Tandin

"Traitor!"
"I was; not anymore."

―King Rash accuses Tandin after he sides with the rebels^[2]

Tandin was a Human male general who served the Royal Onderon Militia during the Clone Wars.

Biography

Under the rule of Rash

The leader of the royal guard and native military forces of Onderon,^[2] General Tandin was a proud patriot devoted to protecting the crown and the sanctity of the Onderonian people.^[1] When the planet sided with the Separatists during the Clone Wars,^[4] Tandin remained loyal to the crown^[5] and supported the new king, Sanjay Rash, despite his misgivings of offworld interlopers interfering in Onderonian affairs. The people of Onderon, though, began to reject Rash's rule, and an insurgency began targeting the battle droid forces stationed on the planet. Tandin had difficulty waging war against his own people, and cared little for the military support and tactical advice offered by the emotionless droids sent by the Confederacy to reinforce his defenses.^[1]

Liberation of Onderon

In 20 BBY,^[6] Tandin attempted to convince Rash that the rebels were only targeting the droid army, and suggested that allowing the Royal Onderon Militia to assume control of security could convince the rebels to stop and discuss terms. Kalani denied him, stating that the rebels may have had sympathizers among the militia's own ranks. Tandin insisted the threat was external and the droid reinforcements had done little to stop it. Rash interjected that they would not negotiate with the rebels, whom he referred to as "terrorists". Tandin then notified the king of Steela Gerrera and her brother Saw's involvement in the rebel movement, along with Lux Bonteri, son of the deceased Senator Mina Bonteri.^[2]

Tandin confers with the rebel Saw Gerrera.

Later that night, Saw Gerrera, one of the leaders of the rebellion, was captured while attempting to rescue Ramsis Dendup from execution. He was subjected to torture by Kalani to extract his cohorts' location. Tandin refused to have him tortured any longer and decided to have him alive in order to find rebels. In questioning the young man, Saw sowed the seeds of doubt within Tandin.^[2]

Tandin rebels against . — Tandin rebels against Sanjay Rash.

Later that day, Tandin witnessed the near-execution of Dendup and the occurrence of the rebels. When they were surrounded and all seemed lost, Tandin led all the palace guards to serve by his side and prevent the execution from happening,^[2] thus the honorable general became an enemy of the crown.^[1] They surrounded the battle droids while Tandin took Rash as hostage for a short time. He gave the rebels and guards a chance to escape since he was willing to sacrifice his life for them. But before the battle droids were about to take aim, Ahsoka Tano jumped out of the crowd and saved the general and both escaped, allowing all the civilians to turn against the false King Rash for his lies. In the shelter, Tandin and the royal guards pledged their support to the rebels and their true King.^[2]

Tandin at . — Tandin at Funeral of Steela Gerrera.

The rebels soon moved out of the city into the wilderness to draw the droids away from Iziz.^[3] Tandin threw his lot in with the rebels, bringing the forces of the royal army into the jungles.^[7] He consented to Steela Gerrera's leadership when Dendup appointed her as leader of both their forces. However, Kalani dispatched droid gunships to aid the droid army to destroy the rebellion. The rebels were on the brink of defeat, until Hondo Ohnaka delivered rocket launchers on behalf of Anakin Skywalker. They were able to defeat the droids, forcing the Separatists to abandon Onderon and kill Rash. Sadly, the victory was with great cost, as Steela died during the final battle. Tandin was present at her funeral in Iziz as Onderon celebrated its liberation.^[3]

Personality and traits

A male Human,^[2] General Tandin measured 1.77 meters^[1] and had broad shoulders. At the time of the Clone Wars, he was a mature gentleman who sported grey, short-cropped hair and a wide mustache. His blueish eyes were surmounted by thick eyebrows.^[2] Like other Onderonians such as King Ramsis Dendup,^[8] the General had a personal lyra-shaped emblem tattooed on the back of his hands.^[9]

Tandin cared little for off-worlders, and despised General Kalani's soulless implacability.^[10] While initially siding on King Sanjay Rash,^[2] he came to see the errors of his ways.^[7]