Visas Marr

"My life for yours."

- Visas Marr, to the Jedi Exile

Visas Marr was a female Miraluka from Katarr who lived during the time of the Jedi Civil War and Dark Wars. The sole survivor of the devastation of her homeworld in 3,952 BBY, She was taken from the ruins of that wirkd by the Sith Lord Darth Nihilus, the slayer of her people. Marr was made his apprentice, and a Force bond was forged between the two; as a result, her vision was damaged. Now a servant of the dark side of the Force, she traveled with Nihilus aboard his flagship, the Ravager, beyond the Outer Rim. In 3,951 BBY, Marr was dispatched into the galaxy to find the Jedi Exile and bring her before Nihilus.

Impressed by the Exile's abilities and the destiny that she perceived about her, Marr allowed herself to be swayed to the light side. Forsaking her master, Nihilus, she became an informal apprentice to the Exile, teaching the elder ex-Jedi about the power of her species. The Miraluka traveled with the Exile during her search for the Lost Jedi Masters, and aided in the battle against the Sith Triumvirate. Later that year, Marr played an instrumental part in resolving the Battle of Telos IV, in which she met her former master in battle. In the process, she shed the remaining shackles of her past, coming to terms with the destruction of her world people. Following the Destruction of Malachor V, according to the predictions of Darth Traya, Marr parted ways with the Exile and returned to Katarr. After the end of the Dark Wars, she played a pivotal role in rebuilding the Jedi Order.

Background
"There are many kinds of hate, and all of them have the call of the dark side in them."

- Visas Marr to the Jedi Exile

In the year 3,952 BBY, Marr's homeworld of Katarr, a Miraluka colony in the Mid Rim, was chosen to host a secret Jedi conclave to discuss the hidden dangers the Jedi faced as a result of the First Jedi Purge. The Miraluka, as a species, were innately Force-sensitive and the Jedi had hopes that the intensified Force energy would provide them with a measure of clarity. Jedi had been mysteriously disappearing, hunted down one by one, and in an effort to lure their unknown hunter into the open, Jedi Master Atris, who was to attend the conclave, secretly leaked the knowledge of the meeting, expecting that the combined power of the Jedi present would be enough to defeat him. However, Atris's predictions were proved wrong. Darth Nihilus, a Sith Lord with an insatiable hunger for the Force, was drawn to Katarr from the Outer Rim, unable to ignore the emanating pulse of Force power. He consumed the life of the planet, sparing naught, aside from Marr.

Miraluka were typically made uneasy by the presence of something untouched by the Force, and when Marr not only saw but experienced the obliteration of life through the Force, the pain and shock of the severed connections left her unconscious and near death. Taken aboard Nihilus's ship, she awoke to find that the flesh where her eyes would have been had been brutally removed. Distraught, she sought out the Sith Lord, questioning why she alone was spared. Fractured and vulnerable at best, overwhelmed by the dark power surrounding him, Marr allowed Nihilus to take her for his own. In an attempt to make her believe in his cause, Nihilus showed her a vision, forcing her to see the galaxy in a way that her people never could; sentient beings on other planets, disconnected from the life surrounding them, unable to feel the Force.

The vision severely damaged her Force Sight&mdash;which she, as a Miraluka, had to solely rely on, having no physical sight&mdash;and she became convinced that all life must die. She came to believe that Nihilus fed upon the ugliness of the galaxy and left silence; the removal of this wretchedness was bringing stillness and order to where there once had been chaos. Accepting Nihilus's unspoken invitation, Marr became his apprentice.

In the year 3,951 BBY, Marr, as well as Nihilus, felt a growing disturbance in the Force caused by the Jedi Exile's burgeoning reconnection to the Force and the subsequent decisions she had been making during her journey. However, neither one was aware that the Exile was its source, as the disturbance was perceived as an echo rippling through the Force. Curious and perhaps uneasy of this discovery, Nihilus sent Marr to trace the anomaly.

Journeys with the Exile
"Her presence here is a threat to us. To you. Do not underestimate her&hellip; or her loyalty."

- Kreia, to the Jedi Exile

Marr infiltrated the Ebon Hawk and engaged the Exile in lightsaber combat&mdash;only to be defeated, wounded, and have her lightsaber broken. Convinced of the Exile's superior strength, Marr yielded and begged the Exile to end her life, for the alternative was death by her master's hand for her failure. When the Exile refused, she pledged her life to the Exile, seeming to abandon Nihilus before losing consciousness. The Exile then took the unconscious woman to the medical bay. This act of mercy was met by surprise from her companion, the pilot of the Ebon Hawk, Atton Rand, who was uneasy in the presence of powerful Force users, as the Miraluka were known to be. He also expressed his amazement at seeing a Miraluka Sith, saying that he had heard of Miraluka Jedi, but never Sith, further speculating that he was unsure as to how to go about killing one. The idea of killing Marr was met by incredulity on the part of the Exile, who voiced her regret for hurting her during their duel. Atton reassured her that Marr's injuries would heal, noticing that even though some of her wounds were severe, she looked like she had suffered many wounds in the past.

While Atton may have grudgingly accepted Marr, Kreia, the Exile's informal master, met her arrival with ill-disguised contempt. She was of the opinion that the Miraluka's ability to see through the Force was wasted on her people and that she should be considered a servant. Furthermore, Kreia felt it necessary to remind the Exile that the Sith were often betrayed by their own apprentices and that even though Marr had pledged herself to the Exile, she was bound to other masters; insinuating that Marr's loyalty would always be suspect. Wary of Kreia's attitude towards Marr, the Exile nonetheless sought her advice regarding the change Marr had brought about in her eyesight during their clash. While Kreia explained this alteration of the Exile's perception was nothing that hadn't already been present, she had nothing but utter disdain for the forceful and "crude methods" that were the mark of the Sith.

Marr's first genuine encounter with the Exile left her disquieted. It had been some time since someone was concerned more for her well being than her physical state. She felt that the mercy the Exile showed not only towards her, but others as well, would serve as a weapon for her enemies. Nevertheless, impressed by the Exile's skills, Marr rediscovered hope and came to consider that perhaps the universe was not as her master had showed her, and that maybe with her help the Exile might be able to stop him. She found solace in the knowledge that her master did not understand nor see the Exile. But she cautioned that the Exile needed to understand why this was if she was to have a chance at defeating Nihilus. She refused to guide the Exile to him untested and without her potential realized, as she felt the Jedi was not yet ready to face such a threat and feared to lose her only hope. She foresaw that they would meet in the near future, however.

From that moment, Marr devoted herself to the Jedi and to the search for the remaining Jedi Masters. During their journey, she would haltingly speak of her past and the destruction of her homeworld. Her admiration for the Exile continued to grow and from her the Exile would learn to see through the Force as one of her people. When the time came for the Exile to finally confront her former master aboard his flagship, the Ravager, following the Battle of Telos IV, she refused to be left behind, intuiting that her presence would be essential in vanquishing Nihilus. Likewise Mandalore the Preserver, who had been traveling with the Exile in order to gather the scattered clans, insisted that he and his Mandalorian troops lead the charge into battle, claiming that his warriors were the most capable for the task.

Arriving on the ruined ship, Mandalore announced that he would be accompanying Marr and the Exile to the bridge. He asserted that he didn't trust her to complete the mission. However, his low opinion of her capabilities was not so much directed towards her specifically, as it was a general belief that anyone who was not a Mandalorian was ineffective. As they made their way to the bridge, Marr, with the Exile's blessing, took the time to visit her old meditation chamber one last time, finally coming to terms with the destruction of Katarr. Her newfound strength would see her through the trial ahead, not for vengeance but for the sake of all life. In a final test of allegiance, Marr confronted Darth Nihilus with her fate resting solely on the Exile, who gave her the chance to stand up to the one who had wounded her. As they were taken aback by the Sith Lord's powers, the Exile realized that Marr was a link between Nihilus and the power bound within in the Ravager. Struggling as she was with the weight of that power, Marr exploited the bond to her former master and blocked his connection to the Force, momentarily stunning him. Together, the three were able to defeat Nihilus. Before they could make haste to flee the destruction of the ship, Marr felt compelled to behold what lay beneath Nihilus's death mask in order to sever the last remaining bond between them.

After the events of the Dark Wars, Marr would have a vital role in the subsequent restoration of the Jedi Order. Furthermore, according to Darth Traya's final predictions at the close of the Destruction of Malachor V, she returned to her homeworld and, looking upon its surface, finally saw what she was meant to see. What that may have been is rather unclear, although Kreia did acknowledge that the Exile had indeed saved her.

Personality and traits
"[...] but please, do not harm her... do not what you did to me... I beg you."

- Visas Marr to Darth Nihilus, confrontation on the Ravager

Not much was known about Marr's view of the world before tragedy befell her, however, the Miraluka were acknowledged as individuals strongly committed to their chosen course of action, as was evidenced by her dedication to help the Exile in stopping her former master. Nevertheless, the trauma of seeing her world die through the Force left Marr shattered and vulnerable, her Force Sight damaged. Darth Nihilus took advantage of this and twisted her psyche until she became utterly subservient and hopeless, disconnected from herself and life, a mere shell of a being.

Marr's defeat at the hands of the Exile proved to be the catalyst needed that allowed her to break Nihilus's hold over her and restore her own free will. She confessed to the Exile that the very fact that the Exile's nature had eluded her master, gave her hope that he could be defeated. The search for the Jedi Masters reestablished Marr's connection to life and believing the Exile responsible for this, she vowed to protect her. Although she never quite lost her servile attitude, Marr's journey with the Exile allowed her to gain the confidence and self-respect that ultimately severed the final bond to her former master and enabled her to rediscover herself.

Powers and abilities
Like all of her species, the Miraluka, Marr was born physically blind and instead relied on Force Sight to see the physical world. Though this Force power was a characteristic of the Miraluka, it was not species restrictive and Marr would later teach its use to the Exile. She was also known to be highly gifted with Force Sense, as was evidenced by her detection of the Exile, from across the galaxy, during her time as apprentice to Darth Nihilus.

The depth of her Force-sensitivity granted Marr the ability to manipulate the Force to move or control the direction of objects through space. This was commonly known as the "Jedi's object movement power," also referred to as Telekinesis. The use of this talent included Force Pull and Force Push.

Furthermore, Marr was highly skilled in the use of what were considered to be dark side powers, such as Force Grip, Force Choke, and Force Lightning. Her connection to the dark side gave her the use of Dark Healing, an ability that fueled regenerative processes by draining the life force of another.

Marr's return to the light side following her defeat at the hands of the Exile allowed her to continue training as a Jedi Sentinel, which meant that she favored neither the use of a lightsaber nor the Force, instead maintaining a balance of both.

Behind the scenes
Visas Marr first appeared as a non-player character in the 2004 computer and video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, in which she was voiced by American actress Kelly Hu. Marr's story and background was later elaborated in the six-page comic Unseen, Unheard featured in Star Wars Tales 24 and the Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide.

The name "Visas" can be rooted to the real-world Latin word visus (meaning "sight"), and the name "Marr" can be rooted to the real-world English verb mar (meaning "damage" or "impair").

At one point, there was some confusion as to Marr's actions aboard the Ravager and her involvement in the death of Darth Nihilus. Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force, written as an in-universe historical account, claimed that it was unclear as to whether Marr had killed Nihilus, moreover, implying that Nihilus may have in fact killed her. The matter appeared to be settled in Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide where it was stated that Marr led the Jedi Exile to her former master and that afterward she was pivotal in the restoration of the Jedi Order. In addition, in what was originally thought to have been cut content, the player had the option to convince Marr to sacrifice herself for the purpose of weakening Nihilus, but only if Marr was equipped with standard clothes and wielded a melee weapon or a lightsaber.

An example in where the alignment of the player character changed the path of the game was if the Exile chose the path of the dark side; Marr slowly forgot about Katarr and instead gained an unstoppable vengeance against anyone that had ever hurt her physically or emotionally. Additionally, Marr's experience in her meditation chamber aboard the Ravager was altered. If the Exile followed the light path, Marr heard whispers; if the Exile followed the dark side path, Marr heard screams. Another example was when Marr looked underneath Nihilus's mask after his defeat and the player asked her what she saw. If the player was light sided she said she saw only a man; if dark sided, Marr commented on the feeling of destruction she felt from Nihilus, which she now felt from the Exile.

The functions of game mechanics in KotOR II: TSL required Marr to become a companion of the Exile as a prerequisite for gaining a prestige class. Furthermore, Marr was one of two females who would have refused to be the dancer in the player quest Vogga's Dancers. The other female was Kreia. There was also an item called "Visas Marr's lightsaber" that could have been obtained by using a cheat code. This item was a slightly more efficient red-bladed lightsaber with no special features other than Marr's name on it. In Wizards of the Coast's Champions of the Force miniatures set, the Jedi Sentinel miniature resembled Visas Marr.

Romance
If the player was using a male character, Marr, along with Brianna, was intended to be one of two romantic interests that could have been chosen. Technically, however, it was not possible to have a romance with either one. Unlike the first KotOR game, there wasn't a dialog-driven romance progression. Much of the romance was alluded to in the form of conversations between characters and cut scenes. It was only towards the end of the game that Marr confessed her love for the male Exile as long as he had gained enough influence with her, although the player character did not have the option of returning those feelings.

Marr and Brianna viewed themselves as rivals for the affections of the Exile. They had a cutscene together in which Brianna jealously confronted Marr claiming that she would only bring him harm. Marr's response was to state that she only wanted to protect the Exile and that Brianna was aware of this since she had read as much in Marr's movements, much the same as Marr had seen in Brianna's movements. Marr then went on to ask Brianna to describe what the Exile looked like, to which Brianna was unable to give a satisfactory answer, professing that he looked like a man, but also more than a man. Another cutscene centered around Mira's inability to understand why Brianna and Marr were fighting over the Exile. She was of the opinion that since she had caught him, he belonged to her. This most likely was a reference to Mira's profession as a bounty hunter since she rebuffed the player character if he attempted to flirt with her, commenting on his existing admirers. The only occurrence of a conversation focusing on the physical aspects of a romance between the Exile and Marr was voiced aloud by Kreia soon after Marr joined the group aboard the Ebon Hawk. She urged the Exile to control his urges and avoid mating with the seer as this would have had the potential to create both physical and emotional difficulties. The player had the option to reply in the negative, stating that sparing her life did not mean that he had a romantic interest in her. To this response Kreia was skeptical, replying that the Exile should have learned restraint and discipline while in exile.

After the death of the Jedi Masters at the Jedi Enclave and the Exile's discovery that his ability to form very strong Force bonds was the reason his companions followed his lead, Marr confessed her love to him. She did not believe that the Masters were right; it was her choice to follow him, her choice to sacrifice herself for him if need be. She explained that ever since she first heard him through the Force she understood that there was someone who felt the same sense of loss as she and that she had loved him from that moment. She begged the Exile to stay with her, even as she knew that he could not. Her final request to him was to have the opportunity to see him at a moment where they were alone. This lead to them meditating together, looking at each other with Force Sight.

Cut content
Like with many other characters, Marr's role was originally greater, but some details and scenes were not implemented the final game. The majority of the cut content would have given the player a greater insight into the relations between Marr and other characters.

One scene that gave greater depth to the interactions between the Exile and Marr involved the player having the option to spar with her under Kreia's supervision after Marr joined the player character's party and was in possession of a lightsaber. According to developer comments in the game's conversation file, another scene involved the initial battle between the player and Marr in which she would have used her Force Sight to blind the player.

The Ravager was a location that would have shown a greater connection between Mandalore and Marr in addition to player choices. At a certain point, Marr exchanged dialog with Mandalore, where they admonished one another not to betray the other. Later, Mandalore was injured and she healed him. In appreciation, he would have then spoken a bit about his history with Revan. The duel on the Ravager was expanded to allow the player the option to become Nihilus's new apprentice; the player could have chosen this option as truth or lie. If in truth, the player character turned on Marr and killed her. Mandalore then said something to the effect of turning on one's allies. If lie, then the player, Marr, and Mandalore attacked Nihilus. In a scene related to the endgame, Marr confronted Kreia at the Jedi Enclave where she would have realized that Kreia is Sith. Kreia once again expressed her loathing of the Miraluka and berated her weak character. In what was considered to be one of the most detrimental cuts of the endgame, Marr was to have joined the other party members in confronting and attempting to kill Kreia in the Trayus Academy before the arrival of the Exile, but they would have been incapacitated by Kreia's Force Crush and imprisoned by Darth Sion. Atton was the only member to have escaped.

In at least one possible ending for a male player character (presumably the dark side ending), Brianna provoked Marr into a fight by telling her how she seduced the Exile (triggered by previous dialog options aboard the Ebon Hawk) once the player entered the Trayus Proving Grounds. Then, depending on the outcome of the fight and after Darth Traya's defeat, the Exile would have left either Marr or Brianna in charge of the Trayus Academy with instructions to train the Force-sensitives who would have come in time. The player character then set off for the Unknown Regions in search of Revan.

Appearances

 * Unseen, Unheard
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords