Quest of the Hero of Tatooine

"You have done great things in the name of the light. I am honored to be in your presence. Take my Mark of the Hero and let it remind you of your cause. Do not forget why you fight. Good luck, young warrior."

- A hermit

Hero of Tatooine was the title given to a spacer who completed a series of five heroic acts on the planet of Tatooine, tasked to them by an unidentified Rodian hermit at his home in the bottom of a squill-infested cave on the planet.

A strange hermit


In 1.5 ABY, during the height of the Galactic Civil War, a lone spacer was exploring the Squill Cave on Tatooine. They ventured deep into the underground structure, only to find an old Rodian hermit at the bottom. The spacer greeted the old man and they began to chat, the spacer initially wondering what someone was doing living in the bottom of a cave filled with such ferocious creatures. The hermit explained that he had lived there so long, the squills no longer bothered him. The conversation quickly turned to the sad state the galaxy was in. The hermit bemoaned the fact that criminals and pirates traveled freely, that the Old Republic had been shattered, that the Jedi had been hunted to extinction, and that over all this, the shadow of the Galactic Empire loomed overhead.

The spacer agreed wholeheartedly with the hermit's assessment. The hermit was most pleased to hear this, and explained how the galaxy was in dire need of heroes, individuals who demonstrate their devout path through the light. The hermit called the spacer brash and young, but told them that perhaps one day they might become such a hero. The spacer made his intent clear, that they wanted to become such a hero. The hermit was pleased with such noble intentions, but declared them only just that, intentions. He told the spacer that if they truly wished to become a hero, it must be through actions. The spacer asked the hermit just how they might prove their worth as a hero. The hermit told them they must travel Tatooine, performing acts that demonstrate their heroism. He laid down the qualities a hero must have: intelligence, courage, honor, and altruism. The hermit told the spacer that if they were to perform acts which championed these characteristics, he would bestow upon them the Mark of the Hero.

The spacer questioned the hermit on what the Mark of the Hero was. The hermit explained that he wasn't always an old man living in a dirty cave in the deserts of Tatooine. He explained that in his youth, he had won many battles against the forces of darkness, and wore the Mark around his neck, as a reminder of his cause. He told the spacer that if they proved themselves a hero, if they proved themselves that they wished to carry on the hermit's history of heroic acts, then he would pass the Mark onto them. The spacer agreed to take up the hermit's life long crusade. The hermit required a simple test, however, before he would send the spacer onto his task. The hermit had lost a squill skull he had obtained, which he was using for some kind of research. He told the spacer that the squills within the cave had stolen it, and if the spacer returned it, he would set them upon the path proper to becoming the Hero of Tatooine. The spacer searched through very back of the cave, in the nest of a squill and found the skull. They returned it to the hermit. The hermit was very pleased, and declared the spacer worthy to undergo his challenge. He told them that they would have to obtain four different marks, each related to the qualities required in a hero: The Mark of Intellect, the Mark of Honor, the Mark of Courage, and the Mark of Altruism.

The Mark of Intellect
"Perhaps a bounty hunter needs assistance...or a puzzle needs to be solved somewhere in the galaxy."

- A hermit

The spacer first requested information on the Mark of Intellect task. The hermit informed the spacer that in order to obtain the Mark of Intellect, they must find one in need of their wisdom. He suggested a bounty hunter in need of assistance, or perhaps even a puzzle that needed to be solved. He told the spacer that he should travel the cities of Tatooine, for he would find what he was looking for within one of them.

The spacer did just that, and searched the many settlements of Tatooine, until he found a bounty hunter surrounded by five smugglers and their captain. The spacer greeted the bounty hunter and asked if they could be of assistance. The bounty hunter did indeed need help, and informed the spacer that she had been tracking her target for sometime, and knew he was among this band of smugglers, but didn't know which one. She explained that the one she was after had stolen some equipment, but that no one got a good look at him. She also stated that the crate he stole had a transponder attached to it. Unfortunately, she explained that shortly after arriving on Tatooine, the signal from the transponder went dead. She explained that after she landed, she had rounded up all the known smugglers within the city, and questioned them about the crate. None of them were forthcoming about it, however. She explained that the only one she didn't suspect was the smuggler captain, and she knew him and trusted him, but all the others were simply blaming each other. She asked the spacer to find out who the culprit was. After some thorough detective work, the spacer had determined who was lying. The spacer informed the bounty hunter, who immediately took the guilty party into custody. She thanked the spacer, and then left for the starport, her query in tow. The spacer later discovered the Mark of Intellect within his pack.

The Mark of Honor
"Somewhere on this desert planet, strife between ranchers and pirates rages on."

- A hermit

The spacer returned to the hermit's desert dwelling and asked him about the Mark of Honor. The hermit explained that out in the dune's, a band of pirates were make trouble for two simple ranchers. He told them to seek them out, and choose the correct path. The hermit provided the spacer with the coordinates of the pirate's base, and set them on their way.

The spacer arrived at the small desert bunker, and immediately set about infiltrating it, defeating any and all pirates who opposed his entrance. The spacer found their way to the bottom level of the bunker and discovered the pirate's leader. After a short battle, the pirate pleaded for his life, and the spacer relented, but demanded to know why he was terrorizing the ranchers. The pirate leader explained that the only reason he was attacking the rancher's is because they had managed to capture some of his crew. The leader asked the spacer to free his crew and provided the spacer with the coordinates to the rancher's house, which was outside of Mos Eisley.

The spacer made his way to the house, and entered. The spacer noted that the house was sensibly decorated and that they could smell baked goods. The spacer also heard faint murmuring in the distance. The spacer was greeted by a startled woman, who demanded to know why they were in her house and whether or not they were another thug. She threatened to lock the spacer up like the rest of them. The spacer was successful in convincing the woman that they were there to help her. She explained that her husband had gone to warn the authorities about both the pirates in his home and their presence nearby. The rancher's wife asked the spacer if they would look after the captive pirates while she went outside to calm down. The spacer agreed. They went downstairs to stand guard by the door, but suddenly heard a voice from the nearby intercom. The captive pirates tried to persuade the spacer to let them out, but the spacer refused to do so. The spacer then went back upstairs to inform the rancher's wife of the pirates intent to escape. The woman was relieved at the spacer's honorable actions, and at that moment, she heard her husband finally returning. He entered the house with two dark troopers who proceeded to arrest the pirates. The spacer was graciously thanked by the rancher's and they set off on their way. On their way back to the hermit, as before, another sculpture piece appeared in the spacer's pack, this time marked with "Mark of Honor". The spacer had completed their second test.

The Mark of Courage
"You will gain the Mark of Courage by defeating a ferocious beast bent on terrorizing the world."

- A hermit

The spacer returned yet again to the hermit's cave home and requested information on his next task: the Mark of Courage. The hermit explained that Tatooine was home to a ferocious beast, who was bent on terrorizing an already terrorized Tatooine. The hermit instructed the spacer to speak to the citizen's of Tatooine, for they would provide the information they needed.

The spacer decided to start in Mos Espa. As with the moisture farmer, they asked the local citizenry about the creature, and was eventually told that the creature must be a local, wild bladeback boar that had been terrorizing the town. The spacer began searching the outskirts of the city, and eventually found the boar's home. After a ferocious battle, the boar was slain. The spacer noticed that the an object on the boar's corpse was glittering, and after further inspection, discovered the third mark within its entrails: the Mark of Courage. The spacer stuffed it into their pack and made their way back to the Squill Cave.

The Mark of Altruism
"Somewhere, in the harsh desert heat, a farmer desperately cries out....in need of a hero."

- A hermit

The space returned to the hermit and asked about the Mark of Altruism. He instructed the spacer that in order to obtain the Mark of Altruism, they must selflessly help a soul in need. Rather cryptically, he added that somewhere out in the dry desert heat, a farmer desperately cries out in need of a hero.

The spacer started by asking around in the Tatooine settlement of Mos Taike. One of the people they talked to mentioned a moisture farmer had been in town recently, asking for help in rescuing his family from the Sennex, but that he had left recently. The spacer traveled out into the wastes and found the farmer southeast of Mos Taike. The farmer told the spacer this his wife and child were being held for ransom by the Sennex. The spacer tried to calm the farmer, but to no avail. The farmer pleaded with the spacer to help him by freeing his family, even noting that he knew where they were being held. The spacer agreed to help the poor man and the farmer transferred the coordinates to the spacer's datapad. The spacer quickly rushed off to the cave where the Sennex had set up. The spacer quickly fought his way through the pirate's nest, finally discovering where the farmer's family was being kept. However, they were trapped behind a large boulder, unable to get free. Searching nearby, the spacer found an old crate filled with explosives. The spacer used the explosives the destroy the boulder and free the wife and child. The spacer spoke to the mother, assuring her that they were here to rescue her. They convinced her and her child to follow them out, fending off the remaining Sennex along the way. When they finally reached the mouth of the cave, the woman thanked her rescuer, and set off with her child to find her husband. The spacer suddenly felt their pack become heavier, and looked inside to find a weird sculpture, which was marked with the words "Mark of Altruism". The spacer had passed the first test.

The Mark of the Hero


After having soundly completing all tasked laid before him, the spacer returned to the hermit's underground abode. The spacer informed the hermit that he had returned from his journeys and completed all the tasks he had set upon him. The hermit was at first skeptical, asking the spacer if he was truly the hero he had long sought. The spacer boastfully declared, that yes, he was the hero he sought. The hermit congratulated the spacer on all the good work he had accomplished. He rewarded the spacer, as promised, with the Mark of the Hero, instructing them to let it remind them of their cause, and all the good things they were fighting for. The hermit wished the young warrior luck. The spacer left the cave, confident that they had done something to make Tatooine a little bit safer for its inhabitants.

Behind the scenes
The Hero of Tatooine was a series of quests added to Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided in 2004. In its original incarnation, it required the help of the Ranger profession to scan the wilds for the various people and creatures needed to complete it. Its reward was a unique spherical sculpture and a ring with 50 uses that would return you to life if you had died. It could only be used once every twenty-three hours. In 2005, after the New Game Enhancements were brought into the game, the quest was broken until 2007 when it was reintroduced, although in a much more simple form. While the player is free to perform any of the four different Mark tasks in any order, this article puts them in a strict order for the sake of consistency.