Har'esh Volen

"The Force is not a power designed to be used as a problem-solver or daily aid. The Force is the capacity required to allow the one to explore the potential of the self and discover their desires and the raw power hovering at their very fingertips. The Force is a supernova that guides the forces of reality, and I have been uplifted to that plain of power to the point where I can command the power only a God could possess. That is the way of the Sith, and that is what we offer."

- Har'esh Volen explaining his philosophies on the

Har'esh Volen was a Pureblood  and powerful  who served the  ruled by  as a member of the, the governing body of the Sith. During the, Volen chose to limit his direct influence in the war in order to study a number of different abilities of the the in order to further the Sith's ability to wage war on the  and the.

Under the direct orders of the council, he would forward his teachings to promising Sith warriors and students. By the end of the war, Volen had been convinced by, a rival of a Naga Sadow, to support his splinter faction and betray the Empire's leader. When Kressh and his traitors were destroyed by Sadow, Volen was able to cover up his betrayal, though not long after this, Republic and Jedi forces stormed the Sith homeworld of in order to eradicate what was left of their empire, with Volen being killed in the following conflict after a long and heavy struggle.

An extremely powerful Sith, Har'esh became well-remembered for his mastery of and for being the one who predicted the coming of the. One of the most powerful Sith scholars in history of the, Volen's teachings continued to be applied far into the future. Even as late as, his knowledge was still sought out by many Sith and archeologists, most notably by , the founder and ruler of the new Sith Order that reigned supreme over the galaxy.

Early life
Born on the planet around, Har'esh Volen's early growth was monitored closely by his peers because of his extraordinary  potential, and he soon became a very powerful  and. A keen scholar and philosopher, Volen would spend many decades learning the ways of the Force during the powerplays that occurred on Korriban, becoming reputed by future Sith for being one of the most powerful users of and. Around the time perished, Volen had already becoming a extremely respected Sith Lord and an aide and advisor to his successor,. By this time, Volen had worked himself onto the, the governing body of the.

Great Hyperspace War
Though he entered the key political circles of the Empire once the was declared against the  and the, it was notable that Volen himself did not present himself on the battlefield as frequently as some of his fellow Sith Lords did, instead preferring to spend his time on Korriban, studying the 's teachings to further the power of the Sith Empire. Through heavy study, Volen was able to improve and refine several Force techniques, which he would then pass onto a number of powerful and promising Sith apprentices and warriors so as to make the Empire's forces even deadlier.

Though he primarily remained on Korriban during the war, historical records uncovered by later s produce evidence that suggest Volen did serve as a battle leader during the Sith's attempted conquests of both  and. In the midst of the war, Volen foretold that there would be a time when the perfect being would rise and destroy the Sith, only to rebuild it and make it stronger than ever before. This being was referred to as the.

Towards the very end of the conflict, Volen was approached by the Sith Lord, a rival of Naga Sadow, who convinced him to betray his leader and join his faction. Though he supported them, he chose to remain on the surface of Korriban, and subsequently avoided the fate befell Kressh and his rebels when Sadow's fleet destroyed them above the Sith homeworld. Thanks to this, Volen was able to successfully conceal his allegiance with Kressh. After the Sith Empire's might crumbled as a result of this conflict, the Republic ordered a full-scale invasion on Korriban in order to wipe the Sith out.

Fleeing into catacombs beneath the, Volen attempted to hide away from the invaders until he was discovered by a large number of Jedi. After a long and intensive battle, Volen was killed and consumed in a massive. The catacombs where he died would eventually be modelled into his tomb, and his personal belongings were eventually stored in there.

Legacy
"Har'esh Volen was one of the ancient Sith Lords, one of the most powerful ever seen in the original empire. Though he was more a scholar than a warrior, Volen was still one of the most adept users of the dark side the galaxy has ever known. The teachings and concepts he has left behind have given particularly great insight in how to effectively master all natures of Sith magic."

- Unidentified Sith archeologist

Despite the fall of the Sith Empire, By, the remnants of Sith were proven to have survived the conflict, and the return to Galaxy as the resurgent Sith Empire, which was thought defeated during the Great Hyperspace War. Headed by the centuries-old, the revived Empire nearly completely conquered the galaxy.

In addition, the Sith'ari prophecy that Volen foretold eventually came true in the form of, who finally fulfilled the prophecy by first anhilating the and then by instating the , which would produce a new line of Sith where only two existed at one time, a master and an apprentice. It was through this lineage that the Sith'ari prophecy was ultimately completed when the Sith gained domination over the galaxy in.

Prior to his death, Har'esh Volen created a holocron that he stored all his knowledge and teachings within. His holocron gave particularly great insight into how to use, alchemy and. The holocron also related his personal beliefs and theories on the nature of the Force and the infrastructure of the original Sith Empire. This holocron was particularly sought out by future generations of Sith, though only a handful of them managed to successfully master the teachings imparted by the holocron's, let alone bypass his tomb's defenses.

Volen's holocron was also one of the many Sith holocrons that was collected by a  named  during the, who stored it in her meditation chamber in her academy on. At some point after the end of the, Volen's holocron had wound up on. By the time of the, Volen's holocron had also entered ' personal collection of ancient Sith artifacts around , who had proceeded to return it to Volen's resting placing on Korriban.

At an even later point in galactic history, this holocron had ended up in the possession of, who wished to learn any ancient techniques that could prevent the creatures from consuming his body. However, the Volen's avatar proved uncooperative with Krayt and refused to teach him anything, resulting in the holocron being deactivated and being returned to his tomb.

Personality and traits
"Power only belongs to those with the stomach to give the necessary sacrifices and time to embrace the dangers of the unknown."

- Har'esh Volen

Har'esh Volen was a manipulative and mysterious individual, whose cunning and analytical abilities often bolstering his aura of power. He used these characteristics to draw himself into powerful positions in the Sith Empire, where he used the resources and influence offered to him to further his research. He was fiercely intelligent, and possessed a thirst for knowledge and understanding that was almost as strong as his willpower. Har'esh was an insightful person, and possessed a keen photographic memory. Perhaps because of these attributes, he was an extremely good advisor to his superiors. Volen's eerily calm demeanor often sparked fear in those around him, with rumors abounding this was due to an undisclosed power he had discovered.

Volen possessed a brilliant mind and was also an excellent strategist. Though he was poor in terms of leadership skills, Volen was very good at making others do his bidding, particularly those who came to fear or hate him. Volen's ability to manipulate others often earned him the distrust and dislike of his fellow Sith Lords. He was, however, extremely arrogant, and often believed himself superior to almost everyone he encountered.

Powers and abilities
Volen was a powerful Sith sorcerer and alchemist, which therefore made him adapt in a high number of powers of the Dark Side. He was noted at a very young age for having an extraordinary fluency in the Force, which was quickly honed into a talent at using only the darkest powers of the Force. Volen regularly immersed himself into the ways of the Sith teachings, though also contributed a fair amount of his discoveries to them as well.

It was through Volen's experimentations and discoveries that more destructive side-effects from were discovered, and also through his research that certain Sith rituals were improved. In addition to this, Volen was a very skilled at using the abilities of, , , , and.

Equipment
Volen wielded a powerful called the "Blade of Volen" in combat, a weapon which was forged from pure. The sword was left to rest in his tomb on Korriban, though was later stolen by grave robbers during the. The sword was imbued with a strong amount of Dark Side energy and allegedly a portion of Volen's own power. To those who had not embraced the dark side of the Force, the sword was highly corrupting to wield or touch.

Behind the Scenes
Volen was originally planned to have existed around the time the emerged around the time  takes place, though was later scrapped. He also intended to bear the title of "Darth" and wield a in combat, though these ideas too were also scrapped in the end.