Faction Lore: Czerka

The Czerka Corporation is very well known to fans of Knights of the Old Republic. The company played large parts in both games, always serving as the epitome of corporate corruption. Thanks to the HoloNet, we know that Czerka left its mark under the sands of Tatooine, but what they worked on remains a mystery. We know from general lore that Czerka does not simply fade away after Knights of the Old Republic 2, and records of its actions and examples of its equipment in stories during and after the Galactic Empire tell us that it should certainly be alive and kicking during the Cold War. Read on for a little bit of history, and you'll see why we believe Czerka will play a large part in Star Wars: The Old Republic.





The Czerka Corporation is a galaxy-spanning corporate arms dealer. Active since the early days of the Galactic Republic, they are known for their corrupt business practices, exploitation, and extermination of indigenous species on remote planets. In most conflicts involving the Sith and the Republic, Czerka has universally sided with the Sith, although on numerous occasions they have been known to weasel their way back into the Republic should the opportunity for profit present itself.

The Czerka Corporation is credited with the initial discovery of Kashyyyk, dubbing the planet G5-623, or Edean as it came to be known by stockholders. The company quickly embedded itself within the Wookiee tribal society, and started the Wookiee slave trade. The company would establish chieftains with the help of Czerka munitions and mercenaries, and in return the puppet leaders would provide Czerka with slaves. During this time, Czerka was also responsible for hunting many native Kashyyyk species to near extinction, such as the tach. Thanks to the actions of a reformed Revan, the chieftains were dethroned and Czerka was eventually driven off of the planet.

Czerka next set its sights on Telos IV, hoping to profit off of the reconstruction efforts after the planet was nearly destroyed during the Jedi Civil War. Czerka supplied workers and equipment in exchange for the rights to pillage the ruined planet of salvageable equipment. The company clashed with the Ithorian clan managing the restoration, and utilized its connections with the Exchange to commandeer several restoration zones on the planet. Thanks to the influence of the Jedi Exile during her visit to Telos IV, Czerka's operations were halted and their control over the restoration project was severed.



Czerka also had a substantial interest in the ore beneath Tatooine's sands. The company started many small mining installations on the planet's surface, Anchorhead being the most prominent. The company was dismayed to learn that the "valuable" Tatooine ore that it sought after was a mirage, corroding not long after it had been mined, making it useless for long-term construction projects. Czerka soon abandoned its mining operations, however Tatooine's harsh climate and remote location made it perfect for the company's secret weapons division. Several underground facilities were built for testing purposes, but for unknown reasons, Czerka simultaneously abandoned all of its operations on Tatooine.



Not much is known about the internal structure of Czerka, as they tend to be very secretive about their operations. The head of the organization is the President, and several corporate officers were seen in both Knights of the Old Republic games. Employees seem to have a very autonomous relationship with the company, for example Dern, a patrol officer, was allowed to poach tach within the Shadowlands of Kashyyyk, seemingly at the company's behest.

Czerka is not at all beneath allying itself with other shady organizations. The company has known ties to the Exchange, as well as the Sith, even alongside their dealings with the Republic. Czerka tends to go where the profit is, even without regard to the galaxy and its inhabitants. Perhaps one reason for their continued existence even beyond the Galactic Empire era is their willingness to set morality aside to turn a profit.



The Czerka Corporation served as an important antagonist faction in both Knights of the Old Republic games, and we know their products are still around during the Galactic Empire era thanks to Boba Fett's Czerka ZX Miniature Flame Projector. It is entirely probable that Czerka would align itself with the Sith once again during the Great War and provide many of the Sith army's weapons and equipment. It is also possible that much of the Bounty Hunter and Imperial Agent equipment may be Czerka branded.



Thanks to Tatooine's holonet page, we know Czerka was very active on the planet before the Great War, conducting secret experiments in underground bases. For unknown reasons, the company quickly abandoned their efforts and left their facilities unmanned. According to the HoloNet, the Sith Empire is well aware of Czerka's undertakings on Tatooine and is actively uncovering their secrets. Czerka also appears to have a foothold on Nal'hutta, seemingly poaching indigenous species as they did on Kashyyyk. The Bounty Hunter and Imperial Agent story lines involve a mission from Nem'ro the Hutt that requires them to kill a Czerka employee. Perhaps their animosity is an extension of the war between the Exchange and the Hutts on Nar Shaddaa.

Comments

  • MechaGodzilla's avatar
    Dark Lord
    • Posts: 274
    #15 MechaGodzilla Posted 8/11/2010 9:29:12 PM
    possible Umbrella Corporation similarities?
  • Keegan-Vol's avatar
    Spice Runner
    • Posts: 123
    #13 Keegan-Vol Posted 8/5/2010 8:38:44 PM
    so here is a thought....the jawas end up "obtaining" the sand crawlers from czerka after they leave the planet in the later years of the lore, and it has been guessed at that czerka did some really shady deals and or illegal experiments under the sand. So im thinking we may be able to find out one way or the other what czerka was up too. And maybe some previously unknown information about jawas and or the raiders or the skywalker bloodline ....we may find out where it started. wouldnt it be strange if they were previously a czerka employee. Not sure if it started thousands of years before episode 4 but it is nice to speculate. If anyone can add to this it would be great.
  • Darthrauch's avatar
    Nerf Herder
    • Posts: 14
    #16 Darthrauch Posted 8/15/2010 12:09:32 AM
    HK-47 Talked Sand people. U was able to get how they was a Great race before the Invaders came and toke them as slaves and turned there once green planet into the Barren waste it is today. This is why the sand people attack any outsider other then sand people. They have never wrote anything down,only the Great elder of each tribe was allowed to tell the story. Any mistake in the telling or retelling other then the elder was instant Death. This was a Long I mean LONG read in KotOR and a Hard fought thing to get all this info out of them. But Well worth it.
  • Siros's avatar
    Dark Councilor
    • Posts: 838
    #11 Siros Posted 8/5/2010 9:27:59 AM
    Sounds like Eraser.... weaponbased company which does some secret stuff underground
  • sado's avatar
    Dark Councilor
    • Posts: 1,754
    #14 sado Posted 8/6/2010 6:27:26 AM
    Way to bring back up that horribad movie =\
  • mahzic17's avatar
    Nerf Herder
    • Posts: 4
    #9 mahzic17 Posted 8/5/2010 3:39:03 AM
    thanks for the insight!!!
  • darthuser178's avatar
    Spice Runner
    • Posts: 122
    #6 darthuser178 Posted 8/4/2010 8:20:39 PM
    PLOT SPOILERS:

    The Imperial Agent storyline begins with you nearly dying in an attack on your starship. You are resuscitated by members of the Czerka Corporation and their mysterious but wealthy CEO, the Evasive Man, who challenges with a near impossible mission to protect the galaxy from a powerful force that is amassing in the outer regions of space. Before you are able to confront this ultimate mission, you must first traverse the galaxy and recruit multiple companions to assist you in your endeavors. The Czerka Corporation will give you access to your own spacecraft that you may use on your journey.

    As you can see, all of these plot details align really well with the information that has been released by Bioware about TOR.
  • Netru's avatar
    Nerf Herder
    • Posts: 7
    #12 Netru Posted 8/5/2010 3:36:09 PM
    Thats the plot for Mass Effect 2......
  • Darthrauch's avatar
    Nerf Herder
    • Posts: 14
    #17 Darthrauch Posted 8/15/2010 12:14:35 AM
    LMao yes that is word for word. But u got to admit that is Funny.
  • SandRock87's avatar
    Jawa Trader
    • Posts: 90
    #5 SandRock87 Posted 8/4/2010 8:06:15 PM
    Perhaps their underground facilities are HK assassin droid facilities gone wrong :P
  • ArcherAvatar's avatar
    Dark Councilor
    • Posts: 554
    #8 ArcherAvatar Posted 8/5/2010 2:36:25 AM
    @ Raul
    great... now I have to change my clothing...

    From your mouth to BioWare's ears... let it be so. That would be incredibly awesome!

    Perhaps this was hinted at by Daniel Erickson when he was asked about the possibility of running into HK 47 and he replied something to the effect of "if you go "deep" enough you may run across him."
  • MechaGodzilla's avatar
    Dark Lord
    • Posts: 274
    #2 MechaGodzilla Posted 8/4/2010 1:00:20 PM
    there's another possible one Lethal, it's Death Claws I believe. it's the name of a place, forget where I read it, but I sounded like a criminal org.

    also, good article. go Czerka supporting the Sith
  • LethalSharpshooter's avatar
    Spice Runner
    • Posts: 130
    #1 LethalSharpshooter Posted 8/4/2010 7:23:43 AM
    Nice article.

    So, we know that there's at least 4 big criminal organisations that will play a part in TOR:
    The Hutt Cartel, the Exchange, Czerka Corporation and Black Sun.
  • Xavier's avatar
    Dark Councilor
    • Posts: 504
    #3 Xavier Posted 8/4/2010 1:57:00 PM
    Yeah, but Czerka has a more "legitimate" public face then the other 3. Czerka is a public company with a very shady side. The Hutts, Exchange, and Black Sun are out and out criminals. They don't hide it.
  • LethalSharpshooter's avatar
    Spice Runner
    • Posts: 130
    #4 LethalSharpshooter Posted 8/4/2010 4:56:48 PM
    Good point.
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