Who Is Darth Nul?

I usually try to stay away from speculation of what might happen next in an ongoing story because more often than not I end up disappointed that the writers went in a different direction. A prime example would be Morrigan from Dragon Age: Origins. I thought for sure she would be the next big bad when she told the Grey Warden about the ritual. Imagine my surprise and disappointment when Inquisition came out. It was a wasted opportunity in my opinion. However, this time I thought why not share some of my theories. Chances are very slim that I’ll be right, but half of the fun is trying to figure out what happens next.

So, one of the biggest questions on our minds is who is Darth Nul? First, I find the spelling of the word itself very telling. If they had spelled the mysterious Sith Lord’s name Null that would have some interesting implications. Not only because of the definition of the word, but also because of the lore that surrounds Warb Null. If you would like to know more about Warb Null I recommend looking up Illeva’s video where she covers his background.

Let’s look at the definitions of null and nul. Null is an adjective meaning “having no legal or binding force; invalid.” Other synonyms are “void,” “annulled,” “abolished,” and “canceled”.
Nul is also an adjective that means “not any.” The word null was borrowed from the Anglo-French nul and that word can be traced back to the Latin word nullus, from ne-, which means “not,” and “ullus, meaning “any.”

So we have two words with similar, yet different definitions. The easiest explanation for the two different spellings was that the devs wanted to establish a difference between the two Sith Lords, however, I’m also convinced they chose this name specifically because of the meaning of the word(s).

This ties into my theory of what Darth Malgus is planning. In my last post I briefly mentioned that in the latest teaser trailer, Darth Malgus’ voiceover talked about how the Sith, and the Jedi had been controlling the galaxy for centuries and that he thought it was time to break the cycle. Clearly this means that Darth Malgus has completely turned his back on the Empire. We know that Malgus’ ideals have been at odds with the Empire for some time now. When we first met him, he was attempting to take over in the wake of the Emperor’s death and lead the Empire in a different direction. One where they rejected their archaic beliefs of keeping the Empire pure and embraced other alien races into their ranks.

Much later, Empress Ancina/Vowrawn had him kept on a tight leash, which further alienated him against the Empire and now he seems to be relentlessly searching for mysterious artifacts that could destroy both the Jedi and Sith as we know them. The question is what will these artifacts do? We’ve seen how powerful the Force can be, especially when it’s used for nefarious purposes. Valkorion used a dark ritual that destroyed an entire planet.

My theory is that this mysterious Darth Nul was extensively studying how the Force works and discovered a way to either make the Force void or change it so drastically that it would create a wound in the Force and nullify it. Which means that both the Sith and the Jedi would crumble when they can’t access the Force anymore or have difficulties using it. It would then open the way for non-force users to take back control of the galaxy and potentially establish peace without having to worry about the Jedi and the Sith constantly fighting each other.

What do you all think? Is my theory too farfetched? Let me know in the comments below what you think will happen in Legacy of the Sith.

Legacy of the Sith, What Do We Really Know?

So, I didn’t cover the few things that were revealed other than the new potential romance in yesterday’s rant post. There honestly isn’t much to say since the devs want us to discover what happens in LoTS for ourselves and I’m okay with that because I’m expecting a few surprise reveals.

In the livestream they introduced a few new characters and confirmed the return of others such as Darth Rivix, Tau Idair, Arn Peralun, and Lana. Why they made a big deal about Lana’s return I don’t know since she has been in every story update so far. At this point it’s to be expected that she will always be part of the story going forward until and unless they write her out.

They also showed new artwork that will no doubt be the new loading screen when the expansion comes out. The style looks different from their usual so I’m not sure what’s up with that. Maybe they are trying out something new. It’s nice, though Lana and Tau’s face look a little weird in my opinion.

The biggest reveal was made in typical Bioware fashion. Keith came onto the stream to briefly troll Eric Musco before announcing a new trailer that was put together using old footage with a voiceover of Darth Malgus. What really made everyone stand up and take notice was a close up of a pair of eyes that is not old footage.

Based on the color of her skin and the markings on her face many are speculating she could be the Twi’lek in the new artwork holding a lightsaber. This Twi’lek interestingly enough was not part of the new line up of characters that were revealed, which means they want to keep her identity a secret. The question is why? What role does she play in Legacy of the Sith? Who is she? And which side is she on?

I am personally hoping she is neither Jedi nor Sith. Her purple lightsaber could indicate she is either a dark side user or someone who tries to balance both sides. My main Jedi carries a purple lightsaber because I like to think of her as a gray Jedi. So, it would be interesting if they introduce a new character who embodies that practice.

I am also very curious about Darth Malgus’ plans. In the voiceover he talks about how the galaxy has been controlled by the Jedi and the Sith and how he wants to break that cycle. This monologue reminds me a lot of Kreia and how she wanted to destroy the Force to end the cycle of war between the Jedi and the Sith. Is it Malgus’ intentions to destroy the Force? I don’t know, but it does sound like they might be taking inspiration from Kotor 2. And somehow it ties into the mysterious Darth Null. This next expansion definitely sounds intriguing and I’m looking forward to whatever comes next!

New Romances Are Overrated, Yes I Said It

I haven’t been saying much about most of the upcoming changes that will be coming to the game in 7.0 because I would like to wait and observe these changes for myself before I decide how I truly feel about them. I also feel like the few changes I do have an opinion on would just be parroting what others have already said.

However, there is one opinion I would like to share. Yesterday was the dev livestream where they teased some things that will happen in the next expansion, including when Legacy of the Sith will be released. December 14th for those who might not yet know. One thing they teased was that the players would get to kiss someone new, and Jackie was really excited about whoever this person is supposed to be (she was fanning herself during the announcement). The chat in the livestream exploded with this new information and most seem to be genuinely curious and excited about the prospect of another potential love interest. I felt meh about the whole thing.

What’s the point in getting excited about new romances when they never do anything about the relationships they’ve already established? I kind of understand why they would drop any future scenes with Koth because almost nobody likes him and I personally will never romance him, but there are a few who have and are waiting for them to add more.

It’s the same with Theron except most players actually like him. I have no data to back up this claim, but I’m pretty sure most of us have kept him alive through nearly all of our playthroughs and yet the devs seem to cater to those who didn’t. Then there’s Aric Jorgan, Corso Riggs, Doc, Felix, and so many more they’ve introduced since the beginning. What’s the point in adding all these romance options if they’re not even going to write in new scenes for them from time to time? They don’t even have to add new scenes for established couples every time they drop a new story. Just a very short scene once a year would be more than they already do. Instead, they try to pacify everyone by introducing new romance options that will ultimately go nowhere.

Sorry about the rant post I’m just beginning to wonder what is the point in romancing anyone in the game if said romance always falls to the wayside? What do you all think? Is it actually a good idea for the devs to keep introducing new romances or would you rather see them work on already established ones?