The Pirates Of 'Star Wars'

Star Wars

Oct 26

With Star Wars: Skeleton Crew less than two months away and press for the series picking up in the past week or so, it seems like a great time to list out some of the greatest or most intriguing pirates in the Star Wars galaxy. We’ve heard that Skeleton Crew will be full of easter eggs, some already being revealed to us, such as the appearance of Teek, but a show that prominently features pirates as its villains will surely nod to other pirates of Star Wars history. So, without further ado, here is a list of 10 such pirates and their crews.

10. Krawg Pirates

These pirates are probably one of the most obscure entries on this list, but are also intriguing. Made up of hulking members of the Krawg species, they became tangled up in an elaborate deception by Sana Starros to make money and restore a degree of her reputation with the Empire and other criminal factions. Tricked into buying a crate of Imperial blasters, Sana informed the Empire that the pirates had them before going to Tatooine to frame the Krawg for stealing from Jabba the Hutt. Understanding the deception too late, the Krawg attacked her in orbit, only for the Empire to arrive and arrest the group. The Krawg stand out as a unique alien design with a pirate connection and maybe, like the Teek of Battle for Endor, could appear in a brief shot over a host of alien creatures.

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9. Crimson Jack

Crimson Jack is an interesting example on this list, as one of several classic Marvel characters from their original Star Wars comic run that began in the 70s to make the jump to the modern Star Wars era. A pirate with a gorgeous head of red hair and a red mustache, Crimson Jack appeared as the main villain in Star Wars: Halcyon Legacy, one of two pieces of media created to promote the launch of the Galactic Starcruiser experience from Disney. He appears seeking to track down a Resistance spy aboard The Halcyon (the starship at the center of the hotel experience and comic) to sell them and their information to the First Order. Jack fails in his mission when the spy goes with him willingly but has secreted away his information, with the First Order officer involved not believing an old man could be a Resistance spy. We do not know Jack’s fate after this point, but despite this setback in his piracy operations, there’s every chance he went on to pirate another day.

8. Q’anah And Her Marauders

Some of the first pirates to ever get introduced into Star Wars canon thanks to their inclusion in the novel Tarkin, Q’anah and her Maurauders are very unique pirates both due to how they operated and how they were defeated. Q’anah was originally the wife of a pirate who was executed for his crimes, but like notable real-world pirates such as Cheng I Sao, she just carried on with the operation but with herself now in charge. She created a system for her raids as well, endlessly spelling out her name over the convoys that her Marauders hit. But what she hadn’t counted on was the genius of a young Wilhuff Tarkin. He discovered her code and helped lure her forces into a trap. When confronted with the young man, she scoffed, but rather than hold her for a trial (she had escaped justice many times before), Wilhuf had her and her crew locked in a cargo container sent hurtling into a star with a broadcast feed out to her allies. It was a very intense death for a woman who was undoubtedly a scourge on the shipping lanes, and her remaining Marauders scattered, though not all of them were killed. Many years later, survivors had integrated with other crews and told horror stories of Tarkin’s actions, so it is clear their legacy is long-lasting.

7. Sidon Ithano (The Crimson Corsair)

This Sequel Trilogy background character certainly captured the attention of many thanks to his impressive crimson helmet and has an interesting history to match. Despite wearing a Kaleesh helmet, Sidon Ithano is actually a Delphidian, a species of blue humanoids introduced in the Sequel Trilogy. His first mate aboard The Meson Martinet is Quiggold, and while the crew of the ship changes composition over time, one member recovered shortly before The Force Awakens has a great deal of fan interest. While seeking out the “Treasure of Count Dooku,” the Crimson Corsair instead found the Clone medic Kix, captured and imprisoned when he learned too much information about Order 66. Kix ultimately joined Sidon’s crew, though we’ve not heard much of him since this story. Sidon later helped fellow pirate Kragan Gorr acquire Clone War-era battle droids but ultimately sided with the good guys by joining the Citizens’ Fleet in The Rise of Skywalker, being seen celebrating on Ajan Kloss afterward.

6. Kragan Gorr And His Warbirds

Kragon Gorr — Image Source: StarWars.com

Kragan Gorr was introduced to Star Wars as the major threat faced by The Colossus refueling platform of Star Wars Resistance. A fearsome Quarren, he and his Warbirds were secretly supported by the First Order and used a lot of older Imperial-era gear in their armor, weapons, and ships. Increasing his attacks on The Colossus, Kragan was ultimately betrayed by the First Order, who used a major defeat of his forces to secure their position on the platform. Disgruntled but unable to act against their growing military presence in the system, Kragan fully turns on the First Order and flees Castellon with The Colossus, though this solidarity does not last. Plotting against Captain Doza, Kragan acquires battle droids from the Clone Wars to bolster his forces in an attempted mutiny. However, the droids are turned against him, and the last we see of Kragan and much of his crew of them being put off The Colossus. Their fate remains unknown, but Kragan is clearly a survivor with the battle scars to prove it, and he may appear again.

5. Gorian Shard

One of the best-known pirates on this list, Pirate King Gorian Shard, made a memorable impression on viewers during Season 3 of The Mandalorian. Huge and green, Gorian Shard cast a big shadow when he arrived, helping to peel back information on Greef Karga’s past and soon directly attacking the reformed Nevarro to punish Greef for turning away from the criminals he once associated with. Aided by his chief lieutenant Vane, Gorian might have succeeded had it not been for the arrival of Mandalorians led by Din Djarin and Bo-Katan Kryze. A captain always goes down with his ship, and Gorian ultimately perishes in the crash of his starship to the surface of Nevarro, though Vane escaped to live another day. With the pirate king dead, an opening has appeared, and it is possible Skeleton Crew will explore the contest of who is trying to fill it.

4. Blackbolt

Introduced with Young Jedi Adventures Season 2, Blackbolt is a unique entry on this list as a droid pirate of mysterious origins. During the time Kai, Lys, Nubs, and Nash live on Tenoo, his villainous actions many years ago against planetary founder Kaliah Kublop and her ally, Jedi Master Staas, had become a legend. However, this group of four rediscovered Blackbolt and his ship, The Terror of Tenoo, accidentally reactivated both. While Nash ultimately sent Blackbolt in a hyperspace jump across the galaxy, he soon returned with new help in the form of two small droid compatriots and a probe droid. As Young Jedi Adventures is not yet done telling its story, there is no telling what Blackbolt could do next, but his focus on the past and Tenoo means he is certain to remain a threat.

3. Ohnaka Gang

The reason one should put the Ohnaka Gang as a separate entry on any list of pirates in the Star Wars universe is that the group has the habit of breaking away from their leader and setting out on their own while often keeping the name. We know this happened at least twice in canon, the first being when Maul and Savage Opress showed up during The Clone Wars, convincing several of Hondo’s lieutenants to turn against him. This rift was solved in a matter of hours, but the second loss of his crew seems to have hit Hondo particularly hard. When we see him in Rebels, he has few resources and a growing list of enemies. Meanwhile, his old gang eventually reforms, keeping his name, and shortly after the Battle of Hoth, they target a stranded Rebel ship. The bounty hunter Valance is sent to the scene to aid these Rebels, ultimately defeating Hondo’s crew. But, Hondo has led a long life and likely trained many pirates in his time. Many more members of Hondo’s old gang or gangs will likely appear to menace shipping lanes and heroes of countless stories in the future!

2. Hondo Ohnaka

As was alluded to by the prior entry, Hondo Ohnaka is one heck of a pirate. In operation at least over a decade before the Clone Wars, he and his crew accomplished the impossible in capturing not just Count Dooku but also Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. While he was ultimately defeated and later suffered a significant loss of resources at the hands of General Grievous, his survival to pirate another day was shown to us in Rebels. Even there, despite all of the odds, Hondo continues to thrive (despite a brief period of incarceration). His activity from Rebels onward is a little fuzzy, and when he appears in the Sequel Trilogy era, he’s gone legit and now helps the heroes more often than not, much as he did in Rebels. But there are still plenty of pirate stories left to tell from Hondo’s early days, and who knows what he got up to for the 30-odd years between his last Rebels appearance and when he shows up on the planet Batuu.

1. Maz Kanata And Her Crew

The ultimate pirate herself, Maz Kanata, has lived for centuries and has operated her castle for much of that time. She is considered a pirate queen, even if in all the stories where we’ve encountered her so far, she’s put her pirate days far behind her. A friend to the Jedi during the era of the High Republic and beyond, Kaz’s pirate past would be fascinating to explore in detail one day to see what made her famous. Was she ever ruthless? How has she changed as she’s gotten older? We won’t know until we see it! Among her more notable stories are her adventures during Phase 2 of The High Republic with a crew of odd and unique people, breaking out of prison with Chewbacca in Marc Guggenheim’s Han Solo & Chewbacca comic run, and, of course, her introduction in The Force Awakens.

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Source(s): Star Wars 34 (2015), Star Wars: Halcyon Legacy, Tarkin, The Force Awakens, The Crimson Corsair and the Lost Treasure of Count Dooku: Tales From a Galaxy Far, Far Away, The Rise of Skywalker, Star Wars Resistance, The Mandalorian, Young Jedi Adventures, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Bounty Hunters Vol. 2 — Target Valance, Star Wars Rebels, Han Solo & Chewbacca (2022)