Behind the Threat: The Sith (Part 4)

The Teeth in the Darkness

By Matthew Grau

Previous installments of "Behind the Threat: The Sith" looked at the essence of the Sith, choosing an appropriate name and appearance for your Sith character, and the game mechanics of designing that character. In this article, we delve into the technology used by Sith, the kinds of characters that best fit in the different eras, and ways to advance beyond the Sith apprentice prestige class.

Technology

The most notable piece of technology associated with a Sith is the lightsaber. This ancient and elegant weapon is the tool of both the Jedi and the Sith.

To the Jedi, the crafting of a lightsaber is a sacred task. Apprentices are taken to the ritual caves that hold the crystals necessary to create the focused core of the Jedi's weapon. The assembly is part technical, part manipulation of the Force. When it is done, the color of a lightsaber depends on the type of crystal used in its creation. Yellow, blue, and green are common. Some instead hunt far and wide for their crystal, with results (such as Mace Windu's violet lightsaber) that are the stuff of legends.

To the Sith, this is needlessly ritualistic. A lightsaber is a tool like any other, and all that matters is its wielder. For this reason, the Sith artificially grow the crystals for their lightsabers. The outcome of such is consistent and distinct -- all Sith lightsabers are red.

The double-bladed lightsaber is the notorious weapon wielded by Darth Maul during the Rise of the Empire era. These tricky weapons take time to master, but they can make one man fight as two. Some mistakenly believe that Darth Maul created the weapon, when in fact it was first unleashed under the fury of the Sith Lord Exar Kun in ancient times. Those Sith Lords who lean toward the savagery of physical violence may find themselves drawn to the artistry and deadliness of the double-bladed lightsaber.

Normally, attacking with both ends of a double-bladed lightsaber incurs a –10 penalty to both attacks. The Dual Weapon Mastery feats will dramatically reduce that penalty. The first level, which reduces the penalty to –5, can be taken during character creation. Dual Weapon Mastery II and III require higher Dexterity scores and advanced levels to acquire. Unless your character has a high Strength modifier or the Weapon Focus feat, Dual Weapon Mastery II is what's needed to be truly deadly. Since this feat requires a high Dexterity, the Weapon Finesse feat can offset these penalties nicely. The Force power dark rage also helps.

The Sith lanvarok is a wrist-mounted projectile weapon from ancient times, exceedingly rare by the days of the Clone Wars. Inaccurate and with a long reload time, the lanvarok hurled a spray of metal discs to distract an enemy or as a weapon of first attack. However, Sith could use the Force to guide the discs, making them far more dangerous than the weapon would be in the hands of a normal wielder. (For details on the lanvarok, see pages 68-69 of the Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide.)

The Sith, like the Jedi, travel light. As long as they have robes, a cloak (probably all-temperature), and a lightsaber, they are content. Some also travel with currency and a utility belt that might contain three days' worth of food capsules, a medpac, a tool kit, a spare power pack, a spare energy cell, a glow rod, a liquid cable dispenser with grappling hook, an aquata breather, electrobinoculars, or a few specialized tools with which to do one's dark will. The Sith are happy to rely on their wits and their exceptional power.

Certain starfighters might appeal to a Sith Lord. Those who were once Jedi may prefer a Jedi fighter to other craft. Those who served before the days of the Clone Wars would pilot the Aethersprite Interceptor, whereas those who fought in the Clone Wars would prefer the Eta-2 Actis Interceptor. Those in the favor of Count Dooku might also receive one of the rare and exotic Ginivex-class starfighters. During the Knights of the Old Republic era, the Sith had their own starfighters, known as Sith Interceptors. Only one craft was designed for the Sith in the Rise of the Empire, Rebellion, and The New Jedi Order eras -- a prototype that is owned by Darth Sidious and carefully guarded. The Sith Infiltrator is truly a craft worthy of the tradition of the Sith Lords. (All these craft are found in Starships of the Galaxy: the Aethersprite Interceptor on p. 60, the Eta-2 Actis Interceptor on p. 82, the Ginivex on p. 87, the Sith Interceptor on p. 130, and the Sith Infiltrator on p. 128.)

Planet-side, Sith Lords prefer speeder bikes for their speed and maneuverability. The reflexes of a Force-user also make the bikes far less dangerous and more effective than they might be for the average person. For similar reasons, when bikes are impractical, Sith instead might choose racing or military speeders.

Eras

The era in which you choose to play has great bearing on what kind of Sith your character can be.

The Knights of the Old Republic era can call for any kind of Sith because they are prevalent in the universe. There will be more warriors than any other kind; the strongest of the Sith are those who rule. Characters with strong backgrounds in the Jedi, Soldier, and perhaps Scout heroic classes will be the most common, favoring skills and feats designed to enhance combat ability and Force powers.

The Rise of the Empire, the Rebellion, and The New Jedi Order eras call for the Rule of Two, which requires the ways of stealth and guile. However, all Sith are trained as warriors as well, since one Sith must be a match for several Jedi. Characters with backgrounds in either Noble or Scoundrel heroic classes, balanced with Jedi and either Soldier or Scout, are more the order of the day, favoring skills of manipulation and intimidation as well as those of combat.

The Legacy era begins with the Rule of Two and follows the same maxims as the previous three eras. However, once Darth Krayt takes his rightful place in the universe, the Sith flood out again. Warriors again are common, as they were in the Knights of the Old Republic era.

Advancement Paths

Once you have arrived at the Sith apprentice prestige class, your character is now true Sith. It's been a bit of a journey so far, but where do you go from here?

Unless you have chosen a diverse array of classes (either prestige or heroic) as your character's background, you have only a few directions in which to grow. The four talent trees from which a Sith apprentice draws are the Armor Specialist tree (from the Soldier heroic class), the Duelist tree (from the Jedi Knight prestige class), the Lightsaber Combat trees (from the Jedi heroic class), and the Sith tree, the only unique tree in this class. Your character's abilities will now aim toward vicious combat and growing in the dark side of the Force.

If you have chosen a diversity of classes as your character's background, you'll have more room to play. You can continue to develop your character in other classes that can support his growth as a Sith, using the guidelines presented in the last article.

One unique way your character can develop is with the Dreadful Countenance feat, as presented in "Behind the Threat: The Sith (Part 2)." It is a feat solely devoted to the way Sith change in appearance and the effect it has on them. The requirements for the feat are a Charisma of 13 and membership in the Sith tradition, the latter accomplished by reaching the Sith apprentice prestige class.

Upon becoming a member of the Sith apprentice prestige class, your character will have access to Force techniques, which represent a deeper understanding of the Force. Starting at 2nd level, he gains a new Force technique every other level, improving and extending other mechanical uses of the Force.

As your Sith apprentice grows in levels, he gains access to the more advanced prestige classes. The most obvious place to go is the Sith Lord prestige class. There are only two requirements that differ from the Sith apprentice: your character must be at least 12th level and must know at least one Force technique. At this point, your character is purged of fear and begins to learn the secrets of the Force, which allow him to start using Force powers in new and powerful ways, but, unlike Force techniques, they cost Force Points to use. At 2nd level and every level of Sith Lord thereafter, your character gains one Force secret. Levels in the Sith Lord prestige class do not offer access to new talent trees, instead continuing to develop in the Sith tree and the Force trees. However, your character becomes adept at using the dread tradition known as Dun Möch, which lets him tempt others to the dark side.

The Force disciple is another advanced prestige class that might be an option for a growing Sith. This class represents a Sith who wishes to delve more deeply into the mysteries of the dark side, becoming a prophet. Your character becomes immune to mind-affecting effects, gains prophetic visions, and gains access to Force secrets. His talents come from those available to a Force adept and from the Force trees. In addition to the requirements of the Sith apprentice prestige class, the Force disciple prestige class requires that your character is 12th level and has the Force power farseeing. Also, it requires at least three levels of the Force adept prestige class, since there is no other way to acquire two talents from the trees offered there.

Another interesting option, if you are willing to take the extra time, is to have your character work his way up through the Jedi ranks to reach the Jedi Master prestige class. The only requirements beyond those needed to reach Sith apprentice are that your character is 12th level, has one Force technique (easily gained through two levels of Jedi Knight), and is a member of the Jedi tradition. He becomes fearless, gains meditative focus, and learns Force secrets. The Jedi Master prestige class confers no new talent trees, instead focusing on the Duelist tree and the Force trees. In general, if your character follows this path to Sith Lord, it will take longer, but he will have access to a variety of Force-related powers and abilities to make up for it. Just imagine the power of a Jedi Master who has advanced through the ranks of the Jedi and Jedi Knight classes -- he will be very dangerous when he finally falls to the dark side.

If your character has already fulfilled his destiny and taken on the mantle of Sith master, the education destiny might be in order. Perhaps he will play an important part in training a dreadful Sith who has his own destiny to wreak upon the galaxy. The bonus for fulfilling this destiny is a +5 bonus to one class skill of your choice, which is particularly useful when applied to Use the Force.

Next Time

In the next article, we'll explore ways to use the Sith in your game, either as heroes or as villains on the other side of the table.

About the Author

Matthew Grau has been a professional writer and intellectual property developer since the age of 17. He began his career in the adventure games industry, writing books and designing game rules for such popular titles and licenses as Dungeons & Dragons, Marvel Super Heroes, Frank Herbert's Dune, and Star Trek. In the late 90s, Matthew moved into the film and television arena. He has written scripts and directed productions for clients such as Microsoft and Nintendo, and he created and wrote the Curiosity Cafe television show and kick-off feature film on a first-look agreement with the Jim Henson Company. He is an award-winning screenwriter with projects currently in the Hollywood studio system.