Star Wars Expanded Universe Timeline Latest News

5/27/20 Site Update

Broke up Lords of the Sith to fit "Orientation" in between, and moved "Mercy Mission" to 13 BBY. Having just finished reading Lords of the Sith, I can add that it's safe to place in the context of the Expanded Universe. Paul S. Kemp generally writes a good story. This is no exception, although it feels more like a short story that's been padded out a bit, which may be because it takes place in one setting, Ryloth, or because the supporting cast are pretty nondescript, but, by and large, the main cast of Vader, Palpatine, Cham Syndulla, Isval, Mors, and Belkor make up for it, and it's interesting seeing Vader and the Emperor on a dangerous mission together. I thought it a bit of a missed opportunity that Kemp didn't use all the destruction above and on Ryloth to show how that world became the tide-locked, non-rotating one established earlier in the EU, as this would've been a potential opportunity to retcon the one seen in The Clone Wars to the one described in The Essential Atlas (and other sources).

5/25/20 Site Update

Thanks to Aaron, I added The Force Unleashed II: Cloning Tank (Lucasarts.com), which is an interactive game that had been available on their website. Unfortunately it's lost, as are a number of other Star Wars flash games from the early 2000s. This is a problem. When you have lore that is exclusive to games that become obsolete, that lore becomes lost. This is a situation Lucasfilm should never have allowed. The lore should be published in another forum, whether that's in the Prima Guide, or in a short story, novel, comic-book, whatever. There are fans who are deeply interested in the story, and when even a small part of that story vanishes, it's frustrating. And there's no reason for it. If you can't ensure that you'll keep the game from going obsolete, then at least see to it that the story is published in some other way.

5/23/20 The Godform Assumption of StarCrow the Wise!

At long last, Michael K. Brennan's illustrated epic poem is here! If you recall mention of Solomites and StarCrow in Supernatural Encounters, this is where that comes from! Due to the fonts and layout, it's only available as a PDF, which you can access with the introduction here.

5/22/20 Escape from Auren, not Aaron, and More Goodies!

Thanks again to Aaron for pointing out the Droids 1988 video game is not "Escape from Aaron" but "Escape from Auren." The written prologue, for those who can't play obsolete games on the ZX Spectrum or Commodore 64, gives us the basic story premise, and it is up here! If you're a MAME enthusiast, I do believe there's a ROM of the game out there.

I've also added the nine Recovered Messages from the Imperial Prison Barge Purge for your reading pleasure.

Finally, everyone's been asking me about the Clone Wars and Star Wars UK comics from Titan Magazine. They're up here until I hear they're going to be reprinted, which hopefully Marvel will at some point. Vol 6 and Vol 7. Enjoy!

Addendum: Thanks to Ryan Winters for pointing out that the "Design an Alien" article from Star Wars Galaxy Magazine #9 could be dated to early in Yoda's life (we now know, thanks to The Mandalorian, it's obviously after he was 50 years old!) I've put it circa 820 BBY.

5/21/20 Happy 40th TESB and Site Update

The Empire Strikes Back debuted in the U.S. today 40 years ago in 1980! How time flies!

I wanted to briefly revisit and expand on Scoundrels, which I started but didn't finish on the 18th. I moved Scoundrels (and its associated stories) a little further up in time, but that doesn't quite work, so I'm moving it later, by "World of Fire." Contextually, it reads like it takes place shortly after Han loses the reward money to Crimson Jack and is a looking for a way to make money to pay him off. This would a very short time after the Battle of Yavin. One problem is that he says that Leia doesn't know that happened because if she did, she'd give him one of those looks. But, of course, he knows she's aware of it, since she was also kidnapped by Crimson Jack a short time later. I guess it can argued that he didn't tell her THAT part. Ok, but compounding the chronology problem is the conversation Han and Winter have, in which she's noted to have replaced the Millennium Falcon's escape pod (jettisoned prior to being brought aboard the Death Star) seven months ago, placing this story long after the Battle of Yavin, and leaving Winter without knowing if Leia was alive or dead for a bit longer than seems plausible. But it's a big galaxy. The story is less intrusive in that time slot than the earlier one, and because Jabba raises Han's bounty to a million credits, the later date is really the way to go.

It's nice to see Zahn play in the larger Expanded Universe, referencing things like Crimson Jack (by event rather than name), Jaxxon (by race), the Yavin Vassilika, and Bidlo Kwerve (establishing his recent death, which was an investigation I'd had some time back that I'll have to reopen). There's not a lot of it, but given Zahn was more known for sticking to his own creations (and Stackpole's), it's good to see him adjust and work in the context of the larger EU, which helps make the whole thing feel like it's a living history.

The problem with Scoundrels is that it doesn't much feel like a Star Wars book. Take away the names and you have an Oceans-11 story, which can be fun, but this one is a bit of a chore to get through as it's overwritten and detail-heavy. If you like these kinds of capers and heist-stories and don't mind excessively long buildup, you might want to check it out.

5/20/20 Site Update

Thanks to Ryan Winters, who did some research on the subject, I took Tartakovsky's Clone Wars: episode 21 (second segment) out of Infinities and placed it after Jedi Trial. It works!

Also thanks to Aaron Sawyer for letting me know of the existence of four Ewoks adaptations published in the UK by Dragon Books (who also published four Droids adaptations)!

5/18/20 Site Update

See 5/21/20

5/11/20 Sith Update

Thanks to Ryan Winters for informing that The Jedi Path was missing from the timeline! I'm sure it was there at some point, but who knows?! At any rate, it's back now, and placed where it takes place according to Dan Wallace, in 990 BBY.

5/11/20 Site Update

Thanks again to Alex Payne for his keen vision in noticing that a chapters in the the Republic Commando: Order 66 book weren't quite where they should be. The Prologue is now at the end of 21 BBY, and Chapter 2 is now at the start of 20 BBY. I've said it before and I'll say it again: this site could not be what it is without all the help you guys have given over the years!

By the way, these changes are as of now only being made to the Complete Saga page. I will eventually transfer them over to the individual pages, but not until I'm confident that most of the problems have been identified and corrected.

Addendum: After trying to see if it could fit into the EU, I've added Heir to the Jedi to Infinities. With these three books, what was intended as standalone titles in the Empire and Rebellion trilogy, there's little connection to the larger universe, save perhaps in one small aspect of Razor's Edge, in which Princess Leia uses the alias Leia Durane when going undercover, which seems to be a pretty cool callback to Giles Durane, her weapons master from the old Marvel series.

I found the first two-thirds of Razor's Edge good, though the last third was hard to get through. As with Honor Among Thieves, the villain is nondescript. Contrast this to someone like Captain-Supervisor Grammel from Splinter of the Mind's Eye, who to this day stands out amongst scummy Imperials. One could argue the whole point is the banality of evil and that the Empire's real horror was that it was run by administrators who just followed orders (and that story can certainly be told), but I find in this case that he's just under-written. On the other hand, I find the action scenes are overwritten, which makes them difficult to get through. Quoting from thewritelife.com: "This can be a real problem for science fiction, historical fiction and fantasy writers. An intricate backstory can create a riveting universe for your story, but you can risk alienating your readers. If you spend too much time explaining historical context or write exhaustive passages explaining the inner workings of various pieces of technology, you’re going to leave the reader behind."

Heir to the Jedi had different issues. Luke saying he's never heard Ben Kenobi speak to him since Yavin is problematic. In the stories I've edited, I always flag dialogue from main character who say things like "I've never done" this or that. With an ongoing series, it's easy for editors to forget such lines, and inevitably stories crop up in which the same character who said "I've never done this" ends up doing that very thing, and probably doing it well or multiple times, at a time prior to the story where he claims never to have done it.

Another problem is that Luke and his love-interest are overly casual about his identity as the guy who blew up the Death Star, which in both the EU and DU, was a big deal that had Vader going across the galaxy several times over to discover that name. This is part of Luke feeling out-of-character, just as he did in Tim Zahn's novel Allegiance. Luke may be a little green, but these authors wrote him like he's never seen the outside of a barn. ;) Granted, Luke's not sophisticated like Leia, or world-weary like Han, but he's hardly a "hee-haw" country bumpkin either!

5/8/20 Site Update

Thanks again to Alex Payne for detecting anomalies in my placement of certain Clone Wars comics, specifically the appearance of Phase One Clone armor, I've moved Clone Wars Adventures: Volume 4: "Another Fine Mess," "The Brink," Volume 5: "Heroes on Both Sides," and Volume 10: "Thunder Road" and "Waiting" to early in 20 BBY. Conversely, Vol 10: "Chain of Command" was moved to in between episodes 16 and 17 of Season 5.

I'm aware of the contradiction between the flashback events in the book Ahsoka and the final episode of The Clone Wars. When I have time again, I'll explore these in greater depth, as well as work out a chronology that makes sense of Anakin and Obi-Wan's whereabouts during that time frame, taking into account Labyrinth of Evil, Reversal of Fortune, TCW: Season 7, and Tartakovsky's misbegotten third season of the Clone Wars.

5/5/20 May the Fourth/Revenge of the Fifth!

Hope everyone enjoyed their Star Wars celebrations at home with the excellent conclusion of The Clone Wars and debut of the Mandalorian documentary! Here at the Star Wars Expanded Universe Timeline, we're hard at work on the extended edition of Supernatural Encounters, as well as site updates, the most recent including the addition to Infinities with Heavy Metal magazine's March 1985 parody "Rock Opera II."

5/2/20 Site Update

Thanks to Aaron Sawyer, I added some RPG material from Star Wars Adventures Magazine (Scholastic) to their appropriate places. There's a LOT more RPG adventures to add, but I don't have the time as of yet! Also, thanks to Alex Payne, I moved the Clone Wars Magazine issue 50 stories, "The Runaway Ride" and "Coruscant Holonet" to shortly after Clone Wars: Gambit due to the Clone's use of Phase 1 armor.

4/29/20 Site Update

Moved the Clone Wars Magazine issue 42: "The Collector" to shortly after Clone Wars: Gambit. Thanks to Alex Payne for the heads-up!

4/28/20 Site Update: Honor Among Thieves

I moved Honor Among Thieves (and its associated short story "Silver and Scarlet") to 7 months ABY. This is a tougher book to place, in large part because it feels disconnected to the larger universe, a situation we also saw Dark Horse do with Brian Wood's infamous Star Wars series. The characterizations are good, particularly Han's, but it does take you out of the story to see a Noghri at a time when they were supposed to be confined to their world and unknown to the larger galaxy. We're introduced to old friends of Han who we've never met before and it would've been better had the authors chosen one of Han's many old companions. If the K'kybak been the Rakata or Esh-kha, if Scarlet Hark had been Platt Okeefe, if Baasen Rey been Rik Duel, then I think the stakes would've been higher.

Chronology-wise, the book is hard to place because Han is struggling with his role in the Rebellion, something we saw also in Allegiance (though it's admittedly handled much better here), and Han is acting as if the Death Star destruction only recently happened. Yet, they're off Yavin base, which means the Death Star was destroyed at least six months earlier. The authors do mention Han' having adventures with Luke and Leia, but they're general references that make it seem as if those stories were just milk-runs. Also, the Alliance hasn't yet chosen Hoth as their destination, which is a slight change from the Star Wars newspaper strips in which it seemed there was no question that that was where they were going to set-up shop, but that's workable.

Others have commented that the story feels low-key instead of grand, and that may be in part because the villains are either a faceless Imperial threat, or bland like Baasen Rey. It all combines to leave the last of the EU books with a whimper instead of a bang.

4/27/20 The Adventurer's Journal

Missing West End Games and the Star Wars Adventure Journal? Miss it no more! Brian L. Bird and his team of writers, editors, and graphic designers have been creating NEW material free as PDFs called The Adventurer's Journal, which will total 15 issues with new content, including RPG adventures, short stories, supplements, NPCs, maps, and much more! There's even a new RPG supplements book, with plans for cleaner versions of the unpublished issues 16-18! Check all that out and the current four issues here, and join their Facebook page here!

RPGAs

I wanted to thank Aaron Sawyer for providing us with some lost and very hard-to-find RPGAs from the early days of WOTC. I haven't made of any of these available as of yet, since I just have the time right now and am also hoping some more will be discovered, but I will in the coming year.

4/25/20 The Wrath of Darth Maul

In honor of the recent Darth Maul episode in The Clone Wars Season 7, I've added those titles, which at this point are really just best-guess estimates as to when exactly they occur during Revenge of the Sith, as well as the chronological chapter breakdown of The Wrath of Darth Maul, which is entirely thanks to Alex Payne, who put it together for us!

More Site Updates

Thanks are also due to Danni Scarpa who informed me that Clone Wars: Gambit references the events of The Clone Wars Season 1 episodes, "Jedi Crash" and "Defenders of the Peace," which have now been moved to reflect that!

4/21/20 Han Solo Books and Site Update

The latter first, put X-Wing: Mercy Kill, chapters 1, 12, and 17 into their appropriate time-slots; added the unpublished Ryder Windham Droids sketch to before the published Apple Jacks Droids sketch in 1 ABY, where it's been moved (figuring that the Tatooine trip all happened around that time around Mystery of the Rebellious Robot and Tales #4's "Spare Parts."

I've also added the four Hungarian Han Solo books to the timeline, which relates to the next topic. As posted on this site's Facebook page earlier today, there is a new development in the translation of the these books!

For those of you hearing about this for the first time, long story short: these were four books set after the Brian Daley series, written exclusively in Hungary in the early '90s by Dale Avery (Nyulászi Zsolt) and Ed Fisher (Gáspár András), published by Valhalla, who were the leading sci-fi/fantasy publisher in the country and had been doing official Hungarian translations of the Thrawn books, Han Solo trilogy, and Splinter of the Mind's Eye. While Avery believed this was an official Lucasfilm publication, and had worked as Daley's Hungarian translator, in fact, Lucasfilm only later acquired the rights from Valhalla for these books, making them official after the fact, likely because they were very well-received in that country and diligently followed continuity!

Unfortunately, they never got an English translation. Obsessed as I am about lost EU works, I took it upon myself to find a translator, and after a few starts and stops*, I believe I have!

It's too early to make any kind of official announcement, as the translator is yet early in the process, but I wanted to mention it because I have a good feeling about this! All I can say now is that I'll be serving as proofreader/editor, and that we're both determined to make this a reality for the fans.

I'll keep you guys up-to-date as we get closer to the completion of the first book.

* Just an addendum to say there's absolutely no hard feelings towards any previous translators. Life happens.

4/15/20 Site Update

Thanks again to Alex Payne, I moved several Clone Wars comics to more chronologically-appropriate places. This includes "Slaves of the Republic," "Suited," and "Mandalorian Memories"! I also moved the public service announcement ("Danger! Mystery Infection on Geonosis") to between episodes 7 and 8 of The Clone Wars: Season 2.

4/7/20 Site Update

Thanks again to Harry Thornton for catching Children of the Jedi being a year too early! Not sure how that happened, but it's fixed and in 12 ABY where it belongs! :)

4/6/20 Jedi Fallen Order

Thanks to Harry Thornton for reminding me to place Jedi: Fallen Order and its comic-book series! You'll find them in 14 BBY.

4/4/20 Site Update

Thanks to Alex Payne, I moved The Clone Wars Magazine story "The Only Good Clanker" to BEFORE The Clone Wars, Season 3, episode 12, due to the fact that Asajj is still working for Dooku.

4/1/20 Updated Gamemaster Guide

Just wanted to give a shout-out to David Sell for providing us with the missing page 4 of the Lords of the Expanse: Gamemaster Guide! Download it here: Gamemaster Guide

You can find additional fan-made RPG sourcebooks, supplements, adventures here!

3/20/20 Infinities Addition

Due to the fact that Greg Rucka's Smuggler's Run: A Han Solo & Chewbacca Adventure has the Alliance leaving Yavin 4 immediately after the Battle of Yavin, which contradicts the EU version of events, which has them staying there for at least six months, it's been placed in Infinities.

3/18/20 TOR Updates

Thanks to Alex Payne, I added two additional TOR short-stories that I'd missed: "The Search for Oricon" and "Lana Benikos' Journal: Darth Arkous" to 3639 and 3638 BBY respectively. There's some additional stories that need to be added as soon as we figure out exactly where they go.

3/9/20 Shuffling (update)

The 0 year ABY has gotten some shuffling in order to accommodate the Marvel 2015 series, Star Wars, Darth Vader, Vader Rising, Lando, Chewbacca, and Doctor Aphra.

The 2015-on Marvel series has been surprisingly free of contradictions with the Expanded Universe stories in this time-frame, not entirely, but enough to allow them to be placed. I say surprisingly because the Dark Horse 2013 series—which was supposed to be in continuity with the Expanded Universe—was far more problematic (for which reason it currently sits in Infinities). These Marvel stories are generally self-contained, and well-written, though they do require some adjustments.

The Doctor Aphra series required shifting the Alan Moore story "Blind Fury" (from Marvel UK #159) to the earlier (now in 7-12 months ABY period), which is no problem as that story is free to be moved any time after the Battle of Yavin and before the Battle of Hoth. Due to the fact that Leia is shown swimming in issue #34, Star Wars #21-on and Doctor Aphra stories have to be placed after Splinter of the Mind's Eye (where Leia says she can't swim, a statement that isn't challenged by Luke). It's either that, or place SOTME earlier in the 1 ABY time-frame, which itself wouldn't be problematic. In either case, Leia learns to swim.

Due to various continuity conflicts, Princess Leia has been placed in Infinities.

Added Han Solo, but the placement can be in several places post-evacuation, pre-Hoth. Similarly, Star Wars Annual #3 could fit in several places prior to Luke's discovery of Hoth in the newspaper strips.

As regards Darth Vader's discovery of Luke Skywalker as the destroyer of the Death Star, it seems reasonable that Vader would triple-check the information to ensure its veracity, allowing readers to better understand why there are three instances in which Vader gathers this intel—the original Marvel series (issue #35), Vader's Quest, and Darth Vader #6/Star Wars #6.

As regards the existence of the Super Star Destroyer, the Executor, there were numbers SSDs created at the time. Either the Executor was built or rebuilt and/or upgraded at Kuat, Scarl, and Fondor, or there's an Executor I and an Executor II. Keep in mind too that The Force Unleashed had the Executor in existence three years prior to its appearance at the Starship Yards of Fondor in the Goodwin newspaper strips.

For those puzzled as to why the post-Disney buyout titles would be included on a Star Wars EU timeline, the Complete Saga page follows the "One Canon" approach, which permits any story that reasonably fits into the Expanded Universe on the timeline. For purists, the other pages on this site remain free of post-2013 stories.

3/4/20 Site Update

Added the five part Lando comic-book series to the 7-12 months after Episode IV: A New Hope period.

This takes place after "Lady Luck" (Tales #3), which I have placed in the 1-6 month period (earlier than the placement given it on other timelines), to account for the fact that Lando met Lobot around the time he won Cloud City. As with the latter story, it could take place later (or earlier for that matter).

1/23/20 Site Updates

Moved Master & Apprentice to before Jedi Apprentice #17 for continuity (Valorum) and thematic (Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon's relationship) reasons. Thanks to Alex Payne for catching that!

Also added the forthcoming The Clone Wars Season 7 to the timeline, in the knowledge that the four unfinished "Legacy" episodes, starting with "The Bad Batch" will appear in that seasons in their completed forms.

1/21/20 Batch of Interviews

The final batch of interviews with Doug McCausland is up, and includes Mike Stackpole, James Luceno, Christie Golden, and Kathy Tyers! Find them all here!

1/20/20 The Mandalorian is Up

All eight episodes are listed in 9 ABY (on the "Complete Saga" page only), placed prior to the return of Thrawn in Heir to the Empire.

1/14/20 Interview with Dave Wolverton!

Next up in our EU interview series with Doug McCausland is author Dave Wolverton! Check it out here!

1/6/20 Interviews for the New Year

Today I was interviewed by my friend Matt Wilkins for his Princes of the Universe podcast on Youtube! We had a blast as we always do when we talk Star Wars!

Additionally, I'm starting a new section on the Archives for interviews with Star Wars Expanded Universe authors. These were all conducted by writer, Star Wars fan, and all-around great guy, Doug McCausland! We start off with an in-depth interview with Kevin J. Anderson, and one that's going really to appeal to Expanded Universe fans because the interviewer asks the kinds of questions that readers want to know! Check it out here! There will be more coming down the pike!

Finally, I've updated my email address on here. I'd forgotten how when I switched hosting companies, the old one wouldn't work. But if you find any that still don't, drop me a line here. Thanks to Noam Nederby Jessen for the heads up!