This Jedi Was The Anakin Skywalker Of The Old Republic
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Every Star Wars fan is familiar with the story of Anakin Skywalker’s fall to darkness and later redemption. Long before Anakin’s time, there was another Jedi tempted by the dark side of the Force. His name was Ulic Qel-Droma.
Ulic was born to the famous Jedi Master Lien-Tsai Qel-Droma. Ulic, his younger brother Cay, and his cousin Duron were discovered to be Force-sensitive at a young age. Ulic trained under the Jedi Master Arca Jeth along with his brother Cay and the Twi’lek Jedi Tott Doneeta. Times were much different then than in the prequel trilogy. The Jedi Order were much more relaxed in their rules, even to the point of allowing romantic relationships or multiple apprentices.
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Qel-Droma was very strong in the Force and was naturally gifted at lightsaber combat. In 4000 BBY, Master Jeth sent Qel-Droma and his comrades to Onderon to aid in the Beast Wars. Qel-Droma and company were charged with rescuing Princess Galia from the Beast Riders. The Jedi would learn that Princess Galia’s mother Queen Amanoa and other members of the royal family were Sith cultists loyal to Freedon Nadd, a powerful Sith from the past. Queen Amanoa called on the power of the dark side to defeat the Jedi, and they would have lost without Master Jeth’s intervention.
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The peace was short-lived as another Sith cult emerged on Onderon two years later, led by now Queen Galia’s father King Ommin under the influence of the spirit of Freedon Nadd. A year after, another Sith cult called the Krath, led by Aleema and Satal Keto, caused an uprising in the Empress Teta system. An intense battle resulted in the death of Master Jeth.
Qel-Droma decided to infiltrate the Krath and defeat them from the inside, but they tortured him with dark side energy. Satal openly despised Qel-Droma, but Aleema sensed his grief and anger and wanted to manipulate the Jedi Knight to the dark side. Qel-Droma killed Satal and began his journey to the dark side.
Shortly after, another fallen Jedi Exar Kun came to conquer the Krath, believing they were a threat to his power. Kun and Qel-Droma clashed, but their battle was halted when the ancient Sith Lord Marka Ragnos anointed them Sith Lords. Kun became the new Dark Lord of the Sith, and Qel-Droma was named his apprentice. Kun focused on recruiting the Massassi and other Jedi, while Ulic took on Mandalore the Indomitable to bring the Mandalorian raiders to his side.
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In what became known as the Great Sith War, the two Sith Lords staged several attacks on Republic bases. Eventually, Qel-Droma was captured and wound up on trial for his crimes. However, Kun and his armies came to Qel-Droma’s rescue and killed the Supreme Chancellor before his sentence could be carried out. After this harrowing escape, the Sith Lords sent Aleema on a suicidal mission to destroy the planet Ossus while the two headed for the Great Jedi Library to steal the Jedi treasures there. During this mission, Qel-Droma ran into his brother Cay. Cay refused to let his brother pass, and Qel-Droma struck him down in anger. Qel-Droma’s former apprentice Nomi Sunrider found Qel-Droma standing over his brother’s body and subsequently cut him off from the Force.
Qel-Droma spent his remaining days wandering the galaxy filled with regret. He aided the Jedi in tracking down Kun who destroyed himself, or so it seemed, before the Jedi could reach him. Eventually, a pilot named Hoggon took Qel-Droma to the icy world Rhen Var. He settled down here and tried to find peace with the aid of Master Jeth’s spirit. Nomi’s daughter Vima tracked Qel-Droma to the planet and after much convincing, he agreed to teach her everything he knew about the Jedi arts. He took extra care to warn her of the dangers and temptations of the dark side of the Force.
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The fallen Jedi’s story did not end there. A Cathar Jedi named Sylvar followed Nomi Sunrider to the planet to avenge her partner who had been slain by Kun. Qel-Droma could sense the Jedi’s grief and refused to defend himself. This action cured Sylvar of her anger and prevented her from going down a dark path. However, Hoggon misunderstood and killed Qel-Droma with a blaster bolt, believing him to be a war criminal. He died in Nomi’s arms and became one with the Force, showing that he was once again fully on the side of light. Qel-Droma’s legacy was recounted among the Jedi until the fall of the Old Republic as a warning against the dark side and as a tale of hope.
Many years later, Ulic Qel-Droma’s spirit appeared to guide Anakin in the Clone Wars and wanted him against the temptations that can lead a Jedi to the dark side. Unfortunately, Anakin, much like the ancient Jedi, had to learn that lesson the hard way.
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Source(s): YouTube, Comic Vine, The Expanded Universe
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