Mandalorians
The Mandalorians—known in Mando'a as the Mando'ade, or "Children of Mandalore"—were a nomadic group of clan-based people consisting of members from multiple species and multiple genders, all bound by a common culture.
In their early years, Mandalorian culture revolved around combat, with war being a source of honor and pride in their community. The leader of the Mandalorians was known as the Mand'alor, translating to "Sole Ruler" and was rendered as "Mandalore" in Basic. Throughout their history, the Mandalorians were frequently allied with the Sith, perhaps most notably the Sith Lord Exar Kun, and held a certain distrust and general dislike for the Jedi Order. However, they would not hesitate to cooperate with the Jedi if a partnership between the two groups was mutually beneficial. In later years, the Mandalorians moved away from their obsessively war-like and conqueror ways and instead, most became bounty hunters and mercenaries, selling their skills to various individuals and factions in the galaxy.
History
Early History
"Mandalorians believe confrontation is required for growth, on the personal as well as the cultural level. War is the Mandalorian way of life." ―Jedi Master Gnost-Dural —The Mandalorians began as the humanoid Taung species from the planet Coruscant. Intense fighting with the thirteen Human nations of Coruscant known as the Battalions of Zhell began millennia before the Republic, and when a powerful volcano nearly wiped out the humans and darkened the skies over Coruscant, the Taung came to call themselves the Dha Werda Verda—the "Warriors of the Shadow". Despite the volcano's devastating effect, the Taung were eventually driven off Coruscant and took refuge on the world of Roon. Led by the warlord known as Mandalore the First, they would conquer another planet in the Outer Rim in 6964 BrS, which they named Mandalore after their leader. The Taung took on the name Mandalorians and were seen by many as the most skilled fighters in the galaxy, thriving in battle. These Mandalorian Crusaders were known for their use of cutting-edge weaponry and held to a strict code of honor, and wore armor known simply as "Crusader Armor" that differed from one soldier to the next. For thousands of years, Mandalore's new inhabitants would not stray far from the Mandalore sector, instead of venturing on a series of further conquests to capture the worlds of Ordo, Gargon, and Shogun. When the Mandalorians came to the nearby Mandallia, though, the Mandallian Giant natives not only repelled the invaders' assault, but many came to join the Mandalorian culture, having impressed the Mandalorians with their strength and prowess. But nearly three thousand years after Mandalore's conquest, at a point prior to 3964 BrS, the Mandalorians began to expand their ongoing crusade outward and engaged the Nevoota species in a conflict that would lead to the extermination of the Nevoota and the deification of war in the Mandalorian culture, personified as the destroyer god, Kad Ha'rangir. Shortly before 3964 BrS, the Mandalorians were led by a new Mand'alor, Mandalore the Indomitable, and in their continuing campaign of expansion, the Mand'alor led a raid on the planet Iskadrell. There, the Mandalorians freed the slaves of the Iskalloni, taking many of them into their culture, including a young Antos Wyrick. Another victim of the Mandalorian crusade was the planet Basilisk. As the Mandalorians invaded, the Galactic Republic sent a relief force, under the command of Jedi Master Sidrona Diath, to the aid of the Basiliskans. Even with Republic support, the Basiliskans found their lines being overrun by the more numerous Mandalorians, and upon realizing that they were going to lose the battle, the Basiliskans decided to poison their planet so that the conquerors would not be able to use the world. Basilisk fell, but because the planet's surface was virtually destroyed, the Mandalorians decided to abandon the world and move on, though not before pillaging a sizable number of Basilisk war droids for future use. The Mandalorians also captured a large number of the reptilian Basiliskans, and through centuries of warfare they degenerated into little more than war mounts and beasts of burden, becoming known as "Lagartoz War Dragons".
The Great Sith War
"My warriors need another crusade. The Empress Teta system is in chaos, overstretched by their many conquests. The witch Aleema and her Jedi devotee Ulic Qel-Droma will fall under the fist of Mandalore!" ―Mandalore the IndomitableSeeking further challenges, the Mandalorian Crusaders moved toward the Deep Core. Setting their sights on the Empress Teta system, the Mandalorians conquered the rocky world of Kuar and utilized the ruined underground cities as a staging ground for their attack on Empress Teta. When the Mandalorians destroyed a carbonite smelting station, it caught the attention of the fallen Jedi Knight-turned-Sith Lord Ulic Qel-Droma, who'd usurped control of the Krath forces in command of Empress Teta. Challenged to a duel by the Mand'alor, Qel-Droma traveled to Kuar where he faced off against Mandalore the Indomitable on the plains of Harkul. Despite the use of his Basilisk war droid, the Mand'alor was defeated, and in the duel's aftermath, swore fealty to Qel-Droma and his own Sith Master, Exar Kun. Thus was forged the first Mandalorian-Sith alliance, but while Mand'alor had accepted his defeat at the hands of Qel-Droma, several of his supporters had not, including the Zeltron Antos Wyrick; Mand'alor's defeat at the former Jedi's hands would drive Wyrick to try and unlock the mysteries of the Jedi's power and the secrets of the Force. Now allied with the Sith and Krath forces, the Mandalorian Crusaders joined in an attack on the Republic shipyards in orbit around Foerost. Mandalore the Indomitable led his warriors through the corridors of Foerost's command station, destroying all opposition before him. With the combined coordination of the space forces and the Mandalorians, Qel-Droma was able to quickly and decisively capture the Foerost shipyards, as well as the three hundred Republic starships that had been docked there. With their newly-acquired flotilla and the Republic fleet chasing false leads to the jump station at Kemplex IX, Qel-Droma and the Mandalorians invaded Coruscant. Basilisk war droids rained down on the planet from space, and the Mandalorian Crusaders poured into Galactic City. Qel-Droma was betrayed by the Krath witch Aleema Keto, who ordered a retreat of their forces and abandoning Qel-Droma to the Jedi; claiming the Sith Lord had died, Keto was able to sway Mandalore the Indomitable to pledge his loyalty to her. Upon finding out the truth of Keto's betrayal, the Mand'alor feigned loyalty and sent his Crusaders with her latest attack force while he boarded his shuttle and journeyed to Yavin 4 to seek the aid of Exar Kun. Arriving at the jungle moon, Mandalore explained to Kun what Aleema had done, and asked the Dark Lord of the Sith to lend him aid in rescuing Ulic from execution. Though Kun had warned Ulic that attacking Coruscant would end badly, he agreed to help Mandalore in rescuing his apprentice. Storming the Senate Building with Kun, Mand'alor rescued Qel-Droma and warned him of Keto's treachery. After Keto had been dealt with by Qel-Droma, Mandalore the Indomitable had been tasked with capturing the Iziz Royal Palace on Onderon for the Sith. Ordering his fleet carriers to hold the position in orbit over the planet, the Mandalorian Crusaders swarmed down atop their war droid mounts toward the city of Iziz. A vicious aerial battle ensued as the Crusaders and their Basilisks clashed against the Onderonian Beast Riders and their flying Drexls. During the fight, the Beast Riders managed to get a call out to the Republic, explaining that the Mandalorians were attacking and requesting immediate assistance. It wasn't long before a Republic fleet, led by Fleet Captain Orley Vanicus, arrived to combat the Crusader attack. Realizing that the fight was over when he witnessed the destruction of his orbiting fleet carriers, Mand'alor wagered that there was still a chance to lead his Crusaders to safety; ordering his warriors to retreat from Onderon and make their way to the moon of Dxun—the atmosphere of which was currently touching Onderon's—Mand'alor planned to lose their pursuers in the moon's dense jungle. During their retreat, Mand'alor's Basilisk war droid was hit by enemy fire and he crashed on the surface of Dxun, separated from the other Crusaders. Pulling himself from his war droid's wreckage, the Mand'alor soon found himself surrounded by several dangerous beasts native to Dxun's jungles. Though he fought the creatures, Mandalore the Indomitable was eventually overcome and slain by the beasts. While combing the jungles for their downed leader, a Mandalorian Crusader came upon the Mand'alor's mask and, under Mandalorian tradition, claimed the mask as his own to become the new Mand'alor.
The Mandalorian Wars
"The Sith came to us with an offer—to fight a worthy enemy in a battle that would be remembered forever." ―Canderous OrdoDuring the next twenty years, peace prevailed and the galaxy began to slowly recover from the damage inflicted during the war, entering an era of rebuilding and renewal known as the Restoration Period. On the Mandalorian side, the new Mand'alor—going by the title of "Mandalore the Ultimate"—undertook the task of rebuilding the Mandalorian clans that had been greatly diminished in the war. With many of the original Mandalorian species, the Taung, now dead, Mandalore the Ultimate aggressively expanded his recruiting efforts, welcoming members of all alien descent into the Mandalorian culture. To this end, the Mandalorians established bases such as Unity, constructed under the planetary crust of Caillte. While primarily built to serve as a forward supply post, under Feruun Lern it also became a recruitment center where numerous individuals were invited to learn the Mandalorian ways and become new Mandalorian warriors. As a result, the Mandalorian ranks swelled with an influx of warriors from countless worlds. To help cohesion and uphold order among the motley ranks, a new generation of more uniform armor was implemented at the suggestion of the Mand'alor's closest advisor, Cassus Fett, thus forming a powerful new generation of warriors known as the Neo-Crusaders. However, as many Mandalorians rebuilt, ten years after the end of the Great Sith War, dozens of Mandalorians were unjustly arrested and executed after a psychotic bounty hunter named Jigger Wraith preyed upon innocents using rare Mandalorian weaponry. At the same time, Antos Wyrick continued his research into the Jedi and the Force, constructing the New Generation Academy on Osadia where he attempted to form a sect of Force-using Mandalorians called the Mandalorian Knights. In a deal with the Crucible slave-trading organization, the ruthless Zeltron traded his own daughter for more test subjects. But the Crucible would return while Wyrick was away, raiding the school and capturing its students. His experiments ruined, Wyrick rejoined the Mandalorians under the pseudonym of "Doctor Demagol". In the decades since their defeat in the Great Sith War, many Mandalorians had become convinced that their once-prophesied "Great Last Battle" was soon to be at hand. Emboldened by an element of the "True Sith" in hiding, Mandalore the Ultimate launched a campaign into the Outer Rim, on the edge of Republic space. Conquering several independent planets outside of the Republic's interests, the Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders were able to amass a clan territory larger than that ruled by the Hutts in the short span of a decade. During this period of aggressive expansion, the Neo-Crusaders conquered the planet Cathar in an operation headed by Cassus Fett. Though already defeated, Fett herded what remained of the Cathar species after the battle, out into the sea and—although he was opposed by the outcry of a single Mandalorian female—gave the order to kill them all, and the Mandalorian traitor with them, as retribution for the Cathar's actions against the Mandalorians in the past. In the end, the Mandalorians had wiped out over ninety percent of the species. As the Republic refused to get involved in the Mandalorians' conquests, wary of being dragged into another war so soon after the last, the Mandalorians plundered resources from conquered worlds and stockpiled them to fuel the growing campaign. With each victory in this ongoing series of proxy wars and border skirmishes, the Mandalorian clans grew more powerful, conscripting conquered species into their ranks as they probed the Republic's military strength and resolve. Just as it appeared as though the Neo-Crusaders' appetite for conquest had been satisfied, with the Mandalorians having failed to conquer a populated system in over a year by 3928 BrS, the Mandalorians struck out in force against the Republic. Striking swiftly from their outpost on Dxun, Onderon quickly fell to the Mandalorians, and it wasn't long before the likes of Vanquo and Taris soon joined it. The victory on Suurja gained several Jedi prisoners that were taken to a research station on Flashpoint to be experimented on by Demagol. The Jedi would be freed, although Demagol managed to escape in the guise of the renegade Mandalorian known as Rohlan Dyre, leaving Dyre behind for capture in his stead. On the planet Serroco, the Republic military made the mistake of placing its defensive fortifications within the cities of the native Stereb, believing that the Mandalorians would not attack their bases housed amidst a civilian population. Unfortunately, the Mandalorians soon dissuades them of this notion; disgusted by what he deemed a "defense without honor", Mandalore the Ultimate ordered a full-scale bombardment with nuclear weapons, destroying twenty-seven population centers. Neither Duro or Eres III would fare much better in the face of the continuing Mandalorian onslaught. Lord Arkoh Adasca of Arkania and the head of Adascorp, offered to sell a devastating bioweapon to the Mandalorians in the form of the enormous exogorths, under the agreement that the Mandalorians would spare Arkania from their crusade and adopt Adascorp as their main weapon supplier. Before the Mand'alor could arrange the deal, the exogorths were drawn out to Wild Space by Gorman Vandrayk, where neither the Mandalorians nor the Republic would be able to use them. Setting their sights on Alderaan as the target of their next conquest, the Mandalorians amassed their forces on the recently conquered planet of Jebble. At the same time, Demagol's former assistant, Pulsipher, had come into possession of the ancient Sith amulet known as the Muur Talisman. With it, Pulsipher unknowingly unleashed the Rakghoul plague across their base, transforming Neo-Crusaders into the beastly Rakghouls. To prevent the spread of the plague to other worlds, Cassus Fett ordered the base on Jebble to be destroyed, ordering a nuclear bombardment, not unlike that which occurred on Serroco. The Mandalorians seemed on the verge of victory, with the Republic outmatched and overwhelmed by the sheer ferocity of the Mandalorian tactics. Finally, when the Jedi Revanchists unveiled the true events of the Cathar genocide in a tragic vision, hundreds of Jedi followed the Knights Revan and Malak into the war against the Mandalorians, no longer able to stand back and watch without action. Revan proved to be an extremely capable commander in the field, masterminding a string of military victories, and rose swiftly through the ranks of the Republic Military; with his new-found authority to spearhead the Republic war effort, Revan spurred the all-but-defeated Republic Navy to push the Mandalorians back. In relatively short order, the Mandalorians were forced off of Taris, driven from Dxun—even Cassus Fett's victory at Jaga's Cluster could do little to halt the Republic's growing momentum. The year 3924 BrS would usher in the ultimate battle of the Mandalorian Wars, as Revan forced a confrontation with the Mandalorians in orbit over Malachor V. Drawing upon the dark side energies of Malachor, Revan faced off against Mandalore the Ultimate in single combat, slaying the Mand'alor. The experimental superweapon known as the Mass Shadow Generator was activated by one of Revan's Jedi Generals, destroying the Mandalorian fleet, but at the cost of a significant amount of the Republic fleet as well. With their fleet in ruins and their leader dead, the Mandalorians transmitted their unconditional surrender.
The Dark Wars
"Times have changed now. The Mandalore clans have been scattered across the Outer Rim, the Republic is in decline and the Sith Empire raises to take its place. The clans act as if they aren't a threat, but the galaxy still fears us. Ha! People think we war out of spite, or bloodlust. They don't understand, and fear that." ―Canderous OrdoFollowing their defeat at the end of the Mandalorian Wars, Revan stripped the Mandalorians of their armor and destroyed their stockpiles of weaponry, along with the war droids they'd ridden into battle upon. He also took the mask of Mand'alor, the relic that had been passed from one Mand'alor to the next and without it, a new leader could not be declared. With no Mand'alor, the Mandalorian clans fragmented and scattered throughout the Outer Rim. Beaten and embittered, many of the scattered Mandalorians took up professions as bounty hunters and mercenaries to make a living. Known informally as Mandalorian Mercs, these Mandalorians sold their skills to the highest bidder with morality a distant second-thought to credits. Some, like Gorse Bendak, became gladiators on worlds such as Taris, and Geonosis. Worse still, others became pirates and bandits, troubling settlers on worlds such as Dantooine. But far too soon after the last, the galaxy found itself entangled in another war, one featuring Revan's return to the galactic scene as a newly-turned Sith Lord, with his apprentice, Darth Malak, at his side. The rechristened "Darth Revan" turned the galaxy on itself in his attempt to claim the power of the Rakatan artifact known as the Star Forge. Revan would be captured by the Jedi, however, and his memories of his days as a Sith erased. It was during the travels of this redeemed Revan, that he met the Mandalorian warrior by the name of Canderous Ordo. Ordo was a former Mandalorian Crusader who had survived the Great Sith War, joined the Neo-Crusader ranks as a battle tactician, and went on to become a mercenary following the end of the Mandalorian Wars. Tired of his mercenary life on Taris, Ordo traveled with Revan on his mission to stop Darth Malak and his Sith Empire, seeking greater battle worthy of his skill. During their travels, Ordo came upon Sherruk and his group, Mandalorian warriors who had descended into a lowly bandit, harassing settlers on Dantooine; Sherruk and his companions would fall to Revan's blade, though not without putting up a substantial fight. They would also come upon Mandalorian poachers on Kashyyyk, preying on Wookiees in the region known as the Shadowlands, and a small Mandalorian contingent on Lehon. Revan would go on to succeed in stopping Darth Malak, destroying the Star Forge and ending the war in the process. But afterward, Revan would disappear from the galaxy, seeking out the "True Sith" that he believed lurked in the Unknown Regions. Before he did, though, Revan—his memories of who he was and had been, returned—gave the mask of Mand'alor that he had claimed upon defeating Mandalore the Ultimate, to Ordo, with instructions to reunite the scattered Mandalorian clans. Revan also informed Ordo that it had been the Sith behind Mandalore the Ultimate's decision to go to war with the Republic. With the Mand'alor's mask now back in Mandalorian hands, Canderous Ordo became the new Mand'alor, taking the name "Mandalore the Preserver". During his quest to reunite the clans, Ordo came upon what may have been one of the last remaining Taung in the galaxy. This Taung, already dying when Ordo found him, claimed that Mandalore the Ultimate had usurped the title of Mand'alor with Sith assistance and that he was the true heir of Mandalore the Indomitable. Before succumbing to death, this Taung warrior consigned his armor and clan to Ordo, asking that he carry on their traditions; Ordo wore the armor as his own and incorporated the mask of Mand'alor into the Taung's helmet. As Mand'alor, Ordo summoned the Mandalorians to the old Neo-Crusader outpost on Dxun, intent on rebuilding their forces there under the banner of Clan Ordo. However, not all would heed the Mand'alor's call: Esok, the leader of a Mandalorian clan living on Dantooine at the time, tried to overthrow Ordo to become Mand'alor himself, though he would fail to defeat Ordo and die at the Mand'alor's hand. Following the battle, the remainder of Esok's clan agreed to follow Ordo, joining the likes of such warriors as Kelborn, Bralor, and Xarga on Onderon's jungle moon. Ordo and his Mandalorians would host a former Jedi General of Revan's, known at this point as the Jedi Exile when her ship was forced to land on Dxun after being attacked over Onderon. Ordo agreed to provide the Exile with transport to Onderon and later allied with her in her battle against the Sith Triumvirate, to combat the threat they posed to his efforts to reunite the Mandalorians. The Mandalorians would enter the Onderon Civil War during the Second Battle of Onderon, siding with Queen Talia's forces and defeating the rogue general, Vaklu and his troops. They also took control of Freedon Nadd's tomb from the Sith presence sent by Darth Nihilus to back Vaklu's coup. The Mandalorians and Mand'alor Ordo would come to the Republic's aid again during the Battle of Telos IV, engaging the Sith fleet alongside Admiral Carth Onasi. The Mandalorians boarded Darth Nihilus' flagship, the Ravager, and Ordo fought the Sith Lord at the Jedi Exile's side. Once Nihilus was dead, the Mandalorians detonated proton charges they'd planted, destroying the ship.
The Great Galactic War
"Mandalore's call was simple: to confront the galaxy's greatest challenge and fight the legendary Knights of the Jedi Order." ―Gnost-Dural —Despite Canderous Ordo's attempts to unite the scattered clans during his time as Mand'alor, the Mandalorians would remain fragmented for nearly three centuries. That would change in the year 3625 BrS after the Sith Empire made an unforeseen return to the galaxy. In their war against the Republic, the Sith turned to the Mandalorians for aid, attempting to recruit the galaxy's most infamous mercenaries and bounty hunters to their cause. However, when most refused these offers, the Sith Empire decided upon a different course of action: on Geonosis, a successful young Mandalorian gladiator was chosen by Imperial Intelligence agents as a potential pawn. Manipulating the crowds with whispers of "Mandalore" that grew into thunderous cheers, and drugging his opponents into submission, the Empire ensured that their chosen warrior would win every bout until the title of Mand'alor was thrust upon him. When the new Mand'alor called, many of the Mandalorians living in diaspora rallied to him as their culture's tenets dictated, following him in his fight against the knights of the Jedi Order. But even as the Mandalorians gathered to serve their new leader, their leader still served the Sith Empire and it was under their orders that he led a Mandalorian blockade of the Hydian Way. The Hydian Way was a major supply lane for the Republic and blockaded, the Republic lost its ability to provide military support to its forces in the Outer Rim and to bring in raw goods to the Core Worlds. The Jedi answered the Mandalorians' challenge, striking back at the blockade, but the Mandalorian cruisers overwhelmingly crushed the Jedi forces and would continue to choke the Republic until a large undertaking of smugglers led by Hylo Visz managed to finally break the blockade and deliver goods to Coruscant. With the blockade broken, the new Mand'alor—later known pejoratively as "Mandalore the Lesser"—sought to restore his support among the clans by calling for a galaxy-spanning competition for glory known as the Great Hunt. The champion of the Hunt, a Mandalorian warrior by the name of Artus, challenge the Mand'alor to a duel where he shot and killed the Imperial puppet. Taking his place as Mand'alor, Artus adopted the title of "Mandalore the Vindicated". In the process of consolidating his new power, Mand'alor quelled an uprising by a group of Mandalorians led by Jicoln Cadera, who believed that the Mandalorians should follow in the footsteps of Mandalore the Preserver, supporting the Republic rather than the Sith Empire. Under Mandalore the Vindicated, the Mandalorians would continue to be the well-paid, but cautious allies of the Sith. However, this did not stop some Mandalorians from fighting against the Sith Empire during the Cold War and even the Galactic War. The violent Mandalorian clan known as Clan Varad would break off from Mandalore the Vindicated's leadership and began attacking Republic and Sith worlds before they were stopped by taskforces from the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic. Terror Brigade, a group of former Mandalorian thrill-seekers, would go on to capture Imperial Moff Yoren and offered him to the Republic if they can survive a series of challenges. And a Mandalorian warlord known as Varek Tarn stole plans for the Sovereign Forge and attempted to sell them to the Republic but was killed by Empire before he could. The Zabrak Mandalorian warrior Akaavi Spar who fought with the Republic privateer, the Voidhound, after her entire clan was killed by the Empire. The Mandalorian known as Jindo Krey was among those first to join Darth Malgus's New Sith Empire and fought against both the Republic and Sith Empire.
The New Sith Wars
During the New Sith Wars, the Mandalorians would break from what many perceived to be a long-standing alliance, and waged war against the Sith. During the first quarter of the New Sith Wars, one group of Mandalorians was approached by Jedi Master Murrtaggh. Murrtaggh offered a large number of credits to enlist the Mandalorians' help in assaulting the camp of the mysterious Dark Lord of the Sith known as the Dark Underlord. The Mandalorians attacked the Sith camp on Malrev IV with a force of Lagartoz War Dragons, and numerous soldiers equipped with Mandalorian battle harnesses. The Mandalorians would draw the forces of the Dark Underlord's general, allowing Master Murrtaggh to infiltrate the Underlord's fortress where he slew the Sith Lord in combat but fell to the dark side in the process. At another point during or before the New Sith Wars, the Mandalorian training master, Jaing—a former Neo-Crusader Shock Trooper from the Mandalorian Wars—found a young Gen'Dai by the name of Durge. Jaing took Durge into his care, becoming a mentor to the Gen'Dai and teaching him the ways of the Mandalorians. Sometime later, after Jaing had abandoned the Mandalorians due to what he felt was a lack of honor, Jaing and Durge came into contact with a cyberneticist who offered to implant the two with advanced cybernetics, restoring Jaing's youthful strength and speed, while simply increasing Durge's own incredible physical capabilities. The operation was a success for each, turning the two warriors into powerful cyborgs, and in return for this upgrade, the doctor who had performed the surgery asked only one thing in return: protection from the Mandalorians loyal to Mand'alor Ung Kusp, Mandalorians in the employ of a Sith faction seeking to re-obtain the Sith artifact the doctor had stolen from them. These Mandalorians attacked the doctor's laboratory moments later, during which the doctor's assistant was killed, and Jaing mortally wounded by a thermal detonator. Before the Mandalorian leading the assault could finish Jaing, Durge brutally massacred the Mandalorians responsible for nearly killing his mentor, even going after the Mandalorians once they retreated. As Jaing lay dying, the doctor revealed to him that together they had set the stage for a war between the Mandalorians and the Sith.Cultural shift
In 702 BrS, following significant growth in Mandalorian militancy that alarmed the Republic and its Jedi protectors, a brief and targeted conflict broke out between the Republic and the Mandalorians that brought devastation to the Mandalore sector despite the Mandalorians involvement in defending the galaxy against both Eternal Empire and the New Sith. Portions of the planet Mandalore were reduced to barren white-sand deserts. While many of the warrior clans scattered, out of the ashes rose the New Mandalorian faction. Doing away with many of the old warrior codes the Mandalorians had historically followed, the New Mandalorians put forward the idea that the best opportunity for Mandalorian survival and prosperity would come through being peaceful, neutral, and tolerant. Clinging strongly to this belief in pacifism, nonviolence became a central tenet in their society. The New Mandalorians constructed grand cube cities in the desert wastes, using their talents as inventors and builders. Upon instituting these changes, any of the Mandalorians in their society who refused the reform and insisted upon carrying on their warrior ways were banished to Mandalore's moon, Concordia. Traditional Mandalorian armor became a rare sight in the New Mandalorian capital city of Sundari, and on the neighboring world of Kalevala, known to be a stronghold for the New Mandalorians. Although a large number of Mandalorians joined in the New Mandalorian movement, other clans chose to continue on the path they'd walked for centuries. The ancient traditions survived in Mandalore's countryside, with the traditionalist Mandalorians calling themselves the Aka'liit ("Faithful" in Mando'a). The title of Mand'alor subsequently passed to members of the Aka'liit. Approximately 164 BrS, the Mandalorian Faithful were responsible for the genocide of the Ithullan race. Almost a hundred years later, the reigning Mand'alor of the time was murdered by the Gen'Dai bounty hunter, Durge, in his ongoing quest of vengeance against the Mandalorians for the death of his mentor, Jaing. In retaliation, the Mandalorians captured and tortured Durge to the edge of insanity; the bounty hunter managed to escape his Mandalorian captors, but it would take him the better part of a century to regenerate from his wounds. At some point in this era, Ranah Teh Naast became Mand'alor, known by the sobriquet of "Mandalore the Destroyer". She led a siege of Luon, giving the Consul of Luon a final chance to surrender before attacking. It was also likely around this time that a group of Mandalorians killed the family of a Wookiee by the name of Ryyk. In the year 24 BrS, a charismatic Mandalorian warrior by the name of Jaster Mereel ascended to the position of Mand'alor. In this role, he began to institute a cultural reform that many had been calling for since the Ithullan genocide nearly a century and a half earlier, eventually laying out a new guideline for Mandalorian behavior known as the Supercommando Codex. He asserted that the Mandalorians who still wished to fight should act as highly-paid soldiers, and should conduct themselves as honorable mercenaries. However, not all would agree with the Codex or Mereel's reforms. He was opposed by the followers of the barbaric Tor Vizsla, who desired a return to brutal savagery and the instigation of another galactic war of conquest. Skilled but undisciplined, these soldiers rallied to Vizsla and formed a splinter group that came to call itself the Death Watch, while those super commandos who remained loyal to Mereel recast themselves as the "True Mandalorians". While Death Watch's goals were quite opposite to those of the New Mandalorians', they could not support Mereel's faction either, for, despite his reforms, any act of Mandalorian violence was fundamentally against what the New Mandalorians stood for. While they remained neutral and removed from the conflict, a schism occurred within the Aka'liit and the True Mandalorians and the Death Watch became embroiled in a bitter civil war.The Mandalorian Civil War
"No true Mandalorian can live alongside the Death Watch." ―Kal SkirataThe Mandalorian Civil War, as it came to be known, swallowed up Mandalore's full-time army and several prominent clans, but the two factions were relatively small in comparison to the overall Mandalorian population. Mandalorians living away from Mandalore were scarcely affected, even those in the Mandalore sector. However, the ideological differences between Tor Vizsla and Jaster Mereel were central to the war and the path the Mandalorians would take for the foreseeable future. In the year 22 BrS, the Mandalorian Civil War spilled onto the agricultural world of Concord Dawn. During the fighting, Jaster Mereel and his soldiers were forced to retreat and seek refuge from the Death Watch on the farm of a local Journeyman Protector by the name of Fett. When the Death Watch found out Fett had been hiding their enemies, Vizsla brutally interrogated the man in front of his young son, Jango. Before Vizsla could kill the farmer, who refused to give up Mereel and his men, Fett's wife opened fire on the Death Watch with a blaster rifle. In the resulting chaos, both Fett and his wife were killed, although Mereel managed to rescue young Jango from the Death Watch. As the True Mandalorians fled into the fields, Vizsla ordered that the fields burned to the ground in an attempt to kill Mereel as he ran. Jango showed the Mandalorians to a large irrigation pipe that allowed them to escape the blaze, while Vizsla and his men ransacked Fett's home and kidnapped Jango's sister, Arla. Believing their enemies dead, the Death Watch moved into a nearby town for a celebratory raid before moving on to their next target. Unfortunately for them, the True Mandalorians had regrouped in the town and sprang an ambush on the unsuspecting Death Watch. Striking from protected alleyways and second-story windows, the True Mandalorians struck down nearly every Death Watch soldier there. However, Vizsla would manage to survive an attack on his armored speeder and escape Concord Dawn. His parents dead, Jango Fett was taken in by Jaster Mereel, joining the Mandalorians as Mereel's adopted son. Six years later, in 30 BrS, the True Mandalorians believed the threat of the Death Watch to be over and returned their focus to acting as a mercenary army. Contracted by the Korda Defense Force, the True Mandalorians journeyed to Korda Six to extract a team of rookie security personnel pinned down under fire by a group of local hostiles, supposedly poorly armed and with no formal army. Unfortunately, the intelligence reports were grossly inaccurate: when the Mandalorians landed, they came under heavy fire from the Kordan natives and in the resulting battle, took heavy casualties. Jaster Mereel ordered a retreat, but his second-in-command, Montross, refused and insisted they press on. When he was injured in a grenade strike, it was up to Mereel to provide rescue, killing no less than three Kordan in the process. At the same time, Jango had used Montross's ill-guided attack as a diversion to move on the location of their original objective, the Kordan security team. But when he and his squad reached the site, they instead found a Death Watch ambush awaiting them. As Jango's troops fought back the Death Watch, Mereel and Montross came under attack from Vizsla himself. Mereel was wounded in a grenade blast that Montross used his jetpack to avoid, but when the injured Mand'alor called to him for an airlift, Montross turned his back on Mereel and left him to die on the battlefield, stating that he no longer wished to take orders from Mereel. Betrayed and abandoned, Mereel was helpless to defend himself and perished as Vizsla rained down laser cannon fire from his four-wheeled tank, killing his hated rival. At the Mandalorians' landing zone, Montross now urged the Mandalorians to heed Mereel's final orders and pull out, claiming that Mereel was dead and that Jango had perished trying to save him. However, Fett returned to the landing zone carrying with him Mereel's body, exposing Montross as a liar and a traitor. When Montross insisted that Mereel would have wanted him to take command, the other Mandalorians denounced Montross at blaster point and declared that they would only follow Fett, Jaster Mereel's chosen heir. Montross was grudgingly allowed to leave, slipping off into exile, while Jango became the new Mand'alor and leader of the True Mandalorians. Under Fett's leadership, the True Mandalorians scored a significant victory against the Death Watch in the years leading up to 8 BrS, which left the Death Watch severely crippled. But rather than concede defeat, Vizsla turned to the Governor of Galidraan for refuge and his assistance in rebuilding the Death Watch. As per Vizsla's plan, the governor contracted the True Mandalorians to put down a local insurrection. The True Mandalorians traveled to Galidraan where they dealt with the rebels, and upon completion of their task, Fett went to the governor's estate to collect their payment; by that time, however, the governor had already contacted the Jedi Council with a request for aid, claiming that the Mandalorians were murdering "political activists" along with innocent women and children. In response to the governor's concerns over the lack of evidence, Vizsla assured him that his men would supply the necessary body count. Fett had become aware of the governor's involvement with the Death Watch and while there, demanded to know the whereabouts of Vizsla. At that moment, Vizsla revealed himself there in the castle and attacked Fett with a cadre of Death Watch soldiers, forcing him to flee. Fett rushed to make it back to base camp, trying unsuccessfully to comm his second-in-command, Myles, and warn him of the inbound Jedi ships he'd spotted, but he arrived at the same time as a Jedi strike team lead by Jedi Master Dooku. Demanding that the Mandalorians stand down on charges of suspected murder, the innocent Mandalorians indignantly opened fire on the Jedi. In the ensuing shootout, eleven Jedi were killed—six of which were felled by Fett himself, following the death of Myles—along with every other True Mandalorian there, save for Fett himself. In the battle's aftermath, the Jedi delivered the subdued Fett into the custody of Galidraan's governor, who in turn sold Fett into slavery. Though it seemed the Death Watch had won the war—successfully manipulating the Jedi into destroying their enemy for them—after several years spent aboard a spice transport inbound servitude, Fett managed to escape, recover his armor from the Governor of Galidraan, and track Vizsla's ship to Corellia where he killed Vizsla after a lengthy fight, avenging the True Mandalorians and dealing the final blow of the war. The remaining Death Watch members scattered, vanishing from the galaxy at large under the Mandalorian principle of ba'slan shev'la, or "strategic disappearance". Fett, scarred by the loss of his True Mandalorian compatriots and his years as a slave, grew distant from the rest of his people and his role as Mand'alor, turning instead toward the solitary life of a bounty hunter. As such, Mandalore's post-war reconstruction fell largely upon the New Mandalorian government, now under the leadership of Kalevala native, Duchess Satine Kryze. The Mandalorians who chose to retain their traditional lifestyles, but also rejected the Death Watch's ideals came to be known as Old Mandalorians. Some of the Old Mandalorians chose to leave the Mandalore sector to Vlemoth Port, under the leadership of Nam Beroya.
Founding Date
6964 BrS
Type
Military, Mercenary Group
Demonym
Mandalorians
Location
Controlled Territories
Notable Members
Related Ethnicities
Comments