Welshman Corsair Tarentae (15BBY-present) a Consul emeritus of the Clan Tarentum and the current Aedile of House Tridens of Tarentum and member of the Honoured families of the Tarentae and Bruth’Kothae.
Character History
Childhood (15BBY-0BBY)
Welshman experienced a rather uneventful childhood living life in relative comfort with his middle-class Imperial Beaurocrat parents. His father was a civil servant in the Yaga Minor shipyards who’s main job was balancing the accounts whilst his mother was a local parish councillor.
Adolescence (0ABY-4ABY)
One of the most defining moments of his life occurred on his 15th birthday, the destruction of the first Death Star, it was during the battle of Yavin that he discovered a taste for everything military and promised himself that a naval career was the one for him. The marvel infused in him by watching the dogfights on the news holo and the courageous deaths sustained by those on the Death Star made him feel a sense of pride and duty to his Empire.
On his 17th birthday Welshman fulfilled that dream by enrolling to the Imperial Naval Academy on Carida.
During his stay at the Academy Welshman discovered he was a natural pilot, often outperforming even some of his instructors, a trait which saw him pass close to the top of his class all the time. Other aspects of study were quickly followed up on to make a better pilot, computing, martial arts and even languages. A well rounded warrior was a warrior who survived.
Two years later and badged as a fully fledged Imperial TIE Fighter pilot Welshman was sent to join the Open Circle Armada operating out of the Core Worlds.
Imperial Service (4ABY-19ABY)
After joining the Open Circle Armada he underwent 8 months of intense anti-piracy and rebellion interdiction missions came the news of the death of Emperor Palpatine at Endor. During the months of upheaval that followed Welshman remained loyal to the forces of the Empire and its leaders.
And on this went until Grand Admiral Thrawn once more gave hope to the Imperial forces, for a glorious year Welshman flew under the banner of Thrawn from the Imperial Star Destroyer Nemesis until the traitorous Noghiri bodyguard slaughtered Thrawn at his command seat.
And so it went for many years and many torturous defeats Welshman staying at the side of Thrawn’s chosen successor, Admiral Pelleon. For 15 years Welshman excelled behind the cockpit of a T/I rising to the rank of wing commander, the man responsible for the whole fighter contingent aboard the ISD Nemesis and it was here he stayed until 17 years after Yavin when he was promoted to General and assigned a groundside office in charge of the planetary defences of one of the few worlds still loyal to the Empire, it was here during the closing stages of the Civil War that he almost met his match. As the planetary shields crumbled and the defence force fled from orbit down closer to the planet Welshman attempted to make his way to the hangers so that he may rally his fighters for a final counter-assault, this was not to be as a turbolaser blast thundered from orbit to destroy the headquarters he had only recently vacated, thrown about by the shockwave and peppered by shrapnel Welshman waited to die.
Brotherhood Service (19ABY-Present)
It was in this state that emissaries from the Brotherhood found him, broken and dejected. Sensing potential within the pilot they placed him in a healing trance and took him aboard their ship. For the whole five day journey from Garqi to Yridia Welshman was cared for by the two Dark Jedi who had been sent to Garqi to attempt to buy unique xenoc agro-products.
Upon arrival in Castle Tarentum Welshman was immediately taken to the medical ward where he suffered a further two weeks of bacta and Force treatment to nurse his battered body back to health however one part of his body was beyond repair, his eyes. To compensate for his loss of vision the Tarenti surgeons fitted him with an archaic looking set of optical goggles to enable him to see.
Once healed he was sent on his way to Lyspair and the Shadow Academy to begin his tuition in the ways of the Dark Side.
After only a few days at the Academy Welshman came to realise that he was destined to follow the path of the Sith, a noble institution and heirs to a great power Welshman became enthralled with the history of the great Sith Lords of the past, Exar Kun, Naga Sadow, Darth Vader and Freedon Nadd. To follow in these great men’s footsteps and to perhaps achieve such power as they did was indeed a great lure to the old Imperial officer.
Due to his past experiences Welshman excelled in the martial aspects of his studies besting even those Journeymen who had had long training in ways of the occult. Within months he had progressed enough to be bestowed with the rank of Apprentice and sent on his way back to the Clan which had saved him.
Upon his arrival in House Tridens of Tarentum Welshman assumed the duties expected of a lowly member such as himself his prowess in the cockpit however soon endeared him to his fellow squad mates in Hammerhead squadron and within weeks he had caught the eye of the Quaestor of the House, one Rekio Corsair, who then took Welshman on as his apprentice.
Under the tutelage of his Master Welshman climbed quickly through the Journeymen ranks rising to Jedi Hunter and his own squadron command within a year. With himself at the head of Stingray Welshman prepared for his most trying time so far in the Brotherhood.
The Third Sith War
It was a grand venture to solidify the Brotherhood’s grasp over its new home that gave Welshman his first taste of a Force war. Leading his squadron through battle after battle Welsh distinguished himself in dogfight after dogfight leading to him being given command of a multi-Clan task force in the final battle against the Antaran hordes. The Dark Council’s ships were being kept out of the Antaran shipyards by the heavy Golan defence platforms and Welsh’s squad were given the mission of infiltrating the yards and causing as much damage and destruction as possible before turning on the defence platforms and attacking them from within. This attack was met with great success and the ISD Heresiarch was able to punch a hole in the weakened perimeter and allow Brotherhood forces to flow into the alien’s shipyards.
Due to his commendable actions Welshman was promoted to a Dark Jedi Knight and along with his new lightsabre even newer doors were to open for him in the Brotherhood.
Leadership
Arriving home from Antei exhausted but also exhilarated Welshman was surprised to find himself called to the office of then Aedile Oberst. Tarentum considered Welsh an investment and one they expected to see a return on, as such they trusted him enormously with a position on the house Summit of Tridens, and then began a period in which Welshman would rise from humble Rollmaster of the greatest House of the Sith to one day rule the Clan that had rescued him and given him life.
The Fifth Great Jedi War
The time of peace that followed the Sith War did not last long and all too soon the Brotherhood once more succumbed to war. This time due to an insidious virus which infected the minds of almost half of the Brotherhood causing them to fight against fellow members. Welshman for almost the whole war fought on the side of the Clean against the infected ones and earned himself distinction, rising to the rank of Sith Warrior after a series of particularly lengthy battles however the golden age of this War was not to last long. In a battle with his Consul, Sith Bloodfyre, Welshman was soundly defeated and infected with the mind plague. Under the influence of the insidious virus Welshman travelled to Antei where he took command of a squadron of capital ships in defence of the Infected leadership. His three picket destroyers and frigates however did not last long against the combined might of the Clean fleet and his ships were left drifting and burning until the disease state was lifted from everyone by the Grand Master. Shame burning through him at the thought of having helped the traitors Welshman travelled to Yridia to await the trial he thought would be forthcoming.
Inclusion into the Tarentae
Upon his arrival in Tarentum home space Welshman was immediately escorted to a room he had only been in once previously, on his promotion to Dark Jedi Knight, a dark room in which it was only possible to make the rough outline of half a dozen individuals. His Force senses revealed them to be all members of the Clan’s elite, here no doubt to preside over his trial. Instead this transpired to be one the days in which he felt most honoured, he had been granted the right to use the name Tarentae. His loyalty to Tarentum had now been sealed and only death would break that vow.
Gladius
Following the tumultuous times of the past Great War and the depletion suffered by al Clans, Tarentum was forced to reshuffle her assets. The once noble House Cestus decimated by war had to be merged with Tridens and Gladius causing a gradual shift of all the Clan’s Houses from the previously well defined single order groupings to Houses which would soon incorporate all the disciplines followed in the Brotherhood. Seeing the potential difficulties Welshman was approached to become the Aedile of House Gladius, once a proud Krath House that had since war’s end seen a dramatic influx of Sith disciples and Obelisk warriors and High Command fearing any backlash decided that a Sith follower on the Summit would be of help to the willy Krath leader, the future Headmaster himself Anshar Kahn.
Soon Welshman was to rise to lead this great House, the first Sith in an age to rule over a predominately Krath House but not the last. It was around this period that he began training his first apprentice, Nit’Chu, who unfortunately failed to master his grip on the Dark Side and was driven away from the Clan by the power which he could not control. Distraught over the failure of his promising Apprentice Welshman himself apprenticed himself to Warlord Oberst in a effort to learn more about the subtleties of the Force and the skills of leadership. It was this move which first brought him to touch with Clan Tarentum’s area of Force expertise, the power of Necromancy. Under Oberst’s guidance Welshman began on his first steps down the long road to becoming one of the Death Dealers of Tarentum.
Welshman was proud to be the leader of such a fine House for many years, leaving his mark on some of the younger members whom inside them he saw great potential. Indeed a few of his closest friends during this time have themselves gone on to great things. After two years of successful management of House Gladius and the instigator of many a reform Welshman was granted the honour of ascending to the Clan summit.