Grond (third from left) was one of the Imperials present for Darth Vader's arrival aboard the Death Star.
The Human Grond hailed from the planet Corellia and grew up racing swoops. At some point during the Galactic Civil War, he was part of the Emperor's Demonstration Team, a specialized unit in the Galactic Empire's military. By 4 ABY, he had become a scout and a lieutenant serving as an aide of Colonel Dyer, who helped oversee the fortification of the second Death Star's shield generator bunker on the Forest Moon of Endor.
That year, Grond awaited the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader's arrival aboard the Death Star orbiting the moon. Upon his arrival, the Sith Lord ordered the station's commander, Moff Tiaan Jerjerrod, to speed up the superweapon's construction. Grond shortly afterwards stood in one of the Death Star's hangar bays alongside Vader and other Imperial officers to await the arrival of Emperor Palpatine aboard the battlestation. A short time later, Grond took part in the Battle of Endor on the forest moon, where he organized scout trooper patrols and coordinated both scout movements and the actions to help lead the Imperial defense of the shield generator. Nevertheless, the Rebel Alliance destroyed both the generator and the Death Star battlestation.
During his time as a lieutenant, Grond wore a black Imperial Navy crewman's uniform and cap.
The character of Grond first appeared as one of the Imperial extras—portrayed by an uncredited Rodney Cardiff according to actor Kenneth Coombs—awaiting Darth Vader's arrival on the second Death Star in the beginning of the 1983 film . He was named and given a brief backstory on a card of the 1999 Endor Limited expansion set of Decipher's Star Wars Customizable Card Game.
According to an on-set photo shown first by a card for 1983 Topps Star Wars: Return of the Jedi Series 1, Grond was meant to appear in at least one more scene in Return of the Jedi, among the extras standing in a docking bay with Vader and Jerjerrod to await Palpatine's arrival on the Death Star.
In the 1997 Special Edition release of , footage of Darth Vader's arrival aboard the second Death Star in the opening scene of Return of the Jedi was reused to show Vader arriving aboard his flagship, the Executor-class Star Dreadnought Executor, following his duel with Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker on the planet Bespin. Because of the scene's inclusion, Rodney Cardiff is visible aboard the Executor along with other extras who portrayed the Imperial officers in the beginning of Return of the Jedi.
- The Art of Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
- Star Wars: The Magic of Myth
- Star Wars: Behind the Magic
- Star Wars Customizable Card Game — Endor Limited
- Rebellion Era Sourcebook
- The Official Star Wars Fact File11
- Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary
- The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- Death Star Owner's Technical Manual
- Star Wars: Jedi Battles