antagonist

[sniggy]

darth vader supposedly fell into molten rock / metal and lost his legs, an arm, lots of skin and his lung functions to this terrible accident. he couldn't breathe without his armor and the fear of suffocation was always with him- hence his obsession with choking inferiors to death.

 

malak had "lost his face" and could not be redeemed because of that. what i find strange though is that he's being both referred to as darth malak and malak in the game. if malak was his name- why "darth" malak. usually a sith lord takes on a different name. same (naming) goes for revan by the way

 

anyway, if we look at the charismatic figure vader was, we can only hope that kotor2 will feature a similar charismatic, sinister and tragic figure. maybe someone who was disfigured in some way. or an alien with a mind too dark to comprehend- though the pic hints at a humanoid figure who might be perfectly healthy (except for the scorched look of the skin)

 

 

the picture of the sith in kotor2 suggests that we're going to face someone who has fully embraced the dark side. i wouldn't dream of "redeeming" whoever that is. malak just looked angry (probably because he was tired of eating soup all the time) but this person looks like evil personified

 

i just hope that we hear of the deeds of that person and see some reaaaly evil ones in action. (vader was cool even though he hasn't wiped any planets in the movie. he just choked people for fun)

 

but look at the eyes of this person. they look dead. i can't imagine this one saying "do not disappoint me again". this person will not give second chances. (s)he will twist your mind... fill your heart with fear... and slowly drive you insane while all the time standing there... motionless... silent... draining your life away, leaving only an empty, scorched shell

[Zero]

Well there are multiple ones around this time, so I would like to see alot of variety amongst them.

 

I get a Darth Maul type vibe from that guy ...don't think he will be the main baddie (could be wrong though). I don't see the whole evil personified thing..he just looks mysterious to me ....but I guess thats subjective...

 

Sidious is the only really evil looking character I've seen in Star Wars..for the most part.

[Tyrell]

Sidious is the only really evil looking character I've seen in Star Wars..for the most part.

 

You are saying he doesn't look evil?

[Guest Michael Chu]

Oh, Annie. You'll always be that little boy I knew on Tatooine.

[Tehellet]

 

Really, he just looks like a punk kid.

[Meshugger]

Until Anakin puts his notorious suit on, he will still be 'little annie' IMHO.

[Gorth]

...though the pic hints at a humanoid figure who might be perfectly healthy (except for the scorched look of the skin)

Say hello to Drizzt in space...

[Shdy314]

Personally I think he has some gender issues. The face mask looks like a porcelain doll. Which certainly doesn' make me think tough and sinister. Though possibly slightly mad. And the hood looks more like a habit. Oooooh a Sith Lord Nun. Terrifying. I also shouldn't say he since I think it will be a woman.

[Malon]

*hopes it's gonna be a super evil sith girl*

 

Anyways, methinks that's the main baddie, because in one of the interviews on Gamespot (the second one where they had a little video of interviews playing in the corner) since when they interviewed one of the Devs, he moved slightly when Sithie was in the background, making the word "(START)" easily visible. Since Malak was a centerpiece in both the start screen and box are of KoToR I, I suppose this is our main boss.

 

And uhm...the blue background doesn't help the evilness.

[Zero]

You don't think they had that just as a temp. background for e3?

[Taran'atar]

what i find strange though is that he's being both referred to as darth malak and malak in the game. if malak was his name- why "darth" malak. usually a sith lord takes on a different name. same (naming) goes for revan by the way

 

In the movies era, that may be true. Revan and Malak lived 4,000 years earlier. That's a long time. Sith traditions may have changed. In the days of Palpatine, Sith Lords took on a new name for their Sith persona. Apparently Revan and Malak just tacked "Darth" onto their real names. Exar Kun, Ajunta Pall and the others mentioned in KOTOR didn't even do that. They just used their real names with no "Darth". This change makes some sense. In Revan and Malak's era, Sith Lords acted overtly and made no secret of their identities. In Palpatine's time, the Sith modus operandi was to be stealthy and secretive. Taking on a Sith alias would fit with this change in their culture.

[sniggy]

You are saying he doesn't look evil?

he looks like he has flatulance... evil flatulance... no, you're right. looks evil. palpatine only looks evil in the prequels though

[sniggy]

Exar Kun, Ajunta Pall and the others mentioned in KOTOR didn't even do that.  They just used their real names with no "Darth".  This change makes some sense.  In Revan and Malak's era, Sith Lords acted overtly and made no secret of their identities.  In Palpatine's time, the Sith modus operandi was to be stealthy and secretive.  Taking on a Sith alias would fit with this change in their culture.

you're right, i hadn't thought about that. i guess once you had joined up with the sith back then, it was pretty obvious.

 

still, it'd be interesting to know where the title "darth" came from. i can't remember whether it was in any of the books.

 

 

Oooooh a Sith Lord Nun. Terrifying. I also shouldn't say he since I think it will be a woman.

 

you don't know that- could be an alien. what i find disturbing is exactly the fact that this person looks like it came from a venice mask festival. the porcelain mask is very prominant- everything else is completely dark. i can imagine that the force "it" likes to use most might be insanity or death field.

 

all i'm saying is: this sith should be portrayed uniquely. there was nothing mysterious or sinister about malak. he was simply a jedi turned sith lord. he hasn't done anything terrifying in kotor.

[jaguars4ever]

he hasn't done anything terrifying in kotor.

Oh come on, lol.

 

His best line in the whole game was:

 

"The search for Bastilla is taking too long. Destroy the entrire planet"

 

But you're right in the sense that Malak was way too clich

[Shdy314]

Still, it'd be interesting to know where the title "darth" came from. i can't remember whether it was in any of the books.

 

you don't know that- could be an alien. what i find disturbing is exactly the fact that this person looks like it came from a venice mask festival. the porcelain mask is very prominant- everything else is completely dark. i can imagine that the force "it" likes to use most might be insanity or death field.

 

all i'm saying is: this sith should be portrayed uniquely. there was nothing mysterious or sinister about malak. he was simply a jedi turned sith lord. he hasn't done anything terrifying in kotor.

There's no definitive answer to where Darth came from. It's first use was in dark Horse comics. Darth Bane is the sole surviving Sith after Sith treachery led them to lose a giant battle that wiped them out. He adopted the rule of two and all apprentices afterwards adopted the name Darth in his honor. It's also been theorized that Darth is a shortened form of DARk lord of the siTH. Could be a little of both. Then with KOTOR though continuity is broken a little. So we have to go with Darth being a Sith title that Bane either had or logically adopted when he was the last one left. That all Sith afterwards used since with only two in the universe who else is supposed to be a Dark Lord of the Sith.

 

Oh it is NOT an alien. I'd bet anything. It will be human and I theorise female. Like I said porcelain masks makes me thinks of dolls. And dolls do not make me think of tough or sinister. They do make me think of children though which is why I think they probably will be slightly mad and use insanity or death field. Insane characters are normally portrayed with some sort of childlike influence to them. Like Kefka looking like a clown in ... uh oh is it FF5 or 6?

 

Malak was also pretty weak in the visuals dept. The completely unexplained missing jaw just so he could have a Darth Vader look with the whole I lost part of my body and replaced it with metal. The skunk look. Which were Sith tattoos on his pale skin but man that did not translate well. (Anyone notice those red streaks on the mask look just like the black ones on malak's head?) The tight red suit that looked like leather... A tad gay. A LOINCLOTH! :D What was Bioware thinking? At least his cape was kewl. And his voice was good though only because it reminded me of Vader with the "this voice is obviously being made with the help of some machinery." Plus he took Revan out the cowardly way and constantly ran in terror from him on the Star Forge. OH MY GOD REVAN IS COMING STALL HIM! I'M NOT READY TO FACE HIM. <_< That's weakness right there. Those 3 sith should have attacked him on the spot.

 

Hopefully this character will make up for the porcelain doll mask and Sith Nun clothing with a delightfully insane and pure evil attitude. Just like Kefka made up for his ludicrous appearance. I don't know why but seeing her drive someone insane or causing them to just drop dead for a small infraction is much better than Malak bombing an entire planet. Maybe it's because it is more personal and more a reflection of their force power instead of the power of their fleet. She should definitely be a pure force user. I don't want to see her whipping out a double ls and force jumping at my character. It's late and I'm rambling. I'll stop now.

[sniggy]

"The search for Bastilla is taking too long. Destroy the entrire planet"

yeah, well- he kindda missed an escaping ship there

[Shdy314]

"The search for Bastilla is taking too long.  Destroy the entrire planet"

yeah, well- he kindda missed an escaping ship there

Yeah he was just impatient. He had an interdictor class ship. If he hadn't been in orbit above Taris bombing it he would have been able to take off after them and the game woul have been over. Or the Leviathan scene would happen much sooner. ;-) Malak was nothing compared to Revan. Now he would have been a great villain.

[sniggy]

Oh it is NOT an alien. I'd bet anything. It will be human and I theorise female.

yeah, i figure so much, too.

 

Like I said porcelain masks makes me thinks of dolls. And dolls do not make me think of tough or sinister.

 

haven't seen chucky, right?

 

they probably will be slightly mad and use insanity or death field. Insane characters are normally portrayed with some sort of childlike influence to them. Like Kefka looking like a clown in ... uh oh is it FF5 or 6?

 

makes sense. i just hope we're not too close to what the devs have in mind. (noooo- they figured it out! change the script! change the script!)

 

I lost part of my body and replaced it with metal.

 

yeah- i hoped there'd be some kind of reference to the missing jaw (story-wise). but it was unexplained and didn't seem to bother him much.

 

(Anyone notice those red streaks on the mask look just like the black ones on malak's head?)

 

yup. maybe just sith symbolics?

 

A LOINCLOTH!  :D  What was Bioware thinking? At least his cape was kewl.

 

umm. i thought he looked like some kind of supervillain from marvel. i thought he'd start flying and shoot laser beams from his eyes any moment. but you're right. the voice made up for it.

 

OH MY GOD REVAN IS COMING STALL HIM! I'M NOT READY TO FACE HIM

 

send the droids

send the soldiers

send my apprentice

send... aww.

 

evil lord rule number 1: don't send your followers 1-by-1... send them all at once

 

Hopefully this character will make up for the porcelain doll mask and Sith Nun clothing with a delightfully insane and pure evil attitude.

 

i think we can expect a very twisted mind behind that mask.

 

why but seeing her drive someone insane or causing them to just drop dead for a small infraction is much better than Malak bombing an entire planet

 

because evil deeds that are on a small, personal level are easier to grasp then the abstract killing of billions. look at it this way: you see someone you know die in a car accident and that is horrible. you hear of thousands being massacred somewhere in africa and forget about it within hours. it's the comprehensible, small scale evil that works best.

 

killing a planet involves a fleet. killing one person slowly involves just the pleasure of being able to do so. more sinister as it is the person doing it- not some flagship in orbit.

[Ivan the Terrible]

send the droids

send the soldiers

send my apprentice

send... aww.

 

evil lord rule number 1: don't send your followers 1-by-1... send them all at once

Given what I was doing to each individual 'wave', I'd wager even that would be a lost cause. He sends them all at once, I kill them all at once.

[sniggy]

send the droids

send the soldiers

send my apprentice

send... aww.

 

evil lord rule number 1: don't send your followers 1-by-1... send them all at once

Given what I was doing to each individual 'wave', I'd wager even that would be a lost cause. He sends them all at once, I kill them all at once.

ha! you're right about that... force wave was pretty darn powerful in the game. in fact, you could just fill your slots with that power and then watch.

 

maybe force breach should also hinder a force user from using his powers- like its meant to (see nomi sunrider). now that would pose a hard challenge- no more force wave then, eh?

[EnderAndrew]

Malak wasn't the greatest villian in appearance or dialouge, but he didn't look bad per se. I think it's rather interesting in human pysche the way we often associate a disfigurement with villians.

 

Some people assume Hitler was a psycho because he had syphillis, not because he had a predisposition to being a psycho. Sadly, there is evidence to the trend. Serial killers often bear some sexual disfigurement, or inadequacy. Movie villians often bear facial disfigurements.

[Shdy314]

haven't seen chucky, right?

 

 

(Anyone notice those red streaks on the mask look just like the black ones on malak's head?)

 

yup. maybe just sith symbolics?

 

why but seeing her drive someone insane or causing them to just drop dead for a small infraction is much better than Malak bombing an entire planet

 

because evil deeds that are on a small, personal level are easier to grasp then the abstract killing of billions. look at it this way: you see someone you know die in a car accident and that is horrible. you hear of thousands being massacred somewhere in africa and forget about it within hours. it's the comprehensible, small scale evil that works best.

 

killing a planet involves a fleet. killing one person slowly involves just the pleasure of being able to do so. more sinister as it is the person doing it- not some flagship in orbit.

Chucky makes me laugh. Doll movies are so stupid.

 

Like I said they look just like the symbols on Malaks head which are Sith tattoos so thats what I think also.

 

That's true for the most part. But what about if someone you know is part of those thousands? And people like Adolf Hitler and Stalin are normally considered the evilest people to ever live and they didn't kill millions of people by their lonesome. But you did hit on what it is. They didn't show the humanity side of bombing a massively populated planet. We saw it kill Calo Nord(who we hate) and we saw buildings blowing up. And we "know" technically all those NPCs there are now dead but they don't show it. What we needed we're a few cutscenes (they could be in engine) and show some of the NPCs we might actually like being crushed by rubble and such. Like the good doctor's hospital collapsing on him. The Sith guard that invites you to the party looking up shocked and being enveloped in blaster fire. The dueling arena being wiped out etc. That would have made it much more emotional and made us hate Malak more. By showing the human side of the suffering. Not just property damage is how you show the evil.

[sniggy]

Chucky makes me laugh. Doll movies are so stupid.

yup, they are. it was supposed to be a joke. oh well...

 

That's true for the most part. But what about if someone you know is part of those thousands? And people like Adolf Hitler and Stalin are normally considered the evilest people to ever live and they didn't kill millions of people by their lonesome.

 

yeah- but they present evil we can't comprehend. now someone cutting someone else into little bits to feed him to other peope- that we can grasp (scale-wise). and that we find evil, disgusting, horrifying. with the genocide thing we're just baffled.

 

They didn't show the humanity side of bombing a massively populated planet. We saw it kill Calo Nord(who we hate) and we saw buildings blowing up.

 

you're completely right! all i saw were some buildings going "boom". on the other hand, the game does have a teen rating- so what do you expect. how do you present evil without being too evil? (he destroyed your comic book collection. -nooo! the bastard!)

 

Like the good doctor's hospital collapsing on him.

 

"finally- i have found the cure for rakh- gAAAAAAAHHH!"

 

ironic, eh? or take the guys down below- found their promised land... a bit too late. they might have survived though. they were deep underground, right?

 

That would have made it much more emotional and made us hate Malak more. By showing the human side of the suffering. Not just property damage is how you show the evil.

 

yeah- that's exactly what would have set the players off at malak. that's an important point that was missing in kotor. (are the devs listening?). kotor2 should have stuff like that to portray the evil of the main antagonist.

 

the emotional attachment to NPCs is also likely to work. if the sith personally kills a character one has grown accustomed to... that would definetly make me want to gut that dark lord

[EnderAndrew]

One of my beefs with KOTOR's plot was having two worlds destroyed by an ancient fleet, and then having that fleet destroyed by the Republic ultimately.

 

In ANH, Han Solo doesn't believe the entire Imperial Fleet could wipe out an entire planet. Many Star Wars EU sources feel the need to play on the same scope as a Death Star, but I don't believe it's necessary.

 

The Thrawn Trilogy shows that a truly great Star Wars story doesn't have to involve Galactic Badness

[Shdy314]

One of my beefs with KOTOR's plot was having two worlds destroyed by an ancient fleet, and then having that fleet destroyed by the Republic ultimately.

 

In ANH, Han Solo doesn't believe the entire Imperial Fleet could wipe out an entire planet. Many Star Wars EU sources feel the need to play on the same scope as a Death Star, but I don't believe it's necessary.

 

The Thrawn Trilogy shows that a truly great Star Wars story doesn't have to involve Galactic Badness