Free Ryloth movement The Free Ryloth movement ( FRM ) , was a resistance movement led by Twi ' lek Cham Syndulla during the reign of the Galactic Empire . The Free Ryloth movement sought to rid their home planet of Ryloth from Imperial occupation , fighting back against the Empire to do so . Later , the Free Ryloth movement joined forces with the Spectres to remove a " Quasar Fire " - class cruiser carrier that was bombarding Ryloth . Eventually , the Free Ryloth movement attracted the attention of the Imperial strategist Grand Admiral Thrawn who studied Twi ' lek culture , art , and philosophy and devised tactics that led to the fall of Tann Province . Description . The Free Ryloth movement was a guerrilla force led by the former Twi ' lek Resistance leader Cham Syndulla . The organization consisted of hundreds of guerrilla fighters that Cham had personally recruited and trained . While most were Twi ' lek s , the Free Ryloth movement was also known to include non - Twi ' lek individuals . In addition , the Free Ryloth movement had many contacts and informants scattered throughout the Ryloth system , several hidden bases , and hoarded materiel . Due to the numerical and military superiority of the Galactic Empire ' s military garrison , the Free Ryloth movement carried out hit - and - run guerrilla attacks . In addition , Free Ryloth operatives also stole Imperial weapons shipments and freighters from places as far flung as the Yaga Minor shipyards . Some known military assets of the Free Ryloth movement included space mine s , Vulture droids , rocket launchers , and Blurrg steeds . History . Origins . The Free Ryloth movement was founded by the former Twi ' lek Resistance leader Cham Syndulla to oppose the Imperial occupation of his homeworld Ryloth . During the Clone Wars , the Galactic Republic had annexed Ryloth after liberating the planet from the Separatists . However , the Republic ' s successor state , the Galactic Empire , refused to leave Ryloth due to its valuable spice resources . Imperial forces occupied the planet and imposed a protectorate . While Ryloth was nominally independent and was still represented in the Imperial Senate by the collaborationist Senator Orn Free Taa , the Empire dominated the planet . In response , Cham formed the Free Ryloth movement to restore his planet ' s independence through armed resistance . Cham ' s gambit . About five years after the establishment of the Galactic Empire , the Free Ryloth movement had developed into a well - armed and motivated resistance army that was backed by a network of informants , hidden bases , and storehouses . The rebels launched several raids against Imperial forces which led to the deaths of dozens of Imperial military personnel on Ryloth and disrupted the planet ' s spice trade . Cham ' s movement was aided by Colonel Belkor Dray , an ambitious Imperial officer who supplied intelligence to Cham in order to discredit the ruling Moff Delian Mors . Cham ' s subordinates included Pok and Isval ; with the former stealing Imperial ships and equipment and the latter recruiting Twi ' lek escorts into the movement and assaulting Imperial personnel . After Pok was killed by the Emperor ' s enforcer Darth Vader while attempting to escape with a stolen shipment of weapons from the Yaga Minor shipyards , Cham decided to shift from " half - measures " towards taking stronger action against the Empire . Viewing the Free Ryloth rebels as a growing threat , the Emperor organized a visit to Ryloth . He would be accompanied by Vader , Senator Taa , and his staff . The delegation would travel on the Imperial Star Destroyer " Perilous " . As planned , a Free Ryloth operative among Senator ' s staff leaked information about the upcoming visit to Cham . The rebel leader saw it as a perfect opportunity not only to attack the Empire but also to decapitate its leadership ; thus leading to the Empire ' s fragmentation . Without disclosing the full details of the mission , Cham contacted Belkor and solicited his help for the mission . Both agreed to use the Free Ryloth attack as an opportunity to discredit Moff Delian . Putting their plans into action , the Free Ryloth movement planted space mines around Ryloth . As planned , the " Perilous " struck the mines and sustained damaged . From the safety of his hidden base , Cham then dispatched Vulture droids to attack the Star Destroyer . After battering the Star Destroyer , Belkor arranged for hundreds of Free Ryloth operatives including Isval to board the Star Destroyer disguised as maintenance crew . The Free Ryloth boarders inflicted heavy damage on the " Perilous " and killed numerous Imperial personnel . However , they were unable to prevent Darth Sidious and Darth Vader from escaping in a shuttle . The Free Ryloth operatives gave chase but were unable to stop the two Sith Lords from escaping into Ryloth ' s equatorial forest . Moff Delian dispatched Imperial forces to rescue the Sith Lords . While taking part in the rescue efforts , Colonel Belkor leaked information to Cham and arranged for Isval ' s party to bomb the Imperial Equatorial Communications Hub ; damaging its main satellite and imposing a communications blackout . In an effort to confuse the Imperials , Belkor also sowed disinformation claiming that Moff Delian was a traitor . Isval and Cham led teams of Free Ryloth fighters to pursue the two Sith Lords and their remaining Royal Guards while braving dangerous predators such as gutkurr s and lylek s . After the two Sith Lords slaughtered an entire hive of lyleks , the Free Ryloth forces tracked their quarry down to a remote village inhabited by former slaves . Meanwhile , Moff Delian discovered Belkor ' s treason and managed to win back control of the Imperial forces taking part in the rescue . In an attempt to hide his links to Cham , Belkor tried to order V - wing fighters to bomb both Cham ' s forces and the Twi ' lek village the Sith Lords were hiding in . However , Delian ordered the V - wings to shoot Belkor ' s ship out of the sky . Belkor ' s death deprived Cham of his spy in the Imperial government . Still , Cham and Isval decided to proceed with their assault on the village . However , Delian ' s forces arrived in time to rescue the Emperor and Vader , who proved more than a match for the Twi ' leks . The Free Ryloth forces suffered heavy casualties that day and Cham was forced to retreat . Under the Emperor ' s orders , Vader executed Isval , the Free Ryloth prisoners , and the entire Twi ' lek village to leave no survivors . Working with the rebellion . Three years before the Battle of Yavin , the Free Ryloth movement continued its insurgency against the Empire . In response , Imperial forces deployed a " Quasar Fire " - class cruiser - carrier to Ryloth . The carrier was used to house TIE bombers that ran bombing sorties against the Free Ryloth movement . This undermined the effectiveness and morale of Cham ' s rebel forces . Cham found unlikely help in the form of his daughter Hera Syndulla , who had joined the rebellion . Father and daughter had parted company after disagreeing about the Free Ryloth movement ' s place in the rebellion . While Cham was primarily concerned with Ryloth ' s freedom , Hera believed that their homeworld ' s freedom was linked to the growing galactic - wide rebellion against the Empire . Unable to resolve their differences , Hera had left Ryloth with her astromech droid Chopper and become the leader of the Spectres , who were a small cell allied with Phoenix Cell . Cham and his followers Gobi Glie and Numa met with Hera and her team aboard the VCX - 100 light freighter " Ghost " . While Cham wanted to destroy the Imperial cruiser - carrier in order to demonstrate the strength of the Free Ryloth movement , Hera convinced her father to help them steal it for the Phoenix rebels ; who needed a new carrier for the starfighter s . Cham reluctantly agreed to help and the two rebel teams managed to board the ship using a stolen TIE bomber . However , once they were aboard , Cham and his team stun ned Hera and her rebels . The Free Ryloth rebels then proceeded with their original mission to destroy the cruiser - carrier . However , Hera and her team managed to break free of their restraints . After Sabine Wren and Garazeb Orrelios captured and disarmed Gobi and Numa in the munitions rack , Hera managed to convince her father to put aside their differences and to work together . After father and daughter reconciled , the Free Ryloth rebels and Hera ' s crew joined forces to prevent the Imperials from recapturing the cruiser - carrier . During the fighting , the two rebel groups also managed to shoot down an " Arquitens " - class command cruiser . The sight of the burning light cruiser descending into Ryloth ' s atmosphere was witnessed by many Twi ' leks . This had the effect of emboldening the Free Ryloth movement and their supporters . The joint cooperation of the two rebel cells in stealing the cruiser - carrier led Cham to establish a relationship with Hera ' s rebel cell and the rebellion . As a result , the Free Ryloth movement found new allies in the form of the rebellion . Two years before the Battle of Yavin , a new Imperial commander Grand Admiral Thrawn was dispatched to Ryloth . The Chiss Imperial officer studied the Twi ' lek species ' art , culture , philosophy , and history and was able to devise successful tactics against the Free Ryloth rebels . Working with Captain Slavin , Thrawn expelled the Free Ryloth forces from Tann Province ; which was the ancestral home of the Syndulla clan . Cham was forced to flee his family home and left behind several priceless heirlooms including his wife ' s Kalikori . While Hera and the " Ghost " crew were conducting a supply run , they learned about the Imperial advances in Tann province . Cham along with Numa and Gobi joined forces with Hera ' s cell in a mission to recover the Kalikori from the Imperials . While Hera , Ezra Bridger , and Chopper traveled to the Syndulla house , Cham , Numa , Gobi , and the other Spectres attacked Imperial forces in the Tulara Ravine . Hera and Ezra were captured by Thrawn , who added the Kalikori to his art collection . Thrawn then transferred command to Captain Slavin , who contacted Cham and offered to free his daughter and Ezra if he would surrender himself to the Empire . In secret , Slavin planned to capture all of the rebels . However , Hera circumvented Slavin ' s plan by using Chopper to plant explosives in Syndulla house . The two rebel cells then took advantage of the chaos to escape in the " Ghost " . Thrawn was impressed by his opponents ' ingenuity and refused to shoot them down on the grounds that they had earned their victory . Victory . One year after the Battle of Endor , Imperial forces abandoned all of their bases on Ryloth in a wake of a string of defeats against the New Republic , the government established by the Rebel Alliance . Free Ryloth rebels saw the Imperial retreat as a vindication of Cham ' s long struggle against the Empire . The rebel fighter Yendor became Ryloth ' s Emissary to the New Republic . Ryloth subsequently became an independent world but maintained relations with the New Republic . Behind the scenes . The Free Ryloth movement first appeared as the main antagonists in Paul S . Kemp ' s 2015 novel " Lords of the Sith " , which focuses on the relationship between Darth Vader and his master Darth Sidious . The Free Ryloth rebels also appeared in Melissa Scott ' s 2015 short story " Mercy Mission " ; which was released as part of " The Rise of the Empire " omnibus . Cham and two fellow Free Ryloth operatives Gobi Glie and Numa later appeared in two " Star Wars Rebels " episodes " Homecoming " and " Hera ' s Heroes " , which were released in 2016 . The Free Ryloth rebels were briefly alluded to in Chuck Wendig ' s 2016 novel " " , the second book in .