Rogue One - A Star Wars Story Special Edition Magazine

BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE MOVIE E VENT OF 2016

SPECIAL EDITION C O N C E P T

A RT

P H O T O S

P R O F I L E S

Contents

CONTENTS 06 / The Troops 14 / Profile - Jyn Erso 18 / The Rebel Arsenal 34 / Profile - K-2SO 29 / The Death Star 36 / Profile - Orson Krennic 42 / Imperial Machine 48 / Profile - Darth Vader 53 / Concept Art 61 / The Death Quiz 64 / McQuarrie’s Death Star 69 / 50 Things to Notice in The Force Awakens

INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW

THE MAKING OF ROGUE ONE


the troops

THE TROOPS A FIELD GUIDE Meet the troopers—some new, and some more familiar—as we take a look at the rebels’ worst nightmares.

6 | ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY | 7

INTERVIEW THE MAKING OF ROGUE ONE

INTERVIEW THE MAKING OF ROGUE ONE

STORMTROOPER The most well-known and easily identifiable of the Empire’s elite soldiers, Imperial stormtroopers are the cold enforcers of the Emperor’s dark will. Brandishing powerful blasters, these servants of the Empire are as merciless as they are loyal.

SHORETROOPER Patroling the luxurious world of Scarif, the shoretroopers are specialist elite stormtroopers. Owing to the highly specific nature of the postings, they are a rare sight in the galaxy. They operate at an effective sergeant rank, which means they are able to command stormtrooper squads.



INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW



IMPERIAL COMBAT DRIVER Trained to pilot the Empire’s ground assault vehicles (GAVs), these combat pilots are lightly armored, relying on their heavily armored vehicles to bear the brunt of any attack.

DEATH TROOPER Imperial death troopers are specially chosen to protect vital operations and operatives. Wearing armor formed from plastoid coated in reflec, these troopers are very hard to detect, making them effective when on stealth missions.



INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW



IMPERIAL ROYAL GUARD Elite soldiers assigned to protect the Emperor, the Imperial Royal Guards are highlytrained soldiers armed with force pikes, a type of melee weapon with a vibro-edged head.

TIE FIGHTER PILOT Elite warriors of the skies, TIE fighter pilots undergo rigorous training in order to earn their place in the Imperial navy.



JYN ERSO

JYN ERSO

“THIS IS OUR CHANCE TO MAKE A REAL DIFFERENCE.”


Felicity jones is

JYN ERSO REBEL WITH A CAUSE? A rogue and a rebel who might just become a hero, Jyn Erso is enlisted to take part in a seemingly impossible mission.

yn Erso was born to Galen and Lyra Erso on the planet Vallt during the Clone Wars, one of the most tumultuous periods in galactic history. Jyn Erso’s turbulent start in life offered a taste of what was to come. Trapped behind enemy lines on Vallt and held captive by Separatist forces, young Jyn and her parents were liberated by Galen’s old friend, Orson Krennic, who enlisted Galen to work on a mysterious top secret Imperial project on Coruscant. However, Krennic’s kindness was a deception; in reality he was harvesting Galen’s genius to create a devastating superweapon, that the Empire planned to use to hold insurgent forces in line with almost unimaginable brutality. When Galen learned the true nature of the project he


was working on, he took Lyra and Jyn and fled the Imperial capital, aided by rebel firebrand, Saw Gerrera. The family established a new life in hiding on the rural Outer Rim world Lah’mu, eking out a humble existence among fewer

“ May the Force be with us. ” than 500 settlers who populated the planet. Despite the world providing an effective hiding place for those looking to avoid the watchful gaze of the Imperial machine, the Erso family were eventually tracked down by Krennic and his squad of Imperial

death troopers. Lyra, Jyn’s moral compass as she was growing up, was killed, and Galen was taken into captivity, but Jyn managed to escape before being taken off-world by Gerrera, who spirited her away and raised her to be a soldier. Between the ages of eight and sixteen Erso became a fighter with Saw’s militia, as well as a smuggler and petty criminal, adopting a variety of aliases over the years, including Tanith Ponta, Liana Hallik, and Kestrel Dawn. Her training and experience led to her becoming proficient in hand-to-hand combat as well as skilled at improvising with whatever weaponary came to hand, though she favored dual truncheons as her weapons of choice. After the group suffered a crippling defeat, she was


JYN ERSO

JYN ERSO


“THIS IS OUR CHANCE TO MAKE A REAL DIFFERENCE.” 2/

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abandoned by Gerrera. The sudden trauma of losing her mentor left Erso unable to trust others and, not for the first time in her life, she was left alone and isolated. On her own and without the sense of direction that Saw Gerrera was able to provide, she was captured on Corulag, arrested under the alias Liana Hallick and sentenced to a labor camp on Wobani. It was only the intervention of the rebel Specforce team, commanded by Sergeant Ruescott Melshi, that led to her liberation. Little did she know she


was about to be plunged into greater danger than she bargained for. Enlisted by rebel leaders Mon Mothma and General Davits Draven, she becomes involved in a daring mission to steal the data tapes that hold the schematics of the Empire’s Death Star, the exacting and horrific planetdestroying weapon that Jyn’s father helped create. With the vital information contained on those tapes, the rebels just might turn the tide of the Imperial’s march to galactic dominance... or die trying.

1 / Sergeant Jyn Erso and Captain Cassian Andor pose as pilgrims in the Holy City of Jedha. 2 / Jyn Erso sneaking into position on Eadu. 3 / Jyn Erso in the heat of battle. 4 / Preparing for combat against the forces of Director Krennic. 5 / Rescued by the Rebel Alliance, Jyn embarks on a deadly mission.


THE REBEL ARSENAL

FEATURE

SHIPS OF THE ALLIANCE

THE STORY SO FAR...

machines

THE REBEL ARSENAL The Rebel Alliance are the underdogs in the fight against galalctic oppression, but these ships might just help to even the score a little...



THE REBEL ARSENAL

FEATURE

SHIPS OF THE ALLIANCE

THE STORY SO FAR...

T-65 X-WING The most well-known starfighter in the rebel fleet, Incom’s X-wing is perhaps the ultimate ship of its kind: Not only is it fast, maneuverable, well-armed and wellshielded, it is capable of hyperspace flight.

BTL Y-WING Dating back to the Clone Wars, the Y-wing serves as an assault fighter and bomber. The model used by the Alliance to restore the Republic, stripped off the original hull plating and engine nacelles of the earlier models for ease of maintenance.



THE REBEL ARSENAL SHIPS OF THE ALLIANCE

FEATURE THE STORY SO FAR...

U-WING A troop transport and gunship, the U-wing starfighter is a swing-wing vessel capable of penetrating heavy fire zones, to deploy soldiers onto battlefields before providing crucial air support. Wellshielded, the U-wing is not as nimble as a regular starfighter.



K-2SO

“YOU ARE BEING RESCUED. PLEASE DO NOT RESIST.”

K-2SO


ALAN TUDYK IS

K-2SO

AN IMPERIAL ALLY A droid who should be an enemy of the rebels, K-2SO is actually one of its most important assets: a reprogrammed spy on the side of the Alliance.

P

ersonally reprogrammed by Captain Cassian Andor, K-2SO is an Imperial combat droid who now fights alongside the Alliance to restore the Rebublic. He is perhaps the only KX-series droid to have been successfully reprogrammed. Originally created, like all the KX series, by Arakyd Industries, K-2SO was ostensibly designed as a security droid. However, the KX droids’ programming secretly included exceptions to the standard in-built droid rules about not harming flesh-and-blood creatures, as well as commandsto defer to Imperial officers, with the result that they were deployed on the battlefield against the rebels. Although programmed to interact with organic beings, the KX-series


droids are not as well-versed as protocol droids at the intricacies of human-cyborg relations. Cassian was able to strip out the majority of the Arakyd programming, with the unintended consequence that

“

There is a 97.6 percent chance of failure.

” K-2SO is now often brutally honest in his assessments. Humanoid in appearance— albeit in exagerated preportions— the 12-year-old droid K-2SO was designed to be multifunctional,

with the ability to operate a range of machinery and equipment. This, in combination with programming that allows him to pilot multiple Imperial vessels, and his innate speed and strength, has made him an invaluable resource on many missions with Cassian Andor. Although he is a crucial tool in the battle against his former Imperial commanders, he isn’t quite trusted enough to be allowed to brandish a blaster. Despite the fear of combat droids following the Clone Wars, K-2SO is the ideal spy, blending in Imperial territory while reporting back to his rebel masters. A key member of the rebel strike team sent to retrieve the Death Star datatapes, K-2SO is a valuable ally.


K-2SO


K-2SO

“YOU ARE BEING RESCUED. PLEASE DO NOT RESIST.” 3/

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1 / Captain Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso, and K-2SO. 2 / Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso, and K-2SO infiltrate the Imperial base on Scarif. 3 / K-2SO on Jedha. 4 / The Imperial droid confers with Jyn Erso. 5 / Cassian Andor and the droid he reprogrammed.


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THE DEATH STAR

CONSTRUCTING A TECHNOLOGICAL TERROR

PLANET KILLER

T H E D E AT H S TA R Constructing a technological terror...


THE DEATH STAR


THE DEATH STAR


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“

We need to capture the Death Star plans if there is any hope of destroying it.

”

Jyn Erso

T

he Empire rules by fear and intimidation, whether it’s the shock attack of a unit of stormtroopers, the relentless march of a squadron of Imperial walkers, or the looming threat of a Star Destroyer in orbit above a planet. Yet while those measures can prove devastating on individual worlds, nothing before or since has spread interstellar terror like the Death Star. A mobile battle station with hyperdrive capabilities, the Death Star is the size of a small moon and has the power to destroy an entire planet with a single shot of its superlaser, regardless of planetary defenses. It also houses many squadrons of TIE fighters, and hundreds of thousands of Imperial military personnel. The earliest plans for the Death Star were conceived by the weaponsmiths of Geonosis at the outset of the Clone Wars. Then referred to simply as “the ultimate weapon,” the design was commissioned by the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus, who was known publicly as Count Dooku. Acting on behalf of his master, Darth Sidious, Dooku headed the Confederacy of Independent


Systems, a puppet movement of separatists in conflict with the Republic, set up to secretly advance the cause of the Sith. In his public capacity as Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, Sidious was in charge of the Republic, meaning that he was actually pulling the strings of both sides from behind the scenes. When Geonosis was invaded by the Republic’s army of clone troopers (on a mission to rescue a team of Jedi Knights), Geonosian leader Poggle the Lesser turned over the plans for the Death Star to Dooku, little suspecting that he was secretly a Sith Lord. Construction of the Ultimate Weapon began in orbit of Geonosis soon after, and kyber crystals were gathered from far and wide to power its devastating superlaser. Work on the battlestation was well underway by the end of the Clone Wars, when Sidious disposed of his Confederacy underlings, including Dooku, and took on a new apprentice, Darth Vader, formerly the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker. As Palpatine, Sidious declared himself Emperor of a new Galactic Empire, and took over

the development of the Ultimate Weapon. He appointed Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin to supervise construction—with the help of Rear Admiral Tiaan Jerjerrod—and assigned Director Orson Krennic to oversee security for the project. Everything about the Death Star was kept top secret, with access to Geonosis severely restricted and the construction site guarded by several Star Destroyers and other Imperial ships. The sheer scale of the project required a great deal of labor, much of it forced. Enslaved Wookiees and other species carried out much of the legwork, while Krennic enlisted scientists such as his old friend Galen Erso to apply their genius intellects to the technical challenges. Having been misled by Krennic, when Erso discovered what he was really working on, he fled Coruscant with his family, but was eventually captured. Erso’s decision to flee was not the only incident to dog the smooth development of the Death Star. Sentinel Base, a support facility on a nearby moon, was attacked by a group of former Republic Intelligence operatives

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THE DEATH STAR



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acting under the orders of the Empire’s own Vice Admiral Rancit. The admiral intended to betray his underlings to secure a promotion from the Emperor, but his plot was uncovered and he and his co-conspirators were captured, tortured, and eventually killed. In another incident, a small band of rebels based on the planet Lothal managed to destroy a single, massive kyber crystal that was en route to the Death


THE DEATH STAR

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Star to power its superlaser, delaying its completion. After these setbacks, the Emperor decided to move the almost-completed Death Star from Geonosis to the planet Scarif. He also went so far as to have the entire population of Geonosis wiped out in order to ensure the continued confidentiality of the project. This monstrous act did not succeed in keeping the Death Star

entirely secret, however, and when the battlestation was finally complete, Galen Erso managed to send a coded transmission to the Alliance to Restore the Republic, telling them that a major Imperial weapons test was soon to take place. This led to the Alliance moving against the Empire with a plan to steal the schematics for the mysterious weapon, in the desperate hope they might discover some weakness…

Previous spread: 1 / The Death Star orbits Jedha. 2 / The ominous outline of the Death Star over Scarif. 3 / The rebels survey their target. This spread: 4 / The superlaser dish is fitted to the battle station. 5 / Death Squad commanders on board.


THE DEATH STAR CONSTRUCTING A TECHNOLOGICAL TERROR


ORSON KRENNIC

ORSON KRENNIC

“THE POWER WE ARE DEALING WITH HERE IS IMMEASURABLE.”


Ben Mendelsohn is

ORSON KRENNIC THE DIRECTOR

Ambitious and driven, Orson Krennic’s career, reputation, and maybe even his life depend on the completion of the Empire’s much-delayed superweapon, the Death Star.

B

orn in the Sativran City on the planet Lexrul, Orson Callan Krennic is an Imperial officer determined to deliver the ultimate weapon to Emperor Palpatine and win the respect and admiration of his equally ambitious peers. Highly intelligent but very cruel, Krennic has spent years driven by the desire to realize the Death Star—a project begun decades ago by the Separatists (under the direction of Senator Palpatine) before being adopted by the Empire. To that end, he has assembled a team of unwilling but coerced scientists on Eadu (led by his former friend Galen Erso), and set them the task of harnessing the awesome power of kyber crystals. Krennic’s road to the upper echelons of the Empire began


when he studied architecture in the Futures program on the planet Brentaal. It was there that he first met Galen Erso, and where his gift for manipulating others became evident. He went on to work in the design regiment of the Corps

“

We’re on the verge of greatness.

” of Engineers, before supervising construction of government headquarters and military facilities on Coruscant during the Clone Wars. Upon joining the Republic’s Strategic Advisory Cell as part of the Special Weapons Group,

he began to research and test weapons for the Grand Army of the Republic and the Republic Navy. When the Republic became the Empire, Krennic became Director of the Empire’s Advanced Weapons Research division. An outsider among the high-born Imperials of Coruscant society, Krennic is not given to rhetoric and debate, and his highly volatile temper often gets the better of him. This causes great concern among his fellow officers and superiors such as Grand Moff Tarkin. Armed with a non-regulation DT-29 heavy blaster pistol with a custom-fitted macroscope, the Director is not a man to be crossed, and the cold steel of his designs for the Empire very much reflect the man himself.


ORSON KRENNIC

ORSON KRENNIC



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1 / Director Orson Krennic. 2 / Imperial officers gather to witness the might of the Empire’s superweapon. 3 / Director Krennic in a pensive mood. 4 / A moment of contemplation as Orson Krennic considers his destiny. 3/


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FEATURE

THE IMPERIAL MACHINE

THE STORY SO FAR...

DROIDS, SHIPS, AND TECHNOLOGY

machines

THE IMPERIAL MACHINE The Death Star isn’t the only means that the Empire uses to enforce its iron will.

ZETA-CLASS SHUTTLE C2-B5 A black-plated astromech droid, C2-B5 patrols the Scarif Citadel, performing maintenance tasks. The subject of frequent memory wipes, C2-B5 has no distinctive personality.


A cargo shuttle built under the cooperation of the Telegorn Corporation and the Sienar Fleet systems, the Zeta class offers assorted transportation options. 2 wing-mounted heavy laser cannons and 3 hull-mounted laser cannons offer useful defensive support.


FEATURE


THE STORY SO FAR...


KX SERIES A highly-mobile, highlyadaptable series of droid.

AT–ACT Designed as a cargo transport and not a combat vehicle like the AT-AT, the AT-ACT can still defend itself from attackers thanks to the two heavy cannons mounted on either side of its “head.”



FEATURE


THE STORY SO FAR...


TIE STRIKER A streamlined starfighter, the experimental TIE Striker is designed specifically for atmospheric patrols over Imperial installations.

TIE FIGHTER With its distinctive “scream“ and instantly recognizable silhouette the Imperial TIE fighter is the Empire’s most common symbol of oppression.

MSE-6 DROID AT-ST The All Terrain Scout Transport is a light walker, which serves as a reconnaissance vehicle. The two chinmounted guns have a range of 2km.

A familiar sight at any Imperial installation, the MSE-6 “mouse“ droids are fast-moving workers that relay coded messages and transport small items.

TX-225 “OCCUPIER” Able to carry crucial supplies of kiber crystals, this maneuverable tank boasts immense firepower, as well as resilient armor.



DARTH VADER “THE ABILITY TO DESTROY A PLANET IS INSIGNIFICANT NEXT TO THE POWER OF THE FORCE”

SITH WARRIOR

DARTH VADER THE DARK LORD

The Empire’s most sinister agent has proved himself to be a loyal servant of Darth Sidious after his defeat on Mustafar.

A

s the Empire gained strength around the galaxy, Darth Vader proved himself as a feared enforcer. From the ashes of Mustafar rose a warrior even more ruthless and cunning than before, and clad in black imposing armor. The former Jedi commanded his own squadron of stormtroopers, otherwise known as “Vader’s Fist,” who inspired fear wherever they went. Five years into the Emperor’s iron rule, Vader accompanied his master, Darth Sidious, on a mission to crush the rebellion on Ryloth, led by Cham Syndulla. Faced with an extreme attack from Twi’lek insurgents, the Sith Lords were forced to crash-land on the forest planet. They were soon attacked by a lylek horde, retreating into a tunnel that was,

in fact, the creatures’ nest. They stood their ground against a hundred or so lyleks and their queen, killing them before encountering a young Twi’lek girl, Drua. Vader prevented the Emperor killing her, intending to have her guide them to her village, where they were finally able to summon help. Despite being surrounded by Syndulla’s forces, relief finally arrived as the Imperials set about quelling the insurgency. At the Emperor’s command, Vader killed the rebels, bringing the Sith Lord’s mission on Ryloth to a violent end. Some time later, The Emperor commanded Vader and Moff Tarkin to investigate an attack on Sentinal Base, an Imperial stronghold in the outer rim. During a misadventure on Murkhana, Carrion Spike, Tarkin’s personal modified stealth corvette

was stolen by dissidents, who Tarkin were sure to be connected to the attack, as well as being supported by a senior member of the Imperial military. Tarkin and Vader managed to unravel the mystery and Vader executed the culprit, while Tarkin commanded the Star Destroyer Executrix as it decimated the dissident fleet. This led to a newfound mutual respect between the Dark Lord Tarkin and the ambitious officer who was rewarded for his efforts by being promoted to Grand Moff. He was assigned to take command of the construction of the Death Star over Geonosis.

The Hunt As the Death Star’s construction continued, The Emperor sought out the “children of the Force.” He commanded Darth Vader to order


DARTH VADER

DARTH VADER “THE ABILITY TO DESTROY A PLANET IS INSIGNIFICANT NEXT TO THE POWER OF THE FORCE”

“THE ABILITY TO DESTROY A PLANET IS INSIGNIFICANT NEXT TO THE POWER OF THE FORCE”

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a Grand Inquisitor to hunt down these children and either enlist them into the service of the Empire, or kill them. The Inquisitor promised Vader that his mission would be accomplished. However, after his mission failed, the Inquisitor killed himself rather than facing Vader’s wrath. Several rebel cells that had united to fight the Empire were revealed when they rescued a small gang of Lothal rebels from an Imperial fleet. As rumors of these events became known, uprisings begun to occur on several worlds, including Lothal. The Emperor sent Vader to Lothal with Tarkin to end the growing rebellion. Vader concocted a cunning trap which would help him track the Lothal rebels back to their base. The Dark Lord met with Imperial agents Kallus and Minister Maketh Tua, informing Tua that Tarkin would hold her accountable if she failed to stop the rebels. Gripped by terror, Tua contacted the Lothal rebels, offering them information if they would smuggle her off the planet before she met with Tarkin. The rebels agreed, and returned to Lothal. However, this played directly into Vader’s hands as he had intended for the minister to contact the rebels and lure them back to Lothal. He had a bomb placed on Tua’s shuttle. Once the rebels arrived, they attempted to escape the planet, only for the bomb to go off as Tua boarded the ship, killing her. Vader then broadcast the misinformation that the rebels had assassinated Tua. He had Kallus lockdown the planet’s spaceport, telling everyone that any ship attempting to escape would be destroyed. Vader knew that the rebels would need to steal a ship in order to escape. He used a shuttle capable of hyperspace travel as bait. When the rebels tried to commandeer it, Vader


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was ready, confronting them with a small squad of stormtroopers. Vader dueled with the rebel leader, a Jedi named Kanan Jarrus, and his apprentice Ezra Bridger. Vader easily bested his two opponents. Realizing that they could not win, they stalled Vader long enough to make their escape aboard the shuttle. Shortly after, the rebels used the shuttle to rendezvous with the rebel fleet. But Vader had been tracking them, and launched an attack on the rebel fleet in his TIE Advanced x1 fighter. The rebels fought back but were no match for the Sith Lord as he disabled the rebel command ship, Phoenix Home.

1 / Lord Vader makes his imposing presence felt! 2 / Showing respect to Lord Vader. 3 / The Dark Lord of the Sith: a fearsome figure who inspires terror and obedience in the Imperial navy.

The Lothal rebels boarded their ship, the Ghost, and fought back against the Dark Lord in a futile attempt to defeat him. With all seemingly lost, Vader’s former apprentice, Ahsoka Tano, combined her powers with Kanan’s, using the Force to probe Vader’s mind. As the two former allies became aware of each other, Ahsoka passed out and Vader broke off his attack, instead centering his attention on the Ghost. As Vader closed in, his intended prey jumped to hyperspace. Vader informed Sidious that he had “broken” the rebels, but also revealed to Sidious that Ahsoka Tano was alive. Sidious

declared that she could lead them to other Jedi who survived the purge of Order 66. Sidious instructed Vader to send another Inquisitor to hunt the rebels. After several unsuccessful attempts to capture the rebel Jedi, the Fifth Brother and Seventh Sister Inquisitors pursued Jarrus, Bridger and Tano to a Jedi Temple on Lothal. The Inquisitors warned Vader that the Jedi were increasing in their ability to use the Force, but he replied that it would be their undoing.

A Final Battle Vader sent the two Inquisitors, along with a third, The Eighth Brother, to hunt down Darth Maul,

who was located on Malachor, where he had been studying its Sith temple for years. The Zabrak killed the Inquisitors, leading to Vader personally choosing to retrieve the holocron and take possession of the superweapon that was also being sought by Ezra Bridger. Vader confronted Bridger, quickly disarming him before being interrupted by Tano. She assured Vader that there were no more Jedi left. As Vader taunted her, stating that Anakin had been weak, Tano responded by battling the Dark Lord, eventually managing to slice through Vader’s mask, revealing his partially exposed face and confirming that

the he was, indeed, Ahsoka’s former master and friend. As the Temple locked down, Tano said that she would stay with him causing Vader to pause briefly. The two resumed their fight, as Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger took flight from the chamber as it closed around the two combatants. As they fought, a massive energy discharge consumed the area. Although Tano’s fate remains unknown, Darth Vader managed to escape from the Temple... With the Death Star project under the watchful eye of Emperor Palpatine, Vader is tasked to oversee the officers behind its construction.


FEATURE CONCEPT ART

CONCEPTS

ROGUE ONE CONCEPT ART The illustrations that helped create the movie.

EDRIO TWO TUBES A Tognoth mercenary pilot who is allied to Saw Gerrera. Art by Luke Fisher, Creature Concept Designer/Senior Sculptor.


FEATURE CONCEPT ART

FEATURE CONCEPT ART

Opposite page: SAW GERRERA The militia leader who operates from the catacombs on the mysterious world of Jedha. Art by Glyn Dillon, Co-Costume Designer. ORSON KRENNIC The director of the program to create the Imperial Death Star. Art by Glyn Dillon, Co-Costume Designer.



FEATURE CONCEPT ART

FEATURE CONCEPT ART

Opposite Page: CHIRRUT ÎMWE AND BAZE MALBUS Two warriors from Jedha who prove crucial in the mission against the Empire. Art by Glyn Dillon, Co-Costume Designer. K-2SO Imperial droid turned valuable asset in the fight to steal the Death Star plans. Art by Luke Fisher, Creature Concept Designer/Senior Sculptor.



FEATURE CONCEPT ART

JEDHA The ancient Holy City of Jedha. Art by Matt Allsopp, Lead Concept Artist.

FEATURE CONCEPT ART

FEATURE CONCEPT ART

A TANK TROOPER Patroling the streets of Jedha, the tank troopers maintain control against insurgent forces. Art by Glyn Dillon, CoCostume Designer.


TERROR

TEST!

TELL US ALL YOU KNOW ABOUT THE EMPIRE’S ULTIMATE WEAPON AND SEE IF IT’S ENOUGH TO WIN YOU A PLACE IN THE EMPIRE! QUIZ COMPILED BY GRAND MOFF TOLLY MAGGS

5 1

On which planet were the Death Star plans delivered to Darth Sidious?

How many individual beams make up the composite blast in the first Death Star?

14

What did Luke mistake the Death Star for when he saw it for the first time?

15

Who is the commander of the first Death Star?

NAME THESE DEATH STAR OFFICERS! We require the full name and rank for a point!

7

2

18

What moon was the Death Star attempting to destroy immediately prior to its own destruction?

19

What is the real name of the droids found on the Death Star that are commonly referred to as “Mouse Droids”?

20

Who was the sole Imperial survivor of the Battle of Yavin?

10

In which detention cell was Princess Leia held during her captivity on the Death Star?

16

What is the name of the main weapon used to defend the Death Star from small fighters?

SCORING 16-20 STRONG. You would make a fine military historian. In fact, would you like to assist in building a second Death Star?

11

How did Darth Vader describe the Death Star when addressing Admiral Motti?

3

What powers the Death Star superlaser?

12

Who nearly destroyed the Death Star prior to Luke Skywalker’s direct hit on the thermal exhaust port?

4

What kind of steel was used to make the hull of the Death Star?

13

Who stealthily deactivated the tractor beam on the Death Star?


12-15 ABOVE AVERAGE. Another year at the academy and you might just pass muster. 9-11 AVERAGE. Much more study required. If servants of the Empire were all like you, we’d probably be defeated by a bunch of teddy bears.

17

What is the name of the creature that lurked within the trash compactor?

0-8 WEAK. We foresee a career in the Imperial Sanitation Corps.

ANSWERS

9

8

1. Coruscant. 2. 2187 3. Kyber crystals 4. Quadanium steel 5. 8 6. Lieutenant Shann Childsen 7. General Tagge 8. Colonel Wullf Yularen 9. Chief Moradmin Bast 10. General Hurst Romodi 11. As a Technological Terror! 12. Red Leader, Garven Dreis 13. Obi-Wan Kenobi 14. A small moon 15. Grand Moff Tarkin 16. Turbolasers 17. Dianoga 18. Yavin 4 19. MSE-6-Series Repair Droid 20. Darth Vader

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The rebel Y-wings commence attack on the Death Star.

MCQUARRIE’S

DEATH STAR 64 | ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

RALPH MCQUARRIE’S ART DEPICTING THE DEATH STAR IS SOME OF THE MOST EVOCATIVE IN HIS OEUVRE. A LAVISH NEW BOOK, STAR WARS ART: RALPH MCQUARRIE OFFERS THE MOST COMPLETE LOOK AT HIS INCREDIBLE, PEERLESS LEGACY. ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY | 65

An interior view from an Imperial cockpit as a TIE pilot hones in on the rebel Y-wings.

One of the many cavernous docking bays of the Death Star.

In addition to concept art, McQuarrie also designed toy packaging for Galoob, including this preliminary illustration for the Death Star Action Fleet set.

This piece, showing Han and Luke escorting their “prisoner” to the detention block, subtly suggests the spherical shape of the Imperial battle station.


The cold corridors of the Death Star, as populated by lightsaber-wielding Imperial stormtroopers described in earlier drafts of The Star Wars screenplay.


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O T S ING

TH

1

IN E C I NOT

E WARS B SIVE YOUR R THE E A S T K A S A KENS. O T L A T D N L L D T A W E U N P O A O A W X N E E , S S WHAT W HINTS TO THE A OF FILMS A VIDEOGAMES ORLD? JOIN U RS: THE FORC A D T AG W WITHOU SEEN IN THE S CARTOONS, AN OM THE REAL ETS OF STAR W S, CR FR SE UNIVER BOOKS, COMIC AND CAMEOS REVEAL THE SE E ES OF CANON LL THE IN-JOK R WORLD AS W NA GE MENTIO PS INTO A LAR TE FIRST S RYAN YOUNG :B WORDS

4

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, director J.J. Abrams chose the name BB-8 because he looked round and bouncy, saying, “I named him BB-8 because it was almost onomatopoeia… It was sort of how he looked to me, with the 8, obviously, and then the 2 Bs.” Bill Hader of Saturday Night Live and Ben Schwartz of Parks and Recreation fame helped create digitally altered sounds for BB-8’s voice, and are credited as “vocal consultants”.


5

FATAL SLIP

6

SQUEAK WARS

FN-2003, also known as Slip, is the stormtrooper who drags his bloody hand across Finn’s helmet during the First Order’s siege on the Jakku village of Tuanul. Slip made his first appearance in Before the Awakening written by Greg Rucka.

BRINGING BALANCE

Lor San Tekka, played by legendary stage and screen actor Max Von Sydow, speaks the first line of dialogue in the film. According to the Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary, San Tekka is a seasoned traveler and explorer who spent the dark times as a follower of the Church of the Force. Although not Force-sensitive, he, like many others, strongly believed in the Jedi ideals. During his conversation with Resistance pilot Poe Dameron, played by actor Oscar Isaac, Lor San Tekka almost immediately references the balance of the Force, saying, “Without the Jedi, there can be no balance.” Qui-Gon Jinn and Mace Windu first mentioned the concept of bringing balance to the Force in The Phantom Menace.

BUILDING BB-8

We get an initial glimpse of Mouse Droids aboard the Finalizer, which were first seen on the Death Star in A New Hope.

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FRIENDS REUNITED?

During the battle near Maz Kanata’s castle on Takodana, FN-2199, or Nines, is the trooper who shouts, “Traitor!” and attacks Finn with a Z6 baton. Nines and Finn trained together prior to the events of The Force Awakens. More can be learned about their relationship in the novel Star Wars: Before the Awakening by Greg Rucka.

CAPTAIN PHANTASM

Captain Phasma’s name and chrome armor were a tribute by director J.J. Abrams to the 1979 horror movie, Phantasm. In fact, Abrams’ company Bad Robot recently oversaw a 4K restoration of the cult classic, which was written and directed by Don Coscarelli.


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As Rey trades in scavenged junk to Unkar Plutt for rations, the creature behind her is a Nu-Cosian crittermonger and storyteller named Bobba-Jo. He was the first new creature from the film revealed by J.J. Abrams in his video for the Omaze contest, “Force for Change,” where a lucky fan named D.C. Barns won a walk-on part in the movie and a trip to the premiere of The Force Awakens! You can read more about this character in Landry Q. Walker’s short story, All Creatures Great and Small.

ESCAPE PLAN

It is revealed in Alan Dean Foster’s novelization of The Force Awakens that the vehicle stolen by Poe and Finn aboard the Finalizer is a Special Forces TIE fighter.

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ARRRGGGH!

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THE EYE’S HAVE IT

A NEW CREATURE

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The Wilhelm scream, which is used at least once in every Star Wars film, is heard during Poe and Finn’s daring escape. This famous sound effect was first used in the 1951 film Silent Drums, and was popularized by the character Private Wilhelm in the 1953 film The Charge at Feather River.

According to the The Force Awakens Visual Dictionary, Rey’s goggles are cobbled together using lenses from a stormtrooper’s helmet left on the planet after the Battle of Jakku.

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RANCID RATIONS

The polystarch ration, or instant bread, Rey prepares at her “home” on Jakku was a real effect, not computer generated. According to special effects supervisor Chris Corbould, it took three months to develop, and it tasted terrible.

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DESERTED DESTROYER

The downed Star Destroyer Rey passes on her way to the Niima Outpost is called the Inflictor, which is mentioned in the novel Lost Stars by Claudia Gray.

TIE FIGHTER DOWN

Finn and Poe’s stolen TIE fighter crashes into the Goazon Badlands, the same stretch of desert where the Battle of Jakku occurred. Videogame developer DICE created a playable map of the area in Star Wars: Battlefront, published by Electronic Arts and Lucasfilm.

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PEGG PAL

In addition to his role as the junk boss, Unkar Plutt, actor Simon Pegg also served as a valuable resource to director J.J. Abrams, who said, “His support and friendship [was] massively important and helpful in the process.”

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REY’S HEADGEAR

The pilot’s helmet Rey wears while eating her instant bread ration once belonged to Captain Dosmit Ræh of the Tierfon Yellow Aces.

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WAYS OF MAKING YOU TALK

When Poe Dameron wakes up bound to an interrogation table on the Finalizer the sound of an IT-000 droid, located behind Kylo Ren, can be heard. An earlier model of this droid, the IT-O interrogator droid , was used by Darth Vader in a failed attempt to force Princess Leia to reveal the location of the rebel base.

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BEAST OF BURDEN

After arriving at the Niima Outpost, Finn quickly races to a watering hole and begins guzzling water next to a happabore. This hulking creature is found throughout the galaxy on various worlds, and is first mentioned as a mount for Sarco Plank in Weapon of a Jedi written by Jason Fry.

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GAME ON?

The holochess dejarik set seen on the Millennium Falcon was animated by Tippett Studios, which is owned and supervised by the same special-effects mastermind who worked on the original sequence in A New Hope, Phil Tippett.

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CAPTURE THE FLAG

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WARWICK RETURNS

Star Wars film veteran Warwick Davis continues his streak of cameos in The Force Awakens, this time in Maz Kanata’s castle as interstellar scout and hyperspace trailblazer, Wollivan. It also continues a tradition of Davis playing characters who have names beginning with the letter “W”: Wicket W. Warrick (Return of the Jedi), and Weazel and Wald (The Phantom Menace). Coincidentally, Warwick played the lead character Willow Ufgood in Willow, a Lucasfilm Ltd. production from 1988.

The flags at Maz Kanata’s castle are imprinted with familiar images from Star Wars films and cartoons, including the Mythosaur skull from Boba Fett’s left-shoulder blast plate, Hondo Ohnaka’s Gang symbol and Ziro the Hutt’s belly tattoo from The Clone Wars, and Cikatro Vizago’s Broken Horn Syndicate symbol from Rebels. There is even a flag displaying the universal symbol for the 501st organization.


During Rey’s Force vision, or Forceback, at Maz’s castle, many voices and sounds are heard, including Darth Vader’s breathing and Yoda explaining the nature of the Force. However, it is an altered sample of the late actor Sir Alec Guinness’s voice that is the sequence’s most impressive ingredient. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, director J.J. Abrams explains longtime Bad Robot collaborator Bryan Burk and one of the film’s producers took the word ”afraid” and altered it to sound like “Rey.” They then combined that with new voice-over from actor Ewan McGregor to complete the line, “Rey…these are your first steps.”

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C-3P0— SPYMASTER?

In addition to his role as translator, C-3P0 is in charge of the Resistance’s pool of spy droids distributed across the galaxy, including GA-97, who reports BB-8’s presence at Maz Kanata’s castle.

ON SONG

Composer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda, most recently of Hamilton: An American Musical fame, wrote the tracks Jabba Flow and Dobra Doompa, which were performed at Maz Kanata’s castle by travelling musicians Taybin Ralorsa, Infrablue Zedbeddy Coggins, Ubert “Sticks” Quaril, and Sudswater Dillifay Glon.

Poe Dameron flies a T-70 X-wing. An upgrade from Luke Skywalker’s T-65, it is not quite as stateof-the-art as other X-wings in the Resistance’s fleet. BB-8 loads into Poe’s X-wing via an arm that attaches to the droid’s head and sucks him into the socket. This is the same way astromechs such as R2-D2 were pulled into the Royal Naboo starfighters in The Phantom Menace.

REY’S VISION

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THE RETURN OF SOME JEDI

BLACK LEADER’S RIDE

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DON’T TRUST HER

See the mysterious girl wearing the distinctive black and white outfit? That’s Bazine Netal, a human mercenary and spy of the First Order who spots BB-8 at Maz’s castle on Takodana. She was first introduced in the short story The Perfect Weapon by Delilah S. Dawson.

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A LIGHTSABER’S JOURNEY

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SNOKE’S SHOW OF POWER

According to a display at Disneyland’s Star Wars Launch Bay, Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber, along with his severed hand, were salvaged from the depths of Cloud City following his confrontation with Darth Vader. How Maz Kanata obtained the famous Jedi’s weapon is still unknown.

The beginning of Rey’s Force vision brings her to a hallway that bears a resemblance to two different hallways that were important in the life of Darth Vader. The first was a hallway he fought Obi-Wan Kenobi in on Mustafar in Revenge of the Sith, the other was the hallway in The Empire Strikes Back that led to the catwalk where he battled his son, Luke Skywalker.

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GALACTIC PEACE

With the Empire defeated, Chancellor Mon Mothma restored the Galactic Senate and decided all member worlds would have an opportunity to host the delegates, bringing a more inclusive spirit to the government that was absent during Emperor Palpatine’s reign. The first such captial was Mon Mothma’s homeworld of Chandrila, as revealed in Chuck Wendig’s novel Aftermath. The cosmopolitan world of Hosnian Prime is the site of the capital in The Force Awakens.

In a show of power, General Hux destroys Hosnian Prime with Supreme Leader Snoke’s approval. The casualties are staggering as Chancellor Villecham; Kor Sella (General Leia’s envoy); senatorial representatives from planets such as Naboo, Taris, and Commenor; as well as inhabitants of the planet are obliterated.


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POE’S PAST

Poe Dameron is a child of the Galactic Civil War. Poe’s parents fought for the Rebellion, most notably during the Battle of Endor where his mother was a pilot and his father was a member of Han Solo’s landing team. You can read more about them in the Star Wars: Shattered Empire comic book series written by Greg Rucka. Poe was raised near the Massassi Temple on Yavin IV, the rebel’s secret base in A New Hope. Coincidentally, the temple’s real world location was in Guatemala, the country where the man who plays Poe Dameron, Oscar Isaac, was born.

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HIDDEN FORTRESS

Lucasfilm president and executive producer Kathleen Kennedy approached members of the R2 Builders Club Members at Star Wars Celebration in 2013 and asked them if they wouldn’t mind making the R2-D2 prop seen in The Force Awakens. Of course they said yes!

The Resistence’s hidden base on D’Qar is located in the Ileenium system. It was discovered and marked for potential use as a rebel base decades earlier by pilots of Corona Squadron, Thane Kyrell and Kendy Idele. More can be learned about their exploits in the pages of Lost Stars by Claudia Gray.

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THANK THE MAKERS!

LEIA’S DROID

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PZ-4CO, or “Peazy,” is a communications droid assigned to General Leia on D’Qar, and makes her initial appearance in the Resistance’s command center. Peazy is first referenced in the pages of Star Wars: Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure by Cecil Castellucci and Jason Fry.

DOCTOR DOOKU?

Actress Harriet Walter plays Doctor Kalonia, the physician who treated Chewie’s wounds after the skirmish at Takodana. In addition to The Force Awakens, Walter has appeared as Lady Shackleton on Downtown Abbey. She is also the niece of Christopher Lee, who played Count Dooku in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith.

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FEELING BLUE

Blue Squadron makes its debut in The Force Awakens. Luke Skywalker was originally supposed to fly with Blue Squadron in A New Hope, but the star fighters’ blue markings made it difficult to film against blue screens, so they were changed to red instead. The resulting moniker was Red Squadron.

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SNAP TO ACTION!

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GOOD LOURD!

Carrie Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd, plays Lieutenant Connix, who appears in the Resistance base on D’Qar. 74 | ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

Greg Grunberg is an actor and childhood friend of J.J. Abrams who has appeared in many of the famed director’s productions. In The Force Awakens, Grunberg plays X-wing pilot Temmin “Snap” Wexley. It was his character who provided the Resistance with the information they needed to launch an attack against the Starkiller Base. Wexley was first introduced in Aftermath by Chuck Wendig.

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SNOWSPEEDER UNSEEN!

When Rey and Finn arrive at the oscillator on Starkiller Base, behind them is the boosted snowspeeder that brought them there. It was featured in the novelization of The Force Awakens by Alan Dean Foster and is also a toy by Hasbro.

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COMFORTABLY NUNB

One of the Resistance fighters flying an X-wing against Starkiller Base is none other than Lando Calrissian’s Sullustan co-pilot from the Battle of Endor, Nien Nunb. In the Princess Leia-focused book Moving Target and Battlefront: Twilight Company, Nien Nunb is revealed to be a vital combatant in the fight against the Empire, and willingly signs back up to take on the First Order. Actor Mike Quinn, who plays Nunb in Return of the Jedi, was tapped to bring life back to the character he made famous for The Force Awakens.

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AGENT OF THE FIRST ORDER

As reported in Entertainment Weekly, actor Daniel Craig of James Bond fame makes a cameo in The Force Awakens. He plays a stormtrooper who falls victim to Rey’s Jedi Mind Trick on Starkiller Base. When first asked about his supposed role prior to the film’s release, Craig vehemently denied it because he was forbidden to confirm his association with the project. His involvement was made easy because the latest Bond film, Spectre, was filming on a neighboring soundstage only a thermal detonator’s throw away.

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HUX: A TRAGIC VILLAIN?

J.J. Abrams wanted Hux to have a sense of tragedy, and the fact that he appears to be too young to be in charge of a murderous group added to that. According to Abrams, the character’s name was created after he noticed a grave with the name “Hux” carved into the stone.


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LEIA’S LOSS

Through the Force, General Leia can feel the loss of Han Solo in the same way Yoda feels Order 66 in Revenge of the Sith and Obi-Wan Kenobi feels the destruction of Alderaan in A New Hope. Leia previously sensed Luke was in danger at the climax of The Empire Strikes Back and knew he was safe after the destruction of the Death Star in Return of the Jedi.

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DROID STORY

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KYLO’S BLADE

Kylo Ren’s lightsaber is based on an ancient design, dating back thousands of years. The ragged, unstable appearance of the main blade and two cross-guard blades, or quillions, are the result of a cracked kyber crystal housed inside the weapon’s hilt.

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ANOTHER TRAP?

Look closely and you’ll see as Rey and Chewie leave aboard the Millennium Falcon in search of Luke that C-3PO’s red arm has been replaced with a golden one. The reason behind C-3PO’s red arm is explained in the comic book Star Wars Special: C-3PO #1 by James Robinson and Tony Harris.

Admiral Ackbar makes appearances in the war room at the Resistance Base on D’Qar. According to The Force Awakens Visual Dictionary, General Leia had to coax him out of retirement to meet the growing threat of the First Order. Tim Rose, the voice behind everyone’s favorite fishy commander from Return of the Jedi, reprises his role in the new film.


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CELL MATES

Finn’s trooper designation is FN-2187, a reference created by director J.J. Abrams to Princess Leia’s cell number, 2187, aboard the Death Star in A New Hope.

NO SLEEP ‘TIL BESPIN!

J.J. Abrams love of the Beastie Boys features in his 2009 movie Star Trek (the band’s song “Sabotage” plays during young James Kirk’s introduction) and continues in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. The Beastie Boys were an American hip-hop/rock band from New York City, consisting of Michael “Mike D” Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam “MCA” Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz (vocals, guitar). The Abednedo harassed by First Order troopers in the Jakku village is named Ilco Munica. These are the first two of a series of references to the Beastie Boys. Abednedo is close to the word “Abegnego,” which is a character in a biblical story they told in a track called “Shadrach” on their album “Paul’s Boutique.” Ilco Munica refers to “Ill Communication,” their fourth studio album. The second Abednedo with a name whose reference is to the Beastie Boys is present on Hosnian Prime, a senator named Brassmon Kee, which is similar to the Beastie Boys hit “Brass Monkey.” The third Abednedo character whose name references the Beastie Boys is an X-wing pilot who sacrifices his life in the battle over Starkiller Base. His name is Ello Asty, which is a reference to the fifth studio album of the Beastie Boys, “Hello Nasty.” Ello Asty’s helmet bears the words “Born to Ill” in Aurebesh, a reference to Lt. Joker’s helmet in Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket that reads “Born to Kill.” It’s also a reference to the debut album of the Beastie Boys, “Licensed to Ill.”


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HEY, ISN’T THAT…?

Various well-known faces can be seen in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Here are some, along with some hints as to where you might have seen them before… Thomas Brodie Sangster, who portrays First Order Petty Officier Thanisson in The Force Awakens, plays Jojen Reed in the hit television series Game of Thrones and Newt in the Maze Runner films. His first major movie was Love Actually, in which he played the stepson of Liam Neeson (Qui-Gon Jinn in The Phantom Menace). Resistance X-wing pilot Jess Pava is played by actress Jessica Henwick, who also plays Nymeria Sand in the television show Game of Thrones. Pava is first referenced in The Weapon of a Jedi by Jason Fry. Actor Ken Leung, who played Miles on the television show Lost, appears in The Force Awakens as Admiral Statura. It was his character who explains the science behind Starkiller Base’s oscillator. Members of the Kanjiklub gang are played by actors from the 2011 Indonesian action film, The Raid: Redemption (originally titled The Raid). The most notable of whom is action choregrapher Yayan Ruhian, who portrays their leader, Tasu Leech.

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LOOKING FOR LUKE

Luke Skywalker sought out the First Jedi Temple. Jedi Temples were first seen in The Phantom Menace and the first temple Luke visited was the Temple of Eedit on Devaron in Jason Fry’s book Weapon of a Jedi. The planet outside known space where the first Jedi Temple is located was named Ahch-To in the screenplay for The Force Awakens and the island was filmed on location at Skellig Michael in Ireland.

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SNOKE AND LEIA

Story Group member and Star Wars expert Pablo Hidalgo has revealed on Twitter that Leia and Snoke knew each other before the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

There are undoubtedly many more cool things to look out for in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. With the movie now available for home viewing, it’s the perfect time to look! Happy hunting! a


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