I now have more Star Wars figures then I did when I was a kid much to my better half’s delight! I first started out collecting figures when I dug up two of my old figures while I was doing some gardening in my dad’s garden and now I have around 55 figures. It was not an easy task to name my favorite five characters there are so many to choose from, both from the star Wars cannon and the extended universe. So here it goes here’s my fifth favourite Star Wars character…..
At number five is…..
Darth Bane…. The Sith lord responsible for the Rule of Two, A master and an Apprentice. Darth Bane and Darth Sidious are very alike specially in there planning and the using of different groups to undertake their plans to destroy the Jedi and to rule the galaxy. Also in their power level as both Sith lords were said to be the Sith’ari. The reason I choose Darth Bane over Darth Sidious is when I read the Darth Bane trilogy in some ways he came across as a good guy and that the Sith were not completely evil. I think the reason why I thought of Bane as a good guy is because of his upbringing. He grow up with out the love of his parents and with the scorn and hatred he had to endure all his life from his father I think made Bane a type of good Sith. An example of this is when he took on Zannah on as his apprentice. She was only a little girl when he first met her but he was never unkind or treated her badly or as she got older never took advantage of her. In some ways he was the good father. I know some of the trials he first set Zannah looked evil but it was all to do with conditioning her to the ways of the Sith. I don’t think she went through as much in the degree of harshness in her training as Palpatine did in his training with Darth Palgueis. I have wrote a shortened biography of Banes life below and there plenty of links for you to follow to read further into his life. Please let me know what you think and if you think Darth Bane is one of your favourite Star Wars characters and
Born 1026 BBY on the outer rim planet of Apartos. His birth name was Dessel. His father was a miner for the Outer Rim Oreworks Company and his mother dies giving birth to him. When he was 18 he had to jump planet after killing an ensign of the republic army over a game of sabacc. He was enlisted in the Sith army where he became a sergeant and was noticed by the Sith lords over his command of the force. Dessel was offered to train in the ways of the Sith at the academy on Korriban. He changed his name to Bane. While at the academy Bane studied the old texts about the history of the Sith and became interested on the old Sith title of Darth. Bane lost his trust in the Brother Hood of Darkness and after discovering Darth Revans holocron he came up with a plan that would save the Sith and eventually destroy the Jedi. He was able to trick the brotherhood into using a Sith ritual called the thought bomb which not only destroyed the brotherhood but also 100 Jedi. Bane came up with the rule of two and gave him self the title of Darth. He found a young force sensitive girl called Zannah and took her as his apprentice. After destroying the brotherhood Darth Bane travelled to the moon Dxun in search of The Dark Lord Freedon Nad’s tomb.. There he found Nad’s holocron but he also picked up the parasite Orbalisks which would later grow to become an living armour and source of power. After setting up camp on Ambria he put in motion his plan to defeat the Jedi and started Darth Zannah’s training. Ten years later while undertaking a mission to kidnap former supreme chancellor Tarus Valorum (A distant relative of Finis Valorum from The Phantom menace) Zannah meets with a force sensitive nobleman called Hetton who has a huge library of Sith artifacts and books. She tricks Hetton into returning to Ambria and with his 8 Umbaren shadow assassins attack Bane. Bane defeats them and nearly kills Zannahn thinking that she had tried to betray him. At the last minute Zannah reveals her plan and information about Hettons library. Using information from Hettons library Bane discovers the were abouts of the deep core planet of Tython and the temple of the Dark Lord Belia Darzu whos holocron has information on creating holocrons. Something Bane is trying to learn but with out any success. Bane is also starting to worry that the orbalisks are slowly killing him and making him lose his mind so he sends Zannah to the Jedi temple on Coruscant to discover any cure for them. Zannah discovers a cure but she also bumps in to her cousin who she thought dead on Ruusan. The Jedi learn of Zannah and Bane and follow Zannah to the planet Tython where Bane has discovered the holocron he set out to find. Darth Bane and Zannah battle the Jedi and defeat them but Bane is gravely injured when the force lightning he projected onto a Jedi is reflected back on to him killing some of the orbalisks which in return start to poison Bane. Bane and Zannah travel back to Ambria to seek out Caleb the healer. Caleb only agrees to save Bane if Bane hands him self in to the Jedi. Zannah agress and Bane has the orbalisks removed. Before the Jedi arrive to arrest Bane Zannah kills Caleb and puts a spell on her cousin driving him mad and making the Jedi think he is the Sith lord who they kill there and then. The Jedi leave thinking that the Sith are no more little knowing that Zannah and the weak Darth Bane are hiding.
Ten years later we find Darth Bane and Darth Zannah living on the planet Ciutric IV pretending to be a rich merchant family. Bane has come worried that Zannah no longer wants to take on the mantle of Dark Lord of the Sith and what with his rapidly ageing caused by the incidents ten years ago Bane draws up an contingency plan. Bane seeks out the lost fortress of Darth Aneddu who had lived for centuries. Bane discovers the fortress and the holocron and learns the art of essence transfer. Unknown to Bane the daughter of Caleb the healer Serra, now a princess through marriage has learned of her fathers death at the hands of Bane and Zannah and has sent a bounty hunter and mercenaries to capture him. Bane is attacked in his mansion and is able to defeat some of the soldiers until the bounty hunter Cognus stabs bane with a blade coated in senflax which sedates Bane. Unknown to Serra her body guard Lucia served with Dessel during the Sith Wars and she owes her survival to Bane so helps Bane escape. Meanwhile Zannah has learned about Banes contingency plan and has tracked Bane down to finally kill him and take over as Dark Lord of the Sith. While Bane is escaping he comes across Cognus who asks Bane to take her on as his apprentice and teach her the ways of the Sith. But for Bane to do that and keep to the rule of two he first must kill Zannah. He arranges to meet Zannah on Ambria and the two battle it out. Just before Zannah can finish Bane off his uses essence transfer. His body crumbles to dust and there is a battle of wills between Zannah and Bane but Zannahs will is to strong and Bane is finished although a little bit of Bane stays with Zannah. Zannah becomes the Dark Lord of the Sith and takes on Cognus, now Darth Cognus as her apprentice.
If you want to learn more about Darth Bane and the beginnings of the rule of two I suggest you read the following books
Darth Bane: Path of destruction
The new essential guide to characters
Library Jedi 