Sidney Shortfang

In the year 0 ABY, Sidney Shortfang's life took an unexpected turn while working in the Sil'Lume asteroid belt. He crossed paths with Luke Skywalker, who had journeyed to the Sil'Lume system to scout potential locations for a Rebel base. Witnessing the capture of Erling Tredway by Imperial forces under the command of Governor-General Sebastian Parnell, Sidney and Gideon Smith boarded their ship, the Rockcan, with the intention of warning Tredway's family on 24 Tredway. However, they arrived to find the asteroid under attack by the Empire, with a massacre of the workers having already occurred. Teaming up with Skywalker, the group explored 24 Tredway. During this investigation, Shortfang was compelled to kill Imperial soldiers in self-defense, an act that deeply troubled him due to his species' unwavering pacifist beliefs. Despite his inner turmoil, Shortfang continued to aid Skywalker in warning any survivors of Tredway's capture. Together, they located Erling's sister, Dena Tredway, who had sustained severe injuries in the attack but had been kept alive by droid workers at the facility. Leveraging Shortfang and Smith's mining expertise, Skywalker successfully extracted the wounded Dena from the mines and placed her aboard the Rockcan. Subsequently, they transported her to a nearby asteroid where Doctor Ire Eleazari, a friend of Dena's, resided.

While Eleazari tended to Dena's injuries, Shortfang and his companions set course for Tol Ado, a prison planet where Erling had been imprisoned following his arrest. Disguising themselves as Imperial prisoners, with Skywalker donning an Imperial uniform, the group infiltrated the base. Working in unison, they successfully located Erling's cell within the Deathblock and convinced him to join their escape. However, upon learning of the massacre of his home and family by the Empire, Erling succumbed to rage and abandoned his commitment to peaceful resistance. This transformation deeply saddened Shortfang, who had hoped Erling would reaffirm his belief in peaceful resistance. During their escape, Erling initiated a firefight with the Imperials, resulting in Gideon Smith's death and prompting Shortfang to confront his idol about his perceived hypocrisy.

As the remaining three Rebels navigated Tol Ado's sub-facility in search of an escape route, they encountered the resistance group led by the Wookiee Warburton. Shortfang, Skywalker, and Tredway were compelled to defend the sub-facility from an incoming attack to prove they were not spies. During this defense, Sidney shielded Erling from a fatal blow, sustaining severe injuries himself. A Quarren resistance fighter rescued him from the battlefield and brought him to their base for medical attention. Leaving Shortfang behind, Skywalker and Tredway eventually managed to escape Tol Ado.

Troy Denning conceived the character of Sidney Shortfang, who debuted in a role-playing module within the 1990 West End Games supplement titled Jedi's Honor. The scenario's outcome hinges on the player's decisions. Skywalker has the option to abandon Sidney and Gideon to focus on locating a Rebel base, leaving the two miners to fend for themselves, but this choice leads to the scenario's failure.

Sidney Shortfang's fate is directly determined by the outcome of the battle within the sub-facility. Should Skywalker allow Tredway to mishandle the ambush, resulting in an incomplete defeat of the Imperials, Sidney intervenes, shielding Erling from blaster fire and sacrificing his life to protect his hero. Conversely, if Skywalker prevents Tredway from botching the ambush, the Imperials are decisively defeated, but Sidney sustains injuries while pushing Tredway out of the path of a blaster attack. Regardless of the scenario, Skywalker and Tredway escape Tol Ado without Sidney.