Gentis

During the Clone Wars, Gentis, a male Human, held the rank of General within the Grand Army of the Republic. Notably, he led a mere seventy clone troopers to victory against the formidable Burning Ember armored division of the Confederacy. On another occasion, when the Confederacy triggered massive volcanoes on the planet Mirak Major, Gentis successfully orchestrated the evacuation of six billion individuals. As the war concluded, and the Jedi Order was culled for their supposed "plot to seize the Republic," Gentis, feeling deeply betrayed by their alleged treachery, personally executed three Jedi Knights.

All of Gentis's sons, at one point, enlisted in the Empire. However, all but one, Caul Gentis, perished in the early days of the New Order.

In late 19 BBY, just weeks after the Galactic Empire's formation, Gentis attended a military gathering on Imperial Center. Seeking respite from the monotonous speeches of the various Moffs, he stumbled upon the Imperial Crematorium. There, he witnessed the incineration of countless dead Imperials every minute. Realizing that Emperor Palpatine's hunger for war would persist even after the conflict's end, leading to the deaths of many more young men like his sons, Gentis resolved to find a way to halt the senseless bloodshed. He leveraged his status as a war hero and respected headmaster to amass influence and recruit followers.

Months later, cadets from the Raithal Academy graduating class arrived on Coruscant. They represented six different academies across the galaxy, converging on the capital to form the first graduating class of Imperial officers. Their training, mirroring that of the Empire's clones and other military personnel, had been condensed from the standard years to mere months. Gentis presided over the ceremonies, delivering an impassioned speech emphasizing loyalty to the Empire. Laurita Tohm, a young man who greatly admired Gentis, achieved valedictorian status at the Raithal Academy and was subsequently granted the rank of lieutenant by Gentis himself. Gentis inquired about the impact of Tohm's disfigurement, sustained in a Separatist attack, on his success and encouraged him to continue his excellent work.

Tohm was soon selected to join Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin's fleet, but Gentis had alternative plans for the promising officer. He instructed his son, Caul, and fellow Ensign [Shens] to ensure Tohm remained "out of harm's way." Tohm's friends confined him within a prototype TIE fighter, initially leading him to believe it was a prank. However, this was the initial step in Gentis's coup, as he believed the prominent officer would draw undue attention due to his deformities.

Gentis's scheme commenced on graduation night, as explosions reverberated for kilometers, eliminating seventy-two Imperial targets within minutes. The officer's club, various Stormtrooper garrisons, Comm Towers, and a supply depot were all decimated. Imperial Plaza became the epicenter of the ensuing battle, as "terrorist" forces, comprised of hundreds of newly graduated cadets, flooded the city streets, engaging the Empire's clone forces. The stormtroopers faced defeat until Darth Vader intervened, rallying the troops and repelling the enemy forces. Amidst the chaos, Tohm escaped the prototype starfighter by activating its ejector seat, landing in the heart of the battle. Tohm seized a blaster and joined Lord Vader in resisting the assault. Shens, one of Gentis's recruited students, was killed by Tohm in the conflict.

Gentis met with Emperor Palpatine, feigning an intention to present his best students as "future Moffs." As the explosions erupted, Gentis unleashed a potent necrotic virus known as Aorth-6, aiming to personally assassinate the Emperor. Dozens of Imperials, including Royal Guardsmen, succumbed to the aerosolized virus, which liquefied them from within. Although the Emperor was infected, Gentis had not anticipated the presence of Moff Trachta. Gentis and his men fled before Vader and Tohm, who arrived to rescue Palpatine, could discover them.

While Gentis remained unaware of the specifics of their escape, he quickly learned that despite the coup's initial success, both Vader and Palpatine had vanished. Palpatine employed the dark side of the Force to suppress the virus's effects, while Vader, Tohm, and Trachta escorted him to a secret hangar beneath the Imperial Palace, where they boarded a stealth transport. Gentis then initiated a backup plan, instructing his engineers to command every droid within five kilometers to eliminate any Imperial officer they encountered. Aboard the Emperor's shuttle, Trachta was attacked by a 2-1B surgical droid, while Vader and Tohm were attacked by lightsaber-wielding Jedi training droids in the Jedi Temple, though both attacks failed. Utilizing information extracted from a holorecording, Vader and Tohm promptly evacuated Palpatine to a hidden Jedi prison in the Diab system known as The Prism.

Soon after, Gentis convened a gathering of influential Moffs and Naval officers. He maintained the facade that the capital had suffered a terrorist attack and that, as the highest-ranking officer present, he had assumed military command. He also imposed a naval blockade around the planet and blacked out all communications, again under the guise of suppressing the terrorist uprising. When questioned by Grand Moff Tarkin, Gentis claimed to have the Emperor in protective custody, although Palpatine's injuries might prove fatal. He then insinuated that Vader and Trachta might have been involved in the attacks, as both had disappeared without contacting anyone. Tarkin then informed Gentis that, as the sole Grand Moff, he would assume acting control of the Empire. Gentis, dismayed, looked to Caul as he told Tarkin they would be waiting for him.

Later, Gentis met with another Imperial general, attempting to persuade him to join their coup while Caul held a blaster rifle to the man's back. Gentis showed the general the Imperial Crematorium, explaining that it was there that he had resolved to kill the Emperor and end the losses Palpatine was inflicting on their young ranks. After the general agreed to join Gentis, the headmaster showed the general and Caul a hologram of the Death Star plans, proving to the general that it was more than just a rumor. Though he already had spies aboard the unfinished project, Gentis wanted Tarkin within his grasp so that he could gain further knowledge of the superweapon. He then planned on having Tarkin executed for his crimes, as 627 of Gentis's cadets alone had died while working for Tarkin. Gentis would then announce to the galaxy that Palpatine was dead, regardless of whether it was true. Gentis then told the general that he and his peers would declare Gentis the new emperor, so that there would be no more needless deaths.

Gentis gathered his cadets to welcome Tarkin's shuttle, intending to finally secure his control over the Empire. As the shuttle landed in a docking bay, Gentis acknowledged to Caul that it was all for him and his fallen brothers. Tarkin disembarked, accompanied by his stormtroopers, but was immediately surrounded by the cadets. Gentis confronted Tarkin, demanding that he be taken alive for interrogation, and explained his reasons for the coup. Tarkin remained unapologetic, indifferent to the hundreds of innocent cadets who had perished under his command. When Gentis revealed that his own sons had been killed by the Emperor's policies, Vader informed him that he would see them again soon.

Gentis looked up in horror as Vader emerged from the shuttle alongside Tohm, Trachta, Shonn Volta, and dozens of dangerous ex-prisoners. After assembling a small fighting force from the Prism, Vader and Tohm had used Volta's hyperspace expertise to find Tarkin while he changed hyperspace lanes at the nexus of several trade routes and set a trap for Gentis. Although Gentis's forces outnumbered the attackers eight to one, the diverse skills of Vader's group proved decisive. Vader unleashed a devastating Force wave, while the prisoners slaughtered the cadets. Caul ordered Koh, a demolitions expert, to attack with grenades, but Volta, a skilled sniper, shot Koh before he could throw the armed explosives, causing them to detonate among the cadets.

Caul retreated among the scattered and wounded cadets until he heard Tohm call out to him. Believing Tohm was still on their side, he was relieved to see him, but Tohm cruelly shot him in the stomach, killing him. Gentis witnessed his son's fall and rushed to his side, devastated by the loss of his last child. He cradled Caul's body, unable to accept his death. He begged him not to die, promising to keep him safe. Suddenly, he was struck by Force lightning, attacked by the Emperor himself. As he screamed and clutched his son, his body was consumed by Palpatine's dark side power, leaving him a charred husk.

In the aftermath, all those involved in the coup were rounded up and executed, while Trachta was promoted to Grand Moff and Tohm was promoted to Admiral. Tohm's victory and reward would be short-lived, however, as Vader threw him from a balcony high above the cityscape, fearing that Tohm might one day rival his own power.