The Rebels establish their new base on Hoth, a world of snow and ice where daytime temperatures are bone chilling and nighttime temperatures are deadly. Rebel patrols riding indigenous tauntauns venture into the freezing landscape to guard the base's perimeter. On one of these routine patrols, Luke is captured by a wampa ice creature, one of the planet's most vicious predators. The carnivorous wampa hunts its prey with stealth in spite of its size. Perfectly hidden by its white fur in the snowy Hoth landscape, the ice creature sneaks up on Luke and renders the unsuspecting Rebel unconscious with one swipe its massive hand. The wampa drags Luke back to its ice cave and suspends him from the ceiling, planning to make the Jedi its next meal. Only Luke's skill with the Force saves him from an untimely end: he uses the Force to retrieve his lightsaber, which enables him to free himself from the ice and escape from the wampa.