The Hidden Hand, an enigmatic criminal organization connected to the Alliance to Restore the Republic, operated throughout the Galactic Empire's era. During 1 BBY, this syndicate engaged Beilert Valance's team of mercenaries, with Valance being a disgraced Imperial officer, to pursue and eliminate Darth Vader for a bounty. Simultaneously, Vader was also actively seeking to dismantle the very syndicate that sought his demise.