The Rule of Many

Star Wars D20 Campaign

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

EPISODE IV: A NEW HOPE

It is a period of civil war. Three young dissidents have fled from Imperial oppression and have taken their first steps toward joining the fight against the evil Galactic Empire.

Tyrus Arcona, a tech-combat soldier assigned to the DEATH STAR project, has faked his own demise after learning that the space station was intended as a planet killer. Sif Roon, in training as a member of the royal guard, has killed the sadistic Imperial officer in charge of her squad and has fled into the underworld of the Outer Rim. The son of a murdered Jedi apprentice, Kelnoir Cross has faded into the shadows, seeking to learn of his father’s lost order.

Taking on new identities, this small group plans to rendezvous on the sleepy agricultural world of Kwevron. There they hope to shake all connections to their old lives and avoid the dark forces of the Empire.

Adventures and Plot Points

Chronology Event: Princess Leia sets out to find Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Campaign Scenario: Rebellion on a Quiet World (06/04/04)

Player imperative: Getting everyone together and moving. Introduction to Lt. Tragen; introduction to Eva Bloodsparrow.

• Major chronology change: Advised by the supreme dark prophet Kadann, the Emperor has decided to break the Rule of Two. Years ago, with Vader as the only other true Sith practitioner, the Emperor began a secret program, managed by Kadann. Their goal was to raise a number of Force sensitive children in hopes of producing some worthy of the Sith. Chief among these, and the only child to survive the training, is Keval, who is now nearly ready for the title Sith Lord. The Emperor plans of naming Darth Vader “Lord of the Rim Worlds,” and allowing him to seek him own apprentice. The Emperor will take Keval into his ranks as his new apprentice on Coruscant.
• (Character creation session. All characters are level 01.)
• On the Outer Rim farming world of Kwevron, an assassin droid is trying to obtain a prototype Imperial weapon that is being tested there. (The weapon is a standard blaster rifle with ion mode.)
• Stormtroopers are firing at civilian droids. (Gear: 4 prototype blasters/ion, 4 grenades, 4 liquid cable dispensers, 4 comlinks.) Imperial techs are gathering data on the effectiveness of the new weapons.
• A flying spy eye droid is circling the area, scouting for the assassin droid who wants to obtain one of the prototypes.
• The party opts not to allow the stormtroopers to test fire on their droid cargo, then defeats the stormtroopers in combat and flee.
• Following the droid delivery, the assassin droid contacts the party and asks for a meeting. Called Essar (S-R6), the droid gives them a contact data card for future transactions.
• Essar (S-R6): This secretive assassin droid is obsessed with weapons, especially those of exotic or prototype varieties. It will usually offer to purchase such items, but mostly wants the opportunity to study them. Often, Essar sell them afterward. One of the tactics Essar employs frequently, taken advantage of his transference hardware, is to move his awareness into a lesser (and more discreet) droid shell during operations.
• The party spends time at a bar called Blask Café and is approached by T’lal, a Bothan, who offers to either shelter them or turn them in. “I will get my credits by sheltering you or by turning you over the Lt. Tragen.”
• In the Bothan’s shelter, the player-characters meet Eva Bloodsparrow, a pilot who is currently working for Jee Ann Mosa.
• Eva Bloodsparrow: A human woman, Eva was originally the daughter of an Imperial consort and was intended for the same work. Badly abused in late adolescence by Imperial leaders, she is haunted by great anger. After her mother’s death, she was raised by another Imperial consort, N’dal—a Twi’lek female enslaved by the Empire. Eva inherited her uncle’s ship, the Bloodsparrow, a YT-2400 Corellian freighter, and has used it to earn credits by undertaking courier missions. She has learned a lot about technical matters during her time operating the ship, focusing almost entirely on astrogation and piloting.
• Going to meet Jee Ann, in hopes of leaving Kwevron, the player-characters witness an Imperial officer and two stormtroopers oppressing and arresting a Rebel Ithorian and two other Rebels who are being smuggled within his produce wagon. The two rebels being smuggled are Human and Duros.
• A fight breaks out and the Rebels are wounded. The player-characters kill or disable Lt. Tragen and several stormtroopers. (Gear: 2 blasters, 1 mastercraft blaster (+1), 2 grenades, 2 liquid cable dispensers, datapad, 3 comlinks.)
• Jee Ann watches the encounter from safety. She is partially disguised in garb that is vaguely religious: spots and glyphs have been inked onto her face and she wears a translucent veil over her nose and mouth.
• Jee Ann Mosa: An advisor to the player-characters, this near-human woman is calm and rational. She practices meditation and a stretching art similar to Yoga. She often wears thin robbers, a veil and paints her face with spiritual glyphs. She is a Rebel contact who wishes to remain completely invisible, working through secondary agents. Jee Ann’s goals involve indirect, mission-based service to the Alliance, as well as acting as shepherd to any potential Rebel recruits. Jee Ann is very loyal to Bail Organna.
• The player-characters, Eva and Jee Ann aid the Rebels, then flee the area.

Campaign Scenario: Rebellion on a Quiet World (07/13/04)

Freeing a Rebel, finding the Rebellion: Introduction to Jee Ann Mosa, initial advisor.

• Jee Ann Mosa has been traveling with Eva Bloodsparrow; Eva sees her as a client and has some respect for the older woman. Directing Eva and the player-characters, Jee Ann asks for aid in moving the wounded Rebels to a safe-house maintained by the Bothans.
• The safe-house is located at the top of an enormously tall grain silo, standing among a cluster of 12 silos. The Bothan silo is empty. Inside, an industrial lift takes the party to a small room, over a thousand meters above the ground.

• The Bothan underground operative T’lal stops by the silo for a visit, reiterating his offer for long-term housing. Jee Ann takes him aside; afterward, he leaves rapidly without speaking.

• Within the silo, the player-characters spend time speaking to Jee Ann and Eva. They also aid in the care of the three fallen Rebels. Jee Ann meditates, cares for the wounded, paints on scrolls and on her own face.
• The player-characters evaluate the gear they have collected: Lt. Tragen’s blaster (+1): A mastercraft Imperial blaster, often given to officers from privileged families. Lt. Tragen’s datapad (+2): A modified commercial datapad, previously owned by Lt. Faldar Tragen. It currently contains a data card providing additional information about droid manufacturing and repair, as related to the droid factory on Kwevron.
• A DC 25 computer use skill check is required to access Lt. Tragen’s datapad. The mastercraft datapad contains Lt. Tragen’s personal files and schedule, which provides insights into the routines of a promising Imperial officer on a remote rim world. Most of the time, he runs a tight operation, working for the Prefect. He has an interest in maintaining security over the space port, the droid factory and the agricultural shipments headed out for Imperial worlds lacking food production capabilities. In the personal files, there are erotic holo images (human females only), a fitness log, letters to Imperial officers back at core world bases on Corulag and Coruscant, mostly inquiring about potential assignments to these places. Additionally, there are three entries of note on Lt. Tragen’s datapad: 1) He is still mostly in the dark, but has learned that an Ithorian has been aiding anti-Imperial forces around Kwevron’s only spaceport. 2) A temporary platoon of 25 stormtroopers—including a few elite training commandos and some highly respected Imperial Intelligence agents—is scheduled to arrive at Kwevron within days via Imperial assault shuttle. (The purpose of their deployment is related to annual training and reassignment.) 3) Despite his disdain for non-human species, Tragen has been using the bounty hunter Greydal Warr to hunt criminals outside the city.
• Greydal Warr: This bounty hunter is an Imperial favorite, used in hunting and killing Wookie insurgents and rim world outlaws. Greydal is known for his cruelty toward his own kind and for his outright disdain for taboos. He keeps his fur shaved away and his skin tattooed with old Sith designs that he first saw when tracking a Wookie Rebel into an old temple. Greydal is a fierce breaker of all Wookie traditions and laws, such as using his claws to kill opponents. One of his favorite tactics is to rake an opponent’s eyes, blinding him temporarily with blood. Greydal gets the Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Claws) as a free racial bonus feat due to his deviant Wookie nature, but also suffers from a -4 wisdom penalty, instead of the standard -2 wisdom penalty for Wookies and is not proficient with a bowcaster.
• Via Lt. Tragen’s comlink, an Imperial tech calls to confirm receipt of Tragen’s spy probe. (“Lt. Tragen, we’ve received your probe here at subspace transceiver station 2. We will upload the data this evening with the daily holo net report.”) The player-characters realize that they have 12 hours before the technician updates the daily report. (They can either try to break into subspace transceiver station 2 or make a DC 20 bluff check to convince the tech to erase the data on the spy probe. “Sir, are you sure?”)
• (If the player-characters are not successful in thwarting the Imperial tech from uploading the data from Lt. Tragen’s spy probe, the player-characters will be listed as criminals against the Empire, wanted for questioning.)
• Optionally, the player-characters can contact Essar (S-R6) and pay him for his aid. (Or offer to move him off-world.) No one did this…

• Returning to the Blask Café, the party spots Greydal Warr, an exotic Wookie bounty hunter. (It requires a DC 15 knowledge (alien species) skill check to recognize Greydal as a Wookie. Player-characters who speak or understand Shyriiwook will understand immediately that he is speaking the Wookie language, and get a +4 on their skill check to recognize Greydal’s species.) Greydal is arguing with some Rodians over a gambling game. He is rude and aggressive toward everyone in the cantina, gleefully attempting to bully his way out of paying for his debts.

• After the party has seen the Rebels safely into the hands of the Bothans, Jee Ann offers the player-characters the chance to leave Kwevron, in exchange for their help. She only does this after determining that they seem worthy. (“You all did a courageous thing, aiding us. And you could have killed that Imperial officer, but you didn’t…”) Jee Ann—scouting and gathering information through the night—has just learned that a Zabrak has been accused of being associated with the Rebellion and is being moved by landspeeder from a small Imperial security station near an outlying agricultural combine to the main garrison near the space port.

• Eva suggests ambushing the speeder a kilometer before it reaches the checkpoint into the city. She reveals her hatred of the Empire. (She has a small glyph tattooed on the inside of her wrist. If the player-character’s have any knowledge of Imperial society, then might recognize it as the mark of an Imperial consort. A DC 15 skill check is required. No one recognized the mark…)
• The Bothans offer eopie mounts, transplanted on Kwevron from Tatooine. (Eopie are hairless, quadrupedal, long-snouted and ill-tempered.)
• The city is surrounded by a translucent white wall standing 4 meters tall. Along the top of the wall, there are electro stunners. In order to leave the city, the party must pass through one of six checkpoints, manned by 2 local constables. The checkpoint consists of a shielded guard shack and an electrified gate. (Gear: 2 blaster pistols, 1 stun grenade, 1 pair macrobinoculars, 1 pair restraining cuffs, 1 suit padded armor, 1 (low quality) datapad, 2 comlinks.)
• At one point along the route being taken by the Imperials moving the Zabrak, the road cuts through a steep rock outcropping, forming a man-made canyon. The party chooses to use this opportunity to block the road with a heavy farming vehicle in order to ambush the Imperials.
• Cover: Many of the hills and fields surrounding this area are thickly covered in 4 meter tall blue-corn plants. Away from the fields, there are medium and large sized rock outcroppings.
• The speeder is a slower-moving transport, capable of seating 12. It is manned by 4 stormtroopers, 2 Imperial officers and 2 local constables from the outlying area. (Gear: 4 blaster rifles, 3 blaster pistols, 1 mastercraft heavy blaster pistol (+1), 4 stun grenades, 1 suit mastercraft padded battle armor (+2), 1 mastercraft all-temperature cloak (+2), 1 pair macrobinoculars, 2 glow rods, 1 tool kit, 1 vibroblade.)
• If freed, the Rebel Zabrak (Dreevis) will take up the role of Kwevron Rebel operative, along with the Ithorian and the two Rebels he was smuggling.
• Following the attempt to free the Rebel, Jee Ann and Eva want the player-characters’ help in freeing Eva’s ship and leaving Kwevron. Eva’s ship, the Bloodsparrow, is a Corellian YT-2400 freighter. The player-characters agree to assist. Afterward, Jee Ann reveals that she is paying Eva for transport on various errands of subversion and offers to hook the player-characters up with a Rebel contact. (Jee Ann has the locking codes for the spaceport, but the tractor beam must be deactivated. Kelnoir accomplished some stealthy actions here, slipping past stormtroopers and deactivating the tractor beam.)
• Aboard the freighter, folded up, there is an out-of-commission astromech droid called X7-7R5. (A DC 20 Repair skill check is required to restore to full operational status.) The chipped, blue droid has been dysfunctional since Eva inherited the ship. The droid’s main body is housed in a tube, more narrow than the average R2-style astromech droid, surrounded by 4 spider-like appendages.
• The Imperial technicians serving under the Prefect have installed an Imperial tracking beacon on the Bloodsparrow. (If restored to operational status, the droid will immediately note the presence of the tracking beacon and ask for permission to deactivate it.)
• As the party successfully leaves Kwevron, Jee Ann reveals herself as a Rebel field operative, loyal to Bail Organna.

• Lt. Tragen, nursing his wounds, sends the bounty hunter Greydal Warr to capture and return the crew of the Bloodsparrow to Kwevron for imprisonment and interrogation. Tragen also applies for an Imperial Security Bureau (ISB) special assignment to search for the Rebels associated with the Bloodsparrow.

Chronology Event: Princess Leia Is Detained

Campaign Scenario: Ice Moon, Sith Temple (07/16/04)

An unexpected detour. Introduction to the Force. First taste of infamy.

• Eva has to drop out of hyperspace due to an unforeseen gravity shadow. “According to my astrogation, this shouldn’t be here.”
• The party is just in time to see an Imperial star destroyer and a contingent of support ships jump into hyperspace.
• Near a dead gray world, there is a small moon. The system features a pale white star. On the icy moon, a small squad of Imperials have been deployed. The Imperials are researching a crash site (and a Sith temple). The crashed ship belonged to a Jedi Knight. (The Imperials removed a lightsaber and a Sith holocron, found by the young Jedi in the nearby Sith temple, from the crashed Jedi ship.)
• The Imperials left behind: 5 specialist stormtroopers in ice gear, 1 high ranking stormtrooper, 1 Viper probe droid, 1 officer (Captain Annor) and 1 female Imperial force adept (Lerketh).
• From the cockpit, the party (including Jee Ann and Eva) reaches a decision about the importance of investigating the site. Finding a black rocky plateau, Eva lands the Bloodsparrow, staying on the ground for only a few minutes. Tyrus and Sif step out onto the frozen moon, then watch the ship climb back up through the atmosphere. (Kelnoir stays on the Bloodsparrow.)
• The area is plagued with thick-bodied feline mammals (Ice Claws) and small, winged carnivores (Cold Wings—similar to gaunt, razor-toothed penguins). (These predators are spotted periodically, and will consume anyone left behind on the ice, dead or unconscious.)
• The Imperials left a Viper probe droid guarding their Lambda class shuttle. After a heated gun battle, Sif and Tyrus defeat the droid and it self-destructs. At some point during the battle, the droid sends out a distress call to the Imperials on the ice moon.
• Tyrus and Sif, investigating the crash site after destroying the probot, defeat 2 stormtroopers on snow-speeder bikes and take their uniforms. They open the Imperial shuttle with an explosive, but botch slicing the companel. Tyrus then fires several shots into the companel, destroying it.
• Sif and Tyrus execute two of the stormtroopers after they have been rendered helpless.
• Captain Annor calls over the comlink and Tyrus tries to bluff (but fails). Captain Annor discreetly sends three stormtroopers to investigate. Later, on the ice, the party faces off against the stormtroopers and defeats them. Meanwhile, a few kilometers away, Captain Annor, Lerketh and the last stormtrooper continue to investigate the Sith temple.
• Lerketh: Originally a slave girl and thief who was scheduled for execution for killing her master, Lerketh spent her early years on the ruthless industrial planet of Eriadu. Traveling in the Rim, the Dark Prophet Kadann noticed her nascent Force talents and saved her from Imperial execution. Under his tutelage on Coruscant, she grew in power for several years. After earning her loyalty and nurturing her dark side talents, Kadann sent her away for training with the Emperor’s elite guard; she carries the elite guard tattoo on her left wrist. Then, with her martial skills further honed, Kadann began aggressively mentoring her in the ways of the Force, even taking away her for a year-long stay at the hidden temple that he maintains. Now she is capable field operative, serving Kadann and at various times the Emperor and Darth Vader. With the Rule of Two broken, Lerketh desires to apprentice under Darth. (She is jealous of Keval, whom she despises; he is clearly being groomed to serve as the new apprentice to the Emperor.) When undertaking a mission, Lerketh often employs secondary agents. She is sneaky when the opportunity presents itself, but savage when pressed to fight.
• The party comes to another ravine, with a campsite and a slain feline predator. (Earlier, the Imperials lowered themselves down on two sections of liquid cable, which they left behind.) Down below, the party discerns a massive doorway and a mosaic landing pad. Someone has recently melted the ice over the landing pad. The architecture looks to have been cut with laser precision from the rock walls of the ravine, long ago. The door is flanked by human figures. A simple pressure plate opens the door.
• As the party enters the ruins, Eva calls (over a static-filled com signal) and reports that another ship is landing.
• Greydal touches down mid-way through the mission. (He always leaves his ship well hidden, often submerged in a lake or swamp.) He has been tracking the party from Kwevron, sent by Lt. Tragen, with the goal of bringing the party back to Kwevron.
• Temple ruins: Long corridor with motion-activated lights; lots of empty rooms with ruined furniture; holo projection room featuring a model of the moon, planet and sun; large chamber with hologram figures, 2 massive pillars and an ochre-colored force field; tomb behind the force field.
• Sif and Tyrus battle Lerketh, Captain Annor and the lead stormtrooper, but are defeated. When they awaken, they are chained up to opposing pillars, stripped bare. The wounded Imperial officer is about to begin interrogation…

Campaign Scenario: Ice Moon, Sith Temple (07/25/04)

The Rebels walk along the edge of a knife blade. Kelnoir makes a daring rescue. The bounty hunter moves closer.

• Eva, Kelnoir and the Bloodsparrow’s astromech droid manage to get the ship’s damaged lifter working again, allowing Eva to set down on the planet in a deep ravine. Kelnoir sets out to follow the others, while Eva continues to work on the ship.
• Kelnoir first surveys the area with macrobinoculars and then finally reaches the crash site on foot. Coldwings are attempting to consume the stormtrooper bodies (described as “two bodies”). Cautious at first, Kelnoir enters the shuttle. Once inside, he ensures that it is empty and takes an all-weather tent from one of the ship’s lockers. Out in the ravine, one of the arctic felines and some of the coldwings tear up one of the stormtrooper bodies. Kelnoir takes the other body, dragging it to the crashed ship and donning the stormtrooper armor. The he returns to the shuttle to evaluate the damaged companel. Outside, he hears blaster fire, as Greydal began fighting the coldwings.
• Greydal enters the shuttle and Kelnoir attempts to bluff him into leaving the surface of the world. Greydal doesn’t quite accept his lies as authentic, but doesn’t want to get involved with the Imperials. He is surprised to find on the frozen moon and leaves the ship to scout the area.
• Kelnoir manages to repair the shuttle’s companel and bypasses the code-stick lock in order to operate the shuttle. Eva joins him and they lift off in the shuttle, with Eva piloting. After several minutes of flying low spiral patterns, they spot the bounty hunter, tracking the snow-speeder bike trails leading to the temple ruins. Using Greydal’s general direction, they locate the ruin site. Eva lands the shuttle in the Imperial campsite and Kelnoir tricks the door to the shuttle so that he has access to the open/close code.
• An artic feline attacks Eva and Kelnoir at the base on the liquid cable, just as they reach the bottom of the ravine. Afterward, somewhat wounded, they enter the temple.
• Kelnoir destroys the spy eye droid in the temple with a well-placed shot, then enters the main room. He creeps around and attacks by surprise, with Eva’s support soon after. Together, they kill the Imperial officer and render the stormtrooper captain and Lerketh unconscious. (Lerketh almost gets away, by sprinting behind a pillar and hiding, but Eva spots her, then drops her with a critical shot.)
• Eva frees Tyrus and Sif, then treats their wounds. Afterward, Kelnoir binds Lerketh with 2 sets of mastercraft restraints. They try to hurry, knowing that Greydal is only 20 minutes away.

Campaign Scenario: Ice Moon, Sith Temple (07/26/04)

The party is battered and exhausted, but together. They must soon face a powerful bounty hunter and explore an ancient tomb.

• Imperial gear: Captain Annor carries a blaster pistol, a code cylinder and a datapad. Lerketh carries a naginata, a holdout blaster, 2 stun grenades (which she used in combat) and a spy droid (which was destroyed by Kelnoir). The lead stormtrooper carries 2 frag grenades and a blaster rifle. Additionally, in a pack, Captain Annor carries a lightsaber and holocron recovered from the crashed ship.
• Greydal is 20 minutes from the temple, trekking through the ice. (When he arrives at the temple, he will enter and hide. Later, he will attempt to capture the party members alive. If wounded, he will flee.)
• Night is falling; the temperatures outside is dropping and at full dark it is brutal.
• Inside the Sith temple, there is a force field, blocking access to a tomb. The companel is ancient and archaic. To deactivate the field, the players (or Lerketh) can do one of the following: 1) Turn it off with the force. Force sensitive characters—after studying it—can attempt to manipulate it metaphysically. 2) Turn it off with computer use skill. It’s old, but can be interfaced via datapad or droid.
• Kelnoir experiences a strange feeling as he approached the ochre-colored force field.
• Within the temple ruins, the party rifles through the stormtrooper commander’s and the Imperial officer’s gear (but not Lerketh’s). Then they hack the force field protecting the tomb and enter. Inside the tomb, there is a withered body and an ancient Sith vibroblade.
• Leaving Lerketh bound by the door, they begin to investigate the slab containing the mummy and the sword. Tyrus deactivates the field around the mummy.
• After making a heroic escape artist effort, Lerketh frees herself and slips into the darkness. She fells Eva with a blow from her naginata and runs from the tomb. The party hears Eva hit the floor, sees that the force field is down and they all take up (absurdly comical) defensive positions. Sif stabilizes Eva, who is bleeding to death on the floor.

• After nearly leaving—convinced that Greydal was Eva’s attacker—the party camps with Eva’s unconscious form inside the tomb, sealing the force field.

• When she encounters Greydal, Lerketh uses a combination of Imperial diplomacy, Force adept mind influence and bribery to enlist the Wookie’s aid. (She ups the bounty promised to the Wookie by Faldar Tragen.) Departing the temple, Greydal leaves a stormtrooper’s naked body tied outside, attracting another feline predator. Then he and Lerketh take the snow-speeder bikes and the tents, and pilot the Imperial shuttle back to Greydal’s ship.
• In the intervening hours, the bounty hunter creeps out and places a tracking device on the exterior of the Bloodsparrow.

• Lerketh and Greydal decide to wait before attacking, allowing Lerketh to heal. (She is badly wounded.) Lerketh knows that to return to Vader (and Kadann) empty-handed will mean death. With her knowledge about the Rebels updated by Greydal’s information from Kwevron, she resolves to follow them, recover the Imperial datapad, the Sith artifacts, the Jedi Knight’s lightsaber, and then destroy the Rebels and any allies at their next destination.
• While healing, the party further investigates the datapad and the holocron. The holocron can only be activated by someone who is Force sensitive. Each time it is used, a DC 25 See Force check is made to determine whether the user notes the masked presence of the dark side of the Force. The shuttle and the datapad carry holographic orders, assigning Captain Annor the task of taking a team to the moon to investigate the crash site and possible ruins. “This is of importance to Lord Vader himself.” The crashed ship belonged to a Jedi Knight. Prior to the party’s arrival, the Imperials removed a (Sith) holocron and a lightsaber from the crashed Jedi ship. (Annor and Lerketh had a running argument over who should take possession of these items.) There are additional orders within the shuttle’s holocom and in the datapad for Lerketh from Kadann, one of the Dark Prophets. If decrypted (DC 20), these orders allude to the breaking of The Rule of Two. “Lerketh…if you are successful in this matter, I foresee that you will earn the favor of the Dark Lord himself. With the breaking of the rule of two, this is your chance to serve at his side, to grow in the ways of the Force. I am Kadann…I have spoken.”
• Kelnoir activates the holocron and gold light spills out. An aquatic alien of crustacean nature appeared, named Cohdal: “I am a teacher. There is a Jedi master on Dathomir, an old ally. Keep this holocron secret and safe.” Cohdal—actually a Sith spirit imprint—convinces Kelnoir through implication that he is an ancient Jedi master. Anyone attempting to discern that Cohdal is lying is at a major negative due to his alien nature. Also, as an ancient Sith, he is a master liar. Kelnoir updates Cohdal on galactic affairs and recent events. (Now Cohdal knows the basics of the Empire, the Rebellion and Lerketh. Periodically, Cohdal will ask for further updates; the Sith imprint will attempt to lead Kelnoir toward the dark side.) Unsure of where his allies might lie after so much time, Cohdal decides to send Kelnoir to Dathomir, a wild bastion of the dark side. His goal is to corrupt Kelnoir, over time, or to allow the holocron to fall into the hands of the Nightsisters.
• After recovering, Tyrus picks up Eva and the party heads for the exit. Only then do they realize that it was Lerketh who deactivated the force field. Precious time has passed, allowing the Imperial Force adept to enter into an agreement with Greydal.
• Emerging from the temple, the party fights a feline predator, attracted by the stormtrooper’s corpse. They climb up over the ridge, out of the fissure to see that the campsite and shuttle are gone. Jee Ann comes to pick them up, then Tyrus takes the ship into orbit. After recovering, Eva wraps herself in a blanket, drops into the cockpit and takes control of her ship again. After leaving the ice moon, the Bloodsparrow continues to Alderaan.

Chronology Event: The Republican Senate Is Disbanded

Campaign Scenario: Peace on Alderaan (08/02/04)

The most beautiful world, the most dangerous world—the last hours of Alderaan, Home of Bail Organna.

• The players have gathered details about some powerful enemy (the Emperor) “Breaking the Rule of Two.” Unsure of what this means, they must deliver the data to Rebel command on Alderaan, alerting them to this seminal event.
• The Bloodsparrow comes out of hyperspace near Alderaan. All is well: Trade ships are coming and going, recreational craft move about in ordained near-orbit space lanes.
• There is a light Imperial presence: In orbit, there is an Imperial Star Galleon called the Tarkon. TIE fighters patrol the region.
• As the Bloodsparrow approaches: “This is Imperial Star Galleon Tarkon…YT2400 transport: What is your cargo and destination.” If the players answer reasonably, everything is fine; the data is simply noted. If not, TIE fighters escort the ship down into an Imperial star dock for search and questioning. (Everything goes well; routine.)
• Jee Ann Mosa gives Eva the coordinates for a small private space dock, maintained as a retreat for Bail Organna.
• The players must walk through the dark to Bail’s home nearby. Thrantas (air whales) fly above the city parks.
• Bail’s silver protocol droid wears a white cloak and escorts the players to their rooms.
• Within a palatial private residence, the players meet with Bail for personal introductions. Within his home, they hear again of Leia and the Rebellion.
• Bail and his allies are deeply disturbed because the Emperor has recently dissolved the Senate.
• The players are given a chance to deliver the information about the Breaking of the Rule of Two.
• For the party members, all wounds are healed (in a bacti tank), all gear is repaired (but weapons are not), their clothes are washed, and the Bloodsparrow is restored to pristine condition.
• The stay on Alderaan is nothing short of wonderful: Several days of total rest and recovery, a peaceful atmosphere, brilliant and wise people; literally “some of the best days and nights of your lives.”
• In his room, Kelnoir uses the holocron. (Failed DC 25 See Force check to note dark side energy.) Cohdal asks for another update, thus learning more of the party, the Rebellion, the Empire and the state of affairs. The Sith imprint still intends to corrupt Kelnoir or to fall into the hands of some dark side agent (like Lerketh or the Nightsisters).
• Bail invites the party to the Water Tree, a restaurant on a large lake. The food is great, walking the streets is safe, the lighting everywhere is lovely, massive peaceful aquatic life-forms swim near the restaurant windows.
• Bail Organna offers 8k credits for the party to undertake a mission: Set up a small transceiver station, a solar power station and two droids to monitor the site on an out-of-the-way world. (He paid them half up front.)
• If told about the alleged ‘Jedi’ on Dathomir, Bail will also request that the players deliver a message (in a code cylinder): “Our need is great.” (No one mentioned this.)
• Kelnoir thinks to have the Alderaan techs search for tracking devices and they remove the one left by Greydal, thwarting the bounty hunter and the young force adept. (Now, for the time being, the party is safe from the Greydal and Lerketh. Any further reports over Imperial channels of a ship like the Bloodsparrow, in usual circumstances or in an exotic location, will allow the bounty hunter to pick up the trail.)
• Jee Ann Mosa decides to stay behind on Alderaan…
• As the players depart, they see that the Death Star is in orbit around Alderaan, with a heavy support fleet of Imperial ships. Rather than draw too near the Death Star, risking Imperial questioning, Eva departs the space lane illegally and jumps to hyperspace.
• Greydal and Lerketh capture Jee Ann and imprison her on Greydal’s Mon Calamari security transport, the Rakk’toor.
• Lerketh puts in a brief, terse report to one of Kadann’s lesser servants (thus dodging her master) and acquires greater access to Imperial Intel.

Campaign Scenario: Painted Faces (08/02/04)

A Sisterhood and the Force.

• (Mid-game chapter break: All characters are level 04.)
• After following them to Alderaan, Lerketh and Greydal have lost track of the party. In the background, they seek to pick up the trail: The bounty hunter wants the heavy Imperial reward; Lerketh knows her life (or more) depends on finding the holocron.

• Cohdal—an ancient Sith imprint—continues to pose as a wise Jedi master. He provides Kelnoir with the coordinates to Dathomir. “The Jedi Council had it removed from the space ways for good reason, young Padawan.” (Kelnoir fails his DC 25 See Force check.)
• Dathomir System: Many planets, many moons, including a few gas giants.
• Dathomir Planet: Languages: Basic and Paecian. Gravity: Light (90%). Forests, deserts, mountains, canyons.
• With the Bloodsparrow’s newly calibrated sensors, Eva notes three tech structures on the planet below. (Imperial prison, abandoned Trade Federation outpost, the crashed Chu’Unthor.)
• On Dathomir, in the forest, there are bodies—mostly female—left staked up by the Nightsisters. Purboles crawl the upper trees: Simians the size of children, with baboon faces and razor teeth. Sheer Mites can be found in the rocks. Any time the players are in rocky areas, there is a chance they will encounter these creatures.
• The party lands the Bloodsparrow. The others ask Eva to stand by, waiting for quick pickup, so she stays with the ship. Setting out, Sif, Kelnoir and Tyrus head for the abandoned trade station. Along the way, in a massive ravine, the party watches two fully grown Rancors fight, then mate.
• A Nightsister patrol attacks: Their leader is mounted on a Rancor. The others have several young Rancors on Force-strengthened vine tethers. In a battle under massive trees, the party kills some of the young Rancors and knocks one of the women out. The other Nightsisters flee. Afterward, the party releases their captive and heads for the abandoned station at a quick pace.
• Close to the trade station, the group spots the distant wreckage of the Chu’Unthor in a distant bog. This massive ship is mostly sunken, hidden beneath the tar.
• The players reach the abandoned station, once a trade outpost. Long ago, the base was mostly evacuated, after a losing fight. A tower with windows stands above the station. The jungle has since crept inside. The space dock is empty.
• There is an empty command and control room halfway up the tower. There is a conference chamber for the trading post located high up in the complex. Thick plasteel windows look out over the swamp. Tyrus recognizes a pitted logo as the now-failed Trade Federation.
• Inside the conference chamber, a Jedi Knight’s body was staked out and burned long ago. (Crime: A male using the Force.) The Jedi’s lightsaber was smashed, but the power cell is intact. There is a semi-functional battle droid, guarding the Jedi. (Repairs are needed before it can fight.)
• Seeking prestige, the Nightsister patrol returns and attacks the conference chamber, attempting to batter down the door. With little time left, Kelnoir takes the cell and powers up his (green) lightsaber. Also working under duress, Tyrus gets the droid active and Sif blocks the stairwell leading up into the conference chamber with furniture. The Nightsisters enter the outpost. (Outside the window, one of the Nightsisters levitates up to spy on the party, noting their location, then returning to the others.) Using grenades, the party manages to kill most of the young rancors as they are coming up the partially blocked stairwell (moving too slowly to get out into the room). Sif and Tyrus fire blaster shots at their enemies, while Kelnoir uses his lightsaber for the first time. The repaired droid simply continues the fight it started 4 decades earlier. Halfway through the fight, some of the Nightsisters enter the back of the room through a ceiling hatch (that the party failed to spot). In a close-quartered fight, the Nightsisters are slain, including the more powerful leader of their patrol, who exhibits unusual Force powers.
• (The party is still searching for a “potential ally,” allegedly a Jedi Knight living on Dathomir. He does not exist, of course.) Kelnoir activates the holocron, failing his DC 25 See Force check to note the dark side energy emanating from the artifact. Told of the staked, burned body in the conference chamber, Cohdal tells Kelnoir that the Jedi ally on Dathomir was not humanoid. “This one is lost, but he is not the ally you seek.” Cohdal simply desires to keep the party on Dathomir long enough for the holocron to fall into the hands of the Nightsisters, one of the most accessible dark side factions still in existence.
• The repaired battle droid tells Tyrus that it was once the property of a Jedi Knight who came to Dathomir to look at the wreckage of the Chu’Unthor. (The Jedi was attacked and his ship was destroyed.)
• After the battle, the party stops to rest in the tower. (Kelnoir is injured.) Tyrus updates Eva via comlink. Sif climbs up through the hatch and notes a ladder leading down to the landing pad on the roof of the outpost.

Campaign Scenario: The Imperial Prison (08/09/04)

A new alliance in the war of the Witches.

• Just after fight a group of Nightsisters and their young rancors, the party is recovering in the abandoned Trade Federation installation. They spend a few minutes collecting themselves and planning.
• Tyrus carries the rancor corpses down into the depot. He set the droid up as a sentry and began work on the fallen door, noting that the Nightsisters had used some sort of wooden and alchemy explosive to knock it off its track.
• A 15 year old male named Bala, below the tower conference chamber, is barely controlling a large rancor outside. (He is an agent of the underground who secretly serves the Witches and hates the Nightsisters.)
• After Bala approaches, the party tries to communicate with him in broken Basic. (For rancor, the Dathomirians say “gugon.” For avoid (or stay back), they say “chech.”) Bala sends the lead Nightsister’s rancor away, then asks Tyrus and the others to follow him. Initially, upon seeing Sif, the boy drops to one knee, bowing his head. Once they begin to follow, Bala takes the players away to a campsite, half a day away.
• At the hidden campsite, Reen—who speaks Basic—begins to talk to the party. He has heard of their feats in defeating the dreaded Nightsisters and knows they might be of value to his mistress, Kell.
• Reen’s encampment is at the edge of a bog. The camp consists of a ground level, with a fire pit and animal skins tied up as wind breaks, and several overhead ‘floors’ supported in the branches above by logs lashed together between the trunks of two massive trees. At any given time, there are 1-5 males there; this place is used by the secret underground of males working against the Nightsisters.
• Reen serves the Clan Mother Kell of the Great Canyon clan of Witches. Bala is currently enslaved by the Nightsisters, but greatly respects Reen. In his role as messenger and rancor caretaker, Bala has a great deal of freedom to move between the clans, carrying secret messages. Reen is teaching Bala Basic.
• After talking for a while (leaving the droid to patrol the campsite at their backs), Reen sends Bala to alert a nearby hunting party of Great Canyon Witches. Aided by Reen, the party then runs along with the Witches in an all-night trek to the Great Canyon.
• To gain access to the Clan’s territory, the party must ride down a massive wooden lift, which is lowered past the narrow rock walls. Tyrus leaves the sentry droid above the chasm.
• The enclave of the Great Canyon Clan is here. The Witches are somewhat barbaric, but are civilized compared to the Nightsisters, who are evil dark siders.
• Inside a natural temple, the party engages in parley with Kell, an ancient crone who is strong in the ways of the Force. She knows Basic and speaks mostly to Sif, but acknowledges Kelnoir. A number of tough-looking Witches surround Kell at all times. There is a massive mobile hanging inside the temple, made of fist-sized crystals and lit up by light from the crevasses above.
• Kell explains that Dathomir is currently under the tenuous control of the Nightsisters, who have risen in power over the Witches. The Witches and the Nightsisters are disdainful of outsiders and leery of tech places (exploring then avoiding them). However, having broken with tradition, the Nightsisters are strong because they have a powerful leader—Warchief Beya—who has made an alliance with the Imperial officer, Captain Julienne.
• Nightsister Warchief Beya: Born and raised by the Nightsisters on Dathomir, Beya wants nothing more than to dominate and unifying all Dathomirians under her control. To this end, she has made a temporary alliance with the Imperial officers who are erecting a prison on the planet. She is 18 winters old.
• As Clan Mother of the Great Canyon clan, Kell wants the Nightsisters cast down and Imperials removed. Kell has kept the oral history of the founding of the planet, the crash of the Jedi ship and of Yoda’s eventual visit. She alludes to knowledge of off-worlders and of the Jedi, but will say little else.
• Kell demonstrates the Force by lifting a stone bowl of water and placing it on the animal-hide rugs before the party. Her shaman then uses the Force to heal Kelnoir’s wounds.
• Later that night, resting in a cave, Kelnoir attempts to move a water bowl, but drops it, spilling the liquid.
• The next day, Reen leads the party out of the Great Canyon. Wishing to avoid the territory of the Nightsisters, they direct Reen to take them to the Imperial prison.
• After observing the prison, the party encounters a speeder bike patrol. First they battle two of the stormtroopers, but their enemies manage to call the other two members of the squad. When the remaining two speeder bike pilots decide to flee, Sif and Tyrus mount the other bikes and give chase. Eventually the two stormtroopers are slain and their bikes are destroyed.
• Once the party regroups, they develop a plan for entering the fledgling Imperial base. Kelnoir and Tyrus don speeder bike Stormtrooper armor, while Reen boils face paints for Sif. He then provides her with his clothing, completing her disguise as a Nightsister. Tyrus wipes the sentry droid’s memory, renaming it Gugon.
• The party enters the base after passing the checkpoint. (Kelnoir uses a mind trick on the stormtrooper sergeant: “We’ve got to take this prisoner to the detention block. You don’t need to call it in.”)
• Notes about the prison: Captain Julienne has been assigned as Imperial diplomatic officer in command of a unit on Dathomir. The Empire has landed one Star Galleon here, which served to transport 2 speeder bike squads, 2 AT-ST walkers (and crew), 3 stormtrooper squads, 1 technical squad and 2 officers (junior lieutenants).
• To date, Captain Julienne’s forces have constructed several prefab structures: Command and communications bunker, initial detention cell cluster, barracks, 2 landing pads (one of which is empty), maintenance bunker and electrified fence (but no gates). The layout includes ferrocrete pavement poured to sketch out the future expansions. Outside the fence, there is an 80 meter kill zone where all vegetation has been cleared away.
• (If the party creates any significant chaos, there is a chance that Imperial speeder bike patrols will spot either them or the Bloodsparrow. If the Bloodsparrow is spotted, the Imperials will report the odd presence of a YT-2400 on an uncharted world. Lerketh will, given two days, note this by searching for the Bloodsparrow through Imperial intelligence channels.)
• Once inside the base, the party moves Sif (the ‘prisoner’) to the cellblock cluster, exchanging small talk with the stormtroopers posted at the door while still in the guise of speeder bike troopers. Concerning Sif, disguised as a Witch, the officer overseeing the cellblock makes the remark, “Captain Julienne is done with her so soon? I expected this to take hours.” At this, the party comes to understand that the Imperials have captured one of the Witches. A fight breaks out, of course. The party fights the junior lieutenant, then the two stormtroopers, who have heard the commotion. Sif and Tyrus drag the bodies into a holding cell.
• Kelnoir uses the Force to heal Tyrus, who cannot deny the feeling of some strange energy from the young Jedi’s touch and the miraculous results.
• The party assumes that the Imperials are in custody of one of the Witches of Dathomir; they decide to wait for her return to the cellblock. Sif and Tyrus don stormtrooper armor and take up guard positions outside the detention center. An hour or two later, another junior lieutenant and two stormtroopers approach the detention center, dragging a wounded Witch. The officer is about to pass when he spots blaster fire all over Tyrus’ armor. “Seen some action tonight, have you? What’s the story?” Tyrus responds, “Sir, we were attacked by some locals…nothing we could handle.” The officer pauses…”The locals are primitives; they don’t use blasters.” Within his stormtrooper helmet, Tyrus grimaces. The officer states that he is going to follow up on this matter and enters the cellblock to drop off the prisoner and to speak to the other lieutenant.
• Inside, Kelnoir is wearing a black Imperial uniform and using Force magic to enhance the illusion. He stands behind the control desk as the junior lieutenant enters and the stormtroopers drag the Witch inside, pulling her into one of the cells. As the stormtroopers are situating her, the lieutenant turns and sees the bodies stacked inside the next holding cell over. “What is the meaning of this? I’m calling Captain Julienne…” In a flash of insight, Kelnoir touches the control panel, sealing the stormtroopers and the Witch inside one of the cells, then orders the lieutenant to surrender. Eventually, the three stormtroopers and the lieutenant are stripped and imprisoned in another holding cell.
• The Witch is freed. She is immediately goes to retrieve her gear; the locker is finally opened when Kelnoir uses his lightsaber to burn through the latch.
• After communicating with the Witch (through a comlink back to the droid to Reen), the party decides to use the stormtrooper-prisoner-escort trick again. They escort the Witch to the Command and Communications center, where Captain Julienne and two late-night technicians are typing up notes from their interrogation session.
• When the conflict breaks out, the Witch flees and Captain Julienne orders the technicians to activate the alarm. She reaches for a blaster lying on the counter in front of her. After a short fight, Captain Julienne is knocked unconscious.
• Both technicians surrender, but—given the party’s battered, wounded appearance—one of them later reaches for Julienne’s blaster, which is lying on the floor at his feet. This technician could have turned the battle with a lucky shot, but instead he misses and is slain.
• Inside the Command and Communications center, monitors display the view from both AT-ST walkers. The party uses this to make decisions for the next few minutes. Outside, the Imperials are running about, trying to find the source of the alarm: shouting, boots hitting ferroconcrete and stormtroopers emerging from the barracks donning armor.
• The surviving tech, in an effort to save himself and his captain, suggests that the party issue a base-wide evacuation order. They revive Julienne and she gives the order; the base begins to clear as the Imperials move to the landing pad and begin to enter the star galleon.
• In anger, Sif is set to execute Captain Julienne from the crime of extreme arrogance. Kelnoir, drawing upon the teachings of his Jedi Padawan father, knocks Sif’s blaster aside. “No!” The shot goes wild, scoring the ceiling, and Sif backs down, her anger somewhat abated.
• Minutes later, left standing next to the console, Captain Julienne makes one last play: She reaches to shut down the Command and Communications center, which would black out the lights and power and throw the doors open wide. Using an attack of opportunity, Kelnoir hits her with his lightsaber, disrupting her ploy. Sif then shoots her in the mouth, burning a hole in her head and killing her.
• Rushing away, Kelnoir and Sif jump onto speeder bikes, Tyrus fires up one of the AT-ST walkers and the party leaves the base. The Imperials notice the walker leaving and begin to break off the evacuation.
• Tyrus gives Reen the order to flee, suggesting that the Witches be mobilized to harass the base.
• The surviving Imperial officer begins to restore order to the base.
• Busy piloting, Tyrus doesn’t have time to hack into the Imperial computer in search of Captain Julienne’s orders; meanwhile, the surviving officer notes Captain Julienne’s death, takes control of the base and initiates standard security breach procedures. (This locks the AT-ST out of the computer.) Outside the AT-ST, Sif and Kelnoir drive the two captured speeder bikes across the dark terrain.
• Back at the campsite, the party gathers up. Setting up an autonomous pilot subroutine, Tyrus climbs from the AT-ST hatch and jumps down. After a brief delay, it begins marching forward toward the edge of the cliff ahead. Silhouetted against the four-mooned sky, the walker plummets down into the darkness, falling 50 meters and exploding as it crashes on the rocks below.
• A short time later, after collecting Gugon and their gear, Sif, Kelnoir and Tyrus are Eva picked up by Eva.
• From within the Imperial Command and Communications center, Lieutenant Mothose—the new officer in charge—is notified of the Bloodsparrow and immediately files a report over Imperial channels. He is soon contacted by Lt. Faldar Tragen, who has taken a personal interest in the Bloodsparrow. Tragen then adds to the report, linking the Bloodsparrow incidents on Kwevron and Dathomir.
• When word comes across Imperial holonet channels of a YT-2400 and some Rebels attacking a small prison outpost on the uncharted world of Dathomir, Lerketh and Greydal set out again, closing in. Greydal and Lerketh are holding Jee Ann Mosa prisoner on the Rakk’toor (in the security hold) as they search for the party (and the holocron).

Campaign Scenario: The Chu’Unthor (08/16/04)

The hidden seeds of a lost order.

• Back on board the Bloodsparrow, Sif, Tyrus and Kelnoir talk to Eva about their next move, finally deciding to rest for a day or so. On the way to hide the ship, the party passes Reen, running across a marsh toward the Great Canyon. (Knowing that he might fear the ship, they opt not to pick him up.) Eva leaves Dathomir prime and moves the ship into orbit on the dark side of one of the planet’s moons.
• On the ship, the party attends to small matters and rest for 24 hours: Tyrus borrows a vibroblade from Sif for use with the droid called Gugon, then he gives Eva a heavy blaster pistol and a blaster pistol for the ship’s locker.

• On the Bloodsparrow, while healing, Kelnoir summoned Cohdal. Kelnoir studies the droid’s memory, gathering information about Jaimon—the young, fallen Jedi—who once trained on the Chu’Unthor. He tells Cohdal everything that came to pass on the planet below. Cohdal: “These dark siders must be destroyed. You must feel passion to be alive.”
• Cohdal reveals that this planet’s Force wielders are descended from an outcast Jedi. “Perhaps this is why your ally came here…in an effort to turn this culture away from the dark side.” (The Sith imprint is still attempting to lead Kelnoir into the hands of the Nightsisters. When asked, Cohdal says, “Carry the holocron with you at all times, young Padawan.”)

• Tyrus notices again that Eva has a small glyph tattooed on the inside of her wrist, and with his knowledge of Imperial Society, he finally recognizes it as the mark of an Imperial consort. He remains quiet.

• The party heads toward the wrecked Jedi training ship, the Chu’Unthor, located in a massive tar pit. (This is one of the structures that Eva originally detected from orbit.) The remains of the 2-kilometer hulk are only visible as a tarnished silver crescent rising up out of the swampy waters of the bog.
• Half a kilometer from the wreck site, the party sees a pack of screeching purboles leading a sobbing girl-child through the bog. The creatures surround her, moving in to nip and growl, herding her toward the wreck. She is scratch, exhausted and traumatized, but is otherwise unharmed. The party kills a few purboles, causing the rest to scatter. Tyrus is bothered by the way the creatures seemed to be moving with a higher purpose. After securing the girl, Kelnoir puts her up on his speeder bike.
• Sif goes to briefly scout the wreck site. Upon approach, she spots a purbole chunking a few shiny metal objects into the bog. (It observes her sullenly at first, holding a “shiny metal tech object” before hurling the object with a shriek into a tar pool.)
• The party figures out that Chu’Unthor means “academy” in Cerean (Knowledge check DC 15) and was second in academic importance only to the Jedi Academy itself (Knowledge check DC 25).
• The Rebels take the young girl (Linarl) back out of the bog, onto dry land and call the Bloodsparrow. Eva takes the girl into ship for temporary safety and medical care. In keeping with her life on Dathomir, the girl speaks only Paecian and is somewhat frightened by women.
• Back at the wreck site, the party goes through several attempts to get inside. They hide their speeder bikes, camouflaging them, they attempt to climb up the side of the up-ended ship, toward the one visible hatch. They fail the massive climb up, Kelnoir falling once, then decide to use the Bloodsparrow to drop down onto the Chu’Unthor from above. Eva picks them up.
• For some base detail about the Chu’Unthor—massive Jedi training vessel—see the Power of the Jedi sourcebook.
• Chu’Unthor entry requirements: The party must find an open entry (used by the purboles) and climb in (DC 15), or they must find a sealed hatch and cut it open or bypass the lock (DC 20).
• Lowering the Bloodsparrow’s hatch, Kelnoir drops down onto the Chu’Unthor, 150 meters above the bog. He manages to settled onto a railing and ledge surrounding the long-sealed hatch. He ties off the line of liquid cable stretching up to the Bloodsparrow—hovering overhead like a massive manta ray—and Tyrus and Sif slide down onto the wreck. Tyrus opens the blast door, jury-rigging a dead power box by draining off part of a blaster energy pack.
• Once inside, all three explorers turn on their glow rods and begin making their way deeper into the long lost Jedi ship. Some sections are still above the water level, while others are sunken. In some places, massive plasteel window domes look out over the bog or down into the tar, water and vines. Movement is difficult, since the ship is standing on end and tilted badly; the party members make their way along ceilings and over irregular surfaces not intended for traffic. The effect of moving through this quiet tomb of a vessel is disconcerting.
• Purboles live all through the ship; mostly they scatter when the party members approach.
• Deep inside the Chu’Unthor there is a bog wyrm: This long, sinewy reptile is intelligent and is a natural dark side Force creature. It has dominated the purboles, who feed themselves to it, attract other purboles, occasionally capture a Dathomirian child, and who tear the ship apart in search of Force-sensitive artifacts. (Other objects are thrown outside into the bog.)
• Tyrus taps into a cargo computer node, again powering it locally with blaster energy pack. He learns that backup-power could be restored to the Chu’Unthor, but it will never fly again. He also obtains a simple ship schematic and directs the party toward the engines in order to manually access emergency power.
• The party gets closer to the bog wyrm’s lair, moving along what resembles a hallway, but was once a climb-shaft. At this point, the purboles attack with purpose, their actions guided by the Force-sensitive bog wyrm. The party defeats the baboon-like purboles easily, but then sees that the passage dead ends in water. Sif throws her glow rod down the hall and it slides into the water, vanishing into the murk. Wanting to avoid the submerged ship sections, Tyrus kicks in a ventilation grill and enters the small passage there, heading toward the ship’s hyperdrive array.
• Tyrus reached the room containing the backup power relay, noting that the relay is jammed by the remains of a long-since-destroyed droid who was thrown into the complex power works by the crash. The areas adjacent to the power relay room are flooded, but piping, consoles and dead equipment form island pathways through the area. All the party members collect in the area as Tyrus prepares to hop his way over the ruined droid. Kelnoir enters the room and stands on a console near the water’s edge, while Sif sits in the frame of the ventilation shaft, with her legs hanging out over the water.
• The bog wyrm influences Kelnoir’s mind, forcing him to leap into the water and swim downward. There’s a splash, suddenly the room is much darker and the others are not sure what to make of the situation. The bog wyrm attacks. Once his mind has cleared, Kelnoir ignites his lightsaber and fights back, beneath the dark waters. Seeing the turbulence, Tyrus draws his vibroblade and dives beneath the surface, chasing after Kelnoir. (Bog wyrm: Attack +5, Auto Grapple +9, Def 15, Vitality/Wounds 40 (12), Swim 18m.)
• Kelnoir and Tyrus are close to the bog wyrm, holding their breath and trying to kill it. Sif is still outside the water, firing blaster shots at parts of the wyrm’s body as it thrashes and sometimes emerges from the water. Tyrus attempts to stab it in the eye and it grabs him in its mammoth jaws. Kelnoir gets in a few strokes with his lightsaber, but the bog wyrm retreats, recoiling back deeper into the submerged sections of the room and dragging Tyrus along forcibly.
• After being stabbed in the neck, cut with a lightsaber and shot several times with blaster fire, the wyrm is finally slain.
• Kelnoir makes his Sense Force check and feels the presence of some special objects below the water. Along with some Jedi training toys, the skeletons of several children are scattered about, gnawed and partially sunken.
• Tyrus pulls the droid remains from the power relay and gets the backup power online. He knows it’s only temporary, but the feeling is comforting. With the death of the bog wyrm, the purboles all scatter and the ship loses some of its dreadful mien. With the backup power active, the place is dimly lit and hums with faint technological life.
• Tyrus harvests some droid repair parts and the party prepares to explore the other accessible areas on the ship.
• In various rooms, the party gathers a few valuable treasures. Gear: Jump boots (50 meters), vibro dagger (+2), Force toy: liquid tube (moving bubbles), Force toy: black cube (living moss ball inside), lightsaber color crystals (gold, green), lightsaber (gold), training remote, datapad card (Jedi training regimen), datapad card (Jedi philosophy), lightsaber power cell.
• Reaching a central computer node, Tyrus begins a download: Computer journals contain a history and evidence of a massive data erasure. “After limping away from a battle, it crashed. It seems unlikely, but some of the Jedi were taken prisoner. Yoda himself negotiated their release, promising not to leave the ship in place.” It becomes obvious that a copy of the Jedi archive—destroyed by the Empire—was on board and was hidden (by Yoda). (“Massive amounts of data are missing.”)
• After the fight at the Imperial prison, via holonet, the Empire was been alerted to the presence of a group of Rebels (and a YT-2400 transport). At this point, Greydal and Lerketh land on Dathomir.
• Eva: “I just picked up two ships coming out of hyperspace just outside the system…they’re splitting up.” If the party inquires, she will follow up with: “One of them is a Lambda-class shuttle…I lost it near one of the moons. The other is a design I haven’t seen, but it just dropped down into the atmosphere. Now it’s gone…”
• Greydal leaves his ship hidden in the waters of a bog. Lerketh leaves the Imperial shuttle hidden on another planet within the Dathomir system; he and Lerketh take their modified snowspeeder bikes out to hunt for the party.
• The party climbs up out of the Chu’Unthor. Eva picks them up and moves toward the Great Canyon. In the middle of the night, she slowly lowers the Bloodsparrow down into a narrow section of the canyon, with her flood lights on full. (This is a moment that the Witches will talk about for generations.)
• Parley with Kell: She offers a great secret in exchange for defeating the Warchief of the Nightsisters.
• Kell reveals that she was once saved by Yoda, changing the interaction between the Jedi and the Witches just after the Chu’Unthor crashed. “Yoda and I had the same dream vision…a young Jedi came to our world and played a key role in the fate of many lives.”
• Kell explains that she wants Clan Mother Mintinee to succeed her. Kell is reunited with her granddaughter, Linarl. Standing within the temple, under the massive crystal mobile, the party can see the night sky above. Kell is exhausted and wants to sleep. So Sif, Kelnoir and Tyrus head back to the Bloodsparrow. In an act of foresight, Tyrus gives Reen a comlink, instructing him in its use.
• On the ship, Kelnoir summons Cohdal, provides an update, while studying the Jedi training toys, the mastercraft lightsaber and the Force crystals recovered from the Chu’Unthor. Cohdal watches with interest, advising the young Jedi…
• Everyone sleeps for the night.

Chronology Event: Alderaan Is Destroyed

Campaign Scenario: A Game of Pawns (08/23/04)

Lerketh ruthlessly exploits the Bounty Hunter, the Imperials and the Nightsisters in an effort to capture the party.

• Having tracked the party for weeks, in the employ of Lt. Tragen, bounty hunter Greydal Warr is eager to capture Sif, Eva, Kelnoir and Tyrus.
• Tactically, Lerketh is ready to manipulate all of the others in an attempt to get her hands on the Sith holocron and the sword. From her perspective, everyone and everything on the planet is expendable in terms of reaching this goal. As soon as she has these things—regardless of other circumstances—she plans on fleeing, returning to the Sith Keep.

• Due to his vigilant tracking of the Bloodsparrow, Faldar Tragen is promoted to Captain and is granted command of an ISB strike force.
• The ISB begins an investigation of Essar, the droid arms dealing. Their eventual goal is to capture the droid and use him to trap the crew of the Bloodsparrow.

• Kelnoir is carrying the holocron on Cohdal’s counsel. The Sith sword is on the Bloodsparrow.
• Lerketh leaves the Imperial shuttle on a moon in the Dathomir system. She can summon it with her comlink. Greydal lands his ship in a bog, letting it rest beneath the murky waters. They take their modified snow speeder bikes out to hunt for the party. Sometimes, under Lerketh’s directions, they split up; Lerketh wants to spend time with the Imperial officer overseeing the prison and the Nightsister Warchief.
• In the middle of the night, everyone is plagued with bad dreams. The women and men of the Great Canyon Clan toss restlessly, children cry, animals howl; Kelnoir, the Witches, Lerketh and the Nightsisters all feel the destruction of Alderaan. (Because he was just on Alderaan and because this is an extraordinary event, Kelnoir makes a far seeing Force skill check (DC 15) and ‘knows’ that Alderaan has been destroyed, that Bail Organna is dead, and that Jee Ann Mosa is not (but is in pain and is now on Dathomir) (DC 20). Kelnoir is allowed to use a Force point here if he wants.)
• Lerketh visits the Imperial base in the night, rousing everyone and giving Lt. Mothose new directives regarding the party.
• In the morning, Kelnoir gives everyone the grim news about Alderaan, but does not mention Jee Ann being alive and on Dathomir. The party has breakfast then heads out. Eva moves the Bloodsparrow close to the base and the party moves out on speeder bikes to scout the Imperial prison. Sif, Tyrus and Kelnoir debate ways to attack the base.
• The orders of the Imperials on Dathomir involve supporting the Nightsisters to effect change in the local power structure and to begin construction on an Imperial prison and interrogation center.
• The Imperials have noted the Chu’Unthor, but simply consider it a wrecked freighter. They have plans for investigating the wreck at some future date, when their facility construction project is ahead of schedule.
• The Empire considers the prison construction a disaster already; it is behind schedule and there was major dissent regarding the best location for the facility. If all officers are destroyed here, or a significant amount of personnel and equipment, the Empire will withdraw from Dathomir and mark the planet as too inhospitable from a cost-analysis standpoint.
• Log entries created by Lieutenant Mothose indicate significant diplomatic problems with the Nightsisters after Captain Julienne’s death. He sees recent events as a great opportunity for promotion.
• Imperials: Star Galleon (intact), speeder bike squad alpha (destroyed), speeder bike squad beta (destroyed), AT-ST walker gamma (destroyed), AT-ST walker beta (stolen), stormtrooper squad alpha (alive), stormtrooper squad beta (alive), stormtrooper squad gamma (killed), technical squad alpha (2/4 killed), Junior Lieutenant Brage (killed), Junior Lieutenant Mothose (alive), Captain Julienne (killed).
• If the Imperials manage to subdue the party, they will hold them for interrogation and will contact Lerketh. Once Lerketh has made contact with the Imperials, they will warn her by comlink of any party movements or activities.
• Even as the party acts on their goal of stealing an AT-ST, Lerketh moves to the Nightsisters, bypassing their sentries with mind control tricks and boldly approaching Warchief Beya within the tunnels beneath her massive tree.
• The party spends the rest of the day observing the Imperial prison. They watch shift changes and daily briefings. Eventually, using Force illusions and jump boots, Kelnoir and Sif attack the corner tower during shift change and steal the remaining AT-ST. Tyrus snipes from where the speeder bikes are parked, across the base kill zone, downing an AT-ST pilot. Sif moves the walker out of the base as fast as possible.
• The base alarm goes off and the Imperials give chase. Lt. Mothose immediately contacts Lerketh, as directed.
• Out in the forest, the party picks a spot to fight against stormtroopers on Imperial speeder bikes. Two of the bikers get away. Kelnoir destroys one of the bikes.
• Lt. Mothose contacts and wants to parley. “We are leaving this world, but we need time to evacuate. Our diplomatic relationship with the Nightsisters has deteriorated with the death of Captain Julienne.” Searching for the Bloodsparrow, Lerketh masterminds the conversation via comlink, also dispatching Greydal and 3 Nightsisters from the Imperial prison.
• While being delayed by Lt. Mothose, Greydal is racing toward the AT-ST. Hovering sidecars, from the Imperial speeder bike hangar, carry his Nightsister allies. When he draws near, he stops and they all begin to creep closer, advised periodically by Lt. Mothose. (Greydal leaves this speeder bike and the sidecars in the woods nearby, but later the party never searches for it.)
• The remaining two stormtroopers on speeder bikes attack from behind. The party destroys the riders and one of the bikes. They hook up one of the speeder bikes for towing.
• Lerketh and the Imperial tech she took from the prison base reach the Bloodsparrow, but wait outside, watching.
• Lt. Mothose is directed to parley again, for longer. He contacts them again and makes an effort to keep Tyrus occupied. “If you can distract these savages, I will pay you handsomely. You’re already wanted criminals, so what do you have to lose?” He talks about problems with the Nightsisters and offer weaponry and 50k credits for warchief’s head. Tyrus is swayed somewhat, hovering close to believing Mothose.
• Tyrus and Kelnoir take out the walkers tracking device. For added security, Tyrus rigs the AT-ST with a password. As he is climbing back up toward the walker’s hatch, he sees Greydal crouched on top of the AT-ST. Greydal attacks, trying to claw-blind Tyrus.
• In combat, Greydal will use his archaic blaster pistol, his claws (blinding attack) and stun grenades. Once a day, he can use Heart to gain a +1 on an attack or skill check.
• Sif, Gugon and Kelnoir engage the Nightsisters in the forest, while Tyrus attacks Greydal with his vibroblade.
• Greydal goes inside, dropping down into the AT-ST and closing the hatch. In the ensuing battle, two of the Nightsisters are killed, one escapes and Greydal destroys the speeder bikes. (Lerketh contacts him once and tells him to delay the party as much as possible.)
• Kelnoir, Sif and Tyrus manage to get on top of the walker. Kelnoir begins to cut the hatch open with his lightsaber. Tyrus drops inside, Sif leans over the hatch and eventually the party subdues the Wookie, knocking him out and bounding his hands and feet.
• Sometime during all this, Lerketh and the tech enter the Bloodsparrow and take Eva by surprise. (Eva had a chance to get off a warning to the party as Lerketh entered the Bloodsparrow, but she failed her listen check versus Lerketh’s move silent.) Lerketh searches the ship for the holocron and takes the Sith sword. Pushing a wicked bone and rancor horn dagger through the back of Eva’s cockpit seat, she leaves a note: “I must have the holocron.” Lerketh sends the tech back to the base. (He perishes in the forest at night, badly burned by sheer mites, then eaten by a rancor.) Delighted with the power she feels in the sword, Lerketh feels that her plan is proceeding well; she is patient and content to accomplish her goals a millimeter at a time, if needed. She heads to Beya’s stronghold with Eva slung over the back of her speeder bike.
• Fearing the Wookie might get free, Tyrus wonders if Greydal should be questioned and executed. Kelnoir argues for Greydal’s life: “We are not the Empire. We do not share their values.”
• Ready to head out, Sif tries to contact Eva: no response. Knowing that Lerketh is actively moving about on Dathomir, the party begins to worry about Eva. They sense, vaguely, that all the events of the last few hours might be related.
• Now their only means of transport is the walker; they head to the Bloodsparrow. Along the way, Tyrus hacks and reads Greydal’s datapad, piecing together the Wookie’s involvement with Lerketh over the last few weeks. Tyrus notes that Lt. Tragen is responsible for Greydal’s pursuit.
• Back at the Bloodsparrow, the party sees that the loading bay ramp is down on the ship. Sif sneaks forward and looks for tracks, noting the evidence of a humanoid male, a humanoid female, and a speeder bike. The speeder bike tracks head away from the Imperial base. The human male’s tracks lead away into the woods, heading toward the base.
• Sif and Kelnoir creep inside the ship. They note ion blaster fire marks all over the droid. Nothing is damaged, but the ship’s interior looks like it was searched. Kelnoir notes that the Sith sword is gone and Sif finds Lerketh’s note. Sif tries to speak to Lerketh directly, calling her on Eva’s missing comlink: no answer. (Lerketh simply listens, knowing the time is not right.)
• Tyrus, displaying the loyalty of a good military squad mate, said: “I won’t leave this planet without Eva.” He flies the Bloodsparrow back to the canyon. Sif trudges along in the AT-ST, returning a few hours later.
• There is a brief argument about trading the holocron for Eva. Sif: “Lerketh really hasn’t done anything to us. It would be worth it to give her this thing for Eva.” Kelnoir (angrily): “You do not know these people…you don’t know what they are.”
• At the canyon, Kelnoir talks with Cohdal and Tyrus talks to Reen for a while before initiating repairs on the damaged walker’s hatch.
• Kelnoir tells Kell about Greydal and turns the Wookie over the Witches.
• Reunited and rested, the party heads toward Greydal’s ship. From studying his datapad, they know the ship’s sunken location and they suspect that Jee Ann Mosa is on board, imprisoned.
• While the party is away, Kell studies Greydal, using the Force, then slays him and has him tied him out in the canyon, over the temple entrance.
• Once they’ve located Greydal’s ship out at the edge of the bog, the party prepares to enter. Bubbles rise from the murky waters and nearby trees look like they’ve been smashed by the ship’s slow descent. Sif dons her breather, then swims down to the ship and finds Jee Ann. She is badly shaken, but physically unscathed; she doesn’t have a single bruise. Sif pilots the ship up out of the water and onto the rock shelf nearby.
• Greydal’s ship—the Rakk’toor—is a small, modified Mon Calamari security transport, made for use in space and on aquatic worlds.
• The party returns to the Great Canyon with all haste. When they near the temple, they see Greydal’s corpse, staked out over the entry. They leave Jee Ann with Kell for restoration, then spend the night in the Bloodsparrow. The next morning, they spend time talking to Jee Ann Mosa, then leave in the AT-ST for the Nightsister territory.
• The party is ambushed twice by the Nightsisters, once in the forest and once at a ritual site, where one of the Nightsisters created an illusion of the walker. Signal runners are dispatched during each battle, sent back to Beya’s stronghold in order to alert Lerketh, who is nearby. Both times, the AT-ST takes significant damage from Force-imbued flint shards and from dark side Force lightning. In the battle at the ritual site, Kelnoir suffers a major blow from a long, serrated sword made ivory. His lightsaber blade is extinguished and he drops to the ground, dying. Sif and Tyrus are just barely able to finish off the Nightsisters and stabilize the Padawan learner with a medkit before his death. They get him back into walker and—covered in sweat, mud and Kelnoir’s blood—they decide to abort the mission to rescue Eva.
• As they move out, Lerketh contacts them over Eva’s comlink. (Lerketh knows that she is closer than she will ever be to the holocron, on a low-tech world, surrounded by Force-sensitive warrior women allies, holding a hostage dear to the party, while they are in a state of dire emergency. She also notes that, because she has been careful, she has done nothing overtly harmful to them; they might listen.)
• Tactical notes: Lerketh will happily sacrifice Greydal, the Imperials or the Nightsisters in her bid to gain the holocron. Lerketh will offer Eva’s life in exchange for the holocron. She will make every effort to accost Kelnoir when combat is not a wise option for him: When the party is surrounded, imprisoned or under attack; when she has a blade to Eva’s or Jee Ann’s throat; when they are badly wounded and exhausted. She will simply ask for the holocron. In combat, Lerketh will use the Force, her naginata, a holdout blaster pistol and frag grenades. If she acquires the Sith sword, she will use it immediately, having trained extensively with the weapon under the Emperor’s servants. Lerketh can use Lucky once per day (for a re-roll) and Heroic Surge three times per day (for an additional move or attack action). If badly wounded, she will use Burst of Speed (or Burst of Speed followed by Heroic Surge) to escape.
• Lerketh says to Sif: “You have what I need and I would offer a trade: Your friend is still alive.” Sif talks for a while, then asks to speak to Eva. During the entire parley, Lerketh is firm but polite. “I am not what you think…I have no love for the Imperials. I must have this device, or my life is forfeit.” Pressed to talk, Lerketh admits (partially as a form of manipulation, partially seeking empathy): “I was born into slavery on Eriadu. Kadann is balanced in his use of the Force, halfway between the light and the dark. I must serve my master, the man who has treated me more kindly than even my own father and mother.” Lerketh does make it clear that the party should not force her hand; if they try to leave, she will order the Nightsisters to attack, and will aid them if needed. (If this occurs, the Warchief will show up a short time later, with rancors. The players are in a very tight spot.)
• After talking to Lerketh and discussing the matter with each other, Sif and Tyrus decide to trade the holocron for Eva. Tyrus climbs outside, sets the holocron on a rock and Sif trains the AT-ST’s guns on the spot. Lerketh and four of the Nightsisters bring Eva out, tied to a long pole. (Mi’ehla is with this group.) Tyrus approaches to verify that Eva is alive and herself. In negotiating all this, Tyrus calls himself a member of the Rebellion for the first time. Lerketh continues to talk, trying to convince the party that she is not their enemy. Once Eva is free, Tyrus takes her back to the walker.
• As they are about to leave, Sif, Tyrus and Eva see Lerketh draw the holocron to her hand. As Cohdal appears, his true form is revealed.
• Notes: In a display of arrogance (and with the desire to elicit rage), Cohdal will reveal himself if he falls into the hands of Lerketh or the Warchief. When the Sith imprint manifests above the holocron, he will take in his surroundings, the gold light will deepen to blood red, and the crustacean form will grow many times in size. Cohdal—in his truer form—will appear bloated and horrible: a menacing, bullying figure. He will gloat: “I am an imprint of Cohdal, a devotee of the ancient Sith practices. This holocron will make you powerful; stored within are blueprints for weapons and ships, for the secrets of Sith sorcery. I can show you rituals that will allow you to channel the true spirit of Cohdal. The young Jedi is a fool…easily manipulated. The Force is strong within him, but he has no master and will fall to the dark side. Let him live and he will eventually serve us.” Cohdal will also promise to reveal everything the Rebels have told them: “From what I have learned, this holocron sat dormant for centuries. I have learned much in my time aboard the Bloodsparrow. We have great work to do.”
• Lerketh had planned on leaving immediately, stalking off into the woods, turning her back on the Nightsisters, Greydal and everything else on Dathomir. She normally would have called down her ship and within minutes would have been headed at light speed for the Sith Keep. However, intrigued with Beya and Mi’ehla, she stays for the night. By firelight, the three women privately feast, dance, share secrets and commune with the Sith holocron until late into the night. It is a rare moment of abandon for Lerketh. She leaves at dawn, with Beya and Mi’ehla sleeping on a pile of furs. Lerketh now has the Sith sword and the holocron; her confidence has grown and with the breaking of the Rule of Two, she will grow powerful. Lerketh takes her ship and returns to the Sith Keep. (Lerketh must decide whether to turn the holocron over to Cohdal or keep it a secret.)
• Back at the Great Canyon, Kelnoir is healed. He now has a dark side point as a result of the corrupted teachings of Cohdal.
• The original party is finally completely re-united and discusses the many things from within the temple of the Witches. Sif is creeped out by Cohdal and by the fact that such an ugly thing was with them on board the Bloodsparrow. Sif asks: “How did Beya get so powerful?” (The answer lies within the extraordinary adventure that Beya and Mi’ehla had within the ruins of the Chu’Unthor.) Jee Ann cries over Alderaan and eventually suggests: “When we leave here, we should go to Yavin IV; there is a Rebel base there.” Kelnoir admits that he told Cohdal everything. Knowing the importance of the Jedi Archive, the young Jedi knows that unless the party finishes its mission, the Empire (and the Sith) will crush this world. “Kadann is coming; he will know if the Jedi Archive is here and he will stop at nothing to take it.” Lerketh has been nice enough to convince Sif that she might eventually be an ally. (And, truthfully, Lerketh might be turned. This will hinge upon Kelnoir’s compassion and the party’s attitude toward her in the future.)
• Eva suggests hooking the AT-ST up to the YT-2400, hauling it to the Warchief’s tree stronghold, and dropping it for the attack. Everyone loves the idea. The party rests for a night.
• Note: Any fight with the Nightsisters will feature Force-wielding warrior women and rancors. (The males will secure the children and flee.) Warchief Beya will fight confidently with her skull mace, then use Force flight to get away if threatened. She was the ally of Captain Julienne and hates the party hotly. Beya’s closest ally (Mi’ehla) once served under Kell and speaks Basic. If the Nightsisters manage to subdue the party, they will examine their belongings, set aside anything Force-related and summon the Warchief. If Bala or Reen are with the party, the Nightsisters will feed them to a rancor. Once Lerketh has made contact with the Warchief, Beya’s servant will warn Lerketh by (borrowed) comlink of any party movements or activities.
• After a day of engineering, the Bloodsparrow is ready to transport the walker and to carry it (folded) in the cargo hold later.
• Eva pilots the ship over the forest, with Sif, Tyrus and Kelnoir riding in the walker below. The walker sets down, the cables break free and the battle begins. Overhead, the Bloodsparrow’s guns circle the tribal grounds, raining down fire. The AT-ST begins to burn the massive dead tree beneath which the Warchief makes her home. Nightsisters emerge from the tree and from the nearby caves; some begin aligning rancors for a counter-attack. After several minutes of destruction, the area is a burning, smoking wreck.
• Kelnoir emerges from the walker and finds the tunnel network beneath the tree. The party enters—with Eva flying guard above the walker—and searches for the Warchief. In the grand cave, surrounding a massive fire pit, the final battle occurs. Nightsisters attack, using the Force and archaic weapons. From above, Beya uses the dark side of the Force to enhance the strength of her minions. She wraps Sif in an illusionary version of the Warchief’s own form and Kelnoir attacks his ally, wounding her badly. Sif fires several accurate shots up at the Warchief, inflicting significant damage. Beya almost runs, but sees that the party is wounded and merely consists of one woman and two men. (Men, in her mind, are inferior.) As the others fight the Nightsisters, Beya partially crushes Sif’s heart with the Force, then flies down into the fight. An instant later, Kelnoir cuts her down with his lightsaber.
• If Warchief Beya falls and the Empire is thwarted, the Witches will attack and will regain control. Mintinee is more progressive and wants to grant males some higher status, still second to females. If the players do topple the Nightsisters, Kell will give them the Jedi archive in a long leather shoulder quiver. The archive is priceless and will change the course of the galaxy. Currently, the Jedi archive crystals have been woven into a mobile. The crystals hang from Force-imbued strings and cast prismatic light around in the chamber of Kell, the leader of the Great Canyon Clan.
• Kelnoir cuts Beya’s dark side mace into pieces with his lightsaber and takes her sheer might talisman.
• The party hooks the walker back up to the Bloodsparrow and heads back to the canyon.
• Sif drags the Warchief into the temple, slung over her shoulders. Holding Beya's beautiful face in her gnarled hands, Kell regards the young girl's corpse with some sympathy and some disdain, then talks to the party at length: “My time is nearly past.” Kell reaches into the air and the crystals from her mobile begin to float down. These are encoded sections of the Jedi Archive. The Witches put the crystals into a massive leather quiver and Kell passes it to Kelnoir. “Yoda’s wisdom is now yours.”
• Kelnoir drives his lightsaber through the sheer mite talisman, destroying this dark side artifact and the priceless Jedi crystal within it.
• Outside, Tyrus and Eva slave the Rakk’toor to the Bloodsparrow and prep for take off. Tyrus: “I want to get the hell off this planet.”
• Once they have completed their conversation with Kell, Kelnoir and Sif leave the temple, carrying the Witches’ quiver. The party talks to Reen one last time, then they all enter the YT-2400.
• Eva takes off, slowly pulling away from the world below. The darkness of space drops over the crew and passengers, giving them a comforting feeling; they are moving from a wild, uncivilized place back toward galactic civilization. The computers on Greydal’s ship keep it in lock-step with Eva’s as both craft make the jump to light speed.
• On the Bloodsparrow, Kelnoir experiences a premonition about Yavin, knowing that his destiny is tied to this system. “You keep seeing Yavin, a massive gas giant world. There is a mighty current within the Force, leading you there. You see a space battle around Yavin and a Rebel base hidden on a moon within the system. Then you see the Death Star. And you know that you and the others should be in the Yavin system as soon as possible. You know that you have a critical role to play, but cannot see it with any precision. You only know that you must avoid the Rebel base, avoid the space battle and avoid the Death Star; you know that you must find the Seeker.”
• In the days that followed the Bloodsparrow’s departure from Dathomir, the Witches begin to purge the remaining Nightsisters; the Witches take in any men or children not already corrupted by the dark side. Mi’ehla hides alone in the empty remains of the Imperial prison during this time, meditating on Cohdal, using her Sith Sorcery to channel the ancient spirit itself, not merely the holocron imprint. (Note: Here, as she levels, Mi’ehla gains two levels in the Sith Acolyte prestige class; she is the first dark sider to channel Cohdal. Previously, Mi’ehla had seen other Nightsisters use Sith Sorcery to channel the spirits of her long-dead dark side ancestors.) Shortly thereafter—with some of his new ISB strike force assembled—Captain Faldar Tragen lands at the prison, looking for clues as to the Rebels next destination. Mi’ehla and Tragen connect; she has no home and he offers her the chance to get revenge for her grief. Once off world, Mi’ehla adapts to galactic trade and travel quickly, though she is very quiet in situations where she is unsure of the local etiquette and she is uncomfortable with technology. (By the time Mi’ehla needs a new lightsaber power cell, she will have access to Imperial technicians and resources.) Mi’ehla was present when the Tyrus and Sif traded the Sith holocron for Eva Bloodsparrow, so she recognizes them on sight (but not Kelnoir). Her goal is to apprehend them and torture them for their actions against her.

Chronology Event: The Battle of Yavin

Campaign Scenario: Kadann’s Vision (08/30/04)

Pivotal movements in the shadow of Yavin.

• Months earlier, Kadann told the Emperor of a troubling vision: “Yavin will play a key role in events to come, but I cannot see whether we should interfere, my master. Any error here could be disastrous…”
• The Emperor orders one of the Dark Prophets, Argin, to move his ship into the Yavin system, with strict orders not to engage anyone found there. “This place is strong with the Force; once Naga Sadow had a temple there. Go to the Yavin system. Sit and watch. Stay silent, hidden, my young Twi’lek friend.”
• Argin’s ship, the Seeker, is built into an asteroid. It is virtually undetectable, appearing to be a completely natural asteroid. (Lots of design effort has gone into stealth.) For months after Palpatine’s order, the Seeker sits in the Yavin system.
• When they hear that the Millennium Falcon is headed to Yavin, the Emperor and Kadann know that moving Argin there was wise. After the death of Obi-Wan Kenobi on board the Death Star, the Emperor feels that he and Vader are moving in for the kill, that in accordance with Kadann’s vision, they are about to witness the final destruction of the Rebel Alliance. Kenobi’s sudden appearance, however, is troubling; the involvement of the Jedi was unforeseen.
• The Emperor tells Argin: “A battle is coming…a pivotal time in the Galaxy. Your goal, in accordance with Kadann’s vision, is to isolate any Force users attacking the Death Star; use your abilities to hurt them, to keep them ineffective in the fight against the Rebels until we can destroy their base. If you succeed, the Rebels will be crushed.”

• During the Battle of Yavin, the Dark Prophet Argin will remain hidden, as ordered, watching and waiting. When he detects Luke Skywalker and the Force spirit of Obi-wan Kenobi, Argin will use his Black Chair to suppress Luke’s connection with the Force. Unless the players can destroy or interrupt Argin’s efforts, Luke Skywalker will fail, the Rebel base at Yavin will be destroyed and Princess Leia will die. (If this occurs, the campaign will deviate from the primary Star Wars chronology.)
• The party’s goal: Destroy Argin (and the throne), allowing Luke and Kenobi to destroy the Death Star.
• As the Bloodsparrow enters the Yavin system, the Imperial fleet has not yet arrived (but they are coming). The Rebels seem to be preparing for conflict.
• Yavin is a gas giant. Jee Ann: “The Rebel base is on one of the moons, Yavin IV.” She briefly confers with the Rebel base over a secure channel, using the ship’s communications system.
• At this point, Kelnoir feels a surge in the Force. Entering the system, Kelnoir knows their destiny lies within the Seeker; not on the moon of Yavin IV, not in the space battle. He knows that the party has a critical role to play there. Kelnoir is drawn toward a large oblong asteroid. It is made of black shards of icy, stratified stone. In places, large chunks have been torn away. Argin’s ship was carved from the center of this asteroid. The Seeker is naturally camouflaged, but it is also practically invisible to scanners. However, to Kelnoir’s sensitivities, it shows up like a faint beacon; it is a murmur in the Force.
• Eva heads toward Yavin IV until otherwise instructed. When Kelnoir halts and redirects her, Eva comments: “There’s nothing there…just some rock.” Once the Bloodsparrow is closer, she says, “Wait…there’s a low-powered landing beacon down in that crater.” After a minute, scanners show that there is a mostly hidden defense system built into the asteroid. When asked to land, Eva says: “Without clearance, they’ll blast us to pieces.”
• Jee Ann Mosa reveals that she has a very valuable, high level Imperial clearance code, received from Bail Organna, a week earlier. “This is a costly resource; it is a special operative code that I intended to use if we needed to set down on the Death Star. It should allow us to land.”
• On the Seeker, there is a medium-sized landing pad down within a crater. The landing system is mostly automated. “YT-2400 transport, your code is cleared; I will meet you in the docking bay.”
• Once the party emerges from the Bloodsparrow, an officer meets them in the hangar. Several stormtroopers hold a formation some 10 meters back and the Elite Guard are posted at the entry to the engine room. The officer approaches: “I am Major G’thar. Your security clearance code was good, but we are not expecting any shipments or couriers. What is the nature of your business on board the Seeker?”
• Through a combination of lies and Jedi mind tricks, the party co-opts Major G’thar. He reveals a great deal about the Seeker and agrees not to log the Bloodsparrow’s arrival. Also, he orders some techs to refuel and restock the YT-2400.
• The Seeker is divided into two sections: Imperial Operations Sector and Omega Restricted Sector. Imperial Operations Sector is staffed with stormtroopers, a few officers and technicians. These personnel are under orders of death to avoid entering or disturbing Omega Restricted Sector.
• Seeker Stormtrooper: Init +1; Def 12; DR 5; VP/WP: 0/15; Atk (range) +4 (3d6/19-20, blaster pistol); SV Fort +5, Ref +1, Will +1.
• Seeker Hangar and Power Center: The hangar is huge, filled with tech bays. A massive blast door leads into the power center, where the ship’s engines and stealth generator are located. At all times, in the hangar and power center, there are several techs and at least one (maintenance) droid working.
• An old ship—a heavily modified Sienar Systems Courier—sits on one of the docking pads inside. (Tyrus makes a DC 15 check to recognize the ship type, manufacturer and age.) This is actually a Sith Infiltrator (assigned to Cart’an and owned 40 years before by Darth Maul). (Start of game: Cart’an is on board his ship.)
• In several spots, a sign posts: “Imperial Operations Sector.”
• Seeker Command Deck: A number of officers and techs work here, performing astrogation, maintaining the stealth field and generally keeping the ship running. At any given time, there are two stormtroopers here.
• Hallway One (Imperial Operations Sector): Guarded by 4 stormtroopers. At the end, there is a turbo lift leading up. In this area, there is a single restricted access sign, warning of lethal force. “Omega Restricted Sector: Under no circumstances are any unauthorized personnel allowed beyond this point.”
• Seeker Crew Quarters: This area houses the stormtroopers and officers who are assigned to the Seeker. Bunk rooms, officers’ quarters, dining tables, officers’ mess, weight benches, showers, small equipment repair area.

• Eva’s Gambit: If still on the Bloodsparrow, Eva can—after studying the Keep for a while—attack a delicate atmospheric processor, causing a brief drop in air pressure within the Seeker and causing all airlocks and doors to seal shut. Busy with refueling and restocking, she never does this...
• After a brief tour, the party rests with the crew quarters, surrounded by half dressed stormtroopers. While there, Tyrus sliced the computer system and looked through cameras around the ship, gathering intelligence.
• Tyrus creates a 5 minute loop for the camera looking at the turbo lift leading to Omega Restricted Sector. (A tech begins investigating, but fails to find traces of Tyrus' tampering.) The party heads to the turbo lift. They stun two elite guards. Kelnoir disables the turbo lift and the party and strips them, then hides the bodies in a hatch above the elevator housing. With Sif and Tyrus dressed as Elite Guards (using only the red cloaks and masks), the party ascends, leaving the Imperial Ops Sector.

• Hallway Two (Omega Restricted Sector): Guarded by 2 Elite Guard. Turbo lift down connects Omega Restricted Sector to Imperial Operations Sector.
• Omega Restricted Sector is populated by Imperial consorts, a pack of Sith hounds, the Emperor’s Elite Guard, Cart’an (a member of the Emperor’s Hand, temporarily quartered there) and Tishooc, head of the Elite Guard. The Elite Guard move throughout the entire ship.
• Sith Hound: Init +7; Def 13; VP/WP: 20/12; Atk (melee) +7 (1d8+2, bite); SQ: Darkvision; SV Fort +5, Ref +7, Will +2.
• Elite Guard: Init +5; Def 17; VP/WP: 40/15; Atk (melee) +8/+3 (2d6+2, force pike); Atk (range) +7/+2 (3d8/19-20, blaster rifle); SV Fort +6, Ref +3, Will +2.
• Seeker Elite Guard Quarters: A dour place, housing the Elite Guard and Captain Tishooc. Cart’an is also currently bedding here, with Tishooc. (Start of game: Tishooc is asleep, having spent a late night with Cart’an.)

• On the Omega Restricted Sector level, Kelnoir mind tricks two of the elite guards, sending them to the Imperial Ops level to stand guard.
• Seeing the crew quarters for the elite guard, Kelnoir begins rigging the door so that it will not open. This takes several tries and, during the time he is working on the door, Kelnoir’s actions attract a pair of the (intelligent) Sith Hounds.
• The hounds approach, growling, and Sif tries to intimidate them. When this fails, the hounds attack. During the battle, the elite guards hear the noise outside, realize they are trapped and call for aid. Two more guards come from the detention center and the remaining hounds follow, intrigued by the disturbance.
• Tyrus notes the hound pack’s approach and seals off nearby airlock doors, protecting the party temporarily. Later, the party opens the doors and continues the fight. Sif throws a well-placed grenade, wounding the elite guards and a number of the hounds. After all the fighting is over, two elite guards and eight Sith Hounds lay dead. Kelnoir is badly wounded. The party moves on, deeper into Omega Restricted Sector.

• Seeker Sith Hound Den: Once a garden, this place is now a fairly foul animal den. Window bubbles overhead look out at the stars.
• Seeker Detention: Two Elite Guards, medical droid, one officer, one captive.
• The captive within the detention center is Jeed Snowshadow: “You’re not Imperials…get me out of here. Argin is mad.” The party spends time with Jeed and he tells them: “They grabbed my ship and brought me into this detention center. Later, Captain Tischooc told me that my ship had been impounded.”
• The party frees Jeed, allowing him to acquire Elite Guard armor and weapons. After Sif presents his options in a partisan, but reasonable light, he accompanies them to Argin’s quarters. Jeed weighs Sif’s offer of temporarily joining forces against trying to sneak out, steal a ship and leave. (Otherwise, he would have stolen the Sith Infiltrator, forcing Cart’an to act differently.)
• If the party does not free Jeed and is about to leave, he will say: “Wait…I work for the Black Sun; I can pay you 10,000 credits to free me.” Jeed will quadruple this if needed, but this will put him into debt. If the players agree, Jeed will set up a rendezvous with them on some planet for payment. If the party does not free Jeed, he will be released when the Seeker’s power starts to fail. This will give him 5 minutes to get to the hangar; if there is no ship there, he will die. (The party freed him, so none of this occurred...)
• Tyrus slices the detention center computer and learns of Jeed’s ties to the Black Sun.
• The party interacts some with the Imperial officer assigned to the detention center, finally locking him in a cell. (He later dies when the ship explodes.)
• Sif finds the medical droid in one of the rooms attached to the cellblock. Kelnoir recovers some of his health.
• Accompanied by Jeed, who is now potently armed and armored, the party enters Argin’s chambers. These areas are dimly light; the Twi’lek’s eyes are better than human.
• Argin’s Quarters (Lower Level): Entry, Dining Room, Pool 01 and 02 (connected by aquatic passage), Cushioned Lounge, Nude Twi’lek Statue.
• Argin’s Quarters (Upper Level): Black Chair, Bed Chambers, Technical Center, Holonet Communications Room.
• Within Argin’s quarters, there are three Imperial consorts: Twi’lek, Zabrak and Human. Tyrus and Kelnoir made pot checks (DC 15) to notice that the tattoos on the Imperial consorts match Eva’s.
• Tyrus makes a technical skill check (DC 15 Repair) that indicates that this area has a separate computer node.

• The Black Chair: Argin can sit within a massive throne composed of delicate crystalline parts, channeling the dark side of the Force for use in the Battle of Yavin. From this throne, he can sense and target light side Force users, using a Force feat that is similar to, but opposite, Battle Meditation.

• As the players approach, Argin is seated in the Black Chair. He is a male Twi’lek, young and sinewy; he looks athletic and wears dramatic black clothing, including gauntlets, beneath a cloak that resembles clusters of star against the blackness of space. Argin is communicating with a holographic representation of Kadann: “Yes, Argin, I feel you are correct: This is the one Lord Vader spoke of…the boy. He is the one the Emperor has foreseen and he is your target. Focus on him, use the Black Chair to interfere with his connection to the Force. Lord Vader will want the boy…once the Death Star has fired, track him…bring in his fighter craft. I will contact you when the battle is over and Yavin IV has been destroyed.”
• Upon seeing the party, Argin rises, standing next to the chair. He maintains this position, talking to them, but at the first sign of conflict, he activates the force field around his black chair. (Force field: DR 9.)
• Deactivating the force field around the Black Chair requires a DC 30 Computer Use check. (Alternately, Kelnoir can attempt to use Affect Mind and order Argin to shut it off.)
• Argin has three personal Sith hounds with him at all times. Unless the party attacks, he will give them the order to stay. The hounds will pace about and growl.
• Combat Notes (Dark Prophet Argin): Heroic Surge, Force Weapon Readiness, Force Strike, Affect Mind, Spear.
• Force Awareness Notes: Argin will use combinations of Farseeing, Telepathy and Empathy during the battle. “You must be Kelnoir. You seek to become a Jedi, but the Dark Prophets have not foreseen this. Why is that, I wonder?” Additionally, given time, Argin will ask about Dathomir: “Kelnoir...I saw a report that said you might be on Dathomir. A strange place to visit. Ah, yes…you know Lerketh! She has crossed your path. What’s this? You found something important there with the Witches. What was it?”
• Sif sneaks near and takes Argin’s spear. This has major ramifications on the battle ahead. The party fights Argin, first killing off his Sith Hounds. Argin uses dark side Force powers several times. Only near the end of the battle does he regain his spear. After Tyrus deactivates his personal force field, Argin is killed. (Jeed is involved, taking down two of the Sith Hounds and badly wounding Argin.)

• Upon Argin’s death, he says: “How could we have not foreseen this?”

• When Argin is killed, the asteroid ship will lock out the main controls and begin a build up to self destruction (20 minutes).
• Jeed tells the party that someone named Cart’an is making an announcement over the PA to the elite guard and is about to stage a rescue. (The party can infer from this that Cart’an can move freely from Imperial Ops to Omega Restricted Sector.)
• Sif and Jeed race down below, toward the elite guard quarters, arriving just in time to stop Cart’an. As Sif sets up to attack him when he goes for the door, Cart’an makes a pivotal decision: He realizes that the ship will self destruct in 15 minutes, that the party powerful enough to have staged a raid and survived and that he will likely die if Sif opens up with both blasters. (Jeed is also visible in the near distance, with a blaster rifle, and Cart’an knows that Jeed is a noteworthy bounty hunter.) Cart’an decides that the situation is too risky. He looks into the window of the elite guard quarters, where the athletic blond Captain Tishooc—his lover—is trapped, and says, “Zanya, I’m sorry.” Then Cart’an steps back through the turbo lift and makes his way to the hangar. (He leaves the ship on board his Sith Infiltrator.
• As a note, Cart’an failed to spot Sif’s Imperial Elite Guard tattoo. However, he will now recognize Sif and Jeed.
• Kelnoir strips Argin, taking his clothing and destroying his Sith gear. Then Kelnoir destroys the Black Chair.

• On the Seeker, within Argin’s personal computer node, there are several pieces of valuable information. (A DC 30 computer use skill check is required to access these files.) Tyrus copies this data down and reviews it later, on board the Bloodsparrow.
• Dragging along Argin’s consorts (a Twi’lek, a Zabrak and a human), the party races out of Argin’s chambers. Passing the detention center, Tyrus slaps a restraining bolt on the medical droid and commands it to follow. They reach the hangar, where 20 Imperial personnel have surrounded the Bloodsparrow. After talking to Tyrus, Eva calls out over the ship’s broadcast system: “Lay down your weapons and armor; we will evacuate you.” Tyrus yells at Major G’thar, reiterating this command. Soon the party (and Jeed) have packed 20 disarmed and half-naked Imperials into the Bloodsparrow, using Greydal’s ship for additional storage. (Tyrus watches the computer to ensure that no one steals the Rakk’toor.)
• Jeed considers stealing the Wookie ship, but noting Tyrus’ defensive measures and seeing that he is in no danger, he waits instead.
• With less than 5 minutes to go, the Bloodsparrow takes off, leaving a number of Imperials behind to die on the Seeker, including Captain Zanya Tishooc. As the YT-2400 clears the Seeker, the Death Star goes off like a supernova on the other side of the Yavin system; the party has successfully allowed Luke Skywalker—assisted by the Jedi spirit of Obi-wan Kenobi—to destroy the most powerful Imperial weapon ever devised.
• Eva heads for Yavin IV and, after Jee Ann Mosa provides clearance, the ship lands at the primary Rebel base.
• The Imperial prisoners are turned over, Jee Ann heads off to brief Rebel command, and the party celebrates the victory. Later, they attend the ceremony for the “Heroes of Yavin,” standing all but hidden within the crowd. Jee Ann approaches each one of them, including Eva, and whispers with a smile: “You made this possible…you are the hidden weapon that allowed the Alliance to destroy the Death Star. Be proud and remember that a low profile can be a tactical advantage, especially in these times and especially when your enemy is powerful.”
• Seeker Computer Records (Black Sun): There is a record (approximately 30 years old) related to the Black Sun. The recordings were pieced together from the Imperial Palace at Coruscant, a trio of Dark-eye Probe Droids and security systems within the Black Sun bases, forming a narrative record of Darth Sidious and Darth Maul crippling the Black Sun Syndicate in its form during the Rise of the Empire. This record seems to indicate that Darth Sidious and Emperor Palpatine are the same person, and indicates that the Sith were responsible for the Jedi purge. It also provides basic information about the Black Sun Syndicate; the specific Black Sun members in the recordings—including a Nightsister of Dathomir—are dead, but clues about the structure and nature of the organization still hold true. (See Darth Maul comic.)
• Seeker Computer Records (Tishooc): Head of the Elite Guard on the Seeker, Captain Tishooc believes in the Empire with her entire being. She was originally the daughter of a petty bureaucrat on the planet of Roon, living in poor conditions. Once her father became an Imperial officer, Tishooc’s life changed dramatic. Suddenly, she had the best of everything: the finest schools, a place on the Imperial fencing youth team, aristocratic parties, handsome young suitors and off-world holidays. She intended to follow in her father’s footsteps. However, the anger within her drove her toward a more militaristic end. She eventually applied for Elite Guard training and, possessing the right combination of loyalty, combat prowess and discipline, she rose in the ranks quickly.
• Seeker Computer Records (Kadann): There are a few separate recordings of recent communications from Kadann, communicating his orders to Argin. The party can discern Kadann’s relationship to the Emperor and to the other Dark Prophets, Kadann’s vision about Yavin and that Lerketh has been at odds with Kadann and Argin in recent months.
• Seeker Computer Records (Vader): There is also a fairly stern message, sent a few hours earlier from Lord Darth Vader, “Once we are through with the Rebels, we will turn our attention to the Black Sun Syndicate. We will finish what Maul began. As cleanup operations commence within the Yavin system, you will come to Coruscant.”
• In the days that follow the Battle of Yavin, the Rebels quickly pack up to leave; they will soon settle at a new location, the coordinates of which are only known to high ranking Rebel officers.
• Jeed Snowshadow hangs out with the party, mostly comfortable around Sif. Occasionally, he gets drunk with one of the Imperial consorts, rescued from the Seeker. (Everyone notes that Eva seems uncomfortable around the these women.)
• Sif decides to keep Greydal’s ship, the modified Mon Calimari security vessel that the Wookie called the Rakk’toor. (After some retrofitting, the ship has only one holding cell, only has cargo space for personal effects, but has flight seats for two pilots and four passengers.)
• The Rebellion enthusiastically offers to buy the AT-ST walker and the medical droid. (And they need them.) Offered price: 30,000 credits total for both. (As a scoundrel, Kelnoir can get a better deal; as a Jedi he might not want to...)
• Every time someone tries to bring up the Black Sun, Jeed finds a way to dodge the question. He has no interest in traveling with the Alliance, though, and wants transport with the Bloodsparrow. “Drop me off in the next place I can earn some credits."

• Jee Ann Mosa offers to take the Jedi Archive crystals, but Kelnoir opts to keep them on board the Bloodsparrow (hidden in the smuggling compartment).

• Jee Ann is going to travel with the Rebels, but promises to contact the party soon, once the new Alliance base is established. She also asks the party to complete Bail's mission in the coming months: find an undeveloped world to deposit the communications gear and support droids (still stored in a narrow cargo space on the Bloodsparrow). 
• Just before the Rebel Fleet leaves for Hoth, Eva lifts off in the Bloodsparrow, moving the party along in whatever will shape up as their next major undertaking. Yavin IV falls below, an ancient jungle world.