Tyber Zann

"I am Tyber Zann. Corruption is my weapon. And while the Galaxy is distracted by civil war, I will strike."

- Tyber Zann

Tyber Zann was a crimelord who rose to prominence sometime after the Battle of Yavin during the Galactic Civil War and led his own faction, the Zann Consortium.

Biography
"Everyone has a price."

- Tyber Zann

Zann was born on Anaxes in 34 BBY, and first worked in the family firm, Zann Remanufacturing. He became bored and entered into running crooked sabacc games. As his reputation grew, he attracted the notice of rival local crimelords. In order to protect himself, he tried to arm his gang with weapons stolen from his father's warehouses.

Zann's father caught him, and as punishment arranged for him to be enrolled as a cadet in the Academy of Carida. A top ranker, he used his Imperial service to make underworld connections, including with Jabba the Hutt. Just prior to Zann's graduation, he ran a smuggling racket that was actually a trap laid by the suspicious Imperials. However, his associate Urai Fen got wind of the trap and warned Zann. He was suspected of weapons theft by Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo, who could only dismiss him from service, having found no firm evidence to connect him to the crime.

Using the Imperial connections he made while in the military, Zann began to build up an extensive criminal organization known as the Zann Consortium. He collaborated with Jabba the Hutt until he stole a valuable and strange artifact from the Hutt on Felucia. However, while Urai Fen escaped with the artifact, Zann was arrested, for "crimes against the Empire".

While Zann rotted away in the spice mines of Kessel, his loyal servant, Urai Fen, planned his escape. By starting an insurrection on Kessel and hiring the crew of Millennium Falcon to pick him up, Zann made his escape.



After his return to freedom, Zann, along with his closest companion Urai Fen, reestablished the Consortium as a power to reckon with. Among other things, the criminal organization would offer protection to worlds affected by the Galactic Civil War, having built up a sizable military force. Zann even went so far as to attempt to steal Eclipse, the prototype for the Eclipse-class Star Dreadnought.

He used his extensive crime network to influence the warring factions, siphon their credits, and sabotage their operations when necessary. During the course of his ascent to power, his forces fought against both factions of the war. He had his own flagship, an Aggressor-class destroyer named Merciless, for his navy.

Lieutenant Izbela Saarrj of the Imperial Security Bureau once wrote a report on his activities.

Zann wielded a modified Rawk chopped special, a blaster later favored by Cade Skywalker around 130 ABY.

Behind the scenes



 * It is possible that his name was taken from author Timothy Zahn.


 * It is also likely that the name Tyber is a nod towards the fact that many of the people at Petroglyph used to work on the Command & Conquer series, in which Tiberium was first discovered along the Tiber River.


 * Zann was included in Star Wars Insider 89 at the request of LucasArts, who wished additional publicity for him. For his illustration in Insider 89, due to a lack of reference photos of the character, artist Joe Corroney followed a suggestion and based him on British actor Jason Isaacs.


 * Zann was voiced by Steven Blum in the Forces of Corruption trailer.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Empire at War: Forces of Corruption