Koth Vortena

Koth Vortena was a male Human from Zakuul, the capital world of the Eternal Empire. He joined the military and reached the rank of captain by the time Immortal Emperor Valkorion was assassinated and his son Arcann took the Eternal Throne, launching an invasion of the larger galaxy. During the Occupation of Denon, Vortena and his crew were ordered to fire on the crowds of rioting civilians and refused, for which Vortena was thrown into brig and relieved of command. His subordinate Len Parvek helped him escape and joined in opposing the new Emperor's rule, after which they spend months escaping Senya Tirall of the Knights of Zakuul who hunted them for the desertion. Later Vortena met and befriended former Sith Intelligence Minister Lana Beniko and the two spend a lot of time opposing the Eternal Empire together on Arron Prime and Altair 3.
Five years into Arcann's rule, Beniko convinced Vortena to free the Outlander responsible for killing Valkorion from being frozen in carbonite. Vortena joined Beniko's bodyguard droid HK-55 in piloting their escape shuttle, though it was shot down, requiring Vortena to improvise and quickly steal a new one. While escaping the pursuit of High Justice Vaylin in the Endless Swamp, the group located the Gravestone - a legendary vessel that could rival the might of the Eternal Fleet - which Vortena quickly grew attached to. They restored the ship to working condition and used it to escape Zakuul along with Senya Tirall, whom Beniko brought in to assist them. The Gravestone possessed an omnicannon that could destroy dozens of Eternal Fleet warships in a single shot, but the vessel was still damaged and Vortena took it for repairs to Asylum shadowport, where his crew joined him in working on the ship. Vortena briefly returned to Zakuul to assist the Outlander and Senya Tirall in their search for the Lady of Sorrows, who turned out to be an advanced artificial intelligence called SCORPIO, returning with her to Asylum. The shadowport was attacked by Arcann's forces, who locked down the docking clamps keeping the Gravestone in place and Vortena fought through Zakuulan forces to free the ship, after which everyone used it to escape into hyperspace and traveled to Odessen where Lana Beniko started an Alliance to oppose the Eternal Empire.
Vortena piloted the Gravestone during a failed mission to take over control of the GEMINI droids that controlled the Eternal Fleet and later led it to face the Fleet again after SCORPIO betrayed the Alliance and revealed the location of the Alliance base to Arcann. During the Battle of Odessen Arcann was dethroned, only for his sister Vaylin to take his place and strike against the Alliance with renewed fervour. Shortly after the Invasion of Voss Vaylin and SCORPIO used subterfuge to get onboard of the Gravestone along with a host of Zakuulan Knights and Horizon Guards. Vortena escaped capture and called the Alliance forces for help, assisted by the Alliance Commander in disarming the quantum bomb that he had installed on board as a last precaution. Vortena was then trapped on Iokath by ARIES along with the rest of the Alliance leadership, and worked on improving the Gravestone with new upgrades obtained on Iokath after everyone escaped that worlds and safely returned to Odessen. He continued working on the upgrades until Vaylin launched another assault on Odessen, forcing everyone to rush to get the ship airborne to provide the Alliance with a fighting chance. During the battle the Alliance Commander struck down Vaylin, after which Vortena took the Alliance leadership to Zakuul on the Gravestone, where he used the Iokath upgrades to break the blockade by the Eternal Fleet, allowing the Commander to claim the Eternal Throne and proclaim the age of the Eternal Alliance.
==Biography==
===Early life and military service===
Koth Vortena was born on a Wild Space planet of Zakuul, the capital of the Eternal Empire ruled by Immortal Emperor Valkorion. He joined the Eternal Empire military, obtaining the rank of captain in the years prior to the Eternal Empire raids and captaining one of the few manned starships that was not crewed by droids. After the assassination of Valkorion in 3636 BBY his son Arcann took the Eternal Throne and launched an invasion of the Core Worlds, attacking both the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic. 
During the Occupation of Denon, Vortena and his starship's crew were send down to Denon's surface to pacify the rioting local population. Ordered to fire on the crowds, Vortena refused and was thrown into brig and relieved of command. However, many of his crew sympathized with his decision and Vortena's surbordinate Len Parvek helped him escape and smuggled Vortena to safety of the Asylum shadowport. Vortena and his crew of deserters joined other exiles from Zakuul in opposing Emperor Arcann's tyranny, welcoming other misfits such as former Republic Corporal Ralo and the snobbish engineer Tora. They also spend months escaping the Knights of Zakuul, in particular one named Senya Tirall. Vortena also met and befriended former Sith Intelligence Minister Lana Beniko and the two spend a lot of time opposing the Eternal Empire together, growing to trust each other during their excursions on planets such as Arron Prime and Altair 3.
===Rescuing the Outlander===
Five years after the Assassination of Valkorion Beniko was able to learn that her ally - the Commander who was blamed for killing the Immortal Emperor, was frozen in carbonite and kept by Arcann in a secured vault that housed his most prized possessions. Beniko mounted a rescue mission and infiltrated the Spire with her astromech droid T7-O1 while Vortena and their bodyguard droid HK-55 waited in the shuttle that served as their escape vehicle. Unfortunately, their presence was detected and Vortena was forced to abandon the original pickup point, evading pursuing vehicles while Beniko and the Outlander were being pursued by the High Justice Vaylin.
Attempting to cut off their escape route, Vaylin destabilized a Sun Generator, which threatened to explode taking innocent lives and Vortena demanded that the Outlander take a detour to disable it before the detonation, despite Beniko's protests. His shuttle was eventually shot down, and making a crash-landing on a nearby shuttle pad, Vortena and HK-55 defended their position from Arcann's forces. They managed to clear their position, after which Vortena stole a nearby Zakuulan shuttle and rushed to pick up Beniko and the Outlander. The two were cornered by Vailyn, when Vortena arrived and open fire upon the High Justice, mowing down her skytrooper escort. Vaylin telekinetically shielded herself with a piece of debris, before throwing it at Vortena's shuttle and causing it serious damage. Vortena managed to keep the shuttle in the air long enough for the Outlander and Beniko to get aboard, after which they fled the capitol.
The internal fires on the shuttle forced Vortena to put in down, crashing in the Endless Swamp. Beniko and Vortena stayed behind to hide evidence of their crash-landing, while the Outlander and HK-55 went ahead to investigate a large technological object that the droid detected on his sensors. When Beniko and Vortena caught up with their companions, HK-55 informed them that the object was not native to Zakuul and Vortena quickly identified it as the Gravestone, the legendary starship that single handedly stood up to the Eternal Fleet. Vortena was convinced that the recent events were a sign that they would beat Arcann, though Beniko disagreed. Leaving Beniko on the ship, Vortena and the Outlander ventured back into the swamp to locate the parts ditched from their shuttle that were now essentially to get the ancient vessel airborne again. Vortena used this opportunity to bring his new ally up to speed with his past in Zakuulan military, thanking the Outlander for preventing the sun generator from causing destruction in the Spire.
The two of them then returned to the Gravestone and got working alongside Beniko to repair it, eventually restoring major systems to working conditions. Their position was soon discovered and the ship came under attack by Skytroopers and Zakuulan Knights. Vortena and HK-55 stayed on the bridge to get the ship ready to fly while Beniko and the Outlander held off the attacking forces. As soon as he was ready, Vortena rushed outside to assist them, where he was shocked to discover that Beniko had recruited his old adversary Senya Tirall to aid them. Vortena initially refused to let her onboard, but with more reinforcements on their way there was no time to argue and the Force-users helped raise the ancient starship from the swamp.
As everyone got onboard and the ship left the atmosphere, the Eternal Fleet appeared to intercept them, and Vortena ordered everyone to their battle stations. The Outlander fired the Gravestone omnicannon, destroying more than two dozen Eternal Fleet warships in a single shot, giving Vortena the confidence that they could win their fight. The Gravestone escaped into hyperspace, but sustained enough damage to require additional repairs, with both the Hyperdrive and the Omnicannon taken out. Hostilities soon erupted on the bridge as Koth and Senya's past history prevented them from working towards a common goal, and as everyone left to cool off the tensions, Vortena set out to repair the Gravestone by himself, while setting the course to Asylum shadowport for repairs.
===Asylum and excursion into Breaktown===
The Gravestone managed to limp and to the shadowport and dock as the Asylum, where Vortena's crew joined him to work on the ship, while Beniko and Tirall went to contact their allies separately. In their absence, Vortena asked the Outlander and HK-55 to search for Tora, who did not return from a supply run to the Free Zone, while he and the others were busy keeping the Gravestone reactor stable. Tora returned safely and joined the rest in working on the ship when Beniko returned with HK-55, having found the droid wandering the streets with his most recent memories missing. Vortena informed her that the droid was accompanying the Outlander to a rendezvous with Tirall's allies and assumed that the turncoat Knight had betrayed them. 
However, Beniko suspected that the mystery contacts were the most present danger and asked HK-55 for his last location before the memory gap. Beniko, Vortena and his crew rallied to that spot, locating a concealed entrance to a hideout of the Scions of Zakuul, where they found the Outlander and Tirall in a standoff with the Scion leader Heskal. Beniko demanded for Heskal and his Scions to stand down, which they did as Heskal revealed to everyone that Valkorion still lived within the Outlander's mind. Vortena believed that Valkorion's survival meant hope for Zakuul and was excited, while Beniko replied that the Immortal Emperor was a threat to all life in the galaxy and vowed to find a way to extract him from the Outlander's mind. At this revelation, Senya Tirall also confessed that she was Arcann and Vaylin's mother, of which everyone present was previously unaware.
Returning to the Gravestone, Koth again expressed hostility at Senya for withholding information and refused to believe that she would fight against her own children. He insisted that Valkorion was never interested in war and that restoring him to the Eternal Throne should be the group's primary goal, to which Beniko again countered that Valkorion was a world devourer. The argument was interrupted by HK-55, who relayed a message from T7-O1 on Zakuul, informing them that the information broker known as "Lady of Sorrows" wished to have a dialogue with the Gravestone s computers. Senya Tirall volunteered to accompany the Outlander back to the Old World of Zakuul in a shuttle, which Vortena again saw as a sign of destiny calling. Before the two left, they discovered a wingmaw infestation inside the ship, which HK-55 volunteed to clean up, and Vortena warned him not to open fire inside the vessel. 
When T7-O1 reported that the two of them were heading inside Breaktown, Vortena deduced that they were going to confront the Heralds of Zildrog and decided to follow them to Zakuul. Catching up with Tirall and the Outlander, Vortena insisted that the leader of Heralds of Zildrog, the Exalted, detested Knights and wouldn't talk to Senya Tirall, arguing that he should accompany the Outlander instead. The two began arguing, with Tirall insisting that she could simply strongarm the Exalted into compliance, and Vortena claiming that as an average Zakuulan, he could reason with them better. The Outlander made their decision and took one of them to meet with the Exalted, while the other was ambushed and brought to the Lady directly. 
The Exalted refused to cooperate and was about to order his Heralds to open fire on the Outlander, but was interrupted by a holocall from Lady's Nautolan aide Thea, who told them that the Lady wished to meet both the Exalted and the Outlander at the Razor. The parties converged on the base of operations of the Lady of Sorrows, who was revealed to be an advanced Artificial intelligence calling herself SCORPIO. She killed the Exalted and his Heralds and agreed to accompany the Outlander, departing Zakuul alongside Vortena and Tirall. When she mentioned that Arcann had taken something from her, Vortena asked to elaborate, but a glare from the droid indicated it was personal and private.
===Battle of Asylum===
Upon their return to the Gravestone, Vortena was hesitant to grant SCORPIO full access to the ship's mainframe. At the same time, Heskal called the Outlander for another meeting at the Scions hideout, where it was revealed that he gave up their location to Arcann, acting in accordance with a prophecy. The Eternal Fleet emerged from hyperspace and opened fire on the shadowport, while the Gravestone remained grounded by Asylum docking clamps. Vortena went to the Control Spar to free the Gravestone, sending HK-55 ahead of him to clear the route. The Outlander soon joined him and Beniko volunteered to hold a choke point to cover their back. Vortena took control of a shuttle to get himself and the Outlander to the high ground, asking them about Valkorion along the way. After rejoining with HK-55 and killing Captain Lazna Delothrea, Vortena and the droid stayed behind to hold off a full battalion of Zakuul Knights using Vortena's unorthodox military training to their advantage.
Meanwhile, the Outlander reached the Control Spar and released the docking clamps, but was confronted by Arcann, who destroyed HK-55 seemingly beyond repair. Despite suffering a great physical toll, the Outlander managed to survive and escape the confrontation with Arcann alive, returning to Gravestone by shuttle just as the vessel was taking off. Vortena took control of the vessel and set it towards the blockade, where despite the omnicannon being offline, he still managed to destroy one Eternal Fleet warship with the Gravestone turbolasers. They narrowly evaded the Eternal Fleet's fire by jumping into hyperspace, just as the Outlander collapsed from sustained injuries. Vortena was at his new ally's side when they woke up and expressed his thanks to Senya for defending his crew from Vaylin during the battle.
===Birth of the Alliance===
The Battle of Asylum served as a rallying cry for those who wished to oppose Arcann, and Beniko called her multiple contacts to gather on the remove planet Odessen, where she laid the foundations of an Alliance against the Eternal Empire. The Gravestone arrived to Odessen, where Senya noted that it was unwise to leave SCORPIO with access to the ship's systems, but Vortena assured her that he had the ship controls locked down. Elements from the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire threw their support behind the new Alliance, establishing a base on Odessen. Vortena relaxed in a new Alliance cantina along with Beniko and her trusted assistant Theron Shan, where he continued to cling to his distrust against Senya Tirall. 
To prevent SCOPRIO from taking control of the Gravestone, Vortena secretly installed a quantum bomb onboard, to destroy the ship and everything within thousands of kilometers around it, should anyone ever access the bridge controls without entering his hidden passcode. The new Alliance made several bold strikes against the Eternal Empire, which attracted new members and volunteers. On Theron Shan's suggestion the Alliance Commander returned to Zakuul to recruit Kaliyo Djannis, an experienced anarchist known as "Firebrand", although Vortena was extremely against the idea of bringing in a known terrorist and later thanked the Commander for ensuring that no civilians were killed by Djannis during her most recent act. The Commander also assisted Republic Special Forces Division Havoc Squad under Major Aric Jorgan in wire-tapping a Zakuulan listening post in the Eternal Swamp.
Combining the information from the new sources allowed SCORPIO to reveal the existence of the GEMINI frequency, by the means of which Arcann controlled the Eternal Fleet. The Alliance planned an attack on the Hyperwave relay station hidden ten kilometers beneath the Spire on Zakuul and connecting the Eternal Throne to the Eternal Fleet, sending the Havoc Squad and Kaliyo Djannis on the mission, one of them providing a diversion for the other's main objective. Unfortunately, the Commander went missing and was unable to join on the mission, so the Alliance had no choice but to proceed regardless. In the process the contact with the infiltration team was lost, prompting the diversion team to attempt a rescue, and Vortena and Tirall found a common ground in their desire to see Kaliyo Djannis removed from Zakuul by any means. At that point, the Spire went into full lockdown with no transmissions coming in or out, making any rescue attempt all but impossible and leaving the Alliance leadership no choice but to wait. 
Relaxing in the Alliance cantina, Vortena engaged in a game of Holo-Sabacc with Theron Shan, Lana Beniko and Gault Rennow. Aric Jorgan and Kaliyo Djannis eventually managed to escape Zakuul and returned to Odessen with a database on the GEMINI droids. Its analysis let SCORPIO reveal that the GEMINI droids were produced from a template called GEMINI Prime in a weapons factory on Darvannis. After the Commander secured the Prime with the help of Mandalorians, SCORPIO determined that plugging the Prime into any of the warships in the Eternal Fleet would enable her to take over the entire network, and with it the Eternal Fleet. After SCORPIO located a lone warship scheduled to recharge its hyperdrive as their target, the Alliance leadership moved to intercept it.
===Arcann's downfall===
Vortena piloted the Gravestone to the location of the Eternal Fleet warship and stayed onboard to jam its communications and safeguard the GEMINI Prime. SCORPIO confused the vessel's targeting systems, allowing Theron Shan to take a shuttle with a strike team consisting of Beniko, Tirall, SCORPIO and the Alliance Commander inside its hangar. Inside, the GEMINI captain separated the Alliance members and during a confrontation with the captain SCORPIO was seemingly destroyed. When that happened, the Gravestone received a transmission from the Eternal Fleet ship that permanently disabled the GEMINI Prime and temporarily knocked out the Gravestone power, allowing the GEMINI captain to use the moment when the jammer was offline to send an alert signal to Zakuul.
The Alliance rescued several prisoners from Zakuul and ejected them in two escape pods, which Koth picked up just as the GEMINI captain set the vessel to self-destruct. The Alliance barely made it back to the Gravestone on their shuttle when the Eternal Fleet arrived and opened fire, just as Vortena took the vessel into hyperspace. SCORPIO then contacted the Alliance and revealed that she faked her death, using the GEMINI network to transport herself to Zakuul, where she took control of the Eternal Throne. Returning to Odessen, the Alliance learned that a portion of the Eternal Fleet remained under Arcann's control and that SCORPIO revealed to him the location of the Odessen base. Vortena took the Gravestone against the Eternal Fleet, thanking the Commander for their actions before a boarding team went to disable Arcann's Eternal Flagship.
During the ensuing battle of Odessen the omnicannon malfunctioned and Vortena send Tora to assist Theron Shan in fixing it. SCORPIO attempted to remotely take over the Gravestone, but Vortena stopped her by locking the droid out of the ship's systems, he later fired a turret on the Eternal Flagship to assist Beniko and the Commander in their fight against skytrooper KJ-931. The Commander defeated Arcann, but Senya Tirall took her son into his shuttle and announced her intention to redeem him. Vortena pleaded the Commander to shoot her down, but Tirall and Arcann escaped nonetheless. At point Theron Shan fired the omnicannon on the Eternal Flagship, creating a massive explosion that wiped out the present portion of the Eternal Fleet and winning the battle for the Alliance.
===The fight against Vaylin===
With Arcann gone, his sister Vaylin allied with SCORPIO and proclaimed herself the new Eternal Empress, carving a path of destruction across the galaxy in search of her family. Her search led her to Voss, where she launched an all-out attack to draw her family out of hiding. The Alliance fleet moved to intercept and engaged the Eternal Fleet, while Vortena joined the battle on the Gravestone, carving a path through the Eternal Fleet while the Alliance raced against Vaylin's forces to reach Arcann at the Shrine of Healing. Senya Tirall ordered the Voss Mystics to use her strength to heal her son in a Voss healing ritual, which let her comatose, allowing Arcann to escape once again while Vortena was unable to stop him.
Not long after the battle, news from Dromund Kaas reported that the Alliance Commander had died. While Vortena was taking the Gravestone against several Eternal Fleet warships, they picked up a distress call from a cargo freighter Ridala. The freighter's captain requested emergency repairs and Vortena allowed the ship to dock inside the Gravestone. However, this turned out to be part of the ruse by SCORPIO and Empress Vaylin, who were inside the freighter with a host of Zakuulan Knights and Horizon Guards and rounded up Koth's crew, taking control of the vessel. 
Vortena himself managed to avoid capture and contacted the Alliance base for help, providing his coordinates. The Alliance fleet moved to intercept and Lana Beniko and the Alliance Commander snuck onto the Gravestone in a boarding pod before meeting with Vortena. Vortena revealed to them that Vaylin's forces risked triggering the quantum bomb that he installed as a precaution against SCORPIO, and the Commander joined him in disabling the fuses, while Beniko provided distraction. After disabling several fuses, Vortena and the Commander reached the bridge, surprised to find it empty of Vaylin and her forces. Vortena disabled the bomb from the bridge console and told Len Parvek to get Tora and the rest of his crew to evacuate in escape pods.
SCORPIO then contacted the bridge and revealed that she knew about the quantum bomb and manipulated Vaylin into leaving the bridge so that Vortena could disable it. She also informed the Commander that Lana Beniko was cornered by Vaylin in the Dark Sanctuary, where the bomb was hidden. The Commander and Vortena arrived in time to save Beniko from Vaylin's lightsaber, but their fighting still triggered the bomb. About to strike the Commander, Vaylin suddenly turned and fled, giving Vortena the chance to disarm the bomb while the Commander disabled the power relays to prevent its early detonation. Just as Theron Shan brought Kaliyo Djannis, Aric Jorgan, Torian Cadera and Vette as reinforcements by landing an Alliance shuttle inside the hangar, SCORPIO took over control of the Gravestone, sending it towards an unknown location and locking the hyperdrive. 
Converging on the bridge, Alliance forces witnessed as the vessel jumped out of hyperspace in an unknown system, surrounded by the entirety of the Eternal Fleet. SCORPIO left the ship in her shuttle and Vortena and the Commander rushed to the omnicannon, but could do nothing as blinding white light engulfed the ship. Alliance members found themselves on the surface of the strange world that computers called Iokath, separated from each other and placed in scenarios that resembled combat simulations. Theron Shan managed to get his cybernetic implant working, contacting everyone and directing them to a structure called the Tributary, as they became aware that not only Vaylin, but every Zakuulan and GEMINI droid from the Eternal Fleet found themselves in a similar situation as well. Along his way Vortena met a Zakuulan naval officer from the Eternal Fleet who was terrified of Vaylin and wanted to surrender, but was killed by local hostile droids. 
When every Alliance member got back together, their position in the Tributary came under attack, forcing them to find another way out of it. Theron Shan realized that even though he was unable to locate the Gravestone, he could still use his cranial implant to remotely pilot the Alliance shuttle that was left in its hangar. However, when everyone got inside the shuttle, SCORPIO contacted the group and revealed that ARIES, the droid that controlled Iokath, raised an energy shield that would destroy any vessel attempting to escape. With ARIES re-charging the weapon that incapacitated them to begin with and promising to use it again on a lethal setting, the only way out was to stop ARIES. SCORPIO revealed the location of ARIES base and Theron Shan dropped off the Commander and Vette there to deal with ARIES, while the rest went to reclaim the Gravestone. SCORPIO herself arrived to help the Commander defeat ARIES, however the capacitors on ARIES' weapon overloaded, threatening the cover the entire world with a pulse of deadly radiation. The Gravestone just barely managed to escape to hyperspace to avoid it and the Alliance leadership returned safely to Odessen.
===Taking on the Eternal Throne===
Using blueprints and data files obtained on Iokath, the Alliance saw the opportunity to optimize the Gravestone weapons and defense systems. Unfortunately, installing the new upgrades has proved far more complicated than anticipated, leaving the Gravestone dry-docked for an extended period of time while mechanics frantically worked around the clock to integrate the new enhancements. The vessel was still in dry-dock when Vaylin launched an assault on Odessen, and without it the Alliance fleet was unable to prevent Vaylin's ground forces from landing. The Eternal Empire deployed a massive number of troops and ground vehicles on the surface, with most of them focused on taking the Gravestone. Vortena and his crew worked frantically and managed to finish the last of the updates just in time to destroy a large number of walkers that threatened to overwhelm the personnel defending the Gravestone, after which the ship took off to face the Eternal Fleet. The Alliance Commander was able to land a killing blow on Vaylin, and Vortena reported that the entire Eternal Fleet retreated the moment she died.
However, with the Eternal Throne empty, the GEMINI captains have gone rogue, bombarding the capital worlds of Coruscant, Dromund Kaas and Zakuul into rubble. To claim the Eternal Throne and stop the carnage, the Alliance forces departed for Zakuul on the Gravestone. Dropping out of hyperspace, they witnessed the Spire blockaded by the Eternal Fleet, though Gravestone Iokath upgrades allowed Vortena the to breach the blockade. The Commander traveled down to the surface and made their way to the Spire, where they claimed the Eternal Throne and pacified the Fleet. Valkorion attempted to take over the Commander's body, but with the use of Dramath's holocron he was defeated once and for all, putting an end to his millennia-long existence. The Commander then proclaimed the age of the Eternal Alliance, unifying the military of Zakuul and the Eternal Fleet with the cause of the Alliance, which Vortena continued to be a part of.
===Eternal Alliance===
By the time of the outbreak of the third Galactic War, Vortena and his crew were in command of a Thranta-class corvette, patrolling the route between Odessen and Zakuul. The latter planet had descended into near-anarchy by that point, which the Exchange crime syndicate had taken advantage of. Vortena asked for, and received, permission from the Alliance Commander to lead a flotilla of Alliance ships in intercepting further Exchange members bound for his homeworld in order to cripple their presence.
==Personality and traits==
Koth Vortena possessed a deterministic outlook on life, strongly believing that every fortunate event that happened to him was a sign of destiny. Being a native of Zakuul, he was a strong supporter of Emperor Valkorion, knowing only prosperity under his reign and deflected claims of those who knew him as a world devourer. However, he also possessed a strong moral code and was opposed to hurting innocents, be they natives of Zakuul or otherwise. He quickly took to opposing the new Emperor Arcann after refusing a direct order to open fire on civilians. Despite joining the Alliance dedicated to bring down Arcann's oppressive reign, Vortena by no means agreed that the ends justified the means, he would call the Outlander on any actions that hurt civilians and would not tolerate consistent loss of life in service to their cause. He was fond of Lana Beniko and her droid HK-55 and held a strong prejudice against Senya Tirall, which over time softened but did not go away completely, and SCORPIO, which eventually proved completely justified. Even though he was compassionate to the innocents, Vortena strongly desired vengeance against those who wronged him, calling on the Outlander to shoot down Senya and Arcann's shuttle and to destroy SCORPIO when given the chance on Iokath.Star Wars: The Old Republic: Knights of the Fallen Empire
==Behind the scenes==
Koth Vortena appears in Star Wars: The Old Republic expansions Knights of the Fallen Empire and Knights of the Eternal Throne as a major companion character voiced by Ike Amadi. First mentioned on the game's official site, his character blurb originally referred to him as "The Exiled General" before being changed to "The Exiled Officer." His storyline and ultimate fate depends greatly on the player, whose continuous Dark Side choices can send Koth Vortena on a drastically different path. He is portrayed as bisexual through romance options available to male and female player characters. However, he will close the door on the romance if player continues to flirt with both him and Lana Beniko.
===Gameplay alternatives===
*During Fallen Empire Chapter III: Outlander, player can either shut down the Sun Generator in a Light Side option, to Vortena's appreciation, or let it explode in a Dark Side option. In the latter case Vortena will angrily confront the player about all the deaths caused by the explosion.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter IV: The Gravestone, player has the option to allow Zakuulan exiles to join them aboard the Gravestone as a Light Side option, or either deny them aid or order HK-55 to kill them as a Dark Side option, which again causes Vortena to strongly disapprove.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter VII: Lady of Sorrows, Vortena will attempt to convince the player to take him along for the meeting with the Exalted instead of Senya Tirall, while the companion not chosen by the player will be captured by the Lady of Sorrows and taken to her headquarters unharmed. If player chooses Vortena, he will attempt to negotiate an agreement with the Exalted before it falls through.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter VIII: Taking Flight, either Lana Beniko or Koth Vortena will come to player's aid during their second fight with Arcann, depending on who is romanced or has higher affection. Koth is shocked to see the player unleash Valkorion's power or saves the player after being stabbed by Arcann if Valkorion's offer is refused.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter IX: The Alliance, player has to choose between initiating a romance with either Koth Vortena, Lana Beniko or Theron Shan provided they have enough [Flirt] options, although Vortena will automatically reject the idea if the player previously allowed Sun Generator to explode. Should the player later resume their original romance with a returning class companion, they will have to break up with Vortena.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter X: Anarchy in Paradise, player can make a Dark Side choice and allow Kaliyo Djannis to detonate bombs throughout the Spire, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths. This will enrage Koth Vortena and he will angrily confront the player, who can attempt to claim it was an unfortunate accident and convince Vortena to stay, which will only work if they never caused harm to civilians in previous chapters. Otherwise, Koth Vortena will be fed up with player's actions and attempt to steal the Gravestone. Tora will fight him off, and will instead depart on the shuttle with most of his crew, including Len Parvek and possibly Ralo, depending on player's earlier choices. Tora reports the news to the Alliance Command, who will contact his shuttle on a holochannel. Lana Beniko will plead Vortena to stop and he will respond that there is no way back for him, while the player can either ask to talk this through, dismiss Vortena as unimportant or threaten to kill him for the betrayal. Afterwards, their shuttle jumps into hyperspace and Koth Vortena will be absent from all cutscenes and interactions up until the battle of Odessen, while Tora will become the new captain of the Gravestone.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter XI: Disavowed, if Koth Vortena remained with the Alliance, he will comment on the player's decision regarding their new Zakuulan exiles. If the player sends Havoc Squad to aid the exiles, Vortena will question why the Alliance is sending civilians to fight its battles, while if the player refuses to send aid, he will complain that the Alliance isn't doing enough to help them.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter XIII: Profit and Plunder, if Koth Vortena remained with the Alliance, he will support sharing the plundered wealth with the world who suffered under the Eternal Empire and will disapprove if the player invests it into Gault Rennow's scheme instead.
*During Fallen Empire Chapter XVI: The Battle of Odessen, if Koth Vortena remained with the Alliance, he will storm out of the victory celebration if the player let Senya Tirall escape with Arcann without attempting to stop them. If the player tried to stop Senya, Koth will simply just state how a shame it was that the Outlander could not stop her and Arcann. If he abandoned the Alliance, Tora will pilot the Gravestone instead. When she leaves the bridge to help Theron Shan with the omnicannon, Vortena will sneak his way onboard along with his crew and pretend to have forgiven the player, claiming that stopping Arcann is all that really matters. However after the battle is over, he will reveal that it was just a ploy to take the ship, as he is worried the player would use it to destroy Zakuul. Putting Tora and Theron in handcuffs, Vortena ejects them in an escape pod, after which he hijacks the Gravestone and jumps into hyperspace with it, robbing the Alliance of its best weapon against the Eternal Fleet.
*During Eternal Throne Chapter I: Wrath and Ruin, if Koth Vortena stole the Gravestone, he will participate in the battle against the Eternal Fleet independently to save lives instead of aiding the Alliance fleet.
*During Eternal Throne Chapter III: Dark Reunions, if Koth Vortena stole the Gravestone, he will reluctantly contact the Alliance for help after the vessel is boarded by Vaylin and her forces. After he disables the quantum bomb, player has the options to either spare Vortena's life or kill him for the betrayal on the spot.
*During Eternal Throne Chapter IV: Where Dreams Die, if player had spared Vortena's life, they can choose to either act forgiving to him or openly remind him of his place as a traitor. If player had killed Koth Vortena in the previous chapter, Theron Shan will question his absence and the player will announce his death to the rest of the crew.
*During Eternal Throne Chapter V: Ascension, if player had spared Vortena's life, he will leave the Alliance once again after the return from Iokath, believing he no longer has any place in it.
*During Eternal Throne Chapter VIII: End Times, if Koth Vortena had abandoned the Alliance or been killed, Hylo Visz will take his place as the captain of the Gravestone throughout this and the following chapter.
*During Eternal Throne Chapter IX: The Eternal Throne, if Koth Vortena remained with the Alliance and was romanced by the player, they will share a brief scene together before the player travels down to Zakuul's surface. If he had had abandoned the Alliance or been killed, Hylo Visz will pilot the Gravestone in his place.
==Appearances==
*Star Wars: The Old Republic: Galactic Strongholds
*Star Wars: The Old Republic: Knights of the Fallen Empire 
*Star Wars: The Old Republic: Knights of the Eternal Throne
*Star Wars: The Old Republic: Onslaught
==Sources==
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==Notes and references==
==External links==
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Category:Captains
Category:Eternal Alliance individuals
Category:Eternal Empire individuals
Category:Galactic Republic individuals
Category:Humans
Category:LGBTQIA+ individuals
Category:Males
Category:Military personnel
Category:Pilots