The Tarisian Season Opener, also referred to as the Great Swoop Race, was a swoop race held annually in the Lower City of the planet Taris, and was implied to be funded by Czerka Corporation and, later, Lhosan Industries before Czerka Corporation re-established themselves as the funders after the Mandalorians where driven out. Due to the planet's prominence as the seat of professional racing, the event was widely regarded as the start of the galaxy's swooping season, hence the title given. Two main swoop gangs competed against each other in the track, one being the Hidden Beks and the other being the Black Vulkars.

History[]

In 3956 BBY the amnesic Revan competed in the Great Swoop Race^[1] in order to free Bastila Shan from Brejik and the Black Vulkars, who had captured her and planned to sell her as a slave. Though Revan's bike was using a prototype accelerator designed by the Hidden Beks, which he had earlier retrieved from Brejik's gang, it was his innate command of the Force that enabled him to beat racers who had been riding swoops for over twenty standard years. Brejik, however, claimed that the accelerator was an illegal modification and refused to give up Bastila as the Vulkars' share of the victory prize. In this, he defied the traditions of the Season Opener and declared himself to be "the wave of the future."

When Revan accused the gang leader of lying, Bastila took the opportunity to use the Force to free herself of a neural disruptor and incapacitate her guard. This precipitated a vicious brawl on the swoop platform in which Brejik, along with his top racer Redros and all of the attending Vulkars, were killed by Revan and Bastila. Afterwards, the two would make their way back to their hideout in the South Apartments. Revan was soon recognized on sight by many individuals as the winner of the Season Opener, including a messenger for Canderous Ordo, who approached Revan's party shortly after the race with a proposal from the Mandalorian.

This would prove to be the last Season Opener as Darth Malak ordered the planet subjected to an orbital bombardment not long afterward. The swoop track would later become known as Brejik's Run by the Republic restoration teams.

Behind the scenes[]

The player has a limited number of chances to complete this race. If he or she fails three times, the Hidden Beks' mechanic will inform the player that the temperature of the swoop's engine is beginning to worry him and that he has added a rudimentary cooling system to it so that the swoop will be able to make one or two more runs. After the fourth failure, the mechanic reroutes the cooling system's power to the accelerator to give the swoop an extra boost. He tells the player that this modification is liable to cause the swoop to eventually explode. If the player does not complete the race within thirty-eight seconds on his fifth try, the swoop explodes, killing Revan and prematurely ending the game.

Appearances[]

• Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (First appearance)

Sources[]

• Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic: Prima's Official Strategy Guide

Notes and references[]