The Jkarn people were an autonomous, neutral, near human race,
living within the borders of the old Republic, in the Egemont
sector. When the Empire rose, they attempted to retain their
neutrality. This was not a decision that the Empire approved of,
and the Emperor decided to make an example of the Jkarn. The
Imperial navy destroyed the weak and unprepared Jkarn space navy,
and engaged in large scale bombing of the Jkarn homeworld. The
Empire had not yet developed a weapon anywhere near the magnitude
of the Death Star, so while the damage inflicted was great, it did
not eliminate all life on the planet.
The destruction of the major cities of the planet gave a great
opportunity to the Rin, a primitive, warlike race that the Jkarn
had confined to reservations. The Rin were able to hunt down many
of the devastated Jkarn, and gain near total control of the planet.
Those Jkarn that survived now live in their massive battlewagons,
taking shelter in these converted ore haulers.
The Jkarn lead a grim existence now, still operating the
Ridulum mines in order to acquire materials to add to their ships.
The Battlewagons will occasionally make forays into the ruins of
the Jkarn cities when supplies and the Ridulum stores are low, but
the high radiation, the Rin, and the primitive, often hideously
deformed urban survivors make those trips dangerous indeed.