Katuunko

Katuunko was a male Toydarian who ruled as the king of the planet Toydaria in Hutt Space. During the Clone Wars, Katuunko was approached by Senator Bail Prestor Organa and Representative Jar Jar Binks of the Galactic Republic during their mission to deliver relief supplies to the contested world of Ryloth in the Outer Rim Territories. Although Katuunko wished to help the planet's starving Twi'lek population, he was unable to formally support a Republic intervention force due to his planet's reliance on the Trade Federation, a corporation with ties to the Confederacy of Independent Systems. In an effort to both aid the Twi'leks and maintain the facade of neutrality, Katuunko allowed for relief supplies to be covertly shuttled to Ryloth via Toydaria. As Federation officials had no evidence of the king's complicity in the operation, Toydaria was allowed to remain neutral, but Katuunko decided that it was time for his people to ally themselves with one of the warring factions, so that his planet might be safe from other threats. He was soon contacted by the Republic's Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, who requested that the Grand Army of the Republic be permitted to use Toydaria as a supply base and staging ground in their war against the Confederacy. Katuunko proposed that negotiations between himself and a Republic envoy take place on Rugosa, a neutral moon near Toydaria.

On Rugosa, Katuunko and the Toydarian royal delegation were greeted not by a Republic representative, but instead by Dark Acolyte Asajj Ventress of the Confederacy. While Ventress proposed an alliance between the king and the Confederacy, the Jedi Order's Grand Master Yoda and several clone troopers arrived at Rugosa but were forced to land on the moon in an escape pod after their ship was attacked by Confederate frigates. Although Ventress claimed the attack was proof of the Confederacy's superiority, Katuunko still wished to meet with Yoda, and so agreed to a challenge set forth by Ventress. If her troops were able to capture Yoda before he could reach the king, Toydaria would join the Confederacy; however, if Yoda managed to evade Ventress and her droids, the king would pledge his alliance to the Republic. While Yoda and his small force of clone troopers trekked across the coral moon of Rugosa, Katuunko became increasingly disturbed with Ventress's tactics and dishonesty, and eventually rejected the Confederacy's offer. Yoda and the troopers arrived just in time to prevent the Dark Acolyte from assassinating the king, which led the grateful Katuunko to promised his unwavering service to the Republic. Confederate Head of State Count Dooku held Katuunko in contempt for his decision to support the Jedi, and so dispatched his new apprentice, Savage Opress, to Toydaria to capture the king alive shortly after the Battle of Sullust. However, Opress disobeyed his Master and instead killed Katuunko by crushing his throat when the Toydarian king attempted to escape. When Dooku discovered this, he was extremely furious with Opress.

Text and facts from the “Katuunko/Legends” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.