Skrull
The Skrulls (or Skrullkind) are a technologically advanced race of reptilian humanoids, native to the destroyed planet Skrullos.
Skrulls in the Dark Nebula were one of the five species subjected to Kree Primagen experiements, resulting in the creation of the Dire Wraiths.
At the height of it's power, the Skrull Empire was considered the most powerful political or military force in the universe. However, their military power gradually waned, eventually being forced off Skrullos entirely, becoming galactic refugees. The primary Skrull diaspora is located on Tarnax II, with significant poopulations on Wraithworld, Aks'lo, Hy'lt Minor, Kral IV, Zaragz'na, and the former Skrullian throneworld of Satriani.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Skrulls are bipedal reptilians. They are recognisable by their distinctive chin grooves.
They are shapeshifters, capable of dramatically altering their own biology, including changing biological sex, growing a womb capable of supporting a mamallian foetus, impersonating the appearance and voice of another, and shrinking or elongating individual parts or the entirety of their bodies.
Genetics and Reproduction
Skrulls are oviporous, laying eggs from which infants (known as Hatchlings) are born.
Skrulls are capable of interbreeding with a wide variety of other species. However, in almost all cases, the infant must have a Skrull mother in order for the foetus to survive, as the Skrull shape-shifting ability can account for any biological incompatibilities.
Additional Information
Facial characteristics
Long pointed ears. Prominent chin with five grooves running down from the mouth to the neck.
Civilization and Culture
Major Language Groups and Dialects
The native language of the Skrulls is Skrullos, although Skrulls prize language learning as it is necessary for infiltration and espionage.
Culture and Cultural Heritage
The Skrullian religion has many unusual features. Firstly, the primary gods of the pantheon, Sl'gur't and Kly'bn, were verifiably real historical figures. They wrote a book, the Book of Worlds, which became the central text of the Skrullian faith. Among the book's teachings was a form of manifest destiny, teaching that it was the will of the gods that the Skrulls conquer the galaxy.
Secondly, the Skrulls believed that the gods of any planet or culture they conquered became a part of their pantheon, as subservient 'intercessors'. Skrull temples were commonly filled with statues and icons of the gods of other races, who they believed were bound to intercede with Sl'gur't and Kly'bn on the behalf of worshippers.
Most Skrulls believed the Book of Worlds was intended to be interpretted metaphorically, but a fundamentalist sect, known as the Dard'van existed parrallel to the mainstream faith through much of Skrullian history, weilding significant political power under many Emperors.
History
The Beginnings of Empire
Skrulls have been cited as both evidence for and against the Progenitor Theory. Proponents point to the Skrullian ability to interbreed with mamalian species such as the Kree, while opponents argue that the inclusion of a reptilian race demonstrates that the theory is based on purely morphological evidence, rather than any genetic testing.The Skrulls developed faster than light travel relatively early (approximarely 10 million years ago), assisted by the resilience of Skrulls to many of the physical symptoms which make FTL travel challenging.
The Skrull Empire developed unusualy. Though the Skrulls were skilled warriors, the early Empire's preference was for a diplomatic solution in all situations, and their expansion was largely peaceful. They offered civilations they encountered access to advanced technology in exchange for loyalty. This system was so successful in the early years that there are multiple recorded instances of civilisations petitioning to join the empire.
One of the planets they visited at this time was Hala, home to the Cotati and the Kree. Although they only provided their technology to the Cotati, believing the Kree to not yet be ready, the Kree slaughtered the Cotati and took the technology.
The Kree-Skrull War
400 years later, Kree expansion outside of Pama brought them back into contact with the Skrull. The Skrull were unprepared to face an enemy they could not overpower with technology, and attempted peace talks intended to bring the Kree under Skrull control ended in the murder of Emperor Dorrek I by the Kree abmbassdor, marking the beginning of the Kree-Skrull war.The Influence of the war on Skrull culture was profound. In the face of the genuine threat posed by the Kree, their culture became increasingly militarised, with the Emperor's power increasing from little more than a figurehead to an absolute ruler.
During the reign of Emperor Hagar, the Skrulls came into possession of the Space Stone. They created a case to allow them to safely harness it's power, the Tesseract. The power it granted caused Hagar to grow increasingly meglomaniacal, destroying much of Skrull society in his madness. He was eventually defeated and the Tesseract was thrown into a black hole, but the damage to the Empire took centuries to repair.
Although the Skrulls fought many battles, they preferred to use their natural shapeshifting abilities to fight from the shadows, infiltrating the governments and militaries of their enemies. The brief Kree-Shi'ar war has been largely blamed on Skrull interferance. That war ended in what is widely considered the worst crime of the Skrull empire, when Skrull spies in the Shi'ar army stole a Nega-Bomb and detonated it on the edges of the Kree empire, wiping out the populations of two entire planets.
The most famous Skrull spy is undoubtedly Nenora, who infiltrated the Kree Science Council during the time of the third Supreme Intelligence. She rose through the ranks, eventually becoming the the Supreme Commander of the Council. The lifestyle and wealth available to her as Supreme Commander far outstripped those offered to Skrull agents, and she switched sides, becoming one of the Skrull's most dangerous enemies as she used her intimiate knowledge of Skrull culture and military practise to win numerous battles against her former allies.
Her rule eventually came to an end when Shalla-bal, the Zenn-lavian Keeper who was a political prisoner on Hala, revealed her status as a Skrull.
In the wake of the deception, the Conventions of Fornax was signed, a set of laws governing military action, who's provisions included strict rules on the treatment of prisoner, including a ban on torture. Although both sides have broken the Conventions at various times, their impact was significant. The wars that followed were marked by a significant shift in attitudes, so much so that when Kree General Huran was on his deathbead, he was awarded a Skrullian medal of valour in recognition of his brave and honourable service against the Skrull empire.
The Reign of Dorrek VII
The fall of the Skrull Empire is widely considered to have begun with the accession of Dorrek VII, a former warlord who won the title of Emperor by murdering his predessor. In order to legitimise his rule, he married the former Emperor's daughter, R'kill. The couple had only one child, Princess Annelle, as they reportedly could not stand to be in the same room for any length of time.
Dorrek is unusual among Skrull Emperors as he was an open aetheist, rejecting the gods of his people. When an Priestess of Dard'van, Princess Veranke, a cousin by marriage of the Emperor, gave a prophesy that the Skrull homeworld would fall but Earth was their true destiny, he exiled her to Skrullos, by then largely abandonned.
Famous for his ruthlessness, Dorrek even executed his own brother, Prince Dezan, when it was revealled that Dezan had pacifist sympathies. Pacifism had once been almost unknown among the Skrulls, but under Dorrek's tyranical rule, it became increasingly popular. A semi-pacifist religious movement grew around the exiled Veranke, and many of her followers returned to Skrullos in order to hear her preach.
Shortly after this, Dorrek declared war on the Nova Empire, a war which went extremely badly for the Skrulls. Empress R'kill, who had returned from exile to command the Skrull fleet in the conflict, eventually murdered her husband and assumed the throne herself, immediately suing for peace.
Galactus and Civil War
Though not a pacifist by any means, Empress R'kill proved a far more steady hand than her tempestuous husband had been. She even began peace talks with the Supreme Intelligence. Unfortunately her reign was cut short by Galactus, the World Eater, who destroyed the Skrull throneworld and all its inhabitants, including Empress R'kill and the heir to the throne, Princess Annelle.With no clear line of succession, governers of a number of Skrull worlds adopted the titles of Emperor or Empress, and a bloody civil war broke out. The conflict between the conflicting claimants was worsened by Black Swan, one of the Daughters of Thanos, who allied herself with the self-styled Emperor Gorath, and fought a brutal campaign against General Zedroa of the Kree Navy. Gorath and his fleet were eventually defeated, and Black Swan killed.
The chaos was only increased when two disgraced Priests of Science, Myrn and Kabyk created the Hyperwave Bomb, a device which prevented Skrulls caught in the blast radius to utilitise their shapeshifting powers. Few records survive as to their motivation in creating it, though many believe they may have been inspired by the apocolyptic prophesies of Veranke. Whatever their motivation, once detinated it removed the abilities of all Skrulls within a million lightyears, an area which included most of the inhabited worlds within Skrullian space.
In the chaos that followed, Govenor S'byll emerged as the victor of the Civil War, becomming the last Empress of the Skrulls. Historians have generally judged her kindly; she was a tallented military strategist but favoured negotiation over bloodshed where possible. But there was nothing she could do to save her people. The Kree, sensing a moment of weakness, went on the offensive, and without their abilities, the Skrulls were slaughtered.
S'byll petitioned the entity known as the Silver Surfer for help, and he did succeed in restoring the abilities of many of the remaining Skrulls, but it was too little, too late. One by one, the Skrull worlds fell, until only isolated communities of refugees remained. One of the last strongholds of the Skrulls was Skrullos, their ancestral homeworld, where Veranke and her cult welcomed refugees. Veranke's prophesy proved true however, and eventually even Skrullos fell to an attack by the Kree Starforce.
Mar-Vell and the Resettlement of Tarnax
Following the prophesy, the survivors of Skrullos headed for Earth. (The planet had long been known to the Skrulls, as it occupied an important strategic location between the Kree and Skrullian Empires. Several attempts had been made by Skrulls to infiltrate the planet in the past - declassified S.H.I.E.L.D files indicate that the Roswell crash may have been a Skrullian ship, and the Warskrull Talos admitted that a group of Skrulls had replaced the Beatles for a period in the mid 60s, even recording a studio albumn (magical mystery tour)).Their arrival on Earth was detected by Mar-Vell, an exiled Kree Scientist sympathetic to their cause, who sheltered them on her ship.
These Skrulls were eventually encountered by Carol Danvers, who used her knowledge of Kree politics to assist the group in resettling the long-abandonned world of Tarnax II, which she knew was no longer under Kree surveillance.
During the fall of Hala and the Phalanx Crisis, the Skrulls of Tarnax II came to the aid of the Kree, helping to evacuate civilians. Though relations between the two races remains strained, a small Kree diaspora lives peacefully on Tarnax II alongside their hereditary enemies.
Home Galaxy
Andromeda
Home System(s)
Drox (Original)
Tarnax (Current)
Notable Individuals
Princess Anelle
Talos
Princess Veranke
Andromeda
Home System(s)
Drox (Original)
Tarnax (Current)
Genetic Descendants
Lifespan
210 years
Average Height
5'5"
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Green, scaled
Related Organizations
Princess Anelle
Talos
Princess Veranke