What Are The Factions Cassian Lists In Andor Episode 4?

Today, Disney+'s Andor drops its fourth episode in Season 1, and we're beginning to see exactly how Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) made his first contact with the Rebel Alliance.

For a quick refresher, Cassian started off the show as a roguish mercenary type looking for his long-lost sister on the mining planet Morlana One. There, he killed two Preox-Morlana security officers in self-defense. On last week's episode, the Preox-Morlana corporation, led by Syril Karn (Kyle Soller), attempted to corner Cassian on the salvage yard planet Ferrix. But they reached Cassian shortly after the mysterious Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård), an anti-Imperial operative. Rael helped Cassian escape and now wants him to join his cause. Problem is, Cassian doesn't quite know which cause Rael is aligned with. 

Early in Episode 4, Cassian tries to figure it out. In a conversation with Rael, he rattles off the different anti-Imperial groups Rael might belong to: "Alliance, Sep, guerillas, or the Partisans." For diehard "Star Wars" fans, these all probably sound familiar. For the more casual among you, here's what each of these groups is.

"Andor" takes place five years BBY, or "Before the Battle of Yavin," (or, before the events of "Star Wars: A New Hope"). At this point, it's about 14 years after the events of the Clone Wars. The Galactic Empire has been in power for most of that time. By now, several resistance groups have popped up to oppose it.

The Rebel Alliance is likely the most familiar. It's the group that Cassian will ultimately join, and for which he'll eventually steal the Death Star plans. At this point in the timeline the Rebel Alliance as we know it doesn't formally exist–it's officially created in 2 BBY by Mon Mothma (Genevieve O'Reilly on "Andor") and Senator Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) (via Wookiepedia).

"Sep" is the "Separatist Congress," which governs the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Founded by Count Dooku (Christopher Lee), they were one of the two main opponents in the Clone Wars, mostly relying on battle droids. Although they lost the Clone Wars, by this point the remnants of the Congress are holding out on Raxus (via Wookiepedia).

"Guerrillas" is a catchall term for the smaller resistance groups across the galaxy. The Galactic Empire has conquered thousands of planets, and many of its new, unwilling subjects began using guerrilla tactics against it (via Wookiepedia).

Finally, the Partisans are the resistance group led by Saw Gerrera (Forrest Whitaker). They're willing to engage in more extreme tactics than the Rebels, including torturing civilians. Because of this, the Rebels will distance themselves from the Partisans despite their common goal (via Wookiepedia). They're a major factor in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story." 

The "Star Wars" galaxy is a big one, and "Andor" is definitely making full use of it.