Darth Maul/Legends


 * "At last we will reveal ourselves to the Jedi. At last we will have revenge."
 * – Darth Maul

Darth Maul (54 BBY&mdash;32 BBY) was a Dark Lord of the Sith, and an apprentice to Darth Sidious. Maul was trained in the ways of the Dark Side of the Force from a young age, and he may have been Sidious' first apprentice.

Biography
Darth Maul was born a Zabrak from Iridonia. Indoctrinated in the ways of the dark side of the Force from youth, Maul grew to have no emotion aside from bloodlust and rage. During his training, any show of fear was severely punished by Sidious, any hint of mercy rewarded with cruelty. By the time Maul was an adolescent, his master had already forged him into a weapon of pure hatred. Marked by Sith tatoos that covered his entire muscular body, the young Zabrak was now the ultimate tool of the dark side. Despite this, Maul had fatherly feelings toward his master and never once contemplated killing him&mdash;until his final test.

The ultimate test came when Maul was abandoned by his master on an isolated Outer Rim world, forced to survive alone while being hunted by hordes of assassin droids. After a month's time, Sidious returned and challenged his apprentice to a duel, one which Maul lost. Sidious then told Maul that he had been secretly training another apprentice to replace him. Rage and hatred overwhelmed Maul, and in one final act of defiance he nearly killed his master. When Maul's emotions were finally spent, he prepared himself for death, yet Sidious laughed instead. By wanting to kill his own master, Maul had in fact passed the final test. Sidious proclaimed him Darth Maul and took him to a new home on Coruscant. Maul was skilled with the lightsaber, trained by Sidious to be a master of Form VII, which draws on emotions and the dark side. Unlike the traditional dueling techniques of most Jedi, Maul combined his swordsmanship with incredible acrobatic and martial arts and hand-to-hand combat skills, making him a nearly unstoppable dervish of destruction. Maul was a master of the fighting style teräs käsi, and was also skilled in the Jar'Kai style of wielding a lightsaber in each hand. When fighting multiple opponents, Maul extended the second blade of his double-bladed lightsaber to form a saberstaff, doubling his lethality. Maul often used this to catch opponents by surprise, as few were prepared for the extra blade. Maul had constructed this weapon himself, using ancient plans stored within one of the Sith Holocrons the Sith still possessed; he had based his lightsaber design upon Exar Kun's. Darth Maul was also skilled with combining Force talents with mechanics. Sidious gave Maul the funds and schematics he needed, and provided Maul with a secret facility on Coruscant in which to work. There Maul constructed his signature speeder bike Bloodfin and the Dark Eye seeker droids. Sidious also gave Maul a powerful transport - a Sith Infiltrator called Scimitar - which hosted a cloaking shield generator. This vehicle vas developed by Raith Sinear, the man whose company would later develop the TIE fighter for the Empire.

Maul originally went on countless missions of terror for his master, killing politicians, crime bosses, merchants, and warlords. Maul's very appearance had been carefully conceived to put fear into the heart of the Sith's enemies and unwitting allies. Yet despite his untold successes, Maul longed for victory over Jedi. Prior to the Battle of Naboo, Maul was dispatched to eliminate the Jedi who had been sent by the Republic to settle the conflict. Maul had failed in this task on Tatooine a few days before, and was eager to exact revenge. In a vicious battle, Maul slew the exhausted Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn. He then used the Force to push Jinn's apprentice, the young Obi-Wan Kenobi into a melting pit. Kenobi hung onto a small device on the side of the pit as Maul grinned evilly at him from above. However, Maul's overconfidence was his downfall.

Kenobi used the Force to leap out of the melting pit, and at the same time summon his Master's lightsaber to his hand.The Padawan sliced Maul in half, and his body fell into the melting pit in an end unfit for a great warrior such as himself. It was a setback for Darth Sidious, but for a calculating man with access to the future, it was not a disaster. Perhaps it was even deliberate. Maul would eventually be replaced with an apprentice far more powerful.

Behind the Scenes
Darth Maul was played by martial arts specialist Ray Park and voiced by British actor Peter Serafinowicz. Darth Maul's striking visual design, in addition to his limited role in the film, have left many fans wanting to know more about him. Maul's earlier escapades were later documented in the comic book miniseries Jedi Council: Acts of War, the e-book Darth Maul: Saboteur, the comic book miniseries Darth Maul, and the novels Episode I Adventures: The Fury of Darth Maul and Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter.

Darth Maul's name is likely a reference to his role as Palpatine's personal assassin. His pre-Sith name is unknown, although controversial fanon author SuperShadow has invented the name Khameir Sarin for him.

Darth Maul is a favorite subject for non-canon, what-if stories. Recently, he has become the subject of another spinoff story in Star Wars: Visionaries. The story "Old Wounds" featured the return of Darth Maul, with a new robotic lower body and longer horns. He returns to Lars' Homestead to kill off three-year old Luke Skywalker. Obi-Wan Kenobi, watching the boy, comes to save the family and fights him. He has also been "resurrected" in Star Wars Tales, where he fought Darth Vader in the short story Resurrection.

Appearances



 * Darth Maul: Saboteur
 * Jedi Council: Acts of War
 * Darth Maul
 * Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter
 * Marked
 * Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars Visionaries (non-canon)
 * Resurrection (non-canon)
 * Star Wars Tales 17 (non-canon)
 * Star Wars Battlefront II