A new Star Wars novel reveals that Darth Maul may have been involved in (or at least present during) the events of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Fallen Order takes place during the period between Star Wars‘ prequel trilogy and its original trilogy, in the time after Order 66 caused the death of most Jedi throughout the galaxy. By itself, it’s a pretty insular, standalone story, but the complications of the Star Wars timeline mean it intersects with many other characters’ storylines, even if they don’t always appear on screen.
Darth Maul wouldn’t normally be associated with Fallen Order and its sequel Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. But despite evidence to the contrary in The Phantom Menace, Maul is alive and well during that time. While Maul’s life after Episode I has already been well explored in comics, novels, and animated series, his own timeline is somewhat confused, and clear answers on his activities at a particular time aren’t always available. However, a newly released novel suggests that Maul may have been around for the events of Fallen Order, and that Cal Kestis was in more danger than he even realized.
Darth Maul Was On Dathomir During Fallen Order
E.K. Johnston’s Star Wars novel Crimson Climb confirms that Darth Maul had a base of operations on Dathomir during the events of Fallen Order. Crimson Climb, which hit shelves on October 10, 2023, tells the origin story of Qi’ra, a crime lord who debuted in the 2018 film Solo: A Star Wars Story. During Solo, set in 10 BBY (Before the Battle of Yavin, or the destruction of the Death Star at the end of A New Hope), it’s revealed that Maul has a hand in several of the galaxy’s biggest and most powerful crime syndicates. Qi’ra runs off to join him near the end of that film.
However, Crimson Climb focuses more on Qi’ra’s life before Solo, and it also touches on Maul’s crime empire during that time. It clearly establishes that Maul was in total control over five of the galaxy’s biggest crime syndicates – Crimson Dawn, the Hutts, Black Sun, the Crymorah, and the Pykes – during the time between the prequels and the original trilogy. It also reveals that his base of operations was located on none other than Dathomir, a planet that Cal Kestis visits during the events of Fallen Order in 14 BBY.
Cal visits Dathomir four years before the events of Solo and one year before the events of Crimson Climb, which is set in 13 BBY. The BBY dating system works similarly to the real-world BCE system, with years before a pivotal event in history counted backwards down to 0. By this time, Maul has already established control over five distinct crime syndicates, with headquarters on his home world of Dathomir.
Cal visits Dathomir during his journey to find the Jedi Eno Cordova’s holocron, completely unrelated to Maul’s doings there. A message in the Bogano Vault leads Cal to follow Eno’s footsteps, which eventually leads him to Dathomir. There, he runs up against the Nightsisters, a clan of witches who draw on the planet’s natural dark energy for their magic power. He undergoes a series of trials orchestrated by the Nightsister Merrin, before realizing that she’s been manipulated by the power-hungry Jedi Tarin Malicos to hold the Jedi responsible for the death of her sisters. Together, Merrin and Cal defeat Tarin, before taking to the stars together.
Cal and the player are both led to believe that Merrin and her Nightsisters are the greatest threat to their safety on Dathomir during the events of Fallen Order. But as it turns out, Darth Maul is almost certainly present on Dathomir at the same time, lurking in the shadows behind his all-powerful interplanetary criminal empire. It’s impossible to say whether Maul is actively aware of the Jedi Cal’s presence on his planet, although it’s certainly possible he was able to sense Cal’s existence through his connection with the Force. Thankfully for Cal, Maul had bigger fish to fry by that point in his life.
Dathomir Is Maul’s Home World
Maul establishing a base of criminal operations on Dathomir makes sense, considering he was actually born there. Maul is a member of the Zabrak species, which is divided into two subspecies respective of their dual home worlds: Dathomir and Iridonia. He was born on Dathomir in 54 BBY, under a different name he has since forgotten. The son of Nightsister Talzin, Maul had a strained relationship with his mother. Talzin was busy with her Nightsister duties, and made little time for Maul and his brothers. The young Maul suffered from anger issues, which were later exploited by Darth Sidious in an attempt to train him as a Sith lord.
Maul then goes on to chase down Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn throughout Episode I. At the end of that movie, he defeats Qui-Gon, but is bifurcated in the effort. However, it was revealed in The Clone Wars animated series that Maul survives. After trying and failing to avenge himself by killing the surviving Kenobi, Maul turns his back on his Sith lord training, but retains his ever-present desire for control. It’s that desire that eventually leads him to become a crime boss, and his connection with his home world that leads him to base his operation on Dathomir.
Unfortunately, there’s no way of knowing exactly what Darth Maul was doing during the events of Fallen Order, at least not yet. As far as anyone knows, he never even realizes that Cal is present on Dathomir, let alone what he’s trying to do. Maul isn’t present in the game itself, and by the time it takes place, he’s left behind his Sith past in favor of a life of crime. However, if Merrin’s Dathomirian origins take her and Cal back to her home world in a potential sequel to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Survivor, there’s a very real chance Cal could come face-to-face with Darth Maul himself.
