Till was a Human male starfighter pilot who served as an ensign in the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War. He was killed during a routine patrol of the Dreighton Triangle when one of the Galactic Empire's new TIE Phantom starfighters used its cloaking device to take his flight group by surprise, damaging Commander Jenn's X-wing and causing her fighter to collide with his; both craft were destroyed in the ensuing explosion.

Biography[]

The Human male Till joined the Alliance to Restore the Republic as a starfighter pilot^[2] at some point around 3 ABY,^[1] holding the rank of ensign. He had yet to experience combat^[3] when, following the Battle of Hoth,^[1] he was assigned to a routine patrol mission around the Dreighton Triangle as part of a flight group of three T-65 X-wing starfighters led by Commander Jenn. Unbeknownst to the Rebel pilots, the Galactic Empire was using the region to conduct a series of tests of the new TIE Phantom, a starfighter fitted with a cloaking device that rendered it invisible to other vessels, using reports of unexplained events in the region ever since the Battle of Dreighton during the Clone Wars as a cover for their operations. The fighter group's initial pass failed to detect any signs of activity, and Jenn ordered one more pass before returning to base. However, mere seconds later, a TIE Phantom de-cloaked behind the commander's X-wing and opened fire on the group. The resulting damage to her stabilizers caused her to spin out of control toward Till's X-wing. Till was unable to get clear in time, and both fighters were destroyed, killing both pilots.^[2]

Personality and traits[]

During his time with the Alliance, Till was still young and inexperienced, with a tendency to talk a lot during tense situations. While serving with Jenn, Till developed a good friendship with his commander, who teased him frequently.^[3] When assigned to patrol the Dreighton Nebula, he expressed his concerns about the stories of ghost ships in the region to Jenn and hoped to return to base as soon as possible.^[2] Till had not experienced a combat situation prior to his final mission,^[3] and, due to the TIE Phantom's cloaking device, he died without even seeing his attacker.^[2][3]

Behind the scenes[]

Till was created for the 1995 LucasArts video game Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire, in which he appears during the opening cutscene. The character was portrayed in the game by actor Michael Aron.^[2]

Rebel Assault II designer Vincent Lee's storyboards and scripts document, dated November 16, 1994, included a brief description of Till.^[4] Though not included in the game or its manual,^[2] the biography was adapted for use on the LucasArts website,^[3] and the document was later printed in Rob Smith's Rogue Leaders: The Story of LucasArts.^[4] The online biography gives no indication of Till's age,^[3] but Lee's original notes placed the character in his early twenties. Lee also made notes on the people he thought symbolized each character in the game, choosing actor Woody Harrelson to represent Till. An early storyboard of the scene in which Till appears reveals that his flight group was originally called "Gamma patrol,"^[4] but the group was unnamed in the final game.^[2]

Props and costumes created for the original trilogy of Star Wars movies were used during the filming of Rebel Assault II.^[5] The flight helmet worn by Till—and by other pilots seen in the game—was one originally created for a Y-wing pilot in Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi.^[6]

Appearances[]

• Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire (First appearance)

Sources[]

• Rebel Assault II - Original Story on LucasArts.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
• Rogue Leaders: The Story of LucasArts
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia (Under Jenn, Commander)

Notes and references[]