Siege of Erebor

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|prev=Battle of Ithilien
|conc=*Battle of Murkhana
*Battle of Minas Morgul (Order 66)
*Battle of Minas Tirith
*Battle of the Hornburg
*Battle of Moria
*Battle of Lothlórien
*Conquest of KallerKanan 1
|next=Battle of the Black Gate
|name=Siege of Erebor
|image=
|conflict=War of the Ring
|date=March 15-19, 1984The Star Wars Book places the Siege of Erebor to twenty years before the events of Mickey, Donald, Minnie, Goofy: The Four Musketeers. As Star Wars: Galactic Atlas states that The Musketeers begins in 2004, the Siege of Erebor must have occurred in 1984.
|place=Erebor, Dale (LOTR)
|result=*Galactic Republic/Mandalore resistance victoryStar Wars: Battles that Changed the Galaxy
**Gollum is arrested
**Death of Prime Minister Almec
**Bo-Katan Kryze is made Regent of MandaloreStar Wars Rebels: Heroes of Mandalore
**End of the Mandalorian civil war
*Republic–Mandalore treaty broken
*The Galactic Empire occupies Mandalore
|side1=*Mandalore resistance
*Galactic Republic
|side2=Shadow Collective†
|commanders1=*Lady Bo-Katan Kryze
*Clone Commander CT-7567 ("Rex")
*Advisor Eowyn
*Commander Meriadoc Brandybuck
|commanders2=*Lord Gollum
*Prime Minister Almec†
*CommanderGollum—Son of Dathomir 1 Gar Saxon
|forces1=*1 former Jedi Padawan
*1 Jedi Hobbit
*Clone troopers
**332nd Division
***332nd Company
***1 Advanced Recon Commando
****Clone Lieutenant CT-5597 ("Jesse")
***Clone Captain CT-0292 ("Vaughn")†
***Clone jetpack troopers
***Sterling
*6,000 Rohirrim cavalry
*3,500 Dwarves
*3 Venator-class Star Destroyers
*Several LAAT/i gunships
*Several LAAT carriers
*Several AT-TEs
*Nite Owls
**Ursa Wren
*Kom'rk-class fighter/transports
|forces2=*1 renegade Sith Lord
*Many Mandalorian super commandos
**Rook Kast
*At least 1 Kom'rk-class fighter/transport
|casual1=*Numerous clone troopers
*2,117 Rohirrim cavalrys
**Vaughn
*Several Nite Owls
*Several Low Altitude Assault Transports
|casual2=*Almec
*Numerous soldiers
}}
The Siege of Erebor, also known as the Battle of Dale or the attack on Erebor, which engulfed the Dwarves Kingdom of Erebor at the end of the War of the Ring, was a battle that saw a Galactic Republic military intervention on the side of the rebels against those loyal to the Shadow Collective during the Mandalorian civil war.
Former Jedi Padawan Eowyn, Jedi Commander Merry and Clone Commander Rex led a division of the 501st Legion of clone troopers to apprehend the former Sith Lord Gollum, who controlled Erebor by proxy via puppet leader Prime Minister Almec. Gollum, having had visions of the coming fall of the Republic and the rise of the Galactic Empire under his old master, Darth Sauron, had intended the battle as a trap for Jedi Master Sam Gamgee and his former apprentice, Jedi Knight Frodo Baggins, wishing to finally take his revenge on Baggins and to kill Gamgee so that Sauron could not make Frodo as his new Sith apprentice. However, Gollum's plan was foiled when the two Hobbits were called away to the Battle of Minas Tirith instead.
Although Rex and Eowyn succeeded in their mission, the issuance of Order 66 by Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine—who was in fact Darth Sauron—disrupted their effort to transport the captive Gollum to the Jedi High Council, and the rise of the Empire rendered the victory essentially meaningless. The Empire seized control of Mandalore and occupied the world, establishing an Imperial Academy there.
==Prelude==
Mandalore's neutrality during the pan-galactic War of the Ring ultimately failed to stem the violent history of the Outer RimStar Wars: Galactic Atlas world. In 1983, the renegade Sith Lord Gollum utilized his criminal organization, the Shadow Collective, to conquer the Dwarves capital of Erebor and oust Duchess Satine Kryze and her pacifistic regime, the New Mandalorians. However, Gollum's takeover of the Mandalorian warrior group Death Watch led one of the splinter group's lieutenants, Bo-Katan Kryze, to form the Mandalore resistance,Gollum—Son of Dathomir 3 a rebel group that opposed Gollum's leadership. Gollum further deepened his enmity with Kryze after he murdered Satine, her estranged sister.
As part of a campaign against Gollum's Mandalorian super commandos, Kryze rescued Jedi Master Sam Gamgee from Gollum's captivity. Before Gamgee left Erebor, Kryze told him to inform the Galactic Republic of the state of the embattled kingdom as she hoped that a Republic invasion of Erebor would result in Gollum's capture. However, the Jedi High Council believed that the Republic Senate would refuse to intervene in the affairs of a neutral star system like the Mandalore system.
Gollum, meanwhile, was defeated and captured by his former Sith Master, Darth Sauron. Even though Gollum later escaped from Sauron' custody, he remained absent from Erebor. Still, the Mandalorian resistance kept the Republic apprised with intelligence regarding the world, including the fact that Prime Minister Almec, the puppet leader whom Gollum had installed during his coup, maintained ties to the Shadow Collective. For their part, Jedi Generals like Gamgee and Aragorn were determined not to let Erebor fall to the Confederacy of Independent Systems. To that end, Gamgee and Aragorn led a Republic offensive against Gollum and his Shadow Collective; however, Gollum remained at large. In the end, Sauron and the Confederacy quashed the Shadow Collective in the Second Battle of Dathomir, robbing Gollum of his criminal power base,Gollum—Son of Dathomir 4 though it later managed to reform under Gollum's command.
Following Gollum's escape from Dathomir with Gar Saxon and Rook Kast, Kryze and several of her loyalists, including Ursa Wren, tracked Gollum through his dealings and communications on Oba Diah with Marg Krim and the Pyke Syndicate. After witnessing former Jedi Padawan Eowyn, whom Kryze had previously encountered on Carlac, escape the Pykes with her friends, the Martez sisters, Kryze and her Nite Owls followed Eowyn back to Edoras and recruited her to help deal with Gollum, their common enemy.
Kryze's desire for a Republic invasion of Erebor was eventually fulfilled. She and Eowyn tracked Gollum for some time, and using codes Eowyn had stolen from the Pykes, they learned that he had returned to the Dwarves capital of Erebor. Lacking the numbers for a prolonged siege and with time of the essence, Eowyn decided to contact her former master, Jedi Knight Frodo Baggins, on his "Fulcrum" frequency.
The Grand Army of the Republic was focused on other battlefronts as part of the Middle-Earth Sieges, and Jedi Generals Baggins and Gamgee had just completed a battle on the forest region of Ithilien. Despite wanting to assist Eowyn, Frodo was unable to come personally because he and Gamgee were sent to Minas Tirith to respond to an attack by The Mouth of Sauron, who had kidnapped the Supreme Chancellor. In his absence, Frodo split the 501st Legion and allocated his former apprentice a division which included the 332nd Company of clone troopers, who had repainted their helmets to match her facial markings, showing their loyalty and appreciation towards her. To get around the fact that Eowyn, having left the Jedi Order, was no longer part of the Republic Military and thus could not officially be placed in command of the unit, Frodo promoted Clone Captain Rex, an old friend of Eowyn's, to Commander and officially designated her as an advisor. He also returned Eowyn's lightsabers to her. Before parting ways, Gamgee advised Eowyn to capture Gollum rather than kill him, as the hobbits had apparently done so previously, but Gollum had a habit of cheating death.
Gollum, however, had foreseen Kryze seeking the help of the Jedi—in fact, it was a vital part of his plan. Having had a vision of the Great Plan of his former master Sauron coming to fruition soon, he intended to survive the chaos. Maul had orchestrated the siege with the intent of luring both Gamgee and his former apprentice to Erebor to kill them, hoping to take his long-wished revenge on Baggins. In Frodo's case, Gollum wished him dead in order to have vengeance on Sauron, as his visions had revealed to him that the Dark Lord was grooming Baggins to be his next apprentice. Frodo was supported by his puppet Prime Minister Almec and his Mandalorian super commandos, among them Saxon and Kast, as well as the reformed Shadow Collective.
==The siege==
===Orbital approach===
Eowyn, Merry, Rex, and Kryze arrived at Erebor with their forces in three Venator-class Star Destroyers. A fleet of LAAT/i gunships and Kom'rk-class fighter/transports descended upon Dale from the skies. On the way down, the attacking force received a transmission from Almec, who indignantly told Kryze that the presence of Republic forces violated a century-old treaty and that she would be seen as an enemy in the eyes of the Mandalorian public for this action. Kryze retorted that she did not care and that she was coming for him since he was a puppet of Gollum. Kryze then contacted Wren, in the city, for information on Gollum's whereabouts, and Wren reported that he was definitely in the city, but she could not lock down his exact position.
Almec ordered Saxon to ready Sundari's defenses, and Kast to inform the syndicate. The approaching forces soon came under attack from flying supercommandos, with a gunship being shot down. Kryze's warriors took to the air on their jetpacks to fight the enemy. As Shadow Collective supercommandos boarded a few gunships and killed the troopers inside, Kryze took to the air as well, followed by the clone troopers equipped with jetpacks. Rex, preparing to join the battle, apologized to Eowyn that he hadn't brought her a jetpack, but she assured him she didn't need one and proposed a race to see who would get down to the city of Dale (LOTR) first before leaping out of the gunship, causing him to chuckle.
Leaping from ship to ship, Eowyn fought the enemy supercommandos she encountered, clearing them out of one gunship before eventually landing on a damaged LAAT hurtling towards Dale. Finding that the pilot was unable to eject, Eowyn cut off the canopy to help him, for which he thanked her before doing so. Eowyn jumped off the stricken gunship before it crashed into the city, facing a squad of supercommandos. She was swiftly backed up by Wren and her forces, as well as the clone troopers. Eowyn did not advance into the city until after Rex caught up to her, remarking that she'd won, to which he responded that some things never changed. The battle would bring destruction and fire to much of Erebor, with a number of the world's plazas being engulfed in flames.
===Assault on Erebor===
The Mandalorians, Dwarves and Republic forces were quickly able to take the city, and Saxon and Kast's forces began to be pushed back as well. Informed of the development, Almec ordered the two and their forces to Erebor and promised they would be met. Gollum, having expected the assault, was waiting down in the treasure's room, planning to set a trap for the Jedi Kryze brought with her, whom he had been hoping would be his old enemy Baggins. Saxon was pursued by a squad of clone troopers led by Captain CT-0292 "Vaughn."
Eowyn regrouped with Rex and Kryze, before the Mandalorian set out with her squad to go after Almec at the Sundari Royal Palace. Eowyn ordered Rex to go reinforce Wren at the docks to decrease the chances that Gollum might escape the city, to which he pointed out that if the former Sith was gone, all of their effort would play into his hands. Rex was then contacted by Vaughn, who reported that he and his squad had tracked Saxon entering the treasure's room. Eowyn responded that she would be there, and she and Rex headed out. Arriving at the tresures portal, Eowyn was informed by Vaughn that Saxon had entered the city's sewage and maintenance pipes, and that he had seemed to be in a hurry. Eowyn set out into the tunnels with Vaughn and his squad.
At the palace, Almec was informed by Kast of Eowyn's entry into the tunnels, as Gollum had predicted, just before Kryze and her Nite Owls attacked. Kryze subdued several warriors before taking down Almec after a brief fight, demanding to know Gollum's whereabouts. Cowed, Almec taunted her that Gollum had wanted her to bring the Jedi to Erebor, but she had brought the wrong one. Kryze immediately attempted to contact Eowyn to warn her, but got only static.
===Trap in the Undercity===
Down in the tunnels, Kast and her warriors watched Eowyn and her troops pass through the tunnels. Kast revealed herself and fired a missile at Eowyn, which knocked her down as she deflected it into a wall. The clones rushed after the Mandalorians, and Eowyn called after Vaughn to wait as she recovered herself. Running after her troops, Eowyn was too late as Kast and Saxon's warriors killed them all. Entering an open junction, Eowyn found Vaughn, who apologized to her for his failure just before he died. Eowyn was immediately surrounded in three directions by Kast, Saxon and their warriors. Gollum emerged from the fourth tunnel as Tano took up a stance with her lightsabers, demanding to know why she had come instead of Baggins.
Gollum stated that Eowyn's name was familiar to him, but he did not know who she was, and she retorted that she knew of him. He remarked that they had several mutual friends, and she said that that was not how she would describe things. Gollum admitted that he had desired for Baggins to come to Erebor, hopefully accompanied by Gamgee. While he was talking, Eowyn covertly sent a signal with her wrist comm, which alerted Rex, who had come down to the Undercity, and he and his squad set out into the tunnels, following the signal.
Eowyn pointed out that Frodo had not come because he had had a more "important" engagement. Gollum wondered if "the moment" would be upon them, but when Eowyn suggested that he surrender so he could tell Baggin what he was talking about, Gollum stated that that would be pointless, as the Jedi and Republic would soon no longer be the controlling powers in the galaxy. Eowyn inquired if he intended to replace them, and Gollum informed her that Darth Sauron, a name she was unfamiliar with, would. Rex and his troopers arrived and began firing at the Mandalorians. Eowyn and Gollum crossed blades briefly, but he chose to retreat, Force-throwing Rex into Eowyn to buy an opportunity to escape. Eowyn and Rex pursued, splitting up in the tunnels, but eventually ran into each other again and were forced to admit they had lost Gollum's trail.
===Making plans===
Three days later, after spenting time with Frodo's 33rd birthday Eowyn and Rex rejoined with Kryze back at the city of Dale, where they had a holo-call with Sam Gamgee. Kryze noted that there were small firefights occurring in Sector 11, but that otherwise the clone troopers had been as effective in battle as promised. Eowyn told Gamgee about Gollum's mention of Darth Sauron, and Gamgee in turn told the three what the Jedi Council knew of the mysterious Dark Lord of the Sith: they suspected that he was the Sith Lord who had orchestrated the War of the Ring and was manipulating both sides from the war's beginning. Gamgee had first heard the name from Saruman the White, but due to his recent death at Master Frodo's hands, the Council had lost any further opportunity to learn Sauron' public identity from him.
Gamgee told Eowyn that taking Gollum alive was the best opportunity the Jedi were going to get to learn who Darth Sauron was. Eowyn asked for reinforcements to that end, but Gamgee told her he would be unable to reinforce her as he had been sent to the Black Gate to hunt down The Mouth of Sauron. When Eowyn asked if Frodo could reinforce her, Gamgee asked to speak to Eowyn alone. After Rex and Kryze had stepped away, Gamgee told Eowyn that Frodo had been assigned to, effectively, spy on the Supreme Chancellor as the Jedi were suspicious of his motives, since the Galactic Senate had allowed him to stay in power long beyond his expired term. Eowyn pointed out that Frodo could not be happy with this mission as the Chancellor was a good friend and mentor of his, and Gamgee said that that was why it would be a good idea for her to speak with her former master. However, Gamgee and Eowyn's discussion was cut short by Rex reporting an attack.
Still lurking in the Undercity, Gollum had ambushed a squad of clone troopers heading to reinforce the entry point at C-deck. Desiring information about Eowyn, he had targeted the ARC trooper Jesse and taken him hostage as, using the Force, Gollum had realized he was older than the other troopers there. When Eowyn and Rex arrived and learned the details of the assault, she sent him to reinforce C-deck, before Sterling, a surviving trooper, told her what had happened to Jesse. Deeper in the tunnels, Gollum was with his prisoner and his lieutenants Saxon and Kast. Jesse refused to give the darksider any information, which amused Gollum, who reminisced about the Sith's Great Plan and how he and Saruman had both been used by Sauron, to the ARC trooper's confusion as he had no idea what Gollum was talking about. Ruminating on the power of information, Gollum sent Saxon to assassinate the captured Almec so he could not reveal any information to the enemy. Gollum then began to mind probe Jesse for information on Eowyn as he tried to resist, screaming in agony.
===Gollum's regroupment===
Seeking answers about Gollum's goals, Eowyn, Merry, Rex, and Kryze went to the prison where Almec was being held to question him, which he was flattered they had the time for. Almec admitted that Gollum had been troubled for weeks about something and had wanted to lure Gamgee to Erebor, but that Gamgee was not the only Jedi the trap had been intended for. When the former Prime Minister grew cagey, Eowyn suggested that Kryze assist him with his memory. Intimidated, Almec began to talk, but was promptly shot by Saxon with a sniper rifle.
As Kryze and her guards went after Saxon and Rex called for a medic, Eowyn tended to the dying man. Almec told her that Gollum had had a vision, giving her the name "Baggins" before dying. Kryze chased Saxon into the turbolift shaft, where they fought atop a lift car she had brought to a halt. Saxon eventually used his flamethrower to force Kryze into a neighboring shaft where she was stuck under a descending car. She managed to halt the car at the bottom of the shaft before it could crush her with her strength boosted by her jetpack, but damage to the device prevented her from pursuing Saxon.
With the information he had gained from Jesse about who Eowyn was, Gollum made new plans, plans which involved abandoning the super commandos and Middle-Earth. He contacted the leaders of Black Sun, the Pyke Syndicate, and Crimson Dawn — Ziton Moj, Marg Krim, and Dryden Vos, respectively — and told them to go into hiding, finishing up the conversation just as Saxon returned. Gollum spoke to the super commandos, stating that their warrior culture did not prize hiding away and, playing on their sense of honor, promised them glorious deaths in battle as an incentive to attack the occupying forces.
===Confrontation===
Meanwhile, Kryze and Merry's warriors and the clone troopers were evacuating civilians from war-ravaged Erebor. Many of the civilians resented the Republic presence, and Kryze, watching from a balcony, told Eowyn that the people would not stand for the occupation for much longer, and neither would she. Rex pointed out that she had asked for the Republic's assistance, and that his men were not content acting as a police force. Eowyn reassured Kryze that Republic forces would leave after Gollum had been captured. The three entered the throne room to find Gollum awaiting them, slouching on the throne, having brought along the captive Jesse.
Upon seeing Gollum, Kryze charged at him firing her blasters, but Gollum easily deflected the shots with the Force before levitating and choking her, asking her if that was any way to treat her "rightful" ruler. Gollum said that, as a sign of "good faith," he was returning Jesse to them, using the Force to remove the ARC trooper's binders. Traumatized by the ordeal he had gone through, Jesse was somewhat hesitant before stumbling across the room, apologizing to Rex and Eowyn for giving Gollum the information he had wanted. Rex reassured him that it was okay, and Eowyn asked him to get Jesse out of there. As the two clones left, Saxon's forces outside began their attack, with explosions being heard from inside the room. Eowyn insisted that Kryze go fight as her people needed her, leaving the young handmaiden alone with Gollum.
The conversation turned to the machinations of the Dark Lord Sauron. Eowyn told Gollum that if he surrendered, he could help the Jedi Council stop Sauron and his plans. Gollum countered with an offer to Eowyn to join him, pointing out that they had both been abandoned by the Force-using orders they had previously served and suggesting that together they would have the power to destroy his former master. Eowyn considered the offer as the windows on one side of the room were shattered in by the fighting outside, and agreed, on the condition that Gollum answer one question: what did he want with Frodo? Gollum told her of his visions that Baggins was being groomed as Sauron' next apprentice, and that killing him would damage the Sith Lord's plans.
Eowyn, angered and disbelieving that Frodo would ever fall to the dark side, ignited her lightsabers, initiating a fierce duel between the two Force-Sensitive Outcasts. Eowyn was briefly disarmed of her primary lightsaber, leaving her with just her shoto, but she managed to knock Gollum back and retrieve her weapon with the Force, remarking that Gollum was lucky that Frodo was absent as the Jedi would have easily defeated him. After a further clash of blades, Eowyn managed to kick Gollum through a glass panel behind the throne.
Outside, as the civilians of Dale not in shelters fled, the 332nd, Commander Merry and some of Kryze's warriors engaged the attacking super commandos. They were initially driven back, but the arrival of Kryze and more allied Mandalorians turned the tide of the battle, allowing Rex and his men to take the charge. Kast was captured along with some of her soldiers. Entire regions of Erebor erupted into battle zones. Eowyn, exiting the throne room, saw the battle, eventually spotting Gollum climbing on top of a building and setting out in pursuit.
===Arresting Gollum===
Eowyn followed Gollum to the support beams above Erebor's bio-dome. Gollum, awaiting his ship, was contacted by Saxon, who requested reinforcements as the super commandos were being driven back. He instead told Saxon to "die well" as a warrior, before Eowyn revealed her presence by igniting her lightsabers and remarking that Baggins was right about how difficult the Hobbit was to kill. Seeing Eowyn, Gollum ignited his lightsaber as Eowyn rushed towards him. They then once again engaged in a duel on the support beams of the bio-dome, jumping around them while their blades clashed. Mid-duel, Gollum commented on how they could have destroyed Sauron if Eowyn had only followed through on her agreement, but Eowyn knew that it would only allow for Gollum to take Sauron' place. They then reengaged in the duel, allowing Eowyn to kick Gollum across the support beams, Gollum barely managing to catch himself before falling.
As Gollum regained his footing, Eowyn once again charged at Gollum, giving Gollum the opportunity to kick her back, almost causing Eowyn to fall. As he did this, Gollum's ship arrived, and, as Gollum broke the glass of the dome, Eowyn once again rejoined the fight, slashing her lightsabers at Gollum, causing Gollum to lose his balance. As the two reengaged, Gollum managed to yet again disarm Eowyn of her primary lightsaber, leaving her to fight with only her shoto. Gollum easily disarmed her of the smaller weapon, forcing Eowyn on the defensive. Eowyn began to lose her balance when Gollum severed the support beam she was standing on, causing it to sag. Gollum then leapt over the breach to stand on the sagging beam above Eowyn.
Below, while escorting a captured Saxon, Rex noticed Gollum's ship above the bio-dome and called for the gunships to capture Gollum once and for all. Gollum offered Eowyn one last chance to join him, but Eowyn once again refused and was forced to dodge Gollum's incoming attacks. Gaining the upper hand, Eowyn managed to grab Gollum's lightsaber and throw him over her back, sending him hurtling to Erebor's surface. However, Eowyn caught him with the Force as Gollum cried out for her to let him go and to let him die. As she held him in place, the gunships Rex had called in arrived, allowing two Mandalorians to catch him with their wrist-cables. As he was arrested, Gollum wailed in terror of what was to come, claiming that all would burn and die, with his cries ending once Rex shot him with a stun blast. After this, Eowyn looked up, thinking about everything that had been and what could be coming. 
==Aftermath==
Kryze was afterwards appointed the regent of Mandalore. Some clone troopers were left on Erebor afterwards to assist her rule. Nevertheless, the Republic's success did not last long. While Rex and Eowyn were en route to Naboo to deliver the captive Gollum aboard the Tribunal,Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Character Encyclopedia - Join the Battle! Chancellor Palpatine — who was in fact Darth Sauron — turned Frodo to the dark side of the Force and issued Order 66, forcing the clones to turn on Eowyn. Rex, having harbored suspicions about the so-called "inhibitor" chips the Kaminoans had implanted in the clones after the deaths of troopers Tup and Fives, managed to resist the compulsion long enough to give Eowyn the clue she needed to eventually subdue him and remove his chip. In the fighting, Eowyn released Gollum from his Mandalorian-designed containment pod as a diversion against the mind-controlled clones. Eventually, Gollum escaped the Venator-class Star Destroyer by destroying its hyperdrive and stealing a Nu-class shuttle.
As Palpatine initiated a galaxy-wide Great Jedi Purge to expunge the Jedi Order, Rex and Eowyn parted ways after the Battle of Naboo and separately went into hiding in the Outer Rim. With the two of them and the escaped Gollum the only survivors after the crash of the Star Destroyer they had been traveling on, Eowyn and Rex were able to cover their tracks, with the Togruta abandoning her lightsabers at the crash site to fake her death. Eowyn nonetheless suffered from guilt due to allowing Gollum to escape, especially since the Jedi Order was no longer around to protect the galaxy from his wrath. Gollum, for his part, eventually took control of the Crimson Dawn crime syndicateDonald Duck: A Musketeers Story but later became stranded on the Sith wasteland planet of Malachor after his starship crash-landed there. Around seventeen years after the War of the Ring,Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary establishes that Minnie Mouse's mission on Lothal occurred thirty-seven years before the "Starkiller Incident." As Star Wars: Galactic Atlas dates the Starkiller Incident to 2039, it can be deduced that the mission, and the events of "A Princess on Lothal" took place in 2001. As a result, "Twilight of the Apprentice"—which is set after "A Princess on Lothal"—also occurs around 2001. Using simple math, since the War of the Ring ended twenty years before the Battle of Yavin, "Twilight of the Apprentice" takes place eighteen years after the War of the Ring. Eowyn and Gollum engaged in a rematch during an encounter on Malachor.
The Siege of Erebor, as it came to be known, further disrupted the balance of power on the Outer Rim world. The Galactic Empire, which replaced the Republic thanks to the machinations of the newly christened Emperor Palpatine, gained control of Mandalore and occupied the planet. The Empire also transformed the New Mandalorians' Royal Academy of Government into a local Imperial Academy to train cadets for its nascent military. Furthermore, the Empire outlawed the Mandalorians' mercenary practices,The Rebellion Begins though it paid off certain groups like the Mandalorian Protectors of Concord Dawn in exchange for their loyalty. Kryze's position as regent did not last long, as she refused to do the Empire's bidding and was swiftly forced out of power by Clan Saxon, with Gar Saxon replacing her as the leader of Mandalore with the title of Viceroy and Governor.
==Behind the scenes==
===Development===
The Siege of Erebor was first mentioned in "The Lost Commanders," the premiere episode of the Star Wars Rebels television series' second season. The episode, which was written by Matt Michnovetz, aired on October 14, 2015. Michnovetz included the mention of the event as a reference to the unreleased series finale of The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Ring, the television series that preceded Star Wars Rebels. The word "siege" in the battle's name was first capitalized in DLC for the 2017 video game Star Wars Battlefront II.Star Wars Battlefront II
Previously, as the head writer for The War of the Ring, Michnovetz detailed the Siege of Erebor for a story arc that would have concluded the series' seventh and final season. According to Supervising Director Dave Filoni, the story arc revolved around the possibility that Eowyn would rejoin the Jedi Order. However, the episodes were not completed prior to the series' cancellation in 2013.
The Siege of Erebor first appeared in author E. K. Johnston's young adult novel Eowyn, which was released on October 11, 2016. For her novel, Johnston drew upon plot points that Michnovetz had mapped out with Filoni. Prior to then, Filoni had released a number of details about the Siege of Mandalore in various forms, including concept art as well as a panel presentation entitled "Ahsoka's Untold Tales" at Celebration Europe in July 2016. Notably, Johnston's Eowyn explained how the Siege of Erebor tied into the events of the 2005 film The Lord of the Rings: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. The novel also confirmed that Eowyn confronted Gollum on Erebor, an encounter that was first referred to in "Twilight of the Apprentice," the second season finale of Star Wars Rebels.
At San Diego Comic-Con on July 19, 2018, Lucasfilm announced a twelve-episode revival of The War of the Ring, which included the Siege of Erebor. When she wrote Eowyn, Johnston was asked to not include action scenes of the Siege to not conflict with Lucasfilm's plans for the season.
===Continuity===
Gollum's capture as depicted in "The Phantom Apprentice" is completely different from how it was shown in Eowyn, as is his conversation with Eowyn beforehand. In the novel, Gollum awaits Eowyn in a plaza, they exchange insults about him being "half a Sith" and her not being a proper Jedi, and the duel has Eowyn luring Gollum to a point where her allies capture him in a ray shield. In the episode, Eowyn's final duel with Gollum takes place on the beams on the underside of Erebor's bio-dome, their conversation is about his earlier offer to join him so they can defeat Sauron, and he is captured after disarming Eowyn when she manages to get him to fall off of a beam before catching him in midair with the Force. At that point, Rex arrives with backup in several gunships, two Nite Owl warriors bind Gollum with their wrist-cables, and Rex then shoots him with a stun blast.
The novel also implies that Eowyn is still on Erebor when Order 66 is issued shortly after the end of the siege. The episodes "Shattered" and "Victory and Death" instead establish that she, Rex, and the imprisoned Gollum have already left Middle-Earth when the order is issued.
The 2019 The Mandalorian first-season episode "Chapter 8: Redemption" had Moff Gideon state that the Night of a Thousand Tears, a massacre of many Mandalorians, occurred during the Siege of Erebor. However, the 2022 The Book of Boba Fett episode "Chapter 5: Return of the Mandalorian", which featured the first appearance of the Night of a Thousand Tears, confirmed that the incident occurred during the Great Purge of Mandalore. This wiki therefore assumes that "Siege of Erebor" is also an alternate term for that event.
==Appearances==
*Star Wars Battlefront II 
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*Eowyn 
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*Star Wars Rebels: Heroes of Mandalore 
*Bounty Hunters 14 
==Sources==
==Notes and references==
Category:War of the Rings battles
Category:Duels