I agree with Ordo. Thats one of my favorite pictures of the Basilisk.

I looove that miniature! *insert drooling maniac smiley*

Completely random thought here...(and I don't know if this is sad or an "aha" moment...)

I was watching one of the many preschool shows with my son today, and they had a small segment about...

BASILISK LIZARDS!!

So, I just learned something new today. I thought "Basilisk" was simply a term tossed around in the Star Wars Galaxy because it was a made-up word. It turns out this droid is probably modeled after one.

Amazing what you learn on TV these days...my son is learning more Star Wars stuff that I even imagined I could teach him!

Hi Mesh'la,

No, I do not follow Harry Potter, but I did see on the Internet that Basilisk was a mythical creature as well. I was just pointing out my ignorance for the world around me and how a child's show taught this "old lady" something new.

Basilisk war droids were originally produced by the Basiliskans, an extinct lizard-species, which they modeled after themselves - according to Wookiepedia. And I've got an impression that after the Mandalorians had conquered them, they were used in the production of the droids as spare parts, so to say.

You got that partly right. The Mandalorians did conquer them, but when they saw how the Basiliskans fought, they used them for grunts. I saw a few pictures of Mandalorians fighting side by side of Basiliskans. The Mandalorians then used the Basilisk War Droids after all the Basiliskans died in their army.

Also partly right.

Basiliskans were an intelligent lizard species native to the planet Basilisk in the Core. They were the creators of the Basilisk War Droids, that were rumored to be modeled after themselves. During their war with the Mandalorians, the Basiliskans chemically poisoned their own planet, in a last effort to defeat their conquerors.

After the war the Mandalorians found a new use for the Basiliskans. With their tough hides and claws (not to mention how easily they could be trained) and their intelligence the Mandalorians used them as weapons for aerial and ground fighting during later wars. Because of this the Basiliskans degenerated and became nothing more than beasts. As such they were re-named the Lagartoz War Dragons.

I generally love any element in SW that's exotic, and Basiliskan tech is the most exotic next to Vongese tech. I wonder what kind of society they had. Here's an idea: bug worship. Think about it. Every Basiliskan tech we've seen so far has had a bug hull design: the Kyramud looks like a wasp, the Shadlaar looks like a cockroach and the Basilisk looks like a very weird bug combined with lizardy claws. Makes me wonder if the planet before it's conquest had architecture supposed to resamble hives, from mounds to beehives.

Perhaps a bit off-topic but still... on topic.