The Nikto Sand Riders In The Book Of Boba Fett Explained
"The Book of Boba Fett" continues to roll right along on Disney+, with Chapter 3 of the "Star Wars" series arriving this week. With an odd number of episodes, seven to be exact, we're pretty close to the halfway point, and lots of pieces are being moved around the chessboard that will come into play in the final stretch. One particular group that warrants discussion is the Nikto sand riders, who have been causing trouble for Boba Fett (particularly in flashbacks). So, we're here to go over what we know about the group, and clear up some possible confusion.
Warning: spoilers ahead for "The Book of Boba Fett."
Who Are the Nikto Sand Riders?
The Nikto are a common species within the "Star Wars" franchise who hail from the planet Kintan. As far as "The Book of Boba Fett" goes, in the timeline shortly after "Return of the Jedi" when Boba was essentially an adopted member of the Tusken Raider clan, they were a biker gang operating on Tatooine causing lots of trouble for the planet's residents. They take what they want and do as they please. Boba, for his part, beat up a whole group of them at a local watering hole, taking their speeder bikes and giving them to the Tuskens.
These speeder bikes were then used to help stop the train that was being used by the Pyke Syndicate, who were running Spice through Tattooine. Boba then cut a deal with them, ensuring that they would no longer harm the Tuskens (seemingly) in addition to securing payment so that they could safely travel through the territory. In short, the Nikto are merely one of the gangs that make Tattooine a wretched hive of scum and villainy. At least so far as we've seen up through Chapter 3 of the show.
But this episode added some crucial and heartbreaking stuff to the mix, as Boba returned to the Tusken Raider camp to discover that it had been torched and his Tusken friends murdered. While he didn't actually see who had done it, the same symbol he had seen the Nikto use before was left behind, leading him to believe that they were behind the massacre. But is it that simple? Or is someone pulling the strings behind the scenes? Are the Pyke trying to have these two factions go to war with one another? For now, we have lots of questions and few answers.
What About that Kintan Striders Reference?
Chapter 3 does, however, add a bit more to the mix. At one point in the episode, we see Boba ride a Bantha to go see the Pyke Syndicate once again to collect their payoff. The Pyke leader that Boba deals with mentions that "The Kintan Striders" have already collected protection money for the same territory that he and the Tuskens are laying claim to." Boba, quietly stricken by this, responds by saying, "You don't have to pay that speeder bike gang. We far outnumber them."
A little later on in the meeting, Boba also says "You will not hear from the Nikto sand riders again." So, are we dealing with two different groups here? What's going on? For those who may have been confused, the Nikto refers to the species, which Boba uses as a way to identify them. However, the use of Kintan Striders refers to the actual name of the group, and this name traces its roots to an interesting part of "Star Wars" lore.
As we can see in the above image from the official "Star Wars" website, a Kintan Strider is a species within the galaxy, and one that was used as a chess piece in the 3D version of chess, known as Dejarik, we saw C-3PO and Chewbacca playing in "A New Hope." What's more, as noted by Twitter user @bhx_1138, the Nikto gang even uses symbolism from the Kintan in the show.
The wonderful AurekFonts, who I am not tagging since I don't believe he's seen the new episode yet, called out that the Nikto raiders' paint tag was a Nal Huttese K. Pretty sure that stands for Kintan, as their symbol looks like a Strider skeleton and it's the Nikto homeworld pic.twitter.com/MHf10c9B74
— Ben (@bhx_1138) January 8, 2022
So, what is the significance of the Kintan Strider name for the Nikto speeder gang? That remains to be seen. What we know for sure is that Boba and the group have much more business to attend to, as he is surely going to want revenge for what was done to the Tusken Raiders, and it seems like that revenge is going to flow through them.
"The Book of Boba Fett" returns with new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.