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Characters / Star Wars – Classic Era

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For the main Star Wars Legends character index, click here.

This page is for characters introduced during the Classic Era of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, from 0 ABY to 25 ABY. Many of these characters cross over with several other eras and character sheets, and may be found on them due to being more prominent in those eras.

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Jedi

    Callista 

Callista Mansana/Ming

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/callista_swleu_1319.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Chad

Appears in: The Clone Wars: No Prisoners | The Republic Commando Series | The Callista Trilogy | Murder In Slushtime | Fate of the Jedinote 

A Jedi ghost Luke meets in a computer on an old ship, Callista and Luke fall in love immediately. But when she finds a body, she loses her connection to the Force. She sees how powerful Luke is, and can't be around him because it hurts too much.


    Mander Zuma 

Mander Zuma

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/manderzuma.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: Scourge

A human Jedi Master trained by Tionne, Mander is a Jedi Archivist and The Protagonist of Scourge. After his former Padawan, Toro Irana, is murdered on a mission, Mander investigates and gets caught up in a plot involving the Hutts and a new type of spice.


  • Combat Pragmatist: He's not that comfortable with a lightsaber, so he relies on trickery and careful planning to win battles.
  • Insistent Terminology: He is an archivist, not a librarian.
  • Laser Blade: Uses a green lightsaber.
  • My Greatest Failure: After Toro's death, Mander thinks he must have been a awful teacher for his padawan to die in the circumstances that he did. He eventually realizes that there is a lot more to the situation than meets the eye.

    Empatojayos Brand 

Empatojayos Brand

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/empbrand.jpg
Appears in: Jedi Starfighter | Dark Empire

"I am grateful that Brand was with us. He was a greater Jedi than I."
Luke Skywalker

The apprentice of Yaddle who narrowly survived Order 66 after sustaining grievous injuries that left him in permanent need of a floating prosthetic body. He became the King of the planet Ganath after being rescued by the native Ganathans and later joined Luke Skywalker's fledgling New Jedi Order.


  • An Arm and a Leg: An extreme example. All of Brand's limbs were destroyed when his ship crashed, leaving him quadriplegic and immobile without his crude, spherical exoskeleton.
  • Chekhov's Gunman: Introduced as one of the only surviving members of the old Jedi Order. He ends up being the one who ensures Palpatine's third and final death.
  • Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: Brand holds the honour of being the one who managed to permanently end the threat of Palpatine by dragging the immortal Sith's very soul down to the Netherworld of the Force where his vestige would be chained by the spirits of all the Jedi he murdered for eternity. Not bad for a non-Chosen One.
  • The Good King: After his ship crashed and he was rescued by the Ganathans, he assumed the position of their king, governing in accordance with the principles of the Jedi. He is considered a just monarch and is beloved by his subjects.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: Jumped in the way of Palpatine's disembodied spirit as it was coming for Anakin Solo.
  • Locked Out of the Loop: Before he encountered Han Solo and pals, Brand was completely isolated from wider galactic affairs for decades and as such had no knowledge about the rise and fall of the Empire, nor the resurrection(s) of Emperor Palpatine.
  • Taking You with Me: Performed a particularly epic Mutual Kill against Palpatine.

    The Ysanna siblings 

Jem & Rayf Ysanna

Species: Human (Ysanna)

Homeworld: Ossus

Jem Voiced by: Glynnis Campebell (Dark Empire)
Appears in: Dark Empire

"The sons of the Jedi are strong in the Force."
Rayf Ysanna

    Jedi on other pages 

The Galactic Empire

Thrawn's Fleet and the Imperial Remnant

    Thrawn 

Grand Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo, "Thrawn"

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thrawn_galaxies_tv_tropes.jpg
"Death awaits them."'

Species: Chiss

Homeworld: Csilla

Voiced by: Robin Atkin Downes (Empire At War), Tim Russell (Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire), Tris King (TIE Fighter)
Appears in: Outbound Flight | Mist Encounter | Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire | Rebellion | Empire at War | Rebel Force | Choices of One | Galaxy of Fear | Galaxies | Command Decision | Side Trip | X-Wing Seriesnote  | TIE Fighter | Crisis of Faith | Tatooine Ghost | The Thrawn Trilogy | Essential Warfare | Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider
"Learn about art, Captain. When you understand a species' art, you understand that species."

Perhaps the greatest military mind the Galactic Empire ever knew. Promoted to the rank of Grand Admiral (the only nonhuman to hold that title), he was sent to the edge of the galaxy to bring new territories under Imperial rule, only to return to find the Emperor dead and the Empire shattered. Taking command of the Imperial Starfleet, Thrawn devoted himself to rebuilding the galactic order, and though he was still evil, he was notable for leading through respect, rather than fear. He was assassinated by his own bodyguard, Rukh, mid-battle, but it is possible that a clone of him survives…

For tropes on his portrayal in the reboot continuity, see Star Wars – Thrawn (Character Sheet).


  • Affably Evil: Thrawn is polite and would rather subjugate enemies than kill them. Despite this affability, he is also evil and is willing to decimate planets if need be, he'd just rather not.
  • A Lighter Shade of Black: He is often regarded- both in-universe and by the fandom (and even by his creator, to a point) as one of the nicer, fairer and more well-meaning Imperials, who honestly thought the galaxy would be more secure and better off under an autocratic empire than a democratic republic. While all of this may be true, he was still an extremely ruthless military conqueror at the end of the day, perfectly willing to terrorise populations, manipulate cultures, kidnap children and in at least one off-hand mention, commit xenocide if it means achieving his objectives. His own species- a culture of isolationist, xenophobic fascists, no less- regarded him as a dangerous extremist. Thrawn may be a pragmatic villain, but he is still definitely a villain.
  • Alien Arts Are Appreciated: He weaponized this trope, using the psychological insights he gained from studying a species's art to figure out what tactics they'll try to use during battle.
  • Anti-Hero: A Pragmatic Hero during his early days, though was already leaning to...
  • Anti-Villain: Type III (Pragmatic Villain and Well-Intentioned Extremist). He wants to bring order and safety to The Galaxy, but is willing to engage in some pretty-shady business in the process.
  • Anti-Magic: A Ysalamari nutrient frame is built into his command chair, and he repeatedly put the creatures to use to protect himself against Force users.
  • Arch-Enemy: The Unknown Regions warlord Nuso Esva (whose name is a cipher for "Moriarty").
  • Awesome, but Impractical: A lot of his strategies boil down to this. Pellaeon even points out that the Force-coordination is awesome, but relying on an insane dark Jedi for them is not worth the trouble.
  • Awesomeness by Analysis: His battle plans are made by studying alien art and using it to determine exactly how he can make them submit to his forces.
  • Badass Bookworm: His decimation of enemies has nothing to do with his physical prowess, no: he just studies their art and from that he's able to come up with brilliant tactics to swiftly defeat them.
  • Badass Normal: Easily the most dangerous antagonist of the entire franchise whose abilities have nothing to do with the Force. What elevates him beyond the Emperor and the Yuuzhan Vong is that when the other antagonists tend to swarm the good guys with superior numbers and firepower, Thrawn is most adept in decimating his opponents with a vastly inferior force. He's even aware of his Force-related disadvantage and takes steps to work around it, resulting in him and his men using Ysalamiri to protect themselves from Force attacks.
    • Taken further in Outbound Flight where he shows that he can run rings around Jedi Masters and even use tactics to turn their own Force abilities against them, despite having only just learned about the Jedi and the Force just days before and only in the briefest of explanations.
  • Batman Gambit:
    • Thrawn is a master of understanding the workings of someone's mind and takes advantage of this by correctly predicting the New Republic's surprise attack of his most fortified base, as opposed to a smaller, easier target, when they even leaked signals they would be going for the latter.
    • This is also how his "knowing cultures by their art" thing works, it's all about spotting conceptual blind spots. His introduction involves him knowing that the leader of the task force he's facing will make exactly the wrong maneuver when facing a disorganized fighter swarm. His gambit of shooting "through" planetary shields revolved around targeting a race especially vulnerable to that kind of illusion (and to panicking if they see something they thought was impossible); once a video of the attack leaked off-world the trick is figured out instantly.
  • Benevolent Boss: At least by Imperial standards - he's the nicest and most open-minded Imperial ruler to serve under. He won't punish you for failure in and of itself - though he will punish you for incompetence or insubordination, especially if you try to pin your own failings on someone else.
  • Big Bad: Of The Thrawn Trilogy, where he causes conflict by seeking to usurp the galaxy's new alliance and restore the empire with himself in charge.
  • Big Bad Duumvirate: He's the more prominent half of one with Joruus C'baoth.
  • Bodyguard Betrayal: He's finally done in when his personal guard discovers that he poisoned their home world and stabs Thrawn in the chest, killing him.
  • Bond Villain Stupidity: A more mitigated example than most, but all his losses can be traced back to not killing someone when he should have. Niles Ferrier's screw up with the smugglers, C'baoth's control of the cloning facility, Rukh's Bodyguard Betrayal, and Mara Jade assisting the New Republic could have been avoided if he were a tad more ruthless.
    • A far better example is him betraying Mara after she tries to cut a deal with him. While it isn't necessarily a stupid thing to do, it does gain him a far more dangerous enemy in Mara than he expected and it essentially derails his plans by forcing her to align with Luke Skywalker and the other heroes in order to stop him. A problem that could have been avoided if he had been less ruthless.
  • Boring, but Practical: Other than his aforementioned Awesome, but Impractical reliance on an Ax-Crazy Dark Jedi for support, Thrawn follows this trope to a T. He — unlike villains such as Tarkin and Palpatine — doesn't believe in grandiose superweapons, preferring to conserve as many resources as possible for more-sensible strategies. However, many of the ways he uses them are creative enough to fall into Simple, yet Awesome territory anyway.
  • Brutal Honesty: He's usually polite about it, but still blunt when it's called for. He also mentions that on no less than two occasions that he told Emperor Palpatine to his face that a plan the Emperor was working was dumb (one of which was The Death Star). Considering Palpatine was known to kill anyone who gave him lip, it speaks volumes about how much he valued Thrawn that he didn't kill him.
  • Character Shilling: He gets a sizable amount thrown his way. Even Mara Jade, the reigning queen of sarcasm, has some good things to say about him. By the Hand of Thrawn series his enemies and even his protege are pointing out how out of hand this has gotten.
  • The Chessmaster: His calculation and planning skills make him one of the most dangerous foes the New Republic has ever faced.
  • Cloning Gambit: Ten years after his death, a clone of him was ready to be born, but was destroyed by Luke and Mara Jade. He might have another out there.
  • Complexity Addiction: Downplayed. He doesn't have it to nearly the extent of Palpatine and is forced to develop more complex plans due to lacking resources, but some of his plans, like trying to steal a fleet with mining vehicles, can come off like he had a crazy idea and just wanted to see if it would actually work.
  • Continuity Cameo: Appears in Tatooine Ghost, set a few months before the Thrawn Trilogy. He's heard communicating instructions to the troops trying to capture Killik Twilight, and appears in stormtrooper armour observing a squad as they try to locate it, with Leia even seeing his glowing red eyes. While he's never named, the timeframe, use of the Chimaera and the Imperials' innovative tactics make it clear who it is.
  • Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: Can be considered this to Emperor Palpatine, since The Thrawn Trilogy was the first novel series to continue the story after Return of the Jedi. While Palpatine was an ominous black-cloaked card-carrying human villain known for his sadism and his vast Dark Side powers, Thrawn is an impeccably cultured Officer and a Gentleman known for his strategic brilliance and his love of art, he's an alien, and he habitually dresses in crisp white military regalia.
  • Deadpan Snarker: It's very rare for Thrawn to engage in any humor, but when he does, it's this, particularly when interacting with C'baoth.
  • Dragon Ascendant: He was a Grand Admiral under Emperor Palpatine and after the Emperor's death, he returns to try and restore the regime with himself heading it.
  • The Dreaded: In the Hand of Thrawn duology, the possibility of his return has everyone scared, to a degree rather beyond reason. Those who actually fought him have to occasionally remind others that, clever as he was, he wasn't infallible.
  • Equal-Opportunity Evil: Unlike the Empire proper, the Empire of the Hand will hire nonhumans.
  • Establishing Character Moment: Two.
    • For how he deals with his enemies, his utter annihilation of a New Republic force at the start of Heir with innovative tactics, understanding of his opponents' psyche and total, total confidence things will go his way.
      Thrawn: The last thing we want to do right now is bring in more of our ships, Captain. After all, there may be survivors, and we wouldn't want the Rebellion learning about us. Would we.
    • For dealing with other Imperials, his execution of the tractor beam operator who let Luke Skywalker get away - but, in stark contrast to Vader's oft-pointless murder of subordinates for minor mistakes, only after establishing said operator was unable to accept fault, blaming the rulebook for not covering such a scenario and his supervisor for not training him. When the same thing crops up again in the final book, the replacement not only instantly copped to the failure, but had tried a genuinely innovative tactic to try and prevent it. Thrawn promotes him on the spot and reassigns him to developing a working countermeasure, and Pellaeon explicit notes it as the point where he realises a different sort of Empire is being born. The second operator is implied to succeed at developing a countermeasure, because Lando tries the same trick in Hand of Thrawn and it doesn't work.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He did genuinely love his brother, Thrass.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Seems genuinely somber about his My Greatest Failure genocide (despite it being implied to be against General Grievous's people, no less) in retrospect, and was even-more disturbed when a desperate subordinate of his caused the Outbound Flight's destruction (which included countless innocent civilians). Additionally, while Thrawn may be ruthless, he nevertheless feels that it's a Necessary Evil to prevent the Yuuzhan Vong from becoming a far, far worse option for The Galaxy.
    Thrawn: Art? You think the defacement of buildings is art?
  • Evil Genius: Definitely, his military brilliance is rivaled only by Palpatine's Machiavellian political genius. though he is morally better than most.
  • The Exile: The Chiss basically exiled him for being the only one willing to Shoot the Dog.
  • Expansion Pack Past: Despite dying at the end of his titular trilogy, Thrawn continued getting an ridiculous amount of focus, whether it be prequels, flashbacks, or schemes from beyond the grave.
  • Expy: If Sherlock Holmes was a ruthless alien military strategist working for The Empire, he would be Thrawn.
    • The popular depiction of Erwin Rommel would also fit, as an extremely competent military commander in service to an evil Empire who nevertheless bucks much of the Stupid Evil behavior of that Empire, instead winning a reputation as a Frontline General and A Father to His Men.
    • Similarly, he's also one to Bel Riose, in that they are highly skilled commanders who are sent by their respective empires to lay claim to the outmost systems of the Galaxy, who are obsessed with restoring the power and prestige of their respective empires, and who do not easily fit into the power structure they serve (Thrawn because he's an alien in a xenophobic empire, Riose because he's a commoner in an aristocratic empire).
    • In Tatooine Ghost he appears, observing a group of stormtroopers on the ground as they attempt to locate Kiliik Twilight. When the heroes wipe out said squad, he does a remarkably good job of holding them off Guns Akimbo until Chewbacca forces him to retreat.
  • Fatal Flaw: He does not understand Force Users nearly as much as he might like, which causes him to underestimate Force Users far more than he might realize.
  • A Father to His Men: Thrawn can be ruthless to his subordinates when he feels it's justified, but he prefers to encourage respect rather than demand absolute obedience.
  • Foil:
    • To Darth Vader. Black/white clothing contrast, overwhelming power vs subtle manipulation, leading through fear vs leading through respect. Vader will kill his subordinates for any failure, Thrawn encourages creativity and punishes stupidity, not failure. Vader engages enemies in battle himself and uses the Force as a source of power, Thrawn displays little, if any, skill in personal combat and has no connection to the Force. Both take the title of Supreme Commander of the Imperial Fleet at different points, Vader working to crush the Rebellion, Thrawn working to restore the Empire.
    • He is also this to typical Imperial commanders as depicted in the original trilogy. Where typical Imperial doctrine is to rule and command through fear, Thrawn prefers to do so with respect. Typical Imperial tactics rely on the application of overwhelming force and a reliance on superweapons. Thrawn frequently obtains victories through creative and novel tactics with much more limited resources and even while outnumbered. Finally, where most Imperial commanders would press on, even in hopeless situations (most likely because of how failure is rewarded in Palpatine's Empire), Thrawn is willing to admit defeat and retreat if he can't see a way to pull off a win.
  • Four-Star Badass: He returns from the Unknown Regions five years after the Rebellion toppled the Empire and became a legitimate contender for dominant power in the galaxy and, after assuming command of remaining forces, nearly single-handedly steers the war solidly back in the Empire's favor.
  • Frontline General: In Outbound Flight - he goes into combat with his troops while boarding an enemy vessel, as this is a requirement of all Chiss commanding officers.
    • In the four-part short story "Side Trip" by Timothy Zahn and Michael Stackpole, Thrawn, already a Grand Admiral, goes undercover as bounty hunter Jodo Kast with a rebel freighter crew on a mission to bring down Black Sun's Corellian operations, simply because he feels it's the best way to ensure the plan works. He stops a bar fight by casually shooting a blaster out of a man's holster while he's drawing it, brings down Black Sun's sector leader, tags the Rebels' cargo to track them to their supply base afterwards, and only the two CorSec agents who become involved (Hal and Corran Horn) even realize there's something off about "Kast", but not what.
  • Honor Before Reason: Isn't fond of You Have Outlived Your Usefulness at all, unlike most villains. While this makes him easier to sympathize with, it also leads to multiple Spanners in the Works ultimately causing his final defeat and death — which could've been prevented had he indeed killed those characters after manipulating them.
  • Ignorant of Their Own Ignorance: One of the main reasons he lost in the end; he made crucial mistakes in analysing a situation that can be traced back to the fact that he appeared to be unaware (or at least not take into account) the implications of Luke and Leia being Vader's children. As a result, the Noghiri's former loyalty to Darth Vader translated into a loyalty to Vader's children that took precedent over their devotion to the Empire as a whole. This allowed Luke and Leia to convince the Noghiri that they were being used by the Empire by carefully implying that Vader had been deceived as well, turning them against Thrawn using a plan he simply never considered.
  • Kick the Dog: Betrays Mara and has Talon Karrde dragged off for torture and interrogation.
  • Kick The Son Of A Bitch: The only soldier whom Thrawn is shown invoking You Have Failed Me on turns out to be something of a Jerkass who keeps invoking Never My Fault. Had he been more honest and respectful, he likely would've kept his head (let alone his job).
  • Know When to Fold 'Em: While most Imperial commanders would rather go out in a blaze of glory than admit defeat, Thrawn actually will order a retreat if he's starting to lose. The problem is getting him to that point. It also makes him much harder to kill.
  • Light Is Not Good: Bright uniform, glowing eyes, and a prominently holographic art collection, but he's still a dangerous antagonist.
  • Meaningful Name: By dint of the rough draft of the Thrawn Trilogy. Zahn chose the name Thrawn from the Scots word for "twisted", and Thrawn was originally more of The Paranoiac and Ax-Crazy, being obviously unhinged. The name doesn't really apply to his finalized personality.
  • Military Maverick: Unsurprisingly, the historical inspirations for Thrawn included Erwin Rommel, Robert E. Lee, and Hannibal Barca.
  • Monochromatic Eyes: Depictions of Chiss vary between red irises, red irises and sclera with visible pupils, and uniformly glowing red eyes.
  • Moral Sociopathy: Thrawn prizes efficiency over brutality and behaves as A Father to His Men, but appears to do so on purely practical terms: he's averse to genocide and randomly murdering subordinates because he considers them wasteful rather than immoral. Thrawn doesn't really appear to actually care about anybody (other than his brother Thrass in Outbound Flight), and when he's foiled, it's often because he failed to consider actions taken out of genuine altruism. He also never once appears to consider how he would actually rule the galaxy were he to succeed in reconquering it for the Empire, seeming to want to do so purely for the intellectual challenge of the attempt.
  • My Country, Right or Wrong: According to Zahn,invoked his ultimate motivation for everything he's done is to protect the Chiss Ascendancy. He supports the Empire in hopes that the Empire can act as a bigger fish against the enemies of the Chiss (chiefly the Yuuzhan Vong in Legends), and opposes the New Republic because he doesn't think it's going to last long enough to be useful.
  • My Greatest Failure: A rare villainous example. At one point, he was unable to understand a species through their art, forcing him to win through sheer force and destroying their world.
  • Non-Action Big Bad: During The Thrawn Trilogy. Thrawn is a schemer, not a fighter but that doesn't make him any less dangerous. At earlier dates he is shown leading troops (Outbound Flight and Tatooine Ghost among others), but he's not in any way a remarkable infantryman.
  • Not So Above It All: He might be a Pragmatic Villain and The Stoic, but he'll still take time out of waging war against the Republic to ruin people who have screwed him over — to Talon Karrde's dismay.
  • Officer and a Gentleman: He is sophisticated, urbane, and polite in all of his dealings.
  • Only Known by Their Nickname: In his first appearance, he's known only as "Thrawn"; his full name isn't stated until the last part of Vision of the Future. Outbound Flight establishes that, among the Chiss, the "core name" is for use by friends and family only, but Thrawn allows Jorj Car'das to address him by his simpler core name because Car'das has trouble pronouncing Mitth'raw'nuruodo correctly. By the time of The Thrawn Trilogy it seems to have simply become a habit.
  • Outside-Context Problem: No one in the New Republic and few in the Empire even knew he existed before he began his campaign, and it was years before anyone found out more about his past, his species, or even his full name.
  • Paranoia Gambit: His reputation has made all his plans partially this by default. No matter what he's planning, everyone aware of his involvement is unsure what to do, since he's probably planned for all possible outcomes.
  • The Plan: Absolute master of this list.
  • Pragmatic Villainy: What sets him apart from other Imperial leaders.
    "As to [Talon Karrde's] would-be rescuers, I want them also alive if possible. If not—" He paused. "If not, I'll understand."
  • Predecessor Villain: In Hand of Thrawn his reputation alone is a source of trouble for the entire New Republic, and a clone of him is nearly ready to take control of the Empire of the Hand.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: Thrawn believes in rewarding good work and while he does execute lazy soldiers, he also promotes a man who failed to capture Skywalker because the soldier attempted to do so using a new, innovative tactic and admitted to his failing, acknowledging the innovation behind the attempt even if it didn't work. While he is a brilliant strategist on his own, he is also willing to listen to others; when attempting to create a cover story to allow C'Boath to make contact with Luke Skywalker, Pellaeon suggested sending C'Boath to a relatively isolated world where he could plausibly have been living in hiding all this time, and Thrawn complimented his subordinate for the idea and went along with it. Thrawn also detests uselessly sacrificing his men and reprimands his commanders for being careless with their soldiers.
  • Reassigned to Antarctica: The story goes that he made enemies in the Imperial Court, and was sent to the Unknown Regions of the galaxy as a result. Really, he was doing work for the Emperor conquering the region and dealing with potential threats.
  • Red Eyes, Take Warning: His status as the villain is emphasized by the book describing his red, glowing eyes, painting an unsettling picture of the man.
  • Right-Hand Cat: Frequently drawn with a ysalamari, though in the novels it's mounted onto a "nutrient frame" on his chair.
  • Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Thrawn goes to war against the New Republic rather than make peace with them mainly due to being convinced that the New Republic cannot defeat the Yuuzhan Vong and the Emperor is required. The ripples of Thrawn's campaign are by no means solely, or even primarily, responsible for the New Republic being poorly situated to deal with the invaders in terms of political factionalism and infrastructure damage, but they do play a role. Additionally, it is partially because of lingering bad feelings from the New Republic's wars with Thrawn and his successor that the Imperial Remnant sits out the war for a disastrously long time, contributing to the loss of life.
  • The Starscream: Implied. He had his own empire out in the Unknown Regions, and someone has to be Emperor after La Résistance is crushed.
    • The background material tying together Zahn's novels and Dark Empire states that, rightly or not, this is how the resurrected Palpatine saw Thrawn during his campaign, explaining why Thrawn never had access to the huge warfleets and superweapons of the Dark Empire comics - Palpatine, believing his subordinate was betraying him by staging his own campaign to destroy the Rebellion, arranged for him to be cut off from much of the remaining Imperial war resources.
  • The Stoic: Rarely emotes, and doesn't even flinch at a Jump Scare that alarmed Pellaeon.
  • The Strategist: The finest in the Empire. With the possible exception of Revan and Palpatine himself, he's the best example in the entire franchise.
  • Underestimating Badassery: He has a bad tendency to do this with Force Users, primarily with Mara Jade and Joruus C'Baoth. He betrays Mara Jade, even though she's willing to work with him to save Karrde, because he believes she's powerless without Palpatine's influence and it allows her to essentially derail his and C'Baoth's plans for Luke and Karrde. He's also sure the mad clone can be easily controlled, even after it starts becoming clear that C'Baoth is far more dangerous than he seems. At the least, he finally does get it after C'Baoth practically takes over Mount Tantiss and the cloning facility, but by then can't actually do anything directly about it.
  • The Unfought: None of the main heroes even speak to him, much less fight him directly.
  • Villain in a White Suit: An antagonist who wears the all-white uniform of an Imperial Grand Admiral.
  • Weak to Magic: To a degree. One of Thrawn's consistent psychological weaknesses is that, coming from a culture which later entrants in the Legends continuity would explain does not like Force-users and may have even stamped out all Force use by the time of the original trilogy, is an underestimation of Force-users. He's even aware of it, to a certain extent, but can't compensate for it. He sees the Force as just another tool or weapon, and while this allows him to make leaps others aren't capable of (how he made quick-growth clones practical, e.g.), it renders him blind to the true extent and power of the Force.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist: It's eventually revealed he allied with the Empire to use their military against the Yuuzhan Vong.
  • Wicked Cultured: Thrawn is not only an admirer and collector of art, he actually works it into his battle strategy by studying the works of enemy races, so as to psychologically analyze the species he's up against and determine their weaknesses.
  • Worthy Opponent: Considers Ackbar as one, or at least as someone who could pose a threat to his campaign by leading the Republic against him and keeping everyone united. Hence using Fey'lya to frame him for treason.
  • Xanatos Gambit: Thrawn attacks multiple enemy planets, knowing he can conquer them if the New Republic fails to send back up and that his true target will have thinner defences if they do.
  • Xanatos Speed Chess: Thrawn is tasked with taking down a political enemy of Darth Vader and does so by manipulating a pair of policemen he happens upon into arresting the man. Later on, Thrawn actually admits this had not been his initial plan for taking down Vader's enemy but realized the opportunity and took advantage of the police.
  • You Have Failed Me: Famously deconstructed, with Thrawn showing exactly why he does and doesn't invoke it: he has a tractor beam operator killed in the first book for letting Luke escape, but only because that man not only failed to display any initiative but tried to pass the blame off on his immediate superior, displaying both a lack of imagination and an unwillingness to take responsibility. In the third book a different tractor beam operator tries a different stratagem to catch Luke, one not in the manual. It fails and Luke escapes again - but Thrawn promotes the guy regardless for trying to think outside the box.
    • There's also an argument that Thrawn's biggest failings are because of him not going for this trope when he should.
      • In "Outbound Flight" he pulls back his attack at the last second because Outbound flight is crippled and he wants to give them a chance to simply flee. Instead, a now-Dark Sider Jorus C'Baoth almost kills him, forcing Doriana to use radiation bombs to save Thrawn's life - killing everyone aboard and causing a far greater death toll than if Thrawn had simply hit C'Baoth's command centre again.
      • In the Thrawn Trilogy he doesn't invoke this trope on Joruus C'Baoth despite his clear madness and The Starscream tendencies, Mara Jade despite trying to kill him after his betrayal, or Niles Ferrier despite his general incompetence. If he'd had each of them killed after they began to show traits damaging to him, Thrawn's position in the latter book would have been infinitely more secure, with no Smuggler's Alliance against him, no exposure of Mt. Tantiss and its cloning facilities and no C'Baoth almost taking advantage to create an army loyal only to him.

    Gilad Pellaeon 

Captain/Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon

See the Star Wars – New Jedi Order and Legacy Eras character page.

    Rukh 

Rukh

Species: Noghri

Homeworld: Honoghr

Appears in: The Thrawn Trilogy

"It is not my place to question. It is only my duty to obey."

Thrawn's bodyguard.

For tropes on his portrayal in the reboot continuity, see Star Wars – Imperial Navy.


  • Bodyguard Betrayal: Rukh to Thrawn. After Rukh finds out that the Empire has been poisoning his homeworld instead of helping the clean-up process as they say, he stabs Thrawn. It's mentioned in the Hand of Thrawn duology that Rukh did not live to tell about it, being intercepted and killed by an elite stormtrooper squad.

    Natasi Daala 

Admiral Natasi Daala

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/natasi_daala_swleu_7417.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Irmenu

Daala was once the lover of the infamous Grand Moff Tarkin, and through him acquired command of an elite Star Destroyer armada dedicated to protecting Maw Installation, storehouse and producer of superweapons. Resurfacing two years after the Thrawn crisis, she led her warships on a crusade of vengeance against the New Republic, notable for inflicting massive casualties on her own side. After hovering around the edges for a few years and causing minor havoc, Daala vanished. She resurfaced several years after the Yuuzhan Vong invasion in command of a rag-tag fleet of ships equipped with prototype superweapons. She then somehow become Galactic Alliance Chief of State, but became so bad at her job that nobody so much as batted an eye when the Jedi overthrew her..


  • Ax-Crazy: Or at least, she used to be. She still is.
  • Board to Death: Seemingly overlooked in most views of her—for all her battlefield failings, Daala is the lone officer to end the post-ROTJ warlordism period (by inviting the competing warlords to meet and reconcile, and then killing them when they fail to). Doing this probably saved the Imperial Navy, and the Empire, from extinction and without a doubt extended the conflict by many years. Just to prove the point, when she is defeated (like every single post-ROTJ Imperial commander before her), she quietly resigns from her commander without firing a shot (making her another first).
  • The Baroness: Sexpot when she was younger, Rosa Klebb as an older woman.
  • Breaking the Glass Ceiling: It's said that she would not have achieved her rank except for the fact that she was sleeping with Grand Moff Tarkin. There seem to be differing opinions as to whether his favouritism promoted her beyond her abilities or simply allowed her to claim her rightful due - but deservedly or not, she was introduced as the first woman to make admiral in the Imperial fleet.
  • Casting Couch: Some rivals claimed that she only reached her rank because she was Tarkin's mistress. After a certain rather nasty incident, people quickly learned not to say things like that where Tarkin could hear about it.
  • Character Development: In the Fate of the Jedi series, she is completely different in terms of personality and competence level than her earlier incarnation. Then cracks start to show as public pressure against her mounts. She ends the series as being back to her old self.
  • Chief of State Evil
  • Corrupt Politician: Her administration was so rapaciously corrupt that the Alliance began the practice of installing triumvirates after her ouster, because she showed how badly the Chief of State post could be abused, even in peace time.
  • Evil Old Folks: She's in her seventies and going gray by her final appearances.
  • Evil Redhead: A copper haired Imperial Admiral though by her later appearances, she's going grey.
  • Foil: To Thrawn. Anderson describes her as being Thrawn's opposite, as Daala is hotheaded and goes by "shoot first, ask questions later", while Thrawn is patient and observes first.
  • General Failure: The one thing that put her above all the other warlords in the Imperial Remnant was that she never lost sight of the fact that her primary opponent was the New Republic, not the other warlords. Every campaign she lead resulted in disaster, taking massive losses in return for inflicting damage on worlds that had no real strategic value, while failing to do any real harm to the worlds that did. Her main achievements were uniting the various Imperial Remnant factions under one banner, and then having the sense to step down and hand command to Pellaeon after her own defeat.
  • General Ripper: Her "tactics" boil down to throwing everything you have at the enemy until they are dead. Which was fine when the Empire had unlimited resources, but she is never able to adapt to that change.
  • God Save Us from the Queen!: A prominent Imperial leader and later Chief of State, ruthless, and at times; dangerously incompetent.
  • Jerkass: The EU introduced a lot of sympathetic characters within the Empire. She, on the other hand, is your typical Imperialistic jerk.
  • Jerkass Has a Point: When she became the Galactic Alliance Chief of State, she did have some generally sound grievances against the Jedi Order such as how Jedi have a habit of cutting off limbs of people who antagonize them and the fact that the Jedi appear to be complacent in their position as law enforcers, cooperating little with local authorities in certain matters. Even Luke himself agreed that some of her concerns are justified.
  • Informed Ability: Claimed to be an unrecognized genius held down by the glass ceiling until Tarkin found her, but all of her military campaigns were ultimately disasters. Possibly justified by the fact that she claimed to be a genius in infantry tactics, and Tarkin gave her a fleet.
  • Karma Houdini: Annoyingly, she's one of the few major Star Wars villains to escape any kind of punishment, with Boba Fett saving her from prison and her disappearing to parts unknown. Whether this was intended to lead to anything will likely remain unclear due to the 2014 Continuity Reboot.
  • New Old Flame: Despite the fact that a huge part of her backstory is having been Grand Moff Tarkin's mistress, Planet of Twilight suddenly introduces kindly old pilot and programmer Liegeus Vorn (who just so happens to be working for Seti Ashgad) as a long-lost lover Daala left behind when she went to the Imperial Academy; presumably this was done to a) make her more sympathetic and b) provide her character with a happy ending and closure. However, when the writers decided to have Daala reappear again later with the Imperial Remnant, and then eventually become Chief of State, this plotline was rendered null and void, and no mention is ever made of what happened to him, either...until sometime later during Legacy of the Force when it is revealed that they married offscreen, had a son, and then he died saving Daala from a thermal detonator, an assassination attempt made by the Moff Council.
  • Skewed Priorities: Her very public murder trial of Tahiri Veila, while based on a well-founded premise, is mired in hypocrisy because she's not nearly as focused on justice in any other matter. Contrast Cha Niathal, who was going to be given a show trial and acquitted. A woman who willingly collaborated with a Sith Lord, created a dictatorship, and committed treason was going to get let off, while a woman who committed at most two murders was being subjected to a highly politicized trial. It makes it very easy for the Jedi to sell her actions as being politically motivated against them, rather than out of a true sense of justice.
  • Smug Snake: Very proud despite her numerous leadership flaws despite claims to the contrary.

Trioculus' Empire

    Trioculus 

Emperor Trioculus

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/trioculus2.jpg

Species: Human (mutant)

Homeworld: Kessel

  • Big Bad Wannabe: He's a petty, incompetent idiot who thinks he is Palpatine's worthy successor. Yet he is a fraud, gets outsmarted by the protagonists easily and even loses to Zorba the Hutt and gets frozen in carbonite. Kadann knows he is a fraud, and saw him as just a puppet to kill and replace on the throne.
  • The Caligula: Murderous tantrums, sexual obsessions, grandiosity, whining? Check. Of course, since he's a G-rated villain, he rarely succeeds at killing anyone in his rages.
  • Cruella to Animals: Trioculus takes a break from pursuing the heroes to hunt animals.
  • Meaningful Name: "Trioculus", 'Tri' — meaning 'three', and 'oculus' — a form of the word ocular, 'of the eye'; so, three eyes. And the man he serves as a doppelganger for, literally named Triclops.
  • Red Right Hand: His Third Eye.

    Bertroff Hissa 

Grand Moff Bertroff Hissa

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1000001859_699900.png

Species: Human/Sephi hybrid


    Vilim Disra 

Grand Moff Vilim Disra

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1000001860_300355.jpg

Species: Human

Other Imperial Remnant Leaders

    Ysanne Isard 

Director Ysanne Isard

See her entry on the Star Wars: X-Wing character page.

    Ardus Kaine 

Grand Moff Ardus Kaine

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/arduskaine.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Sartinaynian

Appears in: Star Wars Adventure Journal | Galaxiesnote 

Regional governor of Oversector Outer (the Outer Rim) after Grand Moff Tarkin's death, Kaine was one of the most fervent supporters of Palpatine's New Order philosophy. A person focussed on power, he was never satisfied with any of the powerful positions he was given. Following the collapse of the Empire, Kaine formed the Pentastar Alignment, one of the many feuding factions within the fracturing empire that ruled over a large swath of the Outer Rim, yet was one of the longest-lasting before being annexed by the Imperial Remnant.


  • All There in the Manual: No mention is made in the movies as to who filled Tarkin's position as governor of the Outer Rim Territories. Here it's revealed to be Kaine, though he isn't happy about it.
  • Ambition Is Evil: On the surface, this seems to be one of his prominent traits, since he desired to be at the center of Imperial power on Coruscant and thus was dissatisfied by his position in the Outer Rim despite its prestige. This is ultimately subverted as an actual fear of power, choosing only to maintain control over the fourteen systems making up the Pentastar Alignment rather than vie for more territory like the other warlords. His desire to rule is only because the idea was drilled into him by his ambitious father.
  • Arch-Enemy: To Ennix Devian, the Emperor's personal hitman, who he views as a brutal and merciless thug. Devian likewise sees him as an arrogant fool who isn't actually committed to the Emperor's Humanocentric principles. Ironically, Devian turned out to be correct.
  • Killed Off for Real: Despite not directly joining Palpatine's revitalized Empire during Operation Shadow Hand, he dies in the midst of the conflict after an attack by New Republic forces on his shuttle. Devian was rumoured to have been involved in this. This was actually orchestrated by turncoat Grand Admiral Octavian Grant.
  • Pragmatic Villainy: Kaine is never actually loyal to Palpatine's Humanocentric policies. Despite claiming to continue such policies in his new regional fiefdom, he is content with using vast numbers of non-Humans in the Pentastar Patrol, the Alignment's military.
  • Manipulative Bastard: Kaine is extremely dead set on decisions he makes, using his skills as an arbiter to assuage concerns regarding his decisions and ensuring he is rarely opposed on any front.
  • Names to Run Away from Really Fast: His flagship is called the Reaper.
  • Reluctant Ruler: Perfectly happy with running his regional government without striving for any higher; he feared making a run for supreme leader of a new Empire would destroy what he had built and make him like the rest of the feuding warlords. He even dislikes his own position as leader of the Pentastar Alignment. Despite this, officers under his rule like Grand Admiral Octavian Grant genuinely see him as a worthy ruler wasting his potential.
  • Threatening Mediator: A talented mediator, Kaine can switch between aggression, tacit intimidation and syllogism to persuade others to share his viewpoint. This talent would come in handy during the initial talks establishing the Alignment, with his not-so-subtle intimidation holding together otherwise tense negotiations.
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy: Most of his actions to ascend in the echelons of politics were done in part to please his father, a successful and speciesist trader on Sartinaynian. This is despite the fact he did not share any of his father's biased beliefs and ambitions. In fact, his desire to rule to impress his father continued long after his father had passed away.

The Circle of Twelve (The Original Grand Admirals)

    Martio Batch 

Grand Admiral Martio Batch

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grand_admiral_batch.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | Essential Warfare
One of twelve Imperial loyalists promoted to the rank of Grand Admiral, Batch was a gifted military researcher and weapons designer tasked with creating a fool-proof cloaking device to defeat the Rebellion. This resulted in the TIE Phantom, but its creation was cut short when the Rebellion attacked the testing facility. Batch escaped with his life and fled to the Outer Rim Territories in fear of his Emperor's retribution, but was assassinated by his crew soon after the Emperor's death.

He is the sixth Grand Admiral to die.


  • The Everyman: Is regarded as this in personality by the Imperial court at large (along with a pronounced dislike of Imperial court politics), so much so that he was nicknamed the 'invisible admiral'. Palpatine uses this quality to his advantage when he tasked Batch with top-secret weapons projects.
  • Overranked Soldier: He isn't a particularly good military commander, so his promotion to Grand Admiral was a bafflement to many. He along with Demetrius Zaarin were better known for their prowess in military research and weaponry.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Flees into the Outer Rim with his fleet following the destruction of his TIE Phantom facility to escape the Emperor's wrath. Was killed by his crew some time later anyway.
  • Wave-Motion Gun: Uses his rank to divert the Tarkin superweapon, a stripped-down variant of the Death Star to destroy the planet Aeten II for stygium crystals to use in his cloaking technology research.
  • You Have Failed Me: Would almost definitely have been on the receiving end of this after losing potential leverage over the Rebellion. Batch decides to run instead.

    Nial Declann 

Grand Admiral Nial Declann

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/declann.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: The Dark Forces Saga | Star Wars Insider | Galaxies | Essential Warfare

One of the twelve Grand Admirals appointed by Palpatine, Nial Declann was an odd choice for the position since his record was relatively average for an Imperial officer. He is actually a Force-sensitive whose abilities were discovered by Palpatine as a TIE pilot for the Imperial Navy. After graduating from training by the Prophets of the Dark Side on Dromund Kaas, he became a Dark Side Adept. As a Grand Admiral, he built a reputation for himself due to his skill at battle meditation and mood swings. He ultimately died stationed on the second Death Star when it was destroyed during the Battle of Endor.

He is the second Grand Admiral to die.


  • Ace Pilot: During his time as a TIE pilot, thanks to his uncanny Force abilities.
  • Like Father, Unlike Son: Has a son who is also Force-sensitive and joined the Stormtrooper Corps under the designation "17786". Said son would later be involved in a coup against Emperor Palpatine spearheaded by one of his Hands.
  • Minor Major Character: Is one of the highest-ranking Imperial officers aboard the second Death Star, coordinating the Imperial forces above Endor with his battle meditation. Yet he receives zero mentions throughout the entire battle and died when the station was destroyed. Grand Admiral Thrawn believes it was the Emperor who had been conducting the fleet, not Declann.
  • Mood-Swinger: A frequent example of this, able to switch from morose and bland to loud and threatening within a matter of seconds.
  • My Significance Sense Is Tingling: Inverted; Declann (a comparative unknown in the Star Wars universe) sensed the death of Palpatine when he was thrown into a central shaft by Vader. He dies while rushing to the throne room in response.
  • Small Role, Big Impact: Was the one aiding the Imperial fleet with battle meditation and not Palpatine, who was preoccupied with turning Luke Skywalker to the dark side. Had Declann not perished aboard the battle station, the Imperial fleet above Endor would still have his guidance to continue the battle for a longer period of time.
  • You Are Better Than You Think You Are: A rare evil example of this trope. Having been overlooked by the Jedi Order, Declann opted not to put his Force-sensitivity to better use. Palpatine's agents convinced him otherwise and sent him for Dark Side training on Dromund Kaas.

    Octavian Grant 

Grand Admiral Octavian Grant

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grant_8.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: The Dark Forces Saga | The Essential Chronology | Essential Warfare | Star Wars Insider
A Humanocentrist with a pronounced distaste for those not of Imperial nobility, droids and other species, Octavian Grant was a talented strategist yet did not have many achievements to his name compared to the other Grand Admirals. Never bothering to make a name for himself, the lord from Tapani sector was virtually alone after the Battle of Endor and sought refuge in Ardus Kaine's Pentastar Alignment. He boded his time as his peers were either hunted down by the New Republic or in hiding, surviving far longer than anticipated to become 'the last Grand Admiral'. Ultimately, he would surrender to the New Republic and offer Imperial secrets in exchange for amnesty and a peaceful retirement on the world of Rathalay.
  • 0% Approval Rating: One of the least, if not the least, popular of the Grand Admirals. For his lack of interest in politics or forming interpersonal relationships with the Imperial moffs, Grant is singled out by his eleven colleagues to be the first to die in the turmoil surrounding the Empire's death. He manages to turn the tables and outlive all of them.
  • Fantastic Racism: Towards the non-elite, aliens and droids. He had a particular hate for Grand Admiral Thrawn, a Chiss who he believed was undeserving of the rank, more so if rumours were true that he was appointed as the thirteenth Grand Admiral, a violation of the 'twelve Grand Admirals' rule.
  • Hidden Depths: For all his foppery and snobbery, he has an excellent service record during the Clone Wars, and may have been the only Grand Admiral capable of giving Thrawn a run for his money.
  • Karma Houdini: Committed countless tactical atrocities on behalf of the Empire, yet outlives all the other Grand Admirals and survives various other Imperial remnant insurrections, including that of Thrawn and the cloned Palpatine. He even manages to gain favourable celebrity status in retirement on Rathalay.
  • The Mole: After defecting to the New Republic. He lures Ardus Kaine, leader of the Pentastar Alignment, to the Palanhi system in his personal shuttle with the promise of returning to the Alignment to fight for the resurrected Palpatine. This leads the Grand Moff to be killed by New Republic forces.
  • Opportunistic Bastard: While loyal to the Galactic Empire, it's only in so far as to advance his own interests. He is perfectly content with going into hiding and not taking action whenever there is a chance to rebuild the Empire, even defecting to the New Republic and contributing to the deaths of other Imperial remnant leaders like Kaine. Additionally, he only consents to trading Imperial military secrets if the New Republic grants him amnesty and a peaceful retirement.
  • Sole Survivor: Grant is the only Grand Admiral remaining after the turmoil surrounding the end of the war, and the only one to live a full life.

    Josef Grunger 

Grand Admiral Josef Grunger

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/grunger.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: The Glove of Darth Vader | The Lost City of the Jedi | The Essential Warfare | The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider
Slippery and traitorous, Grand Admiral Josef Grunger would turn full warlord when he received word of the Emperor's death and claim the title of Emperor for himself. He chose to follow mutant Slavelord Trioculus, who led the Central Committee of Grand Moffs in opposition to Ysanne Isard instead if he received the blessing of Dark Side prophet Kadann. That failing, he struck out on his own and ended his life in battle with fellow Grand Admiral Danetta Pitta in a suicide attack on his flagship.

He is the eighth Grand Admiral to die along with Danetta Pitta.


  • Beard of Evil: Certainly has one and is easily one of the most immoral and selfish of the Grand Admirals, whether in personality or military philosophy.
  • Fatal Flaw: His Pride. Grunger is pathologically incapable of admitting defeat or even any form of weakness. This would prove to be his undoing when he opts to launch a Suicide Attack into his bitter rival when the latter's ship decimates his armada instead of cutting his losses and fleeing.
  • Overranked Soldier: Subverted. For all his arrogance and pettiness, Grunger is actually one of the four original Grand Admirals who didn't earn his rank through political maneuvering or pure dumb luck (The other 3 being Takel, Teshik and Tigellinus). Prior to becoming a Grand Admiral he was a competent and respected Fleet Admiral and a highly-regarded strategist among the Imperial elite.
  • That's an Order!: A habit of his especially after becoming a warlord. Grunger notably uses his rank to bully lower-ranked officers and governors in the Outer Rim into granting him territory and forces. This allows him to amass a considerable fleet for his plan to take over Imperial Center.
  • Sore Loser: What does he do when he realizes he's lost a battle against his rival Pitta? Ram his flagship straight into Pitta's Torpedo Sphere, killing them both.
  • The Starscream: He claims the title of Emperor for himself immediately after learning of Palpatine's death. As a Grand Admiral he is one of the Emperor's highest-ranked enforcers, overshadowed in that regard only by members of his direct court like Sate Pestage. Even when knowing that there are more powerful factional rulers of splinter factions, Grunger plans to take over Coruscant to consolidate his power anyway.
  • Taking You with Me: Would rather die and eliminate his hated rival Pitta when he realizes the battle is lost instead of fleeing in an escape pod to try again in another engagement.

    Ishin II-Raz 

Grand Admiral Ishin II-Raz

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ishin_il_raz.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare

Ishin II-Raz was one of the major architects behind Palpatine's New Order, being one of the founders of the Commission for the Protection of the Republic (COMPOR) and its successor body the Commission for the Preservation of the New Order (COMPNOR). His efforts in promoting Humanocentrism and his ruthlessness in hunting down the Empire's enemies earned him a promotion to Grand Admiral. So great was II-Raz's loyalty to the Emperor for this reward that he committed suicide after his death by crashing his Star Destroyer into the asteroid Denarii Nova.

He is the seventh Grand Admiral to die.


  • Ax-Crazy: To a fault, but even more so after his promotion to Grand Admiral. He was personally responsible for some of the Empire's worst atrocities such as the Massacre of Myomar and the Bombardment of Shalam for the sole purpose of impressing the Emperor.
  • Better to Die than Be Killed: II-Raz knows that with his complete lack of military skill and the absence of Palpatine to prop him up, his career is in shambles and he would perish if he ever confronted the vastly superior forces of his colleagues who could potentially hunt him down to seize his forces. These fears along with being unable to handle life without the Emperor contribute to his Villainous Breakdown and suicide.
  • Driven to Suicide: Unable to accept a life without his Emperor, II-Raz plunges his Star Destroyer, the Emperor's Disciple into the asteroid Denarii Nova, ending his life (as well as those of the 70, 000 people aboard).
  • Greater-Scope Villain: As one of the founders of COMPNOR. He oversaw the recruitment of thousands of Imperial citizens into the organization and indoctrinated them into becoming blindly loyal enforcers of the Emperor's will. Not to mention that COMPNOR is the commanding body of the Imperial Security Bureau, which monitors Imperial citizens for signs of disloyalty and where Colonel Yularen hails from.
  • Hated by All: Unlike Grant, who is sidelined due to his lack of interest in politics, II-Raz is despised by his peers for the exact opposite reason. Many high-ranking Imperials look down on him for his lack of military prowess and the fact that he was promoted as a political appointment. They think him no better than a petty criminal for the atrocities he committed which were done solely to ingratiate himself with the Emperor.
  • Overranked Soldier: The most glaring example of this among the Grand Admirals, since II-Raz has no military experience whatsoever. Palpatine made him a Grand Admiral for his efforts in crushing dissent, even though as a member of COMPNOR and not the Imperial military, he shouldn't even be eligible for this role. This is even acknowledged In-Universe with critics often pointing to him as a prime example of Palpatine's ineptitude in appointing capable individuals to high posts. II-Raz himself knows he got the promotion purely as a political appointment and doesn't care.

    Afsheen Makati 

Grand Admiral Afsheen Makati

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/makati.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: Vision of the Future | The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare
A mediocre flag officer who was elevated to the rank of Grand Admiral, Afsheen Makati was among those present on the second Death Star at the Battle of Endor. Makati remained loyal to the Empire after the Emperor's death unlike his colleague Josef Grunger and pledged allegiance to whoever controlled Imperial City on Coruscant. He would spend the remainder of his life hunting down an impostor of his Arch-Enemy, Dark Side Prophet Kadann and leading a campaign to keep the Corporate Sector in Imperial hands.

He is the fifth Grand Admiral to die.


  • Bus Crash: Dies of unexplained causes in the midst of protecting the Corporate Sector and his death is briefly discussed by Wedge Antilles. Cut content states that he at least died with dignity, confident that Imperial City would remain under the yoke of the Empire.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Can be very cutting and sarcastic with his remarks, especially in his interactions with the fake Kadann:
Makati: Your 'subordinate' Azrakel was kind enough to help me find you, my Emperor. He doesn't care for your sparkly dress either.
  • Implacable Man: Will hunt down anyone who crosses him. For most of his post-Endor life he tracks down an impostor of Supreme Prophet of the Dark Side Kadann because the real deal blasted him with Force lightning for failing to restrain his subordinate from insulting his order. He succeeds in getting said impostor killed.
  • Revenge: His only personal goal after the Battle of Endor is terminating Kadann who had shamed him for the actions of his first officer. Even then he ensures he receives permission from Director of Imperial Intelligence Ysanne Isard to track down the impostor Rajah Ubooki, using every turbolaser he can muster to finally kill Ubooki. He did not succeed in getting complete revenge however; Azrakel, a former apprentice of the real Kadann would do it for him.
  • Undying Loyalty: Makati is intensely loyal to the Emperor with a deep respect for the chain of command, though not to the fanatical level of Ishin II-Raz. This alone made him one of the most effective Grand Admirals post-Endor since he pledged his support for whoever controlled Imperial City. He died protecting Imperial territory from the New Republic rather than turn warlord or flee into regions unknown.

    Danetta Pitta 

Grand Admiral Danetta Pitta

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pitta.jpg

Species: Near-Human (Etti and Borneck ancestry)

Appears in: The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare

Danetta Pitta was a fanatical advocate for Human High Culture in the Empire to the point that other Imperials with similar beliefs kept their distance from him. However, Pitta was actually of mixed ancestry - descended from the Near-Human Etti and Borneck species, which he concealed behind a ferocious hate of non-humans. This made him a perfect candidate for promotion to Grand Admiral as Palpatine saw him as a useful tool in expanding into the Outer Rim Territories. Pitta cut a bloody swath through many non-Human worlds, either sterilizing or enslaving their populations. He would perish in battle with fellow Grand Admiral Josef Grunger over control of the Corellian sector after Palpatine's death.

He is the ninth Grand Admiral to die along with Josef Grunger.


  • Boomerang Bigot: Despises Near-Humans and Non-Humans and actively sought to wipe them out entirely despite being of mixed ancestry himself.
  • Cool Starship: His flagship is a Torpedo Sphere, a mobile siege platform with more than five hundred guns on its surface which is capable of stopping Grunger's Super Star Destroyer, a ship packing just as much firepower in its tracks.
  • Every Man Has His Price: Assumed control of the Corellian sector as its protector by bribing the diktat stationed there to grant him the authority and resources needed.
  • Fantastic Racism: Towards anyone or anything that isn't fully human. He despises other alien species much more than the average Imperial and uses his authority in expanding into the Outer Rim to sterilize, enslave and perform gruesome experiments on the aliens he captured. His racism ran so deep that even COMPNOR (where fellow Humanocentrist II-Raz was from) greatly disliked him.
  • His Own Worst Enemy: Pitta has to constantly contend with the Irony of hating and killing Non-Humans and Near-Humans despite being one himself. His inner demons neither change his outlook nor diminish his hate for them.
  • Horrifying the Horror: Pitta heavily scrutinizes the pedigree of his colleagues and subordinates for signs of 'weakness' towards aliens and Near-Human species. Most of the Imperial Court (including the other Grand Admirals) balk at this fanaticism and avoid him whenever possible. This included people like Tarkin who ordered massacres of innocent civilians and the destruction of entire planets without even blinking.
  • The Strategist: His deep anti-alien sentiments mask a keen intellect and cunning even in comparison to more successful Grand Admirals. He trounced Grand Admiral Josef Grunger in their battle for control of the Corellian sector despite the latter having more field experience than him.

    Peccati Syn 

Grand Admiral Peccati Syn

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/syn.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Taris

Appears in: Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds | The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare
Peccati Syn was born into a pious family who followed the religion known as the Sacred Way. He was forced to abandon his faith in the face of Imperial oppression and joined the Imperial Navy to fill the spiritual gap, eventually becoming one of the twelve Grand Admirals. Unlike some of his colleagues, Syn continued to serve the powers that be on Coruscant after Palpatine's death, joining the Church of the Dark Side (a sham religion created to strengthen Sate Pestage's hold on power). He was killed in action by Admiral Ackbar defending his base on Kashyyyk, loyal to the Church to the bitter end.

He is the fourth Grand Admiral to die.


  • A Lighter Shade of Black: Syn is friendlier and less power-hungry than the other Grand Admirals. He made an effort to connect with and support his colleagues despite their shortcomings and takes great care of the soldiers under his command. It's still important to note that he is a servant of the Emperor willing to commit numerous atrocities in his name.
  • All for Nothing: Gives his all for the Church of the Dark Side, not wanting to turn his back on another religion when the Sacred Way and Palpatine's New Order failed him. He fights to protect Kashyyyk from the New Republic with no concern for his well-being or that of his subordinates for the sake of the Church, only for his sacrifice to come to naught when it collapsed immediately after his death. Adding extra salt to the wound, Ysanne Isard restored freedom of religion shortly after Syn's demise, including the Sacred Way.
  • A Father to His Men: Syn genuinely cares for the troops under his command and ensures they are well cared for. This is likely because of his strong attachment to the Sacred Way religion which preaches care and respect for the souls of organic beings.
  • Churchgoing Villain: The core of his characterization. Syn relies on religion to keep him going and is willing to give his all for the sake of his faith, despite serving the Galactic Empire which regularly engages in corruption and misdeed. When Syn joins the newly-established Church of the Dark Side after his faith in both the Sacred Way and the New Order was shaken, he vows not to abandon another religion and dies for them in battle against Admiral Ackbar.
  • Meaningful Rename: His Star Destroyer was initially named Fi, after the High Galactic word for "son" used by Sacred Way clergymen. It was later rechristened Silooth, named for the Sith animal after Syn joined the Church of the Dark Side.
  • O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Normally a dutiful and caring commander, Syn descends into religious fanaticism in his final battle, no longer caring for the lives of his subordinates if it means protecting the Empire from the New Republic.
  • Pet the Dog: Syn lends his most unpopular colleague Ishin II-Raz his copy of Secrets of the Dark Side in an effort to lift his spirits. He fails to lessen II-Raz's depression or prevent his suicide soon after Syn's own demise.
  • Villainous Friendship: With Tarisian admiral Foga Brill, who he enjoys having theological debates with. Syn helped Brill gain governorship of the planet Prakith, from where he was subsequently elevated to Moff of the Prakith system.

    Miltin Takel 

Grand Admiral Miltin Takel

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/takel.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Gargon

Appears in: The Glove of Darth Vader | The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare

A famed Fleet Admiral, the street-talking Miltin Takel regularly attended high-profile events on Coruscant and was highly respected among the Imperial elite. However, the opposite was true; he was a spice-addict who lusted after non-Human women. Takel was forced out of his former territories after the Battle of Endor by fellow Grand Admiral Josef Grunger, throwing his lot in with the Central Committee of Grand Moffs led by Slavelord Trioculus. Trioculus eventually grew tired of the Grand Admiral and had him executed by his right-hand man Grand Moff Bertroff Hissa.

He is the tenth Grand Admiral to die.


  • Addiction-Powered: Near-constant consumption of glitterstim gives Takel telepathy, which has saved him from many a defeat and at one point, his life.
  • Brutal Honesty: Takel's street-style of speaking and habit of protesting orders with his personal opinions don't endear him much to superiors who desire nothing less than unswerving obedience. His paranoia-inducing spice addiction doesn't help the situation any.
  • Empowered Badass Normal: Takel's addiction to glitterstim augments his already excellent tactical and strategic prowess with telepathy, granting him limited access into the minds of Force-users.
  • Fatal Flaw: His lack of tact. Takel's inability to shut up and question orders out of turn gets him killed.
  • Functional Addict: While a spice-addicted Dirty Old Man in private, Takel is easily a highly competent commander on the job, which is why he is still able to lead an illustrious career in spite of his many vices.
  • Hookers and Blow: The high-ranked Takel is rarely seen in private without a huge bundle of spice and/or a Twi'lek woman draped around his shoulders.
  • Humiliation Conga: Suffers one after the Emperor dies. Takel is forced out of his territories and loses almost his entire fleet to Grand Admiral Josef Grunger, he gets his butt kicked when he tries to retaliate, then gets threatened with death by Ysanne Isard when he loses. By the time he dies, Takel has lost everything and become a powerless servant of Trioculus and the Central Committee of Grand Moffs.
  • Killed Mid-Sentence: Takel gets shot by Grand Moff Hissa as he rants against moving the Committee's headquarters from Kessel to Hoth:
    Takel: You can't do this, Trioculus! You're being too hasty. Until you find the glove of Darth Vader, you won't be accepted as the new Emperor. What if Grand Admiral Grunger finds it first and—
  • Life of the Party: A social climber, Takel is a popular attendee at high-profile events, habitually attending at least two New Year Fete Week events and the opening premiere of The Kallea Cycle. Additionally, he presents the Distinguished Medal of Imperial Honor to worthy candidates like Captain Sergus Lanox.
  • Motor Mouth: Cannot stop talking out of turn when under the influence, something which eventually gets him killed.
  • The Paranoiac: His spice addiction has the side effect of making him extremely paranoid and erratic, which leads to his death when he opens his mouth once too many.
  • Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Takel avoids prosecution and disgrace for his many improprieties because his brother Griff, Imperial governor of Esseles covers them up.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Jacked up on glitterstim during the Battle of Endor, Takel notices the Force-sensitive Grand Admiral Declann's unease and has his forces flee the system, realizing they're screwed. Seconds after Takel retreats, the second Death Star explodes.
  • The Strategist: One of four Grand Admirals who got the job for actual military merit (alongside Grunger, Teshik and Tigellinus). While not without his flaws, Takel is no slouch at commanding a massive armada, having served as a Fleet Admiral for many years.

    Osvald Teshik 

Grand Admiral Osvald Teshik

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/teshik.jpg

Species: Human (cyborg)

Homeworld: Anaxes

Appears in: The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare

Among the Grand Admirals promoted for military merit, Osvald Teshik held a lofty position as commander of Imperial Center Oversector, the military sector responsible for the Core Worlds (including the capital, Coruscant). A serious failure got him sent on a suicide mission by Emperor Palpatine, culminating in seventy-five percent of Teshik's body being replaced with mechanical parts. As a result, he lost much of his past compassion, a rarity among high-ranking Imperials. Teshik surrendered to Rebel forces after the Battle of Endor, becoming one of the only high-ranking Imperials executed by the New Republic at the end of the Galactic Civil War.

He is the third Grand Admiral to die.


  • Cybernetics Eat Your Soul: The many cybernetic parts augmenting Teshik's body caused him to lose touch with his humanity, and subsequently ostracization for his part-human anatomy caused him to completely cut himself off from all emotion.
  • Defiant to the End: Spends his last days taunting and cautioning the New Republic from reveling in his death, as their fight with the Empire is far from over. Given Thrawn, revived Palpatine and other such insurrections, his warnings were correct.
  • Die Laughing: As he's being taken for execution, Teshik responds with mechanical laughter to his executioners, gloating that the New Republic's fight with the Empire is far from over.
  • Dreaming of Things to Come: After being injured in battle, he has a vision of future galactic wars.
  • Glowing Mechanical Eyes: Teshik has a red metal eye.
  • Heel–Face Door-Slam: During the Battle of Endor, a fleeing construction worker takes the time to free Teshik from a beam he is trapped under as the Second Death Star crumbles, and the Grand Admiral regains his long-lost compassion as a result. He's then taken prisoner and sentenced to death.
  • Stand Your Ground: The only surviving Grand Admiral at the Battle of Endor to not immediately leg it for greener pastures after the Second Death Star explodes. While Takel and Makati immediately withdraw their fleets from the system, Teshik opts to hold fast against the now superior Rebel fleet. Admirable as his actions were, this leads to the capture of his forces and his execution by the New Republic.
  • The Scapegoat: He's the most humane of the Grand Admirals but is sentenced to death by the Rebels, mainly due to being the most senior Imperial they take alive.
  • The Spock: He tries not to show emotions due to the ridicule he gets as a cyborg.
  • Unwilling Roboticization: Implied. Teshik didn't in any way ask to become a cyborg, and certainly not in the way he was rebuilt (synthskin cybernetics exist, for one). It's hinted that Palpatine had him rebuilt this way specifically to strip him of the humanity that made him an anomaly among the Grand Admirals and deprive him of his social standing for failing to retrieve Coh Veshiv.
  • Uriah Gambit: He loses seventy-five percent of his organic body parts after being sent on a Suicide Mission for failing to retrieve an important Imperial advisor from a Rebel force. He ends up as the Sole Survivor of the Imperials participating in the battle.
    Teshik: The only survivor of the Battle of Andalia was the man sent there to die.

    Rufaan Tigellinus 

Grand Admiral Rufaan Tigellinus

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tigellinus.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare

  • Action Politician: A negative example. He's a Grand Admiral (and one of the few to be considered a genuinely brilliant and exceptional commander) as well as a Grand Moff.
  • False Friend: He tries to befriend Thrawn solely so he can undermine him later, and his only motive for doing so is Fantastic Racism.
  • Fantastic Racism: Has a negative view on any race that isn't human and actively works to undermine them.
  • Informed Ability: Tigellinus has a reputation as the most politically astute Grand Admiral and a potential successor to Palpatine. However, Palpatine and Disra can easily manipulate him into dancing to their tune when he makes or pushes policy decisions without Tigellinus ever realizing this.
  • Wine Is Classy: He is the Grand Admiral most at home in the political court, and his Star Wars Insider picture shows him holding a shot glass of green wine while in deep thought.

    Demetrius Zaarin 

Grand Admiral Demetrius Zaarin

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zaarin2.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Coruscant

Appears in: The Essential Chronology | Star Wars Insider | The Essential Warfare | Choices of One | TIE Fighter | X-Wing Alliance| The Essential Characters
The Imperial Navy's head of starfighter research and development. He is the first Grand Admiral to die.
  • Divided We Fall: Zaarin's coup is partially rooted in genuine disapproval of Palpatine and his methods, but his ambition will only settle for a new government with himself as the Emperor. Therefore, he refuses to work with the Rebel Alliance and his insurgency collapses within months.
  • The Evil Genius: The scheming Zaarin is a decent tactician and a brilliant inventor of starfighter technology.
  • Hidden Depths: Would-be dictator Zaarin is a music buff.
  • Like a Duck Takes to Water: He was a weapons researcher with no known combat accomplishments before his unexpected promotion to Grand Admiral, but he turns out to be a remarkably audacious and successful battlefield commander.
  • Mean Boss: Zaarin likes to alter his demeanor at random moments to unsettle his subordinates.
  • Significant Wardrobe Shift: During his Imperial service, he wears the uniform of a normal admiral even after his promotion to signify his distance from the Imperial Court and instill solidarity with other officers. After turning warlord, he finally dons his Grand Admiral uniform to look like a more impressive leader type.
  • The Starscream: Zaarin launches a failed coup to overthrow Palpatine.
  • Underestimating Badassery: He ultimately underestimate Thrawn in multiple battles and finally does for it.

The Crimson Empire

    Carnor Jax 

Carnor Jax

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carnorjax.jpg

Species: Human

A son of a Sun Guard who became a Stormtrooper and distinguished himself in service to the Empire, Carnor Jax was trained to become an Imperial Royal Guard. Yet despite all the years of propaganda, Jax only ever held loyalty to one person - himself! Learning the ways of the Dark Side from the Sith Lady Lumiya, Jax betrayed Palpatine after the Emperor attempted his return and aided in his second death. Seizing the Imperial Throne for himself, Jax prepared to reclaim the Galaxy in the name of his new Crimson Empire.


  • Big Bad: For the first six issues of Crimson Empire.
  • The Conspiracy: Lead one against Palpatine. Amazingly, it actually succeeded... although it was probably helped by the fact that Palpatine was distracted with Luke Skywalker and the New Republic.
  • Dark Lord: Manages to briefly hold this position.
  • Dragon Ascendant: While it's a stretch to call him Palpatine's dragon, he was one of his Imperial Royal Guards - rising to become a Sovereign Protector in the Dark Empire - and managed to become Emperor.
  • Equal-Opportunity Evil: Apparently Jax had no issue with women or aliens serving on his Ruling Council - although it should be noted that the aliens allowed Jax to hold territory outside Imperial control.
  • Greater-Scope Villain: For the entire Crimson Empire series after his death.
  • Mind over Matter: His favourite pastime on the Emperor's Revenge - apart from obsessing over Kir Kanos - is practicing his telekinesis. In his final battle with Jax, it gives him an advantage.
  • Red and Black and Evil All Over: Dresses in a red and black Imperial Guard uniform.
  • The Starscream: He sabotaged Palpatine's clones, causing them to degenerate or fail, and took control of the Empire for a brief period after Palpatine's final death.
  • Surrounded by Idiots: He considers Wessel a fool and isn't too impressed with Colonel Shev either.
  • Villainous Legacy: Even though he dies at the climax of the original Crimson Empire comic, the council he put into power is still a threat in the next issue.
  • You Killed My Father: A variant, Palpatine is responsible for his father's death but Jax had no idea.

    Geff Blim 

Geff Blim

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lieutenantblim.jpg

Species: Human

Imperial Lieutenant Geff Blim was the weighty personal assistant to Carnor Jax as well as his secret assassin.
  • Beware the Quiet Ones: He was commonly believed to be mute by those who encountered him; however, his silence, combined with low rank and stature, was purposeful, to allow him to evade others' notice.
  • Boom, Headshot!: Gets shot in the head and killed by the Trandoshan Sish Sadeet.
  • Fat Bastard: Overweight and a deadly assassin.

    Redd Wessel 

General Redd Wessel

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/generalwessel.jpg

Species: Human

An Imperial Army general under Carnor Jax of the Crimson Empire.
  • Lack of Imagination: The reason why Jax considers him a fool is due to his inability to do anything but follow orders without any creativity.
  • Military Brat: His father Marcellin Wessel was one of Palpatine's earliest admirals and he tried to follow his footsteps, only to end up in the Imperial Army instead of the Navy.

    Burr Nolyds 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nolyds.jpg

Species: Human

Burr Nolyds was a wealthy and arrogant Human male aristocrat who briefly ruled the Galactic Empire in 11 ABY as head of the Imperial Interim Ruling Council.


    Mahd Windcaller 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mahdwindcaller.jpg

Species: Human

Mahd Windcaller was part of the Interim Ruling Council. Known for being a manipulative schemer, Mahd Windcaller was the head of an extensive news agency and had been a supporter of the Galactic Empire since its beginning.


  • Comic-Book Fantasy Casting: The appearance of Mahd Windcaller was based on that of Lucy Autrey Wilson, Director of Publishing for Lucasfilm.

    Xandel Carivus 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carvis.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Ord Cantrell

  • Fat Bastard: He's an obese and corrupt Imperial bureaucrat.
  • Unwitting Pawn: By Nom Anor, who ensured he was elected as head of the Imperial council.
  • You Are in Command Now: He became the leader of the Imperial Ruling Council after Jax's death, and would be the last official emperor until Jagged Fel.

Others

    Kir Kanos 

Kir Kanos

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kir_kanos_swleu_3666.jpg

Species: Human

Voiced by: Patrick Coyle (Crimson Empire)
Appears in: Crimson Empire | The Bounty Hunters | Hard Currency | The Third Time Pays For All

The last surviving member of the Emperor's Royal Guard and the most wanted man in the Galaxy.

He is the main character of the Crimson Empire comics.


  • Alliterative Name: Kir Kanos. Also, Kenix Kil.
  • Anti-Hero/Anti-Villain: He is a fanatic Palpatine loyalist, but he hunts down Imperials who he considers traitors to the true goals of the Empire.
  • Bounty Hunter: One of his main disguises is as the bounty hunter "Kenix Kil".
  • One-Man Army: He effortlessly cuts through dozens of opponents at a time.
  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Hunted down all those in the Empire he blamed for Palpatine's demise, as well as other Imperials who abused their power or betrayed what Kanos considered the Empire's true ideals.
  • Significant Anagram: His alias as a bounty hunter, Kenix Kil, is just his original name but as an anagram in the battle language of the Emperor's Royal Guard.
  • Sole Survivor: He was the only member of the royal guard to escape Carnor Jax's betrayal and destruction of their order. He eventually hunted down and killed Jax, becoming the last member of the order to survive.
  • Undying Loyalty: To Emperor Palpatine. There are some hints that he was beginning to understand that the Empire he thought he served did not exist at all and that the Emperor was evil, but he kept hunting down Imperials he believed deserved punishment in the name of that Empire.

    Tion 

Lord Tion

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tionlordjpg.jpg

Species: Human (Tionese)

Appears in: Empire

The commander of the Devastator before Vader.


The Rebel Alliance/New Republic

    Wedge Antilles 

Wedge Antilles

See his entries on Star Wars Theatrical Legends and the X-Wing Series character page.

    Winter Celchu 

Winter Celchu

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/winter_celchu_swleu_9053.jpg

Species: Human (Alderaanian)

Homeworld: Alderaan

An Alderaanian intelligence agent and best friend and adopted sister of Princess Leia Organa. She eventually marries fellow Alderaanian Tycho Celchu of Rogue Squadron. She is the daughter of the late Sheltay Retrac, an aide of the Organas and a friend of Padmé.


  • Actually, That's My Assistant: She would often be mistaken for Princess Leia by visitors to Alderaan, who thought the stoic, dignified, and regal-looking Winter seemed more like the Princess of Alderaan than Leia did.
  • All There in the Manual: It wasn't revealed until the release of Chronicles: The Prequels in 2005 that one of Bail's aides in Revenge of the Sith was Winter's mother. This information is never talked about anywhere else.
  • Blessed with Suck: Her Photographic Memory. She's Alderaanian and remembers the destruction of her homeworld with as much clarity as if it happened yesterday, as well as a number of other unpleasant incidents in her life. However, during the Yuuzhan Vong War, Luke reflects that Winter's memory also allows her to recall so many wonderful things as well, including his deceased nephew Anakin, and is comforted that someone will always be able to recall him.
  • Blue Blood: Winter's parents were aristocrats and a king later adopted her. Han Solo picks up on her aristocratic bearing within minutes.
  • Depending on the Artist: Pre-Chronicles works depict her as looking more like Leia, while post-Chronicles works depict her as looking more like her mother, Sheltay.
  • Depending on the Writer: Exactly how she was mistaken for Leia varies depending on the story. In The Thrawn Trilogy this is attributed to Winter having the bearing of a classic aristocrat more than Leia herself. In the X-Wing Series she's actually identical to Leia, to the point that someone familiar with both women can't tell the two apart when Winter is wearing the proper wig.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Princess Leia and Admiral Gial Ackbar.
  • Meaningful Name: Winter is an Ice Queen with a good heart.
  • Photographic Memory: She can recall with perfect clarity everything she has ever seen or heard, and can even remember her exact emotions from any point in her past. While a very useful skill (Leia essentially uses her as a living data recorder during meetings, and they are both amused by what the potential reactions of the other people in the meetings would be if they knew), it also has its drawbacks since she can remember terrible events with fresh clarity every time she thinks of them.
  • Retcon: Post-2005 works illustrate her as resembling Sheltay, rather than resembling Leia. Sheltay and Leia don't resemble each other, though Winter could've gotten her resemblance to Leia from her unidentified father. On the other hand, the mistaken identity can be chalked up more to people mistaking the serious-looking Winter as the princess rather than a case of doppelganger.
  • The Stoic: Very calm and collected most of the times.
  • Sugar-and-Ice Personality: This is one of the few works in the EU where she gets enough screentime for the softer side of her personality to show, revealing her to be much more of a Sugar-and-Ice Personality than a true Ice Queen (despite her at times Meaningful Name).
  • Took a Level in Cynic: Winter isn't an Ice Queen until Alderaan is destroyed. In Scoundrels she thinks that once she enjoyed her Rebel activities, and now they're more of a duty.

    Borsk Fey'lya 

Chief of State Borsk Fey'lya

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/borsk_feylya_swleu_4814.jpg

Species: Bothan

Borks Fey'lya is a Bothan, a species known for its cunning and vicious politics. He has made it quite clear on numerous occasions that he feels that he would be the best choice for running the Republic, and often resorts to less-than-legal means to achieve this. Ultimately he was legally voted Chief of State, only to have the Yuuzhan Vong War dropped in his lap. During the fall of Coruscant, he sacrificed himself to destroy an entire Vong battle group.


  • Anti-Hero: Type V throughout much of the Bantam era. Rises to a Type IV in New Jedi Order.
  • Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: This is a hat of the Bothan people that he wears proudly.
    • As a point of comparison, this is all a well-known phenomenon in Bothan politics. Those Bothans that leave local politics for galactic, polyspecies politics do so with the understanding that they should ease up on it a bit, work a little more earnestly to make things better for people instead of themselves, and generally do as the Romans. Fey'lya is the moron that didn't get it.
  • Dirty Coward: Played with: he'll do whatever he can to avoid being involved in a battle, but if the circumstances require it, he will fight extremely competently.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: While he still tries to conceal Bothan involvement in the Camaas Genocide, it's made clear that he does genuinely regret the role his people played in it; he even acknowledges that he'd be willing to let his people pay the indemnity if they actually had the money to do so.
  • Heel–Face Turn: After being one of the more backstabbing and conniving characters in the series, and almost as damaging to the New Republic's war against the Yuuzhan Vong as the Vong themselves, he finally realises the damage he's doing and throws his support behind Luke and the Jedi in "Star By Star".
  • Heel Realization: In Star By Star, he finally realizes what his power grabbing and paranoia about the Jedi has cost both him and the galaxy in the face of the Yuuzhan Vong invasion. He promptly throws all his support behind them, but it's sadly too little, too late.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: Doubles as Death Equals Redemption but he dies to destroy a large Vong group. Subverted a bit in that he was trying to use his death (a bomb was attached to his heart monitor, going off if it stopped) to kill Warmaster Tsavong Lah, who saw through it instantly.
  • Jerkass: Very unpleasant, which makes it a miracle his schemes work as well as they do.
  • Manipulative Bastard: A trait typical of Bothans.
  • The Starscream: If he was trying to take over an evil government instead of a good one, he'd be a textbook example.
  • Those Wacky Nazis: Surprisingly, a non-human one. He wrote a (presumably autobiographical) novel called My Ar'kai. In it, he specifically rails against human political involvement. Ar'kai is the Bothan word for struggle of annihilation and the title brings another political treatise to mind.
  • Redemption Equals Death: See Heroic Sacrifice.
  • The Rival: One-sided with Ackbar. Borsk loathes Ackbar. Ackbar is just exasperated by the whole thing.
  • Ungrateful Bastard: In most of his appearances. No matter how many times the Skywalker/Solo family and their friends/allies save his ass (both literally and figuratively), he rarely treats them as anything besides political rivals who must be crushed and humiliated. (And he never stops expecting them to save his ass, either.)

    Garm Bel Iblis 

Senator Garm Bel Iblis

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/garm_bel_iblis_swleu_413.jpg

Species: Human (Corellian)

Homeworld: Corellia

Appears in: The Force Unleashed | Interlude at Darkknell | The Corellian Trilogy | Legacy of the Force

The senator of Corellia, and one of the leaders of the Rebel Alliance alongside Senator Mon Mothma & Senator Bail Organa.


  • A Father to His Men: Most definitely. It was part of why he disliked Mon Mothma so much — he thought she didn't put enough value in the soldiers they were ordering into battle. During the Rebellion's early days, Bel Iblis received intelligence that an Imperial base Mothma was planning to attack was actually an Ubiqtorate base and thus a direct attack would have led to the slaughter of his men. He strenuously objected, and left the Rebellion in protest.
  • Badass Bureaucrat: Served as Senator of Corellia, but unafraid to get his hands dirty fighting the Separatists, the Empire, and the Yuuzhan Bong directly.
  • Four-Star Badass: His career has a later-in-life renaissance. After joining the New Republic, he becomes one of its best leaders.
  • Combat Pragmatist: During the fall of Coruscant at the Yuuzhan Vong's hands, Bel Iblis ordered his fleet to fire at the refugee ships that the Yuuzhan Vong under Tsavong Lah's command were using a shields and kamikaze ships, stating that the refugees would die regardless, though this action horrified Sien Sovv and Kre'fey and caused him to lose all the ships under his command.
  • Comic-Book Fantasy Casting: His portrait shows him to be modeled after Sean Connery, specifically from Highlander.
  • Conspiracy Theorist: Thought Mon Mothma was looking to make herself Empress, which was farthest from the truth.
  • Good Counterpart: To the Corellian nationalists from The Corellian Trilogy and Legacy of the Force.
  • Headbutting Heroes: With Bail Organa and Mon Mothma.
  • The Hero: Of the short story "Interlude at Darkknell."
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He is rather gruff, cynical and prideful but he does care about his planet and the galaxy and sincerely fight for their defense.
  • Methuselah Syndrome: The chronologically earliest works in which he's referenced date back to the Clone Wars. The latest was during the LOTF series, and he hasn't been confirmed to have died, meaning, his involvement in galactic affairs stretches through some sixty-five years.
  • Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Even though he's one of the good guys; all three of his names are taken from evil figures in real life religion or mythology (possibly a red herring to make his first appearance more suspenseful).
  • Outliving One's Offspring: Bel Iblis's children die during an attempt to assassinate him.
  • Pride: He refused to admit his mistake of fearing that Mon Mothma would declare herself empress as well as other past failings, and to try to make amends with her because of his prideful personality. He also initially refused to join the New Republic, and to help Coruscant against Grand Admiral Thrawn's siege, unless Mothma herself requested it to him.
  • Rebellious Rebel: A mild example. The rebellion he rebelled from, and the rebellion he started himself were both good.
  • The Rival: To Mon Mothma.

    Rianna Saren 

Rianna Saren

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/riannasaren_la.jpg

Species: Twi'lek

A wilful Twi'lek slave who escaped her Zabrak captors and became a wandering fugitive before being recruited to the Rebel Alliance by Kyle Katarn. She is the main protagonist of the obscure PSP/Nintendo DS action game Star Wars: Lethal Alliance.


  • Arch-Enemy: Zarien Kheev, the ruthless Zabrak slave master. Once she finally escapes slavery, she vows to exact revenge against him no matter what.
  • Dark and Troubled Past: Her past as a slave left her with severe trust issues and a burning hatred for all slavers, especially Kheev.
  • Ms. Fanservice: She's voluptuous, wears very little clothing and has an extremely acrobatic fighting style. You do the math.
  • Red Right Hand: One of her lekku (Twi'lek head tails) is a metallic prosthetic, owing to her hated slavedriver Kheev cutting the original off during a childhood escape attempt.
  • She-Fu: Despite not being a confirmed Force user, Rianna is exceptionally athletic and capable of bringing entire squads of trained Stormtroopers to heel with her impressive acrobatics and nimble fighting style.
  • Vitriolic Best Buds: She is often dismissive of her droid companion Zeeo as her rough upbringing as a slave forced her to be fiercely independent, but the two quickly form an inseparable team.

    Others 

Mirith Sinn

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mirith_sinn_1.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Nez Pharon

Mirith Sinn was an agent of New Republic Intelligence and the leader of New Republic guerrilla forces on the planet Phaeda who met and fell in love with Kir Kanos. She later became Chief of Security of the Imperial Palace on Coruscant.
  • Crusading Widow: She joined the Rebellion when Darth Vader personally murdered her husband just for refusing to hand over their produce to the Empire.
  • Dating Catwoman: She fell in love with the Imperial rogue agent Kir Kanos.
  • Redhead In Green: Her most famous look and she has intense red hair.

Orma Hundeen

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1000001861_330450.jpg
A General of the Rebel Alliance who leads a squad of Femme Fatales known as the Quetzal Sisters.

Dark Side Elite

    Dark Side Elite 

Sedriss QL


Vill Goir


Xecr Nist


Tedryn-Sha


Dark Jedi

    Joruus C'baoth 

Joruus C'baoth

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/joruus_cbaoth_swleu_7210.jpg

Species: Human (clone)

Homeworld: Wayland

Appears in: The Thrawn Trilogy

"I serve no Emperor. My power is for myself alone."

Jorus C'baoth was one of the greatest Jedi Masters of the Old Republic, and a raging egomaniac. Joruus C'baoth, his clone, possessed both traits, and was spectacularly insane to boot. Recruited by Thrawn to perform battle meditation for his forces, it quickly became apparent that C'baoth would be satisfied with no less than complete galactic domination. He also desired to turn Luke, Leia, and Leia's children into his soulless puppets, and foresaw that Mara Jade would kneel before him. She did... in order to strike him dead.

For tropes on his original template, Jorus C'baoth, see his entry on the Star Wars: Outbound Flight & Survivor's Quest character page.


  • And Then What?: C'Baoth's original question to Thrawn as to why he should help him conquer the galaxy. C'Baoth states that he has no desire to rule over millions of people he will never meet, preferring a smaller and more intimate society that he can micromanage down to the last shirt button. Subverted when C'Baoth's rapidly expanding powers allow him to take control of people's minds from great distances. And Then What? gets thrown out the window, as now he has the means to mentally dominate everyone in the entire galaxy. In a way, his victory would be far worse than Thrawn's, as C'Baoth would control everyone in the galaxy, mind, body, and soul.
  • Ax-Crazy: Before joining forces with Thrawn, his hobbies included killing anybody who arrived on Wayland and using his subjects as playthings. It escalated from there.
  • Be Careful What You Wish For: His prophecies show Mara kneeling before him, and he refuses to kill her until this happens. She does kneel before him - so she can dodge his telekinetic rock storms to stab him through the chest with her lightsaber.
  • Big Bad Duumvirate: With Thrawn, very tensely.
  • Can't Kill You, Still Need You: Interestingly, he's on both ends of this trope in The Last Command. It's revealed he's seen in a vision that if he kills Thrawn he'll lose the war, hence why he doesn't simply have the Grand Admiral killed. At the same time, Thrawn can't yet be rid of him - despite his growing instability and belief he now rules the Empire - because with the Thrawn campaign in full swing he needs his Force powers for his various strategies. The final break between them comes late in the novel, but both die separately before they can act against each other.
  • Clone Angst: One of the more famous Legends examples. He was created via a method notorious for growing clones that turned out to be unstable, and subsequently went off the deep end in adulthood. Throw in his template being a Dark Side-prone Jedi supremacist, and he was a time bomb waiting to go off.
    • Later, Thrawn comments that once C'Baoth is eliminated (their relationship having hit rock bottom) they could clone him again and this time avoid the insanity pitfalls. Pellaeon is understandably not very keen on this.
  • Contrasting Sequel Antagonist: Can be considered this to Darth Vader, since The Thrawn Trilogy was the first novel series to continue the story after Return of the Jedi. Vader was a tragically corrupted Dark Jedi known for his stoicism and his physical discipline, and he ultimately turned against Emperor Palpatine in a Heel–Face Turn; C'baoth is the deranged clone of a legendary Jedi Master who's simply brought down by his own insanity, and Grand Admiral Thrawn ultimately turns against him when it becomes clear that he can't be controlled.
  • Evil Sorcerer: A very powerful Jedi with a wide array of powers. While he's very, very skilled at telekinesis and Force Lightning, it's his Mind Control abilities that almost ends up dooming everything.
  • Evil Mentor: Briefly serves to one for Luke, though his insanity causes Luke to rightfully not take any of his lessons to heart.
  • Fantastic Racism: Like his template, believed Jedi to be inherently superior to non-Jedi and therefore fit to rule them. He also considers droids to be an abomination as they "have no soul" (that is they cannot touch the Force at all).
  • The Heavy: While Thrawn is the overarching threat to the Republic, it's C'Baoth who's a far more personal threat, especially in the third book. His attempted corruption of Luke, the efforts to kidnap Leia and the twins on his behalf and his obsession with making Mara kneel before him all culminate in the heroes' final showdown with him at Mt. Tantiss where it's clear he's usurped Thrawn as the Big Bad. Tellingly, all the main heroes from the movie end up taking him on, while they never actually meet Thrawn at any point. Also tellingly, the French Completely Different Title for the trilogy means "The mad Jedi's black crusade", clearly referencing him, not Thrawn.
  • It's All About Me: His insanity causes him to form a warped perspective on his potential ties to Luke and Leia, proclaiming them his apprentices and certain that they want to be taught by him and are being kept away by others, incapable of properly acknowledging that Luke had already rejected his teachings.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: He's a raging asshole, with helps contrast him with Thrawn.
  • Kneel Before Zod: He wants Mara to kneel before him. She did, and struck him dead.
  • Mind Control: A very disturbing take as he breaks down pretty much everything that made the person who they were and make them wholly devoted to him. Thrawn speculates he essentially replaces entire portions of his victim's mind with his own, leaving them utterly unable to function without him.
  • Mood-Swinger: A byproduct of his insanity. During his first meeting with Luke, he goes from mournful and somber, to kind and grandfatherly, to a holier than thou jackass within the span of like three sentences. By the third book Pellaeon notes that while he seems more confident and arrogant than ever when he's stable, this is happening ever-more frequently, like a feedback loop primed to explode.
  • Obfuscating Insanity: He is undoubtedly insane, but Thrawn's knowledge of his defective clone status causes him to underestimate the scale of C'Baoth's ambitions - and his growing power. If it weren't for Luke and Mara, his scheme to create a clone army totally loyal to him would have worked.
  • Obviously Evil: Played with. His mood swings and use of the Dark Side cause Luke to decide he's not the kind of mentor he needs almost from the off (and this despite C'Baoth manipulating his mind). However, Luke also pegs he's insane because of this and believes he can be saved like Vader was. It takes until C'Baoth's reveal of a new clone army that'll be loyal to him only for the penny to drop that he's irredeemable.
  • Psychopathic Manchild: C'Baoth was infamous for his violent temper, mood-swings, and possessiveness. When he tries and fails to kill Thrawn with force lightning three different times, Pellaeon noted that he looked "puzzled and oddly petulant", while he later comments that C'Baoth's rage over not being respected the way the Emperor was sounded like a child throwing a pointless tantrum.
  • Small Name, Big Ego: Has announced himself as the new Emperor by The Last Command, seemingly based on his command of the Force - ignoring the immense political subtleties, manipulation skills and other abilities that Palpatine displayed in getting to that position. He genuinely seems to think that just because he has the Force the Imperials will fall in line automatically.
  • The Starscream: He makes it very clear right from the very beginning that he will betray the Empire despite helping them, and by the third novel is speaking as if he's actually the Emperor. Thrawn's fully aware of this, but is willing to tolerate because he needs C'Baoth's powers to pull off some of his tactical tricks. By the third novel his patience is at an end, but both die before he can do anything about it.
  • Took a Level in Badass: In Heir, co-ordinating a few Star Destroyers in different systems on one of Thrawn's raids visibly strains and exhausts him. Come Last Command, he's able to co-ordinate multiple Imperial taskforces across different sectors, while having enough in reserve to make Thrawn's cloaked cruiser gambit work. Pellaeon even lampshades that Thrawn had told him C'Baoth learning this level of control was impossible.
  • The Unpronounceable: Zahn has a habit of making up difficult-to-pronounce names in his books, even once hanging a lampshade on it via Han in Heir to the Empire. According to the author, C'baoth is pronounced "SAB-ay-oth".
  • Villainous Legacy: His rampages are briefly brought up alongside the spectre of Vader in the Jedi Academy trilogy as arguments against a resurrected Jedi Order.
  • Villain Has a Point: An unintentional one on Zahn's part, as the Prequels' backstory hadn't been established yet, but C'Baoth claims to Luke that the Jedi were annihilated because the galaxy turned against them. While he painted it as being rooted in the envy and hatred of the "lesser beings", events surrounding the Clone Wars show that's pretty close to what actually happened, with their own troops turning on them and much of the rest of the galaxy believing Palpatine's smear campaign against them after the Purge. C'Baoth also rants that anti-Jedi prejudice will come again when the Jedi do. Come the New Jedi Order books, the Yuuzhan Vong succeed in stoking up anti-Jedi hatred that sees the Republic government and many of its citizens turning on the Jedi once more, ultimately leading to a power struggle between the Galactic Alliance's civilian government and the Jedi Order in Fate of the Jedi.
  • With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: He's a Jedi of immense power but he's also a defective clone. As his power increases throughout the trilogy, his mental state accordingly deteriorates until even Thrawn and the Empire have had enough of him.

    Brakiss 

Brakiss

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brakiss_swleu_1971.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Msst

Brakiss was a Force-sensitive Imperial spy sent to infiltrate Luke Skywalker's restored Jedi Order, although Luke saw through his cover immediately. After Luke attempted to get him to undergo a Heel–Face Turn, Brakiss fled the Jedi Academy and became a Dark Jedi, eventually coming into the service of the Second Imperium and a supposedly reborn Emperor Palpatine. After starting the Shadow Academy, which trained Dark Jedi, he led an attack on Yavin IV. After discovering that he was serving four surviving Imperial Guards impersonating Palpatine, he was killed by them when they blew up the Shadow Academy as he attempted to kill them.


Warlords

    Zsinj 

Warlord Zsinj

See his entry on the X-Wing Series character page.

    Cronal 

Cronal, "Blackhole", "Lord Shadowspawn"

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cronal_swleu_8033.jpg

Cronal, alias Blackhole, alias Lord Shadowspawn, was a dark side sorcerer who rose high in the Emperor's favor, earning the elite title Emperor's Hand. Following the Emperor's defeat, he concocted an elaborate Batman Gambit that would have allowed him to seize control of Luke Skywalker's body, and through him, the galaxy. A true nihilist, Cronal was largely uninterested in ruling a peaceful galaxy, preferring to devote his efforts to speeding the end of all things. During a telepathic battle with Luke, his body was disintegrated, though other sources indicate that some part of Cronal yet survives…


  • The Chessmaster: In Shadows of Mindor, despite having significantly less forces at his disposal, he manages to destroy almost 80% of the rebel fleet sent after him within minutes of them arriving and spends the rest of the novel destroying the rest of them. He only loses thanks to dumb luck on the Rebels part, and some quick thinking from Luke and Lando.
  • Continuity Snarl: The creative process that went into this character was exceptionally confusing. Originally, Blackhole, Cronal, and Shadowspawn were separate characters, briefly appearing in the comics and two RPG reference books respectively. Reference writer Abel G. Pena, a man known for his Arc Welding skill, had intended to conflate Blackhole with Shadowspawn, but as this would've created a continuity error decided to use Cronal for his true identity instead. Later, Shadows of Mindor revealed he was Shadowspawn anyway, and killed him off at the end... except he'd previously been established in yet another work as surfing at least to the Yuuzhan Vong War. Finally, the Star Wars Blog article "The Imperial Warlords" settled the whole thing by giving a complete narrative of Cronal's life, revealing he had survived his death using Mechu-deru (Force Technopathy) to build himself a new body and identified him with yet another minor comic villain, Mechu-deru master Perek, allowing the bastard to finally be killed off right before the 2014 Continuity Reboot.
  • Cruel and Unusual Death: Luke severs Cronal's connection to his Shadow Crown, and then liquid metal seeps out of his pores, essentially turning him and his entire ship to stone, after which he is literally ripped apart, atom-to-atom, by hyperspace. And is conscious for all of this.
  • Evil Sorcerer: While his powers are science based, he goes out of his way to style himself as one in order to intimidate his enemies.
  • I Have Many Names: Cronal, Blackhole, Lord Shadowspawn.
  • The Man Behind the Curtain: He's really a frail old man hiding behind body doubles and holograms, but half-subverted by the fact that he's still a scarily powerful Darksider.
  • Omnicidal Maniac: Decides to go this route at the end of Mindor, but then he gets killed.
  • Pervert Dad: Cronal resents the existence of his illegitimate daughter Sariss, raping her throughout her childhood and encouraging his colleagues to do the same.
  • Punny Name: See if you can spot the double meaning in 'Lord Shadowspawn'.
  • Squishy Wizard: See above.
  • Straw Nihilist: Gives off this vibe in his monologuing to Luke.

    Ennix Devian 

Ennix Devian

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ennix_devian_ceiii6.png
Appears in: Crimson Empire

  • Big Bad: Of Crimson Empire III. Notable in that Nom Anor was set up as the overarching bad guy in Crimson Empire II, but due to outside forces, his part had to be drastically cut down for Part III.
  • Professional Killer: Was one for most of his life. Likens himself to Kir Kanos as they were both trained to kill for the Empire, but Kanos shoots this notion down, seeing himself as a Proud Warrior Race guy as opposed to Devian's job as an assassin.

    Nuso Esva 

Nuso Esva

Appearances: Choices of One | Crisis of Faith

A warlord from the Unknown Regions who opposed the Empire, attracting attention from and war with Grand Admiral Thrawn.


  • Arch-Enemy: To Thrawn in his younger days.
  • Awesomeness by Analysis: Shares Thrawn's ability to deduce a person's strategies and mindset by looking at the art they collect. He prepares for his final battle with Thrawn by stocking up a set of pieces that, once Thrawn decoded their significance, would lead his forces into a trap.
  • The Chessmaster: Necessary to fight Thrawn on equal footing.
  • Manipulative Bastard: In both of his appearances, he manipulates his allies by promising them power.
  • Meaningful Name: His name is a cipher for "Moriarty"; switch the consonants for the consonant previous to them in the alphabet (Muro Erta) and switch the vowels for the vowel previous to them in the alphabet (in other words, AEIOUY). Thus, Nuso Esva is to Moriarity as Thrawn is to Sherlock.
  • Thanatos Gambit: He claims his followers will kill Thrawn eventually, but nothing ever comes of it. On the other hand, it's this threat that convinces Thrawn to employ the bodyguard that eventually kills him, making it an indirect success.
  • Villainous Breakdown: He loses his cool after realizing he's been beaten once and for all.

The Galactic Fringe

    Talon Karrde 

Talon Karrde

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/talon_karrade_swleu_1440.jpg

Species: Human

Appears in: Rebellion | Galaxies | Galaxies: Trading Card Game | X-Wing Alliancenote  | X-Wing Series | The Thrawn Trilogy | The New Rebellion | Jade Solitaire | Hand of Thrawn Duology | Union | Survivor's Quest | The New Jedi Order | Fate of the Jedi

A member of Jorj Car'das criminal organization, which he took over when Car'das disappeared. Following the death of Jabba the Hutt, Karrde took over many of his less vile operations and became the head of the most powerful smuggling and information organization in the galaxy.


  • Benevolent Boss: He gives big rewards to his people for performing their jobs well, although he punishes betraying his trust with death.
  • Cultured Badass: More than capable of holding his own in a firefight while having an appreciation for the finer things in life.
  • Default to Good: He tries to resist being brought into the war between the New Republic and the Empire, but after Thrawn targets him and his organization, Karrde assists the New Republic in fighting him and convinces many other smugglers to do the same after exposing how Thrawn was trying to pit them against each other. He continues to side with the New Republic even after Thrawn is dealt with and even helps forge peace between the two sides.
  • Fluffy Tamer: keeps a pair of vornskrs, Sturm and Drang, as pets. Note that vornskrs are incredibly dangerous predators who hunt using the Force. Karrde had to get their more dangerous traits removed to safely keep them.
  • Heroic Neutral: He doesn't much care for politics; he just wants to run his shipping business/smuggling ring in peace. When The Empire keeps threatening his crews, breaking business deals, and eventually tries to turn the other members of his smugglers' coalition against him, he takes it kind of hard.
  • Loveable Rogue: Deliberately written as one, now that Han Solo had become more respectable. He is essentially, what Han could have become if he had remained a smuggler.
  • Knowledge Broker: The most successful one in the galaxy.
  • Neutral No Longer: He eventually decides that yes, the Empire does need to be fought and provides assistance against Thrawn and C'baoth - for a fee, of course.
  • Not in This for Your Revolution: Even after he begins assisting the New Republic, he insists it is just out of personal interest, although he does seem to be protesting a bit much. In fact, when he makes this clear to Leia, she has a flashback to when Han himself named the actual trope.
  • Only in It for the Money: He charges everybody for pretty much everything he does, although he eventually works with the Jedi for free due to Mara becoming one.
  • Privateer: During the Yuuzhan Vong War, he often raided Peace Brigade shipping to hurt their efforts to assist the Yuuzhan Vong while also making a bit of profit.
  • Sacred Hospitality: After capturing Luke and hosting Han and Lando, he doesn't sell them out to Thrawn when he arrives because they ate under his roof and are thus under his protection.

    Dash Rendar 

Dash Rendar

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dashrendar_sotetc.jpg

Species: Human (Corellian)

Homeworld: Corellia

Appears in: And Leebo Makes Three | Shadow Games | The Han Solo Trilogy | Galaxy of Fear | Galaxies Trading Card Game | X-Wing Alliance | Shadows of the Empire

A smuggler. He is the captain of the Outrider, along with his android companion LE-BO2D9("Leebo").


  • Been There, Shaped History: Technically, he's one of the many snowspeeder pilots of Rogue Squadron during the Battle of Hoth as shown in The Empire Strikes Back, but never shown on-screen. He's also the one responsible for destroying the android bounty hunter IG-88.
  • Break the Haughty: Failing to hit a missile targeting his allies shakes his ego considerably, as twelve Bothans die as a result. Then it's revealed that the missile was made of diamond-boron; he did hit it, but it deflected even starship cannons.
  • A Day in the Limelight: He's a bit player in the events of the novel of Shadows of the Empire, but the video game adaptation makes him the focus.
  • Friend to All Children: His cocky nature makes him difficult to get on with at times, but in ''Doomsday Ship'' he goes out of his way to protect Zak and Tash.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's cocky, brash, and willing to abandon people once he's met the criteria of their contract, but if push comes to shove, he'll do the right thing.
  • The Rival: His ship is totally better than the Millennium Falcon.
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: A cocky smuggler with a Cool Ship. No, he's not Han.
  • Unknown Rival: Prince Xizor is directly responsible for the death of his brother, said event is indirectly the reason he was kicked out of the Imperial Academy and banished from the Core Worlds like his parents were. Xizor meanwhile has no idea who he is.

    Jaxxon 

Jaxxon

Species: Lepi

Homeworld: Coachelle Prime

An alien resembling a green humanoid rabbit who briefly became an associate of Han's in the early issues of Star Wars (Marvel 1977). Lucas is said to have strongly disliked the character, but he has his share of fans who appreciate the sheer goofiness of the concept.


    Shada D'ukall 

Shada D'ukall

Species: Human


    Xizor 

Prince Xizor

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/2744488_tumblr_m7yluzxeeg1qhhf05o1_500.jpg

Species: Falleen

Voiced by: Nick Tate (Shadows of the Empire)
Appears in: Coruscant Nights | Evasive Action | Shadow Games | Rebel Dawn | Shadows of the Empire

"You see, to contend with Xizor is to lose."

Head of the Black Sun crime syndicate, Prince of the reptilian Falleen people, obscenely wealthy shipping magnate and secret advisor to the Emperor, Prince Xizor is the Big Bad of Shadows of the Empire where he tries to murder Luke Skywalker once he finds out he is Darth Vaders' son, as he holds Vader responsible for the death of his family, not to mention a dangerous rival. He fails, and Vader orders him killed, but he and the Black Sun pop up in various earlier-set works throughout the franchise.


  • Arch-Enemy: Considers Darth Vader to be his; it is more or less mutual, since while Vader has many enemies he seems to regard Xizor as the most loathsome of the lot, though he is unaware that Xizor considers it to be personal.
  • But What About the Astronauts?: Was offplanet when Vader wiped out his family.
  • Co-Dragons: Considers himself to be this to Palpatine along with Vader, and ranks himself as the 3rd most powerful man in the galaxy after those two...and plans to replace both of them.
  • Diabolical Mastermind: Head the galaxy-spanning Black Sun syndicate, the most powerful criminal organization in the galaxy.
  • Didn't Think This Through: For all his plotting and scheming, going after Luke was a *really bad idea*. While it was all part and parcel of his plan to get his revenge on Vader, he didn't think Vader would actually temporarily team up with the Rebels, who had an equal stake in Luke's survival, to stop him.
  • Faux Affably Evil: Acts polite and Sophisticated as Hell. Is really a spiteful Sociopath.
  • Green Skinned Space Guy: A tall, dark and handsome alien reptile.
  • Hijacked by Ganon: Palpatine letting the Rebels find the Death Star II plans, as bait? His idea; Palpatine just agreed, then took all credit.
  • Hold Your Hippogriffs: Says The Empire is going to "entropy in a turbolift" instead of "Hell in a handbasket".
  • Kingpin in His Gym: Averted as he finds exercise boring. So he sits on a myostim machine that stretches and contracts his muscles for him.
  • Love Is in the Air: His species are capable of producing pheromones in order to attract mates; Xizor has no compunction about abusing this to pick up (and later discard) beautiful women who catch his eye or- as he attempts with Leia- to manipulate them for personal gain (Leia only resists after being informed about this trait).
  • Manipulative Bastard: Has no problem lying, cheating or stealing to get his way. Also doesn't mind doing the same to get women into his bed.
  • Meaningful Name: His name is pronounced "she-zoor". It sounds similar to Caesar.
  • No-Sell: Played with. Vader's Force Choke affects him just like anyone else; he merely acts like it doesn't, just to mess with him.
  • Screw the Rules, I Make Them!: Bought a stake in an exclusive-as-hell restaurant, where reservations must be booked months ahead, just so he could add a policy: "I can eat whenever, or the manager can find a new job." Doubles as Screw the Rules, I Have Money!, given the price range.
  • Smug Snake: A high-functioning example; he orchestrates an elaborate plan to kill Luke Skywalker and nearly succeeds, but when he fails and the Rebels end up destroying his home he suffers a prolong Villainous Breakdown that sees him try and kill them all very publicly and in revenge, which ultimately gives Vader all the excuse he needs to finish him off once and for all.
  • The Spymaster: Black Sun has it's own intelligence operation that Xizor feels is better than any other in the galaxy, including Imperial intelligence and the personal networks of both Palpatine and Vader, though he concedes that the Bothan network employed by the Rebel Alliance might be "slightly better".
  • Wicked Cultured: Secretly co-owns the most expensive restaurant on Coruscant; is very proud of a 600 year old Banzai plant someone gave him in lew of payment and carefully cultivates it (considering it more valuable than most of his personal wealth); regularly buys his ex-mistresses expensive presents (including a mansion) as a good-bye gift (and makes them "disappear" if they persist afterwards). Generally considers himself to be a Man of Wealth and Taste.

    Max Rebo 

Siirulian Phantele, "Max Rebo"

Species: Ortollan

Performed by:

Max Rebo, real name Siiruulian Phantele, was the leader of the band Sy Snootles and Droopy McCool are in, after their old boss was killed.


  • Big Eater: All Ortolans are this. Got the band an all you can eat contract to Jabba due to it, which prompted Sy to want to kill him for it.
  • Bizarre Alien Biology: Anything can literally be fingerfood to him, again, like all members of his species.

    Jess 

Jess

Species: Human

Portrayed by: Amanda Noar (Episode VI)

Jess was a random slave girl of Jabba's Majordomo, Bib Fortuna.


  • Fashionable Asymmetry: Unlike the one worn by Leia, Jess's top was put together like this.
  • Go-Go Enslavement: Wore a red metal bikini and see-through blue harem pants.
  • Those Two Guys: Female version. Was this in the movie for a few seconds with Yarna when both were sleeping on Jabba's Dias just before Leia was captured, and with another girl named Laudica in non-canon film Return of the Ewok.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: Compared to Jabba's other slave girls, she only gets a few seconds of film getting dragged to watch Oola's death in ROTJ before cowering with other court denizens from "Boushh" and "His" prisoner, and one trading card.

    Thrackan Sal-Solo 

Thrackan Sal-Solo

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1000001862_600800.png

Species: Human

Homeworld: Corellia

Han Solo's older cousin. Though his appearance matches Han's nearly perfectly, his personality couldn't be more opposite to Han and he's been a constant thorn on his cousin's side serving as the main antagonist of the Corellian Trilogy, and staying as a recurrent antagonist during the New Jedi Order and Legacy of the Force.


  • Arch-Enemy: To Han. Of all of Han's enemies Thrackan is the one who has plagued Han the most consistenly in his life, and is perhaps the one with the most personal enmity with his cousin due not only to their blood ties, and of Thrackan having abused Han when they were younger, of how many times they have clashed, but also because Thrackan went as far as trying to murder Han's children as well.
  • Cain and Abel: The Cain to Han's Abel, by virtue of being Han's evil cousin, of having abused Han when they were younger and of having tried to kill Han's children.
  • Les Collaborateurs: He becomes the head of the Peace Brigade that collaborate with the Yuuzhan Vong during their invasion of the galaxy and even help them track Jedi. He ends up arrested for this after Jaina recognised him.
  • Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: He does genuinely love his mother, and part of his animosity with Han is that he accuses him of having driven her mad, as Han's resemblance with his father, her brother, caused her to have a hysterical and enraged reaction as she mistook him for her brother with who she obviously had some animosity.
  • Evil Twin: He's described as looking nearly-perfectly like Han in older, with even their voices being close.
  • Fantastic Racism: He's racist toward non-human races and does join and lead a Corellian nationalistic party.
  • Karma Houdini Warranty: Despite his many crimes and failures, and even after his odious collaboration with the Yuuzhan Vong, Thrackan somehow always managed to eventually escape justice and regain power in Corellia. However in Legacy of the Force his luck finally deserts him as he's assassinated by Boba Fett, Han and Mirta Gev.
  • The Resenter: He ressents Han for having ruined his military career in the Empire with him having been punished by association for Han's desertion of the Empire and following role in the Rebel Alliance.
  • Thicker Than Water: Averted. Despite family being viewed as sacred in corellian culture, he had no issues abusing Han physically and verbally as a teen or selling him to a criminal that Han was running from, later put a bounty on his head, and he even ordered to shoot Jaina, Jacen and Anakin which backfired as it caused his subordinates to turn on him.
  • Tyrant Takes the Helm: He takes power on Corellia during Legacy of the Force and quickly proceeds to become a nationalistic dictator.
  • Villain with Good Publicity: Despite his previous attempt to take control of Corellia, Thrackan ends up being viewed as a hero on Corellia after using Centerpoint Station to decimate a Yuuzhan Vong armada at the Battle of Fondor. Even after his collaboration with the Yuuzhan Vong and crimes after in the war, he still somehow manages to remain or become again popular on Corellia and become its ruler.
  • Would Hurt a Child: He had no issue ordering a ship with children inside to be shot, said children being his own family nonetheless.

    Others 

Silver Fyre

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1000001863_8611673.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Aquaris

Platt Okeefe

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1000001864_400540.jpg

Species: Human

Homeworld: Brentaal IV

Pike sisters

Species: Epicanthix

Homeworld: Panatha

A pair of twin mercenaries who worked for underworld types like Prince Xizor.
  • Cultured Badass: Both of them might be this, since their late father was a famous Teras Kasi fighter, and their mother (status unknown) was a noblewoman.
  • Human Aliens: Epicanthix like them look almost exactly like humans.
  • Identical Twin ID Tag: The only way to differentiate them is their eyes; Zan Pike has green eyes while Zu Pike has one green eye and the other blue.

Feltipern Trevagg

Species: Gotal

Homeworld: Antar 4

A Gotal bureaucrat in Mos Eisley who fancies himself a superb hunter, but lets himself get distracted from the pursuit of his lifetime in order to play Don Juan (to his own bitter cost).



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