Xamuel Lennox

Xamuel Lennox was born into a distinguished military family of men who had served as officers for generations. After the fall of the Galactic Republic in 19 BBY, Lennox enlisted in the navy of the Galactic Empire, believing the Republic to be corrupt and aiming to follow in his ancestors' honorable path. By 1 BBY, during the Galactic Civil War against the Alliance to Restore the Republic, Lennox held the rank of captain aboard the Imperial-class Star Destroyer called Tyrant.

During that year, Lennox commanded Imperial naval operations in the Pakuuni sector. He received orders from the sector governor to lead a squadron of ten Star Destroyers to intercept and destroy Rebel warships that were orbiting the planet Turkana. Imperial Intelligence had reported the presence of this Rebel group, initially estimated to consist of four to six capital ships and three to eight smaller vessels. Before emerging from hyperspace with his fleet in the Turkana system, Lennox dispatched a starfighter to verify the Rebels' presence. On the bridge of the Tyrant, Lennox received confirmation from his first officer, Cabbel, that their TIE interceptors had located the Rebels above Turkana.

Employing Formation Besh within Attack Pattern Tartarus to prevent the surprised Rebels from escaping, Lennox's Tyrant took the lead, with Captain Firmus Piett of the Star Destroyer Accuser providing primary support as they engaged the Rebels' seven Mon Calamari Star Cruisers at long range. The two Star Destroyers, along with the Flanchard and other Destroyers, also launched their TIE fighter wings under Lennox's command. The evading Rebels also had two Nebulon-B frigates, two CR90 corvettes, four GR-75 transports, and a Golan Ribbon tanker. Their cruisers' engines were targeted by TIE bombers flying under the protection of TIE fighters and interceptors.

In less than a minute, Rebel Admiral Gial Ackbar deployed three squadrons of Y-wings and two squadrons of newly acquired T-65 X-wing starfighters. Despite Captain Piett's warnings about the advanced capabilities of the X-wings', Lennox persisted with his tactics of utilizing superior TIE fighter numbers. As the defensive screen of TIEs was occupied by the X-wings, the Y-wings began destroying the Imperial bombers, prompting Piett to redirect the Accuser to target the Rebel fighters and enable the bombers to disable the engines of one MC80 Star Cruiser.

Already convinced that Lennox's inaction had cost the Empire a victory, Piett disregarded his fellow captain's orders when the remaining TIEs suffered heavy losses. Piett moved the Imperial fleet closer to the Rebels into full weapons range as part of Formation Aleph, Attack Pattern Abbadon. However, none of the Rebel capital ships were destroyed, and the Rebel fighters inflicted significant damage on the Star Destroyers Formidable and the Ajax by breaching their bridge shields with proton torpedoes, compelling Captain Lennox to order the Empire's retreat via hyperspace.

After regrouping at the world Pakuuni, Captain Piett filed a mission report on the battle that was later included in the Imperial Handbook: A Commander's Guide tactical manual, distributed just before the Battle of Yavin nineteen years into the Empire's reign. In the report, Piett recommended Lennox's removal from command of naval operations in the Pakuuni sector, and he led the subsequent unsuccessful Operation Strike Fear counterattack.

By the time the Tyrant joined the battle against the warlord Nuso Esva eight months after the Battle of Yavin, the starship had gained a formidable reputation across the Empire as a part of Death Squadron, the personal fleet of the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader. It typically consisted of five Imperial I- and Imperial II-class Star Destroyers supporting Vader's Super Star Destroyer, the Executor, where Piett served as captain under Admiral Kendal Ozzel. In 3 ABY, Captain Lennox and Lieutenant Cabbel continued to command the Tyrant, and at some point, the former's right hip was replaced with a myoelectric replacement.

Cabbel reported to Captain Lorth Needa aboard the Star Destroyer Stalker as part of a temporary detachment of Death Squadron that also included Needa's Avenger in the Anoat sector. Following the Battle of Derra IV, they retargeted probe droids to search for the Rebel headquarters on the planets Allyuen, Tokmia, and Hoth within the sector. Upon discovering the Rebels on Hoth, Death Squadron, supported by four Star Destroyers from Juris Sector Forces, executed a series of hyperspace jumps from the Juris sector's Qeimet system to attack the Hoth system, where Lennox was joined by Cabbel on the Tyrant's bridge.

Lennox and Cabbel's warship was positioned at the forefront of Death Squadron's formation, as one of six Star Destroyers forming a heavy attack line reinforced by the Executor, maintaining a full complement of seventy-two TIE fighters. Despite Admiral Ozzel's error of alerting the Rebels to the fleet's arrival by exiting hyperspace too close to Hoth, Death Squadron promptly initiated the Battle of Hoth by launching a ground assault on the Rebel base. Meanwhile, Lennox and the Tyrant advanced to intercept the Rebels' GR-75 transports and their X-wing escorts as they attempted to evacuate personnel from the surface.

Lennox stood beside the viewports on the Tyrant's bridge when Cabbel eagerly informed him of approaching Rebel vessels. Eager to engage the Rebels despite lacking information about the composition of the incoming craft, Lennox announced to his bridge crew that they were about to capture the first quarry of the battle. An officer relayed that they were facing two starfighters and a transport: the first Rebel transport, the Quantum Storm, escorted by a pair of X-wings. Although Lennox ordered his crew to attack on his command and fixed his sight ahead, the Rebels fired their planetary ion cannon at the Tyrant. An officer reported that com-scan detected power fluctuations on the planet's surface, but before the captain could request clarification, he identified the flashes of incoming ion blasts. One struck the Tyrant's dorsal superstructure, while another hit its conning tower, knocking Lennox to the deck floor and removing his cap.

Lennox's vessel lost its shields and helm control, allowing the Rebel ships to escape the star system. Due to the energy surge, Lennox realized that the Star Destroyer's bridge had also lost its console displays and lighting. The ion blast also deactivated a droid and affected Lennox's myoelectric hip replacement, causing his foot to tap erratically. Despite the chaos, Lennox attempted to stand and told Cabbel to disregard his commands for all stations to report, realizing that the Tyrant, although veering off course, would not collide with Hoth and that the Accuser would have to take his ship's point position.

The Tyrant's bridge further suffered from the loss of artificial gravity, forcing Lennox to grasp a handhold while he watched his crew, strapped into their stations, attempt to secure a tumbling Cabbel. Lennox concluded from the impact of the ion cannon that the weapon was a large emplacement on Hoth, and the captain dismissed his crew's futile status reports as he became aware that the Tyrant would remain debilitated until after the battle's outcome was clear.

Lennox's crew managed to repair the Star Destroyer as the battle continued. Soldiers of the Imperial 501st Legion captured the Rebel General Crix Madine on Hoth and transported him to the Tyrant's docking bay via a shuttle, intending to transfer him to prison on the planet Dathomir. Captain Lennox summoned one of the soldiers to report the battle's status on the bridge, but the Tyrant was struck by another ion blast, prompting Lennox to alert his crew of a possible Rebel boarding action, order his helmsman to repair the inoperative systems, and instruct the soldier to secure Madine in the Tyrant's brig.

Rebel commandos exploited the ship's ion damage to board it, rescue Madine from the brig, and return to Hoth aboard a stolen Lambda-class shuttle before evacuating with the Rebel cruiser Champion. As the Champion prepared to enter hyperspace for the Rebel rendezvous point, Captain Lennox's Tyrant attacked the vessel and launched its TIEs, offering to cease the attack if the Rebels surrendered General Madine. The captain of the Champion refused this offer and launched X-wings and Y-wings that held off Lennox's forces and allowed the Rebels to escape. Ultimately, the Empire captured or destroyed seventeen of the thirty transports fleeing Echo Base, scattering the remainder of the Rebellion.

Following the Battle of Hoth, Darth Vader sent a communication that Lennox received in his ready room on the Tyrant with the Imperial soldier he had summoned earlier. Lennox's forces were assigned to the mining colony Cloud City on the gas giant Bespin in the nearby Bespin system, where he was to remove Rachi Sitra, a Jedi Diplomat who was causing issues for Imperial negotiations with the city. Vader concluded the message by warning Lennox not to fail again, and Lennox assigned the Imperial soldier to lead the attack on the Jedi. After two days, the Tyrant reached the Bespin system, and the Imperial soldier led a number of troops in a shuttle to Cloud City, forcing Sitra to flee before Darth Vader's arrival with Death Squadron, which had been pursuing Rebels through the Hoth asteroid field between Hoth and Bespin.

The soldier informed Lennox of Sitra's departure via hologram, and the captain ordered the operative to remove Rebel sympathizers from Cloud City's lower levels, providing the soldier with locations to search and names of suspected sympathizers. However, before the soldier could investigate any suspects, Cloud City's Baron Administrator, Lando Calrissian, advised his people to evacuate. In the ensuing chaos, the soldier captured Calrissian's top aide, Lobot, and prevented Rebel commandos from rescuing the Rebel Captain Han Solo from Vader's forces. When Lennox debriefed the operative aboard the Tyrant, he commended the soldier's removal of the Jedi and their work in preventing the Rebels from interfering with Vader's business, assuring them that the Empire would provide another worthy assignment.

Lennox remained captain of the Tyrant and served in Death Squadron at the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, where the Rebels destroyed the second Death Star superweapon and killed Vader and Emperor Palpatine, fracturing the Empire. Several years later, shortly after the Bacta War of 7 ABY, Lennox's Tyrant was captured by the Rebel Alliance's successor, the New Republic. With Lennox imprisoned, the New Republic renamed his ship Rebel Dream and made it the flagship of Princess Leia Organa.

Xamuel Lennox, a Human individual, possessed sharp, well-defined features. His brown hair was cut short, complementing his matching eyebrows. He had dark eyes, a fair complexion marked by a mole on his left cheek, and a resonant, deep voice. Lennox underwent extensive training with the ambition of upholding his family's legacy as a distinguished officer. Demonstrating skill as a strategist and a natural leader, he took command of the Imperial Star Destroyer Tyrant. He was deeply devoted to his ship and its crew, prioritizing their welfare over his own career advancement, and was known to commend subordinates for successful performance.

Unlike the honorable ideals of his ancestors, Lennox deplored the corruption, treachery, and political games that plagued the Empire. Yet, he was also cautious, fearing the Empire's war machine would render him obsolete as it had the Republic. He became cynical, believing deception was universal, after mastering his colleagues' manipulative tactics as adeptly as he mastered warfare. The Galactic Civil War and his position significantly burdened his conscience. He grew disillusioned with the Empire's immorality but also held the Rebellion in contempt for instigating the conflict, viewing them as hypocritical for attempting to revive a Republic he saw as equally corrupt as the Empire they opposed.

Despite Lennox's leadership skills, his strategies during the Battle of Turkana, along with his refusal to heed Captain Piett's advice, led to an Imperial defeat. Subsequently, Piett recommended Lennox's removal from command of Imperial naval forces in the Pakuuni sector. By the time the Battle of Hoth occurred, Lennox was well-acquainted with ion cannon emplacements. While some naval recruits struggled with the constant noise and vibration on a Star Destroyer, Lennox missed the deep hum when away from a starship, considering it the Tyrant's heartbeat.

Lennox controlled his emotions, typically clasping his hands behind his back. However, he made eye contact with Cabbel and offered a slight smile when the lieutenant reported incoming Rebel ships at the Battle of Hoth. Unfazed by the Rebels' arsenal, he remained confident in his ship and Death Squadron's capabilities, focusing intently on the approaching spacecraft. The captain swiftly recognized the trails of ion cannon fire impacting his Star Destroyer and stayed alert to the ensuing chaos, yet remained composed. He analyzed the situation's consequences for the Imperial fleet and his own vessel, promptly bracing himself when artificial gravity failed. Lennox frowned, realizing the Tyrant would be incapacitated during the crucial stages of the Battle of Hoth.

As an Imperial captain, Lennox wore the standard uniform of an Imperial naval officer in command, including a cap and black gloves. A single code cylinder was positioned next to a rank insignia plaque on the left side of his chest, displaying three red bars above three blue bars. By the time of the Hoth campaign, he had received a myoelectric replacement for his right hip joint.

The character of Xamuel Lennox, along with his Star Destroyer, the Tyrant, were initially presented, though incorrectly identified as Captain Needa and his Star Destroyer, the Avenger, in Donald F. Glut's novelization of Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back from the original trilogy, released in April 1980, before the film's May release. In the film, Lennox is portrayed by John Dicks, credited among the Imperial characters as one of the "other officers." Interior Star Destroyer scenes were shot at Elstree Studios' Stage 5 between April 17 and April 30 of 1979.

The 1996 Hoth Limited set of Decipher's Star Wars Customizable Card Game gave the character the name Lennox. The first name "Xamuel" was assigned in the article "The Empire's Finest: Who's Who in the Imperial Military," published in the ninety-sixth issue of the Star Wars Insider magazine on September 4, 2007, written by Abel G. Peña and Daniel Wallace.

"The Empire's Finest," which provided more detail on Lennox's character, was initially composed in 2002 for publication alongside Peña and Wallace's "Who's Who: Imperial Grand Admirals" article in Star Wars Gamer magazine before its cancellation. Peña had originally intended Lennox's first name to be "Corazon," the Spanish term for "heart," believing it connected to the character's internal conflict regarding the Empire and the Rebellion, but he changed it to "Xamuel" prior to The Empire's Finest's release. Peña decided that using words from other languages was an overused naming convention and instead drew inspiration from Samuel Adams, a United States Founding Father—though Peña admitted he was thinking of Samuel Adams beer at the time. The author considered Lennox one of the "good" Imperials he had written about and wanted to revisit the character, whom he described as adapting to ethically untenable situations.

"The Empire's Finest" noted that some fans were initially confused because Lennox's sole line in The Empire Strikes Back was mistakenly attributed to Firmus Piett. The article clarified that, although Lennox's face is not fully visible in the scene, his voice was noticeably deeper than Piett's. It also stated that part of the confusion stemmed from the film's novelization incorrectly assigning the line to Piett, but the novel actually attributed it to Captain Needa.

The opening scene of the 1993 video game Star Wars: X-Wing contains artwork that recreates Captain Lennox's scene with Lieutenant Cabbel in The Empire Strikes Back, although with ungloved hands. The 2014 reference book Star Wars: Imperial Handbook: A Commander's Guide confirms that Lennox participated in the game's events, which are set before the Battle of Yavin, as the captain of the Tyrant.

The Imperial soldier mentioned in the article biography who served Lennox is the player character in the Dark Side scenario campaign of the Star Wars Galaxies Trading Card Game's 2010 set, The Price of Victory. Unlike his film appearance, Captain Lennox's card in that set depicts him with a thin brown moustache and without his code cylinder.

A character with a visual resemblance to Xamuel Lennox appears in the fifth issue of Empire Lost, the third mini-series of the Star Wars: Crimson Empire comic series. The issue was written by Mike Richardson, illustrated by Paul Gulacy and Michael Bartolo, and published by Dark Horse Comics on March 7, 2012. This article does not assume that the character was Xamuel Lennox.

The character had distinctly brown eyes and served as an Imperial Remnant commander at a meeting of the Council of Moffs on the planet Orinda around 13 ABY. Admiral Gilad Pellaeon convened the group to discuss a treaty with the New Republic. After the council learned that the Republic had murdered the Imperial Feena D'Asta—who was actually killed by a dissident Imperial faction—the commander argued against retaliating against the New Republic, believing it could weaken the Imperial fleet following their previous defeat in the Pallaxides system. Despite the commander's objections, Admiral Pellaeon and the council chose to strike back at the New Republic.

Captain Lennox is among the characters whose name can be randomly selected as an Imperial leader in the 2001 video game Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds's standard game mode, and in its 2002 expansion Clone Campaigns. As the mentions of Imperial leaders are independent of the game's plots, they are considered non-canonical within the Star Wars Legends continuity.

Jason Fry composed a story that expanded on Captain Lennox's experiences during the events of The Empire Strikes Back for his April 2012 reference title, The Essential Guide to Warfare, but it was ultimately cut from publication. Instead, the story was released on StarWars.com on August 8, 2014, as the eleventh installment of Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Warfare Author's Cut, which showcases various material that was removed from the book. Titled "A SOLDIER'S STORY: HIT BY AN ION CANNON," the story captured the interest of Warfare editor Erich Schoeneweiss, who believed Fry could further develop the story into a more extensive exploration of the impact of the ion cannon strikes on Lennox and his ship.