Darth Kruhl

"The hate you teach will be used against you and your kind, Kruhl! You cannot kill everyone who will defy you!" "Of course we can. Hate is a Sith weapon."

- Rikkar-Du, and Darth Kruhl.

Darth Kruhl was a male Sith Lord and assassin, being one of many to serve under Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Krayt during his reign as Galactic Emperor. Kruhl was also the direct subbordinate of Darth Maladi, acting her as one of her operatives in the Sith Intelligence and Assassination department of Krayt's Empire. Kruhl displayed unusual loyalty to Darth Krayt, and had no reservations about dying for him.

In 137 ABY, Darth Kruhl was sent to the world of Munto Codru, with instructions to capture the planet for Krayt’s Sith Empire. He attempted to peacefully negotiate an agreement with the appointed spokesman of planet’s native Codru-Ji species, Rikkar-du. However, Rikkar-du was uninterested in Imperial domination, and attempted to unite the clans of Munto-Codru in rebellion against Kruhl’s plan to subjugate them. When Kruhl learned of Rikkar-du’s plot, he returned to the planet and confronted the Codru-Ji man. The two engaged in combat, which resulted in Darth Kruhl slaying both Rikkar-du and his son.

Kruhl was later dispatched by Darth Maladi to the stronghold of the deposed Emperor Roan Fel on the world of Bastion, where he was tasked with assassinating him, to rid Darth Krayt of any further opposition to his rule. Kruhl infiltrated Fel’s sanctuary where he attempted to take the exiled Emperor by surprise; however, Fel had been expecting Kruhl, and the two engaged in a lightsaber duel. Kruhl was killed when Fel displayed his concealed blaster pistol and shot the Sith Lord in the stomach. After Kruhl’s death, Fel returned his lightsaber to Coruscant, to show the usurper Krayt that his assassination attempt had failed.

Occupation of Munto Codru
"Rikkar-du, you have a great position among the Codru-Ji. You are a clan chief, and your wife is the daughter of another clan chief. How would you like to command all the clans? The Empire wishes to build a base here to command this sector of the Outer Rim."

- Darth Kruhl, offering to take Munto Codru peacefully

The man known as Darth Kruhl was a Sith Lord of Darth Krayt's One Sith Order. Kruhl was also an agent within the Intelligence and Assassination department of Krayt's Galactic Empire, operating directly as the subordinate of the Intelligence director, Darth Maladi. During the Anti-Sith Insurgency instigated by the deposed Emperor Roan Fel, Kruhl was sent to Munto Codru by Darth Maladi to gain a foothold in the Outer Rim Territories for the Sith. Kruhl's mission was to obtain the support of the native Codru-Ji, so that Krayt's forces could establish an Imperial stronghold on their planet. The Codru-Ji engaged in ritual political conspiracies, and Kruhl sought to play on their customs by offering control of all the Codru-Ji clans to one man, a clan leader named Rikkar-du. However, Kruhl's offer was rejected by Rikkar-du, and the Codru-Ji clan leader urged his people to unite against the Sith Empire.

Knowing that Kruhl would return expecting an answer, Rikkar-du planned to confront the Sith Lord, and ambush him in the Codru-Ji temple with two hidden security droids. Lord Kruhl was aware of Rikkar-du's treachery, and destroyed the droids before revealing himself to the clan leader. After a brief exchange, Kruhl rescinded his original offer, and Rikkar-du drew four knives in an attempt to kill the Sith Lord. Kruhl ignited his lightsaber and cut Rikkar-du down, severing one of his four hands while explaining that resisting the Empire was futile. When Rikkar-du's son Jassar arrived in the temple and attacked Kruhl in defense of his father, he too was slain by Kruhl, as an example to Rikkar-du that insolence would not be tolerated. Kruhl then killed Rikkar-du as punishment for his defiance. Unbeknownst to the clan leader, Kruhl was secretly collusion with another clan leader, Kassek-ka, to have Rikkar-du’s wife eliminated as well. Kassek-ka relented to the terms that Rikkar-du had refused, and Darth Kruhl warned him to be wary of making the same mistake, lest the same fate befall Kassek-ka as well. With his mission complete, Kruhl returned to his orbiting Star Destroyer, Dauntless.

Mission to Bastion
"Kassek-Ka will persuade the other clans of the ''wisdom of our offer. Now, what is the reason for governor Dorn's presence?" "Former governor Dorn is here to assist you in your next assignment, Darth Kruhl&mdash;Roan Fel."

- Darths Kruhl, receiving orders from Darth Maladi

After ensuring the loyalty of Kassek-ka, Kruhl was approached by another operative of Lady Maladi&mdash;Munto Codru's former governor, the Human Vikar Dorn. With Dorn's assistance, Kruhl was to infiltrate the Imperial fortress-world of Bastion and assassinate Roan Fel, thus ending Fel's resistance. He failed in his mission, having been shot by Fel personally.

Personality and traits
"Life&hellip;death&hellip;the one is the same as the other."

- Darth Kruhl

Darth Kruhl wore short-sleeved Sith robes, and was a well-muscled man with mohawk-styled hair. Like most of the members of the Order, the visible areas of his body were decorated with Sith tattoos of a red and black design. He was a prime representative of the One Sith's doctrine, which taught unquestioning loyalty to the Dark Lord of the Sith above everything else. Kruhl cared not for his personal safety or for his life; his purpose was to serve the will of Darth Krayt.

Kruhl was brutal and ruthless, and was regarded with contempt by his enemies for being so. This was evidenced when he murdered Rikkar-du's son in front of him, and then slew Rikkar-du himself, after the clan leader still refused to yield. Kruhl was also known to intrigue against his enemies, such as when he conspired with Kassek-ka to eliminate Rikkar-du's wife as a potential dissident to Imperial occupation of Munto Codru. He was brash and arrogant, and believed himself to be a better combatant than Roan Fel, who was a seasoned warrior in his own right.

Powers and abilities
"A Sith has many ways to kill."

- Darth Kruhl to Roan Fel

Lord Kruhl was fought with a single red-blade lightsaber. Unlike the coral-like hilts carried by most of his Sith brethren, Kruhl's saber hilt was smooth and metallic. He was a skilled duelist, and fought with an aggressive two-handed style in combat. Kruhl was also skilled in hand-to-hand, close-contact fighting, often employing martial techniques in conjunction with his blade work. He was proficient with Force lightning, another skill shared among members of Darth Krayt's One Sith.

Kruhl well-trained in the arts of assassination, being able to infiltrate enemy territory undetected in order to strike down his targets. He was unable, however, to hide his Force presence from Emperor Fel, who sensed Kruhl and prepared for his arrival. Though his skill with a lightsaber was on par with that of a fully-trained Imperial Knight such as Fel, he was unable to defeat the Emperor in combat, who killed the Sith Lord with his holdout blaster.

Behind the scenes
Kruhl's name is inspired by the word cruel.

The first mention of Kruhl was in Leland Chee's blog, unconnected to any source at the time.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Legacy 13: Ready to Die

Notes and references
Darth Kruhl Darth Kruhl Darth Kruhl Darth Kruhl