In an earlier blog, I addressed the issue of the mysterious and grammatically challenged Chiss bartender from Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast and, possibly also, Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy. I suggested that someone in an official capacity wrote a backstory for him, and also solved the mystery of whether he is Red-eye Baldarek or not. I also suggested that he might be material for a future 'What's the Story' entry.

But the Chiss bartender is but one out of a host of unnamed characters to appear in the Dark Forces saga. The saga presently counts Dark Forces, Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight, Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith, Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast, Jedi Knight and the three Dark Forces novellas by William Dietz. These characters are not only background characters or cannon- or saber-fodder for Kyle, but in many cases characters that have some kind of impact - be it a profound one or a miniscule one - on the storyline of the respective games or novellas.

Given that these are very likely to be canonical, I think it would actually be interesting with some backstories for these characters and, at least, some names (or designation numbers in the case of droids). Maybe it's just me, but whenever I play one of those games or read one of the novellas (I've read them a couple of times now), I can't help but starting to wonder what this or that person or droid is called and where he, she or it came from. I mean, each character is the potential topic of one or more short stories, RPG-scenarios, or just an interesting databank entry.

The nameless people
Anyway, here's a list of some of the intriguingly mysterious unnamed characters that appear in the Dark Forces saga provided with links to their articles on Wookieepedia and with appearance information (see abbreviations at the bottom of this entry) as well as a wee information on their role in the Dark Forces saga. All of the names/titles are either conjectural since they haven't been given any canonical names yet, or they are taken from some of the descriptive terms used in the novellas for characters who are never given any name.

Aqualish thug (DFR)
The Aqualish thug worked with a Trandoshan bountyhunter called Porg. While he, Porg, and some other bountyhunters were chasing Kyle Katarn in the sewers of Nar Shaddaah, the Aqualish thug accidentally shot and killed Porg, whereupon he was killed himself by Kyle.

This character is quite important, since it is largely because of him that Kyle makes it out of the sewers alive. He is also intriguing because he actually seems shocked at accidentally killing a colleague, so perhaps there's more to him than just a cynical bountyhunter.

Baruk's RA-7 droid (JO)
Baruk's R7 droid worked in his garbage hauling facility. He encountered Kyle Katarn when Katarn infiltrated the facility and begged Katarn not to deactivate him. He also warned Katarn to watch out for Baruk.

Like the thugs mentioned below, the droid is probably intended as a kind of humoristic thing. It does not have any impact on the development of the storyline of the game. When the player approaches the droid, the droid will beg not to be deactivated (obviously a reference to C-3P0), warn Kyle Katarn to watch out for Reelo Baruk, or - and most amusingly - assure Kyle that he is not bad, but that the one who is bad is Reelo Baruk. Why does the droid seem to dislike Baruk? It almost seems as if Baruk has been mistreating the droid, doesn't it? How did the droid end up there in the first place?

Baruk's thugs (JO)
There were many thugs in Baruk's bar on Nar Shaddaa, but three of them actually insulted Kyle Katarn before everybody in the bar attacked him. The three, a Gran and two Weequays, were hanging out around a table, probably talking and having a few drinks. They were eventually killed by Kyle.

These thugs do not really have any impact on the storyline of the game, but if the player approaches them, Kyle will ask the thugs what's going on, how they're doing, or if he can join them. Every time, the thugs will respond with an insult. This is proably intended as a kind of humoristic thing by the developers of the game. But there could be some interesting background stories behind them. Obviously, they have been hired by Baruk to kill Kyle Katarn, so their hostility towards him must be genuine. It would be interesting to see the scene in their persepctive (and to know what they were talking about), and to know how they ended up in the employ of Baruk.

Blenjeel shipwreck survivor (JA)
Jaden Korr was sent to Blenjeel to search for suvivors of a shipwrecked merchant ship. Korr arrived just in time to see the last survivor get eaten by a giant sandworm.

This character appears in a cutscene only, but he is part of the reason why one has to do the Blenjeel level. There's lots of potential for exploring the entire Blenjeel thing here. I mean what exactly were those merchants doing there in the first place? How did the guy manage to survive for so long on Blenjeel? Well, how long was he actually there?

Jedi praxeum protocol droid (JO)
This protocol droid, who looked like C-3PO, worked in Luke skywalker's Jedi Academy. It greeted Kyle Katarn when he arrived there to retrieve his lightsaber.

Okay, this is a quite marginal character. It looks like C-3PO, but it isn't since it's voice is different. I don't know how much flesh there would be on this character, but it would be nice to know it's name/number and what its function is in the Academy.

Jedi student (JA)
The Jedi student studied at Luke's Jedi Academy. Rosh Penin once complained to him about the way Kyle was holding him back. The student later participated in the Battle of Korriban against the Disciples of Ragnos.

The Jedi student's appearance is based on the generic Jedi student sprite from Jedi Outcast, so in Outcast there's like hundreds of him. But in Academy he appears to be just one character. There are, as far as I know, no other characters with the same appearance. But did he actually study at the academy during the Desann crisis or did he arrive along with Jaden, Rosh and the other new students? What kind of person is he? It would also be interesting to know about his deeds during the Battle of Korriban. Will he survive or is he killed? I've often wondered which other missions the other students are sent on during the crisis of the Disciples of Ragnos. Is this student sent on any missions and does he encounter the Disciples? There's enough material here for an entire novel about this guy.

Kubazian landlord (DFS)
The Kubazian landlord owned a building complex in Trid on Danuta, where he rented a room to Jan Ors, who was secretly spying on the former Imperial soldier Kyle Katarn.

Granted, the landlord plays a very small role, but, nevertheless, he does interact with Jan Ors, who is one of the main characters in the saga, which makes him more than just a background character. It would be quite interesting to know how a Kubaz ends up on Danuta as a landlord. How did he azquire the building complex? Does he own more? Is he a shark or an honest person? What happens to him afterwards?

Lando's R5 unit (JO)
Lando kept all the access codes for all doors in Cloud City hidden inside an red old R5-unit, which was itself hidden away. Lando told about this droid to Kyle Katarn who had agreed to help Lando fight off the mercenaries, Imperials and Reborn that had invaded Cloud City. Kyle found the droid who unlocked a series of doors for him so he could move on.

This droid is important not only to the storyline of the game but also to the Expanded Universe in general. It must be, since Lando used it as a kind of "universal key". Why would he do that? The droid sees some action, since the level is swarming with enemies for Kyle to fight, while he and the droid fight their way through Cloud City. It would be interesting to know if the droid survives or if it is destroyed. Perhaps Lando will give it a memory-wipe and reassign it some other function or maybe he'll sell it. Also, does the droid have a personality like R2-D2 or is it just a mindless mechanical greasebucket?

Mining Guild elders (JA)
The mining guild elders were a group of humans representing a mining guild who were sent to negotiate with a local Hutt crimelord on Nar Kreeta. They were captured by him and pitted against a rancor. Jaden Korr arrived just in time to rescue them from the rancor though.

Lots of potential here, and since the main objective of the Nar Kreeta level is to rescue them, they are quite important characters. They are intriguing in many ways. Firstly, which mining guild do they represent, what was their problem with the Hutt, and how did they get kidnapped? Secondly, it is possible to complete the level even though some of them get eaten by the rancor. So how many will survive? Will some of them meet their doom in the belly of the beast, or does Korr manage to save them all? Also, what do they have to go through before he rescues them? They must be held captive for at least a couple of days.

Moisture farmer (JA)
The moisture farmer lived on Tatooine. He overheard a conversation about the Disciples of Ragnos and recorded it on his R5-unit. Subsequently, he got scared and sold the droid to some Jawas. The New Jedi Order dispatched Kyle Katarn and Jaden Korr to Tatooine to retrieve the droid.

This character only mentioned in one of the mission briefings, but it is because of him that Kyle and Korr are send off to find the droid. There's lots of potential here. Firstly, who is he? Secondly, there's the entire thing with the droid and the Ragnos-guys. What exactly did he hear and why did he decide to record it? What happened to scare him into getting rid of the droid? How did the New Jedi Order learn about the droid anyway? Did he contact them after all? Will he survive or will some New Reborn assassinate him?

Nar Kreeta Hutt (JA)
The Nar Kreeta Hutt resided on Nar Kreeta where he had a large underground complex. There he arranged bizarre betting games in which people could bet on how long captives would last in a fight against a rancor. He kidnapped some mining guild elders, whom Jaden Korr was dispatched to Nar Kreeta to find. Korr managed to rescue them from the rancor.

We never meet the Hutt in the game, but he is mentioned, and since he is behind the kidnapping and the ownder of the rancor, he certainly is important to the storyline. As far as I remember, he is described as a crimelord, so it would be interesting to know exactly what kind of crime empire he controls. Also how did he rise to power, and where did he get the rancor from? Who works for him? What kind of people does he consort with - anyone that we know from the movies or the Expanded Universe? There's lots of stuff to explore here. Moreover, it is actually possible to kill the rancor if one takes the time to do it, but the rancor apparently respawns. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the killing of the rancor cannot be made canonical. Did Korr kill it or is Korr too much of an animal lover to kill the poor creature?

Ortolan monk (DFS)
The Ortolan monk lived in Trid on Danuta and had a short conversation with Jan Ors.

Playing an even smaller role than the landlord, the Ortolan monk is interesting simply because he's a monk. It would be interesting to know why an Ortolan would become a monk on Danuta, wouldn't it?

R5 unit (JA)
This was the moisture farmer's R5-unit which Jaden Korr had to fight his way through hordes of Tusken Raiders to find.

This droid constitutes the objective of a mission, so it's quite central to the storyline of the game. What is the background of this droid? Is it the same droid as the one Lando stored all his access codes on (it's the same sprite at least)? How did the Jawas and subsequently the Tuskens treat him? And why exactly did the Tuskens attack the Jawas that had bought it?

Rodian bouncers (JO)
The Rodian bounders worked in Reelo Baruk's bar on Nar Shaddaah. When Kyle Katarn entered the bar, they confiscated all of his weapons save his lightsaber. Later, they attacked him along with everybody else in the bar, but were killed.

These are quote important to the storyline of the game, since it is because of them that the player loses all his or her weapons and has to start all over again picking up weapons. They're obviously part of the plot to kill Kyle. Come to think of it, it would be interesting to know how Baruk came up with the plan, and how he knew that Kyle would show up in his bar. The Rodians are completely identical - obviously because of the limitations of the game - but it would be quite funny if they were actually canonically identical. Maybe there are twins or clones or something? Since they are Rodians, like Baruk himself, they maybe related to him somehow.

Spaceport worker (JA)
The spaceport worker worked on Zonju V, He was in possession of some information on the Disciples of Ragnos which he wanted to pass on to the Jedi. Jaden Korr was sent to meet him, but unfortunately the spaceport worker was assassinated by a mercenary.

A central character to the Zonju V swoop-tastic mission, this character remains somewhat of a mystery. Okay, Korr will probably never know what the information was, but that's no reason for us not to know it. How does the spaceport worker get the information? Is he perhaps a New Republic spy or an information broker? He obviously knows that the Disciples of Ragnos are out to get him, so what's up with him? Does he have a family?

Ugnaught worker (JO)
This gnaught worker worked in Cloud City. He operated some kind of incinerator or something that Kyle Katarn had to actually go through in order to continue on his quest. Katarn mindtricked the Ugnaught into opening a door that gave him access to the incinerator.

What I've always wondered is why Kyle has to mindtrick the Ugnaught. I would suspect the Ugnaught to just open the door for Kyle since Kyle is helping Lando liberate Cloud City. Did the Remnant bribe or threaten thus Ugnaught? Why did he not just let Kyle through? And what's in the little lunchbox of his?

Warden (JO)
The Warden worked at the mining facility on Artus Prime. He was in possession of access codes to some of the main security doors there. In the Battle of Artus Prime, Kyle Katarn forced the Warden to open up the security doors. Having opened the door, the Warden uttered "Enough of this charade" and tried to kill Kyle. He ended up getting killed by Kyle in stead.

This character is not only important to the storyline of the game, but he's also extremely funny. He has this stereotypical British accent and Imperial arrogance. What the player has to do is literally to arrest him and, walking behind him, take him through the base so he can unlock the doors. The guy even puts his hands up in the air and surrenders. We know that he got killed by Kyle, but how did he end up on Artus Prime? It's obviously not the ideal place for an arrogant Imperial officer, is it?

Yavin Runner pilot (JA)
The Yavin Runner pilot flew Yavin Runner III which transported Jaden Korr, Rosh Penin and a bunch of other new Jedi students to Skywalker's Academy on Yavin.

He wears the uniform of a Rebel soldier like the ones getting massacred in the beginning of A New Hope. Was he once a Rebel, or was that unform reused by the New Republic? Is he satisfied transporting Jedi students back and forth or does he have something bigger in mind? Maybe he's just wating around to retire or something. What's his story?

More mysteries
There are more mysterious nameless characters in the games and novels. Who's the frustrated woman who scolds Mara Jade in Mysteries of the Sith while Jade is looking for Abron Mar. Or how about those two droids in the locker in the Mag-Lev train on Corellia in Jedi Academy? What the hell are they doing there? And the Jedi trainer(s) from Jedi Outcast and Jedi Academy? Is there anything interesting to say about the other guard in Baruk's Bar who wil interact with the player in Jedi Outcast?

Some names, please
I think all of these nameless characters are, or could be made interesting enough, if someone with the proper authority would come up with names and backstories for them. Or perhaps they could also be material for What's the Story. As with the bartender, these nameless characters all provide the opportinity to expand the universe even further and to produce some interesting shortstories, databank entries, comicbooks, or RPG-materials.

Appearance "tags"
DFS = Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire
DFR = Dark Forces: Rebel Agent
JK = Dark Forces II: Jedi Knight
JO = Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
JA = Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy