'Star Wars Outlaws' scores a new prequel novel starring antagonist Jaylen Vrax and his ND-5 assassin droid

An official prequel novel to 2024's "Star Wars Outlaws" is coming later this year, entitled "Star Wars Outlaws: Low Red Moon". Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft's third-person, open-world sci-fi adventure game, "Star Wars Outlaws," launched back on Aug. 30, 2024, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

Gamers were introduced to the rogue scoundrel named Kay Vess and her BX-Commando droid partner as they prepared for one of the "biggest heists the Outer Rim has ever seen". The game was set sometime between the events of "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back" and "Star Wars: Return of the Jedi."

Now, an official prequel novel to "Star Wars Outlaws" titled "Star Wars Outlaws: Low Red Moon" by author Mike Chen ("Star Wars: Brotherhood") is being published by Random House Worlds Feb. 3, 2026, to fill out the darker corners of the "Star Wars" Universe. The 384-page hardcover focuses on the game's main antagonist, crime lord Jaylen Vrax, and his assassin droid ND-5.

Here's the official synopsis:

"Jaylen Barsha, heir to his family’s immense power and wealth, had his life charted out for him neatly and meticulously by his parents, even though he suspected his neglected half-brother Sliro would be a better fit for the bright corporate future his parents envisioned. Then the Empire stripped it all away on trumped-up charges of conspiracy against his family. Before he can reach Sliro for help redeeming the Barsha name, a battle droid arrives at the family compound with a mission to kill every last member of the Barsha clan. Jaylen manages to fend off the attack as the sole survivor, but realizes the droid, who he reprograms, is his only chance to stay alive. But he can no longer be Jaylen Barsha—he’ll have to live now as Jaylen Vrax.

"Former Separatist battle droid ND-5 knows he should be scrap metal, all things considered. He was a proficient contributor to the Separatist cause, but what is a soldier without a war?

"With the threat against the Barsha clan still shrouded in mystery, the pair has no choice but to leverage the chaos and disappear. They find sanctuary in the anonymity of the underworld, building their reputation among scoundrels, bounty hunters, and crime syndicates. But when their latest score gives the first real clue in years to who sent ND-5 after Jaylen’s family, their biggest opportunity presents a new kind of risk. Do they give up this chance at the wealth and power Jaylen was denied to pursue answers? Or will ambition and the weight of the past shatter their unlikely partnership?"

"Star Wars Outlaws: Low Red Moon" arrives on Feb. 3, 2026.