Katuunko, King

• Appeared in:
  
  I
  II
  III
  IV
  V
  VI
  CW

• Homeworld:
  Toydaria

• Species:
  Toydarian

• Gender:
  Male

• Vehicle:
  Thief's Eye personal star yacht

• Affiliation:
  Neutral, though eventually allied to the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars.

• 

The monarch of Toydaria during the Clone Wars, he was skeptical at first of the Republic presence in Hutt Space afforded by the treaty forged between the Republic and Jabba the Hutt. He feared the inevitable strong arm tactics meant to sway his neutral world to either side of the spreading conflict. Katuunko shrewdly knew that Toydaria held an advantageous position along the spacelanes of Hutt territory, making it an attractive target to both Republic and Separatist interests. Such a valued placement also caused Toydaria to bear the brunt of raider and pirate attacks.

Seeking security, Katuunko leaned toward allying with the Republic, but he needed a show of faith as well as force. In a secret communiqu é with Chancellor Palpatine, he made it clear that he would not sign a treaty at the end of a blaster, or with clone forces floating overhead to pressure his decision-making. Palpatine agreed, and the two selected a neutral moon, Rugosa, to be the site of a diplomatic rendezvous.

Katuunko's curiosity also got the better of him; he had heard the tales of Jedi Knights, and always wanted to meet one in person. Knowing that Toydarians were naturally resistant to Jedi mind tricks, Katuunko trusted that a Jedi could not unfairly influence such negotiations.

Aboard the Thief's Eye, with minimal retinue, Katuunko arrived on the coral moon of Rugosa to await his Jedi diplomat. What he found instead was an envoy of Count Dooku: the assassin Asajj Ventress. The Confederacy had intercepted Katuunko's plans through their secret listening post at Ruusan, and plotted to ambush the Jedi mission before it even arrived. Banking Clan warships attacked the arriving Republic frigate, but the diplomatic team -- Jedi Master Yoda and a trio of clone troopers -- landed safely on Rugosa and made contact with the king.

Ventress proposed a deal: she would pit her droid battalions against Yoda. The victor would win Toydaria's allegiance. Katuunko had little choice but to comply, but he insisted that Ventress keep her word to give Yoda a fair chance. Time and again the droid forces confronted Yoda's small team, each time experiencing defeat. Yoda arrived safely at the rendezvous point, at which point Asajj -- under orders from Dooku -- attempted to kill Katuunko. Yoda stopped her in a display of Force that not only proved to Katuunko's the Jedi's power, but also the integrity of his character. He gladly allied his world to the Republic, and handed to Yoda a ceremonial sword of Toydaria.