Velok the Younger
When I Was A Young Warthog
http://vimeo.com/97875604
Image Source: Mean Teddies
Intent: A personal defensive companion for the very young; analogous to a droid
Development Thread: Extensive excavation of the location where the canon guardians are found
Manufacturer: Akure Executive Leatherworks
Model: "Valiant" Model Ursine Companion/'Sith Jedi Statue'/Watcher
Affiliation: Open market
Modularity: Available in a variety of colors
Production: Minor
Material: Woven tuk'ata and jakobeast fur, retractable claws formed from the ends of tuk'ata claws, stuffing manufactured from jakobeast fur, well-padded small chunk of stone inside.
Classification: Analogous to Class Three (Child Care Droid analogue)
Weight: 2kg
Height: 0.25m
Movement: Bipedal locomotion
Armaments: Some are capable of using a variety of lightweight melee weapons. Those Valiants also have retractable claws located within high-safety, externally padded casings. Others are capable of generating a repulsive telekinetic force.
Misc. Equipment: Some have senses and capabilities analogous to a family dog, though without the need for housetraining. Others are inert.
Description: Though closely analogous to a Class Three child care droid, a Valiant Ursine Companion is absolutely non-technological in origin. Fundamentally, it is a derivation and repurposing of two forms of common sorcerous guardian found on Dromund Kaas. Not only is this project based on Rave Merrill's extensive excavation of Dromund Kaas' Dark Force Temple under the Mandalorian aegis, but it forms a critical part of her contract, which involves secure containment of hazardous artifacts and tomb guardians.
Having found profitable solutions to the terentatek menace, Rave turned her attention to the animate and inanimate statues which guarded the deepest crypts of the Dark Force Temple. Though fully eradicating them was not a possibility, after several months of excavation she found a solution for the various statues she had found. The essence of these statues, though not precisely alive, did contain a sort of Force-manufactured intelligence, comparable to a low-functioning droid or a clever animal. By careful alchemical sorcery, Rave and her staff alchemists were able to compress the essence of each statue into a small stone chunk analogous to a heart, rendering the statues inert. She then had her work crews remove the heart portions from the crumbling statues.
Each heart, once firmly subjugated and its powerful protective instincts redirected, was then placed in a form crafted from the bodies of powerfully Force-sensitive guardians.
The end result is the most lethal ursine companion in galactic history. The Valiant Ursine Companions are tireless, require no sleep or nourishment (like the tuk'ata, they can draw sustenance from the Force itself, and hibernate for long periods of time), and are staunch defenders of children in hazardous circumstances. Some, made from Watchers, are largely inert and have no claws, but those who mean harm to the Valiant's child may find their way barred by a powerful will. They may even find themselves thrown back by a moderate shockwave derived from Watcher and Jakobeast defenses. The other Valiants, made from the mobile statues, are armed with retractable claws and capable of using and even improvising a variety of light melee weapons. Valiants are available with soft-edged, safely chewable, fully functional duraplast helmets.
As a fair warning, the Valiant does have a mild presence in the Dark Side of the Force. This obviously works better for some children than for others. On the whole, though, Valiant Ursine Companions save more lives than they cause bad dreams, and their innate cuddliness has proven an effective antidote to nighttime uneasiness.
