Shadow Collective

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Shadow Collective

TheShadow Collective was a large criminal alliance and rivalSith Order founded during theClone Wars by the rogueSith LordMaul. Partly founded at the behest ofMotherTalzin, Maul aimed to threaten the plans of theDark Lord of the SithDarth Sidious as well as to compete with him for galactic power. Among its goals, it sought to defeat both theConfederacy of Independent Systems and theGalactic Republic. During the war, Maul rallied the forces ofDeath Watch,Black Sun, thePyke Syndicate, theHutt Clan, and theNightbrothers to form a considerable base of power.

The Shadow Collective worked under Maul's vision as he led them to atakeover ofMandalore. Although Maul's allyPre Vizsla planned only to win back his homeworld, Maul had ambitions to influence the thousands of neutral systems impacted by Mandalore as well as enact a plan of revenge against his former master Darth Sidious. Their alliance ended when Vizsla betrayed Maul, but the renegade Sith later defeated him in single combat, executing him and taking control of Mandalore. However, his empire began to fragment after theHutts abandoned him, with the Pykes and Black Sun severing ties following their defeat at the hands of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Maul eventually lost control of Mandalore when the Republic laidsiege to the planet. However, the Pykes and Black Sun came back and were later joined byCrimson Dawn.

With the Siege of Mandalore, the Shadow Collective was defeated. However, Maul retained his great influence over theFive Crime Syndicates as a mysterious overseer. Crimson Dawn in particular succeeded Shadow Collective and Maul's ambitions after theconclusion of the Clone Wars and therise of theGalactic Empire.

History[]

A dangerous alliance[]

Following theSkirmish on Florrum, which saw thepirateHondo Ohnaka andJedi MasterObi-Wan Kenobi defeat Maul and Opress after the pair hoped to take over Ohnaka's gang andbase of operations,^[14] the two brothers became stranded in space. However, they eventually passed out from lack of oxygen in theirescape pod.^[1]

They were then discovered byPre Vizsla, leader of aMandalorian splinter group known asDeath Watch. The two brothers, who were dangerously injured following the events which took place onFlorrum, were taken onto Vizsla'sstarship, upon which they were taken to the Death Watch'sbase on themoonZanbar. Maul and Opress awoke inside a tent, with Vizsla andBo-Katan Kryze, Vizsla's second-in-command, greeted the brothers, inquiring as to who they were. Upon Maul's response as the brothers beingSith, Vizsla acted with hostility due to his dislike of his former allyCountDooku. Maul told Vizsla that he worked for no man and admitted his hatred for Kenobi, to which Vizsla appeared impressed with. When Maul revealed that he was only a Sith that sought fortune and power, Vizsla told his droids to fix his legs and left.^[1]

The two men later hadCassius Tea together in one of the Mandalorian tents. Vizsla explained his struggle againstDuchessSatine Kryze of Mandalore, and his people's past as warriors. He also explained how Satine and Kenobi were linked personally and told Maul he believed that fortune brought them together. Maul rose from his seat and said that it was the will of the Force that brought them together, saying that he and Savage could help them reclaim Mandalore, with Vizsla adding that they would punish Kenobi for his trespass into their affairs.^[1]

Bo-Katan stepped in, and offered a counter argument—remembering the time that Death Watch allied itself with Dooku—and how it affected them badly. Maul proceeded toForce choke Bo-Katan and expressed his hopes for an alliance between the Death Watch and the two brothers. He let Bo-Katan go, and Vizsla told Maul that he would put the proposed alliance to a vote amongst his men. Maul smiled and stalked out, returning to his brother. Following Opress' awakening, Maul calmed his brother and informed them of their new alliance, and how they could take advantage with Vizsla. Vizsla then entered and informed the two brothers of his men's favor of an alliance, officially creating the Shadow Collective.^[1]

Recruiting allies[]

Maul explained his vision to Vizsla, telling him of his plan to gather allies to help them reclaim Mandalore. Vizsla explained that he had supporters already on the planet, but Maul told him that they would start by recruiting theBlack Sun. Vizsla said that they were hardly a force to rally with, but Maul told him that they were perfect allies because they could provide them with the resources they needed without the scrutiny of the Republic.^[1]

The newly formed alliancetraveled toMustafar, on which theBlack Sun fortress was located. The force was met by abattalion of Black Sun warriors, led byVigoZiton Moj, whom Maul noted would serve them well. Maul requested an audience with their leader, to which Moj laughed and said that it was his funeral before leading them into the fortress.^[1]

Maul, Vizsla, and Opress entered the meeting room of the fortress, whereXomit Grunseit and the leaders of Black Sun were assembled. Grunseit and his fellow leaders refused to cooperate with Maul, and so Opress, in a single motion, threw hisdouble-bladed lightsaber down the table, decapitating and killing each and every leader of the Black Sun immediately. Moj, the new de-facto leader, hastily agreed to join the new group. As they began to load supplies onto theirships, Vizsla smiled and said that they had their army now, but Maul brushed him off and said that there was a singular vision behind their scheme. Vizsla countered that it belonged to Death Watch, but Maul said that he lacked clarity and did not understand the depth of their opportunity.^[1]

Back on Zanbar, members of thePyke Syndicate—a crime organization dealing mostly with illegally exportingspices and drugs—landed, led byLom Pyke, who informed Vizsla that he did not wish to oppose the new organization, and conveyed his wishes to join them.^[1]

A task force, led by Maul, Vizsla, and Opress,traveled toNal Hutta, a central planet ofHutt Space to meet with theGrand Hutt Council. There, Maul asked the council for control of everything insideHutt-controlled borders, or their lives would be taken. Upon hearing this, a team of hiredbounty hunters, includingEmbo,Sugi,Dengar, andLatts Razzi began to attack Maul's forces. A large confrontation broke out, forcing Maul, Vizsla, and Opress to retreat. After being pushed back to the landing platform, the trio were reinforced by theNite Owls and several Death Watch Warriors and began pushing their way back into the Council Chamber. Having forced the bounty hunters into a retreat, Maul interrogatedOruba for the location of the other members. Being dissatisfied that the only location he was given wasJabba's Palace, Maul had Opress kill Oruba.^[1]

Soon afterwards, the Shadow Collective traveled toTatooine andattackedJabba'sPalace. The Death Watch soldiers were quickly able to cause chaos as they landed and dropped over a dozen armed guards. They soon surrounded the Hutt Council and forced them to join the Shadow Collective. Now with an army, Maul revealed to Vizsla that he was intending to control the criminal underworld after taking Mandalore. Maul then ordered him to send scouts to the capital in advance in order to devise targets inSundari, the capital of Mandalore, for Vizsla's plan.^[1]

Later, after Maul was captured by theMorubas crime family, the Shadow Collectiveattacked the crime family'sstronghold onBahlah, commanded by Savage Opress. After breaking the supposedly impenetrable walls, they seized the stronghold.^[15]

Taking Mandalore and choosing sides[]

Vizsla's scouts supplied Maul with targets for the Shadow Collective in Sundari and Maul met with the leaders of Shadow Collective. He told the Death Watch to act as the heroes for the Mandalorians as the other groups were meant to cause chaos and undermine their safety under the Kryze. The Shadow Collective traveled swiftly to Mandalore where Maul and Savage led the attacks on theMandalorian Guard, causing mayhem throughout Sundari. After sufficiently sowing the seeds of chaos, Vizsla and two otherDeath Watch Warriors flew in to interrupt Satine's speech to the people. Vizsla promised that Death Watch would save them from the threat. As instructed, Vizsla, Bo-Katan, andanother soldier led rescue parties for the Mandalorian people. Kryze lost control over her people as they began to side with Vizsla as he appeared to thwart the threats facing them. Satine was then captured and, with the full backing of the populace, Vizsla declared himselfMand'alor.^[16]

Now that he had maneuvered himself onto the throne, Vizsla then double-crossed Maul and Opress, saying that he had no desire to continue forward with Maul's vision, because he had what he wanted. The two Zabrak brothers were publicly shown in shackles before being thrown in prison, although they quickly freed themselves. Mandalore's politicians were quickly brought into line, with some joining Vizsla's new rule and the rest being executed. However, Maul approached Satine to learn where the other political leaders were, and after she told him that she and the formerPrime MinisterAlmec were the only ones left, Maul decided to approach Almec. After he revealed his plan to challenge Vizsla to single combat for the mantle of leadership, Almec agreed to become their new puppet leader in the event that Maul defeated him. Maul then challenged Vizsla for his title and Vizsla fought with him until Maul defeated him, beheading Vizsla in front of the other Death Watch members and declaring himself as their new leader. Most of them accepted the duel's outcome. However, Bo-Katan and her Nite Owls refused to accept Maul and led aresistance against him, quickly fleeing the palace. Death Watch was then led by Maul, Opress, and the freed Prime Minister Almec. Almec made a speech to the populace, declaring that Satine had assassinated Vizsla and that Vizsla's final command was for him to become the new leader of Mandalore. The Death Watch Warriors loyal to Maul painted their armor red to resemble his appearance and they became known asMandalorian super commandos.^[16]

Defeated by Sidious[]

Although Almec's rule did not garner the attention of the Republic, as was Maul's plan,Darth Sidious, seeing his old apprentice as a threat, traveled to Mandalore to confront Maul as thebattle for Sundari raged on between Shadow Collective and the Mandalore resistance, led by Bo-Katan. Sidious dueled Maul and Opress, killing Opress and defeating Maul.^[3] Despite Maul's capture and the Hutts abandoning the Shadow Collective, the Pykes and Black Sun remained loyal to Maul.^[8] Maul was held at the prison known as theSpire on the planetStygeon Prime, where he was tortured by Darth Sidious and Sidious' current apprentice Darth Tyranus, more widely known asCount Dooku. The pair tortured Maul in order to find the location of MotherTalzin, who was secretly behind Maul's return and was seen as a threat by Sidious.^[8]

The prison was run by Dooku's government, theConfederacy of Independent Systems. Despite the high security, two of Maul's Mandalorian commandos,Rook Kast andGar Saxon, were, ordered by Almec, were able to break in andrescue Maul. This was done, and Maul was returned to Mandalorians on Zanbar, however they were quickly found by the CIS.GeneralGrievousattacked the location, and many of Maul's Mandalorian troops were killed in the battle.^[8] However, Maul and his remaining Mandalorians retreated toOrd Mantell on Warships, which was where Black Sun had a presence inOrd Mantell City. Afterdefeating Separatist forces there,^[4] the Separatistsattacked Shadow Collective forces at their secretasteroid baseVizsla Keep 09.^[9] Maul intended to use Dooku to bring about Talzin's complete return to the physical realm, but was thwarted by Grievous and Sidious. Talzin took control of Dooku's body initially, but, after being attacked by Sidious' Force lightning, she elected to exit the Count, now fully whole and returned. Eventually, however, Dooku and Sidious both firedForce lightning at her, and she elected to keep her defense up to protect Maul. As Maul was pulled to safety by his Mandalorians, Grievous fatally stabbed the Nightsister Mother.^[10]

Though Maul escaped Dathomir, Sidious felt that, with Talzin'sdeath, he was no longer a threat to his plans. The Shadow Collective itself had also been disrupted. Both the Black Sun and Pykes hadbeenattacked by the Separatists, leading to both to retract their support. In addition, a Separatist invasion fleet was sent toattack Dathomir.^[10]

Regrouped[]

Despite the Pykes and Black Sun leaving the Collective,^[10] they eventually rejoined.^[17]Crimson Dawn had also become a member of the Collective by the time of theescape from Oba Diah.^[6] When theSiege of Mandalore began after theBattle of Coruscant, Almec had the rest of the syndicate informed of the attack while the Mandalorian super commandos fought off the invading Republic and Mandalorian resistance forces.^[18] Shortly afterward, when Almec had been captured and was later assassinated by Saxon. Meanwhile, Maul made preparations for the end of the Clone Wars, the former Sith contacted the Shadow Collective leaders viahologram and ordered them to go into hiding. He revealed to his warriors that the dark side had never been stronger and that the galaxy was about to beremade soon. Maul's forces would soon lose control of Mandalore and Maul was imprisoned after being defeated byAhsoka Tano.^[17] Although the Shadow Collective collapsed after Maul's defeat,^[19] after the execution ofOrder 66, which Maul had foreseen, he was able to escape from Tano.^[20]

Legacy[]

Maul survived and led the criminal enterprise Crimson Dawn after the end of the war. Maul relied on a figurehead,Dryden Vos, and later,Qi'ra, to publicly lead the group. He resided on Dathomir^[21] and collected various objects from his former conquests, including a portrait of the former Duchess Satine.^[22] Beyond his secret control over Crimson Dawn in specific^[23] as its leader,^[24] Maul retained a great amount of power over theFive Crime Syndicates^[25] despite the collapse of the Shadow Collective.^[19] He would assume the role of a mysterious overseer who kept a tight reign over the five factions, with his orders including not to openly fight with each other and to instead exist as allies.^[25]

After Qi'ra's ascension following Vos's death, Maul told her to come to Dathomir and told her that they would be working much more closely.^[21] Eventually, Maul would be separated from the greater galaxy when he was left stranded on the planetMalachor. Following his escape^[26] in3 BBY, he wouldfall in battle with Kenobi on the planetTatooine in2 BBY.^[27] Qi'ra, meanwhile, was able to assume command of Crimson Dawn. Much like Maul had with the Shadow Collective, Qi'ra would go onto recruit and ally assorted individuals into her reformed Crimson Dawn for herwar against the Sith.^[28] Following the fall of the Galactic Empire, Maul's manipulations over the Shadow Collective became public knowledge.^[29]

Appearances[]

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Eminence"(First appearance)
• "Tales of Villainy: The Hostage" — Star Wars Adventures (2020) 3
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Shades of Reason"
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "The Lawless"
• "Kenobi's Shadow" —The Clone Wars: Stories of Light and Dark(andaudiobook)
• Darth Maul — Son of Dathomir 1
• Darth Maul — Son of Dathomir 2
• Darth Maul — Son of Dathomir 3
• Darth Maul — Son of Dathomir 4
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Together Again"
• The Clone Wars: Season 7: Volume 1
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Old Friends Not Forgotten"(First identified as syndicate)
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "The Phantom Apprentice"
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Shattered"
• Star Wars Rebels — "Twilight of the Apprentice"(Indirect mention only)
• Maul: A Star Wars Rebels Cinestory Comic(Indirect mention only)
• Bounty Hunters 14(In flashback(s))
• Ahsoka — "Part Five: Shadow Warrior"(In flashback(s))

Non-canon appearances[]

• Disney Infinity 3.0
• LEGO STAR WARS: Celebrate the Season — "Carving Up the Competition"

Sources[]

Notes and references[]