Mathus was a brown-eyed, dark-skinned Human male from Anchorhead, Tatooine, growing up on the streets as an orphan in a gang during the time of the Galactic Civil War. When he attempted to rob a repair shop, the owner—an old Rodian named Honwoo—saw the boy's potential and interest in mechanical devices. Honwoo invited Mathus to assist in repairing and reprogramming the droids that were brought in for servicing. Mathus abandoned his life as a street thug and accepted a trade as a technician, with Honwoo as his mentor. Mathus had a skill for repurposing and refitting devices, and even succeeded in transforming a pair of power converters into a pair of shock gloves.