Lok Durd/Legends

"I am General Lok Durd of the Separatist Alliance. You are now under the protection of the Separatist Alliance. I congratulate you on your good fortune."

- Lok Durd

Lok Durd was a Neimoidian general and weapons developer in the Separatist Droid Army who served in the Clone Wars. During the war, he created an experimental defoliator, an artillery radiation weapon that would completely wipe out any organic matter while leaving machinery unharmed. Durd planned to test the weapon on the planet of Maridun after he discovered a small Lurmen colony there. After landing on the planet and setting up a base camp, Durd tested the defoliator on a pair of battle droids successfully. He then tried to test the weapon on the colony to impress Count Dooku, the leader of the Separatist movement. However, he was interrupted by Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, his Togruta apprentice Ahsoka Tano, and Twi'lek Jedi Knight Aayla Secura, who had crash landed on the planet prior to Durd's arrival. Using shield generators they had captured from the Separatist base camp, the Jedi were able to block Durd's defoliator by surrounding the Lurmen village with a deflector shield, and Lok was captured by the Jedi following a brief battle.

The defoliator
"We test a new weapon, of my own design, which is capable of catastrophic destruction. A weapon which will destroy organic matter, but leave machines unharmed."

- Lok Durd on the defoliator



Lok Durd was a Neimoidian general and weapons developer who served in the Separatist Droid Army during the Clone Wars. Sometime during the war, Durd developed a defoliator weapon, an enhanced radiation weapon that could destroy all living matter while leaving inorganic material unharmed, such as his own combat units, the battle droids. He created the weapon in hopes that it would allow him to rise in the ranks of the Separatist Droid Army. The defoliator was mounted on a modified HAG, and when loaded, fired a large missile that contained the explosive itself. When the warhead exploded, it created a large fiery shock wave; however, the wave could be blocked by a deflector shield. Durd decided to test the weapon on the remote planet of Maridun and show the results to the Sith Lord Count Dooku, the leader of the Separatist movement, as Maridun was home to a small, peaceful Lurmen colony. Believing the Lurmen would not fight back, Durd intended to test the weapon on the colony.

After landing on the planet with the defoliator and several dozen battle droids, Durd's forces built a small but heavily armed base camp, and then went to the Lurmen colony. When they arrived there in a Separatist landing craft, Durd met with the colony's leader, Tee Watt Kaa. Durd lied to Tee Watt, saying that the colony was now under Separatist "protection", and as long as they did not fight back they would remain unharmed. Durd then boarded his shuttle and returned to the base camp to conduct the first defoliator test.

Testing the defoliator
"I have located a world in which we can test my...excuse me, our new weapon." "I hope it turns out to be worth the expense. You may proceed."

- Lok Durd and Count Dooku

Back at the Separatist base, Durd prepared to conduct the first field test of the defoliator. When he told his battle droids about his recently developed weapon, they cheered. However, when he stated he required two volunteers, the droids' ranks quickly moved back, leaving two very reluctant B1 battle droids for the defoliator to be tested upon.

Durd opened a hololink to Count Dooku to show him the tests. After the two battle droids were a safe distance away from the base camp, Durd ordered the defoliator to be loaded and fired. Another pair of B1 battle droids loaded the defoliator missile, and Lok's Aqualish aide prepared to fire the weapon at the two droids. The Aqualish aide launched the missile, and as it landed, it exploded into a fiery, expanding inferno.

The two battle droids were quickly engulfed by the shockwave, while Durd and the rest of his troops, along with Count Dooku through his hololink, watched back at the camp. As the smoke generated by the defoliator dissipated, it revealed the two battle droids, slightly smoking but unharmed and intact, standing in the middle of a desolate wasteland. To Durd, the defoliator appeared to work: the two test subjects were not damaged, and all organic life around them were completely wiped out. Dooku stated that the new weapon was very impressive, and that it should be tested on living, sentient subjects. Lok promised that he would test the weapon on the Lurmen colony. Durd then closed the hololink with Dooku, and prepared to travel to the Lurmen colony to test the defoliator, taking three squads of droids with him as well as two extra tanks.

Battle of Maridun
"There goes my promotion."

- Lok Durd, after being captured by Anakin Skywalker



Durd and his forces arrived at the colony the next day and set up positions a distance away from it, but close enough so that the village was in range of the defoliator. When one of the droids told Durd that a barricade had been set up, he thought that it was only the Lurmen trying to protect themselves and laughed. However, a glance through a pair of electrobinoculars revealed to him the presence of a small Republic force&mdash;Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Aayla Secura, Skywalker's Togruta apprentice Ahsoka Tano, Commander Bly and Captain Rex. The Jedi and the clones had crash-landed on Maridun before Durd had even arrived, in the wake of the Battle of Quell, and had taken refuge with the Lurmen. The force had witnessed Durd's test of the defoliator, and so they had taken measures to protect their Lurmen allies. Upon seeing the Jedi and the clones, Durd ordered that the defoliator be fired at them.

When the enemy saw that the Separatists were loading the defoliator, they activated several shield generators they had stolen from Durd's camp, and the resultant deflector shield enveloped the colony. As soon as loading was complete on the defoliator, Durd commanded his aide to fire the weapon. The missile landed several meters in front of the deflector shield, and the fiery shockwave began to expand. When the shockwave reached the shield, however, it was unable to break through and was effectively stopped. After the wave had dissipated, the Jedi and clones emerged from behind the pod barricade, preparing for the Separatists' charge. Durd realized he would have to destroy the shields for the defoliator to be effective, and ordered his first squad, consisting of several B1 and B2 battle droids, to charge forward and attack.

The first squad charged across the newly devastated field, and engaged the Jedi, but the Republic forces were able to drive them off. Durd and the rest of his forces watched on as the first squad was obliterated. The general then ordered his second and third squads to charge forward, leaving behind just a few battle droids and the three tanks to guard his own position. As the second wave of droids attacked, the Jedi were unable to destroy all of them, and a portion of the Confederate force got past their line. They eventually were able to push through and destroy the enemy shield generators.

Seeing that the shield was down, Lok ordered his droids to reload the defoliator and destroy the village; however, Skywalker was already bearing down on him at a rapid speed. Durd ordered his tanks to blast the Jedi Knight, but Skywalker was too fast for the laser fire and easily evaded it. The Jedi Knight destroyed the defoliator along with several of the droids guarding Durd. In the process, the defoliator projectile was dropped by the droids. Durd, afraid that he would be "defoliated" by the projectile rolling toward him, jumped out of his AAT and attempted to run away, but Skywalker lifted him from the ground before the Neimoidian general could run far. Durd's forces were eventually routed by the combined effort of the Republic and Lurmen forces. After the battle, the Jedi prepared to leave the colony with the captured general, and three Republic Venator-class Star Destroyers jumped into the system to pick them up.

Personality and traits
"Uh, sir, there's a Jedi heading right for us." "Then blast him, you idiot!"

- Lok Durd chastises an OOM command battle droid

Lok Durd was overconfident, condescending and power-crazed, often towards his own troops. He also carried a dream of being promoted to a higher rank within the Separatist Droid Army, which was one of the reasons he developed the defoliator. He liked to deploy his troops in large head on rushes. However, Durd was cowardly, as seen when he chose to escape from the battle after Skywalker had decapitated his defoliator cannon. He was also very overweight for a Neimoidian, and as a result, was a very slow runner.

Behind the scenes
Lok Durd made his first and only appearance in the The Clone Wars episode "Defenders of Peace". In the episode, Durd is voiced by George Takei of Star Trek fame. Although his character is captured at the end of the episode, according to interviews with George Takei, Durd will be a recurring villain in the series.