Taking Off on a Star Tour Episode 1: Dark Side of the Force

[Dunames Lopez]

"Welcome to The Scream, brought to you by Taking Off on a Star Tour! Today's host is our beloved corporation head, Dunames Lopez, called in to replace Emelanda Starky! Our first guest for today is the Sith Lord, Daxton Bane, known to Star Tours for having played in the Galactic Games!" Merrily said, as the backstage announcer.

Taking Off on a Star Tour was much, much less well-known than Star Tours, its parent corporation, now the largest shipping corporation in the galaxy. For this reason TOoaST decided to call its potentially ground-breaking book after its parent corporation, the Star Tours Guide to Force Specialties. Dunames knew that there was a market because, for all too many NFUs, understanding what Force-users used the Force for was a means to better understand the threat they posed or, in Dunames' case, who was acting more like a Light Side Sith, that is, making benevolent actions under a malevolent agenda, the reverse of this, one doing malevolent actions under a benevolent agenda, would be called a Dark Side Jedi in the Guide. This was a weekly talk-show, and, despite its name, The Scream was rather tame by dark-sided standards of holobroadcasting: they would be lucky to still be on air were it not of the First Order, who preferred more tame stuff in talk shows.

"Hello, Daxton. My first question is as follows: What made you join the Sith?"

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

The interview took place onboard Daxton's latest personal Star Destroyer, Chaos Incarnate. He was dressed in a simple dress tunic of purple and black with gold cufflinks, a discrete badge of the Red Ravens pinned on his left chest. Hanging from his waist were the trio of lightsabers that helped blaze his name throughout the galaxy.

"Before we begin I would like to thank you and your organization for this opportunity to be heard. I find it refreshing that some are willing to ask questions most people are afraid to ask."

"A most curious question indeed. Before I answer that question let me give a little background about myself. My parents were slaves so when I was born I was a slave, nothing more that property. I would died a slave except for a small quirk of fate which allowed to touch the Force. My Master made me an offer to study the ways of the Sith, to become his apprentice and I accepted. So to answer your question, I chose the Sith because it was my destiny, my way out of chains of bondage. You could say that this is the role the Force deemed I would fill in the universe. I have to confess its was the best decision I have ever made."

[member="Dunames Lopez"]

 

[Dunames Lopez]

"Now I understand that often Force-users become aware of their power in tight spots"

Jessica, who prefaced the Star Tours Guide to Force Specialties, talked about this whole ordeal about psychological incomfort. She felt uncomfortable that she always had the impression of being used as a computer in the Force but, in the end, she accepted it as the cost of being a Force-using genius. The sort of genius that only exist in tiny numbers per planet. There is highly intelligent and there is - her. That was the kind of girl that could design a lot of stuff without trouble, and slice, too. And that many a Force-user fit more than one of the base 16 categories of the book: 7 in the consular branch, 5 in the sentinel branch and 4 in the guardian branch (named inquisitor, assassin and marauder respectively as applied to dark-siders).

"Many among the population think of Sith as simply dark-sided Force-users who chased Jedi for sport. Yet there is more to Sith than just dark-siders playing this cat-and-mouse game between both sides of the Force. What are the specialized functions among the Sith in regards of how they use the Force vs. their lightsabers?"

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

"A common misception by many of the unenlightened masses. While there are those that give in to their base urges, this is true both among light and dark side users. Before we could use the Force, we are individuals whose actions tended to guided by emotion. The Force is merely a tool which allows us to express ourselves more emphatically."

"You ask about specialities among the Sith, there are more than a dozen off the top my head. The most common type you can expect to encounter is the Marauder. These are specialists in one on one combat like Reavers, Inquisitors, and Assassins. They might sound and look the same but each discipline allows them a very different skill base. Then there are those who excell in leading troops in combat like the Warlords, Overlords and Predators. Then there are Alchemists who divided into several groups as well as the Sorcerors based primarily on the path they choose to study. Most Sith refuse to be pigeonholded so expect them to do a lot of cross training between specialities when they can."

"As for lightsabers the common belief is that it is better to use an aggressive strategy to end the fight quickly. So Sith tend to use double bladed or overpowered weapons than our counterparts. I, myself, am trained to use three blades at the same time as well as a variety of weapons as well."

[member="Dunames Lopez"]

 

[Dunames Lopez]

"How are Reavers, Inquisitors and Assassins different one another?"

In the first draft of the book, Inquisitors were to Sith what Consulars were to Jedi, a supercategory including several categories; perhaps some revisions may prove necessary if the description of Inquisitors don't quite fit what the Jedi Consulars do. Suffice to say, the first draft was not cleared for publication, not even by the First Order; yet accurate descriptions of Force-users and their functionality will go some way into improving the relationship between FUs and NFUs. Sure, even on the Sith side, one could use passion to power Force-healing, and all the more tempting for Sith Healers (regardless of where they are slotted in the final product) to just spam Force-healing for healing as many people as they possibly can - and Cathul was briefly tempted by the dark side of the Force even though her motives were mostly benevolent. To Dunames Taking Off on a Star Tour was a medium with a galactic reach.

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

"While all three excel in hand to hand combat, Reavers live for one on one combat. They usually augment themselves personally to excel as duelists. For them combat against a powerful foe defines who they are."

"Assassins prefer stealth and speed. Misdirection is their ally while they work from the shadows. Hit and run tactics are very common among their kind. But don't be lulled into thinking they run out of cowardice, it is likely they are baiting you to pursue them and then you fall into their trap."

"Finally Inquisitors are the most devious of the lot. They use their brains to outwit their foes while bombarding them with Force Lightning. Be wary when facing them as they are already plotting your downfall two steps ahead. An Inquisitor as an enemy is a very powerful foe indeed. "

[member="Dunames Lopez"]

 

[Dunames Lopez]

That was to be one big edit in the final version of the book: in the first draft, Inquisitors were more or less like the Sith versions of Consulars. Here Inquisitors were not even close to that: they were more like Sith Correctors in the initial draft. The three chapters dealing with Sith were inaccurate, she thought. But also Warlords, Predators and Overlords, which were not in the initial version of the book, were mentioned right here. Was the dreaded Darth Centax one of those? Dunames had a feel that the Witch chapter was as accurate as was possible. She would never doubt Cathul as a witch, wouldn't she? But that might be because of Dunames' inexperience with Witches. Anyhow, Dunames was willing to make this book as accurate as was possible: a good understanding of Force-users and what they did was crucial for bettering the relationship between Force-users and NFUs, at least to Dunames' eyes.

"How would you distinguish between Warlords, Predators and Overlords?"

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

"A matter of scale, Predators excell in small groups tactics, usually Commandos or Sabateours. They move in the shadows and very rarely are seen in the open. Some of them like to appear as ferocious warriors, painting or tatooing themselves."

"Warlords are more refined in presence. They lead large scale groups and usually hold the rank of Provincial Govenor. Their speciality is control and pacification of a region. Ruthless and without mercy they will use any amount of force necessary to quell opposition."

"Last are Overlords, who can influence divisions of men and material. More often than not these hold the rank of Moff. Their forte is large scale tactics which can include but not limited to Planetery blockade, Fleet tactics and Populance Pacification. They like massive structures dedicated to military might and usually are the presence of a cadre of bodyguards. "

[member="Dunames Lopez"]

 

[Dunames Lopez]

"How would you distinguish among subclasses of Alchemists or Sorcerers?"

Cathul wrote that there were 10 specialties of Witches: doctor, warlock, sorcerer, seer, lorekeeper, sniper, ace, alchemist, illusionist, knight. Doctors were to Witches what Healers were to Jedi; snipers specialized in ranged combat. Aces were air combat specialists, knights were melee combatants, But that left pondering how exactly did the Sith version of alchemy or sorcery matched the Witches' or not. Dunames was a NFU that could benefit from a guide such as the Star Tours Guide to Force Specialties. It was painfully obvious that Alchemists and Sorcerers were poorly understood by the NFU population. Warlocks focused more on the mentalist aspect of witchcraft, whereas the illusionist was more akin to a Jedi Shadow in how they used sorcery. But there were so many traditions of sorcery that it was difficult to sort out. A new edition of the Star Tours Guide to Force Specialties would probably include all the various Force-cults or something like that.

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

[Member="Dunames Lopez"]

Pouring himself and his guest a drink, the amber liquid was smooth and silky, not bad for 200 year old Scotch. Sighing softly, he took out a cigar, lit it and took a few puffs.

"Alchemists use their knowledge of the Force to improve something that already exists. There are those whose specialize in biologicals, merging DNA of creatures to create new and improved versions, improving on Mother Nature so to speak. Then there are those who create new items. Smithing and crafting new alloys and specialized gear."

"Sorcerors on the other hand, harness the raw power of Sith Magic to create poweful spells. Sith Magic follows formulas and rituals established through generations of arcane study. Unlike other magic, it tends to be violent, forceful and very draining. It explodes with fury and anger, the rawer the emotion the more power it generates."

 

[Dunames Lopez]

"Thank you for your time and I hope you enjoyed this interview"

The more in-depth details of alchemy and sorcery were things that few NFUs would understand; Dunames knew some Sith Lords would know about it but Marauders would usually not. To Dunames' eyes, the public may not necessarily be interested in the inner workings of Force-related professions. What she could do is to provide a more in-depth bibliography. But Cathul provided Star Tours with enough knowledge of sorcery and witchcraft to last them for a while, seeing that, to Dunames' eyes, Sith sorcery vs. Dathomirian one is more similar than different. That, even if Cathul is as far away from traditional Dathomirian methods as she possibly could be - her approach (also used by Jessica; to Dunames' eyes, they are the two practitioners) is widely considered too mathematical for it to be deployable on a large-scale basis due to the intense intellectual requirements on the practitioner, while it is not a given that a significant number of Force-users can meet them.

[member="Daxton Bane"]

 

[Daxton Bane]

[Member="Dunames Lopez"]

"You are welcome my dear. Should you need more information please fres to ask. I hope your viewers would be able to get a better insight on our world. Now come share a few drinks with me and let up toast to the success of your interview."