Cliffhold

"Place dried up once the spice convoys stopped running. Out here, we're just one of the millions of little backwaters no one cares about."

―Jaybo Hood, on Cliffhold's situation —

Listen (file info)^[2]

Cliffhold was a spaceport city that was built directly into the face of a cliff on the Outer Rim Territories world of Iego. Founded in the later years of the Galactic Republic, Cliffhold was used by smugglers as a center for spice production. Spice convoys eventually stopped running, but a number of residents remained in the city, managing their dilapidated home. During the Clone Wars, the Confederacy of Independent Systems discovered Iego and seized the world, but abandoned it soon afterward, leaving behind a number of defunct battle droids in Cliffhold. After the Separatists' departure, the people of Cliffhold were unable to leave the planet, as their vessels were repeatedly destroyed by a LaserWeb Defense Station that had been left behind by the Confederacy. The superstitious residents believed that it was instead a malevolent spirit called Drol that was preventing them from leaving.

Later in the war, the city was visited by Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi during their search for an antidote to the Blue Shadow Virus. The Jedi retrieved the antidote and attempted to leave Iego, but were stopped by the defense station. With the assistance of Cliffhold resident Jaybo Hood, the two freed Cliffhold from its fear of Drol by destroying the LaserWeb Defense grid. "Drol" returned once more when the IG-86 sentinel droid HELIOS-3D reactivated part of the laser grid and many of the abandoned Confederate forces in orbit of Iego. The people of Cliffhold contacted Kenobi and Skywalker for assistance, and the two again intervened and freed the planet.

Description[]

Cliffhold landing pads — The landing pads encircling Cliffhold

"A settlement was even founded on Iego—the perilous town of Cliffhold."

―A dossier on Iego found in an astrography publication^[1]

The settlement of Cliffhold was built directly into the face of one of Iego's cliffs.^[2] It was bordered on one side by tall spires of basalt^[3] and hung over a deep canyon formed by the bases of the surrounding cliff faces. Cliffhold's surface streets and pathways were made up of catwalks that connected the city's buildings to one another, as well as to the landing pads that encircled them. The buildings themselves were tall and rounded, reaching high above the catwalks and dipping far below them. All of the buildings were pointed at the top and bottom, and many sported Aurebesh graffiti tags.^[2] Some of the tags were dedicated to Cliffhold local Jaybo Hood, while others depicted battle droids and clone troopers; still others were little more than simple messages.^[3]

History[]

"Cursed we are! The planet is cursed!"
"Cursed by who, my twitchy friend?"
"The Ghost of Drol, that's who!"

―Amit Noloff and Obi-Wan Kenobi discuss Drol —

Listen (file info)^[2]

The city of Cliffhold was the first intentionally inhabited settlement on Iego. After ages of the near-mythical planet being populated by only stranded shipwreck survivors, smuggling groups finally discovered hyperspace routes that penetrated the Extrictarium Nebula in which Iego rested. The smugglers founded Cliffhold,^[1] which eventually became a hub for the production of illegal spice. Farmers grew their crops from the thin soil of Iego and brought their spice yield to the town, where it was collected before being shipped off-planet.^[4] The smuggling convoys that exported the spice from Cliffhold eventually ceased, leaving the city to join the rest of Iego in isolation.^[2]

Drol2 — The people of Cliffhold watch the activation of the LaserWeb Defense grid.

By the time the Clone Wars had begun, the leadership of the Confederacy of Independent Systems had learned of Iego and organized an invasion of the planet, intending to use it as a refuge should their war against the Galactic Republic go awry.^[1]^[5] The Confederate forces pushed the native Diathim from Iego's moons, forcing them to join the people of Cliffhold on the planet's surface. B1-Series battle droids and Vulture droids landed in the city, but soon, the Confederacy pulled out of Iego, leaving behind a warehouse of inactive droids in Cliffhold. Jaybo Hood, a Human resident of the town, claimed the droids for himself and worked to reprogram them for nine standard months. During that time, the residents of Cliffhold found themselves unable to leave Iego, with their ships being destroyed by a force unknown to them before they could make it past the planet's moons. The city's superstitious residents claimed that the ships were being destroyed by the Ghost of Drol,^[2] a malevolent spirit that was, unbeknownst to them, nothing more than a LaserWeb Defense Station left behind by the Confederacy in order to prevent anyone from leaving Iego.^[3]

In 21 BBY,^[5] Cliffhold was visited by Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker during their mission to recover an antidote to the Blue Shadow Virus in the form of reeksa root, which could only be found on Iego. The two were greeted by Hood and his reprogrammed battle droids before heading below the city to retrieve the root. The Jedi were successful and planned to leave Cliffhold immediately, but were warned by the local Quarren official Amit Noloff that they would be killed by Drol if they attempted to leave. Kenobi and Skywalker disregarded the warning and attempted to depart Iego, but were stopped by the activation of the LaserWeb Defense grid.^[2] Returning to Cliffhold, the two met with the town's citizens and the Iego council to inform them that it was not a ghost but rather a Confederate security system that was preventing them from leaving the planet.^[3] The townspeople were skeptical, but a Diathim refugee from Millius Prime reaffirmed the Jedi's suspicions and helped them to determine the defense system's primary node.^[2]

Using several of Hood's repurposed Vulture droids, the Jedi targeted and destroyed the primary node of the LaserWeb Defense System, causing a chain reaction that destroyed the entire grid. The skies above Cliffhold filled with a display of explosions, signifying the end of the reign of Drol and the liberation of the planet.^[2] Despite the Jedi's victory, Cliffhold and Iego once again fell under the influence of "Drol" shortly thereafter when the IG-86 sentinel droid HELIOS-3D used the planet as his refuge following an operation with the bounty hunter Cad Bane. The droid reactivated part of the defense grid in the Thicket, the debris field over Iego, and gathered together an army of previously abandoned battle droids. The people of Cliffhold attributed this latest anomaly to the "son of Drol" and attempted to probe the situation themselves by sending unmanned vessels into the Thicket. The vessels stopped transmitting upon reaching the Thicket, prompting Cliffhold to call the Republic for assistance. Kenobi and Skywalker were dispatched to the city and once again met with Hood, who briefed them on the situation. After a short battle with HELIOS-3D in the space over Iego, Cliffhold was again freed from "Drol" with the aid of Kenobi and Skywalker.^[6]

Inhabitants[]

"Citizens of Iego! Drol is not a ghost. Rather, it is a Separatist security system."
"Nonsense! You were lucky to escape alive, simple as that!"

―Obi-Wan Kenobi and Amit Noloff —

Listen (file info)^[2]

Due to its origins as a hub for spice production, Cliffhold was originally populated by farmers who sold their crops to the smugglers who would stop by the spaceport.^[4] The end of the spice trade meant the end of the town's prosperity; however, many residents remained to tend to their homes.^[2] The population of Cliffhold at this time also consisted of marooned spacers, some of whom had been driven mad by their captivity on the planet.^[4] A myriad of different sentient species inhabited the city, including Humans, Quarren, Ithorians, Nikto, and Rodians. The regions around and beneath the city were home to various non-sentient life forms as well, such as the Xandu and reeksa.^[2]

After the Confederate invasion, Cliffhold became home to an army of defunct battle droids. These droids were reactivated and redecorated by Jaybo Hood and became his personal servants. The invasion also brought Diathim to Cliffhold, as the Confederacy had forced these aliens, commonly known as "angels," from their home on Iego's moon of Millius Prime.^[2] The people of Cliffhold were governed by the Iego council during the Clone Wars.^[3]

Locations[]

Cliffhold meeting hall[]

Amit Noloff2 — Amit Noloff in the meeting hall

Main article: Cliffhold meeting hall

The Cliffhold meeting hall served as the gathering place for the Iego council. The council was called to session in the hall by Obi-Wan Kenobi upon his discovery that Drol was neither a ghost nor god, but rather a Separatist defense system. The meeting room itself was rounded and had a high ceiling. The council members met at a large, circular table at the center of the room.^[2]

Canyon floor[]

"Are you coming?"
"You gotta be kidding. No way I'm going down there."

―Obi-Wan Kenobi and Jaybo Hood^[2]

The canyon floor that lay directly beneath Cliffhold proper was a misty labyrinth that received little light from the skies above. The floor was home to a large reeksa plant that had spread its roots and vines far up the canyon walls. Xandu inhabited the walls of the canyon itself, and both creatures were avoided by the people of Cliffhold. During Kenobi and Skywalker's first mission to Iego, the Jedi descended into the canyon with the aid of a Xandu before being attacked by the reeksa. Skywalker retrieved the reeksa's root, and the two escaped the canyon unharmed.^[2]

Behind the scenes[]

Cliffhold was first introduced in the eighteenth episode of the first season of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series. The episode, titled "Mystery of a Thousand Moons," used Cliffhold as its primary setting. In addition to several The Clone Wars source books, the city was mentioned in The Essential Atlas in 2009.

The design of the city itself was based on work by concept artist Doug Chiang done for Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace.^[3] According to Series Director Dave Filoni, Cliffhold and Iego were intended to give an off-beat and whimsical look at the Star Wars universe, much like Jabba's Palace did in Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi.^[7]

One of the buildings in Cliffhold is adorned with an Aurebesh marquee reading "KRISTAL SKULL," an obvious reference to the fourth film in George Lucas's Indiana Jones franchise, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.^[3]