Adventures of the Starkiller , Episode I : The Star Wars Adventures of the Starkiller as taken from the Journal of the Whills , Saga I : The Star Wars was the second draft of the script to the film that would become . It was begun in the summer of 1974 and finished early in 1975 . It was replaced in May 1975 by a new synopsis called " The Adventures of Luke Starkiller " ( episode one ) " The Star Wars . " This version of the script shows a much closer resemblance to the finished film than any of the earlier drafts . It is particularly interesting because of Ralph McQuarrie ' s conceptual drawings and paintings , which were commissioned to accompany the second draft . McQuarrie began work on conceptual art almost as soon as the script was completed , working through early March 1975 . As such , the second draft can be said to have first established the visual character of the " Star Wars " saga . Synopsis . Above the planet Utapau and its five moons , a rebel starfighter fled three pursuing Imperial Stardestroyers . One of the Imperial cruisers exploded , but the Rebel craft was damaged . Within the damaged Rebel ship were two droids , Threepio and Artwo . The smaller droid led his counterpart toward a corridor . A barrage from one of the Stardestroyers blew a hole in the ship , and Threepio was covered in debris . The Captain , Deak Starkiller , an Aquillian Ranger and a Jedi , arrived and checked on the hapless robots . He informed his officers to expect a boarding party , and that a Sith knight was with them . Deak sensed him in the Force . Deak ordered a group of R2 units into the ship ' s lifepods to seek help from his younger brother , Luke Starkiller . One of those sent was Artoo , who took Threepio along . Stormtroopers swarmed onto the Rebel ship , and started attacking the crew . After a firefight , Darth Vader , clad in an armored spacesuit , entered the vessel . He flung objects and fragments of the ship at Deak using the Force , battering the young Ranger . Finally , Vader drained Deak of his life force , and the Rebel passed into unconsciousness . Vader believed he had captured the Son of the Suns and had averted defeat for the Bogan . Meanwhile , on Utapau , Artoo and Threepio are captured by Jawas and imprisoned inside a sandcrawler . After a prison break , the droids escape , and get directions to the Lars homestead from a local . The same local , however , reports the droids to an Imperial spy , called a Gray Tusken . At the Lars moisture farm , the droids encountered Biggs Starkiller and his twin brother Windy . Also residing there were the Jedi Owen and his wife Beru Lars , the Starkiller brothers ' guardians . Leia Lars was the 16 - year old cousin of Luke , Biggs and Windy . When he was given the code word Angel Blue , Luke , who is practicing with his laser sword , stops his exercises and introduces himself to the droids as " The Skywalker , " his Jedi title , though he was still an apprentice . Artoo projected a hologram from Deak explaining that Luke must take the Kaiburr Crystal , which was under the care of Owen Lars , to Ogana Major , where the Empire was attacking the world . The Starkiller , father of all four Starkiller brothers , was defending Ogana , but they needed the Crystal to protect against the Bogan and its minions . Owen believed that Deak would have been taken to the Imperial capital of Alderaan . Though Luke ' s training was incomplete , and his heart was set on becoming an , he took up the mission . He visited his mother ' s grave site that evening , and explained to his younger brothers the history of the Jedi and the rise of the Empire . With the Kaiburr Crystal , Luke and the droids took a landspeeder to Mos Eisley . As they made their way there , Luke scoped out a pursuer , the Tusken , with his binoculars . In Mos Eisley , Luke made contact with Han Solo , a young space pirate . Solo came to his aid when a fight breaks out in the Mos Eisley Cantina , though Luke ' s laser sword was more effective than Solo ' s laser pistol . In exchange for a million credits on delivery , Solo would get Luke to Ogana Major . As it transpired , Solo was deeply in debt to Oxus , the captain of a TDF104 docked there . Faking a reactor malfunction , Solo hijacked Oxus ' s ship . Only three other crewmembers stayed with them : Montross Holdaack the science officer , a cyborg , and Chewbacca the Wookiee . The ship blasted off from Mos Eisley and headed into hyper - skip to Ogana Major . But their destination was no more : Ogana Major had been destroyed by the Empire . How , was yet a mystery . Luke directed Han to pilot the ship to Alderaan , in hopes of rescuing Deak . The ship docked on the floating city , and Luke and Han stole stormtrooper armor as a disguise . Chewbacca would be their " prisoner . " They found Deak , now dying from his torture , and carried him off , escaping both the garrison and strange Dai Noga creatures . As they blasted out of the Imperial capital , four TIE / LN starfighter s followed them . Luke used the Kaiburr Crystal to keep Deak alive . As they arrived at their destination , the moon Yavin 4 , site of the secret rebel base , they found that an immense space station had tracked and followed them . Ejecting from the pirate ship , the heroes landed on Yavin in lifepods . On Yavin is the Massassi outpost , where they were debriefed . General Dodana explained the dangers and weaknesses of the Death Star . Miraculously , The Starkiller , Luke ' s father , survived the destruction of Ogana Major . With the Crystal , the ancient Jedi is revived . He explained that Luke would complete his training with him . Luke joined the strike force assembled to attack the Death Star , but despite a payment of 8 million credits , Han declined to help . With Bail Antilles , Artoo and Threepio , and the Crystal , Luke flew his fighter toward the space station . Other Rebel pilots targeted the station ' s poles . Darth Vader , however , sensed the Crystal , and pursued Luke with his personal starfighter . He was about to destroy Luke and his crew , but unexpectedly , Han , Montross and Chewbacca attacked him , saving the young Jedi . Vader piloted his ship into the pirates ' craft , dying , but seriously damaging the larger vessel . Luke was able to maneuver the Rebel ship into position , and Antilles and Threepio fired the turrets into the exhaust port . The Death Star exploded as Luke ' s ship flew past a lifepod from the pirate ship ; Han and his crewmates had survived . The Empire had suffered a serious defeat . Development . The film script begins with a quote , much like the " A long time ago . . . " of the finished films : This script was the first to feature the Force as a supernatural power . Earlier versions depicted the Jedi merely as potent warriors . This was also the first script begun and oriented with the two droids . By beginning the script with the attack on the Rebel craft and with the evacuation of C - 3PO and R2 - D2 , Lucas returned to the opening he had envisioned in , though there they were aboard an Imperial ship threatened with destruction . This was a return to an idea from Akira Kurosawa ' s " " . However , unlike " The Hidden Fortress " and his earlier drafts , he now made Luke Starkiller the main hero , rather than the General or the Princess . This script introduced the Kiber Crystal , a , or item that everyone wants , providing essential motivation for movement and action , but that is not relevant to the film as a whole . The Kiber Crystal later appeared as the Kaiburr crystal in the Legends novel " Splinter of the Mind ' s Eye " , and still later as kyber crystal s the , " " , and other canon works . After completing the second draft , Lucas contemplated changing Luke into a girl , possibly because of the lack of any important female characters in " Adventures of the Starkiller " . This change was eventually not adopted in the intervening synopsis , and Leia was reintroduced as a major character in the .