The Arkudans were a sentient species who originated on the planet of Arkuda. Displaying a somewhat ursine build, they were a short and stocky race. Their homeworld sat within the Gordian Reach sector, specifically where the Junction-Tierell Loop met the Korphir Trace. For centuries leading up to the Battle of Yavin, the Arkudans crafted elaborate and bejeweled gaming cubes. These cubes were thought by some to bring about good luck, and the Arkudans' reputation rested mainly on the creation of these objects. Tionne Solusar, a New Jedi Order member, possessed a pair of these fluffy Arkudan gaming cubes, which she suspended from the roof of her starship, the Lore Seeker.
The Arkudans were conceived by Daniel Wallace and Jason Fry for The Essential Atlas, which Del Rey released in 2009. This offered an origin story for the Arkudan game cubes referenced in Junior Jedi Knights: Kenobi's Blade, a book penned by Rebecca Moesta and put out by Berkley Boulevard in 1997.