An Ugnaught engineer named Groggin found himself in charge of Smelting Core D, a highly productive metal recycling facility within Cloud City. This took place during 3 ABY of the Galactic Civil War. Within the waste materials headed for his incinerator, Groggin stumbled upon a Human hand gripping a peculiar metal tube. This was, in fact, the severed hand and lightsaber of Jedi Luke Skywalker, recently detached in his famous duel against the Dark Lord Darth Vader in Cloud City. Vader arrived at the smelting area, demanding the return of the hand and lightsaber. Groggin, not knowing who he was dealing with, instead proposed a negotiation. Vader, displeased, killed Groggin and took possession of his desired items, which were then destined for the personal vaults of the Emperor.
During the Galactic Civil War, an Ugnaught engineer by the name of Groggin oversaw the operations of Smelting Core D. This core was located deep within Cloud City on the planet Bespin. Groggin ensured his smelting core remained a top metal processing center in Cloud City. All sorts of scrap that could be melted and reused, ranging from droid components to bulkhead pieces, were processed through Groggin's system, reduced to their basic metals or useful alloys.
One day in 3 ABY, Groggin made an unusual discovery amidst the pile of trash about to be incinerated. He was surprised to find a cauterized Human hand clutching a strange metal cylinder. This was the very severed hand and lightsaber that the young Jedi Luke Skywalker had lost during his duel with the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader earlier that day in Cloud City. By examining the item's lot number, Groggin determined the hand had come from the city's lower air shafts, where it had been collected by the drones responsible for keeping Cloud City's air ducts clear.
Groggin wasn't concerned with how the hand ended up in his smelting chamber; his only thought was the value of the metal he had found. As he prepared to discard the hand and melt the cylinder, he heard a strange mechanical breathing sound from behind. Turning, he saw a towering, two-meter-tall figure dressed in black robes standing in the doorway. It was Vader himself, there to retrieve Skywalker's hand and lightsaber.
Groggin, completely missing the gravity of the situation, responded to Vader's demand for the hand with a counter-offer: 2,000 credits to cover his expenses. He even suggested a trade for Vader's metal helmet, despite acknowledging it wasn't worth much. Vader, momentarily surprised by Groggin's audacity, repeated his demand for the hand and lightsaber with increased menace. When Groggin protested again, Vader used a Force choke on the Ugnaught. With a flick of his wrist, the hand and lightsaber floated into the Dark Lord's possession.
The other Ugnaughts in the smelting chamber rushed to Groggin's aid, trying to figure out why he was suddenly choking, but their leader was already dead before they could reach him. Having completed his mission, Vader left the chamber with his prize, another addition to the Emperor's collection.
Luke Skywalker's severed hand, labeled as sample B-2332-54 in Imperial records, was later used as a genetic template for the creation of a Luke Skywalker clone in 9 ABY.
Groggin ensured that Smelting Core D's furnace, one of Cloud City's most effective, operated continuously. However, the Ugnaught engineer had no knowledge of galactic events. When Lord Darth Vader entered his smelting chamber seeking Luke Skywalker's hand and lightsaber, Groggin didn't recognize him. Vader was taken aback by Groggin's display of disrespect before killing him and claiming the prize that the impudent Groggin refused to simply hand over.
At the time he died, Groggin was wearing a work outfit consisting of a long-sleeved undershirt, an outer tunic, pants, a belt, footwear, and work gloves.
Groggin was a character in the short in-universe story Clone B-2332-54, which appeared in the March 1994 The Last Command Sourcebook, authored by Eric S. Trautmann. This story explained how the Empire recovered Luke Skywalker's hand and lightsaber, lost during his duel with Darth Vader on Cloud City, which were then used to create a Skywalker clone, as depicted in the novel The Last Command. Tim Eldred created the illustration of Groggin for the sourcebook.