The Crusaders were a Gray Jedi faction during the New Sith Wars. The group was founded by Jedi Knight Karr Shadeez, who broke away from the mainstream Jedi Order to conduct his own operations against the New Sith Empire and other dark side factions, taking a Republic fleet with him. Over time, more soldiers and Jedi defected to his cause, while he recruited and trained a number of Jedi himself. The group acquired the nickname "Crusaders" after Shadeez's own flagship, the Crusader.
History[]
The First Crusade[]
The Crusaders made particular strides against the Sith Lord Zirist Lakalt. Though Shadeez was a successful commander, he owed many of his victories to the battle meditation of his foremost disciple, Rhosa Xei.
In 1,389 BBY, Shadeez decided to ally the Crusaders with Admiral Herqilius Arstyn of Gizer. However, both Shadeez and Arstyn were assassinated by Darth Alecto, and the Crusader fleet was on the losing side of the ensuing Battle of Gizer. While the Republic retreated to Taanab, the Crusaders fled from the conflict.
The Second Crusade[]
In 1,387 BBY, Jedi Master Argus Z'dar, a friend and contemporary of Shadeez, deserted the Jedi Order and joined the Crusaders, becoming their leader. He was responsible for numerous successful operations against the New Sith Empire and the Zygerrian Slave Empire, though he was willing to execute prisoners the Crusaders could not hold. In 1,386 BBY, after Z'dar's supporter Jylo Naki murdered Arlya Kesk, a civil conflict broke out among the Crusaders, Force-sensitive and otherwise. Z'dar's faction prevailed, imprisoning their surviving Jedi opponents at Malachor Base. Over the following years, several Jedi Guardians defected to Z'dar's Crusaders.
In 1,384 BBY, the Crusaders destroyed an Imperial Army training facility on Galidraan, along with several nearby cities, by using a nuclear bomb; not long after, Admiral Zuuli Ok-Majan joined Z'dar and took an entire Republic task force with him. Unable to stop a Sith raid on Deep Storage Facility 214-Peth, Z'dar destroyed it and all its prisoners and staff. Both the New Sith Empire and the Republic tasked their agents to hunt down Z'dar and the Breld Syndicate, his nuclear suppliers. Darth Alecto reached Malachor first, but was captured by the Crusaders. Tirien Kal-Di arrived shortly after, killed Jylo, and struck a deal with Alecto to fight Z'dar.
Meanwhile, Narasi broke Farwel Jodurk and the other "true Crusaders" out of the Malachor brig. While Tirien and Alecto fought Z'dar, Narasi and Farwel led the other Jedi to retake the Crusader itself, where Captain Kundra Kuul surrendered and Narasi arrested Ok-Majan.
Rebuilding[]
After Tirien and Alecto killed Z'dar, the Crusaders used the remaining nuclear stockpile to destroy Malachor Base. Farwel assumed leadership over what remained of the group, intending to bring its scattered forces back into a light-sided approach to war, though Tirien connected them with several Jedi resources.
Organization and tactics[]
Outmatched against most of their enemies, especially in their early years, the Crusaders relied on hit-and-fade attacks, disrupting supply lines and conducting raids. Karr Shadeez fought relatively few direct battles, and most of those with the aid of Rhosa's battle meditation; Argus Z'dar continued this policy, though he substituted nuclear attacks and mass casualties for Force-inspired advantage. The Crusaders evaded major retribution by dispersing their fleet so it was not concentrated in a single location. Their work also earned them the acclaim and loyalty of many Outer Rim citizens, who felt otherwise trapped between competing galactic powers without protection, and who established a network to get supplies to the Crusader fleet undetected and provided safe ports.
Shadeez's Crusaders were famous for their insularity and loyalty; in nineteen years, no Republic Intelligence agent ever successfully infiltrated the faction, despite several attempts. Though Shadeez trained many of his Jedi personally, a handful of Republic Knights joined his cause; Z'dar attracted a more hard-bitten crop of soldiers and Jedi.
Appearances[]
- Twist of Fate
- Second Chance (Mentioned only)
- Danse Macabre (Appears in hologram)
- Grim Tidings
- Vendetta II: Felinx and Rodus (Mentioned only)
- Behind Enemy Lines (Mentioned only)
- The First Cut (Mentioned only)
- Lightning and Fire
- The Hundredth Day (Mentioned only)
- Vendetta III: The Void (Mentioned only)
- Fault Lines (Mentioned only)