Slyder

Slyder, a male Rodian, earned his living as a bounty hunter, a common profession among his species. However, he considered the typical bounty hunting process – accepting contracts and chasing targets across the galaxy – to be inefficient and troublesome. Instead, he would identify valuable targets, locate potential buyers, and negotiate a deal before pursuing the target. He believed this method was uniquely his own. Sometime around or before 4 BBY, Slyder established his base of operations on the luxurious cruise ship Star of Empire, providing him with a consistent hunting ground. He also enlisted the help of NB4, a porter droid, who assisted in identifying and observing potential targets.

Slyder's accomplishments included capturing a con-woman, an assassin droid, a spy, and a bank robber, among others. He also collected trophies from his successful hunts as souvenirs. For example, he possessed a four-barreled blaster pistol taken from the con-woman, and the head of the assassin droid. Since the Star catered to not only Imperials but also agents of the burgeoning Rebel Alliance, Slyder found that selling out Rebels was the most lucrative venture, making the Empire his most frequent client.

As his career prospered, an increasing portion of his earnings went towards his addiction to pol pollen, a drug. Slyder resided in his personal cabin on the Star of Empire for at least three years, where he kept most of his trophies. His long-term plan was to retire and build a home with a dedicated room for his collection.

In 1 BBY, Slyder was present at a sabacc game in the Corellia Room, involving Dol Donar II, an Imperial governor, and Lando Calrissian, a keen sabacc player. While observing the game, NB4 alerted him to the presence of Rebel agents on board. During the match, a new Imperial officer, Kyle Katarn, bumped into Slyder while rushing out of the room to follow a Human female, Jan Ors, identified by the droid as one of the agents. The officer commented on Slyder's body odor, to which the Rodian explained he was attempting to mask his natural scent, which others found unpleasant, with cologne. Katarn suggested Slyder stick with his natural scent and continued on his way. Intrigued by the officer's haste, Slyder began tracking Katarn and Ors, first tasking NB4 with planting a transmitter on Ors' ship, Truly Sorry.

Later, Slyder tracked them to a library, where he pretended to sleep in a cubicle. Using cameras, he discovered that Ors was working with two other agents, Ris Waller and Rosco Ross, along with a protocol droid named A-Cee. Subsequently, Slyder remotely observed Katarn and Ors as Ors revealed that the Empire was responsible for the death of Katarn's father. Katarn, who had been told that Rebels were to blame, decided to join the agents, discarding a Medal of Valor into a waste bin. Pleased with the significance of his new targets, and wanting to add the officer's medal to his trophy collection, Slyder contacted Donar, believing he would pay well for the Rebel agents.

Slyder met with Donar in person at the governor's cabin on the ship. Despite Donar and his family's disgust with the Rodian's presence due to his repulsive scent, exacerbated by the cologne, the governor was shocked to learn about the Rebels on board. However, he demanded proof before accepting Slyder's offer to deal with them. The Rodian silently activated a holocube showing the Rebel operations and Katarn's interactions with Ors. Enraged, Donar hired Slyder and ordered several Imperial Military troopers to assist in the hunt. However, Donar's son, Nathan Donar III, was an acquaintance of Katarn's and warned him about the bounty hunters and soldiers. The Rebels rushed to the Star's hangar, where the Truly Sorry awaited. Slyder led the troops to where Ors was exiting and opened fire. Her droid, A-Cee, lost time documenting the events, giving Slyder enough time to disable him with a blaster bolt from his pistol. However, the droid was the only thing the Imperials captured. They pursued Ors to the hangar but were scattered by fire from her accomplices, allowing the Rebels to escape the Star.

Donar, determined not to lose them, crowded the Imperials and Slyder onto his own ship. Initially, Slyder thought accompanying the governor on his yacht as an observer would be beneficial, given its superior capabilities compared to his own vessel. However, Donar's presence proved to be more of a hindrance. He insisted on bringing A-Cee on board and prioritized discovering the droid's secrets, distracting the officers. Slyder's patience wore thin as the Imperials, mostly equal-ranking officers, bickered and bullied a technician without making progress. The Rodian found the Imperials incompetent and believed they should focus on their prey, dealing with the droid later. Unbeknownst to them, A-Cee was programmed to self-destruct upon seeing an Imperial uniform, such as the one Nathan wore. When the droid was reactivated, A-Cee spotted Nathan and prepared to explode, horrifying everyone. While they desperately tried to deactivate it, Slyder knew it was too late. Disgusted by the Imperials' stupidity and incompetence, and realizing his life and career were wasted, Slyder drew his pistol and executed those in the room. With his fate sealed, he could only await his end. A-Cee self-destructed with four point two kilos of plitex nine explosives, destroying Donar's yacht and everyone on board, as the Rebels escaped.

Slyder was survived by his mother, who eventually inherited his trophies.

Like many Rodians, Slyder worked as a bounty hunter. However, he disliked the conventional methods, deeming them unnecessarily dangerous, time-consuming, and arduous. Instead, he preferred a self-designed approach: identifying individuals who should be wanted and then selling them to the highest bidder. Slyder considered himself far more intelligent than the average bounty hunter because of this system. He would even remind himself and his droid companion of his method on occasions of his choosing. Slyder was meticulous in his work, diligently spying on suspected individuals, sometimes stalking them, feigning sleep, and using tiny microdroids disguised as creatures like caterpillars.

Slyder's unique "pre-emptive" approach compensated for his mediocre tracking skills and average marksmanship, allowing him to boast a successful bounty hunting career. Indeed, the Star of Empire, serving Imperials, Rebels, businessmen, and scoundrels, proved an ideal "crossroad" for such activities. Slyder conducted his trade from his cabin, which he filled with a large collection of trophies from his various targets, intending to display them in his future home upon retirement. Slyder also had a mother somewhere, who was entitled to inherit his possessions in case he was survived by her. Slyder was also addicted to pol pollen, a drug he believed cleared his mind and helped him concentrate, consuming an increasing portion of his income as his career progressed. He would often reward himself with doses of pol pollen after moments of clarity.

To better sell his services, he would flatter potential clients, even if he disliked them, using a hand gesture meant to convey respect (or so Governor Donar assumed). This flattery concealed his disdain for those who indulged themselves. Although Governor Donar was the best option for selling the Rebel agents, Slyder hated him on sight due to his corpulence. The Rodian even wished someone would want Donar's head. During his time working with the Imperials and hunting Katarn and Ors, Slyder grew to dislike them more and more. He found them inefficient, distracted, stupid, and, above all, incompetent. When the droid A-Cee began to self-destruct upon seeing Nathan Donar's officer uniform, Slyder, finally fed up with the Imperials' ineptness, executed those he could, including Dol and Nathan Donar, out of desperation.

As a Rodian, Slyder possessed a natural odor that Katarn and the Donars found repulsive, exacerbated by his attempts to cover it with cologne. Slyder's skin color was dark green, and he had large purple eyes sensitive to bright lights, leading him to keep his cabin dark for comfort.

Slyder owned an armed ship of his own which was kept in the hangar of Star of Empire. During the short chase with the Rebels outside of the luxury liner, Slyder wished to have used his own ship as opposed to Donar's when he learned that the Imperials brought the disabled droid A-Cee aboard. Slyder also kept a small blaster pistol as his sidearm, and used it to hunt his prey. He was able to shoot the droid A-Cee with it shortly before his death, and he used it later when he killed several Imperials out of desperation before A-Cee destructed. Slyder also kept a four-barreled blaster pistol, which he took from a target, as a trophy. Throughout his tenure with Governor Donar, Slyder wore basic red clothing.

Slyder also acquired the porter droid's assistance early during his tenure on Star of Empire, and the droid considered it to be a blessing to have worked alongside Slyder for so long. Slyder used the droid for reconnaissance, such as scouting out prey like Jan Ors. Slyder had supplied the droid a transmitter that was installed on Ors' ship.

Slyder was created for the 1997 graphic novella Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire, written by William C. Dietz, where he appeared in the story's fourth chapter as the primary antagonist, alongside Governor Donar. Slyder appeared in three illustrations by Dean Williams, who created all the art for the book. Slyder later appeared in the full cast audio adaption of the novella, voiced by Peter Moore, who also directed the audio drama. A continuity inconsistency exists between the two works: NB4 states that Slyder had lived on the Star of Empire for seven years, contradicting the novella's claim of only three years. This article maintains ambiguity, stating that Slyder lived at least three years aboard the Star.