See also: Galactic Gazetteer
Tatooine is a desert world, and the first planet in the Binary Tatoo System. It's a part of the Arkanis Sector in the Outer Rim Territories. It is inhabited by poor locals who mostly farm moisture for a living. Other activities include used equipment retailing and scrap dealing. The planet is on the 5709-DC Shipping Lane, a spur of the Triellus Trade Route, which itself connected to the Sisar Run. The planet is also not far from the Corellian Run.
Tatooine Statistics
Region: The Outer Rim
Climate: Arid
Gravity: Standard
Moons: 3
Length of Day: 23 Standard Hours
Length of Year: 304 Local Days
Sapient Species: 70% Human, 5% Jawa (Native), 5% Tusken Raider (Native), 20% Other Species
Government: Hutt Crime Lords
Capital: Bestine
Major Exports: Illegal Weapons, Minerals, Narcotics
Major Imports: Foodstuffs, Medicine, Technology
| DC | RESULT | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Tatooine is a backwater desert world dotted with cities, villages, and moisture farms. Native Species include the primitive Tusken Raiders and the Jawas. | |
| 15 | Controlled by the Hutts, Tatooine is a haven for criminal activity and is often used as a hiding place for lawbreakers on the run. | |
| 20 | Tatooine hosts numerous dangerous sporting events, including Podracing. One of it's most famous Podracing events is the Boonta Eve Classic, which is frequently attended by the planet's Hutt overlords. |
| DC | RESULT | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Tatooine is controlled by the Hutts, and many criminals seek refuge there. | |
| 15 | The Jawas of Tatooine have a reputation for being scavenging junk dealers and swindlers, but they are mostly harmless. | |
| 20 | The Tusken Raiders of Tatooine are referred to locally as Sand People. They live in nomadic tribes and often ride around on large herd animals called Banthas. Sand People are extremely violent, attacking anyone who sets foot in their territory. They typically wield Gaderffii ("Gaffi Sticks"), but some tribes use primitive Slugthrowers as well. |
Planetary Updates
Familiar planets undergo significant changes over the centuries. The updates in this section should provide Gamemasters with enough information to use these planets in their respective sourcebooks' eras.
The Old Republic Era
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide
Out of the way and of little interest to military forces, Tatooine is under the control of The Czerka Corporation during this time. Anchorhead is the only active settlement on the planet. Anchorhead is a modest outpost for Czerka operatives and a few other entrepreneurs who have made their way to the distant Outer Rim world hoping to find their fortune mining the desolate world. The two indigenous peoples of Tatooine- Tusken Raiders and Jawas- have made contact with the settlers; the Tusken Raiders violently oppose Czerka operations, and the Jawas seize the opportunity to make a hefty profit from the ill-prepared newcomers.
Tatooine sees little military action during this time. The Mandalorians avoid the planet entirely, and The Sith visit the planet individually only when Revan and Malak seek out ancient Rakatan Star Maps to help find The Star Forge. Realizing that the planet is of little interest, yet possessing the basics of civilization, criminals flock to Tatooine as a short-term hiding place from the long arm of the law. The Hutts show a small amount of interest in the planet, and both The Exchange and The GenoHaradan have influence over the Anchorhead colony.
The Clone Wars
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Clone Wars Campaign Guide
Tatooine is technically held by The Galactic Republic, but it is largely controlled by the Hutts at the start of the Clone Wars. In the early days of the war, the Republic attempts to establish a spaceport on the planet in order to utilize it as a base in the Arkanis Sector. The Republic's newly realized interest in Tatooine is not welcomed by many of the planet's citizens, particularly those who thrive under Huttese control of the world.
Boorka the Hutt, seeking to remove the Republic from Tatooine, negotiates a pact with the Confederacy in exchange for the destruction of the fledgling Republic spaceport. The Confederacy forces, led by Sev'rance Tann, destroy the spaceport and wipe out the small Republic force that had occupied it.
Jabba the Hutt, Boorka's competitor on Tatooine, is incensed by Boorka's cooperation with the Separatists. He betrays Boorka to The Jedi, who kill Boorka and root out the Separatist units on Tatooine. Despite his loud objections, Jabba's interest in seeing Boorka fall are not entirely altruistic; the Hutt crime lord is playing one side against the other, taking a dangerous competitor out of the picture while continuing to supply cortosis ore to the Techno Union.
The Dark Times
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Force Unleashed Campaign Guide
This desert planet in the remote backwater of The Outer Rim all but disappears into relative obscurity after the Clone Wars. The Hutt Kajidics still retain their control over the planet- with the infamous Jabba eventually gaining prominence- while paying token respect to the Empire. Eventually the Podracer action dries up and the racing circuit leaves to find a better venue, but Jabba the Hutt continues using the world as a quiet place from which to conduct his criminal activities. The Mos Eisley starport becomes a hub of smuggling and vice.
The Empire takes such little notice of Tatooine that it all but forgets about the small garrison it established in Mos Eisley. The planet is so obscure that it rates only an Imperial prefect as the chief administrator, a move possibly made in deference to the Hutts to avoid challenging their authority and causing problems with relations between The Hutt Kajidics and the Empire elsewhere. The Stormtroopers and the prefect care little about the crime running rampant in the starport and across Tatooine; they try making the most of their miserable situation.
Tatooine's isolated location, the absence of Imperial Navy patrols, and its minuscule garrison make Tatooine an ideal haven for smugglers and other galactic criminals. Jabba's organization keeps tabs on many, takes a cut of the profits when it can, and generally ensures that the local garrison doesn't hear about anything that has potentially political consequences. Although some resistance cells visit the planet to make deals with criminal elements, Jabba discourages any of them from establishing a permanent presence on Tatooine, lest they draw Imperial attention to this sordid corner of the galaxy.
Few suspect that the planet's dangerous Jundland Wastes shelter one of the last Jedi Knights who managed to escape Order 66 and Darth Vader's systematic purge of The Jedi.
The Legacy Era
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Legacy Era Campaign Guide
As always, Tatooine is just too far away from The Core to be of much significance. Though Darth Krayt actually hails from Tatooine, the Empire largely ignores the world. The Galactic Empire has a small garrison in Mos Eisley, and others in Anchorhead and Mos Espa, but there is not even a Sith Lord assigned to watch over Tatooine. Instead, most of the Imperials stationed on the dry world wish they were somewhere else, and a Tatooine post is usually a sign of falling out of favor with the Imperial bureaucracy. The settlements on Tatooine still provide smugglers and all kinds of scum a good place to rest and find a drink, proving that some things never change.