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 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

Har'esh Volen was a Pureblood  and a  who served the  ruled by  and  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 , so as 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
"I was born into a lineage of proud warriors and hunters, reputed for particularly unique and aggressive methods of catching their prey. By the time I was spawned, my family had already established a tradition of raising promising young sons as warriors, though I obviously stood aside from that path. I turned away from my family's primitive ways so I could embark on a journey of greatness that would make my name memorable, and just look how powerful I have become now because of it."

- Har'esh Volen

Born on the planet around, Har'esh Volen was descended from a line of pure Sith, with his ancestors suffering from a paranoid belief that their family heritage must strictly avoid connections with other species. His earlier relatives had been renowned warriors, though it was quickly noticed that Volen lacked the natural affinity and interest in hunting shared by his forefathers. Because of this, Har'esh was treated with contempt and dislike by his agressive and battle-hardened father, which resulted in Volen despising him in return. Volen was regularly ridiculed and beaten by his abusive parent, resulting in Volen's levels of bitterness and hatred building up dramatically.

Very early on, however, Volen was discovered to be a after he had been pressured by his father to explore one of the deadly caves near their settlement. His father had forced him to do this so he could kill a beast to prove his worth to the family. As he descended through the cave, Volen was attacked by a, which forced him to flee back to the surface. Upon ascending out of the cave, Volen fell upon his fear and hatred as the beast pursued him, and used the to crush the body of the Tuk'ata.

A group of nearby settlers witnessed this event, and fearfully went to report this sighting to a local named Garnal Fentek, who personally ruled the vicinity. Impressed with the alleged capabilities shown by someone as young as Volen, the boy was taken away from his family by Fentek to be trained in the ways of the. Not long after, Volen's new master took him in as his apprentice.

Apprenticeship
Now learning at the foot of a Sith Lord, Volen's power was very quickly honed by his master, who regularly taught him Sith knowledges and rituals, and educated him in the ways of the dark side. As Fentek was considered something of a mystic oddity by his fellow Sith, Volen himself began expressing characteristics of his mentor's maverick ways. As Volen continued to impress his peers, Fentek decided that he would have to take his training a step further, resulting in the two leaving Korriban to travel around the nearby conquered in. On numerous different worlds, Volen and Fentek visited countless Sith Lords, who would assist in training Volen in specific areas of the dark side.

In addition to this, Fentek would also set a high number of challenges that appeared suicidal during their travels, often forcing the young Sith to rely on nothing but his skill and willpower. A notable test was when the two visited the world of, where Volen was abandoned and stranded in it's depths, forcing him to live on his own for a month. Volen would survive this test and prove his worth to his master when he returned with the heads of a two. After many more years spent traveling the Sith' spacial territory, the two returned to Korriban to finish Volen's training and consolidate his power in their race's hierarchy.

Not long after returning, Fentek presented him with an exotic that he had collected during their journeys. He pointed out that the bird used its alluring chirp to attract unsuspecting prey into its nest, then use its beautiful appearance to lower their remaining defenses before striking it down with its poison-coated beak. Fentek went on to reveal that the purpose of the lesson was to teach the importance of deception in a manner where one would initially seem appealing to the enemy before quickly drawing them into a deathtrap. This lesson would have a strong impact on Volen's personal outlook on Sith society and his own beliefs.

As his abilities developed further, Volen's growth was closely monitored by Fentek due to his extraordinary potential. At the peak of his training, Volen developed a strong and unsatisfiable hunger for knowledge and power, desiring to one day be remembered by future Sith with respect and acclaim. As part of his final test, Volen was instructed to return to his home and kill the elderly man who was his father, which Volen did without hesitation. When his training was finally deemed complete, Volen slew Fentek and became a Sith Lord. Believing he had done well in training him, Volen ensured his tutor's death was quick and painless, as a way of thanking him for being such an efficient teacher.

Sith Lord
Having finally become a lord, Volen was posed with a wealth of different paths to walk down in his quest for power and knowledge, though eventually chose to enter the backstabbing political circles that made up the hierarchy of the. After manipulating himself into a position of power in the empire, Volen became a as he began dwell in some of the more mysterious aspects of the dark side. 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  of his time.

As Volen further studied the mysteries of the Force, he authored a series of scrolls to keep track of what he had learned. Amongst all his writings, his most prominent piece was "The Lores of Passion", the content of which would be studied by Sith Lords for centuries to come and would become invaluable to members of the in their critical analysis of the temptations of the dark side. Volen would also further his influence amongst the Sith by establishing connections with, the supreme ruler of the Sith Empire. By this time, Volen had worked himself onto the, the governing body of the empire. Though Ragnos never trusted Volen, he kept the sorcerer around for his input and advice, using him as an counselor.

During this time, 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. This prediction made by Volen would not be fulfilled until many centuries to come. Like many Lords on the Sith Council, Volen was in control of number of worlds ruled by the Sith Empire, one of which included, a planet he personally controlled with an iron fist.

Though many have speculated that Volen did plan to overthrow Ragnos and take his place as ruler, it has been more commonly accepted amongst historians that Volen considered himself more a follower than a leader, who would rather use the connections offered to him to further his insight instead of taking on the challenge of managing an empire. However, when the rivalry between the two Sith Lords and  caught the eye of many high-ranking Sith, Volen saw that either of them would have the potential to be the successors of Ragnos, resulting in him singling out one of them whose reign would offer him more power. In the end, he chose Sadow as the one to pin his hopes on, though remained mindful of the prospects Kressh offered.

Around the time Marka Ragnos finally perished, which subsequently brought an end to the, Volen had become an extremely respected Sith Lord and a senior member of the Sith Council. Volen was amongst the many who attended the funeral of Marka Ragnos and was one of the twenty Sith Lords who helped conduct the burial ritual. In the midst of the funeral, a duel erupted between Naga Sadow and Ludo Kressh for control and supremacy over the Sith Empire. Having finally come to pin all his beliefs on Sadow, Volen deemed that Sadow would become the next ruler of the Sith.

When Sadow emerged as the new Dark Lord after using the unwitting arrival of two explorers, Gav and, to gain political advantages, Volen went on to pledge his full allegiance to the new Dark Lord, eventually becoming one of his aides and advisors. However, he was totally unaware when Sadow staged a situation which made the two Daragons seem like spies planning a full-scale Republic invasion, which resulted in the Sith race panicing and rallying behind Sadow's cause to combat this new threat.

Great Hyperspace War
Though he entered the key political circles of the Empire once the was declared against the  and the Galactic Republic, 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 dark side'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.

During this time, Volen was approached by Ludo Kressh, Naga Sadow's rival, who tried to sway him to betray his leader and join his faction. Feeling that Sadow was not creating the opportunities he had envisioned him to make, Volen accepted Kressh's offer and secretly joined up with his group of supporters. As the war continued, Volen primarily served as a diplomat on the side of the Sith Empire, and although aware that neither side would negotiate a peace treaty, attempted to blackmail Republic politicians into giving into the Sith's demands and surrendering to them so the Sith Empire could finally establish itself as the ruling power of. Though he came close to shattering their willpower, the Republic ambassadors remained unyielding.

Whilst he remained on Korriban for the most part 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 space battles, Volen was documented as commandeering a fearsome Derriphan-class battleship christened the Shadow's Eye. During the invasion of Coruscant, Volen fought on the ground levels of the planet against the capitol's defenders, slaying many Jedi and Republic soldiers with the use of a number of his dark abilities. Backed by the power of Naga Sadow's, Volen and his soldiers proved overwhelming. However, when Sadow's meditation was disrupted, the Republic managed to pull off a counter-attack, and though Volen attempted to rally the Sith forces, they were eventually overwhelmed. Abandoning his forces, Volen fled Coruscant and returned to Sith territory.

Eventually, however, he was called to aid in the battle fought over of Primus Goluud, commanding Sith forces from the deck of his battered warship against the revitalized  under the command of. Under the overall command of Naga Sadow, Volen attempted to reassemble the Sith forces and push forward, though his inadequacy as a leader prevented him from achieving this. As the tide violently turned against the Sith, Volen chose to again flee the battle and abandon his forces. Because of this, Volen avoided the fate that befell many combatants when Sadow triggered the solar flares of Primus Goluud to destroy everything in its nearby vicinity.

Volen then returned to Korriban where he was contacted by Ludo Kressh, who instructed him to have his remaining resources pooled into Kressh's fleet, which was planning to obliterate Naga Sadow and what was left of his forces over Korriban. Though he supported them, Volen chose to remain on the surface of the Sith homeworld rather than stand with Kressh, feeling this would benefit him if Sadow actually defeated Kressh. This decision ended up saving his life, as when Sadow returned and faced his rival's insurgence, he killed Kressh in a battle hosted over Korriban, effectively ending all major opposition to his rule. Having not been present when this had happened, Volen was able to successfully conceal his former allegiances and avoided the fate that befell the rebels when Sadow's fleet destroyed them.

However, this conflict proved ruinous for the Sith Empire. With its weakened army eroded even more, the Sith Empire's military was completely ravaged when the Empress Teta and her dropped out of  and attacked what was left of the Sith Empire. Naga Sadow also fled the battle and went into permanent exile on, leaving the Sith without a leader. In the brief period after this crushing defeat, Volen attempted to take control of what was left of the Sith Empire, though did not have enough time to consolidate his power when the Republic launched a full-scale invasion on Korriban in order to wipe out the remaining Sith strongholds.

Fleeing deep into the beneath the  as Korriban was attacked, Volen attempted to hide away from the invaders and withstand the battle. Though he remained concealed for a time, Volen was eventually discovered by a small number of Jedi who had been sent to clear out the catacombs beneath the valley. Deciding to make his final stand, Volen attacked the Jedi with all the power he could muster in a struggle that nearly brought the cave system down on top of them. After a long and intensive battle, a wounded Volen was killed by an esteemed and his body was consumed in a massive blast of dark side energy, though not before he murdered all but the one Jedi. The catacombs where he died would eventually be modeled into his tomb, and his personal belongings were later stored inside.

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 had 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.

Despite his death, Volen's legacy would live on for centuries. On Athiss, a planet that Volen had once ruled during his time on the Sith Council, the sorcerer was glorified and praised as a deity-like figure by a devoted, which had banded together to honor the deceased Sith Lord not long after his death. This cult, whilst small, managed to survive countless centuries without disruption, though had long since died out by. The ruins of their ancient temples and ritual grounds were all that remained of Volen's loyal followers on Athiss.

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 personal 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 the device's defenses.

Volen's holocron was also one of the many Sith holocrons that was collected by a Jedi historian 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 after the device was given to him by one of his , who had in turn purchased it from a  salvager named Murl Arceth. Sidious then proceeded to return the holocron to Volen's resting placing on Korriban after learning what he could from it. Sidious would also gather many of the scrolls Volen had authored during his lifetime, and though they taught him much, he went on to claim that his teachings on were partially inaccurate and out-of-date in comparison to later techniques.

At an even later point in galactic history, his 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, Volen's avatar proved uncooperative with Krayt and refused to teach him anything, resulting in the holocron being deactivated and returned to his tomb.

Personality and traits
"Power only belongs to those with the stomach to give the time and sacrifices necessary 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 that this was due to an undisclosed power he had discovered. A keen philosopher, Volen was known as something as a political idealist amongst his allies, being more a polymath than a warrior.

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. Volen's own beliefs on the Force were regarded as somewhat unorthodox, resulting in many of his philosophies receiving a fair amount of controversy. Amongst his theories, Volen was notably one of the earliest believers in the concept of the, as he believed one could only draw strength and power from the Force, and not make one particular viewpoint of its nature dominant.

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. Considered amongst the most powerful Sith of his time, Volen was highly respected for his deep knowledge of the Force, and often explored some of it's most archaic and unnatural aspects.

It was through Volen's experimentations that more destructive side-effects of 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, which was forged from pure  whilst the hilt was made from. Both these alloys were collected by Volen during his time as an apprentice whilst he explored the regions in Sith Space with his master. 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 aide 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. According to legend, the sword possessed the power to play a key role in the creation of.

Unlike many Sith Lords of his day, Volen chose not to wear the fatuous armor sets or extravagant war helmets that were popular amongst his peers, instead preferring to wear simple over a set of matching, personalized armor. This armor set included a pair of gauntlets, both of which could contain limited amounts of dark energy. Volen's robe was made of a notably fine fabric, which appeared to have similar properties to. His Sith robes were Force-imbued during their creation.

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.