Lando Calrissian/Legends
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Brown[7] |
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Dark[8] |
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- "He's a card player, gambler, scoundrel. You'd like him."
- ―Han Solo, to Leia Organa
Lando Calrissian was a Human male professional gambler, entrepreneur, smuggler, and general throughout various points in his life. Born on Socorro, he became a gambler and con man early in his life and acquired his own ship, the Millennium Falcon, in a game of sabacc with a man named Cix Trouvee. He went on to have numerous adventures with the Falcon and its piloting droid, Vuffi Raa, during which he ran afoul of a Sorcerer of Tund named Rokur Gepta, whom Calrissian eventually killed. After a series of events led to him losing the Millennium Falcon to a Corellian named Han Solo on Bespin, Calrissian eventually became the Baron Administrator of Cloud City for a time—a position he once again gained through sabacc.
In 3 ABY, Cloud City was taken over by the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War as part of a deal gone wrong. Calrissian had previously agreed to turn over a group of Rebels to the Empire, including Han Solo and Leia Organa, as part of bait for a trap for Jedi Luke Skywalker. However, Darth Vader altered the deal to the point where Calrissian felt he was no longer able to tolerate it. Subsequently, he joined the Rebel Alliance and took part in numerous missions on its behalf; in particular, in search for Han Solo, who had been frozen in carbonite due to Calrissian's betrayal on Bespin. Calrissian eventually participated in Solo's rescue and the defeat of Jabba the Hutt. Following Solo's rescue, Calrissian continued to serve with the Alliance and during the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, Calrissian piloted his old ship, the Millennium Falcon, into the second Death Star's core to destroy its reactor.
Afterward, he continued to serve the newly formed New Republic in times of need, but spent most of his time pursuing various business ventures, specializing in mining. A venture on the sun-baked world of Nkllon was soured by multiple attacks from the Empire under Grand Admiral Thrawn, but Calrissian invested in a number of other entrepreneurial plans, including mining operations on Varn and Kessel. In 18 ABY, Calrissian met and fell in love with Tendra Risant, marrying her soon after the Bastion Accords were signed. During the Yuuzhan Vong War, Calrissian aided the New Republic through his leadership and the YVH 1 droids that his company, Tendrando Arms, produced to combat the extragalactic invaders. He also helped to arrange the election of Cal Omas as Chief of State following the New Republic's reorganization into the Galactic Alliance.
Calrissian, along with his wife Tendra, continued to manage Tendrando Arms following the war. His YVH droids played significant roles in the subsequent Dark Nest Crisis, Swarm War, and Second Galactic Civil War. During the latter conflict, Calrissian aided his friends Han and Leia Solo in their efforts against their son Jacen Solo, who had fallen to the dark side and become a Sith, until Calrissian was informed that Tendra was pregnant; he then spent the rest of the war with her. After the war's conclusion, Calrissian settled down with Tendra in a life of quiet luxury, managing Tendrando Arms and raising his son, Lando Calrissian, Junior. He was later contacted by Luke Skywalker for assistance during a mission to the Maw with Skywalker's Sith allies. Calrissian reluctantly agreed, and successfully carried out the mission. Afterward, he returned to Coruscant and warned the Jedi of not only the danger posed by the Sith, but also the hidden menace which Skywalker and the Sith were pursuing. To that end, he assisted in getting a large number of Jedi StealthX wing starfighters offworld to assist the Skywalkers.
Biography[edit | edit source]
Early years[edit | edit source]
- "[…] Mother Calrissian did always say gambling would be the end of me."
- ―Lando Calrissian
According to historians, Calrissian's early years were obscured by history and Calrissian's own fabrications.[11] He was originally a Socorran,[1] leaving him with a hint of a Corellian accent[12] thanks to the Corellian origin of Socorro's settlers.[13] His own memories pointed to his having a stable family life until at least the age of seventeen,[14] and he had a vivid enough memory of his mother to recall her ability to memorize hundreds of songs and poems.[15] Calrissian also had enough of a recollection of his father to remember a bit of advice given by him, "You can't think deeper than your pockets."[16] He may have had at least one brother, as evidenced by his thinking of himself as his mother's "favorite son."[17] At the age of three, Calrissian and his mother visited a city during holidays. The young Calrissian stopped to look at an animated display and lost his mother, who went away. Frightened, he wandered through the crowded streets of the city for ten minutes until he found her. This event left a deep impression on him, and he never quite trusted the universe afterward.[18] Calrissian's occupations in his youth were broad, diverse, and temporary, as he was at various times a gambler, rogue, smuggler, mercenary, and con artist.[19]
By the age of seventeen, Calrissian had already learned to play sabacc. Once, he was able to talk a group of gamblers into letting him participate in a game at a local saloon. Lying to his parents, he ducked school and entered the competition, thus breaking several laws regarding minors. During one round, Calrissian managed to get a winning combination, sabacc, and exclaimed that he had won. However, he was not fast enough to put the cards onto the table's interference field, and they changed their values to a losing hand. Calrissian was embarrassed by this incident, although he ultimately won the game, acquiring a considerable sum of money.[18]
The earliest reliable accounts possessed by Galactic Alliance historian Voren Na'al of his life dated to 4 BBY, when Calrissian was around the age of twenty-seven. Already a professional gambler,[11] Calrissian won a battered YT-1300 freighter called the Millennium Falcon in a high stakes game of sabacc from a man named Cix Trouvee, who was also a gambler. Calrissian won with an Idiot's Array, the best possible hand in sabacc, leaving Trouvee destitute, though the other man went on to do well for himself, eventually becoming a partner in a successful resort company.[20] As he had no piloting experience, Calrissian sought out a Corellian smuggler and skilled pilot by the name of Han Solo, in hopes of being tutored in flying by Solo.[11] Calrissian found Solo on the moon of Nar Shaddaa being held at gunpoint by the bounty hunter Boba Fett, who had drugged Solo in preparation for collecting the bounty on the Corellian. Calrissian caught Fett by surprise, however, and drugged the bounty hunter with the obedience drug that had been used on Solo, after administering the antidote to Solo. Solo and Calrissian then ordered the entirely complacent Fett to disarm himself and fly his ship off to unknown space. Afterward, Solo eagerly taught Calrissian the basics of starship piloting. For some time, Calrissian flew several various smuggling runs,[21] sometimes partnered with smuggler Salla Zend.[22] Calrissian eventually parted ways with Zend and used his new piloting knowledge to fly the Falcon to the Centrality.[21]
Adventures in the Centrality[edit | edit source]
The Mindharp of Sharu[edit | edit source]
- "Please, call me Lando. 'Captain Calrissian' sounds like the one-eyed commander of a renegade Imperial dreadnought."
- ―Lando Calrissian
Taking the advice of spaceport attendants, Calrissian flew to the asteroid Oseon 2795, a decision he almost immediately regretted, as significant fees were levied against him there. To gain the funds he needed to leave, he played sabacc with an assortment of locals as well as a man named Osuno Whett. From Whett, he won the title to a Class Two droid named Vuffi Raa, but was told he had travel to Rafa IV to actually take possession. Calrissian was incensed, but was unable to press the issue as one of his tablemates, T. Lund Phuna, falsely accused him of cheating. While the rest of the table defended him, Calrissian was forced to make an immediate departure with his winnings.[14]
From Oseon, Calrissian traveled to the Rafa system, which was littered with brightly colored buildings that were the remnants of the ancient Sharu race. Landing in the city of Teguta Lusat, he found a sabacc game that night in a bar named the Spaceman's Rest, and won an illegal cargo of life-crystals. Calrissian picked up Vuffi Raa on his way back to his inn, the Hotel Sharu. However, during the night he was arrested for acquiring an unlicensed cargo and other trumped up charges, beaten, and taken to see local governor Duttes Mer. Mer was working with Rokur Gepta, a Sorcerer of Tund. Both sought the Ultimate Instrument of Music, also known as the Mindharp of Sharu, and thought Calrissian was the one who could find it for them.[14]
Calrissian agreed to assist them in exchange for his freedom and a cargo of life-crystals. Gepta gave Calrissian a peculiar artifact thought to be a key to the secret of the Mindharp, but no other clues, and told him to find it. The gambler then decided to search for information in local drinking establishments. During his investigations, he discovered an ancient being named Mohs, who was High Singer of the native Toka species. Mohs hailed him as the Key Bearer that had been foretold, before trying to steal Calrissian's artifact for himself. Calrissian ran down and subdued Mohs, who agreed to aid him and directed the gambler to the largest Sharu pyramid in the Rafa system, located on the planet Rafa V.[14]
After arriving on Rafa V, Calrissian was ambushed by numerous bow-wielding Toka who captured him and shot Vuffi Raa. Mohs took command of the newcomers, and ordered them to march Calrissian to a life-orchard and tie him to one of the crystalline lifetrees in the hope that he would freeze during the night. Despite the lifetree robbing him of intelligent thought, Calrissian was able to free himself. However, he was then accosted by a group of men led by Captain Myle Jandler, a law enforcement officer in the service of Duttes Mer. Calrissian was freezing and barely clothed at the time, in no position resist them, but they were intimidated into surrendering by a recovered Vuffi Raa piloting the Millennium Falcon. Jandler's ship was then dispatched by Vuffi Raa on autopilot for Rafa XI with Jandler and his men aboard, so that they would not bother the adventurers further.[14]
As a result of his night in the life-orchard, Calrissian's feet were severely frostbitten and required treatment in a portable gel-bath kept on the Millennium Falcon. After the gambler had recovered, he and Vuffi Raa investigated the largest pyramid, thinking that they contained the lock that Calrissian's artifact, actually a key, was made for. There they found Mohs, who begged their forgiveness and directed them to the Great Lock located underground on the side of the pyramid. Calrissian inserted the Key he had been given into the Lock. Nothing happened at first, but then the three of them were transported inside the pyramid. However, inside the pyramid Calrissian and Mohs were sixty times their usual height, though Vuffi Raa remained the same size. In addition, Mohs lost his eyes in his journey into the pyramid.[14]
Calrissian and Vuffi Raa followed a moving walkway down deep beneath the pyramid. As they traveled, Calrissian and Mohs began to shrink down to their normal sizes, though Mohs mysteriously disappeared before the end of their journey. At the end of the hallway, Calrissian and Vuffi Raa found the Mindharp inside a Hall. The Hall spoke to them and told them not to cross the floor to the Mindharp, but the two did anyway. Calrissian then retrieved the Mindharp with the assistance of Hall. He and Vuffi Raa were then promptly teleported back to Rafa IV. While not much time had passed from Calrissian's perspective, months had passed in the rest of the galaxy. The abandoned Millennium Falcon had been returned to Teguta Lusat by Duttes Mer. Rokur Gepta was with his forces around Rafa V, still waiting for Calrissian to emerge from the pyramid.[14]
Vuffi Raa, who had been programmed to betray Calrissian before he had even been "won," promptly turned Calrissian over to Governor Mer. Mer greedily took the Mindharp and sentenced Calrissian to a lifetime of hard labor. However, Vuffi Raa, having fulfilled his imperative to betray Calrissian, rescued the gambler just as Mer activated the Mindharp. The two encountered Mohs once more, now better dressed, on the ramp of the Millennium Falcon. Mohs assured Calrissian that everything was under control, and that all the Toka were becoming Sharu once again. Calrissian fled Rafa IV as the great pyramids of the Rafa system crumbled, leaving alien cities in their wake. Rokur Gepta, who had not reached Rafa IV fast enough to prevent Mer from activating the Mindharp, tried to stop the Falcon with his scoutship. However, Gepta's craft was disabled by an exploding Sharu obelisk. As it turned out, the Mindharp had been the key to re-awakening the Sharu from a self-induced period of technological regression lasting centuries that had led them to becoming the primitive Toka. However, with the Mindharp activated, they were rising again, much to the displeasure of Rokur Gepta.[14]
Leaving the restored planet, Calrissian and Vuffi Raa entered hyperspace with a cargo hold full of the last Rafa life-crystals to leave the system, as the Sharu shut off all trade from the planet soon after his departure. This valuable cargo netted Calrissian nearly 250,000 credits.[14] After returning to Nar Shaddaa, he bought a used-starship lot from a Duros. To his dismay, he discovered the business was expensive and difficult to run. He debated whether he should either sell it or keep running it when the Galactic Empire decided to send a fleet into the criminal-ridden system intent on destroying Nar Shaddaa. To fight the intruders, Calrissian donated his inventory of ships to his fellow outlaws. He and Vuffi Raa then piloted the Millennium Falcon deftly in the resulting Battle of Nar Shaddaa, flying alongside noted smugglers such as Salla Zend, Han Solo, and Mako Spince. The attack was diverted, but at its conclusion less than ten percent of his stock was still spaceworthy. As a result, Calrissian sold 90 percent ownership in what was left of his lot to a man named Roa at a loss.[21]
Sometime during this period, Solo introduced Calrissian to the Tonnika sisters.[23] Solo had come to know the sisters through his dealings with crime lord Jabba the Hutt, and persuaded them to help him play a trick on Calrissian. Solo arranged for him to meet "Bresenni" (an alias the sisters used when masquerading as only one woman) in The High Stakes Casino on the planet Balfron. Although Calrissian thought that his new "girlfriend" suffered from severe personality shifts as the sisters swapped around in the role, he genuinely believed that he was growing close to the woman when Brea and Senni revealed the deception. As he watched a holo-message from Solo, Calrissian was at first dejected and angry, but quickly softened, although he vowed to get even with him for the stunt.[24] Calrissian later had dealings with the Sisters on at least one other occasion.[25]
Calrissian's successes in sabacc also enabled him to free Rystáll Sant from her slavery to Black Sun. The Theelin-hybrid later joined the Max Rebo Band as a dancer.[26]
Setup on Oseon[edit | edit source]
- "By the Core, Captain Calrissian – Lando, if I may – I do admire you! You're a gambler through and through, not just at the table."
- ―Lob Doluff to Lando Calrissian
As Calrissian sought a way to recover his losses, he saw an opportunity in the regional sabacc championships that were soon to be held at Cloud City's Yarith Bespin casino. In order to raise the ten thousand credit buy-in, Calrissian and Vuffi Raa returned to the Centrality and attempted to haul legitimate cargo. However, tariffs, fees, and licensing cost him more than he made, leaving him with nothing and boring Calrissian considerably. While carrying a cargo to the agricultural world of Dilonexa XXIII, Calrissian used a short cut through a nebula, only to be attacked by pirates. Though he was able to use the Millennium Falcon's guns to defeat the pirates, the effort cost him considerably in time and power. Furthermore, upon arrival on Dilonexa XXIII, Calrissian found that his cargo—fishing poles, wintenberry jelly, and hides—was not only utterly unmarketable, but also subject to hefty import duties. The only thing Calrissian found useful from the trip was an invitation to play sabacc in the Oseon system during the arising of the Flamewind. However, Calrissian and Vuffi Raa also had to deal with the fact that several attempts had been made on Calrissian's life—such as two poorly executed bombings of the Millennium Falcon en route to Oseon.[18]
Soon after arriving at Oseon 6845, while playing sabacc with a number of individuals, including the Administrator Senior of the Oseon system, Lob Doluff, Calrissian received a message that the Millennium Falcon was on fire. Upon arriving at his ship, he found nothing, though, and, somewhat puzzled by the false alarm, decided to return to his game. Before he could do so, Calrissian was assaulted and forced to shoot his assailant in self-defense with his stingbeam. Doluff then imprisoned the gambler and informed Calrissian that the penalty for possessing a deadly weapon was death by exposure. However, since the administrator admired Calrissian, he offered a solution to avoid execution. Doluff arranged for Calrissian to participate in a drug bust against the wealthy lesai-addicted industrialist Bohhuah Mutdah. Posing as Mutdah's dealer, Calrissian transported two agents, Bassi Vobah and Waywa Fybot, through the radiation of the Flamewind to Mutdah's location on Oseon 5792. From there, Doluff assured Calrissian, he could leave Oseon free and clear. Doluff gave thorough instructions to Fybot and Vobah to leave Calrissian untouched, though none of them liked each other. Calrissian therefore raised ship with the two agents and made his way through the stellar radiation storm of the Flamewind. As they flew through the maddening radiation fields, the Millennium Falcon once again came under attack, this time from Klyn Shanga, the leader of a group of Renatasian fighters, who were after Vuffi Raa. Calrissian shot down some of the fighters and outran the rest, setting down on an asteroid for repairs. While he was working on the ship, though, someone sabotaged his pressure suit, nearly killing him. Furthermore, the fighters eventually found them, and with Vuffi Raa's piloting skills rendered useless by the radiation, Calrissian had to fly the ship himself—after securing the two agents so that they could not make any more attempts on his life.[18]
Upon arrival on Mutdah's estate on Oseon 5792, Calrissian was escorted by a pair of security guards to Mutdah's presence, where he delivered the lesai to the trillionaire. After he was paid, the two agents burst in, intent on arresting Mutdah. Unfortunately for Calrissian, Mutdah, who turned out to be Rokur Gepta in disguise, promptly killed Fybot (who, himself, was corrupt and had killed Vobah on "Mutdah's" orders) and planned to kill Calrissian—slowly—for the humiliation the gambler had given him on Rafa. Gepta forced the gambler to endure torture by chagrin, which made him relive all the painful moments of his life. However, Calrissian was saved by the timely intervention of attacking Renatasian starfighters, whose goal was to kill Vuffi Raa. During the impending chaos surrounding the attack, Calrissian escaped and grabbed Mutdah's drug payment: a whole twenty million credits. As he was outbound from Oseon 5792, Calrissian's ship was boarded by the last remaining Renatasian fighter, manned by Klyn Shanga. Calrissian subdued the man after Shanga tried to attack Vuffi Raa, and had him explain his side of the story. In turn, though, Shanga explained that he believed Vuffi Raa to be the destroyer of his world, dubbed the "Butcher of Renatasia." Calrissian disbelieved him, though, and kept him confined,[18] dropping him off at a nearby world to do as he wished.[27] Calrissian deposited small sums in banks on several worlds, including fifty thousand credits into the Bank of Aargau, which he planned to use for covering the entry fee for the Bespin sabacc tournament. Unfortunately, his attempt to deposit the bulk of the money on the Centrality's primary financial planet, Dela, was interrupted by a pirate attack by the "pirate queen" Drea Renthal. Despite Calrissian's charm, Renthal took a large fraction of Mutdah's money from him.[11]
Saving the Starcave of ThonBoka[edit | edit source]
- "You have put up a valiant and brilliantly conceived fight, sir, but one which you shall inevitably lose, if only because I am willing to throw half the resources of civilization at you, should it prove necessary. I could bury you with dead bodies, and fill this entire nebula with the wrecks of ships, and I will."
- ―Rokur Gepta to Lando Calrissian
All the while, Calrissian and his droid continued to suffer from revenge attempts from both Gepta and the Renatassian avengers. One assassin tried to kill the two by throwing a fragmentation grenade at them, however, he accidentally threw the pin instead of the grenade and only slightly damaged Vuffi Raa. In another incident, which, as Calrissian suspected, had been orchestrated by Vuffi Raa's enemies, he had been pushed over a rail into a vat of vitamin paste he had considered acquiring for that very trip, and he had fractured both an arm and a toe. In addition to being the targets of their sworn enemies, Calrissian and his droid were also forced to fend off occasional pirate attacks, during one of which, a fighter rammed the Falcon and damaged its boarding ramp. On the other hand, the defeated pirates were giving the Falcon quite a reputation.[27]
Soon after, Calrissian encountered Lehesu, a young member of the space-dwelling, hyperjump-capable Oswaft species. Lehesu's curiosity had carried him from his home in the ThonBoka Nebula to a desolate part of the Centrality, where there were no deep space materials for him to ingest. The starving Oswaft came in contact with the Millennium Falcon, which Calrissian had brought out of hyperspace in deep space to recalibrate its engine. After several halting attempts at communication, Lehesu finally conveyed his need for sustenance. Calrissian emptied the contents of the ship's recyclers into space, which Lehesu eagerly gobbled up. The gambler and the droid then cobbled together a tank full of nutrients that Lehesu could carry with him, so that he could get home. Lehesu then rewarded them with synthesized gemstones.[27]
However, Lehesu did not return home immediately. While exploring other star systems, he came to the attention of the Empire when he accidentally destroyed several fighters. The Empire tracked him to his nebula home, and some months later, blockaded the entrance to the sack-shaped ThonBoka with five hundred capital ships. The fleet's orders were to cut off nutrients and starve the entire Oswaft race into extinction. Some of the ships were Carrack-class light cruisers that were modified to contaminate the "interstellar plankton" drifting into the nebula. Lehesu then used a transceiver provided to him by Vuffi Raa to contact the Millennium Falcon and plead for help.[27]
Calrissian, meanwhile, had been getting into problems of his own. Rokur Gepta was still trying to kill him, and on top of that Klyn Shanga, the leader of the Renatasians that had attacked on Oseon, was still trying to kill Vuffi Raa. Since Gepta's agents occasionally also targeted Vuffi Raa, and Shanga's Renatasians sometimes went after Calrissian, the months after Calrissian encountered Lehesu were eventful. Several bombs were planted inside the Millennium Falcon, she was rammed by a fighter, Calrissian broke his arm after being pushed into a vat of vitamin paste, and an assassin serving Rokur Gepta tried to kill Vuffi Raa with a fragmentation grenade. In addition, the ship had been harassed by pirates.[27]
Calrissian, seeing in the plight of the Oswaft a lucrative solution to his own problems, raced to the rescue. When stopped by the blockade, Calrissian used the ruse that he was a trader plying his wares. Because no one below the rank of admiral had been informed of the reason behind the blockade, the Falcon was inspected and then allowed to continue traveling from ship to ship. The Imperials failed to realize that the ship's real cargo was nothing more than the ordinary waste carried in its trash and toilet recyclers.[27]
After working his way through the ships in the blockade, selling cigars and playing sabacc as he went, Calrissian made a break for the mouth of the ThonBoka. Once inside, his damaged craft was discovered by Lehesu. Calrissian dispensed some of his recycler cargo to the hungry Oswaft and then went to meet with the Oswaft leaders in the Cave of Elders. While he spoke to the elders, an Oswaft delegation under the command of Bhoggihalysahonues went to negotiate with the fleet. An accidental altercation took place, and the Oswaft destroyed the unshielded cruiser Courteous, with their maser voice-streams. The fleet, seeking retribution, raised their shields and began to enter the nebula, but were called back by Rokur Gepta, who wished them to wait until his flagship, the Wennis, arrived.[27]
When Gepta arrived, accompanied by Klyn Shanga and his Renatasian fighter squadron, the fleet re-mobilized and entered the nebula. Fortunately, the suspension of hostilities had given Calrissian time to suggest a battle plan. Confronting the Imperial ships, the Oswaft excreted heavy metals from their pores and then jumped to hyperspace, leaving decoy Oswaft outlines placed between the enemy cruisers. The Imperials fired at the Oswaft and decoys, taking casualties from friendly fire. Meanwhile, the Oswaft "shouted" at the starfighters, destroying them with their maser voice-streams as the spacefaring beings swarmed around the blockade ships, vastly outnumbering them. After the fleet's forces had been reduced by about eleven percent, the battle ceased, as Rokur Gepta transmitted an ultimatum to Calrissian: engage Gepta in personal combat, or he would fire an electromagnetic torpedo into the nebula, killing all life therein.[27]
Calrissian and Vuffi Raa (who was allowed to participate because Gepta believed he could not overcome his pacifist programming) faced off against the Sorcerer of Tund in the vacuum of space. After much maneuvering and exchanging of fire, Calrissian landed a stray shot on Gepta's ankle after chest shots were of no effect. The Sorcerer's form withered, but he hit Vuffi Raa, who had attempted to strangle him with his tentacles, with a final shot. Calrissian searched Gepta's space suit and found an injured Croke—Gepta in his true form—and then proceeded to kill him.[27]
Osuno Whett, who had been spying on Gepta for the Empire, decided that Gepta's electromagnetic torpedo was too powerful to be in the sorcerer's hands, and so attempted to interfere in the duel by killing all three combatants. However, Klyn Shanga finally recognized Whett as the true Butcher of Renatasia and destroyed his ship, and in the process, the Wennis as well. At that, the battle renewed, but for only a moment. Out of nowhere, a multitude of fifty-kilometer diameter sentient droids suddenly appeared, demanding on all channels "Cease fire immediately or be destroyed!"[27] They were the Silentium, the creators of Vuffi Raa, and they had come for their offspring.[28] The Imperial fleet, faced with thousands of these immense ships, retreated. Vuffi Raa's progenitors repaired the little droid and departed with him into the Unknown Regions after playing a game of sabacc with Calrissian. Calrissian himself departed the ThonBoka with a hold filled with valuable Oswaft-synthesized gemstones.[27] Calrissian would later be visited by Vuffi Raa several times.[28]
Failure and success[edit | edit source]
- "No Human in the galaxy has a right to be that lucky."
- ―Barpotomous Drebble
Unfortunately for Calrissian, his turn of good fortune was once again countered with bad luck, as his investment in a berubium mine in the Borgo asteroid belt turned out to be worthless. He was left with nothing except fifty thousand credits in his Aargau account and partial ownership of the Nar Shaddaa starship lot. During this time, around 3 BBY, he struck up a brief relationship with Drea Renthal, the very pirate who had stolen millions from him before.[11]
To ease his need for cash, shortly thereafter, Calrissian stole a treasure cache from the Glottalphib criminal Nandreeson, which earned him Nandreeson's undying hate and promise of sure death if the gambler ever returned to Smuggler's Run. Another smuggler named Jarril smuggled Calrissian out of Nandreeson's asteroid and Calrissian told Jarril that he owed the man, though Jarril did not immediately collect on the debt.[29] Soon after, Calrissian entered the Cloud City Sabacc Tournament along with Solo. However, he wound up in second place, losing to his friend Solo. During the final round, Calrissian had placed a marker for any ship on his used starship lot as part of his bet. Unexpectedly and much to the gambler's dismay, Han chose the Millennium Falcon, the ugliest but most efficient ship in the lot, and Calrissian's favorite.[30]
Calrissian, who was nearly broke after the tournament, managed some successful 'ventures' as he recouped his losses.[11] Holonet News reported[31] how Calrissian, with the aid of a droid named Flek, masqueraded as a ronin Jedi Knight in an attempt to scam the Meek people, who wanted him to slay a rancor. Calrissian knew that the rancor in the area had already been slain by poachers, so he used a rancor's tooth and a recorded rancor's cry as proof of his combat with the beast. However, while out in the woods, he was surprised to find that there was another rancor. Having heard that rancors were incapable of swimming, he jumped into a nearby lake. Before the rancor could wander off, though, he attracted its attention with the decoy rancor cry and then tossed the decoy into the water, hoping to lure the rancor to its doom. To his surprise and dismay, the rancor swam off. Nevertheless, Calrissian returned to the Meek village and collected his reward of valuable artifacts from the Meeks for having allegedly slain the rancor, but later found out that he had been given fakes.[32][33] He successfully defrauded the governor of Pesmenben IV and later replaced the Falcon with the sleek Cobra.[34] Free from any permanent investments to tie him down, he also spent a lot of time on cruise ships, slowly acquiring money through card games and sabacc. While traveling on the Queen of Empire, Calrissian encountered Bria Tharen—a Rebel agent and Han Solo's former girlfriend. He tried to strike up an acquaintance with her, but was captured by Boba Fett along with Tharen, who had a bounty on her head. As Fett was taking his two prisoners off the Queen, the ship was boarded by Drea Renthal, who, as a favor to Calrissian, paid Fett more than his current employer would have paid for Tharen in exchange for letting his prisoners go.[30]
Sometime during this period, Calrissian made several profitable runs to Chandrila. His smuggling was made possible through some skillful bribery of local customs officials. On these runs, Calrissian would first encounter Hiram Drayson, an officer in the defense force who later became part of the New Republic.[15] Also in this period, Calrissian met Tocneppil, a fellow smuggler, and encountered another freelance spacer named Dash Rendar[35] at the sabacc tables on Kaal,[36] whom he would later meet again during the Galactic Civil War.[11] Another individual Calrissian met and became friends with during his career as a freelance spacer was Mungo Baobab, a businessman and the heir to the Baobab Merchant Fleet.[35]
Fallout with Solo[edit | edit source]
- "Get this through your head, Solo. We've been friends in the past, so I'm not going to do what you so richly deserve and blow your head off. But don't ever come near me again!"
- ―Lando Calrissian after being ripped off by Solo
Some time later, Calrissian assisted Han Solo in an attack on the Hutt spice and slavery operations on Ylesia, which Solo was involved in due to once again falling in love with Rebel agent Bria Tharen, the mastermind of the attack. Tharen's Red Hand Squadron had desired to gain recruits and spice from a raid on the Ylesia colonies, but needed skilled pilots to bring her forces to the surface. Consequently, Solo recruited several smugglers for the strike, including Calrissian, to pilot the Rebels through Ylesia's turbulent atmosphere and then help defeat the guards. As incentive for their participation, Tharen promised the smugglers that they would share in captured plunder from the Ylesian operations. After meeting unexpectedly stiff resistance, they eventually were successful in destroying the Hutt operation and freeing the slaves. Tharen, however, reneged on her end of the bargain and kept all the spoils for the Rebellion. This left Solo with nothing to pay Calrissian and the other smugglers, creating a large rift between Solo and Calrissian.[30]
Shortly thereafter, Calrissian found himself on another treasure hunt sponsored by a trio of Hutts eagerly hunting the fabled Yavin Vassilika, a priceless, gemlike statuette. He became involved in the search for the statuette after an incident where Calrissian was saved by Twi'lek majordomo Bib Fortuna after losing a game of sabacc. The chase pitted him against some of the underworld's most notorious bounty hunters, sent by Malta the Hutt, including Bossk, Dengar, and IG-88B. Unfortunately, it also threw him in unwilling partnership with Han Solo again, which made for an uneasy alliance following the recent Ylesian spice fiasco. Since the rewards were considerable, they managed through it, bickering most of the way. In time, however, all parties realized they were being used again. This time, it was one of the Hutts' assistants, a woman named Jozzel Moffet, who was manipulating them. Unknowingly, this assistant was being directed by none other than Bria Tharen herself on behalf of the Rebellion. The Vassilika was the key to opening a Massassi temple, a place that would become a strategic Rebel outpost once opened. After the Vassilika had been found, and the dust settled on this adventure, Solo and Calrissian parted ways, their anger tempered to a mere distrust and agreement to stay on their own ends of the galaxy.[37]
In 1 BBY, Calrissian was on the luxury liner Star of Empire in search of gambling opportunities. While onboard, he met Kyle Katarn and Governor Dol Donar II of Derra IV. He engaged Donar and other passengers in games of sabacc and was able to win considerable amounts of credits from the governor, including a ring that the governor's wife had given to Donar for an anniversary.[38]
The Hero of Taanab[edit | edit source]
A few months after the Battle of Yavin, Cynabar's InfoNet reported that Calrissian was continuing his career as a gambler, winning taxi-service license rights for Ord Wylan in a game of sabacc, only to lose them almost immediately thereafter in another bet. However, he also continued to do some shipping, and headed to Taanab aboard his starship, the Mama Tried, following his loss of the taxi-service rights.[39]
After shipping a cargo of denta beans to Taanab, Calrissian relaxed in a casino on Pandath before preparing to ship a cargo of Conner nets to Socorro, only to be caught up in a Norulac Freebooters raid. Disgusted by the incompetence of the Freebooters and the Taanab defense fleet, Calrissian boasted that he could defeat the pirates. A drunken cantina patron named Gathal Danager, an employee of a Clendoran brewery, accepted the wager and offered the deed to the brewery if Calrissian could pull it off.[40]
Consequently, the gambler hid the Mama Tried in the ice rings of Taanab's moon, and when the pirates approached their marks, he dumped his cargo of Conner nets into the midst of their fleet, tangling and disabling many of their ships and panicking the rest. While they attempted to extricate themselves from the nets, he used tractor beams to launch ice chunks from the rings into their cockpits. He then led Taanab's orbital defense fleet in a mopping up operation. As a result, Calrissian single-handedly destroyed nineteen of the remaining vessels and crippled the pirates' two supporting corvettes. The ships were captured with all hands, thanks to Calrissian using yet more Conner nets to secure the escape pods they launched.[40]
After TriNebulon News carried the story, Calrissian became a minor celebrity.[39] The Imperial Navy arrived several days later and took the pirates into custody. Calrissian turned down an offer to be appointed marshal of Taanab's defense fleet, citing the low salary, but also feeling that the uniform was too gaudy. He left the system to inspect his new brewery, which he found was run by a Zeltron whom he remembered as "pretty as a Tellanadan moonflower and mean as a Hismauli hawk-snake."[40]
Exploits in Hologram Fun World[edit | edit source]
- "Kid, luck's got nothing to do with it. Here's your first lesson in sabacc and in life, my young friend. Nothing is what it seems."
- ―Lando Calrissian to Zak Arranda
Two months later, Calrissian made a visit to an amusement park known as Hologram Fun World, examining it as a possible investment for his funds. While there, he met two Human children, Tash and Zak Arranda. Saying that he wanted to see how popular the park was from the children's point of view, as they were the park's primary clientele, Calrissian offered to tour the park with them. Their droid guardian, DV-9, nixed that idea, but the two Arrandas were able to change the droid's mind and they agreed to tour the park with him. Calrissian first took them back to where they were staying, at the visitors lodge near the park, and returned to his own room to play sabacc. During the game, Zak came to Calrissian's room in search of something to do and the gambler allowed the boy to watch as he raked in a sizable sum of credits. The last player in the game, Dengar, vehemently demanded to see Calrissian's cards after folding, to the point of drawing his blaster, but Calrissian thwarted any attempts at violence by pointing a "hold-out blaster"—actually a ship's slave circuit control rig—at him. Calrissian then showed Zak how to play sabacc before sending the boy back to his room for the night.[41]
The next day, Calrissian, the two Arrandas, and DV-9 toured the park, and Calrissian liked what he saw. However, later in the day, Zak wandered off to investigate an attraction dubbed the Nightmare Machine. Entering, he discovered Borborygmus Gog, a scientist in charge of Project Starscream, an Imperial project devoted to creating super-soldiers and who had previously encountered the Arrandas. Zak raced back out to warn the others, and Calrissian took them to consult Danna Fajji, the baron administrator of Hologram Fun World, who bemusedly took them to the room. There, he showed them how what Zak had seen was nothing more than a persuasively realistic holographic and sensory simulation—in essence, the Nightmare Machine scanned people's minds and let them experience their greatest fears. After the children tried the ride, which was not to their liking, Calrissian had a meeting with Fajji to discuss the possibility of his investing in the park. However, during the meeting, Zak noticed that most of the visitors to the park were computer-generated, and Calrissian stormed out of the meeting, allegedly outraged about Fajji's deceiving him about the park's profitability—in truth, he was not angry at all.[41]
The next day, Calrissian continued his tour of the park with the children, but they returned to the Nightmare Machine and were trapped inside, locking out Calrissian and DV-9. When Calrissian brought this matter to Fajji, the administrator claimed it was a glitch that would soon be rectified, but Calrissian didn't wait. Drawing a hold-out blaster, he charged into the exhibit, followed by DV-9, only to find that Imperial stormtroopers were present in the park. Although he was able to free the two Arrandas from a creature that had been controlling the Nightmare Machine, he was forced to surrender in the face of numerous stormtroopers. They were captured and brought out to face the real Gog, who had been using the amusement park as a front for some of his experiments.[41]
The three prisoners were loaded into a shuttle, guarded by a stormtrooper, to be returned to Gog's cruiser for experimentation, but during the flight, the stormtrooper revealed himself to be the Arrandas' uncle, the Shi'ido shapeshifter Mammon Hoole. Hoole incapacitated the pilot and the four escaped in the shuttle. Once they were safely away, Calrissian summoned his yacht remotely and parted ways with the others for Bespin, suggesting that the two Arrandas also go there, as it was remote enough to serve them well as a hiding place.[41]
Winning a bet[edit | edit source]
- "You have no idea what I'm thinking, Raynor. All of this plus my starship lot on Nar Shaddaa—against the Cloud City.'"
- ―Lando Calrissian betting it all against Dominic Raynor
Calrissian continued his gambling ventures, though, showing up on the planet Naboo to ply his trade. While there, he encountered Dusque Mistflier, a female Imperial bioengineer, but although she allowed him to show her the basics of sabacc, she was not interested in his advances.[42] In roughly 2 ABY, Calrissian was mentioned in Cynabar's Infonet as having been relatively inactive since his participation in the Battle of Taanab. However, speculation in the article mentioning him included the supposition that he might be planning another scam.[43]
After spending several months on Cloud City gambling at the fancy casinos there,[43] Calrissian played a game of sabacc against the Baron Administrator of the facility, a man named Dominic Raynor, after his success at gambling had caught the eye of the administrator. Little did he know that Ymile, the consort of Dominic Raynor, had helped him win with a skifter disguised as a pendant, but when a thief tried to steal her pendant, Calrissian seized him and returned the pendant to her, dubbing her his "Lady Luck." Calrissian quickly found himself in a very high stakes game, with millions of credits and his Cobra on the line, which he lost. However, this was revealed to be due to the actions of a furious enemy of Calrissian's, Barpotomous Drebble, who had planted a skifter in the deck to throw the game to Raynor, in a form of revenge on Calrissian for the gambler's winning large sums of money from Drebble. Raynor ordered Drebble removed, but refused to discount the game. Because an anonymous benefactor then advanced Calrissian five million credits, the gambler bet four million and his lot on Nar Shaddaa against Raynor's administrator's post, and won not only his ship back, but the whole game and became the new Baron Administrator of Cloud City. In doing so, he also had the aid of Ymile, who helped tilt the game toward Calrissian with her pendant even though she was with Raynor, since she wanted to leave and see the galaxy. The unknown benefactor turned out to be Cloud City's cyborg liaison, Lobot, who had obtained the credits from the pooled funds of thousands of Ugnaught workers, in order to ensure Raynor's departure.[44] Though Calrissian's methods for taking the reins of the city were considered unorthodox, his new position was confirmed by a vote of both the governing bodies of Cloud City, which had done nothing to stop his game against Raynor. His actions in taking over the city garnered him considerable media attention in Cynabar's Infonet, which gave his takeover a full article.[43]
Revenge attempts[edit | edit source]
- "I guess this whole 'respectable baron administrator' thing has been a bit overwhelming, that's all. I can't gamble while I'm in office. Someone's been trying to kill me, so I can't go anywhere without guards. And every little thing that goes wrong, I have to fix. Sometimes I miss hopping around the galaxy with Vuffi or Tocneppil, or even Dash. Life was easier back when I was playing the rogue. More dangerous, yeah…but more fun. I miss the adventure, Lobot. Sometimes I really miss being a scoundrel."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to Lobot
After Calrissian won the Baron Administrator's job from Dominic Raynor, the former Baron Administrator swore to get revenge on the gambler. Raynor hired the bounty hunter Bossk to extract revenge from Calrissian. As such, Bossk brought a group of hired thugs and mercenaries with him for his plan. The bounty hunter and his crew moved to one of the maintenance decks and sabotaged equipment there, as well as impersonating the chief engineer on Bespin in order to send Calrissian an urgent summons telling him that the city's primary repulsorlift pod was failing. Calrissian responded, but brought several bodyguards with him as a precaution. Upon arrival at the maintenance levels, Calrissian was ambushed by the bounty hunter and his entourage, and was unable to escape or summon reinforcements due to Bossk's sabotage. Instead, he and his guards were forced to fight their way out.[45]
In another incident, Cloud City's security chief, the droid EV-9D9, was found to have been torturing other droids, going so far as to dismantle a quarter of the city's droid population. After her efforts were detected and reported to Calrissian by security officer Sarl Random, the droid was imprisoned, but managed to escape. EV-9D9 then set off a series of explosives targeting the city's repulsorlift generators that nearly destroyed Cloud City and Calrissian. She then launched a diversionary ship to draw off pursuit while stealing an expensive Mining Guild ship, Iopene Princess to make good her flight. Disaster to the city was avoided, however, though EV-9D9 escaped. Calrissian and his newly promoted chief of security, Sarl Random, enacted new security procedures in the wake of this incident, and Calrissian also had to placate the Mining Guild over the loss of their ship.[46]
Approximately six week after winning of Cloud City, Calrissian began to settle into his new role as Baron Administrator with Lobot by his side. It was during this time that Calrissian received a royal visit from a person whom he believed to have been Queen Sarna of Drogheda. However, on his way to meet his guest, a large explosion rocked the section of Cloud City immediately around Calrissian, nearly killing him and Lobot. It was soon discovered that the explosion was caused by a human replica droid that had detonated itself, and which had been designed to look like Sarna in the hopes of getting close enough to Calrissian to kill him in the blast.[35]
Beginning an investigation into who would want Calrissian dead, Cloud City security contacted Drogheda; the real Sarna denied any knowledge of involvement or even of the supposed meeting between herself and Calrissian. Realizing that the assassin, or assassins, had no concern for the safety of innocent bystanders, Calrissian decided to use the attempt on his life to draw out those responsible. To this end, Calrissian had Lobot help him fake his own death in the aftermath of the devastation caused by the explosion. With the news of Calrissian's apparent death circulating through the sector and Cloud City, the duo set out to look for those responsible for the attack. Calrissian and Lobot considered several possible candidates, such as Barpotomous Drebble and EV-9D9, but they soon concluded that it must have been Dominic Raynor, Cloud City's former owner, who had planned the attack. Upon agreeing that it was Raynor's doing, Calrissian and Lobot, who were aboard Cobra, were attacked by what appeared to an Imperial-class Star Destroyer. However, once again, what appeared to be was not the case, as Lobot ascertained that the ship attacking them was not a Star Destroyer, but something much smaller — it was in fact a YT-1300 freighter named Faceted using a hologram of a Star Destroyer to conceal itself. The pilot of Faceted, a female bounty hunter named Thune, eventually contacted Calrissian aboard Cobra advising him to surrender. Realizing that Thune had the upper hand, Calrissian and Lobot reluctantly waited for Thune and her hired help to board Cobra. However, at that moment Calrissian thought of a plan that had the potential to save them. Realizing that they were only a short jump away from Quilken, where Calrissian's friend Mungo Baobab resided, Calrissian had Lobot program a standing jump into the hyperspace navigational system aimed at Quilken. Despite the dangers listed off to Calrissian by Lobot regarding potential dangers of doing a standing jump, the cyborg followed Calrissian's orders and Cobra jumped to safety, temporarily leaving Thune behind.[35]
Eventually meeting up with Baobab, Calrissian and Lobot effected repairs on Cobra for the damage it had received in the fight against Thune. Nevertheless, Thune eventually tracked Calrissian and caught up with him, Lobot, and Baobab. Quickly dispatching Baobab's bodyguards, who had stepped up to protect their boss, Thune demanded that Calrissian come with her. However, when Thune threatened Baobab himself, Calrissian was able to use a small jeweled dagger he had with him to wound Thune, by stabbing one of her hands. Managing to knock her out, Calrissian and Baobab then took Thune into custody for murdering Baobab's two bodyguards. Not wanting to kill Thune, Calrissian and Baobab instead came up with a plan to make sure that she would not track either of them after the current affair had been completed. Using a type of Roonstone called kessum, which randomly bounced electronic signals off of surrounding objects, Calrissian had Lobot inject Thune with a small sample of it. Admitting to Thune that it was completely harmless to her, Calrissian did, though, tell her that the kessum would be impossible for her to locate, but it would allow him and Baobab to be aware if she ever came within a light-year of either of them. Calrissian and Baobab then hired Thune for a small fee to track down Raynor and capture him and bring him to justice for the attack he had planned on Cloud City. After she reluctantly agreed, Calrissian and Lobot returned to Cloud City, and soon the news of Calrissian's survival of the bomb blast, which had thought to have killed him, spread across Cloud City.[35]
Life as Baron Administrator[edit | edit source]
- Ars Fivvle: “Welcome t'the Mining Quarter, Mr. Baron-Administrator. Thank ye fer providin' this interview, an' on behalf o' the Ugnaught population o' Bespin, may I extend me heartiest congratulations on yer new position.”
- Lando Calrissian: “Thank you …”
- Ars Fivvle: “Please, call me Ars.”
- Lando Calrissian: “Arse?”
- Ars Fivvle: “Close enough, Mr. Baron-Administrator.”
- Lando Calrissian: “Please, call me Mr. Calrissian, or Lando if ye—if you prefer. Baron-administrator is quite a mouthful. Here's an exclusive for you: The first citizen that comes up with a better title gets to lead the Miner's Guild…uh, that was a joke. A bad one, obviously. Tell you what, why don't I let you start.”
- ―Lando Calrissian in an interview with Ars Fivvle of Action Tidings[src]
Following the events involving Thune, Calrissian took his job as Baron Administrator seriously, even becoming a legal citizen after taking office,[47] and worked closely with Lobot for over two years,[48] though he considered running Cloud City the strangest scam he'd ever run.[49] During this time, Calrissian became known as a capable steward of Cloud City dividing his time between various conferences with the Parliament of Guilds, reviewing possible trade routes and agreements, and making appearances to Cloud City's citizens. Likewise, Calrissian meet with the city's corporate administrators, known as the Exex, and received their various reports, outlining their needs and wants, from the numerous corporate liaisons; acting on these reports, Calrissian did his best to comply with their requests and kept the number of diverse businesses within Cloud City content. With the title of Administrator, Calrissian was also responsible for being judge in a number of legal disputes for people, or crimes, that were not brought before a tribunal of the Parliament of Guilds. Among Cloud City's denizens, it was well known that Calrissian would arrive at his legal decisions by using the confidential advice of Lobot, his computer liaison officer.[47] Over the years, Calrissian and Lobot developed a nonverbal communication system which allowed them to send subtle messages to each other.[50] The new Baron Administrator also started wearing an easily concealed wrist-comlink that could interface with the Cloud City Central Computer, as well as allowing him to direct his subordinates.[51]
Calrissian deflected both the Mining Guild and the eyes of the Empire from the city. In addition, he scouted new Tibanna plumes, hired pilots to protect the city from raids, repealed restrictive anti-alien immigration laws put in place by Raynor, and increased Tibanna gas profits by over 35%.[12][48] Another reform Calrissian instituted dealt with the Wing Guard, Cloud City's security force, who had garnered a reputation for corruption. Calrissian changed the system to allow more oversight of the Wing Guard by the Baron-Administrator and made their pay dependent on how well they were doing at maintaining order,.[52] as well as enhancing their pay structure and making Lobot also a liaison to the security forces.[53] Calrissian's reforms were successful in bringing a reputation for honesty back into the Wing Guard, and contributed to Cloud City's growing fame as a luxury resort.[52] Bespin enjoyed a profitable trade triangle with Alderaan and the Corellian system, but a large source of revenue was lost when Alderaan was destroyed by the Empire. In the wake of that event, Calrissian worked hard to ensure that there were no other disruptions of trade by the Empire,[47] maintaining a strict neutrality in galactic affairs on Cloud City.[53]
Another action Calrissian took after becoming Baron Administrator was to drastically improve the wages for the local Ugnaughts. He financed this by opening several new Tibanna refineries on Cloud City, and in return secured the pledge of the Ugnaughts to shut down clandestine refineries of their own. He described these improvements in an interview with Ars Fivvle of Action Tidings, an Ugnaught journalism service, and stated his desire to keep the Empire off Cloud City, saying that he disapproved of their methods. Furthermore, he stated that he intended to keep things running smoothly at Cloud City, using a modus operandi he described as the Lando System.[54]
Calrissian also focused his efforts on other areas besides running the Cloud City and attending high-profile social events; among these were zoning. By placing the higher-class hotels on the surface of the city and the seedier elements of the city on lower levels, he helped eliminate the threat of criminals preying on tourists. However, he did not fully remove some of the rowdier areas, feeling that as long as the individuals there kept to that location, they could be easily contained.[52] He also allowed a separate policing division to be formed by the more lawless district of Port Town. This provided a responsible, accountable security force to be in place, but also one with more leniency than the Wing Guard and a tendency to look the other way on certain activities within Port Town. Calrissian also stepped in to arbitrate a series of turf wars between employees of Jabba the Hutt and a rival crimelord based on Cloud City, Wonn Ionstrike.[47] Calrissian faced down another challenge when Port Town crimelord Sawthawne began raiding Bespin's tibanna refineries, operating from the abandoned mining colony of Tibannopolis. Calrissian managed to convince a group of adventurers into destroying Tibannopolis while the Wing Guard launched a diversionary assault. However, his Wing Guard commander, Flagesso, turned out to be in league with Sawthawne.[55] During this time, Calrissian met Orrk, the Guildmaster of the metalsmiths on Vandelhelm and learned of their ways and customs.[56]
However, Calrissian himself still craved adventure, and so while he was a responsible administrator by day, he would disguise himself and enjoy the gambling and female companionship to be found among Bespin's casinos by evening. One of his aliases led him to be known only as "the old man," who gained attention by winning and losing a fortune every single evening he was present. Though Calrissian never gained financially out of that particular alias, it was the thrill of risk that motivated him, so he did not mind.[52] That was not to say that he didn't gain money though; his earnings from his frequenting of the gambling establishments he helped support on Cloud City earned him more credits than his actual salary.[57] People were known to travel to Cloud City simply for the pleasure of gambling and especially playing sabacc there. At some point, Calrissian played sabacc with Queen Sula from Presteen, the Hutt Corugg and Moff Elior.[53]
At some point after becoming Baron Administrator, Calrissian had to stop an Imperial TIE pilot who had been sent to blow up the facility. He was forced to confront the pilot before he could detonate the bomb, and Calrissian was able to save the city.[58]
Entering the Galactic Civil War (3 ABY–4 ABY)[edit | edit source]
- "Yeah, a Tibanna gas mine. Lando conned somebody out of it. We go back a long way, Lando and me."
"Can you trust him?"
"No. But he has no love for the Empire, I can tell you that." - ―Han Solo and Leia Organa
Precursor to war[edit | edit source]
- "I hope you've got a very good explanation for this."
- ―Lando Calrissian to a group of Rebels standing beside the murdered Issan Len
Calrissian became involved in a clandestine Rebel Alliance mission when a noted scientist, Doctor Issan Len was murdered. The Wing Guard and Calrissian went to investigate the death and found a group of Rebel agents, including scientist Walex Blissex, at the laboratory where Len had been slain. Calrissian threatened them with arrest for murder, saying that their guilt could easily be proven, but that if they caught the murderer for him in twenty-four hours, he would let them go free. He also told them that he believed the murderer had taken an experimental droid Len had created that could control other droids.[59]
He also subtly participated in the case by once again disguising himself and frequenting the Royal Casino in order to monitor Imperial engineer Lira Wessex, who was also the daughter of Blissex. One night, he played sabacc with the Rebels, Wessex, and Helm Iskraker, an underworld contact of Vreen, an assistant to Dr. Len. During the game, though, a rogue labor droid attacked the casino, intent on causing widespread carnage. It was defeated, though, but in the chaos surrounding the attack, Wessex and Vreen disappeared. The Rebel party eventually found Vreen at Bioniip Laboratories, infected by a microscopic droid-based virus that transformed flesh into metal. The partially transformed Vreen informed them that a malicious droid program called Exo had been behind a series of droid attacks, including the labor droid assault, and that the only way to stop the attacks and spread of the virus was to destroy Exo. The Rebel party, with the reluctant aid of Wessex, was able to deactivate Exo, but in doing so, deactivated the power systems for all of Cloud City, sending the station plummeting down through Bespin's atmosphere. In the time in which the city was falling, though, the Rebels stopped Exo permanently and restored power to the city's repulsors.[59]
However, at that point, Lira Wessex summoned a group of armed thugs and turned on the Rebels in an effort to steal Exo; however, Calrissian and Lobot, accompanied by a sizable group of Wing Guards, disarmed her thugs and compelled her to surrender. Calrissian had learned that she was attempting to perform a rogue mission beyond Imperial orders and, to save her the fallout from her failure and him the danger of Imperial entanglements, they agreed to keep the matter quiet. He had her escorted off Cloud City, while the Rebels were offered special security positions on Cloud City in payment for their efforts. He also dropped the murder charges, since it had been rogue droids controlled by Exo that had slain Len, and had Exo destroyed.[59]
Later, while preparing for the Security Guild conferences set to be held on Cloud City, Calrissian noticed a woman named Platt Okeefe, an old acquaintance of his, and took interest in her. He set up a meeting with her, but despite his attempts, she did not accept his invitation due to her preoccupation with a smuggling racket.[60]
However, despite his legitimate business aims and official neutrality, he was also involved in a smuggling operation and also sold arms and supplies to the Rebellion covertly[57] to the point where he was considered a valuable ally to them.[61]
Sometime during the early Galactic Civil War and after Calrissian became Baron Administrator, a shipment of ryll spice went missing en route to a Rebel Alliance medical center. Having kept his ties to the underworld despite becoming a legitimate businessman, Calrissian became involved in the search for the ryll. The spice was rumored to have been stolen and taken to Smuggler's Run. Calrissian became involved and, despite his outward neutrality, led a Rebel team to infiltrate the ranks of the Hutts in an effort to locate the shipment. However, though he wanted to recover the spice, he also intended to return it to the Rebellion, as his Rebel sympathies had grown.[62]
One of Calrissian's first actions was to recruit a Rebel agent on his shuttle, Cobra and send that person to infiltrate Jabba's Palace. The agent was able to obtain some leads and ended up on Corellia tracking a spice smuggler. While there, Calrissian contacted the agent with information that the Bothan Spynet was following an Imperial agent, Jeffren Brek, who was also hunting for the shipment. Calrissian also provided the assistance of Loza Sil'ban, a Bothan operative. Sil'ban and the Rebel agent were able to defeat Brek and learn that a spacer named BoShek had information about the shipment. After finding and confronting BoShek, the Rebel agent was told that the ryll shipment had been taken to Smuggler's Run.[62]
Calrissian then arranged for a Rebel pilot, Wedge Antilles, to ferry the Rebel agent to Smuggler's Run. They ran into forces of the Imperial Security Bureau, led by a holographic representation of Blackhole, but were able to defeat them. Once the Imperials were defeated, Calrissian flew a clandestine mission to Smuggler's Run to recover the ryll.[62]
Calrissian worked with Han Solo to recover the missing ryll shipment, but Solo was found and tailed by the Imperial Security Bureau. When Solo and Chewbacca flew to join Calrissian on Smuggler's Run after the ryll was located there and seized, they were followed by an ISB agent, who instigated a fierce firefight. Cutting their losses, Solo, Chewbacca, and Calrissian boarded the Millennium Falcon and escaped, leaving most of the ryll behind.[63]
Trap at Cloud City[edit | edit source]
- Lando Calrissian: “Lord Vader! What about Leia and the Wookiee?”
- Darth Vader: “They must never again leave this city.”
- Lando Calrissian: “That was never a condition of our agreement, nor was giving Han to this bounty hunter!”
- Darth Vader: “Perhaps you think you're being treated unfairly?”
- Lando Calrissian: “No.”
- Darth Vader: “Good. It would be unfortunate if I had to leave a garrison here.”
- ―Calrissian and Vader, speaking of their deal[src]
As it was a key source of Tibanna gas, Cloud City was a lucrative target for the Galactic Empire, though Calrissian had so far managed to keep his operation beneath the attention of both the Empire and the Mining Guild. This was changed when Boba Fett and Sith Lord Darth Vader, in pursuit of the Millennium Falcon and Solo, who had joined the Rebellion, as well as his companions, reached Cloud City before the Falcon did.[64] Little did Calrissian know that ISB agent Tian Chyler had also infiltrated Cloud City and funneled the true nature of his operations on Cloud City to the Empire, allowing the Empire to blackmail Calrissian with ease.[65]
Calrissian, quietly escorted by a group of concealed Wing Guard, met Vader on the landing pad, and the Dark Lord of the Sith indicated that he wished to speak to Calrissian in private. Vader wished to discuss arrangements for capturing the inbound Han Solo and his compatriots, and though he acquiesced to a few of Calrissian's wishes, such as leaving Fett, whom Calrissian distrusted, out of the conference, Vader maneuvered the Baron Administrator into agreeing to betray Solo. Although he was reluctant to do so, Calrissian knew the lives of everyone on Cloud City were at stake, and so made the deal.[52] In exchange for Cloud City's continued independence and survival, Calrissian agreed to help detain the Falcon's crew until fledgling Jedi and Rebel hero Luke Skywalker arrived and was captured by Vader.[64]
Playing the part of a congenial host, Calrissian, sporting his signature Tarelle sel-weave shirt[66] and cloak, greeted his old friend Han and his companions, flirting openly with Leia Organa. He gladly agreed to help fix the Falcon's damaged hyperdrive while they enjoyed Cloud City's hospitality. The travelers, however, did not trust Calrissian entirely, especially after the disappearance of C-3PO, who had vanished only to be found in several pieces destined to be melted down.[64] Their suspicions proved correct, as Calrissian informed Vader of the Rebels' presence immediately after they landed.[67] Not long after their arrival, Calrissian invited the Rebels to refreshments and led them to Darth Vader and his stormtroopers, where Han, Leia, and Chewbacca were captured.[64] Solo and Chewbacca had originally intended to rush Vader, but Vader threatened to kill the Wookiee, and Calrissian was able to persuade the two to abandon that notion.[68]
Much to Calrissian's chagrin, Vader considerably altered the original deal. Furthermore, as part of his plan to lure Skywalker to Cloud City in order to turn him to the dark side of the Force, Vader had the three Rebels tortured so that their pain would reverberate through the Force to Skywalker. When Calrissian protested, Vader threatened to leave a garrison of Imperial troops on Cloud City.[64] After seeing how much his original bargain with Vader had been changed, Calrissian instructed Lobot to prepare to make a move of their own in order to turn the tables on the Empire and help the Rebels. Calrissian also observed some of the Rebels' suffering, as did the bounty hunter Boba Fett, who had no qualms about seeing their agony, unlike Calrissian, who was outraged. Disgusted by Fett, Calrissian informed the bounty hunter that he would eventually have his revenge on him, saying that his face would be the last thing Fett ever saw.[68] Increasingly unhappy with the arrangement, he informed Organa and Solo of their fate, telling them "I had no choice." Solo did not take this well, and punched the Baron Administrator.[64]
The Dark Lord then insisted that Leia and Chewbacca remain on Bespin and decided to test the carbonite-freezing chamber, normally used to prepare Tibanna gas for shipment, on Han Solo, hoping that the same apparatus could be used on Skywalker to transport him to the Emperor.[64] Calrissian objected to the use of the facility for freezing Solo, but Vader replied by threatening to execute Calrissian and destroy Cloud City if the Baron Administrator did not cooperate. A thoroughly angered Calrissian was then ordered to bring the prisoners to the freezing chamber.[68]
Calrissian, under direct orders from Darth Vader to observe so that he would understand the fate of the Empire's enemies,[68] personally supervised Solo's freezing, and announced that the freezing had been successful: the Corellian was in perfect hibernation, encased inside a slab of carbonite.[64] The experience deeply affected Calrissian, who years later would still suffer the occasional nightmare based on the events in the chamber.[29] Fett removed Solo and left the chamber, and shortly after Vader altered the deal further by taking Leia and Chewbacca as Imperial prisoners. With some convincing from Lobot, Calrissian realized that the Dark Lord had no intention of making good on his promises and decided to aid the Rebels.[52] Via Lobot, he summoned a group of the Wing Guard to help free Organa, Chewbacca, and the still-disassembled C-3PO from the Imperial stormtroopers.[64]
Though they had been freed, Organa and Chewbacca did not trust Calrissian, but went with him to try to rescue Solo. As they evaded stormtroopers and pursued Fett, Calrissian announced the takeover of Cloud City by the Empire and ordered its evacuation.[64] During his escape with Organa and Chewbacca, Calrissian stopped long enough to take down a group of stormtroopers threatening Ars Fivvle, an Ugnaught holojournalist. Under pressure from Chewbacca to keep going, he told the Ugnaughts to get off Cloud City before the Empire completely overran the city.[54] Unfortunately for them, Calrissian, Organa, and Chewbacca barely missed catching Fett, and the bounty hunter escaped with his frozen prize.[64]
Meeting up with R2-D2 and retreating to the Falcon, they took off under fire from stormtroopers and were almost immediately pursued by Imperial TIE fighters. As they escaped Bespin, Organa received Skywalker's call for help through the Force, as the young Jedi had arrived on Bespin and lost in a duel with Darth Vader, and had Calrissian return to rescue him. Under threat from Chewbacca, Calrissian flew the ship back and pulled the wounded Skywalker into the ship via the top hatch. While trying to escape Bespin, it was realized that while the hyperdrive had been repaired, it had been deactivated by the Imperials. R2-D2 reactivated the hyperdrive and Calrissian piloted the Falcon to the Rebel rendezvous point,[64] which suited Calrissian as he wanted to be as far from Vader as possible.[67] There, Skywalker received medical treatment for his injuries.[64] Calrissian also left a recording inside R2-D2 telling of his adventures with the Rebellion during this time.[67]
Cody Sunn-Childe's dream[edit | edit source]
- "I wonder how long your "truth" would hold up if the war you ran away from came knocking on your front… door…?!"
- ―Lando Calrissian to Cody Sunn-Childe, suddenly interrupted by an Imperial attack
Feeling guilty for what had happened to his old friend and coming to view the Empire as evil, Calrissian joined the Rebel Alliance, allying with Chewbacca and using the Millennium Falcon to search for Han Solo. Preliminary planning started while Calrissian was at the Rebel fleet and soon he and the Wookiee were out on missions to find Solo.[67] One day, while utterly lost, the pair stumbled across a dimensional rift inhabited by Cody Sunn-Childe, a former Rebel Alliance operative and a hero of Calrissian's who had used strange powers he'd gained during his travels to construct a City of Dreams in a dimensional rift. Angered by Sunn-Childe's abandonment of the Rebel cause, Calrissian threw a punch at him, only to be attacked by several creatures—manifestations of the darker side of Sunn-Childe's power—which were immediately absorbed by Sunn-Childe, lest they cause injury to Calrissian.[69]
The former Rebel's city had a hypnotizing effect on its inhabitants as they were enthralled by the phantasmagoric surroundings, even Chewbacca. The Wookiee, spellbound, even seemed to forget the search for Solo in favor of the city's distractions and had roughly punched Calrissian for speaking ill of the city. As the former gambler walked back to the Falcon, the city was attacked by an Imperial fleet led by Captain Plikk, who had also become trapped in the rift. The attack caused many, Chewbacca included, to snap out of their charmed state. Calrissian and Chewbacca piloted the Millennium Falcon against the Imperials, but the battle was cut short when Sunn-Childe, who had at first allowed his mysterious manifestations to attack the Star Destroyers, made no further attempt to stop the Imperial bombardment of the city, letting the fleet utterly destroy it and all its citizens, himself included. The Falcon then escaped through the rapidly closing dimensional gate, but the Imperials, lacking the hyperdrive power to escape because of their excessive bombardment, were forever trapped in Sunn-Childe's dimension.[69]
Skywalker's affliction[edit | edit source]
- "Something terrible has happened. Terrible enough to send me combing the Galaxy for you two… and have you abandon the search for Han."
- ―Leia, to Chewbacca and Lando
Calrissian and Chewbacca's frantic search for Solo was again cut short as Leia Organa summoned them to a Rebel base on Golrath. Once there, they were informed that Luke Skywalker had caught a deadly disease known as the "Crimson Forever" after boarding an Imperial vessel and finding its crew crimson-colored and dead. Suspecting a red-glowing stone aboard the ship to be the source of whatever killed the Imperials, Skywalker rushed back to the Rebel headquarters, but he was already infected. In a short time, he was lying comatose, his eyes turned scarlet red. Organa remembered a story Solo had told her about the Red Nebula that featured a pair of stones similar to the one that infected Luke. Chewbacca regaled the tale, and the group came to the conclusion that the "Crimson Forever" stone was indeed one of those Chewbacca and Solo had encountered—when the two stones were separated, they were lethal. Following up on the lead, Chewbacca, Calrissian and Organa piloted the Millennium Falcon to the Red Nebula, only to find a seemingly abandoned House of Tagge spaceship. The gambler and princess boarded the vessel while Chewbacca waited in the Falcon and immediately saw victims of the "Crimson Forever." Convinced that one of the stones was nearby, they started looking for the second stone. Their search was cut short, however, when they were captured by a gang of bounty hunters employed by Domina Tagge, a House of Tagge noble with a grudge against Luke Skywalker.[70]
Tagge explained that the stones were part of her plan to kill Skywalker as revenge for the death of her brother, Orman Tagge, whom Skywalker had been forced to slay. Domina had hired the bounty hunters to retrieve the stones once word of the deadliness of the red-glowing rocks reached her. Bombing the planet where the stones had been held, she soon had them in her grasp. Tagge and company were surprised by an Imperial warship, however, and the Tagge ship was boarded by stormtroopers. Not wanting to risk her plan, Tagge at first allowed the Imperials to seize one of the stones—encased in a protective canister—and even told them the location of the Rebel Alliance's base on Golrath. Provoking a firefight, Tagge's bounty hunters forced the stormtroopers to retreat back to their own ship and jump to hyperspace, heading for Golrath. Unbeknownst to the Imperials, Tagge had tinkered with the canister of their stone, making it burst open when it was placed under the pressure of hyperspace travel. By the time they arrived near Golrath, they were all dead, and the ghost ship trap was set for Skywalker. However, a priest the bounty hunters had captured to get information about the stones from released the stone in Tagge's ship from its canister as well, killing many. Domina and a few bounty hunters were able to seal themselves away on the ship, avoiding certain death, but lacking space suits to shield themselves from the disease, they were trapped.[70]
Escaping Tagge and her crew by jumping through an airlock, Organa and Calrissian were picked up by the Falcon. Realizing that they needed the stone to cure Skywalker, Organa struck a deal with Tagge—the Rebels would save her and her bounty hunters from the "Crimson Forever"-infested ship, and in return, she would hand over her stone so they could stop the plague. As the crystals were reunited on Golrath, Skywalker was cured. Domina and her accomplices flew off in an escape ship per the agreement, and the stones were loaded aboard the Imperial ghost ship, which was sent straight into Golrath's sun.[70]
Destruction of the Tarkin[edit | edit source]
- "They left me out of this mission because they thought I couldn't be trusted. But stowing away so I could be their ace-in-the-hole should prove that—"
- ―Lando Calrissian's thoughts interrupted by an approaching stormtrooper patrol
Later, Calrissian, accompanied by Chewbacca in the Millennium Falcon, was on the trail of a gunrunner named Shem-Lern, who Calrissian believed knew Boba Fett's location. However, when Shem-Lern flew into an asteroid field, Calrissian was reluctant to follow, and a priority signal from General Carlist Rieekan ordering them to return to the fleet interrupted their chase. Informed by an operative that the Empire was constructing a new superweapon—the Tarkin—the Rebellion ordered Chewbacca and Calrissian to stop their hunt for Shem-Lern and return to the temporary base, where they were briefed on their new mission—to destroy the Tarkin.[71]
A small commando team, consisting of Skywalker, Organa, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2, were to sneak aboard the superweapon dressed as workers and strike at its reactor with a proton grenade. Calrissian, whom both Organa and General Rieekan thought of as untrustworthy, was "left out" of the mission[71] but the gambler stowed away on the Falcon that the commando team piloted to Hockaleg, the planet over which the Tarkin orbited. He hoped to make himself useful by staying with the Falcon, ready to rush to the superweapon to save his friends.[72]
Unbeknownst to the commando team, Darth Vader was also present at the space station, having sensed that Skywalker had infiltrated it. Believing the Rebels' plan was to destroy the Tarkin's reactor, Vader personally saw to the protection of that area, delegating the rest of the security personnel to potential escape routes. However, just as he was en route to catch Skywalker, a group of high-ranking Imperial officers attempted to kill the Sith by opening an airlock, sending Vader into space. The plan was foiled by Vader himself—using the dark side of the Force he was able to pull himself back into the Tarkin from the vacuum of space. This distraction helped Skywalker barely escape the Dark Lord. In the meantime, Organa had wired the superweapon's ion cannon to fire upon itself—something that would utterly destroy the station.[72]
Meanwhile, on Hockaleg, Calrissian was approached by a stormtrooper patrol, but he was able to "bribe" them with two kilos of what he said was Gannarian narco-spice—in reality, it was simply slime yeast from the Falcon's provisions. At the same time, on the Tarkin, the Rebel commando team prepared to flee the space station, aborting their original mission. Just as they rocketed off the station in a commandeered transport, they were followed by two TIE fighters, one of which shot out the engines of their ship. They had little chance of survival until Calrissian appeared with the Millennium Falcon, blasting the enemy craft and bringing the group aboard the YT-1300. Darth Vader boarded his personal modified TIE and gave chase, but he was ultimately outmaneuvered by Skywalker when the young Jedi jettisoned the Falcon's water supply into space, creating an instant ice barrier that Vader crashed into. Seeing that the Rebels were about to escape, the officers aboard the Tarkin decided to fire the superweapon on the lone freighter. However, thanks to Organa's wiring of the ion cannon, the space station exploded violently. The Rebels escaped to safety while discussing the princess's ion cannon-tinkering.[72]
A short while later, while investigating an incredible power source on Ventooine, Skywalker, Calrissian, and C-3PO discovered a giant golden statue of Solo as they were being chased by Imperial stormtroopers. The statue had been erected by Vetter Piin, a man Solo had helped in the past. After listening to the tale of Solo's escapades on the planet through a memory stone, the three defeated the pursuing stormtroopers by tricking them into a room with a specific mineral composition that put them into suspended animation.[73]
The search for Leia[edit | edit source]
- "I hate to disappoint you, ugly—but this is as far as you go!"
- ―Lando to Sk'ar
Some time later, Leia Organa went missing while on a mission to investigate Imperial activity in the Shiva system. Skywalker, Chewbacca and Calrissian embarked on a desperate search for her before finally finding her on Shiva IV—a technologically primitive planet. Unable to leave the planet due to its lack of space technology, she had gotten tangled up in a conflict between the Calian Confederacy and the Galactic Empire.[74] The Empire, lead by Kaleesh General Sk'ar,[75] sought to invade Shiva IV by destabilizing the Confederacy—wiping out cities using anti-matter bombs, and kidnapping Aron Peacebringer, the Warlord of the Confederacy, as well as Leia.[74]
The three searchers found Organa just as she was being assailed by Ygal Delois, a Calian Imperial sympathizer, while attempting to defuse an anti-matter bomb meant to destroy the Confederacy's capital, Illyriaqüm. As Chewbacca and Skywalker fought Delois, Calrissian landed the Millennium Falcon only to discover a fleeing General Sk'ar. Calrissian fired at the general, but the enormous man carried a personal anti-blaster shield, so the blaster bolts had no effect. Unable to defeat Sk'ar in close combat, Calrissian pretended to be knocked unconscious after being slapped to the ground. Luckily for the Rebels, he later spotted Sk'ar's escape ship,[74] prompting Chewbacca to throw a steel gun mount at it,[75] causing it to explode. With Sk'ar's forces defeated, the Rebels were hailed as heroes in a large celebration, where Calrissian was the center of attention for several Calian women.[74]
Return to Cloud City[edit | edit source]
- "Ever since we left Cloud City under Imperial domination, I've felt uneasy, like there was something I could've done to help. I suppose that's why I'm going back."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to Luke Skywalker
Afterward, as the Rebel Alliance was establishing its new base on Arbra, Calrissian made a return visit to the Imperialized Cloud City. Upon arrival, he was flabbergasted by the apparent abandonment of the city.[76] Unable to locate a single person, he queried the city's central computer, which informed him that all of Cloud City's residents had been evacuated to the artificial surface located below the city itself. Upon learning this, he was attacked by Lobot, who sprang from the shadows behind him. Lobot had somehow identified Calrissian as an "intruder" and "threat to the city," and was set on destroying the returned Socorran. Calrissian took several punches, and was hurled around a few times by the cyborg, but eventually escaped. Wandering around Cloud City, he soon happened upon an Imperial patrol, led by Captain Hugo Treece. Eavesdropping as Treece informed his men of the task that lay before them, Calrissian learned that the city had been evacuated due to a bomb threat from disloyal Ugnaught workers. The Imperial patrol was to make sure any bombs were defused. Spotting a chance to escape Lobot by attacking the Imperials to draw their fire in the hope Lobot would recognize them as a threat to the city and engage them instead, Calrissian blasted one of the stormtroopers, immediately taking flight afterward. Treece immediately ordered his men to attack their assailant. Calrissian then lured the pursuing stormtroopers into Cloud City's carbon-freezing room, then knocked them all into the freezing pit. He dedicated the following carbon freezing of the stormtroopers to Han Solo. Meanwhile, the remainder of Treece's men were attempting to defuse a bomb. This failed horribly, and caused a sizable explosion that rocked the city itself. Concerned about the explosion, and hoping to escape the wrath of Lobot, Calrissian fled the carbon-freezing room. Shortly after, he stumbled upon the site of the explosion, and found all the Imperials dead—save one. Hugo Treece had survived without a scratch, and pulled a blaster on Calrissian—an action mirrored by the former gambler. Realizing their predicament, the two agreed to temporarily work together for the benefit of their mutual survival. Treece elaborated on the Ugnaught bomb threat, while Calrissian conjured up a plan to save the city.[77]
Calrissian acted as bait, and tricked Lobot into the grasp of a loading claw operated by Treece. Realizing that not even such a tight grip could hold the cyborg, Calrissian removed Lobot's motivational programming capsule, rendering the crazed cyborg unconscious. Before long, Calrissian had fixed Lobot's broken programming, and the three went about disarming the rest of the Ugnaught-planted bombs. When that task was completed, Calrissian appealed to Treece, asking that he treat the Ugnaught workers with respect. Treece promptly refused, and kicked Calrissian off the ledge of Cloud City.[77] As Treece watched Calrissian plummet toward the artificial surface, Lobot deduced that the Imperial officer had become a threat to the city, and seeing as Calrissian was the one most likely to defeat him, it was imperative that he be rescued. He swiftly grabbed a jetpack, hurled himself off the city's edge, and soon caught up with and grabbed Calrissian.[78]
The two landed in a swamp on the artificial surface, right next to a boat laden with an Ugnaught team of journalists that were hoping to catch the destruction of Cloud City on film. They were initially helped aboard the boat, but as the Ugnaughts recognized Calrissian, suggestions were made to lynch the former Baron Administrator. Such thoughts were cut short as two Imperial skimmers attacked the Ugnaught vessel. Calrissian reacted quickly and, despite the reluctance of the journalists, made an improvised slingshot that sent a camera flying straight into one of the skimmers, causing it to explode. The Ugnaughts retreated, and led Lobot and Calrissian to their city. There, the Ugnaught leader, King Ozz, told Calrissian of the poor working conditions that had been established on Cloud City during the Imperial reign. This greatly upset Calrissian, who immediately hatched a plan to reclaim the city.[78]
Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker and Rebel pilot Shira Brie had arrived on Cloud City, only to find themselves pinned down by Imperial fire. Luckily for them, Calrissian arrived with the Ugnaught journalists, and informed the Imperials that if they did not flee the station, he would order Lobot to re-arm the Ugnaught explosives. Treece promptly shot Lobot in the head. However, Skywalker was able to create a set of mock explosions that frightened the Imperials into leaving. Following this, the Ugnaught population moved back into Cloud City, and held a large celebration in which Calrissian, Skywalker, Brie, and the repaired Lobot participated. As the celebrations continued, Calrissian and his fellow Rebels returned to their base on Arbra.[78]
Not long after, Calrissian was unknowingly used as both commander and decoy in a civil war on Drogheda while on a brief respite for his work for the Alliance on Arbra. Initially summoned to the planet by Queen Sarna, an old flame of his, he met with the queen's sister, Danu, and made his way toward the palace on a small skimmer. They came under attack by revolutionaries, but were rescued by a palace guard named Harlech, who conveyed Calrissian and Danu back to Sarna's palace.[79]
Once there, Sarna informed Calrissian that Drogheda's government was beset by revolutionaries, and she requested his help in quelling the revolt, offering to pay him handsomely. Calrissian accepted her offer and agreed to lead an attack on a key mine that the revolutionaries were using as their stronghold. Approaching the mine, Calrissian left most of Sarna's forces near the front entrance and gave them orders to take prisoners instead of using lethal force while he sought out another point of entry. He quickly located one and followed the passage into the mind, locating a group of water tanks. He planned to plant explosives on the tanks and flood out the revolutionaries, forcing them into the waiting arms of Sarna's forces. A small group of revolutionaries found him, though, and while Calrissian tried to hold them off by threatening to detonate the water tanks, one revolutionary jumped on him. In the ensuing scuffle, the detonator went off and Calrissian was swept away by the resulting flood out to the front of the mine along with the other revolutionaries. He was irate when he saw several of the revolutionaries gunned down and immediately ordered a halt to the killing. Instead, he had the remaining survivors captured and taken to the palace.[79]
Calrissian attempted to question one of the prisoners himself in search of finding out the true purpose for the revolution, but his prisoner was slain by Harlech, who had thought the prisoner was trying to attack Calrissian. After that, Calrissian went to a local cantina and learned that the revolutionaries were part of a pro-democracy movement. He angrily confronted Sarna about this, but was blown off and declared an enemy of the state. Several guards chased him, and while he attempted to escape, the revolutionaries, freshly summoned by Danu, who was one of them, rallied and launched an assault on the palace. For his part, Calrissian led several guards around until the pursuit became too hot. At that point, he jumped through a window and took Sarna hostage until more revolutionaries arrived and captured Harlech and Sarna. Danu then announced that Sarna would be sent into exile, and ordered Calrissian off the planet, and while he lost his original payment, Danu did agree to compensate him if he took Sarna with him. He begrudgingly did so, quarreling with Sarna as they departed Drogheda, as she tried to convince him to partner with her.[79]
Business on Bazarre[edit | edit source]
- "…that monster's gonna learn… there's no such thing as a free lunch! 'Specially not when it's Lando Calrissian!"
- ―Lando Calrissian
Next, on a mission to acquire black-market TIE fighters for the Alliance, Calrissian, Chewbacca, and Skywalker journeyed to the space station and trading post Bazarre to meet with Orion Ferret, its administrator. However, Calrissian, due to prior dealings with Ferret, was suspicious of him.[80] Upon arrival, Skywalker and Calrissian were accosted by a gang of merchants who mistook them for merchandise, but that matter was settled once Ferret approached them. He informed them that he had been able to scrape together enough parts from damaged Imperial ships to reconstruct four TIE fighters. For security reasons, he had stored the spacecraft on the garbage planet Patch-4,[81] located in the Cademimu sector.[82] Ferret offered Calrissian and Skywalker use of his own private shuttle, which was programmed with the coordinates for Patch-4. Distrustful of Ferret, Chewbacca stayed behind to keep the administrator from betraying their agreement.[81]
Shortly after landing on Patch-4, Skywalker spotted the TIE fighters. As he and Calrissian approached them, they were attacked by a large creature that seemed nearly impervious to their weapons. Forced into retreating to the nearby caves, Calrissian and Skywalker discovered a community of vagabonds that had settled there. One of the inhabitants, Serja Kesselrook, informed the two Rebels that the creature was controlled by a sonic pacifier on the ship they had been given, which meant that Ferret had been controlling it and had betrayed them. Returning to confront the beast, Calrissian distracted it by shooting his blaster while Skywalker went to the ship and used the sonic pacifier to put the beast to sleep. Then, they retrieved the fighters, returned to get the Falcon and Chewbacca, and returned to Arbra.[81] Later, Calrissian was present at an awards ceremony honoring starfighter pilot Shira Brie, and commented that she was an exceptional member of the Alliance.[83]
Some time later, Skywalker came under suspicion for killing Shira Brie during a covert mission. Calrissian offered his assistance to the prospective Jedi, helping Skywalker to "steal" the Millennium Falcon so he could investigate the case.[84] After Skywalker was cleared of suspicion following his discovery that Shira Brie had been an Imperial agent, the Rebellion learned of a new threat emanating from their former base on Golrath.[85] The bedrock that formed the foundation of their base had a peculiar photoreceptive quality which meant it absorbed light rays when cool, and released them when heated. Consequently, it had the capacity to reveal critical Rebel secrets.[86] This meant that if the Empire found the base and its secret, they would be able to see into Rebel discussions and databases by heating the stone, leading them to the Rebel's current position on Arbra. As a result, two fighter squadrons were scrambled to destroy the base, which the Empire had taken over. For his part, Calrissian flew a Y-wing starfighter along with Leia Organa, who he dropped off near the base. Organa went on a solo mission to overload the base's reactor and was ultimately successful, while Calrissian helped the other Rebels against Imperial starfighters. After picking up Organa, the Rebels left the planet and returned to Arbra as the base exploded, save for Luke Skywalker, whose hyperdrive had been damaged.[85]
Trouble on Stenos[edit | edit source]
- "Luke, you've got to leave this to a man with some style, a man of subtlety. A man who knows his way around cities."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to Luke Skywalker during their infiltration of the capital of Stenos
Following the mission to Golrath, Calrissian returned to the Rebel base on Arbra. However, with Han Solo still in captivity, Calrissian, Skywalker, Chewbacca, and Leia Organa decided to embark once more on a mission to track down Boba Fett and free their companion. Wishing their companions luck, Calrissian and Chewbacca took the Millennium Falcon and began their search,[87] after Chewbacca dealt with an alien entity named the Darker that infested a cave on Arbra and was threatening the Alliance.[88] To start them off, Organa had received information regarding Han Solo: the bounty hunters Dengar, IG-88 and Bossk were aware of where Boba Fett was storing the Corellian.[89] In light of this, Calrissian traveled to The Wheel space station, accompanied by Chewbacca. While there, he met up with Skywalker again and was informed that IG-88 and Bossk had been spotted on Stenos. As such, the three Rebels departed for Stenos in the Millennium Falcon.[90]
Leaving Chewbacca aboard the Millennium Falcon, Skywalker and Calrissian searched Stenos for any clue of Solo's whereabouts. They eventually spotted a metal storage block similar to the one Solo was frozen in being carried into a building. As they broke into the building, they discovered that the metal casket contained Chihdo, a Rodian, and was merely bait for a trap set by Bossk and IG-88A.[90] As the two bounty hunters cornered Calrissian and Skywalker, Rik Duel and Dani, friends of Chihdo, rushed to their aid. They initially escaped, but IG-88A summoned reinforcements and was able to capture Calrissian and Dani. They were brought before Drebble, who had contracted to have Calrissian captured since he was still outraged about being outwitted years earlier by Calrissian. However, Skywalker and Duel arrived just as Drebble was about to have Calrissian and Dani frozen in carbonite. Unfortunately for the Rebels, there were too many guards present, and they were all captured and set to be frozen. However, at that point, Chewbacca and a band of native Stenaxes the Wookiee had enlisted charged, causing Bossk and IG-88A to flee.[91][92]
Encounter with Black Sun[edit | edit source]
- Princess Leia Organa: “I can't say I'm happy about putting our fate in the hands of a mercenary like Dash Rendar.”
- Lando Calrissian: “Dash? Aw, he's OK. He's no friend of the Empire, anyway. And he did give a good account of himself for the Alliance on Hoth. We used to do a little smuggling in the old days — guess Dash never got out of that line of work. That's how he knows the set-up on Gall. Sometimes I think he's a little too confident for his own good.”
- ―Leia Organa and Lando Calrissian, speaking of Dash Rendar[src]
When not working on missions for the Alliance, Calrissian continued the search for Han Solo, hiring a guide who knew where Boba Fett had been hiding. On Tatooine, he arranged to meet Leia Organa and Chewbacca, informing them that an old acquaintance of his, Dash Rendar, was investigating the moons of Gall in his own ship, Outrider, to confirm that Fett was there. They also planned on rendezvousing with Luke Skywalker, who had rejoined the Alliance and was eager to continue the search for Solo even as he trained further in the ways of the Jedi.[93]
A few days later, Rendar verified that the bounty hunter was in fact there, and Calrissian, Organa, and Chewbacca took to the Millennium Falcon, accompanied by Luke Skywalker and Rogue Squadron. Setting down at a temporary camp on a tiny moon called Kile, the Rebels met with Rendar. After a brief contest of machismo, Calrissian was able to get Rendar to discuss the matter of how to approach Boba Fett through the sizable Imperial garrison stationed near Gall. The plan they decided on was for Rogue Squadron to make a diversionary attack on the Imperial vessels while Rendar, in his Outrider, led the Millennium Falcon to Fett's location.[93]
Flying the Falcon at treetop level, Calrissian, Organa, and Chewbacca attempted to discreetly approach Fett, but Rendar abandoned them just as they approached the shipyard where Fett was, claiming that he had only been paid to guide, not help in the rescue. Unfortunately for the Rebels, the opposing Imperial forces were too numerous for the Rebels to pursue Fett's fleeing Slave I, as the Rogues had already been forced to flee. Faced with large numbers of oncoming Imperial fighters, the Millennium Falcon withdrew to regroup back on Kile. Organa was disconsolate after the failed attempt, and Calrissian was apologetic, but told the others that he had been forced to retreat due to the sheer number of Imperial craft.[93]
On Kile, Calrissian and Organa were alarmed to learn that Luke Skywalker had narrowly escaped two attempts on his life—one in space when Rogue pilot Wes Janson's astromech took over Janson's X-wing and attempted to kill Skywalker, and another on Kile when the crew chief who had sabotaged the droid tried to shoot the Jedi. Both of them were worried by these events, and so they sent Skywalker back to Tatooine, where he would be in isolation and left to practice his Jedi skills while keeping an eye on Jabba the Hutt's palace in case Solo was delivered there by Fett. Calrissian also arranged for Dash Rendar to keep quiet surveillance on Skywalker, as added insurance against any further attacks. Shortly thereafter, Leia Organa asked him how to get in contact with Black Sun, as she sought to use their spynet to uncover the origins of the attacks on Skywalker. Though Calrissian advised against involvement with Black Sun, Organa was insistent, so Calrissian took her to Rodia to meet with an Rodian acquaintance of his named Avaro Sookcool, who could put them in touch with a Black Sun operative.[93]
Sookcool informed them that they would need to speak with an offworld representative of Black Sun, and in the meantime, offered Calrissian, Chewbacca, and Organa the use of his casino's rooms and entertainments. Calrissian took advantage of Sookcool's hospitality to frequent some of the games of chance there, winning several times. Calrissian was with Organa and Chewbacca when they met with the Black Sun representative Guri to discuss obtaining information on Skywalker's attackers—who, unbeknownst to the Rebels, were actually being orchestrated by the head of Black Sun, Xizor. With the Wookiee's help, Calrissian set up a bioscanner in order to discover a bit more about Guri in her second meeting with Organa. Just before the second meeting, Dash Rendar arrived on Rodia, having been sent there by Skywalker. The Rebels attempted to drug Guri in order to examine her more closely, as they all were uneasy about her, but Guri showed no vulnerability to the sleeping potion placed in her tea. Furthermore, the bioscanner revealed that she was a droid. Guri then tried to compel Organa to accompany her, but was then faced with Calrissian, Rendar, and Chewbacca—all armed and ready for trouble. After that, Guri gave no further resistance and allowed herself to be restrained.[93]
In the end, Guri did have useful information, placing the Rebels in contact with Xizor, who told them that he could provide them with the knowledge they sought, but only if Organa accompanied Guri to Coruscant. The Rebels reluctantly agreed to her plan, although Rendar and Calrissian were left on Rodia to await Skywalker while Guri arranged for the transportation of Organa and the Wookiee.[93]
When Organa and Chewbacca went to Coruscant with Guri, Calrissian journeyed to Skywalker's location on Kothlis and helped him in escaping a group of bounty hunters who had temporarily detained the Jedi. In the meantime, Rendar went his own ways. Calrissian was able to escort Skywalker back to the Millennium Falcon and they took off just before Darth Vader arrived on Kothlis to retrieve Skywalker. Hyperdrive malfunctions forced the crew of the Millennium Falcon to take cover in a group of asteroids to make quick repairs, and Calrissian was aghast when he found out the extent of Solo's modifications to the ship. However, he managed to repair the device before Imperial TIEs caught them, and the ship jumped to hyperspace, bound for Tatooine.[93]
En route to Tatooine, Skywalker had a "bad feeling" about Organa's situation and had Calrissian drop the ship out of hyperspace to check on her. When Skywalker made the call, he was answered by a distressed Wookiee—Chewbacca, who had escaped from Xizor's palace, warning that Organa had been taken captive. Calrissian and Skywalker immediately headed for Coruscant to find the princess, sneaking into the capital world by attaching the Falcon to a robotic cargo ship to get past the Imperial warships patrolling the area. Successfully landing on Coruscant, Calrissian and Skywalker obtained a pair of Imperial disguises from a pair of patrolling stormtroopers and went to see a contact of Calrissian's, a Ho'Din named Spero. At Spero's place, they were reunited with Chewbacca, but came under fire from a group of attackers. They scattered and ran, but their attackers were swiftly dispatched by Dash Rendar, who had reappeared to offer his help. Heading back to a location obtained for them by Rendar, the group resolved to rescue Leia, using a plan formulated by Skywalker and Rendar that involved entering Xizor's castle via the sewer approaches.[93]
A rather unhappy Calrissian, accompanied by Skywalker, Rendar, and Chewbacca, journeyed through the sewers into the sub-sub-basement levels of Xizor's Palace, guided by Benedict Vidkun, a utilities worker and acquaintance of Rendar's who knew how find his way through the sewers and avoid the traps. At the end of their journey, the guide attempted to shoot them because, as Rendar speculated, Vidkun thought they would betray or kill him, but was slain before he could do so. Once inside, they worked their way up the building, knocking out guards as necessary, and were reunited with Organa, who had escaped as well. Finding themselves surrounded by Xizor's guards, and the Falleen prince himself, Calrissian pulled out a thermal detonator, set it to explode after five minutes, and dropped it into the garbage chute. In the ensuing chaos of fleeing guards and employees, the Rebels made good their escape, boarding the Millennium Falcon, which had been brought to the castle by R2-D2 and C-3PO, albeit without much piloting skill. The Rebels scrambled aboard quickly as the detonator exploded.[93]
With Skywalker and Calrissian safely back at the controls, the Rebels tried to escape. They had time for Rendar to transfer to the Outrider, and then both ships flew off Coruscant, pursued by Xizor's considerable forces. At that point, Rogue Squadron arrived and began running interference for the Millennium Falcon and Outrider, but they were heavily outnumbered. Soon, the Black Sun pilots began closing around them, and Calrissian and Skywalker believed there was no escape. However, timely interference from the Imperial Navy, including Darth Vader's flagship, Executor, allowed the Falcon and the remaining Rogues to escape. Vader had grown tired of Xizor's machinations and had uncovered evidence of the Black Sun head's scheming to kill Luke Skywalker. As such, Vader's fleet targeted the Black Sun forces, allowing the Rebels to escape, although Dash Rendar's craft, Outrider was hit by debris, and the smuggler was presumed dead as a result.[92][93]
Finding Argo and Vanis[edit | edit source]
- "My plans involve secrecy… subtlety… subterfuge…"
- ―Lando Calrissian
Soon after,[92] Calrissian, Skywalker, Chewbacca, R2-D2 and Dani—who had sneaked aboard the Falcon as it left Stenos—teamed up with Leia Organa and C-3PO on a new mission.[90] The group was charged with tracking down the undercover Rebel operatives Yom Argo and Tay Vanis, who were tasked with finding the plans of the second Death Star, a new Imperial battlestation. Pursuing Argo first, they found records of him crashing on the planet Lahsbane. Closer investigation revealed that Argo had died in the crash, along with a native Lahsbee. The natives kept the tapes from Argo's starship—the Death Star plans included—to themselves, to honor their fallen kinsman. Leia and Dani were fortunately able to retrieve the tapes from The Forbidden City.[94]
Tracking Tay Vanis to the planet Iskalon, the group soon became involved in the delicate conflict between the Galactic Empire and the other planets in the sector. Once on Iskalon, Calrissian met an old acquaintance of his, the Inleshat Mone, who conducted the Rebels to an underwater city called Pavillion. There, they were informed by Primor, the leader of the Iskalonians and Mone's father, that Vanis's old K-3PX droid was present on Gamandar, a heavily fortified Imperial planet not far from Iskalon. Hoping to find clues to Vanis's whereabouts through his droid, Calrissian, together with Chewbacca, Mone, C-3PO and R2-D2 flew the Millennium Falcon to Gamandar.[95] Mone used his position as a leading member of his people to obtain Imperial permission to land the Millennium Falcon on Gamandar. As such, the group was allowed to wander Gamandar unchallenged, but Calrissian took the precaution of disguising himself as his old nemesis Drebble when the time came to have dealings with the Empire. They purchased the K3PX droid from the Imperials,[96] but unbeknownst to the Rebels, K3PX had been turned into an espionage droid employed by Darth Vader himself.[97] Even though they were captured, R2-D2 saved them when he returned from pursuing another lead of his own. Fleeing Gamandar, they picked up Organa and Skywalker on Iskalon. The mission ended as a failure, with no information about Vanis recovered.[97]
Returning to the Arbra base to report their failure, they were informed that a third Rebel operative had apparently gotten hold of the Death Star plans: Han Solo. Although it seemed impossible that the Corellian had escaped Boba Fett, Calrissian and Chewbacca were nevertheless sent to investigate,[98] and their search eventually took them to Arcan IV.[99] There, Calrissian went undercover, again posing as Drebble, and learned that Solo had been delivered to Jabba Desilijic Tiure. Entering a bar with Chewbacca, he talked with a pair of criminals named Lemo and Sanda. They were after a pair of artifacts called The Minstrel and the Dancing Goddess, and Calrissian claimed that Solo was an expert at finding treasure. At a later meeting he scheduled with Lemo and Sanda, as well as their gang, he told them that finding Solo was the key to finding their artifacts, but they intoxicated Calrissian with potent wine to the point where he let slip his real identity. With the help of Chewbacca knocking the criminals to the ground, he and the Wookiee were able to escape into a harrowing speeder chase. Ultimately, Calrissian and Chewbacca were caught, but Calrissian managed to weasel his way out of the situation by handing over the Minstrel, which he had obtained years earlier in a card game, to the criminals. Upon obtaining the statue, one of the criminals, Dafi, shot the others and seized the statue while Calrissian and the Wookiee escaped with Solo's location.[99]
Mission to Yinchorr[edit | edit source]
- "Luke, it could be nothing. Maybe…"
"No, Lando, there's trouble -- and it feels like the Empire." - ―Lando and Luke, after receiving Leia's distress call
In an effort to gain more support for the Rebellion and its fight against the Empire, Princess Organa then organized a diplomatic mission to the planet of Yinchorr. Wanting to foster a sense of trust between the Rebellion and the native Yinchorri, Organa decided to go on the mission by herself, and unarmed, so as not to threaten the Yinchorri leaders. Though he did not agree with her stance, Skywalker gave her an emergency beacon, which she could trigger if any problems arose. Skywalker, meanwhile, boarded the Millennium Falcon, along with Calrissian and Chewbacca, to rejoin the main Rebel fleet.[100]
Once on Yinchorr, Organa soon discovered that she had been betrayed by the Yinchorri, who planned to hand her over to the Empire. Having been shot down by Imperial TIE fighters, she activated her emergency beacon, hoping that Skywalker and Calrissian would reach her in time—or at all. Eventually, Organa was captured by Moff Marcellin Wessel and his stormtroopers. The Empire proceeded to execute a number of Yinchorri elders and was about to kill her when, at that moment, Calrissian and Skywalker arrived in the Falcon to rescue the princess. Under fire from the Imperials, Organa made a dash for the Falcon and, with the help of a sympathetic Alderaanian stormtrooper who saved her life by shooting Wessel's weapon, she was able to reach the ship. Though the stormtrooper was killed while trying to join them, Calrissian and Skywalker were able to escape Yinchorr and return to rendezvous with Alliance forces.[100]
Mission to Blimph 3[edit | edit source]
- "Who'd have guessed Quaffug would hold a twelve-year grudge over a little gambling setback! What a cry-baby! We did plenty of business together…I thought we were solid. Never should have volunteered for this mission…I thought I was the right man for the job—big diplomatic hero…I thought I was the man for the job…I thought I knew Quaffug…but it was all a setup! Quaffug wanted me, not a deal with the Alliance."
- ―Calrissian laments
Some time later, Calrissian volunteered to go on a diplomatic mission for the Alliance to the Mid Rim moon of Blimph 3. The moon was a trade hub and of strategic importance to the Alliance, which hoped to establish a presence there post haste. Its ruler, the Hutt crime lord Quaffug, offered to cut a deal with the Alliance and allow their presence in his domain. Calrissian had worked for the Hutt previously, though their last meeting ended on less-than-cordial terms, after Calrissian won Quaffug's Ceramo-Werx manufacturing facility in a game of sabacc. Despite this, Calrissian volunteered to negotiate on behalf of the Rebels. He believed that Quaffug would have moved on and no longer care about the incident, and was confident that his diplomatic skills would be able to sway the Hutt into allying with the Rebellion. The former gambler also hoped that his dealings with Quaffug might lead him toward a means of rescuing Solo from Jabba's Palace, and might increase his standing in the Rebellion. He departed for Blimph 3, alone.[101]
He soon learned that it had all been a set up; an embittered Quaffug, upon learning of Calrissian's position in the Alliance, had offered to open negotiations on the knowledge that Calrissian was most likely to be sent as negotiator. Lying in wait for the would-be diplomat were a number of bounty hunters hired by Quaffug, including Bossk, 4-LOM, and Dengar. The bounty hunters took Calrissian prisoner, but Quaffug opted not to kill him immediately, preferring to make a sport of the Rebel's death. Calrissian would be the prey in a traditional duff-jikab ceremony, during which he would be pursued by the Hutt's hired hands. He would be given a head start over the bounty hunters, though the only place to run was into the territory of the native, fierce Jokhalli species. Quaffug would watch the spectacle via cam-droids in an attempt to alleviate his severe boredom on Blimph 3. Calrissian worried he would be unable to outrun the physically fitter bounty hunters, but ran for his life when released. He made progress through the moon's craggy, unstable terrain for a time but before long the bounty hunters had closed the gap. As they prepared to take out Calrissian, however, the precarious and shaky ground prevented any of them from getting a shot off. Calrissian took advantage of their distraction to incapacitate Bossk before fleeing.[101]
After making good distance on his pursuers, Calrissian found himself at a practically impassible lake of molten lava. Eventually he managed to make his way across a narrow walkway and in doing so, he left Quaffug's territory and entered the land of the volatile Jokhalli. He encountered some of the natives, who, unable to understand Galactic Basic, bound him and took Calrissian back to their encampment. While there, he realized that one of them was speaking a Baragwinian trade dialect he was fluent in, and he was able to communicate with his captors. He noticed them playing divot and, being "adequate" at the game himself, challenged their leader to a game of it. Calrissian won with ease, and the Jokhalli were so impressed with his abilities that they agreed to help him return to the Falcon and take down Quaffug, who had been their oppressor for some time. With the help of his newfound allies, Calrissian captured and disarmed Bossk and the other bounty hunters, and returned them to Quaffug. The Jokhalli, however, wanted to kill the Hutt, while Calrissian merely wanted to force him to leave Blimph 3 for good. His conscience refusing to allow him to simply walk away and let the Jokhalli have their way, he again took advantage of their gambling nature and challenged one of them to a game to decide whose hands Quaffug's life would be.[101]
Calrissian allowed the Jokhalli to specify what the game would be, though ultimately to his detriment, as the natives chose to challenge him in a one-on-one duel. Calrissian fought with a physically imposing Jokhalli, barely managing to fend him off. He managed to turn the tables, though, using a hidden hold-out blaster he had taken from Dengar to bash the Jokhalli off of him. Pointing the weapon at his opponent, he forced the Jokhalli to concede defeat, allowing Calrissian to do as he pleased with Quaffug. He told the Hutt his life would be spared if he agreed to give the Rebel a good referral to the Hutt Guardsman's Guild, to which Quaffug agreed. Calrissian hoped to infiltrate the Guild to gain access to Jabba's Palace, which would help in any Alliance rescue operations for Han Solo. Calrissian then triumphantly left Blimph 3.[101]
Hutt guardsman[edit | edit source]
- Quaffug: “What do you want of me?”
- Lando Calrissian: “A recommendation—a letter of reference, if you will. I want into the Hutt Guardsman's Guild…with no questions asked.”
- Quaffug: “That's—all? But—but why?”
- Lando Calrissian: “Let's just say I need to retrieve some stolen merchandise…”
- ―Quaffug the Hutt and Lando Calrissian[src]
After Calrissian was admitted to the Hutt Guardsman's Guild,[101] he adopted the pseudonym Tamtel Skreej,[46] with help from an associate in the nearby town of Anchorhead.[102] In order to be placed in the Hutt's palace as a guard, Calrissian next had to endure certain "tests", such as leaping across the rancor pit and stealing krayt dragon eggs. Boba Fett himself acted as a referee for Calrissian during these trials.[103] However, this was not enough to gain Jabba's trust and so, hoping to prove himself and impress the Hutt, Calrissian volunteered to enter Jabba's demolition games, piloting one of Jabba's modified desert skiffs. It was during this time that Lobot also came to Jabba's Palace, hoping to dismantle the rogue droid EV-9D9. Though Jabba was planning to feed the cyborg to his rancor, Calrissian suggested that Lobot instead be placed in the games with him. As Lobot did not know that the disguised Tamtel Skreej was in fact Calrissian, the two became opponents.[104] Calrissian hoped to demonstrate his worth as an employee to Jabba by winning the competition, despite being forced to face off against a determined Lobot, as well as other contestants such as Aurra Sing, Quagga, and Boba Fett.[105] Calrissian survived the games, and his performance in them was enough to impress Jabba.[104][106]
Calrissian had several reasons for personally involving himself in the effort to rescue Solo; not only because it was his actions that had led to Solo's imprisonment, but also because Calrissian wanted to ingratiate himself with the Rebel Alliance and Leia, as part of his decision to side with them against the Empire. The thrill and impossibility of the entire plan had a certain flair that he savored as well. As such, after gaining access to Jabba's throne room in his role as a guard, he watched and waited as the pieces fell into place.[107]
Calrissian was present as each member of the Rebel rescue team—R2-D2, C-3PO, Leia Organa (disguised as bounty hunter Boushh), Chewbacca, and finally Luke Skywalker—arrived.[10] The plan devised by the Rebels called for Organa and Calrissian to exploit Jabba's known affinity for lawless decadence by posing as characters they considered "scum"[108] and Calrissian was willing to play his part.[107] As a Hutt guardsman, Calrissian explored the lower levels of the palace, spying it out and collecting information for future use.[109]
Calrissian remained incognito even as Han Solo—released from carbonite by Organa—and Chewbacca were imprisoned and Organa's identity was revealed, resulting in her enslavement, deciding that it was best not to reveal his presence until all the team was present. He was reluctant to abandon the princess to Jabba's mercy, but she assured him she would be fine with a quick whisper.[107] After she was shackled to Jabba and dressed in a skimpy slave girl's costume, Calrissian came to check up on her. She told him that she was okay, albeit uncomfortable, but they both hoped Skywalker would arrive soon, as Organa was concerned for her own safety if she had to remain chained to Jabba.[110][111]
Luke Skywalker later arrived, confronting the Hutt; still, Calrissian remained the "ace-in-the-hole," as the Jedi defeated Jabba's monstrous rancor, knowing that the stakes were high and the time was not quite right for him to make a move. For his part, Calrissian knew he was the wild card, the one who could change the entire situation in the blink of an eye, and did not want to reveal his presence.[107]
When Skywalker, Solo, and Chewbacca were sentenced to execution in the Great Pit of Carkoon, Calrissian was stationed as a guard on the same skiff as the prisoners, ready to spring them free on Skywalker's cue. At the Pit of Carkoon, while Skywalker received his lightsaber from R2-D2 and fought off the other guards, Calrissian helped free the other prisoners. In the process, he was nearly knocked into the maw of the sarlacc, falling toward the pit.[10] Calrissian quickly scrambled out of the pit, trying to escape the approaching tentacles of the sarlacc.[107] However, only the timely intervention of a partially blinded Han Solo and Chewbacca saved him from the sarlacc, as the Wookiee lowered Solo down to where Calrissian could grab hold of a force pike held by Solo in order to haul himself out of danger. One tentacle of the sarlacc seized Calrissian's ankle, but a blind blaster shot by Solo freed him from its grasp. After Skywalker defeated the guards and rescued Leia from the Khetanna, Calrissian piloted the skiff away as Jabba's barge exploded.[10]
There was an Imperial battle group over Tatooine interdicting the planet as the Rebels prepared to depart, so the Millennium Falcon and Skywalker's X-wing flew low to avoid attention. However, R2-D2 broke Jabba's computer security, convincing the denizens of Jabba's Palace that the Imperial fleet was there with death warrants on them. As such, the panicked ruffians launched a desperate attack on the Imperial warships in an attempt to escape Tatooine and the perceived threat. Calrissian and Solo then escaped Tatooine in a move Solo described as Corellian Overdrive, which meant using any means necessary to get the job done.[110]
For his part, C-3PO was annoyed that he had not been included in Solo's rescue plan, nor did he understand the concept of Corellian Overdrive. Solo and Calrissian explained Corellian Overdrive, while everyone else assuaged the droid's hurt feelings. Calrissian offered to fix his damaged photoreceptor, which had been damaged by Salacious B. Crumb during the skirmish at Carkoon, though Chewbacca actually did the repairs. Calrissian also told Solo about his repairs and modifications to the Millennium Falcon while the Corellian had been frozen in carbonite, although Solo groused about Calrissian letting C-3PO fly the Falcon on Coruscant. Finally, Calrissian also apprised Solo of the pending completion of the second Death Star before they jumped to hyperspace to rendezvous with the Rebel fleet to prepare for the pending attack.[110]
The Battle of Endor[edit | edit source]
- 'Han Solo: “Scuse me, I wanted to tell you that if you ever needed a double to trick the Imperials, I know this guy named Lando who looks exactly like you.”
- Lando Calrissian: “What are you babbling about? ”
- Han Solo: “Well, this fellow Lando's not a general. He's a ladies' man and a card cheat with a terrible reputation.”
- ―Han Solo and Lando Calrissian before the Battle of Endor, after the former learned of Calrissian's promotion[src]
In preparation for the attack on the second Death Star, Calrissian was promoted by the Rebel Alliance to the rank of general, based largely on the laurels of his victory at the Battle of Taanab.[10] He volunteered for[67] and was given command over the Rebel starfighter contingent for the forthcoming battle, and assigned the callsign Gold Leader.[10] General Calrissian also went by the callsigns Gold Squadron 1,[112] with Wedge Antilles as his wingman[107] and Green Leader, as part of his fighter screen.[113] At the urging of Han Solo, Calrissian once again piloted his old ship, the Millennium Falcon, this time alongside Sullustan copilot Nien Nunb,[107] an old acquaintance from his smuggler's days.[114] Prior to the battle, Calrissian assured his anxious copilot that the sensors on the Millennium Falcon were capable of informing them of any incoming TIE fighters.[115] As part of his ground crew, Calrissian was aided by Lieutenant s'Too Vees, a Human gambler who had followed Calrissian from Bespin to serve the Rebellion, to the point of rejecting a rearguard position in order to work on Calrissian's vessel.[116]
Staging from Sullust, the fleet departed, bound for Endor. The Alliance knew that this fight would determine the fate of the war, as they were committing almost all of their military resources in this battle. Furthermore, the Emperor himself would be present on the space station, giving the Alliance an opportunity to strike at the Empire's leadership in addition to its military might. Rebel intelligence suggested that the weapons systems on the Death Star were not fully operational, making this the opportune time to strike.[107]
Upon reversion of the Rebel fleet from hyperspace near Endor, Calrissian led a large number of fighters toward the uncompleted battle station, but soon discovered that the battle was orchestrated by the Empire as a trap, due to the appearance of a fleet of Star Destroyers and sensor jamming. This precipitated Calrissian's announcement that the shield protecting the battle station was still operational. His words saved dozens of starfighters from smashing into the Death Star's shield, and the gambler's unorthodox strategies were vital in keeping the flailing Alliance forces from collapsing. After the Death Star suddenly came online and began destroying Rebel capital ships, he suggested taking the fleet's Mon Calamari Star Cruisers into point blank range of the Empire's Star Destroyers, exposing them to the Empire's warships but protecting them from the far more dangerous superlaser of the Death Star.[10]
For his part, Calrissian led his ships through waves of TIE fighters in a desperate assault on the Imperial fleet.[10] At one point in the battle, while pursuing two TIE Interceptors, Calrissian approached a Super Star Destroyer too closely; rather than flee, Calrissian flew the Falcon into the hangar bay of the massive ship, flew through an interior access corridor, and, after blasting away at the unarmored innards, flew back out the way he came ahead of a sensor-obscuring fireball, saving the ship and crew from what otherwise would have been certain death.[117] During the battle, Calrissian and Antilles ordered a B-wing fighter, Blue Five, to draw off fighter pursuit,[118] while Rebel pilot and future general Horton Salm was tasked with engaging Imperial capital ships that were between Calrissian and the second Death Star.[119]
Eventually, a Rebel strike team that had reached on the surface of Endor under the command of Han Solo was able to bring down the shield protecting the Death Star, allowing Calrissian, along with Wedge Antilles, to initiate a starfighter assault on the battle station itself. Skimming the surface of the Death Star, Calrissian closed in on a reactor shaft, followed by both Rebel and Imperial fighters. He dove the Millennium Falcon into the superstructure of the massive station and began heading for the core. After evading TIEs and having close run-ins with the station's superstructure resulting in the loss of the Falcon's long-range sensor dish, Calrissian fired two concussion missiles into the Death Star's reactor core, destroying the station; for the second time that day, Calrissian rode a fireball from inside an Imperial structure to safety.[10] The destruction of the second Death Star, along with Luke's and Anakin Skywalker's victory over the Emperor, effectively sealed the fate of the Empire, and Calrissian was hailed a hero.[11] He joined in the celebration on Endor afterward with his friends, though he did have to explain to a perturbed Solo about the damage that the Millennium Falcon inflicted during the battle. He also expressed regret to Skywalker over the death of Skywalker's father, Anakin, but rejoiced in the new freedom that the battle had brought to the galaxy.[110] Following the victory at Endor, Calrissian stayed behind on the moon to "keep an eye on how the Alliance was handling the Empire's defeat."[120] He also left another pair of recordings with R2-D2 detailing his involvement with the Battle of Endor.[67]
Under the New Republic (4 ABY–25 ABY)[edit | edit source]
Mission to the Hunter's World[edit | edit source]
- "Let's get out of here!"
- ―Lando, to Han and Chewbacca
With the defeat of the Empire at the Battle of Endor, the Rebel Alliance leadership began preparations for the establishment of an intermediate government, to be known as the Alliance of Free Planets. As part of the preparations, various planets from throughout the galaxy were invited to send representatives to the First Conference of Free Peoples to have their say in the formation of the Alliance of Free Planets. One such planet was Keyorin, also known at the Hunter's World due to its popularity amongst bounty hunters. Calrissian, Solo and Chewbacca all volunteered for the mission to Keyorin. The reason Calrissian and Solo volunteered for the mission was that Keyorin was the first planet in a long string of diplomatic missions, which would eventually pass by the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk. Chewbacca had not been able to visit his homeworld for a significant time, and Solo hoped to be able to provide this opportunity to his old friend. Calrissian, likewise, offered his services, and those of his ship, the Cobra, to the mission so that if Chewbacca wished to remain on Kashyyyk for longer than planned, then he would not be without a ship.[121]
Leaving the forest moon of Endor behind, Calrissian, Solo, and Chewbacca traveled to Keyorin[121] in the Belderone sector,[122] and were granted an audience with Tinketh Fo, a Pinurquian who was the planetary leader of Keyorin. After the short meeting, in which Fo agreed to think about attending the Alliance meeting, Solo led Calrissian and Chewbacca to a small bar where the trio decided to unwind before continuing their mission. However, shortly after their arrival, the Trandoshan Bossk entered the cantina, to the consternation of both Calrissian and Chewbacca. Not understanding why the presence of one more bounty hunter would cause his friends such discomfort, Solo gradually grew irritated at their hushed tones. Calrissian, not wanting to draw Bossk's attention, explained to Solo that while he had been encased in carbonite, Calrissian had tricked several bounty hunters, including Bossk, into tracking down Han's trail, hoping to follow them to his friend's location. When the trio tried to slip out of the cantina unnoticed, Calrissian ran into another acquaintance—his old enemy Barpotomous Drebble—whose identity Calrissian had stolen over the years. At the time, Drebble was the owner of the cantina they were in, and had significant influence in the Keyorin community. Upon seeing Drebble, Calrissian, Solo, and Chewbacca fled the establishment, but were eventually captured by Drebble while they were trying to board the Falcon. Taking Calrissian into custody, Drebble handed Solo and Chewbacca over to the criminals Lemo and Sanda, who had also been seeking the trio since the incident over the Minstrel statue on Arcan IV.[121]
With Calrissian as his prisoner, Drebble attempted to operate the Cobra, but instead activated a holo-recording from Mon Mothma, leader of the Alliance. The recording stated that because of his efforts in aiding the Rebellion, Drebble was to be awarded for his bravery, and granted the rank of Captain within the Alliance. Calrissian, however, could still not believe that Drebble was being rewarded for all of the work that Calrissian had done, disguised as Drebble, during his search for Solo. During this time, the Cobra was attacked by Lemo and Sanda who had been tricked by Solo into believing that Drebble was in possession of a rare statue known as the Dancing Goddess. The ensuing fight saw Drebble release Calrissian to help him against the criminals, and witnessed the arrival of both Solo and Chewbacca who had managed to escape captivity. With Lemo and Sanda having surrendered, Drebble decided to let go of the past, and forgive Calrissian of his past transgressions—Drebble was too excited about his new title within the Alliance, along with the enormous opportunities it would afford him. Before the trio departed Keyorin, Calrissian, who had been in possession of the Dancing Goddess all along, decided that the best way to keep Lemo and Sanda from tracking the statue further was to award it to Drebble for his past "services" to the Rebellion. Drebble accepted the statue with full enthusiasm, much to the disappointment of the two criminals.[121]
Trouble on Kashyyyk[edit | edit source]
- "…I can't help feeling that something's wrong here…like there may be trouble."
- ―Lando, speaking to Han Solo shortly after arriving on Kashyyyk
Following their escape from Keyorin, Calrissian, Solo, and Chewbacca continued on to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk. Upon arriving at the jungle world, the trio set both the Falcon and Cobra down on a landing pad, and set out to find Chewbacca's wife, Mallatobuck, and his son, Lumpawaroo. While following Chewbacca to his home, Calrissian and the others were confronted by a nonhuman male identified only as Knife, as well as Chewbacca's brother-in-law Vargi. Though Calrissian and Solo sensed that something was wrong, they allowed Knife and Vargi to accompany them to Mala's home.[123]
Shortly after arriving at Chewbacca's home, Knife and Vargi sprang a trap that was aimed at capturing Chewbacca. Calrissian and Solo soon realized that Knife had hired Wookiees, like Vargi, to help with re-initiating the slave trade on Kashyyyk. In an effort make his job easier, Knife wanted to capture Chewbacca, who was a hero throughout Kashyyyk, along with his family and parade them through the streets in an effort to demoralize the other Wookiees. With Chewbacca firmly under his control, Knife left both Calrissian and Solo under the watchful eyes of several guards. Nonetheless, Calrissian was able to pick the lock on his and Solo's cuffs, and the two managed to escape from their captivity.[123]
While Solo attempted to free Chewbacca from custody, Calrissian decided to make his way back to the Cobra and attempt to send out a distress signal to the Alliance. Along the way, he encountered Chewbacca's father, wife, and son, who were being held captive in a hangar, and managed to free them from the slavers. With Chewbacca's family safe, Calrissian was able to send out the distress call he and Solo had decided upon. Believing that Solo was in trouble, Calrissian hurried away from the hangar, and made his way to where the Corellian had managed to free Chewbacca. However, during their freeing of Chewbacca, both Rebels had been assaulted by Wookiee slavers directed by Knife. When it became clear that Chewbacca, in a fit of rage, was endangering him, Knife attempted to throw one of his several blades at the angry Wookiee. Nevertheless, Calrissian managed to arrive in time and used his blaster to shot the blade out of Knife's hand. Seeing that his plans had become unraveled, Knife ran away while the freed Wookiees celebrated. Due to the sheer number of Wookiees who had been freed, and who were now celebrating with each other, Calrissian and Solo were unable to pursue Knife. As a result, Knife was able to steal Calrissian's ship, the Cobra, and use it to escape Kashyyyk.[123]
The destruction of Naldar[edit | edit source]
- "It's like walking through a ghost town."
- ―Lando, after landing on Naldar
With the slavers routed on Kashyyyk, Calrissian, Solo, and Chewbacca returned to the Alliance command on Endor, where they were reunited with both Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa. Following a short briefing with Admiral Ackbar, where Calrissian helped explain what had transpired on the Wookiee homeworld, a ship of unknown origins arrived on Endor whose pilot sought an audience with the Alliance leadership. The pilot, who identified himself as Denin, told Calrissian and those gathered about the Imperial invasion and occupation of the planet Naldar, where Denin confessed to be the last surviving member of the royal bloodline. After hearing about the Imperial takeover of Naldar, Skywalker organized a relief force consisting of Calrissian, Solo, Organa, Chewbacca, Barney, and the droids C-3PO and R2-D2, to aid Denin in the fight to free Naldar from the Empire.[124]
Upon arriving at Naldar, Calrissian and the rest of the party were surprised to find the capital city, which Denin had told them was the most fortified city on the planet, completely destroyed. At that moment, the Falcon was attacked by a group of Imperial TIE fighters, and was damaged when a surface cannon from the planet managed to hit them. Forced to land on Naldar, the group split up: Organa and C-3PO left to go look for replacement parts to use to repair the Falcon; Solo and Chewbacca opted to stay behind and attempt what repairs they could; and Calrissian, Skywalker, and Denin departed for the capital city in search of survivors. During their search of the capital, Calrissian and his team were ambushed by Imperial stormtroopers led by a mysterious figure in black armor, an apprentice of Darth Vader named Flint. Knowing that Calrissian and Denin were no match for a dark side warrior like Flint, Skywalker ordered them to retreat back to the Falcon and warn the others. Calrissian, however, could not stand the thought of leaving one of his friends in danger, and upon returning to the Falcon, organized a rescue team to assist his Jedi companion.[124]
With the help of Organa, Solo, Chewbacca, and Barney, Calrissian was able to rescue Skywalker, who had been wounded by a stormtrooper's blaster shot. However, Flint did not expect to see his childhood friend, Barney, among the rescuers. With the intervention of Barney, Flint was able to see the error of his ways and how he had allowed his anger over the deaths of his parents to control his actions. With newfound perspective on his life, Flint ordered the Imperial forces to desist in their plan to further destroy the capital city using an enormous energy cannon. Even though Flint had turned away from the dark path, Denin, who had confessed to actually being the princess Vila, was gunned down by a stormtrooper attempting to kill Flint. Calrissian was among those present who watched as Vila died; she was later considered a hero for her planet.[124]
Work for the Alliance[edit | edit source]
- "Alliance command was suspicious of the situation here…but any direct interference might have alienated the Guild. Something was needed to make the plotters reveal themselves — and you're the most useful guy we have for stirring things up!"
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to Han Solo explaining the need for secrecy during Solo's mission to the Metalsmith's Guild
Following the surrender of Flint on Naldar, it became known to the Alliance leadership that a new conflict had spilled over into Alliance space—that of the Nagai–Tof War. During this time, the man known as Knife had been apprehended, along with members of his species, who had been identified as the Nagai. Preceding this event, Calrissian was present during a meeting of the leaders of the Alliance who were discussing the various ways that this war could, or would, affect the fragile state of the galaxy. Due to Knife having been taken into custody, Calrissian also once again regained control of the Cobra.[125]
With Chewbacca away on a vacation with family on Kashyyyk, and Organa preoccupied with meetings, Solo found himself without a co-pilot for an upcoming mission to a former Imperial prison planet. At the insistence of Calrissian, Solo accepted Nien Nunb to be a temporary companion. With Nunb as his co-pilot, the Corellian rebel was briefed by Calrissian on his mission: Solo was to investigate whether the Imperials had been influencing the Metalsmiths Guild on Vandelhelm—a guild that was supplying the Alliance with ores and alloys.[126] Calrissian's knowledge of Vandelhelm, acquired during his tenure as Baron Administrator when he had met the Guildmaster Orrk, aided him in providing Solo's briefing.[56]
Solo reached Vandelhelm successfully after picking up two Venerated Ones, children who were descendants of the discoverers of Vandelhelm and who were revered by the inhabitants of the mining planet. Unfortunately for Solo, he ran into Imperial entanglements, in the form of a treacherous guildmaster named Orrk and his ally Mordur, an Imperial admiral. Just as Solo thought everything was under control, Mordur tried to flee, using a barge fleet loaded with valuable metal as cover. Solo was unable to fire on Mordur's ship because the barges were slaved to Mordur's vessel and would fly themselves into the sun if the admiral's ship was destroyed. Instead, Solo boarded Mordur's ship and defeated the Imperial, but was unable to stop the fleet from continuing toward the star. Not in possession of the codes needed to override the Imperial commands, Solo began to believe that that the Falcon, his passengers, and the barge fleet were doomed.[126]
At that moment, Calrissian arrived out of hyperspace, in command of an EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate, and latched onto the Falcon using the frigate's tractor beam. Calrissian proceeded to tell Solo that several of Solo's passengers had been in possession of the override code, and that they had had Nunb transmit to the Alliance frigate when it appeared out hyperspace. The only reason Solo hadn't known about the codes was due to his earlier order to the Venerated Ones to keep quiet. Back on Vandelhelm and knowing that Solo was safely away from the Imperials, Calrissian advised him that Solo's true mission all along had been to draw out the Imperials, and not just to gain intelligence. Explaining himself, Calrissian said he believed that Solo had been the perfect candidate to cause enough trouble to draw the Imperials out in the open.[126]
Several months after the Battle of Endor, Calrissian and Chewbacca used the Millennium Falcon for a cargo run. During their trip, the navicomputer failed and they were forced to set down on a desolate planet controlled by the Empire. They were recognized, apprehended, and brought before the local Moff, who out of boredom and knowing Calrissian's reputation as a gambler, arranged for Chewbacca to fight his champion. If Chewbacca won, the Rebels would be free. With little other choice, Calrissian watched as Chewbacca defeated a sizable droid construction that the Moff had developed. The victorious Wookiee then placed the Moff and Calrissian in the dueling ring and had them fight it out, as he was displeased by having to do all the work. Calrissian won and the Rebels escaped the planet.[127]
Near-death experience on Godo[edit | edit source]
- "Seriously…would you have started a war, just to save me…or were you bluffing?"
"Lucky for everyone…we'll never know." - ―Lando and Han, shortly after Lando's recovery
Having recently gained Mandalore Fenn Shysa and an undercover Nagai agent named Bey as allies, the leaders of the Alliance once again turned their focus back to helping member worlds who had experienced hardship and strife over the previous years. One such world was the planet of Godo, whose inhabitants resembled small children, both in stature and attitude. Over the course of several years, the natives of Godo, known as Godoans, had become afflicted by an unknown disease that had wreaked havoc across the populace. As a result, the Alliance sent several of their personnel to Godo in an effort to ascertain the root of the disease—the Alliance party, so as not to be infected by the sickness, had to be inoculated before setting foot on the planet. Among this initial party was Han Solo and Chewbacca, and the Alliance soon discovered that the Godoan disease stemmed from an enormous machine that the Godoan worshiped. The machine itself had actually been manufactured by an unknown entity to aid in keeping the Godoans alive when Godo had become unfit to support them anymore. Over the centuries, knowledge of the machine turned into a local religion in which the Godoans believed a "Goddess" lived in the machine, seen as a holy temple, and looked after the welfare of their people. As such, the machine was named the "House of the Goddess." Unbeknownst to the Godoans, for the machine to operate properly it required a large number of integral cogs which resembled golden statues—two of which had been stolen, and ended up in the possession of Lando Calrissian through a card game.[128]
Having acquired the knowledge that it was the missing statues that was causing the disease to continue on Godo, Solo and the others returned to the Alliance base on Endor to speak with Calrissian. Surprised by what Solo told him, Calrissian devised a plan to retrieve the two statues from those who possessed them—the criminals Lemo and Sando, and his old acquaintance Drebble—and return them to the machine on Godo. Solo and Skywalker opted to travel to the prison world which housed Lemo and Sando and speak with them about the location of the Minstrel; while Calrissian and Chewbacca were to seek out Drebble on Stenos in hopes of acquiring the Dancing Goddess.[128]
While Skywalker and Solo were busy tracking down the Minstrel, Calrissian and Chewbacca found themselves in dire straits in the streets of Stenos. Believing that Drebble had ordered them to be killed, the pair participated in a running firefight with a large group of Drebble's gang. Nevertheless, Calrissian expressed surprise when Drebble appeared and ordered his gang members to cease fire, explaining that the former gambler and Chewbacca were actually old friends of his from the Rebellion. Believing that Drebble had changed for the best, due to his newfound stature brought upon by none other than himself, Calrissian explained to Drebble why he and Chewbacca had sought him out. Though Drebble was visibly sad to give his "award" back to Calrissian, he was cheered when Calrissian told him that they were friends, and that he furthermore had truly earned the friendship of the Alliance. With the Dancing Goddess in their possession, Calrissian and Chewbacca then hastily made their way back to Godo.[128]
Arriving ahead of Calrissian, Solo and Skywalker replaced the other statue, the Minstrel, within the machine—however, without Calrissian and the Dancing Goddess, the Godoans' sickness continued to worsen. Just as Fumiyo, a Godoan acting as an interpreter, was close to death, Calrissian arrived with the Dancing Goddess and placed it within the machine. With both of the missing pieces now back in their original lodgings, Fumiyo immediately began to heal—as did the rest of the Godoan population. Believing that their mission had come to an end, the four Rebels boarded the Millennium Falcon, and returned to a position at the head of the Alliance fleet orbiting Godo. However, Calrissian soon began exhibiting the exact same symptoms that the Godoans had shown when sick—Calrissian's sickness, though, had accelerated quicker than Han and the others had expected. According to Chewbacca, Calrissian, in his rush to get the statue back to the machine, had forgotten to get inoculated against the deadly disease. Believing that his friend was close to death, Solo commed back to Fumiyo and requested permission to transport Calrissian to the temple. Fumiyo, however, advised Solo that the Godoans had just sealed the temple against all "alien" persons in an attempt to dissuade the theft of any more statues. Outraged that they would condemn to death the man who just saved their entire populace, Solo warned Fumiyo that he had at his disposal enough Alliance firepower to level the entire planet if they did not help Calrissian. With the support of various other Alliance military persons present, such as Wedge Antilles, Solo gave Fumiyo ten seconds to accept his deal. To the relief of Admiral Ackbar, Fumiyo conceded and allowed Solo to bring Calrissian back to the temple, where he was instantly healed.[128]
Second Battle of Endor[edit | edit source]
- "Calrissian… I've never seen flying like that in my life! Are you a pilot--or a magician?"
- ―Fenn Shysa
Following the events on Godo, Calrissian and his colleagues returned to the Alliance base on Endor. However, Calrissian felt that the Alliance wasn't involving him and some of his comrades as much as it used to. Wishing to make himself useful, Calrissian decided to suggest that he help supervise training pilots. For this purpose, he suggested to the Alliance leaders that all pilots should take holographic piloting exams, using a program devised by Calrissian himself, and they agreed to his proposal. To Han Solo and Luke Skywalker's dismay, the exam results concluded that they both flew in insane patterns, and thus should be kept out of space combat. When confronted about this, Calrissian admitted that the poor results were due to a programming error in the exams themselves. However, until he could fix it, both Solo and Skywalker would have to stay grounded.[129]
When a group of Nagai spacecraft approached Endor, Calrissian was given command of both the Alliance defense and the Millennium Falcon. Anticipating a few Imperials to be among the attackers, he gave the order to use new flight formations that had been used in the weeks leading up to the attack, thus making them unknown to the Imperials. However, when they finally engaged their enemy in combat, it seemed that the Nagai were familiar even with the new tactics. This was due to the betrayal of Bey, who had secretly been supplying the Nagai with confidential information in preparation of the battle. Faced with heavy losses, Admiral Ackbar suddenly realized how to beat the enemy: he ordered all Rebel ships to lock their computers with that of the Millennium Falcon, whose pilots would formulate a new attack plan. Calrissian then employed one of Solo's piloting tricks to make the Rebel ships fly in seemingly irrational patterns that masked each other's movement. The Nagai, led by the Dark Lady of the Sith Lumiya, were caught off guard by this tactic, and retreated shortly after.[129]
Return to Iskalon[edit | edit source]
- "Luke and I are armed, so let us cover your retreat."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to the Iskalonians during a Nagai attack
Teaming up with Skywalker, Calrissian piloted the Cobra on a mission to Iskalon, to inform its leaders of the death of Kiro, an Iskalonian that had contributed to the Alliance war effort. As they descended on the planet, Calrissian expressed dismay at the isolationism adopted by the Iskalonians since the Imperial attack that had destroyed much of Iskalon's infrastructure. Landing on the ruins of the city of Iskalon, the two were greeted by a plethora of corpses—both Iskalonian and Nagai. Before long, Mone and a group of his people ascended from the Iskalonian oceans, and thanked Calrissian and Skywalker for dealing with the Nagai invaders. When Skywalker clarified their lack of involvement in the battle that had taken place, the Iskalonians assumed Kiro had slain the Nagai. Skywalker attempted to regale the tale of Kiro's death to Mone, but the Iskalonian leader was convinced Kiro was alive and well, harassing the Nagai that had invaded Iskalon. This was news to Skywalker,[130] who had previously witnessed Kiro being shot by the Nagai Den Siva.[125]
The two Rebels agreed to help the Iskalonians repel the remaining Nagai forces, who had garrisoned themselves in a large tower. Just as they gave their consent, the party was attacked by a group of Nagai divers and stormtroopers. Hoping to cover the escape of the fleeing, unarmed Iskalonians, Calrissian and Skywalker stood their ground. Despite killing several of their assailants, they were eventually overpowered by the Nagai sonic weapons. Just as the stormtroopers trapped the defeated pair with net guns, Kiro sprang from the ocean and dispatched the remainder of the Nagai-aligned party. Kiro swam off without stopping for conversation, leaving the gambler and Jedi to shake off the effects of the sonic weapons. Calrissian was convinced that the Nagai had escaped with Mone and several Iskalonians captive. He feared that, given the school-centric nature of the Iskalonians, and their hatred of the slavery the Nagai were imposing on them, the entire species would rather commit suicide than succumb to the invaders. The two quickly formulated a plan: they would destroy the Nagai tower as quickly as possible.[125]
They swam to the ocean floor near the tower, and began hacking away at it—Luke with his lightsaber, and Calrissian with a smaller lightsaber that Luke had "whipped up" some time prior. As they swung at the base of the tower, Calrissian began fearing that the native Chiaki predators would attack them. As he expressed this concern, two Nagai divers approached the pair, but were suddenly intercepted and slain by Kiro. With the Nagai dead, Kiro and Skywalker swam off to rescue the Iskalonians inside the tower, while Calrissian continued destroying the tower. Kiro and Skywalker were successful in their task, and before long, Calrissian had toppled the Nagai construction. Shortly after, having returned to the Cobra, the two Rebels said their goodbyes to Kiro and the Iskalonians.[125]
Nagai-Tof War[edit | edit source]
- "Everything's under control up here. We destroyed about half of their small ships and then the Merriweather surrendered to us."
- ―Lando Calrissian
Calrissian later journeyed to Zeltros, along with Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, as part of a diplomatic mission to enlist the native Zeltrons' support in the war against the Nagai invaders. They were later joined by Han Solo, Chewbacca, Plif, and the Zeltron Dani, and Calrissian enjoyed the festive, carefree mood that pervaded the entire planet, as the Zeltrons were a fun-loving people. However, while they were partying, a group of Nagai landed and captured Organa, Solo, Chewbacca, and Calrissian along with the royalty of Zeltros. At the same time, a group of insectoid Hiromi made their own attempt to seize the world, surrounding Skywalker and Plif, though the Jedi knew his erstwhile captors were fairly harmless.[131]
However, while Calrissian and most of the Rebel delegation was in Nagai custody, a group of Tofs, the enemies of the Nagai, arrived on Zeltros. They quickly defeated the would-be Hiromi "conquerors," who didn't even put up a fight, and seized custody of Organa and Dani, who were being held in a separate location from the other Rebels, from the Nagai warrior Den Siva. The Tofs ordered Siva to divulge the location of the Nagai rendezvous point, threatening to slay Dani, whom he was taken with. However, Plif and his fellow Hoojibs were able to convey messages from Skywalker to the princess and Dani, and subsequently aided both women as well as the Jedi in escaping the Tofs. With their blasters drained by the Hoojibs, the Tofs were unable to stop the three from getting free.[132]
While Skywalker, the Hoojibs, and the Hiromi went to attack the Tof command ship, Calrissian, Solo, and Chewbacca were captured by the rest of the Tof landing force, who had forced Den Siva to betray the Nagai who had originally been holding the Rebels and Zeltrons captive. The Tofs intended to imprison all the Zeltrons and Nagai and kill the others. However, before they could do so, Organa and Dani arrived, rallying the Zeltrons to defeat the Tofs and free the other Rebels. For their part, Solo, Chewbacca, and Calrissian took advantage of the opportunity to attack the Tofs who had been prepared to shoot them a moment earlier. The Tofs were quickly subdued, and Den Siva requested an alliance with the Rebels, as the Nagai now had to contend with their own mortal enemies, who had chased them from their own galaxy.[133] Soon thereafter, a truce was reached with the Nagai, who agreed to aid the Alliance of Free Planets against the Tofs, whom they both feared and hated. In the mean time, Lumiya, abandoned by the Nagai, had switched sides to aid the Tofs and was coordinating their war effort.[134]
Calrissian was later sent to Saijo, along with Solo, Organa, Chewbacca, and Skywalker. Also present on Saijo were some Mandalorians, led by Fenn Shysa, Zeltrons, Hoojibs, Hiromi, and Nagai, all fighting against the Tofs, who had set up their headquarters on the world. Their crown prince Sereno was present there as well. However, Calrissian, Chewbacca and Nien Nunb were not assigned to the planet's surface with the others—instead, they remained in orbit with an Alliance Star Destroyer. When Tof fighters launched from their main ship, the Merriweather, Calrissian led a formation of Alliance ships to engage and defeat them. After that, he pressed the attack on the Merriweather and compelled its surrender. As the Tof crown prince had been captured on the ground by the Alliance forces there and Lumiya had been shot while attempting to blast Leia Organa, the Nagai-Tof War was brought to an end.[134]
Black Sun coup[edit | edit source]
- "Do you really think we can convince Black Sun to stop shooting it out, Princess?"
"I hope so Lando. The Alliance doesn't need any more citizens getting killed in any kind of war." - ―Lando Calrissian and Leia Organa
Later in 4 ABY, Calrissian joined his fellow Heroes of Yavin on a mission to Coruscant to negotiate a ceasefire between the remnants of Black Sun, whose internecine warfare had resulted in numerous civilian casualties. However, Savan, Prince Xizor's niece, was making her own bid to take over the syndicate. Calrissian and the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO remained behind while Organa, Skywalker, Solo, and Chewbacca went to the negotiating table with several Black Sun vigos, including Savan, who was disguised as a Human. While negotiating, the meeting was attacked; while Savan alleged these forces belonged to belong to the Vigo Vekker, they were actually under her orders, serving to intensify the infighting and facilitate her own takeover.[135]
Organa saw through Savan's disguise, however, and the negotiating team decided to track her down. Though she had left Coruscant for Hurd's Moon to track down the Human replica droid and former Black Sun majordomo Guri, Calrissian was able to learn of her destination, as the port chief owed him a favor as a result of the gambler having taken the chief's I.O.U. on several occasions. Upon arriving at Hurd's Moon, it was again through favors owed to Calrissian that the group was able to learn of Savan's goal to capture Guri and the Black Sun secrets she possessed.[135]
They entered the fortress-laboratory of Massad Thrumble, who was reprogramming Guri at her bequest to forget her previous life as a Black Sun operative and assassin, just as a multi-side firefight was beginning; not only had Savan and her hired mercenaries entered the facility, but so had criminal scientist Spinda Caveel and his hired hands, the "Pikkel Sisters." Calrissian and his fellows first encountered this latter group, and after a brief firefight, Calrissian recognized the two women as the Pike Sisters, and the sisters recognized Chewbacca; upon realizing who they were dealing with, the sisters refused to fight further, killing Caveel when he attempted to insist on further violence.[135]
The Rebel group continued on their quest to find Savan, dispatching one of her mercenary teams, before finally finding her just as she was giving Guri a secret code that she believed would take control of the erstwhile Black Sun droid, then instructing her to attack Thrumble. Skywalker sensed she was different, and held the group back from making a move; true to his suspicions, Guri feinted a move toward Thrumble before striking Savan. The group took Savan into custody,[11] and allowed Guri, who no longer remembered her past criminal actions, to go free.[135]
Around this time, circa 5 ABY, Calrissian assembled a team of smugglers, pirates, and bounty hunters dubbed Lando's Commandos. He was put in charge of a rescue mission for the New Republic, using his commando team. After several Republic ships had been captured by pirates, the Republic called on Calrissian, hoping to "send a thief to catch a thief," as Calrissian himself put it. Calrissian was given any amount of provisions, weaponry and ships he requested for the mission, but was warned that the pirates were not known for their clemency. Calrissian accepted the mission and assembled his team, including the former Imperial officer Von Asch. During the briefing, there was some tension over Von Asch's role in the unit, but Calrissian informed the others that he had requested Von Asch. Guided by another former Imperial named Kine who led them to deduce that the pirates were in the treacherous Abraxas system and navigated them through the hazardous obstacles insystem, Calrissian and his team assaulted the pirate base.[136]
Upon landing, though, they were hit by a crossfire. Taking casualties, Calrissian ordered a retreat to the ships and ordered Kine to watch Von Asch. Suddenly, Kine turned on Calrissian, blasting him and revealing himself as a spy for the Empire. After seizing a spacer named Isolde Siro as a hostage, Kine compelled the surrender of the rest of Lando's Commandos. He then presented the pirates, former Imperials, and the whole mission as being in honor of Von Asch. The former Imperial ace was not pleased, though, and castigated them for turning bandit. Just at the point, Calrissian, who had not actually been slain, stood back up and opened fire while calling in New Republic reinforcements that had been brought in an antique stealthed fighter. Having observed the skill at which Kine flew them into the dangerous Abraxas system, Calrissian had prudently drained the charge on the man's blaster. As such, the fight quickly turned against the pirates, and even though Kine made a last ditch attempt to kill Siro, Von Asch took the hit for her. He survived, and the pirates were defeated. Upon returning to base, Calrissian and his force were commended for their successful operation.[136]
Lando's Commandos also assisted him in re-taking Cloud City from the Empire,[34] as Calrissian had long desired to free the floating city. While Admiral Ackbar had promised Calrissian Rebel Alliance support in the form of starfighters, Calrissian had politely declined their offer shortly after the Battle of Endor.[137] Although the operation took months, Calrissian and his commandos were successful, allowing Calrissian to once again take his place as Baron Administrator.[34] Calrissian himself participated in the final engagement on Cloud City, assisted by the aspiring Jedi X2. Flying his X-Wing, X2 engaged a Star Destroyer above the city. On Calrissian's advice, X2 shot down a mining platform, causing it to to pierce through the starship, destroying it. X2 then landed his starfighter and rendezvoused with Calrissian on the ground. The two made their way to a computer console, with which Calrissian located Lobot, who had been taken captive by the Empire. X2 liberated the cyborg, escorted him to the central computer and protected Lobot until he transferred all command functions over the city back to Calrissian. Although the Empire attempted to launch a counterattack by landing additional troops in shuttles, Calrissian, Lobot and X2 managed to fend off the attacks. With the battle won, Calrissian stated that the drinks to celebrate the victory were on him.[138] Although Calrissian returned to his duties as the Baron Administrator, he still retained a general's commission in the New Republic through 7 ABY.[139]
New missions and failed businesses[edit | edit source]
- "This is good-bye, old buddy. My political career in Cloud City has just come to an end!"
- ―Lando, to Han Solo, after losing control of Cloud City in a sabacc game
Calrissian was eventually persuaded to join a short-lived New Republic organization named SPIN—the Senate Planetary Intelligence Network—alongside Solo, Organa, and Skywalker. SPIN's main task was to extinguish the threat of would-be Emperor Trioculus and the Central Committee of Grand Moffs, who had laid claim to Palpatine's vacant throne; Calrissian used his history with the galactic criminal class to advise the New Republic on a number of matters, particularly during the rise of Trioculus. His main priority, however, lay with his business on Cloud City, and Calrissian only performed occasional errands for SPIN, spending most of his time on Bespin.[140] During this time, Calrissian put great effort into reducing the amount of pollution in Cloud City, though the toxins produced by a local Imperial munitions factory allied with Trioculus meant that his efforts did not come to fruition. Calrissian sent Trioculus several messages requesting that he move his factory elsewhere, though the self-proclaimed Emperor refused, threatening to attack Cloud City if Calrissian persisted in his complaints.[141]
During the pollution crisis, Calrissian allowed Luke Skywalker and Ken, the "Jedi Prince," to stay in one of his residences on Cloud City, though he was too busy to spend much time with his friends. While Skywalker and the others were on Bespin, Zorba Desilijic Tiure, Jabba's father, demanded that Calrissian hand over the Holiday Towers Hotel and Casino to him. Zorba had owned the casino previously, and felt that it was still lawfully his. Eventually, the two reached a compromise, whereby they would play a game of sabacc for control of the entire Cloud City. Calrissian was confident of his chances, erroneously believing Zorba to be a poor player. Ultimately, the Hutt won the game; he had cheated, using his Hutt ability to see ultraviolet light while using a deck of secretly marked cards. Calrissian was forced to hand control of Cloud City to Zorba, and fled the planet.[141]
Calrissian was not particularly perturbed; he decided to try his hand at several new businesses, including administrating Hologram Fun World. During his tenure as administrator, he ran into trouble when the recently-married engaged Han and Leia Organa Solo decided to elope there at the same time as Zorba the Hutt decided to attack his competitor; ultimately, however, Calrissian was able to repel the attack. Eventually, Trioculus was slain by a decoy of Leia Organa and the threat of Zorba was eliminated after the Hutt ran afoul of the Empire. Furthermore, following the death of their leader, the Central Committee of Grand Moffs no longer exerted the influence they had once held, and their threat was pronounced ended. After the ensuing dissolution of SPIN, Calrissian left Hologram Fun World to make investments elsewhere. However, after Zorba the Hutt lost significant amounts of money running Cloud City,[142] he surrendered the City back to Calrissian. Instead of resuming his old position, the former general was done with the Baron Administrator's post and gave control of the city to the Ugnaughts.[34]
Upon receiving a call for help from Han Solo and Chewbacca who were on Kashyyyk battling the Empire under Moff Darcc, Calrissian and Skywalker, accompanied by Rogue Squadron, journeyed to help their friends and the Wookiees. Upon reaching the Wookiee homeworld, Calrissian found the Millennium Falcon on the forest floor abandoned. Reclaiming the vintage freighter, he, Skywalker and the Rogues flew into orbit to assist Solo, Chewbacca, and the Wookiees in assaulting Avatar Orbital Platform. There, Calrissian helped rescue Chewbacca's father Attichitcuk from a group of Imperials and Trandoshan slavers led by Moff Darcc and Trandoshan Pekt. Once all of the Wookiee prisoners were freed, the New Republic and Wookiee force destroyed the reactor of the station, ending Avatar's legacy of slavery.[143]
Mindor[edit | edit source]
- "Hit 'em with our Big Stick, then. Slap 'em good and run like hell."
- ―Wedge Antilles, to Lando Calrissian
Later that year, Calrissian aided Rogue Squadron in a mission against the forces of the Imperial warlord known as Shadowspawn. The Rogues ambushed a squadron of Imperial TIE Fighters sent by Shadowspawn to attack the luxury liner Corellian Queen, and were able to release transponders, which stuck on the TIE Fighters. When activated, the transponders revealed the location of the TIEs, which by then had returned to Shadowspawn's hidden base. Through this, the warlord's base was revealed as being located on the planet Mindor, in the Inner Rim. Calrissian was familiar with the planet, as his parents had once owned a resort home there. However, the neighboring planet, Taspan II, had been destroyed by Imperial engineers testing gravity well projectors there years earlier, creating a massive asteroid field around Mindor.[144]
General Calrissian was then sent to a meeting along with Mandalore Fenn Shysa to try to convince a Mandalorian commander to surrender and allow a New Republic force to land on the unnamed asteroid the commander was guarding. The commander and his forces had been ordered by an Imperial officer to never surrender to the New Republic, and he refused to let New Republic ships land, threatening to detonate bombs to kill the asteroid's inhabitants if any such vessels landed. Han Solo had been negotiating with the Mandalorians, but after receiving word that Luke Skywalker may have been in trouble, he left, headed for Mindor. Though Mandalore Shysa attempted to convince the commander to relent, he refused. Frustrated, Calrissian played his trump card—he told the commander that he had won, and that the New Republic was giving up. He then asked him where the Imperials were, and what his troops would do once they ran out of supplies. He then offered to hire the troops for a mission to Mindor. Realizing that he had been abandoned by the Empire, the Mandalorian commander admitted defeat and agreed to work for Calrissian.[144]
Calrissian, Shysa, and the Mandalorians headed for Mindor, where Calrissian helped command the battle from the Remember Alderaan. Calrissian then utilized the Mandalorians, sending them down to the planet's surface to destroy Shadowspawn's gravity gun. Calrissian ordered the New Republic CC-7700 frigates to use their gravity well projectors to drag the gravity bombs into the planet, and slice the volcano where Shadowspawn's forces were based on the planet. Calrissian expected the maneuver to also destroy the New Republic forces, and was prepared to die to destroy Shadowspawn, although he was upset that the warlord had tricked the New Republic so badly, trapping them in a gravity well and then ambushing them with thousands of TIEs in Mindor's asteroid belt.[144]
Suddenly, orders came over the ships communications, ordering all Imperial forces to stop firing. The voice came from Luke Skywalker, who called himself "Emperor Skywalker". Calrissian was stunned when Imperial forces complied, and powered down their weapons. However, mere minutes later, the New Republic forces were hit by a storm of TIEs. As part of Shadowspawn's nefarious scheme, he had ordered his forces to obey any command issued by Luke Skywalker, as the warlord, who was also skilled in use of the dark side of the Force, was planning to transfer his spirit into Skywalker's body. However, when Skywalker had fought back Shadowspawn and commanded the Imperial forces to stop shooting, the warlord had utilized his secret weapon. Using the Force, he took control of the unique substance known as meltmassif, of which his trooper's armor was made of. Shadowspawn used the meltmassif to drive the soldiers into a fury, where they would want to simply attack and kill. Driven into a furious rage, the troopers forgot their orders from Skywalker, and became fixated on destroying the New Republic starships.[144]
Calrissian fully expected all New Republic personnel to die in the onslaught. Noticing that the New Republic forces were occupied with the thousands of TIEs before them, Shadowspawn used this as an opportunity to flee. A special chamber in the volcano, conditioned for journey into space and fitted with a hyperdrive, lifted off, and once it left the atmosphere, jumped into hyperspace. However, the tide would once again shift. Skywalker was able to touch the minds of the Melters, a very primitive and unique energy-based species that lived on Mindor and controlled the meltmassif. With his prompting, the Melters were able to make the meltmassif evaporate, killing Shadowspawn's soldiers and destroying Shadowspawn's escape vessel, presumably killing the warlord. The New Republic forces were then able to jump to hyperspace, escaping Mindor before the planet exploded due to excessive radiation.[144] Shortly thereafter, Calrissian resigned his general's commission. After he departed from command, though, Calrissian found himself treated coldly by Ackbar for his refusal to continue in military service.[19]
Nomad City[edit | edit source]
- Lando Calrissian: “Welcome to Nomad City. What's this about playing a hand of sabacc?”
- Han Solo: “Hello, Lando. We were just talking about you.”
- Lando Calrissian: “I'll bet. Is that Luke in that X-wing?”
- Luke Skywalker: “I'm here. This place is amazing, Lando!”
- ―Calrissian, speaking to Solo and Skywalker upon their arrival at Nomad City[src]
In another investment, Calrissian had some success with mining through his mobile Nomad City—a walking mining platform—on the super hot world of Nkllon. Calrissian had gotten the idea from plans left over from when Cloud City was first built by Ecclessis Figg, a famous Corellian businessman. Figg's workers had mined materials from the planet Miser, located closer to the sun than Bespin, resulting in a hostile climate. Figg had attempted to develop a rolling mining facility that would stay on Miser's dark side permanently, but the mining center had never been built. However, it had inspired Calrissian to build a similar facility.[145] He welcomed New Republic financing for the operation after Calrissian obtained the rights to the Athega system, where Nkllon was located, accepting their low-interest loans to help in its construction. He also designed and had a dozen shieldships produced by the Republic Engineering Corporation to allow cargo ships to transit through the super hot space around Nkllon. The colony, though it was built out of scrap ships centered around a Dreadnaught-class heavy cruiser mounted on forty AT-ATs, became prosperous and shipped large amounts of raw materials to clients, principally the New Republic.[19]
In 9 ABY, Nkllon was raided by an Imperial force led by Grand Admiral Thrawn. They successfully stole Calrissian's mole miners—mining devices employed by Calrissian on Nkllon—despite the best efforts of Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa Solo, who had recently arrived insystem, and Calrissian's own defense forces. While his three friends were on Nkllon, Calrissian helped identify an old beckon-call for Skywalker and had Threepio reprogrammed to sound like Leia as part of a decoy operation that allowed Solo, Leia Organa Solo, and Skywalker to leave Nkllon incognito.[145]
Calrissian and Solo then went to Abregado-rae to meet a representative of Talon Karrde's, Fynn Torve, to discuss an alliance with the smuggler chief. Torve took them to the planet Myrkr, where the smuggler's base was, to meet with Karrde. Shortly after they arrived, though, Thrawn came to Myrkr in person to collect ysalamiri, reptilian animals that could repel the Force in a bubble around them and which Thrawn needed to clone soldiers quickly. Karrde hid the two former generals, concealing them from the Empire, though they decided to observe the meeting. As such, Solo and Calrissian became the first members of the New Republic to see Thrawn in person when they spied on him with a pair of electrobinoculars. Calrissian also deduced that Karrde had been holding Luke Skywalker hostage. After some terse haggling with Karrde, they were able to assist Karrde's forces in preparing to attack the Imperials in nearby Hyllyard City. Karrde knew that that was where the escaped Skywalker, and his pursuer, a woman named Mara Jade, would flee to; Karrde also anticipated and that the Empire would find them and realize that the outlaw had not turned over Skywalker. As such, Karrde sanctioned the attack and Calrissian participated in the subsequent ambush of the Imperial forces in Hyllyard City that rescued the Jedi. He had a tense moment with one of Karrde's associates, Aves, who was helping with the ambush, over the timing of the ambush, as Calrissian insisted on waiting for Skywalker's signal—after Calrissian held a blaster on Aves, the smuggler acquiesced. Calrissian was wounded in the attack, but he, Solo, and the smugglers successfully escaped after freeing Skywalker.[145]
Thrawn would then use the mole-miners he stole from Calrissian in an attempt to capture a large number of Rebel capital ships at Sluis Van. Returning to Sluis Van from Myrkr in the Millennium Falcon, Calrissian, Skywalker, and Solo were caught up in the middle of the battle. The mole-miners, packed with boarding teams, had been ordered to drill into a large number of New Republic ships that had been converted into cargo carriers and were thus undercrewed and ripe for capture. After realizing what the Imperial admiral was planning, Calrissian used his command codes to drive the mole-miners completely through the ships, killing the boarding teams by exposing them to vacuum, but though he prevented the theft of the ships and Thrawn withdrew afterward, all of them were crippled by his actions.[145]
Following the battle, Calrissian was able to recover his mole miners easily, but learned that the prices of hfredium, a key product from his Nkllon operation, had dropped further. However, he quickly forgot about both of those when he smelled a distinct blend of carababba tabac and armudu spice on Luke Skywalker, which told him that the ship thief Niles Ferrier, who was known for smoking that blend, was in the area. With the Jedi accompanying him, Calrissian went to investigate, finding Ferrier leading a group of thieves in an attempt to steal a warship. After a brief firefight that saw Skywalker easily defend both himself and Calrissian from Ferrier's henchmen, Calrissian was able to negotiate a deal with the ship thief that allowed Ferrier to leave peacefully, but empty-handed and having turned over the slicer access codes he had used to gain access to the shipyard. Using those same codes, Calrissian was able to move Skywalker's damaged X-wing up in the maintenance schedule, allowing his friend to quickly move past Sluissi bureaucracy and be on his way.[146]
After this, Solo returned the Lady Luck to Calrissian, which had been left behind on Coruscant. Solo then asked Calrissian for transport to New Cov, where Solo had arranged to meet with Skywalker in order to investigate a possible private operation of Bothan Councilor Borsk Fey'lya, who had been trying to subvert military authority from Admiral Ackbar. Calrissian suspected that Solo and Skywalker would try and bring him on their mission, though, rather than just providing transportation to New Cov, and coaxed the Solo into suggesting that Calrissian might be able to arrange a deal for metals from Nkllon on New Cov if he stayed with him. With that incentive provided, Calrissian then reluctantly decided to join Solo and Skywalker.[146]
Once on New Cov, it was not long before Solo and Calrissian spotted one of Fey'lya's Bothan aides, Tav Breil'lya, but while Solo tried to follow the Bothan, Calrissian was sent to find Skywalker. He met up with the Jedi at a local cantina where Skywalker was mediating an argument and aided Skywalker by translating for him. Once the mediation was finished, Calrissian and Skywalker went to meet with Solo, but were interrupted by an Imperial raid. While Skywalker continued in search of their Corellian compatriot, Calrissian journeyed to the landing area to investigate the severity of the raid. Calrissian found that a full-fledged search for them was underway, but managed to avoid detection. After Solo pulled a quick bait-and-switch maneuver with the beckon call on the Lady Luck, Solo and Calrissian, along with an agent named Irenez, were able to escape New Cov while Skywalker left in his X-wing.[146]
There was an Imperial force waiting for them in orbit, but Skywalker was able to clear out several Imperial fighters before jumping to hyperspace. Meanwhile, three Dreadnaught-class heavy cruisers reverted to realspace and began attacking the Imperial Star Destroyer that had been brought into orbit, allowing the agents evacuated from New Cov, along with Solo and Calrissian, to escape. Irenez, whose true allegiances remained unknown to both Solo and Calrissian, informed them that she worked for the commander of the cruisers, who wanted to meet Solo. With little other choice, Calrissian found himself dragged along on the expedition.[146]
Taken to a hidden base, they met the commander, who turned out to be Corellian expatriate Garm Bel Iblis. The former senator had been waging a private war against the Empire with backing from Fey'lya after a split with Mon Mothma years earlier. While at Bel Iblis's base, Calrissian, who was quite suspicious of Bel Iblis, did some investigation of the area along with Solo and deduced that the ships that Bel Iblis was using had been part of the Katana fleet, two hundred lost Dreadnaughts waiting to be claimed. One of Bel Iblis's people, a woman named Sena, confronted them about their discovery and asked them to help persuade Bel Iblis to join with the New Republic. In turn, Calrissian and Solo asked her for information on the Katana fleet, as nearly two hundred heavy cruisers would tip the balance in the war. Sena pointed them to a man named Hoffner, who was on a gambling ship called the Coral Vanda which operated on Pantolomin. By this time, the Empire had also become aware of the fleet and sought to obtain its location before the New Republic.[146]
In the race to reach the lost Dreadnaught fleet, Calrissian and Solo searched out Hoffner, but were delayed by a call allegedly from Skywalker that sent them to New Cov again. However, it turned out to be Niles Ferrier who had made the call, and the ship thief planted a homing device on the Lady Luck. Due to this, Calrissian and Solo were ultimately unsuccessful in reaching Hoffner before the Empire did, as Grand Admiral Thrawn had also learned of the man's identity thanks to information from Mara Jade, who before becoming employed by Karrde, had been a high-ranking Imperial agent. Jade had rejoined the Empire in an effort to exert influence from within in order to protect Karrde, and had given Thrawn information on the Katana fleet in exchange for Karrde's organization being spared. Calrissian and Solo attempted to reach Hoffner, but interference from Niles Ferrier and his gang forced them to break off their search. In fact, Calrissian was nearly killed by Ferrier's men in a blaster fight, but he was saved by Solo. However, Thrawn gained the location of the Katana fleet.[146]
Calrissian then journeyed with a small team to the remaining ships, as the New Republic had been given the location of the fleet by Talon Karrde. However, just after Skywalker, Solo, Calrissian, and a small New Republic team boarded one of the Dreadnaughts, Imperial warships arrived, and Calrissian participated in the Battle for the Katana fleet from the Katana itself, fending off Imperial boarding teams. The Imperial Star Destroyer present, Judicator, outgunned the small New Republic task force and Karrde's ship, but the arrival of Bel Iblis's warships and more of Karrde's smugglers allowed the party aboard the Katana a brief respite from repelling boarders. A second Star Destroyer, Peremptory, arrived, but the lack of boarders allowed Solo and Calrissian to use the Katana's control circuits to ram another Dreadnaught into the new arrival, destroying it. The damaged Judicator then withdrew, but the New Republic was disappointed when they realized that Thrawn had already seized all but fifteen of the Katana fleet warships.[146]
Calrissian returned to Nkllon, but before he achieved much more progress he was attacked again by Thrawn's forces, who stole his entire stockpile of metals and severely damaged his complex. He and his miners were evacuated by Garm Bel Iblis, but the Nkllon complex was doomed.[147] Returning to Coruscant, Calrissian instead rejoined the New Republic military in an attempt to strike back at the Empire, and he worked heavily with Wedge Antilles.[148] Calrissian was at the Imperial Palace when an Imperial Intelligence team penetrated the palace, intending to capture Leia Organa Solo's twins. With the help of Mara Jade, who had been recovering from injuries sustained during the Battle for the Katana fleet and Garm Bel Iblis, Calrissian and the Palace Security defeated the intelligence team. However, a single Imperial survivor implicated Jade as being an Imperial agent, and Calrissian, though he had thought Jade familiar to him, finally remembered where he had seen her from: Jabba's Palace years earlier, where she had been a dancer begging Jabba to accompany him to the would-be execution of the Rebels at the Pit of Carkoon. In fact, she had been a high-level agent of the Empire, answerable only to the Emperor himself as one of his Hands.[147]
Jade was imprisoned on suspicions of still working for the Empire, but while talking to Leia, revealed that she knew the location of Thrawn's cloning facility, which the Grand Admiral was using to churn out thousands of soldiers and crewers for his Katana fleet Dreadnaughts. As the Empire had effectively been collecting information from Coruscant's government and knowing the speed needed, Skywalker and Calrissian broke Jade out of prison and took her, along with Solo, Chewbacca, R2-D2, in the Millennium Falcon to attack the Imperial cloning complex at Mount Tantiss on the remote world of Wayland.[147]
After trekking through kilometers of forest, fending off predators, the party was encouraged when some Noghri commandos, who had abandoned their previous Imperial allegiances, revealed that they had been following them and offered their aid. Penetrating the Mount Tantiss stronghold[147] which Calrissian noted appeared to consist of vintage equipment and wiring that one might expect in a pre-Imperial facility,[148] Calrissian and Chewbacca began looking for ways to destroy the facility while Skywalker and Jade sought out a remote destruct control. They, along with Solo, ran into the Dark Jedi Joruus C'baoth and, with the aid of the newly arrived Leia and Karrde, were able to defeat him. Meanwhile, with the help of Chewbacca, Calrissian rigged an Arhythmic resonance scheme—despite being under fire from stormtroopers—that destroyed the complex, ending the threat of the clones grown there. The Rebels then escaped on Karrde's ship, the Wild Karrde. Concurrently, Grand Admiral Thrawn was slain by a Noghri bodyguard, ending the threat he posed to the New Republic.[147]
Palpatine reborn[edit | edit source]
- "I guess I just wasn't cut out to command Star Destroyers!"
- ―Lando
Despite the defeat of the mastermind Thrawn, the Empire's offensive against the Republic continued; in fact, in 10 ABY it even seemed to gain in strength, with a significant increase in forces over that which were available to Thrawn. The reason for this, unknown to the leadership of the New Republic at this time, was a revival of Emperor Palpatine. Believed to have been finally defeated at the Battle of Endor, through the Force, Palpatine's essence had escaped his body, eventually transferring to pre-prepared clone bodies grown at secret headquarters in the Deep Core. There, the Emperor had slowly drawn resources to himself, consequently undermining Thrawn's offensive. The forces under the Reborn Emperor even managed to reclaim Coruscant, the galactic capital.[149]
The growing revival of the Empire angered Calrissian, particularly as it had struck at his personal assets on a number of occasions, and his resolve grew to utilize his own profits to fight back against the Empire. His business sense also convinved him that by helping the New Republic now, it might help him out in the future. Spurred on by his risk-taking gambler's mentality, he was able to convince Ackbar to give him his command back, and he was placed in control of the two Star Destroyers captured at Endor and refitted per Calrissian's suggestion—the Liberator and the Emancipator. Calrissian and fellow general Wedge Antilles were able to use the ships to weaken the already splintered Imperial alliance, penetrating deep into Imperial space and using pirated codes given to him by old smuggler friends to get close to other Imperial ships. There, his forces would open fire, leaving clues that the attack was sponsored by a rival Imperial faction.[149]
Calrissian and Antilles, accompanied by Luke Skywalker, tried this trick on a mission to Coruscant.[149] However, their ship, the Liberator, was shot down. Calrissian managed to safely land it, although they were stranded in the midst of battle. They managed to survive—and even assisted other victims of the Imperial attack by giving them extra supplies—until Calrissian and the Star Destroyer's crew were rescued a short time later by Han Solo and Leia Organa. However, Skywalker was unwilling to leave the planet, as he'd discovered a hidden trove that Palpatine had used to store archives of information about the dark side of the Force and wanted to investigate.[149] As a Force storm attacked the party, Calrissian and the others escaped in the Millennium Falcon, leaving the Jedi behind to battle the storm.[150]
Soon thereafter, Calrissian and Wedge Antilles commanded the Rebel fleet from the Star Destroyer Emancipator during the Battle of Calamari against the Imperial World Devastators. Calrissian's plan was to bring the Rebel fleet into position on top of the Imperial fleet that was blockading the planet. The plan worked well, with the Rebels inflicting heavy casualties on the Imperials, until a World Devastator moved into space and consumed Emancipator.[151] Unbeknownst to Calrissian, Skywalker had fallen to the dark side of the Force, and was in fact commanding the Imperial fleet. However, prior to falling completely to the dark side, he had given a code to shut down the World Devastators to his astromech droid, R2-D2. The New Republic forces were near defeat when the Falcon arrived, carrying, amongst others, R2-D2, who was able to shut down the superweapons. As the gargantuan superweapons collapsed, the New Republic defeated the remaining Imperial troops, driving them off of Mon Calamari. Meanwhile, Skywalker was redeemed with the help of his sister, Organa Solo, and temporarily defeated the cloned Palpatine.[150]
With Palpatine believed dead again, the Empire initiated Operation Shadow Hand, a punitive campaign against numerous worlds. By this time, the Republic leadership had withdrawn to Pinnacle Base on the fifth moon of Da Soocha after its retreat from Coruscant. While there, Calrissian received a message from Governor Beltane of Balmorra, a key weapons producing world. Calrissian then informed the New Republic leaders about a cargo of large X-1 Viper war droids being shipped from Balmorra to the Imperial headquarters on Byss, and how Beltane had arranged an opportunity for the New Republic to intercept the shipment. Calrissian then agreed with a recommendation by Wedge Antilles that they hijack the droids and strike directly at Byss in order to topple the Imperial hierarchy and hopefully spark a return of internecine squabbling between the Imperial leaders. He led a group that included Antilles and New Republic commandos that seized the Viper shipment and hid inside their cramped innards.[152]
After the Vipers were unloaded on Byss, the commandos activated them and advanced on the Emperor's Citadel. They were able to defeat the Imperial forces, including waves of walkers, tanks, and gunships, and reached the Imperial citadel. The war droids started pulling down the citadel until huge mutant chrysalide beasts were released by Palpatine. The New Republic force then fled their droids to seek cover before the Vipers were defeated. Calrissian, Antilles, and other surviving New Republic personnel were evacuated by smuggler Salla Zend and her friends, who had been on Byss looking for her ship, Starlight Intruder, as a chrysalide closed in on them.[152]
Calrissian, Antilles, the smugglers, and the remaining infiltrators left Byss only to find that Pinnacle Base had been destroyed by the Emperor's new superweapon, the Galaxy Gun. They regrouped at a hidden New Republic stronghold on New Alderaan only to find it under attack from Imperial walkers. Calrissian alerted a nearby X-wing unit to attack the walkers while he and the smugglers evacuated the remaining Rebels, including Leia Organa Solo and her twins. Han Solo also arrived in the Millennium Falcon and assisted in the rescue. The New Republic fugitives then jumped to hyperspace before the Empire could catch them, bound for the Auril systems and the Nespis VIII space station. Arriving there, they found that the New Republic leaders, including Mon Mothma and Admiral Ackbar had also escaped Pinnacle Base's destruction and journeyed to the space station.[152]
While Calrissian was on Nespis VIII helping plot the next move of the New Republic, Palpatine learned of their location. The Galaxy Gun fired a projectile at the space station, but the projectile failed to explode. Knowing the Emperor would strike again, the New Republic leadership again fled their main base for the safety of deep space.[152]
Not long thereafter, Chewbacca arrived at the Republic fleet's location in the Millennium Falcon. The Wookiee told them that Palpatine had taken his new flagship, Eclipse II, to the planet Onderon in an attempt to capture Organa Solo and newborn Anakin Solo. As Palpatine and his flagship were without escort, Skywalker devised a scheme that would involve capturing the Emperor. Republic attack squadrons launched a diversionary assault on the warship while the boarding teams used the distraction to get aboard. Calrissian, Antilles, Jedi Knight Kam Solusar, and R2-D2 infiltrated Palpatine's flagship in the Millennium Falcon, while Skywalker and two other Jedi headed to the surface to deal with Palpatine, who'd left Eclipse II in pursuit of Anakin Solo. Onboard the warship, they launched an attempt to destroy the massive vessel. While dozens of New Republic starfighters continued their diversionary assault, the New Republic team successfully took control of the helm and R2-D2 jumped the ship back to the exact coordinates of Palpatine's Galaxy Gun orbiting Byss. As the two massive weapons collided, Calrissian and the other New Republic personnel extracted under fire from the Imperial crew as the Galaxy Gun fired a final projectile into Byss, setting off an unstoppable nucleonic reaction. As Calrissian and rest of the Falcon's crew escaped, Byss was destroyed by the blast, as were the two superweapons. Furthermore, Palpatine himself had perished for the last time on Onderon, as Jedi Knight Empatojayos Brand sacrificed himself to ensure that the Sith Lord's spirit was taken to chaos after Palpatine was shot by Han Solo.[153]
Kessel investment[edit | edit source]
- "A shoot-out at the blob corral. Just the way I wanted to spend my vacation."
- ―Lando Calrissian on Umgul
Later in 11 ABY, Calrissian would help Luke Skywalker search for Force-sensitives to study at the newly established Jedi Academy. At the time, he had no investments—while the Nkllon facility had been reclaimed, it was not as profitable following the Sluis Van attack and Calrissian had lost it in a sabacc game. While visiting with Leia Organa Solo on Coruscant, C-3PO and R2-D2 brought the records of a man on Umgul who was a possible Jedi candidate, based on his betting record. Organa Solo asked him to investigate, saying that he knew his way around gamblers, and Calrissian agreed. Along with C-3PO and R2-D2, he was led to the Umgullian Blob races in search of the possible Force-sensitive. The individual they were searching for, Dack (also known as Tymmo), turned out to be a cheater on the blob races instead of a Force-sensitive, and Calrissian helped expose him. When Calrissian went to confront Tymmo at the blob stables, he found that the man had planted something on one of the blobs. Tymmo did not take kindly to being discovered and a short firefight at the corral ensued before security forces arrived to subdue him. Rather than suffer the usual death penalty for cheating, Tymmo was returned to his wife Mistal, the Duchess of Dargul. As a reward for Calrissian's help in returning her husband, Mistal gave him one million credits.[154]
Calrissian was later called in, along with Skywalker, by Leia to help find Han Solo and Chewbacca after the two had disappeared following a diplomatic mission to Kessel. Taking Calrissian's yacht, the Lady Luck, Calrissian and Skywalker posed as businessmen seeking to invest in the Spice Mines of Kessel. With this cover, they investigated the moon and its administrator, Moruth Doole. Finding the Millennium Falcon in Doole's private fleet, the two ersatz "businessmen" boarded the ship along with the administrator. They confronted Doole, who fired at them and ran off the ship. In response, the Jedi and gambler took the Millennium Falcon and fled, though Calrissian was forced to leave the Lady Luck on Kessel. They were pursued by the rest of Doole's ships and fled toward the Maw, an unstable cluster of black holes.[154]
While the Falcon had been on Kessel, Solo and Chewbacca were no longer there, having escaped from Kessel, along with Kyp Durron, a Force-sensitive fellow prisoner of Doole's. The fugitives had fled into the Maw black hole cluster in order to escape Doole's fleet. Navigating between the black holes, they discovered a hidden Imperial facility controlled by Imperial Admiral Daala who captured the trio. They escaped the installation and stole the Sun Crusher superweapon to make good their flight. Pursued by Daala's fleet, they emerged from the Maw just as Calrissian and Skywalker were fleeing Kessel. The New Republic heroes escaped in the confused brawl that ensued between Doole's and Daala's ships. After the Sun Crusher and the Falcon returned to Coruscant, Calrissian decided that the spice mines of Kessel would be his next investment; with a million credits at his disposal, he only needed to wrest control of the facility from Moruth Doole. As Admiral Daala's fleet had largely destroyed Doole's meager force, Calrissian anticipated little trouble in doing so.[154]
Shortly thereafter, Calrissian and Solo also traded control of the Falcon three more times over games of sabacc. Calrissian had lost his own craft on Kessel and felt that he was entitled to some compensation from Solo, who disagreed. When Calrissian accused Solo of cheating in the original game in which Solo had won the Millennium Falcon, Solo angrily offered to replay their game. Calrissian won their first match, leaving Solo to take diplomatic transport.[155]
When Calrissian next encountered Solo again on Coruscant, Mara Jade was also present, and Calrissian found himself attracted to the former Imperial assassin; however, Jade coldly rebuffed his charms, leaving him to contemplate how to best attract her attentions. While Calrissian was making repairs to the Falcon, Solo arrived in the hangar bay, demanding passage to Mon Calamari to rescue Leia, as the world had fallen under attack from Daala. Calrissian agreed, but insisted on flying. En route, the gambler suggested playing sabacc for the Millennium Falcon again. Solo agreed, and this time the Corellian won the vessel back from Calrissian. The pair arrived at Calamari, and Solo was able to rescue his wife, returning her to Coruscant.[155]
Not long afterward, Calrissian asked Solo to borrow the Falcon. Kyp Durron, who had fallen to the dark side, had seized Mara Jade's Z-95 Headhunter on Yavin 4, leaving her stranded. Calrissian sought to elevate himself in her eyes by offering her a ride, and Solo relented, coming along to visit Skywalker. Although Mara agreed to journey in the Falcon, she adamantly ignored Calrissian's advances. With little else to do, Calrissian and Solo played one final game of sabacc for the Falcon. In their third game, Calrissian won the prized ship from his Corellian friend, but gave it to Solo forever in order to impress Mara Jade.[155]
Calrissian continued to try to attract Mara Jade once the Millennium Falcon had returned to Coruscant, but he also started a venture with the Smugglers' Alliance to take over the Kessel mines. Still short a vessel, he once again tagged along with Solo while Solo went to search for the renegade Kyp Durron, who had undertaken Jedi training with Skywalker but had quickly fallen to the grip of the dark side. Though Solo was more concerned about Durron, Calrissian hoped to reach Kessel within a week. Solo and Calrissian were able to track Durron, who had stolen the Sun Crusher and gone on a rampage of destruction and found the Dark Jedi near the galactic Core. While Solo attempted to reason with Durron, Calrissian sought to override the Sun Crusher with a set of control codes. Though he was able to do so, Durron quickly bypassed the override and threatened to destroy the Falcon. Across on the other side of the galaxy, Skywalker's Jedi apprentices were able to defeat the spirit of Exar Kun, who had been influencing Durron toward the Dark Side. With that influence removed, Durron surrendered and agreed to be transferred by Calrissian and Solo back to Coruscant, along with the Sun Crusher. After that, Solo agreed to take Calrissian to Kessel.[156]
By the time Calrissian arrived at Kessel, the Smuggler's Alliance, led by Jade, had already secured the Garrison Moon. After Calrissian arrived, he and the Smuggler's Alliance journeyed down to the planet to seize the mines from Doole. Jade also returned Calrissian's Lady Luck to him, which greatly pleased Calrissian. Finding the planet largely deserted and somewhat damaged from an Imperial attack, Calrissian was only opposed by Doole in the prison fortress. With the aid of Zakarisz Ghent, he was able to bypass the defenses and breach the interior to confront Doole, who perished in the crossfire between the smugglers and his own larvae. Calrissian and Jade had just finished taking over the mines when the Death Star prototype emerged from the Maw and blew up Kessel's moon. Leading the smugglers and pirates into space, Calrissian and Jade attacked the Death Star prototype, but were unable to keep it from re-entering the Maw Cluster. They pursued the prototype, with Calrissian, Solo, and Jade flying the Millennium Falcon into its superstructure. Deep inside, near the reactor, Calrissian and Jade, clad in vacuum suits, planted timed detonators. However, they were attacked by spacetroopers and were forced to flee, which resulted in most of the charges being disarmed before they exploded.[156]
As the Millennium Falcon roared out of the prototype, they realized that they were deep inside the Maw, where New Republic forces under Wedge Antilles were engaging Admiral Daala's sole remaining vessel. With the Falcon flying cover for a redeemed Kyp Durron in the Sun Crusher, Calrissian, Solo, and Jade were able to help lure the prototype into a black hole, where it was destroyed, along with the Sun Crusher, though Kyp Durron ejected and was retrieved by the Falcon. Despite the setback of the loss of the garrison moon, Calrissian and Jade continued mining operations and Calrissian installed Nien Nunb as the mines' new administrator.[156] As part of his operations, he allowed some sentients to remain as technical support, but did away with the prison system and slavery, instead employing droids in the mining work.[55]
Months later, Calrissian was with Jade when he received a call from Solo, who was on Belsavis. Leia had gone missing while they were on a search for the children of the Jedi, and Solo had called Jade for more information about her activities on Belsavis as Emperor's Hand. It was then that Jade realized that she had been tricked by the Emperor into thinking she was the only Emperor's Hand; she had not been on Belsavis at the time Solo had specified. Calrissian was shocked at the sight of her fury, and she left him to journey to Belsavis for a time to deal with the other Hand.[157] Sometime during this period, Calrissian would also invest in a pleasure craft on Coruscant's artificial seas.[158]
Run-in with the Imperial Remnant[edit | edit source]
- "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm sitting in a cell. How about you?"
- ―Lando Calrissian to Kyle Katarn
In 12 ABY, Cloud City was overrun with mercenaries, criminals and thugs at the same time as Calrissian had investments in several Outer Rim mining interests of questionable legitimacy. While he held no official position on the floating city, Calrissian complained of increased criminal activity on Cloud City at this time, requesting more security forces from the New Republic Senate. His request was denied, though analysts for the senator of Varonat reported that Calrissian would likely either invest his own money into improving security or petition the Senate through influential friends of his, such as Han Solo or Luke Skywalker. NRI agents later investigated Cloud City, but failed to find any evidence of significant criminal activity.[159] As such, Calrissian took it upon himself to track down their leader. After a few card games and bar fights, he was led to Reelo Baruk, a leading gangster on Nar Shaddaa. The moment he heard of an Imperial agent called Desann, Calrissian was captured and placed into one of Reelo's holding cells. Fortunately for Calrissian, New Republic agent and Jedi Knight Kyle Katarn was also looking for Reelo Baruk. He freed Calrissian from Baruk's hold and eventually Katarn and Calrissian managed to find the Lady Luck and refuel her using nearby pipelines. When they were about to make their escape from Nar Shaddaa, Reelo attacked them with a handful of mercenaries. The criminal used a gun platform to hit the ship while his thugs boarded the ship, but Katarn leaped into the laser turret of the Lady Luck and shot down the gangster. Calrissian, finally able to call for help, signaled the New Republic with the news that the Imperial Remnant was on Cloud City. He then dropped Katarn off in the lower levels while he organized the security forces to drive Reelo's remaining thugs and the Remnant off.[160]
In the next year, an outbreak of the Death Seed plague and the disappearance of Chief of State Leia Organa Solo caused Han Solo to recruit Calrissian to accompany him and Chewbacca on a desperate search to find Leia. Calrissian and Solo, onboard the Falcon, were searching for her on the planet Damonite Yors-B when they discovered the remains of the New Republic warship Corbantis, with a few badly injured survivors. As they departed, they came under attack from the same small swarm of CCIR Needles that had brought down Corbantis. Solo, Chewbacca, and Calrissian outflew them, escaping with the Corbantis's casualties onboard. Taking the survivors back to nearby Nim Drovis, they unloaded them at the nearest medical facility. While outside the ship, Solo got caught up in inter-tribal warfare waged on the planet, but made it back to the Falcon, where Calrissian and Chewbacca were waiting.[161]
Leaving Nim Drovis, they journeyed to another remote world, Exodo II, where they'd detected a wrecked scout cruiser. It was empty, but as they left the system, they were forced to evade an inbound hostile fleet of Imperial origins and head to the Durren orbital base. While Calrissian believed that the invasion fleet was bound for Pedducis Chorios, a world known for its pirate warlords, Solo determined that the fleet was actually bound for Nam Chorios, where Seti Ashgad, the last person to see Leia and who had reported she had departed safely, held power. At the orbital base, Calrissian, upon a request from Solo, arranged to obtain the services of holo-faker "Wing Tip" Theel to create a falsified transmission from Leia. This was enough to finally wrangle a small New Republic fleet to go to Nam Chorios to rescue Leia, with the aid of a forged holo of her to convince the New Republic commanders of the authenticity of their orders. Solo charted a course for the fleet that would take them to Nam Chorios and after arriving over the planet, Solo and Calrissian participated in a frantic battle against Loronar Corporation's CCIR Needles and Moff Tol Getelles's fleet. Victory was only achieved after Admiral Daala, thought to be dead, attacked Getelles and Skywalker—who had been on the surface of Nam Chorios unaware of his sister's predicament there—shut down the Needles. Apparently, Ashgad, Loronar, and Getelles had been collaborating in an attempt to seize power by capturing Leia, unleashing the Death Seed plague, and launching their invasion attempt. The Battle of Nam Chorios ended their plans, though, with Ashgad slain, the Death Seed contained by Skywalker and the Needles likewise shut down. Solo was also reunited with Leia, who'd managed to escape from Ashgad and had assisted from the ground.[161]
In 14 ABY, Calrissian convinced his business partner on the Kessel mines, Nien Nunb, to accompany Han Solo to the ten year anniversary of their mission to Vandelhelm. Nunb was not thrilled about it, and a coup attempt by one of the Venerated Ones that was thwarted by Solo and Nunb did little to ease the Sullustan's peace of mind. When the Sullustan returned from the mission, he was convinced that Calrissian owed him and Solo heavily for the escapade they'd endured.[56]
The Black Fleet Crisis[edit | edit source]
- "You leave without me, and I'll hunt you down and kill you one cell at a time."
- ―Calrissian, replying to Luke Skywalker's humorous suggestion that he might leave him stranded on the Teljkon Vagabond
In 16 ABY, Calrissian found himself with nothing to occupy his time; Mara Jade had resisted all of his advances thus far and he was still fairly flush with money from his reward from Duchess Mistal. With no better diversion, he infiltrated the Alpha Blue headquarters to meet with his friend Admiral Hiram Drayson to ask him for a challenging task. Drayson agreed to his request and freshly reactivated Calrissian's rank as a general. Drayson showed him images of the mysterious Teljkon Vagabond, a large, powerful, and entirely mysterious vessel. New Republic Intelligence assets had been trailing the vessel for some time, and Drayson wanted Calrissian to accompany a team commanded by Colonel Ejagga Pakkpekatt to board the vessel in an attempt to determine what it was and its intention. Calrissian readily agreed and began preparing for his trip.[15]
Journeying to Yavin 4, Calrissian convinced R2-D2 and C-3PO to come with them, claiming that Skywalker had let him borrow their services. In fact, the Jedi Master had done nothing of the sort, but Calrissian did not reveal that detail to either the droids or Streen, the Jedi who was responsible for the two droids in Skywalker's absence. Departing Yavin 4, Calrissian next took the Lady Luck to Bespin, where he was able to persuade the new administrator of Cloud City, Lobot, to accompany his expedition, and with surprising ease. All Lobot required in exchange for his assistance was the various objects and furnishings that Calrissian had left in the administrator's office and never retrieved. Calrissian agreed and Lobot joined his team.[15]
At the rendezvous point, Calrissian flew the Lady Luck to meet up with the other six vessels of the task force, led by the Belarus-class cruiser Glorious. After docking the Lady Luck with the Glorious, Calrissian met Colonel Pakkpekatt and quickly established that he and his party would have an active role in mission, preventing Pakkpekatt from relegating him to the role of observer.[15]
When the Glorious and its escort first approached the unknown vessel[15] in the Inner Rim[162] Gmar Askilon system, Calrissian was initially annoyed at Pakkpekatt's cautious approach, as twenty-two days passed without their team attempting to make contact with the vessel. Eventually, an unmanned ferret was sent in closer to the vagabond to investigate. As it did so, the vagabond sent out a melodic communication pulse and then jumped to hyperspace after it received no response. Calrissian asked Threepio to analyze the transmission, but while the sound was similar to one that had been recorded as coming from the vagabond earlier, it did not exist within the protocol droid's databases, nor any other. Thanks to an interdiction field established by Pakkpekatt, the vagabond did not jump a great distance, and while the fleet closed to their usual following distances, Calrissian and Pakkpekatt disagreed over the best way to approach the vessel. Pakkpekatt sought to launch boarding teams to investigate the alien craft, while Calrissian felt that more time and caution was needed before approaching the vagabond.[15]
Calrissian and his team were able to conjecture that the ship's communication pulse was a genetic code, thanks to its long, unique nonrandom sequences. Examining the transmission, they found that the code had eighteen molecular pairs. Constraining their search to include only species with eighteen molecular pairs in the genetic code as well as a pitch-based form of communication, they narrowed it down to one species: the long-extinct Qella. Based on the fact that the transmission from the ship didn't include all of the Qellan genetic code, Calrissian postulated that the answer the ship was looking for was the missing fragment. Retrieving the rest of the code from a data archive, Calrissian felt that his team was far superior to that of Pakkpekatt. Instead of joining the New Republic boarding parties, Calrissian decided to take his team over to the vagabond in the Lady Luck and approach the ship with the remnant of the genetic code in order to gain entry. With little time until the boarding parties were launched, he detached the Lady Luck from the Glorious without permission, bringing it in close to the alien vessel. With Pakkpekatt unwilling to fire weapons or use a tractor beam in the vicinity of the vagabond, Calrissian was able to transmit the rest of the Qellan genetic sequence to the vessel, which responded by placing a secondary shield around the Lady Luck, protecting it from the Glorious's tractor beam.[15]
Calrissian, Lobot, R2-D2, and C-3PO, now isolated from the rest of the New Republic task force, were able to dock with the Qellan ship. After suiting up against a possible lack of or poisonous atmosphere, Calrissian entered the ship, followed by the droids. In order to gain access to the rest of the ship, Lobot provided Artoo with a set of perceptual parameters that would display the interior from the viewpoint of a genetic relative of the Qella. The result was a handle that Calrissian degloved and touched. Immediately following this, the Qellan ship sliced free of the Lady Luck, destroyed an interdiction picket, and jumped to hyperspace.[15]
Trapped inside the ship, Calrissian and his party used a cutting blaster to gain entry in another part of the mysterious vagabond. The ship, detecting the breach, dropped out of hyperspace and attempted to vent them, but Calrissian was narrowly able to scramble through the hole that they had cut before the ship's self-sealing bulkheads repaired the breach, protecting them from decompression. They attempted to explore the vessel, but the featureless corridors and lack of gravity, the constantly changing interior walls, random arrangement of the ship, and dynamic external length of the vagabond made for slow going. When the ship finally reverted to realspace, Calrissian and his party found a sort of control panel. However, Threepio touched it inadvertently and received a significant electric jolt that rendered the protocol droid inoperable. Calrissian quickly realized that they had returned to realspace and attached a limpet to the vessel's outer hull while Artoo attempted to repair C-3PO. Rejoining the others, the party moved out of the conduits, which they realized were linked to the weapons systems and thus not a safe place to be.[163]
Recalling that it had been a touch of his hand that had first activated the ship, Calrissian and Lobot proceeded to remove their suit gloves and touch the wall surfaces, which immediately reformed into various constructions and even a doorway. Exploring the resulting chambers that opened up when certain surfaces were touched, Calrissian discovered that the interior of the ship had been set up to display Qellan history lessons. He also discovered that the ship was alive; a living museum of the Qellan people and it had adjusted its atmosphere to suit the needs of its Human visitors. However, they were still in deep space and completely isolated from Pakkpekatt's fleet.[163]
Their period of discovery and exploration was interrupted by an Imperial frigate, which attacked the vagabond with an ion cannon battery. The vagabond returned fire, easily destroying the Imperial vessel, before fleeing into hyperspace, but Calrissian's limpet had been fried by the ion cannon barrage.[163] During their journey, Calrissian was confronted by the rest of his group, who were concerned that their chances of rescue were diminishing. He informed them that his mission priorities differed from Pakkpekatt's and that he also still had a beckon call for the Lady Luck, which would bring the yacht. However, he was unwilling to use the call before he was able to ensure that the vagabond would not attack it.[164]
Still, peace was not to be had for Calrissian and his team of explorers. After the Qellan vessel dropped out of hyperspace again, it was soon attacked by the Gorath, an Imperial vessel seeking to avenge the lost frigate that had been destroyed earlier. The damage was significant and, anxious, Threepio activated the beckon call. Calrissian was irate at the idea of bringing an unmanned vessel into a combat zone, and left with Lobot and Artoo to inspect the damage. While the vagabond had managed to destroy the attacking frigate, it had sustained heavy damage. Calrissian's problems were compounded when Lobot and Artoo left him to inspect some previously undiscovered interior passages that Lobot surmised led to a control nexus.[164]
After observing the vessel repair itself, Calrissian was summoned back by Lobot, who wanted him to enter into the internal passages that the cyborg had found. He somewhat irritably complied, making his way through a series of narrow passageways to Lobot's location. There, he found that Lobot had removed half of his neural interface band and plugged it into the Qellan ship in a location that Lobot referred to as the place of awareness. Lobot then informed Calrissian that the damaged ship was returning to its home, bearing the seeds of Qellan civilization; its home was Maltha Obex, the ancestral system of the Qella. In the mean time, there was little for Calrissian to do but further explore the biological ship.[164]
As the vessel orbited the barren ice world of Maltha Obex, Calrissian realized from a viewport that the Lady Luck, which had been commandeered by Pakkpekatt, and an archaeological expedition were present. However, the relay satellites used by the expedition were interpreted as hostile by the vagabond, which destroyed them and forced Pakkpekatt and his small crew of volunteers to keep the planet between the Lady Luck and the mysterious vessel. Finally, help arrived in the form of Skywalker, who used a Fallanassi illusion technique to approach the vessel with a cargo of supplies and one passenger, a scientist named Doctor Joto Eckels from the expedition. Skywalker was able to reach the vessel and rescue Calrissian and his party. The Jedi, together with the scientist, also realized that the Qellan vessel was awaiting a thaw of the now-frozen planet. Using Lobot's communication interface, Skywalker was able to convince the vagabond to use its weapons to melt the thick ice and begin the thawing process while he cloaked the planet in an illusion. For his part, Calrissian was grateful to have access to food, water, and shelter again, and had minimal involvement in the final stages of the expedition.[164]
Almanian crisis[edit | edit source]
- "Great rescue. Excellent rescue. In fact, the best rescue I've ever experienced."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking sarcastically to Han Solo after Han's rescue attempt of him from Nandreeson went awry
17 ABY saw Calrissian participate in the Almanian Crisis, which occurred after the Senate Hall was bombed by an unknown terrorist faction. Shortly after the bombing, accusations that Han Solo knew about the bombing or was somehow involved began surfacing. At the time of the bombing, Calrissian had just dropped off Jade in the Minos Cluster, so she could run an errand with Talon Karrde. On his way back, he encountered a derelict freighter, the Spicy Lady, normally piloted by Jarril. Linking his own craft to the Spicy Lady's holocams, he found that Jarril had been killed by a blaster shot at close range, apparently by stormtroopers, as a stormtrooper helmet was floating in the ship also. Calrissian then towed the Spicy Lady to Kessel for further analysis. He also found evidence that Solo had possibly known some hint about an event referred to as "fireworks". Since Jarril, who had also had some connection to those events based on the text that Calrissian had seen in his ship, had been murdered, Calrissian feared that Solo might be targeted next. Calrissian considered leaving the ship there and forgetting about the incident, but recalled that Jarril had once helped him escape from the Glottalphib Nandreeson years before and decided that he owed it to Jarril to investigate further. He left numerous messages for Solo, Skywalker, and Organa Solo, but they didn't answer. Frustrated, he called Mara Jade, who informed him of the Senate bombing. Calrissian deduced that the "fireworks" reference he had found in Jarril's ship that Solo had known about was a reference to the Senate Hall bombing.[29]
Calrissian immediately went to Chief of State Leia Organa Solo's residence on Coruscant where he finally managed to get through to Leia, who was still recovering from the bombing, as she had been in the Senate when it was attacked. Calrissian hoped to find Solo on Coruscant to warn him in case Solo was the next person being targeted by whomever had killed Jarril, but the Corellian had gone to Smuggler's Run in search of information. Calrissian's sense of urgency was temporarily deflated by that news, as Nandreeson—whom Calrissian had once stolen a treasure cache from twenty years earlier—was still alive and nursing both a bitter hatred and a bounty on Calrissian's head, and his lair was in Smuggler's Run. However, Calrissian put aside his fear of Nandreeson to go try and save Solo, as he believed the message in Jarril's ship meant that Solo might be targeted for assassination.[29]
As Calrissian approached the Run, he faked damage to the Lady Luck, after sending a message to Jade in case of his disappearance, in order to gain access to the Run. He arrived on Skip 1, where he was met by Ana Blue, a former acquaintance, who warned him that Nandreeson was probably aware of his presence. His other former associates on Smuggler's Run were also less than welcoming, treating him with open suspicion, even as he tried to discreetly find out what Solo had been up to without revealing his purpose to the smugglers. Unfortunately, a group of Rek bounty hunters—at least thirty—arrived with weapons and captured him for transport to Nandreeson on Skip 6. Calrissian had no chance to put up a fight and the smugglers, including Ana Blue, Zeen Afit, and Kid DXo'ln made no move to protect him.[29]
The Reks conducted him to Skip 6 and unceremoniously threw him into a slime pool to await Nandreeson's twenty years of stored up retribution. Nandreeson and his Glottalphib henchmen kept him in the pool, intending for him to drown after becoming too exhausted to stay awake. Calrissian desperately treaded water in an attempt to stay alive, trying to bargain for a way out. The Glottalphib, however, refused any offers from Calrissian, taunting him as Calrissian forced himself to stay afloat.[29]
Fortunately for Calrissian, Solo—who was free and unharmed—found out about Calrissian's presence when he spotted a group of smugglers stripping the Lady Luck. Solo and Chewbacca recruited a gang of reluctant smugglers, including Blue, Wynni, Kid, and Zeen to help him rescue Calrissian. They landed at Nandreeson's hideout in Blue's ship and the entire party made their way into the slime pools, wading through the pool to where Calrissian was being held. However, Kid, Zeen, and Wynni betrayed him when they arrived at Nandreeson's slime pool, turning their weapons on Solo, as Nandreeson had hired them to help capture Solo in an extension of his revenge against Calrissian. Calrissian, for his part, was unsurprised by Nandreeson's plan and threw several sarcastic comments at Solo for his lack of foresight. A brawl broke out between Nandreeson's goons and hirelings and Solo's diminished rescue party, and Calrissian began wrestling with Kid. With Solo's help, he defeated Kid, then took his blaster and fired a shot into the ceiling of the cave, which was lined with watumba bats. The aggravated bats, natural predators of Glottalphibs, swooped down as Solo, Calrissian, and Chewbacca made their escape. Before they could climb out of the slime pool, Nandreeson dove into the pool and attempted to kill Calrissian, but Solo fought off the crime lord while Chewbacca dispatched him with a bowcaster quarrel. The three and Ana Blue then made their escape on Nandreeson's ship back to Skip One.
There, Solo and Calrissian reclaimed their ships, though Calrissian was outraged by the damage done to his ship. As they were repairing the Lady Luck, a number of droids that had been stolen from various New Republic sources exploded, as they had been built as part of a plan to sabotage droids and computers across the New Republic. The droids had been stolen by various smugglers and now their confiscation came back to haunt them when their illicitly acquired property killed and maimed many of them. Solo and Calrissian, despite the fact that many of the denizens of Smuggler's Run had betrayed and treated them badly, did their best to provide aid. In fact, Blue had lured both Solo and Calrissian there so the mastermind behind the droid sabotage plot could capture Solo to use as leverage against Leia and Luke Skywalker and thus damage the New Republic. Nevertheless, Solo and Calrissian opened up their vessels to ferry the injured to Wrea, the nearest inhabited world with the medical capacity to treat the numerous casualties.[29]
Soon after, Calrissian received a distress call from C-3PO on Telti and he brought the Lady Luck to pick up Threepio, R2-D2, and Cole Fardreamer, a mechanic whom the droids had helped neutralize the explosive-packed droids by deactivating all the detonators across the galaxy before they could be activated.[29] After this incident, Calrissian sold the Kessel mines to Nien Numb, taking up other ventures instead.[34]
First Corellian Insurrection[edit | edit source]
- "Even Golden Boy understood what it meant, and he's incoherent in over six million forms of communication."
- ―Lando Calrissian, picking on C-3PO during the First Corellian Insurrection
In 18 ABY, Calrissian used his business sense for more altruistic purposes when he created Dometown—safe, affordable subterranean housing on Coruscant for lower-income citizens. He was happy to have made something worthwhile, but grew dissatisfied with just being a businessman.[16] That same year, with the reluctant help of Skywalker, he set up a series of visits with wealthy women in order to find one suitable to marry. One of them was Karia Ver Seryan of Leria Kerlsil, a "life-bearer" (or "life-witch"), who had the power to give men very good health for a time—usually 3–5 years—with the tradeoff that they would die as soon as the period ended. Calrissian almost unknowingly bound himself to the life-witch when R2-D2 and C-3PO arrived and explained the truth to him. Rather shaken, he continued his search for a prospective bride, but his next prospect turned out to already be married. To forestall any further "surprises", Calrissian made a holocomm call to the next woman on his list: Tendra Risant of Sacorria. Upon meeting her, Calrissian was very impressed and definitely wanted to deepen the relationship, although he was surprised to find he liked her for more than just money. However, the governing Sacorrian Triad had made it illegal for a Sacorrian to marry an offworlder. The Triad chased Calrissian and Skywalker off the planet, but not before Calrissian was able to provide Tendra with a radionics communication device so that they could keep in touch.[165]
The two returned to Coruscant with the disturbing news of a Corellian interdiction field, which shut down hyperspace travel in the entire system. Calrissian and Skywalker themselves only narrowly managed to escape being caught by it before they left the system. After being escorted through a hazardous path into a secret underground government headquarters, Calrissian and Skywalker were advised by Mon Mothma to request the aid of Bakura's fleet to assist in efforts to stabilize a rapidly deteriorating Corellian system, which had fallen under a system-wide interdiction field and had experienced severe levels of unrest and turmoil. Additionally, the Solo family had been there when the entire Corellian system had become embroiled in chaos, rioting, and terrorism. Calrissian took Skywalker to Bakura, ferrying him on the Lady Luck to meet with a former flame of Skywalker's, Gaeriel Captison, who agreed not only to dispatch a Bakuran fleet, but also accompanied it. The two would return to the Corellian system on board the Bakuran war fleet dispatched to find out what was happening in the system. Shortly after they arrived, the Bakuran fleet engaged a number of insurrectionist light Pocket Patrol Boats, with Calrissian participating in the skirmish from the Lady Luck. He also was surprised to find that Tendra was in the system, attempting to reach him via the radionics set he had left her. Calrissian survived the battle, though one of the Bakuran ships, the Watchkeeper was destroyed by a planetary repulsor over Selonia.[166]
Approaching Centerpoint Station, Calrissian, Skywalker, R2-D2, C-3PO, Captison, and New Republic Intelligence agent Belindi Kalenda boarded the massive structure in an attempt to figure out why it was destroying stars. This was a critical part of the plan to separate Corellia from the rest of the galaxy by providing a deterrent against New Republic action, dubbed the Starbuster Plot. However, they found the entire station unoccupied except for one staff member, Jenica Sonsen, who was ignorant of the entire plan. Upon reaching the center of the station, once known as Hollowtown, they realized that the whole area was heating up and would soon be lethal to Humans. Calrissian's toxic air training came in handy, as he was the first one to reach the elevator car they would use to escape the increasingly hot and toxic atmosphere.[167]
Calrissian would later rescue Tendra, who was single-handedly providing the New Republic and the Bakuran fleet with intelligence on the Triad fleet from her ship Gentleman Caller. She was code named "Source T" by intelligence operatives and had been key in providing information on the Triad, who had masterminded the entire insurrection. Tendra and Calrissian escaped the ensuing battle unscathed and spent more time together on Selonia after the New Republic was victorious over the Triad. On Selonia, Calrissian, who had fallen deeply in love with Tendra, asked her to marry him, and she agreed.[167]
Caamas Document Crisis[edit | edit source]
- Wedge Antilles: “Well, well. General Calrissian.”
- Lando Calrissian: “It's just plain Calrissian now. My military days are long behind me. Good to see you again, Wedge.”
- ―Wedge Antilles and Lando Calrissian upon meeting again after a length of time[src]
Following his subsequent marriage to Tendra, Calrissian opened an underwater mining/tourist attraction on Varn, but had difficulty finding ways to protect his shipments from pirates. In 19 ABY, Calrissian, while on Bothawui, gave Diamala Senator Porolo Miatamia a ride back to his homeworld after the senator was cut off from his ship, hoping to discuss the possibility of Diamalan protection for his mining shipments. En route, they were interdicted by the Empire and the Lady Luck was brought onboard an Imperial Star Destroyer, where Grand Admiral Thrawn reappeared to them. Thrawn, after a short discussion, released them with an offer to the New Republic to let Thrawn investigate the brewing Caamas Document Crisis. Calrissian took this report back to the New Republic, which alarmed the government greatly.[168]
Calrissian then served the New Republic during the brewing Caamas Document crisis in several ways, going with Han Solo, Lobot, and the Verpine slicer Moegid on a mission to the Imperial Remnant's capital Bastion in an effort to retrieve the document. Calrissian was reluctant to go, but he was aware of the potential ramifications of a galactic civil war and a resurgent Empire. They were able to reach the Imperial capital of Bastion, but were unable to find the Caamas Document. When they were discovered, Calrissian, Solo, and Lobot evaded local security officers in an attempt to reach Moegid and their ship. Calrissian caused a distraction by firing a slug thrower into the ceiling of a crowded building, and, evading pursuit, Solo, Lobot, and Calrissian arrived back at the spaceport only to find Thrawn and a large cordon of stormtroopers waiting for them. Thrawn gave them a copy of the Caamas Document and allowed them to leave, astonishing both Solo and Calrissian. However, they would later find the Caamas Document given to them by Thrawn was a fake. They arrived back at Bothawui, only to find that warships on both sides of the issue had drawn battle lines and a full-scale battle was imminent. Calrissian was onboard a Diamala warship when the Second Battle of Bothawui started and was instrumental in convincing Senator Miatamia to investigate an anomaly near a comet, which turned out to be a cloaked Imperial Star Destroyer. Following the discovery of three cloaked Star Destroyers, Calrissian led the suddenly united fleet against the Imperials at the request of New Republic Chief of State Ponc Gavrisom and defeated them, while Thrawn was revealed to be simply the con artist Flim in disguise.[169]
Calrissian was later invited to the Wedding of Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade on Coruscant. Prior to the wedding, Calrissian attended a raucous bachelor party for Skywalker at a Coruscant cantina. When a bar fight broke out, Calrissian, along with Solo, Skywalker, several Jedi, Talon Karrde and three Rogue Squadron veterans quickly dealt with the combatants and escaped before local media was attracted to the altercation.[170]
GemDiver Station[edit | edit source]
- "You need to broaden your horizons-learn about the way commerce works in the New Republic. That'll give you some useful knowledge, in case your lightsabers ever fail."
- ―Lando Calrissian to the Solo twins and Lowbacca
In 23 ABY, Calrissian opened a Corusca gem mining station over Yavin, known as GemDiver Station with the aid of Lobot. When the Solo twins and Lowbacca planned to visit on a vacation from their studies at the Jedi Praxeum, Calrissian agreed to let the young people assist in the mining process and was happy to show them around the station, having assured Luke Skywalker that they would be safe. Calrissian had taken numerous security precautions with the station, including security satellites, automated cargo pods, and guard droids. Then, taking the Jedi hopefuls down into the swirling storms of Yavin in a mining pod known as the Fast Hand, Calrissian embarked on a mining trip and Jacen Solo was able to catch one of the rare corusca gems. Upon their return, though, GemDiver Station was attacked by the Second Imperium using a boarding shuttle equipped with corusca gem teeth to breach the station, who kidnapped the Solo twins and Lowbacca while they were taking a tour of the station. Despite Calrissian's efforts, the Second Imperium kidnappers, with their captives in tow, got away, with Calrissian stunned by the invading troops. Feeling guilty about what happened, Calrissian lent the blockade runner Off Chance to Luke Skywalker, so that the Jedi Master could find the culprits and missing trainees. However, the young Jedi eventually managed to escape from their captors and returned, warning of a group known as the Shadow Academy that sought to train a new wave of Dark Jedi. For his part, Calrissian was distraught that his own gems had been used by the Shadow Academy to penetrate his station's defenses and planned to upgrade the station to avoid repeating another such incident.[171]
During the Battle of the Jedi Praxeum, Calrissian led his private fleet to aid in the defense of the Jedi Praxeum against the Second Imperium. While the Jedi engaged the Dark Jedi trainees on the surface of Yavin 4, Calrissian's fleet, along with a small group of New Republic vessels, engaged the Imperium ships. After the Imperium ships were defeated thanks to programming changes made to their friend-or-foe transponders by Jaina Solo, Calrissian brought Jaina down to the moon's surface in his ship to lend aid to Skywalker on the surface. By that time, the battle was largely over, so Calrissian helped evacuate the casualties among the Jedi.[172]
Calrissian spent a considerable amount of time with the Solo twins during their youth, seeing them and their generation as the future of the New Republic. They saw him as a friend and enjoyed their time with him, even as he tried to show them more of the galaxy beyond Jedi training. As part of that aim, he took them Corusca gem mining,[171] and introduced Jaina Solo to protein altha shakes, which she would savor years later.[173]
Using income from his profitable GemDiver venture, Calrissian then opened the SkyCenter Galleria on Bespin, partnering with a former smuggler associate of his named Cojahn. Calrissian also contacted the Solos and received permission for their children to accompany him to Bespin to help test out the new entertainment center. He ended up bringing not only the Solo twins, but also Zekk, Lowbacca, Tenel Ka, and Anja Gallandro, after promising Skywalker not to allow any kidnappings. However, upon arrival at Cloud City, Calrissian was informed that Cojahn had died, apparently by committing suicide. He was deeply disturbed by this news, losing much of his enthusiasm for the SkyCenter after the death of Cojahn. The young Jedi Knights agreed to investigate Cojahn's death, though, suspecting foul play. While eating a meal with the young people, Calrissian noted that Anja Gallandro failed to show up and that she displayed symptoms of addiction to andris spice. While touring a swamp attraction, Calrissian also learned of a possible connection between Cojahn's death and a band that had been booked for the SkyCenter, Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes. Upon this discovery, Calrissian decided to go to the Bith homeworld of Clak'dor VII/, suspecting that the band had disappeared somewhere on the planet. He decided to take Jaina and Zekk with him, promising the others that he would return quickly.[174]
Contacting some of Figris D'an's gambling partners on Clak'dor VII, Calrissian quickly obtained information on the whereabouts of the band. Once confronted, D'an revealed that he and his band were on the run from a revitalized Black Sun organization, which was also implicated in Cojahn's death. Returning to Cloud City, Calrissian learned from Jacen Solo that the new leader of Black Sun, Czethros, had personally slain Cojahn. While investigating, Calrissian was summoned to help a labor dispute with some Ugnaught workers. However, the summons was actually cover for a Black Sun assassination attempt. Only quick action by Zekk, Jaina, and Anja Gallandro saved their lives. Eventually, Calrissian and his Jedi companions managed to kill or frighten off some of their pursuers and trap some of the others in the attractions in the SkyCenter. Once they returned to Calrissian's quarters, Calrissian was able to expose the Black Sun conspiracy to take control of Cloud City, although Czethros had disappeared. Thanking the Jedi apprentices for their aid, he returned them to Yavin 4.[174] The Jedi would later completely defeat Czethros and his organization, freeing his investments from the specter of Black Sun control. Calrissian would also later hire Anja Gallandro as a pilot for his companies, as she showed little Force potential in becoming a Jedi Knight.[175] Calrissian later sold the Galleria in exchange for a controlling interest of two Outer Rim planets: Dubrillion and Destrillion.[34]
Yuuzhan Vong War[edit | edit source]
Early efforts[edit | edit source]
- Luke Skywalker: “Didn't you tell me that Lando was out there, mining asteroids or something?”
- Han Solo: “He's out there. Pair of planets called Dubrillion and Destrillion, near an asteroid system he modestly named Lando's Folly.”
- ―Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, speaking about Calrissian's new mining operation[src]
With Tendra's help and finances, Calrissian proceeded to run a mining operation on Dubrillion and Destrillion, where many smugglers came to train and fly in the asteroids surrounding the planets. The field was dubbed "Lando's Folly" and drew pilots throughout the Outer Rim who wished to fly the run.[176] Calrissian used the asteroid-navigation course as a friendly contest, allowing visiting pilots to test their times in modified shield-equipped TIE Advanced x1s.[177] Using a modified space station called Belt-Runner I that could project shielding over the starfighters, Calrissian was able to protect the fighters, making the run less dangerous and more alluring to the less suicidal. He was able to make money both off betting on the runs and by charging a fee to pilots wishing to use his craft to make the run. For special cases, though, he would waive the fee, knowing that more money could be made on the betting.[178]
Concurrently, the asteroid belt also served to train smugglers in techniques needed to evade hunters. This grew into a popular exercise for fringers in part due to a group of Jedi that was chasing down smugglers in the Outer Rim. Calrissian's mining operations also served an ulterior motive, as the Socorran hoped to develop mining techniques that could be franchised and sold to other miners operating in riskier areas. In 25 ABY, the Solos and Skywalkers came to visit him and he welcomed them warmly when they arrived on Dubrillion. He showed them the course flown by his pilots through Lando's Folly, offering the Solo children the opportunity to fly the route. They all agreed and wove through the asteroids and Jaina flew the fastest time that anyone had placed on the course. Calrissian attempted to persuade Luke and Mara Skywalker to fly the run, but they declined. By appealing to Solo's pride, he was able to get Han Solo and Chewbacca to fly the run in a two-seat TIE bomber. An equipment malfunction left the pair without shields and their craft was damaged by collisions, but Skywalker was able to navigate the asteroid belt and find them. Calrissian then had their craft towed back to Dubrillion for repairs.[176]
Not long afterward, he asked Solo and Chewbacca to make a supply run to Sernpidal. They agreed, and in return, Calrissian agreed to supply information on Kyp Durron's aggressive smuggler-hunting squadron to Luke Skywalker. Unfortunately for all of them, the run resulted in the Wookiee's death as the invading extragalactic Yuuzhan Vong pulled the planet's moon down onto the planet as the first leg of their advance. Furthermore, following the Mission to Sernpidal, the Millennium Falcon and other surviving New Republic forces arrived at Destrillion and were pursued by the Yuuzhan Vong. Calrissian mounted his defenses, activating every defensive emplacement and starfighter he could find. In a vicious battle, the defenders held off the Yuuzhan Vong, but Dubrillion became a target. The battle was a victory, but at the cost of many defenders. He did manage to salvage a mostly intact Yuuzhan Vong starfighter, a coralskipper, which was thoroughly examined for clues as to its technology. Luke Skywalker was able to ascertain that the ice planet Helska IV was the center of the invasion and requested a mining ship capable of boring through the ice, which Calrissian agreed to supply.[176]
Cajoled by Solo, Calrissian also agreed to accompany the former smuggler and his wife in the Millennium Falcon to Helska 4 after his children took the mining ship and headed to the ice planet without permission. Along with a New Republic attack force, they arrived at Helska 4 and assaulted the Yuuzhan Vong there, but were severely outmatched. The Solo children did rescue a scientist, Danni Quee, who was held hostage by the Yuuzhan Vong group, but the New Republic group was annihilated. After retrieving the Solo children and Quee, Calrissian and the other survivors retreated to Dubrillion. Based on Quee's account, the Solos and Skywalkers were able to devise a process to eliminate the Yuuzhan Vong fortress and yammosk war coordinate buried deep in Helska 4's ice using a shieldship similar to ones that Calrissian had used on Nkllon to reflect sunlight into the planet and destroy it. A small band of escorts, including Calrissian, the Solos, and Skywalkers was able to run interference for the shieldships long enough for them to disrupt the structural integrity of Helska 4, which exploded, taking the war coordinator and the Yuuzhan Vong base with it.[176]
Unfortunately for Calrissian, as the Yuuzhan Vong invasion swelled in scope and magnitude, the Yuuzhan Vong set up a post in the Dubrillion asteroids and attacked the world. By the time Leia Solo returned a short time later, Dubrillion was being harassed by numerous coralskipper sorties while Calrissian could do little against them. He grew frustrated, but with most of his fixed emplacements destroyed, there was not much he and his defenders could do besides lure the coralskippers into ambushes. His fighters made an attempt to knock out the worldship stationed nearby, but none of his craft were able to get close. One brief glimmer of hope for Calrissian was that the Yuuzhan Vong showed little interest in attacking inbound or outbound traffic, allowing some of population to be evacuated.[179]
Solo was able to secure an Agamarian refugee convoy to help evacuate Dubrillion, along with a New Republic escort under Admiral Traest Kre'fey and Rogue Squadron. While the convoy was departing, the Yuuzhan Vong attacked, but Rogue Squadron and the other fighters were able to hold them off long enough for most of the refugees to flee. However, due to an interdiction field generated by a Yuuzhan Vong ship, the refugees headed for Dantooine instead of Agamar. Calrissian accompanied the refugees to the grassy planet, but the Yuuzhan Vong were in hot pursuit.[179]
Calrissian was present when the Yuuzhan Vong attacked Dantooine and helped Force-sensitive scientist Danni Quee search for Yuuzhan Vong disguised as refugees using ooglith masquer creatures. Finding one infiltrator, Quee pointed to the Yuuzhan Vong, who attacked Calrissian with a set of claws before he could fire. Leia Solo shot that Yuuzhan Vong and Calrissian escaped with just a flesh wound, insisting that he was fine. The defense of the refugees by the Jedi and New Republic was successful in saving some of them, holding off the Yuuzhan Vong advance long enough for the survivors to withdraw.[179]
Calrissian meant to attend Chewbacca's funeral, but some of his people were on Obroa-skai when it fell to the Yuuzhan Vong. Feeling an obligation to save them, he assisted them in their escape instead.[158] His guilt about his responsibility for the Wookiee's death also plagued him, assisting in his decision to not attend Chewbacca's funeral. The incident also left his relationship with Solo temporarily strained. However, he did all he could to stop the invading Yuuzhan Vong.[34]
As the invasion ripped through the galaxy and Yuuzhan Vong Warmaster Tsavong Lah ordered a vendetta against the Jedi, Calrissian oversaw the construction of Shelter base, a space station hidden deep inside the Maw, which housed Jedi children and apprentices. In 26.5 ABY, Calrissian met Han, Leia, and Jacen at the rudimentary Shelter base shortly after Jacen rescued his mother from captivity and torture at the hands of Lah. The three had journeyed to Shelter both to get repairs for the Falcon and to meet a Hutt representative, as well as other trade guilds who helped Calrissian fund Shelter, to discuss plans for the Great River network, a series of routes designed to help the Jedi funnel personnel and supplies. While the loss of Dubrillion had impacted his finances, Calrissian had enough money, including some stake in operations on Kessel, to absorb the financial hit, but not enough to fund the Great River personally. He did provide repairs to the Millennium Falcon, courtesy of his technicians, during the meeting.[158]
At the meeting between the three Solos and Bana the Hutt, Numa Rar and Jin'ri trade syndicate representative Opeli Mors, Calrissian additionally provided intelligence on Peace Brigade activities. The collaborationist Peace Brigade had asked Calrissian for help in hunting down Jedi and covering their convoys, but Calrissian flatly rejected their overtures, knowing that they didn't enough sway or force to back up any threats. The meeting itself consisted of much haggling, as the other three parties had agendas of their own and were less than eager to contribute to the Great River. However, the Solos were able to confirm Calrissian's intelligence by locating and attacking a Peace Brigade freighter escorted by a Yuuzhan Vong ship.[158]
By 27 ABY, Calrissian was also responsible for establishing Tendrando Arms, which manufactured YVH 1 droids that were considered instrumental in fighting the Yuuzhan Vong.[180] The heavily armed droids were specifically designed to resemble Yuuzhan Vong warriors and spoke in a booming facsimile of Calrissian's own voice.[28] During a demonstration of his new droids to various New Republic officials on Coruscant, including Chief of State Borsk Fey'lya, General Garm Bel Iblis, and General Wedge Antilles, Calrissian demonstrated the capabilities of his new droid against simulated versions of Yuuzhan Vong warriors. However, several Yuuzhan Vong infiltrators launched an actual assassination attempt. While Calrissian's YVH droid tried to stop them, its weapons were not fully equipped and was unable to do so. The droid continued to fire at the attackers and eventually slew one by crushing it, though most of the assassins were killed by the New Republic onlookers. This "failure" gave Calrissian some initial difficulty in marketing his droids to Defense Force members.[180]
When the Jedi suggested the Mission to Myrkr to destroy the Jedi-killing voxyn, Calrissian was present at the initial proposal on Eclipse. After some debate, the Jedi agreed to launch the mission. At the personal request of Leia Solo, Calrissian and Tendra posed as Yuuzhan Vong sympathizers and journeyed to Talfaglio to deliver the seventeen Jedi, including all three of the Solo children, to the Yuuzhan Vong. Calrissian also required extensive planning of the operation, which involved the Jedi being surrendered to the Yuuzhan Vong while YVH droids brought equipment and weapons and strapped themselves to the hull of the Yuuzhan Vong frigate, which would then eventually be seized by the Jedi and droids. He warned them that they would be acting as spies and might have to do some unpleasant things, as well as deal with unexpected difficulties. They were determined to continue, and so Calrissian proceeded with the next part of the plan.[180]
Posing as a Talfaglian native active in the Jedi's Great River network, Calrissian offered to betray the seventeen Jedi to the Yuuzhan Vong in exchange for Talfaglian refugeees being spared from impending death at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong. The warrior Calrissian met, Duman Yaght, was somewhat uncooperative, though Calrissian's plan worked well enough to subdue the Jedi despite Yaught's lack of diplomacy. As the Jedi were being handed over, a planned scuffle broke out designed to buy the war droids time to attach to the Yuuzhan Vong ship. However, the Bith Jedi Ulaha Kore was stabbed with a coufee in the process. Calrissian was unable to do more for the Jedi due to having to maintain his pretense and the seventeen were hauled away by the Yuuzhan Vong. He then returned to Eclipse to report to the other Jedi what had transpired. The strike team went on to continue their mission with the aid of the two YVH droids. However, upon arrival to Myrkr, the team suffered heavy casualties, although they achieved their ultimate objective of stopping the threat of the Jedi-hunting voxyn.[180]
For his part, he was at Talfaglio when the New Republic and Jedi attacked the Yuuzhan Vong force over the world to rescue the refugees that were being held hostage. The battle was a success, resulting in the loss of the Yuuzhan Vong fleet and the rescue of the refugees. Working with the Wild Knights Jedi squadron, Calrissian assisted them and scientist Danni Quee in finding a way to destroy the yammosk war coordinator organisms employed by the Yuuzhan Vong. When a yammosk-carrying cruiser was successfully destroyed, Calrissian was asked to send his droids into the cruiser to investigate and see if any remains of the yammosk could be obtained for study. He then returned to Coruscant with the Solos and Jedi after their victory and was present at a Senate session where there was considerable conflict over the New Republic's assistance to the Jedi at Talfaglio. In response, Chief of State Fey'lya overrode the opinions of the anti-Jedi senators and ordered the New Republic military to directly aid the Jedi.[180]
Calrissian was still on Coruscant when Anakin died. He was in the Solos' apartment when Leia Solo sensed her son's death through the Force. In response to Leia's despair and Han's fury, Calrissian tried to console both of them. Calrissian would later feel considerable guilt for helping deliver many of the Jedi, including Leia's son Anakin, to their deaths on this mission. There was little time to mourn, though, as the Yuuzhan Vong attacked Coruscant shortly thereafter.[180]
Fall of Coruscant[edit | edit source]
- "Every so often I need to remind the universe that I'm a damned good pilot. With people like you and Han and his daughter around, everyone tends to forget."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to Luke Skywalker
As Coruscant came under attack by the Yuuzhan Vong, Calrissian was on board the Orbital Defense Headquarters.
He was on a planetary defense station along with two YVH droids to dole out the droids as donations to various New Republic installations in the hopes of marketing them. As the Yuuzhan Vong used a screen of refugee ships to absorb damage from the minebelt around Coruscant, Calrissian suggested allowing all the ships through. and advised the commander, General Ba'tra, to deactivate the orbital minefields and allow the Yuuzhan Vong, preceded by captured refugee ships, through the minefield into the planetary shields. Ba'tra, recognizing Calrissian's tactic, reactivated his general's commission and Calrissian implemented the order. As more Yuuzhan Vong ships followed the refugee ships and advance units, Calrissian reactivated the mines, sowing chaos and destruction into the assault wave. However, his efforts were ultimately in vain and he and General Ba'tra evacuated in the Lady Luck.[180]
From there, they received word that treacherous Senator Viqi Shesh's star yacht Byrt was fleeing the besieged planet with a kidnapped Ben Skywalker, the son of Luke and Mara Skywalker, and C-3PO. Calrissian through use of a Bothan runaway gambit, was able to approach the Byrt and attach onto it. Sending YVH droids in first, Calrissian and Ba'tra effectively neutralized Shesh and the other escorts and rescued Ben and C-3PO, though Shesh managed to escape. Retrieving the young Skywalker, Calrissian sent a triumphant message informing Ben's parents, aunt, and uncle of his rescue, much to their relief. However, as Coruscant was rapidly being overrun by the Vong, he, too, withdrew from the battle.[180]
Following the fall of Coruscant, Calrissian served with distinction in the Battle of Borleias when he, along with some New Republic engineers and YVH droids, successfully destroyed a Yuuzhan Vong rakamat. Once the New Republic was established on Borleias, Calrissian, along with Jedi Knight Alema Rar and Rogue Squadron, participated in a trap against a Yuuzhan Vong frigate that had been hunting refugee ships. Using sensor equipment developed by scientist Danni Quee, Calrissian and Alema determined that the Yuuzhan Vong were hunting the ships through inside information after Danni's sensor revealed no tracking creatures. They also lured a Yuuzhan Vong boarding party in an ambush of YVH droids while Rogue Squadron dealt with the Vong frigate.[181]
Calrissian would later help insert Luke and Mara Jade Skywalker, Tahiri Veila, and Wraith Squadron into occupied Coruscant, now known as Yuuzhan'tar. Calrissian felt that he needed to be more active in aiding the war effort, so he and a YVH droid piloted the patched-together transport Record Time over to Coruscant. Once in orbit, Calrissian jettisoned orbital insertion pods containing the infiltration team of Jedi and Wraiths and then escaped in a waiting B-wing starfighter, narrowly escaping death from the orbiting Vong ships. He then returned to Borleias, where the defenders had just repulsed a significant Yuuzhan Vong thrust, and had a celebration with his friends over their joint successes.[181]
Later, after the Borleias garrison withdrew and eventually regrouped at Mon Calamari, he aided Talon Karrde in "persuading" important Senators to elect Cal Omas, the pro-Jedi candidate, as Chief of State in 28 ABY. Calrissian and Karrde would approach a supporter of the main opposition candidate, Fyor Rodan, and offer him supplies for their refugee constituents. The senators would often think that they were being bribed and responded in such a way as to incriminate themselves. Calrissian and Karrde recorded these conversations and were thus able to influence a number of senators to change their votes in favor of Omas in exchange for keeping the senators free from being prosecuted. Following Omas's election, Calrissian served in the Battle of Ebaq from the Lady Luck, fighting as part of a group commanded by Han Solo. That battle saw the destruction of a large portion of the Yuuzhan Vong fleet, as well as the death of Tsavong Lah. Upon its successful resolution, he was present to meet the Jedi team that had been on the surface of Ebaq 9 acting as well-armed bait for the Yuuzhan Vong.[182]
The War's end[edit | edit source]
- "I only charge enough to keep me from looking foolish. Anyway, my businesses won't run without communications, either. And there's plenty of competition-the Smugglers' Alliance loves this sort of work. Appeals to the romantic in them."
- ―Lando Calrissian, on his courier service
After Omas's election and the subsequent formation of the Galactic Alliance, Calrissian continued to serve against the Yuuzhan Vong invasion. He found that with the fall of the HoloNet, his services as a courier were highly valued by the new government. On a visit to Mon Calamari, Calrissian also informed Han Solo that a modified dovin basal was responsible for the collapse of the galactic communications network.[183] In his work, he was sometimes partnered with the Smugglers' Alliance and almost always accompanied by his YVH 1 droids.[184]
When Han, Leia, Kyp Durron, the Bothan Intelligence agent Wraw, and Ho'Din scientist Meloque were investigating rumors that Caluula was being used as a staging area for an attack on Dac in 29 ABY, they found themselves captured by the Yuuzhan Vong. It was Calrissian, Karrde, Shada D'ukal and other smugglers who saved them from being sacrificed to a yammosk by rescuing the party and gunning down the Yuuzhan Vong.[184]
During the final phases of the Yuuzhan Vong War, from aboard the Lady Luck, he and Tendra used their advanced sensory equipment to relay information to the Galactic Alliance fleet during the Recapture of Coruscant, as well as to the Jedi helping to defend Zonama Sekot. After the battle, he and others, including Wedge Antilles, discussed the post-war balance of power over a friendly drink on Zonama Sekot's surface.[184]
Second Galactic Civil War[edit | edit source]
- Spinnerfish: “Incoming craft, this is Spinnerfish, Galactic Alliance Second Fleet. Cut your sublight engines and identify yourself immediately.”
- Lando: “Hello! I'm Bescat Offdurmin, master of the private yacht Looooove Commander! What's a Spinnerfish?”
- ―Lando, attempting to run the blockade of Corellia[src]
By 40 ABY, Calrissian and Tendra were successful in their business endeavors, leading a life of luxury. Somewhere around this time Calrissian began to carry a cane, more as a symbol of aged taste than any actual need for it. His life also seemed to have become somewhat boring and uneventful, according to him. That would change after he was visited by Han and Leia Solo, who had requested his help after being exiled by both the Corellian rebels and the Galactic Alliance. In the previous months, tensions had elevated between the Corellians and Galactic Alliance, to the point of open war between the Galactic Alliance and the Corellians and their allies. The Solos had been allied with the Corellians, but left after the Corellians attempted to assassinate Tenel Ka, the Queen Mother of Hapes. However, they were also unwanted by the Galactic Alliance, to the point that their own son, Jacen, who had fallen to the dark side, ordered his gunners to fire on the Millennium Falcon, which barely managed to escape to one of Calrissian's facilities.[9]
Calrissian willingly paid the cost to repair the Millennium Falcon and while the Falcon was under repair, he lent the yacht Love Commander to Han and Leia, on the condition that they let him come with them, which they agreed. Calrissian, in disguise, served as the captain of the yacht, which somewhat irritated Han, who posed as his navigator. They had an eventful trip to Corellia, which consisted of a shootout with the Corellian Defense Force in a cantina after meeting with Corellian Minister of Justice Denjax Teppler, who told them that the Corellian leader, Dur Gejjen, had been behind the assassination attempt. Calrissian and the Solos then escaped the cantina and their CDF pursuit, blasting their way away from Corellia with the aid of Wedge, Iella and Myri Antilles and Corran and Mirax Horn. The unified group then made their way to the privately-owned Star Destroyer Errant Venture and a meeting with the ship's captain, Booster Terrik, an old friend of theirs. Calrissian continued to work with his friends on the Star Destroyer to prevent a full-scale war between the Corellians and their allies and the Galactic Alliance. He had a run-in with the renegade Dark Jedi Alema Rar while on the Errant Venture, as she met him in an elevator. He tricked her and used his cane, secretly modified to have a blaster concealed in the tip as well as emitting electric bolts, to make good his escape. He had attempted to shoot Rar, but she'd used the Force to pull his cane into her hands, at which point, he vocally ordered it to shock her. However, she was able to remove his memory of the encounter.[9] After the encounter with Rar, Calrissian and Han Solo went off on an errand until Solo heard the news about Mara Skywalker's death.[185]
However, with a fallen Jacen seizing power over the Galactic Alliance, the galactic situation continued to devolve. Soon, the Jedi Order broke with the Galactic Alliance, but also refused to side with the opposing Confederation. Calrissian continued to aid the Jedi during this time, though from the sidelines. As the war escalated, Tendra announced that she and Calrissian were expecting their first child, much to the shock of Calrissian, who was intimidated at the idea of becoming a father at the age of 71. After helping the Wookiees in the wake of Kashyyyk's devastation, he left the Jedi Order's temporary headquarters on Kashyyyk to be with his expecting wife, but not before bequeathing the Love Commander to Han Solo for his own use.[186] Calrissian remained with his expecting wife through the remainder of the war, and the end result of the conflict was the death of Jacen Solo at the hands of the Jedi Order. With Solo out of the way and the Confederation largely defeated by that point, the warring factions ceased hostilities.[187] Afterward, Calrissian and Tendra continued to manage Tendrando Arms, doing business with any number of legitimate sales as the Daala administration took the reins of power of the Galactic Alliance.[20]
After the war[edit | edit source]
- "I'll pour the wine, and you tell me what you like best about me."
- ―Ben Skywalker impersonating Lando
Two years after the Second Galactic Civil War, the Calrissians had acquired a total of eight homes on various worlds and Calrissian himself had become a skilled sailor of a boat. He lived the life of a successful businessman and abandoned his cane, as Tendra convinced him it was merely an affectation. He also made time to look after his young son, whom he loved greatly. During his peaceful routine, Han and Leia, along with their foster daughter Allana, came to visit the Calrissians in search of information regarding the past of the Millennium Falcon. Though Calrissian was unsure of the true history of the ship, he did pass along the name of the man he had won it from—Cix Trouvee, allowing the Solos and Amelia to continue their search into the ship's past. He also revealed to them the state of rising tensions between the new Chief of State and the Jedi Order.[20]
Calrissian also continued to work with Nien Nunb, who he'd turned over management of the spice mines of Kessel to years earlier. To boost spice production, he had sent processed ryll spice and incendiaries down to distract Kessel's native energy spiders, which produced glitterstim, while miners collected from the spice veins. In 43 ABY, Calrissian, along with Tendra and his son, Chance, was at the Calrissian-Nunb mines and learned about a series of dangerous groundquakes that had been damaging facilities on Kessel and disrupting spice mining, as well as setting back efforts that Calrissian and Nunb had made to improve conditions at the mines. As the quakes became more severe, Calrissian evacuated most of the mine personnel, but he had no idea of what was causing the groundquakes, despite having made several expeditions underground in a modified and heavily armored airspeeder to investigate.[188]
With little other recourse, Calrissian called on Han and Leia Solo, who arrived, accompanied by Amelia, to investigate the problem. At the meeting with his two friends, Calrissian, along with Tendra and Nien Nunb, described the danger, informing the Solos that the quakes had begun shortly after the destruction of Centerpoint Station. While Han had no problem with abandoning Kessel, as the world was naturally unstable, Calrissian was highly reluctant to abandon the world, although Leia pointed out that far too many things were unknown scientifically about Kessel. This prompted Calrissian to order xenobiological and archaeological studies of Kessel, despite the cost it would present him. In the mean time, Calrissian sent the two elder Solos down into the tunnels to investigate, hoping to take advantage of Leia's Jedi abilities, and he furnished them with the same armored and armed airspeeder that he himself had used previously.[188]
Calrissian was unaware of the true extent of the subterranean caverns on Kessel, but while the Solos were away, the groundquakes continued. Calrissian watched over Amelia in the mean time while her foster parents were away, soothing her after a groundquake hit in the middle of the night. He also informed her about a cave-in that had trapped the Solos behind a large amount of rock, which due to his labor shortage, he was unable to excavate. Eventually, though, Han and Leia re-appeared after some time, emerging from the caverns.[188]
Calrissian, along with Tendra, Amelia, and Nunb, picked them up in the Lady Luck and conveyed them back to the main operations center, where Han and Leia informed him that the groundquakes were being caused by alien explosives packages in previously unknown underground chambers that were being detonated, apparently by an energy-based life-form known as bogeys. Calrissian and Solo then used the Millennium Falcon to deploy sensor drones in the tunnels to investigate and map the underground tunnels, searching for more explosives packages. The drones discovered a sizable fault running through the planet, which according to Leia would soon be destroyed by sequential detonations of the explosive packages, shattering the planet.[188]
Solo then suggested deliberately setting off the explosives, but not in their intended order, which would destroy the explosives, but not the planet. Calrissian agreed, and had a mining excavator clear a tunnel down into the caverns while arranging for demolition experts. Using some of his YVH droids, they were able to determine that thermal detonators were capable of destroying the explosives packages, but the bogeys swarmed the droids, and were able to completely shut them down. As such, Calrissian and Solo decided to fly fighters down and launch mechanically timed detonators from those craft to set off the explosives. While Leia offered the aid of the Jedi, Solo and Calrissian emphatically refused, as the Jedi were currently being monitored by the Galactic Alliance government, and any government inquiry or delay in their plan would have doomed Kessel in their minds. Putting out a call to his friends and old comrades, Calrissian received a sizable response, including Wedge Antilles, demolitions expert and pilot Kell Tainer, former Rogues Derek Klivian, Inyri Forge, Nrin Vakil, Adumari pilot Cheriss ke Hanadi, and former Imperial ace Maarek Stele. These pilots, along with Solo and Calrissian, flew a number of missions through the tunnels planting detonators on the explosives packages, which had been located by the sensor drones.[188]
Their mission was ultimately successful, and the explosives were detonated without destroying Kessel. With the threat erased, Calrissian thanked his friends who had come to his aid at a large celebration,[188] which included himself and Han Solo sharing a sizable amount of Gizer ale.[189] For the moment, his investments on Kessel were safe, and only after all the explosives were detonated did he submit a report to the Galactic Alliance government. In response, he was sternly chastised for his failure to notify them earlier and was instructed not to destroy anything further.[188]
Sith alliance[edit | edit source]
- "I have a few…associates accompanying me."
"Associates, eh? What kind of associates? Not swindlers and scoundrels keeping the noble Luke Skywalker company, surely."
"Er…They're, um,…well, they're Sith, actually."
"S-Sith?"
"Sith. Quite a few of them. It's…a long story,"
"No kidding. I'll want that story in addition to my fee, Skywalker." - ―Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian
Later, in 44 ABY, Calrissian was contacted by the exiled Luke Skywalker, who asked for his assistance in navigating the Maw. Skywalker revealed to Calrissian that he was embarking on a mission with new Sith allies to confront Abeloth, a dark side being whom he believed was causing the psychosis affecting many Jedi on Coruscant and causing increasing tensions between the Jedi Order and the Galactic Alliance government. Despite Calrissian's misgivings about the Sith, he agreed to help Skywalker, although he refused to allow the convoy to meet at Kessel, suggesting instead that they go to Klatooine, in the Si'Klaata Cluster. Meanwhile, he told Skywalker that it would take him several days to prepare his Colossus I Beta Series asteroid tug, the Rockhound, which he would use to assist the Sith and Jedi fleet in navigation of the Maw.[190]
While he worked on refurnishing the ship, the Jedi and Sith stationed themselves at Klatooine, waiting for him there. However, both factions grew restless and Skywalker decided that he wanted to move to just outside the Maw and await Calrissian there. After informing Calrissian of this decision, the allied fleet left Klatooine, leaving only two Sith ChaseMaster frigates behind. However, the purpose of the two frigates was not only to await Calrissian; the Sith High Lord Sarasu Taalon had instructed them to obtain valuable wintrium samples from the Klatooinians' sacred Fountain of the Hutt Ancients. Their attempt was met with native resistance, which was easily overcome, however, the Klatooinians contacted the Hutts, who were bound by the Treaty of Vontor to protect the Fountain, in return for the eternal servitude of the Klatooinian species, to assist in the defense. As Calrissian arrived in-system in the Rockhound, he was contacted by one of the ChaseMaster frigate's Captains, Leeha Faal, who told him that the rest of the fleet had already departed, and that they would be ready to follow momentarily. Suddenly, however, several Hutt ships arrived in-system and began assaulting the Sith frigates. Faal contacted Calrissian, requesting help, but Calrissian replied that all he had for weaponry was a skiff, the Stoneskipper, aboard the Rockhound. Meanwhile, a StealthX also arrived on the scene, and he hailed it, discovering that it was Jaina Solo, who had come in the hope of finding and helping her uncle.[190]
As Solo docked aboard the Rockhound, Calrissian attempted to contact the planet. When he was finally answered, he was informed that the planet was in lockdown, but he revealed that he was acquainted with the planet's Chancellor, Darima Kedari—whom he knew from his days as a gambler. Kedari contacted him soon after, asking if they were connected in anyway with the Captains of the two Sith frigates, which had been successfully apprehended. Calrissian responded that Skywalker was associated with them, and had requested his help, but that he'd never met the Captains before, and Solo replied that she hadn't, either. Kedari revealed that Klatooine was in a state of crisis—not only had the Sith violated the sacred Fountain, there was also concern that the Hutts had not adequately protected it, thereby failing to uphold their Treaty. Kedari then asked Calrissian and Solo if they could mediate, as the Treaty stated that, in the case of a possible violation, two or more offworlders must be present in order to make a decision in the case. Calrissian was reluctant at first, but Solo convinced him to accept the role.[190]
The hearing was attended by the crews of the two Sith vessels, the Hutts, and the Klatooinian Council of Elders. Faal claimed that Vyn Holpur, the Captain of the Starstalker—the ship that had attacked the Fountain—had acted of his own accord, a lie which Holpur upheld. Solo and Calrissian realized that she was lying but had no way to prove it. Meanwhile, the Klatooinians accused the Hutts of failing to protect the Fountain, but the Hutts responded that they had done everything they could under the circumstances. After taking some time to come to a conclusion, Solo and Calrissian stated that they found Holpur and his crew guilty of violating the Fountain—he and his crew were then condemned to death for this act. They also decided that the Treaty of Vontor had not been broken, as the Hutts had indeed acted as swiftly and and effectively as possible under the circumstances. The ruling came too late, however—all across Klatooine riots had already broken out, resulting in a violent uprising of the Klatooinians against the Hutts.[190]
Calrissian then left the planet with Solo and Faal, and met up with the rest of the fleet outside the Maw. There, Calrissian invited Luke Skywalker aboard the Rockhound and informed him of the incident on Klatooine. After Solo subsequently informed the exiled Grand Master of Chief of State Daala's recent siege on the Jedi Temple, the fleet entered the Maw with the Rockhound in the center of the formation, guarding the other ships. Their first stop was Sinkhole Station, a space station where the Skywalkers had seen Abeloth while Mind Walking beyond shadows. However, they found only a debris field; the station had been destroyed. While the rest of the fleet stopped, two of the Sith frigates entered the field at a high speed. The Rockhound used its tractor beams to attempt to pull them back, successfully saving one of the ships, but the other was destroyed. The fleet then moved on to Abeloth's planet. There, the allied forces searched for and eventually located Abeloth. After a battle during which the Sith executed their betrayal of the Jedi, Skywalker defeated and apparently killed Abeloth.[190]
Afterward, the Sith and Jedi repaired their alliance in order to jointly investigate Abeloth's origins, under the condition that the entire Sith fleet as well as Calrissian and Solo would leave, leaving just the Skywalkers, the Sith High Lord, and two other Sith on the planet, Vestara and Gavar Khai.[190] However, after departing, Calrissian and Solo found that they had exited hyperspace at the incorrect location. After investigating the situation, they discovered that a sabotage droid with an impersonation protocol had been slipped aboard the Rockhound while they were on Klatooine, and had since been giving orders to the ship's droid crew, claiming that the orders were from Calrissian himself.[191]
Calrissian set about countermanding the false orders and hunted down the droid. For her part, Solo decided to launch in her StealthX to counter what she believed was an impending attack. Due to the severe state of damage on her fighter, Calrissian was loathe to let her launch, but she was adamant. Before launching, she thanked him for his concern and warned him to be careful. Solo was correct and several Lost Tribe Sith BDY crew skiffs attacked Rockhound, but she fended them off before re-boarding the asteroid tug just before they jumped to hyperspace.[191]
Upon their return to Coruscant, Calrissian and Solo made their report to the Jedi Council, adding that based on research of recent pirate attacks, it appeared that the Sith were using their piratical activities to build a war fleet. Following this revelation, Calrissian assisted the Solos in discussing a pro-Jedi bill with a sympathetic Sullustan senator friend of his named Luewet Wuul, who agreed to help the Jedi with his influence in the senate.[191]
Calrissian then helped organize a high-stakes celebrity three-day sabacc tournament on the Errant Venture, which was in orbit over Coruscant. Once all one hundred players, including many of Coruscant's social elite and Daala's chief of staff, Wynn Dorvan, arrived, the Errant Venture proceeded to inflict thousands of credits worth of property damage to orbital structures. This drew the attention of Galactic Alliance warships in orbit, but they dared not fire for fear of killing the tournament contestants, who were largely unaware of the happenings. This attack was a diversion, allowing a large number of Jedi StealthXs, which otherwise would have been prevented by the Galactic Alliance from launching due to Jedi distrust of the Jedi, to leave Coruscant. The Errant Venture and StealthXs then proceeded to Pydyr, where the Skywalkers had requested their help, and aided in fighting and defeating the Lost Tribe of the Sith force that was there.[191]
Personality and traits[edit | edit source]
- "Well, he seems very friendly."
- ―C-3PO
Throughout his life, Calrissian was both a gambler and businessman, crook and hero.[11] Han Solo referred to him as a card player, gambler, and scoundrel.[64] This was in part reflected by his adventurous, risk-taking, and seemingly shallow nature. He was known for being a classy, dapper gentleman, with a sense of humor, fine fashion taste, and more culture than the typical smugglers and pirates seen in some of his haunts. Despite his proficiency with weapons, Calrissian much preferred to use a con or trick to deceive an adversary rather than fight them.[14] He purposefully disguised his past, leaving it a mystery.[8] He enjoyed being in charge almost as much as he liked creating profit in areas that others shunned.[19] Calrissan could be talkative, though according to Han Solo, he was one of the biggest liars in the galaxy.[49] During his adulthood, Calrissian weighted 79 kilograms.[6]
For all his love of adventure, he disliked complications and was fond of the "easy life." However, his adventurous, debonair exterior was augmented by his deep sense of loyalty.[11] Calrissian did not like weapons and, during his gambling career, usually eschewed all but a small stingbeam.[8] Although he often dealt with criminals and others of questionable legality, Calrissian had no tolerance for bounty hunters, and despised them in general.[192]
- "Nothing ruins the cut of a suit quicker than epaulets. You remember that - they ever want to make you a general, you insist on braid. Epaulets are showy; braid's classy."
- ―Calrissian expresses an opinion on military tailoring to Voren Na'al.
Calrissian also preferred to drink beverages he disliked while playing sabacc, so as to avoid intoxication. He fancied fashionable clothes, and his tastes included military tunics and capes.[8] His clothes were coordinated and he took considerable care of them, when possible. He cared greatly about his fashion sense.[14]
His association with Vuffi Raa also taught him that it was sometimes worthwhile to act selflessly.[8] At times, such as his betrayal of Solo on Bespin, his business-like pragmatism would come into conflict with his sense of loyalty. As a result, he felt he "owed" Solo for the fate he had helped deal him and did many things to try and repay that, including accompanying Solo to search for Leia when she was kidnapped by Seti Ashgad[161] and placing him at the mercy of the Glottalphib thug Nandreeson, who hated him, in an effort to warn Solo of impending danger.[29] He would later experience a similar form of guilt after Solo's twins were kidnapped by the Second Imperium from his GemDiver Station[171] and later aiding seventeen young Jedi on the Mission to Myrkr by turning them over to the Yuuzhan Vong—a mission, which resulted in the death of Leia Organa Solo's youngest son, Anakin. That guilt added to the debt he felt he carried.[180]
When he felt it was needed, Calrissian was known to take charge of a situation, often solving problems in unexpected ways.[181] In such cases, he had little regard for rules, regulations, or established conventions if he felt his methods were more suited to the situation.[15][163][181] If he felt that he had been betrayed or mistreated, his anger at times boiled to the surface in visible rage, which at various times throughout his life was directed against the Empire,[147] Han Solo,[30] and the Yuuzhan Vong.[181] Calrissian was known to use his personal connections for his own benefit, such as during his search for a wife[165] or by trying to get a favor owed to him by Diamalan Senator Miatamia.[168] He could also be persuaded to act when convinced that the fate of numerous others was at risk; Han Solo used this reasoning to convince Calrissian to attempt a risky infiltration of the Imperial capital of Bastion during the Caamas Document crisis.[169] His own general's commission, first granted before the Battle of Endor[34] was reactivated on several occasions, including over Coruscant[180] and Bothawui, a testament to his skill as a commander.[169]
In his younger days, Calrissian found himself attracted to women who he found classy, intelligent, and beautiful, and he was fond of such female companionship.[21] However, for all his love of prosperity and well-run businesses, he surprised even himself when he fell in love with a woman he had planned to marry for money—Tendra Risant—despite his many previous flings with other women.[167] Calrissian remained faithful to his wife throughout their marriage, even rejecting an attempt by Alema Rar at seduction, as his former carefree womanizing gave way to a stable relationship with Tendra.[181]
Talents and abilities[edit | edit source]
- "That's me: Lando Calrissian, miracles made to order."
- ―Lando Calrissian
Calrissian was a man of many talents, ranging from card-dealing to business to military tactics. He was fluent in eighteen different languages,[34] including Rodian,[146] a Baragwinian trade dialect,[101] Shyriiwook, and Sullustese.[57] as well as three languages only used by droids and computers.[34] However, he could only read and write in Basic.[57] As expected of a professional gambler, Calrissian was a skilled sabacc player, well versed in both tangible gambling knowledge such as rules and practices and the more intangible qualities of winning large amounts of money while losing enough to keep away suspicion and dealing cards[14][18][155] and was often known to bluff.[193] On one occasion, Calrissian won nearly 50,000 credits just from an Imperial moff named Ariss Lyjan, who had overestimated his own gambling prowess despite being accomplished at games of chance, and Calrissian was able to make a considerable profit off of him.[194]
While not traditionally considered as much of a gunman as say, Han Solo, Calrissian was still proficient with personal weapons such as a stingbeam or blaster.[14][21][27] During his stint as a Hutt Guardsman, Calrissian also wielded a BD-1 Cutter vibro-ax.[195] Later, he learned how to fly from Solo, and became an excellent pilot in the Falcon in his own right.[30] Many believed that Calrissian had received piloting lessons from an expert, and perhaps had even served in the Imperial Navy.[196] However, he also admitted that while he was a good pilot,[181] he was not as skilled as Solo.[71] Calrissian was also considered a capable con-man, even to the point of being able to hoodwink Jedi Masters such as Luke Skywalker on multiple occasions, a fact which he enjoyed.[165][181]
He also displayed a flair for unconventional methods, which aided him numerous times during his life. Working with Lobot, R2-D2, and C-3PO, he was able to investigate and eventually discern the purpose of a sizable Qellan vessel using what his New Republic superiors considered unorthodox methods.[164] Years earlier, Calrissian defeated an entire group of pirates in the Battle of Taanab with more unorthodox methods and it was his tactic for Ackbar's cruisers to engage Piett's Imperial fleet at point-blank range in the Battle of Endor which ultimately proved successful and helped defeat the Imperials.[34] As administrator on Bespin, Calrissian received toxic air-training, which later aided him on Centerpoint Station during the First Corellian Insurrection.[167]
He was also known for his business sense, having run and managed any number of both legitimate and illegitimate business interests across the galaxy,[34][64][165] ranging from Hologram Fun World to mining operations on worlds such as Varn, Kessel, and Nkllon.[34] Around the time of the Battle of Yavin, Calrissian's experience in the business world and from operating Cloud City allowed him to accrue knowledge of planetary upkeep and facility improvement,[61] which he would use in later operations.[11] Also during this era, the Imperial Business Bureau had a list of complaints about Calrissian that ranked him in the top twenty most complained about individuals. He was described as "not a reputable businessman" by them due to his siding against the Empire and illegal activities such as drug-trading and possession of dangerous weapons.[1]
He was also quite proud of his charm on females, and was known to exercise it, particularly in his younger days, before he eventually fell in love with and married Tendra Risant.[30][34][42][64] He was also an author; by the time of the Yuuzhan Vong War he had written and published two memoirs, A Toss of the Dice: This Gambler's Life[197] and How to Succeed in Everything (22 ABY); this second memoir was a bestseller.[198]
"Drebble"[edit | edit source]
- "What an appalling performance!"
- ―Griggor Tower, after talking to a disguised Lando
Calrissian would often use the name "Drebble" as an alias during his search for Han Solo. The name was "borrowed" from an old acquaintance of Calrissian's; Barpotomous Drebble, a man he had severely beaten in sabacc at one point,[44] launching a long feud between the two. After Drebble almost had Calrissian killed at Stenos,[90] the Socorran started using the alias in hopes that people he conned would decide to look Barpotomous up. Ironically, Calrissian's efforts for the Rebel Alliance under the guise of "Drebble" caused the real Drebble to be hailed as a hero—the Alliance had no idea Calrissian used "Drebble" as an alias.[121]
Calrissian's starships[edit | edit source]
- "Her name says all you need to know. The Lady Luck's fickle, but when she's smiling down on you, you're bound to win. She hasn't given up on me yet."
- ―Lando Calrissian
Throughout his career as a smuggler, Rebel, con-man, and businessman, Lando Calrissian owned several ships ranging in name and description. While Calrissian used the Lady Luck for the longest period of time,[199] he was known to have had operated a small number of other starships, such as Cobra[99] and the Millennium Falcon.[20] Calrissian also possessed an unnamed ship early in his career, which he used for transportation to and from the Meek homeworld. The ship provided transportation for him and his droid companion and included couches for his comfort.[32]
The Millennium Falcon[edit | edit source]
Calrissian's second ship was the Millennium Falcon, a battered YT-1300 freighter which was eventually made famous by the exploits of Han Solo. Having joined a high stakes sabacc game, Calrissian found himself betting against a fellow gambler by the name of Cix Trouvee, the then-current owner of the Falcon. Through a turn of fate, Calrissian managed to get the Idiot's Array, the best hand possible in sabacc, and won the Falcon from Trouvee.[20] Calrissian also modified the freighter by adding quad laser cannon to the ship as part of an armament upgrade.[200] However, even though he was extremely happy at his good fortune, Calrissian soon remembered that he had absolutely no experience flying anything, let alone a starship the likes of the Falcon. To remedy this problem, Calrissian sought out the services of a young pilot by the name of Han Solo who had recently started to make a name for himself as a smuggler working out of Nar Shaddaa. Agreeing to help him, Solo taught Calrissian how to fly the Falcon. Using his newly acquired talents, Calrissian set out for the Centrality, an independent government consisting of several dozen star systems.[21]
Calrissian would go on to have a number of adventures in the Centrality at the helm of the Millennium Falcon, along with his co-pilot Vuffi Raa.[11] During one such venture on the planet of Rafa V, in search of the Mindharp of Sharu at the request of Rokur Gepta and Governor Duttes Mer, Calrissian was ambushed by several Toka who managed to capture him and wound Raa. The Toka's leader, Mohs, believed Calrissian to be the embodiment of a Toka prophecy and took him, Vuffi Raa, and the Falcon back to their village. Calrissian would eventually escape from his captivity, though he encountered a group of security officers intent on apprehending him again. However, a recovered Vuffi Raa, at the controls of the Falcon, managed to persuade Calrissian's pursuers to abandon the chase.[14]
The search for the Mindharp of Sharu was eventually successful, though Calrissian and Raa were transported to an unknown dimension during their quest which seemed to make time go by incredibly fast even though those inside could not tell. Upon recovering the Mindharp of Sharu, Calrissian and Raa returned to the surface of Rafa IV where they discovered that several months had passed in the galaxy during their time in the other dimension. Likewise, he learned that the Millennium Falcon, which had essentially sat abandoned for all that time, had been taken to the city Teguta Lusat by Governor Duttes Mer. Tracking the Falcon to Teguta Lusat, Calrissian was apprehended by Mer who gladly took the Mindharp from his captive, likewise sentencing him to a lifetime jail sentence. Even though a prisoner, Calrissian eventually escaped with the help of Raa, reacquired the Millennium Falcon and made their way off the planet. Even though the Falcon was pursued by Rokur Gepta's scoutship, the Falcon, piloted by Calrissian, managed to elude their pursuer and return to Nar Shaddaa.[14]
Following the Falcon's return to Nar Shaddaa, Calrissian would pilot his starship in the Battle of Nar Shaddaa against the invading Imperial forces, alongside fellow pilots Han Solo, Salla Zend, and Mako Spince. Due in part to the Millennium Falcon and almost every other smuggler pilot, the Imperial fleet was routed and turned away from Nar Shaddaa.[21]
Calrissian would go on to have a small number of other adventures while in possession of the Millennium Falcon, though he would eventually lose the Falcon to Han Solo in a game of sabacc.[30] Many years later Calrissian would again pilot the Millennium Falcon during the Battle of Endor where he would use the Falcon to help destroy the second Death Star.[10]
The Cobra[edit | edit source]
Following the loss of the Falcon to Solo, Calrissian would replace the YT-1300 freighter with the modified Mu-class Model 2 shuttle Cobra.[201] Cobra was a sleek starship which appeared much smaller than the Falcon. Calrissian would, again, lose his ship in a rigged sabacc game with Baron Administrator Dominic Raynor. Even though he lost the ship, he would manage to win it back from Raynor in another bet.[44] While in possession of Cobra, Calrissian, while flying his ship, was attacked by the criminals Lemo and Sanda who had been tricked by Han Solo into believing that Calrissian was in possession of an artifact known as the Dancing Goddess.[121]
Calrissian would later use Cobra, alongside Solo and Chewbacca in the Falcon, in a trip to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk in search of Chewbacca's wife and son. They would soon encounter an individual who identified himself as Knife who was accompanied by Chewbacca's brother-in-law Vargi. Through a series of events that followed, it became known that Knife and Vargi were intent on capturing Chewbacca and reinstating the slave trade on Kashyyyk. Calrissian would return to Cobra to call for help from the Alliance of Free Planets, and would also render assistance to helping stop the Nagai agent Knife. Realizing that his plans for slavery had been defeated, Knife managed to steal Cobra and use it to flee from Kashyyyk and punishment.[123] Eventually Knife would be apprehended by the Alliance of Free Planets and Calrissian would once again regain control of Cobra.[125]
The Lady Luck[edit | edit source]
At some point during the Galactic Civil War, Calrissian would purchase a SoroSuub Personal Luxury Yacht 3000 from an Orthellin royal mistress.[199] Calrissian would go on to name this luxury yacht the Lady Luck, named after Ymile, the girlfriend of Dominic Raynor, who secretly helped Calrissian win Cloud City from Raynor—thus, the name "Lady Luck" was coined.[44] The ship was not as heavily armed, armored, or swift as the Millennium Falcon, and while Calrissian made numerous modifications to the ship, for some years, his work on Nkllon prevented him from devoting much time to it.[19]
During one escapade following his purchase of the Lady Luck, Calrissian was captured by the Rodian criminal known as Reelo Baruk, and the Luck impounded at a Nar Shaddaa hangar bay. Calrissian, with the help of Kyle Katarn, managed to escape from Baruk's base, and the two set out to escape from the Smuggler's Moon. However, Baruk attempted to organize a last ditch effort to stop Calrissian and Katarn. Even though Baruk attempted to use an E-WEB repeating blaster cannon, along with members of his gang, to stop the two from escaping in the Lady Luck, Katarn was able to hold off the attacking gangsters using one of the cannons aboard the Luck.[160]
In the year 11 ABY, Calrissian would lose the Lady Luck, though this time not through gambling, after he was forced to abandon his ship on Kessel. Prior to this event, Calrissian and Luke Skywalker had traveled to Kessel in search of Han Solo and Chewbacca who had vanished following a diplomatic mission to that planet. Skywalker and Calrissian soon discovered the Millennium Falcon in possession of Moruth Doole, leader of Kessel; Doole would eventually figure out who the two impostors were, and Skywalker and Calrissian were forced to flee the planet aboard the Falcon, though Calrissian had to make the decision to leave the Lady Luck behind.[154] Even though Calrissian feared that he would never see the Luck again, he was relieved to learn that the Smuggler's Alliance, who had arrived on Kessel to begin a spice mining operation, had found the Luck unharmed and where Calrissian had been forced to leave it. Mara Jade personally presented it to him when he returned to Kessel.[156]
Several years later, in 17 ABY, Calrissian would fly the Lady Luck to Skip 1 on the Smuggler's Run, again in search of a missing Han Solo. Upon his arrival, however, Calrissian was captured by the Glottalphib crimelord Nandreeson, whom Calrissian had once stolen a small fortune from, and was again forced to leave the Lady Luck behind. Assuming Calrissian to have been killed by Nandreeson, the smugglers of Smuggler's Run proceeded to gut the interior of the ship, taking anything of value. In an ironic twist of events, Calrissian would be rescued by the missing Solo, and Calrissian returned to the gutted Luck, salvaging the ship and whatever else he could. Shortly after these events, Calrissian would use the Lady Luck to transport injured smugglers to Wrea, following an attack by the Dark Jedi Kueller on the Smuggler's Run.[29]
Calrissian would continue to rely on the Lady Luck and would continue flying it during the Yuuzhan Vong's invasion of the galaxy. During that war, Calrissian would pilot the Luck during the pivotal Battle of Ebaq 9.[182] Near the end of the war, during the Liberation of Coruscant from the Yuuzhan Vong, the advanced sensor systems of the Lady Luck proved valuable to the fleets of the Galactic Alliance, allowing Calrissian and his wife, Tendra, to relay vital information to the invading forces of the Galactic Alliance.[184]
The Love Commander[edit | edit source]
Following the Yuuzhan Vong War, Calrissian came into possession of a SoroSuub 2400 yacht called the Love Commander. As with other starships from his past, Calrissian won the Love Commander in a game of sabacc during the Second Galactic Civil War. Following Darth Caedus's attack on the Millennium Falcon, which resulted in severe damage to it, Calrissian loaned the Love Commander to Han and Leia Solo.[9] Later in the war, following Caedus's attack on the planet Kashyyyk, Calrissian used the Love Commander to help fight the fires caused by the Anakin Solo's long-range turbolasers. In the events following this battle, during the planet-wide fights to quell the fires, Calrissian learned that his wife, Tendra, was pregnant; he then left the Love Commander in the care of Han and Leia,[186] but got it back from them some time afterward.[20]
Relationships[edit | edit source]
Throughout his lifetime, Calrissian was known as a smooth and charming individual with a taste for members of the opposite sex, to the point where these traits were noted in an official history compiled by the Galactic Alliance.[11]
Sarna[edit | edit source]
- "I may be mercenary, but since I joined the Rebellion, I've earned a lot of people's respect—I'm not throwing all that away on you! Find yourself another sucker."
- ―Lando Calrissian, speaking to Queen Sarna
Before the Galactic Civil War, Calrissian journeyed to Drogheda, where he began courting Sarna, the queen of the planet, in hopes of marrying into her family's mining business.[79] Even after becoming the Baron Administrator of Cloud City, he maintained some relationship with Sarna,[54] and eventually started falling for her himself. However, her father learned of Calrissian's ulterior motives and cut off contact between them by banishing Calrissian. Years later, Calrissian would be summoned to Drogheda again, where he was recruited by Sarna to fight against a group of revolutionaries, whom she claimed were funded by the Empire. However, he eventually learned that Sarna's opponents were proponents of democracy and sided against her. He ultimately took Sarna hostage, and while her right-hand man, Harlech, was distracted, the revolutionaries flooded into the palace. To replace Sarna, her sister Danu was chosen as the new leader, and she too ordered Calrissian to leave the planet, but promised him a reward if he took Sarna into exile with him. As such, Calrissian departed Drogheda with his old flame. [79]
Mara Jade[edit | edit source]
- "Sure I can't get you another drink?"
"No thanks, Calrissian. We've got business to discuss." - ―Lando Calrissian and Mara Jade
In a reversal from his initial views toward her,[147] Calrissian found himself attracted to the former Emperor's Hand Mara Jade in 11 ABY. While he made several advances toward her, she rebuffed his every move. Eventually, Calrissian was able to get on her good side by winning the Millennium Falcon back from Han Solo once and for all in a game of sabacc, and then giving it back to his friend. Mara was impressed by his action, and he was able to strike up something of a relationship with her.[155] He struck up a business venture involving the spice mines of Kessel with her Smuggler's Alliance,[156] and was able to spend a considerable amount of time with Mara on business trips and other missions,[157][202] but she continued to distance herself from him over the next several years. Their last involvement was around 17 ABY, but Jade had other interests, ending their business affiliation as well as any romantic engagement that had existed.[29] Ultimately, she later told her future husband, Luke Skywalker, that her relationship with Calrissian had been a ruse set up by Talon Karrde to allow them to discreetly conduct several missions for him.[169]
Karia Ver Seryan[edit | edit source]
- "And that's someone you'd be willing to marry?"
"For the right money, absolutely. I'd leave her alone and put her money to work making more money, and she'd leave me alone and still have money to spend. More money to spend, for that matter." - ―Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian, speaking about Karia Ver Seryan
In 18 ABY, Calrissian set out on a quest to marry a wealthy woman, recruiting Jedi Master Luke Skywalker to come along with him to serve as a chaperone and endorsement. The first woman he met with was Karia Ver Seryan of Leria Kerlsil. Calrissian was taken with her, and since she was more than willing to assent to the marriage, was about to proceed in matrimony only a short period of time after meeting her. Unbeknownst to him, though, Ver Seryan was a life-witch, which meant that she could give him excellent health for three to five years before having to withdraw her support, which would kill him. Just before the ceremony started, Calrissian was interrupted and warned of the danger by R2-D2 and C-3PO. Somewhat shaken, he declined to marry Ver Seryan, who had thought he knew about her status as a life-witch all along, and continued on with his search.[165]
Tendra Risant Calrissian[edit | edit source]
- "We pay a call on the Outlier planet Sacorria in the Corellian Sector, and visit a young lady by the name Tendra Risant. Assuming she doesn't turn out to have six kids, three husbands, and a beard down to here."
"That doesn't sound like a likely combination."
"Give it a chance. In this universe, absurdity tends to a maximum. Especially when I'm around." - ―Lando Calrissian and Luke Skywalker, speaking about Tendra Risant prior to actually meeting her
After his shakeup with Karia Ver Seryan and his next prospect, who turned out to be freshly married when he arrived, Calrissian decided to make a holocomm call ahead of time to the next woman on his list, Tendra Risant of Sacorria. She was still eligible and happy to meet with him, so Calrissian arrived on Sacorria accompanied by Luke Skywalker. He was immediately attracted to her, and not just for her money, which surprised him. Although he desired to deepen his relationship with Tendra, he and Skywalker were chased offworld by Sacorrian authorities, as the governing Sacorrian Triad had made it illegal for Sacorrians to marry offworld. However, he left a radionics communications system with her so she could call him.[165]
Calrissian found himself back in the Corellian system, which was near Sacorria, not long afterward as part of a combined Bakuran and New Republic effort to investigate and settle the First Corellian Insurrection. He was able to make contact with Tendra via the radionics set, who was in her ship, the Gentleman Caller.[166] Calrissian enjoyed just hearing her voice again, and spoke with her often, though New Republic Intelligence was also trying to use Tendra as an intelligence source about the motives of the Sacorrian Triad, who had engineered the entire insurrection. When the Gentleman Caller was left stranded in space during the Battle of Centerpoint, it was Calrissian who came to Tendra's rescue.[167] They were married shortly after the Galactic Civil War ended.[34]
Their marriage endured through the Yuuzhan Vong War and beyond. Calrissian survived the war,[186] despite the loss of his mining colony on Dubrillion,[11] and incorporated Tendra's name into his next venture, a defense company named Tendrando Arms.[180] He remained faithful to her, despite an attempt by Twi'lek Jedi Alema Rar to seduce him.[181] Years afterward, during the height of the Second Galactic Civil War, Calrissian learned that he and Tendra were expecting their first child.[186]
Behind the scenes[edit | edit source]
- "The audience was so enamored with Lando, they could forgive Lando for anything. If you're able to play a character that can be sort of a bad guy but has redeeming qualities, those are the best characters to play. That was a great challenge to me, to make him palatable, and it worked."
- ―Billy Dee Williams, commenting on his work as Lando Calrissian
Lando Calrissian was developed for Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back, where he appears as an old friend of Han Solo's. In this film, Calrissian betrays Solo to the Empire before expressing regret for his decision and joining the Rebel Alliance. Calrissian later appeared in Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, where he aids the Rebellion and is one of the Rebels responsible for the rescue of Han Solo and the destruction of the Second Death Star. George Lucas originally portrayed Calrissian as a clone shock trooper from the Grand Army of the Republic.
Sources such as The Lando Calrissian Adventures have since expanded on his backstory before Episode V, including how he lost the Millennium Falcon to Han Solo.[30] The character was a prominent part of the Marvel Star Wars comics produced during the 1980s.[203] Calrissian has also featured prominently in post-Return of the Jedi novels like the Thrawn Trilogy and the Corellian Trilogy. These series have helped build his character, with the latter first introducing his wife, Tendra Risant Calrissian. Though Calrissian was only featured in a minor role in the Legacy of the Force series, those books, set in 40 ABY, reveals that Calrissian was to be a father.[186] A subsequent novel, Millennium Falcon, later revealed that Calrissian's progeny was named Lando Calrissian, Junior.
When asked by fans in Star Wars Insider 86 why Calrissian acted as though he had never heard of Princess Leia, a famous senator from the Galactic Senate, prior to their initial meeting on Cloud City, author Pablo Hidalgo replied that Calrissian might have heard of her if he had ever bothered to take an interest in Core World politics. However, Hidalgo would go on to comment that even if Calrissian had of heard of the princess, that would not have stopped someone like him, with such inimitable charm, from using a pickup line like "Hello, what have we here?" on an attractive woman.[204]
Origin[edit | edit source]
- "Being a hero was a very big part of my thinking at that time because I really wanted to create something that nobody seemed to want to look at. I have always somehow seen myself that way, and I wanted to present myself that way. So it worked."
- ―Billy Dee Williams, discussing how he approached playing Lando Calrissian
Calrissian was several different beings as The Empire Strikes Back was developed. The first draft had him as a smuggler named Lando Kadar, a veteran of the Clone Wars who lived on Hoth. In the second draft, the surname Calrissian first appeared, along with information about a gas giant he won in a game of sabacc (then known as sabacca).[4] The second draft of the script also contained an extended scene where Calrissian, in the midst of rescuing Leia Organa and Chewbacca, has to deal with an out-of-control elevator on Cloud City. The scene was ultimately cut, though Lucas later re-used the idea of a runaway elevator in Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith.[205]
He was also known as a gambler on Kashyyyk, a role that would be fulfilled by Saun Dann in The Star Wars Holiday Special, released in 1978. Another role for Calrissian had him as the leader of a clan of clones who fought in the Clone Wars. His planet had over 700 different countries, each with a new clan. This idea was later dropped, although for a while Calrissian remained a clone, as he was a member of the Ashandi family, who reproduced through cloning. Though it is rumored that Calrissian was supposed to have died at the end of Return of the Jedi, this is not true, according to Lucasfilm.[4]
According to an article, Escape from Cloud City, written by Chris Trevas and published in Star Wars Insider 89, the character of Lando Calrissian was created by George Lucas as an alternate version of Han Solo, had Solo never joined the Rebellion. Initially, he was intended to appear to be entirely self-serving, but experienced a similar emotional progression as Solo did in the film until he, too, was part of the Rebellion.[205]
Portrayal[edit | edit source]
- "I've had this reputation of being a ladies' man for a long time now. I guess there is a certain sound in my voice, and a special way I carry myself"
- ―Billy Dee Williams, commenting on himself and his character of Lando Calrissian
Lando Calrissian was portrayed on-screen in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi by actor Billy Dee Williams, who reprised the role for the radio adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back, the video game Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, and the audio dramatization of Dark Empire. Williams also reprised the role for an episode of the Seth Green/Cartoon Network series Robot Chicken, as well as its sequels Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode II and Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III.[206] Williams also reprised the role for a sketch on Cartoon Network's MAD called Moves Like Jabba.
Interestingly, unlike most of the cast available for use in the multiplayer version for Jedi Outcast, Lando is the only non-Force character who does not use a lightsaber as his primary melee weapon if his player model is summoned to the game as an A.I controlled bot. Instead, Lando will resort to using the stun baton if opponents get too close to him or if his supply of ammunition runs dry.
Arye Gross provided the voice of Lando in the radio adaptation of Return of the Jedi. Obba Babatundé provided the voice for Lando in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader, and Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike. In his disguise as Tamtel Skreej for an appearance in Star Wars: Demolition, Calrissian was voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson. For the 1999 video game Star Wars: X-Wing Alliance, Calrissian was voiced by Dave Fennoy.[206] In the Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire audio drama, the character was voiced by Bob Davis.[207]
In The Empire Strikes Back Calrissian's character has been noted for his flamboyant wardrobe, as well as his signature cape. Billy Dee Williams' costume designer was John Mollo, who was responsible for the design and look of Calrissian's attire in Episode V.[208]
Actor and author comments[edit | edit source]
- "I pretty much took what they had and decided to create this character who was devoid of the whole racial, ethnic kind of a thing. I really wanted to create a guy that was far beyond that kind of thinking. I wanted to make a really kind of epic hero out of him. That's generally what I do with most characters I play. And of course, when I got the cape that really did it for me. That was like the key."
- ―Billy Dee Williams on portraying Lando Calrissian
According ABC news, Williams rose to screen prominence during the 1970s, and was well known for portraying Calrissian.[209] In July of 1980, shortly after the release of The Empire Strikes Back and the introduction of Lando Calrissian to the Star Wars saga, Billy Dee Williams was interviewed by Lois Armstrong for an article in People magazine. In the article, Armstrong commented on the fact that Calrissian was the first major black character to be introduced to the Star Wars universe, pointing out that earlier social critics had noted a lack of racial diversity in the saga. Armstrong also described Calrissian as "the swaggering, jive-talking, morally ambiguous leader of the Cloud City of Bespin." For his part, Williams refuted claims that the role was written with race in mind, stating that "The reason I was attracted to this role was because it wasn't written for a black person." This same sentiment, that the character of Calrissian was not intended to draw attention to race in the galaxy far, far away, was also echoed by Sidney Ganis, the vice-president of Lucasfilm at the time.[210]
In August 2001, in another interview conducted with Star Wars Insider, Williams discussed why he believed that the character of Lando Calrissian was so successful within the world of Star Wars. His reasoning was simple and to the point: he believed that Calrissian was a man who was devoid of the typical clichés associated with similar characters; that he was good because the fans did not really know which way he was originally going to go; that there was a little bit of uncertainty that surrounded Calrissian, the kind that one might attribute a villain, but that it was that ambiguity that made the whole character that much more interesting. Also, Williams commented, the successes that were experienced with Lando Calrissian were positive because he was a character that everyone could relate to, in one way or another. It was this intrepid character that Williams admitted allowed his acting career to really take off; Lando gave Williams a huge, otherwise untouched, fan base that he commented would never go away because he believes that the Star Wars films have a touch of immortality to them.[211]
On a trip to Australia to attend Star Wars-related conventions in 2007, Williams was interviewed by the Courier Mail. During the interview, the subject of Calrissian's betrayal of Han Solo was brought up, and Williams replied that Calrissian wasn't "a double crosser." Williams went on to say that he had had to make a similar defense of the character over the decades since The Empire Strikes Back was filmed, to the point where children would ask him why he betrayed Solo when Williams was picking up his daughter from elementary school. Another example Williams gave was having to justify Calrissian's life to an airplane stewardess. Defending Calrissian, Williams gave the explanation that "He had to figure out a way to hold on to what he had created for himself and at the same time prevent the complete demise of a friend." Williams also admitted that he was aware that Calrissian, and to some extent himself, was typecast as a "cool character," but that he was fine with that, saying "Obviously I think I have this persona, and the persona is based on character attributes or flaws, so I have to live with it."[212] Likewise, during an interview with Star Wars Insider, Williams recalled how casting wanted Calrissian's character to be a dashing, swashbuckling space entrepreneur, and how he now could understand why they chose him for the part — because he had all those qualities, thus allowing for a more convincing Lando to be played.[213] When interviewed for the documentary Empire of Dreams, Williams stated that "it's always interesting to create a character, that has two-you know, just sort of dual character. You know, you're not really sure about him, especially if he's cute, and I was really kind of cute" in reference to Calrissian.[214]
When interviewed by fansite Lightsabre.co.uk in 2007 about his experiences portraying Lando Calrissian in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Williams said that working on Star Wars was quite exciting. He also explained how he got the part: Williams was asked to do it, and Irvin Kershner, the director of The Empire Strikes Back, had come to his house to discuss the part, whereupon Williams agreed to take the role. Williams also said that had he had agreed to work on the films after being impressed with one of Lucas's earlier films, THX-1138. Williams denied any claims that Calrissian was written with him in mind, saying that he wanted to move beyond the idea of racial or ethnic thinking. In Williams's mind, Calrissian was an epic hero and had no concept of racial barriers, repeating his comments about the character not being drawn up with race in mind. He also particularly enjoyed the cape part of the costume that he wore as Calrissian.[215]
During the same interview, a mention was made of an alleged scene where Carrie Fisher, as Leia Organa, was supposed to have gotten annoyed at Lando and slapped him. Rumor had it that Fisher had forgotten to telegraph the slap and had actually hit Williams, but Williams had no recollection of the incident, saying that he couldn't remember being hit, but did recall constantly flirting with Fisher as part of his "very charming" character. Williams also said that he wished there had been more time to flesh out Calrissian's adventures in the movies, but recognized that the destiny of Luke Skywalker was the primary focus of the trilogy. However, he was also pleased with how the character of Calrissian had evolved to become a Rebel hero, and said, though he believed the possibility of playing Calrissian again to be highly unlikely, he would not rule out taking on the role again, were Calrissian being played as "an older gentleman who still 'has it', to some degree."[215]
Also in 2007, Williams was interviewed by Will Harris of Bullz-Eye.com regarding his role in the soap opera Night Shift. During the course of the interview, the topic of Lando Calrissian came up. Williams again reiterated his view that Calrissian was a character who was devoid of racial barriers, describing him as a "heroic character of the future." He also said that ethnicity, in his view, would not matter in the future and played Calrissian to reflect that viewpoint.[216]
In 2008, Williams reprised the role for an internet Star Wars political ad: "Vote for Lando Calrissian! w/ BILLY DEE WILLIAMS".[217] In the video, Calrissian encourages citizens to vote for him instead of Palpatine.[218] Though he has been an artist for years, Williams has also taken up commercial painting, and, with permission from Lucasfilm, pictures of Lando Calrissian in some form or fashion are part of his gallery of work.[219]
Another individual with significant influence on Calrissian is L. Neil Smith, the author of the The Lando Calrissian Adventures, one of the earliest Expanded Universe works written. In an interview with Lightsabre.co.uk, Smith stated that when writing the books, he found that seeing an image of Calrissian without his mustache helped him get the characterization of a young Lando Calrissian down better. Smith was drawn to the character because he was a "gambler and a wheeler-dealer", qualities which he had also admired in Han Solo, of whom he was also a fan. In his books, Smith sought to portray Calrissian as a younger gambler and con artist still learning his trade. Discussing the events on Bespin during The Empire Strikes Back, Smith also said that he thought Calrissian would not have viewed the situation as a predicament, but rather a "problem that could be solved by a sufficiently intelligent con-man."[220] In another interview, Smith explained that he was asked to write the books by Del Rey Books on behalf of Lucasfilm. He was ordered by his editors at Lucasfilm to keep his libertarian politics out of the trilogy, but ultimately "decided that I'd make the books as political as I could until the editors squeaked. That's why Lando is an anarchist and free trader."[221]
When asked about what he had in mind when writing Lando Calrissian, author Kevin J. Anderson stated that he viewed Calrissian as "a businessman with a bit of a shady past, trying to be reputable, but things don't always work out for him." Anderson, who was responsible for creating the relationship between Calrissian and Mara Jade, also said that he placed them together because they seemed to have much in common. At the time Anderson was writing his first books in The Jedi Academy Trilogy, the events of The Last Command had yet to play out, and the future of Luke Skywalker's and Mara Jade's relationship was uncertain.[222] Anderson later indicated in an interview with AlternativeNation.net that he was toying with the idea of killing off Lando, noting the character had run his course for Expanded Universe authors at the time.[223]
In popular culture[edit | edit source]
- "Star Wars is the greatest movie of all time. It's hard not to talk about Star Wars."
- ―Billy Dee Williams as "Pastor Dan" on That 70's Show
In Star Wars Insider 67 there is an article which deals with a large number of little-known facts, details, and other trivia-type information concerning the film Return of the Jedi. Among the numerous items listed and explained is a section which rates the "Nine Most Unforgettable Lines" from that movie; within the selected nine quotes was Lando Calrissian's quote of "We'll last longer than we would against that Death Star. And we might just take a few of them with us!" Within the same article there appears various trivia sections with a "did you know?" type of setup. One such piece of information revolved around the scene in Return of the Jedi where Calrissian is disguised as a guard in Jabba the Hutt's palace. During that scene, before he goes to move his mask away from his face, Calrissian bumps his head against the low ceiling while moving into the frame. Calrissian's third mention in the top 100 facts about Return of the Jedi is "Lando as General" which describes how Calrissian's character is still the suave businessman from Episode V, but how he now destroys Death Stars too. Noted as another informational piece was how Han Solo, Chewbacca, Luke Skywalker, and Calrissian were originally supposed to be sentenced to die in the "Sloth Pit" by Jabba the Hutt — this would, of course, be later renamed as the Great Pit of Carkoon. The final piece of trivia information presented revolves around the use of "film flipping," where frames would be flipped, either accidentally or on purpose, to show different angles. One such instance of this was with Lando's character on the Rebel star cruiser during the scene where the Rebel Alliance leadership was meeting to plan the attack on the second Death Star. Within this scene, Calrissian's bandoleer that he had on his shoulder can be seen jumping from left to right shoulder.[224]
Billy Dee Williams was cast to play the character of Pastor Dan in the television sitcom That 70's Show in the episode "Baby Don't You Do It," filmed in the early months of 2004. In this guest appearance, Williams's character provides pre-marital counseling to two other characters, Eric Forman and Donna Pinciotti. During the course of the counseling, Pastor Dan continually draws parallels between the troubles that Eric and Donna are having and with the original Star Wars film. Much to the angst of Donna, Pastor Dan and Eric begin to hit it off due to their common love of Star Wars and everything in it. One memorable part from the episode is when Pastor Dan tells the young couple how the challenges of faith are much like "[sic] Han Solo's faith in his sometimes unreliable Millennium Falcon."[225]
Featured in Star Wars Insider 85 is an article which delves into the history surrounding the numerous posters which were initially drawn and released for The Empire Strikes Back. One of the more famous posters, nicknamed "Gone With the Wind 'Style 'A'" was originally supposed to feature Lando Calrissian behind Luke Skywalker, but he was eventually taken out of that particular design. The removal of Calrissian's character from the image prompted Billy Dee Williams's agent to contact Lucasfilm Ltd. asking why that decision had been made. This inquiry accelerated the release of the third poster, which included Lando Calrissian, entitled "Style 'B'".[226]
Non-canon appearances[edit | edit source]
"In the Beginning"[edit | edit source]
- "Well, I guess I oughta get goin'…man's gotta know his limits…know when to quit…yessir, I reckon I met my match tonight…"
- ―Lando Calrissian, upon losing the Millennium Falcon
On a backwater world, Lando was playing sabacc when he was defeated by another human. Calrissian lost a significant sum of credits, but he also lost his ship, the Millennium Falcon. While Lando had cheated in the game, his opponent, Han Solo, had out-cheated him and when Calrissian attempted to challenge the integrity of his opponent, he was faced with a number of gun barrels from the other players. Unable to question the other player, he unhappily accepted the loss.[227]
Kessel Run[edit | edit source]
Calrissian, somewhat annoyed over the loss of his ship, nevertheless accompanied Solo to a nearby cantina, where he devised a scheme to recoup some of his losses from the rather inebriated Corellian and his partner. Calrissian and his friend Marshak informed Solo of the dangerous Kessel Run, a milestone accomplishment for a spacer, that involved circling thirteen planets to retrieve valuable Kessel birds while dodging unfriendly fauna and local patrols. Solo, his ego and piloting prowess challenged by Calrissian's insistence that the run was too dangerous, insisted on going. Calrissian and his comrades were able to convince Solo to buy a map that allegedly led to prearranged drop sites and avoided the space patrols so that Solo could finish the Kessel Run in a record number of parsecs. They also set up the drop sites with traders and trappers, each of whom traded the Kessel birds to Solo for a tidy sum. Solo took off and doggedly pursued his quest, not knowing that the entire thing was a scam. The supposedly rare Kessel birds were actually vermin and the money Solo paid out at each stop was divided between Calrissian and his friends.[228]
Tag and Bink[edit | edit source]
- Bink Otauna: “Lando Calrissian? How do you know him?”
- Tag Greenley: “He dated my sister.”
- Bink Otauna: “Ta-mara or De-hoff?”
- Tag Greenley: “Both.”
- Bink Otauna: “What a "Mac Daddy!" But I hardly think that's worth hiding us. He's dated a lot of sisters. What makes yours so special?
Tag Greenley: Let's just say he had a problem with double booking and I provided an alibi that he's been using to his advantage ever since.” - ―Tag and Bink discussing Lando Calrissian[src]
On one occasion in Calrissian's life before he became involved with the Rebellion, he was assisted by a Corellian named Tag Greenley, who provided him with an alibi that allowed him to escape a double booking. Calrissian also dated both of Greenley's sisters around the same time, and on one occasion, Greenley saved Calrissian by cooking up a story about the Battle of Taanab when one sister spotted Calrissian with another woman.[229]
Years later, Calrissian met up with Greenley and his companion, Bink Otauna, while serving as the Baron Administrator of Cloud City. Greenly and Otauna approached Cloud City with stolen Imperial property and appeared before Calrissian seeking refuge and repairs to their ship, as they had made an enemy of bounty hunter Boba Fett. However, Calrissian was quick to point out that Fett had already arrived on Cloud City and ordered the two to leave immediately. Greenley reminded Calrissian that the Baron Administrator owed him, from the fictitious Battle of Taanab, and Calrissian begrudgingly had their stolen Imperial shuttle moved to a maintenance hangar for repairs.[229]
However, while finding a place to remove the stormtrooper outfits they had been wearing, they were walked in on by C-3PO, a protocol droid who had earlier gotten them captured by the Empire. They blasted the droid, but Calrissian found out about the incident and was not pleased. In return for getting back on his good side, Calrissian told Otauna and Greenley to disguise themselves as stormtroopers again and shadow a princess and a Wookiee whom he claimed he might need for leverage in an Imperial deal rapidly turning sour. They were standing right behind the Wookiee in a carbon freezing chamber when the furry alien went wild and knocked them both out.[229]
After he joined the Rebel Alliance, Calrissian would later recruit Otauna and Greenley, who had escaped Cloud City and returned to the Rebel fleet, to help him get the jump on Boba Fett on Tatooine. While his two accomplices posed as stormtroopers, Calrissian attempted to search Slave I for the carbonite frozen Solo, but to no avail. However, Otauna and Greenley managed to get themselves caught by Fett before Calrissian could search the bounty hunter's craft. Instead, Calrissian decided to join Jabba's guard organization, leading to the skirmish at the pit of Carkoon.[230]
In an alternate version of the events surrounding Han Solo's rescue, Greenley and Otauna aided Calrissian in his attempt to search Fett's ship after interrupting his meeting with a Rebel spy in a cantina. They arrived in Fett's hangar to distract the bounty hunter while Calrissian planned on entering Fett's ship quietly. Though Fett tricked them into revealing themselves, Calrissian knocked Fett out, but Solo was not in Fett's ship. Instead, Calrissian infiltrated Jabba's guard organization, as did Greenley and Otauna. Calrissian nearly fell into the sarlacc, but was saved and went on to win the Battle of Endor.[231]
Skreej[edit | edit source]
- Tamtel Skreej: “Say, you remember me? I was in here last night talking to some guy and a girl.”
- Bartender: “Nope.”
- ―Skreej attempting to retrace his steps following a drunken night[src]
While on Tatooine working on a plan to rescue Han Solo, Calrissian snookered an applicant for skiff guard at Jabba's Palace, a man named Tamtel Skreej. After getting Skreej drunk at a cantina, Calrissian stole his clothes and identity, planning on sending Skreej to Cloud City. However, Skreej pursued Calrissian to Jabba's Palace and confronted Calrissian. Though the gambler tried to dissuade him, Skreej was relentless and attempted to expose Calrissian. Knowing that the rescue plan would be jeopardized by any alarm Skreej sounded, Calrissian shoved him into a chute marked "rancor chum."[232]
Father's Heir[edit | edit source]
In an alternate scenario of how the confrontation on the second Death Star between Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, and Emperor Palpatine might have played out, Calrissian, along with Han Solo, Leia Organa, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2 escaped Endor after Skywalker fell to the dark side. Palpatine pursued the Rebels to Cloud City, capturing and torturing them before shipping them to Coruscant for a final confrontation. The Emperor allowed the Rebels to have access to weapons in hopes of turning them against Skywalker, and possibly even bringing Organa over to the dark side. The Rebels were then forced to either slay their opponents or persuade Skywalker to return to the light or face destruction.[233]
Infinities[edit | edit source]
The Empire Strikes Back[edit | edit source]
- Han Solo: “We'll only stay long enough to get the Falcon fixed. Then we're gone. See…I'm going to train to be a Jedi Knight.”
- Lando Calrissian: “ You?! A Jedi? HA–HA!”
- ―Han Solo and Lando Calrissian, shortly after Solo and company arrive at Cloud City[src]
During the Galactic Civil War, Calrissian was the head of a mining colony known as Cloud City on Bespin when he was sought out by Han Solo, an old acquaintance of his, and Leia Organa, who were hoping to get his aid with repairs on Solo's ship, the Millennium Falcon. Both Solo and Organa were members of the Rebel Alliance, and Calrissian declared that he was happy to help, though he scoffed when he heard the idea that Han Solo was going to become a Jedi. However, while the Rebels were taken to their quarters, Calrissian met with another guest who had arrived just after Solo and Organa did, a bounty hunter named Boba Fett.[234]
Calrissian demanded to know the reason for Fett's arrival, and the bounty hunter replied that he was there to collect a bounty on Han Solo. Compelling the cooperation of Calrissian and his cyborg assistant, Lobot, at gunpoint, Fett demanded that he be taken to Solo. However, Calrissian and Lobot alerted the Wing Guard, Solo, and Chewbacca, who were able to defeat Fett in a brief melee. After Calrissian had the Millennium Falcon repaired, the Rebels left, leaving Fett in Calrissian's hand. Unwilling to kill the bounty hunter, Calrissian had him frozen in carbonite and used Fett as his desk. Unfortunately for Calrissian, the Empire, Fett's employer, soon arrived and began attacking Cloud City, on the basis that they were colluding with the Rebel Alliance. Calrissian ordered an evacuation of the city, but the Empire struck the mining station's repulsors, causing it to plummet into Bespin's atmosphere.[234]
Return of the Jedi[edit | edit source]
- "Well, if he's playing dead, it's the best acting job I've ever seen."
- ―Lando Calrissian, upon inspecting the corpse of Boba Fett
During the Galactic Civil War, Calrissian became part of the Rebel Alliance and joined up with Leia Organa and Chewbacca in an attempt to rescue Han Solo, who'd been frozen in carbonite and turned over to Jabba the Hutt, whom Solo owed money. Calrissian was posing as one of Jabba's guards in the Hutt crime lord's Tatooine palace when Organa and Chewbacca arrived, with the princess disguised as a bounty hunter bringing in Chewbacca for a bounty. However, when she revealed her true identity and armed a thermal detonator in order to extort Solo from Jabba, Boba Fett prepared to gun her down. Before Fett could do so, though, Calrissian intervened, shoving a Gamorrean guard into Fett's line of fire. In the ensuing chaos, Fett was able to escape with a carbonite-frozen Han Solo, but Organa, Calrissian, and Chewbacca were able to flee the palace before the thermal detonator, which Organa had dropped, exploded, consuming the palace, Jabba, and C-3PO, a protocol droid belonging to the Rebels. They seized Jabba's sail barge and departed to rendezvous with their Jedi friend, Luke Skywalker.[235]
After apprising Skywalker of what had transpired, Skywalker encouraged them to keep searching for Fett. Calrissian, Organa, and Chewbacca had little fortune until they met with one of Fett's contacts, Gre'ento, who, under duress, divulged the location of a meeting Fett would soon be making with the Empire on a remote arboreal world. Arriving at the meeting site, Calrissian and Chewbacca used the light freighter Millennium Falcon to blast the Imperial shuttle, while Organa dealt with Boba Fett with a sniper rifle. Their opponents dead or neutralized, they were able to retrieve Fett's ship, the Slave I, and the frozen Han Solo. The Rebels then returned to main Rebel Alliance fleet massing over Sullust in preparation for attacking a new Imperial superweapon, the second Death Star. However, a transmission from Skywalker revealed to Leia that she was his sister, and that he had been captured by the Empire. Organa did not take the news well and stole the Slave I for a brash rescue attempt to break Skywalker out of the second Death Star, where she believed he was being held. Calrissian had the Rebel fleet follow her, bringing Han Solo, still blinded from hibernation sickness, and Chewbacca with him in the Millennium Falcon. Arriving from hyperspace at the Death Star's location over Endor, Calrissian and his Rebel compatriots were dismayed to learn that they had flown directly into an Imperial trap; dozens of Imperial warships had been awaiting them.[235]
Calrissian attempted to keep holding off Imperial TIE fighters until a Rebel commando team was able to weaken a large planetary shield generator defending the superweapon. Once the shields were damaged, Calrissian flew the Millennium Falcon down to finish off the shield generator complex. A strafing run destroyed the generator, and Calrissian then flew the light freighter up to the Death Star, landing inside its hangar bay in time to rescue Organa, Skywalker, and a freshly redeemed Darth Vader. Meanwhile, Rebel fighters had initiated a chain reaction in the Death Star's reactor with proton torpedoes, and Calrissian brought the Millennium Falcon out of the Death Star just as the station exploded. Although the Emperor was able to escape, Calrissian and the Rebels, aided by a redeemed Anakin Skywalker, vowed to continue fighting against him.[235]
LEGO Star Wars[edit | edit source]
Calrissian's role in The Empire Strikes Back and the Return of the Jedi was shown in both LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy and LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga, although both completely omitted his near-death during the skirmish at the Pit of Carkoon.[236][237] Also, Calrissian was omitted from the short LEGO video LEGO Star Wars: The Han Solo Affair, which takes place at the same time as The Empire Strikes Back and is set on Bespin starting immediately after Han Solo is frozen in carbonite, though other characters from the original film such as Lobot, Chewbacca, Leia Organa, Boba Fett, and Darth Vader are featured.[238]
The Force Unleashed[edit | edit source]
In the Star Wars: The Force Unleashed video game, if SCOUNDREL is entered as a cheat code, players can play as Lando.[239]
Galactic Battlegrounds[edit | edit source]
Calrissian appears as a non-playable character as part of a Rebel Alliance force defending Bespin's Cloud City during an Imperial assault. A bonus mission for the Imperial campaign, it involves the player taking control of Bespin with Imperial forces and Calrissian is one of the opponents the player's forces may encounter.[143]
Star Wars Galaxies[edit | edit source]
In 2010, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back, a holoshroud-activated "costume" of Calrissian was made available to player of the online game Star Wars Galaxies, allowing player characters to masquerade as Calrissian.[240]
Appearances[edit | edit source]
Non-canon appearances[edit | edit source]
- LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
- LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
- Template:Tales
- LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
- Tag & Bink Are Dead
- Star Wars Infinities: The Empire Strikes Back
- Template:Tales
- Template:Tales
- Template:Tales
- Template:Tales (Mentioned only)
- Star Wars Infinities: Return of the Jedi
- Template:Tales
- The Return of Tag & Bink: Special Edition
- Template:Tales (Mentioned only)
- Star Wars: The Force Unleashed video game
- Choose Your Own Star Wars Adventure: The Empire Strikes Back
- Choose Your Own Star Wars Adventure: Return of the Jedi
Sources[edit | edit source]
The Official Star Wars Fact File[edit | edit source]
Notes and references[edit | edit source]
External links[edit | edit source]
Lando Calrissian on Wikipedia
Billy Dee Williams: The Life and Times of Lando Calrissian on Hyperspace (content removed from StarWars.com and unavailable)
Drawing LEGO Lando and Chewbacca on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link on Archive.org)
Lando Calrissian on the Official Star Wars Soundboards
This page was moved from wook:en:Lando Calrissian/Legends. It's edit history can be viewed at Lando Calrissian/Legends/edithistory
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