Tatooine/Legends

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"Well, if there's a bright center to the universe, you're on the planet that it's farthest from."
―Luke Skywalker, to C-3PO — (audio) Listen (file info)[10]

Tatooine (pronounced /tætu'in/; Jawaese: Tah doo Een e[11]) was a desert world and the first planet in the binary Tatoo star system. It was part of the Arkanis sector in the Outer Rim Territories. It was inhabited by poor locals who mostly farmed moisture for a living. Other activities included used equipment retailing and scrap dealing[12]. The planet was on the 5709-DC Shipping Lane, a spur of the Triellus Trade Route, which itself connected to the Sisar Run. The planet was not far from the Corellian Run. It had its own navigation system. The planet acquired a bad reputation, often being viewed as the cesspool of the galaxy due to the large number of criminals who could be found there. However, it would nevertheless play a role in major galactic events throughout the millennia, most notably being the homeworld of Anakin Skywalker. It was here that Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn recognized Anakin's potential to become a Jedi and where he introduced him to Obi-Wan Kenobi, his future master and mentor. Tatooine was also the home of Anakin's son, Luke, where he lived until his early adulthood.

Description

"What a desolate place this is."
―C-3PO[10]

Geology

Tatooine is thought to have been one of the oldest planets in known space and was composed of a molten core with a rocky mantle and silicate rock crust. Other notable geological features included the Dune Sea, an enormous sodium-rich desert; Mushroom Mesa, a vast formation of giant standing stones; and the Jundland Wastes, a rocky region. There was a settlers' saying that one's eyes burn out faster by staring straight and hard at sun-scorched flatlands than by looking directly at the suns.[13]

Climate

"There's nothing to see. I used to live here, you know."
―Luke Skywalker[14]
Tatooine's twin suns Tatoo I and Tatoo II setting over the sand dunes

Tatooine orbited two suns, Tatoo I and Tatoo II, and was covered in deserts and rock formations, so the days were extremely arid and bright, especially during double noon. In fact, it was so brightly lit by the suns that from space it could appear to be a star itself. This was the case for the people who discovered Tatooine as they first thought Tatooine was in fact a star until they approached and discovered that it was a desert planet. The planet circled the suns far enough to develop a stable, but very hot, climate.[13] Due to the extreme conditions, only a relatively mild region of its northern hemisphere was habitable, and less than 1% of the planet was covered in surface water. The average humidity level was 5.4%.[source?] One of the many extraordinary features unique to Tatooine was the mysterious mists, which rose regularly from the ground where desert sands met cliffs and mesas. Various theories of this moisture's origin were disputed by meteorologists and geologists, like water suspended in sandstone veins beneath the sand and complex chemical reactions which made it rise when the ground cooled, then fall underground again with the double sunrise.[13]

History

"Back on Tatooine—for such a desolate, backwater world, it has assumed a great deal of importance for the rest of the galaxy."
―Boba Fett[15]

Old Republic

Early years

Around 4000 BBY, Jedi Knight Sidrona Diath and his son Dace lived on the planet. Dace Diath spent the majority of his early life on Tatooine being taught his initial training by his father.[16]

Lost and found again

Czerka's mining involvement in the Anchorhead settlement proved fruitless, and the company began Czerka's Secret Weapons division on the planet, due to no restrictions from the Republic. Sometime between Revan's visit and 3643 BBY, Czerka completely pulled out of Anchorhead, abandoning the Secret Weapons complex. Unlike the corporations before Czerka, Czerka's presence was replaced with a vacuum for a long time, this left the planet to plunge into complete anarchy. Authority on the world had an extreme informal control by disorganized criminals, but they were later united by a group of dissidents, who called themselves the Hutt Cartel. The Republic had yet again began to use the planet for a supply stop. During the Cold War, the Sith Empire also set up a small outpost near Anchorhead in an effort to discover the secrets of the Czerka Secret Weapons division. Some time after the trio of wars had ended, the Republic left the planet for a third time and it was forgotten until the Republic rediscovered it in 1100 BBY. However, the Republic had withdrawn from Tatooine for a fourth time, but this led to an increase of immigrated inhabitants. Sometime later Gardulla established her empire on Tatooine and based herself in her palace.[source?]

The B'omarr Order built a monastery on the planet in 700 BBY which the bandit Alkhara, who worked for the Bureau of Ethnicity and Socialization, used as a hideout in 550 BBY. Shortly thereafter, in 516 BBY, the notorious Jabba the Hutt chased Alkhara out of his citadel of operations and claimed the B'omarr Monastery for his personal palace and made it the center of his empire.[source?]

A map of Tatooine

In 100 BBY, the Dowager Queen crashed on the planet at the site where Mos Eisley was later built. The crash survivors were Humans from Bestine IV, who established Bestine, the capital of Tatooine, and made first contact with the Jawas. Shortly thereafter, colonists founded Fort Tusken, which was wiped out by Sand People five years after its establishment. From that point on the Humans and other species referred to the Sand People as the "Tusken Raiders." Anchorhead was then re-inhabited in 93 BBY. Mos Eisley was settled by Humans and Rodians in 85 BBY and Mos Espa was settled in 80 BBY.[source?]

The Corellia Mining Corporation brought many digger crawlers to the planet, but abandoned it, as did the Republic for all intents and purposes, in 70 BBY, when the orbital station Tatoo III crashed, revealing the unstable nature of the local ores from which it had been constructed. The abandoned crawlers radically changed Jawa civilization, serving as mobile fortresses for Jawa tribes searching the deserts for materials to scavenge.[source?]

Although the planet was thereafter considered technically part of the Republic's Arkanis sector, the Hutts became its de facto rulers when they arrived in 65 BBY using the planet as an important transfer point between the Triellus and the Corellian Run.[source?]

In 60 BBY, Merl Tosche established Tosche Station on the outskirts of Anchorhead. Rival Hutt kajidics vied for control of the planet, notably Besadii (represented by Gardulla Besadii the Elder) and Desilijic (represented by Jabba the Hutt).[source?]

Rise of the Empire

In 19 BBY, following Order 66 and the Great Jedi Purge, Obi-Wan Kenobi went into hiding on Tatooine, finding an abandoned hut and keeping a close eye on the young Luke Skywalker. Kenobi entrusted Luke to Shmi's stepson, Owen Lars, and his wife Beru Lars, who continued to live in their homestead.[17]

Galactic Empire

"I doubt the Empire would ever fight to keep this system."
―Biggs Darklighter[13]
A typical meal for a family of moisture farmers

At the time of the early Galactic Empire, the planet's population was estimated to be roughly 200,000, excluding the inhabitants of the indigenous tribes. Jabba's Empire resumed its alliance with the larger galaxy via the Galactic Empire.[18] In 18 BBY the Empire stationed several battalions of stormtroopers on the world to be picked up by the Eye of Palpatine, which never arrived.[19] In 11 BBY the Empire established a small garrison in Mos Eisley, although the troops stationed there paid little heed to the crime infesting the spaceport.

Shortly before the destruction of Alderaan, the Star Destroyer Devastator captured Princess Leia Organa aboard the Tantive IV above Tatooine. This began the First Extermination of the Battle of Tatooine. Leia had been trying to contact Kenobi, to ask him to help the Rebel Alliance resolve the crisis of the Death Star, as she had been instructed by her foster father Bail Prestor Organa, a former compatriot of Kenobi. Leia did not realize the secret Bail and Obi-Wan shared: she was Anakin Skywalker's daughter. As stormtroopers boarded the corvette, she gave the recently received plans for the Death Star to R2-D2, who escaped to the surface of Tatooine with counterpart C-3PO. Moments later, Darth Vader had Leia captured alive, not knowing she was his daughter.[20]

Vader, the former Anakin Skywalker, had Commander Nahdonnis Praji's stormtroopers, under the command of Brenn Tantor and Grand General Malcor Brashin, scour the planet for the droids,[21] ignoring the protests of local Governor Tour Aryon.[13] The droids were captured by Jawas and purchased by Owen Lars, but R2-D2 ran away seeking Obi-Wan Kenobi. Luke Skywalker and C-3PO gave chase. They were attacked by Tuskens, but rescued by Kenobi, who emulated the sound of Tatooine's vicious monsters, the Krayt Dragon. The Tuskens were scared off but would soon return in greater numbers. Obi-Wan began to teach Luke about the Jedi, although hiding the truth about his father, making him think that Anakin Skywalker had been murdered by Darth Vader. He gave Luke a lightsaber that had belonged to Anakin.[20]

Mos Eisley, a spaceport town

Meanwhile, the Imperial search party, following the droids' trail, had slaughtered the Tuskens who had attacked Luke and used their banthas to disguise their tracks as those of a Tusken raiding party. They attacked the sandcrawler which had carried R2-D2 and C-3PO, interrogating and killing the Jawas. They proceeded to the Lars homestead, where they interrogated and ruthlessly murdered both Owen and Beru, as well as badly damaging their homestead.[20]The Imperials also ran into a local Rebel cell in the Dune Sea, beginning a brutal skirmish, with the Empire triumphing. The Imperials blockaded Tatooine to prevent the droids from escaping, and began a thorough search of Mos Eisley. This led into a second skirmish with some of the inhabitants.[22]

In Mos Eisley, Kenobi and Luke hired Han Solo and Chewbacca to take them to Alderaan with the droids. Solo's Millennium Falcon fled Mos Eisley and broke the Imperial blockade, a jump that would change the galaxy forever.[20]

File:Womp Rat Spawn GH.png
A pack of womp rats on the outskirts of one of Tatooine's cities

Either in conjunction with the above events or shortly afterward, two Rebel X-wings piloted by Rookie One and Ru Murleen took out a portion of the AT-ST garrison stationed in Mos Eisley. Turning their sights skyward, the pair then led an only partially successful attack on the Star Destroyer Devastator still in orbit around the planet. Though the Devastator was heavily damaged, both Rebel pilots abandoned their target in order to pull back to the Rebel base on Yavin 4 in time for the Battle of Yavin.[23]

Following this disaster, the Empire increased its presence on Tatooine. At some point in 0 ABY, Luke returned to Tatooine, this time to recruit some CR90 corvette pilots to aid the Rebels in their evacuation from Yavin 4.[24]

Six months after the Battle of Yavin, a bounty hunter provided information to the Empire that led them to launch a raid against Mos Eisley.[25] Luke Skywalker and Rogue Squadron were flying near Beggar's Canyon at the time and intervened.[26]

By 1 ABY, Tatooine, along with the rest of the system, was put under Imperial curfew by a Moff. On receiving the message Ackmena, the bartender of Mos Eisley Cantina, reluctantly responded by singing "Goodnight, But Not Goodbye" at closing time every night to tell the customers it was time to leave before the curfew started.[27] In addition, the Empire introduced Bledsoe's disease to Tatooine. However, Luke Skywalker, now a Jedi in training and member of the Rebel Alliance, returned to the planet and destroyed the Imperial garrison after kidnapping Dr. Bledsoe himself, from whom Luke acquired the antidote to the disease.[28]

Some time between 0 ABY and 4 ABY, C-3PO and R2-D2 returned to Tatooine with a Rebel agent and Holocam E to destroy a hidden assassin droid factory of the Empire by infiltrating a Jawa Sandcrawler. They succeeded in turning all the Imperial IG-model Assassin Droids into harmless dancing droids.[29]

Mos Eisley celebrates what they thought was the end of the Galactic Civil War.

In 3 ABY, Boba Fett brought Han Solo, frozen in carbonite, to Jabba's Palace, and collected his bounty. A year later, Luke returned to Tatooine to rescue Han. Before undertaking the endeavor, he built a new lightsaber, the one Kenobi gave him having been lost on Bespin. Luke, Leia, Lando Calrissian, Chewbacca and the droids infiltrated Jabba's Palace and freed Han Solo from the carbonite, but the Skywalker siblings and Han were captured. Jabba tried to feed Luke and Han to the Sarlacc at the Great Pit of Carkoon, but they turned the tables on him. Han accidentally sent Boba Fett into the Pit and Leia strangled Jabba to death with a chain, as Luke battled the Hutt's many guards with his new lightsaber, thereby fragmenting Jabba the Hutt's empire. After having successfully destroyed Jabba's barge, Luke and his friends left for their rendezvous with the Rebel Alliance.[30] Boba Fett, however, didn't remain in the Sarlacc for long and eventually escaped and was healed by Dengar.[31]

Afterwards Tatooine was quick to join the Alliance of Free Planets and subsequently the New Republic.

New Republic

"Tatooine is a nasty, useless little planet. The only noteworthy things about it are Jabba, and the pilots it produces year after year."
―Kardue'sai'Malloc[src]
Tatooine

After the Battle of Endor, the demise of Jabba's Empire caused the rival gangs of Tatooine to wage a bloody conflict with each other in every community of Tatooine for many months. Well over a year later, the Criminal Empire was resurrected by Jabba's father and subsequently his nephew. Thus the local feud had ended and Gorga had expanded the empire greater than Jabba himself, due to his affiliation of the main criminal body and based the criminal empire in his own palace.

Also after the Battle of Endor, Emperor Sate Pestage built a redoubt on Tatooine called Eidolon Base, although he never used it. Eidolon Base was later discovered by the New Republic's Rogue Squadron. Commander Wedge Antilles gave Elscol Loro many of the weapons stored in Eidolon Base. Elscol left Rogue Squadron and used the weapons to create an independent guerrilla movement which liberated worlds from the Galactic Empire.[32] Rogue Squadron also returned to Tatooine to purchase weapons from Gavin Darklighter's uncle (Huff Darklighter) during the Bacta War, when Rogue Squadron was working independent of the New Republic.[33]

The Millennium Falcon departs Tatooine

As the homeworld of Luke Skywalker, Tatooine became something of a tourist trap as a member of the New Republic.

In 8 ABY, following her marriage to Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo traveled to Tatooine to retrieve the Alderaanian moss-painting Killik Twilight and the Shadowcast key hidden within it. There, she discovered her grandmother Shmi's diary and, with the help of her father's childhood friends Kitster Chanchani Banai and W. Wald, discovered her father wasn't the evil monster she thought he was and learned to forgive him.[7]

In 12 ABY, the Eye of Palpatine stopped at the planet and, failing to find the stormtroopers it was looking for, took onboard a number of Tusken Raiders and Jawas whom it tried (with no success) to brainwash into being Imperials.[19] That same year, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo searched Jabba's palace, and discovered that the Hutts were planning to build a superweapon.[34]

In 14 ABY Jaden Korr arrived on Tatooine and his first mission was to investigate some mercenary activity. Arriving in Mos Eisley, the Raven's Claw and the Millennium Falcon were trapped by tractor beams under the control of the cultists. Jaden released the ships with the help of Chewbacca.[35]

Tatooine and two of its three moons

Jaden Korr's second mission to Tatooine for the New Jedi Order was to visit the planet once more while investigating a mysterious Sith Cult known as the Disciples of Ragnos. Jaden visited the dunes when a moisture farmer overheard a group of smugglers talking about a Sith cult in a bar and had his R5 droid record the conversation. Unfortunately, he became afraid and sold the droid to some Jawas before leaving Tatooine. Jaden went for the droid who was held captive by a group of Tusken Raiders in a Sandcrawler. He broke in, slew them all with his lightsaber and Force powers, got out the shoot with the droid before the Jawas assisted him by wiping its memory and returned to the Academy.[35]

In 22 ABY, Jedi trainees Anakin Solo and Tahiri Veila traveled to the planet after Tahiri's foster Tusken Raider father Sliven demanded that she return. All her life, she had been raised by a Tusken tribe without knowing her true parents. That day had come but first she had to prove that she was worthy of knowing.[36]

She and Anakin would use the Force as they never had which included fighting a deadly krayt dragon and surviving the harsh Dune Sea. In the end, both Jedi prevailed and Tahiri learned that her parents were Tryst and Cassa Veila and that they had accidentally been killed during a Tusken raid on their moisture farm. Following that, the duo returned to Yavin IV and freed the trapped Massassi souls within the Golden Globe.[36]

During the time of the New Republic, Tatooine experienced a cycle of harsh sandstorms that damaged and destroyed several Human settlements.

Inhabitants

Han Solo and Chewbacca seek shelter during one of Tatooine's sandstorms.
"Be careful, Ion, the Hutts are the only law that matters on Tatooine."
―Baron Papanoida to his son[src]

The inhabitants of Tatooine included many different species from many parts of the galaxy, as can be seen in the multiple bars and cantinas in the cities. Most creatures on the planet loved to gamble on nearly everything, especially podracing, though the sport declined after the rise of the Empire. This may attest to the fact that the planet has long been controlled by the Hutts. Human natives of the planet often had unusual sounding last names, such as Fardreamer, Sandskimmer, Darklighter, and Skywalker.

Behind the scenes

Tatooine is frequently misspelled as "Tattoine" in some sources. This should be interpreted as a typing error.

The planet is not actually named in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope; Lucas had called it Utapau in all but the first draft of the script, then renamed it in the fourth after the movie's desert location, Tataouine (French spelling) in Tunisia (see also Tunisia for other Tunisian-inspired names).[37]

On September 15, 2011, a planet (actually a Saturn-like gas giant) in the real universe was discovered with two suns. The official name is Kepler-16b, but many call it the real Tatooine. (Even NASA is calling it a "Tatooine-like" planet.) A Lucasfilm employee was present at NASA's news conference. Kepler-16b is 200 light years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus (the swan). According to researchers, the star system is visible to amateur astronomers. The planet was discovered a day before the release of the Star Wars Blu-rays in North America.

As of 11 January 2012, two more gas giants that orbit two suns each have been found. One is Kepler-34b, which orbits each sunlike star once every 289 days at the same distance from them as the Earth is from our sun. Kepler-34b is located 4900 light years away from Earth. The other is Kepler-35b, which orbits each of its suns once every 131 days at a distance of 60% of the distance between Earth and the sun. Kepler-35b's suns are smaller than our sun and are located 5400 light years from Earth.

Some critics have seen Lucas's use of a desert planet as excessively derivative of Frank Herbert's Arrakis in the Dune series of novels.[source?] Tatooine could also be taken as a derivative of the planet Mongo of Flash Gordon, which is presented as a desert planet in some media. This is strongly supported by the presence of the starport Gordon on the planet Aquilae in the rough draft, the same planet which was later named Utapau in the second draft, where Gordon is briefly mentioned. Utapau, as noted above, was renamed Tatooine.[37] Additionally, Kenner attempted to create a Mongo Beefhead Tribesman action figure for The Epic Continues, further strengthening the Mongo/Flash Gordon connection; however, the 1986 toy line was canceled before making it to production.[38]

In the Star Wars universe, planet names ending in "-ooine" are quite common; examples include Minntooine, Dantooine, Kinooine, Klatooine and Vactooine. This is similar to the "-stan" suffix of many nations in Asia.

In the 1998 video game Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, various famous locations on Tatooine — such as Beggar's Canyon, Jabba's Palace, the Sarlacc Pit, Mos Eisley, and Artoo and Threepio's escape pod, as well as several moisture farms — are all shown as being fairly close to each other, when in actuality they are vastly spread out over the planet's surface. Additionally, Tatooine serves as a location for a Versus Mode match in Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike.

The real-world filming locations for Tatooine are in Tunisia, Death Valley in California, and the Yuma Desert in Arizona.

The PC game Star Wars: Rebellion mistakenly places Tatooine in the Orus sector, which is actually a sector located in the Inner Rim.

Appearances

Non-canon appearances

File:TatooineFlag.png
Flag of Tatooine

Sources

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Star Wars: Complete Locations
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 2.28 2.29 2.30 The Essential Atlas
  3. ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 Star Wars: Empire at War: Prima Official Game Guide
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley, p. 4
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Star Wars Roleplaying Game Saga Edition Core Rulebook, p. 236
  6. ↑ The Illustrated Star Wars Universe
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Tatooine Ghost
  8. ↑ The Essential Guide to Planets and Moons
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 Secrets of Tatooine
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope
  11. ↑ Star Wars: Republic: Outlander
  12. ↑ Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon 1
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope novelization
  14. ↑ Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi
  15. ↑ Hard Merchandise
  16. ↑ Tales of the Jedi Companion
  17. ↑ Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith
  18. ↑ Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Children of the Jedi
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope
  21. ↑ Star Wars: Force Commander
  22. ↑ Star Wars: Battlefront
  23. ↑ Star Wars: Rebel Assault
  24. ↑ Star Wars (1977) 31
  25. ↑ Star Wars: Rogue Squadron: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide
  26. ↑ Star Wars: Rogue Squadron
  27. ↑ The Star Wars Holiday Special
  28. ↑ Tatooine Sojourn
  29. ↑ Star Wars: DroidWorks
  30. ↑ Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi
  31. ↑ The Mandalorian Armor
  32. ↑ Star Wars: X-Wing Rogue Squadron: Battleground: Tatooine
  33. ↑ X-Wing: The Bacta War
  34. ↑ Darksaber
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 Junior Jedi Knights: Promises
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film
  38. ↑ "Galactic Bazaar: Tales of Phantom Toys" – Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 2

External links

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