I could definitely see that... I'd actually probably prefer it to be honest. The whole infinite clone thing is a bit meh to me overall, but the other aspects are fun and interesting enough for me to not worry about it too much
Thanks. My idea was that Palpatine would have died for good in Return of the Jedi, but he was working on a ritual to become a god (Basically what Vitiate did in TOR); he would have been close to completing it when Vader killed him, and Sedriss's plan would be to complete the ritual and ascend to godhood. He'd also be so utterly twisted and sadistic that he pretty much kills the Empire's legitimacy among everyone but the most psychopathic (even many die hards finally have their loyalty broken by Sedriss's cruelty).
Actually, here's my outline for how I would have done the Post ROTJ EU (with some changes to ROTJ).
Return of the Jedi would be mostly faithfully adapted but some parts would be strengthened
Act 1: Luke tries to do the practical option and simply tries to buy Han's freedom by paying what he owed plus interest. Unfortunately, the Empire got to Jabba first and persuade him to betray Luke. However, Jabba decides that he wants entertainment and says "it's been a long time since I've had a Jedi in my arena." So, Jabba throws Luke, Han, Leia, and Lando into his arena while keeping 3P0 and R2 as servants. Luke had guessed that this might happen and so he smuggles his lightsaber in through R2.....who launches it to Luke during the fight. Luke quickly makes mincemeat of Jabba's goons, and even Boba Fett is taken down with ease by Luke. At this point a furious Jabba unleashes the Rancor (which is MUCH more massive then in the original movie), disregarding that some of his own goons are in the line of fire. Luke uses the force to calm the beast and make it docile, and when a furious Jabba orders more men in Bib Fortuna (who Jabba has been shown being abusive to and also realizing which way the wind is blowing) decides "fuck this" and shoots Jabba before letting them go.
Luke goes back to Dagobah and confronts Yoda. Luke is initially very angry at Yoda and during the argument Yoda finally succumbs to old age.....with Luke feeling guilty that Yoda's last moments were Luke yelling at him. Obi Wan appears and gives the full context; he explains that he truly did try to redeem Anakin but ultimately failed, and was worried that if Luke tried their hope would be gone....but also acknowledges that it was shame guiding him. Anakin was HIS failure and he supposed he didn't want Luke to think less of him. Luke accepts this, but explains that when he and Vader touched minds on Bespin he felt remorse deep within him, and he believes it can be reached. Obi Wan is far more skeptical of this (it's also during this time that Leia is revealed as Luke's sister; Luke is somewhat shocked but understands why it was kept secret.)
Act 2: Instead of Endor, the final battle is on the Wookie homeworld of Kashyyyk
3PO and Chewbacca are the ones who broker the deal, persuading them that they need to stand with the outsiders to save their world. Luke has a vision and talks to Leia. Leia will say that she was always a war orphan adopted by Bail and Breha; Luke reveals the truth, and explains that he has a vision, and thus must confront Vader. He surrenders, and Luke and Vader have their first encounter since Bespin (with Vader sadly admitting that it’s too late for him). One thing I’d also do is show Vader having additional signs of regret even before the encounter; Luke successfully defying him on Bespin rattled him HARD, and the reminder of what it means to truly be a Jedi has forced him to face how weak and selfish he’s been. When he and Palpatine meet earlier they discuss what happened with Jabba and Vader expresses annoyance of what happened. Palpatine reassures him that it was merely a test, and then asks "you're not getting FOND of the boy are you?" Vader is visibly furious and denies it, but it's also very obvious that he's kidding himself.
Act 3: Luke is brought before Palpatine. Unlike the movie, Palpatine dresses in white robes and actually looks handsome....but there's a wrongness about him. He tries to persuade Luke to join him by talking about how corrupt the Republic was, and how he put it out of it's misery. He further says that he's brought order to the Galaxy and how the rebels are threats to that order. Luke resists it, pointing out all the terrible things the Empire has done and refuting Palatine's claims that it was for the greater good (citing the destruction of Alderaan even though most of the people were non combatants). Palpatine starts to drop the act at this point and reveals that the entire thing is a trap. Luke tries to attack Palpatine (since his motives are to save his friends and not anger and selfishness it's not a dark side action), Vader blocks and battle is joined. Palpatine stays quiet the entire time, quietly reveling in the action.
At this point it’s divided into three sections:
1.) Space Battle: Largely similar to the original movie
2.) Ground Battle: Since it’s wookies rather then Ewoks, it’s a lot cooler. Han takes a blaster shot saving Leia and nearly dies.
3.) Luke puts up a stronger showing due to Vader's inner turmoil, and tries to reach out to Vader despite his own turmoil (with Vader getting notably agitated and angry to the point Luke is able to get a few good hits in). However, then Luke senses Han getting shot, and his panic allows Vader to read his mind and learn about Leia; Luke hulks out and beats the crap out of Vader when he threatens her. As Luke stands on the precipice of falling, Palpatine says "good, good"....Luke looks down at Vader and sees his severed hand, making the comparison to his own. He realizes what he's about to do and calms down, throwing the blade aside. Palpatine is FURIOUS at this and starts torturing Luke; Vader, realizing that this is the one chance he will ever have to make things right, finally defies his master and throws him to his doom. Vader succumbs to his wounds and Luke escapes with his body in Palpatine’s shuttle.
The ending is bittersweet: Vader is dead but with Palpatine gone the Empire will likely collapse into in fighting. Han and Leia are ready to formally be together.
After this, I wanted to have a 5 year gap between ROTJ and TTT.
Thrawn Trilogy:
Leia is pregnant with twins when the trilogy starts. Luke wants to learn more about the Jedi (he's been searching, but hasn't had a lot of luck). Thrawn is still the main antagonist, but some of the scale issues are addressed (the Katana fleet ships are all 8km long instead of a measly 200 meters). Mara is also different; she was at Jabba's palace disguised as a dancer, with her mission being to observe Luke. She was impressed but is angry at him blaming him for the ruin of her world. A large part of her arc is learning to accept that Luke isn't the monster that she's built up in her head, and by the end of the trilogy she's come a long way to accepting that the Empire was evil and needed to be overthrown. In many ways it's quite similar to the original thrawn trilogy (though Thrawn's moves in the opening chapter don't depend on the Elomin being a planet of hats). Thrawn's flagship is also the Executor Class Dreadnaught Reaper, which he acquired after overcoming Grand Moff Ardus Kaine in a power struggle. Thrawn’s defeat occurs similarly to canon (his role in keeping the Noghri enslaved is quietly revealed, and Rukh takes the opportunity to stab him at the climax of a key battle).
Dark Empire:
The idea is that Palpatine died for good, but one of his hands (Sedriss) bided his time in the Deep Core, amassing a power base and waiting for the moment to strike. He finally does so shortly after Thrawn's defeat, and since the Remnants were desperate after Thrawn's death they don't really look a gift horse in the mouth....though as Sedriss's cruelty and depravity becomes more apparent many quickly get buyer's remorse. One thing I wanted to do is that Palpatine was working on a ritual that would have allowed him to ascend to godhood; he was fairly close to completing it when he died in Return of the Jedi, and since Sedriss wasn't as strong it took a while to catch up. Sedriss wants to complete the ritual himself and rule as a god over the galaxy.
Characters:
Good Guys:
1.) Mara Jade: She throws in with the heroes after Sedriss’s rise to power. She helps with the mission on Byss.
2.) Kam Solusar: He’s Luke’s convert from the Dark Side and along with Mara one of Luke’s first real apprentices.
3.) Ood Bnar: An ancient Jedi who is awakened in the second story in the trilogy after hibernating for thousands of years on Ossus. He helps Luke expand his knowledge, while at the same time learning from Luke.
4.) Jem and Rayf Ysanna: Two tribal warriors from the planet Ossus that go with Luke. (Am debating whether I should add other new Jedi to the story alongside just these guys. The events of Dark Empire is a sort of genesis for Luke’s new order).
5.) Possible other Jedi (Tionne from Jedi Academy could be introduced earlier as a singer/scholar)
Villains:
Sedriss: I wanted to make him someone who is highly intelligent….but also cultivates a dumb brute image to trick people into underestimating him. It’s one of the things that he uses to manipulate the other leaders into accepting his control. He’s also incredibly cruel and sadistic.
The 7 Dark Jedi:
1.) Vil Goir: Sedriss’s second in command. He was Kam Solusar’s combat instructor, being cruel and vicious to the young man but also taking pride in how made Kam a weapon. Kam’s defection infuriates him, later in the trilogy (I’m not sure where) Kam has to face his old teacher in single combat (this was present in the original Dark Empire but I felt it wasn't explored enough in the story. Kam fighting his former teacher should be a very powerful moment and the climax of his arc)
2.) Tedryn Sha: Another former hand; he’s fundamentally a dirty coward, confident when the odds are going his way but panicking when they don’t. He specialized in wetworks operations and assassinations when he was a hand.
3.) Krydys Mordi: Notable for being rather misogynistic (he’s explicitly a sexual predator) and highly sadistic (he masterminds the Shadow Droid project, where the brains of injured tie fighters are removed and placed in droid bodies fueled by the Dark Side.) Even by the low standards of Dark Jedi he’s VERY unlikable, with many of the Imperial officials hating his guts.
4.) Kvag Gthul: The one with the most-raw power, Kvag is an engine of destruction, with a great deal of brute force. He specialized in causing mass destruction when the Empire needed plausible deniability, and he’s also very sadistic (and an effective torturer). Doesn’t really have any ambitions.
5.) Baddon Fass and Zassm Katth: Two other Dark Jedi who frequently work together; Katth is collected and methodical, while Fass is somewhat passionate and petty. They complement the others weaknesses.
6.) Xecr Nist: Added after Kam defects, he has his own ambitions
Part 1: Sedriss took Coruscant itself and drove the New Republic off world. Luke is captured and brought to Byss (Palpatine’s former retreat and Sedriss’s throneworld). Sedriss wants to break Luke to the Dark Side to prove himself Palpatine’s superior. He also unleashes weapons called World Devastators on various worlds. Leia and Han try to save Luke, but as this is going on one of Sedriss’s 7 dark Jedi approaches Luke out of curioisity. Kam Solusar is the age Luke was when he began his journey in A New Hope; Kam’s father Rannik was a well respected Jedi and one of the few who saw through Palpatine’s benevolent façade (though he never realized he was a Sith). Palpatine himself personally killed Rannik, leaving Kam alive purely as a twisted insult to Rannik (the hatred was mutual). Luke helps slowly guide Kam to the light, and ultimately it works (I'm thinking the possibility of Sedriss corrupting Leia's unborn child is what gets Kam to finally work up the strength to resist). Kam defects for real and helps Luke and the others flee Byss, while also giving them the codes to shut down the World Devastators. Sedriss is furious at this but the battle isn’t over.
Part 2: For the second entry I have the following in concrete detail: Luke and Kam go to Ossus, and it's here that they encounter Ood Bnar (Kam might have his first real fight with Vil here as well). Ood had preserved some ancient knowledge from the Great Sith War and is happy to help Luke learn (though Ood is somewhat shocked at the state of the galaxy, and he and Luke do disagree in some places, Ood being a bit more conservative). The other big issue is the attack on New Alderaan. It's an incredibly vicious and destructive action, and during the battle members of the elite try to infiltrate to decapitate the government. The heroes barely win; Krydys Mordi and Tedryn Sha are dead (I'm also wondering if Vil Goir and Kam could have their final battle here) but New Alderaan was despoiled beyond repair and a lot of good people died (I'm thinking of even a big character from the original movies; maybe Wedge Antilles, maybe Mon Mothma)
For the third entry I had the following basic outline. The heroes were able to recover after New Alderaan, and Sedriss's increasing cruelty and insanity has caused many imperial officers to defect (Palleaon is among them; Sedriss's cruelty shattered any illusions he had about the empire being good. The 181st, the Empire’s greatest fighter unit also defects out of disgust over the Shadow Droid project). The heroes bounce back and manage to strike blows to Sedriss's forces, even retaking Coruscant. However, Sedriss has retreated to Byss to carry out the ritual, forcing the heroes to pursue him. Xecr Nist could make a play for power that, while resulting in his death, buys the heroes time to muster a response. The final battle would be at Byss. Luke and his fellow jedi would go to the surface to face Sedriss, and it would be a brutal and vicious battle. I envision Sedriss's defeat as follows: earlier in the trilogy Ood taught Luke and the others the "Wall of Light" a powerful technique with the power to sever one's connection to the force. At the climax of the ritual they use the wall of light, severing Sedriss's connection. Unable to control the dark powers, Sedriss is consumed. I'm also thinking that Ood might make a heroic sacrifice of some sort (maybe he's badly injured and he insists on being the one to do the Wall of Light himself). As he dies, he trusts that the future is in Luke's hands. Byss is consumed as the ritual goes wrong.
At this point the Empire is essentially shattered, with the few groups left being small bands of fanatical terrorists/warlord pockets.
