Duel on Kuar In 3996 BBY , a duel took place on the planet Kuar between the Sith Lord Ulic Qel - Droma and Mandalore the Indomitable , leader of the Mandalorian Crusaders . In the months following the alliance between fellow Dark Lords of the Sith Exar Kun and Qel - Droma , the Mandalorian clans attempted to begin a new crusade under their warlord ' s banner , believing that they would be able to gain control over the Empress Teta system while the attention of Qel - Droma and his Krath cult was focused elsewhere . Engaging in several small raids to test the strength of the Krath , Mandalore eventually caught the attention of Qel - Droma by destroying an important carbonite smelting station in the Empress Teta system . Wanting to crush the threat that the Mandalorians presented as soon as possible , Qel - Droma agreed to a challenge of single combat on the planet Kuar extended by Mandalore . The duel , as explained by Mandalore , would be fought between Qel - Droma and himself , and the victor would receive full command over their foes ' forces , as well as the seven worlds of Empress Teta . Qel - Droma managed to best Mandalore during the course of the fight , but refused to kill his defeated enemy . Having experienced the fighting ability of Mandalore firsthand , Qel - Droma believed that Mandalore was of more use to him alive . Seeing that his reputation had been preserved , Mandalore pledged his life , honor , and troops to Qel - Droma ' s cause . Prelude . Following the Second Battle of Empress Teta , in which Ulic Qel - Droma and Exar Kun were anointed Lords of the Sith , the two warlords made a plan through which they would expand their forces in an effort to eventually topple the Galactic Republic and destroy the Jedi Order . Part of the plan was for Qel - Droma to use the armies of his Krath cult to begin asserting his control in the systems neighboring Empress Teta . With the Krath military attempting to fulfill their commander ' s orders , the seven worlds of Empress Teta appeared to be overstretched by their campaigns . This , however , did not cause Qel - Droma or his co - commander , Aleema Keto , any concern , for they believed that no enemy other than perhaps a joint Republic – Jedi force could threaten them . Nonetheless , their overconfidence in their own power allowed for another enemy to attack them — the Mandalorians . The Mandalorians were a warrior society whose beliefs were firmly ingrained with their sense of honor . Attempting to gain both territory and honor by attacking the Tetan worlds , the Mandalorian leader , Mandalore the Indomitable , led his soldiers on several raids within the boundaries of Krath space . Eventually , following the destruction of an important carbonite smelting station under Krath control , these raids managed to attract the attention of Ulic Qel - Droma . Believing that he did not have time to deal with mercenaries such as the Mandalorians , Qel - Droma contacted Mandalore and demanded that he and his armies surrender immediately . Mandalore , however , refused Qel - Droma ' s demands , choosing instead to challenge Qel - Droma to a one - on - one fight that would decide the fate of the seven worlds of Empress Teta . Qel - Droma agreed to Mandalore ' s demand for a fight , but also offered up his own terms should he win the fight — if he could defeat Mandalore , then the Mandalorian clans would pledge their allegiance to him , and thus fight under his war standards . Not wanting his honor to be tarnished , Mandalore agreed to Qel - Droma ' s terms . The duel . As part of Mandalore ' s terms , both he and Qel - Droma , along with their respective armies , were to meet on the Deep Core world of Kuar , on the Plains of Harkul , which the Mandalorians had raided and established camps upon years earlier . Believing that he could stunt Qel - Droma ' s use of the Force , Mandalore waited until just before the fight to advise the Sith Lord that the duel would not take place on the ground ; instead , it would take place far above the plains of Harkul on a network of linked chains . Likewise , Mandalore advised those listening that to even the odds against a Jedi , he would be allowed to use his customized Basilisk war droid , while Qel - Droma would not be allowed any type of mount . The duel began with Mandalore attacking Qel - Droma from above , using the advantage afforded to him by his Basilisk mount . Qel - Droma , however , was able to use his lightsaber and Force abilities to destroy Mandalore ' s mount , thus forcing the Mandalorian chieftain to fight hand - to - hand . Realizing that Qel - Droma still held an advantage over him by being allowed the use of his lightsaber , Mandalore challenged Qel - Droma to put away his lightsaber and fight with a Mythosaur axe , the traditional bladed weapon of the Mandalorian forefathers . Believing that he could defeat Mandalore regardless of the weapon he used , Qel - Droma accepted the Mandalorian weapon . The fight continued until , ultimately , Qel - Droma was able to knock Mandalore off of the chain linking , thus defeating the Mandalorian leader . Aftermath . Realizing that he was defeated , Mandalore asked Qel - Droma to kill him , thus putting a proper end to the fight . Qel - Droma , however , had a different plan for the defeated chieftain ; realizing that he would need a trustworthy and combat - capable lieutenant to lead his newly acquired Mandalorian soldiers , Qel - Droma advised Mandalore that he would act as his personal warlord . Thus , with the Mandalorian armies under his command , Qel - Droma began preparations to further his and Kun ' s plans for galactic domination . While Mandalore had accepted his defeat at the hands of the Krath warlord Qel - Droma , several of his supporters had not . One such individual was a young Zeltron Mandalorian named Antos Wyrick , who was devastated that his leader , from whom he had learned martial combat directly , had been defeated . Following Mandalore ' s loss , Wyrick sneaked into Qel - Droma ' s cabin with intentions of determining what gave the Jedi a tactical advantage over the leader of the vaunted Mandalorian clans . All Wyrick found was a worn Jedi robe , which he confiscated for later study with hopes of discovering a genetic secret to Qel - Droma ' s superiority over Mandalore . Unbeknownst to Wyrick at the time , the stolen garment had not been worn by Qel - Droma ; it had belonged to the Sith Lord ' s deceased Jedi Master , the Arkanian Jedi Arca Jeth . Behind the scenes . The duel on Kuar first appeared in the issue " " of the " " series of comics . The duel was conceived and written by author Kevin J . Anderson and was drawn by artist Dario Carrasco , Jr . Anderson used the comic " Edge of the Whirlwind " , along with the duel on Kuar , to re - introduce the Mandalorian clans to the " Star Wars " universe . The duel later appeared in " " during a flashback concerning the origins of a Mandalorian character from the " " comics , the scientist doctor Demagol .