Spindrall

"Slave, welcome to my humble hole. You are here for your trial, yes? Learn the ways of the Sith from a doddering old man in a tomb? And hopefully to return to your master with the mark of my approval."

- Spindrall meets a new student

Spindrall was a Human male adherent of the Sith Order during the era of the Sith Empire's resurgence. By the time of the Cold War between in the Empire and the Galactic Republic, Spindrall was an elder Sith prophet and Lord who had made his home on the Sith holy world of Korriban. In the deepest reaches of the tomb of the ancient Sith Lord Ajunta Pall, Spindrall counseled new acolytes on the Code of the Sith and retrained failed students who hoped to earn re-entry into the prestigious Sith Academy of Korriban.

During the Cold War, Lord Zash, a supervisor at the academy who visited Spindrall during her own training, mandated that all of her prospective apprentices seek out the hermit during their early trials so that he might judge their worth. Around 3,643 BBY, Zash's new class of students travelled into the tomb to find Spindrall in the Sacrificial Chamber. Although all seven of them successfully traversed the dangers of the tomb, only one student, a slave-turned-promising acolyte, truly impressed Spindrall. The elder Sith allowed Zash's six other Sith hopefuls to leave to tomb, but chose to condemn the timid acolyte Kory&mdash;a condemnation that resulted in her execution.

Biography
"Now, slave, for your trial: There's a hermit named Spindrall who lives in the tomb of Ajunta Pall in the Valley of the Dark Lords. Spindrall's a lunatic, but Lord Zash sees him as some kind of prophet. Once you find him, he will test you."

- Overseer Harkun

Spindrall was a Human male who lived during the reign of the Old Republic and the resurgence of the Sith Empire. A Force-sensitive, Spindrall was inducted into the Sith Order and eventually attained the rank of Sith Lord. Although he was renowned for his insight into the minds of young Sith Acolytes and his command of the Code of the Sith, Spindrall chose to forgo the traditional path of a Sith Lord and instead adopted the life of a hermit. In the Valley of the Dark Lords on the ancestral Sith homeworld of Korriban, he took up residence in the tomb of the ancient Lord of the Sith Ajunta Pall, and there he counseled aspiring Sith apprentices and took failed acolytes under his tutelage.

Spindrall grew old in the tomb, and although he had little contact with the surface or nearby Sith Academy, the teachers at the school knew of his expertise and began sending their students to meet with the elder Sith Lord. Within the tomb's Sacrificial Chamber, Spindrall held audience with the few young Sith who survived the crypt's dangers. He also accepted disgraced acolytes who had failed in the academy's trials and were seeking tutelage so that they might earn a second chance at becoming Sith. Spindrall's seekers included the Humans Zash and Harkun, both of whom would continue their training and ultimately achieve supervisory positions at the Sith Academy.

When she herself rose to the rank of Sith Lord, Zash chose to send her own students into the Tomb of Ajunta Pall so that they might be judged by Spindrall. Around 3,643 BBY, she ordered that Harkun, now an Academy Overseer, direct a new class of seven acolytes into the tombs so that they might be tested and appraised by the hermit. Four of the acolytes&mdash;Balek, Wydr, Niloc, and Gerr&mdash;completed the task and returned to the Academy without either impressing or disappointing Spindrall. Another student, the timid and kindly Kory, succeeded in reaching Spindrall, but failed his challenges and was therefore deemed unworthy of the title of Sith. A sixth student also reached the elder Sith in the Sacrificial Chamber, but Spindrall refused to appraise them until they completed a trial of blood. The trial also served as the final test for a group of disgraced students who had been studying with the prophet in the hopes of having an opportunity to kill the new acolyte and take their position at the Academy. Zash's sixth acolyte handily defeated Spindrall's disciples, thereby earning his attention and judgement. Spindrall recited to the young Sith the tenets of the Code of the Sith and encouraged them to nurse their hatred for Harkun and their distrust of Zash.

After the sixth acolyte left his domain, Spindrall sent his judgements to Harkun. The Overseer took the hermit's words into account and followed up by executing Kory and allowing the remainder to continue their studies. Spindrall was visited a short time later by Zash's seventh acolyte, Ffon Althe, who also passed his tests. After the trials of Zash's pupils, more disgraced students and aspiring apprentices sought Spindrall's counsel. The hermit found at least one of these acolytes, Shinos, to be lacking Sith resolve, and so refused to allow them free passage out of the tombs unless they passed a message of congratulations and a stimulant on to Zash's sixth acolyte, who had impressed him the most.

Personality and traits
"Do not be timid. Humility is the attitude of a slave, not a Sith."

- Spindrall

By the time of the Cold War, Spindrall was an elderly man, sporting a gray beard and a receding hairline. He garbed himself in simple, tattered robes and covered his head with a raised cowl. His fair visage was characterized by yellow eyes, a slight darkened discoloration around his eye sockets, and extensive wrinkling.

Although he was a talented seer with a keen intuition, Spindrall lacked many of the attributes that characterized his fellow Sith of the era. On the reclaimed holy planet of Korriban, the Sith Lord abandoned the trappings of political power and adopted the life of a religious hermit. In his hermitage in the Sacrificial Chamber of the Tomb of Ajunta Pall, the prophet accepted failed students and counseled new arrivals to the planet&mdash;two groups that many at the Academy believed were unworthy of notice. His work in the tomb led some, like Overseer Harkun, to believe he was little more than a lunatic; others, like Lord Zash, put faith in his judgements and subscribed to his teachings.

In spite of his willingness to work with young acolytes, Spindrall was a harsh Master who was quick to pass judgement on his pupils. Those who failed to meet his standards, like Kory and Shinos, were dealt with severely, while others, like the acolyte who slew Spindrall's disgraced pupils, were rewarded for their talent and tenacity. For those who he believed to be worthy of his teachings, he offered insights on the Code of the Sith and methods for surviving the tutelage of brutal or untrustworthy Masters.

Powers and abilities
"He said I could only leave his sight alive if I passed along this, his 'final gift for the one who will shape fates both future and ancient.' Those were his words, his exact words. I had to be exact."

- Acolyte Shinos, to the future Lord Kallig

Spindrall was a talented practitioner of the dark side of the Force, and gained enough notoriety in the Sith Empire to earn elevation to the rank of Sith Lord. His judgements on students were considered to be prophetic in nature, and were highly valued by Sith Masters who believed Spindrall's Force visions. Zash's apprentice, the seeker who slew Spindrall's disciples, even reached the Dark Council after fulfilling the seer's prophecy that they would shape the fates of individuals from both the future and past.

Behind the scenes
If Klemral, an acolyte wanting to become Darth Baras' apprentice, is spared by the Sith Warrior that would later become Baras' new apprentice, Klemral tells him he heard the mad hermit in the tombs accepts failed acolytes, so it is possible he eventually joins Spindrall.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: The Old Republic