Star Wars: 10 Things You Never Knew About The Pirates In The Galaxy Far Far Away

The Star Wars universe is home to a number of significant threats. While the terrifying Sith and the Empire are the most well known villains of the galaxy far far away, the Pirates that inhabit the universe are certainly of equal danger when the franchise’s protagonists come face to face with them.

Unorganized, reckless and bloodthirsty, Pirates are often driven by their greed and desire to continue to roam the galaxy with complete freedom. They’ve struck a number of unconventional deals to continue going about their business, but they are not the well-oiled machine that many would expect. There’s a number of things that audiences may not realize about these intergalactic criminals.

10 Early Hunters

In the early days of the galaxy, starships weren’t actually invented. With interplanetary travel all but impossible, Pirates didn’t have vehicles that they could loot and plunder. Instead, they looked for a very different kind of bounty.

More hunters than Pirates, they sought out rare and incredibly dangerous creatures. They would kill these creatures or capture them and sell off their most valuable pieces. It’s a profitable business and one that still takes place in the modern Star Wars universe.

9 Difference With Bounty Hunters

Bounty Hunters are known to be some of the most professional and skilled warriors in the entire galaxy. Their profession is purely based on their ability to carry out a job. There’s a strict code amongst Bounty Hunters and one that has to be followed.

Pirates are sometimes compared to Bounty Hunters, especially as they have been known to work together. The Pirate code is far looser than that of a Bounty Hunter though and it’s very rare that a Pirate will have a contract for the job that they take on.

8 A Code

There is a very loose Pirate code, although its consequences appear to be far less severe than that of the Bounty Hunters. This code has been on display numerous times, in the way in which a group of Pirates will operate.

Loyalty to the leader appears to be a must, but mutinies are possible. There’s a hierarchy and a job is to be finished unless the leader says otherwise. There is less of a moral code for pirates though and it appears to be based upon the wishes of a Captain. Famous Pirates like Hondo Ohnaka had a stronger code when it came to dealing with Jedi as allies; ironically a group that also have to follow a code.

7 Trouble In The High Republic

Pirates have always been a significant threat to peace in the galaxy. Of course, if their crimes went unchecked then it would be pretty easy for a Pirate Empire to begin to form. When the Sith weren’t an immediate issue therefore, the Jedi turned their attention to Pirates.

From what is known so far about the High Republic era, Pirates appear to be a major problem that the Jedi have to deal with in the unknown regions of space. Pirates are often territorial, so they would have been especially dangerous against Jedi unfamiliar with the regions.

6 The Pirate Ruler Of Wild Space

In the brilliant canon novel series, Aftermath, by Chuck Wendig, Andre Gordirro and Guilherme Kroll, Eleodie Maracavanya tries to carve out their own Empire after the fall of the Emperor. Eleodie is in possession of a Super Star Destroyer, which houses the poor and homeless.

Building an ideological utopia which seeks to both plunder and rebuild after the devastation the Empire left, the gender neutral Pirate became the Rule of Wild Space. The former slave built up an impressive society, but it’s unknown what happened during the era of the First Order.

5 Weequay Pirates

A great number of Pirates, including Captain Hondo, actually originate from the Weequay species. The desert planet known as Sriluur is their home world and it’s under the control of a Hutt Clan. Many of its people are therefore in slavery or serve the Hutts.

The desperation of the Weequay means that many of them have turned to crime. It’s not that surprising therefore that if they don’t end up serving the Hutts, a huge number end up working in other criminal organizations or as Pirates. Very few manage to make an honest living.

4 Pirate Status

Of course, not everyone who is deemed to have a Pirate status should be considered to be a villain. While they may be going after their goals in an illegal fashion, the law put in place isn’t always just.

The Cloud-Riders were a group of Pirates which targeted the Empire. Led by the freedom fighter Enfys Nest, their group were much aligned with the sympathies of the Rebels, but chose to conduct business in a slightly different manner.

3 Imperial Intelligence

Much like the Empire formed uneasy alliances with Bounty Hunters in order to carry out some of their most difficult missions, the Emperor clearly thought that order could be kept with the assistance of some of the most chaotic beings in the galaxy.

Pirates were often tolerated in return for intelligence. Indeed, Pirates managed to cause problems for the Rebels many times, so as long as they were not interfering with the Empire and were feeding back intel, they were allowed to continue on with their business.

2 Treasure Hunters

Pirates weren’t always plunderers though. Occasionally they fell into a different class altogether. There are plenty of ancient, mystical and very expensive artefacts in the galaxy. Knowing where to look for them is the key to some massive discoveries.

Some Pirates such as Sidon Ithano and his crew, dedicated their time to searching for treasure. This could be a rewarding endeavour when the crew were onto a good lead. However, much like Ithano, occasionally they would still have to resort to theft in order to make some quick cash.

1 Links To Smuggling

The smuggling circuits were heavily linked to that of Pirate rings. Often stolen items found themselves smuggled to new territories for sale. Sometimes Pirates got ahead of themselves and relied on these smugglers further as their ambition struggled to keep up with their capabilities.

Hondo Ohnaka managed to build up a huge business, which he passed off as a transport company. It was instead a front for a massive amount of smuggling, which he was already very used to thank to his time as a Pirate Captain.

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