Varko Grey

Varko Grey was a human male ace pilot who led the Galactic Empire's Titan Squadron as Titan Leader with the military rank of captain. Grey initially fought to maintain order against corruption and injustice as a ParSec police officer on Parkella, although he eventually became an Imperial TIE pilot. As a pilot of the Empire, Grey believed that it was the only hope for a chaotic galaxy.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Varko Grey was a ParSec police officer on Parkella during the Imperial Era, seeking to maintain order against perceived corruption and injustices. After some time, Grey believed that the only hope for a chaotic galaxy was to become a TIE fighter pilot of the Galactic Empire. Eventually, Grey married his husband, Emory, who was relieved that Grey beat the odds to survive after every battle. After some time serving, Grey achieved the military rank of captain and was assigned as Titan Leader of Titan Squadron.
===Strike on Var-Shaa===
====Leading an attack run====
Following the Battle of Endor during the Galactic Civil War between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance, Grey and Titan Squadron were stationed aboard the ISD Overseer when it responded to a strike on the Var-Shaa dockyard by the New Republic, the successor government of the Rebel Alliance.Star Wars Battlefront II During the attack, Grey, piloting a TIE/IN interceptor, led several Imperial squadrons against the New Republic Defense Fleet capital ships, specifically a New Republic MC75 Star Cruiser. Grey and his forces destroyed a pair of BTL-A4 Y-wing assault starfighter/bombers that had just destroyed an Imperial Raider-class corvette, and continued his attack run on the New Republic forces.
Captain Terisa Kerrill, however, soon ordered him to call off the attack and withdraw back to the Overseer as the dockyard above Var-Shaa was lost. Grey and his fighters soon withdrew, flying above the fiery inferno that consumed the dockyard and an Imperial I-class Star Destroyer nearby. While retreating, Titan Three contacted Captain Grey that she wasn't going to be able to survive as she was being attacked by a trio of RZ-1 A-wing interceptors. Grey informed command that there were TIEs remaining, to which Kerrill responded that she was leaving them as she could not allow another Star Destroyer to be destroyed.
====Dogfighting over Var-Shaa====
Grey swiftly turned his TIE interceptor and destroyed two A-wing interceptors while the third withdrew, thus saving Titan Three. After Titan Three thanked the captain, Grey responded to get to the hangar, but she was soon destroyed and killed by a New Republic pilot. The destruction of Titan Three's TIE/sa bomber resulted in Grey colliding with the debris and explosion, and his interceptor became damaged on the top starboard wing. Grey soon received transmissions of Kerrill stating that all stations were ready for the Overseer to jump into hyperspace. Grey refined his craft's systems and quickly flew toward the Overseer, refusing to be left behind. Despite his efforts, however, the Overseer jumped to lightspeed, abandoning him in the debris from the battle.
After getting over the initial realization of his situation, Grey powered down his ship and hid among the debris from the battle, hoping to evade the New Republic forces flying overhead. Despite the Republic forces passing over him, the New Republic pilot who shot down Titan Three broke off from the rest and began to scan the debris with a spotlight. Grey inspected his systems and his craft's condition, and prepared himself for a possible confrontation. Shortly after being spotted, Grey quickly powered up and fired on the Republic T-65B X-wing starfighter, and quickly flew through the wreckage and into Var-Shaa's atmosphere as some of the wreckage from the battle began falling through the sky and towards Var-Shaa's surface. After entering the atmosphere, Grey was hunted and attacked by the New Republic pilot, who fired his laser cannons at Grey's interceptor. Soon after, a missile was launched from the X-wing starfighter, and after Grey conducted some evasive maneuvers, he deployed countermeasures that sent the missile back towards the Republic pilot, though he managed to fire upon it and destroy it before impact.
Grey and the Republic pilot engaged in a dogfight in the sky on Var-Shaa, flying through the clouds and inflicting damage on each other, including more damage to Grey's interceptor's wings, and the R-series astromech droid on the X-wing being destroyed. Grey then flew towards the rocky fjordlands and rivers of Var-Shaa, just as a large amount of orbital debris from the battle fell near him. Grey flew through the fjordlands and canyons with the New Republic firing at him from behind, and was eventually critically hit. The X-wing's shot damaged the cockpit of the TIE interceptor and created a large hole that went through the rear of the cockpit and through the cockpit's windshield. Due to the damage his ship received along with his uniform being damaged, Grey took off his helmet and continued to fly through the canyons, all while receiving enemy fire from the rear. After the two quickly split into adjacent canyons, the Republic pilot contacted Grey that the war was over, and though Grey was slightly affected, he continued to fly through the terrain. The both eventually came out over an ocean, and after a maneuver conducted by Grey sent a wall of water up in the air, the Republic pilot flew through it but was distracted and crashed into a small mesa, destroying his starfighter and killing him.
===Marooned on Var-Shaa===
Emerging from the dogfight with his interceptor critically damaged, Grey's interceptor soon lost power after the death of the New Republic pilot and began descending to the water's surface. Grey let go of his controls and accepted the situation, and the TIE soon crashed and cartwheeled on the ocean's surface. After some time when there was a sunset, Grey had crawled out of the water and into a beach, with his helmet and some of his TIE's debris around him. Eventually, Grey created a campfire and settled on the beach, remembering the words of the New Republic pilot while looking at the nearby burning wreckage and the sunset. Grey soon received a transmission from his fellow Imperials who were searching for him, and Grey stood up and said aloud that the war was not yet over, not for him. His Imperial comrades soon arrived in their TIE ships and rescued their captain.
===Fight against the Republic===
Titan Squadron was active after the strike on Var-Shaa, and although their numbers had dwindled after the Empire's defeat at Endor, the squadron's determination motivated them to continue in battles against the New Republic's Vanguard Squadron.
==Personality and traits==
Varko Grey was a human male who had long black hair, a thin mustache, and tan skin. Grey had a career in law enforcement fighting corruption and injustices. Grey had struggled internally about the Empire's methods, but refused to reject the Empire due to the sacrifice of many of his comrades for those ideals. Additionally, Grey joined the Empire as he believed it was the best hope for a chaotic galaxy. Grey was married to his husband, Emory.
==Skills and abilities==
Grey was an ace who achieved the position of Titan Leader and the military rank of captain in the Galactic Empire.
==Equipment==
As an Imperial officer and skilled TIE fighter pilot, Grey piloted a TIE/IN interceptor and was equipped with the standard TIE fighter pilot uniform, albeit with a personalized matte grey thick vertical line that went through the center of his helmet.
==Behind the scenes==
Varko Grey is a character created for the 2020 video game Star Wars: Squadrons, in which he is portrayed by Noshir Dalal. On June 15, 2020, he was first pictured in the game's reveal trailer. The character then appeared in "Hunted," a short released on September 14, 2020, to promote the game, which provided the name of Grey, while his full name was provided in an article published on StarWars.com on the same day.
==Appearances==
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*Star Wars: Squadrons
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==Sources==
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*Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy
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==Notes and references==
Category:Aces
Category:Captains
Category:Enlisted personnel of the Galactic Empire
Category:Humans
Category:Imperial Navy officers of the Galactic Empire
Category:Imperial Navy pilots of the Galactic Empire
Category:Individuals with he/him pronouns
Category:LGBTQIA+ individuals
Category:Males
Category:ParSec officers
Category:Police
Category:Titan Squadron personnel