How a 90s Star Wars RPG Inspired Andor’s Ghorman Tragedy!

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In the Star Wars universe, particularly during the Galactic Civil War, every path ultimately leads to the planet Ghorman. This has been evident since the third season episode “Secret Cargo” of Star Wars Rebels introduced Senator Mon Mothma’s resignation following the Ghorman Massacre. The Ghorman Massacre took place around 1 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin, as depicted in A New Hope). In the second season of Andor, we’ve been hinting at the Ghorman Massacre since its premiere and it was finally shown for the first time. However, the concept of the Ghorman Massacre serving as a spark for rebellion dates back to 1990.

During a period often referred to as “The Dark Times” by Star Wars fans, spanning roughly from 1984 to 1991, there was scarcely any new Star Wars content being produced. The only exceptions were children’s cartoons like Droids and Ewoks, along with a couple of TV movies about the inhabitants of Endor. Marvel Comics ceased their Star Wars series in 1986, and no new novels emerged either. With an abundance of fresh Star Wars material hard to envision during this time, it’s surprising to learn that for years there was almost none. However, a flourishing aspect from this era was West End Games’ Star Wars roleplaying game. In 1990, Paul Murphy wrote the Rebel Alliance Sourcebook for West End Games, where the Ghorman Massacre was first referenced.

According to the “Rebel Alliance Sourcebook”, the event on Ghorman transpired just a year following Palpatine’s proclamation of the New Order. This devastating incident unfolded when Governor Tarkin’s starship descended upon a group of protesters on Ghorman, who were blocking its landing site. Regrettably, many lost their lives, and hundreds more were injured. The inhabitants of Ghorman, a prosperous planet, were protesting against the new Imperial taxes imposed on them. In the original timeline presented in the sourcebook, this tragic event sparked Bail Organa to collaborate with Mon Mothma in planning a rebellion. Interestingly, deleted scenes from “Revenge of the Sith” suggest that Bail and Mon were already coordinating their efforts even before the Empire was officially established.

As a devoted fan, I recall that in 2016, the tragic Ghorman Massacre, initially known from the RPG, was officially acknowledged in the Fantasy Flight Games RPG sourcebook, “Age of Rebellion: Forged in Battle”. This new version was set two years before the events depicted in “Rogue One” and “A New Hope”, as confirmed by Mon Mothma’s appearance in the 2017 “Rebels” episode “Secret Cargo”. The incident was further elaborated upon in the novel “The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire”, where it was established that it was indeed an Imperial massacre on Ghorman, not the death of citizens elsewhere. However, there’s still some ambiguity about the nature of the event or any potential connection to Tarkin.

As a movie reviewer, I’m thrilled to share my thoughts on “Andor” season 2. Showrunner Tony Gilroy masterfully weaves together disparate elements, creating a gripping narrative tapestry in this sci-fi series. In this installment, our protagonist Cassian (Diego Luna) explores Ghorman as a potential hotbed of rebellion. Here, he encounters an employee at the lavish hotel he’s staying at, who shares a poignant story from his past. As a child, he witnessed Tarkin’s ship landing on a protesting crowd, which tragically took the lives of several, including his own father. Remarkably, his father sacrificed himself to save the young man from harm’s way. A memorial, standing tall in Ghorman’s central plaza, serves as a somber reminder of those who perished. The haunting memory of these events continues to echo in the hearts and minds of the Ghor survivors.

Andor recently revived an event from a 35-year-old roleplaying game, but this time it’s not the same Ghorman Massacre mentioned in Rebels or the one expected towards the end of Andor season two. This new Ghorman Massacre will be different and much more devastating than Tarkin landing his ship on a crowd. It needs to be a heinous, large-scale tragedy that Mon Mothma would risk her life over, directly blaming the Emperor for it. This massacre could potentially unite various rebel groups into the Alliance that eventually dismantles the Empire. However, it all started as a detail in an RPG from more than three decades ago.

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2025-04-30 04:02