Tantor Tantor was an Esoomian born on Esooma in 32 BBY . He worked as a pirate brawler and stopped several mutiny attempts that threatened his captain . After the captain and Tantor argued about a raise in Tantor ' s salary , the Esoomian attacked and jettisoned the captain into space . Tantor was shackled following the incident , for the crew ' s safety , but later freed himself and killed several of the pirates before escaping . Through the following years , Tantor became a professional enforcer , bounty hunter , bodyguard , thug , and killer - for - hire . Lacking the slyness needed for the most profitable jobs in his area , and knowing that he was not that smart , Tantor carefully chose less lucrative , easier tasks . During the first years of the New Republic , he operated in Mos Eisley , confronting Gamorreans and agents of the New Republic — which earned him a bounty on his head . His employer , the Enu crime lord Corf Sarb , had initially agreed to pay Tantor ' s medical bills , but he later changed his mind . Knowing this , Tantor then turned against Sarb . Biography . An Esoomian male born on the planet Esooma in 32 BBY , Tantor first left his homeworld to join the crew of a pirate starship . Tantor ' s tasks included intimidating victims of the ships they boarded . The Esoomian also subjugated the pirate crew during several attempted mutinies , to the benefit of the vessel ' s captain . After a long time without a pay rise , Tantor requested one of the captain . As Tantor and the captain had differing opinions on the pay adjustment , a discussion followed , which ended with an unsatisfied Tantor putting the captain in an escape pod and jettisoning the individual into space . The captain was succeeded by the ship ' s first officer , who mistrusted Tantor after this event . As such , the first officer decided to shackle the Esoomian for the crew ' s safety . Tantor freed himself at the following stopover , killed a number of pirates , and escaped the ship . Eventually obtaining an Imperial Peace - Keeping Certificate , Tantor became a legitimate bounty hunter , albeit an aimless one . Realizing that his mind was not as keen as some of his colleagues ' , Tantor mostly worked for other individuals while sometimes accepting illegal jobs in exchange for money or favors . He nonetheless avoided the higher bounties , as they meant a harder job , and the Esoomian contented himself with a modest success . Still , he was familiar with the reputation of Jabba the Hutt , a crime lord operating on Tatooine , and Tantor hoped to travel there and join Jabba ' s organization one day . However , by the time Tantor reached Tatooine , Jabba had already been killed , and Tantor no longer had the Peace Keeping Certificate identifying him as an authorized bounty hunter . He looked for alternative employers , including the Enu smuggler and crime lord Corf Sarb , for whom he began working . Sarb was known to hire the best available thugs and to have them affirm their loyalty to him by killing one of his enemies or committing a crime . While working for Sarb and for other crime bosses , Tantor earned himself a reputation in Mos Eisley as an " antennae - breaker . " At some point before 7 ABY , Sarf promised to pay for Tantor ' s medical expenses should Tantor fight against a clan of Gamorreans . However , once the skirmish was over , Sarf broke his oath . Tantor ' s partnership with Sarf soured , and the Esoomian demolished Sarf ' s headquarters while the Enu was inside . Tantor also fought and assaulted agents of the New Republic . Due to this , New Republic Intelligence offered a bounty of 30 , 000 for Tantor ' s head . Personality and traits . Tantor worked as a professional enforcer , bodyguard , and assassin - for - hire , sometimes collecting debts for anyone paying him . The Esoomian commonly resorted to physical violence in a straightforward style , effective in the back alleys he frequented . While he was not particularly intelligent , he had a certain guile and ambushed prey from dark alleys . A report on Tantor written by agents of New Republic Intelligence mentioned that Tantor was surprisingly loyal for a common thug . Nonetheless , Tantor disliked being betrayed by his boss , Corf Sarb , and turned against him . A huge , strong being , Tantor knew how to use his natural heftiness to his advantage , both in personal combat and as a tool of intimidation . He was very persuasive and had a penchant for gambling . He commonly carried a vibro - ax , and he could also use his naked , hooved fists to violently kill a person . Like many Esoomians , he had trouble speaking Galactic Basic Standard , but he understood it well enough to follow orders . Behind the scenes . Tantor first appeared in " Wanted by Cracken " ( 1993 ) , a sourcebook for the West End Games ' " " . He was identified as an " Esoomian , " a sentient species that had not appeared previously in " Star Wars " canon . The book included an image of Tantor , credited to " LFL " ( Lucasfilm Ltd . ) . That image was a cropped , re - inked conceptual design for the rancor , drawn by Joe Johnston , which had been drawn for the film but went unused . The same year , Fnnbu , another alien of similar appearance , was seen in " " . Although Fnnbu ' s appearance was based on the same concept art , he was identified as a member of the Zexx species . The text in " Wanted by Cracken " mentions repeatedly that Tantor had hooved hands , but the images of him show that he had three - fingered hands and no apparent hooves ; this inconsistency has not yet been explained . Tantor later appeared in a different roleplaying game supplement , " " ( 1994 ) . This book included new , original art on Tantor , drawn by Mike Vilardi .