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“Fair game, go on and drop your head

Fairness gone, and make you lose mine

Losing love all over again

But it’s my way ‘til the end of time…

Less dread when I drop my head

Fear go, and let me lose mine

I’m losing love all over again

But it’s my way ‘til the end of time…

And where do we go?

And I’m leaning towards losing my mind

With this feeling no more...

Ooh, better leave that war with me…!

Ooh, better leave that war with me…!

Fair trials, they don’t exist my friend!

Only a circus in my mind

Judgements gone, and there’s no love again

But it’s my way ‘til the end of time…"

London Grammar, ‘Leave The War With Me’

Another wonderful render from the talented

Meet call-sign ‘Rogue Two’, the Mandalorian warrior Akaavi Kyne, all dressed up in her crusader armour and ready to serve her beloved mistress.

The Mandalorians in whatever the bullshit Disney canon is called this week:

Few topics are more controversial than the Mandalorians in Star Wars lore; perhaps the hated 'midicholorians' (srlsy, reducing The Force to germs now, WTF?) or the arguments of whether Han Shot First (spoiler: he did).

The Mandalorian people were created as a backstory to Boba Fett, the cool-looking-but essentially-useless bounty hunter in the second and third films, ‘Empire Strikes Back’ and ‘Return of the Jedi’. (’Episode V and VI’? Fuck off.)   Initially, they were – like every single other race in Star Wars – full on ‘Planet of Hats’, a race of people who dressed and acted exactly like Boba Fett. Over time, they were developed as a warrior people who had fought wars of conquest throughout galactic history. Infamously, an author called Karen Traviss wrote extensively about them, developing their culture in intricate detail. Unfortunately, she fell in love with her own creations, making them a kind of author-insert Mary Sue race who were flawless and superior warriors while the Jedi they fought were portrayed in the worst light possible. This interpretation, known as ‘Fandalorians’ to some, received very mixed reviews – some fans loved the concept of a proud warrior race, others felt Traviss went over the top and made them overly perfect.

They also played a large part in Bioware’s superior ‘Knights of the Old Republic’ series of games and comics, all of which was a big influence on the MarcyVerse.

They were further developed by the kid’s cartoon show, ‘Clone Wars’ (spoiler: it’s mostly garbage) and ‘Rebels’ (spoiler: it’s complete, execrable garbage) into a society split along the lines of warriors and pacifists, and embarrassingly, had a major character who was a Mandalorian graffiti-artist (if Karen Traviss was dead, she’d be spinning in her grave here). Actually, to give it it’s due, the treatment of the poor old Mando’s in Disney’s shitty kid’s show was about the only thing that was halfway intriguing, and the single thing we borrowed from it for the (far superior!) reworked MarcyVerse.

To their credit (this once!) the Disney version of Mando’s wasn’t half bad; they took the basic concept of Karen’s Fandalorians and made them less perfect and more flawed, which is exactly what I would have done in reworking them. They had all the trappings of the Proud Warrior Race Guy culture, but also serious drawbacks – their warlike nature prevented them from ever achieving much as a culture when they weren’t at war, and Mandalore itself was a tiny and insignificant backwater, notable only for producing a species that twice waged an unwinnable but ambitious war on the rest of the galaxy.

Mandalorians in the MarcyVerse

So for once, we had the core of a decent concept. The Mandalorians were historically a small but warlike culture that punched way above their weight and twice gave the world a scare before being well and truly crushed by the Old Republic. I interpreted it a bit like World War One and Two, if they had been instigated not by the imposing military might of Germany, but by a tiny place like Monaco or Liechtenstein.

We decided that the Mando’s were a near-human race, genetically engineered by the Taung from Corellian near-human stock about three thousand years ago. The Taung we imagined a bit like Mass Effect’s krogans, if they were all a bit like Doctor Okeer – warlike and conquest-minded, but also great genetic engineers. Only this time, they brought their genophage on themselves with germ warfare, so they were long-lived but rarely produced viable young. The Mando’s were therefore one of many efforts to create a subservient race of quick-breeding combat troops to serve in their wars of conquest. And when the Taung finally eradicated themselves from the galaxy in one of their many stupid civil wars, their creations survived them, happily carrying on their creator’s legacy with a knowledge of war, and a technological edge superior to most other species.

We kept the division of warlike ‘hawks’ and peaceful ‘doves’, as that tallied with the official Fantasy Flight stats for them – they either got one free Combat skill or two Knowledge skills as a playable race.

Early on, we thought they would suit the ‘Scum and Villainy’ faction - the Shadow Collective – as a ragged but tough race of scattered elite mercenaries trying to recreate their glory days of conquest. The official adventure ‘Friends Like These’ changed our minds here, however. Not only did we now have official stats for them, but they leaned heavily on the honourable ‘Proud Warrior Race Guy’ trope again. An essentially honourable race made up of elites who punch well above their weight, who regularly make war upon much bigger forces… and hate the Jedi? That was an almost perfect fit for our Alliance of Independent Systems (who really are more like the Separatists than plucky ‘Rebels’). So after playing that adventure out with our AIS characters, it opened the way of the Alliance diplomats to do their thing, and bring them fully into the Systems Alliance… inadvertently changing the whole thrust of the Galactic Civil War and making military victory now a possibility for the AIS...

In some ways, our Mandalorian culture is a little like sci-fi writer Robert Heinlein envisaged – it’s very socialist, with everyone forced to cooperate and serve the common cause, and each are rewarded according to their needs and ability.   It’s not always perfect and it doesn’t always work – they are human stock after all, and humans are flawed - but the intention is there, and it’s biologically written into their very being.

The in-game MarcyVerse lore

Carth Onassi: "I'm not a ‘warrior’. I'm a soldier. There's a difference. ‘Warriors’ attack and conquer. They prey on the weak. Soldiers defend and protect the innocent – mostly from ‘warriors’."

Canderous Ordo: "Nice speech. I bet you tell yourself that every night so you can sleep. But I am accept who and what I am. I don't have to justify it with words. Victory in battle is my justification."

Carth Onassi: "Justification through victory? So what happens when you lose? You know, like you did against us."

Canderous Ordo: "You had us outnumbered five to one! You had more ships, more troops, more supplies, and the Jedi on your side. And we still made the Republic tremble before we fell!"

Carth Onassi: "Nice speech. I bet you tell yourself that every night so you can sleep."

(Carth lays a brutal verbal slap-down on Canderous in Knights of the Old Republic)

The Mandalorian people – known in their own tongue as the Mando’a – are a near-human race genetically engineered from Corellian stock by a now-extinct reptilian race called the Taung. About three-thousand years ago, the Taung – a dying race weakened by gene warfare even then – sought out many ‘lesser’ species to shape into client races who would provide the raw numbers in their wars of conquest. The Mandalorians were not their only attempt at this, but were by far the most successful… outlasting even their creators in the end. When the Taung finally tore themselves apart in nuclear fire, leaving only small colonies that dwindled and eventually died out, the Mandalorians thrived on their little colony planet deep in the Outer Rim, using the gifts of their creators - knowledge of war and technological supremacy – to carve themselves an empire at the edge of the galaxy.

While there were certainly civil wars, some quite destructive, the Mandalorians were bred as a servitor race, and it was written deep in their genetic make-up to co-operate and band together. While mere humans – the most aggressive, expansionist race in the galaxy - might have torn themselves apart, the Mando’a learned to put aside their many differences and externalise their aggression outwards. Civil war became ritualised, fought by small numbers to decide policy and supremacy, without needing to slaughter civilians or non-combatants. In this way, they developed a peculiar sense of honour, and saw war as something akin to a holy calling, ensuring that the best ideas and the strongest beliefs flourished and spread.

Their tiny planet sat at the heart of a wide empire across the sprawling Outer Limits, for well over a millennia until they had contact with other Coreward species. Obviously, this didn’t begin well – those they encountered were told to become part of their empire, or fight for the right to be free of it. As their horizons opened, they found new and worthy enemies to fight in the Mid-Rim, and had to defend themselves in turn from other aggressive empires.

Things got serious about four-hundred years ago, at the very height of the Old Republic. Coruscant - the birthplace of humanity - held a very special place in the mythology of the Taung, some of whom had theorised that the Taung themselves were once a genetically-engineered species created from Coruscant reptile life. Some Taung - incidentally those who were in charge of creating the Mando’s – dreamed of one day conquering humanity’s birthplace and preserving it as the home of their distant ancestors. The Mando’a may have even been bred for this purpose eventually, being mostly human-like in biology and appearance. While the Mandalorians did not quite worship the Taung as gods, they held their creators in very high regard – Taung images decorated their armour and statues of their lost creators stood in every Mando’an city. They came to obsess about realising their ‘true purpose’ and conquering the galactic core in honour of their creators.

The First Mandalorian War took the Old Republic by surprise. Few had heard of them or realised they were a threat, being some distant outpost of a dead species that made war upon Outer Rim colonists and explorers. When the Mando’an fleets cut through the Mid-Rim like a lightsaber blade, the Old Republic was caught off-guard. Nations and empires that had been established for centuries fell to the sudden attacks, using advanced technology and unique protocols of battle that caught the Republic unawares. Even more unbelievably, they were able to absorb many of their conquests into their expanding empire, putting them to use and even ‘uplifting’ other species in terms of culture and technology. Client races were treated well and not butchered, but allowed to become part of something greater. The Mando’a did not simply challenge the Republic in a military sense, but a cultural sense also. The Republic had been stagnant and fragmenting for some time, although outwardly it seemed as strong as ever.

Eventually, when they reached the ‘Expansion Region’ of the Inner Rim, the boundaries of the Core, the Jedi themselves had to take action. Long embroiled in their own secret internal struggles, the Mando’a energised the Order, uniting as one after centuries of mistrust and internal strife. And in turn, the Jedi were an enemy unlike any the Mandalorians had ever seen. Here at last, they thought, was a truly worth foe. The battles of the First Mandalorian War were legendary, but there could only be one winner. Extended far from their empire, the Mando’a struggled to replace losses, and the Jedi were an implacable and ruthless enemy, capable of supernatural feats of power. The Mandalorians had few Sensitives and no Force traditions, while a single Jedi could crush their mighty ships or mind-link with an entire army to ensure cohesion and unity. The Mandalorians fought valiantly, but were finally driven back, and the Old Republic followed to see what manner of threat assailed them from nowhere.

The Jedi were impressed by the Mando’an culture, and the sheer audacity of their invasion. In honour of their strength and determination, the Jedi decreed that the Mando’a would be mostly left alone, aside from a decommissioning of their remaining fleets. They took some promising Force-sensitive students and some of their genetic coding and lore of the Taung, but otherwise allowed them to continue their empire far from the galactic Core. The Jedi believed the race had learned their lesson… but it would not last as long as most hoped.

Almost two-hundred years passed; the Mandalorians rebuilt their strength after decades of damaging internal conflicts, and re-established their colonies on the edge of the Mid-Rim. They found they had many allies in the territories they had once ‘uplifted’, and in the centuries that had passed, the Old Republic’s grip was growing weaker. The façade of a huge galactic empire that had stood for nearly two millennia was beginning to crumble. Sensing weakness, the Mandalorians once more girded for war, and launched another spearhead assault on the Inner Rim.

This time, the Jedi had remained watchful, and understood the nature of the threat. Yet the Mando’a had learned from their defeat, and also had allies who wished to be free of the weakening Republic. The Second Mandalorian War was perhaps more vicious and spiteful than the last, with both sides sometimes abandoning honour for pragmatic victory. The Jedi Grand Master at this time was Jaylani Revan, a brilliant but controversial figure who led the Consular Order and masterminded the path of the war. As always, it was a war that Mandalorians could never hope to win; when all passion was spent, when all honour was ground down in war, their surrender was this time to be unconditional.

It is said that High Lady Revan argued against punishing the Mando’a harshly, believing that would only fan future flames of war. But many in the Republic believed they had been too lenient on the Mando’a initially, and this time a lesson had to be taught. This time, the Mando’an empire was dissolved, their entire fleets decommissioned, their colonies demilitarised. There was dark talk of more sinister punishments, of internment camps and forced sterilisations of entire nations. Whatever the truth of it, resentment burned in Mando’an hearts, a belief they had fought with honour and yet been humiliated by the victors.

But over the next hundred and fifty years, there was little they could do about it. Their empire had been torn apart, their colonies lost, their fleets destroyed. All they had was their history and their lost honour. Popular risings tore their culture asunder – many blamed the warlike habits of the warrior sects, wanting to bring a more peaceful future for their species, one that would be free of wars and hopeless, futile campaigns of conquest. Many of the most famous warrior castes, such as the Death Watch, were banished from Mando’a to their moon or distant colonies. Mando’a struggled through a century of rebuilding and civil strife.

But in these last centuries, even the watch of the Jedi diminished, as the Order was pulled into conflicts at the Core. The Clone Wars against the Separatists (an early prototype of what would eventually become the Alliance of Independent Systems) damaged the Old Republic further. As the Core became engulfed in insurrection and squabbling, as the once-mighty Republic crumbled, the Mando’an people, long-forgotten, began to mobilise once more.

As the Clone Wars limped to a damaging and inconclusive end, leaving anger and insurrection in their wake, as species like the Mon Calamari and Sullustans agitated for independence, Mando’a slowly stirred from its malaise. The governments of the planet once again reached out to their exiled warrior brethren. Popular movements stressed national pride and their glorious history. Fleets were rebuilt, and colonies abandoned for centuries resettled. By this time, the Old Republic had all but fragmented. An insane, Force-sensitive clone escaped from Byss made an audacious attempt to seize the Senate under the guise of Sheev Palpatine. The Jedi slew him, but Grand Admiral Willuf Tarkin made his own bid to seize power. With the Jedi abandoning the Core for their mysterious exodus to the Far Rim, Tarkin crowned himself Emperor of a military dictatorship over much of the Core, declaring the ‘Imperium of Mankind’ and the end of the Republic that had stood for two millennia.

With their ancient rivals gone, and their strength almost rebuilt to the level of the Mandalorian Wars, Mando’a felt that a new opportunity had been revealed. The only problem was an age-old one – no matter how fierce and disciplined they were, the Mando’a were a very small force compared to the empires at the galactic core. Even with the Jedi gone, the new Empire commanded legions of fleets and numberless hordes of disposable cloned shock troops. The last thing any Mandalorian wanted was another glorious, catastrophic defeat. But with the warlike and peaceful factions nearly united once more, they understood that this was the perfect opportunity – perhaps their last – to make an impact on a galactic scale. The only problem was; what could they do?

Enter Senator Bail Organa and the Alliance of Independent Systems.

After a small unit of Special Forces elites foiled a plot by Imperial Remnant and Zygerrian slavers, it came to the attention of Alliance High Command that the Mandalorians were recovering their pre-war strength and ambitions. Lady Aika Ulnar sent her best diplomat (and the father of her daughter) to Mando’a to discuss terms of alliance. Both the Mandalorians and the AIS soon saw this was a perfect match. The sheer skill and drive of the Mando’an forces would be a significant addition to AIS firepower – armed with this, and the assistance of the Shadow Collective, military victory now looked a distinct possibility. A lightning strike, cleaving through the Inner Rim, a spear hurled at the heart of Coruscant. Tarkin’s Empire was already shattered by civil war and a long, draining struggle since the holocaust of Alderaan.  Prince Xizor of Black Sun now ruled most of Coruscant through proxies, but the Jedi were returning in force, and everyone knew that he could not hold onto his prize.

Lady Aika’s plan; to beat the Jedi to their goal, to defeat Xizor and the Imperial hold-outs, and declare Coruscant her own and dictate the terms of its release to the Jedi. For the Mandalorians, it meant what their Taung creators always dreamed of – Mando’an boots on Coruscant soil.  And in addition, they genuinely liked the idea of the Systems Alliance. The warrior cadres like the Death Watch saw an elite team of underdogs, punching well above their weight using skill, flair, unity, ingenuity and excellence. The peaceful factions knew the Alliance as high-minded and honourable, an independent government of free people who would rule themselves, free of the tyranny of the galactic Core.

Lady Aika proposed a singular motion - to bring the Mando’a on board not as a client species, but as a Council race. Most of the Council species were aghast – this essentially gave humanity a second vote on the High Council, as the Mando’a were not technically human, but to all intents and purposes were an extension of humanity. Aika called in every favour and every underhanded move she could come up with, and the motion was passed by a single vote. Duchess Satine Kryze was crowned the first Mandalore in two centuries, and the Council of Seven was now the Council of Eight. The die was now cast – this changed the whole motivation of the AIS from ‘fighting for independence’ to ‘military victory and galactic power-brokering’. While the Ithorian, Mon Calamari and Gran Counsellors were appalled, the more pragmatic Bothans, Sullustans and Duros were resigned to this path, pulled along in humanity’s wake. The conquest of Coruscant was now a possibility, and it would place the AIS in the most powerful position when the inevitable peace talks with the Jedi began. They knew that bargaining from a position of strength was their best hope for a lasting independence. Now everything rested on one factor – was Aika Ulnar as good a general as she believed?

The Near Now

Mando’a today is revitalised as never before. Nationalism and patriotism has never been stronger, and they believe their hour has come at last. Military victory against the Core, against the Jedi, and Mandalorian warriors in the vanguard of the invasion. The hopes of their ancient creators will be realised, and the Mandalore will be among the most powerful beings on the galactic stage. Every single Mando’a believes in their eventual victory, and their will as a species is bent on this moment in history.  They sing the praises of Lady Ulnar as the ‘Great Mother’ and statues of her with Taung horns have gone up in every city. Of course, victory may not be as simple as all that, but Aika never plays unless the cards and dice are loaded in her favour…

Biology and Culture

The Mandalorian people are near-humans, a young race bred only three millennia ago from Corellian bloodstripe stock (making them technically near-near-humans). While the Taung genetically altered them to be a client warrior race, the Mando’a are not clones and are their own genetic offshoot species that breed in the natural way. Their biology is mostly Corellian (and therefore mostly human) with a few minor differences. Mando’ans can breed with humans or near-humans and produce viable offspring. Perhaps peculiarly all things considered, they are rather socially progressive – same gender relationships are fully accepted, and noble houses with such relationships adopt offspring to further their lineage. There are few gender distinctions in Mando’an society, so one wishing to take on the identity of the opposite gender may do so without any cultural issues. Family and lineage, and self-sacrifice for the greater good, are literally ingrained in the species.

The main differences are cultural – Mando’ans are bred to be a client race, and are naturally inclined to work together and put aside their differences for the common good.   While warlike and conquest-minded, and firm believers that ‘might makes right’, they are an honourable people, who dislike the slaughter of civilian populations and waste of valuable resources. Client people are treated fairly and put to practical use to better them, instilling the community mindset of the Mando’an philosophy. Those Mando’ans who are guilty of massacring unarmed civilians (such as in the Cathar Heresy) are vilified and reviled in Mando’an lore, as are cowards or others who lack military discipline and honour.

The one obvious non-human feature of the Mando’a are the markings across their brows, the Jaig, roughly translated to Basic as ‘hawk eyes’.   These are markings that signify a certain house or bloodline, something akin to a genetic ‘barcode’ written as an identifier into each Mandalorian by the Taung. Culturally, Jaig eyes have huge significance and are seen as harbouring certain racial qualities and even spiritual implications. Those few Force-sensitive Mando’a see their Jaig eyes as a kind of ‘sixth sense’ and the seat of their mystical powers.

Akaavi Kyne (it’s pronounced ‘Ky-Na’ incidentally!)

As a people, the Mandalorians have assimilated well into the Systems Alliance, inducted into military or support programmes and adding significant value to existing procedures. They were bred for war, and it shows. Nonhumans don’t see them as any different to humans, and at worst, Mando’a and human troops have a friendly rivalry. They are placed in mixed groups and adapt well, eager to realise their true purpose alongside their Alliance brothers.

When selecting agents for her ‘Rogue Squadron’ Black Operations group, Aika Ulnar eschewed recruitment from the usual Special Forces channels. Each member was selected by her own inner circle of advisors, and she was eager to include a Mando’an in her entourage.   After sifting through thousands of potential candidates, they settled on Akaavi Kyne, a young warrior in high standing from a good house. Young, enthusiastic with a calm, collected manner, she was chosen for her loyalty and total commitment to the cause (though some whisper that Aika’s confidante and lover, Dariusz Bess’a, liked her pretty face and snake hips the most…)

Akaavi is a combat medic, officially on the team to tend to the group’s injuries and Lady Ulnar’s biological needs (whatever the latter might be!). Akaavi is confident, self-assured, patriotic, and cool under fire, comfortable in almost any battle role from assault to heavy support. She believes utterly in the Mando’an cause and the righteous victory of the Systems Alliance. The opportunity to serve the ‘Great Mother’ directly and perhaps be the very first Mandalorian boots on Coruscant fills her with incredible pride, and she is honoured to represent her people at this moment in history. She obeys orders without question and oversees her duties, whether medical or combat, with enthusiastic zeal. She loves to talk about her people and educate others about the Mando’a, whether they ask for it or not.

In battle, Akaavi wears Mando’an ‘Crusader’ armour (stripped down here!), each suit of which is heavily customised and bespoke-made for its wearer. Aside from its obvious protective value, her suit has an integrated multi-band commlink; an MB-7 ‘Ranger’-class range-finder, enhancing her considerable sniper skills; a SmartMed 2000 Integrated Med-Systems, allowing her to use stims and increasing her first-aid ability; and a Threat Monitor system to detect any dangers to the Lady Ulnar.

Akaavi is proud of her ‘House of Kyne’ Jaig markings, which she says indicate her family’s clarity of sight and visual excellence. She wears many typically Mandalorian markings on her flesh and her armour also, including the famous Alderaani firebird symbol of the AIS on her left breastplate. On her breastbone is the primal symbol of her Taung creators, in bloody red. On her helm, the armoured Taung face-plate on which the distinctive look of Crusader armour is based. The battle-symbol of her House is at the centre of her armoured front-plate, and around her navel, where she was physically separated from her mother, the Crusader symbol itself, signifying the ancient assault troops of the first Mando’a, a tradition stretching back almost three millennia.

Description

“Fair game, go on and drop your head

Fairness gone, and make you lose mine

Losing love all over again

But it’s my way ‘til the end of time…

Less dread when I drop my head

Fear go, and let me lose mine

I’m losing love all over again

But it’s my way ‘til the end of time…

And where do we go?

And I’m leaning towards losing my mind

With this feeling no more...

Ooh, better leave that war with me…!

Ooh, better leave that war with me…!

Fair trials, they don’t exist my friend!

Only a circus in my mind

Judgements gone, and there’s no love again

But it’s my way ‘til the end of time…"

London Grammar, ‘Leave The War With Me’

Another wonderful render from the talented

Meet call-sign ‘Rogue Two’, the Mandalorian warrior Akaavi Kyne, all dressed up in her crusader armour and ready to serve her beloved mistress.

The Mandalorians in whatever the bullshit Disney canon is called this week:

Few topics are more controversial than the Mandalorians in Star Wars lore; perhaps the hated 'midicholorians' (srlsy, reducing The Force to germs now, WTF?) or the arguments of whether Han Shot First (spoiler: he did).

The Mandalorian people were created as a backstory to Boba Fett, the cool-looking-but essentially-useless bounty hunter in the second and third films, ‘Empire Strikes Back’ and ‘Return of the Jedi’. (’Episode V and VI’? Fuck off.)   Initially, they were – like every single other race in Star Wars – full on ‘Planet of Hats’, a race of people who dressed and acted exactly like Boba Fett. Over time, they were developed as a warrior people who had fought wars of conquest throughout galactic history. Infamously, an author called Karen Traviss wrote extensively about them, developing their culture in intricate detail. Unfortunately, she fell in love with her own creations, making them a kind of author-insert Mary Sue race who were flawless and superior warriors while the Jedi they fought were portrayed in the worst light possible. This interpretation, known as ‘Fandalorians’ to some, received very mixed reviews – some fans loved the concept of a proud warrior race, others felt Traviss went over the top and made them overly perfect.

They also played a large part in Bioware’s superior ‘Knights of the Old Republic’ series of games and comics, all of which was a big influence on the MarcyVerse.

They were further developed by the kid’s cartoon show, ‘Clone Wars’ (spoiler: it’s mostly garbage) and ‘Rebels’ (spoiler: it’s complete, execrable garbage) into a society split along the lines of warriors and pacifists, and embarrassingly, had a major character who was a Mandalorian graffiti-artist (if Karen Traviss was dead, she’d be spinning in her grave here). Actually, to give it it’s due, the treatment of the poor old Mando’s in Disney’s shitty kid’s show was about the only thing that was halfway intriguing, and the single thing we borrowed from it for the (far superior!) reworked MarcyVerse.

To their credit (this once!) the Disney version of Mando’s wasn’t half bad; they took the basic concept of Karen’s Fandalorians and made them less perfect and more flawed, which is exactly what I would have done in reworking them. They had all the trappings of the Proud Warrior Race Guy culture, but also serious drawbacks – their warlike nature prevented them from ever achieving much as a culture when they weren’t at war, and Mandalore itself was a tiny and insignificant backwater, notable only for producing a species that twice waged an unwinnable but ambitious war on the rest of the galaxy.

Mandalorians in the MarcyVerse

So for once, we had the core of a decent concept. The Mandalorians were historically a small but warlike culture that punched way above their weight and twice gave the world a scare before being well and truly crushed by the Old Republic. I interpreted it a bit like World War One and Two, if they had been instigated not by the imposing military might of Germany, but by a tiny place like Monaco or Liechtenstein.

We decided that the Mando’s were a near-human race, genetically engineered by the Taung from Corellian near-human stock about three thousand years ago. The Taung we imagined a bit like Mass Effect’s krogans, if they were all a bit like Doctor Okeer – warlike and conquest-minded, but also great genetic engineers. Only this time, they brought their genophage on themselves with germ warfare, so they were long-lived but rarely produced viable young. The Mando’s were therefore one of many efforts to create a subservient race of quick-breeding combat troops to serve in their wars of conquest. And when the Taung finally eradicated themselves from the galaxy in one of their many stupid civil wars, their creations survived them, happily carrying on their creator’s legacy with a knowledge of war, and a technological edge superior to most other species.

We kept the division of warlike ‘hawks’ and peaceful ‘doves’, as that tallied with the official Fantasy Flight stats for them – they either got one free Combat skill or two Knowledge skills as a playable race.

Early on, we thought they would suit the ‘Scum and Villainy’ faction - the Shadow Collective – as a ragged but tough race of scattered elite mercenaries trying to recreate their glory days of conquest. The official adventure ‘Friends Like These’ changed our minds here, however. Not only did we now have official stats for them, but they leaned heavily on the honourable ‘Proud Warrior Race Guy’ trope again. An essentially honourable race made up of elites who punch well above their weight, who regularly make war upon much bigger forces… and hate the Jedi? That was an almost perfect fit for our Alliance of Independent Systems (who really are more like the Separatists than plucky ‘Rebels’). So after playing that adventure out with our AIS characters, it opened the way of the Alliance diplomats to do their thing, and bring them fully into the Systems Alliance… inadvertently changing the whole thrust of the Galactic Civil War and making military victory now a possibility for the AIS...

In some ways, our Mandalorian culture is a little like sci-fi writer Robert Heinlein envisaged – it’s very socialist, with everyone forced to cooperate and serve the common cause, and each are rewarded according to their needs and ability.   It’s not always perfect and it doesn’t always work – they are human stock after all, and humans are flawed - but the intention is there, and it’s biologically written into their very being.

The in-game MarcyVerse lore

Carth Onassi: "I'm not a ‘warrior’. I'm a soldier. There's a difference. ‘Warriors’ attack and conquer. They prey on the weak. Soldiers defend and protect the innocent – mostly from ‘warriors’."

Canderous Ordo: "Nice speech. I bet you tell yourself that every night so you can sleep. But I am accept who and what I am. I don't have to justify it with words. Victory in battle is my justification."

Carth Onassi: "Justification through victory? So what happens when you lose? You know, like you did against us."

Canderous Ordo: "You had us outnumbered five to one! You had more ships, more troops, more supplies, and the Jedi on your side. And we still made the Republic tremble before we fell!"

Carth Onassi: "Nice speech. I bet you tell yourself that every night so you can sleep."

(Carth lays a brutal verbal slap-down on Canderous in Knights of the Old Republic)

The Mandalorian people – known in their own tongue as the Mando’a – are a near-human race genetically engineered from Corellian stock by a now-extinct reptilian race called the Taung. About three-thousand years ago, the Taung – a dying race weakened by gene warfare even then – sought out many ‘lesser’ species to shape into client races who would provide the raw numbers in their wars of conquest. The Mandalorians were not their only attempt at this, but were by far the most successful… outlasting even their creators in the end. When the Taung finally tore themselves apart in nuclear fire, leaving only small colonies that dwindled and eventually died out, the Mandalorians thrived on their little colony planet deep in the Outer Rim, using the gifts of their creators - knowledge of war and technological supremacy – to carve themselves an empire at the edge of the galaxy.

While there were certainly civil wars, some quite destructive, the Mandalorians were bred as a servitor race, and it was written deep in their genetic make-up to co-operate and band together. While mere humans – the most aggressive, expansionist race in the galaxy - might have torn themselves apart, the Mando’a learned to put aside their many differences and externalise their aggression outwards. Civil war became ritualised, fought by small numbers to decide policy and supremacy, without needing to slaughter civilians or non-combatants. In this way, they developed a peculiar sense of honour, and saw war as something akin to a holy calling, ensuring that the best ideas and the strongest beliefs flourished and spread.

Their tiny planet sat at the heart of a wide empire across the sprawling Outer Limits, for well over a millennia until they had contact with other Coreward species. Obviously, this didn’t begin well – those they encountered were told to become part of their empire, or fight for the right to be free of it. As their horizons opened, they found new and worthy enemies to fight in the Mid-Rim, and had to defend themselves in turn from other aggressive empires.

Things got serious about four-hundred years ago, at the very height of the Old Republic. Coruscant - the birthplace of humanity - held a very special place in the mythology of the Taung, some of whom had theorised that the Taung themselves were once a genetically-engineered species created from Coruscant reptile life. Some Taung - incidentally those who were in charge of creating the Mando’s – dreamed of one day conquering humanity’s birthplace and preserving it as the home of their distant ancestors. The Mando’a may have even been bred for this purpose eventually, being mostly human-like in biology and appearance. While the Mandalorians did not quite worship the Taung as gods, they held their creators in very high regard – Taung images decorated their armour and statues of their lost creators stood in every Mando’an city. They came to obsess about realising their ‘true purpose’ and conquering the galactic core in honour of their creators.

The First Mandalorian War took the Old Republic by surprise. Few had heard of them or realised they were a threat, being some distant outpost of a dead species that made war upon Outer Rim colonists and explorers. When the Mando’an fleets cut through the Mid-Rim like a lightsaber blade, the Old Republic was caught off-guard. Nations and empires that had been established for centuries fell to the sudden attacks, using advanced technology and unique protocols of battle that caught the Republic unawares. Even more unbelievably, they were able to absorb many of their conquests into their expanding empire, putting them to use and even ‘uplifting’ other species in terms of culture and technology. Client races were treated well and not butchered, but allowed to become part of something greater. The Mando’a did not simply challenge the Republic in a military sense, but a cultural sense also. The Republic had been stagnant and fragmenting for some time, although outwardly it seemed as strong as ever.

Eventually, when they reached the ‘Expansion Region’ of the Inner Rim, the boundaries of the Core, the Jedi themselves had to take action. Long embroiled in their own secret internal struggles, the Mando’a energised the Order, uniting as one after centuries of mistrust and internal strife. And in turn, the Jedi were an enemy unlike any the Mandalorians had ever seen. Here at last, they thought, was a truly worth foe. The battles of the First Mandalorian War were legendary, but there could only be one winner. Extended far from their empire, the Mando’a struggled to replace losses, and the Jedi were an implacable and ruthless enemy, capable of supernatural feats of power. The Mandalorians had few Sensitives and no Force traditions, while a single Jedi could crush their mighty ships or mind-link with an entire army to ensure cohesion and unity. The Mandalorians fought valiantly, but were finally driven back, and the Old Republic followed to see what manner of threat assailed them from nowhere.

The Jedi were impressed by the Mando’an culture, and the sheer audacity of their invasion. In honour of their strength and determination, the Jedi decreed that the Mando’a would be mostly left alone, aside from a decommissioning of their remaining fleets. They took some promising Force-sensitive students and some of their genetic coding and lore of the Taung, but otherwise allowed them to continue their empire far from the galactic Core. The Jedi believed the race had learned their lesson… but it would not last as long as most hoped.

Almost two-hundred years passed; the Mandalorians rebuilt their strength after decades of damaging internal conflicts, and re-established their colonies on the edge of the Mid-Rim. They found they had many allies in the territories they had once ‘uplifted’, and in the centuries that had passed, the Old Republic’s grip was growing weaker. The façade of a huge galactic empire that had stood for nearly two millennia was beginning to crumble. Sensing weakness, the Mandalorians once more girded for war, and launched another spearhead assault on the Inner Rim.

This time, the Jedi had remained watchful, and understood the nature of the threat. Yet the Mando’a had learned from their defeat, and also had allies who wished to be free of the weakening Republic. The Second Mandalorian War was perhaps more vicious and spiteful than the last, with both sides sometimes abandoning honour for pragmatic victory. The Jedi Grand Master at this time was Jaylani Revan, a brilliant but controversial figure who led the Consular Order and masterminded the path of the war. As always, it was a war that Mandalorians could never hope to win; when all passion was spent, when all honour was ground down in war, their surrender was this time to be unconditional.

It is said that High Lady Revan argued against punishing the Mando’a harshly, believing that would only fan future flames of war. But many in the Republic believed they had been too lenient on the Mando’a initially, and this time a lesson had to be taught. This time, the Mando’an empire was dissolved, their entire fleets decommissioned, their colonies demilitarised. There was dark talk of more sinister punishments, of internment camps and forced sterilisations of entire nations. Whatever the truth of it, resentment burned in Mando’an hearts, a belief they had fought with honour and yet been humiliated by the victors.

But over the next hundred and fifty years, there was little they could do about it. Their empire had been torn apart, their colonies lost, their fleets destroyed. All they had was their history and their lost honour. Popular risings tore their culture asunder – many blamed the warlike habits of the warrior sects, wanting to bring a more peaceful future for their species, one that would be free of wars and hopeless, futile campaigns of conquest. Many of the most famous warrior castes, such as the Death Watch, were banished from Mando’a to their moon or distant colonies. Mando’a struggled through a century of rebuilding and civil strife.

But in these last centuries, even the watch of the Jedi diminished, as the Order was pulled into conflicts at the Core. The Clone Wars against the Separatists (an early prototype of what would eventually become the Alliance of Independent Systems) damaged the Old Republic further. As the Core became engulfed in insurrection and squabbling, as the once-mighty Republic crumbled, the Mando’an people, long-forgotten, began to mobilise once more.

As the Clone Wars limped to a damaging and inconclusive end, leaving anger and insurrection in their wake, as species like the Mon Calamari and Sullustans agitated for independence, Mando’a slowly stirred from its malaise. The governments of the planet once again reached out to their exiled warrior brethren. Popular movements stressed national pride and their glorious history. Fleets were rebuilt, and colonies abandoned for centuries resettled. By this time, the Old Republic had all but fragmented. An insane, Force-sensitive clone escaped from Byss made an audacious attempt to seize the Senate under the guise of Sheev Palpatine. The Jedi slew him, but Grand Admiral Willuf Tarkin made his own bid to seize power. With the Jedi abandoning the Core for their mysterious exodus to the Far Rim, Tarkin crowned himself Emperor of a military dictatorship over much of the Core, declaring the ‘Imperium of Mankind’ and the end of the Republic that had stood for two millennia.

With their ancient rivals gone, and their strength almost rebuilt to the level of the Mandalorian Wars, Mando’a felt that a new opportunity had been revealed. The only problem was an age-old one – no matter how fierce and disciplined they were, the Mando’a were a very small force compared to the empires at the galactic core. Even with the Jedi gone, the new Empire commanded legions of fleets and numberless hordes of disposable cloned shock troops. The last thing any Mandalorian wanted was another glorious, catastrophic defeat. But with the warlike and peaceful factions nearly united once more, they understood that this was the perfect opportunity – perhaps their last – to make an impact on a galactic scale. The only problem was; what could they do?

Enter Senator Bail Organa and the Alliance of Independent Systems.

After a small unit of Special Forces elites foiled a plot by Imperial Remnant and Zygerrian slavers, it came to the attention of Alliance High Command that the Mandalorians were recovering their pre-war strength and ambitions. Lady Aika Ulnar sent her best diplomat (and the father of her daughter) to Mando’a to discuss terms of alliance. Both the Mandalorians and the AIS soon saw this was a perfect match. The sheer skill and drive of the Mando’an forces would be a significant addition to AIS firepower – armed with this, and the assistance of the Shadow Collective, military victory now looked a distinct possibility. A lightning strike, cleaving through the Inner Rim, a spear hurled at the heart of Coruscant. Tarkin’s Empire was already shattered by civil war and a long, draining struggle since the holocaust of Alderaan.  Prince Xizor of Black Sun now ruled most of Coruscant through proxies, but the Jedi were returning in force, and everyone knew that he could not hold onto his prize.

Lady Aika’s plan; to beat the Jedi to their goal, to defeat Xizor and the Imperial hold-outs, and declare Coruscant her own and dictate the terms of its release to the Jedi. For the Mandalorians, it meant what their Taung creators always dreamed of – Mando’an boots on Coruscant soil.  And in addition, they genuinely liked the idea of the Systems Alliance. The warrior cadres like the Death Watch saw an elite team of underdogs, punching well above their weight using skill, flair, unity, ingenuity and excellence. The peaceful factions knew the Alliance as high-minded and honourable, an independent government of free people who would rule themselves, free of the tyranny of the galactic Core.

Lady Aika proposed a singular motion - to bring the Mando’a on board not as a client species, but as a Council race. Most of the Council species were aghast – this essentially gave humanity a second vote on the High Council, as the Mando’a were not technically human, but to all intents and purposes were an extension of humanity. Aika called in every favour and every underhanded move she could come up with, and the motion was passed by a single vote. Duchess Satine Kryze was crowned the first Mandalore in two centuries, and the Council of Seven was now the Council of Eight. The die was now cast – this changed the whole motivation of the AIS from ‘fighting for independence’ to ‘military victory and galactic power-brokering’. While the Ithorian, Mon Calamari and Gran Counsellors were appalled, the more pragmatic Bothans, Sullustans and Duros were resigned to this path, pulled along in humanity’s wake. The conquest of Coruscant was now a possibility, and it would place the AIS in the most powerful position when the inevitable peace talks with the Jedi began. They knew that bargaining from a position of strength was their best hope for a lasting independence. Now everything rested on one factor – was Aika Ulnar as good a general as she believed?

The Near Now

Mando’a today is revitalised as never before. Nationalism and patriotism has never been stronger, and they believe their hour has come at last. Military victory against the Core, against the Jedi, and Mandalorian warriors in the vanguard of the invasion. The hopes of their ancient creators will be realised, and the Mandalore will be among the most powerful beings on the galactic stage. Every single Mando’a believes in their eventual victory, and their will as a species is bent on this moment in history.  They sing the praises of Lady Ulnar as the ‘Great Mother’ and statues of her with Taung horns have gone up in every city. Of course, victory may not be as simple as all that, but Aika never plays unless the cards and dice are loaded in her favour…

Biology and Culture

The Mandalorian people are near-humans, a young race bred only three millennia ago from Corellian bloodstripe stock (making them technically near-near-humans). While the Taung genetically altered them to be a client warrior race, the Mando’a are not clones and are their own genetic offshoot species that breed in the natural way. Their biology is mostly Corellian (and therefore mostly human) with a few minor differences. Mando’ans can breed with humans or near-humans and produce viable offspring. Perhaps peculiarly all things considered, they are rather socially progressive – same gender relationships are fully accepted, and noble houses with such relationships adopt offspring to further their lineage. There are few gender distinctions in Mando’an society, so one wishing to take on the identity of the opposite gender may do so without any cultural issues. Family and lineage, and self-sacrifice for the greater good, are literally ingrained in the species.

The main differences are cultural – Mando’ans are bred to be a client race, and are naturally inclined to work together and put aside their differences for the common good.   While warlike and conquest-minded, and firm believers that ‘might makes right’, they are an honourable people, who dislike the slaughter of civilian populations and waste of valuable resources. Client people are treated fairly and put to practical use to better them, instilling the community mindset of the Mando’an philosophy. Those Mando’ans who are guilty of massacring unarmed civilians (such as in the Cathar Heresy) are vilified and reviled in Mando’an lore, as are cowards or others who lack military discipline and honour.

The one obvious non-human feature of the Mando’a are the markings across their brows, the Jaig, roughly translated to Basic as ‘hawk eyes’.   These are markings that signify a certain house or bloodline, something akin to a genetic ‘barcode’ written as an identifier into each Mandalorian by the Taung. Culturally, Jaig eyes have huge significance and are seen as harbouring certain racial qualities and even spiritual implications. Those few Force-sensitive Mando’a see their Jaig eyes as a kind of ‘sixth sense’ and the seat of their mystical powers.

Akaavi Kyne (it’s pronounced ‘Ky-Na’ incidentally!)

As a people, the Mandalorians have assimilated well into the Systems Alliance, inducted into military or support programmes and adding significant value to existing procedures. They were bred for war, and it shows. Nonhumans don’t see them as any different to humans, and at worst, Mando’a and human troops have a friendly rivalry. They are placed in mixed groups and adapt well, eager to realise their true purpose alongside their Alliance brothers.

When selecting agents for her ‘Rogue Squadron’ Black Operations group, Aika Ulnar eschewed recruitment from the usual Special Forces channels. Each member was selected by her own inner circle of advisors, and she was eager to include a Mando’an in her entourage.   After sifting through thousands of potential candidates, they settled on Akaavi Kyne, a young warrior in high standing from a good house. Young, enthusiastic with a calm, collected manner, she was chosen for her loyalty and total commitment to the cause (though some whisper that Aika’s confidante and lover, Dariusz Bess’a, liked her pretty face and snake hips the most…)

Akaavi is a combat medic, officially on the team to tend to the group’s injuries and Lady Ulnar’s biological needs (whatever the latter might be!). Akaavi is confident, self-assured, patriotic, and cool under fire, comfortable in almost any battle role from assault to heavy support. She believes utterly in the Mando’an cause and the righteous victory of the Systems Alliance. The opportunity to serve the ‘Great Mother’ directly and perhaps be the very first Mandalorian boots on Coruscant fills her with incredible pride, and she is honoured to represent her people at this moment in history. She obeys orders without question and oversees her duties, whether medical or combat, with enthusiastic zeal. She loves to talk about her people and educate others about the Mando’a, whether they ask for it or not.

In battle, Akaavi wears Mando’an ‘Crusader’ armour (stripped down here!), each suit of which is heavily customised and bespoke-made for its wearer. Aside from its obvious protective value, her suit has an integrated multi-band commlink; an MB-7 ‘Ranger’-class range-finder, enhancing her considerable sniper skills; a SmartMed 2000 Integrated Med-Systems, allowing her to use stims and increasing her first-aid ability; and a Threat Monitor system to detect any dangers to the Lady Ulnar.

Akaavi is proud of her ‘House of Kyne’ Jaig markings, which she says indicate her family’s clarity of sight and visual excellence. She wears many typically Mandalorian markings on her flesh and her armour also, including the famous Alderaani firebird symbol of the AIS on her left breastplate. On her breastbone is the primal symbol of her Taung creators, in bloody red. On her helm, the armoured Taung face-plate on which the distinctive look of Crusader armour is based. The battle-symbol of her House is at the centre of her armoured front-plate, and around her navel, where she was physically separated from her mother, the Crusader symbol itself, signifying the ancient assault troops of the first Mando’a, a tradition stretching back almost three millennia.