Raymus Antilles/Legends

Raymus Antilles was a male Human and the captain of the corvette Sundered Heart at the time of the Clone Wars and the Galactic Civil War. He served the Royal Alderaan Civil Fleet under Senator Bail Prestor Organa. During the early stages of the Civil War, he served the Rebel Alliance in the fight against the Galactic Empire. He captained the Alderaan Diplomatic Cruiser Tantive IV before his death in 0 BBY at the hands of Darth Vader.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Raymus Antilles was a male Human from the peaceful planet of Alderaan, one of the Core Worlds of the Galactic Republic.The Essential Atlas He was a member of the prominent House of Antilles and the uncle of Corla Metonae. Although he belonged to the same family as Breha, Queen of Alderaan, he himself held no title. During his formative years, Antilles learned how to pilot under the guidance of his mentor, Captain Jeremoch Colton.
===Rise of the Empire===
At the time of the Clone Wars, Raymus Antilles had reached the rank of captain and was entrusted with piloting the Sundered Heart, the consular vessel for Senator Bail Prestor Organa.Star Wars Blueprints: Rebel Edition
During the war, Captain Antilles served as Organa's pilot on a mission to Metalorn, noting with concern the operation's lack of a Jedi escort. Visiting Confederate Foreman Wat Tambor, Senator Organa expressed false interest in joining the Separatist movement to cover an attempt to rescue Jedi Master Shaak Ti from Tambor's Unreal City prison. While Organa entered the prison and freed Master Ti, Antilles, feigning a weak stomach, returned to their corvette to prepare for departure. Antilles came to his allies' rescue by destroying the surrounding Confederate forces and bringing them aboard the ship, earning him recognition from Senator Organa.
Following the transmission of Order 66, Captain Antilles relayed the Senate Emergency Response announcement of a Jedi rebellion and the institution of martial law to Bail Organa. At Organa's direction, he recovered a homing beacon from Jedi Master Saesee Tiin's ship Sharp Spiral, encountering no opposition from clone troopers still confused by the ordeal. The beacon helped Bail Organa locate Jedi Masters Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi, who the Alderaanians transported back to Coruscant, and later ferried the weary Masters to the medical center of Polis Massa.
When Bail Organa returned to Alderaan aboard the Sundered Heart, it was in the company of the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO, as well as his newly-adopted child, Leia, with whom Antilles soon was acquainted.Star Wars Journal: Captive to Evil To preserve the secret of the girl's true parentage, Bail Organa gave possession of the droids to Antilles and Colton and ordered C-3PO's memory to be wiped, though R2-D2 managed to avoid this fate.
Together, Antilles and Colton shared captaincy of the Corellian corvette Tantive IV, the former being groomed to take over as sole captain while the latter made plans to retire to teach full-time at Aldera University.Star Wars: Empire at War: Prima Official Game Guide Also serving aboard the Tantive was Antilles' niece Corla Metonae, under whose supervision R2-D2 and C-3PO were lost in a jettisoned escape pod early in the reign of the Galactic Empire, though Antilles later recovered them.
===Galactic Civil War===
A sympathizer to and member of the Rebel Alliance, Raymus Antilles spent time at the Rebel base on Dantooine. There, he lost R2-D2 in a game of sabacc against the Lorrdian Pike Angeles, a technician who wanted to be deployed in the field. Angeles agreed to return the astromech in exchange for a field commission, and, with R2-D2 back in Antilles' custody, was free to begin a career stealing starships for the Alliance.Cracken's Rebel Operatives
Approximately one year before the Battle of Yavin, he gave his support to the Star Tours travel agency, which was being re–launched under new management. To assist in the preparations for the first flight from the brand new Spaceport THX1138, Captain Antilles assigned C-3PO and R2-D2 to temporarily work for the company. However, after the first flight was ambushed by Imperial forces conducting a raid on THX1138 in search of a Rebel agent delivered to the Alliance, he quietly had C-3PO and R2-D2 returned to him from Star Tours.
Captain Antilles participated in the Galactic Civil War by running Imperial blockades. For his work delivering aid and medical supplies, he was gifted ownership of the Sundered Heart, which he employed the use of during higher-risk operations, such as the campaign to recover T-65 X-wing starfighter prototypes from the nationalization of their manufacturer, the Incom Corporation.
Leading a force of Rebel corvettes to the planet Fresia, Antilles was surprised by the presence of the Imperial Star Destroyer Tyranny. Unable to penetrate this defense, Antilles identified the Tyranny usual post as the Imperial shipyards in orbit of the planet Kuat, and conceived of a plan to attack and draw the Star Destroyer there, clearing the path to Fresia. While the Tyranny initially refused be drawn away, the destruction of six of the shipyard's facilities and activation of Emergency Code Zero by its personnel lured the Destroyer to the diversion, where it sustained damage from the fleeing Rebel corvettes.
Antilles sent C-3PO and R2-D2 to Wayland to register his ships with the Imperial network, allowing them to bypass the sentry drones deployed by the Tyranny over Fresia and deliver Rebel pilots to the four X-wing prototypes waiting on the ground. While Antilles urged Rebel leader Mon Mothma to make a direct strike at the Empire in defense of Fresia, she instead tasked him with liberating Incom scientists sentenced to the Spice Mines of Kessel by the Empire for their involvement in the X-wings' theft. Antilles intercepted the prison convoy in an asteroid field over Kessel, where he deployed Y-wing starfighter squadrons to disable six Imperial shuttles and brought the imprisoned scientists aboard the Sundered Heart before escaping into hyperspace.
C-3PO and R2-D2 were once again utilized by Captain Antilles to interpret the Imperial network and steal technological data from the Empire, though they failed to uncover information on a rumored Imperial superweapon, leading Mon Mothma to contact her allies in the Imperial Senate, the Organas, as well as pirate associates of the Alliance. One such pirate, hoping to sell the location of Rebel bases, arranged a meeting with the Empire at Atzerri, and Antilles was dispatched by Mon Mothma to keep the base data out of Imperial hands. Narrowly beating the Empire to the system, Antilles' forces disabled the fleeing pirate's frigate, captured the pirate and data, and broke through the Imperial Interdictor fleet blocking their retreat. The captive pirate divulged the location of an Imperial research facility tied to the new superweapon, and Mon Mothma recruited the smuggler Han Solo to plant an EMP device on a container bound for the facility. Though Antilles mocked Solo for his tendency to draw Imperial attention, the mission was a success. Antilles followed the device to the facility over Corulag and detonated it, shutting down the facility's defenses and allowing a boarding party to launch a raid for information on the superweapon. As the Imperial ships recovered from the EMP's effects, Antilles' force bought time for the search group, who discovered the weapon's name, the Death Star. Following this discovery, Princess Leia Organa set out to investigate further. With the Princess at considerable risk, Mon Mothma reassigned Antilles to serve as her captain, bringing C-3PO and R2-D2 with him.
Three weeks before the Battle of Yavin, Antilles, as captain of Tantive IV, escorted Organa on a mission to the Imperial-subjugated planet Ralltiir, running military-grade medical supplies and spare parts to Rebel operatives under the pretext of providing humanitarian relief to the Ralltiiri High Council. Encountering the occupying Imperials, the Tantive IV was diverted and forced to land under escort. Antilles and Organa met with Lord Tion, commander of the occupation, who explained that the state of emergency and planetary blockade had been triggered by the discovery of Rebel sympathies among the High Council, now dissolved and its members executed.Empire 5 Though Organa protested the Imperials' actions, Antilles, eager to leave and fearing the discovery of the war materiel stowed within the Tantive cargo hold, attempted to pass her anger off as distress at the unstable situation. The confrontation was disrupted by an attack by Ralltiiri insurgents, in reality a diversion to allow Rebel agent Basso to make contact with Organa and reveal the impending activation of an Imperial surveillance system monitoring all conversation in the city. Antilles and Organa used this knowledge to goad Lord Tion into allowing the Tantive to raise ship unsearched, with their military supplies and the injured Basso onboard.
Seeking an alternate method of delivering the supplies to the Ralltiiri, Antilles, Organa, and the Tantive IV made for the smuggler haven spaceport Haleoda on the planet Kattada. While Organa made arrangements with Kattadan leader Mia Ikova, Antilles turned his cargo over to the locals and prepared to leave, encouraging the Princess to return to Alderaan, particularly following the arrival of Imperial forces on the world. Too late to run, Antilles prepared for battle and gave Organa a comlink with which to signal the attack. Attempting to resist Imperial arrest, Ikova was mortally wounded, prompting Organa to give Antilles the order to fire the Tantive guns, driving the enemy back to their ship. Antilles rescued Organa from Imperial Commander Karg, searing the Imperial officer with laserfire, and bringing her, the injured Ikova, and—despite his misgivings—Karg aboard his ship. To keep it from reaching fleet control, Antilles had his men fire upon the Imperial ship's communications array and landing gear. Though he wished to press the attack, Organa instead had the Tantive pull back out of harm's way. As Ikova and Karg succumbed to their wounds, Antilles and Organa sought the benefit of Rebel commando Basso's military expertise, through which the battle was won and the remaining Imperials captured. On their return to Alderaan, Organa had Antilles swear to keep the events on Kattada from her father, and placed Basso in his care.Empire 6
As requested by Bail Organa, Antilles accompanied the Princess aboard the Tantive as she set out to retrieve the Death Star plans from Rebel agents on the planet Toprawa in restricted space. Though he was opposed to the mission for the danger it posed, Antilles enlisted C-3PO and R2-D2 to feign a malfunction on board the Tantive, providing a cover for their presence in the restricted system. As the plans were transmitted to the Tantive, the ship was accosted by the Imperial Star Destroyer Devastator. Antilles stalled for time until the transmission was complete before ordering a jump to hyperspace, bound for Tatooine. As Tantive IV made its approach, he communicated with Blue Squadron's X-wing pilots as they scouted the system, failed to discover an Imperial fleet hidden in a nearby nebula, and cleared the ship to jump. Trapped by Imperial Interdictors, the Rebels were once again pursued by Devastator, attempting to flee before being caught in the Star Destroyer's tractor beam. In a delaying tactic, Antilles had his men prepare to repel the Imperial boarders. With the Empire closing in, he suggested that Organa destroy the plans, though she conceived of an alternate solution: by uploading the Death Star plans to R2-D2's memory banks and jettisoning the ship's empty escape pods, a pod carrying the droid—and the plans—could pass unheeded to the planet's surface. Though Antilles was incredulous of placing such hopes upon the maintenance droid, he was convinced of the gambit's necessity by Organa. As Imperial stormtroopers approached his position, he ordered his crew to fall back and launched the diversionary pods.
The Imperial 501st LegionStar Wars: Battlefront II captured the officer and brought him to their commander, Dark Lord of the SithStar Wars Episode IV: A New Hope novelization Darth Vader, for questioning. Unable to locate the plans in the ship's computer, Vader seized Antilles by the throat and held him aloft, demanding the location of the intercepted transmissions. Antilles feigned ignorance of the transmission to the consular ship, refusing to give up the princess or the plans. Angered, Vader strangled Antilles to death and threw his corpse against a bulkhead.
===Legacy===
Despite Antilles' efforts, Leia Organa was captured by the Empire and the Death Star plans' delivery to Tatooine was discovered. However, R2-D2 escaped Imperial custody and recruited allies on the planet, who rescued Organa and delivered the plans to the Rebel base on Yavin 4. There, the plans that Antilles had helped to recover were used to identify a weakness in the design, which the Rebels exploited to destroy the Death Star.
A simulation of Captain Antilles' combat experience was created and stored on a data nodule carried by R2-D2. During a Rebel mission to the planet Ladro, the nodule was affixed to C-3PO, allowing the droid to take charge against the attacking Jinwa Raiders, and causing him to believe that he was, himself, his old master.
==Personality and traits==
Fluent in the Mon Calamari language in addition to basic, Raymus Antilles was level-headed, schooled in diplomacy, and a capable pilot. He was a strong Rebel Alliance sympathizer and skilled at running Imperial blockades, but he lacked experience leading ground troops. Antilles demonstrated his loyalty to the Alliance by giving his life rather than giving up the Death Star plans, and showed concern for Princess Leia Organa, protesting her risk-taking and offering to take the fall for an uncovered Rebel operation. Due to his familiarity with the princess from her early childhood, Antilles was less reverent of her lofty position than most, and regarded her as a comrade with whom he could speak frankly.
When he served aboard the Sundered Heart, he wore the iconic gray uniform of an Alderaanian starship captain and carried a target blaster and comlink.
==Behind the scenes==
Raymus Antilles was played by Peter Geddis in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope,The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film and Rohan Nichol in Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. He was voiced by David Ackroyd in the Star Wars radio drama and by Stephen Stanton in Star Wars: Empire at War. Though he was both seen and mentioned as "Captain Antilles" in A New Hope, the name was not tied to the Rebel officer strangled by Darth Vader until the release of the radio drama.
Rohan Nichol suffered an accidental shaving incident leaving a noticeable nick on his chin that would not stop bleeding prior to filming for Revenge of the Sith. After apologizing to George Lucas for the blemish, the latter jokingly responded that the character "must have gotten it in the Clone Wars."
===Raymus vs. Colton===
In the novelization of Episode IV, C-3PO tells Luke that he and R2-D2 were previously owned by a "Captain Colton," rather than "Captain Antilles" as in the film. Addressing the contradiction, C-3PO: Tales of the Golden Droid gave the character the name Colton Antilles,C-3PO: Tales of the Golden Droid though previously The Essential Guide to Characters had established Captains Antilles and Colton as two distinct characters, and the book Star Wars Journal: Captive to Evil had given him the first name "Raymus". In 2005, Revenge of Sith portrayed Captains Antilles and Colton as separate, and Lucasfilm employee Leland Chee confirmed that the "Captain Antilles" seen in both films is a single individual named Raymus Antilles.
==Appearances==
===Non-canon appearances===
*
*LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
*LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
*LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
==Sources==
===Non-canon sources===
*LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars: Prima Official Game Guide
==Notes and references==
Category:Alliance Fleet captains
Category:House of Antilles
Category:Humans
Category:Individuals with he/him pronouns
Category:Males
Category:Pilots