Saw Gerrera

Saw Gerrera was a human male guerilla fighter whose years of revolutionary struggle spanned the rise of the Galactic Empire. A leading figure alongside his sister Steela in the liberation of their homeworld of Onderon from Separatist occupation during the Clone Wars, Saw became a key member in early rebellion against the Galactic Empire and the formation of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. His tactics against the Empire led him to be seen as an extremist, one whose notoriety was recognized by the Empire and, many years later, the New Republic.
In the early resistance against the Separatists on Onderon, Gerrera and his fellow soldiers were outnumbered and out-fought by the Separatist Droid Army. They requested help from the Jedi Council, which led the Grand Army of the Galactic Republic in its fight against the Separatists, but they chose not to become actively involved in the fighting on Onderon. Instead, they sent a team of advisors — Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, Commanders Ahsoka Tano and Jarik Shan, and Clone Captain Rex — to train the Onderonian fighters. The Jedi and Captain Rex taught them proper techniques and strategies for taking on the Droid Army, and through their efforts, the rebels began to turn the tide. Gerrera came to resent that the rebels chose Steela as their leader, and he was soon captured in an ill-concocted solo effort to rescue the deposed King Ramsis Dendum from the Separatists. They were both rescued by the rebels, who eventually mounted a final battle against the Separatists. Through their efforts, the rebels liberated their world and returned Dendum to the throne. The fight, however came at a personal cost, Steela was killed during the final battle, and Gerrera was left to mourn his sister, feeling responsible for her death.
Following the transformation of the Republic into the Empire at the end of the Clone Wars, an Imperial occupation of Onderon led Saw to reform his rebels as the Partisans, which conducted various strikes throughout the galaxy, including the rescue of Wookiee chieftain Tarfful from Imperial captivity on Kashyyyk. Bringing defected Imperial scientist Doctor Galen Erso, his wife Lyra, and their daughter Jyn to the uninhabited planet of Lah'mu early in the Empire's reign, Saw later took in and raised Jyn after Orson Krennic took her father and his Death Trooper guard squadron killed her mother. In they years nearing the outbreak of the Galactic Civil War, Saw was later involved in the early campaigns of the Rebellion, by which time his more-extreme tactics had come to stand in stark contrast with those of Rebel leaders Bail Organa and Mon Mothma, alienating his Partisans from the rest of the Rebellion.
==Personality and traits==
Saw Gerrera had a reputation as an able but ruthless and cunning commander during the Clone Wars and the rebellion against the Galactic Empire. His harsh methods led many to regard him as an unrepentant extremist. Gerrera bore great antipathy towards the Separatists for invading his homeworld Onderon. He also disliked the Geonosians due to their alignment with the Separatists and for building gunships which led to his sister Steela's death. This coupled by the loss of his comrades during a mission on Geonosis led him to brutally interrogate the Geonosian Klik-Klak, much to the discomfort of his friend Lux, his former comrade Clone Captain Rex, and the Spectres.
Despite his antipathy towards the Geonosians, Gerrera was horrified by the Empire's genocide against the species and believed that they had the same right to rebuild as other species. Gerrera's change of heart led him to release Klik-Klak and the Geonosian queen egg he was guarding. Gerrera disagreed with the Jedi's principled tactics and believed that it cost them the Clone Wars. However, he greatly admired and respected his old friend Jedi Master Jarik Shan, who had once assisted in training the Onderon rebels with his wife Ahsoka Tano during the Clone Wars. Gerrera saw Shan as a man with the will and guts to take firm action against the Empire, in contrast to the leaders of the Alliance to Restore the Republic, who he felt were spineless, weak, and indecisive. Gerrera also opposed the Empire and was prepared to defeat it through any means necessary. When he met Padawan Cal Kestis, Gerrera offered him to join their cause and when Kestis refused because he had his own mission, Gerrera admitted that without him the war would be more difficult.
Gerrera's aggressive tactics including the killing of prisoners, civilians and violations of the rules of engagement created strife with Mon Mothma, the leader of the Rebel Alliance, who regarded him as a war criminal and terrorist. Gerrera saw potential in Ezra, Sabine, and Chopper as effective soldiers for a mission to discover the Empire's secret superweapon. However, Gerrera's willingness to risk the lives of civilians in this quest strained his partnership with Ezra and Sabine. Ezra, who initially admired Gerrera's ability to acquire intelligence, became disillusioned with his ruthless and aggressive tactics. Gerrera believed that if a planet was lost, then there was no other option but to leave, which put him at odds with fellow Partisan Mari Kosan, who chose to stay with the Wookiees on Kashyyyk.
Gerrera became a mentor to Jyn Erso after she lost her parents to the Empire. He abandoned her at the age of sixteen in order to protect her from other rebels who wanted to use her as a hostage due to her status as Galen Erso's daughter. Gerrera initially did not believe the Imperial defector Bodhi Rook's report that the Empire was building a new superweapon called the Death Star and had him tortured with a Bor Gullet. Despite his estranged relationship with Jyn, Gerrera was still able to inspire her to find the weakness in the Empire's superweapon in order to save the Rebellion.
Ruthless though he was, Gerrera carried several regrets throughout his life. He felt responsible for the death of his sister, Steela, felt that he failed his homeworld of Onderron after the Empire rose to power, and despite justifying his reasons for doing so, deeply regretted abandoning Jyn Erso and leaving her on her own.
==Appearances==
Category:Characters
Category:Star Wars Characters
Category:Galactic Republic
Category:Partisans
Category:Rebel Alliance
Category:Humans