FE-9Q

FE-9Q was a tractor-robot, in use during the Imperial Period. Known colloquially as "Effie," he was one of the few such droids in the farming village of Onacra on Aduba-3, as the farmers commonly preferred to do the hard work themselves, a point on which they prided themselves. FE-9Q fell into disrepair, and was eventually cast aside. He was recovered by the Doshuns, who valued the unit's strong personality. He became an informal household servant, until the Doshuns perished in a high-hound attack. Their three-year-old child, Jimm Doshun, was largely cared for by the village as a whole, but the direct raising of the young boy fell to FE-9Q.

FE-9Q attempted to pass on the teachings and ethics valued by the Doshuns to young Jimm, but the boy was restless. The droid greatly cared for the boy, and although Jimm openly chose to defy FE-9Q's authority, he internally loved the tractor-robot. As Jimm Doshun grew, he became more and more difficult, and resented FE-9Q's efforts to raise him. His rebellious attitude got him into a great deal of trouble, but FE-9Q remained faithful, and was always present to help the young teenager. Doshun often exploited his ability to have the droid do his bidding, but FE-9Q constantly made sure to make his objections and reservations vocalized. FE-9Q later joined Doshun in journeying to the spaceport of Tun Aduban, where the boy hoped he would be able to find a way off Aduba-3.

In 0 ABY, a posse was being assembled in Tun Aduban, and Doshun hoped to join. FE-9Q accompanied Doshun to Locru's Central Saloon, where the boy was interviewed by the man in charge of the posse, Captain Han Solo. Doshun elected to identify himself by the moniker of "The Starkiller Kid," a decision that FE-9Q lamented but could not affect. Solo was in fact more than happy to have FE-9Q join his posse, but was curious as to why he should allow the inexperienced Doshun entry. The boy was able to convince Solo, and excitedly prepared for what he assumed would be his departure from Aduba-3.

The next day, FE-9Q and Doshun assembled with the rest of Solo's posse—the Wookiee Chewbacca, gunslinger Amaiza Foxtrain, Spiner Hedji, aging would-be Jedi Don-Wan Kihotay, and the Lepi Jaxxon. Doshun demanded to know where Solo's starship was, presuming that it would be used to spirit them away from Aduba-3, but the Corellian pointed out that he had not said anything about them leaving the planet. Soon the posse was approached by Serji-X Arrogantus and the Cloud-Riders—a gang of hoods that had been terrorizing Onacra for years. Solo quickly explained that the posse would be defending Onacra from the Cloud-Riders, before exchanging choice words with Arrogantus.

While the rest of the posse saddled up on banthas and rode out to Onacra, FE-9Q proceeded on his treads, while Doshun led the group to his . On the way, they spotted a pack of high-hounds haranguing some farmers in a nearby crop, and Solo urged the posse to engage. Using his telescoping arms, FE-9Q managed to grasp one of the high-hounds, while Doshun took the advantage and shot it dead. The rest of the posse were able to scare off the remaining high-hounds, and Solo managed to rescue a farm girl, Merri Shen. The posse then proceeded on to Onacra, where they were tasked by Solo with the construction of makeshift defenses.

The posse then assembled, and Solo made sure everyone was ready for Arrogantus' inevitable attack, a prospect that FE-9Q did not find to be favorable. Sure enough, the Cloud-Riders approached, with Arrogantus in the lead, and a battle broke out between the posse and the marauders. Using his telescoping arms, FE-9Q was able to reach out and grasp the skyspeeder flown by the Boltrunian Warto, bringing it to a standstill. Chewbacca then pulled the Cloud-Rider from his mount, and pummeled him to death. FE-9Q then noticed that Doshun was in great peril, vulnerable to a team of outlaws sneaking in from the rear. He attempted to warn the boy, but was unable to be heard over the roar of blasterfire. As one of the outlaws raised their weapon at Doshun, FE-9Q hurriedly darted into the line of fire. The blaster bolt lanced into FE-9Q, shattering him and destroying him instantly.

The Cloud-Riders were eventually overcome, and Onacra was saved. Doshun married Shen in the aftermath, and Solo's posse came to be known as the Star-Hoppers of Aduba-3. Their exploits were fictionalized in a holodocumentary by Tri-Nebula Entertainment, and FE-9Q was profiled, along with the rest of the Star-Hoppers, by Alliance to Restore the Republic historian Voren Na'al, several years after the incident.

FE-9Q possessed a strong personality, which was noted by the Doshuns and inspired their recovery of him. He was programmed to do the bidding of their child, Jimm Doshun, although he had the capability to vocally speak out against the young boy's dictates. FE-9Q was programmed not to harm other sentients, but by 0 ABY his programming had developed to such a point that he had the ability to creatively bypass his inhibitive dampers. During the battle to defend Onacra, instead of directly attacking a Cloud-Rider, FE-9Q had the capability of using his telescoping arms to grasp their skyspeeders instead. He was insistent on the fact that he did not actually belong to Doshun, and was continually criticizing the boy when in the presence of strangers. In spite of this, he was unable to allow Doshun to be gunned down in the heat of combat, and sacrificed himself that the boy might live.

FE-9Q first appeared in Star Wars (1977) 8 (1978), which was penned by Roy Thomas and Howard Chaykin. The character was killed off in the next issue, Star Wars (1977) 9 (1978).

• "The Starhoppers of Aduba-3" — Star Wars Gamer 4
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
• "New Planets, New Perils" — Star Wars Insider Special Edition 2022