Maul

"I was apprenticed to the most powerful being in the galaxy once. I was destined to become... so much more."

- Darth Maul, to Savage Opress

Darth Maul was a male Dathomirian Zabrak Sith Lord who lived during the waning years of the Galactic Republic. Maul was born to Mother Talzin and raised as a Nightbrother on Dathomir, before being taken by Darth Sidious as his apprentice. Maul learned the art of lightsaber combat and took on a dual-bladed lightsaber, becoming a weapon to be used against the Jedi Order.

During the Trade Federation's invasion of Naboo, which Palpatine orchestrated as part of the Sith plot to take over the Republic and destroy the Jedi Order, Maul was dispatched to locate Queen Padmé Amidala, who had escaped Federation custody and whose capture was vital to the invasion plans, and tracked her down on Tatooine. There, he fought Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, revealing the Sith to the Jedi for the first time in a millennium. After the queen and the Jedi returned to Naboo to fight the invasion, Maul once again faced Jinn, as well as Obi-Wan Kenobi, in combat. The Sith Lord killed Jinn, but Kenobi was able to defeat Maul, slicing him in half and knocking him down a seemingly endless reactor pit.

The Jedi and Sith both believed that Maul had perished on Naboo, but he survived and went into exile in the Outer Rim. There, he gained a set of spider-like legs, allowing him to walk again, but his exile on Lotho Minor saw him go mad with thoughts of revenge and shame for what had happened on Naboo. During the Clone Wars, he was located by his brother, Savage Opress, and taken to Mother Talzin, who gave him new robotic legs and restored his mind. Maul declared himself and Opress the true Lords of the Sith, and set out to seek revenge against Kenobi and overthrow the Sith.

As part of his plot, Maul organized a collection of criminals into an army known as the Shadow Collective. The alliance included Death Watch, a splinter group from the planet Mandalore. Together, Maul and his forces took control of Mandalore. Maul killed the Death Watch leader, Pre Vizsla, becoming their new leader; and killed Duchess Satine Kryze, a close friend of Kenobi's and whose death was part of Maul's quest for revenge. Maul was captured soon after by Darth Sidious, who killed Opress and took Maul into custody in the hopes of using him to draw Mother Talzin into the open so the Sith could eliminate her.

Maul escaped from captivity and regrouped with his forces on Zanbar, many of whom were killed in a Separatist attack meant to push Maul towards Talzin. On Talzin's instruction, Maul instead lured Dooku and Grievous into battle on Ord Mantell, where he and his forces captured the two Separatist leaders. Dooku briefly joined Maul, and the two fought off a Jedi-led Republic assault against the Shadow Collective. Knowing that Dooku was only feigning his allegiance, Maul brought the Sith Lord to Dathomir, where Talzin took control of Dooku's body. Maul and his mother fought Sidious and Grievous in a lightsaber duel, and, although she was briefly able to return to her physical form, Talzin sacrificed her life so Maul could escape. The Shadow Collective was torn apart by Separatist assaults, eliminating Maul's base of power.

Early life
"[Sidious] promised to make me his right hand, but instead he stole what was most dear to me... my own flesh and blood. My son!"

- Mother Talzin recounts how Darth Maul became Darth Sidious' apprentice

Darth Maul was born the son of Mother Talzin on Dathomir. As a Dathomirian Zabrak male, he was a Nightbrother and had two blood brothers, Feral and Savage Opress. When Maul was a child, Mother Talzin became an ally of Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith, and the two exchanged wisdom and power. Sidious eventually abandoned Talzin, despite promising to make her his apprentice, and instead took Maul once he realized Maul's potential. Once under Sidious' tutelage, Maul began training as his Sith apprentice.

For years, Maul was trained to become a weapon of the Sith. He became an acrobatic warrior, one trained to be relentless against his enemies, and learned to use a dual-bladed lightsaber. His Sith training made Maul long for revenge against the Jedi Order, which had defeated the Sith a millennium earlier. With his master, Maul hoped to destroy the Jedi and restore the Sith to galactic power.

War on Naboo
"At last we will reveal ourselves to the Jedi. At last we will have revenge."

- Darth Maul, to Darth Sidious

After years of longing for revenge against the Jedi, Maul became part of his master's plan to take over the Galactic Republic and destroy the Jedi. Sidious, who was secretly Senator Palpatine of Naboo, conspired with the Trade Federation to invade his planet as retaliation for the taxation of trade routes in outlying Republic star systems. The Federation launched their vessels and formed a blockade against Naboo, and prepared their battle droid army. Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum, who Palpatine aimed to replace through the invasion, dispatched Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi to resolve the situation, but the Federation attempted to kill the two Jedi, forcing Jinn and Kenobi to the surface. Once there, and as the invasion began, they rescued Queen Padmé Amidala and escaped from Naboo.

Because Amidala was necessary for their plans&mdash;the queen needed to sign a treaty that would legitimize the illegal occupation of Naboo&mdash;Sidious dispatched Maul to find the queen and the Jedi. Maul traced a distress call from Sio Bibble, the governor of Naboo, which Queen Amidala received on Tatooine. With his master's blessing, Maul traveled to Tatooine to locate the queen, and discovered her ship just before it was preparing to leave using one of his nefarious probe droids. Maul rode across the Tatooine sand dunes on his Bloodfin, his personal vehicle of choice, towards the Queen's ship. However, he encountered Qui-Gon Jinn, one of the Jedi Knights that was trying to protect the Queen, and a young boy named Anakin Skywalker, whom Maul felt had an unusually powerful connection with the Force. Nevertheless, the Sith Lord attacked Qui-Gon Jinn, and the two engaged in lightsaber combat. The Jedi commanded that Anakin board the ship and tell the pilot to take off. It was a short but intense duel, Maul using his terrifying agility and ferocity to tire Jinn out with his vicious lightsaber technique. Just as Jinn had succumbed to Maul's power and fury, and Maul was looking to finish the Jedi off, the Queen's ship came to the rescue and Jinn jumped aboard, leaving the helpless Sith Lord fuming with rage on the sand. Although Jinn and the queen were able to escape, the Sith had revealed themselves to the Jedi for the first time in a millennium, and the Jedi Order began wondering how the Sith could have returned after so many centuries. Despite his narrow defeat, Maul embraced what he had achieved and let himself become more consumed with darkness and hatred. What Maul did not know was that Skywalker, the young boy who was destined to be the Chosen One, would one day all but destroy the Jedi and become a Sith Lord himself.

After the Jedi and the queen escaped, they made their way to Coruscant where Sidious, as Palpatine, manipulated Amidala into calling for a vote of no confidence against Chancellor Valorum, prompting a new election where Palpatine was a favorite to win and take over the Republic. Maul, meanwhile, returned to Naboo, where Amidala and the Jedi also returned to in order to fight the Federation occupation force. The Naboo, along with the Gungans who lived in Naboo's oceans, led the Federation army into battle away from the capital city. Using the battle as a diversion, the queen and the Jedi fought to regain control of the city.

The battle for the capital reached the royal palace, where Maul was waiting for Jinn and Kenobi. The Sith Lord fought the Jedi in the palace hangar, before moving into a generator complex. The duel raged on throughout the generator rooms, with Maul dominating the duel; he did, however, give ground in order to lead the Jedi throughout the complex. Maul managed to separate the Jedi by knocking Kenobi down several levels, and Kenobi was unable to catch up to Maul and Jinn due to force fields standing in his way. Taking advantage of their separation, Maul fought Jinn in single-combat and eventually stabbed the Jedi Master through the stomach, mortally wounding him. When Kenobi finally caught up, the two engaged in a vicious fight, with Kenobi growing angry over the death of his master and friend. Although Kenobi managed to chop Maul's double-bladed lightsaber in half, Maul was able to disarm Kenobi and knock him over the edge of a seemingly endless reactor pit, making the young Jedi cling for dear life on a nozzle just below the edge. However, as Maul prepared to deliver the fatal blow, Kenobi managed to calm himself and used the Force to jump back up and summon Jinn's lightsaber into his hand. In an instant, Kenobi sliced the blade through Maul's torso, cutting him in half and sending him falling down the pit.

Exile in the Outer Rim
"...he lives in the Outer Rim, in exile."

- Mother Talzin tells Opress that Maul survived

Though the Jedi and Sidious believed that Maul had perished on Naboo, the Sith Lord managed to survive. He went into exile in the Outer Rim, and was replaced as Sidious' apprentice by Count Dooku, a fallen Jedi who took on the name Darth Tyranus. After his body had been severed in half by Obi-Wan Kenobi, through his hate and will to survive, Maul used the Force to grab an air vent as he was tumbling down the reactor pit. Maul's shattered body was dumped on the junkyard world of Lotho Minor. He lived in the bowels of the planet and had his legs replaced by a six-legged apparatus that allowed him to walk again. During his exile, he made a bargain with a sneaky snake-like creature called Morely, who agreed to bring Maul food in return for his leftovers. Over the years, Maul was driven mad with rage and thoughts of revenge against Kenobi.

Mother Talzin, however, knew that Maul had survived. During the Clone Wars, she told his brother, Savage Opress, that the former Sith Lord could be found in the Outer Rim. Talzin gave Opress a talisman that would help him find Maul, and Opress set out to locate his brother. Opress found Lotho Minor and discovered his crazed brother living there, but Maul did not know who Opress was, and barely had a hold on his own identity. All that remained of the one-time Sith Lord was his lust for revenge against the Jedi. To restore Maul's memories, Opress took his brother to Dathomir, where Mother Talzin repaired Maul's mind and gave him a pair of cybernetic legs.

Resurfacing in the galaxy
"To continue, we need one singular vision&hellip;my vision.''" "Brother, let us share our strength. There is no need for dominance between us." "Always two there are, my brother&mdash;a Master, and an apprentice. And you'' are the apprentice."

- Darth Maul and Savage Opress

With his mind restored, Maul set out to seek revenge against Kenobi for defeating him on Naboo, and led the now-Jedi Council member to Raydonia by slaughtering civilians to draw Kenobi out. Maul and Opress captured Kenobi, but the Jedi was rescued by Asajj Ventress, a former acolyte of Darth Tyranus and the Dathomir Witch who once commanded Opress. Kenobi and Maul engaged in a lightsaber duel for the first time in over a decade, and Maul attempted to goad Kenobi into anger by talking about how he killed Qui-Gon Jinn. Kenobi was briefly overwhelmed as a result, so he and Ventress escaped the ship. Although Kenobi had escaped, Maul knew that the Jedi would soon begin pursuing him, which would play into Maul's hand in his quest for revenge.

The brothers began a rampage across the galaxy, which took them to the Cybloc transfer station in the Cybloc system. After defeating the station's guards, the brothers discovered a credit coffer filled to the brim. Maul demonstrated his martial superiority to his brother by disarming him, earning the latter's respect. From that point, Maul referred to himself as Opress's Master, taking upon himself control of the traditional Sith Rule of Two dynamic.

After stealing the valuables on the space station, the brothers traveled to Florrum, where they bribed a squad of pirates into joining them. Although some joined, others questioned Maul and Opress's motives and were killed as a result. Hondo Ohnaka, the pirate leader, was forced to watch. Eventually, the brothers were faced off against Kenobi and Adi Gallia, a fellow member of the Jedi High Council, who tracked them there. After a duel that left Gallia dead, Kenobi lured the brothers into the pirate base, where they continued their duel in an isolated passage. However, after Opress had his arm cut off, Maul knew they were outnumbered and ordered a retreat. He also discovered that Ohnaka's forces reconciled with the renegade pirates, and likewise, Maul's hired group had turned on him. The brothers promptly escaped, although the escape cost Maul one of his artificial legs. They later barely escaped the doomed ship after one of Ohnaka's pirates shot out its engines with a rocket launcher. Because of this, the Jedi believed that Maul and Opress were incinerated in the crash, though Kenobi suspected otherwise.

Building the Shadow Collective
"I thought there could only be two Sith: a master and an apprentice.''" "''We are brothers. The true Lords of the Sith."

- Pre Vizsla and Darth Maul

Maul and Opress managed to escape Forrum, although they eventually passed out from lack of oxygen in their escape pod. As they floated aimlessly in deep space, they were discovered unconscious and half-alive by Death Watch, a Mandalorian splinter group led by former Governor Pre Vizsla. Discovering Maul's lightsaber, Vizsla decided not to kill them as his lieutenant, Bo-Katan Kryze, wished to do; Vizsla believed that if they were enemies of the Jedi, then they were his friends. Vizsla and his men returned to their base on Zanbar, with Maul and Opress in tow. On Zanbar, medical droids healed Maul from his wounds and replaced the legs he had received from Mother Talzin for a pair of Human mechanical legs that returned him to his previous height. Waking after the surgery was completed, Maul was groggy and only tried to react when he saw the still unconscious Opress next to him, as the droids fitted the wounded brother with a mechanic arm. Vizsla and Bo-Katan entered and began to interrogate Maul, threatening to kill Opress if Maul refused to answer. Maul revealed that they were Sith Lords, which immediately led Vizsla to question him as to his links to Count Dooku. Maul angrily stated that he and Opress served no one and that they were brothers, the true Lords of the Sith. Satisfied, Vizsla asked him as to his intentions, and Maul revealed his plans to seek power and influence to gain his revenge over the Jedi. He also informed the Mandalorians that the Jedi responsible for their troubles was Obi-Wan Kenobi. Having faced Kenobi before, and knowing that the Jedi Master was a close friend of Vizsla's enemy, the Mandalorian Duchess Satine Kryze, Vizsla ordered the droids to complete the repairs to the brothers.

Maul was later taken to Vizsla's shelter and revealed himself as a member of Death Watch, who purported to be the descendants of Mandalore's true warrior faith which had been rejected by the pacifists who ruled Mandalore. Vizsla also informed Maul of his and his warriors' exile from Mandalore after failing to overthrow the Mandalorian government and mused against the one responsible for their exile: Kenobi. Realizing that they possessed a common goal and a common enemy, Maul proposed an alliance between the brothers and Death Watch, claiming that it was the will of the Force. Bo-Katan rebuffed him, stating that the last time they had allied with a Sith, they had been betrayed. She also denigrated the Sith as being weaker than they claimed as opposed to the Jedi. Maul used the Force to choke her and, as the Mandalorians aimed their weapons at him, he claimed that, thanks to their alliance, Mandalore would be theirs and they would dispose of all their enemies, as well as gaining their revenge against Kenobi and Dooku. He then released Bo-Katan, and Vizsla sent him to see to Opress while they put the alliance to a vote among the Mandalorians.

Opress emerged from his coma and proceeded to destroy the medical droids with his new mechanical arm while Maul watched. As Opress grew agitated, Maul appeared to calm him and informed him of who they had fallen upon. He insisted that the Mandalorians would be more useful to their plans than the pirates ever would have been, because the Mandalorians had honor. While Opress rejected this as a weakness, Maul stated that his plans would be better served by them and, once they had reclaimed Mandalore, they would use its resources to further their own plans, with the Death Watch under their command. Vizsla then arrived and announced that the alliance had been accepted by the Death Watch.

Maul convinced Pre Vizsla they needed to recruit Black Sun so they could build an army. The alliance proceeded to go to Mustafar to recruit the Black Sun rulers into their ranks. Upon arrival, their request for Black Sun to join were shot down and mocked by the Black Sun leader, although one of their leaders ended up joining after witnessing Opress single-handedly wiping out all the other ruling council members. Upon returning to their camp on Zanbar, the Pykes also declared their allegiance to the Sith brothers.

Next, the alliance traveled to Nal Hutta to convince the Grand Hutt Council to join their group. The brothers and Death Watch were initially met with refusal, and bounty hunters began to attack them, so the alliance retreated outside and began an attack, killing almost everyone. After defeating the bounty hunters and the guards, they met Oruba the Hutt, who was captured by Bo-Katan and her forces. After the Hutt could only tell that they would find the other Hutts at Jabba's Palace on Tatooine, they killed Oruba, resulting in Jabba declaring the Hutts' allegiance to the Sith brothers.

The coup
"I will use my army of crime lords to attack different targets across Sundari and sow chaos to undermine the Duchess' rule. Our gangsters will make her look too weak to maintain control. Then you and your Death Watch will capture and arrest us, bringing order where Satine's weak government could not."

- Darth Maul to Pre Vizsla

Now with an army under his command, Maul and the Shadow Collective planned to overthrow the government of Duchess Satine on Mandalore. Their goal was to make the Duchess look weak by sending the Collective's criminal elements to attack the capital city, Sundari, at which time Death Watch would arrive and drive them off. Maul also anticipated and counted on Pre Vizsla and Bo-Katan betraying him, an act that he counted on as part of his own plans.

After Death Watch drove the criminals away, Maul's suspicions were confirmed when he and Opress were arrested. With Maul imprisoned, Death Watch declared themselves the leaders of Mandalore. Maul suspected that there would be other political prisoners nearby, other than the deposed and imprisoned Satine, who Maul could use for his own ends. The two Sith brothers broke out of their cells and sought to find a new ally, choosing former Prime Minister Almec as a puppet; Almec had been imprisoned by the Duchess on corruption charges.

Having fought his way out of prison, Maul stormed into the Mandalorian throne room and challenged Pre Vizsla to an honorable death match, knowing that the winner would gain the allegiance of Death Watch and become their new leader. After a long and spectacular duel, Maul overpowered Pre Vizsla and beheaded him with his own weapon, the darksaber that ancient Mandalorians had stolen from the Jedi, which Maul then claimed as his own. However, Maul's victory split the Death Watch in two, with Bo-Katan and her forces refusing to pledge loyalty to Darth Maul. The other half submitted to Maul's rule, while Almec was reinstated as Prime Minister&mdash;albeit with Maul as the true power on Mandalore.

Revenge against Kenobi
"You think you know me? It was I who languished for years thinking of nothing but you! Nothing but this moment! And now, the perfect tool for my vengeance is in front of us. I never planned on killing you, but I will make you share my pain, Kenobi."

- Maul prepares to murder Duchess Satine Kryze in front of Kenobi

Shortly after the coup, Maul learned that the Duchess had tried to escape from prison and transmitted a distress call to the Jedi. Having learned of Kenobi's old friendship and relationship with Kryze, Maul realized she could serve as bait for his archenemy and the perfect tool for his revenge against the Jedi Master. As Mandalore was technically neutral in the Clone Wars, Maul knew that Kenobi could not receive an official sanction from the Jedi Council for a rescue mission. As such, he predicted that Kenobi would mount his rescue alone.

After Kenobi managed to infiltrate the palace and liberate his friend, Maul and the Mandalorian forces chased the two of them all the way to Kenobi's ship, Twilight. The Mandalorians fired missiles at the ship and crippled it, forcing Kenobi and Kryze to abandon ship before it was destroyed. Although dazed from the crash, Kenobi recognized Maul and Opress and attacked them, but Maul disarmed him and ordered his forces to bring Kenobi and the Duchess to the palace.

In the throne room, Maul taunted Kenobi to give in to the dark side, all the while holding Kryze in a Force grip. Kenobi refused, and told Maul he had been to the Sith Lord's village on Dathomir; Kenobi expressed his belief that it had not been Maul's decision to join the dark side, but rather the Nightsisters forced it upon him. The comments struck a nerve, angering Maul and causing him to lash out. He reminded Kenobi that it was the Jedi Master who truly made Maul suffer for over ten years, and that it was time for Kenobi to share in his agony. At that moment, Maul activated the darksaber and stabbed it through the Duchess' chest. Kryze died in Kenobi's arms, before Maul ordered that Kenobi be taken to the prison to contemplate his loss. Kenobi later escaped with the help of Bo-Katan, who revealed herself to be the Duchess' sister.

Duel with Darth Sidious
"Remember the first and only reality of the Sith: there can only be two, and you are no longer my apprentice."

- Darth Sidious rejects Darth Maul's claim of Sith Lordship

As Bo-Katan and her forces fought Maul's Death Watch, bringing a civil war to Mandalore, Darth Sidious arrived at the royal palace, having sensed that Maul was growing stronger and had become a rival; as Palpatine, Sidious had learned from Kenobi and Skywalker that Maul was alive. When Sidious arrived, Maul sensed his old master's presence and prepared to face him. Maul claimed that he had taken Mandalore and built an army in the hopes of becoming Sidious' apprentice once more, but the Dark Lord saw through Maul's deception and attacked the brothers, demonstrating his superior power through Force attacks.

After Sidious released the duo from his Force grip, all three drew their weapons and began to duel. Sidious overwhelmed the brothers, battling them both before stunning Maul and taking Opress on alone. Maul regained consciousness just in time to see Opress be fatally impaled by Sidious' blades and rushed to his brother's side. In his final moments, Opress expressed his regret that he had failed his brother. Sidious was amused and reminded Maul that there can only be two Sith.

Enraged, Maul attacked his former master, but was overpowered and disarmed after a brief, but intense duel. Sidious telekinetically assaulted Maul multiple times, severely weakening him. Maul pleaded for mercy, but Sidious ignored him and sadisticly tortured him with blasts of Force Lighting. However, the elder Sith Lord revealed he had no intention of killing his former apprentice. Rather, Sidious still had uses for Maul; the Dark Lord wanted to use Maul to draw Mother Talzin into the open so she could be defeated, though he did not reveal his plan to Maul.

Capture and escape
"The war you have waited your entire lives to fight is upon us, my brothers. Victory or death!"

- Darth Maul to his Death Watch forces

After the duel on Mandalore, Sidious took Maul as his prisoner and brought him to the remote world of Stygeon Prime, where the Confederacy of Independent Systems operated the Spire, a prison fortress in the mountains. On Almec's orders, Sidious' vessel was pursued by Maul's Death Watch forces, with the intention of rescuing their captive leader. Once he was imprisoned, Maul was subjected to torture at the hands of the Sith, as Sidious reminded Maul that he still had plans for his former apprentice. The two were interrupted by Count Dooku, whose arrival angered Maul.

Dooku returned to Maul after conferring with Sidious, with orders from the Dark Lord to learn more about the Shadow Collective and the names of Maul's associates. Dooku interrogated his predecessor, electrocuting him in an attempt to find the information he was seeking. Maul, however, resisted the torture and refused to give up any information. After Dooku left, Rook Kast and Gar Saxon of Death Watch attacked the prison and rescued their captive leader. The Mandalorians blew a hole in the walls of Maul's cell, and together they repelled down the mountain and escaped aboard a Death Watch ship. Unknown to Maul and the Death Watch, the Sith intended for Maul to escape so he could lead them to Mother Talzin.

Maul and Death Watch regrouped with more of their forces on Zanbar. After his arrival, Maul spoke to Prime Minister Almec via hologram, and the Prime Minister told Maul that the prison break was repayment for when Maul released Almec from imprisonment. Once again in command of his forces, Maul reclaimed his darksaber and promised the Mandalorians that the war they had longed for was at hand. Soon thereafter, Separatist forces under the command of General Grievous reached Zanbar. Grievous launched all of his forces against Death Watch, with both sides suffering heavy losses. Maul attacked Grievous during the battle, which left most of the Death Watch forces in tatters. Defeated, Maul ordered his warriors to retreat. Grievous allowed Maul to escape, hoping that Maul would seek out Mother Talzin for help.

Capturing Dooku and Grievous
"We must assume he allowed you to break free. With Sidious, nothing is ever as it seems. We must be this way, as well."

- Mother Talzin, to Darth Maul

As Grievous predicted, Maul contacted Mother Talzin after leaving Zanbar, calling out to her through the Force for guidance. She appeared to him from afar in a cloud of smoke and informed her of his escape from prison and defeat on Zanbar. Talzin anticipated that Sidious hoped to lure her into a trap, so she ordered Maul to go to Ord Mantell, where the Black Sun had a base of operations. Once there, Talzin wanted him to gather his forces for another battle against the Separatists, this time to lure Dooku and Grievous into a trap and capture them&mdash;which Talzin believed that Sidious would not expect. Talzin herself would not go to Ord Mantell, however, due to being a target of the Sith Lords.

Maul arrived on Ord Mantell and conferred with his Shadow Collective allies, including Ziton Moj of Black Sun and Fife of the Pyke Syndicate. He informed them that a battle would take place against the Separatists, who were being lured to Ord Mantell thinking they could capture Maul. Despite some reservations from his allies, Maul was confident that his plan would succeed and they could trap the two Separatist leaders. Maul and his allies quickly began planning their attack against the Separatists, which including luring the droid army into a specific point in the Black Sun-controlled territory so the Shadow Collective forces could attack them.

As the Collective prepared for battle, a team of Nightbrother warriors, led by Brother Viscus, arrived after having been sent from Dathomir by Mother Talzin to reinforce Maul's army. While Maul greeted his fellow Nightbrothers, the Separatists arrived in orbit and began their attack, using their fleet to bombard the surface of Ord Mantell. Maul immediately ordered his forces to begin carrying out their assault, while the Nightbrothers were to wait in the command center for instructions. Maul, meanwhile, made his way to Mandalorian warships, which he and Death Watch forces would use to assault the Separatist fleet in orbit. Maul arrived in orbit while the Separatists began landing their troops&mdash;as well as Count Dooku&mdash;on the planet, quickly overwhelming the Shadow Collective army. Maul's ships attacked General Grievous' command vessel, before attaching itself to the hull of the Separatist ship so Maul and his forces could board and make their way to the bridge. Once there, Maul and Death Watch eliminated the battle droids defending the cyborg general, and Maul gave Grievous a choice: disable the signal powering the droids on the surface, or die. Grievous disabled the signal and was taken into custody. Dooku, who engaged and killed the Nightbrothers in battle, was captured by Shadow Collective forces on the surface, while the disabled battle droids were eliminated.

Alliance with Dooku
"So it is true&mdash;you are working together! Of course. Only our hatred of you could be strong enough to unite us!"

- Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Maul

After the battle, Maul contacted Mother Talzin once again to inform her of what had happened on Ord Mantell. Talzin promised Maul that, with Dooku and Grievous in custody, they would capture Sidious as well&mdash;and gain their revenge against him. Maul and his forces cleared off of Ord Mantell, leaving little trace they were there, and made their way to a Mandalorian supply outpost.

From the outpost, Maul contacted Darth Sidious, informing him of the capture of Dooku and Grievous. Claiming that he had no further use for the two, Sidious told Maul to kill them, but the former Sith Lord had other plans. Grievous was locked in the brig, while Maul tempted Dooku to join him. They were both betrayed by Sidious, so Maul suggested that he and Dooku could be natural allies. Dooku did not believe that Sidious could be challenged, and claimed he did not think he should ally with Maul and Mother Talzin, the latter of whom once tried to kill Dooku. Talzin herself appeared using Nightsister magic and told the story of how she was once an ally of Sidious, how she too was betrayed when Sidious took Maul from her, and how Sidious was already seeking to replace the Count. Neither Talzin nor Maul believed Dooku would sincerely ally with them, however, and simply wanted to ensure he could be taken to Dathomir.

As they spoke, a Jedi-led Republic assault team attacked the supply outpost. The Jedi, including Kenobi and Mace Windu, had tracked the Shadow Collective from Ord Mantell. With both of their lives at stake, Dooku feigned an alliance with Maul, while Grievous escaped in the chaos using an escape pod. Maul and Dooku engaged the Jedi in a lightsaber duel, which lasted until Kast shot a small explosive towards the Jedi, incapacitating the Jedi and allowing the two Sith Lords to escape.

Fall of the Shadow Collective
"At last, the great deceiver comes to rescue his pawn." "I come to end this farce once and for all."

- Darth Maul and Darth Sidious

Having fled the outpost, Maul and his followers made their way towards Dathomir. While en route, Maul was contacted by Moj and the Pykes, who grew concerned that Maul's vendetta was causing the Shadow Collective's plans to fail. Maul assured them that they would be paid and that Sidious would die, allowing the galaxy to be controlled by the Shadow Collective. To ensure loyalty, Maul ordered Saxon to keep the Pykes and Black Sun in line. He also revealed to Dooku that he knew the Sith Lord was not an ally, and that Sidious had ordered his apprentice to feign allegiance with Maul.

Once on Dathomir, Maul was greeted by Brother Viscus, who survived his fight with Dooku on Ord Mantell. The Nightbrother told Maul that they were ready for the next step of their plan, so Dooku was taken before Mother Talzin, who appeared before them in a cloud of smoke. She unleashed her magic upon the Sith Lord, using it to draw Dooku's life force so she could physically manifest herself again; Talzin's physical return required a sacrifice, and they had chosen Dooku for that purpose. They were interrupted, however, by an explosion ripping through the area, and the arrival of Grievous and Sidious. Sidious reminded his former apprentice that there was only one plan that mattered: Sidious'.

The arrival of the Dark Lord and Grievous led to a lightsaber duel, one which Talzin joined after she took control of Count Dooku's body. Talzin fought Sidious while Maul fought the cyborg general, and Sidious quickly gained the advantage over the Dathomir witch. Sidious bombarded Talzin with Force lightning, and the witch released Dooku and appeared in physical form once more. Maul, meanwhile, pushed Grievous out of the opening that the explosion created. Once Sidious attacked her with a barrage of lightning, Maul pleaded with his mother to use his own life force to grow more powerful, but Talzin demanded that he retreat as she held off the Dark Lord's attacks. The witch used her powers to toss Maul from the fray, and he was dragged away by Kast and another Death Watch warrior. As they fled, Maul watched as Grievous returned to fatally stab Talzin with his lightsabers.

Maul fled from Dathomir, which was being attacked by the Separatists. The Shadow Collective, meanwhile, had also been defeated by Separatist forces. In Sidious' eyes, despite Maul's escape, the former Sith Lord had been eliminated as a rival to the future Sith rule of the galaxy.

Personality and traits
"You may have forgotten me, but I will never forget you. You cannot imagine the depths I would go to to stay alive, fueled by my singular hatred… for you."

- Darth Maul to Obi-Wan Kenobi on Raydonia

Darth Maul's life and motivations were based around revenge. As a Sith apprentice, Maul sought revenge against the Jedi for their triumph over the Sith, and wanted to return the Sith to power over the galaxy. After his exile and the restoration of his mind, Maul turned his thoughts of revenge towards the galaxy, declaring himself and his brother the true Sith Lords; and especially towards Obi-Wan Kenobi, after the Jedi defeated him and forced him into exile after the war on Naboo. He felt the vacuum from losing power, having known about the Clone Wars and intending to be part of it, only to learn that the Sith plans moved on without him. Maul was therefore willing to go to great lengths to achieve his vengeance, including slaughtering civilians and thrusting Mandalore into civil war to gain power and draw Kenobi out into the open.

During his exile, Maul's mind was shattered. He became obsessed with revenge, fueled and kept alive only by his hatred for Kenobi, despite losing his mind and many memories. His aggression and fear increased in his crazed condition, as Maul attacked Opress when he first encountered his brother on Lotho Minor. It required magic from Mother Talzin to restore his mind, bringing him clarity again while still preserving his desire to seek revenge against those who had wronged him.

Maul's power made him crave dominance over the Sith and the galaxy, though he recognized the power that Darth Sidious possessed that Maul did not. Maul feared his old master when Sidious arrived on Mandalore, and begged for mercy after Sidious bested him in a lightsaber duel. After the electrocution that Sidious subjected him to on Mandalore, he later told Death Watch that he had become indifferent to pain.

However, Maul was not completely heartless; he expressed compassion towards his brother, Savage Opress. Though they didn't always get along, they did genuinely care about each other; when Sidious killed Savage, Maul was grief-stricken and briefly mourned him before flying into a rage and attempting to avenge him. Maul also had a good relationship with his mother, the Dathomir Witch Mother Talzin.

Powers and abilities
"You have been well trained my young apprentice. They will be no match for you."

- Darth Sidious orders Darth Maul to move against the Jedi during the war on Naboo

As the apprentice of Darth Sidious, Maul was trained to be a weapon of the Sith, one intended to help Sidious bring about the destruction of the Jedi and take over the galaxy. He became an acrobatic warrior, one who could relentlessly pursue his enemies while utilizing his double-bladed lightsaber. He showcased his efficiency with a blade against Qui-Gon Jinn on Tatooine and Naboo, allowing him to kill Jinn in their second encounter; it was during this duel that Maul took on two Jedi Knights at once, holding his own against them. It was an overconfidence in his abilities, however, that allowed Kenobi to get the better of him and defeat him, leading to the loss of the lower-half of his body and over a decade of crazed-exile in the Outer Rim. Maul later defeated Kenobi in a number of encounters after emerging from exile, including on Mandalore. He also bested and slew the veteran Death Watch leader, Pre Vizsla, without using the Force against him even once. Determined to defeat his former master, Maul fought Sidious using own his lightsaber and Pre Vizsla's darksaber. Though he put up a considerable fight, holding his own exceptionally well for a short amount of time and even managing to kick Sidious backwards at one point, he was ultimately no match for Sidious, who was able to counter Maul's bladeblock and disarm him. Maul was also able to temporally hold his own against Mace Windu and Aayla Secura on a Mandalorian supply outpost, and even managed to match renowned Jedi Hunter General Grievous.

In addition to skills with a lightsaber, Maul proved capable with the powers of the Force, able to destroy numerous enemies including Banking Clan guards, and subduing Mandalorians such as Bo-Katan. During the skirmish on Florrum, he pulled a several-ton Eta-class shuttle off of a hill, where it slid to a stop in front of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Hondo Ohnaka's pirates. His skills paled in comparison to Sidious, however, even after Maul declared himself the true Lord of the Sith. During their encounter on Mandalore, Sidious easily pinned Maul to a wall using the Force, bested him in lightsaber combat, and captured him. It was just before this capture that Maul experienced Sidious' power over him and begged for mercy.

Maul also had political skills from his time as Sidious apprentice, and managed to form the Shadow Collective.

Behind the scenes
"George Lucas had described Darth Maul as a figure from your worst nightmare. So... I drew George my worst nightmare."

- Iain McCaig, describing how he designed Darth Maul

Darth Maul first appeared in Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, where he was played by actor and martial artist Ray Park. The character was a presence throughout the film, but only spoke three lines in total&mdash;all of which were voiced by actor Peter Serafinowicz. For the character's appearances in the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, he was voiced by actor Sam Witwer.

For The Phantom Menace, the character was designed by concept designer Iain McCaig, who felt that designing a new Star Wars villain was a daunting task. He recalled George Lucas describing Maul as "a figure from your worst nightmare," so McCaig thought about his worst nightmares and then used those to design an initial look for the character. McCaig described his worst nightmare as a lifeless face pressed against a window in a thunderstorm, a dead yet alive figure who stares at him through the rain. McCaig used that as the first design, adding metal teeth and blood-red ribbons falling on it rather than rain. Lucas apparently felt it was too intense, saying "Okay. Now draw me your second worst nightmare..."

McCaig spent much of the three-year pre-production time drawing masks, attempting to design something similar to Ralph McQuarrie's original design for Darth Vader from Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. Eventually, however, he felt he was on the wrong track. He ended up finding his stride when he drew members of the Episode I Art Department as Sith Lords, using their personalities and faces to design characters. At one point, McCaig used a circuit board as a face, a design that intrigued Lucas. Lucas also liked a concept based on production photographer Greg Gawlowski.

Darth Maul's design went through a number of other variations until McCaig created a series of Rorschach designs by creating splattered ink patterns, which led to the tattooed look of Darth Maul. McCaig wanted to soften the look of the character, at one point adding feathers the top of Darth Maul's head. McCaig saw these feathers are being part of the Sith Lord's personality; "every morning I imagined Darth Maul would get up and bind his head with this piano wire, and that the feathers had to end up at the right points&mdash;it was just a part of the focusing of the Sith." These feathers were interpreted as horns, however, which became part of the final design.

With the face of the character completed, McCaig also designed Maul's costume. Originally, Maul wore a large muscle suit, "making him larger than life," with Batman-like spikes on his neck. That costume made it through most of the storyboarding process, until McCaig changed the costume and made it smaller after Lucas talked about an acrobatic lightsaber duel. The costume was therefore made smaller, resulting in the Sith robes Maul wore in The Phantom Menace.

For his return in The Clone Wars, actor Sam Witwer knew that Maul was a popular character and felt a responsibility to get it right and respect the character's iconic status. He described Maul as broken, and attempted to convey a shattered mind through his acting. One way of doing so was to quote the Code of the Sith from the Expanded Universe, part of which made it into the episode. The character's design on the show was very similar to his look in The Phantom Menace, and the animators used the designing of the character as an opportunity to improve animation on the series. Because the character's appearances required him to show emotion such as anger and hatred using only facial expressions, the animators spent time improving the modelling process so they were able to achieve better expressions.

Because Maul had been cut in half in The Phantom Menace, he required a new set of cybernetic legs for The Clone Wars. The cyborg form of Darth Maul had previously been created by Industrial Light & Magic concept artist Aaron McBride for the Infinities graphic novel Star Wars: Visionaries. Similar to the events of the show, Maul appeared in the Visionaries comic Old Wounds with cybernetic legs and sought revenge against Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars: Galactic Defense
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir
 * Star Wars: Darth Maul&mdash;Son of Dathomir

Non-canon appearances

 * William Shakespeare's The Phantom of Menace: Star Wars Part the First
 * Disney Infinity 3.0