Jabba's favorite kell dragon
Jabba Desilijic Tiure, the Hutt crime lord, possessed a kell dragon as a pet, which he considered his most cherished kell dragon. This prized pet was just one of several kell dragons residing on his Minstrel-class space yacht, the Star Jewel. In the year 1 ABY, the Star Jewel, Jabba's personal yacht, ensnared the starship Moldy Crow above the moon of Nar Shaddaa. While the pilot was incarcerated, Kyle Katarn, a Rebel mercenary aboard the ship, was designated as a meal for Jabba's favored kell dragon. However, Katarn managed to killed the creature using only his bare hands, and promptly made his escape from the Star Jewel.
Biography
By 1 ABY, in that year, Jabba Desilijic Tiure, the Hutt crime lord, had acquired a kell dragon distinguished by its large size and green-skinned hide. Among his collection of kell dragons, Jabba esteemed this particular one as his favorite. The kell dragon eventually established its habitat aboard Jabba's Star Jewel, a Minstrel-class space yacht manufactured by Ubrikkian Industries. Its living quarters were spacious, featuring a large room with two substantial doors on opposite sides. One of these doors opened into a sizable execution pit.
During this era, Jabba was engaged in commerce with the Galactic Empire, providing smugglers to assist General Rom Mohc in his endeavor to create droid soldiers known as dark troopers. However, Mohc faced relentless opposition from individuals unknown to Jabba. These adversaries were none other than the mercenary Kyle Katarn and Jan Ors, a Rebel Alliance agent, the former being at least somewhat familiar to Jabba. Katarn eventually raided an Imperial installation situated on the moon of Nar Shaddaa, resulting in the acquisition of a nava card detailing the routes utilized by Jabba's smugglers. Following Ors' rescue of Katarn, their starship, the Moldy Crow, was captured by the Star Jewel. Ors was subsequently imprisoned, the nava card secured within a heavily guarded chamber, and Katarn was led to the kell dragon's enclosure.
Jabba, who was not physically present on the Star Jewel at the time, engaged in a brief conversation with Katarn via a Holoprojector, marking his first visual encounter with the man. Katarn issued threats to Jabba, to which the Hutt merely remarked that the human displayed remarkable courage for someone about to become a meal. Jabba expressed his regret at not being able to witness his kell dragon in action. Katarn was then cast into the pit, and the door to the dragon's chamber was opened, unleashing the kell dragon. Against all expectations, Katarn triumphed over the kell dragon, killed it using only his bare hands. Another door opened, revealing additional kell dragons and an exit route. Katarn battled his way through the ship, successfully rescuing Jan, retrieving his equipment and the nava card, and facilitating the Rebels' escape from the Star Jewel.
Personality and traits
Jabba's preferred kell dragon was distinguished by its substantial size, green-skinned complexion, blue dorsal spines, and white eyes featuring black irises. The creature typically attacked its prey by leaping.
Behind the scenes
The initial appearance of Jabba's prized kell dragon occurred in Star Wars: Dark Forces, a video game released in 1995. It was featured at the commencement of the tenth level. Players were restricted to using only their bare hands to combat the beast, and its defeat was essential for progression within the game. The quantity of kell dragons encountered at the outset could vary from one to three, contingent upon the selected difficulty level. However, additional kell dragons were only revealed after the demise of Jabba's favorite.