Blitzer Harrsk Blitzer Harrsk was a Human male admiral of the Galactic Empire who was considered to be one of the Imperial Navy ' s most talented tacticians and commanders . During the Battle of Endor , Harrsk suffered a cranial injury that left him brain damaged , which resulted in him developing a split personality that alternated between Harrsk himself and his deceased second - in - command , Captain Bolla Thoath . When Captain Gilad Pellaeon gave the order to retreat following the death of Emperor Palpatine , Harrsk initially agreed , but later refused to follow an officer of such low rank and took his fleet into the Deep Core , where he established Zero Command , the first breakaway warlord kingdom of the Empire . Styling himself Lord High Admiral , Harrsk carved out a territory for himself in the Deep Core and Core Worlds . The warlord broke from many of his contemporaries in keeping watch on events outside his fiefdom , forging relations with Sate Pestage , Ysanne Isard , and many disaffected Imperials seeking new allegiance . Harrsk weathered the New Republic capture of the Core and Coruscant , and ignored the unification of factions under Grand Admiral Thrawn , but when a mysterious power broker on Byss sent entreaties to him , Harrsk joined forces alongside many other warlords and Imperial factions under this new banner — that of the resurrected Emperor Palpatine . Though the reunified Empire saw success with attacks on the New Republic during Operation Shadow Hand , Palpatine was ultimately killed and Byss was destroyed , and Harrsk retreated to his holdings which had been severely reduced during the campaign . From there he attempted to grab more power in the Atravis sector , which brought him into conflict with a fellow Deep Core warlord , Treuten Teradoc . Harrsk allied with Admiral Natasi Daala , whom he trusted to put an end to Teradoc . However , Daala turned on Harrsk and joined forces with Gilad Pellaeon , now Vice Admiral of Teradoc ' s forces , and the two brought Harrsk and Teradoc to the negotiation table . At Tsoss Beacon , Daala gathered Harrsk , Teradoc , and eleven more of the most powerful Deep Core warlords with the goal of uniting them . They were unable to come to any agreement , however , and so Daala arranged for the assembled warlords to be executed . Harrsk survived the original attempt due to his brain injury , but his fractured psyche drove him to commit suicide shortly after when he finally realized the extent of his madness . Biography . Imperial service . Blitzer Harrsk was a Human male who served in the Imperial Navy during the Galactic Civil War . Holding the rank of Admiral , Harrsk was considered to be one of the Navy ' s foremost military strategists , and he commanded Arrowhead Command from the " Imperial " - class Star Destroyer " Whirlwind " . Harrsk ' s sphere of responsibility was the Core Worlds portion of the Slice , dubbed the " Arrowhead . " In 4 ABY , Harrsk was contacted by his friend , Admiral Firmus Piett , commander of the " Executor " - class Star Dreadnought " Executor " . Piett convinced Harrsk to attach his command to Lord Darth Vader ' s Death Squadron to bolster Imperial forces set to ambush the Alliance to Restore the Republic fleet at Endor , where Emperor Palpatine had laid a trap for the Rebels . During the fighting , the battle turned in favor of the Alliance , with the death of Emperor Palpatine , and the destruction of both the " Executor " and the second Death Star . During the battle , the " Whirlwind " suffered damage , and a console exploded near Harrsk . The detonation sent durasteel debris spearing through Harrsk ' s left eye and into his brain ' s frontal lobe . The same explosion claimed the life of his second - in - command , Captain Bolla Thoath . Harrsk ' s resulting injury caused him to develop a divergent personality , in which he took on the persona of Captain Thoath . In his Harrsk persona , he forgot that Thoath was dead , and hallucinated the presence of his second - in - command . In either case , Harrsk was unaware that his psyche was fractured . When Captain Gilad Pellaeon of the Star Destroyer " Chimaera " called for a retreat from Endor and to fall back to the planet Annaj , Harrsk — in his Thoath persona — agreed with the order . During the retreat , the admiral was placed in a bacta tank to heal . The first warlord . The Harrsk that emerged from the bacta tank was a different man . Cruel and megalomaniacal , he was blind in his left eye and half of his face was a mass of scar tissue . Unwilling to take orders from a captain , he informed Pellaeon that command of Death Squadron should revert to the ranking admiral , Adye Prittick . However , Prittick was unable to work out a course of action , and his indecision sparked a dispute among the fleet ' s flag officers . Harrsk refused to co - operate with the other commanders and he departed from Annaj with the battlecruiser " Ilthmar ' s Fist " , two " Tector " - class Star Destroyers and three other Star Destroyers , declining to continue the retreat to Yag ' Dhul with the rump Imperial fleet . Instead , Harrsk took his ships directly into the restricted Deep Core at the center of the galaxy , and he claimed that he would remain there until a clear chain of command was established among the Imperial hierarchy . Within the Deep Core , he claimed the systems around Kalist as his own protectorate , which he titled Zero Command , and named himself Lord High Admiral . Though he did not officially break from the Imperial Ruling Council , and remained ostensibly loyal to the Empire , Harrsk had become the first independent warlord . He replaced his ruined eye with a droid photoreceptor . With the Imperial government on the galactic capital Coruscant occupied with problems on other fronts , Harrsk expanded his dominion further , moving into the Southern Core , and claiming Abregado - rae and several planets at the origin of the Rimma Trade Route . In the Outer Rim , the warlord expanded his personal empire by maintaining forces in the Atravis sector . Unlike many of the warlords who followed in his wake , Harrsk kept a watch on events beyond the Deep Core , recruiting disaffected Imperials to his side by using his reputation as a rallying point for those wishing to join the winning side . The crew of Grand Admiral Martio Batch ' s fleet , in particular , joined Harrsk ' s cause after assassinating the Grand Admiral . Harrsk also promised to protect the richer citizens of the Empire , a claim made particularly appealing by the recent loss of the planet Brentaal IV and its wealth to the Alliance ' s successor state , the New Republic , and one which undermined the rule of Sate Pestage , Palpatine ' s inheritor to the throne . At the same time , though , Harrsk kept diplomatic ties with other factions , including offering his services to Pestage . After recovering from his injuries at Endor , Harrsk mustered Imperial forces around him and used them to stage a campaign of harassment against the New Republic . Over the next two years , as the New Republic advanced into formerly Imperial territory and dealt with the warlords one by one , Harrsk lost his holdings in the Core Worlds . In 6 ABY he aided Ysanne Isard , the new steward of the Empire , but Isard soon lost Coruscant to the New Republic and was forced to flee to Thyferra , home of the Bacta Cartel , to start her own career as a warlord . With the Cartel ' s military forces falling to the New Republic ' s elite unit Rogue Squadron , Isard was forced to trade bacta with Harrsk in exchange for replacement matériel , a fact that Harrsk lorded over her . Imperial reunification . Harrsk ' s mental state began to affect his decision making . As Harrsk , he would attack his competitors on a whim , and be on the verge of defeat when the Captain Thoath persona asserted itself to save the Warlord ' s forces from disaster . In 9 ABY , Grand Admiral Thrawn reunited several warlords into a confederation to wage war against the New Republic . Harrsk and the Deep Core warlords , however , were not among them , and remained in their holdings . After Thrawn ' s death , Harrsk was one of the first to be approached by agents of a new rising power on Byss — though unknown to many , it was Emperor Palpatine , resurrected into a new clone body . Harrsk , bearing the title of Supreme Warlord , pledged himself to Palpatine , apparently not remembering that the Emperor had died years before at Endor , although the Thoath persona was aware of the fact . Unifying the factions of the Empire under his banner , Palpatine launched Operation Shadow Hand against the New Republic , and Harrsk and the rest joined in driving them out of the Core . Much of Harrsk ' s forces were destroyed in the fighting , and the Emperor ultimately died his final death on Onderon . His capital on Byss was destroyed , and the unified Empire collapsed though Carnor Jax quickly rose to power with the backing of his Imperial Interim Ruling Council . Many of the Empire ' s commanders , including Harrsk , refused to follow him . Harrsk returned to his power base in the Deep Core , and rebuilt whatever he could holding on to part of the Western Core as he regrouped and planned his next move . Rumors reached the New Republic that Harrsk was allying with rogue Imperial ships , and Rogue Squadron was sent into the Deep Core to investigate . In 12 ABY , Harrsk increased recruitment of soldiers in the Atravis sector and began moving his own troops there from the Deep Core , leading the New Republic to suspect he was preparing to take action . Several Imperial fortress world s in the region supported him , and when Leia Organa Solo discovered that former Emperor ' s Hand Roganda Ismaren was using the superweapon vessel " Eye of Palpatine " as a bargaining chip to gain power among the Imperial factions , she suspected that Harrsk might attempt to make a deal for it . The " Eye of Palpatine " , however , was soon destroyed , and the Ismarens fled to Harrsk ' s Atravis sector anyway . Harrsk also had problems on his home front . With the fall of Byss , the Deep Core warlords had lapsed into open warfare amongst each other , and Harrsk ' s recent attempts to increase his own power brought him into conflict with self - styled High Admiral Treuten Teradoc , a fellow warlord of the Deep Core . By this time , Harrsk had established his base on a rocky world orbiting closely around a red giant star . Using resources Harrsk had strong - armed from surrounding systems , orbital facilities around the planet constructed for him a fleet of twelve " Imperial " - class Star Destroyers , including his flagship " Shockwave " , which was larger than the others and equipped with more and better weaponry . Harrsk kept his system monitored with a large network of holocams and spy satellites , and a good portion of his budget went towards bribing those in the employ of the other warlords to serve as his spies . Daala . Later that year , Admiral Natasi Daala arrived at Harrsk ' s stronghold as part of her goodwill tour of the remaining fragments of the Empire . While her second in command Kratas was allowed aboard the " Shockwave " to inspect it , Harrsk had Daala brought to him in his base with a good deal of ceremony . Daala pleaded with Harrsk to agree to unification with the other warlords , so the combined Imperial fleets could turn their attention on the New Republic . Harrsk , however , had his own idea for unification ; Daala would become his second in command , and they would together eliminate the opposing warlords and unify their forces under Harrsk ' s banner . Before they could resolve their disagreement , a fleet of seventy - three " Victory " - class Star Destroyers under Teradoc ' s Crimson Command arrived in - system . Harrsk mobilized his own Star Destroyers , destroying several of the attacking ships , and Kratas took command of the " Shockwave " . Teradoc ' s forces concentrated their fire on the flagship , and though it was able to withstand the onslaught for a time , the shields eventually gave way and the " Shockwave " was destroyed . With their mission accomplished , Teradoc ' s forces headed back to his base , leaving three of Harrsk ' s Star Destroyers severely damaged in addition to the destruction of the " Shockwave " . Harrsk wanted to take immediate revenge on Teradoc , with Daala ' s assistance . Daala , angry at the loss of Kratas , refused to comply , but Harrsk ordered his stormtroopers to take her at gunpoint to his Star Destroyer and force her to lead the fleet against Teradoc . Under duress , she complied , taking command of the " Firestorm " as Harrsk took his own place on the " Whirlwind " . Wanting the element of surprise , Harrsk refused Daala time to plan , and the eight remaining vessels in his fleet hyperjumped to Teradoc ' s fortress world , a gas giant surrounded by an icy planetary ring . As Harrsk , Daala , and the fleet moved into the rings , bombs laid by Teradoc detonated inside the larger pieces ; the fragments slammed into Harrsk ' s fleet , and two Star Destroyers were eliminated with one more left crippled . Harrsk was angry with Daala for losing three ships , but by this point the fleet had reached Teradoc ' s fortress , built into one of the larger asteroids of the ring system , and " Victories " poured forth to engage them . Harrsk and two other Star Destroyers opened fire on them , but Daala countermanded him , giving orders to disengage . Taking personal command of her vessel ' s firing systems , she fired all the ship ' s power through its ion cannon , into Harrsk ' s " Whirlwind " . Harrsk ' s ship was dead in space , but Daala expanded the shields on the " Firestorm " to encompass him . Two of the remaining Star Destroyers , loyal to Harrsk , began firing on Daala . Ignoring them , Daala opened a communications channel to Harrsk and Teradoc ' s forces ; in her address , she condemned the attacks both had inflicted on the other , explaining that she had attacked Harrsk to prevent him from continuing the conflict , and entreated both forces to unite against the common enemy of the New Republic . Harrsk was able to reactivate his own comm system and sent out his own message , accusing Daala of treason and ordering the crew of the " Firestorm " to arrest and execute her . Holding the " Firestorm " bridge crew at bay with a blaster , Daala activated the ship ' s self - destruct , stating that it would kill her and Harrsk within fifteen minutes unless Harrsk gave a ceasefire order . Gilad Pellaeon , now a Vice Admiral and commander of Teradoc ' s forces , ordered his own side to stand down almost immediately . Harrsk , on the other hand , waited until less than minute remained before giving out the order , at which point Daala canceled the self - destruct and left the system with Pellaeon to confer . Death and legacy . Daala called for a conference between Harrsk , Teradoc , and eleven more of the most powerful warlords of the Deep Core at Tsoss Beacon , a small station deep in the center of the galaxy . Harrsk and the warlords were ordered to keep their fleets outside the system , with only the individual warlords approaching the stations ; after two days of disagreement , they finally all assented . The thirteen warlords assembled in a conference room on Tsoss Beacon with Daala and Pellaeon , where Daala called upon them all to unite in the name of the Empire . Teradoc and Harrsk mocked the proceedings , and when Superior General Sander Delvardus attempted to leave , Daala sealed the room with a cyberlock that would not open for three hours . Daala ordered them to choose a leader in that time . For hours the warlords argued with each other . Eventually , Harrsk leaped on Teradoc and attempted to choke him to death , only stopping when Pellaeon pulled him off and flung him to the table . Having had enough , Daala condemned the warlords , she and Pellaeon put on breath masks , and Daala flooded the room with nerve gas . Harrsk and three others attempted to rush the door to break free , but it was too late . While the other warlords succumbed to the gas , Harrsk did not . The poison gas targeted vital centers of the brain , and the corresponding centers in Harrsk ' s brain had been destroyed at Endor . Daala and Pellaeon left the room , believing the warlords to be dead , allowing Harrsk to escape the room after them . Returning to his TIE shuttle , Harrsk was intent on revenging himself on Daala . As far as she was concerned , Harrsk was dead so she would not see his vengeance coming . Aboard the TIE shuttle , he hallucinated that Thoath was aboard , and relayed the story of his escape to him . The Thoath persona , inspired by Daala ' s action and the example of Grand Admiral Batch ' s crew , decided that Harrsk had to be eliminated once and for all . He sent the TIE shuttle into an uncontrolled spin ; the Harrsk persona reasserted itself , and struggled for control of the ship . Eventually , Harrsk ' s ruined brain finally remembered that Thoath was dead , and came to the realization that he had been Thoath all along . With the truth apparent to him , Harrsk allowed the craft to impact an asteroid , killing himself . Personality and traits . Blitzer Harrsk had black hair , and stood less than 1 . 73 meters tall . During the Battle of Endor , Harrsk ' s face sustained great injury , with the left half burned down to pink scar tissue and his left eye blinded . While medical technology made healing his wounds possible , Harrsk had chosen instead to leave his scars as they were , both as a badge of honor and tool of intimidation . He also had his eye replaced with a droid photoreceptor . The undamaged half of his face , however , Harrsk kept trim and neat . Prior to his injury , Harrsk was considered to be one of the Imperial Navy ' s foremost tacticians . However , damage to Harrsk ' s frontal lobe at Endor left him with a fractured psyche , which manifested itself as a split personality . Harrsk took on two personas ; one was Harrsk himself , although a cruel and maniacal version of his former self . The other was Captain Bella Thoath , Harrsk ' s former second - in - command who had died at Endor . The Thoath personality was more practical and rational , and balanced out Harrsk ' s violent tendencies . Harrsk was unaware of the split , and hallucinated Thoath ' s presence to validate his outlook . Harrsk was one for elaborate formal rituals and grandiose displays of power , which Natasi Daala saw as a sign of misplaced self - importance . He considered himself the most powerful warlord and the one worthy successor to the Imperial throne , with all the others as pretenders . Despite being tired of civil war with his fellow warlords , Harrsk felt that diplomacy was not a proper method to use , and was too reminiscent of the ways of the Galactic Republic , which he considered weak . Instead , he intended to kill those he saw as traitors , expecting their soldiers to rally to his side in response . He did not take well to those who questioned his orders or methods . When attacked , Harrsk was quick to vengeance . He sometimes forwent strategizing in favor of speed , relying on the surprise and ferocity of his attack to defeat his opponents . However , Harrsk would not take the lead in his attacks , preferring to remain in a ship at the rear and side of the formation to avoid drawing fire . Many of Harrsk ' s men disliked service to him , preferring the unity he would not seek over continued civil war . Gilad Pellaeon considered Harrsk a war criminal . Behind the scenes . While making his first appearance in " Darksaber " by Kevin J . Anderson , Harrsk first received a brief mention in the novel immediately before it , " Children of the Jedi " . While it is implied in the latter novel that he is preparing to take major action against the New Republic , with an ambiguous ending of Roganda and Irek Ismaren joining him , this plot was never explored again in " Darksaber " . In fact , the second novel places him firmly in the Deep Core , as opposed to his plot in " Children " , which takes place in the Outer Rim . While this was not an explicit contradiction , " The Essential Atlas " confirmed that he held territory in both locations . Harrsk was finally given his first name in the 2008 compendium " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " . In 2013 , the second instalment of " " written by Abel G . Peña and Daniel Wallace , established that Harrsk suffered from a split personality after the Battle of Endor . Different versions of Harrsk ' s title as warlord exist . While Harrsk is titled " Supreme Warlord " in " Darksaber " , " Children of the Jedi " gives his self - styled title as " Lord High Admiral " , and the " Atlas " uses only the latter title . Additionally , he is also called a Grand Admiral in " Children of the Jedi " . Minor contradictions exist in Harrsk ' s rank as of Endor as well ; while " The Essential Chronology " , its followup , and the " Atlas " all state he was Admiral — thus outranking Captain Pellaeon , an important part of his backstory — " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " says he was only a captain at the time .