Bala-Tik

"Han Solo. You're a dead man.''" "''Bala-Tik... What's the problem?"

- Bala-Tik and Han Solo

Bala-Tik was a human male who worked as a negotiator for the Guavian Death Gang. He handled a deal with the famed smuggler Han Solo by paying for Solo to haul rathtars, a deal that Solo also made with Kanjiklub.

Associate of Solo
The human male Bala-Tik served the criminal Guavian Death Gang as a leader and frontman during the reign of the New Republic. During his time with the gang, he encountered the smuggler Han Solo and managed to shake several profitable leads out of him, although Solo let the Guavians down at least once. The smuggler eventually took out a loan of fifty thousand credits from the gang in order to hunt rathtars for King Prana; however, he failed to pay it back within a timely manner and the leaders of the gang soon became tired of his delays and excuses. Less than a year before the First Order's attack on the village of Tuanul in 34 ABY, Bala-Tik was on the planet Kaddak on the forty-fifth level of the city known as the Sliver with three Guavian security soldiers.

While in the Sliver, the Guavians were approached by four members of Kanjiklub, a criminal group with whom the gang were often in conflict. Kanjiklub's leader, Tasu Leech, had overheard the protocol droid C-3PO mention that Solo had borrowed money from the Guavian Death Gang, and revealed to Bala-Tik that the smuggler had also borrowed fifty thousand credits from Kanjiklub to hunt rathar. The two groups of criminals found common ground in their hatred of Solo and agreed to confront him together over his debts, with Leech and Bala-Tik shaking hands on the agreement.

Debt collector
"Tell that to Kanjiklub."

- Bala-Tik notes the arrival of Kanjiklub

In 34 ABY, Bala-Tik and a group of security soldiers caught up with Solo while he was hunting on the planet Nantoon and then followed him in a nonmilitary transport when he left the world in his Baleen-class heavy freighter Eravana. Solo, who was unaware of the criminals pursuing him, traveled to the Western Reaches in order to locate his old YT-1300 light freighter the Millennium Falcon. The Eravana stopped in the Jakku system, where a tracker onboard the Falcon had signalled from, and managed to pick up the freighter. Shortly after the Falcon was pulled onboard the Eravana, Bala-Tik and the Guavians revealed themselves by docking with Solo's freighter.

Bala-Tik and a five-man team of security soldiers disembarked their ship and began marching through the ship until they found Solo and his co-pilot Chewbacca in one of the Eravana's corridors. The frontman demanded Solo repay them their money, also revealing that he knew about the loan from Kanjklub. The smuggler claimed Kanjiklub were lying, to which Bala-Tik responded that Solo could tell that to the group himself. Five members of Kanjiklub then revealed themselves in the corridor behind Solo, led by Leech. The smuggler promised both groups that he would deliver what he owed them, but Bala-Tik and Leech were unimpressed due to his previous work for them.

Runaway rathtars
"Inform the First Order that Han Solo has the droid they want."

- Bala-Tik relays orders via comlink

Bala-Tik then noticed the BB-series astromech droid BB-8, who was hiding between Solo and Chewbacca. Remembering that the group known as the First Order was searching for a similar BB unit and two fugitives, Bala-Tik pointed out BB-8, causing Kanjiklub to start searching the ship for the fugitives. Before Bala-Tik could make a move for the droid, the three rathtars that Solo had caught on Nantoon were set free by Rey and Finn, the two fugitives that Bala-Tik had mentioned who had been on the Falcon when Solo found it. Hearing the rathtars roar, Bala-Tik ordered his men to kill Solo and Chewbacca and grab BB-8; however, one of the rathtars attacked his team from behind before they could open fire.

Bala-Tik and his men fled forward toward Solo and then down a corridor to their left while the rathtar grabbed several security soldiers. Kanjiklub were also attacked by a rathtar and forced to flee, allowing Solo and his companions to escape. The smuggler managed to reach the Falcon with Chewbacca, BB-8, Finn and Rey and then escape onboard it, killing one of the rathtars in the process. Bala-Tik witnessed the Falcon depart through one of the Eravana's hangar doors and then gave orders via comlink that his men contact the First Order and warn them that Solo had the droid.

Personality and traits
"Your game is old. There's no one left in the galaxy for you to swindle."

- Bala-Tik loses his patience with Solo

Bala-Tik was a human male with brown hair and light skin, and he spoke with a harsher form of the clipped accent commonly found in the galactic Core Worlds. He had a cybernetic left leg, which he concealed. Bala-Tik frequently used Solo and Chewbacca as sources of information, a relationship that he valued for the Death Gang despite growing increasingly impatient with the Corellian smuggler's schemes. He knew enough about Solo to bring several guards with him aboard the Eravana, believing Solo to be foolish enough to start a blaster fight near a ship's airlock.

Bala-Tik was a confident and experienced individual, not one to waste time on false pleasantries. When he met Solo on the Falcon, he was bursting with barely controlled anger and spoke in clipped tones.

Equipment
Like all Guavians, Bala-Tik carried the latest in black market weapons technology. That included a percussive cannon by Tostovin Munitions, which fired particularly explosive blaster bolts. He used this weapon against Solo and the rathtars on the Eravana.

Behind the scenes
Bala-Tik was portrayed by Scottish actor Brian Vernel in the 2015 film Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens. Bala-Tik was voiced by James Arnold Taylor in LEGO Star Wars: The Resistance Rises.

Appearances

 * Poe Dameron 9: The Gathering Storm, Part II
 * Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens
 * Han & Chewie Return!
 * Star Wars: The Force Awakens novelization
 * Star Wars: The Force Awakens: A Junior Novel
 * The Force Awakens: Rey's Story
 * The Force Awakens: Finn's Story
 * The Force Awakens Golden Book
 * The Force Awakens, Part II
 * The Force Awakens, Part III

Non-canon appearances

 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens