Abediah Viess

Around 382 BBY, Abediah Viess commanded a formidable group of mercenaries. Field Marshal Tozen of the Bethune military contacted her, seeking reinforcements for Bethune's siege against Firevale, a rival city-state on the planet Gansevor. This siege was a plot hatched by Prince Colden and Princess [Sicatra](/article/sicatra], members of the Firevale and Bethune royal families, respectively, who had recently wed. Their scheme involved using their marriage to instigate an attack by the Bethunian forces on Firevale, with the goal of compelling Colden's mother, Queen Keraan, to relinquish her throne to Colden. Viess initially concealed her fleet behind one of Gansevor's satellites. However, when the Jedi Knights Porter Engle and Barash Silvain intervened, attempting to mediate the conflict, Tozen requested Viess's assistance to hasten the siege. Viess agreed, but was swiftly confronted by Engle, who had been dispatched to halt the attacks while Silvain investigated the underlying issues within Firevale. Viess expressed her disdain for Engle's kind, but when Tozen consented to a temporary cessation of hostilities while Silvain located the allegedly 'abducted' Princess Sicatra, she reluctantly ordered her troops to stand down alongside the Bethunian forces.

Later, during a conversation in the Bethunian command tent, Viess and Tozen concurred that eliminating the Jedi was crucial for the success of their plan to install Colden as ruler. Tozen promised Viess and her soldiers twelve hours to pillage Firevale in exchange for assassinating Engle and Silvain, an offer the general eagerly accepted. Viess immediately launched an attack on Engle, who had remained behind Bethunian lines, using a missile launcher, but the skilled duelist evaded the projectile. She then ordered all artillery to commence firing on Firevale's fortifications, resuming the assault. Amidst the bombardment, Viess confronted Engle, wielding her beskar spear, and proclaimed herself a Jedi killer. The two engaged in combat, but Engle proved to be the superior swordsman, disarming her and leaving a scar across her face. In response, Viess detonated a grenade near both the Jedi and the surrounding Bethunian soldiers, forcing Engle to deflect the explosion while she retreated.

Enraged, Viess returned to the command tent and instructed Tozen to target the buildings within Firevale instead of just the walls. Tozen argued that such an action would devastate the city and compromise its infrastructure, which he needed intact. However, Viess asserted that her soldiers could salvage valuable items from the ruins. Subsequently, she had her men shoot and fatally wound Tozen, who managed to relay a warning message to Sicatra in Firevale before succumbing to his injuries. As Viess intensified the bombardment, news of Tozen's demise prompted Sicatra to recognize the folly of her and Colden's scheme. After confessing everything to Silvain and Queen Keraan, she stood atop Firevale's walls and addressed the Bethunian soldiers below. Sicatra's words swayed the Bethunians to turn against Viess and her mercenaries, who suddenly found themselves caught between their former allies' blasters and Porter Engle's lightsaber. Viess determined that the operation was no longer profitable and ordered a general retreat, but not before firing one last shot at Engle from her transport. An exhausted Engle was unaware of the incoming attack, but was ultimately saved by Silvain, who had returned to his side.

After a century of independent mercenary work, Viess readily joined the Nihil when their Occlusion Zone engulfed ten sectors of the Outer Rim Territories, including her home planet. She assumed leadership of the Eye of the Nihil Marchion Ro's newly formed Ministry of Protection, leveraging her expertise in hunting Jedi. Her martial prowess and ruthlessness made her a dangerous Nihil adversary to those who opposed her. Despite her claims of being a Jedi killer, her longtime foe Engle continued to evade her until their eventual reunion around 229 BBY.

General Viess' complete set of dark armor incorporated lightsaber-resistant beskar filigree, notably on her vambraces. She kept multiple Jedi lightsabers within her robes and employed a variety of weapons. She possessed a beskar spear, a traditional beskar sword, a pair of elongated beskar daggers, and a meticulously decorated blaster.

Abediah Viess serves as a recurring antagonist in the Star Wars: The High Republic project, debuting in Charles Soule's comic book series The Blade, specifically in issue two, released on January 25, 2023. Her given name, Abediah, was first mentioned in the later comic The High Republic: Shadows of Starlight 4. Soule has expressed great satisfaction with her character development throughout High Republic narratives.