One Sith who reigned during the ancient Sith Empire was considered by those that would come thousands of years after him as one of the most powerful Sith who had ever lived.
Darth Traya, a lady of the Sith who is debatably one of the most intelligent and advanced Sith herself, said this concerning the Sith Lord we will be discussing today:
”if you were to face an ancient Sith Lord in combat, you would learn that we are as children playing with toys compared to the prowess of the old masters”.
While Traya is referencing the old masters as an entirety, she had one ancient Dark Lord in mind. It was the Sith Lord Tulak Hord. Tulak Hord was a Sith that reigned long ago before the time when the Sith had even encountered the Jedi Order.
In fact, Hord never once engaged two Jedi Knight over his entire time as a Sith. Even as a young prodigy Hord was feared by those above him eventually; however, even they would grow to submit to his power.
As a younger Sith, people began to fear Hord mainly because of his skill with the lightsaber. And the rumors were growing that he was invincible in the duel. Although this sounded strange to some ancient Sith at first, they were soon convinced otherwise. After witnessing his skill with lightsabers, what has once considered a pure rumor became a reality. Even a warrior named Khem Val, a species that has significant resistance to the Force, would be defeated by Hord’s superior skills with lightsabers. After winning, Hord befriended Val and set him to be his right-hand man.
Together the two warriors formed an army that would never be defeated under their reign, crushing all signs of rebellion against the Sith Empire. As time progressed and Hord was shown to be not only a difficult adversary but seemingly an invincible one. He gained many titles. Lord of Hate Being is his most favored.
Over his years Hord welcomed all he deemed worthy as challengers in single combat. Hundreds came to meet the challenge, and hundreds fell by his blade. His skill became so notable that the Sith of his era even hypothesized that if he so desired he could slay armies with his lightsaber alone. Hord, however, is not only the master of the lightsaber. Over the decades, he also became one with the Force.
Often Hord had armies on its knees even before he reached the battlefield. Hord would utilize this sorcery to drain the very life from his enemies, using it to fuel himself and his great army. Through his power, his people grew to love him.
However, another prodigy with a lightsaber would hear stories about the Hord. Eventually, those stories prompted this other student of darkness to seek him out. This other Sith, known as Aloysius Kallig, would venture to Hord and his great army, pledging his loyalty to him with the only request that he be allowed into his inner circle. At first glance, Hord dismissed the Sith, deeming him unworthy. However, Kallig quested single combat with Hord’s finest general, to which he obliged. Following a lengthy duel, Kallig eventually defeated Hord’s chosen general.
Impressed, Hord took Kallig to his ranks, giving him the honor of leading his armies to many victories. Over several years Kallig proved to be immensely powerful. Whispers grew that he may one day be the one to kill the seemingly unkillable. Hord recognized Kallig as his rival, and because he was not his chosen apprentice and successor, Hord ordered him to be killed. Hord said,
”easily the most ambitious and, therefore, the most dangerous of my rivals is Kallig; therefore, he shall be the first to die”.
Following his death, all that would be known of Kallig was his minor role in the journals of Tulak Hord.
At this point, Hord had arisen as the one Dark Lord of the Sith. His power too immense to be questioned. Following his conquest of one final system by the end of his tour, it was estimated he had successfully taken well over 100 planets for the Sith. At this time, Hord became obsessed with his legacy, beginning the construction of his holocron. Throughout the ranks of his army, rumors began that Hord had discovered the secret to eternal life. To keep his secrets hidden, Hord scattered them over many worlds light years away from each other. He wanted to ensure that only those who matched or even perhaps surpassed his knowledge were available to his secrets and discoveries.
Upon completing his manuscripts, Hord placed his longtime and most valued friend Khem Val in stasis as a reward for his loyalty to in hopes one day returned to a better time. Only days later, Hord was killed by his apprentice Ortan Cela. He stabbed him in the back too frightened of his master’s power and knowing full well he could never truly defeat him.
Unfortunately, decades later, the Republic would follow the Sith Naga Sadow back to the Korriban. And on that occasion, the Jedi and the Republic forces will destroy most of the Hord’s records and journals, possibly obliterating the secret to eternal life. Thousands of years after this event, the Jedi Revan would locate what remained of Hord’s tomb. He took what has left of knowledge and even the legendary mask of the former Sith Lord.
Over the centuries, many Sith Lords claimed Hord was the most powerful Sith who had ever lived, saying a normal ancient Sith would utterly annihilate a more current duelist with their skill with the lightsaber. And even noting among these great duelists, Hord was unrivaled. Although his power was likely immense, the showings of Hord may have been exaggerated by the Sith over the years as tales grew of a Dark Lord that was undefeated. Perhaps the newer Sith created an idol in the form of the Tulak Hord they aspired to, though maybe there was less truth about his greatness than has been discussed for centuries after his death.
That is the story of Tulak Hord, quite possibly the best lightsaber duelist in all of Star Wars.
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