Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order introduced many characters to Star Wars lore. Cal’s crew on the Stinger Mantis ship was widely praised for being an eclectic bunch of characters, in particular, Greez. Greez is considered by many to bring heart and comic relief to the events of the story. While Fallen Order introduces several new characters, there are also cameos from established characters, such as Saw Gerrera and Darth Vader. Of all the new characters introduced, perhaps none are most interesting or as complex as Nightsister Merrin.
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Merrin Is Partly Based On a Scrapped Character
Merrin wasn’t one of the first characters created for Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Originally, the villain of Fallen Order was a character called Mag Zaroff. This character is described as a force-wielding Jedi hunter who would be pursuing Cal Kestis and his crew. Mag was described as calm and collected and would chase Cal throughout the galaxy in her own starship. Ultimately, Mag Zaroff was cut in favor of the Second Sister taking on the lead villain role.
Some of Mag Zaroff’s design characteristics were incorporated into Nightsister Merrin. Mag Zaroff’s design resembled the Inquisitors based on some existing concept art, but one of her earlier designs bears a closer likeness to Nightsister Merrin. Their faces are both quite similar and have alabaster skin, and both characters have distinctive facial markings. It’s unknown if any of Mag Zaroff’s other characteristics were consolidated for Merrin, but the visual design of both characters bears a somewhat striking similarity. Mag Zaroff would have had a different role to Merrin, but she could be considered the origin of much of Merrin’s visual design.
Merrin Wields a Type of Force Power Called Magick
One of the best-known aspects of Star Wars is the Force, which is a familiar term to those who aren’t fans of the franchise. The Force has been portrayed differently in different Star Wars media with varying levels of power, and one of the most interesting forms of it is called magick. Merrin is a Nightsister, essentially a witch who uses the Force as a form of sorcery. Her people were slaughtered by General Grievous during the Clone Wars and she was later manipulated by Taron Malicos, a former Jedi Master who fell to the dark side of the force.
Thanks to her knowledge of this dark sorcery, Merrin can use extremely powerful Force abilities. Merrin is capable of teleporting at will, enhancing her allies’ abilities, and even raising the dead. Her abilities are far-flung from what is traditionally seen in Star Wars media, which is part of what makes her such a powerful ally to Cal Kestis and the crew of the Stinger Mantis.
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Merrin is Technically the Same Species as Darth Maul
Though they might look dissimilar, Merrin and Darth Maul are both Zabrak. Despite the obvious physical differences between the characters, both are the Dathomirian subspecies of Zabrak. Male and female Dathomirians’ appearances vary wildly, where only the males have horns, and females quite closely resemble humans. Zabraks originally come from the planet Iridonia, but some settled on Dathomir, thus creating the Dathomirian subspecies. Male Zabraks tend to have more harsh striping which is often built upon with tattoos, whereas female Dathomirians, like Merrin, have more subtle markings.
Merrin Was a Part of Mother Talzin’s Clan
Merrin has another connection to Darth Maul through her affiliation with the Nightsisters. Talzin was the leader of the Nightsisters until the group was nearly wiped out by General Grievous, and his droid army. Merrin was among the few survivors of the massacre, and Mother Talzin herself was later slain by General Grievous. The connection between Merrin and Maul is that Talzin was the latter’s mother. Merrin was a young girl at the time of the Nightsisters’ massacre, and Maul at the time was living in exile. Though Mother Talzin was Maul’s mother, Merrin would have also viewed her as a maternal figure.
The First Nightsister Appearance In a Non-Mobile Game
Merrin’s appearance in Fallen Order is the first appearance of a Nightsister in a non-mobile game. The Nightsisters have appeared in mobile titles like Star Wars: Uprising and Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes, but never in a console game until Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Fans are hoping that Merrin will have an expanded role in Fallen Order 2, as she has proved to be an interesting and complex addition to the Star Wars canon. While her appearance in Fallen Order is the only one so far by a Nightsister in a console game, fans will likely see her return in a sequel.
Fans will have a chance to be reacquainted with the game when Fallen Order gets a free upgrade on PS5 and Xbox Series X this year. Gamers are hoping that this will pave the way for a sequel that will possibly include Merrin. Merrin survived the events of the first game with a new purpose, and some gamers are excited to see what Respawn Entertainment can do with the character going forward. Nightsister Merrin is considered one of the best characters from Fallen Order by a lot of fans, and she has a complex character arc that could be explored further.
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is available now on PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Stadia, with PS5 and Xbox Series X upgrades being released in 2021.
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