Raygar

Doctor Raygar was an Argazdan archaeologist. After participating in the successful retrieval of Sith artifacts in the Wolhanian expedition to Yavin 4 prior to the rise of the Galactic Empire, Raygar became obsessed with finding more such arcana and gradually lost any legitimate backing from public institutions. Eventually he gained the support of Emperor Palpatine, who was secretly a Sith Lord and had taken possession of some of the Wolhanian expedition's finds when he was Supreme Chancellor of the Republic.
Shortly after the Battle of Yavin, Raygar took control of a Lorrdian archaeological dig which had uncovered the ancient Slave Pits of Lorrd, as ancient Lorrdian legend told of a powerful Argazdan superweapon hidden in the Slave Pits. Despite being unable to determine the true nature of the weapon, the discovery that it would require a human sacrifice to activate it, and learning that it was provided by an alien who was portrayed as a demonic figure in Argazdan fiction, Raygar charged ahead with his plan to uncover the weapon. When Raygar killed his Imperial contact, a monster emerged from the pit. Unable to control it, Raygar was forced to use a thermal detonator to obliterate his discovery, and he fell out of favor with Palpatine.
In 3 ABY, Raygar gained Palpatine's approval to travel on an Imperial-class Star Destroyer commanded by Admiral Kazz to the Endor system. There, Raygar hoped to obtain the fabled Sunstar, a powerful gem. Taking his Imperial Reconnaissance droids to the Forest Moon of Endor, he was able to find and attack Bright Tree Village. While doing so, he was attacked by the Ewok shaman Logray, who used the Sunstar to destroy Raygar's droids. The doctor retaliated by swiftly stealing the Sunstar, before returning to Kazz's Star Destroyer.
Back in his lab, Raygar began studying the Sunstar and came to the realization that by harnessing its power, he could remove Palpatine and install himself as the Galactic Emperor. He began creating a powerful cannon with the Sunstar's powers, speculating that it would be the most devastating weapon the universe had ever seen. He planned to test his weapon on the captive Ewoks Latara and Teebo but was thwarted by their friend, Wicket Warrick. Inadvertently, he fired upon the Emperor's personal shuttle instead, but the hit was only glancing. Palpatine survived, and Kazz subsequently arrested Raygar, charged with high treason. The Emperor then oversaw the doctor's punishment personally.
==Biography==
===Wolhanian===
Dr. Raygar was an Argazdan archaeologist who participated in the Wolhanian expedition to Yavin 4, which saw the retrieval of several ancient Sith artifacts, which were later placed in Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's custody.Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: The Visual Dictionary
Afterward, Raygar gradually lost any backing he might have had from reputable universities or museums, as he became obsessed with finding ancient artifacts. In time, Palpatine made himself Emperor of a new Galactic Empire, which Raygar came to serve.
===The Slave Pits of Lorrd===
Around the time of the Battle of Yavin, the Slave Pits of Lorrd had been discovered, and an excavation had been initiated. Although the Lorrdian scientists had begun the dig, control of the project was later transferred to Dr. Raygar, who sought an ancient and deadly Argazdan weapon that legend told was hidden deep within the Slave Pits. It was his hope that success in finding the weapon would allow him to curry favor with Palpatine once more. For his assignment, he worked with Imperial Agent Diamond, who had infiltrated the local Sisterhood of the Glorious Radiance as "Sister Sigil." During his time on Lorrd, the doctor sported the robes of the ancient Argazdan slave lords who had oppressed the Lorrdians thousands of years ago during the Kanz Disorders. As the Argazdans were ashamed of their past, and the Lorrdians were incensed at Raygar's choice of attire, he drew fire from all quarters.
The doctor made significant process with the dig, entering the central pit and nearing his goal of retrieving the weapon. In his studies, he was not able to determine exactly what the weapon was, but he learned of its origins instead—an extragalactic alien who had aided the Argazdans following the liberation of Lorrd by the Republic. The alien had been portrayed in popular works such as the tragedy Torphceris as a "demonic" figure.
Due to his choice of attire, Raygar was spat on by crowds has he made his way through Qatamer's Performance Square. Moving through the square, Raygar entered a secluded docking bay and made holographic contact with Agent Diamond. He reported his progress to the agent, and she responded with the news that she had been able to collect vital evidence concerning Rebel activity in the area. Later, Raygar rendezvoused with Diamond in the Slave Pit itself, but they were soon chanced upon by Tash and Zak Arranda, two Force-sensitive Alderaanian children who were wanted by Lord Darth Vader. Raygar had his battle droids secure the two intruders, and Tash inquired as to what the ancient Argazdan weapon was. Raygar proceeded to air his theories, as well as his most recent discovery—the requirement of a Human sacrifice in order to gain access to the weapon.
Diamond dismissed Raygar's suggestion derisively, but the doctor retorted, since killing the Arrandas would both provide the sacrifice, and eliminate them as a threat. Diamond agreed, since Vader would likely take the children dead regardless. Suddenly, Raygar opted to stab Diamond in the back instead. The pit began shaking immediately, and a gargantuan monster emerged from the center of the pit. Raygar immediately hurled a thermal detonator at the creature, and fled towards his ship. Although he was able to escape Lorrd, his and Diamond's mission was a complete failure, leaving the doctor out of favor with the Emperor.
===Hunt for the Sunstar===
Doctor Raygar sought to obtain the legendary Sunstar, a powerful gem that he believed was on the Forest Moon of Endor. He requested permission from Emperor Palpatine to launch an expedition to retrieve the Sunstar, and his request was subsequently granted. Admiral Kazz ferried Raygar to the Endor system in 3 ABY in his Imperial-class Star Destroyer. Kazz was highly dubious of the mission's value and had little but scorn for Raygar. The doctor was not deterred, however, and assured the admiral that the Sunstar was quite real and very powerful.
Setting out with PD-28 and a detachment of large droids in his ship, Raygar landed on the moon and laid a trap with which he hoped to catch a wandering Ewok. He then intended to interrogate the Ewok and determine the location of Bright Tree Village, where the Sunstar was kept. His trap instead caught a perkle, but the creature's constant braying attracted the attention of the Ewoks Wicket W. Warrick, Princess Kneesaa a Jari Kintaka, Teebo, and Latara. In attempting to free the beast, Latara was sucked into the trap, prompting Teebo to use his Ewok magic to free her. In doing so, the Ewoks attracted the attention of one of Raygar's droids, who quickly seized Teebo. At that moment, Raygar himself arrived, riding a floating weapons platform.
===Attack===
Wasting no time, the doctor attacked the princess with an incapacitating energy ray. Warrick reacted by attempting to attack the droids with a stick, but Raygar quickly shot the makeshift weapon out of the young Ewok's grasp. Moving in closer, he demanded that Warrick reveal to him Bright Tree's location, while threatening to destroy Kintaka and Teebo. Relenting, Warrick gave him directions, but the doctor did not take any chances and ordered that the four Ewoks be incarcerated in his ship. Making sure that his prisoners were secure and ordering that they were not to be fed, Raygar had two of his droids accompany him as he moved against Bright Tree Village.
Attacking the village, Raygar severely damaged some of Bright Tree's structures. A retaliation was launched by Chief Chirpa, but Raygar was able to ward them off with his repeated fire. Catapults were used in further attempts to down Raygar's platform, to no avail. The doctor, however, was soon met with more formidable resistance—shaman Logray, wielding the Sunstar. The shaman quickly dispatched Raygar's droids, forcing the doctor to reevaluate his position. He fired at Logray, destroying the walkway the shaman was standing on. As a result, the Sunstar fell to another walkway below, from which Raygar retrieved the gem. His mission seemingly complete, he raced back to his ship.
===Vaulting ambition===
Returning to the Star Destroyer, Raygar was welcomed by Kazz. The doctor refused to show the admiral the Sunstar, insisting that he would only present it before Palpatine. Taking the gem back to his lab, he began studying it and came to the realization that its powers were unlimited. He surmised that he would not need to present it to Palpatine, and instead could use the Sunstar to claim the title of Galactic Emperor for himself. As he ranted and raved, Latara and Teebo, disguised as droids, entered his lab. Seeing through the ruse quickly, he used the Sunstar to incapacitate the duo, before accelerating his bid for galactic domination.
With the Sunstar, Raygar began fashioning and forging a cannon that he believed would be the most powerful weapon in the universe. He then intended to test it on his two new captives, before using it on the Emperor himself. Placing Teebo and Latara in an escape pod, he launched them out into space. Before he could fire his new weapon, Warrick and Kintaka entered his lab. As he fired on them, his droid PD-28, who had informally defected to aid the Ewoks, tried to attack the doctor. Raygar, unfazed, shot PD-28, but then had to contend with Warrick. The young Ewok warrior flew at Raygar's face, and the doctor could do little more than scream in terror. As he grappled with the Ewok, he accidentally activated his new weapon.
Inadvertently, the weapon's blast missed Latara and Teebo's pod, and instead hit the Emperor's personal shuttle, which was approaching the Star Destroyer at the time, since Palpatine hoped to inspect the Sunstar. The shot only clipped Palpatine's craft, however, effectively thwarting Raygar's hope of a successful coup. Realizing that his plans had failed, he began viciously squeezing Warrick. Kintaka, hoping to save her Ewok ally, blasted Raygar with the Sunstar, freeing Warrick from the doctor's grasp in the process. As his enemies moved to escape his lab, Raygar repeatedly shot at them with his blaster, but missed. In turn, Warrick rounded on the doctor with the Sunstar, disarming and incapacitating him. When Raygar came to, he chased after them once more, only to be met by a squad of stormtroopers sent to arrest him.
Brought before Kazz, Raygar was subsequently charged with high treason against the Galactic Empire. At first, the doctor protested, but eventually resigned himself to his fate. Asking what Kazz was going to do to him, Raygar soon learned that his punishment would be carried out by Palpatine himself. Howling in protest once more, Raygar was taken to Palpatine's shuttle and was subsequently dealt with by the Emperor.
==Personality and traits==
Doctor Raygar was an ambitious man, prone to speculating far beyond reason. He initially sought to curry favor with the Emperor by discovering weapons that Palpatine could use against his enemies, but he had lost all backing from any reputable sources following his expedition to Yavin 4. He was looked upon with disdain by people such as Admiral Kazz, and was described as a man of evil by the Ewoks. While studying the Sunstar, his aspirations grew significantly greater, as he believed he would be able to assassinate Emperor Palpatine. When faced with the prospect of arrest, he displayed, in quick succession, indignation, resignation, and fear, as he begged for Kazz's mercy.
He took particular delight in the thought of obtaining the Sunstar and did not even balk at the prospect of harming woklings to achieve his goal. Although skilled in creating weaponry in a short space of time, he was a poor shot, and his deficiency in that area eventually cost him his position in the Empire. Raygar also had no qualms about executing Human children and did not hesitate to kill his collaborator, Agent Diamond, on Lorrd. He had yellow eyes and green skin.
==Equipment==
Raygar wore full-body, gray-and-black armor that included red trim, red shoulder pads, and a helmet. He also utilized a blaster.
==Behind the scenes==
Raygar's first appearance was in the Ewoks episode "Battle for the Sunstar," which first aired on December 6, 1986. In the magazine article "A Star Wars CELibration," published in Star Wars Insider twenty-seventh issue in 1995, the character's name is given as "Raegar." Leland Chee later confirmed that the correct spelling is "Raygar."* Both spellings were used in 2008's The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia.
==Appearances==
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==Sources==
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*The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
==Notes and references==
Category:Argazdans
Category:Galactic Empire science and engineering personnel
Category:Males