlds to surrender all former Separatists to Imperial custody, or face a similar fate to Antar 4.

Over the subsequent four years, the Empire acquired control of the discarded materials on Raxus, as well as similar caches found on various other contested worlds, including Utapau. Imperial Intelligence subsequently compiled an inventory of all items obtained from these stockpiles. By 3 BBY, Raxus had accumulated a significant debt to the Empire. With no other means to repay the amount owed, Raxus became one of many planets to relinquish its remaining autonomy to the Imperial state, firmly placing it under the Empire's control.

Inhabitants

As the capital world of the Confederacy, Raxus was inhabited by a diverse range of species, including humans, Gossams, Siniteen, Rodians, Gotals, Twi'leks, and Pantorans. The planet also served as home to numerous Separatist senators, such as Mina Bonteri of Onderon, who relocated there with her family to represent Onderon in the Separatist Senate. Numerous travelers from various backgrounds visited Raxus, although they were required to provide the appropriate clearance code in order for the Confederate orbital blockade to grant them access to the world. Security patrols of battle droids demanded further identification from visitors upon their arrival at one of the surface spaceports.

Locations

Raxulon

Renowned for its beauty, Raxulon served as the capital city of Raxus. Situated on one of the planet's landmasses, Raxulon was centered around a city center featuring tall buildings that overshadowed the surrounding urban sprawl. One of the key structures was the Separatist Senate Building, located at the edge of a circular courtyard amidst the spires of neighboring establishments. A network of streets radiated from the city center, with some terminating at the city's outskirts, which remained less developed with their hills, plains, and forests. The Bonteri family estate was located away from the city center, nestled among the surrounding hills.

Local air traffic within Raxulon was active but not excessively congested, with numerous airspeeders, shuttles, and transports traversing the city on a daily basis. In terms of spaceports, Raxulon boasted a main port in addition to a number of local landing platforms that were used less frequently, although the local docks were serviced by droids providing fuel, cleaning, and other amenities to incoming starships. Asajj Ventress and Quinlan Vos utilized one such landing pad when they arrived in Raxulon aboard the Banshee. The spaceport where Padmé Amidala and Ahsoka Tano arrived aboard a Gozanti-class cruiser was guarded by security squads of B1 battle droids that requested arriving travelers to present proper identification.

Tamwith Bay

Tamwith Bay, a major city on Raxus, was situated a considerable distance from Raxulon and had less security than the capital. Among the establishments in Tamwith Bay was a clothing store featuring upscale attire. Ventress and Vos visited the store to purchase suitable outfits for the prestigious Raxian Humanitarian Award ceremony in Raxulon.

Behind the scenes

The planet Raxus was created for the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series and made its debut in the third season episode "Heroes on Both Sides," which was broadcast on November 19, 2010. The world's name was inspired by Raxus Prime, a junk world featured in various Star Wars Legends projects, including the LucasArts video games The Clone Wars (2002) and The Force Unleashed (2008). The episode's guide indicated that the relationship between Raxus and Raxus Prime was yet to be defined, although they were undeniably intended as distinct worlds based on their differing compositions.

The name "Raxus Secundus" was officially established in the new Star Wars canon in the eleventh issue of the Star Wars Helmet Collection magazine, published in 2016. Within the Legends continuity, Jason Fry's 2014 The Clone Wars: Episode Guide introduced the name "Raxus Secundus" to further differentiate the world from Raxus Prime.

In July 2015, Raxus was featured in author Christie Golden's canon novel Dark Disciple, which was adapted from an eight-episode story arc developed for the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series. These episodes were not completed due to the series' cancellation in March 2013, although the first four episodes of the story arc reached the animatic stage of production. Prior to the novel's release, StarWars.com published concept art for a Raxus landing platform designed for the original episodes. The novel identified the planet's capital city as Raxulon, which had appeared in "Heroes on Both Sides" but remained unnamed.

An image depicting Raxus Prime was used to depict Raxus in Star Wars: Galactic Atlas.