Star Wars Rebels Season 3: 20 Easter Eggs & References You Need To See

Thrawn is seen sparring with a pair of assassin droids aboard his Star Destroyer. The assassin droids (first seen as sentry droids in The Wynkhthu Job) are inspired by the Dark Troopers from the classic video game, Dark Forces.

But the passcode that he uses to disable the droids is a reference to a rather significant character from the Old Expanded Universe. The kill code, “Ruhk” was the name of the nohgri assassin who ultimately brought an end to Thrawn’s life. This all happened in the now non-canonical Legends.

But that’s not to say Thrawn couldn't come to a similar end, given Bendu’s warning.

That’s not the only reference to Thrawn’s previous life, before being brought into the Rebels-verse. Thrawn’s Star Destroyer in the official canon is also called the Chimaera, which is the same name that he gave his ship in Legends.