The Ante-Endor Association, or AEA for short, was an organization that supported the Imperial cause. Based on Mrlsst, they asserted that the Battle of Endor was a fabrication, a piece of propaganda spread by the Rebel Alliance. This group maintained that the Empire was still a powerful force. Furthermore, they alleged that the Rebels, not the Empire, were responsible for the destruction of Alderaan, claiming it was a test of a weapon intended to rival the Death Star. They also stated that Jedi were no longer present, specifically mentioning Luke Skywalker. Gade Yedan, the assistant to Gyr Keela, who was the President of the Mrlsst Trade and Science Academy, was the leader of the AEA. When Loka Hask, an Imperial captain, arrived on Mrlsst to negotiate for cloaking technology, he subjugated the AEA members, using them to pilfer valuable datacards and falsely accuse the pilots of Rogue Squadron, who were representing the New Republic in the negotiations.
The core belief of the Ante-Endor Association was the denial of the Battle of Endor. This battle saw the Galactic Empire defeated by the opposing Rebel Alliance. During this battle, the Alliance Fleet successfully destroyed the Empire's second Death Star, a battle station the size of a moon. Moreover, the Galactic Emperor Palpatine was killed by his second-in-command, Darth Vader.
The AEA's members dismissed the Alliance's version of the battle as a mere fabrication, offering their own altered interpretation of events. According to the AEA, the Rebels were too disorganized and weak to pose a real threat to the second Death Star, a powerful symbol of the Empire's advanced technology. They also asserted that, several years prior, Alliance scientists had detonated the planet Alderaan while attempting to create a superweapon comparable to the Empire's original Death Star. However, Wilhuff Tarkin, the Imperial Grand Moff, had actually destroyed Alderaan using the first Death Star's superlaser.
The AEA further disputed the claim that a Jedi participated in the Battle of Endor, arguing that these ancient warriors no longer existed. The majority of the Jedi had been systematically eliminated during Emperor Palpatine's Great Jedi Purge, which he initiated immediately after establishing the Galactic Empire in 19 BBY. To justify this massacre, Palpatine convinced the Senate that the Jedi had attempted to assassinate him, branding their entire order as traitors to the state. Despite this, the Rebel Alliance included a Jedi in their ranks: Luke Skywalker, a young man trained by Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi, two rare survivors of the Great Purge.
While the AEA had their unique method of denying the Rebel Alliance's victory at Endor, claiming that the Emperor was still alive and the Death Star remained intact, their narrative differed from the official propaganda displayed at the Imperial Museum on Coruscant. This propaganda portrayed the Death Stars as harmless Planetary Ore Extractors, alleging that the Alliance had stolen the second one to use against inhabited planets. The museum's version acknowledged the Emperor's death but suggested that he had infiltrated the ore extractor to offer the Rebels forgiveness and friendship. Supposedly, this offer was rejected, forcing the Emperor to destroy the Death Star himself, sacrificing his own life but saving his citizens. This narrative also claimed that Darth Vader died serving his Master.
The AEA's symbol was a modified version of the six-spoked Imperial crest, which itself was a distorted version of the Galactic Roundel of the Order of Dai Bendu. The AEA's version featured a stylized Death Star superimposed on the right side of the crest. On the association's banner, the modified crest was placed within a golden, diamond-shaped figure, set against a crimson background.
AEA members wore uniforms similar to those of the Imperial Military, consisting of a double-breasted tunic with a choke collar, matching flared trousers, boots, and gauntlet-style gloves. The outfit was entirely black, except for a broad golden trim that ran across the chest on one side and the midsection on the other. The upper part of each sleeve was also decorated with a similar golden armband. The AEA's crest was displayed on the armbands and at the front center of the chest.
The Ante-Endor Association was formed on Mrlsst in 4 ABY, within two months after the Battle of Endor. The AEA conducted meetings on the university campus, asserting that they were enlightening students with the truth regarding Endor. Because the Mrlssi valued freedom of speech, the AEA's propaganda could spread freely. Additionally, a majority of the Mrlsst academies' teachers supported the Empire at that time. Gade Yedan, a Myke who was also the assistant to Gyr Keela, President of the Mrlsst Trade and Science Academy, led the AEA.
During that period, Imperial captain Loka Hask went to Mrrlst seeking new cloaking technology from the Mrlssi, who had offered their Phantom Project to both the last holdings of the Empire and the emerging New Republic, which had evolved from the Rebel Alliance. The Rogue Squadron, led by Wedge Antilles, represented the New Republic. Several members of Rogue Squadron, including Tycho Celchu, Derek Klivian, Plourr Ilo, and Dllr Nep, encountered a speech given by the association. Celchu, who had participated in the Battle of Endor, was appalled by their propaganda and decided to confront the group publicly. The AEA speakers dismissed Celchu's argument, making him appear foolish in front of the assembled students, and the Rogue pilot left feeling angry. Later that evening, the AEA members ambushed Celchu as he walked on campus. When he continued to insist that the Battle of Endor had occurred as the Alliance described, they began attacking him. However, Celchu managed to defeat all but one member of the group, who struck him from behind. A ghost of a Jedi, who struck the final attacker and then disappeared, saved the Rebel.
Soon after, the AEA members stole the datacards containing the Phantom Project plans and altered the surveillance footage of their theft to implicate the Rogue Squadron pilots. However, the Endor deniers lost the datacards to war droids belonging to the band Ghost Jedi. Later, at least one member of the AEA, Gade Yedan, accompanied Captain Hask when he raided Doctor Rorax Falken's asteroid laboratory to steal the technology behind the secret gravitic polarization beam weapon. Hask shot Yedan shortly before Falken's asteroid laboratory was consumed by a hyperspace wormhole.