Darth Jadus

Jadus was a male Human Dark Lord of the Sith. Presumably born on the Sith capital of Dromund Kaas, located in the Outer Rim, Jadus rose to prominence among the Sith during the years of the Great Galactic War and the subsequent Cold War, securing a position for himself on the Sith's Dark Council and developing into its most powerful member. The Sith Lord also gained control of the Imperial Intelligence spy network during the Cold War, working behind the scenes through various intermediaries. At some point he sired a daughter who became his only known apprentice. Jadus also commanded the Imperial dreadnaught Dominator.

In 3643 BBY a new terrorist organization emerged in the Empire, the Eagle's network, which Jadus instructed a new Intelligence recruit to investigate. The terrorists soon launched an attack on the generators powering Kaas City, failing only due to the efforts the agent. A simultaneous attack, however, bombed the Dominator, killing thousands of Imperial dignitaries aboard for a planned cruise across the Empire. Jadus was also on board and thus presumed dead, leading the Dark Council to elect his daughter Darth Zhorrid as his replacement. Zhorrid ordered Intelligence to use all its resources to find the terrorist leader Eagle and provide her with revenge.

Imperial Intelligence, thanks to the agent now codenamed Cipher Nine, began disassembling the Eagle's entire network. In the end they found and killed the Eagle himself, who was attempting to use experimental Imperial weapons known as Eradicators to launch a devastating attack on Imperial holdings. Before dying, however, the Eagle revealed that he had a mysterious "Patron" high up within the Empire.

Hunting down this Patron, Cipher Nine discovered it to be Darth Jadus; he had been the real leader of the Eagle terrorists all along. By faking his own death, holding the Dominator together through the Force while shvash gas incinerated it, he had weakened the Council as they fought each other to claim his resources. He intended to finish the job with the Eradicators, using them against the Empire until it ceased to be ruled by Sith leaders whose infighting he felt was holding it back from its promised rise to glory and strength.

However, in the course of defeating the Eagle, Cipher Nine had obtained half of the Eradicator command codes. Jadus attempted to recruit Nine to execute his plan of firing them, leading to a complicated decision for the agent. Jadus disappeared soon after, his fate unclear. One hypothesis is that Cipher Nine gave him the codes in order to distract him, then sabotaged his ship so the Dark Council and naval reinforcements could move in, and they took him prisoner. Another is that Cipher Nine either talked him down or used the codes to deactivate the Eradicators, with Jadus disappearing once they became useless. Yet another contends that Cipher Nine freely gave him the codes, becoming the "Hand of Jadus." Jadus then tasked the agent with killing his daughter, Zhorrid, so that he could resume his place on the Dark Council and reshape the Empire according to his image.

In any case, Jadus soon left the reaches of the known galaxy to better enact his further plans in secret, having also learned of the Emperor's plans to wipe all life from the universe.

Years later, he was listed as a potential suspect in orchestrating the War on Iokath by Lana Beniko, confirming Jadus was still considered alive and pulling hidden strings.

A prominent yet enigmatic figure among the Sith, Darth Jadus was known for being cold and brilliant. Showing more self-restraint than his fellow Dark Lords, he rarely succumbed to rage or signs of passion; he kept the emotions that fueled the dark side of the Force to himself, even hiding his features in a mask that encased his entire face. He showed very little interest in the squabbles and power struggles so common among his fellow Councilors, and in fact saw them as obstacles to the Empire obtaining its full glory.

Choosing instead to focus his influence on the Imperial Intelligence network, Jadus ensured it remained the galaxy's largest espionage organization. He was staunchly opposed to the anti-alien policies of the Empire and freely allowed aliens into Imperial Intelligence, possibly including the agent who would become Cipher Nine.

His enigmatic nature, coupled with his tendency to uplift ordinary citizens and non-Force sensitives rather than other Sith as his favored agents, fostered a sense of unease and distrust among his peers and an almost religious fervor among his servants.

As a Dark Council member, Darth Jadus was immensely powerful with the dark side of the Force, capable of teleportation, Force choke, Force lightning, Force corruption, and healing. Darth Jadus was also talented with his single-bladed Sith lightsaber.

Imperial Intelligence employees asserted that Darth Jadus' powers were second only to those of the Emperor. This was acknowledged by the Emperor himself, who, in a conversation with Cipher Nine, declared Jadus to be the best Sith his Empire had ever produced.

Darth Jadus' power was enough to earn the respect and admiration of Dread Master Raptus, who revealed to Cipher Nine that Jadus viewed everything in the same way the Dread Masters did.

Those unfortunate enough to find themselves in his presence experienced a physical sensation of pain and suffering due to the power of the dark side radiating from him.

Darth Jadus was first identified in an in-universe Holonet entry on the website for BioWare's video game Star Wars: The Old Republic. Included in this entry are Aurebesh phrases such as "Herald of a New Era," "Daughter is only known apprentice," and "Who is the hand of Jadus."

There are three alternate options to Jadus' fate: in the light-side option, Cipher Nine can use their codes to deactivate the Eradicators while attempting to fend off Jadus, who leaves once they are shut down, or reason with him before convincing him to go; in the dark side, Nine can choose to enter the codes as a distraction while they sabotage his ship and Watcher Two alerts the Dark Council, who surround his vulnerable vessel, force him to stand down and take him prisoner; in another dark-side option, Cipher Nine can join Jadus, earning the title "Hand of Jadus" and letting him reform Intelligence to his own use.

If Nine chooses to serve Jadus, during the class mission on Hoth, the agent runs into one of Jadus' servants, who assigns the agent to survey a detachment of Imperial Guardsmen on the planet. Once the mission is complete, the servant cryptically claims that Jadus now has a better grasp of the Sith Emperor's plans.

Following Chapter 2 of the Imperial Agent story, Jadus tells Cipher Nine that he's removing himself from the war to concentrate on other plans, leaving Nine to carry out his work. He also sanctions the Minister of Intelligence's request for Nine to hunt down and destroy the Star Cabal, being one of the few Sith to believe Nine about them.

• The Art and Making of Star Wars: The Old Republic
• Star Wars: The Old Republic Explorer's Guide
• Star Wars: The Old Republic Encyclopedia
• "Alexander Freed: From A to Z" — Star Wars Insider 226