Morin Tharr was a Jedi Master in both the Old and New Jedi Orders. A Human male found on Toprawa, Tharr managed to survive the Great Jedi Purge and became a founding member of Luke Skywalker's New Jedi Order, serving on the restored Jedi High Council as Jedi Battlemaster.
Biography[]
Old Jedi Order[]
Training[]
Left abandoned at the age of two, Morin Tharr was found on by the Antarian Rangers on Toprawa and given to the Jedi Order. Tharr was trained at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant and inducted into the Dragon Clan as a Jedi Initiate. Passed off by most Jedi Masters, Tharr was eventually taken as an apprentice by Iktotchi Master Rom Staam.[1]
Like Tharr himself, Master Staam was rather headstrong and taciturn. This led to the two of them often arguing while on missions; in one case, their refusal to agree nearly led to the failure of an escort mission and the High Council received complaints from the Galactic Senate. The Council considered reassigning Tharr to another master but Grand Master Yoda advocated against this, saying that this apprenticeship was a learning experience for the both of them and that they would turn out the better for it.[1]
Indeed, following the mission, Tharr and his master's relationship began to improve and by the time of Tharr's knighthood, the two of them had grown to have a mutual respect for one another. At the age of the twenty-five, Tharr was promoted to the rank of Jedi Knight.[1]
Knight to Master[]
Upon becoming a Jedi Knight, the Council suggested that Tharr take an apprentice. The Toprawan Jedi declined however, fearing that he would have just as turbulent a relationship with his apprentice as he had with Staam, even though the two had eventually gotten along. After five years of self-searching, as well as some imploring from some of his fellow colleagues, Tharr finally decided to take an apprentice and began teaching the Alderaanian Jedi Xanus Baran.[1]
Despite young Baran's calm and peaceful mindset, which the Council feared would clash with Tharr's more aggressive personality, the two Jedi got along rather well during their time together. The pair often performed missions for the Council in the Outer Rim Territories, and at one point visited Tharr's homeworld of Toprawa.[1]
While on Toprawa, Tharr encountered a woman whom he found out to be his mother. An ex-Antarian Ranger, Ara Shaleen had been seventeen when she had Tharr and claimed that she had lost him while shopping in a plaza. Tharr saw through Shaleen's lie and forced her to admit that she had left him simply because she had not the means nor the desire to raise a child. Tharr had nothing but disapproval and pity for his mother and bitterly parted ways with her. Two days after Tharr and Baran departed from Toprawa, Shaleen was found dead in a motel room after an overdose of spice. Tharr felt nothing when he received this news.[1]
Clone Wars and the Purge[]
In 22 BBY, Baran reached the rank of Jedi Knight and Tharr was promoted to Jedi Master. A few months later, the Clone Wars broke out and Tharr began serving as a Jedi General for the Grand Army of the Republic.[1]
During the Outer Rim Sieges, Tharr was sent to the swamp world of Zegris. When Order 66 was issued, Tharr used the murky landscape to his advantage and evaded his clone troopers, leading them to assume his death. For the next two decades, Tharr hid among the natives of Zegris, posing as one of their priests whom wore all-concealing robes, which prevented the Zegrins from finding out his true species.[1]
As Zegris was isolated from the rest of the galaxy, Tharr did not learn of the Empire's fall until 10 ABY, when a team of Jedi -- his former apprentice Baran among them -- arrived on the swamp world in search of him. After helping them defeat two Sith, Tharr accompanied the Jedi back to the new Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4, where he became a member of the restored Jedi Council.
New Jedi Order[]
As the New Jedi Order's Battlemaster, Tharr spent most of his time at the Jedi Praxeum training new students in the lightsaber arts. He continued to carry this role when the Jedi relocated to Ossus in 25 ABY.
That same year, the Sith Order of Darth Vorath attacked the New Republic and Tharr once again became a military leader in the war that followed. When the Sith launched an attack on Coruscant, Tharr led the rest of the Jedi Order in aiding the Republic against the enemy and saw to the Sith's defeat.
After the defeat of the Sith, Tharr stepped down from the Jedi Council due to age and ailing health, electing Kyle Katarn to succeed him on both the Council and as Battlemaster. He passed away on Ossus in 27 ABY at the age of 87, surrounded by his one true family: the Jedi.
Personality and traits[]
Morin Tharr had always had an aggressive personality, something which his apprenticeship to Master Rom Staam did not help. Constantly butting heads with his teacher, his stubborn attitude nearly resulted in a Senator getting killed during an escort mission. Facing expulsion from the Jedi Order, whom he saw as his only family, Tharr taught himself to be calm, which led to a smoother relationship with his master, as well as his ascension to the rank of Jedi Knight.
Tharr's belligerent nature lent itself well during the Clone Wars and his headstrong approach led to many victories against the Separatists. He was also quick-thinking and cunning, demonstrated when he blended in with the natives of Zegris to escape execution from his clone troopers during Order 66.
Behind the scenes[]
Morin Tharr's name is taken from the Tolkien legendarium character Morinehtar. His master, Rom Staam, is likewise taken from Morinehtar's compatriot Rómestámo.
Master Tharr is portrayed in the images on this page by Jedi Master Belth Allusis from the Galactic Timeline web videos.
Appearances[]
- Rise of the Dark Empire (First appearance)
- The Emperor's Wrath
- Calm Before the Storm
- Seeds from the Past
- The End of All Days