#Vaylin by those definitions would have been 2

[swtorramblings]

After a recent brief talk about Arcann and Valkorion (well, Vitiate), I started to list characters that are broken or controlled in some way that can be saved that I’ve found. 

Arcann Tol Braga Syo Bakarn Vivicar/ Parkanas Tark Nalen Raloch Duras Fain Eriz Vossan Cin Tykan Bengel Morr Calphayus Ako Domi Revan

I’m adding the former members of Havoc Squad because, while they do not fit as “broken”, they feel they were betrayed and acted on that. Giving the survivors their own section because it’s not quite the same, but seems similar: Harron Tavus Vanto Bazren The old mentor (can’t find his name at the moment)

Master Surro Sidonie Garen Yuon Par Leeha Narezz Kira (arguable, since the real period of control was brief and she saved herself, plus she’s a companion so can’t die)

If we only include the characters that did Bad Stuff while broken but can still be saved and forgiven, my current feeling is that we remove all the women and some of the men. Most of the men that fit that description die, as well, but currently it seems like ALL of the women do.

I wasn’t going to put this up until I had done more but I commented about Thexan that his being alive in-game without other changes would bother me. It would confirm a growing suspicion. This was what I was referring to. Especially if we find that he wasn’t even broken but we accept him into the Alliance, because, let’s face it, he did Bad Stuff.

[synoxshots]

The Master KOTET Adventure

Well at last, my journey is complete. This was some of the most frustrating, and at times hilariously so, content I’ve ever done - but at the same time there were some parts that felt really rewarding and, dare I say it, even enjoyable. 

So as with my Master KOTFE adventure, I’ve written it all up in case you should ever find yourself wanting a go. As with before, I play a Rage Jugg, 306 gear, Descent of the Fearless set, fully augmented but not min-maxed. Here’s how it went, and warning, it gets long:

Chapter I

I was hopeful about this chapter as it's the only one I'd completed on veteran,  and I was already much more prepared. On master though, it still caused me problems. The first death was an unexpected attack from a Knight that dealt like 140,000 damage, which, ouch... The first boss was the main cause of difficulty in this chapter for me, which was the PA-717 droid. The best tactic was basically just stay as close as possible to it, stay out of its blue conal and hope you don't get shoved into mines, and just hit it as hard as you can. Took a few attempts and the successful one was itself a close call, with Lana dying with probably around 15% health left (didn't get to check exactly because, you know, fighting for my life). After that there's quite a few mobs already engaged in battles with Mandos, I just ran through them, also ignored the bonus objectives which I don't think made any difference.

You have a cutscene where you catch up with Theron and then face swarms of Skytroopers in a building. It is probably beneficial to have range here as there are kolto stations which I didn't manage to use a lot because I was always chasing after the droids. It does give you a checkpoint before the Knights come along, and even if you die then the battle carries on around you (and I had to file a bug report as my heroic moment wasn't working properly, so actually kind of cheesed the boss a bit by letting others deal with it ha). Once revived though, it wasn't so bad.

The walker is everyone's nightmare in this chapter. I follow this guide every time now and it does save a lot of hassle. The final walker fight actually went the best it's ever gone for me, I found the mobs a lot harder than the Big Droid at the end which didn't really touch me that much. No real difficulties after that.

Chapter II

This is the one I'd been fearing from the start, as it's regarded as one of the most difficult things to do in the game solo. I remember trying it on vet mode with my PT and not even being able to get past the jungle creatures, i.e. the very first mob. The only slice of hope was that I've heard the difference between vet mode and master mode isn't massive, but. It was still horrible. Died once on the jungle creatures but it wasn't a big problem really, and that was a fight that didn't reset progress so I got it on the second attempt. Not easy, but manageable. The first big challenge is the Genoharadan Scout camp, and honestly several attempts with a few different tactics didn't seem to get me anywhere (though on one I did get reasonably close) - so I called in a friend and we got through it quickly. No problems from then onwards until we got to the last boss, the Genoharadan Leader plus two hunters. And that was a Time.

As 2 dps with 2 healing companions, we went for targeting the hunters first, and generally we managed to get both of them down, but our companions would either be dead or very close to it. I'm not great at micromanaging companions anyway, and that was something that was definitely needed with Acina to pull her out of the fire and on the ground and all that. So we called in a tank to join us, and we made progress but still struggled. We did discover that with the people you call in, if they die it's alright to go to the med centre and then run back to the room and rejoin the fight without it resetting - but for the phase owner if they die, they can't leave the room (leaving the room will exit the battle, and on this fight it does reset progress). So we decided the best course of action was to get a Real Person Healer to join us rather than Acina, who will stand in everything. Funnily enough, having an actual person proved much more effective and we got it first time! It's a very chaotic fight overall, you get chucked around a lot, there's lots of ridiculously high damage abilities, lots of things to stand in and die, and so on. I definitely wouldn't recommend going alone. Acina will stay with you, doesn't seem to matter what the group size is - she stayed with us when we had a group of four - her influence level is also at the start of the chapter though I raised it to 50 (she's another who likes delicacy gifts which is always good). It was brutal, but it's done.

Chapter III

A nice breather, no deaths at all. I even managed the mouse droid on the first attempt! Stealth squads of troopers bring health down a bit but nothing to worry about, was always in control. Vaylin fight doesn't matter so much as it cuts out early. No real boss fight.

Chapter IV

This one caused me more problems than I thought it would, as though there's no real boss fight there is a swarm near the end and after many attempts on my own, trying to raise Vette's influence further to see if it would help (it did, but not enough), I had to call in a friend. Still took a few attempts with the two of us. Initially we went for having both comps on heals, then we found it was better to have one healing and one dps to nuke it a bit, and eventually we got through it - though I only had 6% health left. It was another of those fights where it resets completely on dying, though your friend can go to medcenter and jump back into the fight. Jugg just wasn't the ideal class for that one I think. After that there were no problems, beforehand it was just the odd Compactor Droid causing me issues, though as long as I used my defensives efficiently it was fine as they lose health quickly too.

Chapter V

This one wasn't too bad. Quite a lot of waves of droid mobs again, they do take your health down quite a bit, but by this stage I'm used to that! It's just a chapter where staying out of red things is key really. When you face the giant droid you don't get hit too much, just watch out when it's the time the repair droids come along because being caught in the big attacks will hurt. The droid does lose health at a good pace though. When you go in the droid it's a pretty simple fight, just have to make sure you regen your health regularly (one time I did not and guess what happened?).

I didn't die on the fight against ARIES. From what I'd read, the key seemed to be staying out of melee range...not ideal for a Jugg. So I decided on keeping mobile and utilising my attacks that did have a bit of range as much as possible. (ARIES also tells you to stand still if you want to die, a good reminder if you still needed one!). It was a bit grindy but my health was never really a concern, I ran around a lot and stayed out of the red and all was well.

Chapter VI

So this one was another Experience. Half of it is a puzzle which is a nice change of pace, and no different from story. I would recommend at this stage doing the Bergola bonus mission - I'd never actually done it before, but it does mean you don't need to fight the extra pups when the beast pit starts, and instead have them on your side. Which is definitely a help of sorts, but that fight in the beast pit is definitely something. The best tactic seemed to be getting as many stuns in as possible, as he can be stunned and interrupted - I put Theron onto damage as well to use his stun, used heroic moments for the extra stuns as well. The beast casts a big circle around itself that takes out nearly all of your health, and he has a habit of hitting you as soon as you get out of it and killing you as well, in short it wasn't fun on melee and involved lots of screaming and running away. The other thing is kite him away from Indo Zal, just take him the opposite direction to keep him alive.

And then the very interesting thing. Because it was Hell I invited a friend to come along. HOWEVER, they were stuck in the Zakuulan Knight armour that you wear at the start of the chapter and couldn't do any abilities apart from a bit of companion micromanagement and a lot of emotional support. They also put their companion onto attack for the extra stun, then heal later in the chapter to try and throw some heals at me during the Arcann fight.

That Arcann fight...I chose the light side options in chapter II so I had him on my side, but that didn't make the chapter easier. You're not able to heal Arcann so I just tried to taunt things off him if his health was getting low. I focused on the Captain and tried to ignore the adds as much as possible, used Arcann's reflect to take them out, starting the fight with his taunt and then praying I hit the guard break in time so I could do damage...I had Theron on damage here as well as the plan was basically burn as quickly as possible. It may be better on a character that has some ability to heal Arcann as companions won't...or it may be better to take the dark side option earlier in the story so you're fighting against him rather than with him (though that's a trade-off with the final chapter fights).

This chapter was certainly a trial but we got there in the end. It's best to keep a level head and not panic, skills that I did not pick up from my class trainer and instead ran around in fear and at times forgot how to swtor.

Chapter VII

This is an interesting chapter without masses of fighting, there's 3 boss fights but not masses of trash in-between. First up is the Horizon Guard, which took three or four attempts but really the best strategy for me was nuke him with a heroic moment, stuns, and interrupts. The main challenge I had on this chapter was the two Twisted Experiments. They cast corrosive goo, which you see as a green circle. It can be interrupted, they can be stunned, so it was just a matter of managing that. It was difficult with the two of them there - with a Jugg I used intimidating roar to give me some time to blast just one, it may help to use a stealth class that can stun better, or a sorc/sage that can whirlwind. The good thing is that it was finally a fight in KotET that doesn't reset your progress, so if you take one down you don't have to restart the whole thing. It does bug when you die though - you end up behind a locked door and have to leave and re-enter the phase. That was only the case on the first death though. Or else I would have done it a lot.

Last up is the Corrupted Vault Guardian. Didn't die on this fight, though I did on the two elites before - mostly because I lost Lana early and couldn't use a heroic moment. I ran around the room, stunning/slowing and interrupting as I could, nearly got through without dying anyway and again it's not a fight that resets. The Guardian boss covers the floor in red stuff called morass, it doesn't go away, so manoeuvre him well or blast him fast. Or don't, like me. I just kind of kited him round the room, he doesn't move fast. Lost Lana at the end because she couldn't avoid the morass but I could, and by then he was nearly dead. Because I didn't die on this I didn't really read up on the mechanics, because on reading my go-to guide it looks like there's more - so er, that's probably a good thing to do if you have trouble! Overall though, this was a chapter with challenges but I found it had a better balance between being challenging and enjoyable.

Chapter VIII

One of the easiest chapters of the bunch. There's lots of trash, and quite a bit of it skippable - either as it is already in combat, or my manoeuvring around it. The walker is a pain but was never at risk of dying. Some interesting bits though. You face a guy called Tyrall Jerikko where the Gravestone is dry-docked, he has two droids with him so I yeeted one off - it disappeared but didn't die, I got through the fight...Tyrall and the droids then respawned so I had to do it again. Hmm. I still yeeted the droid again though, it also didn't die but the fight mostly worked properly at least, I lost Lana (not sure why) but I was never in much danger. The other minor issue I had was in the fight with the Knight just before rescuing Vette, not entirely sure what happened, the adds just seemed to overwhelm me. Used a heroic moment and the cannon you're given on my second go and it took a matter of seconds.

Vaylin is actually an easy fight, though it took 3 attempts - the first I didn't plan for her adds properly, the second I was yeeted. Having Arcann with me meant I got his abilities from chapter 6 again - the taunt and reflect - which took the adds out. Heroic moment also does the trick, though I didn't have it on my successful run. Stay at melee range - in her purple circle she keeps close and you're fine. If you're wiser than me, look for when she's about to do the explosion with the knockback and get yourself against a wall so you don't get thrown off. Or be like me, and don't.

Chapter IX

So the final chapter. It's in two halves basically - with the first there's no boss, buy there is a lot of trash. I had Arcann and Senya has my companions, which meant I had Arcann's abilities again which are brilliant for dealing with trash, and I was getting better at managing them as well. Use his taunt and reflect, it speeds things up. There's two major waves that end with two Knights coming along and it was on those where I had the trouble - it just got a bit too much at the end and with things on cooldown. But the fights don't reset, I put heroic moment on just in case, the Knights were blasted in seconds. It may be more tricky if you have Lana and Theron, but I think these are fights more of annoyance rather than being impossible.

The second half, then. First you fight Vaylin, it's the same mechanics from the previous chapter and not too difficult to deal with. I had Dramath with me so I had the healing, it may be a bit more difficult if you take the light sided decision in chapter 7. He's auto-boosted up to level 45. Again, watch out for the knockbacks.

If you saved Arcann, he's your companion in the final fight. After a quick death I ran to fleet and gave him a compendium so he went up to level 50 influence. Fighting Valkorion is very challenging, and involves lots of running around to get out of line of sight of his attacks - things like Project and Force Storm that will take two thirds or so of your health and leave you desperate to find a memory of healing, at which point you'll inevitably get slowed down by his Dark Ritual and not make it and die (this can be interrupted, but I was rarely within range to do so because...kiting).

The basic idea on this one is when he shifts to the light/dark, you follow suit - it seems to be random as to which one he goes to. When you're shifting make sure you hide behind rocks or something (under the stairs is the best bet I found) - so none of those nasty abilities wipe chunks of your health again. It became a bit of a game of hide and seek from there. The light side abilities seem to have faster cast times than the dark, where often he'd get me with a dark ritual whilst I was trying to hit him. You need to survive one of these phases, switch back to normal, use the holocron ability again, and on the second light/dark phase is when he dies. This took many attempts, though it doesn't seem to affect your repair bills too badly which is a plus.

Some final notes:

Going Commando once again proved a valuable resource, with plenty of tips and general experiences of doing it. My experience didn't always match up to theirs, in part due to the classes we used, but there's a wealth of information there.

I think experiences will vary depending on your choice with Arcann in the first chapter. He was a pain to use in chapter 6, but his abilities were very useful in chapters 8 and 9.

On average I'd say it's more difficult than KotFE - the hardest chapters are very hard, and I brought a friend along three times (well, two and a half, given the chapter 6 experience) because I was just not making progress - whereas I only had help once in KotFE.

As with KotFE, different classes are probably better suited to different chapters, and if you’re just seeking the achievement and have the options available - you might want to try different things accordingly. I think Jugg/Guardian is a decent all-round bet though, plus I made myself a Grit Teeth which gives me even more survivability. 

I think this has made me a better player! That may be up for debate, and I’m still prone to wild panic a lot of the time, but there were also lots of times I really found myself better at studying mechanics and finding the best strategies for me to beat them. 

Completing a master chapter completes the achievement for veteran (and story) as well, so it’s a great way to rack up cheevos - and now my KotET completion is at 100% which is incredibly satisfying. But it doesn’t grant a title, sadly.

Another shoutout to @sparkles-and-rust​ as my go to when I needed a helping hand or just some emotional support! 

[chaoticspacefam]

OC Worldbuilding Tag Pt 2!

...electric boogaloo! I’m sorry I know this joke is old now but I cannot help it, it’s ingrained in my brain XD

I got another tag for this from @a-master-procrastinator , thank you! :D

I think all my friends & mutuals have already been tagged for this one? But I’ll throw a couple out here if you want to, no pressure as always!: @mercurypilgrim​ , @actualanxiousswampwitch and @sleepswithvillains maybe?

Some more Saarai, because I love her. Some very slight spoilers for some of the differences in the Subterfugeverse plot points but nothing major! ;3 Long post warning again, as well as some brief mentions of Valkorion being a dick and causing a mass-genocide but all on the same level as the presented game canon.

- Saarai is psychometric and has been since she was pretty young, a Force power she inherited from D’leah’s mother, Saa’thri, because it “skipped” D’leah and Saarai got it instead. Though she didn’t realise it at the time and it wasn’t until she brought it up to her mother and D’leah went “oh yeah, your grandma had that too :)” that she realised it was actually A Thing.

- She’s not always good at recognising when a vision is from the Psychometry and when it’s just “her imagination”, particularly when she’s younger (which gets her into some trouble, see: the whole Tsâhis thing). Even after she gets used to it, sometimes it still hits her out of nowhere and if it’s a particularly nasty vision she’ll sometimes lose her footing and hit the deck - thankfully, because of their Force bond, Ni’kasi can usually figure out what’s happening and react fast enough to catch her before she smacks her head on something.

- Nathema was...not fun for Saarai thanks to the Psychometry. She’d wanted to go with them to protect them and ended up having to be dragged back to the ship and wait there because the moment she tried to touch anything there the Force went “Oh hey!! would you like some Detailed Flashbacks About What Happened Here!!” and yeah...she did not have a good time. Going to Nathema was kind of a mistake for her. Woops. (She gets through it though, Lana gets her back to the ship and she gets a handle on things but definitely doesn’t go all the way into the facility with Vano and Lana. Probably a good thing, too, if she’d picked up that toy of Vaylin’s I think she would’ve found those visions quite upsetting to watch, too.)

- She and Lana don’t share a Force bond, only because she has one with her sister, Ni’kasi instead. Neither of the twins are exactly sure when it formed, but they’ve had the connection for as long as they can remember. When they’re separated while Saarai and Ty are on Rishii, it’s harder for them to communicate because of the distance between them and Kas putting up barriers “just in case” the Sith tried to interrogate her at any point, she didn’t want to give Saarai away. They knew enough to know the other twin was probably still alive, but not to know exactly what was going on with each other until they finally reunite with the first Coalition on Yavin IV. That was the final relief for the twins, actually getting to see the other one standing there and definitely very much alive, there were hugs and a lot of tears, absolutely. <3

- Saarai is very much a “reluctant leader”, she never wanted to be a figurehead in the Alliance nor did she want to be telling people what to do, but circumstances “forced” her into the role and she had to stumble around awkwardly and adapt. With Vano gone and stuck in carbonite, somone had to step up and make sure the people that were working with Vano stuck together and didn’t fall apart (Not all of Vano’s crew disperse, Broonmark, Pierce and Jaesa always remain with the Alliance. Quinn ends up in jail after the Quinncident and Vette goes missing during one of their attempts to search for Vano’s whereabouts only to reappear as in canon later ;)) With Marr dead and the rest of the Dark Council under Zakuul’s heel or missing, that left Lana, Ni’kasi and Aria as alternative “leadership” figures. Lana lacked the ambition for it and was more tooled to be an advisor and while both Ni’kasi and Aria are bossy enough to delegate tasks, they’re abrasive and people don’t like them. But they like Saarai and they listen to her. So everyone kinda went “Okay cool you’re in charge now :)” I’m sorry, Saarai, you’re symultaneously the most and least qualified for this job but you got it anyway :P She settles into it eventually, though, but will be the first one to adamantly insist that it’s a team effort between not only herself and Vano once they have her back, but Lana, Koth, Theron and all the other trusted members of the Alliance acting as advisors in their respective fields of interest.

- In Subterfugeverse, I headcanon that Vano and Saarai share the command of the Alliance once Vano returns. Vano has the Commander title and handles most of the battle tactics and strategy, whereas Saarai handles things like conflict resolution and public relations, as well as controlling the Eternal Fleet. Things work very differently in Subterfugeverse in terms of the Throne so I’ll try to keep it brief but essentially:

Valkorion “took over” the Sith Empire from the Ahaszaai, Saarai’s ancestors. It was a very hostile takeover and currently Saarai, Ni’kasi, Ty, eventually Ni’kasi’s kids, and their uncle Vowrawn are the only four Ahaszaai left in the entire galaxy.

While they didn’t technically have claim to the Zakuulan throne, the original Sith homeworld before Valkorion’s bullshit was Medriaas (which is canon, I’m just borrowing this part because it fits in nicely ;)), which became Nathema after Valkorion did his whole “planet eating” thing.

Vano is initially the only one who can control the Throne and the Fleet via the whole “Valkorion is in her head” loophole. However, that loophole becomes defunct once Valkorion gets yanked out of her mind since it was Valkorion that gave her the ability to control it in the first place.

I’m assuming for the sake of plot flow that it’s based upon two specific “checks” and that’s 1) direct blood ties to the Emperor(ess) in power and/or 2) said Emperor(ess) currently controlling the throne directly and willingly passing their authority over the throne to a successor - which is how Valkorion is able to give the Outlander/Vano control of the Fleet while he’s in her mind, even though she’s not blood related to him.

They’re able to, with some research, deduce that they can exploit this apparent loophole in the system, to avoid losing control of the Fleet entirely and risking any of the GEMINI droids turning into another SCORPIO; and Vano essentially rescinds control of the Throne/Fleet to Saarai, everyone (including Ni’kasi herself) agrees that Saarai is the responsible choice because she’s not going to get a bee in her bonnet and with an errant thought accidentally set the Eternal Fleet on the Jedi or something of the sort.

Since Saarai has direct blood ties to the original ruling Sith before Valkorion userped the title from them, and Vano willingly gave the Throne up to her, the Throne can’t throw a tantrum about it and just has to deal with it. XD

- Once they do manage to track down where Vano is, before Lana and Koth head to Zakuul to actually break her out, Lana comes to Saarai for help with that. Ni’kasi has to stay to watch Ty and also try and keep a tenuous line with the other Sith thanks to her position on the Dark Council, Aria’s too emotionally charged to think straight and Lana is rightfully worried she might make a mistake that puts the whole rescue mission in jeapordy, so they ask Saarai instead. It’s kind of awkward and she and Koth rub each other the wrong way at first, they bicker for two thirds of the entire trip there and Lana almost throws them both out of the airlock for it, but eventually do find a way to bury the hatchet before they actually arrive at Zakuul to rescue Vano.

- By the time they find the Gravestone, Saarai and Koth have made up and though they are not yet involved with eachother at that time, have both agreed that fighting over Lana is stupid and they can make this work without making things difficult for anyone else, so the whole interruption in the Gravestone’s cargo hold, for Subterfugeverse, is genuinely an accident. Saarai heads up to check on him afterwards and they have another amicable and productive conversation and end up growing a little closer. Their side of the relationship is a little slower to form, but they do eventually end up developing deeper feelings for each other, though it’s strictly non-sexual between Rai and Koth and they are both 100% happy and okay with that.

[theshijlegacy]

6.2 thoughts & stuff

J’iro once again got the honor of being my first toon through the latest content.  Spoiler city below the cut!

Okay.  Anyone at Bioware or any Bioware-adjacent companies, if you’re listening or can get this message to them somehow:

PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GROGU CAN WE STOP FIGHTING THE SAME TWO GUYS FOR A WHILE?  I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF THE EMPEROR AND DARTH MALGUS TO LAST ME A LIFETIME.  IT’S BEEN 9 FUCKING YEARS.  CAN WE *PLEASE* MOVE ON?!?!?!????

*ahem*

Now that I got that out of the way...

Yeah, I am totally over Tenebrae/Vitiate/Valkorian popping up in Yet Another Goddamn Form Because He’s The Emperor And Fuck You.  All of the cameos at the end of the final-no-really-we-mean-it-this-time fight (Syo!  Suri!  Master Surro!  etc!) were cool, but I’m so done with this guy I all I could think was “oh hey it’s GamemasterAnthony’s Birthday again.”  And killing every form of the Emperor at once felt a lot like the ending of Season 1 of Legends of Tomorrow, when they had to kill Vandal Savage in three time periods to finally get rid of him.  (...maybe that’s not the best analogy, since he popped up again in a later season.   oh fuck now I’ve done it)

As far as other reappearances go:

Revan. I actually said “this motherfucker AGAIN?” out loud when he showed up.  Not quite as tired of him as I am of the Emperor, but let’s give this dude a rest, PLEASE.

DARTH MARR!  One of the few characters I don’t mind seeing pop up again, because he’s always been way too good for everyone around him.

Meetra Surik!  In non-ghost form!  I am down for this.

Vaylin/Thexan.  Mixed reviews on these two.  First impression, “didn’t we settle their shit in KOTET Ch 9?”  Thought it was really nice that you could finally apologize to Vaylin; doesn’t quite make up for how badly she got treated but it’s something.  Seeing Arcann and Thexan fight together was pretty cool.  And of course I took the [Flirt] option with Vaylin.

Satele.  The only one we knew would come back.  Nothing unexpected, I guess, but THANK YOU for not killing her off.

That final fight, when you get all those temporary abilities for your buddies?  I got click-happy and just hit whichever one was off cooldown.  XD  Way too much happening for me to do much other than “take cover, shoot, shoot, Hightail It to get out of shit, repeat.”  I’ll have to take a closer look at the abilities on a later run.

Disregarding my feelings about That Fucking Guy coming back again, the story was pretty good.  The ship that Satele and her students were on was appropriately creepy, and I do like that the Hand and the Scions - possibly the most fanatical of That Fucking Guy’s followers (aside from those poor Zealots stuck on Nathema) - were the ones to find it.  And then we got to trip balls inside Satele’s head!  Another appropriately creepy locale.  Between the ship and the mindscape I spent damn near the whole run waiting for some creepy shit to jump out.  A+ mood, can’t wait to freak myself out again.

The new flashpoint definitely had me hooked (despite the excessive trash mobs) - it’s really too bad that it’s bugged, I want to see how things go with Marshal Kol!  Cool concept, cool layout, cool new character.  A bit of platforming to get your heart rate up, and later an intentional huge drop to REALLY get your heart rate up, and lol I’m a Gunslinger so I’ll just Hightail It away from the tentacles.

The best part about the new stuff?  The visuals.  The look of everything was fucking top-notch. 

The creepy-ass ship that had a lot of STUFF in it, crates and supplies and a whole crapton of other things you’d expect in a ship that’s on a journey of indeterminate length.  The members and minions of The Hand, lots of distinctive looks in faces and armor yet still unified.  The overall feeling that something here has gone horribly wrong.  

Satele’s mindscape that was its own unique thing, and still had echoes of other places - KOTET Ch 9 of course, but also KOTFE Ch 2, KOTFE Ch 12, and the Raptus & Calphayus fights in Dread Palace.  The stark contrast between the dim rocky landscape and bright memories of Tython.  The creepy mobs.  Lots of places to fall to your death, several times.  Even the little glowing bits (fungi?) felt not quite right.

The ships in the Spirit of Vengeance!  More ships that felt lived-in; lots of supplies and weapons and mobs (even if you have to fight a billion of them.)  Again, a super-cool layout overall.  And I could have spent hours just looking around The Fortune’s Folly!  (To-do for future runs - cheevo hunting!)

Overall, mostly good, and as always I’m eager to see how things turn out with different characters.  J’iro romanced Akaavi, sided with the Republic on Iokath & Ossus, and rejoined the Republic at the end of Onslaught so he’s now Commodore.  It’ll be fun to see how this goes with a Force-user, a Saboteur, an Imperial-aligned toon, a Theron/Lana/Kira/Scourge romancer, etc.

[reliciron]

Notes on Redeeming Arcann: Part 2

This focuses more on his character, than the redemption itself.

Part 1

Let’s not forget that Arcann grew up in a shitty situation. I don’t know when Senya left, and I’m not sure how to take that trailer with Vaylin. Either she left after she tried to take Vaylin from Nathema as a kid, or she left after that battle with Vaylin. I’m more inclined to believe it’s the former, personally.

Arcann and Thexan seemed to be a few years older than their sister, so they were maybe in their early teens (I’m really bad at guessing ages, so I could be way off). And even before Senya left, the situation didn’t seem to be too good once the boys were old enough to start training. They were so focused on their father, that the love and support that Senya gave them probably wasn’t enough. In the trailer, Valkorian’s words paint a pretty bleak childhood for them.

They faced a lot of neglect, if not outright emotional abuse from Valkorian, and we can see the effects it had on Arcann as an adult. The things he did are still wrong, but it shows WHY he’s learned to be this way.

So lets think about what values Valkorian would have taught Arcann:

- Weakness cannot be tolerated. Basically the worst thing you can be is weak. The weakness in question can take many forms.

-Weak Will definitely seems to be the biggest no-no for Arcann. Which makes sense, he was probably taught that literally anything can be overcome with Will otherwise you deserve what you get. Win or death, and survival alone is not a win if you fail your objective.

-Physical Weakness seems to be the least brought up one, and when it IS it’s usually in conjunction with Weak Will. Ex. Some Knights go up against the Outlander. When it is clear that they are going to lose, they retreat to save their lives. They are then punished for fleeing when they should have stayed and fought to the death or overcome their weakness to triumph. So it’s less that physical weakness is punished, so much as it’s not accepted as an excuse for failure. [It also shows why he thought that sending them to fight to the death in pairs would be a good punishment. They fled because they lacked the resolve to stay and fight, and making them face this with people they actually like would make it easier for them to face someone they didn’t, like the Outlander, and not flee (on top of them not fleeing because they didn’t want to be executed or go through those death matches again).

Which sounds a lot like something Valkorian would have taught him. Like, when he was a kid and he and Thexan fought grown ass adults and would have inevitably failed (we don’t see it in the trailer but it definitely would have happened). Valkorian wouldn’t have accepted the fact that they were hopelessly outmatched and would have expected them to fight to the last. This isn’t to say that he would have been proud of them if they DID fight to the end. By failing to win, they still failed in his eyes, and if they did manage to win, it was EXPECTED and not something to reward.

-Perfection is mandatory. It calls to mind that scene with Azula in ATLA, where she’s practicing her lightning bending. She does it perfectly except for LITERALLY a hair out of place. Normal people would consider it perfect, and such a detail would so far below notice it’s played as ridiculous that she cares about it (but, you know, still maintaining us being terrified of her). I imagine the same would go for Arcann, except instead of those old ladies commenting on how it was a shame that it was almost perfect, its Valkorian not even acknowledging him at all. At least the old ladies were looking at her, acknowledging her very existence, commenting on her form like maybe she’d get it right someday. Valkorian just walks away. Arcann and Thexan don’t get acknowledgment even when they do it perfectly, because nothing is ever good enough. It causes the boys, especially Arcann, to desperately chase for that acknowledgment that will never come.

(Of course we learn later that the very fact that Arcann and Thexan are in this together is a disappointment to Valkorian. He only acknowledges Arcann when he strikes down Thexan, proving that he will do anything for acknowledgment power, that bonds to others are something that makes you weaker and not stronger (and that now Arcann’s indoctrination into the worst of the dark side is complete. Thexan was the only person who might’ve gotten through to Arcann, and turned him away from Valkorian. He was Arcann’s rock and the only person who was actually THERE for him, both as a protector and a stabilizing force emotionally).]

-Obedience is mandatory. We can easily see that Valkorian expected absolute subservience from Thexan and Arcann. So when Arcann is in power, it’s not surprising that he treats anyone he sees as ‘lesser’ in the exact same way. He is not to be questioned, and if you fail him, even to save your own life, then you will die. There are no second chances.

We can see all of these things play out in his interactions with his Knights. He treats them like he was treated, except they don’t have the luxury of being a Prince, so unlike him, they are expendable.

We can also see why the Outlander pisses him off so much, especially if they are light-side (which you mostly need to be in order to redeem him at all).

He clearly sees them as lesser, if his arrogant attitude and mocking tone are anything to go by when they first meet him. Since they are lesser, they should obey. When they happily don’t, it pisses him off. Nobody tells him no, and they certainly don’t do it as brazenly as the Outlander does.

When he proved he was stronger on Asylum, they should have accepted his superiority and backed down. Not only did they not back down, they became an even bigger thorn in his side.

Then there are the bonds they forged. Arcann was definitely taught that ties to other people were a weakness. Either they would betray you, or they were a liability, but mostly the former. The better part of KotFE is spent recruiting people, bonding with them, and building the Alliance through those bonds. The people following the Outlander chose to be there because they believe in them, not because they feared them. It goes against everything Arcann was taught, so it’s no surprise that he consistently underestimates them. He keeps assuming that a group forged by bonds is no match for one forged by fear.

And then, of course, there’s Valkorian’s favoritism with the Outlander.

This was probably such a shock to Arcann, more so than anything else before.

He spend his whole life trying to get his father to acknowledge him in some way, and it was only after murdering his brother, that he got it. But here comes some rando, from who-knows-where, and his father treats them with respect verging on adrmiration. He says that no one has captured his attention like the Outlander has and he wants them to join him. I remember the way the camera is focused on his offered hand, and Arcann is in the background shifting in surprise and probably outrage. He’d sacrificed so much, suffered so much, just for a fraction of what his father was so easily offering a stranger. Valkorian said Arcann had no ambition, only jealousy, and he’s technically right, just not in the way he thinks. Arcann isn’t ambitious in that he wants the throne specifically, he doesn’t care about ruling, he just wants power and the freedom that comes with no longer suffering under his father’s thumb. But the jealousy is the big one. Arcann is probably ‘jealous’ in the same way as he was ‘ambitious’. He was jealous of the freedom his father had of not having to serve anyone, but in that moment, that isn’t what he’s jealous about. He’s jealous of the Outlander, and the easy acknowledgment that Valkorian gave them, but instead of lashing out at them, he rightfully attacks his father.

Simplified down, it’s like you painted the house, mowed the lawn, and cooked dinner for your dad. You’re exhausted and sore, and all he does is nod and give you 5 dollars. Then he turns around, goes to the neighbor, who had just finished painting their own house, and tells them great job and gives them 20 dollars. You’d understandably be pretty angry, and you didn’t even kill your own sibling.

But as angry as Arcann is with you in the game, I definitely can see his obsession with the Outlander being a little more than just anger. They keep him on his toes in a way that no one else has. They’re a challenge, and other than his father, he probably hasn’t had that in a very long time. They recognize his power (again, that sweet sweet acknowledgment) and fight him even when they know it will be hopeless. And when he knocks them down, they come back even stronger. Even he would find that perseverance admirable. And just maybe, that hesitation to finished the job on Asylum was because he wasn’t sure he wanted to lose that challenge.

One Quick Note on Injuries

At the end of the final fight with Arcann on his flagship, you score one really good hit to his chest, which he clutches at when he’s backing away to the dais. If it’s a non-force user, I think it’s a flurry of 3-4 shots to his chest. If it’s a Jedi/Sith, it’s one really good slash that looks like it goes from just under his left pectoral (same side as his cybernetic arm), to about 4-6 inches under his right. Either way, the scar would be prominent. I do love the hurt/comfort of him seeing the Commander’s scar where he stabbed them. It’s a wonderful opportunity for a soft, slightly sad intimate moment between the two. If he chose to let it stay there, his own scar might be a chance for another moment, or a sort of ‘see? we’re even’ scene.

[mandogirl93]

KotFE/KotET Headcanon Time!

Tagged by @mimabeann​!  Thank you so much, and I’m sorry for the mess you’re about to see!

Tagging: Anyone who wants to do this one! 

1. Starting with basics. Who is your Outlander (which class, what their aligment)? How did they end up being frozen in carbonite for 5 years? Why did you make them the Outlander?

My Outlander is Vargus Organa. He was placed with the Jedi at a very early age, and follows the Jedi Knight story pretty closely, with a couple of extra twists/turns as he runs into the other class characters. He’s a great example of a Jedi, but he does sometimes struggle with the seriousness of what he does. He just views his day as another one for the books, and rarely sees just how much he impacts the events of the story. I think he’s leading every quest line for me except Ziost. He’s there, but he’s supporting Theron and the 6th line while my Imperial crew have all been called in to help Lana and my warrior takes center stage against Vitiate.

2. Now, to the rest of classes. What happens to them during KotFE/ET? Did they know the Outlander? Were they allies, enemies, family? Do they join the Alliance or have something else to do? Do they play a major or a minor role in the story? Spare no detail (if you wish, of course)

Okay, not gonna lie, this is a bit of a mess right now (mainly because I had got my little legendary icon and then deleted all of my toons. So I’m in the process of remaking and remapping… well, everything. But here’s what I’ve got so far!)

Republic

Knight is Vargus. Check.

Consular: Aishne Pashavi is my consular in-game. Aishne is a Mirialan and she follows the typical class story line. Her family were ambassadors on Corellia and she was discovered by the Green Jedi there, and trained with them for a time before landing on Tython. She ends up working closely with Master Gnost-Dural and Naadia on Ossus. (She also never abandoned Felix, her husband. Because of reasons.) 

Smuggler: I don’t have one yet. Idk, In my brain, no one can really beat Hylo, and I haven’t made a smuggler that I’ve ever actually kept.

Trooper: Ruvah Khor is my trooper. Light side all the way. She follows orders as best she can, but knows when she can draw a line. Her superiors may not always like that, but they can’t argue with her results. She follows the class story line, and ends  up marrying Jorgan. After the Alliance defeats Vaylin, Ruvah and Aric both retire for a few years before being pulled back into the conflict after Ossus. 

Imperial

Sith Warrior: Lord Madraxian. Followed the warrior storyline, but took the Emperor abandoning the Empire pretty hard. When Arcann and crew took over, he was almost killed before Vette was able to cut the skytoopers off from following them. He decided to lay low for a bit and wait for an opportunity to strike back at Zakuul. And that is how my cool sith warrior ends up as a scary bodyguard for Gault and Vette. He joins the Alliance when they do, and is able to break out to go save Vette during Vaylin’s assault.

Sith Inquisitor: Darth Imperius/Vi’fan Kallig. He’s a bookworm who just can’t catch a break.  He was a slave to a noblewoman on Drommund Kaas, but was sent to Korriban after discovering he was force sensitive. He follows the inquisitor story line as well, but romances Talos. He is… not a very good person. He’s not outright cruel, but he will scheme to protect what he loves at all costs, and he’s rather gifted at interrogations. 

Bounty Hunter: Vhikka Farr. You guys have heard quite a bit about her, but I’ve twisted her story inside and out (sorry). She’s actually a member of clan Farr and living with those in the Order of Revan on Drommund Kaas at the beginning of her story. However, she’s heard of all the cheating that Tarro Blood is doing from her clan and decides to enter the Great Hunt the hard way and earn her place on her own. She packs up her beskar and heads to Hutta (she got that tip from one of my other bounty hunters). She follows the BH story after that, but has to reveal to Mandalore that she was already Mandalorian (and she’s very thankful that he found this funny rather than shooting her). She meets Vargus a couple of times throughout her travels, so they know each other during Shadow of Revan. This is where they actually start working together and where they fall for each other.

I also have a bounty hunter called Durgo Farr (or Pink). He grew up with Vhikka but was a few years older. He was already working as a Bounty Hunter when Vhikka was looking to join the Great Hunt. He had worked with Braden on Nar Shadda, so he set their meeting on Hutta up. 

Agent:  Sira’mi’rane, aka Amira. She’s a light-side imperial agent who is just trying to do her job. She’s pretty private, even with her crew and misses Copero (her homeworld). She only romances Aristocra Saganu, and they keep in touch through the expansions.

 I also have a few more, but they’re not set in stone yet and may fall victim to the delete button.

3. What about companions? Do you follow their in-game story or have headcanons for them? Did they stay with your non-Outlander characters or not? Why?

Mostly? I mean, as much as Vhikka wants to blow Skadge out of the airlock, she can’t really bring herself to kill him. And he always manages to make it back on the ship, no matter how early she leaves the spaceport “unannounced”. Mako keeps in contact with Vhikka even though they separate, so I feel like there’s less abandonment/animosity there, and her and Akaavi join the Alliance sooner. (At the moment I don’t think anything changes for the other classes. But I’m also tired and there are so many of them.) Also, everyone lives! Yay! 

4. If applicable: how your characters react if the Alliance joins the opposite faction on Iokath and after that? For example: how do Sith characters feel about joining the Republic? Will they stay or leave (if it’s too spoiler-ish, then feel free to skip this)?

I mean, most of my toons are relatively okay with Vargus siding with the Republic. Vhikka isn’t super fond of the idea, but she always made it a point that she wasn’t the Empire’s lapdog. (She knows that the Republic probably won’t accept her people even if Vargus vouches for them. She also REALLY doesn’t like being asked to be a double agent, and Vargus is so proud of her for controlling herself enough to not shoot Jonas when he asked.) The only ones who actually leave are Vi’fan and Talos, and that’s because he goes back to kill whoever has taken his libraries and offices and asks Talos to come with him. (He also just waltzes back into his spot on the Dark Council somehow. Idk, he’s just that good at what he does.) Most others eventually fall into their new places/roles.

5. If applicable: if your Commander decides to be a saboteur, would they tell anyone (PC or companions)? Why/why not?

Not applicable for Vargus, but I think that Vhikka may get persuaded to do it (oh no...). I haven’t really decided yet. If she does though, she’s going to be a mess. Shes definitely not cut out for that.  

6. How would your characters react if one of their companions is exiled or dead because of Outlander’s choices? For example: sith warrior’s reaction if Commander doesn’t save Vette?

I know it’s cheesy, but I like that I saved Vette and Torian. Vhikka gets Torian and Madraxian gets Vette, which frees Vargus to go for Vaylin. 

7. If you have something written about anything from the above (bc I know some people do), share the links to your works (again, if you feel like it)!

I… don’t actually have anything written. I try, but it’s always a jumbled mess. Maybe one day!

[greyias]

This is not fair of me to ask, I'm sure you have plenty to do, but there is this post on reddit titled, "Is there an enjoyable way to read about SWTOR plot? I have fallen ill right after playing Umbara and I would very much like to know why certain someone did what he did, but I am unable to play and wookiepedia is quite a dry read. " He explains he has seizures from playing video games. I was wondering if you had something written that would help him out, or maybe you could write something?

Oh no, that poor guy! That really sucks to be invested in a story and then not be able to see how it turns out!  I’m going to guess videos/playback of them have a similar issue  🙁 

I totally will agree with him that Wookieepedia is definitely dry, but I’m going to boldly put this statement out here: it’s also incorrect.

At least the articles on Fractured Alliances were (and a few other TOR era articles I came across), to the point where I actually got really angry reading them because the assumptions were just so... blatantly wrong. And not well sourced. (This is a strange hill for me choose to die on, but I will go defend it nonetheless.) Granted I haven’t looked at them in several months, so it’s possible they’ve been updated since then? 🤷‍♀️

I haven’t written a full write-up on what happened in Fractured Alliances, but honestly I’ve been meaning to? Because the Wookiepedia articles irked me that much, I feel like someone needs to rant at length and correct them. I’ve just, erm, got a bit lazy and distracted and haven’t done so. Mostly because there’s actually a lot to cover, and a lot of misconceptions to correct, and sourcing is hard yo.

BUT! I can do a cliff’s notes version really quick to get him some answers. Although if it’s possible... maybe just link him this post in private if possible? Mostly because there’s some pretty big edgelords over on Reddit, and they make me tired (which is why I stopped even going over there to look at things).

Also I still haven’t quite lived down Gravedrog yet. I still can’t believe that blew up to the degree it did.

BUT! I can talk about Theron Shan, and his motivations all the live long day. Probably too long if we’re being honest. And I’ve definitely invested far more thought and energy into understanding what happened in this storyline (and why everyone did what they did) than is probably rational. But hey, we all have to have a hobby? And apparently mine is dissecting rushed/truncated video game storylines and their implications on characterization.

The TL;DR: Theron does what he does in Fractured Alliances to protect both the Outlander and the Alliance. And eventually by extension of the plot, everyone in the galaxy

(Whether or not a player or Outlander agrees with his methods for going about it is another debate entirely, but Theron definitely had his reasons, which were noble in intent, as all roads to hell are said to be paved with)

(Sorta) Cliff’s Notes Version of Fractured Alliances:

(okay this isn’t that short, but I promise it’s a lot shorter than it could be)

Once upon a time, we find a junky old spaceship in the swamp. We ignore it whispering creepily to us and a bunch of warning signs and decide to adopt it anyway

Sometime later, the entire cast of KOTET takes a reluctant field trip (see: KIDNAPPING) to Iokath. 

While there, some stupid droid turns to Vaylin and says “Hey, you want to erase all of these Gemini droids free will?”

Because the entire expansion of KOTET got cut down by literally half, a lot of characterization shortcuts are taken and Vaylin’s like “HELL YEH”

All of the Gemini units are mindwiped save for one, a creepy little scarfed explorer who was off exploring Hoth or something. We get one e-mail from Hylo about this droid at the end of KotFE Chapter 16. 

This lone Gemini unit, named Gemini 16, is traumatized by this and she’s like “Fuck having sisters! I want to be an only child!” and decides she wants to murder her entire droid family. Apparently it’s the only way to be sure this never happens again???

We defeat Vaylin, Valkorion, and take ownership of a shiny new fleet! Neat! Also, we install the Fleet’s control console with a known security flaw that we ourselves tried to exploit in KotFE (see: The Gemini Frequency) into the heart of our operations on Odessen. I’m sure no traumatized, misanthropic lone Gemini droids or crazy Zakuulans will use this to their advantage.

Oh wait.

Some guy we never met hates us because two kids were arguing over a piece of bread in the street. 

This genius is named Vinn Atrius. He’s our villain.

He says “THANKS OUTLANDER-BAMA” and “We always had plenty of bread before YOU showed up!” and “Zakuul can’t just conquer and force everyone to bend to our will anymore :( :( :( :(” and “Won’t someone think of the children????” and decides he’s going to murderize him an Outlander. And the Alliance. 

He decides to become a terrorist and frame us for his terrorist acts. 

When he’s not starting whisper campaigns about how the Outlander is this horrible tyrant that must be stopped

Theron gets wind of Vinn’s plans, and decides to pretend he wants to be a cultist too! -- Vinn wisely slams the door in his face. This is the only wise thing Vinn ever does.

Vinn’s not a very good mastermind, so scary droid lady (GEMINI 16) says “Here honey, let me help you find a giant apocalypse machine”, although she doesn’t say honey because she hates everyone who’s not her

I actually skipped Iokath but I swear to god that’s an entire post unto itself, but someone tries to murderize the Outlander. Theron’s strangely calm about this. We’re supposed to think that’s because the TR8R WAS HIM ALL ALONG

This is stupid and goes against every characterization of Theron Shan up to this point in canon. I literally need an entire post to go into this, and am trying to keep things short.

TL;DR: This lady tried to murder the Outlander because ?????

I’m pretty sure the person behind the mask is the Scion, Oramis, and this part of the story/explanation got cut when they condensed everything.

Oramis and the Scions are also another post/explanation entirely

Gemini 16 lured everyone to Iokath

the full explanation is a post unto itself

but it’s the only thing that makes sense (with her motivation, Vinn’s motivation, their entire dialogue on their first meeting -- again, I’m trying to keep this “short”)

Sixteen literally has recordings of Team Outlander talking about who could have lured everyone there -- implying she was in the Iokath mainframe the entire time they were there on Iokath Fieldtrip #2

also, Vinn Atrius is as dumb as toast

🍞

Theron is actually pretty pissed about someone trying to murder his boss/best friend/girlfriend/boyfriend. And he’s pretty sure he knows who it is. So he goes into ultra THERON LOGIC mode -- which is to say, he becomes an overly paranoid loner -- and decides to infiltrate a death cult.  (again). As you do.

Because via intelligence reports that are for some stupid reason hidden behind group content, he already knows that some conspiracy against the Alliance is afoot. And that they’re being watched. Apparently Lana forgot to read all of her Intelligence dossiers???? 

Since he knows we’re being watched, but can’t figure out how, logically the only thing to do is without any backup whatsoever, try and infiltrate the Death Cult that slammed the door in his face once already. 

Luckily for Theron, Vinn Atrius is a dumbass and says “IDK... you’re pretty close to the Commander”

Theron says “Would a face like this lie to you?” while making this face in the cutscene: 😡  

Vinn’s like “When you’re right, you’re right! Blow up a train for me?” 

Theron: AHAHAHA SURE. I LOVE BLOWING UP TRAINS

Theron, Mentally: ...well, crap. I guess I could tell the Commander about this. BUT THE WALLS HAVE EARS--WAIT I HAVE A BRILLIANT PLAN

Theron proceeds to concoct the most elaborate stage play known to man, which includes:

Leading everyone to the front of the train

Where he can lure both the Outlander and Lana into the front compartment

And shoots Lana with a stun blast, something he has never done before to someone he’s trying to supposedly kill

Then he shoots at the Commander--but not really, because he was shooting out the window on the front of the train

Then he shoots again at the Commander--but not really, because he was shooting at the controls to bring up a shield that prevents the Outlander from following him

And oh no! Now there’s a shield between them, what a tragedy, I guess he can’t pretend to shoot at the Commander and miss for a third time. Guess it’s time to monologue like a Bond villain. What can ya do? It’s not like he has cybernetic implants that help him be an expert marksman. God, that’d be embarrassing.

Since he knows that he’s being recorded by some unseen person, he really hams it up for the camera. He makes this face again, because he’s decided it’s part of his tr8rsona: 😡

The Outlander can react in a variety of ways, but if one of those ways is “UM WTF???? WHY DIDN’T YOU TALK TO ME???” he suddenly breaks tr8r character and goes “I thought about it... but then you might have talked me out of it--AND WE CAN’T HAVE THAT!” 

if you romanced him and say you still love him he makes this face: 😭

And then literally tells the Outlander how to escape from the train before like going “I’m really gonna blow up this train -- in thirty seconds -- gosh it would be a shame if you were still on this train in thirty seconds. When it blows up. When I pull the trigger. That I’m about to do.”

The Outlander leaps off the train, out of the convenient exit point Theron made, with Lana. They’re respectively like “?????” and “🤬🤬🤬🤬”

Vinn thinks this all very convincing. Sixteen is facepalming in the background. Vinn doesn’t listen to her. We don’t see any of this, but it’s kind of implied in future dialogue.

If you’re dating Theron and didn’t try to Force choke him, he sends you a letter going “I STILL LOVE YOU -- CAN’T EXPLAIN WHY I DID THIS BUT ILU PLZ DON’T FORGET ILU oh yeah and the alliance sucks and stuff i guess -- ps. ♥︎♥︎♥︎”

This is apparently something a tr8r would do, because Theron is Vinn’s go-to guy now. And decides to give Theron the task of retrieving a map to this place called Nathema so they can find a giant death machine to kill the Alliance.

Oh wait. That place called Nathema. That Theron has been to before. And knows the exact coordinates too because he was the pilot that flew them there. The place that Valkorion sucked the entire life out of and made a giant wound in the Force. THAT NATHEMA.

This is the part where normal people might think “Maybe I should reconsider my plans”, but they are not Theron Shan. Who shaves his head, throws away a jacket he’s been wearing since he was like fifteen, and heads over to Chiss space, to steal/blow up a map to the Ancient Death Machine.

Actually it’s revealed/hinted at on Iokath, on Copero, and then clarified once again in Nathema Conspiracy, that this machine is literally the Apocalypse

It wipes out entire worlds’ populations in an instant

Background lore indicates that its hunger is endless and has been waiting to rise again and there’s like prophecies about this

If activated and not stopped, this machine will literally annihilate all life in the galaxy

Theron blows up some more things at a resort, runs bravely away away, and then OOPS OH SO ACCIDENTALLY broadcasts his call with the Death Cult, who say their name on camera.

Shockingly, the Alliance intercepts the accidental-on-purpose broadcast and now know the name of Theron’s new cult: The Order of Zildrog

Then like forever and a day passes in real life, but who knows how long in game time, but I guess it’s like, six months or less according to a line of dialogue -- and finally Lana and the Outlander mysteriously get coordinates to a myyyyysterious abandoned outpost. 

And by mysterious, I mean that Lana is the only one who can decode said coordinates because she and Theron came up with the encryption together on Rishi

It’s almost like he’s working from the inside or something

But if you tell Lana that she’s like “NO HE’S A TR8R GRRR THIS A TRAP”

It is not a trap

Lana and the Outlander wander around, and find a bunch of recordings someone conveniently forgot to erase detailing a bunch of infodumps that’s way too long for the Cliff’s Notes version, but boil down to showing and implying an entire novel’s worth of backstory:

Vinn’s manifesto

Theron unconvincingly pretending he really likes death cults

Vinn staring at numbers from data he got from Iokath and zomg Zildrog is reallllll -- the legends of his mighty hunger and DEATH DEALING are true! Squee! Just what he needs to get rid of that pesky Outlander!

Vinn recruiting people who really don’t like you into his death cult

Gemini telling Vinn he really sucks at this masterminding thing, but she needs someone who’s good with people so hey let’s team up!

Oh and she knows where Zildrog is

The Outlander and Lana escape before the space station blows up

Over on the Shuttle of Zildrog, Theron’s like “It’s all up to you now, Commander” and apparently Vinn hears that and is like “Hey Theron, did you remember to erase all of our super sekrit recordings and blow up the space station?"

Theron: 👌

Vinn: 👍

Sixteen: 😒

Back on Odessen Lana’s like “I KILL DA TR8R” regardless of your feelings on the matter as an Outlander. If Arcann’s still alive he’s like “Hey Commander, maybe go easy on Theron? I know the value of forgiveness. Maybe he had his reasons?”

You get corroborating information of literally everything we just learned on the Space Station OF DOOM and Lana’s still like “Nope, still gonna shank me a tr8r! No one tazes Lana Beniko and lives!”

I assume it’s a fun ride to Nathema

Okay I joke. She’s just being protective and "logical”, but honestly if you select literally every single dialogue option supporting Theron throughout this story, illogically Angry Lana can really start to grate after a while

On Nathema, we follow a myyyysterious signal -- to Theron. To the surprise of no one except Lana who’s like “JERKFACE STAY AWAY FROM THE COMMANDER”

Theron proceeds to tell an extremely abbreviated, and slightly more straightforward version of everything above. 

If you’ve romanced him, he reminds you that he promised to do anything to protect you. 

This includes shaving his head, updating his wardrobe, blowing up a train, and putting up with Vinn Atrius’s shit for months on end

The things he does for love

Lana still doesn’t believe him. At this point if you want to, you can be like “Lana plz” and she’s like “OKAY FINE--BUT I’M WATCHING YOU TR8R”

Gemini 16 was watching the entire exchange. Looks like SOMEONE’S cover is blown. Oh well, Theron was done with it anyway.

Vinn is SHOCKED. SHOCKED I TELL YOU.

HOW DARE

THERON????

HOW COULD YOU?????

YOU FRIENDED ME ON SPACEBOOK

WAS IT ALL A LIE

I KEEL HIM

Sixteen is just like “whatever let’s go activate Zildrog”

Vinn: Is this why he kept insulting our Lord and Savior Valkorion?????

Team Outlander fights their way to the site of the Ancient Apocalypse Machine. They meet Shroedinger’s Cultist along the way via holo. 

He/she/they says “hi/plz die”.

There’s sixteen candidates for this spot (two for each class) -- but all sixteen are not death cultists at the same time

This is another thing that requires an entire post to delve into, so another time on that

Team Outlander arrives at the site where Zildrog was installed on Nathema -- coincidentally right at the same spot Tenebrae/Vitiate/Valkorion initiated his first death ritual to grant him semi-immortality. Fancy that.

Vinn has convinced everyone he’s recruited into his death cult to climb into these really dangerous looking pods; not surprising but they’re all basically dead -- because Zildrog required a human sacrifice to be reactivated

A human sacrifice???

In my ancient death machine?

It’s more likely than you think!

Theron shoots Vinn because he’s tired of his shit

Gemini 16 reveals that the Zildrog machine is one half of a larger death device built on Iokath. Where’s the other half?

OH BACK ON ODESSEN. Because it’s the Gravestone. Yes, I know everyone forgot about it at this point, which is kind of easy since we haven’t seen it since KOTET.

The Gravestone blows up the Eternal Fleet. Like, all of it. At once. Also the control console for the Fleet blows up too. This kind of detonates several things on base.

For some reason edgelords on Reddit think this is all Theron’s fault

As if the writers were really going to let us keep that Deus Ex Machina that would literally prevent them from going back to these same whiner’s precious Pub vs Imp conflict

And ignoring the fact that this would have been the end result even if Theron hadn’t gone undercover

I digress

Team Outlander fights Sixteen and defeats her. 

Theron goes to try and finish shutting Zildrog down and Vinn Atrius is like

And stabs Theron in the back with a lightsaber pike

The Outlander can be like 

“FUCK YOU ASSHOLE THAT’S MY BEST FRIEND/BOYFRIEND”

 or “OH NOES” 

or “ASSMUNCH I WAS GONNA DO THAT”

Vinn’s like “DRAGGONNNNNNNNN” as if he was recreating a scene from Dragonball Z, and the holo-Zildrog is like “Here, let me make you go Super Saiyan!” -- and gives Vinn a boss buff

Outlander and Lana fight Vinn and kick his ass. Then kick Zildrog’s ass. Yes, Zildrog is literally just a computer console in the center of the room, and if the Outlander more or less pulls a Kylo Ren on it

The Gravestone blows up -- everyone on Odessen is really confused

Lana tells the Outlander that “WAIT! Theron’s still alive!” -- she’s backed off her murderous rampage at this point and says we have to bring him back to Odessen to save his life

The Outlander can act like any sane person to their boyfriend/best friend/person-who-risked-their-entire-life/reputation-to-save-us/etc and go “Let’s take him home and save his life”

Or can be a dick and literally make Theron live out his worst fear of being abandoned by the people he cares about -- because despite the mountain of evidence that illustrates he literally did all of this to save your life, you can just walk away going “tr8rs never prosper”

This option shows what looks like him dying offscreen

I’m pretty sure he actually survives

Satele sends you a nastygram if you do this, where she directly contradicts a previous letter she sent (to Theron) if you tried to kill her in KotFE Chapter 12

Lana also is not happy with you if you do this, but not like, enough to actually leave or anything

Back on Odessen it’s revealed half of the members of the Alliance are fair weather friends and have abandoned you since you don’t own any super cool space ships anymore

If you brought Theron back with you, he limps up while you and Lana are shooting the breeze and asks if he can stay

You can say yes or no

If you’re romancing Lana you can propose to her around this point

If you’ve romanced Theron (and didn’t tell him to hit the road), you take an ill-advised walk as he’s still limping like crazy, where he reveals that he’s been having nightmares ever since Umbara about you walking away from him and he can never catch up

GEE WHAT DOES THAT SOUND LIKE

He says he knows he doesn’t deserve your trust or forgiveness, but still asks if you can give “your idiot spy boyfriend” a second chance 

You can say no, of course, but if you say yes, there’s a dialogue path that leads to an adorably awkward proposal

And he promises that he and Lana will stay by your side no matter what

THE END

(of that story arc)

Sorry, I know that’s rather disjointed and rushed (despite being as long as it was)! But for such a rushed ending/conclusion, there’s actually a lot of moving parts to the storyline as whole. 

At some point in the future I’ll try to actually expand upon some of those tangent points of “I need more time to explain this properly” -- because there’s a lot of them, and a lot to them. Also cross-referencing the pieces of canon takes time -- but I promise there’s actual canonical evidence and logic trains that make sense for all of that.