Darth Nihl

Darth Nihl, a male Nagai who originated from the planet Nagi in the Unknown Regions, was a warlord on his homeworld, where he used his latent Force abilities to lead bands of marauders in raids all across the world. He was found by Darth Krayt, who was rebuilding the Sith Order and was offered a place within the One Sith. Nihl agreed and went through a training to become a Sith Lord. After Nihl had experienced the Embrace of Pain for the first time, his anger and pain drove him into slaying an entire village. He was known to be Krayt's top enforcer in Krayt's Sith Order, and served the Dark Lord as his Fist, or military commander. In 130 ABY, Nihl was promoted to the position of Hand by Darth Krayt after his predecessor died during the war, in which the Sith allied themselves with the Fel Empire in order to bring down the current galactic government, the Galactic Alliance.

Two standard days after the Empire captured Coruscant, the capital of the Galactic Alliance, Nihl led the Sith in an attack on the Jedi Temple at Ossus—with orders from Krayt to leave no Jedi alive. In the midst of carrying out his Lord's mandate, however, Nihl and his legion of Sith and stormtroopers were confronted and attacked by Kol Skywalker, a Jedi Master of the New Jedi Order, in an attempt to provide a group of Padawans a means to escape Ossus. While Skywalker and his former Padawan, Zabrak Wolf Sazen, had some initial success against the Sith, it was in vain. Nihl engaged Sazen in combat and used his long-handle lightsaber to defeat the Jedi Master. Sazen's weapon arm was severed, and afterward, he was impaled by the Sith Lord, mortally wounding the Zabrak. After Sazen's defeat, Skywalker directly fought Nihl alone, injuring him in hopes of a last stand.

Skywalker's son, Cade, soon arrived to help his father in combat, who had become momentarily distracted from his duel with Nihl. The elder Skywalker commanded Cade to take the wounded Sazen to the Jedi's escape shuttle, thus preventing Nihl from slaying the wounded Master. Skywalker continued his stand against Nihl and his Sith, but to no avail; Nihl unleashed his Force lightning to kill the Jedi Master. With the majority of the Jedi on Ossus dead, Nihl left the planet, victorious over the New Jedi Order. He traveled to Coruscant, where he witnessed Krayt's ascension as Emperor of a newly created Sith Empire by killing a decoy of Emperor Roan Fel in order to take control over the Fel Empire. In the wake of the decoy's death, the Imperial Moffs swore fealty to Krayt.

Seven years later, Nihl was no longer Krayt's only Hand. Darth Talon, a Twi'lek Sith, was named Krayt's second Hand, and she was sent to Socorro for her first mission: to capture and use Princess Marasiah Fel to lure her father, the former Emperor Roan Fel, into the open so that Talon could eliminate him and thus end any resistance to Krayt's full control over the galaxy. However, Talon was prevented from capturing Marasiah by the intervention of Cade Skywalker, who had turned to a career of bounty hunting after Nihl had killed his father. Skywalker and his companions, the Zeltron Engineer Deliah Blue and Human co-pilot Jariah Syn, transported Marasiah and her aide, Astraal Vao, to Vendaxa in order to meet with Vao's brother, Jedi Knight Shado, and the Jedi Nihl had presumed deceased, Wolf Sazen. Talon attacked them there, albeit unsuccessfully, and called for the Nagai's help to eliminate the Jedi and capture the princess. Nihl was commanded by Talon to silently send troops to her position, wait for the former Emperor to appear, and then ambush the Jedi and Imperials so as to kill them all.

Fel arrived with an escort of two Imperial fighters, which were quickly shot down by the Sith troops positioned by Nihl and his fellow Hand. However, Fel and his accompanying Imperial Knights escaped the destroyed ships only to be confronted by Talon. At that moment, Fel revealed himself to be Imperial Knight Antares Draco. In her confusion at the deception, Talon was forced to flee and reconvene with Nihl and his troops. He planned to attack the Jedi and Imperials once more, hoping to capture Marasiah and kill the others. As they attacked, Nihl again dueled with Sazen, and mocked the Jedi Master with the prospect of killing him a second time. Skywalker, seeing the Nagai Sith dueling Sazen once more, and Marasiah mortally wounded by a Zabrak Sith, joined Sazen in combat, hoping to avenge his father. Sazen attempted to halt Skywalker's attack on Nihl, who believed that Sazen was right to stop Skywalker, and stated that wielding a lightsaber did not make him a Jedi. The Sith Lord further mocked him and explained that vengeance was not a Jedi trait, though Skywalker did not care, and continued his duel with his father's killer.

As Nihl's duel with Skywalker continued, Sazen was sent to bring the princess onto Cade's ship, the Mynock. Nihl, convinced that the bounty hunter could not defeat him, offered him a quick death similar to his father's, but Skywalker simply pressed on, discontent with any result besides the Nagai's death. Nihl was subsequently shot by Syn, allowing Skywalker enough time to gather himself, but his companion was soon Force pushed away by Nihl. This left him open to defeat by Skywalker, who instead escaped with his companions, the Imperials, and Jedi Vao, on the Mynock. Nihl then explained to Talon that he would soon be the only Hand once again, as he believed Talon would be killed by Krayt for the mission's failure.

To Nihl's disappointment, Talon was not killed for her actions on Vendaxa. Instead, a search was warranted for Skywalker, in whom Krayt had an interest because of his potential to heal through the Force. This search, once begun, was easier than expected; Skywalker came to the Sith Temple on Coruscant to save Hosk Trey'lis, a Bothan Jedi Knight whom Skywalker had handed to the Sith for a bounty before experiencing a change of heart. He was attacked by Talon, whom he defeated using the dark side of the Force. Before he could finish her off, Nihl Force choked him with the intent of killing the last Skywalker. However, Talon informed Nihl that Skywalker was wanted alive, and that she was sent to capture him. Unable to disobey Krayt's orders, Nihl obliged, and informed Krayt of Skywalker's capture.

With Skywalker captured, Krayt hoped to turn the former Jedi to the dark side. By threatening to kill Syn and Blue, the Sith Lord was able to persuade Skywalker to listen to his offer and reconsider being a Sith. Krayt brought Skywalker to his chambers, but when Nihl attempted to enter, Darth Wyyrlok, Krayt's chief servant, barred him from entering. Nihl attempted to argue, believing his status as a Hand was enough. Wyyrlok did not comply, and questioned Nihl's loyalty to Krayt, causing Nihl to step back. Darth Maladi, the head of Sith Intelligence and Assassination, explained to Nihl why he wasn't allowed entry; Nihl was not born a Sith. Krayt had wanted Nihl to become his Sith military leader, and only promoted Nihl to Hand because Talon had not been ready at the time of his predecessor's death. When Nihl questioned Maladi as to why she wasn't allowed to enter even though she was born Sith, she stated her complete loyalty to Krayt. However, both she and Nihl wondered at Krayt's fascination with Skywalker.

Krayt's attention to Skywalker paid off, and Skywalker agreed to become a Sith, trained by Talon. As Skywalker fell further and further down the dark side, Krayt became convinced that Skywalker would be able to heal him of the Yuuzhan Vong Yorik-Kul implants that were causing his body to fail. As Skywalker began to realize his power under the training of Krayt and Talon, the Sith Lord became obsessed with Skywalker and his potential ability to heal him. This obsession Nihl disagreed with, and he told Maladi of this. She began to wonder to herself if Skywalker was capable of healing Krayt, and what would happen should he die. Nihl firmly believed in the old ways of the Sith; because Krayt had named no heir, there would be a power struggle. Therefore, Nihl believed that should Krayt fail to be healed, then Skywalker would be named his heir.

However, Skywalker had different plans; he lied about his eagerness to be trained as a Sith, and attempted to escape the Temple of the Sith. This escape attempt was foiled by Talon, and Skywalker was brought to Krayt to kill Trey'lis, so that he could become a Sith in truth. Nihl watched as Krayt commanded him to kill Trey'lis or be killed himself, but Skywalker refused. Krayt attempted to stir Skywalker's hatred of people dying for him as motivation to kill Trey'lis, but the Bothan Jedi intervened, expressing his hope that he would not be used as a weapon of the Sith. For his interference, Krayt struck him down and a skirmish between Nihl, Talon, Krayt, and Skywalker occurred when the latter had a vision of his father. Using the Force, Skywalker pulled his father's lightsaber toward him, impaling Talon with it, and engaged Nihl in combat.

As Nihl defended himself against Skywalker, he was betrayed by Krayt; the Dark Lord encouraged Nihl's opponent to use his anger and kill the Nagai in vengeance. The duel continued, and eventually Nihl's arm was severed by Skywalker. Defeated and unconscious, he was then attacked by Skywalker using Force lightning, whose intention was to kill Nihl as revenge for his father's death. However, upon Krayt's beckoning, Skywalker engaged the leader of the Sith in combat instead of killing Nihl. Skywalker was subsequently rescued by his mother, Morrigan Corde, who had aligned herself with her son's companions in a plan to rescue the bounty hunter. The plan was a success and Skywalker escaped, resulting in the failure of both Nihl and his fellow Hand to keep Skywalker within the clutches of the Sith. Krayt was determined to make them both pay for their failure.

Immediately after Skywalker's escape, Nihl was tended to by Maladi and Wyyrlok, along with Talon and Krayt. Though the latter was not injured, Nihl and his fellow Hand were hurt extensively, and Maladi was put in charge of their healing. Since the Nagai's arm was cleanly cut, Maladi offered to have it reattached, but Krayt refused; Nihl's incompetence had failed the Sith, and Krayt felt that he was no longer worthy of his arm as a result. Instead, Nihl was to receive a Yuuzhan Vong bioform replacement for his severed limb. Krayt had originally wanted to kill Nihl for his failure, but Wyyrlok convinced him otherwise, explaining that while he was no longer able to continue his position as a Hand, Nihl still had use to the Dark Lord. Krayt then replaced Nihl with Darth Stryfe, his Fist, as his new Hand, and sent him and Talon to be healed. Nihl protested his replacement, saying he had earned his place as Krayt's Hand, but Krayt brushed the complaint off. Maladi took the two to her laboratory, and placed both Nihl and Talon in bacta tanks.

As the injuries he sustained were more severe than Talon's, Nihl continued to heal on Coruscant, while the Twi'lek recovered completely. The former Hand remained in bacta while Lords Krayt, Maladi, Stryfe, and Talon answered the summons of a mysterious female Jedi, who claimed to have Cade Skywalker imprisoned on the Deep Core world of Had Abbadon. Lured into a trap by Skywalker and his colleagues, which included several Imperial Knights, Nihl's fellow Sith were attacked and subsequently defeated. Though Darth Krayt survived the battle, he was murdered shortly afterward by Darth Wyyrlok, who feigned the Dark Lord's survival to all while acting in Krayt's stead as both leader of their Order and ruler of the Empire. Meanwhile, Nihl had recovered fully and bore a new arm, and later joined Wyyrlok with several of the more prominent Sith when they returned to Coruscant to secure the Imperial throne in the name of Darth Krayt.

Although Lord Wyyrlok had managed to deceive most Sith Lords, such as Darth Stryfe, and the Moffs into believing Emperor Krayt had survived the attempt on his life and had gone into long term stasis to heal his wounds, Darth Maladi, an expert in deception herself, had her doubts. Nihl met with Maladi on Wayland where she disclosed her concerns that the Chagrian Sith Lord would attempt to seize power and would probably do so by exterminating those he considered a threat; Lady Maladi believed both she and Nihl, as outsiders who were not born within the Sith, would both be removed. She went on to say that she considered him a far more suitable candidate to lead the Sith and convinced him to go to Korriban to confirm her beliefs about Krayt's death and then use what he discovered as he best saw fit. Nihl made his way to the Temple on Korriban where he was met and momentarily halted at the doors of the Stasis Room by Darth Talon. When she refused him entry, Nihl lied and told her that he had been summoned by Darth Krayt himself. They entered the room together, and Talon was shocked to discover that Lord Krayt's body was gone and only his empty armor remained, an eventuality that Maladi had prepared Nihl for. Lord Nihl contacted Darth Wyyrlok's office via a priority channel soon afterward. He immediately told Wyyrlok that Lord Krayt's body was missing.

Wyyrlok arrived on Korriban shortly after and he and Nihl inspected the stasis chamber where Krayt supposedly resided. Nihl listened as Wyyrlok claimed that someone in the Order must have murdered Krayt and taken his body. Wyyrlok further stated that he and Nihl had to keep the Dark Lord's death a secret while Wyyrlok ruled the Sith until a replacement could be chosen; Nihl himself was appointed to stand at Wyyrlok's side as the Chagrian's advisor. Despite already being aware of Krayt's death as well as the true culprit, Nihl quickly suggested that Darth Talon, his long-time rival, may have been responsible since she had not only entered the tomb with Nihl but had mysteriously disappeared after the discovery. Pleased that he now had a scapegoat, the Chagrian agreed and told Nihl to find and question Talon while he returned to Coruscant to tend to matters concerning the Empire. Nihl began his search through the Valley of the Dark Lords, where he tamed a Tuk'ata to aid him in the hunt.

Nihl found Darth Talon in the tombs on Korriban and, as the two engaged in a lightsaber duel, implicated her in the murder of Darth Krayt. To Nihl's surprise, Lord Krayt suddenly appeared, alive, well, and more powerful than he had ever been. Nihl was chided for his ambition and desire for power at Krayt's expense, but the Dark Lord spared his life nonetheless. Alongside Darth Talon, Nihl followed Darth Krayt to a secret chamber where for years, he had been assembling an arsenal of Force-sensitive Sith troopers along with new Sith fighters for his new army, an army with which he intended to crush the opposition and forcefully impose peace and order throughout the galaxy.

In 138 ABY, Nihl accompanied Darth Krayt as the Dark Lord prepared to reclaim his throne from the usurper Darth Wyyrlok. They proceeded to Coruscant on board one of Krayt's newly-revealed Dragon ships and stormed the Sith temple upon their arrival. Darth Nihl, Talon, and two of Krayt's Sith troopers cut through swaths of the Sith loyal to Darth Wyyrlok as they made their way to the throne room, and the Chagrian met them for battle at its entrance. Those present did not interfere in the subsequent duel between he and Darth Krayt, and when Krayt emerged victorious, Nihl resumed his place by the Dark Lord's side. Soon afterward, Lord Krayt learned the location of the hidden Jedi Temple on Taivas, and readied his forces for war against his enemies. Darth Nihl was ordered to work alongside the Moffs as the Imperial fleet prepared to assault Taivas, and given explicit instructions to maintain their ignorance to the existence of Krayt's Sith troopers secretly under his command. In the midst of the Sith ambuscade, the Dark Lord sprung his trap and ordered Nihl to unleash the troopers, a bewildering force that recklessly killed all in their path—irrespective of their allegiance—as they stormed the Hidden Temple. Following their victory on Taivas, Nihl and his Sith troopers rushed to meet the allied forces in battle for Coruscant.

The Sith had underestimated the strength and resolve of the enemy, however, and were nonetheless defeated on all fronts. In the heart of the Sith Temple, Darth Krayt was slain in combat by the newly-declared Jedi, Cade Skywalker, and death shudders were experienced through the Force all across the galaxy by those attuned to the nuances of the dark side. Darth Nihl then immediately ordered the One Sith into retreat. The Sith troopers, whose lives had been intertwined with that of Darth Krayt, were driven insane by his death, and ordered exterminated by the Nagai Sith Lord. The Sith fleet was scuttled, Korriban was evacuated by whatever survivors existed, and Sith on battlefronts all across the galaxy withdrew to predetermined locations as they consolidated their remaining power. Nihl himself was joined by the Inquisitor Darth Havok, to whom he outlined the new path by which the exiled Sith would operate: one of patience, cunning, and secrecy; infiltration of galactic governments in an effort to implode the foundation of the galaxy, and create it anew.

Darth Nihl originally was a warlord on his home planet of Nagi, and later joined Darth Krayt in his new Sith Order. As a member of the One Sith, Nihl loyally followed Krayt's every command, though sometimes, he doubted the decisions the Sith Lord made; for example, Nihl did not agree with Krayt's obsession with Skywalker, or his insistence to make the former Jedi a Sith. Nihl had studied the old ways of the Sith, which was that the strongest Sith should take control of the Order, rather than an heir. Nihl believed Skywalker was to become this heir of Krayt, and wondered why Skywalker was being given privileges that Nihl had not been given, such as entry to Krayt's chambers, when Nihl had proven his loyalty to Krayt already.

Before Krayt's obsession with Skywalker, Nihl had taken a personal interest with him. Nihl had killed his father at Ossus, and Skywalker's lust for revenge against Nihl caused him to take notice of the former bounty hunter. Nihl was ambitious as well; he wanted to be the only Hand, and hoped that Krayt would kill Darth Talon, his companion as a Hand, for her failures. The Nagai was forced to take commands from Talon, such as when she commanded the confrontation with Fel on Vendaxa, and when she stopped Nihl from killing Skywalker, an action Nihl disagreed with. Darth Maladi later used Nihl's ambition to convince him over to her side against Darth Wyyrlok, but she underestimated him as he joined Wyyrlok when he promoted him so as to keep his loyalty. Nihl used his new position to move against his longtime rival, Darth Talon, which was what Maladi was afraid Wyyrlok would do with her and Nihl since they were not born Sith. Nihl also believed his own abilities as a Sith made him superior to others. He mocked Sazen's talent as a Jedi because the Sith had chopped off his arm using his lightsaber, and mocked the amount of Skywalker's tutelage as a Jedi, believing that just because Skywalker was able to use a lightsaber, it did not make him a Jedi.

Darth Nihl, as a Sith, knew basic Force techniques such as telekinesis. He utilized Force push and pull against Jariah Syn in a confrontation on Vendaxa. Nihl also knew the Sith skill of Force lightning, which he used to kill Kol Skywalker on Ossus. These abilities, combined with Nihl's usage of a long-handle lightsaber, proved him to be a skilled duelist; he was able to kill a member of the Skywalker lineage, Jedi Master Kol Skywalker, and was able to defeat Wolf Sazen, a Jedi Master, in combat. Yet another ability Nihl utilized was Force choke, which he used to subdue and capture Cade Skywalker when he infiltrated the Temple of the Sith. However, Nihl could not use his prowess in dueling to defeat Skywalker in a second duel when he attempted to escape the Sith temple, in which Nihl was defeated and lost his arm. Nihl also used his prowess with a lightsaber in his duel against Darth Talon right before the appearance of the resurrected Darth Krayt. As he pursued Darth Talon in the Valley of the Dark Lords, Darth Nihl demonstrated the ability to tame a Tuk'ata.

Darth Nihl first appeared in the Legacy series of Star Wars comic books, in which he was a major character and antagonist in the storyline. While he was first mentioned briefly in the pre-release issue of Legacy, 0, Nihl appeared frequently in the Broken story arc, in which he killed Cade Skywalker's father Kol, fueling Cade's revenge for his father's death, and causing Cade to fall to the dark side. Nihl then briefly appeared in Allies, in which he played a minor role, and did not appear again until the next major story arc, Claws of the Dragon, in which Nihl captured Skywalker, but was defeated when the latter escaped the Sith. Since then, Nihl appeared in Legacy (2006) 23, and Legacy (2006) 27 that detailed Nihl's replacement as Hand by Darth Stryfe for his failure, and later in the Monster story arc alongside Darth Maladi. Nihl was also listed in Lucasfilm official Leland Chee's blog, where it was revealed that his name is based on the words "nill, and nihilist." Since Nihl was considered a major character for the first nineteen issues of Legacy, he garnered mention in several sourcebooks, ads, and action figures, including The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia, Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force, a miniature set for Legacy of the Force, and an ad for the miniature set.

• Star Wars Miniatures: Legacy of the Force advertisement

• Star Wars: Legacy (2006) 0
• "Legacies of Future Orders" — Star Wars Insider 88
• "The Art of War" — Star Wars Insider 89
• Star Wars: Panel to Panel Volume 2: Expanding the Universe
• Star Wars: The Ultimate Visual Guide: Special Edition
• Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force
• Star Wars: Legacy (2006) 0½
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
• Legacy Era Campaign Guide
• "Blaster" — Star Wars Insider 118
• The Essential Guide to Warfare
• Star Wars: The Ultimate Visual Guide: Updated and Expanded
• Star Wars: The Ultimate Action Figure Collection
• "Authors of the Expanded Universe: The Legend of Dark Horse" — Star Wars Insider 154