sith

Sith are evil?

On the official forums, Lead Writer for Star Wars: The Old Republic Daniel Erickson confronts the continuous question about the Sith philosophy – Are these guys evil or not? According to Mr. Erickson there is no doubt that Sith are in fact evil: “We can get into endless philosophical discussions about whether anything is actually evil or actually good but if we are speaking from our modern, western view on the concept of evil then the Sith clearly qualify.” However this does not meen that the Sith themselves look at it this way. The Sith see the republic as weak, without strong leadership and basically a bunch of mindless lemmings. Daniel Erickson also states that role players that chooses the Sith faction, has plenty of options to play as ambivalent or even helpful, should they choose to do so. Here is his post: Hey Folks, First of all, let me say that…

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Know your lore: Tulak Hord

Tulak Hord was a Dark Lord of the Sith that ruled sometime during the early Sith Empire, after the use of lightsabers became prevalent. Hord wore a claustrophobic black mask, making him a fear-inspiring sight. There is some disagreement as to when precisely Tulak Hord lived. Kreia seems to imply he was an ancient Dark Lord from the first Sith Empire, yet she also calls him a lightsaber master, and it is widely believed by fans that the Sith did not use such weapons until they re-established contact with the Jedi and the Republic after the Great Hyperspace War. It is unknown how Hord died, but his power was so considerable that a burial chamber was built in his honor in the Valley of the Dark Lords on Korriban. In later years, both Revan and the Jedi Exile visited his tomb, though the entrance was blocked and the tomb looted…

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Know your Lore: King Adas

Adas was an ancient Sith warlord who lived circa 28,000 BBY, long before the exiled Dark Jedi of the Hundred Year Darkness conquered his species. He used his knowledge of the dark side of the Force to conquer and subjugate his homeworld, which he ruled as king.Adas, in holocron form, first appeared in a brief vignette featured in the 1996 sourcebook, Tales of the Jedi Companion, written by George R. Strayton. His role and biography was later expanded in 2006’s Evil Never Dies: The Sith Dynasties, written by Abel G. Peña. In that article Adas is identified to have been a member of the Sith species, and to have had interactions with the Rakata introduced in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Adas’s character would later further be used and expounded upon in 2007’s Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force by Ryder Windham. Korriban, Adas’s world….

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Know your Lore: Ajunta Pall

Ajunta Pall was a Dark Jedi, and later one of the first Sith Lords following the Hundred Year Darkness. His spirit was redeemed by the Jedi Knight Revan during the Jedi Civil War. Ajunta Pall’s tomb is one of the side-quests available in the Korriban segment of the video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. In the game, he recognizes the player character’s true identity. The main character can either help him become one with the Force (for “light-side points”), fight him and destroy his spirit (for “dark-side points”), or fail to take him to the light and let his spirit fade away. The statue of Ajunta Pall seen in his tomb is identical with the one seen in the destroyed Jedi Enclave on Dantooine in Knights of the Old Republic II, which could mean that Ajunta Pall was once a highly respected Jedi Master; however, this has…

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Know your legends: Marka Ragnos

Marka Ragnos was a half-breed Dark Lord of the Sith who was immensely powerful, both physically and in the Force. He defeated Simus in combat, proving himself worthy of the mantle of Dark Lord. The tomb of Ragnos on Korriban appears in the games Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Star Wars: Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy. However, the tombs in each game are dissimilar to the other. This was likely for reasons of game structure, rather than a suggestion of the tombs being at different locations. The same phenomenon is seen with the Valley of the Dark Lords as a whole. Another theory is that his tomb underwent a renovation after being desecrated by Revan and his followers. While a figure of importance in Sith history, Marka Ragnos has actually never appeared in a story in which he was alive, much like another influential Sith Lord, Freedon Nadd….

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Know your Lore: Ludo Kressh

Ludo Kressh was a Sith Lord in the Sith Empire during the Great Hyperspace War. A conservative Sith Lord, Ludo planned to rule the Empire as the new Dark Lord of the Sith after Marka Ragnos‘s death. However, the unexpected arrival of the Daragons allowed Naga Sadow to engineer incidents which undermined Ludo’s support. Ludo eventually faked his own death and ambushed Sadow, only to be truly destroyed by Sadow’s fleet. According to the overview of the Sith Empire on the Star Wars: The Old Republic website”(After the Great Hyperpsace War)…the last Emperor of the Sith managed to escape the carnage and fled into Deep Space with his most trusted Dark Lords.” Considering Ludo Kressh was technically the last Dark Lord of the Sith alive before Naga Sadow (who escaped to Yavin 4, rather than deep space), it is possible that Ludo Kressh perhaps staged his own death (once again) and…

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Rebirth of the Sith Empire

Bioware got a new Timeline holorecord for us this firday. This time it’s the story of a Grand Moff who played a critical role in Imperial history: In the years following the Great Hyperspace War, the Sith exiles on Dromund Kaas faced a daunting future on a harsh world. The guidance of the Emperor and the Sith Lords were critical, but Republic Intelligence has stolen historical records that indicate the resilience and determination of the early Imperial Military were no less crucial to the Empire’s reconstruction. Master Gnost-Dural has identified one Imperial Military Leader in particular whose story exemplifies the strength that runs throughout every level of Imperial Society. BTC 1251 – Following the destruction of their ancient civilization on Korriban, the Sith exiles sought to rebuild their Empire amid the jungles of Dromund Kaas. The man who eventually earned the distinction of the being the Empire’s first new Grand…

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Know your lore: Freedon Nadd

Freedon Nadd was an ancient Jedi apprentice. He later fell to the dark side of the Force and apprenticed himself to Naga Sadow, an ancient Dark Lord of the Sith. Freedon Nadd claimed the rank of Dark Lord by murdering his Master, and crowned himself as the King of Onderon. After his physical death, Nadd’s spirit attempted to resurrect himself and have revenge on the Jedi. Nadd was completely destroyed on Yavin 4 by Exar Kun, the would-be Dark Lord. Freedon Nadd was the first Dark Lord of the Sith after the fall of the Old Sith Empire. Biography Freedon Nadd as seen in Vodo Siosk Baas’s Holocron Ambitious Jedi Freedon Nadd was a Jedi student trained at the Jedi Temple on Ossus around 4,400 BBY. He was amazingly open and willing to touch the Force, which may have inevitably led him down the dark path. While strong in the…

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Friday update: New biographies added

Meet more of the compelling characters you’ll interact with in Star Wars: The Old Republic. New additions have been added to the Biographies section of the HoloNet! This update includes profiles of some of the most enigmatic characters in The Old Republic Era: Bouris Ulgo is the self-proclaimed king of Alderaan. From his bio, it seems he made a lot of political enemies, and will probably be at the center of much turmoil. He has a vast military background and declared martial law on the planet. He is also mad, which is always a plus in my book. Diab Duin is the Republic envoy to Aeten II, a small mining outpost which became very important for the war effort. The man is said to be of few words and with an independent personality. There are few hints as to how he will be involved in the actual story lines, but it’s…

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Playable Species of SW:TOR – Sith Pureblood

Yesterday we reported about Daniel Erickson clarification about the Sith Pure-bloods. We also promised to look deeper into this race, so here you go: The Sith were a species of red-skinned humanoids that evolved on Korriban. They also had tentacle “beards” and all pure blooded Sith were almost always left-handed, and thus their signature weapon, the lanvarok, was adapted purely for left-handed use. Society and Culture Though they engaged in supposedly primitive practices such as sentient sacrifice, held a strong caste system, and were in an almost constant state of war, their civilization was quite sophisticated; they saw these acts not as cruel or barbaric, but simply basic aspects of existence. Their caste system included a meek and lowly slave class, a skilled and intelligent engineer class, the priestly Kissai class, and the warlike Massassi class. In later years, the offspring of Sith and the exiled Dark Jedi formed another class, from which…

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Daniel Erickson on Sith Pureblood

Daniel Erickson made another post on the official forums, giving a bit more explanation on the meaning of “Pureblood” in “Sith Pureblood”: Quote: Originally Posted by Hawnk So… if the Sith species was extinct during the first KOTOR (or so says the loading screen that I just saw) then how are they justifying Sith Pureblood as a playable race in SWTOR? Hey folks, Happy to clarify. In the time of KOTOR, the Republic believed all of the original Sith Empire had been destroyed. Those who had not been killed were chased far into deep space where nobody had ever returned from. Thus Revan’s surprise when coming upon them and his dedication to going back to stop the threat when his memory returned. That said, the Sith “Pureblood” in SWTOR are anything but pure Sith (from a species point of view). The name is a vanity. In the last 1000 years…

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How Stuff Works: Holocrons

A holocron was a crystal lattice (often cubical and sized to be held in one hand) in which the Jedi, as well as the Sith, of old stored phenomenal quantities of data, as well as the holocron’s gatekeeper. The Sith also had their own form of holocron technology, and they seem to predate the Jedi in using the technology by three thousand years. Description Sith holocrons usually took the form of a pyramid, and the existence of the first Sith holocron predates that of a Jedi holocron by at least three thousand years. The technology to create the pyramidal holocrons common to the Sith was something gifted to the ancient Sith king Adas by Rakata warriors trying to gain his trust. He accepted their technology and made a holocron, but he saw through their ploy and rebelled against them. It can only be assumed that the Jedi also learned the…

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Know your lore: Exar Kun

Exar Kun was a Human male Dark Lord of the Sith under the tutelage of Freedon Nadd. Kun displayed an unusual curiosity into forbidden teachings during his time as a Jedi Padawan, so much so that upon completion of his training, he abandoned his Master and set out in pursuit of the knowledge and power of the ancient Sith. His quest led him initially to the planet Onderon and then its jungle moon, Dxun, where he invaded the tomb of a long-deceased Dark Lord of the Sith named Freedon Nadd—and, in doing so, awakened his spirit. Seduced by Nadd with the promise of power through acceptance of the dark side of the Force, Kun allowed himself to become Nadd’s apprentice. As Kun rapidly progressed in the sorcerous ways of the Sith, Nadd directed him to Yavin 4, where Kun acquired even greater Sith powers. He then destroyed Nadd’s spirit, and…

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Jedi and Sith Species Announced for Star Wars: The Old Republic

The Star Wars: The Old Republic website has announced  that all classes in the upcoming MMO will include different alien species to play as. Aside from Chiss, Rattataki, and Twil’lek, fans haven’t heard a lot about the playable races in Star Wars: The Old Republic.    Now  Players can look forward to becoming a Sith Pureblood, a Miraluka, a Mirialan, or a Zabrak. So far we’ve only dropped hints about the range of playable species in Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. You may have heard about the Rattataki Bounty Hunter, Chiss Imperial Agent, or the Twi’lek Smuggler, but we can tell you now that all classes will include optional non-human species.   Sith Purebloods are “the red-skinned descendants of such notorious Sith Lords as Naga Sadow and Marka Ragnos.”  SW:TOR is the first video game allowing players to choose the original Sith as a playable race. Sith Purebloods originated on Korriban and later settled on Ziost and…

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E3 – Day 1 Roundup: Ships, Groups and more

Looks like we are getting treated to at least some more eye candy today… If you’ve seen the latest update to BioWare’s “The Old Republic @ E3 2010” post then you’ll have noticed the following: The Old Republic Live on G4! Make sure to check out G4’s half-hour blowout on Star Wars: The Old Republic starting at 2pm PT! Adam Sessler, X-Play host and G4’s Editor-In-Chief of Games, plans to deliver a 30-minute all-access coverage of The Old Republic including live game-play. “Never before have we granted so much time to one game at E3,” said Adam Sessler. “Star Wars: Old Republic is a game of such breadth that the excitement around it and the time we are dedicating to it will have a huge pay-off for the viewers.” Want to see what the press are seeing? Then don’t miss a minute of it! Below are embeds of the Bounty…

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Know your lore: Naga Sadow

Naga Sadow was a male Sith Lord, and renowned dark side magician during the days of the first Sith Empire. Sadow had ancestors among both humans and the Sith species of the planet Ziost. He rose to prominence in the final days of the Sith Golden Age, when Marka Ragnos, the reigning Dark Lord of the Sith, passed away, leaving the mantle of Dark Lord vacant. During Ragnos’ funeral, Sadow engaged in a duel with rival Sith Lord Ludo Kressh for Ragnos’ title, only to have their contest ended by the spectre of the deceased Dark Lord himself. After a brief admonition, the ghost departed while issuing a warning to both Sadow and Kressh, stating that the fate of the Sith Empire hung on the balance of their decision on how to proceed with leadership of the Sith people. However, the unexpected arrival of two Hyperspace-traveling siblings on Korriban, Gav…

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Star Wars: The Old Republic Sith Warrior Video

Bioware have leaked a recruitment video for the Sith Warrior. So far it has only been available in low quality at gamespot, but I manage to snitch a high quality version and uploaded it to youtube: As nail-biting as the trailer is, that is not all. Notice at 1:15 of this exciting video trailer, the Sith Warrior is driving a speeder bike. What does this mean? Are players going to have vehicles in SWTOR? We do not have the answer, but given the footage in this trailer, the answer looks positive.

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Dev Diary: Combat in STAR WARS: The Old Republic

We usually get our dose of Star Wars: The Old Republic news on Friday, but GameTrailers recently managed to get their hands on an exclusive developer diary featuring BioWare and LucasArt developers detailing combat in the game. What’s even better, there’s more in-game combat video. Ever wonder why anyone would want to play anything but a Sith or Jedi? Find out from the team creating the classes themselves. [UPDATE] And the official news is live: Whether you dream of beating the odds with just your luck and a blaster, or imagine restoring order to the galaxy with Force powers and a Lightsaber, you’ll have your chance in Star Wars™: The Old Republic™. We’ve talked a lot about how The Old Republic is innovating on storytelling in MMOs, and now we want to share with you how combat in The Old Republic will deliver a new level of excitement for fans….

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Daniel Erickson shares more insight on the Sith

Mondays story about Star Wars: The Old Republic writer Daniel Erickson’s explanation of how someone writes for the Sith Empire sparked a huge amount of discussion on the official forums. There was so much discussion in fact, that Daniel Erickson took to the official forums to further explain his reasoning and thought process behind writing from the Empire’s point of view. Of the conversation occurring across the official forums, Erickson had to say, “An interesting thread. I always like to see what responses the philosophical discussions provoke. Hopefully people noticed that there were no quotes from me saying the Sith were good — even the interviewer ended on it being an excuse to unleash ones hate.“” After that intro, Erickson goes on to deftly explain the complexities behind writing for ostensibly the “evil side” in a manner that makes them more than dastardly villains with cape and cane. It’s a…

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Genocide and Jedi: why the Sith may be right in Old Republic

arstechnic has a great interview with Daniel Erickson about who the real bad guys are in Star Wars: “The one thing you’re never going to hear is ‘make the bad guys less interesting.’” I’m sitting in an out-of-the-way room of Lucasarts with Daniel Erickson, who keeps swinging back to one topic: why the people we’ve come to hate in the Star Wars universe act as they do. He’s given this some thought; as the lead writer on Star Wars: The Old Republic, the upcoming Star Wars MMO, it’s his job to help tell both sides of the story. In our time together we discuss the extended universe, he makes the case for Grand Admiral Thrawn, and explains how the Jedi attempted genocide… and why the Sith may just be right. While we’re on the topic of the extended universe, he brings up the Thrawn trilogy by Timothy Zahn. “Thrawn is…

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Know your lore: Saul Karath

Saul Karath was a Human male born on Corellia who served the Galactic Republic’s Navy as an admiral during the Mandalorian Wars. In 3,963 BBY, Karath was promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral after keeping the Mandalorian forces at bay for six weeks at the Jebble-Vanquo-Tarnith line. When the fugitive Jedi Padawan Zayne Carrick—who was fleeing from his Masters after being framed for the Padawan Massacre of Taris—attempted to warn Karath of Serroco’s destruction, Karath assumed that Carrick was a Mandalorian spy. Shortly after the Mandalorians razed Serroco’s surface, Karath participated in the Adasca Affair, which was Adascorp leader Arkoh Adasca’s failed auction of exogorth superweapons. Karath also played a role in the events of the Covenant Affair, in which the secret Jedi cabal known as the Covenant was destroyed. Later that year, the Jedi Knights Revan, Malak and their Jedi faction entered the war, and Karath became the…

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Know your lore: Darth Nihilus

Darth Nihilus was a Human male who reigned as a Dark Lord of the Sith during the era of strife following the Jedi Civil War. Before becoming a Sith, he lost everything during the Galactic Republic‘s war against the Mandalorian Neo Crusaders. He survived the activation of the Mass Shadow Generator superweapon during the war’s final battle at the planet Malachor V, which surrounded the planet with a destructive spacial phenomenon known as a mass shadow that obliterated almost everything and everyone on and around the planet. The experience of the shadows made him “hunger” for Force energy, and the affliction began to ravage his body. In his pain he became a wound in the Force and was found by a seeker of such things, the Sith Lord Darth Traya. She told him that she could teach him to feed his hunger. He accepted her offer, becoming Traya’s apprentice at…

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Fan Friday: Composing the Sith Inquisitor Developer Blog

The latest Fan Friday content has been posted on the official Old Republic site! This week Sean presents the TOR community with a developer blog from writer Rebecca Harwick giving an overview of the Sith Inquisitor: When we set out to build our game, we knew we needed more than one Sith class. The original trilogy only has two Sith in it, but they couldn’t be more different: the heavily armored brutal physicality of Darth Vader compared to the frail but immensely powerful Emperor Palpatine. When we extend our inspiration to Episodes I-III and The Clone Wars cartoons, Count Dooku, Darth Maul, and Asajj Ventress further expand our concept of what a Sith can be. Is a Sith a lithe quick fighter who uses the Force to enhance his/her physical combat prowess, a calculating deceiver adept at Lightsaber duels, or a master manipulator and amasser of dark side secrets? Does…

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