I know a thing or two about Star Wars lore, but I’m always trying to educate myself and read as many books as I can on the Universe. I started to think as I was doing some personal research the other evening, that I would try to start including the lore more in my blog posts. So here is the first, in hopefully many, posts on Lore Discussions.
Please feel free to discuss the lore posted here and correct me if I’ve missed any valuable information. However, please be aware that the Lore Discussion posts, including this one, will contain spoilers. If you don’t want to know then don’t read further on. I respect people’s rights to be surprised.
The Revanites/Order of Revan
The tank and I recently finished reading the new Star Wars the Old Republic: Revan book by Drew Karpyshyn and I have to say it was an amazing read, as usual, Drew being one of my favorite Star Wars authors. While talking about what we liked and disliked, we came to discuss the Revanites that we encountered in the game and their relation to Revan from the book.
We began to wonder if the Revanite missions in game were only Empire side, and after asking a former guild mate, he confirmed that it was not offered on the Republic side. We wondered why the Revanite mission line wasn’t offered on both sides since Revan did start out as a Jedi, and after becoming a Sith he was accepted back into the Republic. We wanted to know why Sith would want to encourage the teachings of Revan.
Before we get into some thoughts on this, let’s look at who the Revanites are, this information is pulled from Wookipedia.
History
The Revanites, are also known as the Order of Revan, was a secret society of Sith that formed at some point before the Cold War. Their lifestyle, which is seen with hostility by the main stream Sith Empire, was inspired by the history and teachings of the former Sith Lord Darth Revan.
Three hundred years after the disappearance of Darth Revan, a former Dark Lord of the Sith redeemed as a Jedi, this cult was formed out of admiration for his philosophy and accomplishments. It was made up of secret members from within the society of the Sith Empire.
At the time, it was known only to few outsiders and its own members, all together the Order had a few hundred members. There was nothing against anyone wanting entry into the Order; its members ranged from powerful, influential Sith Lords, to military officers to even alien slaves. Personal power and passion were seen as important aspects when joining the cult. Some Revanites devoted their whole lives to the teachings of the cult and they existed outside the society of the Sith Empire; others studied and met in secret in order to maintain their ordinary lives.
According to the Order’s followers, Revan had drawn upon the strength of passion coupled with tranquility, took allies from both humans and aliens and enlisted the aid of the weak and the strong. Idolizing Revan as the greatest of all teachers, the Revanites sought to emulate the former Dark Lord’s ways. Since Revan’s fate was unknown to all but a few, the Revanites suspected that their role model was still alive over three centuries after his time.
The Revanites leader, Anyarah speculated that Revan assassinated the Emperor and assumed his role. This theory was reinforced by the Emperor’s seclusion on Dromund Kaas. Furthermore, the Revanites feared that the Dark Council posed a threat to the Emperor, who they assumed to be Darth Revan in secret.
The Dark Council viewed the Revanites with great contempt for mixing Jedi and Sith teachings. Hence, one of their goals was to root out and destroy the secretive organization before its teachings could spread even further throughout the Empire.
In Game and Role-Playing
If you have played the Empire side of Star Wars the Old Republic then you will have encountered the Revanite quest line in Dromund Kaas. You know you are sent there to seek out their leader so that they can be destroyed. This enforces the idea of the Sith Empire wanting to annihilate the organization and its teachings.
While there you encounter many interesting missions that really put Revan’s ideals into place. You even come across a mission that allows you to help promote Revan as a Sith over being “Reborn” and using both sides of the force.
At the completion of the mission line, even if you reveal the leaders name you receive the title of “The Revanite.” This title is such an amazing one to have for the role-playing aspect for me! Will you choose to defy the Empire in public or private? Are you outside of the Sith Empire and believe in Revan’s teachings? If you do believe in his teachings, do you consider him a Jedi or Sith, or someone that is “Reborn”?
This is a wonderful challenge they have applied to the game for us to consider when creating our characters and in choosing a title to proudly display over our head.
Questions
Why is it not offered on the Republic side?
I can only assume that this was not offered Republic side due to the fact that Revan wasn’t really welcomed back by many in the Jedi, as well as the same time he did return the Jedi weren’t looked upon favorably within the Universe. It wouldn’t make much sense that Jedi would want to follow his path since once he returned he broke many Jedi “rules” such as getting married and believing that emotions could be a positive thing in the force. What are your thoughts?
Why would the Sith want to encourage his teachings?
Many Sith turn to their past Sith Lords for guidance and wisdom to help them get an edge on their comrades. Darth Revan was an extremely powerful Sith Lord and held many innovative ideas and beliefs. He has influenced many Sith in the future, including Darth Bane. Even after Revan was “Reborn” his beliefs combined both Jedi and Sith, and with at least one Sith being a witness to the true power of using both sides, it makes sense that at some point in looking for a savior that a cult might be started to purse the stronger of the force. What are your thoughts?
