

Han stuck with the Rebel Alliance, and helped establish its new base on the ice planet Hoth. They cleared the TIE fighters off Luke’s tail, and he delivered a precise shot, destroying the dreaded Death Star. Toward the battle’s end, with Luke about to be blasted by Darth Vader, Han and Chewie returned in the Millennium Falcon.


“I know what I’m doing,” he told Chewbacca. While the fledgling group was planning an attack on the Imperial outpost, Han collected a reward for rescuing the Princess and planned to leave - a decision that disappointed his new friends. They escaped to Yavin 4, location of the hidden Rebel base, and delivered stolen Death Star plans to the Alliance. On the Death Star, they rescued Princess Leia Organa - with whom Han bickered intensely - but lost Obi-Wan. It had been completely blown away by the Empire’s Death Star, and the Millennium Falcon was soon caught in the space station’s tractor beam.

On the trip, it became clear that Han didn’t believe in the Force, saying, “There's no mystical energy field that controls my destiny.” Finally, they arrived at Alderaan - or where Alderaan should have been. The group departed Tatooine, blasting their way out past Imperial stormtroopers who were searching for Luke’s droids. He later had a run in with the gangster himself, convincing Jabba to give him more time - though it would cost 15% extra. In a sit-down standoff at the Mos Eisley cantina, Han blasted Greedo, one of Jabba’s bounty hunters looking to collect a handsome sum for the Corellian. The smuggler was deep in debt to crime lord Jabba the Hutt, who had placed a bounty on his head. Han boasted that his starship, the Millennium Falcon, could make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs whether that was true is unknown, but he needed the job. Years later, the two were hired by Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker to provide passage to Alderaan. After his exploits on Kessel, Han won the Falcon from Lando in a game of sabacc, embarking on a smuggling career with Chewbacca.
