#was probably there for the destruction of mandalore

[hinderr]

would role swap grogu have painted armor or unpainted chrome armor?

Hmmmmm logically- im not actually sure. In my head its unpainted, but Grogu's been Mandalorian for a while, so the age probably does show on his armour nonetheless. I guess it maybe used to be painted, but the paint wore off and Grogu never repainted. So it's silver in a way that's sort of dull and coarse, not shiny like canon Din's, who had a new set just made yknow?

[bookatans]

This is probably going to be a very long post but the more I think about the rise (and subsequent fall) of the New Mandalorians, the more that I get wrapped up in not only the colonialism committed by Satine and the movement, how it began in such a horrifyingly understated way, but also how it paved the way for Mandalore to be destroyed thanks to the almost-complete erasure of their culture.

First of all, Canon verse deciding to remove the True Mandalorians (and placing the "Old" Mandalorians in a similar, though less prominent position) feels particularly underhanded and paints everything in a black and white manner. Satine: a sympathetic character who is the only one standing against Death Watch, the last shred of peace left for Mandalorians to cling to. Which. Last standing? Yes, definitely. But not the only one.

A war where Death Watch and the New Mandalorians were the major players, only to have Death Watch defeated – even with the assistance of the Jedi keeping Satine alive – makes little sense from a technical standpoint. Is it impossible? Probably not. All sorts of things can happen in history, pure dumb luck makes every difference, but it's unlikely. A party which seeks peace is not going to survive against another ultra violent, volatile party that's pissed off at you because you want to erase the culture that they so deeply value.

Which, yeah I don't buy it. Even with the Republic stepping in later on, it's fishy. But for the sake of my sanity, I'm mostly focusing on Legends, because the more you try to create a coherent timeline (seriously, how is Clone Batch Math easier than this?) for the Mandalorian Civil Wars, the harder it is not to give up entirely.

Anyways. Satine did not survive years of conflict due to mere smarts and perseverance, and did not end the war by being charismatic and having good people skills. She was the LEAST THREATENING PARTY in a three-party war, hunkering down with her Jedi protectors and playing politician while the actual warriors in the conflict weakened one another and – for the True Mandalorians – were wiped out.

True Mandalorians. Death Watch. New Mandalorians.

So, okay. The approximate dates of the beginning and end of the Mandalorian Civil Wars don't necessarily make sense with Satine’s age. She'd have been slightly younger, and Canon seems to have a tendency to just wave their hand in the general direction of a time period and deflect onto another topic.

Which, you know what? Fine. I can work with that without having to think too hard about the dates. It kills me not to delve into it further, but. No. It's not like Disney's gonna pay me to fix their broken timeline.

(But if I had to, I'd shift Jaster's death to 47BBY instead of 52BBY, and push the Battle of Galidraan a year back to 43BBY, and—)

Here's what's important to remember, though:

- There are two Mandalorian Civil Wars. The first being True Mandalorians vs Death Watch. The second being the much shorter, and quickly solved Death Watch vs the New Mandalorians.

- The massacre of the True Mandalorians happened shortly before the beginning of the second civil war.

- The True Mandalorians had already been dealing with Death Watch for years, and they were winning. Death Watch wasn't just on the run, they were weak, they had to resort to TRICKING THE JEDI into killing the True Mandalorians for them.

Who wasn't weak? The New Mandalorians, the people that actively choose to turn their back on a culture that had survived for centuries. And yes, Death Watch remained even after the True Mandalorians fell. Tor Vizsla targeted Satine and the New Mandalorians viciously after that, there was even more destruction, but it wasn't with the severity with which he'd prosecuted the True Mandalorians.

Here's what happened next: Jango Fett escaped his enslavement. He hunted down Tor Vizsla, and he killed him. Whatever strength Death Watch had regained in those few years didn't matter, because the second their leader was gone they were certainly left unorganized and at a disadvantage.

Giving the New Mandalorians the opening they needed to cement in people's minds to their beliefs and convince the House and Clan leaders that abandoning their old ways was the solution. After all, how much more of Mandalore was left to destroy? How many more had to be lost?

With the public's approval and the Republic’s help, Satine Kryze and the New Mandalorians scavenged the corpse of Mandalore, and they took what they deemed fit, left the rest to rot and – given time – be erased completely.

What's worse is that Satine's activism and speeches made it sound like that made sense (because, to Satine, it did make sense); abandon what Mandalore once was because that's the reason we've been destroyed, isn't it? (Not entirely untrue.) And these people, whose world had been ravaged, who's clans and families had wrecked everything with in-fighting, were tired and desperate enough that they listened.

Actually, here's what's really worse — Satine got LUCKY! The first time! It should not have ended like that. But because she got lucky, because it worked once, she tried to do the exact same thing when the entire galaxy went to war. And she ignored the suffering of people whom she should have known empathy towards, who were going through the very same torment she experienced as a child. Because her position of superiority where peace is the only answer was so ingrained in her beliefs, because she was ARROGANT.

And because peace was the only answer, because she'd disavowed any sense of warrior culture from her people, Satine had as much a hand in dooming Mandalore as everyone who went in with the worst intentions. Does it matter that it was doomed regardless, because Maul was the great evil that came to destroy them? No. Maul was just the most convenient means to an end the resurrected Death Watch could find, but if not him it would have been anyone — anything – else.

I do feel for her. She had to experience her father's death so young and step into a role he'd left behind, didn't get a proper chance to grieve because she had to be strong for everyone else who was grieving. She gave up the possibility of love for duty. Satine was a good leader, I won't argue that, and she was the last stand between Mandalore and total annihilation, but she was also deeply flawed.

[stellanslashgeode]

I want to say one last thing about the Martez sisters. Something @spacelesbiandisaster mentioned.

The fact that Ahsoka had the Wrong Jedi arc happen to her, goes right to her Walkabout with the Martez sisters, proceeds directly to the Siege of Mandalore, IMMEDIATELY afterwards Order 66 happens which she escapes with Rex by the skin of her teeth, then she and Rex must have had a conversation along these lines:

Rex: Okay, now that the funeral is over, what now?

Ahsoka: I just want to lie low for a while. I'm completely shattered.

Rex: Uhh, I want to do this clone liberation thing. But you don't have to help. It's just what I need to do.

Ahsoka: Okay... Well, I guess it would be best if we split up. Less chance we get arrested if we are apart and more that one of us makes it. Are you going to Coruscant?

Rex: Yeah, probably.

Ahsoka: There's these two sisters who can help you out, and maybe you can keep an eye on them and keep them on the right path. They're down in 1313.

Rex: Okay, cool.

Ahsoka: Hey, you should not only take the Y-Wing. You should take R7. Remember, my droid that served with me on all those missions, who risked destruction to help us out when our Venator was crashing? You know the one we dug out of the wreckage and put back together? Give her to Trace, she'd really like that.

Rex: You got it.

[stormyblue90]

Please, tell me your vision of Clones daemons

Ok, so I've made a list of various clones and the daemon/familiar I've given them. Note, I assigned them based on the general vibe, and characteristics of each trooper, and what knowledge I have of various animals, their general vibe, and a few cultural associations, rather than what animals are associated with what in Dark Materials universe.

Rather than the clones all having daemons from one specific group of animals, such as canines, they all have animals from across the animal kingdom, as each clone IS a unique individual. I wanted that expressed through their animal daemon/familiars.

List and my thoughts for such choices below the cut!

So, lets get underway! This is gonna be LONG!

The 501st

Rex: A Golden Eagle

Eagles have A LOT of symbolism in various cultures across the globe! Rex has been bestowed the Mandalorian mark of Jaig Eyes, a symbol of the Mandalorian Jai'Galaar, the Shriek Hawk. A native bird of Mandalore that I imagine has similarities with our own eagles. When I think of Rex's Jaig eyes, I liken them to the eagle feathers in the beautiful war bonnets of many of the different indigenous peoples of the North American plains. A reverent symbol of bravery, honor and skill that can only be earned. Therefore Rex gets the eagle. I specifically chose the Golden Eagle due to the crown of golden feathers on its head, referencing Rex's blonde hair, his "crown of gold"

The Domino Twins, Fives and Echo: Lion and Cougar respectively.

For Fives, he's brave, he's charismatic, a leader. The lion is a typical symbol of such. Clones are also meant to work TOGETHER, and of course lions work together, and lion brothers especially. Lions are also pretty powerful and tough, and Fives is an ARC trooper! He's tough, he's skilled, so he gets something equally so.

As for Echo, he gets a feline like Fives, because they ARE a package deal after all. However, Echo is still significantly different from Fives, so a different cat. When I think of Echo, I think of how ADAPTABLE he has become. A far cry from the cadet "who couldn't adapt". Cougars, aka Mountain Lions, or Pumas, are pretty adaptable. Not specialists, which is a good thing in the wild. They have a huge range all over North and South America, from mountains, to open plains, hot deserts to lush forests and swamplands. The cougar has adapted to a wide range of ecosystems! Also....they can be very chatty, making all kinds of squeaks, purrs, chirps, hisses, screams, and growls. And well, Echo was pretty chatty, repeating orders and such.

Jesse: Tuatara

Do NOT mistake the cute little guy for a lizard! Tuataras are a native reptile of Aoteroa/New Zealand, and only found there. They are the last of their kind, the order Rhyncocephalians, NOT lizards despite the appearence. They have a kind of "third eye" that's sensitive to light. Now I wanted at least one of the clones to have a NZ native animal, and Jesse gives me the vibe that he'd have a reptile for a pet if he could. So I gave him this unique reptile. Also, like the Tuatara, Jesse is kind of the "last of his kind" in regards to being Rex's last named member of the 501st (Echo having joined TBB, and Kix gones missing)

Kix: Caracal

Ok to be honest, I'm not ENTIRELY sure why I chose this kitty for Kix, but something about it said "Kix" to me. The long tufts on the ears give it a sort of elegance, and of course we like to think Kix has a small sense of vanity about him, what with those intricately shaved lightning bolts in his hair, and admiring himself in the mirror.

Hardcase: Moluccan Cockatoo.

Honestly, if any animal could be the manifestation of ADHD, it's gotta be a cockatoo! LOUD, energetic, fun loving, but also SMART and clever, it just screams Hardcase to me. He likes to have fun, can't sit still, but he's also a highly competent soldier, social, and probably destructive if he gets too bored. A parrot of some sort fits him nicely I think.

Tup: Sea Otter

Of course Tup gets something cute! However, despite their cuteness, Sea Otters ARE still predators, and WILL bite if you harass them! They also meticulously care for their fur, and Tup probably has his own hair care routine due to having long hair. Otters are also clever little beasts, and it was TUP'S quick and clever thinking that allowed them to take down Krell! Tup was vital both for taking Krell down, and setting Fives on the path to discovering the chips, and Rex learning of them, etc etc. A huge domino effect that led to end of the Empire really. And sea otters are VITAL keystone species in their ecosystems of kelp forests. A health population of sea otters equals a healthy kelp forest environment and all the other animals who live there.

Dogma: Budgett's Frog

Heheheh If you know you know! (*coughFrogmacough*) But honestly, I'mma just link to the post that inspired the idea, because I can't associate him with anything else now.

The Bad Batch

Hunter: Ocelot

Hunter's mutations allow him to essentially be a stealthy well...hunter. And of course, what animal better showcase a "stealthy predator" than a cat? However unlike the other clones who have kitty daemons/familiars, Hunter's is much smaller, but no less fierce and skilled. I also like the idea that the ocelot's markings, kinda resembling Hunter's tattoo. Hunter also has a "smokier" husky voice compared to his brothers, and ocelots....well.... they make some interesting noises.

Crosshair: Black Mamba

I can't imagine Crosshair with anything but a snake! I know we all like to joke about him being a grumpy cat, but from the moment I first saw this character, I thought "deadly snake". Even the way DBB plays the character, and his voice, "very calculated and deliberate" feels very snake-like to me. He doesn't say much, is the quietest of the bunch, and snakes are often pretty quiet. The Black Mamba in particular also has an infamous deadly reputation, that I feel fits Crosshair pretty well.

Wrecker: Grizzly Bear

Naturally, Wrecker gets an animal often associated with strength and power, but at the same time soft and warm (Mama Bear, Teddy Bears) So a bear fits him perfectly I think. Bears are big, strong, tough, dangerous, but also protective (do NOT get between a bear and her cubs, it'll be the last thing you ever do) and we've seen how fiercely protective, but loving Wrecker is towards the people he cares about, especially Omega. Also, Wrecker clearly likes to fish, and eat good food, and of course bears love to fish in rivers and will eat just about anything. They'll hunt, scavenge, or forage for food. Bears are also smarter than some people think too, and Wrecker is smarter than a lot of folks make him out to be. (man built a mobile cannon out of scrap and within minutes!)

Tech: Crow

Crows. Are. Fucking. SCARY SMART! Like, if any animal evolves sapience like us next, I'd believe it's gonna be crows! Tech is curious, highly intelligent and skilled, a problem solver. Just like crows. THese birds use tools, learn fast, are inquisitive, and CHATTY! (I've got a small family of crows living the area I do, and I hear them a lot) They are also astounding mimics, and Tech records everything. Yet crows are also fiercely loyal to their flock (or "murder" if you will) you mess with one, you mess with them ALL! Tech is quite similar. He may not be confrontational, but you threaten his family, and he WILL retaliate and remember!

Omega: Red Panda

Now, Omega's daemon/familiar would still be unsettled, but once it does I imagine it becomes a red panda. Of course she'd have something cute. She just really gives me red panda vibes to be honest.

Commanders

Cody: Siberian Tiger

The Marshall Commander Cody gets the largest cat, the Siberian Tiger. With similar traits and associations as the lion (Fives), but still vastly distinct. Strong, charismatic, beautiful. A tiger fits Cody well in my opinion, and I can easily imagine the facial stripes mimicking his scar's pattern.

Wolffe and Fox: Wolf and Red Fox respectively

Yep, what it says on the tin. Would you expect anything less? But in all seriousness, their namesakes DO suit them quite well. Wolffe is loyal to his brothers, his "pack" to a fault. Wolves have strong ties to their packs, their family units, often associated with such.

Fox of course, lives and works on Coruscant, the big city. Foxes are adaptable, and can easily adapt to urban living if need be, better than other wild canine species. They've also got a bad reputation, and lots of people hate them. Fox gets a lot of hate in the fandom (especially outside of tumblr), but it's greatly exaggerated, and he's just as much a victim as Fives.

Bly: Coyote

Ok to be honest, I'm not entirely sure why I chose a coyote. It just....felt right? Maybe to tie him in with Wolffe and Fox.

Other Clones

Howzer: Elk

Howzer was....difficult to be honest. I had enough carnivorous daemons for the clones, I NEEDED an herbivore for SOMEONE. I went with an elk, or deer for Howzer. These animals are often associated with pride, beauty, and elegance. Howzer is proud of being a clone, a soldier, a good man who protects others. He's also of course quite handsome lets be honest. Now, elk are NOT to be underestimated. They are bigger than you think (but not MOOSE big), and deadlier than you think too. Howzer may be a good, caring man, but he WILL FIGHT fiercely and is deadly in his own right.

Mayday: Snow Leopard

Mayday's gotta have something adapted to the cold, mountainous landscape we met him on. A snow leopard just...fits his whole vibe honestly. A stealthy, deadly hunter perfectly adapted to its domain; Mayday has had to adapt to the harsh conditions of the planet he was stuck on. However there was also a sort of charm to Mayday, we were instantly drawn to him, and snow leopards certainly have an alluring charm too.

Gregor: Hyena

Gregor has the hyena! Not just for his laugh, but Gregor is a COMMANDO clone. He's tough as hell, and survived stuff he shouldn't have and keeps fighting! Hyena's are tough, powerful, tenacious animals. Easily able to go toe-to-toe with other large predators like lions. However they're also pretty smart too, and Gregor is also pretty clever. Hyenas are also social, capable hunters. Gregor values his brothers, and enjoys a good Joopa hunt!

Ok....*sigh* That....that was really long.... But that is basically what I've got!

[thewriterowl]

Chapter Thirteen: Ghosts

Luke Skywalker harbors more than a few secrets. Secrets that could bring ruin to the once grand Republic, now turned Empire. But secrets that could also lead to the destruction of the galaxy if he was not careful. So, he makes his moves in the shadows, becoming nothing more than a ghost, and hiding in plain sight to do his work without interruption and without rest.

Living when he should be dead, in a galaxy where the Force-users are fugitives, he does what he can with each passing day. But then a terrible crime is committed against the powerhouse territories of Mandalore; the foundling prince of Mand’alor the Redeemer has been kidnapped. And this action just may spurn an already tumultuous and near broken galaxy into war.

Knowing he needs to help, Luke decides to step out into the light for the first time in his life and face the reality of who he is and everything that he shoulders. Only, when working with the cold but handsome Mand’alor, Luke is finding living is a lot more complicated than he expected.

--

Time for hat is basically part one of the reveal! Quite a few had it guessed from the hints sprinkled throughout--but now you can have it confirmed. The next chapter will probably be a flashback one just as an FYI.

It feels a little anti-climatic and fast to me but, at the same time, it sort of feels fitting with DinLuke's relationship and how they communicate. Besides, I didn't want to drag it out too long either.

But other than that, I hope you enjoy! :D

[fellthemarvelous]

Please try to remember the Death Watch are terrorists.

"We are the Death Watch. Our people were warriors. Strong. Feared! Now they're ruled by the New Mandalorians who think that being a pacifist is a good thing. They've given away our honor and tradition for peace. Duchess Satine and her corrupt leadership are crushing our souls, destroying our identity. That is our struggle." -Pre Vizsla

Maul met the Death Watch and their shared hatred for Obi-Wan and Satine is what destroyed Mandalore.

Read Pre Vizsla's speech here closely. Like so close.

Satine Kryze is not to blame for the destruction of Mandalore.

The Death Watch ARE EXTREMISTS!!!!

They used violence and death to take down an unarmed woman.

Satine Kryze did not cause Mandalore's downfall.

Maul and the Death Watch did, and they did so with cruelty because they made Obi-Wan watch helplessly as Maul murdered her.

She chose to LIVE IN PEACE because it is the right of people to live in peace. She didn't illegally obtain power. The other Houses entrusted her with Mandalore's safety.

It was the terrorist minority that had a problem with her. Satine refused to bow to terrorists.

Because war is not natural. War is not fun. War is pain and loss and a man-made creation of mass destruction.

Satine was so strong in her convictions that entire star systems made her the leader of their council of neutral systems because she was able to give her citizens the access to the peaceful life they deserved. She refused to let Mandalore's legacy become one remembered only for its bloodshed and violence. She knew she would probably end up being killed for her beliefs, but she stood up to every single person who told her that picking a side was the only way to peace when she and Mandalore were already living proof that it was possible to do that without Republic interference.

She died refusing to give in to all the men who tried to scare her into joining their side, and when she died on the blade of the darksaber after it fell into the hands of the angriest being in the galaxy, she still died with love and conviction in her heart. Her final words were not "avenge me". Her final words were "I've loved you always. I always will."

The other Mandalorians were right to trust her, not because she used fear and power to intimidate but rather love and compassion to give Mandalore the tools it needed to thrive.

I saw someone try to say that she didn't do pacifism correctly and I just...

She carried a deactivator, not a blaster. She defended herself even though she chose to carry a weapon only meant to neutralize. Her guards existed to neutralize threats. Not kill them.

What does it say about a person who thinks Satine deserved her fate because she refused to arm herself instead of looking at the person who murdered her? What does it say about yourself if you think a person deserves to die because they refused to arm themselves with a lethal weapon in the first place?

Excuse me???

Not to get political, but Death Watch and MAGA are basically the same. Spoiled brats who believed they should have inherited the throne based on blood rather than qualifications, and really mad to know they are in the minority of people who don't want peace.

A bunch of men repeatedly trying to kill the woman who has proven time and time again that hope is stronger than fear.

She proved that it's possible to live peacefully if people would learn to just stop fucking killing each other, and she is not wrong for choosing to give that small bit of comfort to the others who survived the Mandalorian civil war.

The people chose her because they trusted her to take care of them. And she did. For almost 20 years. She cared about what the people wanted and she chose to give them exactly that for as long as she could.

She didn't make them forget their history. She reminded them that they don't have to live the same way for the rest of their lives. It's okay to put down the weapons and it's okay to want peace. That's not a weakness at all. It takes strength maintain a light like that for as long as she did.

[thecleverqueer]

Pure speculation and likely a lot of head canon, but this is how I think everything likely happened between Ahsoka and Sabine…

(While I think the Master/ Padawan relationship was the best complex relationship to explore with Ahsoka since a romance or her own child would be super lame and out of character, it is odd that Filoni chose Sabine. But, part of me thinks that it all either clicked in his head and he assumed we all knew what happened, or he wrongfully thought Fandom could fill in the blanks)

Anyway, here goes:

In my mind, and likely right after the Battle of Lothal, Ahsoka showed up there looking for Ezra as promised to find a broken Sabine trying to hold it together after losing 1/3 of her Ghost Family to death/ disappearance and the other 2/3 to the larger Rebellion. Sabine had made a promise to watch over Lothal, and that was what she was primarily committed to doing. Ahsoka and Sabine likely trauma bonded pretty quickly, and began going on adventures together in Ahsoka’s T-6 shuttle with Huyang (who I think likely joined up with Ahsoka early on in the Rebellion. It is my theory that he was the one that inevitably rescued her from Malachor).

One of their first adventures was likely a failed attempt to find Ezra (this is what I think they were probably doing during a New Hope).

After being unable to find their long lost friend, Ahsoka and Sabine likely helped the Rebellion when necessary, but were probably more likely just helping people or pockets of resistance than fighting the Empire directly. Anakin’s betrayal shattered Ahsoka in many ways, and the politics behind it all likely twisted her stomachs (yeah, togs have two of those). Sabine probably liked this better as well because it reminded her of a simpler time with the Ghost Crew.

They likely met Luke Skywalker for the first time during this time. Hera likely kept in close contact with Sabine, and she told her about the destruction of the first Death Star. And while Ahsoka was likely incredibly reluctant to disclose any details about her fallen Master, Sabine knew his name and Luke’s existence intrigued Ahsoka (albeit probably also weirded her out a bit where she was unwilling to stay around for too long).

All the while, Sabine likely needled Ahsoka to train her as a Jedi. She probably mentioned it often, and dropped it into conversations frequently. Sabine would want to cling to something that reminded her of Kanan and Ezra, having been raised by the former and grown up alongside the latter. Ahsoka probably saw something within Sabine, possibly a force spark. There were teases in Rebels that Sabine had very slight sensitivities to the force (rewatch “The Trials of the Dark Saber” arc and the “Wolves and the Door” / “World between Worlds” arc as reference, and REALLY squint). A reluctant Ahsoka probably thought to herself, “What the hell, right? She’s not THAT force sensitive! It’s not as if her power will damn the galaxy to fall into a sinking hole of darkness if the worst aspects of my dumpster fire of a lineage seep into her by my teachings.”

Ahsoka likely began to impart her wisdom on Sabine, but was not fully committed to it herself. Ahsoka looked at her legacy and saw a wake of death and destruction that shook her to her core. She thought of her time fighting in the Clone Wars being trained more as a warrior than a Jedi (likely the source of her “I’m no Jedi” sentiments; questions and concerns more than a lack of commitment to the ideology or code). She remembered encountering her older self in the cave on Mortis, warning her that the seeds of darkness were planted inside her by her master. It scared her. Also knowing exactly what happened to her master at that point (with the knowledge of Luke’s existence), she likely became even more cold, stoic and detached; fearful that her own attachments to people could make her vulnerable to the temptation of the darkness.

Their adventures continued… but then, the destruction of Mandalore happened.

As soon as Sabine caught wind of this, she flew furiously off of the rails as Sabine does. Sabine was always impulsive and emotional. She wanted to take the Empire on, full-frontal once again. Ahsoka likely contacted Bo-Katan to assess the situation, and to see if there was anything that they could do to help. Bo-Katan told Ahsoka that it was a lost cause, and to protect Sabine at all costs (Ursa’s dying request for maximum pain), one of the few remaining Mandalorians and the last remaining member of Clan Wren. Sabine and Ahsoka fought hard, loudly and contemptuously about this. Ahsoka tried to reason with Sabine, but she wanted to go scorched-Earth. Sabine’s rage panicked Ahsoka. Ahsoka stayed to keep Sabine in check on Lothal until the dust settled, and then Ahsoka left without a word. Sabine thought that it meant that Ahsoka didn’t trust her to do the right thing, or to fight for the right causes. Ahsoka thought if Sabine had any capacity to use the force, this deep-seated anger and her inability to let go could become problematic.

Sabine remained on Lothal to keep her promise to Ezra, broken and downtrodden. With Ahsoka and her family gone, and with Hera, Zeb, and Chopper busy with the New Republic, she felt incredibly alone and refocused her energy on finding her long-lost friend …even though that felt hopeless too.

Ahsoka, also broken and downtrodden, continued to travel alone with Huyang to protect the people in the galaxy; quietly working towards peace and justice, following the Jedi ideology and code, but never truly feeling worthy of the title. When she ran into Din requesting her to take on Grogu as a padawan, not only did it frighten her further, it stung.

Din said, “A Mandalorian and a Jedi? They’ll never see it coming.”

Ahsoka smiled fondly, a deep regret inside her formed as her failure with Sabine marinated, missing Sabine dearly, and she thought, “If you only knew the half of it…”

[pandora15]

so yeah I still feel the same way I felt at the beginning of the ahsoka series

there are things I really REALLY liked about it. but there are also things that I find frustrating and like. not really fleshed out at all?

like.

ezra's whole arc was amazing. his dynamic with sabine? him getting to make a new lightsaber that looks like kanan's? him finally getting to go home and reuniting with hera? i was almost CRYING at that part and I literally screamed when it cut away before we could see them hug. all of it was AMAZING.

but I'm also like. frustrated with the way that they didn't really explain sabine's past? or like, the things that connected her from the end of rebels to now. like I feel like I still don't understand what happened between her and ahsoka before the events of this show. there was that moment where huyang talked about it to ezra a bit but it's like. so quick and just like "oh ahsoka was worried about sabine turning to the dark side" and then it's never mentioned again???? it's just like how baylan mentioned mandalore's destruction in ep4 and how it drove sabine and ahsoka apart as like a throwaway line and then it's never brought up again? i'm??????

but I also really REALLY liked baylan and shin, and the fact that the mortis gods are referenced at the very end of this season INTRIGUES me. i need to know where this is going.

every time hayden showed up in this series he was INCREDIBLE. probably definitely my favorite part of the series. episode 5 is definitely my favorite episode.

but I'm also like. not feeling great about how ahsoka seems to think about the jedi at the time of the clone wars. she says this line about how anakin was the only one to stand by her, even when no one else would, when homeboy literally turned to the dark side and later tried to kill her in rebels? did she forget about that?

did she forget about all the jedi who mentored her during tcw? about plo koon, luminara unduli, tera sinube, aayla secura? about obi-wan? we haven't seen her even mention any other jedi from that time other than anakin (and kanan, in today's episode, but that's literally because of ezra).

i'm just hnggggggggggg so conflicted. the show does some things so WELL and I'm in awe of those things but then it also just. completely misses the point or confuses me or just makes me vaguely upset and it just leaves me in this state of being frustrated

anyways.

overall I did enjoy the show, even if it sounds like I didn't. It's just. I think it would've been better if the ahsoka series and the rebels sequel were two different things, y'know? it would've given more time for both of these storylines to be fleshed out more properly.

but here we are, I'm accepting that this is the show that we got, and I think it was good. I'm intrigued to see what happens next.

[seven-oomen]

Jangobitine au for B:

In order to save their system from civil war and political fallout, Duchess Satine Kyrze and Mand'alor Jango Fett enter an arranged marriage to unify the True Mandalorians and the New Mandalorians.

An act that serves its purpose, but causes unrest among the other clans scattered over Mandalore. And gives an opening for Death Watch (Kyr'tsad) to put its claws further into the system

Both sides make compromises in order to make their marriage work. They're cordial in public, but behind closed doors they constantly bicker and snap at each other.

Satine tends to most of the political aspects in their marriage, as she's very familiar in the game of politics. Where her husband busies himself with the day-to-day operations of the system. Helping his people with the logistics of farming, setting up medical facilities, building schools, training facilities, etc.

Satine feels as if she's giving up her pacifist nature and values for a man hellbent on death and destruction. Even though she's well too aware that her arranged husband is actually a rather honorable, kind, and fair man. She's just too stubborn to ever admit that to him.

Jango feels as if Satine just doesn't understand her Mandalorian heritage as a proud warrior and protector. And although he sees that many of their values align and that middle ground is not only possible, but probable, he's too stubborn to ever admit that to her.

Enter young Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi. The order's most skilled negotiator. Who's sent to the Mandalore system to broker peace between the scattered factions, and the Mand'alor and his Rid'alor.

At first, both Satine and Jango are very skeptical of this Jetii. What does a Jetii know of Mandalore anyway? But as days pass and weeks fly by they come to realize that his political skills and battle insights is exactly what Mandalore needs.

Husband and wife find themselves falling for the Jetii, and each other, the more time Obi-Wan spends among their people. They come to see the best in the Jetii and in each other.

When they catch Obi-Wan reading and singing to a group of ade from the orphanage, for the Jetii loves to teach the younglings about the force, it's a done deal. They cook up a plan to capture a young Jetii's heart and lure him into their marriage.

Unbeknownst to them, Obi-Wan has been trying his hardest not to catch feelings for the snappy, quick-witted, beautiful Lady Satine, or her sulky, strong, bull-headed, but secretly soft husband.

And then a night of passion leads them into their next adventure; parenthood and the brink of civil war.

[notmykirk]

Concordia

Description: You scrunch up into a ball as the boar collides with you, its tusks bouncing off your beskar with a terrifying scrape, metalic on metal. You cry out and are thrown across the ground. Your head is spinning as the boar rounds on you again. Mandalorian!Reader, prequel to Nar Shaddaa. Fandom: Star Wars Pairing: Gen Word Count: 2.4k+ Warning(s): Violence.

At the edge of Mandalorian space, a war rages amongst the stars.

You are reminded of this occasionally, when Mandalore and its sun dip below the broken mountain peaks of the Bladeback Palisades. The stars of so many distant worlds, for those few precious minutes that they exist in yours, blink down at you, and suddenly you are reminded of the vastness of the galaxy and all its fears and strife and tragedy. 

In a single hour, however, Concordia’s brief night fades and with it, the stars blur, then disappear altogether once twilight returns. All that exists after that witching hour is the ground beneath your feet, the smell of raw beskar, and the distant threat of New Mandalore as it rises once more over the horizon. 

And life goes on--mundane on the grand scale of Kad Ha’rangir’s palm. 

***

Concordia is a harsh mix of barren cliffs, evidence of the brazen strip mining that had once taken place on the moon, and dense forests of dry, coniferous trees. The ground cover is bare, but growing back, and every creature that roams the surface steps lightly. The life on this moon is tough, and like a Mandalorian, it fights to survive. Every year you are one step closer to your ancestral homeland as the moon recovers its ecosystem bit by bit. 

This is all thanks to the conservation efforts pushed forward by Pre Vizsla and Duchess Satine. They are stewards--and this type of change, you welcome with open arms. This is one thing all Mandalorians can agree on: wars are synonymous with the destruction of planets. 

You barely notice the weight of the ballistic rifle in your hands as you steady it, elbows braced on the ground as you lay at the edge of the cliff beside your Alor. Your gloved thumb ghosts over the engraved metal without complex thought as you peer down the scope, searching the endless landscape for movement. 

The vegetation in the valleys below is a dark grey-green under the soft light reflecting off the face of Mandalore. Rarely does Concordia receive direct sunlight, and so the moon is blanketed with this quiet, everlasting twilight that visitors are so enchanted by, but you’ve grown used to. 

There is no shade, nowhere to hide. The light is flat, almost wraps around objects so their shadows are soft and thin, and it is silent except for the faint breeze carding through the shrubs and twisted trees. You lay flat on the ground, back bent at an angle due to the thickness of your breastplate. Beside you, your Alor shifts on her stomach, pulls her hands back to wipe a smudge off her binoculars, then returns to her original position and stills. 

Another five minutes pass in silence. Your nose itches inside your helmet, and you scrunch your face, then bite your tongue, struggling to ignore that annoyance. 

In that moment of distraction, your Alor exhales sharply, and your focus is immediately honed back to the edge of a knife. “There, five klicks out, two towards the ridgeline, by the tree with the broken top.” 

You blink, then pan your rifle to the right and catch the target in your sights--a family of Bladeback boars. You feel for the knob on the side of the scope, then zoom in close enough so you see the tan of their fur, the black tusks protruding from their snouts and the grey of their eyes. Some have the pale markings of adolescence, others are older and more refined. You follow a piglet with your scope as it struts after its mother, bumping into her legs. 

They are huddled around a dingy puddle, bowing their heads and sticking their long tongues out to drink the muddy water. You frown. That water is probably poisoned. Any runoff in this area is soiled by the mining operation on the mountains above. 

Your Alor pushes herself up with a grunt that betrays her age. “Do you have a clear shot?”

“For which one?”

“The largest.”

You pan your rifle over the group in search of a decent target, then pull the trigger easily in answer to her question. The pop of your rifle is deafening, and the sound rolls down the canyon walls and shakes the trees so a group of black birds take to the skies in fright. 

The weapon is ancient and traditional, and its ballistic nature sends it slamming back into your shoulder in recoil. You grunt when the scope of your rifle knocks against the face of your helmet, and flinch, embarrassment hot across your face at the blunder, then regard the target through your scope, bucking and running from you, with the tracking bullet lodged in its shoulder. A ribbon of blood spills from the wound.

She gives you a hard stare, then says plainly, “Well done.” Though you find it difficult to swallow down your anxiety, you grip the rifle and nod. The sudden tilt of her helmet suggests she wants to say more when she is interrupted by the distant roar of a sublight engine entering the atmosphere. 

You can’t help but wonder if it’s yet another government official from Mandalore Prime coming to step on Concordia’s toes. Governor Visla does a good job keeping the new government at bay, using politics to push Condordia’s agenda without inviting the tourism upper-class Mandalorians seem so convinced they are entitled to, but there are always a few beetles who fall through the cracks. 

You see the ship now as it jets overhead and frown. It is definitely from Mandalore. 

Those Mandalorians wealthy enough to make it off-world don’t appreciate land for what it is, something that you belong to more than it could ever be useful or beautiful. They come to poke around your nature reserves, to admire the flora without knowing their names and to prove themselves ignorant of the life that inhabits the valleys and mountains kept watch over by House Viszla’s halls. 

Mandalore is destroyed. It is barren and empty except for their massive city cubes. Those from Mandalore Prime did that to themselves, and once they finished destroying their planet, they tried to tear Concordia down from its sky alongside it--and they are still trying, whispering that Concordia’s massive and sprawling mines should not remain cold--as if they have any need for Beskar when they no longer wear armor. 

No, Mandalore is weak. It is cursed along with anyone who steps foot on it. It is a ghost above your head, a grim reminder of the past and present and its future as well. It is wreckage and ruin and trying its best to spread its wasting disease to your home. 

Your Alor sighs heavily, and you both turn back to regard the boars. They are gone from sight, though the tracking beacon on your Alor’s hip hints at their direction. The two of you stand and descend the cliff.

***

The digital interface of your helmet handles the dark easily, automatically adjusting its shading to your preferred light and contrast levels. Branches scrape across the dome of your helmet as you begin to pick your way across the forest floor. The ground here is treacherously soft, needles forming a springy carpet around jagged boulders and rocks���discarded from various mining operations, then washed down from the mountains during the month of rain. 

You follow your Alor across the rough terrain as she leads you through the dark, nervousness beginning to eat at your stomach and numb the tips of your fingers. You do not pay attention to where you are being led, and instead stare at the ground and count your footsteps in pairs of two. 

Slowly, your Alor draws to a standstill and kneels behind the trunk of a sickly tree. You freeze and crouch behind her. 

She reaches a hand up to brush a branch out of the way, and sure enough, there is the boar you shot with the tracker, its shoulder wet and stained black, though no longer bleeding as badly as it had been when you last saw it. 

On level ground you can truly realize the size of Bladeback Boars–they are larger than you or even your Alor by at least a foot, though this one does not have as much meat as it should. Its bones are like a tanning rack and its patchy hide hangs loosely off them. 

You watch silently, your stomach twisting in knots, as your Alor pulls the folded spear from behind her jetpack, then expands it with a flick of her wrist, the beskar ringing dully–the sharpened tip glowing in the twilight.

The boars head flicks towards the two of you, its small, red eyes instantly suspicious and scanning the treeline. 

When your Alor turns and holds the spear out for you to take, you trade it in silently for the rifle on your back, then force yourself with all the confidence you possess to stand and approach the boar in the open. 

You were, in theory, prepared for what comes next. 

The electric crackle of the tracking bullet shocking the boar–the hoarse squeals and subsequent furious red glare–these are all things you’ve seen before, just never with the spear in your own hands. 

The beast’s eyes are beady, furious, not those of an animal meant to be hunted. It huffs out heavy lungfuls of steam, scraping the ground with its front toes. Its three, long tusks sway dangerously, their points almost glint in the light, sharper than the spear’s. 

You tighten your grip on your weapon and stand your ground. This is what it is to be Mandalorian, because to fight is to be alive. Through struggle you can embrace life. 

Another cruel shock is delivered by your alor from her vambrance, and the Boar squeals with rage, then charges you. Concordia all but melts away. 

Something rushes over you, takes away your agency. You no longer have a name or identity, a body of your own. You are solely an instrument with a task, with The Way, and your heart beats in time with the hoof beats of the boar as it charges. 

The first parry makes your stomach drop. You underestimated the strength of the boar–its shaggy appearance by no means matching its strength. The tip of one of the boar’s tusks scrapes across your chestplate, chipping the paint down to sparking metal, shoving you backwards. It shakes your confidence, and that sudden cold shock of fear clears the calm fog in your head. 

***

New Mandalore is a pale yellow-white disc in the sky, shrouded in Concordia’s twilight and they have forsaken Kad Ha’rangir and they have forsaken their foreclans–everything that those ancestors learned and achieved in the hopes that those who follow might one day lead Mandalore towards the future. They have shed their armor and with it their past. They have no Way, no Truth, no Honor or Vision–

Even without the open secret of Concordia’s involvment with Death Watch and Pre Viszla’s hand in guiding those true Mandalorians still left back to The Way, you still despise that disc in the sky and–

***

You are hit on the floor. The spear rolls out of reach. The boar charges. 

“Buir!” you squeak. “Mom, help me!” 

“Stand your ground.” An order is barked.

You scrunch up into a ball as the boar collides with you, its tusks bouncing off your beskar with a terrifying scrape, metalic on metal. You cry out and are thrown across the ground. Your head is spinning as the boar rounds on you again.

Fear drains like color from your face; hot and cold and debilitating. 

There are no thoughts left in your head. 

You push yourself up to your feet. The spear is still too far away. The boar charges once more and its tusks nearly graze your chestpiece, then you quickly sidestep and squeeze your fist so the vibroblade hidden in your vambrace ignites into angry, solid plasma. 

You plant your foot, then carry your momentum through with a quick jab into the boar’s side. The followthrough of your strike is so vicious that your fist itself collides with the boar’s tough hide. 

With another piercing squeal, the boar’s momentum carries it another couple steps before it tips over and collapses onto the forest floor, needles and dust sent flying through the air at the impact. 

You stare at the dead animal, shivering so badly your knees give out and you collapse onto the ground, unable to unclench the fist igniting your hidden vibroblade. You bury your hands into the soft groundcover, and the acrid smell of burning vegetation makes its way through your helmet’s air filters as you continue to shake. Steam lifts from the forest floor as the blade burns a hole into the ground. 

“Ad’ika,” your mother rumbles, “you did well.”

She approaches the boar, pressing her palm to its fatal wound, then she moves to kneel in front of you. She glances down at your shaking hands, then cups the concave cheek of your helmet and lowers her forehead to yours in a kedalbe. 

You squeeze your eyes shut and let out a shaky breath, thankful that she cannot see your tears. You bow your head, though danger still runs through your veins, and attempt to speak. 

“Thank you.” you croak, voice cracked and hoarse.

The moment is broken when a number of ships lift off from over the cliff where the Kantorek Mine sits just behind you, abandoned at face value, known to those on Concordia as the comfortable staging area of Death Watch. 

There is an explosion, blaster bolts are sent flying into the sky, and then the final ship takes off. The boar is still bleeding just feet from where you are knelt. 

You and your Alor share a look before she stands, her armor illuminated with the blue glow of a dozen ships’ sublight engines. They rapidly ascend from the atmosphere, Death Watch leaving Concordia without warning. 

Something has happened. 

“Come,” your Alor says, her voice cutting clear through your muddied head. 

You pry your fingers from their fist, your vibroblade retracting into your vambrace, then push yourself up onto your feet. 

New Mandalore is still a pale disc above your head, watching with a vacant, hollow glare. 

You can feel it, all around you, just at the edges of Mandalorian space the Clone Wars rage. Concordia is a weed that grows through a crack in a courtyard, but you can’t help but wonder if once more, New Mandalore has brought ruin to your doorstep.

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[queen-of-mandalore]

Em’s Star Wars Rewatch part 14:

The Clone Wars #12 -Ryloth (1x19, 1x20, 1x21)

1x19: Storm Over Ryloth

I really love this episode. It really focuses on Ahsoka’s character development.

I hate when they name clones just for them to die a minute later 😭😭😭. Honestly the survival rate of the pilots is so low.

I really feel for Ahsoka. She’s so young to have the lives of her men in her hands and you can see she really feels the loses heavily. You really appreciate how young she is in this ep.

Ahsoka goes from arrogance to self doubt. Losing her squad really shakes her. It’s an important lesson.

Anakin being shocked that his padawan doesn’t listen to orders - I wonder where she gets that from Anakin 🙄😂

Admiral Yularen standing up for and supporting Ahsoka 🥹

I don’t blame the clones for doubting Ahsoka - she’s literally a child after all.

Ahsoka’s character development over the course of the show is amazing. To see her go from being unsure and nervous in command to leading an army by herself on Mandalore is really something.

Anakin with the mad plans as always (and probably committing several war crimes)

I love the battle droids, they are so iconic.

1x20: Innocents of Ryloth

I really love this episode. It’s great to have an episode that focuses more on the clones and we get to see Obi-Wan, Cody and Ghost Company.

The separatists using ‘human’ shields to remind us they are evil.

I love Waxer and Boil, they are one of those dynamic duos like Echo and Fives.

Waxer and Boil fitting into the Star Wars trope of warrior finds a child and begrudgingly takes care of them and then is ready to adopt them.

‘I have binders of we need them’ 😭

Shiny staring adoringly at Obi-Wan as he uses the force: ‘Incredible’. Cody: ‘shut it rookie’.

Cody casually handing Obi-Wan his lightsaber back then Obi-Wan immediately stepping in front of Cody protectively when there’s danger.

The twi’leks ripping apart the tactical droid.

I love when we see the native populations fighting back. Also seeing the destruction of the planet and the affect on the inhabitants, reminding us of the cost of war.

Also love some of the camera work in this ep, you really feel like you are in the middle of the action.

1x21: Liberty on Ryloth

Another great episode.

I like when an episode focuses on one of the other jedi.

I forget how powerful Windu is. The way he was taking out those droids was impressive.

Tambor’s greed being his undoing.

People characterise Windu as uncaring and unfeeling but I don’t think that’s fair. He might stick rigidly to the ‘no attachments’ rule but he values life greatly - always focused on saving the civilians. I also think it’s unfair to say he doesn’t care about his troops - when the bridge was deactivated his first thought was to save the two troopers with him, force pushing them to safety when his own life was in danger.

A commando droid literally picked up a battle droid and chucked it at a clone 😂

I love when the clones punch the droids.

[awsok]

no because this is still crazy to me!!

when baylan rescues morgan at the beginning of episode one, she informs him that it's ahsoka tano who has the map. like, she's the one who has to inform him. but then, in their very next scene, baylan immediately clocks that morgan is sending shin after ahsoka's former padawan. has enough time passed that he could do research on ahsoka (and by extension sabine) or was this something he already knew? has baylan been keeping tabs on the galaxy's few surviving jedi?

note as well that baylan knew:

ahsoka once taught a padawan

that padawan is sabine wren

ahsoka is no longer teaching sabine

sabine is living on lothal

and (we can assume) he told none of that to shin.

in episode four baylan first tries to get in sabine's head by saying "but you're not like [ahsoka] though, are you?", which he could easily have just inferred by sabine's hesitance to destroy the orb.

and then he starts talking about ezra, telling sabine "i know you feel that ezra bridger is the only family you have left", which again, he could probably just be inferring, right? it's public knowledge that ezra and sabine were part of the same crew, that sabine's family died on mandalore. and that, combined with the fact that ezra is in the same place as thrawn (assuming baylan knows about that???), makes it pretty easy to figure out why sabine is on this mission and why she's hesitating.

but there's this:

which he does right before bringing up ezra which i somehow missed on previous watches

so clearly there's some jedi mind shit going on here (i feel like in previous examples of jedi picking up stuff from others' minds, it's only ever been emotions not specific thoughts? the one example with specific thoughts i can think of is the interrogation in the force awakens, where kylo was clearly putting a lot of effort. baylan doesn't seem to working so hard - so either he's much better than kylo (not impossible tbh) or he's only picking up emotions and figuring out the rest)

anyway then we get to baylan saying "your family died on mandalore because your master didn't trust you" which is CRAZY because either baylan is very good at mind reading, very good at research, very good at guessing, or all three. (or wrong!! which is even more interesting) the point is that here baylan is assuming that sabine blames ahsoka for the death of her family, and the implication is that ahsoka refused to let sabine help, or maybe train sabine efficiently enough to save her family.

which doesn't exactly line up with what we're told in episode eight. huyang says that "ahsoka became afraid that sabine was training as a jedi for the wrong reasons after what happened on mandalore. [...] at the time, ahsoka felt that if sabine unlocked her potential, she would become dangerous". this statement seems to imply that ahsoka only quit training sabine after mandalore, because she was afraid that sabine would try and - what? seek revenge? i don't think grief or guilt would be enough to make sabine fall (which is clearly what ahsoka is so afraid of).

so what is the case here? is it that sabine blames ahsoka for the death of her family, and resents her for preventing sabine from taking revenge? if so, does sabine still want revenge? or did she let that go to instead obsess over bringing back ezra? why is it that sabine specifically feels that ahsoka didn't trust her? didn't trust her enough to train her? didn't trust her not to fall? didn't trust her with vital information about the fall of mandalore?

and THEN (yes there's more) there's baylan's fight with ahsoka earlier in the episode, where he not only drops the bomb that he knows anakin became vader, but tells ahsoka that her "legacy, like [her] master's, is one of death and destruction". which. first of all he's smart enough to clock that ahsoka both knows about vader and that she is terrified of falling like he did. secondly. what the fuck is he talking about??? i don't think this is just manipulation, the line is delivered in such a heartfelt way that i think baylan really means this. but how does ahsoka's legacy "of death and destruction" in any way compare to darth vader's? unless he's not talking specifically about ahsoka, but the jedi as a whole?? baylan skoll you enigma!!! tell me your secrets!!

okay this has already been so rambling and off-topic from the original post that i may as well talk about shin next. because as we've covered, baylan is very good at figuring out his enemies whether it's through jedi mind stuff, research, or both. and then he promptly shares absolutely none of it with shin. like, shin doesn't even know that sabine is looking for ezra until either this moment (and tbf it's unclear whether baylan knew before this scene either - i would assume he at least suspected?) or the beginning of episode six when morgan brings it up in front of her. even so, it's not until they're on peridea that he tells her about ezra, and that's only when she directly asks. and now i'm wondering whether The Look she gives sabine on the ship down to peridea is in response to learning that sabine is looking for a friend. if learning that sabine has selfish intentions is what finally made her real to shin...

one more thing: baylan's whole jedi mind-reading schtick doesn't seem to be a skill he's taught shin: she seems to be constantly out of the loop, and has to directly ask to get answers. i'm sure it's something he's deliberately left out of her training, with all the secrets he's keeping. that's so juicy to me (also. v sith-like behaviour imo 👀)

anyway tl;dr baylan is very good at figuring out his enemies, he tells shin fuck all, and what the fuck went down with sabine and ahsoka?

Ok but to have Baylan say that Sabine’s family on Mandalore died “because your master didn’t trust you” is an insane thing for them to drop and never pick up again. I am so fascinated. We know now that Sabine’s family died in the purge of Mandalore, and Baylan is obviously picking things from Sabine’s head to use against her in this episode, so it’s more that he’s picking up how Sabine feels than what exactly happened. So how did Sabine reach the stage where she has connected her family’s deaths to how she feels regarding how much her master trusts and believes in her?

[thewriterowl]

Chapter Ten: Plaything in the Dark

Luke Skywalker harbors more than a few secrets. Secrets that could bring ruin to the once grand Republic, now turned Empire. But secrets that could also lead to the destruction of the galaxy if he was not careful. So, he makes his moves in the shadows, becoming nothing more than a ghost, and hiding in plain sight to do his work without interruption and without rest.

Living when he should be dead, in a galaxy where the Force-users are fugitives, he does what he can with each passing day. But then a terrible crime is committed against the powerhouse territories of Mandalore; the foundling prince of Mand’alor the Redeemer has been kidnapped. And this action just may spurn an already tumultuous and near broken galaxy into war.

Knowing he needs to help, Luke decides to step out into the light for the first time in his life and face the reality of who he is and everything that he shoulders. Only, when working with the cold but handsome Mand’alor, Luke is finding living is a lot more complicated than he expected.

--

Some smut time! Not exactly what I was specking to write...but what happened feels far more fitting to the story. It probably is the confirmation this will be longer than intended but still not quite sure what the actual length will be (I'm hoping not 20 chapters but it very well may be). So, hope this didn't disappoint!

And also...surprisingly healthy and wholesome. I dunno. The smut-spirit took over and this is what Dinluke wanted for the chapter.

Sigh, I can never keep these stories under control!

But I hope you still enjoy it!!

[gffa]

There’s a thing in Star Wars where installations of the canon tend to fall into one of three categories:

Foundational canon that everything else revolves around

Supportive canon that helps reinforce the structure of the foundation

Connective tissue and knick-knack collections

The movies are the foundation, the TV shows are generally supportive canon, and the novels/comics/games are the connective tissue and window dressing.  And I’m frustrated that I don’t think The Mandalorian knows what it wants to be, because I don’t think Star Wars has any good foundational canon since the prequels movies. The sequels are technically foundational canon, other books and comics refer to them as the unmovable points in history in this world, it was what established where the supportive stories are going, etc.  The problem is that they were so unfocused and actively eschewed worldbuilding that the supportive shows and connective tissue are left to do the heavy lifting and that puts The Mandalorian in a bad place. Because I think it should be allowed to be supportive canon, it should allowed to be like Rebels or The Clone Wars, which were supporting the strong foundations of the movies and thus absolutely flourished, which were stories that knew what themes they wanted to tell, they set the structure of the worlds they lived in, and so the animated shows could build up from there.  The Mandalorian flounders for me because it’s Disney+’s flagship show, so everything else gets spun off from it (except Obi-Wan Kenobi and Andor, which is probably why I liked those shows so much better, because they were coming off much stronger foundations), and thus treated like it’s foundational canon. But it’s not.  This episode really struck that for me all over again, because we don’t even see Moff Gideon’s escape, that should be a crucial moment in the story that we should see instead of it happening off-screen!  In the past, we barely even see the destruction of Mandalore, a key moment in the show that they’re building!  Whether this is Din and Grogu’s story of the story of Mandalore as a whole, we’re seeing a smaller scale story than what we should if this is going to be the flagship foundational story. “Yeah, but The Mandalorian isn’t meant to be a foundational canon, it’s about a dude traveling around with his Foundling and figuring out life on the way.”  Agreed, it should be allowed to be supportive canon, but because the sequels did almost no establishing of the galaxy’s setting, now the supportive shows have to do it, which means we have to get multiple episodes that do the work of establishing what’s going on with the New Republic that have little to do with Din or Grogu’s story. The problem is further exacerbated by how those scenes are genuinely good!  Those tend to be the scenes that I focus on the most, like I loved seeing everything happening with Pershing on Coruscant, but the problem is that it contributed to this feeling that The Mandalorian was telling a foundational story, because those scenes had nothing to do with our main characters’ journey, they were establishing the bigger world that’s not really directly related to our characters.  To be fair, I might feel differently if the show had spread those scenes out better, kept them as side info more than stopping the entire show to go into them--like this episode balanced it well, Teva’s trip to Coruscant worked for me!  And last episode’s flashbacks were perfectly relevant to Grogu’s story and his emotional journey, I have no problem with seeing Coruscant and the Jedi Temple again in that context! But the question looms in my mind with every episode:  What is this show about?  Is it about trying to be an anthology series that tells little stories from all across the time period in this era?  Is it about the bigger story of Mandalore?  Is is about a more back alley level story about a single Mandalorian and the journey he and his Foundling go on? I don’t think The Mandalorian itself knows.  Or else it can’t help straying from what it should be--supportive canon too often either trying to establish too much or get away with focusing on something too small despite the extremely limited run time because it thinks this detour is Rule of Cool--and so it’s not really even about anything, other than being about cameos. I don’t see that changing, either, because those cameos are fun.  They’re amazingly cool to get sneak peaks of what those characters are up to, they’re lighting the internet on fire with getting to see these things in live action, I am absolutely going to continue screaming about these same things myself!  It’s fun!  And Star Wars should be fun! But I think it ultimately means that, once the fun is done, that I’m not sure The Mandalorian is a strong story.  It’s a very cool story and extremely fun, but I don’t think it can carry a franchise like the originals or the prequels did and that it shouldn’t have to, but it’s dipping into those waters (sometimes by choice, sometimes by force, I suspect) and then trying to dip back out of them, and it’s just.  The story of the fall of the Republic had its story directly told, you know?  The story of destroying the Empire had its story directly told, you know?  That hasn’t happened for Mandalore, its spread out in too many pieces and half of it isn’t even directly shown to us.  The sequels refused to tell the story of the New Republic, so that onus is put on The Mandalorian and it shouldn’t be, and I wish the show could be allowed to pick a lane and stick to it.

[nikxation]

Glad that Bo-Katan's "where were you then" statement is justified because she's referring to the fact that the Children of the Watch (and by extension Din himself) were hiding during the Purge (which happened only a few years at most before the fall of the Empire) and not helping in the fight to save Mandalore.

She's not referring to the time period around the Clone Wars when Din was a kid, like everyone was assuming. The Purge happened after the Mandalorian rebellion in Rebels, probably right around the time of the first Death Star's destruction. He was not a child then.

Her calling his people (and by extension, him) out was completely fair and warranted, because the Armorer even admitted it herself, they did abandon Mandalore and its people. They hid. And Bo-Katan is right to say "why the hell do you guys care now".

[ranahan]

Let me attempt to fill in the Mandalorian side. First let me say that some part of this comes from Canon, most comes from the Expanded Universe, some is my own interpretation of both. I’ll leave fact-checking to someone else, but here’s my take on how the Mandalorians compare—or don’t—to the Romans.

The Mandalorian history spans some seven thousand years, so the first thing to note is that the Mandalorians are not an unchanging monolith, just like the Romans aren’t. The original Mandalorian race, the Taung, originate from Coruscant. In a time lost to the mists of history, they fight a war against humans and win it, but sometime later are driven off of Coruscant. They spend a long time living as nomads and wandering around the universe, until in about 7000 BBY (= BP in space) they find the planet Mandalore, settle there, and name themselves Mandalorians.

A side note: think of all of the galactic dates as having an extra zero in them to make them ”galactic” in scale. They will make more sense compared to human history that way, trust me.

From their capital world Mandalore, the Mandalorians then rather slowly conquer nearby planets and worlds, in a fashion that might be compared to Romans consolidating their power over the Apennine peninsula. Already early on, they encounter another peoples (the Mandallian giants) who are fearsome warriors and gain the respect of the Mandalorians to such a degree that they come to believe they are worthy of becoming Mandalorians and being adopted into Mandalorian clans. That sets an important precedent for later, although for all intents and purposes such adoptions seem to have been rather limited in the early days of the Mandalorians.

A foundational idea of Mandalorian philosophy and world view is that the universe is in a constant war between the forces of growth and stagnation. The basic vehicle for growth is struggle and conflict, or what we might term creative destruction. War is the ultimate expression of that struggle. Mandalorians don’t believe in a predetermined destiny—for them, conquest is more of an effect of them seeking opportunities to test themselves and manifesting their purpose in the universe.

This is the ideological basis for these original Mandalorian crusaders, who conquer the nearby regions of space, sometimes wiping out entire races. Yeah, these guys really aren’t out there to bring peace and prosperity by the force of sword. Their conquest appears to be more along the pattern of pillaging worlds and then moving onto the next target. They do however permanently settle at least a few worlds. They’re not stupid—of course they understand that by governing the conquered worlds, they can extract wealth and power—but peaceful governance is really more of a side product of their quest than the goal itself. Because this is Star Wars, we unfortunately don’t have a good idea of what kind of rulers the Mandalorians were, but by the genocides, we can pretty definitely say they weren’t fighting to civilise the world like the Romans. A better comparison at this stage would be the Vikings: there are regions where the Vikings form permanent settlements, but they are also raiders who didn’t necessarily go out with the intent to form permanent Viking kingdoms on the lands they conquered.

Over time, the Mandalorians go from worshiping a trinity of deities representing the cosmic forces (a deity of growth/war/creative destruction, a deity of stagnation—which I interpret to have been originally a deity of preservation/stagnation—and a deity representing the fickle nature of luck), to worshiping just the deity of growth/war (and probably in the process deprecating the deity of preservation to the bad guy representing just stagnation), to seeing war as the definitive expression of that worship, to viewing war itself as divine.

This development eventually leads to Mandalore the Ultimate (= the Mandalorian Emperor at the time), who in receives a vision telling them to accept all worthy warriors as Mandalorians and open the Mandalorian clans to them. A more cynical reading is that this is a rather clever piece of religious propaganda that allows them to fill the ranks of their army which at this point might have been depleted by previous wars or perhaps bad policies of their predecessors. By adopting the conquered peoples into the ranks of the Mandalorians, the Mandalorians could go on to conquer indefinitely. The second part of their reforms is to move from raiding to holding onto the conquered territories, building an industrial Mandalorian society there. This is actually when Mandalorians would make a reasonably good comparison to Romans offering Roman citizenship to their new subjects. Although the Mandalorian version appears to use more sword and less carrot: it’s unclear how many of the new recruits volunteered and how many were press-ganged into service. In any case, the scale of recruitment appears to have been massive: the number of the non-Taung would shortly eclipse the number the Taung.

The legions… whoops, armies of the so-called Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders thus swelling up, and the religious fervour of the officer class (= the Taung) whipped up by this new vision of divine war, leads to a brief but incredibly intense period of galactic-scale warfare called the Mandalorian Wars (3976-3960 BBY). The Mandalorian armies make their way all the way to the Galactic Core and Coruscant, the capital world of the Galactic Republic, itself. Desperate, the Republic deploys a doomsday weapon in 3960 BBY on the planet Malachor V, destroying the entire planet, the Mandalorian fleet present at the battle, and most if not effectively all of the Mandalorian leadership. This is a catastrophic defeat for the Mandalorians.

Their leadership is left in complete shambles and they cannot hold onto most of their recently conquered territories, which the Republic swiftly retakes. The ranks of the Taung have been decimated—and they will soon after go completely extinct (or perhaps more realistically, interbreed with other races until they’re effectively extinct). The large numbers of newly minted Mandalorian legionaries, uh, soldiers are left leaderless and with a rather tenuous connection to their newly adopted culture, clans, and a nominal homeworld most have probably never seen. This leads to some 300 years of disarray and diaspora for the Mandalorians.

Once the Mandalorians re-emerge on the galactic stage, they are a different people: instead of Taung, the ranks of the Mandalorians now consist of every species—anyone, regardless of race or birth, can become a Mandalorian. Mandalorians have thus completed their change from a race to a creed: the culture forged amongst the mixed ranks of the Neo-Crusaders is who the Mandalorians have become as a people now. Instead of the ethos of divine warfare, Mandalorians now reinterpret their old gods as allegorical and believe in a collective oversoul, the Manda. Effectively, the philosophical underpinnings of the culture and faith transform from constant pursuit of conflict to a focus on survival and shared identity.

So that’s the story of the Mandalorian Empire. There are similarities to the Roman Empire: namely, the expansion wars, the huge legions made up of citizenry, and how they use a shared identity overriding ethnic group identities to unify disparate conquered peoples. But there are also clear discrepancies: the Mandalorians are a regional power for most of their history, followed by a brief crash and burn attempt to take over the galaxy, and a return to a regional power. They are a strong regional power, make no mistake, but they don’t really have a claim to an empire that lasts a thousand years and covers half of the known world. The cultural inheritance of the Mandalorians and the Romans is different too: the Mandalorians end up totally transforming their own culture, but the inheritance they leave to the rest of the galaxy is mostly a deep fear and suspicion of the Mandalorian legions (this will come back to bite them later).

P.S. Here’s what happens “later”:

Between the Mandalorian Wars ending in in 3960 BBY and where we pick off the story again, is some couple of thousand of years of galactic history, including a couple of Galactic Wars. Neither canon nor EU offers a lot of information about this period, so we’re skipping it. Between 2000-1000 BBY, the galaxy is embroiled in a thousand year war between the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire called the New Sith Wars. The Republic prevails, but when the war ends in 1000 BBY, both the Republic and Mandalore are in shambles. The Republic has effectively ceased to exist in large parts of the galaxy. They turn inwards and reorganise in what is called the Ruusaan Reformation.

On the Mandalorian side though, in 1058 BBY Mandalore the Uniter calls the Mandalorian clans to return home to the Mandalorian worlds. This leads to a movement called The Return, which could also be termed the Mandalorian renaissance: a period of growth, innovation and military strength. This new growth and yes, expansion, leads the Republic (now back on its feet) to conduct a pre-emptive strike on Mandalore. In 738 BBY, the Republic forces lead a surprise blitz of orbital bombardment on Mandalorian worlds, leaving large parts of the planets uninhabitable, and their military power broken. In a savvy move, the Republic also installs a pro-republic caretaker government to make sure Mandalore does not just go down, but will never rise as a threat again.

This leads to a deep schism amongst the Mandalorians: while no faction could be called pro-Republic, Mandalorians are split into a peace movement and what could be termed traditionalists. The peace movement—very reasonably—believe that Mandalore needs to play nice with the Republic, because there’s no chance Mandalore as it is could succeed against them, and they need to make very sure the Republic navy doesn’t have a reason to come back and finish the job. The traditionalists—also very reasonably—do not want to play nice with the Republic puppet government. Instead, they execute what is called a ba’slan shev’la, or a strategic disappearance. They go to the ground, or vanish into the galaxy to avoid giving the Republic a target, while they bide their time and regather their strength.

The peace movement will eventually lead to the New Mandalorians; the traditionalist sections will eventually lead to the True Mandalorians, a moderate traditionalist sect, and the Death Watch, who yearn to return to the glory days of the Mandalorian Empire. The Death Watch mostly succeeds in wiping out the True Mandalorians—with the unwitting aid of the Jedi, with Jango Fett as almost the sole survivor—shortly before the events of the Star Wars movies. And thus the stage is set for the Clone Wars. Which turn out to be not just the grand plan of the Sith, but also the ultimate revenge of a pissed off Mando.

So, @aelloposchrysopterus, if you were to make a post paralleling the Roman concept of identity with Mandalore--