Hohass Ekwesh

"You knew he had a hard head."

- Ton Phanan to Wedge Antilles

Hohass Ekwesh, also known as Runt, was a male Thakwaash from the world of Thakwaa, serving the New Republic as a founding member of the starfighter/covert operations unit, Wraith Squadron and fighting in the campaign against Warlord Zsinj.

Biography
Because Hohass Ekwesh was considered small for his species, he was nicknamed "Runt". Despite this fact, he was still a physically imposing presence with almost three times the strength of a Human his size and a height still taller than most Humans. He was wingman to, and good friends with fellow pilot Kell Tainer.

He had multiple personalities, often referring to himself in the plural. He proved himself to be an excellent and controlled pilot after Kell Tainer's assistance. After the death of fellow pilot Jesmin Ackbar, Runt was trained to be the Wraiths' new communications specialist.

In 29 ABY, near the end of the Yuuzhan Vong War on the world of Chashima, Hohass stole a new bioweapon created by the Yuuzhan Vong in order to use it for the Galactic Alliance. Dying from the amphistaff venom in combat, he was killed by his friend, Voort "Piggy" saBinring, who had no choice and performed a mercy kill on him at point-blank beneath the jaw.

Personality and traits


Runt, like all Thakwaash, had many different minds. The two most important of these were his social mind, and his pilot mind. His social mind was the mind that he used to talk to people. It was polite and deferential. His pilot mind was an inarticulate mess, a hotshot pilot that constantly disobeyed orders. This was the reason behind him being assigned to the Wraith Squadron. While with the squadron, they, and in particular Tainer, helped him learn to switch more easily between his minds, and restrain the excesses of his pilot mind. Another mind that came to prominence was his student mind, "the one who remembers, and studies for tests", which recalled exactly how to fly down a narrow trench while avoiding turbolaser fire from an orbiting Star Destroyer.

While with Wraith Squadron, his prowess at seeing things from many points of view was put to good use. One exercise that he performed was to read and answer correspondence for Imperial pilots Wraith Squadron had captured. Another was to try to emulate the thinking of Warlord Zsinj; his Zsinj-mind was very erudite, but he was not fond of it, as it "[made] our ego puff up". He served as morale officer for Wraith Squadron.

Strength
Runt was physically the mightiest squad member, with the possible exception of Voort "Piggy" saBinring. His strength was first revealed when he lifted a turbolift door effortlessly, twice, with no help from hydraulics. The second time was when he was forced to attack an Imperial unarmed combat specialist who had just defeated Shalla Nelprin and was a moment from killing her. He picked up the warrior and smashed him into a wall hard enough to break his neck. He served as the physical trainer for Wraith Squadron.

Behind the scenes
The illustration of Ekwesh from The New Essential Guide to Characters was adopted as a humorous mascot by the concept artists of Revenge of the Sith, who referred to him as "Horse Pilot." He was often used as an inspiration during all-night design sessions. Alex Jaeger even designed a custom X-wing, basing its design on a horse trailer.

Author Aaron Allston used a fan drawing made by Amy Pronovost to help himself visualize Ekwesh.

By the release of X-wing: Mercy Kill, Allston had retroactively killed off Runt by revealing in the 29 ABY section that, dying by amphistaff venom, his friend, Piggy, performed a mercy kill on him by shooting him at point-blank range.

Appearances

 * X-wing: Wraith Squadron
 * X-wing: Iron Fist
 * X-wing: Solo Command
 * X-wing: Mercy Kill