Mantis Syndicate The Mantis Syndicate , or Mantis Bounty Hunter Syndicate , was a corporation of bounty hunters and one of the houses belonging to the Bounty Hunters ' Guild . Officially specializing in hunting big groups of criminals such as swoop gangs or pirate organizations , the Mantis Syndicate gathered great numbers of hunters in battalions of military units to carry out assignments . Detractors considered the Mantis Syndicate to be a company of mercenaries . The Mantis Syndicate was active from at least 10 BBY . During the Galactic Civil War , the Mantis Syndicate was owned and managed by Lady Marina Mantis . By then , the Mantis Syndicate worked mostly as a private army for Imperial Governor High Lord Jaris Affric of the Sarin sector , although the Syndicate also reached the Revkinn and Socorro system s . By the end of the war , Affric had suffered a loss of income , and the Mantis Syndicate terminated its working relationship with him . Lady Mantis then made deals with other customers , including the New Republic and Provisional Governor Valis Lorn of Andasala . Organization . The Mantis Bounty Hunter Syndicate , commonly known as the Mantis Syndicate , was a private company working in the business of bounties legally issued by either corporate or government interests . The Mantis Syndicate was one of the ten principal houses forming the Bounty Hunters ' Guild . The owner and chief executive officer of the Syndicate was Lady Marina Mantis from at least 0 ABY to 11 ABY , and the Syndicate ' s offices were established on the planet Santarine . The Syndicate ' s logo was a white stylized " M " within a black circle . Professionals were able to join the Mantis Syndicate either by passing a selection process , or by being personally chosen and recruited by Lady Mantis . The Syndicate , like the other houses , offered training and support to its members . In exchange , every bounty hunter paid the Syndicate a fee , including 3 – 5 % of any collected bounty , depending on the value of the bounty and the seniority of the hunter , plus an annual fee of 150 credits . Hunters recruited by Lady Mantis were exempt from the annual fee . The Syndicate worked on general - purpose bounties , but its members specialized in high - risk missions and in paramilitary operations requiring literally a battalion of professionals to track down and capture collective prey such as a gang or a military unit . One of the main appeals of the Syndicate was the fact that it gathered specialized soldiers , all of them experienced as bounty hunters , in large numbers and in little time for a given assignment . Detractors believed that this feature blurred the difference between a bounty hunter syndicate and a mercenary company . Some members of the Mantis Syndicate operated solo , but as a norm they made four - to eight - person units . Those groups offered a teamwork synergy that the Syndicate found valuable . The Mantis Syndicate succeeded in seventeen out of every twenty assignments . History . The Mantis Syndicate was active circa 10 BBY . At that point , Mantis sent a prominent bounty hunter , Fenn Rizaar , to track down Kaine Paulsen , a pirate and member of the criminal organization Black Bha ' lir . During the chase , Rizaar accidentally shot an Imperial stormtrooper dead and , shortly afterward , was apprehended by his victim ' s platoon along with Paulsen . Paulsen and Rizaar escaped together and went to the Bha ' lir headquarters on Socorro . The Mantis Syndicate then refused to acknowledge Rizaar as one of its members and offered a bounty of 70 , 000 credits for his head . Some members of the Black Bha ' lir wanted to cash in Rizaar , but Paulsen convinced them not to . Rizaar believed he was indebted to the Bha ' lir and eventually became a Bha ' lir himself . He also swore revenge on the Mantis Syndicate . The Mantis Syndicate was still active and a member of the Bounty Hunters ' Guild as of 3 BBY . Soon after the Battle of Yavin , the Galactic Empire showed a sudden interest in criminal and fringe organizations , including bounty hunter houses . Scay Danson , a member of the Imperial Security Bureau , wrote a report on the possible threat posed by the Bounty Hunters ' Guild , including the Mantis Syndicate . At that point , the Trandoshan sociopath Cradossk , not affiliated with Mantis , was identified as the maximum authority of the Guild . Circa 1 ABY , the Black Bha ' lir had infiltrated one agent into the Mantis Syndicate . Thus , when Mantis decided to send a bounty hunter after Karl Mathieu Ancher , a smuggler and member of the Bha ' lir , the informant reported to The Tribunal , the leaders of the Bha ' lir . According to the tip , the hunter , known only as Kael , planned to approach Ancher during the funeral service of a notorious Corellian smuggler on Socorro . The Tribunal knew nothing about Kael save for the individual ' s name , and as such Kael could easily approach Ancher undetected as a part of the crowd that was expected to attend . Additionally , The Tribunal wanted to solve the situation without Ancher ' s knowledge , so it asked a small group to find and stop Kael . At approximately the same time , High Lord Jaris Affric , Imperial Governor of the Sarin sector and owner of several inherited , corporate , and criminal assets in that area , hired and kept on retainer most of the Syndicate . Although the Syndicate still tracked criminals wanted by either the Empire or private corporations , most of its business came from bounties posted by Affric either directly or indirectly through any company under his control . Affric used the Syndicate as his private army of special operatives . He sent its members to track criminal organizations , units of the Alliance to Restore the Republic active in his area , pirate groups , swoop gangs , outlaw mercenary units , and any other collective hampering Affric ' s activities . As Affric controlled most of the sector , there were many such groups in his sights . This situation centered the range of the Syndicate in the Sarin sector , allowing it to offer only a company of troops , similar to a special operations unit , for operations outside the sector . The group was successful in serving Affric and , within two years , had defeated four mercenary units , three swoop gangs , and one group of unauthorized slavers operating in the Suhuurmin system . While under Affric ' s control , the Syndicate was contacted by Imperial prefect Dengless Rinn of the planet Kallistas . Rinn wanted to hire a company of mercenaries , including specialists in demolitions , to stage a coup against his boss , Governor Linrec , in a scheme also involving weaponry and fission bomb s . Mantis arranged a meeting between Rinn and the Twi ' lek smuggler Tarquin Zian , who was able to provide him with the weapons . Rinn and Mantis then started a three - week negotiation to make a deal . Once they had reached an agreement , Mantis sent its troops to Kallistas while Rinn prepared a secret camp for them in a Kallistas desert . Rinn ' s revolution was botched , and the prefect became a fugitive of the Empire . Serving Affric , the Mantis Syndicate obtained wealth , power , and political influence within the Empire , to the point of not having to worry about the legality of its own activities . In addition , Affric did not care about the legality of the assignments he gave the organization . The Syndicate ' s prestige did not impress non - member bounty hunters , who considered the group to only be Affric ' s thugs - for - hire . Other bounty hunter guilds admitted that the Mantis Syndicate was specialized in " acquiring " big groups , but still considered the Syndicate to be more a mercenary unit than a bounty hunter syndicate . This was a widespread opinion even outside the Guild . Due to their closeness with Affric , the guild kept a close watch on the Mantis Syndicate . In the following years , Affric began to use the Mantis Syndicate in regular fights against troops of the Alliance , and also against the mercenary group Churhee ' s Riflemen in an attempt to capture Maydla Churhee , the wife of the organization ' s leader . Circa 4 ABY , Affric was short of money and got into debts with the Syndicate . When Lady Mantis noticed that Affric was unable pay her , she withdrew her men against his wishes . Lady Mantis managed the Syndicate as it continued to operate in Sarin , although its members were more prone to work for anyone paying her fees instead of working for Affric . She also reduced the fees to appeal to a wider range of potential clients . One of the new customers was Valis Lorn , a crime lord and the Provisional Governor of the planet Andasala . Lorn wanted to establish Andasala as a neutral ground welcoming both agents of the Empire and of its rival government , the New Republic , as long as they did not use Andasala to fight . Needing more strength than his usual minions , Lorn hired Mantis mercenaries as his own law enforcement corps . The Mantis Syndicate was not enough to cement Lorn ' s position , but the Governor had already planned several other measures that helped him reach that goal . During the following years , the New Republic took control of the Sarin sector and occasionally hired the Mantis Syndicate to track wanted Imperial agents . The New Republic was satisfied with the talent , professionalism , and political apathy of the Syndicate , although the government was still wary about the organization . In 11 ABY , Captain Zgorth ' sth of the New Republic ' s Department of Threat Assessment filed a detailed report on the Mantis Syndicate . Zgorth ' sth recommended high - ranking officers to keep contact with the Syndicate , because he felt the Syndicate was useful should the Republic need to obtain trained bounty hunters . He also believed that the Syndicate would observe the law if it was monitored . Notable members . The owner and manager of the Syndicate was the amoral Lady Marina Mantis , who offered the services of her troops to anyone paying . Individual bounty hunters in the Syndicate included Fenn Rizaar and Kael . During the height of the Galactic Civil War , however , the Syndicate employed no less than 985 professional hunters , 845 people as support personnel , and 220 administrative staff . Its assets were valued at fifty - four billion credits , including seven billion credits in cash . The Syndicate was bigger than many of its peer houses , such as the Ragnar Syndicate , but it also focused on bigger - scale activities . Behind the scenes . The Mantis Syndicate was first mentioned in the roleplaying guide " " ( 1993 ) , written for West End Games ' " " . Information on it was expanded in " " ( 1994 ) , another role - playing guide , which included a role - playing adventure , " Two for the Price of One " , in which the Mantis Syndicate played a part . The Mantis Syndicate was further explored in later roleplaying supplements . Only one source , " Galaxy Guide 10 , " uses the longer name " Mantis Bounty Hunter Syndicate , " with all the others systematically calling the organization the " Mantis Syndicate " even in formal situations . None of the sources specify whether either of the names is more formal than the other , so this article therefore makes use of the more widely used " Mantis Syndicate " name .