Foga Brill

Foga Brill
Biographical information
Homeworld	Taris
Died	18 ABY
Descriptive information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Hair color	Graying
Chronological and political information
Affiliation(s)	Galactic Republic Galactic Empire Constitutional Protectorate of Prakith

Warning: This infobox has missing parameters: parents, pronouns, children, siblings, partners, families, feathers and unrecognized parameters: era

"We are heading for a rendezvous with, and I quote verbatim, 'The gallant and eternally vigilant patrol destroyer Tobay of the Grand Imperial Navy of the Constitutional Protectorate of Prakith, in grateful and loyal service to His Glory, the potent and courageous governor for life, Foga Brill."

―Taisden

Foga Brill was an Imperial Moff who turned warlord after the Battle of Endor, establishing the Constitutional Protectorate of Prakith. Originally the Director of Investigation for the Galactic Republic's Judicial Department, Brill adopted the ideals of the New Order with zeal after Palpatine established the Galactic Empire, becoming Moff of the newly-colonized Prakith system. Brill's hard work and harsh rule kept order and established the Empire's presence on Prakith.

After the Emperor's death in 4 ABY, Brill fortified Prakith and established his own micro-empire, defended by a strong planetary defense fleet. He ignored all entreaties from rival factions, only temporarily lifting Prakith's isolationist policies to join the reborn Emperor's unified Imperial faction during Operation Shadow Hand. After the Emperor's final death in 11 ABY, Brill returned to Prakith and shut it off from the wider galaxy, throwing his state into poverty and desperation. He was murdered by his beleaguered naval officers in 18 ABY, and Prakith joined the New Republic.

Biography

From Judicial to warlord

A native of the planet Taris, Foga Brill was a Human male who served the Galactic Republic as a member of the Judicial Department. During the Republic's last throes of existence, Brill was the Judiciary's Director of Investigation, coordinating the pursuit of criminals across the galaxy. In 19 BBY, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine instituted the Declaration of a New Order, reforming the Republic as the first Galactic Empire. Brill embraced this Imperialization, seeing the order imposed by Palpatine upon the galaxy as a welcome deterrent to the lawlessness Brill had spent his career fighting. In the aftermath of the Declaration, Brill took a stab at politics, serving a term as a local senator in his homeworld of Taris' planetary government. Brill loathed the experience, but his suicidal urges were quelled when he began to hear tales of a paradise in the Deep Core, which had been advertised as a lucrative career opportunity. Desperate to find his way to the Deep Core, Brill pulled every string he could to attain himself a governorship there. Eventually, Brill was named governor of recently-colonized Prakith, one of many Imperial fortress worlds in the Deep Core and the headquarters of Palpatine's Inquisitorius. Brill put great effort into establishing the New Order on Prakith, ruling without mercy. He insisted that the Imperial Navy maintained a strong presence at Prakith to fend off any external attacks. Meanwhile, without Brill's knowledge, the Inquisitorius fed their spirits by leeching the life energies of the Prakith populace, a process that greatly affected Brill's temperament.

Despite this, Brill went to great lengths to ingratiate himself with the Inquisitorius, and became close friends with Admiral Malfkla Yzu of the 15th Deep Core Reserve Fleet, who instilled in Brill a new, fatalist outlook on life taken from the Ancient Order of Pessimists. Palpatine perished aboard the second Death Star during the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, and the crippled Empire slowly began to fall apart. Some Imperials pledged allegiance to the new Imperial leaders on Imperial Center, but others turned warlord and established their own personal mini-empires. After news of the events at Endor finally reached the Deep Core, Brill's friend Yzu went the warlord route, and granted Brill the title of Moff. It was during this time that Brill became a devotee of the new Imperial religion known as Church of the Dark Side, which had recently been sanctioned by Palpatine's steward, Sate Pestage, having been introduced to the faith by his close friend and religious sparring partner Admiral Peccati Syn. However, Brill took a major doctrinal leap—as the Church of the Dark Side taught that all beings faced eternal torment in the afterlife, Brill figured that he could lessen his own suffering by terrorizing the living. To this end, Brill formed the Red Police, whom he allowed to run wild on Prakith executing innocent civilians. Others suffered in Brill's torture chambers, where some were forced to practice cannibalism.

Brill would follow Yzu's example in becoming a warlord, fortifying his holdings and declaring himself leader of the Constitutional Protectorate of Prakith. Unlike many other warlords, Brill made no attempt to expand his territory, merely ensuring that it was properly safeguarded; his insistence on a powerful planetary defense fleet proved useful in this regard. Though Brill's region technically fell under the jurisdiction of Grand Moff Cinzero Gann of Sector 5, his naval forces were paid by, and thus answered to, him alone. Brill's protectorate remained isolationist, ignoring repeated overtures from Imperial Center and rival warlords; his primary concern was bulwarking his system against any attacks from the fledgling New Republic. Prakith underwent a period of reform: Brill's planetary defense forces became the Grand Imperial Navy, with all ships emblazoned with both the navy's insignia and the governor's personal crest, and scrip was predominately used in lieu of Imperial Credits. Taking on a slew of grandiose titles, Brill ruled from Prakith's capital Prak City.

Decline and mutiny

Brill did adapt his tactics for a time in 10 and 11 ABY. During what was dubbed Operation Shadow Hand, the reborn Emperor Palpatine united Imperial warlord factions in a final offensive against the New Republic. Deciding to emerge from his military and political isolation, Foga Brill joined the unified Empire, committing all of his relatively meager resources to the cause. Palpatine was slain for the final time on Onderon in 11 ABY, and the Empire once again descended into bedlam and internecine conflict. Brill retreated to his stronghold of Prakith, continuing his defensive policy and effectively quarantining the system in anticipation of a large-scale New Republic invasion. On account of Prakith's heavy fortification, such an attack never came, the New Republic preferring a campaign of attrition to open military attacks. Though Grand Moff Gann retained nominal power over Prakith, Brill continued to rule himself.

Cut off from the rest of the galaxy, Prakith descended into a state of poverty, barely able to sustain its unrelenting defensive operations. Local scrip was practically worthless: bullion and goods were preferred, though were only available to the upper class. With the Grand Imperial Navy in serious disrepair, any ship Brill could get his hands on was amalgamated into the fleet; officers were ordered to seize any trespassing vessels, and captains who succeeded in this task were personally recognized by Brill. In 16 ABY, Brill's fleet lost two ships, Ors Dogot's Bloodprice and Voba Dokrett's Gorath, sent to commandeer a mysterious ship, the Teljkon Vagabond, that had exited hyperspace close to Prakith. The two Prakith navy vessels were destroyed by the Vagabond, further weakening Brill's beleaguered navy.

By 18 ABY, Brill was one of few surviving warlords; the New Republic annexed many of the independent fiefdoms established by Brill's rivals, while Imperial Admiral Natasi Daala had executed thirteen prominent warlords at Tsoss Beacon in 12 ABY. Additionally, Brill was the only surviving Deep Core warlord of any note, Sander Delvardus, Treuten Teradoc and Blitzer Harrsk having been among Daala's victims. However, Brill's own condition mirrored that of his failing dominion, and the governor began to succumb to paranoia, while Prakith's desperate populace longed to break free from tyranny. In 18 ABY, famed New Republic hero Lando Calrissian ran afoul of one of Brill's deep patrols, and although he managed to escape, he was appalled by Brill's lunacy. In response, Calrissian rounded up his old unit of irregulars, Lando's Commandos, who with the help of a fleet of starship-sized Silentium droids posed as Brill's most loyal officers and killed him. Afterward, the Prakith system was then integrated into the New Republic and reconnected with the rest of the galaxy.

Personality and traits

"For the glory of Prakith and in service to our beloved governor, Foga Brill, I commit this vessel to the fight before us!"

―Voba Dokrett, captain of the Gorath

Foga Brill was a wily man, thin and gaunt, with graying hair. Hard-working and diligent, Brill spent much of his life maintaining order, first for the Republic's Judicial Department and later for the Empire. His work for the Judicials was a source of frustration for Brill, who essentially saw his pursuit of criminals as wild bantha chases, so he embraced the Empire's harsher policies on law and order. After establishing his Constitutional Protectorate, Brill took an ever firmer stance on order, creating his own military police force to keep Prakith's population in line; undesirables were dealt with severely and with a minimum of fuss. Brill was an opportunist, always willing to take decisions for personal gain. With the Empire's colonization of Prakith came a career opportunity, which Brill took enthusiastically, falling for the Empire's promises of wealth and power more completely than most. During the final years of his crumbling military state, Brill advocated the theft of any civilian ships discovered within his territory so as to relieve his depleted navy. He also saw the opportunity to exploit his position for material gain, taking bribes from wealthy families on Prakith.

As a younger man, Brill had a flirtation with politics, but his term as a local Tarisian senator left Brill disillusioned and suicidal. However, the opportunities afforded by the Deep Core helped Brill emerge from this malaise. Although Brill achieved less notoriety and amassed far less territory than many of his rival warlords, in the end he proved a shrewd leader and gave them a lesson in survival. Brill ignored all entreaties from his fellows, most of whom proved themselves to be distrustful allies, and he did not engage in the squabbles over territory that weakened many warlords' positions. He was cautious and pragmatic, content to consolidate his territory with no delusions of grandeur about defeating the New Republic or becoming an emperor. Thus, while most remaining warlords in 12 ABY met their end at Daala's convocation at Tsoss Beacon, Brill's insistence on isolation and defense spared him. However, the Prakith governor was not averse to adapting his strategy when it was prudent: Brill threw his lot in with the reunified Empire in 10 ABY, knowing it had a strong chance of success. When it failed, he was content to revert to type.

Brill's taste for the grandiose did belie his pragmatism to some extent. He renamed his planetary defense force the Grand Imperial Navy and emblazoned them with his own personal crest. Ships in the navy conducted any communications with other vessels ostentatiously, referring to Brill as "the potent and courageous governor for life." Brill also gave himself the title of "His Glory." Brill was well known for his cruelty between the Battle of Endor and his death, and it gained him more notoriety than his military strength. Fear of Brill's Red Police ensured the acquiesce of Prakith's people, and he kept his navy in line with the threat of demotion to mining duties, and guarantees of safety for crew members' families. This proved effective, with Brill's force showing motivation and hard-work; Captain Ors Dogot was sympathetic towards Brill, feeling that such oppressive tactics were the only realistic course available to the governor. Brill's harshness was born of his dedication to the Church of the Dark Side—believing that all beings were destined for eternal torment, Brill figured that he could earn an easier fate by torturing the living. Brill's newfound religious faith came after a flirtation with the fatalistic dogma of the Ancient Order of Pessimists. Over a decade after the Constitutional Protectorate's founding, Brill still had the regard and loyalty of his captains. Eventually, however, they could no longer endure Brill's harsh policies and leadership, knowing he was the obstacle to an easier life under the New Republic. Brill also spent much of the later period of his life deep in paranoia. He barricaded his forces in the Prakith system waiting for an extensive New Republic attack that never came, and this took its toll on his condition.

Behind the scenes

Foga Brill was created by Michael P. Kube-McDowell for The Black Fleet Crisis trilogy, receiving brief mentions in Shield of Lies and Tyrant's Test, both published in 1996. He was subsequently referenced in Daniel Wallace and Kevin J. Anderson's The Essential Chronology in 2000. Brill's backstory has since been expanded by Rodney Thompson's Byss and the Deep Core (2005) as well as Daniel Wallace and Jason Fry's The Essential Atlas (2010), and the 2014 StarWars.com blog article The Imperial Warlords: Despoilers of an Empire. The latter source creates some canonical conflicts with earlier accounts of Brill's life—for instance earlier sources place the founding of the Constitutional Protectorate of Prakith before Palpatine's return, whereas The Imperial Warlords suggests that the territory was created afterward. In cases where sources conflict, this article treats The Imperial Warlords as being incorrect.

Appearances

• Shield of Lies (First mentioned)
• Tyrant's Test (Mentioned only)

Sources

• The Essential Chronology
• "Byss and the Deep Core" (original article link) on Wizards.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
• The New Essential Chronology
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
• The Essential Atlas
• The Essential Guide to Warfare
• The Imperial Warlords: Despoilers of an Empire, Part 3 on StarWars.com (article) (backup link)
• Star Wars: Force and Destiny Core Rulebook