Amilyn Holdo

Amilyn Holdo, a human female, was born on the planet of Gatalenta in the Core Worlds around the beginning of the Galactic Empire's reign. As a child, she enjoyed exploring caves and fast sledding, and she became proficient in skyfaring, a Gatalentan form of calisthenics. The young Holdo also studied astrology, public service, and philosophy. She was often at odds with Gatalentan traditions of simplicity and tranquility, instead embracing eccentricity and seeking out danger.

In 3 BBY, Holdo was chosen to represent Gatalenta in the Apprentice Legislature, a program designed to train young people in politics on the Imperial capital world of Coruscant. Before their first legislative session, Holdo and other members of the Apprentice Legislature were invited by Queen Breha Organa of Alderaan to participate in a pathfinding class. This class taught survival skills through challenging expeditions in natural environments. Holdo's initial pathfinding course took place in Alderaan's Istabith range and was led by Chief Pangie of the Chandrilan Pathfinding Corps. During their orientation at the pathfinders' chalet basecamp, Holdo met several of her fellow classmates and future apprentice legislators, including Chassellon Stevis from Coruscant, Harp Allor from Chandrila, Sssamm Ashsssen from Fillithar, and Kier Domadi and Princess Leia Organa, both delegates from Alderaan.

During the first pathfinding class, Chief Pangie left the students in the Istabith range. He tasked them with returning to the chalet by nightfall, using only their observational skills to guide them, or face expulsion from the class. As the class attempted to return to the chalet, Holdo searched for snow owls. When Harp Allor broke her leg during the hike back, Holdo, along with Ashsssen, Domadi, and Organa, committed to helping Allor return to the chalet. Stevis, leading the rest of the class, refused to slow down for their injured classmate. Holdo's group made slow progress, risking missing the deadline, but the young Gatalentan's unique thinking saved them. She converted her expandable emergency tent into a makeshift toboggan to carry all five members of her group downhill. When Stevis and his group returned to the chalet, Holdo was already there, enjoying mocoa with the others.

Following her initial pathfinding class on Alderaan, Holdo moved to Coruscant and resided in dormitories for Apprentice Legislature members. She attended the legislature's opening ceremonies in the Senate complex, where she heard an introductory speech by Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin. Her unusual wardrobe and behavior at the reception that followed added to her growing reputation for eccentricity among her fellow delegates.

Holdo participated in the first formal session of the Apprentice Legislature the following day. There, she shared her passion for astrology with her colleagues and participated in a debate about where Galactic Emperor Sheev Palpatine should establish a new Imperial academy for aeronautical engineering and design. The debate centered on four potential locations: Iloh, Harloff Minor, Lonera, and the impoverished world of Arreyel. Princess Organa advocated for Arreyel and successfully convinced a majority of delegates to support the proposal. Weeks later, Holdo learned that the Apprentice Legislature received a special commendation for selecting Arreyel. Early surveys for the academy revealed significant subsurface [radiation](/article/radiation] sources. This discovery led to an Imperial effort to displace the local population within six weeks so the Imperial Military could destroy the surface and construct extensive planet-wide factories on Arreyel. Holdo was devastated by this outcome and shared her disappointment with Organa and Domadi, who also opposed Palpatine's authoritarian rule.

In a later session, the Apprentice Legislature was tasked with determining sanctions against the planet Lolet for violating Regulation 16-ME. This regulation required worlds to provide fuel to Imperial pilots as needed. Holdo opposed any sanctions, arguing that Lolet's refusal to provide fuel was reasonable given its economic conditions and low fuel reserves, indicating a near-crisis state. Her research showed that Lolet's reserves were depleted after significant geological activity on one of its moons, leaving the world unable to support both Imperial patrols and its own people in emergencies. Holdo argued that no planet should be legally obligated to endanger itself to supply the military, a point that resonated with Domadi and Organa. Delegates from Arkanis and Glee Anselm opposed her, ridiculing her style and accusing her of treason for suggesting the Empire was not a reliable safety net for worlds in crisis.

This event deeply affected Princess Organa, who defended Holdo on the legislature's floor and successfully proposed drafting new language for the Imperial Legal Code instead of imposing sanctions on Lolet for circumstances not covered by law. The Lolet debate and other experiences strengthened the bond between Organa and Holdo, and they grew closer during their terms. Holdo taught the Alderaanian noble Gatalentan skyfaring and helped Organa navigate her relationship with her parents and Kier Domadi. At the time, Organa considered involving Holdo in the clandestine operations of the emerging allied rebel movement organized by her father, Senator Bail Organa, but ultimately decided against it.

During the legislative term, Holdo continued her pathfinding class with Chief Pangie and the other delegates, attending sessions in Eriadu's Rivoche Ranges, on Felucia's jungle cliffs, and through Chandrila's vast marshlands. Their final session took them to the ocean world of Pamarthe in the Outer Rim Territories. There, Holdo and Organa were partnered and tasked with navigating island chains using rope bridges to reach Pangie's location.

However, Holdo and Organa became distracted when they discovered Senator Winmey Lenz of Chandrila—a vocal critic of Palpatine's—meeting with an Imperial Military Director in a Pamarthe spaceport to conduct a significant, unofficial sale of quadanium steel. Organa knew Lenz was secretly brokering sales of quadanium to her father's rebel network. While eavesdropping, the two girls learned that a shipment of Lenz's quadanium was about to leave Pamarthe for Ocahont, a known hub for rebel operations. When Organa expressed her desire to learn more about the shipment, Holdo boarded the freighter bound for Ocahont, prompting Organa to stow away with her.

En route to Ocahont, Organa revealed to Holdo that she knew about an armed and organized rebel movement. Before she could say more, a pair of Quarren crewmembers discovered the two stowaways and took them to a rebel outpost on Ocahont as prisoners. There, they were presented to the outpost overseer: Mon Mothma, Chandrila's other senator and a close ally of the Organas. Mothma, frustrated that the Princess had put herself in danger and revealed the rebel plot to Holdo, was grateful for the girls' information about Lenz's double-dealing. After meeting with Senator Mothma, Holdo and Organa were sent back to their parents. Holdo kept Organa's secret, not revealing the true nature of their adventure.

Holdo returned to Coruscant soon after to attend a formal ball at the Imperial Palace, which was attended by apprentice legislators and graduates from the Royal Imperial Academy. Sometime after the ball, she planned to return to Gatalenta for a meditative retreat and hired the light freighter Mighty Oak Apocalypse to transport her from Coruscant to her homeworld. At the spaceport, Chassellon Stevis approached Holdo, arguing that he should be able to use the Mighty Oak Apocalypse instead to travel to an auction on Arkanis and buy a rare speeder. As the two argued, Princess Organa found them and asked Holdo if she could use the ship instead. Recognizing the urgency in Organa's request, Holdo immediately agreed to help her friend, much to Stevis's annoyance.

Organa had learned that the Empire knew of a rebel presence in the Paucris system, where Senator Bail Organa was overseeing a secret staging ground for a developing rebel fleet as its vessels were refitted for combat. Together on the Mighty Oak Apocalypse, Holdo and Organa traveled back to Pamarthe. There, they planned to hire a different ship from a busy spaceport to reach Paucris and warn Senator Organa of the likely imminent Imperial attack. On Pamarthe, the two girls struggled to find a willing pilot due to dangerous atmospheric and solar storms, but Organa used her political connections to convince a crew of Chalhuddans to take the job.

The Chalhuddan vessel reached the Paucris system in time for Organa's warning to reach her father. As the rebel fleet prepared to evacuate, Holdo and Organa briefly met with the senator on his starship, the Tantive IV, before transferring to a small hopper transport to return to Coruscant. The Princess kept the hopper in-system while Holdo monitored the rebel ships escaping to hyperspace. After the rebel vessels left, Holdo noticed a new ship moving quickly towards the abandoned refitting stations. To their surprise, the pilot was Kier Domadi, who had followed Organa to the Paucris system. Domadi was unaware that the stations had engaged their self-destruct mechanism and his vessel was caught in the resulting explosion. Holdo and Organa docked their ship with Domadi's damaged transport to rescue him, but their friend had been mortally wounded and died.

While Organa retrieved Domadi's body and grieved, Holdo flew their hopper directly to Alderaan, knowing that both of her friends needed to return home. Upon entering the Alderaan system, their ship was detected by Imperial authorities who suspected it was returning from Paucris. Holdo's astrological knowledge helped her convincingly lie to the Imperial captain, claiming they had come from the [Shili system](/article/shili_system]. She was able to return Organa and Domadi safely home.

Holdo and Organa became close friends after Domadi's death, supporting each other through their grief. Holdo took her friend skyfaring daily and attended the investiture ceremony on Alderaan where Organa formally became the world's crown princess. For the ceremony Holdo had her hair dyed glittery blue and wore a simple dark green dress at last striking the perfect balance. Publicly, they maintained the appearance of loyal Imperial politicians, while privately joining the Alliance to Restore the Republic as rebel operatives.

Around this time, Organa offered to teach Holdo how to drive a speeder on Coruscant. Holdo accepted, both because she lacked driving experience and because she hoped to take Organa's speeder to the Coruscant Underworld to find an ancient, lost museum somewhere in Level 4, deep within the subterranean structure of the ecumenopolis. Organa was impressed with Holdo's driving skills in a practice area but refused to accompany her to find the museum, insisting that nobody could go deeper than Level 5 on Coruscant. Holdo insisted it was possible and took them deep into the Coruscant underbelly to find directions.

At an underworld circus, Holdo found a Zeltron fortune teller named Lady Forzaa and convinced Organa to pay for her assistance. Forzaa used a Liga crystal to imbue Organa's hands with a soft glow that strengthened as they approached the museum Holdo sought. Back in their speeder, Holdo took the girls deeper into the undercity, following Organa's glow, until they encountered a group of criminals. The criminals chased the girls on speeder bikes, forcing them to flee into a massive pipeline before being driven out by a [thermal detonator](/article/thermal_detonator] blast and a swarm of mutant roach-rats. Holdo and Organa escaped their pursuers and reached the museum on Level 4, where they discovered a soaring statuary hall lit by glowing blue [coral](/article/coral]. The experience brought the two girls closer and strengthened their commitment to advocating for those living below the heights of power.

Around the time the Galactic Civil War began in earnest in 0 BBY, Holdo and Princess Organa left Imperial politics and openly joined the Alliance in rebellion against the Empire. With Organa's support, Holdo became a minister in the Alliance Civil Government. As a minister, Holdo was known for her anti-Imperial speeches but remained largely separate from the Alliance Military.

Sometime during the war, she was a passenger on the Alliance CR90 blockade runner Candor, a smuggling vessel traveling through deep space. While relaxing in her quarters with the droid Tee-Six and using a Morogian snap plant to dye her hair, the Candor was attacked by an Imperial-class Star Destroyer and severely damaged. Holdo made her way to the bridge, where she found the ship's commander, Captain Jardar, had been killed in the initial attack. As the highest-ranking Rebel on the ship, Minister Holdo quickly took command of the Candor and began issuing orders to the stunned crew.

Holdo overcame the bridge crew's doubts when the ship was caught in the Star Destroyer's tractor beam. On her orders, the pilots reoriented the Candor towards the Star Destroyer and opened fire on its exposed [hangar](/article/hangar]. The blasts created a hole in the destroyer's hull, allowing the blockade runner's ion drives to push the ship through and escape. This unconventional maneuver saved the crew of the Candor and impressed Rebel command. Holdo's performance in battle validated Princess Organa's praise and earned her a new role as a captain in the Alliance Fleet.

As the war progressed, Holdo became integrated within the criminal organizations of the galaxy's underbelly, with the purpose of securing vital supply routes for the Alliance. Following the Rebellion's defeat and subsequent dispersal during the Battle of Hoth in 3 ABY, Holdo, through an encounter at a cantina with another human, learned that the previously inactive syndicate known as Crimson Dawn had resurfaced. This syndicate was conducting an auction for the Rebel captain Han Solo on the Mid Rim planet of Jekara. Solo, a beloved companion of Leia Organa, had been encased in carbonite while in Imperial custody shortly after their escape from Hoth. Even though Holdo's communication with Organa was infrequent at the time, she was aware of the princess's search for Solo. Consequently, Holdo left a holographic message at one of their designated drop points, relaying the news about the rebel captain, the return of Crimson Dawn, and the auction invitation extended to prominent figures in the criminal world. This message eventually reached the princess's team, and Holdo's information proved instrumental in guiding them to Jekara for a rescue attempt.

It was Qi'ra, the leader of Crimson Dawn and a former romantic interest of Solo's, who orchestrated the delivery of this information to Holdo. Qi'ra's intention was to ensure Solo's return to Organa and his loved ones, preventing him from falling into enemy hands. During this period, Holdo, still holding the rank of captain, began negotiating deals with crime syndicates to procure fuel and supplies for the Alliance. However, the outbreak of the Syndicate War disrupted her efforts.

Later, she and Organa came to an agreement to have a meeting with Qi'ra on the Home One. Following this meeting, Holdo committed to coordinating supply lines with Qi'ra. Holdo inquired with Organa about her trust in Qi'ra. Organa expressed her lack of trust and advised Holdo to maintain vigilance. Subsequently, Holdo informed Organa about Sergeant Kes Dameron's and Starlight Squadron's unsanctioned mission to rescue his wife.

Subsequently, Holdo escorted Organa, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, and Lando Calrissian to Spira. This trip served the dual purpose of providing Organa with respite and addressing the Rebellion's supply challenges. The group intended to spend several days at the mansion belonging to Holdo's friend. While relaxing by the mansion's pool, Holdo sat alongside Organa, offering reassurance to her friend who was concerned about the Alliance's supply difficulties, emphasizing the necessity and benefit of taking a break. She also noted that her contact with Crimson Dawn had ceased communication. During their stay, Holdo and the others attended an auction on the planet Spira, hoping to acquire a Nihil strikeship. She believed its Path engine could lead the Rebels to the Kezarat convoy and its fuel resources. Despite Holdo's bid of twenty-six thousand credits, they were outbid by the curator of the Galactic Museum on Coruscant.

Remaining determined, Holdo and her allies resolved to steal the Path engine from the ship. They neutralized several stormtroopers guarding the vessel before returning to the mansion with their acquired prize. However, they soon found themselves pursued by Imperial forces. Evading capture aboard Holdo's ship, the Skyfarer, the group escaped the mansion just as it was destroyed by TIE fighters, prompting Holdo to lament the need to inform her friend that their residence had been obliterated. As Holdo piloted the ship, outmaneuvering the TIEs and preparing for a hyperspace jump, the Path engine activated, transporting the group to No-Space.

The Alliance won the war in 5 ABY and the New Republic was established in order to restore democracy to the galaxy. For decades peace was the norm, however, some remnants of the Empire secretly joined together in the Unknown Regions, and reorganized as a fascist military cult known as the First Order. In 28 ABY, Leia Organa departed from New Republic politics so that she could take a more direct role in facing the growing threat of the First Order by creating a private military vanguard referred to as the Resistance. Amilyn Holdo was one of the many former Rebel leaders who was recruited by the newly appointed General Organa with the purpose of building the command structure for her movement. She was given the rank of Vice Admiral of the Resistance fleet during the Cold War between the New Republic and the First Order, and was given command of the Free Virgillia-class cruiser Ninka.

During the Cold War, Holdo and other leaders in the Resistance had suspicions that certain members of New Republic High Command were intentionally mismanaging the New Republic Defense Force so that they could avoid taking direct action against the growing First Order. Before 31 ABY, Vice Admiral Holdo was given command of a Resistance task force that included the legendary Rebel pilot Nien Nunb, and was tasked with gathering information that would confirm those suspicions. The mission required Holdo and her crew to travel to Brooksdion Station, where the New Republic's Admiral Mathieson was stationed. Knowing that Mathieson's protocol droid contained a large amount of records that could prove the Resistance's fears about New Republic High Command, Holdo's team stole the droid's head and escaped the station aboard their unmarked passenger transport.

Before Holdo's team was able to leave the area, the New Republic sent the T-85 X-wings of Rapier Squadron to intercept and recover the droid's head. The hyperdrive on Holdo's ship was disabled by Rapier's Commander Poe Dameron, but Holdo kept her identity secret over the comms and kept attempting to escape at sublight speeds by guiding her ship into Lost Souls, a very dangerous asteroid field with low visibility. While her team was repairing the hyperdrive, Holdo and Nien Nunb guided Dameron through Lost Souls, not revealing their identity but making sure that the New Republic commander was able to safely get through the region. The Vice Admiral had traveled through Lost Souls before and was skilled at navigating its deadly Exogorth infestation and Clone Wars-era mine defenses. By the time the Resistance ship and their pursuer came out of the asteroid field, Holdo's crew had fixed the hyperdrive. Nien Nunb efficiently shot and damaged Dameron's snub-fighter, preventing him from chasing them any further. After warning Dameron about the dangerous inaction of the New Republic, Holdo's team jumped to hyperspace so that they could take their captured evidence back to the Resistance. Dameron went back to Rapier Squadron, not knowing the identity of the people he was chasing.

As the Vice Admiral of the Resistance fleet, Holdo also was in charge of the operations of several starfighter and bomber groups that were assigned to the Ninka, including Blue Squadron and Crimson Squadron. She and Admiral Gial Ackbar both welcomed the Otomok system refugees Rose and Paige Tico into the Resistance after they escaped from the First Order blockade of their home; the two sisters joined the bomber teams of Cobalt Squadron and served under Holdo for many relief and reconnaissance missions.

Holdo was on the Ninka when Blue Squadron, under the command of Lieutenant Tallissan Lintra, ended a training mission early because sensor interference from a nearby ionized gas cloud. While the rest of the squadron went back to Holdo's cruiser, Lintra followed a distress signal into the cloud. Even though she couldn't see well through the nebula, the lieutenant was able to find the source: a lost freighter that was crewed by a lone Duros pilot, Staaysha Dekkr. Lintra helped guide the vessel back to Blue Squadron and the Ninka, and brought the pilot on board so that she could meet Vice Admiral Holdo. Dekkr was very thankful to the Resistance for Lintra's response to the distress signal, and promised to give Holdo a map of the nebula that was compiled by Duro Interstellar Freight and Shipping.

By 34 ABY, the tensions between the First Order and the Resistance were very high because the First Order was becoming more aggressive in its expansion. In the Cassander sector, Holdo was in command of the Ninka and the MG-100 StarFortress bombers of Cobalt and Crimson squadrons against a pirate force based on Sheh Soahi that was suspected of being a proxy for the First Order. Working alongside Lieutenant Lintra and bomber commander Fossil, Holdo led the Resistance to victory over the Sheh Soahi pirates, while avoiding direct engagement with patrolling First Order forces. The Resistance's victory in Cassander space stopped the First Order's ambitions in the sector and confirmed that the enemy was providing arms and resources to pirate forces.

After the Cassander campaign, Holdo joined General Organa and Commander Fossil at the Resistance's secret base on D'Qar so that they could discuss the First Order lockdown of the Atterra system. Using intelligence that was gathered by Cobalt Squadron and reconnaissance efforts by Rose and Paige Tico, Holdo and Organa worked with Casca Panzoro of the Atterran insurgent group Bravo Rising to come up with a plan for their StarFortress bomber squadrons to secretly deliver relief supplies and armaments to the struggling people of Atterra Bravo. Even though Holdo didn't plan to go to Atterra herself, she gave advice on the relief campaign and joined Organa and Panzoro to brief the bomber teams of Cobalt and Crimson squadrons on their objectives.

While Holdo was monitoring the Atterra campaign, open war broke out. At the request of Supreme Leader Snoke, the First Order destroyed the Hosnian system by using a new superweapon in the Unknown Regions: Starkiller Base. The base launched a beam of cataclysmic energy through sub-hyperspace all the way into the Core Worlds, vaporizing the New Republic capital world of Hosnian Prime, all of the other worlds in the system, and the New Republic Home Fleet. The attack destroyed the New Republic as a government and military entity, leaving the Resistance as the only organized group opposing the First Order. General Organa immediately gathered the forces of the Resistance for a counterstrike against Starkiller Base, but Holdo and the bombers of Crimson and Cobalt Squadron were too far away to join the assault.

Even though Resistance agents were able to destroy the superweapon, the Hosnian Cataclysm was just the first part of the war. As First Order armadas and legions of stormtroopers quickly moved to conquer the galaxy, General Organa called Holdo and all other Resistance forces back to D'Qar so that they could help with an emergency evacuation effort. After the StarFortress bomber teams finished their successful final runs to Atterra, Holdo met them at their staging location on Refnu in the Outer Rim to brief them on the events surrounding the firing of Starkiller Base. She explained the situation on D'Qar, and that she would be commanding the bomber teams and a starfighter escort in defense of Resistance forces as they fled their secret headquarters. She also recruited Rose Tico to join her crew on the Ninka after learning about the mechanic's impressive work with baffler technology during the Atterra operation. At Holdo's request, Tico taught the Ninka's crew how to adapt her bafflers, which masked the energy signature from starship engines in order to cloak vessels from detection.

After the Ninka resupplied the eight StarFortress bombers with ordnance in the Refnu system, Vice Admiral Holdo led her attack force to D'Qar, where they joined the remaining members of the Resistance fleet, which were anchored by General Organa's large flagship, the MC85 Star Cruiser Raddus. As ground crews finished up the evacuation, a First Order fleet of three Star Destroyers led by General Armitage Hux arrived in-system; at the center of the invading fleet was the huge Siege Dreadnought Fulminatrix, which carried ventral orbital autocannons that had enough firepower to destroy both the base and the Resistance fleet.

While Commander Poe Dameron—who was now an ace pilot for the Resistance—distracted and delayed the First Order invaders in his T-70 X-wing, Holdo's StarFortress squadrons moved into position to attack the Fulminatrix. The ground teams finished the evacuation right before the dreadnought's ventral cannons bombarded and destroyed the D'Qar base, but the starfighter and bomber squadrons pushed their attack on the Fulminatrix at Dameron's insistence and in direct defiance of General Organa's command to retreat so that the fleet could jump away. Even though the Cobalt Hammer was able to complete its bombing run and destroy the Fulminatrix before it launched a destructive volley at the fleet, every StarFortress in Cobalt and Crimson squadron was destroyed during the effort—a big loss to the Resistance's shrinking forces. After the surviving starfighter escort retreated to the Raddus, Holdo and the Ninka escaped into hyperspace with the rest of the fleet to an old Rebel Alliance rendezvous point in the remote Oetchi system, where they would regroup and start looking for a new base.

In deep space in the Oetchi system, Holdo's Ninka formed a convoy with the Raddus and the other Resistance ships that survived D'Qar: the Vakbeor-class cargo frigate Vigil and the Nebulon-C medical frigate Anodyne. Holdo and Organa had a plan for survival that came from their experience in the Rebellion: after jumping to safety to escape the First Order, they would go to the mineral planet Crait in a nearby system, where they would regroup and start looking for allies and resources from the hidden safety of an abandoned Rebel outpost that was from the Galactic Civil War. Crait was far in the Outer Rim and ignored by political and economic powers, and it didn't appear on most modern star maps, which would make it a good base for the Resistance, if its secrecy was maintained. To make sure that it stayed secret, Holdo and Organa decided not to share their plan with many people so that enemy agents wouldn't find out about it during a dangerous time for their movement.

Before their plan could start, a First Order armada arrived in the Oetchi system, after tracking the Resistance ships through hyperspace using new technology. The armada was a large naval force that consisted of thirty Resurgent-class Star Destroyers that were led by the Supremacy—a very large Mega-class Star Dreadnought that was the mobile headquarters of the First Order and the flagship of Supreme Leader Snoke. The Resistance vessels were caught off-guard by the seeming impossibility of hyperspace tracking and only had enough fuel for one more jump, so they turned to flee. Even though the Ninka, Raddus, and Anodyne survived the first volley from the Star Destroyers, the Vigil was destroyed and the Resistance's starfighter wing was wiped out before it could launch from Organa's flagship. Before the fleet escaped the range of the Star Destroyers, a squad of TIE fighters slipped under the Raddus's deflector shield and fired on the bridge, killing most of Resistance High Command—including Admiral Ackbar—and sending General Organa into the vacuum of space. Even though Organa survived because of her connection to the Force, she was severely injured and fell into a coma, leaving the Resistance without its leader as it fled the large force of the enemy.

With most of the Resistance leadership either dead or unable to act, Vice Admiral Holdo was the highest ranking officer on the fleet and was Organa's chosen successor in the chain of command. She moved her flag to the Raddus along with a small staff and took command of the Resistance as the First Order armada continued to chase them. Holdo's rise to power was announced by Commander Larma D'Acy at a meeting of Resistance officers in the ship's secondary battle bridge, which surprised some of the Raddus crew and personnel who had never served with the vice admiral. In a message that was broadcasted fleet-wide, Holdo explained their dire situation—four hundred survivors on just three ships—and made it clear that the survival of the Resistance was her main goal in command.

Holdo's objective was to proceed with the initial strategy she and Organa had formulated: relocating to Crait for regrouping. This plan, however, required modifications because of the First Order's newfound ability to monitor the fleet through hyperspace. Instead of making a direct hyperspace jump to Crait, which would both reveal their destination and exhaust their remaining fuel, Holdo chose to travel at sublight speed toward the planet. Simultaneously, she would utilize U-55 orbital transports, concealed by Tico's baffler technology, to evacuate the survivors to the surface, while their capital ships would act as a diversion, drawing the enemy away. The secrecy that Holdo and Organa had agreed upon was upheld by Holdo, which immediately led to a conflict with Poe Dameron. Following the vice admiral's address to the fleet, Dameron, who had been reduced in rank from commander to captain after the losses of Cobalt and Crimson squadrons above D'Qar, anticipated being included in command decisions. However, Holdo declined to involve him, which aroused suspicion and resentment in the headstrong young pilot.

Dameron wasted no time in developing his own scheme to rescue the fleet. He successfully enlisted the support of Rose Tico, Lieutenant Kaydel Ko Connix, and the former stormtrooper Finn to secretly disable the hyperspace tracker on the Supremacy, all without Holdo's knowledge. In order to carry out this clandestine mission, Tico and Finn secretly departed from the fleet aboard a stolen shuttle. Although Holdo detected the departure on the Raddus's sensors, Lieutenant Connix convinced her that the blip was simply debris.

As Holdo pressed onward with the fleet, the Raddus used its expansive shields to protect the smaller support vessels, but the dwindling fuel reserves remained a serious concern. The medical frigate Anodyne was the first ship to run out of fuel, prompting Holdo to order its evacuation and the transfer of its crew to the Raddus. This decision once again ignited Dameron's anger, leading him to confront Holdo on the flagship's bridge and demand to know her plans beyond mere evacuations. Holdo dismissed Dameron yet again, asserting that her command style would not reflect the kind of reckless decision-making that had resulted in the loss of the bombing squadrons above D'Qar. The Anodyne was quickly scuttled by Resistance personnel, with the last transports carrying injured patients managing to escape just as the ship lost power and drifted outside the Raddus's protective shield. The medical frigate's captain, who remained on board after the final evacuation transports had left, sent a final status update to Holdo as the Anodyne was attacked and destroyed by the Supremacy. Following this loss, Lieutenant Connix informed the vice admiral that the fleet had only six hours of fuel remaining.

The destruction of the Anodyne amidst the critical fuel shortage had a significant negative impact on morale, and Dameron held Holdo responsible for the declining spirits of the Resistance survivors. In response to his insubordinate outbursts against her leadership, Holdo barred Dameron from the bridge and removed him from duty assignments. Before long, the Ninka's fuel was depleted, forcing Holdo to order the evacuation of the remaining crew from her own cruiser. The Ninka was destroyed immediately after it moved outside the Raddus's shield, leaving the Resistance flagship as the only combat-ready vessel left in the fleet.

As the cruiser approached Crait at sublight speed, Holdo gave the order to transfer the Raddus's remaining fuel to the thirty U-55 orbital transports still in the hangar. While the command and hangar crews were carrying out her instructions, Dameron forced his way back onto the bridge to confront the vice admiral about the morale crisis affecting the ship. Although Holdo briefly managed to calm the captain, Dameron became enraged when he saw a monitor displaying the status of the shuttle fueling operation. Dameron believed Holdo intended to abandon ship, leaving the entire Resistance on unarmed and unshielded transports with no hyperdrive capabilities and no designated destination. He accused the vice admiral of cowardice and treason. Holdo ordered fleet security to remove Dameron from the bridge, which prompted him to proceed with his plans alongside Finn, Tico, and Lieutenant Connix.

When Holdo went to the hangar to personally oversee the evacuation preparations, Dameron and Connix assembled a group of Resistance pilots to stage a mutiny. Dameron and his crew confronted Holdo in the hangar, explaining that he had initiated a plan to have Finn and Tico infiltrate the Supremacy to disable the dreadnought's hyperspace tracker. Holdo refused Dameron's request to delay the evacuation to allow his plan to progress, instead ordering the shuttles to begin the boarding process. Upon her refusal, Dameron and his accomplices—Connix, C'ai Threnalli, and Nodin Chavdri—drew their blasters and declared that they were relieving the vice admiral of her command. Although Holdo was supported by officers including Commander D'Acy, General Caluan Ematt, Major Nossit Cicer, and Captain Geno Namit, she surrendered to Dameron to avoid a firefight aboard the Raddus.

Holdo and her loyalists were confined to the hangar by Dameron's armed mutineers while the pilot led a small group to seize control of the bridge. However, the mutiny was short-lived. As Dameron shut down power to the hangar, the vice admiral kicked a fuel line loose, spraying Threnalli with vapor. Holdo stunned the Abednedo pilot with her concealed blaster; her supporters followed her example, resulting in a shootout in the hangar between her loyal officers and the mutinous pilots. As the Raddus descended into chaos, General Leia Organa awoke from her coma and personally retook the bridge from Dameron, stunning him and capturing his co-conspirators. In the hangar, Holdo and her forces continued to battle Dameron's supporters as news of Organa's return began to spread. The Resistance fighters were unsure whose side she would take in the conflict until the general herself arrived in the hangar to stop the fighting. She was accompanied by a group of soldiers carrying an unconscious Dameron, and she greeted Holdo with a hug, making it clear that the vice admiral retained Organa's confidence and loyalty.

With the mutiny suppressed, Holdo and Organa resumed their plan to secretly evacuate the Raddus and head for Crait. Holdo paused to check on the unconscious Dameron before he was loaded onto a transport, confiding in Organa that she liked the pilot. As the final transports were loaded, Organa ordered Holdo to board, but the vice admiral refused. She explained that for the transports to escape, someone had to remain aboard the Raddus to draw the First Order fleet away from Crait. Although Organa tried to object, Holdo reminded the general that she still held technical command of the fleet and therefore outranked her friend, and that "an admiral goes down with her ship." Organa was reluctant to leave her friend aboard the doomed cruiser, but ultimately deferred to Holdo's will. The vice admiral consoled her friend with a final goodbye before the general and the rest of the Resistance departed the Raddus, leaving her behind.

Alone on the Raddus, Vice Admiral Holdo returned to the bridge. From her station, she had complete control over the massive ship, with the singular goal of buying the Resistance survivors time to reach Crait and escape. As she watched the U-55 transports move towards the planet, she reflected on her role, her relationship with Leia Organa, and her Gatalentan faith. Although she expected the First Order armada to pursue the Raddus until the Mon Calamari cruiser's fuel was depleted, the Supremacy unexpectedly changed targets and opened fire on the unshielded transports bound for Crait. Unbeknownst to the Resistance, Holdo's plan had been leaked to the First Order through Dameron's allies, Finn and Rose Tico. Dameron's messages to his compatriots about the situation on the Raddus were overheard by DJ, a thief and slicer who had been recruited by Finn and Tico in their effort to infiltrate the Supremacy. DJ betrayed his clients after the stormtroopers captured them, trading his freedom for the information he had gathered from Dameron's updates.

First Order gunners, now aware of the low-energy targets moving away from the Raddus, tracked the transports' emissions and opened fire on the Resistance lifeboats. From her station on the bridge, Holdo watched in horror as the Supremacy easily destroyed the vessels. One of the transport pilots contacted Holdo, frantically asking if the convoy should return to the Raddus. Knowing that the transports were too far from the shield envelope to hope for any protection from their flagship, Holdo ordered them to continue at full speed towards Crait. That pilot and others were killed as more than half of the Resistance transport fleet was wiped out by the First Order volley.

Although Holdo knew that the Raddus's shields and armaments were insufficient to save the lifeboats or distract the enemy, she found a potential solution in the cruiser's navigation computer. Dameron had entered hyperspace jump coordinates when he stormed the bridge; since the Raddus and its pursuers had continued along their trajectory towards Crait after the mutiny, the entry point for the jump was now located behind the First Order fleet. Although the likelihood of this outcome was infinitesimally small, Holdo hoped she could initiate the hyperspace jump and ram the enemy forces. Understanding it to be her only option, she turned the cruiser around and aimed it directly at the Supremacy. Both Resistance forces on the transports and First Order officers aboard the armada thought that Holdo was preparing to jump in order to flee the battle; the commanders of the Supremacy realized too late that the cruiser was aimed at the heart of their fleet and posed a significant threat.

Holdo bypassed the safety protocols on the Raddus and initiated the jump. The massive ship accelerated to nearly the speed of light and collided with the Supremacy as a deadly projectile bound for hyperspace. Holdo was killed instantly as the immense release of energy from the collision converted the Raddus's mass into a column of super-heated plasma that vaporized a large section of the Supremacy's starboard wing. The plasma remnants of Holdo's cruiser continued forward at lightspeed, tearing through the hulls of twenty Resurgent-class Star Destroyers positioned behind the Mega-Destroyer before being launched into hyperspace. Holdo's historic suicide run brought a definitive end to the First Order's prolonged assault and was witnessed by Organa, Dameron, and other Resistance survivors aboard the six remaining transports heading for Crait.

Amilyn Holdo's sacrifice above Crait saved the Resistance and many of its future leaders. Aboard the Supremacy, Finn and Rose Tico were about to be executed when the Raddus crashed into the ship; the resulting chaos allowed them to escape as the dreadnought's interior collapsed. The Supremacy's unique construction prevented it from being completely destroyed, but the First Order's flagship was damaged beyond repair, forcing it to be abandoned in the Crait system. The surviving First Order leaders—including General Hux and the newly appointed Supreme Leader Kylo Ren—led their remaining forces down to Crait, where the Resistance gathered to regroup and call for allies from the hidden Rebel base Holdo and Organa led them to. During the ensuing Battle of Crait, Dameron inspired his comrades by paraphrasing Holdo's speech to the fleet. He ultimately commanded Resistance forces with a preference for survival tactics over risky heroics, having learned from his experiences with the vice admiral. Although nearly annihilated, the Resistance was able to finally evade its First Order pursuers with the assistance of the Jedi Luke Skywalker and Rey.

Holdo's memory remained prominent among Resistance survivors as they moved forward from the events of D'Qar and Crait. Vi Moradi, one of Organa's spies tasked with finding new strongholds for the Resistance, was devastated to learn of Holdo's death. During Moradi's work on Batuu, she reflected on the vice admiral's sacrifice and General Organa's resilience, using the two women's example as motivation to continue her own efforts. While Organa worked to reconnect with scattered allies and establish new bases, she lamented to Rey the loss of her old friend, counting Holdo among other painful losses like Admiral Ackbar and Han Solo. The leadership vacuum created by the loss of so many Resistance leaders forced Organa to reach out to retired former Rebels like Wedge Antilles and Norra Wexley, both of whom were shocked to learn of Holdo's death from Resistance pilots Temmin Wexley and Karé Kun.

As the war continued, Dameron remained conflicted about his behavior towards Holdo. He attempted to confess his mutiny to the pilots of Black Squadron, who were away from the Resistance fleet during the D'Qar evacuation and battle at Crait. Instead, he carried that burden privately until the pirate queen Maz Kanata forced him to admit that he was still struggling with his actions aboard the Raddus. Sometime later, while Dameron and Organa worked to recruit New Republic and Rebel leaders into the Resistance, he was confronted by Sanrec Stronghammer, a veteran of the Battle of Jakku who had served alongside Holdo. Stronghammer had heard of Dameron's mutiny and argued that the pilot should be imprisoned or executed for his treason. Consumed by guilt and knowing he had to earn Stronghammer's trust, Dameron finally confessed to his crimes and accepted responsibility for what had happened on the Raddus. The confession and support from his friends and allies won Stronghammer's trust. Ultimately, Dameron committed to making amends for his actions by honoring Holdo's sacrifice. Dameron and Finn, both of whom were saved by Holdo, would remain key leaders of the Resistance until the end of the war.

Sometime in the year following the battle at Crait, cartographer Emil Graf recounted to his droid, CR-8R, the story of Vice Admiral Holdo's Ninka and Blue Squadron rescuing the Duros pilot Staaysha Dekkr earlier in the war. Holdo's memory became immortalized by 35 ABY, as her lightspeed suicide run on the Supremacy became known as the Holdo maneuver. When the Sith Eternal cult prepared to launch its fleet of planet-killing Star Destroyers, the Final Order, from Exegol to reinforce the First Order, Resistance historian Beaumont Kin suggested that Holdo maneuvers be deployed to eliminate the threat. Although his suggestion was dismissed as impractical, the tactic was used against at least one Star Destroyer during a conflict over Endor. At Exegol, the Resistance Holdo helped build and save ultimately triumphed over the First Order and the Sith Eternal, finally liberating the galaxy from the threat of Imperial-style fascism.

Amilyn Holdo was a slender human female with fair skin who stood at 1.78 meters in height as an adult. She possessed blue eyes and naturally blonde hair, which she frequently dyed with Morogian snap plant sap and chromomites to create a range of colors. While she favored vibrant greens and multicolor palettes in her youth, she later preferred pink and purple shades. She was a skilled pilot but a reckless driver during her time in the Imperial Youth Legislature, and she maintained an active lifestyle through pathfinding and skyfaring. Many of her peers in Imperial high society regarded her as peculiar, eccentric, or even unintelligent, but her oddities concealed a sharp intellect. As a teenager, Holdo often communicated using confusing metaphors and riddles, and she sometimes alternated between a monotone and a singsong voice, which Leia Organa dubbed "Holdo speak." In her youth, Holdo was a thrill-seeker who eagerly embraced near-death experiences; as an adult, she developed a deep appreciation for life and found great solace in her relationships and causes.

Holdo was physically attracted to a wide variety of species and genders, once telling Leia Organa that limiting attraction to humanoid males alone felt restrictive. She was not impressed by wealth but enjoyed the high society social events that were available to her as a member of the Apprentice Legislature. As a civilian minister within the Rebel Alliance, she was known more for being "decorative" than for her work ethic—a reputation she eventually overcame through her later military achievements.

The traditions and culture of Holdo's home planet, Gatalenta, profoundly influenced her beliefs and behaviors throughout her life. In her youth, Holdo made a conscious effort to deviate from the norms of her culture, which emphasized serenity, simplicity, and quiet introspection. In contrast, Holdo was assertive and embraced dangerous adventures, flamboyant fashion, and impulsive decision-making. Despite her deliberate rebellion against Gatalentan tradition, she valued her homeworld's culture and how its ruling Council of Mothers maintained a peaceful and just society within the oppressive and violent Imperial system. Slavery, which was illegal on Gatalenta, was abhorrent to Holdo, and the young Gatalentan maintained several practices that reflected the spiritual aspects of her people's culture, including skyfaring calisthenics, incense-burning, and attendance at meditative retreats.

Later in life, Holdo more fully embraced the culture of her people, adopting a serene demeanor and a subdued but elegant wardrobe; however, she still maintained a nonconformist streak in her appearance, such as dyeing her hair exotic colors and habitually going barefoot. Her adherence to Gatalentan culture defied military norms even after she became a member of the Resistance high command, where she eschewed typical military uniforms for floor-length lavender gowns that lacked typical markers like rank badges and officer jackets. She also incorporated several Gatalentan accessories, including bracelets that depicted local constellation patterns, somatohue earrings, rings, and an osmium tiara shaped into arcs representing the planet's multiple suns. Instead of standard Resistance weaponry, she carried a DDC Defender-5 sporting blaster, which was favored by Gatalentan nobility.

In the final moments before her historic suicide run, Holdo found comfort in her Gatalentan faith, which taught that salvation was not found alone, but alongside all those who had offered love and compassion to her in life.

Holdo was a resolute and patriotic individual, capable of adapting to changing circumstances and willing to sacrifice herself for the cause. As a commander, she possessed a clear understanding of the broader strategy and expected her orders to be carried out with precision, as demonstrated during her command of the Raddus. According to Dameron, Holdo was recognized within the Resistance as a brilliant strategic mind due to her actions at the Battle of Chyron Belt and was admired even by Admiral Ackbar.

Despite her adversarial relationship with Dameron, Holdo respected him, telling Organa that Dameron was a troublemaker following his mutiny but that she liked him.

Amilyn Holdo is a character created for the 2017 film Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi, the second film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy. She was played by actress Laura Dern. The casting announcement was made on February 15, 2016, and Holdo's name was revealed on May 24, 2017 in a Vanity Fair article. During the Journey to Star Wars: The Last Jedi marketing campaign, Holdo appeared as a supporting character in the young-adult novel Leia, Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray, and was briefly shown in the picture book A Leader Named Leia. Holdo's appearance in Leia, Princess of Alderaan was well-received, with some readers comparing her to the character Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter. Gray confirmed via her Tumblr blog that she intended to portray Holdo as LGBTQ+, although she did not know what the Star Wars galaxy's terminology would be.