Mix Liddell, born a male Mon Calamari, spent his early career as a harpooner for Bartyn Gourmet Delicacies. Later, from 69 BBY to 29 BBY, he became the Security Chief in the coastal settlement of Bartyn's Landing on the planet Lamaredd.
His appointment as Chief stemmed from the attacks led by the Dark Jedi outlaw, The Padawan, whom Liddell eventually captured. As constable, Liddell gained fame for his fairness and exceptional marksmanship, winning the annual Landing Shootout ten times, an undefeated record upon his retirement. Furthermore, he played a central role in the events surrounding the resurgence of the believed-extinct Menahuun species. Subsequently, capitalizing on his local popularity, Liddell resigned from his position to pursue a career in politics.
Liddell enjoyed popularity among his comrades and respect even from some adversaries, including The Padawan, although Guther Bartyn, the local major, wasn't always pleased with Liddell's actions. He relied on his trusted second-in-command and representative, Grubber Vapps, and was known to sail with the local doctor, MD-0C6. Liddell also maintained a romantic relationship of sorts with Miss Mylla, who managed a local entertainment house.
Born around 95 BBY in Bartyn's Landing, a coastal town on Lamaredd, Mix Liddell was a male Mon Calamari.
Initially, he worked aboard the trawler Swilla as a harpooner, belonging to the Sailor's Union. Around 69 BBY, at age twenty-six, Liddell left the boat to become one of the Seconds under the local Security Chief, Ertine. Because the job was technically associated with Outer Rim Oreworks, conflicting with the Sailor's Union, Liddell relinquished his union membership.
While Liddell was still a rookie, Bartyn's Landing and its surroundings, including farms and sea routes, were attacked by a gang of outlaws, rumored to be led by a lightsaber-wielding dark Jedi known only as "The Padawan." Ertine, accompanied by his four Seconds, including Liddell, tracked the gang to their hideout. The Padawan, actually Byrch Dyshkava, a fallen Jedi, anticipated Ertine's arrival and ambushed the Chief and his Seconds. After a brief fight, they retreated, believing they had killed everyone.
Liddell, severely injured, survived and returned to Bartyn's Landing, where he received treatment in the bacta tank of the local doctor, MD-0C6. Subsequently, the town council convened and unanimously elected Liddell as the new Security Chief.
Liddell quickly accepted the position. He appointed several former sailors as Seconds, including Grubber Vapps, and enlisted the aid of trusted citizens to set a trap for Dyshkava, including a farmer who offered his land as the battlefield. Liddell then lured Dyshkava's gang and ambushed them, securing a decisive victory. Most of the outlaws were either killed or captured, and Dyshkava himself was apprehended. The Padawan was imprisoned in jail but escaped during Liddell's watch, the only prisoner to ever do so. A bounty was placed on his head, but Dyshkava vanished from civilized areas, having been captured by the secretive sentient species known as the Menahuun. Liddell vowed to bring Dyshkava to justice but, as time passed, he doubted he would ever see him again.
As Security Chief, Liddell officially worked for ORO and reported to the Administrator of the ORO mines, who also served as the mayor of Bartyn's Landing. The Administrator understood the nature of the Chief's work and was more lenient with Liddell's methods compared to the all-Human security staff at the spaceport, who worked for ORO under similar conditions.
Over the next forty years, Chief Liddell engaged in various activities as part of his job. He organized posses to pursue criminals, led hunting groups to clear the area of dangerous predators, and mapped the mountains. He hunted dangerous animals alone, found lost pets, and mediated disputes among citizens. He also intervened in fistfights at local establishments, including the Tailfin Cantina, to prevent the use of lethal weapons. Over time, the citizens of Bartyn's Landing considered Liddell the best Security Chief in their history, a significant endorsement, especially from MD-0C6, who had lived in the Landing without memory wipes for about five hundred years before the Battle of Naboo.
During his tenure as Chief, Liddell believed that ORO regularly sent official inspectors to check the local mines, but the Administrator was actually bribing ORO officers and sending his own men, disguised as inspectors, to deceive Liddell and the locals.
In 55 BBY, Liddell, a skilled sniper, won the annual Landing Shootout of Bartyn's Landing for the first time. He repeated his victory for the next nine years, gaining significant prestige and setting a record. Afterward, Liddell retired from the competition. From then on, Liddell, a talented artisan, handcrafted the first prize: a pearl-handled slugthrower with enhanced power.
In 29 BBY, a migrating herd of jungle predators threatened Bartyn's Landing, and Liddell recruited volunteers to clear the area. That same year, a town council member was killed in the dangerous district known as The Ring, prompting Liddell and his allies to investigate. By this time, Liddell suspected that several of his Seconds were being bribed by Administrator Guther Bartyn to conceal his illicit activities, but he still trusted his friend Vapps and the Gungan named Boom Boom. Bartyn also pressured Liddell to investigate alleged attacks by gremlins – actually Menahuun – in the docks, mainly due to concerns about his personal yacht.
Also in that year, Byrch Dyshkava escaped from the Menahuun after forty years of captivity. Feeling old and useless, he sought to die in Bartyn's Landing, preferably in a duel with Liddell. Unable to find the Calamarian, Dyshkava challenged bystanders and was defeated. Liddell arrived shortly after and approached the victors, ensuring Vapps was armed and present in the crowd. Recognizing Dyshkava, Liddell arrested The Padawan, provided him with medical care, and offered the gunslingers the bounty for Dyshkava's capture, explaining their foe's background.
Trusting his instincts and believing many of his current men were unreliable, Liddell offered the newcomers positions as his Seconds. At that moment, Dyshkava awoke and explained to Liddell that he had been captured by the Menahuun while traveling along the coastline, but he could not provide further details due to his illness. Liddell then extended his proposal to the group, offering to pay for rooms at Miss Mylla's Saloon, and gave them the badges of Seconds.
Liddell dispatched his new Seconds and Boom Boom to examine the area where Dyshkava had been captured, where they discovered hostile, organized, laser-armed Menahuun, who tried to conceal their presence. Liddell also sent them to investigate the gremlin reports at the port, where they found Menahuun as well, but Liddell was unavailable to receive their report.
The Seconds eventually located Liddell and showed him a weapon seized from the Menahuun, which Liddell identified as a mining laser. He instructed the Seconds to meet with Guther Bartyn, Administrator of the fully-automated mines, warning them that Bartyn would use evasive language instead of providing information.
Ultimately, the Seconds discovered a Menahuun community hiding in the mines and negotiated a peace with them. The sudden reappearance of the Menahuun was particularly embarrassing for ORO, as it revealed an ORO agent's attempted genocide, leading to ORO's withdrawal from Lamaredd and reducing the power of the Bartyn family. Guther Bartyn was removed as Administrator, and Mix Liddell ran for public office.
During a pre-election rally, a young outlaw seeking fame like Dyshkava sniped at Liddell with a slugthrower rifle. Liddell survived and was elected Administrator, with Vapps replacing him as Security Chief. Guther Bartyn, driven mad, reprogrammed two MMV security droids to attack alien citizens of Bartyn's Landing. Administrator Liddell and Chief Vapps, unable to handle the situation alone, sought external assistance.
While Liddell was proficient with the baton or vibrodagger he carried, he excelled with slugthrower weapons, which he also crafted as a hobby, as they were preferred in Lamaredd due to the scarcity of energy for blasters. Beyond his combat skills, he possessed knowledge of law enforcement and experience as a sailor. Liddell was fluent in the major languages of Lamaredd, including Galactic Basic Standard, Mon Calamarian, Chagri, Huttese, Rodese, and Quarrenese.
Liddell owned a repulsorsail speederboat named Ertine, in honor of his predecessor as Chief. He enjoyed sailing for leisure, often with his friend MD-0C6. Liddell also used one of Bartyn's Landing's few air vehicles, a battered bronze-colored Bespin Motors Flurry II combat cloud car, nicknamed "Brassie," provided by ORO for aerial patrols to find missing people. Liddell typically parked "Brassie" on his office roof.
Liddell's closest friend was Grubber Vapps, his trusted Senior Second and successor as Chief of Security. Vapps participated in illegal Cargo Track races in the Center Sphere District, often winning. Vapps believed this was a secret, but Liddell knew about his extracurricular activity. However, Liddell chose not to mention it, as having a trusted man in those circles could be useful, and Vapps was a successful racer.
Liddell was admired and appreciated by the residents of Bartyn's Landing. His known enemies, including common bandits and The Padawan, rarely underestimated him twice. The Padawan himself held Liddell in high regard, as Liddell had defeated him fairly and was more compassionate than the Menahuun.
Mix Liddell enjoyed his role as Chief of Security but acknowledged its downsides. Becoming a policeman required him to leave the Sailor's Union, which he regretted. He also disliked Administrator Guther Bartyn and preferred not to comply with some of his demands, but Liddell respected the chain of command.
Liddell was known to disapprove of street duels with firearms, even though they were customary in Bartyn's Landing. He viewed them as formalized murder and would suppress his emotions if a spectator was injured.
Miss Mylla was the strikingly beautiful Falleen owner and manager of Miss Mylla's Saloon, a popular 24-hour inn and entertainment venue staffed primarily by attractive women. Mylla's beauty made her popular among the men of Bartyn's Landing, including Liddell. She had repeatedly stated that only Liddell could make her settle down and abandon her lifestyle, and she was determined to seduce him. Although Liddell appreciated Mylla, he considered himself too professional to openly pursue her.
Despite their unconventional relationship, Liddell spent most of his free time at Mylla's Saloon, often talking to her. Mylla provided Liddell with valuable information that aided him in challenging cases. They held each other in high esteem. During the Menahuun crisis of 29 BBY, Mylla faced issues with corrupt ORO customs officers who were stealing her shipments of Corellian brandy. She knew she could turn to Liddell, but she feared he might anger his ORO superiors, so she sought help elsewhere, concerned for his well-being.
Mix Liddell was created by writer Cory J. Herndon and featured in the article Bartyn's Landing and in the role-playing adventure Reckonings, both published in Star Wars Gamer #7 (2001).
The articles inconsistently state that Liddell became Chief of Security either forty or twenty years before the events in the adventure. This article assumes the former is correct because it is repeated more often and aligns better with other details, such as Liddell's ten-year winning streak at the annual Shootout, which would otherwise have started when he was a young, inexperienced sailor.
This article assumes that the player characters of Reckonings achieve the best possible outcome. However, if they fail, the adventure offers an alternative scenario set during an open war between the Menahuun and the citizens of Bartyn's Landing. The Menahuun repeatedly raid Bartyn's Landing, clashing with armed citizens. Bartyn assumes command and recruits Liddell, his Seconds, and many able-bodied citizens to defend the area. With the police absent, crime increases. Several civilians attempt to leave the city and start new lives elsewhere on Lamaredd, with Miss Mylla trying to reach Little Mon Cal. However, she fails due to a transport accident near the Rank that leaves her and her boat at the mercy of the Menahuun. Liddell learns of her fate before the Menahuun and attempts to send allies to rescue her.