This is about the real life person behind Kaine Mandaala. For information the character, see Kaine Mandaala.
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Brief History
I was born in Albany, NY on a dark, cold, snowy November night. My mom always said I was a night owl, from the moment I was born. I still am.
Art
I started (serious) art classes when I was five. I moved up the ladder fast - each class I would be enrolled in I was always the youngest by nearly half, but could hold my own rather easily. I attended classes at the Albany School of Visual Arts and the Albany Institute of History and Art. Even in high school I was taking about 3 art classes each year.
Musical Interlude
Some time around the last year of high school I got burnt out on art and moved to music. I played drums in a band for about 4 or 5 years. We made three albums. We played at several parties and clubs. We even made the local music-scene newspaper as "The Most Highly Distributed Band" in the area thanks to a few key factors including using cheap tapes and selling them cheap (bought 4/$1, sold for $1 each). It was a great time until the others kicked me out. It was one of those "we hate your girlfriend" situations. I realized they were right about her not too long after that and dumped her. I lingered at home for a few more years before finally turning back to art.
Return To Art
I went to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh for Computer Animation, and taught myself to write classical music. During this time I played a lot of computer games, the SWRPG and D&D. About a year after college I had a massive hard drive crash and lost all my work - art and music. I was rather broken at that point, and have only recently started picking up the pieces -- almost 6 years later.
Star Wars
I saw Star Wars (ANH) the first time on TV. The first film I saw in theaters was The Empire Strikes Back. Being an only child I had nearly every toy. My interest in Star Wars dwindled heavily after Return of the Jedi, and all the spin off cartoons (Droids/Ewoks).
Games
It wasn't until high school - when X-Wing came out - that I really got back into it. I played X-Wing for hours, competing with a friend over who could get the best score. This lasted into the B-Wing expansion too. When TIE Fighter came out we kept at it, though we grew apart shortly afterwards.
When I hit college Jedi Knight was the cool SW game. I played Canyon Oasis matches until my eyes watered and the sun went down/came back up. I joined the EH at this time and loved it for quite a while, but eventually my interest shifted to the DJB. I also played a lot of the SWRPG during the weekends or pretty much any time off. This was where I created the character of Kaine Mandaala. Originally he was an ex-TIE pilot with some sort of PTSD, but when I was asked to help the group balance out the Jedi player I turned to the Dark Side. I also began shifting the history of the character so that everything other characters knew about him was wrong. I worked in that he was telling them false information to hide his true history. This carried over to the DJB, even up until very recently where I hammered out the actual history outline (seen here).
Prequels
Games kept my interest strong until the prequels hit. I didn't mind the films as they came out. I went to TPM a few times in the theaters. It wasn't until I started talking about them with people that I had a problem with some of the annoyances. Jar Jar was a little annoying before, but I could see where he'd be "must kill him" annoying after talking it over with friends. This happened with each new film, though with ROTS I was a little more shielded from it. Being the end of the saga, I was a little more willing to let some things slide.
As with the original trilogy, I feel that Act II is the best, despite the cheesy acting by Ani and Padmé. There are quite a few elements I love about Episodes 1 and 3, but 2 was more like a complete chapter without this feeling of a scramble to get the tale told. Hundreds of future stormtroopers, hundreds of lightsabers, and Yoda kicking ass like Old Ben always said he did.
Then to Now
These days my interest in Star Wars is not weak, but not as strong as it has been. Watching any SW film will recharge my dedication. Plus, I've been playing those silly LEGO Star Wars games and finding a lot of enjoyment in talking with people about Star Wars (especially to people who are unaware of Expanded Universe items like the novels). I recently let a co-worker borrow the Zahn Trilogy, and now I need to refresh my memory so I can discuss it with him.
Star Wars Games Played
Console Games
- The Empire Strikes Back (Atari 2600)
- Jedi Arena (Atari 2600)
- Super Star Wars (SNES)
- Super The Empire Strikes Back (SNES)
- Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Käsi (PSX)
- Star Wars Episode 1: Racer (N64)
- Star Wars: Battle For Naboo (N64)
- Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II (Gamecube)
- LEGO Star Wars (Gamecube)
Computer Games
- Dark Forces
- Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II
- Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast
- Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
- Knights of the Old Republic
- Knights of the Old Republic II
- Star Wars Battlefront
- Star Wars Battlefront 2
- Star Wars Galaxies
- Rebel Assault
- TIE Fighter (and expansions)
- X-Wing (and expansions)
- X-Wing Alliance
- X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter
- Yoda Stories