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- "Why don't you watch where you're going, human?"
- ―Krudar
Krudar was a male Duros gunner who served with the Alliance to Restore the Republic, pirates, and the New Republic during his career. Originally a member of the Rebel Alliance, Krudar left their service after becoming convinced that the organization used their mandate of bringing freedom to the galaxy to justify acts of terrorism and violence. Joining a group of pirates, Krudar befriended the Guudrian Boom, and crewed with them until the gang was destroyed by Imperial forces.
Hiding out on the planet Kal'Shebbol in the Kathol sector with Boom, Krudar was present when the New Republic launched an assault on the world to liberate it from the rule of Imperial warlord Moff Kentor Sarne. Despite the successful freeing of the planet, Moff Sarne managed to escape into the Kathol sector with the majority of his forces. The New Republic authorized the CR90 corvette FarStar to track down the rogue warlord and neutralize any threat he posed to the region, but was forced to recruit from the civilian population of Kal'Shebbol to crew the vessel due to manpower shortages. Krudar joined the mission and convinced the New Republic selectors to accept Boom as well. The Duros served on the FarStar throughout its mission into the Kathol sector, participating in several operations along the way. However, his surly and temperamental attitude did little to endear him to the rest of the crew, and he was involved in several confrontations with other personnel during the mission. Several months after leaving Kal'Shebbol, Krudar participated in the Battle of Kathol System, an engagement that saw the end of Moff Sarne.
Biography
Early career
Krudar, a male Duros, began his career as a gunner in the service of the Alliance to Restore the Republic, where he manned a turbolaser aboard an EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate. However, Krudar became disenchanted with the Rebellion's motives, believing that their claim to be fighting for justice and freedom was actually a warped justification for them to commit acts of war and terrorism. In addition, Krudar had yet to receive any tangible benefits since joining the Rebellion, and jumped ship to join a pirate band. The pirates that Krudar worked with were not particularly fussy about the targets they engaged, and the Duros found himself manning his weapon against Rebel, Imperial, and neutral vessels. During a boarding action on an Imperial vessel, Krudar obtained a blast vest and helmet from a dead Imperial gunner. Taking them for his own, he wore them as part of his uniform, and decorated the blast vest with small red metal studs. Each stud represented one of Krudar's kills. During his time with the pirates, he met the Guudrian Boom, and the two developed a friendship.[1]
Eventually, the Empire took notice of the pirates, and the gang was destroyed by Imperial forces. Krudar managed to escape the destruction of the group, and fled to the Outer Rim Territories with Boom. For a time, the pair served as gunners on various smuggling freighters before arriving on the planet Kal'Shebbol—shortly before its liberation by the New Republic—to lie low.[1]
Serving aboard the FarStar
When the New Republic liberated Kal'Shebbol, the planet's ruler, Moff Kentor Sarne, escaped into the Kathol sector with the bulk of his military forces; because of this, he was still considered to be a threat to the security of the region.[2] Learning that the New Republic had commissioned the CR90 corvette FarStar to track down the rogue warlord, Krudar signed onto the ship as a gunner, hoping to add a few more kill markers to his blast vest. The Duros also managed to convince the selectors to take on Boom, telling them that his expertise with explosives would be an asset on the mission. Krudar kept his past a secret from his new crewmates, and Boom would not divulge anything about it either. He spent much of his time on the ship with the turbolasers, either checking them out or standing duty by them.[1]
Krudar manning one of the FarStar's turbolasers
Several weeks into the mission, Krudar participated in a gunnery contest shortly after leaving the planet Binaros, in an attempt to win an extended shore leave at the FarStar's next stopover. During the contest, his turbolaser began sparking and malfunctioned, and the Duros believed that one of the other crewmembers had sabotaged his weapon in order to stop him from winning the contest. The malfunction had in fact been caused by the feeders of the feeder plant, which the FarStar had inadvertently picked up during their mission to Binaros. The mobile plants had extracted certain nutrients and compounds from areas of the ship, and had caused damage to several systems during their explorations. The ship's xenobiologist, Varel DeVay, managed to concoct a gaseous poison to kill the plant before it became a true danger to the ship.[3]
Several weeks later, Krudar was in the command center when he was involved in an altercation with Ensign Colton, one of the few regular New Republic naval crewmen assigned to the vessel. Both were suffering from the effects of a biochemical agent developed by the Qektoth Confederation, a group of rogue scientists who believed in the superiority of biological technology. The crew of the corvette had been exposed to the agent after they had rescued two Imperial crewmen from a damaged Gamma-class assault shuttle that the Confederation had used as a testbed for their new weapon. The agent caused Krudar to be more antagonistic and belligerent than usual, and he had to be separated from Colton before the argument could escalate into a proper fight. Both Krudar and Colton were temporarily confined to quarters by Captain Kaiya Adrimetrum despite their protests.[4]
While traveling through the volatile area of space known as the Kathol Rift, the crew of the FarStar began to suffer from various psychological effects, ranging from paranoid feelings to full-blown hallucinations. The effects of the Rift were well-documented, and many crews passing through the area had reported similar experiences. Krudar's mild agoraphobia was intensified by the Rift's effects, and the feelings he experienced sometimes kept him from leaving his quarters. If he attempted to exit his quarters to attend to his duty station, he would perceive the corridors of the ship lengthening into the distance. The feeling would only diminish when the gunner returned to his quarters.[5]
The constant pressure involved in crewing the FarStar began to irritate Krudar, leading him to be more aggressive, surly, and impatient. After he was involved in several scuffles with various crew members, the command crew warned Krudar that if he participated in any more altercations, he would be stripped of his rank and position as well as confined to his quarters for the rest of the mission. To add to his worries, his friend Boom had developed into a major source of agitation. The Guudrian's love of explosions and pyrotechnics had led him to experiment with several of the crew's personal possessions by setting them on fire to see how they interacted with heat and flames. Although Krudar attempted to restrain Boom, he had a hard job of it, and the situation did little to change the command crew's opinion of the Duros, as he had vouched for Boom to join the crew in the first place. As a result, Krudar became frustrated with Boom as his actions made it harder for the gunner to keep a low profile with the crew.[5]
The FarStar eventually reached the Kathol system after several months, which was the location of Moff Sarne's new power base and home to the mysterious DarkStryder, an insectoid entity that was responsible for the creation of the exotic DarkStryder technology that Sarne coveted. Krudar stood to his assigned duty, and participated in the Battle of Kathol System, an engagement that would see the end of Moff Sarne, the destruction of the majority of his forces, the death of the mysterious DarkStryder, and the loss of the FarStar itself.[6]
Personality and traits
A green-skinned, red-eyed Duros, Krudar projected the façade of being a stereotypical member of his species, appearing to be calm and peaceful. In reality, however, he enjoyed the thrill of ship-to-ship combat and the prestige that came with it. His main concerns were material gain and keeping track of his kills. He only spoke when he had to,[1] unlike the majority of his species who often enjoyed company and telling stories of their adventures.[7] However, he did translate for his companion, Boom, when it was necessary. Krudar was also very protective of the weapons under his care, and strove to do the best he could to keep them in the best condition possible.[1]
During his time on the FarStar, the relentless pressure involved in running the vessel at peak operating condition with no support network began to take its toll on Krudar, and his carefully controlled belligerency came to the surface more often. This resulted in arguments and confrontations with various crewmembers,[5] and he sometimes believed that his shipmates were deliberately trying to antagonize him by rigging his weapon to malfunction,[3] or attempting to draw him into an altercation when they knew he was being watched for any signs of hostility.[5] Spending weeks cooped up on the FarStar made Krudar more surly and irritable than usual and, while infected with a biochemical agent devised by the Qektoth Confederation, the Duros was unable to control his feelings, which led to a public confrontation with Ensign Colton on the bridge of the FarStar.[4]
Krudar maintained a friendship with Boom from his days as a pirate, which extended to the Duros convincing the New Republic to allow the Guudrian aboard the FarStar.[1] However, Boom's overriding interest in explosions and melting objects did not endear him to the crew of the vessel, and Krudar suffered from the crew's impatience and frustration with his friend. As the only one who could translate for Boom, Krudar often found himself forced to try and control his friend's behavior, something that became harder and harder as the mission progressed.[5]
Mildly agoraphobic, Krudar preferred to spend free time in his quarters rather than socializing with his shipmates. While his condition was not a full-blown phobia and did not affect his duties, he found his fears were intensified by the effects of the Kathol Rift during the FarStar's journey through the region of space that it occupied.[5]
Skills and abilities
Krudar was trained in a variety of gunnery disciplines, including blaster artillery, vehicle-mounted blasters, capital ship and starship-mounted weapons. He was also capable of repairing weapons on starships and capital ships, and was knowledgeable of other alien species.[1]
Equipment
Krudar generally armed himself with a blaster pistol and carried a repair kit while on duty. He wore a black blast helmet adorned with a personalized sigil, and a grey and red blast vest.[1]
Behind the scenes
Krudar was created for The DarkStryder Campaign, a multi-book adventure for Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game by West End Games. A member of the support crew of the FarStar, Krudar was referenced in all three of the subsequent supplements to the Campaign. Krudar's ultimate fate is left to the whim of the gamemaster and players. In the "Crew Development" section of Endgame, it is suggested that he will likely go down with the FarStar during the space battle, although it is noted that he may come in handy during the ground battle as well. As one of the FarStar's main gunners, it can be presumed that Krudar served in most, if not all, of the battles in which the corvette fought during its voyage. However, the Battle of Kathol is the only engagement that Krudar is specifically referenced to have participated in.
Appearances
"Plant Food" — The Kathol Outback (First appearance)- "Wildfire" — The Kathol Outback
Sources
- The DarkStryder Campaign (First mentioned)
- The Kathol Outback
- The Kathol Rift
- Endgame
- The DarkStryder Campaign, Deluxe (Reprint)
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 The DarkStryder Campaign
- ↑
"The Saga Begins" — The DarkStryder Campaign
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Plant Food" — The DarkStryder Campaign
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Wildfire" — The Kathol Outback
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 The Kathol Rift
- ↑ Endgame
- ↑ Galaxy Guide 4: Alien Races, Second Edition