Veris Hydan was a male human, an adviser to the Galactic Emperor Palpatine. In addition, he held the position of minister within the Ministry for Antiquity. Despite lacking Force-sensitive abilities, Hydan possessed extensive knowledge as a scholar of Jedi and Sith history, lore, and ancient, lost civilizations. He was also known as a Mortisologist. When the Empire located the Jedi Temple situated on the planet Lothal, Hydan was sent to oversee the excavation operations and to uncover the secrets hidden beneath it, particularly a gateway to the World Between Worlds.
During the excavation process, Hydan came across Sabine Wren and Ezra Bridger, rebel infiltrators who had disguised themselves as scout troopers. After Sabine was apprehended by Hydan's forces, Ezra managed to escape through the portal leading to the World Between Worlds. Subsequently, Hydan attempted to coerce Wren into deciphering the mural depicting the Mortis gods, which served as the entrance to the World Between Worlds. However, Sabine refused to cooperate and provided minimal information, even when Hydan's death troopers attacked her.
Shortly thereafter, Hera Syndulla and Garazeb Orrelios, who were observing the Minister and his forces while also keeping an eye on the infiltrators, launched an assault on the excavation site. They caused the mobile command center where Wren and Hydan were located to shake violently, enabling Wren's escape. Although Hydan needed additional time to get out, he succeeded in exiting the structure. Soon after their escape, Bridger emerged from the World Between Worlds, and the temple began to crumble. As the Rebels made their retreat, Hydan gazed upon the mural of the Mortis Gods during his final moments.
Veris Hydan's birth took place on the planet Ossus. At some point, he rose to the rank of Minister and dedicated his service to the Galactic Empire. He was a scholar specializing in the history and lore of the Jedi and Sith. Furthermore, he was a prominent Mortisologists within the Empire, as well as an expert in ancient and lost cultures. The Ministry for Antiquity was established under his direction to locate and gather various artifacts of significance to Emperor Sheev Palpatine. He served the Emperor and was assigned a personal guard consisting of death troopers. Following the discovery of the Lothal Jedi Temple in 3 BBY, Hydan was dispatched to Lothal to excavate the site and decipher the temple's hidden meanings. Since the Mining Guild was already active on the planet, the Empire utilized much of its workforce. The excavation zone was heavily secured by scout troopers, stormtroopers, and death troopers. Hydan and the Emperor shared a strong interest in the Gateway, believed to lead to the World Between Worlds.
To preserve any potential evidence related to the "Gateway" and information useful to Palpatine, Minister Hydan issued a directive prohibiting Imperial personnel from touching any items recovered from the temple. In 1 BBY, the Imperial excavation project drew the attention of the Spectres rebel group, including the Jedi Ezra Bridger, the Padawan of the deceased Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus. Upon arriving at the temple, the Spectres split up. Syndulla and Orrelios employed binoculars to observe the excavation site, while Bridger and Wren targeted a scout trooper displaying a hologram of Grand Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo's message to the rebels during the siege of Atollon. Taking advantage of the troopers' confusion caused by the hologram, Orrelios attacked them and acquired their uniforms, which he then provided to the young rebels.
Dressed as scout troopers, Ezra and Sabine infiltrated the excavation site. Upon reaching the excavated artifacts, Ezra crouched down and began examining them alongside the Mandalorian. Shortly after the rebels began inspecting the art and artifacts, Minister Hydan stumbled upon them and ordered them to step away. Accompanied by his death troopers, he began to examine the objects touched by the rebels. He emphasized that he had previously stated that only Mining Guild personnel were authorized to handle the excavated items, adding that even a minimal loss of evidence could jeopardize the understanding of the gateway. Bridger then inquired about the nature of the gateway, but quickly apologized for his outburst. After a death trooper informed the Minister that Coruscant, specifically the Emperor, wished to contact him, the minister remarked to the commanding death trooper that the scout troopers' behavior reflected poorly on him. Subsequently, Minister Hydan departed with his escort, leaving the death trooper commander to deal with the two scout troopers.
Immediately following the incident, the commander demanded their numbers and clearance codes. However, Bridger employed a force mind trick on the commander, effectively erasing his desire to know their identification.
Inside the Mobile command center, Minister Hydan informed the Emperor that the excavation had reached the foundation of the temple and uncovered a painting of the Mortis gods, reminiscent of art and iconography found at the former Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Hydan believed that the painting held the key to unlocking the "Gateway." The Emperor responded that he sensed a great disturbance in the Force and suggested that Kanan's death had altered the fate of Lothal. Determined to control the connection between the living and the dead, the Emperor instructed Hydan to expedite his efforts.
Unbeknownst to Hydan, the Spectres were eavesdropping on his conversation, as their droid Chopper had rerouted the Imperial transmission. Acting on this information, Ezra and Sabine began the process of unlocking the painting of the Mortis gods, which served as the "Gateway." While Sabine was taken away for questioning by stormtroopers, Ezra managed to unlock the "Gateway" by touching the Daughter's hand. Meanwhile, the stormtroopers escorted Sabine to Hydan's office for interrogation. After identifying Sabine as a rebel spy, Minister Hydan ordered a lockdown of the camp due to the presence of an intruder. Minister Hydan, accompanied by several troopers and the captive Sabine, arrived at the "Gateway," but were unable to prevent Ezra from entering the portal. A stormtrooper attempted to follow, but the portal sealed, causing him to collide with a wall.
In response, Hydan had Sabine brought to his mobile command center for questioning. Recognizing Sabine as the skilled Mandalorian rebel artist, Hydan attempted to flatter her while sipping tea. When Hydan inquired about how she and Ezra had entered the portal, Sabine refused to cooperate. Hydan then mocked Ezra's master, Kanan, deriding his two names, Caleb Dume and Kanan Jarrus, prompting Sabine to retort that he was a pawn of the Emperor. Hydan countered that his power was a reflection of the Emperor's might. When Sabine mocked the Emperor for failing to unlock the "Gateway," Hydan asserted that Ezra was not safe within the World Between Worlds and that the Emperor would eventually find him. Hydan then revealed that the "Gateway" was a pathway to time and that control of it meant control of the universe.
Continuing his interrogation, Hydan informed Sabine about the "Mortis gods," a family of three powerful beings known as the Father, Daughter, and the Son. When Hydan inquired about the discrepancies in their depiction on the Temple and Lothal mural, Sabine feigned ignorance and disrespect. Hydan cautioned her not to mistake his "pleasant demeanor" for weakness and noted that the positions of the Loth-wolves, the Daughter's head, and the Father's hand had changed since Ezra's arrival. When Sabine defiantly taunted him, Hydan ordered one of the death troopers to strike her across the head with his rifle butt.
After reasserting his authority by attacking Sabine through one of his pawns, Hydan and Sabine discussed the painting of the Mortis gods, concluding that the Daughter opened the portal while the Son closed it. Meanwhile, Bridger heard the voices of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, but received no response to his questions. Shortly after, he encountered Ahsoka Tano and Darth Vader engaged in combat on Malachor. When Tano was about to be killed by the Sith Lord, Bridger intervened, pulling her back and saving her from the duel. After greeting each other, they discussed the World Between Worlds and the possibility of saving Bridger's master.
Shortly after their meeting, Palpatine employed a Sith ritual to unleash a fiery attack, targeting both Jedi padawans. However, they managed to deflect the Emperor's assault. Tano promised Bridger that he would return with them, and Ezra departed while Tano used the Force to shield herself and the young padawan. After Bridger left, Hera activated one of the thrusters beneath the mobile command center, causing the structure to tilt and fall. Sabine escaped with her fellow Spectres and headed toward the painting. They were joined by Ezra, who had escaped the Emperor's clutches. Ezra persuaded his fellow Spectres, including Sabine, to assist him in sealing the portal.
Hydan arrived with several Imperial troops, but the rebels managed to escape on a Mining Guild excavation driller. The sealing of the portal caused the Lothal Jedi Temple to collapse. As the temple sank into the ground in a blinding flash, Hydan lamented the loss of knowledge contained within the Temple, before falling into a chasm and meeting his demise.
The Ministry for Antiquity continued its operations after Hydan's death until it was disbanded following the Battle of Endor.
Hydan's reputation as a scholar of the ancient Jedi and Sith persisted long after his death. His works remained in circulation even after the Battle of Exegol, a fact acknowledged by historian Beaumont Kin, who expressed regret in The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire for having to reference Hydan's work. Kin also recognized Hydan's invaluable contribution to Palpatine in identifying and understanding ancient objects. Kin further noted that many ancient sites had been plundered by the time he and his colleagues arrived, hypothesizing that Hydan himself had likely conducted some of these excavations.
Veris Hydan was a man of human descent, characterized by fair skin and blue eyes. He was usually seen wearing dark headgear and a zeyd-cloth tunic in an ottdefa's style. Hydan possessed extensive knowledge of Jedi and Sith history and lore. His expertise in these areas led to his appointment as the head of the Lothal Jedi Temple excavation. Unlike his Sith master, he lacked Force-sensitive abilities. Hydan considered himself an art critic and applied these skills to analyze the painting of the Mortis gods, which he identified as a portal to the World Between Worlds. Hydan maintained strict control over the Lothal Jedi Temple excavation, issuing orders that prohibited personnel from touching any artifacts to prevent the erasure of evidence. Hydan was an astute individual who quickly recognized Sabine Wren as a rebel infiltrator.
He was also a philosophical man who preferred to use words and flattery rather than force when questioning Sabine. However, Hydan was still prepared to use force against a defiant Sabine and ordered a death trooper to strike her with his rifle butt. Hydan recognized that whoever controlled the World Between Worlds also controlled time and the fate of the universe. Hydan was a loyal servant of the Emperor and considered his own power to be a reflection of the Emperor's might. Hydan was distraught when the Spectres denied the Emperor access to the World Between Worlds and believed that the Emperor's fate was lost.
Veris Hydan made his first appearance in "Wolves and a Door" and "A World Between Worlds," consecutive episodes from the fourth season of the canon animated television series Star Wars Rebels. These episodes were broadcast in 2018, with Malcolm McDowell providing the voice for Hydan as a guest star.
At Dragon Con 2018, Rebels showrunner Dave Filoni revealed that Hydan was originally conceived by Henry Gilroy for the show's third season. He was intended to have a more significant role as the mystical antagonist to the Jedi characters. Gilroy envisioned Hydan as an archaeologist working for the Emperor, tasked with scouring the galaxy for Jedi Temples, erasing them, and extracting their secrets.
In earlier drafts of the story for "Wolves and a Door," Hydan was initially intended to be Vaneé, Darth Vader's attendant from the 2016 Star Wars Anthology film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. However, the decision was made to create Hydan as a new, distinct character, although his design was still inspired by the advisors surrounding Vader and the Emperor. Pablo Hidalgo also mentioned that, to the best of his recollection, Vaneé's name was created for Rebels. For the episodes, Luke Harrington designed Hydan's character model.
In "Wolves and a Door" and "A World Between Worlds," Hydan was only identified by his surname. The name "Veris" was first used in the corresponding episode guides and Databank entry posted on StarWars.com after the episodes aired.
The 2019 reference book Ultimate Star Wars, New Edition established Ossus as the homeworld of Veris Hydan. The author Adam Bray sought to create a meaningful connection to Star Wars Legends. He also pointed out the irony of an Imperial Advisor being born on the planet that once housed the Great Jedi Library, a repository of all Jedi knowledge.