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Mandalore
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[[25 BBY to 1 BBY|Template:Birthyear and Age (BBY)]]
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Human
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Male
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1.85 m
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79.5 kg
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Black
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Brown
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Amethyst
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- Mandalorian Protector (former)
- Dark Jedi
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Solus Gar is a human born on Mandalore, a Sith Battlemaster in the Dark Jedi Brotherhood, and former member of House Plagueis. Also an experienced warrior, Solus is a former member of the Mandalorian Protectors. The son of a rogue ARC Trooper and a Jedi Padawan, Solus was raised by members of the Mandalorian Clan Bralor following the death of his parents in 1 BBY. Raised amidst the Mandalorian culture, Solus trained as a warrior since the time he could walk. Growing up hearing stories detailing the bravery of the father he never knew, Solus came to idolize him and his armor reflects that which was worn by his father.
While his mother's identity as a Jedi was long unknown to him, he regularly displayed the innate talents that marked him as someone open to the training of a Jedi. These abilities eventually would lead him down the Jedi path. After learning the truth about his mother following the Battle of Mandalore, Solus sought out the Brotherhood in order to learn the skills to help ensure that his homeworld would never again fall prey to such devastation. Upon joining he initially found a place in clan Scholae Palatinae and later moved to Tarentum. Solus eventually became disillusioned with the political infighting of the clans, petty bickering that led him to decide to leave the Brotherhood. Unable to return to the Mandalorian clans and unwilling the remain in the Brotherhood, Solus ended up selling his martial skills as a mercenary to various criminal organizations across the galaxy. A chance encounter however lead to his involvement with members of clan Arcona and a reintroduction to the Brotherhood. Following the Brotherhood's Invasion of New Tython in 35 ABY that saw Arcona dominate all comers, Solus left the clan in order to find a greater challenge. Feeling that a victory too easily earned would lead to weakness, he eventually found himself a part of House Plagueis. During the Brotherhood's campaign against the One Sith, Solus was captured by the enemy and is missing, presumed dead.
Character Biography
The Family Gar
Alpha-32, also known as Gar. Solus was born into a life of hiding on Mandalore. His parents, both wanted by the Empire, had lead a quiet life amongst the Mandalorian Clans since the end of the Clone Wars. Their family name, Gar, came from the nickname his father had acquired during his time as an ARC trooper, which was itself a play on the acronym for "Grand Army of the Republic". Gar, or Alpha-32 as he was designated, was one of a handful of Alpha ARC's to disobey Order 66. Like several of his fellow Alphas, Gar's unaltered independent minds and close experiences with the Jedi would not allow him to execute the order. Gar received the order during the closing stages of the Battle of Tellanroaeg, which left him tasked with eliminating the Jedi General Alie Pinath and her Padawan Lia Roan. Unable to carry out the order in good conscience, Gar defended the Jedi against his former comrades. Alie, sensing that victory was impossible, ordered him to escape with her young Padawan while she died holding off the other clones.
Gar would indeed avoid the other clones by shedding his own armor and having Lia and himself disguise themselves in the standard armor of two fallen clone troopers. The plan worked, and they escaped Tellanroaeg with their lives. Eventually, as the war finally ended, Gar realized that they would need someplace to hide to avoid agents of the new Galactic Empire. Upon learning that many of the retiring ARCs and other troopers were settling on Mandalore, the two chose the world to serve as sanctuary. Able to hide amongst a sizable population of genetically identical clones on a world far from the Core, Gar and Lia were able to remain unnoticed. Eventually, the relationship of guardian and charge blossomed into more, and the two were wed in a ceremony in 15 BBY. Even as a married couple, they still resisted having children, as the danger of needing to flee at a moment's notice still hung over their lives. After years of living in secret, feeling they had escaped Imperial persecution, they eventually agreed to have a child in 2 BBY. Nine months later, their son was born.
By 1 BBY, however, the Great Jedi Purge was nearing it's conclusion. Most of the hold outs had been found and slaughtered by Darth Vader and other agents of the Empire, and yet Gar and Lia still had escaped detection. However, in the spring of that year news reached Gar that the Empire had discovered that the Padawan of Alie Pinath was on Mandalore. Knowing that the Empire's wrath would eventually find her, Lia knew she had to leave. Torn between wanting to protect his wife and his newborn son, Gar made the choice to protect them both. Knowing that the only defense he could offer his son was anonymity, he chose to leave his infant son with his adopted Bralor clan mates living in the city of Norg Bral. Before he left Gar recorded several holo messages for his son, but did not tell him about his mother's Jedi heritage.
The former soldier and his Jedi companion were eventually traced to the Outer Rim world of Ord Ibanna. Gar had selected the abandoned mining platforms on the now uninhabited planet as the perfect place to hide, but it was not perfect enough. Vader lead a force of stormtroopers, many of whom were still clones derived from the Fett template just as Gar was, aboard the platform that housed Gar and Lia. The former ARC lieutenant was cut down in a hail of blaster fire as he stood between his wife and the enemy. Vader then proceeded to engage Lia saber to saber, but the out of practice Padawan was no match for the experienced Vader.
Protector
Solus in his Protector armor circa 18 ABY.With his parents' departure and eventual death, Solus was raised with the clan. His adoptive father was Krev Bralor, brother of the clan leader of Clan Bralor, Neth Bralor. With the Imperial occupation of Mandalore broken before his third birthday, most of Solus's childhood was spent helping the Mandalorian people recover from the brutality inflicted upon them by the Empire. The slavery and strip mining of Mandalore had left much of the population destitute and the land barren, and it took many years to begin to heal those wounds. It was at this time that Mand'alor Fenn Shysa began to rebuild the Mandalorian Protectors in earnest, even ousting Grand Admiral Miltin Takel from control of the Mandalorian sector. Following the Nagai invasion of Mandalor, Solus decided that he would join the ranks of the Protectors himself.
His training began at a young age, much as any other Mandalorian warrior. When his training was complete, he forged his own set of Mandalorian armor, using duraplast as opposed to the then unavailible Mandalorian iron. Solus was highly successful as a Protector, eventually reaching the rank of ver'alor, or lieutenant, by his twenty-first year. His duties, like many of the Protectors at the time, mainly revolved around patrol and defense of Mandalorian space against external threats. He often lead a flight group of four Pursuer-class enforcement ships on interdiction missions, stopping and boarding any hostile vessels in the system.
Unknown to Solus at the time, his heritage as the son of a Jedi still undiscovered, much of his ability with weapons and as a pilot was likely due to his latent Force skills. The greater reaction times, preternatural ability to sense danger, and other advantages made him a more effective warrior then his compatriots. These skills would serve him well in the galaxy spanning conflict that was yet to come.
Invasion
The Yuuzhan Vong War.
Outcast by Choice
Solus during his early Jedi training.
- "I won't be coming back here, will I?"
- ―Solus upon realizing his decision to join the sith
Leaving Mandalore and coming to the Brotherhood.
Soldier of Fortune
Mercenary years.
Arcona Rising
Return to the Brotherhood.
No Easy Challenges
Solus wearing his Royal Guardsman armor.
- "Pity the warrior who slays all his foes."
- ―Mandalorian Proverb
The Shadow Academy, Naga Sadow, and Plagueis.
Appearance
Physical Characteristics
Solus's tunic and armor.Solus has the general look of a soldier, with a strong build and robust features. His face carries a hint of his father upon it, however he would never be mistaken for a clone himself. His features are prone to dour expressions befitting his dark and serious mood. He has a dark goatee on his chin, but aside from that exception is clean shaven. His skin is usually lightly tanned and shows the wear of decades of combat and training. He has several small and varied scars over his body, as many veteran soldiers do. None are large or highly noticeable, but are easily spotted if one is looking for them.
Attire
As a former Mandalorian Protector, he often wears pieces of his armor even with his Jedi tunic when going into battle. During his earlier days with the Brotherhood Solus would commonly wear all of his armor even including his helmet. As his familiarity and trust in the Force grew, he scaled back his use of armor plates and now can be found only wearing his chest and back plates beneath his more traditional garb.
Unlike many others in the Brotherhood Solus totally eschews the practice of wearing robes or cloaks. While his years with the Brethren have seen him abandon much of his old beliefs and teachings, he still sees himself as a warrior at heart and avoids the more monastic trappings many Jedi and Sith adopt. His thought is that in combat long, flowing folds of fabric merely serve to entangle a person's limbs and impede their ability to fight. Raised amongst a culture that saw battle as paramount, he learned from a young age to be prepared for combat at any time. As such, he avoids wearing robes in order to ensure he never has to take time at the start of combat to shed them and also that he is never caught still wearing them in unexpected combat.
Psychological Profile
- "As you said, a Mandalorian is not Sith. This one, however, will become Sith in more then just name."
- ―Ric Hunter
Solus is shaped by his transition from Mandalorian to Sith far more than by anything else that has come before in his life. Many of his Mandalorian beliefs dovetail well with the teachings of the Sith, the need for conflict to breed strength for example, but there are still others that do not. The honor exhibited on the field of battle and elsewhere with Mandalorians is not something held in high esteem by the Sith, and so there is opposition between the two schools of thought. This conflict has made it impossible to entirely balance the two, and as such he has spent his time in the Brotherhood transitioning from his old life as a Mandalorian to his new one as a Sith.
This psychological change can be observed most easily in his choices of attire. When he first joined the Brotherhood following the defeat of the Yuuzhan Vong Solus maintained his armor as he had for years as a Protector. As his experience with the Sith deepened, and his distance from the Mandalorian clans grew, he began to incorporate more and more of the teachings of the Sith into his life as symbolized by his integration of the trappings of the Sith into his clothing. He began to wear his Mandalorian armor plates over Sith tunics, shedding his traditional Mandalorian garb. Today he has almost fully made his transition to a true Sith, wearing only the chest pieces of his old armor to complement his fully Sith attire. He has completely internalized the Sith teachings, retaining only those parts of his old life that serve him while discarding the rest.
The Force
- "You refer to the prophecy of the one who will bring balance to the Force."
- ―Mace Windu
Unlike many in the Brotherhood, Solus does not subscribe to the more standard view of the Force and instead follows something called "The Balance". However, unlike many that follow alternate force teachings such as the Potentium or Tyia, his views do not discount the existence of the Light and Dark sides of the Force. Instead, what makes The Balance unique is in how it characterizes the relationship between the two.
Nomi Sunrider, the first recognized manifestation of the Balance.
The classical Jedi view of the balance of the Force is a central tenant of the teachings of the light side. The Jedi believe that for the Force to be in balance it must exist in its pure state of light. The is said to destroy the natural balance through the act of existing, corrupting the Force. This was best exemplified by the prophecy of the Chosen One embodied in Anakin Skywalker. His redemption as Darth Vader and killing the Emperor is believed by the Jedi to have restored the natural balance of the Force.
Those that believe in the Balance however take a different view. The philosophical basis had it's roots during the Great Sith War over four thousand years ago. There were those members of the Jedi order that saw a certain reciprocity between the two sides of the Force, how as one side grew more powerful the other side would produce its own great Jedi. As the Dark Side created Exar Kun, the light side gave rise to Nomi Sunrider. Over the centuries the pattern would repeat itself. The light side would gain in power and so rose Revan and Malak, The Sith Triumvirate faced the Exile, over and over again.
This lead several of the Jedi Order's more Grey Jedi to come to the conclusion that, unlike the Jedi believed, the neither the Light or Dark could exist independently. They saw that the balance the Force would reach would be a balance between its two sides, and that whenever one side grew in strength the other side would rise to maintain that balance. As such it was thought that neither side could eradicate the other through use of the Force itself, as when one side advanced the other would eventually bring itself to that level as well. The Balance philosophy would grow to advocate a minimalist view of the Force, using only what was needed and not expanding the Jedi Order needlessly as it's growth would eventually serve the Sith and the Dark Side. They also advocated having non-force users involved more in the duties of the Jedi Order with the goal of shrinking the order as well.
Darth Bane, perhaps the first Sith to follow the Balance.
The followers of the Balance existed within the Jedi Order for many centuries without incident until a decade prior to the Battle of Naboo. A belief in the "true" power of the Force had been growing in the order for some time. Following the Battle of Galidraan, there were those that felt without the "weakening" of the Jedi advocated by the followers of the Balance that the Jedi could have avoided the casualties incurred during the battle. Had they been able to send an overwhelming force instead of twenty Jedi it was thought that the Mandalorians may have surrendered or at least been quickly overwhelmed. Instead, the battle resulted in eleven Jedi dead and Count Dooku's loss of faith in the Jedi Order. Things finally came to a head following the elevation of Jorus C'Baoth to the rank of master. C'Baoth was supremely confident in his own abilities and those of the Force in general, he even saw non-force users as inferior. Using a series of problems, including Galidraan, C'Baoth engaged in an eventually successful campaign to expel the followers of the Balance from the Jedi Order shortly before the Battle of Naboo.
The Dark Side has also had followers of their own version of the Balance, and some have even suggested that Darth Bane subscribed to it at least partially. It has been said that the institution of the Rule of Two was as much about weakening the Jedi Order by keeping the Dark Side limited and concentrated in two individuals as it was about directly undermining the Order. Certainly Palpatine's strategy of defeating the Jedi not through the strength of the Dark Side in direct combat but through deceit and manipulation seems to fit well with the ideals of the Balance. Those Dark Side believers in the Balance advocate a judicious use of the Force as opposed to not using it unless absolutely necessary as their light side cousins do, believing that a scalpel is more favorable than a hammer. Unlike many other Sith they do not engage in flamboyant showings of their power, and they strive to concentrate the powers of the Sith within few practitioners as opposed to many. For example, followers of the Balance will never take more than one apprentice at a single time.
Solus discovered the Balance shortly after joining the Brotherhood, and adopted it as his own quickly. The philosophy complimented his own predilections and training as a Mandalorian, leaning less on the Force and not ignoring things such as personal conditioning as one must be able to count on his own abilities as much as the Force at any given time. As such Solus called on the Force infrequently, and only with a specific purpose. If a goal could be achieved without the Force, through strength of arms or otherwise, he pursued that course. He developed the reputation of having less ability to call on the Force even in the face of his innate skill, though this was a mental impediment as opposed to a lack of ability.
His interpretation of the philosophy of the balance would shift as he became more immersed into the traditions of the Sith and the Force itself. With more and more familiarity with this Force as more than just a tool Solus began to see it as more and use it more easily. As his understanding of the tenants of the Sith grew he began to see the Balance not as something to be change or affected by our behavior or choices but instead an inevitable constant. The Balance always assured that the Force would raise up your equal and opposite in power and as such it wasn't simply your ability or strength with the Force that needs to be cultivated. Instead the goal of a Jedi or Sith should be to find better methods to use their strength with the Force and more cunning applications of it. The resulting change in philosophy saw Solus move away from his apparent aversion for Force use, though he still does avoid overly showy or unnecessary exhibitions of it.
Combat
Solus in combat.In combat Solus has become more Sith then Mandalorian, mirroring his progression down the path his life has taken. While trained extensively with a variety of modern weapons and possessing an almost uncanny ability with a blaster pistol, Solus has come to rely on his lightsaber and Force abilities. Where blasters and other weapons serve as tools, the Force and lightsaber have come to be extensions of Solus's own body. This focus on the traditional weapons of the Jedi has not caused his other skills to atrophy, however, as he will often make use of his more mundane weapons when taking action where a saber would serve as an all too obvious indicator of his identity.
In addition to his personal combat skills, Solus is also a highly accomplished pilot. Proficient with both starfighters and larger, mid-sized craft, Solus has actively worked to further develop his piloting skills during his time in the Brotherhood. Like many Sith, he has learned to integrate his force usage into the realm of aerospace combat. His training with the Mandalorians has also served to instruct him in the various schools of thought revolving around starfighter combat, and as such he is an experienced and capable squadron commander.
The Force
Coming to his Sith training relatively late, Solus exhibited a raw talent that was rarely seen. As such his ability would often outstrip his training, his aggression and rage getting the better of him. While he could often call on the Dark Side to batter weaker opponents, he lacked the calm and focus that more experienced Jedi possessed. After he joined Clan Tarentum he came to the attention of then Consul Ronovi Tavisaen. The more experienced Obelisk would instruct her new student in techniques to better control and utilize his power. Solus would eventually master these lessons, learning to call on calculated and focused bursts of Dark Side energy instead of emotion run rampant. As a result, Solus uses the Force in combat with relentless determination as opposed to blind rage.
Hand-to-Hand Combat
Trained from a young age in the Mandalorian clans, Solus is highly skilled in many different unarmed combat techniques. While he is a master of several different traditions, he tends to favor Knifist predominantly while using Dulon as his most often chosen alternative. Solus's expertise in Knifist is great enough that he has focused on it to the detriment of many of his other melee based skills, including those of knives and other common weapons. His use of Knifist was a choice instead to train in a tradition of combat where one would never be deprived of his weapons whilst still being able to stand against an armed opponent.
Lightsaber Combat
In saber to saber combat, Solus is a consummate duelist. His mastery of the Vapaad form makes him a challenging opponent to face with a saber or other melee weapon. The long saber hilt favored by Solus allows him to use a variety of grips with his weapon, though he tends to favor a two handed grip with his hands spread apart along the length of the weapon in duels. This grip allows for many quick movements of the blade while using the upper hand as a fulcrum or pivot point while the lower hand acts to apply force. While in combat though Solus will vary his grip as needed as combat progresses, moving to a closed grip with either Vapaad or Makashi and even dropping his off hand and adopting a more agile single hand grip for Soresu.
Solus will many times begin combat against another duelist while employing the Soresu form in to use the inherent defense of the stance to allow him a chance to examine his opponent's strengths and weaknesses. Once he has adequately felt out his foe, he most often moves into an offensive Vapaad stance to attempt to take the initiative in combat. He will sometimes sprinkle some of the simpler dueling moves found in Makashi in combat with other lightsaber duelists.
Equipment
Lightsaber
Gar's first lightsaber. Technically proficient, Solus created his first lightsaber fairly quickly upon joining the Brotherhood. Unlike most sabers carried by the members of the Brotherhood, that created by Solus was a larger weapon. Eschewing the emerging fascination with shoto sabers, Solus chose to build a long-handled saber. The saber hilt was nearly the length of a double bladed saber, though it only projected a single blade.
The blade used a Damind crystal as it's primary focus which gave the blade a bright orange hue. The crystal itself was acquired while Solus was working with the Reckoners Battle Team during his time in Tarentum. While on a mission posing as a mercenary unit, the Reckoners had raided a low ranking Hutt's headquarters on Nar Shadda. During the raid, Solus found himself separated from his teammates and alone in the Hutt's private chambers. Among the various treasures displayed there was the Damind crystal that Solus proceeded to pocket, keeping his find secret from the rest of the team and his then current clan. The blade also uses two focusing stones, a Nextor crystal and a piece of refined Barab ore. The two were chosen by Solus given his preference and training with the dueling form of Makashi. Both the Nextor and Barab ore create blades that are rough and irregular, making it easier to achieve saber locks with other weapons. These two make the redirection of blaster shots with Soresu far less predictable, however the length and breadth of the weapon created from the Damind crystal make intercepting the bolts themselves easier.
Gar's second lightsaber. In 36 ABY during the Horizons crisis, the original saber carried by Solus was destroyed as he fought his way out of the Shadow Academy along with his master Ronovi Tavisaen. Without the opportunity to forge a new saber, Solus made use of a weapon claimed off of a fallen Sith that would serve him throughout the remainder of the conflict. When Plagueis eventually reached the Anchorage and began to rebuild itself, Solus sought the pieces to craft a new saber within the vast unexplored depths of the ancient station. Guided to an age old relic, Solus chose a non-functional Rakatan forcesaber to serve as the basis of his new weapon.
Disassembling the weapon, Solus replaced the fused internal components with the technology of a modern lightsaber. The only piece of the original that he retained was the laboratory grown crystal that had been the heart of the weapon. This crystal, unlike those of newer weapons, had served as a focus to channel dark side energy from the wielder to form the original energy blade and therefore was steeped in dark energy far more so than even a Sith synthetic crystal. Solus felt this would make the weapon even better suited to him given his near-mastery of the Vapaad saber form that he had reached since he had constructed his initial blade. As the primary focus for the new saber, the Rakatan crystal gave the blade a deep amethyst hue. Given the age of the original weapon's crystal, Solus chose a Lignan crystal as the secondary crystal. This ensured the weapon generated a powerful blade, one capable of burning hotter and longer than a standard weapon.
His second saber also had similar proportions to his original weapon. One of the reasons he had chosen the unused forcesaber hilt was its length. The length of a long-handled hilt allows for the use of a variety of grips with the weapon, either one or two handed. Requiring a particular fighting style from the wielder, this weapon is easy to swing around the body using joints of the body as fulcrums upon which the lightsaber can be levered. This ease of movement complemented the flowing nature of the Vapaad saber form favored by Solus.