The Em'liy were a species of humanoids native to the planet Shalyvane. Originally a proud society of warriors, their civilization was devastated by the Galactic Empire's forces. This forced them to become a nomadic society, both on their homeworld and in other star systems.

Em'liy were fairly tall and robust by Human standards. Their faces had no visible noses and small, dark eyes. Their skin color varied from bright orange or tan to dark green or blue. They had no body hair, though they did grow dark hair on their heads. This hair was styled in one to three topknots, depending on caste.

The Em'liy once had a relatively sophisticated society, though they were apparently not starfarers. This changed after the Galactic Empire's forces, under the direction of Darth Vader, attacked Shalyvane. The attack left their capital city, Chinshassa, in ruins. After this attack, the region around the capital was ruled by nomadic tribes, armed with a mixture of primitive weapons and blasters. It is unclear if the blasters were of local manufacture or scavenged from offworlders. 

As part of her cover story, Imperial operative Shira Brie told Luke Skywalker and other members of the Rebel Alliance that Shalyvane had once been host to a Human society, which was destroyed in a war with the Em'liy. After the Rebel forces learned the truth of the matter, the Em'liy came into contact with the rest of the galaxy. Some Em'liy began to rebuild their capital city, while others continued their nomadic lifestyle by traveling from system to system. 

Em'liy were quite religious, with the Circle of Kavaan in Chinshassa a particularly holy place for them. After the Empire's desecration of the Circle, the Em'liy tribes were quite hostile to offworlders, though Luke Skywalker was able to get access to the Circle by proving his "gods" (i.e. The Force) were strong with him. 

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