The recent Shadow of Revan expansion announcement trailer makes us believe that Revan is the big bad but there is more to it, I am sure of it. I seriously doubt that BioWare would make Revan so shallow, it is true that he always walked on the edge of dark and light but making him a super mad villian that wants to turn everything to ash is just too... simplistic - he was never purely evil, he always had his own, bigger agenda in a grand scheme of things. When he became the sith lord for the first time do you remember how he left the infrastructure of the core worlds that he conquered unscratched back in KotOR? Anyway, I think I know how it will all work out as we progress through the expansion - whether I am right is a different matter entirely that remains to be seen. Anyway, here goes.

The Sith Emperor is an essential part of Revan's storyline - he created Revan that we know today. Revan, who is obsessed with killing the Sith Emperor. When he was freed from the Maelstorm Nebula prison, he knew what he had to do. When we encounter him during the Foundry flashpoint, we can see how far he is willing to go to achieve his goals. Many people claim that he is mad and evil. Perhaps. I'd say that he is decisive and willing to do whatever it takes. He knows very well that if both Republic and the Empire keep on fighting, Sith Emperor will eventually succed and wipe out all life from the face of the galaxy. One side of the conflict needs to be annihlated to stop the war and the Emperor's plan. So he decides to sacrifice milions by killing every sith pureblood in the galaxy - in the process, more lives are actually saved. Unfortunately, his plan fails. The Sith Emperor is supposedly killed but Revan knows better. The war between the Republic and the Empire continues and Revan knows that he needs to stop it if he hopes to kill the Sith Emperor. It is time for plan B. "I will finish what I started, and you will not interfere again". This quote from the last part of Forged Alliances story arc is an official confirmation that Sith Emperor is in fact alive (except for the Sith Warrior mail).

Rather than destroy one side of the conflict, Revan's plan is to unite the galaxy against the Sith Emperor. Revan won't make the same mistake twice by supporting the Republic that is 'too weak and unfocused to do what must be done'. He works from the shadows, pulling strings as the war continues. Revanites are his tool - a first small step toward united galaxy. He is fully aware that uniting Republic and the Empire is not an easy task. To unite the galaxy, he needs to create a threat that will force both sides to come together to prevail. The infinite army that he was planning on forming was such a threat. With infinite army destroyed, he needs another, equally powerful weapon to keep both sides of the conflict united. There is something on Yavin IV that Revan is going to use as the new 'threat' (quite possibly a sith artifact of some sort along with 'enhanced' massassi warriors that Revan somehow managed to convert to his side). It is important to note that Revan was not planning on using the infite army to turn the galaxy to ashes. Same goes for the new threat on Yavin IV. Taking over the Republic and the Empire was an option (a favourble one in fact) for him but not a necessity. With the whole galaxy against him, even if he fails to take over the ruling structure of both super powers, he still succedes.

I believe that we will stop Revan but in the end we will realize that all he had done was for the greater good. Sith Emperor will definitely make an apperance in Shadow of Revan (not necessairly in physical form but rather in a cameo of sorts). Revan will die, all the hate in the galaxy focused on him. While uniting the galaxy was important, it would have never been posible for such a union to last - Empire hates Republic too much and vice versa. That is why it is so important to rellocate that hatred onto something else - onto Revan hence breaking the dreaded cycle of hatred. He will sacrifice himself while everyone else thinks (except for player characters and few important individuals) that he was the bad guy, the enemy of the galaxy who got what he deserved. Now, thanks to Revan, we are united under one banner and prepared for the new threat that will come next, the true enemy of every living being in the galaxy - the Sith Emperor.

when I read the announcement about the new expansion, I am left wondering why I have to fight Revan.

Instead, give me an option to JOIN Revan instead.

I'm a Revanite, I even have the ingame title...

the announcement says: republic and empire teaming up to stop Revan.

But what if I, the player, don't want to stop Revan, but actually join his team?

Revan isn't evil. Like you said, he has his own agenda.

But I'm afraid Bioware is going to make us fight Revan.

I don't want to.

I don't know. I think that the base emotions, Fear, Hatred of the Emperor, the pain he's suffered have made him nerely as dark as the Emperor. He's fallen into the same trap that he fell into originally.

He thinks he's doing the right and noble thing by trying to create an army tasked with genocide that would have killed millions of people. Now he's bringing a new war that will condemn millions of innocents to probably die at his hand.

He's no better then the Emperor trying to take lives to feed his power

At the end of it if he wins, kills the emperor and destroys the Empire, does he then try to reform the Republic that he see's as weak and un focused.

Revan is evil personified now, he's just wrapping it in a pretty justification.

I quite enjoyed Revan in KotOR, and SWTOR is pretty much his legacy, which is why I can't wrap my head around the idea that he's replacing the Dread Masters as public enemy #1.

But I suppose it would be fitting for us, on both sides, to take him down. Uniting both the Sith Empire and the Republic under a single cause does seem like a vision Revan might manipulate others into.

I don't know. I think that the base emotions, Fear, Hatred of the Emperor, the pain he's suffered have made him nerely as dark as the Emperor. He's fallen into the same trap that he fell into originally.

 

He thinks he's doing the right and noble thing by trying to create an army tasked with genocide that would have killed millions of people. Now he's bringing a new war that will condemn millions of innocents to probably die at his hand.

 

He's no better then the Emperor trying to take lives to feed his power

 

At the end of it if he wins, kills the emperor and destroys the Empire, does he then try to reform the Republic that he see's as weak and un focused.

 

Revan is evil personified now, he's just wrapping it in a pretty justification.

I disagree, the vibe I got off Revan when speaking to him at the end of Maelstorm Prison is far from evil. Also, you have to look at things from Revan's perspective - he knew that the Sith Emperor was out there, he knew what his plans were and as far as he was concerned, there was nobody out there capable of stopping him. Killing millions is better than letting Vitiate consume every living being in the galaxy. If Revan's goal behind the Foundry would have been to win the war for the Republic, sure I would consider him utterly evil (if such were the case, he would in fact be the equivalent of space hitler as many people on these forums like to describe him). But his goal was not that at all - he simply wanted to save other BILLIONS of beings in MULTIPLE galaxies. Everything Revan has done so far was towards one goal - to stop the Sith Emperor. He did not use the Foundry for his own personal 'glory' as he said it himself during the flashpoint.

I quite enjoyed Revan in KotOR, and SWTOR is pretty much his legacy, which is why I can't wrap my head around the idea that he's replacing the Dread Masters as public enemy #1.

 

But I suppose it would be fitting for us, on both sides, to take him down. Uniting both the Sith Empire and the Republic under a single cause does seem like a vision Revan might manipulate others into.

Yeah, that is the only thing that makes sense to me and that would fit Revan's character. If his aim is not to unite the galaxy, then it is quite possibly NOT Revan (well, I suppose that him being controlled by the Sith Emperor in some way is a possibility).

I believe that we will stop Revan but in the end we will realize that all he had done was for the greater good. Sith Emperor will definitely make an apperance in Shadow of Revan (not necessairly in physical form but rather in a cameo of sorts). Revan will die, all the hate in the galaxy focused on him. While uniting the galaxy was important, it would have never been posible for such a union to last - Empire hates Republic too much and vice versa. That is why it is so important to rellocate that hatred onto something else - onto Revan hence breaking the dreaded cycle of hatred. He will sacrifice himself while everyone else thinks (except for player characters and few important individuals) that he was the bad guy, the enemy of the galaxy who got what he deserved. Now, thanks to Revan, we are united under one banner and prepared for the new threat that will come next, the true enemy of every living being in the galaxy - the Sith Emperor.

 

 

And just a small reference to people that saw Code Geass (a masterpiece, best anime ever created): http://oi62.tinypic.com/2wq9ac3.jpg

Still, I really hope that I am wrong about all this and that the story behind Revan was not inspired by Code Geass. I would prefer to get something totally unexpected (Revan being the new evil guy with some sort of new super weapon is definitely not it and would disappoint me greatly).

Don't know if it is necessarily borrowing from that particular source (to honour your "Spoiler") - there are lots of references in past history and in literature that speak of uniting figures who have acted as "villains" (in quotes) for the greater good. And, a few of these tales often refer to the same figure doing so, such that some greater figure can come along or a union can be achieved. (Even Machiavelli refers to the same sort of idea in his writings.)

I quite enjoyed Revan in KotOR, and SWTOR is pretty much his legacy, which is why I can't wrap my head around the idea that he's replacing the Dread Masters as public enemy #1.

 

But I suppose it would be fitting for us, on both sides, to take him down. Uniting both the Sith Empire and the Republic under a single cause does seem like a vision Revan might manipulate others into.

I've been toying with the idea that we are dealing with a person in the mask who is posing as Revan. Think of the Revanite camp and the mission connected with the mask. Who is to say that one of those figures involved in that mission is not the bearer of the mask?

I've been toying with the idea that we are dealing with a person in the mask who is posing as Revan. Think of the Revanite camp and the mission connected with the mask. Who is to say that one of those figures involved in that mission is not the bearer of the mask?

duh

I've been toying with the idea that we are dealing with a person in the mask who is posing as Revan. Think of the Revanite camp and the mission connected with the mask. Who is to say that one of those figures involved in that mission is not the bearer of the mask?

I posted this earlier already:

http://s28.postimg.org/z21q3zzt9/test.jpg

That's the mask that once belonged to Revan. They didn't get to keep it.

The Revanites.

I quite enjoyed Revan in KotOR, and SWTOR is pretty much his legacy, which is why I can't wrap my head around the idea that he's replacing the Dread Masters as public enemy #1.

 

But I suppose it would be fitting for us, on both sides, to take him down. Uniting both the Sith Empire and the Republic under a single cause does seem like a vision Revan might manipulate others into.

So Revan basically does the same thing Lelouch from Code Geass does?

That's....actually not a bad idea. It makes more sense than his "mass genocide" plan.

Though I still would have preferred it if Revan and the Exile just vanished from history, allowing those of us who played KOTOR to imagine them the way we want.

Two theories that I immediately thought of when "Revan" was revealed as the new villian:

1. It is actually the Emperor taking on his identity to achieve his goal

.

2. In the finally part of the new story chain, Bioware throws an epic twist and gives you the option to join Revan, creating a 3rd faction, that can only be joined through the story.

Honestly, I know the 2nd one is HIGHLY unlikely...the balance involved in that would be difficult. I also feel like you would have a whole bunch of 1-59 Imps and 'Pubs and a whole lot of level 60 Revanites.

I am just baffled by people who can't believe it's Revan when it was clear at the end of the Foundry, he had fallen again. The fact he was using Force Lightning alone is proof of that. Furthermore, he is a man that spent 300 years fighting the Will of the Emperor, a being of pure evil and darkness. That's going to rattle even the strongest minds out there, and Revan was never a bastion of stability to begin with.

The fact his madness was already steeped down that he was planning to commit mass genocide against the Empire, is it so faulty to believe that his plans would extend to the Republic soon as well. his speech is fairly clear that he sees himself as the sole reason that the Republic still exists, and that by his hand alone the republic would fall without his guidance. This is the ravings of man unhinged, who is lost, and he has shown signs he has fallen, again.

Whether people like it or not, is one thing. Maybe Revan is dead, and it's his ghost that we see inhabiting the armor. Stranger things have happened in Star Wars, after all. But to discredit that Revan could fall after all the torture he's technically been through in a vane attempt to say it cheapens his character is attempting to to cheapen the character and remove all of his flaws. After all, just because Vader was redeemed doesn't absolve him of the decades of evil he committed, as Leia well demonstrated to Anakin.