Tyber Zann, a human male crime lord originating from Anaxes, achieved notoriety following the Battle of Yavin during the era of the Galactic Civil War. He spearheaded his own criminal organization, the Zann Consortium, a formidable underworld consortium. In retaliation for his expulsion from the Imperial Academy, he launched a campaign against the Galactic Empire, while simultaneously undermining the Rebel Alliance.
During the Galactic Civil War's peak, Zann ascended to become a prominent figure in the criminal world, much to the displeasure of influential figures like the gangster Jabba the Hutt and Prince Xizor.
Born on Anaxes in 34 BBY, Tyber Zann's initial foray into business was with the family enterprise, Zann Remanufacturing. This company specialized in repurposing obsolete Old Republic and Imperial Military equipment for civilian usage. Finding the structured nature of the business unfulfilling, he ventured into illegal sabacc games and bookmaking, activities that provided the thrill and financial gain he desired.
To equip his gambling ring's enforcers, Zann attempted to pilfer an arms shipment from one of the company's storage facilities. Caught by security, the attempted theft was reported to his father. As a consequence, he was enrolled as a cadet in the Imperial Academy of Carida as a form of discipline.
Leveraging the Academy as a base of operations, Zann established a new smuggling operation: the Zann Consortium. The facility's weak security allowed him to easily steal Imperial weaponry and smuggle it off-world to his associate, the Talortai warrior Urai Fen, who then sold the stolen goods on the black market. As a high-performing cadet, Zann exploited his credentials to participate in training missions, using them to cultivate a network of contacts for the smuggling trade. The operation grew into one of the largest in the galaxy, drawing the attention of more powerful criminals, particularly the Hutt gangster Jabba Desilijic Tiure. Jabba orchestrated a scheme to apprehend Zann during a smuggling operation shortly before his graduation. Fortunately, Urai intercepted Imperial transmissions detailing the plot. Although Zann avoided prosecution, he was dishonorably discharged from the Academy.
Despite his reservations, Zann realized that collaborating with Jabba was necessary to further expand the Zann Consortium. Consequently, he began conducting smuggling operations for Jabba in exchange for vehicles and vessels, while simultaneously concealing assets from the Hutt crime lord. Zann never intended for this arrangement to be permanent. After a year, he learned that Jabba had spent nearly half of his fortune on a unique artifact, though its origins remained a mystery to Tyber.
As the Zann Consortium was still in its early stages, Zann sought to establish connections with a black market on Nal Hutta. To do so, he needed to demonstrate the Consortium's capabilities and establish a reputation as a force to be reckoned with. After learning from one of his soldiers that the Mandalorian Supreme Strategist was en route to the asteroid station above Mandalore, Zann saw an opportunity. Traveling to Mandalore, the Consortium's fleet destroyed the V-wing escort sent to prepare for the strategist's arrival. Shortly after, the strategist arrived, only to be ambushed by the Consortium. During the ensuing battle, the strategist's engines were disabled, his ship was boarded, and he was taken prisoner. Zann tasked one of his defilers with establishing communication with the black market, and Urai was dispatched to acquire disruptor technology for the Consortium's mercenaries.
Zann's agents intercepted a message from an Imperial outpost on Felucia authorizing Jabba to land on the planet. Realizing that Jabba intended to sell the artifact to the Empire, Zann led a task force, accompanied by Urai and several mercenary squads, to steal the artifact before the transaction could occur. Impersonating Hutt Cartel forces, they convinced the Imperial fleet commander, albeit reluctantly, that they were arriving separately to safeguard the artifact. The task force, aboard a TZ-86 transport, landed in a clearing within the dense foliage. Zann ordered Alpha Squad to scout ahead and ensure the path to the Hutt landing site was clear, but watched as they were killed by Felucian spore plants. Fortunately, they had brought a repulsorlift F9-TZ Transport, which Zann ordered his troops to unload, and to deploy a Mobile Defense Unit with a rocket pod, in case the landing site was discovered. The group traveled as far as they could on the transport, but the thick vegetation forced them to continue on foot. The task force clashed with Cartel forces along the way, but failed to stop the Consortium's advance. Leaving the troops behind, Zann and Urai used their personal cloaking devices to bypass the anti-infantry turrets and reach the artifact's location. Urai decloaked and eliminated the Hutt mercenaries guarding the artifact, and Zann instructed him to take the relic and meet him at the rendezvous point. Shortly after Urai left, Zann was captured by Stormtroopers, whom he defeated, but was immediately confronted by a larger Imperial force. Outnumbered, he allowed them to take him into custody, vowing that his imprisonment would be short-lived.
While Zann languished in the spice mines of Kessel, Urai Fen awaited the predetermined time for Zann's escape. Zann orchestrated a riot on Kessel and hired the crew of the Millennium Falcon to extract him, narrowly avoiding execution by a bounty hunter hired by Jabba.
Upon regaining his freedom, Zann, along with his trusted companion Urai Fen, gradually reestablished the Consortium as a significant power from their base on Ryloth. The criminal organization identified an opportunity in the Galactic Civil War, which diverted the attention of both the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance from the Zann Consortium's activities on various planets. After amassing a substantial force of mercenaries, Tyber orchestrated kidnappings, pirate raids, and racketeering schemes to compel worlds to accept his protection and allow him to use their routes for military transport. Through these methods of intimidation, the Zann Consortium expanded its influence over numerous businesses, both large and small, including the InterGalactic Banking Clan, the Plasma Energy Trade Commission, and the Silica Tab.
Lieutenant Izbela Saarrj of the Imperial Security Bureau documented Zann's activities around 0 ABY, noting his use of spies to study the Star Dreadnought Eclipse, the first Eclipse-class dreadnought, during its construction. As Emperor Palpatine's flagship, the Eclipse was equipped with an axial-super laser and surpassed all previous Star Destroyer designs in size. Zann's interest stemmed from the belief that the vessel's console could grant him access to the wealth stored in Palpatine's legendary vaults, but he refrained from directly attacking the construction site above Kuat to avoid provoking the Imperial Fleet.
Annoyed by Jabba's persistent interference, Zann orchestrated an attack on his rival's holdings on Saleucami, seizing control of a listening post. Upon discovering the existence of an ancient Geonosian droid factory built on Hypori during the Clone Wars, the Zann Consortium moved to claim the foundry's Droideka Mark IIs to better compete with the Hutt Cartel. Despite being lured into a trap, Zann, with Urai's assistance, managed to reprogram the Droidekas and overpower Jabba's forces.
Following the battle, Zann contacted Jabba and dictated the terms of a treaty. He stated that, in exchange for a ceasefire, he would refrain from encroaching on the Hutt Cartel's territories. Additionally, Tyber demanded that he retain control of Saleucami and Hypori, which Jabba conceded.
Zann leveraged his extensive criminal network to manipulate both the Empire and the Rebellion throughout the Galactic Civil War, diverting their credits and sabotaging their operations as needed. In his rise to power, his forces clashed with both sides of the conflict. Zann possessed his own flagship, an Aggressor-class destroyer named Merciless, for his fleet. In combat, he would occasionally utilize his personal cloaking device to become invisible.
Zann was also determined to uncover the secrets of the artifact he had stolen from Jabba on Felucia. After Urai identified it as a Sith holocron, Tyber sought a Force-wielder strong in the dark side to unlock its knowledge. Realizing that neither of the reigning Dark Lords of the Sith would assist him, he decided to enlist the help of the witches from Dathomir at Fenn's suggestion. Despite the planet being under an Imperial blockade by order of the Emperor, the crime lord and his bodyguard infiltrated the dark world. After liberating some of the Nightsisters and helping them avenge themselves against the local Imperial Governor, Zann convinced Silri, the most powerful of the Nightsisters, to decipher the Sith artifact. Although she understood the true significance of the Sith creation, she withheld information from Tyber, leading to frequent verbal disputes. Shortly after the ground battle on Dathomir, Grand Admiral Thrawn contacted Zann, warning him that his reckless behavior and ill-advised actions would soon result in Imperial retaliation.
Following the Empire's seizure of Bespin, Prince Xizor contacted Zann and proposed a scheme to steal Tibanna Gas from the Cloud City refinery, with the profits to be split equally. In return, the Black Sun Underlord would arrange a meeting with the Emperor or one of his representatives to whom the Zann Consortium could sell the Sith artifact. Tyber and Urai suspected a trap but intended to exploit it to their advantage. Aware that the Imperial Military's Supreme Commander, Darth Vader, was on Bespin, they decided to hire the droid bounty hunter IG-88 to plant evidence implicating Prince Xizor and the Black Sun organization. Tyber, Urai, and their allies landed in Cloud City, infiltrated the Imperial garrison, and escaped with their Tibanna cargo, narrowly evading Darth Vader's grasp. As the Consortium forces fled, a stormtrooper informed the Sith Lord that they had discovered evidence suggesting the Dark Prince of Black Sun was responsible for the theft. Vader would later use Xizor's alleged involvement in the Bespin robbery as further justification for his execution.
After the successful theft of tibanna gas from Bespin, Xizor seemingly upheld his end of the bargain and provided Tyber with the coordinates for the meeting with Palpatine's representative. However, the negotiation turned out to be a trap, with an Imperial fleet lying in ambush above Carida. Admiral Thrawn contacted Zann, revealing that the fabricated evidence had been sufficient for Lord Vader to eliminate Prince Xizor, but had failed to conceal the Zann Consortium's distinctive signature. The Chiss commander then engaged the gangster. In response, Tyber revealed his new flagship, the Merciless, and demonstrated its destructive power on one of the Imperial vessels. During the battle, the Trandoshan bounty hunter Bossk stole the Sith artifact and delivered it to Admiral Thrawn, who then fled in his flagship, the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Admonitor, abandoning the rest of his ships. After defeating the remaining Imperial forces, Tyber returned to Ryloth.
Following a "misunderstanding" with Silri regarding the information concealed within the Sith artifact, Tyber threatened to annihilate every Nightsister on Dathomir if she lied or withheld information again. He also made it clear that his associate and friend, Urai Fen, would kill Silri if she attempted to harm Zann (a sentiment Urai frequently expressed).
Soon after, Zann learned from his spies within the Rebellion that both Palpatine and Vader had departed the capital world of Coruscant for the forest moon of Endor. Seeing the absence of both the Emperor and the Supreme Commander as an opportunity, Zann planned to raid the archive on Imperial Center, where he had traced the lost artifact's signal. Tyber stole Palpatine's passkey to board the Eclipse, and Silri reclaimed the Sith holocron.
With the deaths of Palpatine and Vader above Endor in 4 ABY, Tyber seized the chance to move to Kuat and seize control of the Eclipse, hoping to gain intel on the Emperor's vaults. During the battle, the Zann Consortium briefly formed an uneasy alliance with General Han Solo's Rebel forces to combat the local Imperial fleet, all while heading for the Star Dreadnaught. After infiltrating the Eclipse and hacking its console, Zann stole tens of billions of credits, technical data, and numerous priceless works of art from Palpatine's personal vault network, securing enough resources to expand the Consortium throughout the galaxy. Following the theft, Tyber decided to abandon the Eclipse, deeming it a "target even the Rebels could not miss." He also decided to allow the Rebel Alliance to form their New Republic, expressing interest in the chance to "own a senator." The Eclipse was later recovered by Imperial forces, who resumed its construction.
However, Silri secretly unlocked the Sith holocron behind Zann's and Fen's backs. The artifact led the Nightsister to an ancient Sith tomb, containing thousands of Sith soldiers frozen in carbonite.
Zann was characterized by his cold, methodical, ambitious, and ruthless nature, coupled with a notable arrogance stemming from his unwavering self-confidence. He preferred to maintain complete control and exhibited considerable cunning. A criminal mastermind and tactical genius, he was proficient in the use of most weapons of war. He harbored grudges and relentlessly pursued retribution. Zann's strong leadership abilities were amplified by his confidence in his own capabilities. His cruelty was evident during the Felucia theft, where he showed no remorse or sadness when his scouts in Alpha Squad were killed by native spores, but rather remarked that the ship would be lighter upon departure.
Despite these negative traits, Tyber possessed a sense of humor, albeit a rather crude one, as demonstrated in his interactions with Urai, such as when he jokingly asked if Urai had become a Jedi Knight due to the revelation of the latter's Force connection. He maintained a long-standing alliance with Urai Fen, who was perhaps his only true friend, and the two were known to address each other by their first names. However, the crime lord held little regard for his soldiers and would execute those who disobeyed him, even if their actions benefited him. Zann also displayed a greater tolerance for Silri's actions compared to Urai, who often advocated for her death. The crime lord kept her around, even admitting that she had grown on him, though he was reluctant to acknowledge it.
Zann wielded a modified Rawk chopped special, a double-barreled blaster carbine later favored by Cade Skywalker around 130 ABY.
LucasArts requested that Zann be included in Star Wars Insider 89's "Underworld: A Galaxy of Scum and Villainy" to generate additional publicity for the character. Artist Joe Corroney based his illustration of Zann in Insider 89 on British actor Jason Isaacs, using a promotional image of Isaacs' character Lucius Malfoy from the Harry Potter films as a reference.
Steve Blum provided the voice of Zann in the Forces of Corruption trailer, while Jake Eberle voiced him in the actual game.
The character's name is frequently misspelled as 'Zahn' due to this error appearing on the gold pack version of the game's case. Subsequent printings corrected this mistake.