Raxshir

For other uses, see sabertooth.

▶️ to a preview of a raxshir roaring
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A raxshir roars at an infant Ahsoka Tano

Raxshir, also referred to as sabertooths, were a type of large, predatory feline with yellow fur with black stripes. One raxshir lived in a pine forest on the planet Shili and attacked the Togruta Pav-ti Tano and Ahsoka Tano there in 35 BBY. The creature took the infant Ahsoka and fled when more Togruta arrived, carrying her by the scruff of her neck to a clearing in the forest. There, the child used the Force to calm the raxshir and then rode on its back while they returned to her village. At the village, the raxshir allowed Pav-ti to take Ahsoka from its back before leaving peacefully.

Biology and appearance

Raxshir,^[2] also known as sabertooths,^[3] were a type of large,^[2] tiger-like^[3] feline that measured four meters (twelve feet) in length.^[2] Hulking and ferocious^[5] predators,^[4] the fanged animals^[2] had two large teeth protruding from the upper jaw as well as a series of smaller teeth between them on both jaws. The felines had a flat, pink nose and a pair of glowing golden eyes beneath a pair of ears and a crest of black fur, with the rest of their fur being yellow with black stripes on the upper side of their quadrupedal body and white on the underside. Each of their four paws had four clawed toes and their tail was thick and nearly reached the ground.^[1]

History

Forest feline

"No! No! Ahsoka!"

―Pav-ti cries out as the raxshir takes Ahsoka — 20?cb=20250116042720

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A raxshir attacked Pav-ti and Ahsoka Tano on Shili.

In 35 BBY,^[6] a raxshir lived in the^[1] pine^[3] forests that surrounded a Togruta village on^[1] the planet Shili.^[3] When the Togruta mother Pav-ti Tano traveled into the forest with^[1] her^[2] infant daughter, Ahsoka Tano, to hunt a kybuck, the raxshir watched the pair while hidden in tall grass among the trees. It crept up on the pair in a clearing where they had killed a kybuck, with Ahsoka spotting the creature as it approached.^[1]

When Pav-ti also realized the creature was there, she slowly reached for her blaster rifle as the raxshir continued to move closer, with the feline growling at her before she could grab the weapon. The mother then stood and roared at the raxshir with her arms stretched wide to try and intimidate it, causing the feline to rear back and groan. However, as she grabbed the rifle, it swiped at her several times as she dodged and rolled out of the way. The raxshir then got its jaws around the rifle and used it to throw Pav-ti across the clearing, growling at her again.^[1] Showing no fear,^[5] Ahsoka then gurgled, drawing the ferocious feline's attention^[1] and saving her mother's life.^[5] It charged at the infant but returned its attention to Pavi-ti when she opened fire with the rifle. After the raxshir disarmed her, she drew a knife and slashed at it, wounding one of the creature's legs while it tried to slash her with its claws repeatedly.^[1]

Rising on its hind legs, it finally knocked Pav-ti to the ground and then approached Ahsoka. By that point, other Togruta from the village had been drawn to the clearing by the sound of blaster fire and fired on the raxshir as it tried to grab Ahsoka. The creature roared at them, then managed to pick up the crying infant in its mouth before fleeing from the clearing.^[1]

Subdued sabertooth

"I'm sorry, Nak-il. There's no sign of her or the creature."
"We will go out in force. We will not stop until we find her."

―A Togruta villager and Nak-il Tano — 20?cb=20250116042720

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Ahsoka Tano used the Force to calm the raxshir.

As dusk settled,^[3] the raxshir carried Ahsoka through the forest by the scruff of her neck as the baby babbled,^[1] seemingly unperturbed by the creature.^[3] Upon reaching a clearing, the creature dropped her and began grooming its forepaw. When the infant sneezed, the raxshir roared at her, but Ahsoka cooed in response and stood, moving toward the feline. Watching her warily, the creature growled and licked its jaws before moving closer^[1] to eat its prey.^[4] As it reached the child, Ahsoka placed her hand upon its nose^[1] and instinctively used the Force to calm the wild beast,^[7] causing it to stop.^[1]

The raxshir's eyes met with those of Ahsoka and it sat back on its haunches in front of her, roaring at her without breaking eye contact.^[1] Meanwhile, the infant's parents and the other villagers aggressively hunted for the raxshir, fearing that it would harm Ahsoka,^[8] but found no sign of the creature or child.^[1] With the Force-sensitive infant able to communicate with the raxshir through the Force,^[9] the feline gingerly^[10] returned Ahsoka to the village that night. As the pair arrived, Ahsoka's father, Nak-il Tano, was preparing to lead another group out to search for his daughter. Hearing the raxshir's roars as it approached, Pav-ti stepped toward the edge of the forest as it emerged, while the other villagers aimed their weapons. The raxshir roared, but did not attack, and the Togruta Gantika ordered the villagers to hold their fire.^[1]

The subdued raxshir returned Ahsoka Tano to her village.

A smiling Ahsoka then became visible on the raxshir's back as it entered the light from the village, where the creature stopped before Pav-ti and lowered its head so that the mother could step forward and take the infant from^[1] the subdued^[3] feline's back. Rising back up^[1] in a regal pose,^[3] the creature gazed into Ahsoka's eyes once more as Pav-ti spoke to it in Togruti, then the raxshir turned and left the village.^[1]

Behind the scenes

Justin Bruce Lee created storyboards of the raxshir.

A raxshir first appeared in "Life and Death," the first episode of the television series Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi,^[1] which first aired at Star Wars Celebration Anaheim on May 28, 2022,^[11] before being released on Disney+ on October 26, 2022.^[12] Associate storyboard artist^[1] Justin Bruce Lee created storyboards of the raxshir fighting Pav-ti Tano for the episode.^[13]

The episode's audio description refers to the creature only as a sabertooth,^[3] but it was then identified as a raxshir in the StarWars.com Story Gallery for "Life and Death."^[4] The audio description also erroneously describes the raxshir as bringing Ahsoka to a cave^[3] while the episode shows only a clearing.^[1]