Sifo-Dyas

"Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas is still a leading member of the Jedi Council, is he not?"

- Lama Su, to Obi-Wan Kenobi

Sifo-Dyas was a human male Jedi Master from Minashee who commissioned the Kaminoans' creation of the Grand Army of the Republic over a decade before the Clone Wars. A Jedi from the Cassandran Worlds, Sifo-Dyas was gifted with the power of foresight, and he earned a seat on the Jedi High Council prior to the Invasion of Naboo. When he foresaw a coming war that would ravage the galaxy, he believed that the Galactic Republic would require an army if it were to prevail. Yet, his peers on the Jedi Council rejected his notions, leading to his removal from the Council. Nevertheless, he pursued his ideas in secret and contacted the Kaminoan cloners, purporting to have the authorization of the Council and the Galactic Senate to raise an army for the Republic. In doing so, he unknowingly entered the crosshairs of the Sith, who set out to assume control of his cloning project.

Around the time of the Invasion of Naboo, Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum requested Sifo-Dyas conduct clandestine negotiations with the Pyke Syndicate, and he headed for Oba Diah with Valorum's personal aide, Silman. However, the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus hired the Pykes to target Sifo-Dyas's T-6 shuttle, and they shot down his ship over the Oba Diah moon. Sifo-Dyas died in the resulting crash, but Silman survived and was taken prisoner by the Pykes. Consequently, Tyranus and his Sith Master, Darth Sidious, funded Sifo-Dyas's army of clone troopers, hired the bounty hunter Jango Fett to serve as a genetic template, instructed the Kaminoan cloners to add Order 66 to the clones' control chips (which Sifo-Dyas originally intended to be a safeguard against any treacherous orders given to clones), and manipulated the Jedi Order into taking command of the army when the Clone Wars erupted. It was not until years later that the Jedi began to unravel the Sith's conspiracy and unearthed the details of Sifo-Dyas's demise.

Early life
"Prior to the blockade of Naboo, Sifo-Dyas sat on this Council until we judged his ideas to be too extreme."

- Mace Windu

Hailing from Minashee in the Cassandran Worlds, Sifo-Dyas was the son of a fisherman. Discovered by the Jedi Order as an infant by the Jedi Master Maota, he would eventually be placed into the Hawkbat Clan (under the direction of Tera Sinube) where he became close friends with Dooku from Serenno.

During their time as initiates, they and their youngling clan joined several other Jedi on a trip to Serenno for a celebration. While encapsulated by the festivities young Sifo-Dyas bumped into Grand Master Yoda, causing the other Masters, including Tera Sinube and Yula Braylon to rush to the elder Jedi's aid with concern. Despite this Yoda insisted Sifo-Dyas has learned from his mistake, and the boy promised to be more careful in the future.

Later, while the Masters where busy demonstrating various lightsaber stances, Dooku ran off after seeing a young girl he thought he recognized. Sifo-Dyas eventually found his friend and the girl, Dooku's sister Jenza, buried under the rubble of the Great Assembly after it collapsed during a groundquake. While the Masters lifted the rubble off of them he tried to comfort his friend. Upon arriving back on Coruscant, Sifo-Dyas was present when Dooku received a box containing a communicator, that allowed him to correspond with his sister over the following decades.

At some point Sifo-Dyas discovered the journal of Klias Teradine, which revealed the existence of the Bogan Collection in the Jedi Archives, with this secret he convinced Dooku to help him break in. Together, they used sand levitation to get past the magnetic lock, allowing them to view the vault of forbidden artifacts linked to the dark side of the Force. As Sifo explored, observing scrolls, weapons, and other ancient devices, Dooku's eye was drawn to a large piece of metal that he connected with through the force. As Sifo was distracted his friend drew closer to it, and heard the sound of a beast drawing near. This frightened the boy, who summoned a force wave that destroyed many of the items in the chamber and threw Sifo-Dyas through a glass cabinet.

The noise quickly drew the attention of the Chief Librarian Restelly Quist, who caught the apprentices and brought them to the infirmary. While there Sifo's arm was put in a bacta cast to help heal his broken bone, and he was confronted by Masters Yoda and Braylon who each expressed disappointment in the way they had violated their trust. It was here that the pair of younglings first met Jedi Master Lene Kostana who came to express her concern that the Bogan Collection had not been sealed effectively since children were able to break in.

Sifo and Dooku watched the masters discuss their conflicting philosophies concerning the appropriate way to prepare young Jedi to confront the dark side, and when their discussion was concluded Yoda assigned Sifo-Dyas and Dooku to decipher the Lothal Agricultural Papyri as punishment. Under the watchful eye of Master Quist they worked through their penance. After a couple days studying crop rotations Master Kostana stopped by and spoke to them, playfully referring to the Grand Master as a "goblin", and wishing the initiates good luck. After she left Sifo discovered that she had slipped him a book, The Bestiary of Darth Coldoth. His friend urged him to turn it in but young Sifo-Dyas refused.

Apprenticeship
Upon completing the Initiate Trials, Sifo-Dyas participated in the Padawan Tournament where younglings would compete against each other in combat in order to attract prospective masters. Sifo-Dyas came up against Dooku, who defeated him blindfolded and with one arm behind his back. However, his friend elected not to demand his surrender, and allowed his fellow initiate to dual him to a stalemate so he might better impress the masters. Immediately following this, Sifo-Dyas was taken as a Padawan learner by Master Kostana, much to Dooku's initial disappointment as he had hoped to be chosen as her apprentice.

During his time as a Padawan, he visited Palek with Kostana and there managed to acquire a crystal that seemed to be similar to a kyber crystal. Upon returning to the Jedi Temple, Sifo-Dyas gifted this crystal to Dooku. While on Palek, a hyperstorm took place.

Under Master Kostana his mind was opened to the current of the cosmic force, which granted him very vivid Force vision of the future. One of these visions involved a planet being engulfed in flames. This turned out to be a warning about the coming the Protobranch Solar storm before the event had even occurred circa 85 BBY. His teacher encouraged him to take these visions seriously, but Master Kostana also did what she could to hide her apprentices talents from the Jedi Council, fearful that they might interpret his talent for foresight as being dangerous.

Over the years Sifo-Dyas and his Master dedicated their efforts to locating dark side artifacts, and the Bogan Collection expanded greatly during their time together. That so many Sith relics were surfacing further convinced them that evil was on the rise again.

Around 84 BBY the Jedi Council learned Dooku was communicating with his sister in violation of the Jedi Code. He agreed to halt further contact on the condition that he be allowed to attend his mothers funeral. Since Master Kostana and Sifo were already planning on searching to the Tamsis Nebula which was near Serenno she convinced the council to allow her to take the apprentice to Monterro, the funeral moon.. While there a protest broke out that ended with the Countess's casket knocked over.

The Jedi knew the prideful Count Gora would not allow the embarrassing incident to be reported by the holonet and agreed not to inform the council of what had happened.

With that done they went immediately to Asusto, following a lead they had discovered earlier while on a mission to infiltrated a smuggler ring on Karazak. While there they encountered a group of Abyssin who were transporting nerve disruptors. Still emotionally unstable from his mothers funeral Dooku killed all of the smugglers in a fit of rage, but the moss coated ground trapped them so they were unable to escape. This was an ambush, laid by the Presagers of Hakotei who intended to kill them in order to generate visions of the future. The moss held them as they were tortured, they bore witness to dark images of war, and the return of the Sith. As their foresight overwhelmed them Dooku lashed out with Force lightning killing their captures and freeing Sifo-Dyas and Master Kostana.

Knowing the council would not approve of her exposing apprentices to the dark side, Master Kostana once again insisted they not be informed about what had transpired on Asusto. To help Dooku refocus himself in the light Sifo and his master taught him an ancient ritual using bindings that allowed him to restore balance within himself.

Sifo-Dyas learned much under Master Kostana, though he never got along with her Convor.

Knighthood
At some point following their mission to Asusto Sifo-Dyas was knighted, but because of the severity of his visions Master Kostana continued to work with him. They agreed that they worked well together and since it was common for the ancient Jedi to work in pairs this further served as inspiration for their partnership. Even so, some Jedi such as Dooku were quick to point out she was no longer responsible for his well being, but his former Master was happy to keep their partnership alive. Sifo saw little of his old friend after becoming a knight, and the emotional toll his visions took on him caused him to develop a stutter. Sifo and Kostana stayed active over the years, constantly traveling on missions and returning to the Jedi Temple infrequently.

In approximately 45 bby Sifo and his Master had returned to Coruscant and were approached by a disgraced Master Yula Braylon. The former Councilor had been asked to transport Dooku and his family Protocol Droid D-4 back to Serenno which had been invaded by Abyssin Pirates.. The mission was not sanctioned by the Jedi Council and Braylon did not wish to put herself in a worse position with them, but she knew Master Kostana would be happy to help.

Together Sifo-Dyas and Master Kostana took their old friend back to his homeworld. Their ship was shot down, and Sifo was separated from his old Master and Dooku during the fight, but things escalated when the Jedi was granted another vision of the future, one where a large gathering of people were chanting Dooku's name. This unnerved Sifo-Dyas and left him unable to participate in the remaining fight. It was soon discovered that the Abyssin had been hired by Dooku's brother, Count Ramil. Dooku confronted his brother, hoping to deescalate the situation, but when the planets ruler threatened to kill everyone present the Master summoned a Sith War Beast to cause mayhem and create an opening so that he might strike the Count down. Ultimately Master Dooku had lost control of the Tirra'Taka, and was forced to kill it.

With the Serenno Civil War now over, Sifo-Dyas witnessed his old friend lay claim to his families title of Count of Serenno. With his sister Jenza's support the people began to chant his name, just as Sifo-Dyas had predicted. They also were present when Dooku informed Yoda that he was resigning from the order, becoming the twentieth member of The Lost before saying goodbye, promising that they would see each other again.

Jedi Master
Later in his life he became a Jedi Master and a leading member of the Jedi High Council, the governing body of the Order, in the last decades of the Galactic Republic. However, some time prior to the Invasion of Naboo, tensions arose between Sifo-Dyas and his fellow councilors. Foreseeing an upcoming full-scale conflict, he started advocating for the creation of an army for the Republic. The rest of the High Council deemed his ideas too extreme, and Sifo-Dyas was removed from his position. Even though the other Jedi had rejected his project, he found a way to carry it out without their consent. Sifo-Dyas contacted the Kaminoans, who were reputed for their clone hatcheries, and secretly commissioned them to grow a clone army for the Republic, which he pretended was a request of the Galactic Senate.

Final mission
Some time later, Master Sifo-Dyas was sent on a secret mission by Finis Valorum, the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic, who asked him to deal with the Pyke Syndicate. Valorum also asked his personal aide, Silman, to accompany the Jedi on his way to the planet Oba Diah, where the Pykes were headquartered. However, Sifo-Dyas was never able to complete the Chancellor's mission, as the High Council called him to deal with another conflict: on Felucia, a skirmish had broken out between the local tribes, and Sifo-Dyas was assigned to quell the conflict. As a consequence, both Sifo-Dyas and Silman were diverted to Felucia aboard T-6 shuttle 77519.

Death over the Oba Diah moon
"Tyranus wanted Sifo-Dyas dead. The Pykes were well paid to shoot down his ship. However, any man that is willing to pay to have a Jedi killed is dangerous and unpredictable."

- Lom Pyke

However, neither man would ever reach their destination, for the Sith Lord Darth Sidious had learned of Sifo-Dyas's army and wished to take control of the project in the course of his plot to bring down the Jedi and the Republic. Dooku, who had since left the Jedi Order and apprenticed himself to Sidious under the title of Darth Tyranus, paid the Pyke Syndicate to destroy Sifo-Dyas's shuttle. Since the syndicate wished to gain an advantage over rival crime families, and Dooku's substantial offer would allow them to do just that, they accepted and shot down Sifo-Dyas' shuttle over the Oba Diah moon. After inspecting the wreckage, they turned over the Jedi Master's corpse to Tyranus as proof that the deed was done. While Sifo-Dyas had died in the crash, Silman was still alive when the Pykes inspected the wreckage. They decided to keep the Chancellor's aide locked up in their prison as insurance against future action by Tyranus, recognizing that anyone who would pay to have a Jedi assassinated was exceedingly dangerous.

Legacy
"They said Master Sifo-Dyas placed an order for a clone army at the request of the Senate almost ten years ago. I was under the impression that he was killed before that."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi

Ten years after the Jedi Master's death, the army he had commissioned was discovered by Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Knight who was investigating on Kamino following the murder of the bounty hunter Zam Wesell by a mysterious colleague of hers, Jango Fett. To his great surprise, Kenobi was greeted by Taun We, a Kaminoan, as if they had been expecting his visit. Prime Minister Lama Su then informed the Jedi of the existence and progress of the clone army ordered by Sifo-Dyas some ten years ago. Although Kenobi had no knowledge of the army, he feigned that his trip to Kamino was in fact an official visit by the Order to inspect the army. He bluffed his way into the heart of the hatcheries, and was introduced to the original source of the clones, which was none other than Jango Fett. As soon as he took his leave of the Kaminoans, Kenobi contacted the High Council and told them of the clone army and how Sifo-Dyas was supposed to have commissioned it. The Council members however, had no more knowledge of the army than Kenobi did, though they did inform Kenobi that whoever had ordered the army had not received the sanction of the Council. Ultimately, Sifo-Dyas' clone army ended up being used at the behest of the Republic, and the conflict between the Separatists and the Republic was named "the Clone Wars" after it.

In 19 BBY, the last year of the Clone Wars, a Jedi mission led by Plo Koon and Commander Wolffe found a lightsaber belonging to the long-dead Sifo-Dyas on Oba Diah's moon. This unexpected discovery prompted Yoda, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Anakin Skywalker to investigate his decade-old disappearance. Meanwhile, Tyranus' master, the mysterious Darth Sidious, was furious to discover that the Jedi were investigating the loose end that was Sifo-Dyas. He ordered Tyranus to clean up his affairs before it was too late.

As part of the Sith illusions created by Darth Sidious and Darth Tyranus' ritual, Sifo-Dyas appeared to Yoda on Moraband. His phantom was being tortured, bound by electricity. The specter begged Yoda to release him, offering in exchange the identity of the Sith Lord. However, Yoda saw through him with his Sith eyes and refused the offer, causing him to merge into Sidious.

At the end of the war, Sifo-Dyas's clone army was commissioned by Chancellor Palpatine, who finally unveiled himself as Darth Sidious, to turn against the Jedi Order, initiating the Jedi Purge, which saw the death of several Jedi Masters. In an ironic twist of fate, unknowingly manipulated by the Sith Lords, Sifo-Dyas contributed to the destruction of the Jedi in his effort to save the Order.

Behind the scenes
In early drafts of Attack of the Clones, the name of the Jedi who contacted the Kaminoans was Sido-Dyas, and was originally a false identity for Darth Sidious—Obi-Wan Kenobi claimed to have never heard of him, and Mace Windu confirmed no Jedi of that name existed. The spelling "Sifo-Dyas" appears in one draft as a typing error that Lucas preferred to the original name; thus the scenario of the Jedi's identity was rewritten. Additionally, the Jedi Master's name was changed in the Portuguese translation to Zaifo-Vias, since his original name sounded much like "se fodias," a vulgar expression in Brazil.

His backstory was originally promised by George Lucas to be revealed in Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith. However, once Lucas refocused the film's story to center on Anakin, he was forced to cut several plot points related to Attack of the Clones, including Sifo-Dyas' backstory. It wasn't until "The Lost One", a sixth season episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, that the character was given a canonical background. He was voiced by Paul Nakauchi for his appearance as a hallucination in the episode "Sacrifice".

Appearances

 * Dooku: Jedi Lost
 * Star Wars: The Prequel Trilogy – A Graphic Novel
 * Star Wars: Force Arena
 * Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones
 * Attack of the Clones Read-Along Storybook and CD
 * Jedi of the Republic – Mace Windu, Part I
 * Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 14: Burning Seas, Part II
 * Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 14: Burning Seas, Part II
 * Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 14: Burning Seas, Part II
 * Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 14: Burning Seas, Part II
 * Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 14: Burning Seas, Part II
 * Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith 14: Burning Seas, Part II