Mission to Delrian

"It was undoubtedly a simple task of extricating the Foreman. We are the masters of technology. To think the Republic could devise machinery to slow us down is laughable."

- Unidentified Techno Union employee

The mission to Delrian was a rescue attempt successfully undertaken by the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Techno Union early in 21 BBY. After his capture by the Galactic Republic on Metalorn, Techno Union Foreman Wat Tambor was transported to the remote prison planet Delrian, by request of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. The security firm used by the prison, however, was owned by the Separatist-aligned Commerce Guild, allowing the CIS and the Techno Union access to details of the prison's layout and security.

Tambor was allowed a visit by several of his staff&mdash;two Skakoan soldiers, posing as legal deputies, and a shapeshifting Clawdite mercenary known as Nuri. Once inside the facility, the two Skakoans blew themselves up, killing Tambor's clone trooper guard, while Nuri bypassed automated security with Techno Union technology and whisked Tambor to safety. The foreman traveled to Denus, Foundry to recuperate, while the Republic attempted to keep his escape hushed up.

Prelude
"Anakin Skywalker's capture of Wat Tambor during the Metalorn mission had caught Darth Sidious by surprise. The move could have potentially destabilized the war&hellip;"

- Voren Na'al

After a failed Confederacy of Independent Systems attack on Coruscant ten months after the start of the Clone Wars in 22 BBY, the Galactic Republic dispatched Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker to the Techno Union mechworld of Metalorn, where the Techno Union was producing C-B3 cortosis battle droids. The droids were the brainchild of Techno Union Foreman and CIS Supervising Combat Engineer Wat Tambor, and had been used in the attack of Coruscant. Skywalker was able to shut down the facility and also managed to snare Tambor, exceeding expectations.

Skywalker's capture of Tambor was a surprise to Darth Sidious, the alter ego of Republic Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, who was playing both sides and manipulating the war for his own end. Tambor's capture could potentially have destabilized the war and tipped the balance in favor of the Republic, which was not what Sidious wanted. In his capacity as Chancellor, Palpatine ordered that Tambor be relocated to Delrian, a remote prison world, where he would be kept watch over by a squad of eight Republic clone troopers, in addition to local security. The detainment center employed an external security firm, which happened to be owned by the Commerce Guild, an ally of the Confederacy and the Techno Union. Thus, the Separatists had intimate knowledge of the facility's defensive capabilities, security complement, and layout. Rather than launch a full-scale attack, a smaller rescue attempt was planned by the Techno Union, and a Clawdite changeling from Aargau, Nuri, was hired to assist them.

The Mission
"He is the Separatists' Techno Union Foreman, as well as a combat engineer. A brilliant strategist. And extremely dangerous&mdash;an expert at fighting machines, and a master of defense technologies. He is also an expert at escape."

- Jabba Desilijic Tiure

On 21:4:07 BBY, Tambor was permitted a visit by members of his staff. Two elite Skakoan commandos, posing as legal deputies, visited the facility with a disguised Nuri. Nuri brought secret state of the art Techno Union technology, which would allow him to bypass the prison's automated defenses. Once inside the center, the two legal deputies breached their pressure suits, releasing the compressed methane atmospheres inside; this caused a large explosion, killing Tambor's clone trooper guard as well as the two Skakoans.

In the ensuing chaos, Nuri was able to infiltrate Tambor's holding area and whisk the foreman to safety. Using the Techno Union technology, the Clawdite bypassed Delrian's automated defenses and escaped offworld with Tambor.

Aftermath
"Not surprisingly, this story has yet to be reported in the government-dominated mainstream Republic media."

- 21:4:12 BBY CIS Shadowfeed report, referring to Wat Tambor's rescue

Tambor was taken to his private estate in Denus, Foundry, to recuperate in a hyperbaric recharge globe, where he remained for several days. Via the CIS Shadowfeed, the Separatists lauded the daring of Tambor's staff, who had given their lives for the Separatist cause, in spite of the Skakoan fear of death via explosive decompression. The shadowfeed used the rescue as a morale-booster for Confederate worlds, highlighting the boldness of the CIS and the inadequacies of the Republic. Although the involvement of a Clawdite in the mission was known, Nuri's identity was kept secret. The Republic attempted to keep the story hushed up, stopping the media from reporting it.

Tambor's rescue allowed Palpatine to plot in safety again: with the Techno Union active once more, the war was evenly poised and no end was in sight. As the conflict progressed, Tambor became extremely reclusive, spending more and more time in his fortress on Xagobah. Nuri, pivotal in the rescue mission, remained in the Techno Union's employ as a guard of the fortress.

Behind the scenes
The mission to Delrian was created by Pablo Hidalgo for CIS Shadowfeed Dispatch 14:4:12 Edition, published in Star Wars Insider 67 in 2003. Hidalgo used the planet Delrian from The Movie Trilogy Sourcebook, as well as numerous entities from Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. The mission was later expanded upon by Daniel Wallace in the New Essential Chronology, which provided the identity of the unnamed Clawdite in Insider as Nuri, a character from Elizabeth Hand's Boba Fett: Maze of Deception. The rescue was also mentioned briefly in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia.

Appearances

 * CIS Shadowfeed Dispatch 14:4:12 Edition