Ice (duelist)

"I'm here to take care of business in the dueling ring, not to have some slack-jawed, goggle-eyed man slobber all over me. So back off!"

- Ice, to Revan

"Ice" was the professional alias of a Human female competitor at the Taris dueling ring that operated at the Upper City Cantina during the Jedi Civil War. Inspired by the legendary Mandalorian duelist Bendak Starkiller, Ice was a competent fighter that received her handle as a result of her cold disposition. To her, coldness was a theme that she adopted for every aspect of her persona: she was harsh and critical towards everyone, even her fans. Nevertheless, she was popular among audiences of the arena, being an intermediate-ranking duelist.

Biography
"Ice? Eh, she's not much for personality, but she's a hell of a fighter – confident, steady. Popular with the crowd, too. If you go up against her you know you're in for a tough match."

- Marl describing Ice

In her childhood, the Human female later known as "Ice" idolized the famed Gorse Bendak, better known as Bendak Starkiller, a legendary gladiator of the dueling ring run by Ajuur the Hutt, located in the Upper City Cantina on the planet Taris. In him, she found her inspiration, hoping to follow in his footsteps and pursue a career as a duelist. Upon meeting him for the first time, however, she found his personality revolting. So affected was she by this meeting that she resolved to emulate his ruthless, anti-social character, embracing it as a lesson in the reality of the world.

As an adult, she stayed true to her dream and joined the Taris dueling ring. Earning a reputation as a devious fighter, she often hid a blaster inside her clothing in case a bout got out of hand. By 3956 BBY, she had acquired a considerable following among fans of the sport. She was especially popular with the female demographic, as women admired that her prowess proved they could achieve in such a field, but she was dismissive of being an icon for gender equality. Of the competitors current to that year, she could defeat Gerlon Two-Fingers and Deadeye Duncan, the latter who was considered the worst duelist of all time. While respected for her skills, she was no match for the veteran duelist Marl or the then champion Twitch, and her ranking was therefore intermediate.

It was in that same year that a Sith fleet led by Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Malak occupied Taris and imposed martial law alongside a planetary blockade. Under the quarantine, the dueling arena continued to operate as usual, with the Sith enforcing the ban on death matches that had led to Bendak's retirement.

However, one of the Republic soldiers that escaped the destruction of the Endar Spire, Revan, visited the Upper City Cantina and decided to join the dueling arena under the alias "Mysterious Stranger." After beating Deadeye Duncan and Gerlon Two-Fingers, he fought Ice and emerged victorious, winning 300 credits. With her defeat, Ice was quick to conclude that Revan's martial prowess far eclipsed her own, accepting this as another simple, cold-heart truth. Sure enough, she would watch as Revan, as an amnesiac former Sith Lord, went on to defeat Marl and Twitch as well, becoming the last champion of the duel ring before the destruction of Taris at the hands of the Sith.

Personality and traits
"I've never been one to shy away from the cold, hard truth so I'll just come right out and say it: I can't compete with the likes of you, Stranger. I know when I'm overmatched. You're good – very good. But you're wrong if you think that means I'm suddenly going to warm up to you. Truth is, I really don't have anything more to say, so you might as well move on."

- Ice to Revan after losing to him

As her stage name suggested, Ice exhibited a cold, dispassionate personality, generally unwilling to befriend others. Though she was deeply cynical, she was not always so, as in her childhood, she dreamed often of meeting her idol Bendak Starkiller. When this dream at last came true, she was struck by his toxic personality. Whether she felt more heartbroken or impressed, the meeting profoundly shaped her worldview, and she became convinced that to thrive, she must be every bit as ruthless and cruel as he was. To that end, she internalized the theme of coldness for her persona, even greeting strangers with condescension unprovoked. In spite of this, and her propensity for blunt, rude responses&mdash;even to her fans&mdash;she was not above congratulating fellow competitors, especially if they proved their remarkable skill. While her resolution to be emotionless made her asocial, it also meant that she was not one to take scorn or defeats personally. Moreover, she would be motivated by shocking incidents to reflect upon what lessons it held.

Ice was a blonde-haired woman with pale skin and blue eyes. By her own account, many men&mdash;men that she was disgusted by&mdash;found her attractive, and her immediate assumption upon meeting Revan was that he was just another male fan who had come to flirt with her.

Equipment
In her career, she favored a combat suit, standard for its time, and carried a heavy blaster pistol alongside a vibroblade.

Behind the scenes
Ice's first canonical appearance is as a non-player character in the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic video game. In the Xbox version of the game, her hair is brown, whereas in the PC version, it is blonde. Inside the game, the player, Revan, can choose to fight her in the dueling ring. However, the nature of the encounter is such that it does not progress any plot, nor does it change the player's alignment. Therefore, it is undetermined whether Revan ever interacted with her.

In a non-canonical dark side outcome, if the player defeats Ice and proceeds to kill Starkiller in a death match, Ice becomes introspective as to what his death meant for her cynical worldview.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic