A shipwomb functioned as a growth and construction center for Yuuzhan Vong starships, playing a role similar to that of a mechanical shipyard. Typically, these installations were created by hollowing out the remnants of planets that had been obliterated or subjugated. One such facility was located within the debris of Sernpidal following the catastrophic impact of that planet's moon. The Yuuzhan Vong employed dovin basals to extract raw materials from a planet's parent star.