Nautolan Roleplaying Ideas

Although your character in-game follows the set storylines the writers have created in Star Wars: The Old Republic, many players enjoy creating custom backgrounds, histories and personalities that exist outside of the game pre-scripted cutscenes. When creating a backstory for your Nautolan, you can choose to either embrace the known Nautolan lore, or of course you’re free to create a character whose race is fairly insignificant when it comes to shaping who they are. Nautolans however, have some very interesting traits that players can use to shape a unique character while embracing the various pieces of Star Wars lore that have been created over the years for Nautolans.

Nautolan Sith, from Star Wars: Legacy 46: Monster, Part 4 by artist Jan Duursema, Jedi Temple Apprentice Tournament from The Jedi Path: A Manual for Students of the Force

Growing Up in the Water

When Nautolans are born from eggs, they emerge as tadpoles, and due to their young weak limbs they live in water for a large part of your youth, an experience that many other species will never have. For your custom Nautolan character, you can choose to create a basis for their life around their biological needs.

Baby Nautolan from the Clone Wars series, rescued from the Sith by Ahsoka Tano

• You were born on a water planet, and lived most of your life underwater before venturing out in to the greater galaxy. You grew up on the Nautolan homeworld of Glee Anselm, or another water planet like Manaan, Kamino, Dac the homeworld of the Mon Calamari, Ando the homeworld of the Aqualish, Tion a uniquely Old Republic waterworld, or the water moon of Dorumaa.
• Born in the lush lands of Alderaan, you were raised in the freshwater rivers and lakes instead of a traditional waterworld.
• Born a slave on Dromund Kaas, you were taken as a tadpole by a Sith Alchemist who wished to see if a perfect servant could be created from a trapped Nautolan child. Instead of being raised in wide open lakes or oceans, you were raised in a small vat of water barely larger than your body. Perhaps the water was infused with Force crystals, or you were exposed to powerful toxins over time.
• Born in the underworlds of Coruscant, your parents were unable to give you the full aquatic experience your growing body needed, so they compromised by setting you free in the vast Free-built waterworks of Coruscant’s infrastructure.

Kit Fisto and Aayla Secura

Pheremone-sensing Tendrils

Nautolans’ head-tails are unique pheremone and odor-sending organs, which even the average Nautolan can use to sense the mood of sentients around them. Although this makes them excellent at judging how those around them feel, they are also susceptible to empathetically taking on the moods of others. This unique trait can be used either subtly while roleplaying, or worked directly into the narrative of a Nautolan’s life.

Art: A female Nautolan Force-user in the Makashi opening stance, from Star Wars Galaxies Trading Card Game: Champions of the Force by artist Derek Herring

• As a Jedi Consular, you help consul those who have been through trauma. Your empathetic abilities allow you to truly connect with the feelings of your patients, and your Jedi Training allows you to suppress the echoed feelings in yourself.
• As a Smuggler, you’re often hot-headed and rash – but when it comes to working out a deal, you’ve always got the upper hand. By sensing the mood of your client, you know exactly when to ask for a few more credits, and when it’s best to walk away from a deal that looks too good.
• As a Droid Mechanic, you feel most at home with the droids you build and service – you never have to deal with their constant unwanted feelings being thrown at you.
• As a Sith Warrior, rather than trying to block emotions like the Jedi, you use your empathetic abilities to feed off of the darkside emotions you produce in others. Never one to find a diplomatic solution, you will always try and push your opponent in to fear, anger and hatred.
• As an Imperial Agent, your strict self-training has allowed you to hone your empathetic traits to a fine edge. You are the perfect spy, especially among Jedi, as they never expect that you are faking your emotions. The only trick is that you always need to stay with those exuding genuine emotions – perhaps you sneak in to the Republic with refugees experiencing genuine fear or hopelessness.
• As a diplomat of the Republic, your empathy-sensing skills make you a fantastic negotiator and sympathizer – you are the first sent to speak with those who have experienced a tragedy. Your weakness is that you can’t always control your own emotions – often you pick up the moods of those you are supposed to be speaking with: becoming angry with those who are angry when you are supposed to be calming a situation, or sharing joy and mirth with someone you are supposed to be hard-line negotiating with.

Nautolan swimming in Jedi of the Republic: Mace Windu comic

Aquatic Persuasion

Although Nautolans experience no difficulties on land, they are most at home underwater. Not only are they strong swimmers with excellent low-light  vision, their empathetic and communication abilities are strongest below the surface. Within Nautolan culture, the ability to sense pheromone changes is an essential part of the communication, and their tendril’s senses work best underwater.

• With your empathy skills strongest under the waves, you are often sent as a diplomat or negotiator on waterworlds like Manaan and Naboo. Your often invite your party to convene in “traditional” settings underwater rather than in dry spaces to take advantage of your natural edge.
• Your strong swimming skills are one of your biggest assets – and you use them either in commando under water missions, or guerrilla engagements through swamps and rivers.
• Many artifacts are no longer on dry land, and their delicate details would be ruined by droids or clumsy atmospheric diving suits. You swim the sunken depths seeking relics and crystals, either for profit or knowledge.
• Ginxes are a banned pet on Glee Anselm, but are highly sought after by celebrities and musicians. You can’t bring them in through traditional means, so you use your strong swimming skills to land in remote places and find your way to your clients without technology.