druchi
SWRP Writer
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So I've always been pretty keen on the Sun Guard and so I've been toying with the idea of creating them either as a small indie faction or Hutt Cartel aligned group - I imagine a lot of their philosophies have changed over the centuries but still as a sort of hardcore religious group that has become more racially diverse over the proceeding thousand years. Anyway thought I would float the idea to see what you guys thought about it? If not faction creation maybe just a single Indie character that could be a Sun Guard Commander. I also thought the faction could be useful for the Jedi to fight in hiding being an active group in the Outer Rim and would be something more of a challenge for the New Jedi Order to take on a more professional force. I realise many are going to draw parallels with the Mandolorians and whilst this is true I think their religious angle and history make them more unique as a Role Playing option.
A feared military unit that in time became better known as mercenaries, the Sun Guard of Thyrsus began as rebels against the Echani Command, a confederation of six worlds ruled by a female council.
In the Begali Uprising of 1154 BBY, the sun-baked world of Thyrsus joined Begali in its rebellion against the Six Sisters. Begali would renew its ties with Eshan less than a century later, but Thyrsus remained stubbornly independent, just as the Thyrsians had long been culturally distinct from the rest of the Echani. Like all Echani, the Thyrsians excel at reading the smallest cues of body language, making them superb fighters. But in other ways they are sharply different: male-dominated rather than female-dominated, dark of hair and skin instead of light, spiritually focused on the sun instead of the moon, and emphasizing bladed weapons and heavy armor instead of unarmed combat.
The Thyrsian special forces evolved into the Sun Guard, fighting numerous skirmishes against the Echani before the Pact of Almera confirmed Thyrsus’s independence in 899 BBY. With peace returned to the Six Sisters, the Sun Guard became known as a mercenary unit, with its members signing on to conflicts across the galaxy as well as serving as bounty hunters and gladiators. The group soon became rivals of the Mandalorians, and battled them in numerous wars and skirmishes. Their most-famous showdown came on Sintheti in 402 BBY, when the two groups were hired by rival claimants to the Horned Throne and dueled for more than three years amid Sintheti’s crags and within its catacombs.
Members of the Sun Guard are famed for their heavy black armor and their use of pikes as a weapon of choice. While many variants of the Thyrsian pike exist, all are about a meter long and most are tipped with vibroblades at each end, reinforced with cortosis ore. The force pike includes stun modules at each end, while the solar pike — used in ritual combat — has conductive tips that glow cherry red with heat. Sun Guard armor is routinely studded with heat grids, vibroblades, knee and toe spikes, dart shooters and miniature flamethrowers.
Those who survive the Sun Guard’s rigorous initiation become Stellar Legionnaires and begin a probationary term of one year, during which they must prove themselves in battle. Those that pass become Stellar Tribunes, commanding a Sun Guard legion numbering between 20 and 40 soldiers. These legions are the most-common units found serving as mercenaries, though all legions heed the orders of the Supreme Sun Guardian.
The Stellar Tribunes compete vigorously with each other for prestige, with particularly heroic Tribunes granted admission into the Sun Guard officer corps. Twisuns Legates command two to four legions; the ranks above Legate are Twisuns Praetor, Thychani Commander, Thychani Dictator, and the Supreme Sun Guardian.
The Sun Guard from Star Wars: Galaxy in War.
The Thyrsians have always been a spiritually restless and hungry people, and more than a century before the fall of the Republic, they became obsessed with the prophecy that the galaxy’s savior would be known as “the son of suns.” That attracted the attention of the hidden Sith, who ensnared legion after legion of the Guard and aided Thull Wulain in his ascendancy through the Sun Guard ranks. As Supreme Sun Guardian, Wulain swore fealty to Darth Sidious. Sidious used the Sun Guard as mercenaries and assassins, deploying them to destabilize troubled worlds in the Republic and to eliminate troublesome Senators and other influential figures. Sidious also used the Sun Guard as protectors of his hidden Coruscant lair.
As his plot to take over the Republic neared fruition, Sidious considered a number of Thychani Commanders and Dictators as potential prime clones for his Republic army, only to settle on Jango Fett instead. Sidious had other plans for the Sun Guard — during the Clone Wars, he tested Dooku’s protégé Asajj Ventress by ordering her to eliminate them. Many fell to Ventress’ red sabers; others were spared and became members of Emperor Palpatine’s Royal Guard, Imperial Shadow Guard, or clone templates for the stormtrooper ranks.
Palpatine’s rise split Thyrsian society. Most Thyrsians were strong supporters of the Emperor, and saw the Royal Guard as the successors to the Sun Guard, with many Thyrsians winning renown as elite members of the Imperial Army and stormtrooper units. But some contended that the Thyrsians had been beguiled by the Sith, and sought to revive the Sun Guard. Thyrsus became an isolationist world after the Emperor’s demise, resisting the entreaties of various Imperial warlords as well as the New Republic. A new generation of Sun Guards appeared during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, guarding Thyrsus against potential attack and then seeking to rebuild the unit’s traditions and reputation.
In the Begali Uprising of 1154 BBY, the sun-baked world of Thyrsus joined Begali in its rebellion against the Six Sisters. Begali would renew its ties with Eshan less than a century later, but Thyrsus remained stubbornly independent, just as the Thyrsians had long been culturally distinct from the rest of the Echani. Like all Echani, the Thyrsians excel at reading the smallest cues of body language, making them superb fighters. But in other ways they are sharply different: male-dominated rather than female-dominated, dark of hair and skin instead of light, spiritually focused on the sun instead of the moon, and emphasizing bladed weapons and heavy armor instead of unarmed combat.
The Thyrsian special forces evolved into the Sun Guard, fighting numerous skirmishes against the Echani before the Pact of Almera confirmed Thyrsus’s independence in 899 BBY. With peace returned to the Six Sisters, the Sun Guard became known as a mercenary unit, with its members signing on to conflicts across the galaxy as well as serving as bounty hunters and gladiators. The group soon became rivals of the Mandalorians, and battled them in numerous wars and skirmishes. Their most-famous showdown came on Sintheti in 402 BBY, when the two groups were hired by rival claimants to the Horned Throne and dueled for more than three years amid Sintheti’s crags and within its catacombs.
Members of the Sun Guard are famed for their heavy black armor and their use of pikes as a weapon of choice. While many variants of the Thyrsian pike exist, all are about a meter long and most are tipped with vibroblades at each end, reinforced with cortosis ore. The force pike includes stun modules at each end, while the solar pike — used in ritual combat — has conductive tips that glow cherry red with heat. Sun Guard armor is routinely studded with heat grids, vibroblades, knee and toe spikes, dart shooters and miniature flamethrowers.
Those who survive the Sun Guard’s rigorous initiation become Stellar Legionnaires and begin a probationary term of one year, during which they must prove themselves in battle. Those that pass become Stellar Tribunes, commanding a Sun Guard legion numbering between 20 and 40 soldiers. These legions are the most-common units found serving as mercenaries, though all legions heed the orders of the Supreme Sun Guardian.
The Stellar Tribunes compete vigorously with each other for prestige, with particularly heroic Tribunes granted admission into the Sun Guard officer corps. Twisuns Legates command two to four legions; the ranks above Legate are Twisuns Praetor, Thychani Commander, Thychani Dictator, and the Supreme Sun Guardian.
The Sun Guard from Star Wars: Galaxy in War.
The Thyrsians have always been a spiritually restless and hungry people, and more than a century before the fall of the Republic, they became obsessed with the prophecy that the galaxy’s savior would be known as “the son of suns.” That attracted the attention of the hidden Sith, who ensnared legion after legion of the Guard and aided Thull Wulain in his ascendancy through the Sun Guard ranks. As Supreme Sun Guardian, Wulain swore fealty to Darth Sidious. Sidious used the Sun Guard as mercenaries and assassins, deploying them to destabilize troubled worlds in the Republic and to eliminate troublesome Senators and other influential figures. Sidious also used the Sun Guard as protectors of his hidden Coruscant lair.
As his plot to take over the Republic neared fruition, Sidious considered a number of Thychani Commanders and Dictators as potential prime clones for his Republic army, only to settle on Jango Fett instead. Sidious had other plans for the Sun Guard — during the Clone Wars, he tested Dooku’s protégé Asajj Ventress by ordering her to eliminate them. Many fell to Ventress’ red sabers; others were spared and became members of Emperor Palpatine’s Royal Guard, Imperial Shadow Guard, or clone templates for the stormtrooper ranks.
Palpatine’s rise split Thyrsian society. Most Thyrsians were strong supporters of the Emperor, and saw the Royal Guard as the successors to the Sun Guard, with many Thyrsians winning renown as elite members of the Imperial Army and stormtrooper units. But some contended that the Thyrsians had been beguiled by the Sith, and sought to revive the Sun Guard. Thyrsus became an isolationist world after the Emperor’s demise, resisting the entreaties of various Imperial warlords as well as the New Republic. A new generation of Sun Guards appeared during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, guarding Thyrsus against potential attack and then seeking to rebuild the unit’s traditions and reputation.
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