Revan and Malak. It is their legacy that I inherit.
—Darth Mordius
Darth Mordius was a Human male Jedi Knight and later, a Sith Lord who lived during, and served in, the Mandalorian Wars and the Jedi Civil War. Mordius, born Kratis Mordrey, was one of the many Jedi who joined the Jedi Knight Revan and his friend Alek Squinquargesimus in defying the Jedi High Council and aiding the forces of the Galactic Republic, who were locked in a struggle with the armies of the Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders. Mordrey saw considerable action during the war and, by the time of the war's final battle, had been given command of a squadron of Interdictor-class cruisers.
After the war, Mordrey stayed with Revan and Alek, the latter of whom had changed his name to Malak. Revan's fleet journeyed into the Unknown Regions, and there, they found the True Sith Empire and its capital of Dromund Kaas. It was on Dromund Kaas that Revan, Malak, Mordrey, and many other Jedi fell to the dark side of the Force, and many of the rank-and-file soldiers and marines also joined the new cause.
Returning to the known galaxy as a Sith Empire in its own right, the ex-Republic forces proceeded to launch a new invasion of the Republic, Mordrey among them. Serving as a Dark Jedi for the duration of the war, Mordrey was loyal to both Revan and Malak, and refused to believe the news late in the war that Revan had betrayed the Sith and was fighting for the Republic. However, Malak was killed by Revan not long afterward, plunging their Sith Empire into chaos. Mordrey managed to escape alive and went into hiding on Dathomir, where he proclaimed himself to be the inheritor of Revan and Malak's mantle and empire. He gave himself the title of Sith Lord, renaming himself "Darth Mordius," and recruited one of the inhabitants of Dathomir, Ala'hir Salari, to be his apprentice. He dubbed his protege "Darth Husk."
Husk, however, would prove to be Mordius's undoing. After Mordius's training of her was complete, Husk fled to the ice planet of Hoth, followed by Mordius. Husk lured Mordius into a trap and attacked him, succeeding in killing her master after a long duel.
Biography[]
Time with the Jedi[]
Kratis Mordrey, a Jedi Knight.
For many of us, the Mandalorian Wars were our baptism of fire.
—Darth Mordius
Kratis Mordrey was born on Corellia in 3,985 BBY. He was discovered to be Force-sensitive by the Jedi Order and was brought to Coruscant for training. During his training, the Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders, led by Mandalore the Ultimate, invaded many worlds, both outside and within the Galactic Republic's jurisdiction. Despite desperate pleas from the Galactic Senate, the Jedi High Council decided not to aid the Republic forces in fighting the Mandalorians. Outraged by the Council's decision, a fellow Jedi Knight named Revan began to recruit other Jedi, Mordrey among them, who wanted to fight the Mandalorians.
Once the rogue Jedi had established themselves as the commanders of the Republic forces, Mordrey was given command of the Omnipotent, an Interdictor-class cruiser. After displaying skill and leadership, Mordrey was steadily given more and more ships to command until he eventually led a squadron, of which the Omnipotent was the flagship. Despite being a naval officer, Mordrey was no stranger to leading Republic marines in ground operations, and saw considerable action against the Mandalorians at the liberation of Onderon, theassault on the Mandalorian fortress on Dxun, and the second battle of Althir. Finally, Mordrey's squadron was part of the massive final battle of the war, from which few Jedi, Republic troops, or Mandalorians escaped alive.
At some point before the war's end, Revan led Mordrey and the other Jedi to the Trayus Academy on the surface of Malachor V. There, they learned ancient Sith secrets, and began their fall to the dark side.
The Unknown Regions[]
Mordrey training as a Sith on Dromund Kaas.
Dromund Kaas was where everything changed. Revan changed. Malak changed. I changed.
—Darth Mordius
After defeating the Mandalorians, Revan led the Republic forces under his command into the Unknown Regions, claiming to be searching for any surviving Neo-Crusader outposts. While in deep space, Revan's fleet came upon the hidden Sith Empire that had been steadily building in power since the defeat of the Sith Lord Naga Sadow in the Great Hyperspace War.
The Sith were headquartered on Dromund Kaas, a world strong with the dark side of the Force. It was there that Revan, Malak, Mordrey, and the other Jedi who had accompanied Revan fell under the influence of the Sith Emperor and his Dark Council. One member of the Dark Council, Darth Deveris, saw great potential in Mordrey and decided to take him as his apprentice. Revan and Malak proclaimed themselves Dark Lords of the Sith, and Mordrey and his companions became Dark Jedi.
With promises of glory, battle, and conquest, the newly-proclaimed Darth Revan led his forces, among them Mordrey and his squadron of cruisers, towards an invasion of the Republic.
War with the Republic[]
A weak and decadent society. We believed that they would be easy prey.
—Darth Mordius
After Revan's invasion, the Republic began to give ground rapidly to the oncoming Sith. It was in these early days of the war that Mordrey established himself as one of the most talented Dark Jedi in the Sith army, surpassed by only a few of his contemporaries, one of whom would go on to become a Sith Lord himself under the name of Darth Bandon.
At the Battle of Allanteen, Mordrey battled on the ground whilst giving commands to his squadron of Interdictor cruisers in orbit above the planet. During the skirmish on Rodia, even though the Sith were defeated by the Galactic Republic, Mordrey earned distinction by killing several Jedi, including the Twi'lek duelist Alam Renora.
In 3,957 BBY, however, the Sith faced a new threat. This threat had emerged not from the Republic, but from within the highest ranks of the Empire itself. Darth Malak, having been growing steadily more bitter ever since Dromund Kaas about his position as Darth Revan's apprentice, sought to overthrow his master. During a battle against the Republic, Malak ordered his flagship, the Leviathan to fire on Revan's vessel. Revan was rendered comatose and developed amnesia. This allowed the Jedi High Council to alter Revan's mind to ensure his loyalty to the Republic once more. The Sith, however, knew of none of this. It was only after Revan rescued Bastila Shan on Taris and subsequently escaped Taris's annihilation that Malak learned of Revan's survival.
Mordrey duels Alam Renora
When Mordrey heard the news that Revan was alive and fighting for the Republic, he dismissed it as Republic propaganda, and considered his fellow Sith fools for believing it. Convinced that Revan was dead, Mordrey gave his loyalty to Darth Malak, the new Dark Lord. However, Malak was later killed by Revan, who had been retrained as a Jedi by this time, and the Sith Empire of Revan and Malak was rendered leaderless.
Mordrey, rather than return to Korriban and become embroiled in the civil war that arose there, traveled to Dathomir, where he knew the dark side was strong.
Exile on Dathomir[]
Dathomir is a harsh world. The Dathomiri Witches and their rancor mounts make survival a constant battle. But what is a Sith without battle?
—Darth Mordius
After fleeing the Sith's defeat in the Jedi Civil War, and opting not to return to Korriban as most of the surviving Dark Jedi had done, Mordrey went to Dathomir. Dathomir was a natural choice for Mordrey, as the planet was among those worlds strong in the dark side, along with Korriban and Dromund Kaas. Here, Mordrey hoped to strengthen his connection to the dark side of the Force and hone his skills in combat.
Soon after arriving on Dathomir, however, Mordrey found that his presence was greeted with hostility by the native Witches, who saw Mordrey as a threat to their survival due to his skill with a lightsaber and strength with the Force. Ostracized already, Mordrey found a cave on Singing Mountain and used the place as a rudimentary home from where he struck out at any Dathomiri who passed by. Soon, Mordrey came to be known by the Witches as "Hidden Man Killer".
Mordrey evades a Dathomiri Witch and her rancor
Dathomir gave Mordrey the chance he had hoped for to further his skills as a fighter and a killer. When he believed that he was powerful enough, Mordrey took up the mantle of a Sith Lord, calling himself Revan and Malak's successor. Naming himself "Darth Mordius," he began to search for an apprentice among the Witches. Despite his efforts, however, any of the Witches he encountered were always too hostile towards him for him to attempt to bring them to his cause.
There was one group, however, who were more interested in Mordius and his Sith ways. Those Witches who used the dark side of the Force were exiled from their clans. Some of these exiles banded together and were known as Nightsisters. It was among the Nightsisters that Mordius found his apprentice. A Sister named Ala'hir Salari was approached by Mordius and, eventually, she accepted his offer and became Darth Husk.
Darth Husk[]
Mordius set about training his new apprentice immediately. Over the course of several years, Husk was taught the many forms of lightsaber combat, in particular Juyo, the seventh form of the various tenets. Mordius also trained his new apprentice in the use of the Force, teaching her how to channel her aggression, anger and hate into every attack.
Husk was also taught the Sith principle of the apprentice facing the master. Mordius believed, and so taught Husk to believe, that it was only by eliminating the weak that the Sith could grow stronger. If the apprentice was stronger than the master, then the apprentice would be able to defeat their master in battle. Unknown to Mordius, Husk began to plan her attack on her master.
Death on Hoth[]
The strong will always conquer the weak.
—Darth Husk's final words to her master
In 3,949 BBY, Mordius declared that Husk's training as a Sith was complete. Husk decided to set events into motion that would lead to her master's death. Slipping away from the watchful eye of her master, Husk found a Republic shuttle, killed all but one of its crew, and journeyed to Hoth, ensuring that the sole Republic survivor would tell Mordius where she had gone.
Mordius sensed Husk's departure and journeyed to the spaceport from where she had flown. The survivor of Husk's attack told Mordius where his apprentice had gone. Overcome by rage, Mordius brutally killed the man and located his own personal starfighter, which he had kept hidden ever since his arrival on Dathomir. Setting his coordinates for the ice planet, Mordius followed his wayward pupil.
Darth Mordius and Darth Husk duel on Hoth
When Mordius landed on Hoth, he sensed that Husk was hiding in an ice cavern not far from his position. Following his senses, Mordius found the place. Immediately, however, he was set upon by Wampas. The Sith Lord managed to kill his attackers, but the encounter had left him exhausted. Before he could recover, Husk leapt down from a ledge and ignited her lightsaber. Mordius ignited his as well, and they engaged in a fierce duel, in which both of them used every skill at their disposal. Eventually, however, Husk gained the upper hand and stabbed Mordius through the chest, telling him as he died that the strong would always conquer the weak.
Legacy[]
Think on what I have taught you, and use it to further the Sith cause
—Darth Mordius
Compared to most Sith Lords, Darth Mordius's legacy was negligible. He was not remembered by the galaxy at large and was not epitomized or feared by either the Jedi or the Sith. However, his holocron did help to preserve the idea of the Rule of Two, as created by Darth Revan, and this idea would later be resurrected by Darth Bane. Bane's eventual successor and a follower of the Rule of Two, Darth Sidious, would go on to rule most of the galaxy as Galactic Emperor nearly four thousand years after Mordius's death.
Personality and traits[]
As a Jedi Knight, Kraits Mordrey tried to uphold the teachings of the Jedi Code and possessed a strong sense of justice. The Mandalorian Wars and the Jedi Order's refusal to interfere in the conflict greatly frustrated and angered Mordrey, who believed that the Jedi should have been trying to help the millions of people oppressed and killed by the Mandalorians. Revan's call to arms, then, seemed to be the perfect cause to Mordrey and he joined the Revanchists immediately.
During the war, Mordrey came to think like the Mandalorians he was fighting. Weakness needed to be weeded out so that the strong could survive and continue the fight. Mordrey still believed his actions were just and defended any straying from Jedi teaching by saying that the war's circumstances meant that any measures were necessary. The longer the war went on, the more and more Mordrey drifted away from Jedi philosophy.
Darth Mordius was utterly ruthless in killing opponents
As a Dark Jedi and Sith Lord, Mordius was brutal and utterly merciless, slaughtering innocent people with ease. By then, his sense of justice had left him and had been replaced by a hunger for power and an almost uncontrollable bloodlust. Despite these characteristics, Mordius was also an inspiring leader on the battlefield, able to urge his troops on to perform feats that other commanders could not achieve from their soldiers. As he was not trained in Battle Meditation, this was all the more impressive on Mordius's part.
Mordius was also a very draconian disciplinarian, punishing any failures of those under his command with death, no matter how small the failing might have been.
Powers and abilities[]
Both as a Jedi and a Sith, Darth Mordius was a very skilled lightsaber duelist, able to wield either one or two lightsabers with equal ability. His dueling skill was proven when he defeated the famed Jedi duelist Alam Renora. Mordius's skill with a lightsaber was also shown during his duel with Darth Husk. Even after having fought four Wampa ice creatures, Mordius posed a signifiacnt challenge to Husk.
Mordius was also very adept at using the powers of the Force. As a Jedi, he was skilled with Telekenisis and could throw his lightsaber like a boomerang. After his fall to the dark side, he became especially proficient with Force choke and Force lightning, adding these powers to his arsenal.
Darth Mordius was capable of using two lightsabers at once
Aside from his skills as a fighter, Mordius was also a very capable commander, adept both at commanding his troops, that is to say that he had both strategic and tactical acumen, and leading them, inspiring his men to greatness on the battlefield. This was a difference which only the finest commanders, such as Saul Karath and Revan himself, bothered to distinguish and so allowed Mordius to set himself apart from his contemporaries.
Mordius was also an able pilot, competent enough to fly and fight in his own starfighter. However, flying was not Mordius's forte and he preferred to fight with a lightsaber in his hand if at all possible.
Behind the scenes[]
As a Jedi, Kratis Mordrey's name provides something of a clue as to the character's future life. His first name, Kratis, is the name of a Sith Lord in the novel, Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance, but with a slight alteration in spelling. As a Sith, Darth Mordius's name is rooted in the English word "morbid".
Throughout his life, Mordius is portrayed by just two different people. The first, a portrayal of Mordius as a Jedi Knight, is one of the many possible appearances of Revan from Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. The second, a portrayal of Mordius during his time as a Dark Jedi and Sith Lord, is provided by Imperial Dark Jedi Namman Cha.