Taidu Sefla

"They like you, ma'am, but if you want to give a speech they'll have trouble respecting you. You're not military. You're not even Alliance."'' "Not really my problem, is it?" ''"Hardly the right attitude, ma'am.""

- Taidu Sefla speaks to Jyn Erso before the Battle of Scarif

Taidu Sefla was a human male soldier who served in the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War. During the war, Lieutenant Sefla became a member of Rogue One and promoted Jyn Erso to the rank of sergeant shortly before the Battle of Scarif. He was killed on Scarif by one of the Imperial death troopers while attempting to arm the master switch.

Alliance lieutenant
Taidu Sefla was a human male, who was a member of the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the early rebellion against the Galactic Empire. A Lieutenant in the Alliance Special Forces, Sefla commanded a platoon of rebel soldiers. At one point, Sefla provided his personal comment to a document titled Readiness Report: Surface Vehicles, an assessment of relative strengths of Alliance ground vehicles presented by SpecForce General Pitt Onoran to Mon Mothma. Specifically, Sefla noted some of the benefits and shortcomings of such vehicles as the Kelliak Freerunner and Aratech Repulsor Company's Arrow-23 landspeeder.

By 0 BBY, Sefla was a member of the Massassi Group, the largest rebel cell operating from the Great Temple on the fourth moon of the planet Yavin.

Operation Fracture
In 0 BBY, the Alliance launched Operation Fracture, an effort to extract Imperial engineer Galen Erso in order to learn from him about the Empire's new planet-destroying superweapon. Captain Cassian Andor and K-2SO were dispatched to escort Jyn Erso, Galen's daughter. to the moon Jedha, where she was supposed to make contact with her mentor Saw Gerrera and defected Imperial pilot Bodhi Rook. Sefla then prepared a detailed report on potential Imperial forces that Andor's team was likely to encounter on Jedha to General Draven, warning about the potential presence of death troopers defending Orson Krennic. Realizing that the Empire would be unable to field heavy vehicles in the crowded streets of Jedha City, Sefla concluded that Andor and Erso would likely encounter TX-225 combat tanks, AT-STs and TIE strikers.

However, Sefla also took into account the possibility of Andor's mission going beyond the city, in which case the rebel team might be faced against Imperial AT-AT or AT-CT walkers. Should that happen, Sefla recommended Draven that Andor joined forces with Gerrera's partisans, even though the group was not favored by the Alliance. Sefla was briefed on the course of Operation Fracture and potential follow-up missions. Sefla's platoon was on stand-by mode, ready to follow Andor's lead to any point of the galaxy. Constant duty shifts ensured that two squads within the platoon were combat-ready at any given time, while two others could be prepared within the hour.

Sefla's participation in the mission was ultimately not required. Andor and Jyn escaped from Jedha before it was leveled by the Death Star. Joined by Rook, as well as Baze and Chirrut, they proceeded to Eadu. A Rebel strike team of starfighters attacked the Imperial installation there, accidentally killing Galen. Andor and his team returned to Yavin 4. Having received intelligence that the plans to the Death Star were being held on Scarif, Erso pleaded the Alliance to assemble a strike team to go after them, but the request was denied. Sefla was the approached by Sergeant Ruescott Melshi, who was looking for volunteers to accompany Andor to Scarif.

Scarif
"I'm going!"

- Taidu Sefla

Personality and traits
"Morale is everyone's problem. So if Captain Andor won't do it, it falls to me as an Alliance SpecForce lieutenant to brevet you the rank of sergeant. Congratulations."'' "You're a cretin." ''"Yes, Sergeant."

- Taidu Sefla and Jyn Erso

Taidu Sefla was a broad dark-skinned man. Confident and steady, Sefla strove to make every action count. A strong and capable soldier, Sefla also displayed a lot of heart in the fight against the Empire. His gentleness and humility even impressed Malbus. He followed Melshi's command on Scarif out of respect, even though he outranked the Sergeant. While running to the master switch, he moved with brisk, brave certainty.

Skills and abilities
Sefla was a sniper.

Equipment
On Scarif, Sefla wore rebel camouflage fatigues and a combat helmet, which allowed him to sneak across the jungle and beach terrain. He was armed with a standard issue BlasTech Industries A280 blaster rifle, with a Neuro-Saav NT 43.3 electroscope a weapon known for its high accuracy and range. Spare ammunition for the rifle was held in Sefla's utility pocket on his belt, as well as field rations and a survival kit. He also carried Merr-Sonn C-35 fragmentation grenades.

Behind the scenes
Lieutenant Sefla was portrayed by actor Babou Ceesay in the 2016 film Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The character was not addressed by name in the film itself, but he was credited as "Lieutenant Sefla." The first name "Taidu" was established in the reference book Star Wars: Rogue One: The Ultimate Visual Guide.

An action figure of Lieutenant Sefla was released in the Rogue One toyline.

Appearances

 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story novelization
 * Star Wars: Rogue One: A Junior Novel
 * Star Wars: Rogue One Graphic Novel Adaptation
 * Rogue One Adaptation 4
 * Rogue One Adaptation 5
 * Rogue One Adaptation 6