Abran Balfour/Legends

"Today, we have a dozen blaster carbines, a KDY heavy-weapons power converter, and Moff Balfour's undergarments&hellip;Sorry, little joke. We don't have the power converter."

- Rebel ordnance procurer, name unknown

Abran Balfour was the Moff of the Parmic sector whose forces constantly patrolled the Llanic Spice Route. Balfour operated from a fortress at Spice Terminus, where he kept a private collection of exotic non-sentient species. Derided as an inefficient and apathetic governor, Balfour was less interested in political and military matters than he was with restoring the vintage space barge known as the Lady Telura. The restoration led him to pursue rare ship parts, and he found himself in contact with organizations such as The Most Honourable Guild of Armourers. Due to his unorthodox order of priorities, Moffs of bordering sectors constantly criticized him, though his lax attitude alone left him bereft of true enemies.

He soon became notorious for his attitude, and was the subject of several political songs, "Moff Balfour's Lament (Tapmint Surprise)" among them. Nonetheless, he was undeterred, and had the utmost faith in the security of his Sector. Eventually, his faith was shaken when Parmic became a nexus of Imperial activity following reported Rebel strikes, and rumors of a Mandalorian presence in the sector. Eventually, Balfour was deposed by the mercenary group, the Laramus Base Irregulars. His holdings were later investigated by operatives working for the ascendant New Republic.

Moff of the Parmic Sector
Due to his complete lack of political knowledge, and the fact that he was bereft of charisma, Abran Balfour was relegated to controlling the backwater Parmic sector. Balfour governed the sector from the space station Spice Terminus, where he had a private fortress. There, he kept a wide collection of rare and exotic non-sentient creatures.

Instead of properly governing the sector, Balfour preferred to ignore enemy activity, and work on restoring the vintage Thalassian space barge, Lady Telura. The ship was a rear model, and required an assortment of very rare parts in order to be properly restored. Balfour would often journey far from the sector capital hunting for parts to restore the ship, and would enlist the help of The Most Honourable Guild of Armourers in his search. If he ever needed to return to the Parmic sector, his position afforded him a fast ship, in case of emergency, although Balfour was usually warned well in advance if a situation arose. Due to his shifted priorities, Balfour was more than happy to let the planetary governors do their work with little guidance from him.

Moff Balfour's Lament
During this time, according to Galactic Weekly NewsStack, Balfour managed to start a Gamorrean clan war by uttering the word "oink," which, unbeknownst to the Moff, was a deadly insult in their native tongue. He was also the target of political protest songs from the banned musical groups "Red Shift Limit," and "Deeply Religious," who released "Moff Balfour's Lament (Tapmint Surprise)." Security in certain parts of the sector was so lax that at one stage, Balfour's undergarments were apprehended by an ordinance procurer. His ineptitude was such that smuggling became an easy option for criminals in the Parmic sector, and some believed that the Moff simply had no idea how to do his job. When the issue of Alliance to Restore the Republic activity in his sector was raised, Balfour would dismiss it, choosing to ignore such a possibility in the hope that it would subside.

Since the troops under Balfour's command were well equipped, they were able to keep the sector relatively free of Rebel operations despite his lack of participation. His forces constantly patrolled the Llanic Spice Route, which was the only locale of note in the sector. While his apathy gained him few supporters, Balfour had very few enemies, save for the Moffs of neighboring sectors who thought that his laid back modus operandi could be dangerous. Balfour was also apparently under surveillance from the Imperial Security Bureau, who had inserted their agent, Elena Shelvay, as one of the Moff's aides.

Collapse and Fall of the Empire
Content that his sector was secure from Rebel activity, Balfour's seemingly easy job became very difficult in short order, due to staff incompetence, Rebel coordination, and rumors of a Mandalorian battlecruiser adrift in the area. Soon, the Parmic Sector was alive with Imperial activity, and was deemed a "danger zone." Eventually, Galactic Emperor Palpatine died his first death at Endor, and those left with power on Imperial Center found themselves squabbling for total dominion over the now fragmented Galactic Empire. The Laramus Base Irregulars were able to topple Balfour's control over the Parmic Sector, and soon after, Voren Na'al, a historian working for the New Republic, was sent to peruse the former Moff's records at the Spice Terminus fortress. In doing so, he activated one of Balfour's traps, but emerged unscathed.

Personality and traits
"Rebel activity? In my sector? Ignore it and it will go away."

- Abran Balfour

Abran Balfour differed from his colleagues, in that he maintained an unkempt appearance, lacked charisma, was unfit, and was notably poor at politics. As such, he was relegated to the backwater Parmic Sector. Personally, Balfour saw himself as a knowledgeable historian, and an able politician. Conversely, he was unable to gain the respect of the Imperial troops under his command; a situation that proved disastrous when the Parmic Sector garnered Alliance attention. Even when it did, Balfour had an apathetic stance towards the threat, and would always caution his men to ignore any dissident activity.

He was more than happy to shun his responsibilities and let the planetary governors operate, while he hunted for spare parts in his restoration of the vintage space barge, the Lady Telura. He was highly confident in the security of his sector; a confidence that would prove unfounded when his undergarments were stolen. In fact, security was so lax under Balfour's supervision that a life of crime was considered a natural and easy one in the Parmic sector. Balfour also had a great interest in non-sentient animals, and had a vast collection kept at a private zoo at the Spice Terminus fortress. The zoo was also heavily booby trapped—a fact discovered by the curious New Republic agent Voren Na'al.

Behind the scenes
Abran Balfour was created as a playable character in 1993's Galaxy Guide 9: Fragments from the Rim, by Simon Smith and Eric S. Trautmann, as part of Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game. He would later be mentioned in 1995's Heroes & Rogues, by Paul Sudlow and Rick Stuart; 1996's Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game, Second Edition, Revised and Expanded, by Bill Smith; and 1997's Pirates & Privateers, by Timothy S. O'Brien. All of the works in which Balfour has appeared were published by West End Games.