Governor of Dantooine
Sayu Ni Temple Acolytes [NPC Army]
- Army Name: Sayu NI Temple Enclave [Army]
- Classification: Defense force of the Diarchy's temples, enclaves, and force nexuses across the galaxy.
- Affiliation: The Diarchy - Sayu Ni Temple Enclave
- Army Symbol: A white, nine-pointed star pointing upwards.
- Image Credits:
NightCafe AI. Prompt: "Red dragonborn in Jedi robes with longsword"
PlayBuzz via Pinterest: "Lightsaber Color Quiz"
Bleengy on Pinterest: Obi Wan Kenobi as a Samurai
"I get knocked down, but I get up again, you ain't never gonna keep me down!"
Chumbawumba - Tubthumping
The Acolytes and Initiatives of the Sayu Ni Temple Enclave are a fierce bunch. Although there are less than three hundred practitioners left across the galaxy, the number is growing, and these force users come from a rich tradition.
The Temple Acolyte Army is a rag-tag group of Jedi/Sith/Grey Jedi who are called to defend the Sayu Ni Temples and to escort important people within the Enclave. Though they come from many different force traditions and force philosophies, their goal is united: to defend the Diarchy and to supports its objective of keeping order at any cost.
Having been in the hands of Mandalorian, Sith, and Jedi alike, the Sayu Ni Temple Enclave has created a unique culture. Much of the Sayu Ni tradition is borrowed from the more-established Naboo traditions - but, as the history of the Sayu NI Temple Enclave suggests, a lot of the teachings of the Sayu Ni tradition were lost to war.
At the peak of their training, full-time Initiates who are in the military division of The Diarchy train from 6am until 6pm, with six hours of the time dedicated to their practical learning and personal training, and the other six hours spent on conditioning and socialization. Initiates may learn about any aspect of the Diarchy military, and not just force use and infantry combat. For example, Diarch Initiates may be taught to pilot ships.
During their training, all initiates are responsible for operating the Temple Enclave like a home. They feed each other, draw water for each other, spar with each other, and they even sleep in the same barracks together. As a form of physical conditioning and income generation, Acolytes regularly extract perfect kyber crystals, which are provided to the Dantooine authorities in exchange for paying no rent or land taxes.
The Sayu Ni Temple Acolytes must accompany the members of the Diarch Enclave Council or Chancellorate on any mission that they choose. They fully fall under the authority of the Diarchy, regardless of whether the planet is occupied by another force.
Some - but not all - Sayu Ni Acolytes are also members of "The Brotherhood", the force-user military arm of The Diarchy. These Acolytes are designated with a prefix of either "Praetor" (dark-sided officers), or "Justicar" (light-sided officers).
Unlike the Jedi Enclave, which is in the open on Dantooine and located close to the well-secured spaceport, the Sayu Ni Temple is located in a secretive part of the planet's open plains, its battlements constructed directly around a kyber crystal mine. Following a recent terrible incident, the kyber and Dantari crystals grown in the Enclave are at-risk of never growing again.
When not in combat or engaged in diplomacy, the primary role of the Sayu Ni Acolytes are to tend to the kyber crystals, Dantari crystals, and feeding the kinrath red meat. ("It builds character and elicits empathy", to feed kinrath and not die).
SOCIAL INFORMATION
- Headquarters: Located primarily on Bastion, but Sayu Ni acolytes could be located anywhere that there is an Enclave.
- Goals: The ultimate goal of the defense force is to prevent attacks against The Diarchy, and protect people and places related to the Enclave and the Sayu Ni tradition. During training, the goal of Sayu Ni is to "moderate restraint and aggression".
All Acolytes aspire to elevate oneself to the position of Master Diarch, which represents the pinnacle of Diarchical "grey jedi" teachings. From there, Master Diarchs may seek to become members of either the Diarchy High Council (the political arm of the Enclave), or the Brotherhood (the military arm).
Master Diarchs often refuse to participate any further in politics or the military, become independent practitioners who teach Sayu Ni so as to make a living. This comes from the Mandalorian tradition, where trained soldiers who fulfilled their tours of duty frequently retired to become bounty hunters. - Reputation: The Sayu Ni Acolytes (as an army) have a reputation for being efficient and effective, but also undisciplined and foolhardy.
- Army Size: Small. The Diarchical interpretation of the force is new and uncomfortable, and practitioners are reluctant to stand up against the established forces of the Jedi and Sith. However, those who join the Sayu Ni Enclave find themselves among best friends .
- Composition: A typical "squadron" or team of Acolytes would look like this.
1x Master Diarch
2X Praetors or Justicars
3X Temple Acolytes
Per their Sayu Ni training, all defense force squadron members carry both a lightsaber and a blaster pistol (of any sort).
With respect to the number of members, and at the time that the Sayu Ni Enclave was reclaimed during the present timeline, there were only about three hundred Sayu Ni practitioners across the entire galaxy. This is a rare tradition; a taboo. Only the most dedicated Sayu Ni acolytes choose to train for twelve hours each day. However, the tradition is steadily growing...
Members of the Temple Acolyte Army are sometimes Justicars and Praetors of the Diarchy Brotherhood, but not always.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION - ANCIENT JEHADI ORIGINS
[ This is the version of Sayu Ni Jedahi History which is taught by the Sayu Ni Temple Enclave to its Initiates. This is not necessarily the "correct" or only interpretation of the Rakatan Civil War's effect on the Braxant Run. Some scholars and academics would even RPly argue that the Jedahi never reached the Braxant Run during the Rakatan Civil War. This codex entry emphasizes that this is an interpretation, and not necessarily provable. ]
The Sayu Ni Temple Enclave rose to prominence during the reign of the old-school Jedi, the Jedahi, at some point before 5000BY. The ancient origins of the Sayu Ni Temple go all the way to the "Kyber Heart" planet of Jedah, which created one of the first temples dedicated to the Force.
The Jedahi along the Braxant Run faced heavy Rakatan resistance. The only way that they would survive would be to abandon the quick, wild-swinging teachings of Shii-Cho and the strong, precise swings of Makashi. The Rakatan, ever-observant and tactical, noticed the main principles of these Jedahi traditions and began to thwart them. This was the void between Forms III and IV. Jedahi / Jedi began to hold their lightsabers underhanded while continuing to follow Makashi, which allowed a wider range of physical movement. This move also surprised opponents, which led to a realization: the Rakatan could be distracted. To survive constant Rakata attacks, they developed a style that would allow the Ancient Jedahi to use trickery against their blood-thirsty Rakatan rivals - without compromising their Jedahi Code. It is believed that at least two of the taboo lightsaber traditions, Trakata and Sayu Ni, developed during this time of the ancient Jedahi. There could have been additional, ancient Jedahi force traditions created at this time. However, only Trakata and Sayu Ni are known in the current timeline.
When Trakata and Sayu Ni were used, it was a time of total war.
When the Rakatan Civil War concluded, the Orthodox Jedahi decided that they would pursue a more traditional, teachings-focused version of their Jedahi Code, with the vast number of force-users adopting either Makashi or Shii-Cho. They believed that Sayu Ni contributed to the dangerously chaotic "confusion", which leads to anger, which leads to the dark side. However, some Jedahi continued to practice Sayu Ni, heading to either Naboo or the Braxant Run to learn this forbidden yet effective tradition. The Jedahi who used Sayu Ni justified that it was a "higher form" of combat and that a reasonable amount of trickery is acceptable when the enemy is intent on murder.
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