Famous Mandalorians from the Old Republic through the Clone Wars era

6. PRE VIZSLA

Group Affiliation: Death Watch, The Shadow Collective
Height: 6′ (1.84 meters)
Weight: 200 lbs ( 90 kg)
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Blonde
Species: Human, light-skinned
Gender: Male
Homeworld: Concordia

Occupation: Former governor of Concordia, Leader of Death Watch

Adversaries: Duchess Satine Kryze, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Maul

Relatives:  Tarre Vizsla, Tor Vizsla, Paz Vizsla

First Appearance: Star Wars: The Clone Wars, season 2, episode 13, “The Mandalore Plot”

Character History:

After seizing control over Mandalore, the New Mandalorians had exiled those unwilling to follow their pacifist ways to the moon of Concordia. Although many of those of the old ways were thought to have died out, secretly the governor of Concordia, Pre Vizsla, had been resurrecting the Death Watch that his fellow kinsman, Tor Vizsla, had created.

The Death Watch was violently opposed to the pacifist government that had taken control of Mandalore, as they were seen as an antithesis to their peoples nature as warriors and world conquerors. Death Watch therefore sought to return all Mandalorians back to these traditions. Aiding Pre Vizsla in his goal of reclaiming the Mandalorians destiny was, Bo-Katan Kryze, the estranged sister of the New Mandalorians ruler, Duchess Satine Kryze.

Pre Vizsla’s desperate measures of attaining his goals led him to make some morally corrupt choices against his own people. Such decisions included: Allying with the Separatists, staging fake attacks conducted with cooperation from members of the underworld organization — the Shadow Collective, as well as, several failed assassination attempts on Duchess Satine’s life.

Pre Vizsla’s endgame of stirring up enough trouble so that his people felt compelled to abandon their pacifist government for stronger leadership finally succeeded, and he was made the new Mand’alor. This victory — especially dishonest ones — came with a price.

That’s because, along the way of gathering allies to join his cause, Pre Vizsla had made a deal with the devil. Or — in his case — a former Sith. Pre Vizsla had come to the rescue of Darth Maul and his brother, Savage Opress, after the two were found floating helplessly out in space onboard an escape pod. Maul was “indebted” to his saviors and decided to aid in their cause.

For a time, the two achieved their mutual goals working together. Vizsla doomed himself later on, after unwisely reneging on his deal with Maul to help expand the Shadow Collective’s reach into the other neutral systems that Mandalore had influence over. Vizsla arrested Maul and used him to convince the New Mandalorians that he was their true savior.

Maul, along with his brother Savage Opress, later escaped his imprisonment and proceeded to confront Vizsla in his throneroom. He then invoked the Mandalorian rites to trial of combat, wherein he could become the new Mand’alor. Vizsla accepted the challenge under the threat that Maul would expose the dark secret of how the new Mand’alor had come to power.

To his credit, Vizsla fought with great skill against the former Sith apprentice, nearly gaining an upper-hand. But — he wasn’t good enough. Maul overpowered Vizsla and, as his former ally lay defeated on the ground, used the Force to summon the Darksaber into his hand.  He then ignited the blade — giving his opponent only a moment to utter his final defiant words — before ending his short reign as Mand’alor.

Despite his fair victory, this sudden change of leadership was met with instant disapproval, which led to an immediate schism, as Bo-Katan and a few more of Vizsla’s loyalists rebelled. Maul had his own supporters, most notable among them was Gar Saxon, a Mandalorian of ever-wavering loyalties. Death Watch was splintered into two opposing factions, Bo-Katan’s Nite Owls, and Maul’s “Maulorians”. (Heh. No, they weren’t really called that.)

Ultimately, Vizsla did accomplish his goal of ending the pacifist movement that had overtaken his people. But, much like everything else he had done, it came with a great cost, resulting in a ravaged world and a people thrown back once again into the turmoil of war. Then again, such is the way of the Mandalorians. Thankfully, their spirits — like their armor — isn’t easily broken.

Powers/Skills: Pre Vizsla was trained in the Mandalorian arts of combat, which made him a formidable foe in that respect alone. However, his most special skill came from the use of the Darksaber, the weapon created by his ancestor, Tarre Vizsla. Even though Pre Vizsla wasn’t trained to use the Darksaber like the Jedi were, he nonetheless could wield it with both competent and deadly efficiency. He also possessed great charisma which commanded loyalty from his troops, even after his death.

Weapon(s): Pre Vizsla was a skilled marksman with his WESTAR- 35 blaster pistol, but his preferred weapon was his Darksaber, the black-bladed Jedi artifact that had been passed down for generations among Clan Vizsla after it was stolen from the Jedi temple by his ancestors.

The First Collaboration, But Not the Last: Jon Favreau — the showrunner of The Mandalorian — first collaborated with Dave Filloni and George Lucas during the making of Star Wars: The Clone Wars after he was asked to voice the Mandalorian character, Pre Vizsla. This early collaboration developed into a fascination with the Mandalorian culture, that then inspired the Disney + series he later co-created with Filoni.