My guess on Vitiate/Valkorion's reason to choose Zakuul(Spoiler)

[adormitul]

Have any of you noticed how many knights of Zaakul are for a single planet? I mean the jedi order and the sith have thousands upon thousands in their ranks but they recruit from thousands of planets. They seem to have similar numbers a little fewer but only from one planet.

[thebumpkin]

Zakuul is massive though, towers reaching up into space. And I suspect very densely populated. I mean, what have Zakuulans to do except enjoy themselves... They don't work, they don't toil, their machines take care of EVERYTHING. They probably breed like rats because they literally have nothing else to do.

 

I would assume that Zakuuls moons are probably colonised too just as an aside.

Edited April 14, 2016 by thebumpkin

[Sanguinal]

Genius! The only issue is the severe personality differences. Could it be his desire to reduce most of the galaxy (Outside of it would be Zakuul...so I assume he knows the destructive limits of this ritual...he was the one that invented it) to ash was out of contempt for his failed experiment? He didn't hate all life, his love of himself and his intelligence, thinking he should basically be God, that he can correct the galaxy. Like you said, his attempt at the Garden of Eden with the Sith was a failure. So he wanted to start over and do it correctly. He is still a villain, so we must assume his motives are not out of sincere belief in bettering the lives of others, but rather on his love of self to do what others cannot.

 

It almost sounds like he never really bought into the Sith creed. I assume the only reason he didn't destroy the Sith Empire was because he felt the Republic and Jedi Order were even worse. So at least have them both locked in combat, leaving his precious experiment alone (eventually Wild space will be fully mapped, it is a matter of when) all the while letting him prepare to strike and cripple both?

 

He's never shown any love for the Sith, or interest in the Sith code. All he's even been shown to have an interest in is remaking the galaxy in his own image. It was assumed that meant destroying it to become a force god, however as you say maybe it was just to destroy a failed experiment and give his new toy space to grow.

 

Or maybe the whole thing was just a distraction to keep the Republic and the Empire enmeshed in the very war that left them vulnerable to Zakuul. After all he is thousands of years old at least and clearly thinks in terms of civilisations and centuries rather than any scale other people would think at. They could, if they wanted, assign almost anything to Valkorian's plan, because that's the sheer scale of the character they've created.

 

I would imagine that moving forward it's going to be very difficult to avoid "Valkorian did it!!" as the basis for most of the story they've built.

[LordDelectus]

After all he is thousands of years old at least and clearly thinks in terms of civilisations and centuries rather than any scale other people would think at. They could, if they wanted, assign almost anything to Valkorian's plan, because that's the sheer scale of the character they've created.

 

I never paused to think about that. The personality differences could be rationalized. Centuries upon centuries of life would grant an incredible level of perspective and, capacity for reason.

 

The more I contemplate, I wonder if the true body of the Emperor was in play up until the second confrontation with Revan, Scourge and Meetra Surik. The timing of this is approximately when he "discovered" Zakuul. Days prior, the Emperor learned of a second plot to overthrow him by the Dark Council. This happened centuries prior. At that time, he may have felt that by liquidating the Dark Council, he would set an example for future Council members to not question his power. With the development of a second plot AND the almost successful attempt to assassinate him, he may have had a revelation.

 

First, it is the nature of the Sith to destroy, plot and scheme for more power. While they uphold the individual and praise strength, (as opposed to the Republic and Jedi Order), there is no bounds or limits. The Sith naturally resist the authority of others and merely bide there time until they can assume control. Knowing that not even fear could control the players of his first grand experiment, he may have decided that galactic domination under the Sith Empire was a fruitless endeavor and declared this original vision of his perfect society a failure.

 

Second, nearly being killed was truely frightening. Without Scourge's intervention, Revan and Surik would have won. Unsettling. We know that absolute mass control of people like we saw demonstrated on Ziost is not a talent he was born with. He tricked those 8,000 Sith lords into the original ritual of Nathema. He also could not control all the minds under the rule. Vitiate may have realized his mastery of the ritual to prevent death by aging was not sufficient to ensure his immortality. He may have gone on a quest to expand his knowledge of essence transference, much like Darth Bane would, thousands of years later.

 

He likely developed the process of creating his "Voices" or as I view them, Force Avatars, at this time. He may have discovered that he could inhabit multiple avatars and thus achieve his aims of ruling his failed experiment and preserving his true body while using one voice, then create another, the one we know as Valkorian to explore the galaxy for a suitable place for a new experiment. Since the Republic and Sith Empire dominated I would say 60-70% of the known galaxy, he would need to look to the Unknown Regions and Wild Space for a new home. Maybe his Valkorian Avatar discovered the Chiss? Would make sense. Eventually he then found the Eternal Fleet, likely resting and unclaimed in the middle of space. Then he found the superstitious and primitive people on a planet that perfectly balanced the force. Zakuul. The perfect fresh canvas for this artist to start his masterpiece without distraction, threats or disturbance.

 

This may also answer why he wasted ANY time with a failed experiment. Essence transfer requires effort and practice and has the risk of failure, as we saw with Palpatine in his final death. Jumping around bodies is to risky, not genuine immortality. The "Voices" the ones he alternated between with Valkorian and the the one known as "The Emperor's Voice" were far safer. I assumed that his true body was kept in a very remote and very secure place by the Imperial Guard. I think Servant One may have stated this in the Sith Warrior story-line. There also may have been practical limitations. Perhaps the benefits of the Nathema Ritual only extended to the body of the performer. A full essence transfer could result in forfeiting this power, a risk Vitiaite may not have been willing to take. The only way to find out would have been through trial and error. He obviously avoided the risk.

 

I know I had a lot of "mays" and other assumptions in my theory, but trying to make sense of this character and how the TOR universe operates is not easy and really requires some elaborate explanation to get from point A to B. If you see a flaw in this theory, let me know.

[adormitul]

Zakuul is massive though, towers reaching up into space. And I suspect very densely populated. I mean, what have Zakuulans to do except enjoy themselves... They don't work, they don't toil, their machines take care of EVERYTHING. They probably breed like rats because they literally have nothing else to do.

 

I would assume that Zakuuls moons are probably colonised too just as an aside.

 

True but have you seen Cruscant the Republic capital that planet has trillions upon trillions of inhabitants hell its so populated that there is no longer any place that was not urbanized at least Zakuul still has the swamps.

[thebumpkin]

True but have you seen Cruscant the Republic capital that planet has trillions upon trillions of inhabitants hell its so populated that there is no longer any place that was not urbanized at least Zakuul still has the swamps.

 

Yes, Coruscant is massive with trillions of inhabitants, but coruscant is spread horizontally, while Zakuul is spread vertically.

[Audoucet]

Yes, Coruscant is massive with trillions of inhabitants, but coruscant is spread horizontally, while Zakuul is spread vertically.

 

Not really. It's just not Coruscant is so much populated, the towers are actually joined together.

 

If you look at Attack of the Clones' car chase and Asoka's escape in CW's last season, you can see that the actual ground is just a thick layer of buildings.

[thebumpkin]

Not really. It's just not Coruscant is so much populated, the towers are actually joined together.

 

If you look at Attack of the Clones' car chase and Asoka's escape in CW's last season, you can see that the actual ground is just a thick layer of buildings.

 

I maybe haven't explained it properly. As the official concept picture below demonstrates, Zakuul features several gigantic towers reaching into space. Coruscant is covered all over as a city world I am aware of that. But the point Im making is; areas where Zakuul has got massive city spreads covering the landmass, those areas literally reach upwards into space.

 

https://cdn0.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/3785978/SWTOR_KOTFE_PlanetConcept.0.jpg

 

So in terms of sheer Meters squared... Zakuul is probably not as small as appears. And that is just one part of the planet you see in that picture.

Edited April 14, 2016 by thebumpkin

[Temeluchus]

Not really. It's just not Coruscant is so much populated, the towers are actually joined together.

 

If you look at Attack of the Clones' car chase and Asoka's escape in CW's last season, you can see that the actual ground is just a thick layer of buildings.

 

^Correct. Coruscant is filled with skytowers that go from Level 1 to Level 5127. That's pretty massive.

[Audoucet]

I maybe haven't explained it properly. As the official concept picture below demonstrates, Zakuul features several gigantic towers reaching into space. Coruscant is covered all over as a city world I am aware of that. But the point Im making is; areas where Zakuul has got massive city spreads covering the landmass, those areas literally reach upwards into space.

 

https://cdn0.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/3785978/SWTOR_KOTFE_PlanetConcept.0.jpg

 

So in terms of sheer Meters squared... Zakuul is probably not as small as appears. And that is just one part of the planet you see in that picture.

 

I understood, but because of the Square-Cube law, I don't think that so few towers can balance things.

 

And without even going on about that aspect of things, you can see on the picture you send, that most of the world seems to be covered by oceans.

[Capella]

I really like the mapping of Valkorion and his family to the Old Gods. I'd assumed Thexan was Nahul and in the dark because he'd been killed (but maybe he's not really dead and his spirit is around somewhere? maybe his body was carbonized and we could restore him?), but the idea of Thexan as Tyth the warleader and Arcann the one in darkness who we need to not follow down his path is an interesting one. And Vaylin codes to Esne with the jealousy and bitterness (she's a bit crazy from being suppressed...she's jealous of her twin, which is what she could be unchained? More pure less evil if she'd been guided right?)

 

Also, am I the only one who sees a strong similarity between Lana and Vaylin? Like when we first saw Vaylin, before I knew anything else, I wondered if Lana was a lost sibling.

[Slowpokeking]

He's never shown any love for the Sith, or interest in the Sith code. All he's even been shown to have an interest in is remaking the galaxy in his own image. It was assumed that meant destroying it to become a force god, however as you say maybe it was just to destroy a failed experiment and give his new toy space to grow.

 

But he is a Sith 100%.

 

To reach immortality and power=totally Sith.

 

Remaking the galaxy by devouring everyone-totally Sith, if you have read the new canon novel Tarkin(or Sith Lords), it's pretty much Palpatine's goal as well. In the old canon novel, Plagueis had the similar goal.

Edited April 15, 2016 by Slowpokeking

[Elyseon]

It's almost like Vitiate became bipolar somewhere down the line. Or just got bored with his toys and decided to get a new set elsewhere. (The less said about the way they ruined Revan the better...)

As for his remote controlled invincible fleet of doom, I'm going to guess it's another leftover from the Rakata or another precursor civilization.

 

Either way, remote world, away from the galaxy at large, populated by superstitious primitives with a mythology he could conveniently exploit. Notice how childlike most of them are in their blind worship and how they refuse to acknowledge there's anything beyond their little ball of mud.

Edited April 18, 2016 by Elyseon

[Nightrangers]

Valkorian kind of reminds me of the Ori from Stargate SG-1, they basically had evolved beyond life and death. Believed that they were actual god like beings and flourished under the power of the blind faith of their people. Like KOTFE the Ori had the soldiers, priors, and fleets to take over the galaxy and they also had the power of using religion as a powerful weapon.

[Isnogut]

I understand why did he pick Zakuul and think the Empire is not worthy, from his view. He wanted to devour the galaxy, and he simply used the Empire as a tool to achieve this. However, loyalty is garbage to most of the Sith. The Sith would plot against him, some of them even learned his true goal. Jadus, Baras, Malgus, Scourge and a bunch more Sith are all plotting against him with different reasons. I think the Dread Masters also had planned to betray the Empire before JK too his voice down, rather than "the Emperor is gone so we no longer serve the Empire". He is a Sith, but building an empire of Sith could not help him achieve his ultimate goal.

 

So he picked Zakuul and made himself a benevolent Emperor, and reformed the Zakuul knights to make a loyal army. This is why the Zakuul knights' "using both light and dark side" is favored by him. It' not like he would go such way, but to ensure they would be very loyal to him, and at the same time willing to do the dirty work. Other people might feel the same way like Koth, Valkorion was so awesome, they don't care what he did to the others, he was nice to Zakuul, but this, was just his disguise, he was still using Zakuul to achieve his final goal. Right now I think he was simply using the Outland the Arcann to form a showdown, he will possess the winner and take over everything, that's his plan.

I agree and disagree at the same time.

 

From all I learned about Vitiate is, he went to a mental place beyond Dark Side and Light Side. He is up to something, he still want to achieve the greatest goal of a Sith, break his chains. I think, he really belives by now what he is talking, being unbound from fate. He thinks he is the absolute master of the Force. He thinks he is a naviagtor through the Force. Paraphrasing from Chapter XII.

 

Why did he chose Zakuul? Funny thing because the legends. He contradicts himself by them. He thinks he is the Dragon, Arkann the Serpent, etc. But how could he still belive in this and still say, that fate has no bound on him?

He used the folklore ofthose people from a planet in balance of the Force to do his biding. he understood, that to get his goal ghe has to outgrow the Dark Side. Thatfore the Sith Empire was a major failure for him. But even though they were used as calatyst to fuel his power in the Force.

 

One thing is clear to me. Either way we played the first encouter with Valkorion, he wants for his corporeal body to die. He knows exactly what he is doing. And all his little influences on our avatar have a deeper purpose. Arkann and Vaylinn are nothing more than B-Role villians. They behave quite similar to Sith, but with less political skill and cunning. if Valkorion truly wanted one of them to be his successor, they would be the total packages he is. Strange thing, that I still can't put my finger on it is, he wants the Outlander to be that guy, to be balaced. To be almost hs equal. But for what purpose?

 

I've been playing the Outlander as the Warth and as Darth Nox. The Wrath is Vitiates sworn enemy, and never went off from his path. Nox kneeled down and embrached Valokrions power. But at the end both are potential enemies to Valkorion. Wrath wants to kill kim for good, and will use any teaching from Valkorion against him. Nox, even having a little different motivation wants what Valkorion has achieved and more, and that works only if she builds her legacy over his ruins. That also means the same.

 

I realised, however the Outlander decide, he remains the intimate enemy of Vitiate. And it has no importance what class we might play. So why is Vitiate playing this dangerous play with the Outlander? Visons from the future? ...Crontradicts his disclaimer, he is the master of his own fate.