Ki-Adi-Mundi/Legends

"Of all living Jedi, have you only the skills to defeat Sharad Hett."

- Yoda

Ki-Adi-Mundi was a Cerean Jedi Master and High General at the time of the Clone Wars. He hailed from the planet Cerea and, due to the low Cerean birthrate, he was allowed by the Jedi to follow the Cerean custom of polygamous marriage&mdash;he had four honor wives and seven daughters.

Early life
Ki-Adi-Mundi's potential was identified by a young An'ya Kuro, and he entered the order at the age of four&mdash;later than most of his peers. Despite this, he matured into a respected Jedi Master under the tutelage of Yoda. An interesting fact is Ki-Adi-Mundi had two hearts, one in his head and another in his chest.

Jedi Master


As Jedi Watchman of the sector to which his homeworld belonged, Ki-Adi-Mundi was responsible for the defense of Cerea and its simple, austere and pacifistic way of life. He once foiled an attempt by Jabba the Hutt and Ephant Mon to smuggle goods from the world. After foiling this plot, Ki-Adi-Mundi joined the Jedi Council, replacing the late Micah Giett, despite his rank of Jedi Knight. He would later train his own Padawan, the Tusken-raised human A'Sharad Hett, completing the requirements for the rank of Master and assuming that title.

Like all Cereans, his binary brain made him extremely logical and insightful, and allowed him to uniquely weigh decisions involving matters of the Force, both light and dark. Also characteristic of his species, his coordination was somewhat impaired, but compensated for by heightened intuition. His distinctive head shape was often regarded with a certain curiousity by other species, and as a result, Ki-Adi-Mundi sometimes went to the extent of hiding it when on missions to remote, backwater worlds such as Tatooine.

Clone Wars
During the Clone Wars, the Cerean was one of the members of the strike team assembled by Mace Windu to rescue Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Senator Amidala. Ki-Adi-Mundi survived the ensuing Battle of Geonosis, fighting alongside other such luminaries as Yoda, Plo Koon, and Aayla Secura. With the latter two, Ki-Adi-Mundi led a failed assault on the Droid Control Ship.

He later led a strike team consisting of himself, Shaak Ti, Tarr Seirr, Aayla Secura, K'Kruhk, Sha'a Gi, and Daakman Barrek on Hypori, where they were attacked by General Grievous. Ki-Adi-Mundi was the last Jedi standing when they were eventually rescued by ARC Troopers.

Ki-Adi-Mundi's duties as a General of the Army of the Republic meant he was unable to go the assistance of his own world, Cerea, when it was attacked. In the ensuing Battle of Cerea, Ki-Adi-Mundi's entire family&mdash;wives, and daughters all, were killed by the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Keeping the Jedi Code in mind, he grieved privately, but then returned to his duties.

For a brief time during the wars, Ki-Adi-Mundi took over as Anakin Skywalker's master when Obi-Wan Kenobi was presumed dead after the Battle of Jabiim. When Obi-Wan was later found to have survived, Ki-Adi-Mundi returned Anakin to his Master, happy to be relieved of such a difficult and headstrong student.

When the 21st Nova Corps became the Galactic Marines and were made independent of the 4th Sector Army, the Marines were placed under Ki-Adi-Mundi's command.

In the last months of the Clone Wars, Ki-Adi-Mundi fought alongside Commander Bacara of the Marines in the Battle of New Bornalex and the Outer Rim Sieges.

Death
"Just like the rest of them, though, he never caught whiff of what was really going on...until it was far too late."

- Retired 501st soldier

Surviving to the last days of the war, Ki-Adi-Mundi was one of the Jedi to fall to Order 66. During the Outer Rim Sieges, he was stationed on Mygeeto with Commander Bacara. He led the clones into the battle, when they suddenly stopped.

Ki-Adi-Mundi turned around, confused, to see that the clones had pointed their blasters at him. He managed to deflect a few shots and wound two clone troopers, though the barrage of blaster bolts overwhelmed the Cerean Jedi Master, and he fell. Ki-Adi-Mundi was no more.

When the Galactic Empire emerged, official records compiled by Sate Pestage stated that Ki-Adi-Mundi was executed because he was arming an explosive device on one of Mygeeto's bridges.

Behind the scenes

 * Ki-Adi-Mundi was played by Silas Carson in the movies; voiced by Jess Harnell in the Star Wars: Obi-Wan and Jedi Power Battles video games; and voiced by Daran Norris in the Star Wars: Clone Wars cartoon. Silas also plays Nute Gunray.
 * Pre-Episode II videogames and the Episode I Ki-Adi-Mundi reveals that he had a purple lightsaber in 32 BBY, but later on switched to a blue lightsaber. However, in Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns, he uses a purple lightsaber, which is most likley just a simple error as it appears in the Battle of Geonosis mission in the Republic Campaign.
 * The design of this powerful Jedi character began as a reinterpretation of the elder Obi-Wan Kenobi, and then he was fitted with whale-like characteristics.
 * His marriage and children appeared in the comics before Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, and thus prior to the knowledge that Jedi weren't allowed attachments such as marriage.
 * A scene was planned for Attack of the Clones in which Ki-Adi-Mundi and Plo Koon led Aayla Secura and four other Jedi on a raid of an orbiting Trade Federation ship. This scene did not appear in the final version of the film, but the rough cut and animatics later become available on the official site for registered Hyperspace customers.
 * He is the only minor Jedi character to have a speaking role in the first three films (with the exception of Shaak Ti's deleted scene in Revenge of the Sith).
 * His name may have something to do with the mammal called the coatimundi, perhaps because there are several more females than males in their groups, just as Ki-Adi-Mundi has multiple wives.
 * In a few EU materials and collector's items such as the Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace scrapbook, it is stated that Ki-Adi-Mundi was a Jedi Knight when he served on the High Council in Episode I. This conflicts with Episode III, in which Anakin Skywalker states that someone's being on the council and not being a master had never happened before in the history of the Jedi. As the films remain the highest level of canon, the EU has implemented a retcon to the earlier claim which implies that Ki-Adi-Mundi's promotion to Jedi Master was in transition once he took a seat on the council. One common possibility suggested by fans to help smooth over this apparent conflict is that Anakin may have been unaware of Ki-Adi-Mundi's history or perhaps in his anger was twisting facts in order to better his standing to challenge the council's decision to refuse him the rank of Jedi Master.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Republic: Vow of Justice
 * Jedi Apprentice: The Captive Temple
 * Jedi Apprentice Special Editions 2: The Followers
 * Star Wars Republic: Prelude to Rebellion
 * Cloak of Deception
 * Star Wars: Obi-Wan
 * Star Wars: Battlefront II
 * Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles
 * Star Wars Republic: Outlander
 * Star Wars Republic: Emissaries to Malastare
 * Star Wars Republic: The Hunt for Aurra Sing
 * Jedi Quest: The Master of Disguise
 * Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
 * The Lesson
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game
 * Star Wars: Clone Wars
 * Star Wars Republic: The Battle of Jabiim
 * Star Wars Republic 59: Enemy Lines
 * Star Wars Republic 60: Hate and Fear
 * Star Wars Republic 61: Dead Ends
 * Star Wars Republic 62: No Man's Land
 * Secrets of the Jedi
 * Star Wars: Obsession
 * Evasive Action: Reversal of Fortune
 * Labyrinth of Evil
 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith