Magva Yarro was a human who participated in a peaceful demonstration on her homeworld of Ghorman against the Galactic Empire. This occurred in 2 BBY, before the Empire initiated a slaughter of the protesters. Surviving this horrific event, she aligned herself with the Partisans, a militant group led by the resistance figure Saw Gerrera, and engaged in combat against the Empire, functioning as a forward scout for their Cavern Angels squadron.
In 1 BBY, while stationed on the moon of Jedha, she was among the Partisan contingent that escorted Rebel Alliance members Jyn Erso, K-2SO, and Cassian Andor, along with the Guardians of the Whills Chirrut Îmwe and Baze Malbus, to the Catacombs of Cadera. Yarro's presence there was noted shortly before Jedha City suffered destruction at the hands of the Empire's Death Star superweapon. The resulting shockwave proved fatal to Gerrera and numerous Partisans, killing them.
Magva Yarro, a native of the Colonies planet Ghorman, engaged in a peaceful protest against the Galactic Empire on her homeworld. The Empire responded in 2 BBY with the Ghorman Massacre, killing many demonstrators. As one of the few who lived through it, Yarro witnessed the Empire's true brutality, prompting her to seek out an organization dedicated to opposing it.
Rather than joining the Rebel Alliance under the leadership of former Imperial senator Mon Mothma, she chose to align herself with the Partisans, an extremist militia group led by the resistance fighter Saw Gerrera, to fight against the Empire. She served as a forward observer for their Cavern Angels X-wing starfighter squadron. On one occasion, she piloted a UT-60D U-wing starfighter/support craft above the moon of Jedha, while the gunner operated the ship's weapon. She also participated in a gunfight around a building.
While on Jedha in 1 BBY, Yarro and a group of Partisans escorted Jyn Erso, Cassian Andor, and K-2SO of the Rebel Alliance, alongside Chirrut Îmwe and Baze Malbus of the Guardians of the Whills, to the Catacombs of Cadera, the location of the Partisans' base, after their capture in Jedha City. During this escort, she was personally responsible for Malbus. Later, at the base, Yarro observed Erso casually as she was taken to Gerrera. Soon after, the Empire utilized its Death Star superweapon to obliterate Jedha City, generating a massive shockwave. Despite a swift evacuation, Gerrera and several Partisans perished in the event.
Initially, Magva Yarro possessed a naive idealism, believing that the Galactic Empire could be resisted through peaceful methods. However, her experience in the Ghorman Massacre triggered a psychological shift, leading her to seek out the most aggressive group fighting the Empire.
Yarro rejected Mon Mothma's Rebel Alliance, considering its members to be ineffectual cowards and Mothma insufficiently fierce, despite the former senator's public condemnation of the Ghorman Massacre and denouncement of the Empire before defecting from the Imperial Senate and forming the Alliance. As a Partisan, Yarro demonstrated unwavering loyalty. As a human female, Yarro had light skin and wore dark face paint around her eyes.
Magva Yarro wore a dark coat with red accents and dark pants, along with several equipment pouches on her chest and a device on her head. She was armed with a modified DH-17 blaster rifle and carried a number of cylinders on her back.
Magva Yarro's first appearance was in the 2016 anthology film, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Her identity was confirmed in Star Wars: Rogue One: The Ultimate Visual Guide, a companion book by Pablo Hidalgo released alongside the film. The character was played by Sabine Crossen. The desert scenes set on Jedha were filmed in Wadi Rum, Jordan in 2015.