Species: Human Sex: Male Age: 64 (at time of death) Hair Color: Red (later gray) Eye Color: Blue Height: 1.85 meters Homeworld: Taanab Political Affiliation: Old Republic/Jedi Knights Weapon(s) of Choice: Lightsaber (purple blade) Vehicle of Choice: modified Corellian Engineering DS-9 class freighter Iron Angel
Jedi Knight

Rabin Dreadstar never doubted his destiny - to spread peace and justice throughout the galaxy as a Jedi.  As the Padawan of Jedi Master Norrin Dade, Dreadstar excelled in his training.  After attaining the status of Jedi Knight, Dreadstar was often paired with another of Dade's former pupils, the young Jedi Knight named Donnovan Sunrider.  Sunrider - who could trace his lineage back to the fabled Jedi training vessel Chu'unthor - complemented Dreadstar quite well, the two making an effective partnership.

For a time, Dreadstar's mind and personality was sublimated by that of a dead Rig'hal named Valtaine.  In Dreadstar's body, Valtaine met and married a woman named Marissa Kale, and the two had a daughter named Kelody.  Dreadstar was able to exorcise Valtaine's spirit upon Marissa's death, and took responsibility for Kelody, treating her as his own daughter.  Due to this unique circumstance, the Jedi Council allowed Rabin to assist in Kelody's formative Jedi training personally, with the intent that he would take her as his Padawan when she was older.  When the self-declared Emperor Palpatine orchestrated his purge of the Jedi, Dreadstar sent his child into hiding, not even knowing her location himself.  He trusted in the Force to help him find her when the time was right.

Dreadstar managed to stay ahead of Imperial forces for roughly three years, doing his best to spread justice as he went. Dreadstar booked passage on the smuggling ship Iron Angel, and the ship found itself under attack by Imperial fighters.  In the course of escaping, the Angel's crew was killed, and Dreadstar made his way to a friendly port.  He was there approached by Captain S'sko, the head of the smuggling organization that owned the Iron Angel.  Thrown together in their escape from Imperial forces, Dreadstar and S'sko's crew ended up on the planet Rigadoré, where Dreadstar attempted to destroy an Imperial research facility that was developing a potentially genocidal form of terraforming.  S'sko and company reluctantly helped Dreadstar break into the compound, and were killed one by one.  Dreadstar himself faced the Imperial lieutenant Ral Vekta in personal combat.  During the course of the battle, the terraforming sequence was initiated and the control panel destroyed - the sequence could not be stopped.  Dreadstar and Vekta each managed to escape, Dreadstar in the Iron Angel, but Rigadoré's inhabitants - over one million in number - were all slain.

Shamed by his failure, Dreadstar went into hiding on the planet Winath.  He remained there for 15 years, becoming something of a joke to the locals, as he drowned his sorrows and failure in alcohol.  During this time, he allowed a smuggling group headed by Skeevo Phlattus to use the Iron Angel in exchange for Phlattus paying his room and board at a local hostel.  Also during this time, Dreadstar became the focus of the independent droid Tom Servo's attentions, much to his chagrin.

Shortly before the Battle of Yavin, Dreadstar was approached by a young man named Trevor Vanth.  Vanth had experienced a prophetic dream featuring Dreadstar, and had sought out the elder man to teach him the ways of the Jedi.  After a bit of reluctance, Dreadstar felt a renewal of purpose and agreed to train Trevor.  After a few short weeks of training, in which Trevor made great strides, the pair learned that the Empire had rethought the Rigadoré experiment and had chosen to renew them with an eye towards developing the terraforming method as a weapon that would later leave a world ripe for Imperial colonization.  The Jedi and his new apprentice set out to stop this plan.

Over the course of Trevor's training, however, the Emperor felt Dreadstar's re-emergence through the Force.  Learning of Dreadstar's identity, Palpatine researched the Jedi's background and found information concerning Kelody.  He dispatched his agent Mara Jade to impersonate Kelody (as she could pass for Dreadstar's child as an adult) and slay the Jedi and his pupil.  Posing as Kelody, Jade pretended to join Dreadstar and Vanth on their quest.  Finally, on Rigadoré, she managed to steal Vanth's lightsaber.  While the two Jedi were separated, Jade attacked Dreadstar who was reluctant to fight back, given that he had believed the young woman to be his daughter.  After a brief confrontation, Jade struck down Dreadstar with his pupil's own lightsaber.

Dreadstar clung to life for a brief time, watching as Trevor barely managed to hold his own against Mara Jade.  As the new installation collapsed, Dreadstar faded away, becoming one with the Force.  As Trevor made his getaway in the Iron Angel, Rabin's spirit appeared before him.  He asked his apprentice to carry on, giving his blessing for Trevor to proudly carry Rabin's lightsaber as a replacement for his own.  Before fading away for the last time, Rabin  asked Trevor to find the real Kelody and tell her that her father died loving her.

Rabin Dreadstar is another character who came about as a result of indecision.  When starting the campaign, I couldn't decide between two character templates.  The Fallen Jedi template provided a tragic character whose struggle for redemption could provide inspiration for many adventures and actions.  On the other hand, one of my favorite elements of Star Wars (movies, novels and comics) has always been Luke's journey of discovery as he came into his own as a Jedi...the Young Jedi template provided that take.  So, I compromised...the Fallen Jedi that I had in mind became the Young Jedi's mentor.  I combined two names that sounded good to me...Trevor Rabin, the guitarist from Yes, and Vanth Dreadstar, the lead character of the comic Dreadstar...to come up with their names.

Dreadstar is obviously a tragic figure.  While the Rigadoré tragedy was an accident, he blames himself just the same.  It is only the arrival of Trevor Vanth that reawakens his sense of purpose, and gives him hope that by training the younger man, he will earn redemption for Rigadoré.  He's included here partly because I think he's a great character and partly because he's a character who can fit in well anywhere from the prequel era to right around the time of the Battle of Yavin.  Keep watching the Wraith Fiction section...I have a few Rabin Dreadstar stories running around my head just waiting to be told.