The Nysshyyyk were a Wookiee clan originating from their native planet, Kashyyyk. Renowned for their pride as warriors, they also held a reputation as some of the most skilled clock makers on the planet. During the era of the Galactic Empire's rule, Imperial troops occupied their planet, resulting in severe hardship for the clan when half of their male population was forcibly removed from Kashyyyk for slave labor, exploited for their species' technological aptitude.
A minimum of one hundred Nysshyyyk were transported to the Maw Installation during its construction, where they endured torment under the cruel hand of a slave master named Grodon Lakky. Within a single month of their capture, a dozen clan members chose to end their lives rather than endure their oppressive circumstances; eight others repeatedly tried to sabotage the facility within the Maw, ultimately dying in the process, while four others committed suicide by depressurizing their spacesuits in the vacuum of space. The clan members stayed at the installation even after it was finished, and were later utilized for zero-gravity tasks during the building of the Death Star prototype; tragically, fifty of them perished during this dangerous work. The Nysshyyyk clan was reduced to a mere shell of its former self, crushed to the point of utter despair for any future improvement. Nawruun was among the eldest of the surviving clan members who remained stationed at the Maw Installation.