The longest, most recent, and best of The Old Republic‘s cinematic trailers is Betrayed, a lead-in to the game’s Knights of the Eternal Throne expansion. Continuing the story begun with Emperor Valkorion’s twin sons, Arcann and Thexan, in Knights of the Fallen Empire,
we’re introduced to their mother, Zakuul Knight Senya Tirall, and
previously unseen sister, a little girl named Vaylin. While Arcann and
Thexan spend their childhood undergoing brutal training regimens for
their father’s pleasure, Vaylin remains in their mother’s care. Like her
parents and siblings, Vaylin demonstrates a latent aptitude for the
Force, seen when she uses it to carve a toy bear from a piece of wood,
but Senya forbids her to use her talents for fear of drawing Valkorion’s
attention to her power.
Nevertheless, Vaylin longs to be a warrior like her brothers. She
practices her Force abilities in secret, and eventually Senya allows her
to spar with the Knights of Zakuul. A small girl, she is repeatedly
knocked to the ground by these full-grown elite warriors, until finally
she can bear no more humiliation and calls on the Force to shatter her
opponent’s weapon and crush half a dozen Knights to death inside their
suits of golden armor. Senya calls on her to stop, but it’s too late;
Valkorion has witnessed his daughter’s power and takes the frightened
girl away from her mother to use for his own purposes.
Vaylin is taken to Nathema, where the Sith Emperor enacted the ritual
that made him immortal and left the world dead to the Force. There, a
group of hooded priests enacts some long, tortuous dark-side rite on
her. Sensing Vaylin’s distress through the Force, Senya decides to
rescue her daughter in defiance of the Immortal Emperor’s will. She
finds Vaylin and carries her to safety, fighting through a cadre of the
emperor’s elite Nathema Zealots, but she’s already too late. Vaylin
rejects her mother, choosing to remain behind with Valkorion, and Senya
is forced to flee.
Years pass. We find Senya at the site of some great battle, examining
the massacred corpses of the Knights of Zakuul to figure out what
happened. She finds the toy bear her daughter carved as a child lying
discarded in the mud, and suddenly Vaylin appears, now a grown woman,
her eyes burning with the dark side. She sets the battlefield aflame
with a blast of Force lightning, then lunges at her mother. Senya’s
lightsaber blade meets Vaylin’s as she gapes with dawning horror at what
her daughter has become.
And they lived happily ever after. The end!
This is so awesome. If only they’d made the game itself this good,
people might actually play it. Like Satele Shan stopping a lightsaber
blade with her bare hands, the way the Force is used in these trailers
is so much more cinematic than running fast. At this point the only future Star Wars film I’m interested in seeing is something based on KotOR or TOR, but I just know they’d screw it up somehow. I liked the first three Star Wars movies, but now everything sucks.
What was I talking about? Oh yeah, this trailer. 5/5 Death Stars, fuck it, this shit is awesome.
“A Mother’s Hope” picks up where Betrayed left off. We find
out that the planet Senya Tirall has come to is Ord Mantell, where
3,000-some years later Han Solo will run into about two dozen bounty
hunters on the same number of occasions. Also apparently Arcann, her son
with the half-robotic face, is in a coma in the back of her ship. The
reason she’s come to Ord Mantell in the first place is to find someone
to heal the injuries her son sustained at the hands of you, the player.
Once Senya lands on the planet, the story proceeds much as it did in the
trailer we just watched, with her discovering that the people she came
to meet are all dead and Vaylin attacking her.
Unlike in the trailer, however, Senya and Vaylin have a conversation
while they fight each other. “SCORPIO is not the Empress!” Vaylin
exposits. “She commands the GEMINI fleet, but they all answer to me. I
am the one who sits on the Eternal Throne!” Despite this riveting
dialogue, I don’t know who SCORPIO is and I don’t care.
Senya says that she doesn’t believe ruling the Eternal Empire is what
Vaylin really wants. Vaylin replies, “You know what I want mother—to
kill you!” At this point I started scrolling down to see how much longer
this was.
“Mommmmm, you don’t understand meeeeeeeeee!”
Their battle causes a crashed shuttle to explode, which should kill
Senya, but Vaylin protects them both with a Force bubble and then flees.
Puzzling over her daughter’s motive for saving her, Senya returns to
her ship and takes off, determined to find another way to save her son.
There’s nothing to this. 1/5 Death Stars. Recommended only if you
enjoy long, drawn-out descriptions of people fighting each other.
“Theron Shan sat shackled to a jukebox in one of the backrooms of the Dealer’s Den.” Oh boy, here we go.
Jonas Balkar, the Republic intelligence operative from a previous one
of these shorts, has invited Theron Shan to go out drinking at a bar
called the Dealer’s Den. While Jonas is passed out on the table, Theron
is accused of cheating at cards by a Twi’lek woman named Lylos Tannon
and hauled into the back room by the bouncer, a Houk named Bolgm. They tell him that they’re going to cut his cybernetic
implants out of his face and sell them on the black market. The buyer, a
man named Doctor Zeke (Zeke is a doctor, but doctor is spelled out in
full every time he’s called Doctor Zeke, so I assume Doctor is his first
name as well as his profession), comes in to inspect the merchandise,
but Lylos reveals that she works for Coruscant Security and was working
with Jonas to bring down this operation. Dr. Doctor Zeke is taken into
custody, and Theron, Jonas, and Lylos go out drinking.
This reads a bit more like an actual story than most of these shorts,
which have mostly just been slice-of-life vignettes. This one has an
actual plot and structure. A pointless plot, sure, but less pointless
than so much of the other crap we’ve read.
The most interesting thing about this story was this unremarked-on
throwaway line: “Things were moving fast since Revan’s defeat on Yavin
4.” For a minute I was like “wait, what?” then I remembered that these
stories have no meaning to anyone who hasn’t played the MMO and its
expansions and there was a whole story arc where Revan
escaped from the Sith Emperor’s Brain Jail and turned evil again but
really he was physically split into like a good Revan and a bad Revan,
then he died, and Jesus Christ, KotOR, I’m so sorry for what they’ve done to you. Two of the most popular and beloved Star Wars
games of all time, and all the spinoffs and tie-ins go to an MMO no one
wanted that undoes everything from those games and prevents them from
ever getting a true sequel. Well I guess the sale of Lucasfilm and
discontinuation of the Expanded Universe would have done that anyway.
RIP, KotOR (2003–2004).
Jace Malcom and Theron Shan have an awkward father-son dinner together.
For some reason this is like the third part in the “Theron Shan Trilogy,” following The Lost Suns and Annihilation. Jace and Theron talk about when Satele Shan briefed Theron on the Ascendant Spear
and he confesses that he’s still not over being abandoned by his
mother, because he’s a “feels over reals” type of guy and Satele is like
“fuck your feelings.” Jace tells him that Satele cares about him and
Theron’s like “If you say so,” then it ends.
This is the beginning of the Knights of the Fallen Empire sub-section of The Old Republic,
when the 44-year conflict between the Republic and the Sith Empire is
brushed aside by the emergence of a new threat, the Eternal Empire of
Zakuul. A common complaint I’ve seen among TOR players is that this is the point where the game jumped the proverbial shark, dumping all that sweet, sweet Jedi-vs.-Sith Star Wars
action that had characterized the previous four years of the MMO. Not
having played these expansions, I can’t vouch for their execution, and
it is a little silly to suddenly have another all-powerful empire emerge
from the Unknown Regions and take the galaxy by storm following
centuries of building its forces in secret after the Sith Empire started
this era doing the same thing, but goddamn at least it’s notthefuckingSithagain. I applaud BioWare for doing something different.
Thexan and Arcann are the twin sons of Emperor Valkorion, ruler of
the Eternal Empire. Tasked by their father with conquering both the Sith
Empire and the Republic, the princes are engaged with the forces of
Darth Atroxa on Korriban, homeworld of the Sith and most evil planet in
the galaxy. Thexan narrates the story, relating how an injury suffered
by his brother cost him an arm and half of his face, replaced with
cybernetic prostheses: “In an instant, it was the face of a stranger.
And we were no longer twins.”
Thexan retires to his tent and receives a holographic transmission
from the “Immortal Emperor Valkorion, Slayer of Izax.” Thexan reports on
his brother’s injuries but Valkorion makes it clear that he’s
uninterested and cares only about the mission, which Arcann went on only
in defiance of their father’s command. Thexan reflects on how his
brother’s impatience with their father grows with every interaction and
the knowledge that Valkorion is only pushing them to become stronger
does nothing to quell his anger, an anger that Thexan doesn’t share.
Valkorion terminates the call and Thexan goes to visit his brother.
“A man can have anything, if he’s willing to sacrifice,” Arcann says,
ironically imitating their father’s favorite lesson. Thexan remembers
how he and his twin once practically shared a single mind, able to
communicate and strategize without speaking, but Arcann’s hatred of
their father has poisoned him and Thexan feels his brother slipping
away. Thexan pledges to fight for his twin, telling him “Your dreams are
mine.” They clasp hands, and for a moment Thexan hopes that maybe they
haven’t yet lost each other after all.
Really short, a bit simplistic, but compared to the disposable tie-in
crap we’ve been reading, this is a revelation. I really like that line
at the beginning, “we were no longer twins.” A weirdly understated and
nuanced turn of phrase for this type of writing; Arcann’s face has been
spoiled by war, so he’s no longer his brother’s twin in physical
appearance, but it’s also reflective of a deeper change inside him, a
change in attitude that is the real source of the crack in Thexan’s
mirror. I like that. 3.5/5 Death Stars.
[Continuity Note: Btw Valkorion is actually the reincarnated spirit of Vitiate, aka Tenebrae, aka the Sith Emperor. Surprise!]
I HAVE SO MANY NAMES
Sacrifice
Medium: Cinematic trailer
Publication Date: June 15, 2015
Timeline Placement: 3,636 BBY
“A man can have anything,” Valkorion piously intones, as Prince
Arcann, yellow lightsaber ignited, flies toward his back, “if he’s
willing to sacrifice.” We flash back to the birth of Arcann and Thexan.
Valkorion turns away from them in the cradle, setting the tone for their
lives of rejection and hardship as their father mercilessly pushes them
to achieve their true potential. No matter their victories and
accomplishments, nothing they do is good enough for him; the only love
they know comes from one another.
We see their campaign against Darth Atroxa, a red-skinned Twi’lek
woman with Darth Maul tattoos, on Korriban, homeworld of the Sith and
most evil planet in the galaxy. She finally falls to Arcann’s blade,
more than half his face now a robotic mask covering the wound he
received in the previous story. The twin princes board a ship to return
to their father, leaving the Valley of the Dark Lords to crumble into
ruins behind them.
They kneel before Valkorion and each presents him with two
lightsabers wrapped in the sigil of either the Galactic Republic or the
Sith Empire. I realize this is visual shorthand to convey in one and a
half seconds the idea that they’ve defeated both groups, but I’m curious
what the significance is in-universe. Whose lightsabers are those, and
is there any special meaning to those particular emblems or did Arcann
and Thexan realize at the last minute that they didn’t have any wrapping
paper?
Valkorion is probably wondering the same thing, because once again he
turns his back on them without saying a word. This failure to
acknowledge their greatest accomplishment pushes Arcann over the edge,
and he lunges at Valkorion’s back with his lightsaber. Even-tempered and
loyal, Thexan pulls him back with the Force, but Arcann is still lost
to his rage, and he turns on his brother and cuts him down. Instantly
his mind clears but it’s too late. He rushes to catch his brother as he
falls and takes his hand for the last time.
He looks up to find Valkorion standing over him, his father finally proud of him.
This four-and-a-half-minute trailer for a video game is a better told and more emotionally resonant story than Star Wars:The Last Jedi. 4.5/5 Death Stars.
It’s been 40+ years in-universe since we were introduced to Nico
Okarr, the Han Solo ripoff who helped a teenage Satele Shan escape from
Darth Malgus when the Sith retook Korriban. He hasn’t shown up since
then . . . until now!
Nico Okarr is lounging in the back of some dive called the Sarlacc
and Loaded when a rich nobleman named Seamus Kaldo approaches and offers
to hire him to apprehend that no-good infamous smuggler Nico Okarr.
Nico reveals his identity and asks for his payment. Seamus protests that
Nico is too young to be a guy who should be in his seventies, because
apparently he looks exactly the same as he did in the trailer that
introduced him. I checked Wookieepedia and apparently it’s never
explained why he doesn’t age, a line of dialogue in the MMO just gives
some offhand reference to a Sith artifact he found. I guess they just
really loved this character and wanted to put him into the game without
being hampered by little details like “temporal consistency.”
Seamus and his manservant, Vhonu, fly into a rage and demand
recompense for the engine schematics Nico stole from the Kaldo family.
They try to capture him but Nico drops them both, then rifles through
Seamus’s pockets and takes the money he was promised. “Sorry for the
mess,” he tells the bartender, flipping him a coin, because they’re not
even bothering to pretend he’s not Han Solo. Nico Okarr goes outside and
says to no one, “Guess vacation’s over.”
Nice-Girl Sith Lana Beniko makes a report on Darth Arkous, some guy
who I don’t know who that is. There were Republic spies on their ship
who were plotting to blow it up but Lana discovered their subterfuge but
one escaped in an escape pod but Darth Arkous flew out through space
and stabbed her with his lightsaber but Lana thought that was pretty
cool but then Darth Arkous told her he was going to Onderon but really
he went to Manaan so now she doesn’t know what to believe.
Varko is a Selkath customs agent on the planet Manaan. He has a pleasant conversation with
a man named Tev Fith, who has come to the planet to do research for a
biotech firm. Varko thinks he met Tev’s boss a few days ago, but it
turns out to be a case of mistaken identity and Varko was thinking of
someone else. Apparently “Tev Fith” is really Theron Shan in disguise
but I had to look that up. Later Lana Beniko shows up and mind-tricks
Varko into giving her information on Darth Arkous’s travel arrangements.
The story ends with Varko going swimming. “Such a boring and
forgettable day.”
The bounty hunter droid BH-7X meets with another bounty hunter named
Kern to discuss a contract on the Wookiee smuggler Jakarro and his
partner, C2-D4, a disembodied droid head. Kern had previously tried to
hire BH-7X but been unwilling to meet the droid’s price, so now the
droid has returned to inform him that the half-priced mooks he hired
instead have all been killed. Kern throws a bottle of booze at him, and
BH-7X stuns Kern to collect a bounty on him, and then freezes him in carbonite or something. Because of course he does.
Of course he does.
HEY HAVE YOU EVER SEEN STAR WARS 1.5/5 Death Stars
A human smuggler named Kaya is pursued through the jungles of Rakata
Prime, the primeval homeworld of our old friends, the Rakata. Despite
ruling the galaxy back when we started this venture with Dawn of the Jedi,
the Rakata have since devolved into tribal primitives, making war on
each other and anyone unfortunate enough to visit their planet. Known
only as “the Unknown World” when it first appeared in 2003’s Knights of the Old Republic, that planet was given the name Rakata Prime in The New Essential Chronology, a Star Wars reference book published in 2005. A year later, however, Drew Karpyshyn featured the world in his novel Darth Bane: Path of Destruction, in which it was called Lehon. The following month, The New Essential Guide to Alien Species identified it simply as Rakata.
This vignette sticks with Rakata Prime, but YMMV.
Anyway, Kaya was hired by the Exchange, the major galactic crime
syndicate of this era, as part of a crew sent to retrieve various
artifacts and antiques from the planet’s ruins. The half-dozen other
members of her team have all been killed by the natives, who are now
chasing Kaya back toward her ship, throwing spears and indecipherable
threats at her, while she yells into her comlink for her droid, Dominic,
to fire up the engines.
She comes into the clearing where she’s parked and throws herself
onto the ground as the droid turns the ship’s guns on the jungle and
blasts away. “It felt like there wasn’t enough air on the entire planet
for her to catch her breath.” That line is pretty banal but hey at least
they put some kind of literary language into one of these things.
Kaya is safely aboard her ship but the action isn’t over yet! Once
she and Dom (short for D0-M9) make orbit, they’re attacked by a Republic
corvette and a Sith destroyer that strangely appear to be working
together. The reason for this isn’t explained in the story, I guess you
have to play the Shadow of Revan game expansion (available now
for only $19.99 USD!) to find out. They get caught in a tractor beam but
manage to break free when Kaya dumps the junk they stole from the
Rakata into space.
Knowing that the Exchange will be pissed at them for losing their
cargo, Kaya and Dominic Toretto decide to lie low for a while in
Raider’s Cove, a trade port on the planet Rishi, where you, the player,
can meet and interact with them in the Shadow of Revan game expansion (available now for only $19.99 USD!).
A little bit more substantial than most of these web vignettes have
been, plus going back to the Unknown World and seeing the Rakata again
warmed the cockles of my heart. 2/5 Death Stars.
Mandalorian warrior Galron is out camping with his twin daughters,
Tayn and Mari. As they turn in for the night beside the campfire, they
ask their father to tell them a bedtime story. Galron tells them about
Shae Vizla, the pretty redheaded lady who helped Darth Malgus blow up
the Jedi Temple. Apparently she used to fight side by side with her
brother until he was killed by a Jedi, which prompted her to volunteer
for the temple attack. Fighting and killing Jedi is all fun and games
until they start killing you back, then you have a reason to kill them, I
guess. Galron says that after the Treaty of Coruscant, Shae and her
whole clan disappeared, but he believes that she will return once she’s
found a great enough challenge. Mari asks if she can sleep with her
father’s helmet on, and he stays up all night carving his daughters
practice swords out of wood.
Fun fact: Shae Vizla has no relation to the various prequel-era Mandalorians surnamed Vizsla.
Whew, I’m gonna need a rag over here.
This story is kind of sweet but also kind of sickening. There’s one
point where Tayn make-believes shooting a flamethrower and Galron
mentally adds it to her armor’s construction list. Now I’m really
endeared to this culture. 1.5/5 Death Stars.
Rishi: Places of Interest
This is another one of these online TOR vignettes that can only
debatably be called a story. It’s a series of emails sent by a
prospector named Rondo to his wife, Marani. There are several shorts
published on the TOR website that are just emails or in-universe
advertisements or transcripts of fictional interviews, none of which I
am including in this series, but this one has the vaguest suggestion of a
plot in that it relates a series of connected events in a narrative
fashion, so it arbitrarily made the cut.
Rondo has come to the planet Rishi to strike it rich mining exonium,
after his previous business venture on Mustafar led to permanent damage
to his lungs. At first he’s optimistic, but he’s quickly made a slave of
the pirate band who control the planet’s exonium trade. Rondo escapes
by jumping out the emergency exit of their ship and ends up floating on a
door in the ocean for two days until he’s rescued by native Rishii
tribesmen. The Rishii introduce him to a local prospector who tells him
where to find all the exonium he wants. Rondo follows the prospector’s
map to a spooky cave but wisely decides not to enter upon hearing
monster noises from within. Unfortunately, as leaves the cave he
stumbles upon some kind of mysterious operation that he doesn’t
understand but knows he wasn’t supposed to see. His final, unsent email
to his wife cuts off mid-sentence, and we’re informed that his datapad
was found by the Rishii villagers but “what happened to Rondo as he
wrote those last words remains a mystery to this day.”
Oh but according to Wookieepedia I guess he was just killed by the
Revanites, a splinter cult within the Sith Empire that worships Revan.
Boooooorrring. 1.5/5 Death Stars.
