Lyran IV

Lyran IV was an Outer Rim Territories farming planet located in the Quiberon sector. It was home to the parasites known as Lyran bloodslugs. The planet served as a notable trans-shipment point of illegal spice, with the local crime lords investing into the local agricultural communities in order to maintain cover for their illicit operations.

Description[]

Lyran IV, also referred to simply as Lyran, was a planet that occupied the fourth orbital position^[3] in the Lyran system, a part of the Quiberon sector^[1] in the Slice portion of^[2] the Outer Rim Territories.^[1] It was situated on the super-hyperroute known as the Triellus Trade Route,^[2] which linked it to the Molavar system in the Abrion sector as well as the Galov sector's Opoku system.^[4]

Lyran IV was an abundant farming world known for its rolling plains where wheat was grown. The planet was also home to the Lyran bloodslug, a species of small omnivorous parasite that burrowed its way into the digestive tract of larger creatures, such as the vermin found in Lyran IV's grain silos and warehouses.^[3]

Inhabitants[]

A sleepy backwater world that had a feudal government and exported agricultural produce, Lyran IV^[3] also served as a notable trans-shipment point of illegal spice^[2] such as ryll.^[3] Between 67 BBY and 0 BBY,^[5] the planet hosted a small but active population of criminals, leading it to be regarded as a smuggler's paradise. A steady supply of illegal substances was regularly brought from the Kessel and Ryloth systems and stored at smuggler bases on Lyran IV. The substances were subsequently smuggled aboard starships exporting innocuous cargoes of grain and sold throughout the Outer Rim.^[3]

To create cover for their illegal operations, the local crime lords invested heavily in the local farming communities and made a marginal but steady profit on agricultural sales. The peasants of Lyran IV believed it was somewhat ironic that the criminals were exploiting them, similarly to how Lyran bloodslugs fed off their hosts. The slugs were also used by the crime lords as a method of assassinating undesirable spacers—the creatures were hidden in the cargo of a departing starship, where they would eventually burrow themselves into the vessel's pilot.^[3]

Behind the scenes[]

Lyran IV was introduced in "Lyran Bloodslug," an article in the Creature Feature series that was written by Brian Campbell and published on Wizards.com on December 13, 2001.^[3] The 2009 reference book The Essential Atlas placed the Lyran system, and therefore Lyran IV, in grid square S-15.^[2]