Maximillian Veers

"General, prepare your troops for a surface attack."

- Darth Vader, preparing Veers for the Battle of Hoth

Maximillian Veers was a human male who served as a general in the Galactic Empire's army. In that capacity, he fought in the Galactic Civil War, which pitted the Galactic Empire against the Rebel Alliance. Veers was famous for his leadership during the Imperial assault on the then Rebellion-occupied in the Hoth system, during which he led a squadron of AT-AT walkers past Rebel defenses and personally destroyed the shield generator powering Rebel base's deflector shield. His leadership in the battle was critical to the successful takeover of the Hoth planetary system, a key victory for the Galactic Empire.

Early service
"General Veers, prepare your men."

- Darth Vader, preparing Veers for the Battle of Hoth

A human male, Maximillian Veers was born on the planet of Denon. In time, he came to serve as an army officer of the Galactic Empire, an authoritarian regime that governed most of the galaxy. As such, he was involved in the Empire's struggle against the Rebel Alliance, which contested the rule of Emperor Palpatine. Rising in the ranks through cunning and courage, Veers took part in over a dozen battles, including conflicts against the Zalorians on Zaloriis and the Culroonians on Culroon III. Aside from being a brilliant army officer, Veers was also a husband and a father.

Veers was eventually assigned to the Death Star battle station, but was ultimately not on board during the Battle of Yavin, where it was destroyed by the Rebel Alliance. The destruction of the Death Star also helped accelerate his career due to the large amount of Imperial officers killed during the battle.

Following the Battle of Yavin, Veers already served as a general. At that time, he was tasked with hunting down a governor who betrayed the Empire and locating the former senator Johhar Kessen. The Empire believed that Kessen would play a key role in finding the location of the Rebel Alliance's new headquarters, and for the duration of that mission, Veers was assisted by Captain Kosh, an officer stationed on Tatooine and in command of the 68th Legion.

Weeds in a storm
Sometime later, Veers along with Admiral Ozzel, travel to the planet Mustafar to meet with Darth Vader at his castle. Veers stood along side Ozzel behind Vader as the Sith Lord looked out over the Mustafar landscape. After the admiral stated that the rebels were vermin and asked Vader on how they would eliminate them, Veers spoke up and informed Ozzel that he was mistaken. He stated that the rebels were not vermin but weeds and that the Empire was like a storm.

Veers went on to explain that in a storm, weeds are able to bend and surive just as the Rebellion was capable of doing despite the Empier's constant attacks. The general went on to say that of the Rebels were more like a tree, stury and rooted in one place then it would be different. Veers went on to comment that until the situationed changed, the Rebels would continue to slip through their fingers. His comment caused Vader to then recall the same statement Princess Leia made to Grand Moff Tarkin. Vader stated that Veers made an intresting point and went on to explain their next course of action aginst the Rebels.

Some time later, Veers was posted to the Death Squadron, a flotilla of vessels commanded by the Emperor's dark enforcer, a Sith Lord named Darth Vader. The Death Squadron's commanding officer, Admiral Kendal Ozzel, was charged to oversee the Empire's search for the Rebel headquarters. As part of the search Imperial probe droids were used throughout the galaxy to collect data and identify the Rebel base.

Veers often clashed ideologically with Ozzel, his superior. While Ozzel preferred a measured, calculated approach to military strategy, Veers was more doggedly loyal to the personal whims of Vader, making him a favored figure among the Imperial hierarchy.

One of the droids detected signs of an occupied settlement on the sixth planet of Hoth, a system located in the Anoat sector of the galactic Outer Rim. On the Executor, the flagship of Death Squadron, Veers joined the panel of officers who reviewed the probe droid's data, along with Vader, Ozzel and his subordinate, Captain Firmus Piett. While Vader immediately identified the data as proof of the Rebellion, Ozzel was more skeptical. Vader ultimately ordered the fleet to investigate the Hoth system, and Veers began to prepare for the assault.

Imperial hero of Hoth
"Yes, Lord Vader. I've reached the main power generator. The shield will be down in moments. You may start your landing."

- Veers, to Vader

Ozzel's approved lightspeed course, intended to surprise the Rebellion, brought the Imperial fleet out of lightspeed close to the system. As a result, Rebel forces on the planet's surface had time to prepare a defense plan and organize an evacuation. Due to a localized energy shield protecting the base and power generator, orbital bombardment of the base was considered to be an ineffective attack strategy. Vader, dissatisfied with Ozzel's decision to emerge so close to the system, ordered Veers to lead a ground assault on the power generator and disable the energy shield. Vader then executed Ozzel and promoted Piett to Admiral.

Veers, who had always kept a low profile in front of Vader, had been offered a chance to correct Ozzel's mistake. His squadron of Imperial AT-AT walkers were deployed beyond the border of the energy shield, allowing a ground approach to be made. Veers led the squadron into the Echo Base mountain valley, facing heavy Rebel ground fire as he approached the shield generators. The general led his troops from the front, in the cockpit of the lead walker, as the Rebels prepared to evacuate their headquarters. A group of snowspeeders led by Rebel Commander Luke Skywalker tried to delay Veers' force, destroying two walkers. As Rebel ground forces retreated, Veers ordered his walker to fire on the shield generator, destroying it. The generator's destruction marked the end of the Rebel defense, allowing Vader and his men to land on Hoth and break into the base, and demonstrating Veers' effectiveness as a military commander. During the battle, Blizzard One, was decapitated when a snowspeeder flown by Derek Klivian crashed into it.

Personality and traits
"Target. Maximum fire power."

- Veers, ordering the destruction of Echo Base's shield generator

Maximillian Veers was a powerfully built man with brown hair and eyes. Weighing 82 kilogram and standing 1.93 meters, he was ten centimeters taller than the average stormtroopers, the Empire's white-armored shock troops.

Veers was a brilliant tactician, and a cool and efficient officer. He did not hesitate to put himself in harm's way on the front line, wearing the AT-AT pilot armor. Cunning and capable, he was also devoted to his family. Because of those qualities, he was viewed as a model Imperial officer. An effective and decorated officer, Veers enjoyed the respect of his peers thanks to an impressive record of ground combat, and due to Veer's calm demeanor during battle he earned respect from Darth Vader himself.

Although he always seemed very sure of himself when talking to Vader, Veers had learned to tread lightly around the Sith Lord, fearing both the mysterious power he wielded and his volatile temperament. For example, when the general went to see Vader in his quarters, he was not bold enough to interrupt the meditating Sith, but stood quietly at attention until he spoke.

Equipment
On the battlefield, Veers wore a grey-green chest armor over his duty uniform, and a matching open face helmet with an ample rear skirt and a black chin strap.

Portrayal
"This man is a general. You don't get to be a general if you're a wimp."

- Actor Julian Glover, to George Lucas

General Veers first appeared in the 1980 movie Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back, the second installment in the original trilogy of Star Wars, in which he was played by the English actor Julian Glover. Robert Watts, an associate producer on The Empire Strikes Back, invited Glover in, as the two were next-door neighbors at the time. Glover worked on the movie for five days, which he later described as "five days of complete and total bewilderment."

Despite having a relatively small part in the movie, Glover discussed Veers' relationship to Vader with Star Wars creator George Lucas. In Glover's opinion, Veers should not be sycophantic toward Vader, since a proper general would not lack confidence. Lucas approved the actor's vision of the character, allowing Veers to stand up to Vader a little.

The armored breastplate worn by Veers in The Empire Strikes Back was the same design seen on the snowtroopers and the bounty hunter Dengar.

In the following movie installment, Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, co-producer Robert Watts played AT-ST pilot Lieutenant Blanaid. Before this pilot was identified, Watts once said that his character was General Veers. However, that identification was refuted on the official StarWars.com website, on the grounds that Veers' demotion to a simple pilot was unlikely. In an early draft of the film's script, Veers was slated to return as the Commander of Endor's Garrison, personally leading the battle on the moon. This was cut, however.

Alternate fate
In the script of The Empire Strikes Back, Veers died when the Rebel snowspeeder pilot Derek Klivian flew his damaged vessel directly into the cockpit of the general's walker. That scene, however, never made it into the final cut of the film, although it did appear in the novelization, written by Donald F. Glut.

Veers' background and fate were expanded upon in a number of reference books and comic books, although those stories are part of the Star Wars Legends, formerly known as the Expanded Universe, and are therefore not canon since Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm Ltd..

On October 2, 2017, during an interview with Ed Dolista for the Episode 256 of IndyCast, Julian Glover was asked by Dolista his opinion about Veers' fate. Glover stated that he thinks Veers may have survived since his apparent death happened offstage (although he is aware of Veers' fate in Glut's novelization) and that he could well be brought back if Lucasfilm wants.

Non-canon material
Maximillian Veers appears as the main antagonist in the 2015 LEGO animated television series LEGO Star Wars: Droid Tales. Following the Battle of Endor, General Veers and a renegade group of stormtroopers attempted to restart the droid foundries on Geonosis in order to restore the Galactic Empire. His plot involved tricking Lando Calrissian and his partner R2-D2 into gathering old droids and reusing their parts to build battle droids. Veers' scheme was defeated by the combined efforts of R2-D2, Lando, C-3PO, Chewbacca, Nien Nunb, and Admiral Ackbar.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Galactic Defense
 * Star Wars Battlefront II
 * Star Wars: The Original Trilogy – A Graphic Novel
 * Star Wars: Commander
 * Battlefront: Twilight Company
 * Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back
 * The Empire Strikes Back: So You Want to Be a Jedi?
 * Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back junior novelization
 * Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back junior novelization

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes
 * Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes
 * Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes