Cad Bane

**Cad Bane** was a Duros male bounty hunter from the planet Duro who earned a reputation as the galaxy's best, deadliest, and most fearsome mercenary during the Clone Wars. Though he worked for a number of clients, his loyalty was ultimately to credits—and by extension, the highest bidder. Bane employed a variety of weapons and allies to ensure that he always got his pay, and he became the leader in his line of work after fellow bounty hunter Jango Fett perished in the opening battle of the war. His renown attracted the attention of Count Dooku and even the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious, the latter of whom employed him numerous times for his own means. Working for Sidious, Bane stole a Jedi holocron from the Jedi Temple to unlock the Kyber memory crystal, a repository of all recorded Force-sensitive infants in the galaxy. After pilfering the crystal from Jedi Master Bolla Ropal on Devaron and forcing Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker to unlock it, Bane was sent to kidnap four of the infants listed in the crystal. Despite being captured halfway through his job by Skywalker and his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, Bane escaped from Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Mace Windu by luring them into a trap on his hideout, Black Stall Station.

Bane was later hired by the Hutt crime lord Jabba Desilijic Tiure and the Hutt Grand Council to break Jabba's criminal uncle, Ziro Desilijic Tiure, out of Republic custody on Coruscant. Forming a team of hunters to execute his job, Bane launched a brazen raid on the Republic Executive Building and captured ten prominent members of the Galactic Senate, using them as hostages to force Supreme Chancellor Palpatine to free Ziro. Once he had secured Ziro's release from the high-security Central Detention Center, Bane delivered Ziro to the Hutt Council. When Ziro escaped from their custody on Nal Hutta, Bane was re-hired to track down the crime lord. Though he arrived on Teth too late to secure his bounty, he managed to evade Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Quinlan Vos, who failed to apprehend him for his crimes. At the close of the bounty hunting season, Bane's total bounties surpassed those of all others in field.

After breaking criminal mastermind Moralo Eval out of the Republic's Central Detention Center, Bane became a candidate in Eval's plot to kidnap Chancellor Palpatine for Count Dooku and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Bane thus entered Eval's Box competition to become one of the five mercenaries who would be hired for the job. After passing the tournament alongside fellow hunters Embo, Derrown, Twazzi, and Rako Hardeen, Bane was personally selected by Dooku to lead the operation, and they traveled to Naboo to capture Chancellor Palpatine during the Festival of Light. Despite Bane's success with abducting Palpatine, Dooku betrayed him, having intended for the bounty hunters' operation to simply be a diversion for his own attempt to kidnap the Supreme Chancellor. Abandoned by Dooku, Bane was defeated by Hardeen, who turned out to be none other than Obi-Wan Kenobi, who had gone undercover to infiltrate and foil Eval's plans. Bane nevertheless retained his formidable reputation throughout the Clone Wars, after which he became one of the preferred freelancers for the Galactic Empire. At this time, he was hired by Kaminoan Prime Minister Lama Su to retrieve an unaltered female clone named Omega and although he initially accomplished his task, he was ultimately thwarted by the intervention of both fellow hunter Fennec Shand and Clone Force 99.

Nonetheless, he continued to provide his services to the highest bidder after the fall of the Galactic Empire and the rise of the New Republic. In 9 ABY Bane was working for the Pyke Syndicate on Tatooine, assisting the nefarious cartel in their expansion of the spice trade onto the planet. After a confrontation with his old apprentice, Boba Fett, he was defeated and stabbed through the chest on the sands of Mos Espa, killing him.

## History

### Age of the Empire

Despite his failure to bring in Omega for Lama Su, Bane became one of the Empire's select freelancers, playing a part in many Imperial dirty dealings. He was still active as of 18 BBY. According to Cradossk, though Bane's frequent clashes with the Jedi Order had earned him the reputation of an outlaw during the Clone Wars, Emperor Palpatine's degradation of the Jedi resulted in popular perception of Bane becoming much more favorable during Imperial times. Although Bane worked with Boba Fett on another occasion, Fett came to be his closest rival in the bounty hunting trade.

### On Nar Shaddaa

By 5 ABY, Bane was still active as a bounty hunter. At this time, he was in a hospital on Nar Shaddaa after getting injured on a mission which resulted in him getting a cast on his left foot and another on his left arm. Boba Fett eventually ended up there as well after suffering injuries from a grenade explosion, lying on a bed next to Bane's. On the TV, the celebration on Endor by Jar Jar Binks, whom Fett had failed to capture for a bounty earlier, popped up. Fett groaned in frustration and fought with Bane over the TV remote, wanting to change the channel. As they fought over it, the remote fell to the ground, meaning that they still had to watch the celebration. Bane groaned in anger, crossing his arms.

### Standoff in Freetown

In 9 ABY, Bane was offered a handsome fee to work as an enforcer for the Pyke Syndicate on Tatooine. During this time Bane spoke with the Weequay pirate Hondo Ohnaka, and he mentioned to Ohnaka about his job with the Pykes. At one point during his stay on Tatooine Bane visited the Crystal Moon restaurant in Mos Eisley to have something to eat.

Bane was sent to Freetown after the local marshal, Cobb Vanth, stood against the Syndicate. A standoff ensued after Bane strode into the center of town and was greeted by Vanth. When Vanth refused a bribe to stay neutral in the coming fight between Boba Fett and the Syndicate, the two drew their weapons, but Bane was much quicker. He fired several shots, killing Vanth's deputy, Scott, and downing Vanth. Before leaving, Bane declared to the townspeople that Tatooine was under the control of the Syndicate, and they would be left alone as long as they did not impede the spice trade, stalking away as the injured Vanth received aid.

### War with Boba Fett

After injuring Vanth, Bane, believing Vanth dead and confident the citizens of Freetown would not interfere in the conflict, reported to the Pyke boss, relaying his success to him. When the boss discussed the possibility of leaving Mos Espa unscathed with mayor Mok Shaiz, Bane told his employer that he would handle it. Shortly after, Bane confronted Fett, Fennec Shand, and Din Djarin himself at the ruins of the Sanctuary, where he attempted to negotiate with Fett on behalf of the Pykes. Partway through negotiations, Bane revealed to Fett that the Pykes were responsible for the death of his adopted Tusken Raider tribe, angering Fett. As Shand convinced Fett to refrain from attacking Bane due to Bane's own backup in the form of Pyke snipers, Fett declared that negotiations were over. Bane smiled, and left to inform his employers.

After the Pykes received news of Fett's refusal to negotiate, a battle broke out in Mos Espa. During the battle, the citizens of Freetown arrived, proving Bane's claim that they would not get involved to be false. As the battle came to a close, Bane confronted Fett directly once more, taunting him over his past and stating that he would remain just as ruthless as his father before him. In a brief duel, Bane overpowered Fett, knocking him to the ground and forcefully removing his helmet. As Bane prepared to fire upon Fett one last time, Fett swung at him with his gaderffii stick, knocking him away. Fett then knocked Bane to the ground, and, in a final blow that Bane believed was proof Fett was still a killer, stabbed him in the chest with the stick, taking out the infamous bounty hunter. As Boba walked off from his former mentor, Bane's suit slowly beeped as a light flashed.

### Legacy

Following his defeat at the battle in Mos Espa, he was posthumously proven wrong on his belief that Cobb Vanth died, as Vanth was being resuscitated in Boba Fett's bacta pod.

During the Second Union's presence in Mos Espa, the role of Bane's old ally HELIOS-3D within the Union there mirrored that of him within the Pyke Syndicate.

Following his job on Tatooine, rumors spread that Bane had met his end. Such rumors had reached Hondo Ohnaka by the time a a bounty was placed on his head, which inspired Ohnaka to complete *The Secrets of the Bounty Hunters* to cover hunters who might go after him. In the text, he expressed doubt that Bane was really gone given the Duros's common strategy of remaining in the shadows. He further claimed that Bane could be playing dead to draw him specifically into a false sense of secruity.

## Personality and traits

As a Duros, Cad Bane had red eyes and blue skin, standing 1.85 meters and weighing 75 kilograms. Bane became one of the best bounty hunters in the galaxy following Jango Fett's demise. Cold, cruel, and capable in his line of work, Bane cared little for the sinister motives of his employers such as Darth Sidious and the Hutts. Bane despite the fact that his new pupil was descended from his old mentor Jango, he did not take any liking to Boba, he was very abusive when he trained him, which made Fett remember his harsh adolescence on his part and that he had no mercy in killing his former mentor. He even told Fett to only look out for yourself and that anything else was a liability. Cad Bane was a very cunning individual, and he often proved capable of outsmarting others such as Jedi and other criminals. He showed impressive strategic ability and was more than capable of leading a team effort despite his preference for working alone. Bane's accomplishments during the Clone Wars meant he had a detailed file in the Republic's records.

Bane had something of a quirk when it came to wide brim hats, which he heavily preferred wearing. This desire was such he was willing to kill another bounty hunter simply because he had a hat he liked. He also had a habit of chewing on toothpicks. Additionally, the hunter spoke down to those younger than him, using terms like "son" and "little lady" when he felt they fit. In spite of his ruthlessness, he did apologize to Omega before he stunned her, yet he continued with his mission nevertheless. He also saved Obi-Wan Kenobi (in disguise as Rako Hardeen) from falling to his death into the fire.

Bane once reflected to himself that the young Boba Fett sometimes reminded him of his younger self, but their relationship eventually soured. As his age passed, Bane remained bitter and ruthless, killing any who stood in his way. He tried to strike down his former ward Boba Fett, without mercy or discrimination. Bane looked at Fett with contempt for what happened between them, determined to kill him even if he played dirty. He also had a habit of using obscure euphemisms such as “By Hook or by Crook” (id est: “By any means necessary”).

## Trivia

* In the end of "Bombad Bounty" the part when Bane and Boba Fett fight over the TV remote is a nod to the end of *LEGO Star Wars: Bombad Bounty* (which the episode is based on) when Fett and Darth Vader fight over the remote in the same manner while watching Jar Jar's celebration on TV.

## Appearances

* Bombad Bounty (First appearance)
* The Sacred Water of Rugosa (Mentioned only)
* Orders (Mentioned only)
* Bounty (Appears on a poster)
* The Sand Will Provide
* From the Desert Comes a Stranger (Mentioned only)
* Invaders on Their Land (Mentioned only)
* The Believer (Mentioned only)
* *From a Certain Point of View* (Mentioned only)