Mace Windu/Legends

"A very, very wise Jedi once said to me, We don't have to win. All we have to do is fight."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mace Windu

Mace Windu was a Jedi Master and one of the last members of the Jedi Council before the Great Jedi Purge. Windu was often regarded as second only to Master Yoda on the High Council, though eight centuries his junior. His wisdom and power were legendary, as were the weight of his words.

Early life


Mace Windu was originally from the planet Haruun Kal, where he was born into the Ghôsh Windu. Following the death of his parents, he was turned over to the Jedi Order when he was six standard months old. Like all in the Order, Mace was apprenticed under Master Yoda before becoming a Padawan to another Jedi. He trained under T'ra Saa for at least a time, but whether this was an actual codified master-apprentice relationship is unknown.

At a very early age, Mace learned of his unusual ability to see shatterpoints in the Force and how they would affect all of his future actions as well as the vunerabilities of his opponents. With these unique abilities, he had glimpses of parts of his future, such as the lightsaber he would eventually build.

By age fourteen, the Jedi Council was concerned with Mace, for even though he was at the top of his class, he still could not construct the lightsaber that came to him in visions multiple times. He informed the Council that he wanted a true challenge in order to find the best pieces for his lightsaber. After considering this, the Council and his Master sent Mace on his own to the world of Hurikane. While on this mission, Mace was at first chased away from the natives that resided there, but after he saved one of them from falling down a chasm, they rewarded him with a crystal. He used this crystal to construct the lightsaber he had seen in his visions and it produced its distinctive purple blade.

Over the next decade and a half, Mace went on many notable missions that included his first visit to his homeworld, Haruun Kal (during which he learned his native Korun language), and one where he tracked down and defeated his parents' killer Uda-Khalid.



Jedi Master
Prodigiously talented in the Force, Mace passed the trials early and was appointed to the Jedi Council at the age of 28 after his exploits during the Arkanian Revolution where he fought the cyborg Gorm the Dissolver.

During his later career, Windu trained many to be Jedi, including Echuu Shen-Jon (who ultimately survived the Great Jedi Purge), and fellow Council member Depa Billaba. As a senior member of the Council, his lightsaber hilt would be uniquely decorated with electrum, a precious metal.

Mace created his own style of lightsaber combat which became known as Vaapad, the seventh form of combat which developed the incomplete Juyo Form. Mace Windu, his former Padawan learner Depa Billaba, and legendary lightsaber instructor Sora Bulq were the only ones to master Vaapad. With his eclectic fighting style, it is said that only his one time friend, Count Dooku, and Yoda could outspar him. A factor that played into Windu's fighting style was his admission that his biggest character flaw was that he enjoyed fighting, and given the nature of the dark side, this was a very dangerous trait for a Jedi to possess. Windu, like Plo Koon, was known to practice powers close to the dark side, even using force crush and force grip at times. In fact, Mace intentionally created Vaapad to help channel his inner darkness into something more positive.

As well as his incredible combat abilities, such as Saber barrier, Windu also possessed a rare gift. He had a unique form of force perception which allowed him to see the shatterpoint in situations, beings and circumstances. These shatterpoints revealed points upon which other things were reliant on. Shatterpoints could form links between beings, creatures, planets or other vessels, and if destroyed or utilised, these shatterpoints could hold the key to averting disaster, sealing fate, winning battles and fulfilling the very will of the Force itself.

In addition to being a great warrior and unusually force sensitive, Windu possessed extensive knowledge of Jedi history and philosophy and was known for his diplomatic abilities. Windu was the Council's primary liaison to the Supreme Chancellor, although the Clone Wars caused him to question his firmest beliefs. In the years before the Clone Wars, Windu would spearhead many diplomatic and peace-keeping missions, including ones to Yinchorr and Malastare.

Windu was a stern advocate against Anakin Skywalker's induction into the Jedi Order. However, he later came to see that Skywalker was the Chosen One. Despite this revelation, it did not solidify his trust in the haughty, petulant Anakin.

Clone Wars
"This party's over."

- Mace Windu

In 22 BBY, it became apparent that a full-fledged military conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems would occur. Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi was captured by the Confederacy on Geonosis and prepared to be executed. Having learnt of this, Mace Windu, without waiting for the Clone Army to be put at the Republic's disposal, led a Jedi strike force to Geonosis. When Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padmé Amidala were brought to the Geonosis arena, Windu and his Jedi revealed themselves to Count Dooku, the leader of the Confederacy, who was personally overseeing the planned execution.

The Battle of Geonosis followed, during which Mace Windu beheaded bounty hunter Jango Fett, the progenitor of the clone troopers, an act predicted millennia ago by Darth Traya in the times of the Old Sith Wars. Eventually, the Jedi were outnumbered by Separatist battle droids, but Master Yoda and the clone troopers rescued the Jedi. After that, Windu and the other surviving Jedi joined the battle as military commanders.



During the Clone Wars, Mace commanded Systems Army Alpha as a General on many fronts, and won a widely publicized victory at the Battle of Dantooine. He was rumoured to have singlehandedly defeated an army of B-2 battle droids and a massive seismic tank, without his lightsaber for much of the battle. Six months after the Battle of Geonosis, Mace returned to his homeworld of Haruun Kal to track down his missing former Padawan, Depa Billaba. While trekking through the jungle toward Billaba, he managed to defeat three Sienar Turbostorm gunships, destroying two and crippling the third, in a masterful display of the versatility and lethality of Vaapad. He then devised a plan to capture the world for the Republic and battled Kar Vastor, spiritually facing the dark side. Though Windu survived this trial and his strategy was successful, the memories of his return to Haruun Kal would continue to haunt him.

Mace Windu, in Force-assisted dreams on Haruun Kal, accurately predicted the fall of the Jedi and the destruction of the Temple, in addition to the Yuuzhan Vong terraforming of Coruscant.

Toward the end of the Clone Wars, Master Windu came to question Chancellor Palpatine's motives. The war was ending, yet Palpatine was taking more and more emergency control, even the Senate itself was becoming little more than an advisory board. As Windu prepared for a meeting with the Senate chair to bring him news of the elimination of General Grievous, a distraught Anakin Skywalker arrived and confirmed the Jedi Council's greatest fear: the elected leader of the Galactic Republic was in fact the Sith Lord Darth Sidious. Master Windu ordered Anakin to wait in the Jedi Council Chamber for his return and boarded a gunship along with the Nautolan Jedi Master Kit Fisto, the Iktotchi Jedi Master Saesee Tiin and the Zabrak Jedi Master Agen Kolar. They departed to confront the Chancellor.

The final battle
"The oppression of the Sith will never return. Your plot to gain control of the Republic has failed. You...have...LOST."

- Mace Windu

Windu marched into the Chancellor's office and coldly announced that he was under arrest. Mace Windu reported the end to the Clone Wars and demanded the Chancellor step down and face a trial in the Senate. Palpatine announced that he was the Senate. Windu retorted with strong words&mdash;"Not yet". Now the elected ruler of the Galactic Republic revealed his true colors; the Chancellor ignited his crimson lightsaber, flew through the air, and stabbed Agen Kolar. Before he could react, Saesee Tiin was struck down, and died. Masters Windu and Fisto managed to hang on a bit longer, but when Palpatine outmaneuvered Kit, the Nautolan died when he was cut on his waist. This left Windu to fight Palpatine alone. His knowledge of Vaapad served him well in countering Palpatine's dark side mastery.

When the fight moved to the window, Mace shattered it with one strike of his lightsaber. He and Palpatine fought at the edge of the ledge, when Palpatine's lightsaber was knocked away by an accurate kick by Master Windu.



Windu seemed to have won the lightsaber duel. But the fight was not over. A grueling battle ensued, and Anakin Skywalker appeared just as Windu cornered Palpatine and again stated that he was under arrest. With a flash of his unique insight Windu sensed Palpatine's shatterpoint: Anakin Skywalker. As the Jedi realised the depth of the Sith Lord's trust in Anakin, Palpatine unleashed his full power. The Sith used Force lightning against Windu, driving him back. Grunting with exertion Windu redirected the lightning back with his lightsaber, melting away the Chancellor's features. Horrified, Skywalker watched the Jedi Master cause seemingly agonising pain to the 'helpless' Palpatine.

During this stand-off, Palpatine and Windu each tried to convince Anakin that the other was a traitor to the Republic. Palpatine claimed he could no longer maintain his attack against Windu, exclaiming that he had "become too weak". Anakin knew, or thought he knew, that if Palpatine died, any chance of saving Padmé from certain death would be lost. Anakin told Windu that the Sith Lord "must stand trial" and that killing him was "not the Jedi way", but Windu determined that Palpatine was too dangerous to be kept alive because he had control of the Galactic Senate and the Courts. Perhaps he saw a shatterpoint in Palpatine, a hinge of fate that would alter history. Palpatine pleaded for Anakin's help, and Windu moved to strike the Dark Lord.

With Windu's attention focused entirely on Palpatine, he failed to foresee Anakin's intervention. Anakin ignited his own lightsaber and severed the Jedi Master's lightsaber hand, leaving him defenseless against the full power of Palpatine's Force lightning, no longer masked under a veil of weakness. Shocked, Mace realized he had been too busy focusing on Palpatine. He had failed to sense Anakin's shatterpoint. As the Chancellor shouted, "Power! Unlimited power!", he once again unleashed his rage, sending raw dark side energy through Windu's body and hurtling him out the window into the cityscape far below. With this action, Anakin had secured his place as the new Sith apprentice and Sidious had defeated one of the few Jedi that could be a threat to him.

The Great Jedi Purge had begun.

Behind the scenes


Mace Windu was portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson in all three movies of the prequel trilogy. He was voiced in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the Clone Wars animated series and in the Revenge of the Sith videogame by Terrence Carson.

George Lucas permitted Windu's signature amethyst-bladed lightsaber at the request of Jackson, making Windu the only character in any Star Wars film to have a lightsaber that is not red, green, or blue. In addition, the prop department replaced the activation plate stud with a plate reading "BMF" in reference to Jackson's character in Pulp Fiction, who has the phrase on his wallet.

Before production of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith began, George Lucas was approached by Samuel L. Jackson who, knowing that Mace Windu was to die in the movie, informed George that he would not work on the movie if Mace Windu died "like some punk."



The name "Mace Windu" actually dates back to the earliest incarnation of Star Wars, a 13-page treatment written by George Lucas in 1973. A similar name, Mace Towani, appeared in the made-for-television Ewok movies. An alien mentioned in Star Wars Adventure Journal 11 (c. 1994) and Galaxy Guide 7: Mos Eisley (1993) also went by the name of Mace Windu, an abbreviation of his full name Macemillian-winduarté. The name Mace Windu was re-introduced as canon for Episode I, but there was no retcon for Mace Towani or Macemillian-winduarté, save a HoloNet article mentioning Windu's participation in the Battle of Skor II.

In Star Wars Tales #13, Mace Windu is seen in a flashback being taken from his parents by another Jedi. While not a canon event, it does show Mace's parents and himself as a baby.

Appearances



 * Jedi Apprentice: The Rising Force
 * Star Wars Republic: The Stark Hyperspace War
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Uncertain Path
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Captive Temple
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Ties That Bind
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Call to Vengeance
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Only Witness
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Threat Within
 * Jedi Apprentice Special Editions 1: Deceptions
 * Jedi Apprentice Special Editions 2: The Followers
 * Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan: Last Stand on Ord Mantell
 * Jedi Council: Acts of War
 * Cloak of Deception
 * Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter
 * Star Wars: Battlefront
 * Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars: Episode I Jedi Power Battles
 * Star Wars Republic: Emissaries to Malastare
 * Star Wars Republic: Twilight
 * Star Wars Republic: Infinity's End
 * Star Wars Republic: The Hunt for Aurra Sing
 * Star Wars Republic: Darkness
 * Rogue Planet
 * Jedi Quest: Path to Truth
 * Jedi Quest: The Way of the Apprentice
 * Outbound Flight
 * Jedi Quest: The Master of Disguise
 * Jedi Quest: The School of Fear
 * Jedi Quest: The Changing of the Guard
 * Jedi Quest: The False Peace
 * Jedi Quest: The Final Showdown
 * ''Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds
 * Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
 * Boba Fett: The Fight to Survive
 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars
 * Jedi: Mace Windu
 * Shatterpoint
 * Jedi: Count Dooku
 * The Cestus Deception
 * Star Wars Republic 63: Striking from the Shadows
 * Honor Bound
 * Conversation in Shadow
 * Star Wars: Clone Wars
 * Star Wars: Obi-Wan
 * Star Wars Republic: Show of Force
 * Secrets of the Jedi
 * Jedi Trial
 * Yoda: Dark Rendezvous
 * Boba Fett: Pursuit
 * Obsession
 * Labyrinth of Evil
 * Reversal of Fortune
 * Star Wars Battlefront II
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Republic: The Hidden Enemy
 * Star Wars Empire: "General" Skywalker (memory)
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game