Black Curs

The Black Curs were a band of mercenaries formed months after the Battle of Endor during the Galactic Civil War. Though they functioned as an independent group, the Curs were affiliated with the New Republic, devoted to scouting and intelligence operations to undermine the crumbling Galactic Empire. Spacers in the Black Curs included Dirk Harkness, Platt Okeefe, Tru'eb Cholakk, Jai Raventhorn, and Starter: former smugglers, outlaws, and Republic personnel impatient with military life. All had personal reasons for hating the Empire.

Description

While Dirk Harkness founded the Black Curs and was considered their leader, the band always had a loose and informal organization. The members related to each other as friends as comrades rather than superiors and subordinates.^[1] Besides the core members, the Curs recruited others, mostly orphaned young people, to man their base; some of these recruits brought younger siblings to live there with them.^[4]

New Republic Intelligence considered the Curs to be a friendly mercenary group and not an official branch.^[1] General Airen Cracken oversaw the assignment of missions to the Curs, as he did with other off-the-record mercenary teams.^[5] Some leaders in the Provisional Council, including Mon Mothma and Borsk Fey'lya, opposed this use of mercenaries to conduct intelligence, but Cracken continued to make use of them.^[4]

The Black Curs engaged in small-scale covert operations to obtain tactical information about Imperial forces,^[4] assess the political climate on Imperial worlds,^[2] and facilitate contact between New Republic operatives so that their intelligence could be shared.^[4] The location of the team's base of operations, Black Curs Base, was kept secret from the mercenaries' enemies and allies alike.^[2]

History

Gathering shadowy mercenaries

The outlaws who formed the Black Curs were old friends and associates.^[1] With the Empire starting to crumble, they felt driven to work with the Alliance of Free Planets (soon to become the New Republic) to get revenge on the Galactic Empire for its crimes and atrocities that had caused each of them to suffer in different ways.^[4] Dirk Harkness briefly enlisted in New Republic Intelligence and was commissioned as a lieutenant, but he quickly realized that this life was not for him and resigned after a few weeks. Instead, he gathered like-minded spacers to work closely with NRI while remaining independent.^[1] The mercenary band provided the Republic with recon information on Imperial actions with the hope that the information would lead to the Empire's destruction.^[4]

Recon and Report

For the next six months, the Black Curs explored the space lanes between the Expansion Region and the Core Worlds, gathering information on the state of the Empire after Palpatine's death and looking for routes that the Rebellion could take in pursuit of its ultimate goal, the capture of Coruscant. This work took the Curs to Corellia, Kuat, Kelada, the Sluis sector, Salliche, Chandrila, the Boeus sector, Kaal, and elsewhere. They explored the status of the emerging Imperial Warlords and investigated the Free Systems abandoned by any Imperial regime. Harkness compiled an extensive report, titled "Recon & Report: The Journey to Coruscant," that summarized the team's findings and made recommendations for next steps that the Republic could take.^[6]

These activities drew the attention of forces within the Empire. Bregius Golthan, one of the group of former Imperial Advisors to Palpatine trying to hold the Empire together, was assigned the task of eliminating the Curs and preventing their information from getting back to the New Republic. The renegade Moff Utoxx Prentioch also learned about the Curs' efforts and believed they could be useful in his fight against Coruscant.^[4]

After Harkness's report was compiled but before it was delivered, the Curs, flying in Platt Okeefe's freighter Last Chance, went to the agriworld of Moorja to pick up a stashed Y-wing starfighter and some other supplies. Golthan tracked them there and sent a fleet to ambush them. Harkness sent an emergency message to General Cracken to ask for help. Before a New Republic team could arrive, a second Imperial fleet from Prentioch's Dominion arrived and began attacking Golthan's ships.^[4]

Caught between the guns of two rival fleets, the Last Chance landed on the planet in the middle of an ion storm, where the Curs awaited the arrival of Cracken's relief team. Harkness grew impatient, ignored his companions' advice, and set off on foot in the direction of his Y-wing fighter, carrying the precious data file with him. The fighter was in an underground cave in Moorja's Crumbling Lands, and on his way Harkness found himself cornered by three predatory bruwoses. Cracken's operatives found him there and helped him get free; Harkness's fighter and the New Republic ship Valiant Damsel were then able to help the Last Chance escape Moorja and deliver the Curs' intelligence to the New Republic fleet.^[4]

Crystal intrigue

Some time after the delivery of the report, Cracken tasked the Curs with a mission to the planet Canyon, where the administrator of a mining colony had offered to arrange the sale of strategic minerals to the New Republic. The administrator, Guldus Bemm, also claimed to have found a possible deposit of lightsaber crystals and had invited Luke Skywalker to come inspect them. Platt Okeefe went alone to manage the negotiation, while the crew of the Valiant Damsel were chosen to represent Skywalker. Bemm's offer, however, was a trap. Though disappointed that he could not capture Skywalker, he took the opportunity to capture Okeefe and deliver her to Advisor Golthan. The Damsel crew escaped, but Okeefe was taken to Golthan's Fortress on the planet Voktunma.^[4]

Mon Mothma expressly forbade General Cracken from committing any Republic resources toward recovering Okeefe, but Harkness recruited the Damsel crew, who had worked so closely with the Black Curs, to mount a rescue mission on their own without the general's permission. He brought the rogue operatives to Black Curs Base, careful to keep its location a secret from them. Then he and Tru'eb Cholakk flew the team to Voktunma in Cholakk's freighter, the Luudrian Star, while other members of the Curs followed in X-wing starfighters. The Republic operatives first infiltrated the fortress from the ground and freed Okeefe from her confinement. The Luudrian Star and the fighters then swooped in, retrieved the team, and escaped the planet.^[4]

Rescue by Rogue Squadron

In 6 ABY,^[7] the Black Curs continued to be employed in scouting operations to some of the Core systems to assess the strength of the Empire's defensive forces and judge the local political climate: a prelude to the coming Core Campaign. The Republic provided the team with the captured and modified Imperial Customs Frigate Battle of Yavin for these missions. While returning to their hidden base, the spacers ran into the Imperial Strike cruiser Havoc. In their attempt to evade the cruiser, they crash-landed the Battle of Yavin in a lake on the planet Hensara III. The Republic sent two ships, escorted by the newly-reorganized Rogue Squadron, to rescue the Black Curs and retrieve the Battle of Yavin. The Rogues' extraordinary performance against the Havoc's starfighter complement came to be known as the Rout of Hensara. The Curs were rescued, though the frigate could not be salvaged and remained at the bottom of the lake.^[2]

The Vengeance Strike

Bregius Golthan remained the group's nemesis. In 7 ABY,^[8] his personal Star Destroyer, the Vengeance, came to Wroona Stardock for repairs after a costly engagement against New Republic forces. The Imperial Advisor was preparing to launch an attack on Sluis Van. The Black Curs saw their opportunity and launched a mission to sabotage it.^[9] They gathered at Gorkin's Rest, a cantina in Wroona starport district.^[10] Their manner was easygoing, and they spent some time swapping stories of past adventures.^[11] They set out to obtain a supply of thermal detonators from Harkness's contact at Starship Outfitters,^[10] then spent the night aboard Okeefe's Last Chance.^[12]

The following day, Harkness and Raventhorn donned the uniforms and fake ident badges of Wroona starport technicians. They boarded a shuttle filled with techs bound for the Stardock and boarded the Vengeance. Harkness transmitted a signal that overloaded the main tracking sensor on the ship's bridge. As their fake badges identified them as sensor experts, the two Curs were ordered to go to the bridge to investigate the damage. Officers guided them into one of the crew pits, and while Harkness removed the access panel, Raventhorn crawled deep inside the sensor housing and planted their explosive charges against the conning tower's outer bulkhead.^[9]

Meanwhile, Okeefe, Cholak, and Starter boarded their ships and left Wroona's atmosphere. Okeefe, in the Last Chance, headed for the star destroyer's landing bay to recover the two saboteurs. Cholak and Starter flew in holding patterns not too far away, waiting to inflict additional damage on the destroyer and, if necessary, help Harkness and Raventhorn escape. However, the getaway was not to be a clean one. Unknown to the Black Curs, Golthan had just contracted the bounty hunter Beylyssa. She knew Raventhorn well, and Golthan wanted her to eliminate the Black Curs before the start of his new campaign. As it happened, Golthan and Beylyssa entered the bridge just as Harkness and Raventhorn were about to make their exit. Golthan recognized them and ordered nearby Stormtroopers to attack.^[9]

In the ensuing firefight, Raventhorn sprayed the bridge with blaster fire, enough to cover their escape. But they were again delayed, this time by Harkness's own desire for revenge. He moved in to cut out Golthan's eye, repaying the would that the Advisor had inflicted on him under torture. This allowed Beylyssa to regain her footing and shoot back, gravely wounding Harkness in the shoulder and gut. Raventhorn shot back wildly, killing Golthan and wounding Beylyssa enough that she could finally pull her comrade into the relative safety of Golthan's adjoining chamber. The chamber had a rear hatch that led to an escape pod. They boarded just as their explosives ripped through the bridge of the Vengeance.^[9]

When the blast went off, Starter and Cholak flew in to deal additional damage to the defenseless vessel. In the landing bay, Okeefe waited five more minutes for her friends before taking off, assuming that they had died in their own explosion. Meanwhile the escape pod landed in an ocean on the planet's surface and drifted until waves lodged it in a coastal cave. Freelance salvagers combed the ocean, knowing that the Wroonian Salvage Guild would pay good money for an Imperial escape pod. A group found Harkness and Raventhorn in the cave in dire need of medical attention. They brought the pair safely to Wroona Starport. The Black Curs' sabotage mission had been enough to damage the Vengeance beyond repair.^[9]

Members

• Dirk Harkness: a dour-faced former starship mechanic, outlaw, and intelligence operative; the founder of the Black Curs and their nominal leader.^[1]
• Platt Okeefe: a notorious smuggler and captain of the Last Chance, best known as a guide to promising spacers and the author of several famous handbooks on smuggling.^[13]
• Tru'eb Cholakk: Okeefe's longtime companion and protégé and an experienced gunrunner in his own right; owner of the Luudrian Star.^[11]
• Jai Raventhorn: a former Rebel Alliance commando and owner of the freighter Doomsayer.^[10]
• Starter: a New Republic fighter pilot who became involved with the Black Curs somewhat later than the others, he flew a modified T-65B X-wing starfighter and was best known for his wildly improbable stories.^[12]

Behind the scenes

The Black Curs first appeared in a series of five stories in the Star Wars Adventure Journal, beginning with "Chessa's Doom" in Issue 1, published in February 1994. The stories combine narrative prose, written by Peter M. Schweighofer, with short, wordless comics, illustrated by John Paul Lona. The five interconnected stories all take place on Wroona, where the five core members of the group exchange stories of past adventures. Each installment focuses on one Black Cur, whose story is told via flashback.^[10]

Appearances

• "Gathering Shadows" — Tales from the New Republic
• "Black Curs Blues" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 8
• X-Wing: Rogue Squadron (and unabridged audiobook)
• "Chessa's Doom" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 1 (First appearance)
• "Big Quince" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 2
• "Explosive Developments" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 3
• "Starter's Tale" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 4
• "Vengeance Strike" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 5

Sources

• "Recon & Report: The Journey to Coruscant" — Star Wars Adventure Journal 2 (Described as "a team of close associates")
• Star Wars Encyclopedia (Under Hensara system)
• Threats of the Galaxy
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia (Under Hensara system)
• The Star Wars Spy Game: SPIN Declassified on StarWars.com (backup link) (original link is obsolete)

Notes and references