Dace Diath

"Our command ship took heavy casualties. But we gave as good as we got."

- Dace Diath

Dace Diath was a male Human and one of many Jedi Knights who trained under Master Vodo-Siosk Baas. He spent the majority of his early life on Tatooine being taught his initial training by his father, the Jedi Master Sidrona Diath. Upon completion of the training, he traveled to Ossus and became an apprentice to Master Vodo. He would eventually be one of the Jedi sent as reinforcements to help Ulic Qel-Droma during the Freedon Nadd Uprising on Onderon. He later participated in the Convocation at Mount Meru on Deneba and fought against the Krath during the Great Sith War.

He was an experienced and talented pilot, and while on Onderon learned to fly one of the Beast Rider's war beasts. Dace Diath, along with fellow Jedi Qrrrl Toq and Shoaneb Culu, was killed when Aleema Keto used Sith powers to destroy a star in the Cron Drift. He was an ancestor of Jedi Master Nico Diath and Padawan Tae Diath.

Early training
"A Jedi who tries with all of his being never fails. It is the Jedi who gives up that fails&mdash;fails not only himself, but the Force as well."

- A holocron gatekeeper, to Dace Diath as a young child

Dace Diath was born the son of the famous Jedi Master Sidrona Diath and grew up on the desert planet of Tatooine. The remoteness of Tatooine permitted Sidrona to begin training his son in the ways of the Jedi, eventually leading Dace to the place where he could achieve a deep understanding of the Force. His father's training, coupled with the isolated environment he found himself in, allowed Dace to touch the Force and let it flow through him unhindered. However, even though he was able to open himself up to the Force, and pushed himself to be the best student he could, Dace found that he was still learning slowly. That led Dace to consider abandoning his Jedi training, not because he disliked the rigid lifestyle he was forced to live, but mainly because he did not want to disappoint his father. If he did not try, he reasoned, then he could not fail.

His father recognized these times of self-doubt in his son and did all he could to strengthen Dace's confidence in himself and his faith in the Jedi way. During one of these times, Sidrona realized that it was usually those Jedi who had worked the hardest and most diligently in their studies of the Force, that became the most capable and gifted teachers; they could better understand the hardships their students faced, and therefore help guide them to a resolution. Sidrona constantly reminded his son of that, and therefore convinced Dace that he was not alone in his difficulties, and that he might one day be able to assume the mantle of a Jedi Master.

Self-doubt and discovery
Sidrona Diath routinely trained Dace in the Jundland Wastes, on both the physical and mental sides of the Force. After one especially frustrating day of training in the Wastes, Dace lost all faith in his abilities. As in previous times, Dace went to his father for support, but that time Sidrona did not offer any words of comfort. Instead, he told Dace that he needed now to learn to rely on the Force unconditionally and to look inward to discover his destiny rather than rely on outside support. Dace, fairly surprised and rather upset at his father's words, wandered away from his home and into the dying light of dusk&mdash;trying to focus his thoughts on the Force and his problem.

He wandered aimlessly throughout the surrounding landscape, the long minutes spanning into even longer hours, fighting with the confusion and inner turmoil that had taken over his mind. He drifted until he was half-frozen, and found himself on the edge of the Dune Sea. Then, he saw through the swirling mists of confusion in his mind, and began to recall things from the depths of his memories. The one memory that rushed to the forefront was when his father had taken him as a young child to Ossus to visit the Great Jedi Library. While there, he had inspected a Jedi holocron, and the gatekeeper had spoken to the young Dace Diath. Dace recalled that the gatekeeper had spoken to him of how a Jedi who tries and does not give up, will never fail&mdash;and that a Jedi who does give up not only fails himself, but also the Force.

Pondering on what the gatekeeper had told him, Diath finally realized that it was his own way of thinking that had resulted in all his difficulties. He concluded that if he could just practice, train, and learn under his father without all these negative personal feelings about his progress, then he would not be hampered any longer, and he would therefore succeed. On his way back to his father's home, he likewise came to the understanding that his father had declined him help, because he would never accept these revelations if someone else had presented him with them; he had to illuminate and discover his own path, and believe in it without question. Otherwise, if he never accepted his own destiny fully, then he would never overcome his own self-doubt.

Dace eventually returned to his father, and continued training under Sidrona's tutelage for a further two years. At the end of that time, Dace felt that he was ready to leave his father to travel to Ossus and continue his training at the Jedi training center there. Upon arrival on Ossus, he became the student of Jedi Master Vodo-Siosk Baas.

Road to Knighthood
"Is this where the flux aperture goes, Master Vodo?"

- Dace Diath

Dace Diath approached his training on Ossus much the same way as he handled his studies under his father; he studied diligently at the Great Jedi Library; pushed himself when learning new levels of the Force; and continued to improve upon how he allowed the Force to flow through him. All through the new training regimes on Ossus under Master Vodo, Diath adhered to the lessons he learned in the Dune Sea on Tatooine, mastering his self-doubt and consequently excelling in his Jedi training. He impressed Master Vodo so much that when Vodo departed Ossus for Dantooine, he asked Diath to accompany him and continue to train under him. On Dantooine, Diath continued his Jedi training under Master Vodo, and was later joined by fellow apprentices Exar Kun, and the Cathars Sylvar and Crado.

Following his training, Diath joined Nomi Sunrider, Shoaneb Culu, Qrrrl Toq, and Kith Kark in answering Ulic Qel-Droma's call for reinforcements against the Naddists during the Freedon Nadd Uprising.

The Freedon Nadd Uprising
"I'm right behind you, Kith!"

- Dace Diath, during the Freedon Nadd Uprising

Following the events which took place on Onderon that saw the capture of Jedi Master Arca Jeth, Ulic Qel-Droma sent a request to Ossus for additional Jedi support in the Freedon Nadd Uprising. In response to that, the entire Jedi assembly gathered at Ossus volunteered for the mission, however only five Jedi Knights were chosen&mdash;Dace Diath being one of them.

The Republic also responded to Ulic's request for help and sent a fleet of warships which laid siege to the walled city of Iziz on Onderon. Upon arrival, the Jedi cruisers from Ossus circled the land outside the walled city in search of Qel-Droma and his remaining Jedi. Sensing Qel-Droma in a fortress not far from Iziz, the five Jedi reinforcements rushed to his aid&mdash;Diath and the other Jedi used Force battle-techniques which had been perfected over many centuries, and together they charged the ranks of their numerous enemy. During the attack, Nomi Sunrider commented that an energy field was blocking her Jedi Battle meditation; likewise, Diath also noticed that something strange was happening. Diath found himself fighting an ancient Sith War Droid that he could feel dark side energy radiating off of. Eventually Diath and the other Jedi reinforcements linked up with Qel-Droma and the remaining Jedi of Cay Qel-Droma, Tott Doneeta, and Oss Wilum; together they discovered that it was King Ommin of Onderon who was creating the dark side energies that they could all sense. With the help of Diath and the other Jedi, Ulic Qel-Droma managed to defeat Ommin and break the dark side influence over Onderon. Following Ommin's defeat, the Jedi entombed Freedon Nadd's remains on Onderon's beast moon, Dxun.

Rise of the Krath
"How's that possible, Master Arca?"

- Diath, upon hearing of Sith activity in the Tetan System

Shortly after the events of the Naddist Revolt, Master Arca Jeth arrived back on Onderon to advise Diath and the other Jedi there about recent events which revolved around the re-emergence of the Sith in the Empress Teta system. Master Jeth informed them of the political coup initiated by the Krath cult, headed by the Tetans Satal Keto and his cousin Aleema Keto. The Jedi were surprised that these two young Tetans, whom they had discovered were on Onderon during the height of the Naddist Revolt, were now deeply immersed in Sith teachings. Diath, Qrrrl Toq, Oss Wilum, and Shoaneb Culu were ordered by Master Jeth to go to Ossus and warn the Jedi and Republic leaders of the dangers of what they had experienced on Onderon and the gathering darkness in the Empress Teta System.

With the information, the Republic and the Jedi Order decided to send a combined fleet to the aid of the remaining Tetan worlds that were still resisting the Krath coup. Diath and several other Jedi joined the task force, and the combined fleet arrived in the Empress Teta System just in time to support the last remaining holdouts of resistance on Koros Major. However, through the use of ancient Sith magic, the Krath forces&mdash;under the leadership of Satal and Aleema Keto&mdash;used suicide tactics to utterly destroy the Jedi and Republic fleet. Diath was one of the few Jedi who survived the attack.

Following the Krath victory at Koros Major, Nomi Sunrider, Tott Doneeta, and Cay Qel-Droma attempted to make secret contact with Ulic who had managed to infiltrate the Krath cult. However, by that time, Ulic had begun his slow descent to the dark side&mdash;when Nomi and the others found him, Ulic used dark side energy to push them away from him, threatening that he would kill them. The Jedi realized that something was drastically wrong, and together they retreated back to Ossus. Once back on Ossus, Diath and Cay Qel-Droma were asked to test the new, but still experimental, Star Saber Starfighters. During the test flights, Dace narrowly escaped death after he lost control of his starfighter in the rocky canyons of Ossus. Even though the starfighter exploded upon impact, Dace managed to eject and use the Force to gently lower himself to the ground.

Sunrider and the other Jedi returned from their mission empty-handed, and it was decided that the Jedi would stage an all-out assault against the Krath to rescue Ulic. Diath, despite his recent trouble with the starfighter, chose another Star Saber for the upcoming attack. However, the rescue did not go to plan, with Ulic shunning Sunrider and Cay and choosing to stay with Aleema and the Krath.

The Sith War
"Why would anyone want to kill Master Dominus?"

- Diath, upon finding the corpse of Jedi Master Dominus

Ulic Qel-Droma led a Krath attack fleet to Republic space and launched an invasion of Coruscant; it was that invasion which sparked off the Great Sith War. Diath, along with many other Jedi, fought on Coruscant and helped defend the city planet from the invading Krath forces. Ulic himself led the attack from the ground, but the Krath were beaten back by the combined Republic and Jedi forces. When the Krath forces retreated from Coruscant, Ulic was left facing the gathered might of a group of Jedi, including Diath, led by Nomi Sunrider and Vodo-Siosk Baas. Together, Sunrider and Master Vodo used the 'Blocking' technique taught by Jedi Master Odan-Urr and temporarily cut Ulic off from the Force. Diath, along with the other Jedi, added his powers to Sunrider's and Master Vodo's to help momentarily imprison Ulic.

Following Ulic's disastrous invasion of Coruscant, he was rescued from Republic captivity by Exar Kun and Mandalore the Indomitable. He eventually made his way back to lead the Krath forces. Ulic knew that Aleema had betrayed and abandoned him on Coruscant, and his revenge against her was swift: he ordered her to lead an attack on the Republic jump station at Kemplex IX during which she would set off a supernova. Ulic knew that the attack would ultimately consume her. Diath, in response to Aleema's attack, organized a Jedi force to respond to the distress signals coming from Kemplex IX.

One with the Force
"Let the three of us lead the counterattack on Kemplex Nine. We'll take command of the fleet."

- Diath, to Jedi Master Thon

The destruction wrought by the Great Sith War had begun to take its toll on the Jedi ranks, and many Jedi had gathered on Ossus in the year 3,996 BBY in response to the various assassinations of Jedi Masters by agents of Exar Kun. To that assembly of Jedi, Tott Doneeta announced that Kemplex IX was under attack by an ancient Sith ship. To the gathered Jedi, Master Thon explained his beliefs that the Krath attack on Kemplex IX was a feint, rationalizing that everything Ulic and Kun wanted was right there on Ossus. Upon hearing that, Diath, Shoaneb Culu, and Qrrrl Toq volunteered to give chase to the mysterious Sith ship while the remaining Jedi stayed behind and protected Ossus.

Upon arriving at Kemplex IX, Diath, Shoaneb, and Qrrrl found the entire area completely devoid of life&mdash;except for the Sith ship commanded by Aleema and Crado. Diath led the attack on the ancient ship, but noted when it began to power up its systems. Little did Diath and the other Jedi know that Aleema had used the ancient weapons on the Sith ship to rip the core from the center of one of the ten stars in the Cron Cluster. The resulting supernova engulfed Dace and the other pursuing Jedi, killing them instantly.

Personality and traits
Dace Diath was a Human male with black hair, brown eyes, and brown skin. He was known to be a hard worker and studious in his studies as a Jedi. As a young apprentice to his father Sidrona Diath, Dace Diath was able to touch the Force unhindered, but struggled with the pace at which he was progressing in his training. He had frequent bouts of self-doubt, and Diath tended to focus on the negative aspects of a situation. However, through his fathers guidance and by walking the path of self-discovery, Diath was able to overcome his self-doubt and fully embrace the Jedi destiny that stood before him.

Powers and abilities
Following the completion of his training, Diath became known as a skilled warrior with a lightsaber and demonstrated his prowess during several campaigns against the Sith. He was among five Jedi chosen for the special assignment of lending aid to Ulic Qel-Droma during the Naddist Revolt. Diath was also present during the Krath invasion of Coruscant, where he fought bravely with his lightsaber against the invading armies. He was also one of many Jedi to combine their powers in creating a wall of light to contain the Sith Lord Ulic-Qel Droma.

Diath was also an experienced and talented pilot, having flown several dangerous missions for the Republic and Jedi&mdash;and on at least one occasion, being one of the few pilots to make it home alive. He was one of the pilots asked to test the experimental Star Saber Starfighters, and showed his proficiency with Jedi levitation when he lowered himself to the ground with the Force after an accidental crash. Dace later led an aerial attack on Kemplex Nine. He was also one of several Jedi to be taught how to fly the war beasts of Onderon.

Behind the scenes
Dace Diath first appeared in Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising. In the Power of the Jedi Sourcebook, it is incorrectly stated that it was Dace Diath and Oss Wilum who were asked to test the experimental Star Saber Starfighters. As per the sub-series Dark Lords of the Sith of the Tales of the Jedi series of comics, it was Dace and Cay Qel-Droma who were asked to try out the new starfighters.

Diath is also obviously absent from both the Tales of the Jedi and Dark Lords of the Sith audio dramas, despite playing a significant role in the events covered by each.

Appearances

 * Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising
 * Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith 1: Masters and Students of the Force
 * Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith 3: Descent to the Dark Side
 * Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith 6: Jedi Assault
 * Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War 2: The Battle of Coruscant
 * Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War 4: Jedi Holocaust