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Passel Argente

< Passel Argente
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"Always in service to the Confederacy, my Lord. Always."
―Passel Argente, to Count Dooku[src]

Passel Argente was a male Koorivar who served as the Magistrate of the Corporate Alliance and a member of the Galactic Senate representing his homeworld, Kooriva in the final days of the Galactic Republic. Following a protracted Separatist Crisis, Argente pledged the Alliance's support for Count Dooku and the Confederacy of Independent Systems before seceding from the Republic and taking a seat on the Separatist Council as the Clone Wars drove the galaxy into chaos. Taking the lead on a series of projects and operations during the war, Argente preferred to play a more administrative role during the war, remaining in the background while his more assertive colleagues on the Council planned and enacted their operations. Following the Council's move to Mustafar, their mysterious benefactor, Darth Sidious, betrayed them by sending his apprentice, Darth Vader, to slaughter Argente and his comrades.

Biography

Early career

"We will do all we can to protect our assets and intellectual properties."
―Passel Argente[src]
Argente

Passel Argente as Senator of Kooriva.

A male Koorivar native to the Inner Rim planet Kooriva, Passel Argente entered politics as well as the corporate world at an early age. The head of the powerful mercantile company Lethe Merchandising, a company affiliated with the Corporate Alliance[4], Argente was also appointed Senator of his homeworld and represented his people in the Galactic Republic Senate. Entering into the Senate during Supreme Chancellor Finis Valorum's second term, Argente's appointment came on the heels of his rise to Magistrate of the Corporate Alliance. During his years on the Senate floor, Argente was often criticized for graft and corruption, and used his corporate connections to amass great wealth.[1]

An outspoken opponent of Valorum and his weak stances on the protection of commerce and trade along the hyperlanes of the Outer Rim Territories, Argente was closely affiliated with other members of the Senate who wished to supplant the Chancellor. In 32 BBY Argente was invited to Rylothian Senator Orn Free Taa's box at the Coruscant Opera, joining his colleagues Edcel Bar Gane, Toonbuck Toora and Palpatine for a discussion on Valorum's ineffectiveness.[5] Not long after, the Neimoidians of the Trade Federation blockaded Naboo, an event which eventually led the planet's queen, Padmé Amidala, to ask for a Vote of No Confidence in Valorum's leadership. One of the first to support Amidala's vote, Argente was pleased to see Valorum leave and Naboo's Senator Palpatine take up the Chancellorship.[6]

Continuing to work in the Senate and lead the Corporate Alliance, Argente's security was overseen by Enforcer Jerv Riske, a man who accompanied the Magistrate to the planet Barlok in 27 BBY to negotiate a dispute between the Corporate Alliance and Guildmaster Gilfrome over a mining dispute. During the negotiations Argente was staying at the Starbright hotel; while the negotiations were underway, an assassin attempted to kill Argente, but was thwarted by Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth.[7]

During the two terms of Chancellor Palpatine, a Separatist Crisis plagued the Senate. During this time, Argente ordered an attack on the Fakir system's Yirt-4138-Grek-12 to destroy an industrial espionage training facility. Argente issued a holomessage to shareholders of the Corporate Alliance to inform them of the attack and its legitimacy regarding the protection of their holdings.[8] Despite his sometimes questionable allegiances during this time period, Argente was known to have made a sizable donation on behalf of the Corporate Alliance to the Refugee Relief Movement.[9]

Joining the Confederacy

"I am authorized by the Corporate Alliance to sign the treaty."
―Passel Argente[src]

In 22 BBY, as the Separatist movement began to pick up momentum, Argente was invited to a meeting on Geonosis by Count Dooku, the leader of the Separatist cause. Accompanied by his aide, Denaria Kee, Argente met with Viceroy Nute Gunray of the Trade Federation; Techno Union Foreman Wat Tambor; San Hill Chairman of the InterGalactic Banking Clan; Commerce Guild Presidente Shu Mai, and several others. Pledging the Commerce Guild's full funding and dedicating their enforcement branch to Dooku's cause, the group would soon be organized into the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Not long after the clandestine meeting concluded, Geonosis was attacked by the Grand Army of the Republic, under the command of the Jedi Order. While taking shelter in a hidden war room, Argente and the other corporate heads fled the planet once it was clear that the Republic would take the world.[10]

Renouncing his place in the Senate, Argente took a place on the Separatist Council, the leading governing organ of the Confederacy. Hoping to maintain a low profile on the war front and remain in the background manipulating events, Argente was not pleased when Dooku forced him to coordinate battles and oversee operations.[1] Argente funded and marketed both anti-Jedi and anti-Republic propaganda, which helped keep the public in Confederate territory pro-war.

Vying for power

At the beginning of the war, Passel Argente briefly headed a plot to oust Count Dooku as leader of the CIS. He pushed for an early attack on the cloning facility at Kamino to be headed by his pawn, the Mon Calamari Commander Merai. He hoped that an early victory there would shut down the Republic's war-making capabilities before the war even began, and that he would be given credit for winning the war, garnering enough political support to overthrow Dooku. However, both Darth Sidious and Dooku were aware of this plot and arranged to have the Confederacy's battle plans leaked to Jedi Knight Quinlan Vos on the Wheel, through Dooku's agent Tookarti. As a result, the outcome of the First Battle of Kamino was disastrous for the Confederacy, and instead of being hailed as a glorious leader, Passel Argente was deemed responsible for the failure and disgraced, which proved to be a fatal setback to his plans for a coup.[11]

"That Wat Tambor is up to something. I know it. The tide is turning, and I know someone's neck has to be in a noose. I know that they are eyeing mine. But I've got horn enough to know better!"
―Passel Argente to Gha Nachkt[src]
Argente Discount

Passel while meeting with Gha Nachkt.

Following his failed plot against Dooku, Argente learned that fellow Councilor Wat Tambor, the Skakoan Foreman of the Techno Union, was planning to move against him. Fearing that he would be assassinated, Argente met with a Trandoshan scavenger named Gha Nachkt to purchase a droid to act as a spy for him. Unknown to Argente, Nachkt had already been bought by Foreman Tambor who had given him a spyware-infected RA-7 protocol droid to present to Argente. Argente kept the infected droid close to him at all times in hopes of detecting any spyware aboard his ship; all the while unknowingly broadcasting covert business operations directly to Tambor. During one of these meetings, Argente's focus on the planet Ryloth peeked Tambor's interest in conquering the system, sparking the Techno Union invasion of the planet.[12]

Conquering Ukio

"Time... time... what time now? When can we get moving?"
"Patience, Magistrate. These preparations must be completed with utmost precision. You do not want this grand endeavor to fail, not when we are so close to victory."
―Passel Argente and Doctor[src]

Later in the war, Argente began to plot the invasion and conquest of a Republic agriworld called Ukio. Despite the presence of the Grand army and the Jedi Order on the planet, Argente was intent on striking a blow at the Republic and therefore commissioned the T-series tactical droid Doctor to assist in the planning of Project Instinction. When in orbit around the planet, Argente's fleet dumped mass amounts of soil harvested from the planet Moorja on the planetary shields protecting Ukio, effectively blocking out the sun. When the Ukians were forced to lower their defenses to allow the soil to disperse, Argente's fleet dropped a series of strange weapons onto the planets surface. These devices, when activated, emitted an unusual frequency which caused non-Force-sensitives to act vicious and bloodthirsty. While the Jedi stationed on the planet were able to destroy the devices and knock back Argente's attack, stocks invested in the planet's food supply plummeted, allowing Argente to effectively conquer the planet and all of its resources, robbing the Republic of a major supplier.[13]

Betrayal on Mustafar

"When my new apprentice, Darth Vader, arrives, he will take care of you."
―Darth Sidious to the Separatist Council[src]

As the war dragged on, Kooriva fell to the Republic as well as the other home and purseworlds of the Separatist leadership. As their homeworld's would not accept them, the members of the Council were forced to roam about space on their private vessels under the protection of Supreme Commander Grievous. Joining the Council aboard the cyborg's flagship, the Invisible Hand, the leadership of the Confederacy was sent to the sinkhole world Utapau to await further instructions. Following Dooku's death over Coruscant at one of the most tumultuous battles of the war, Argente was present with the other Councilors at the meeting during which Grievous ordered them to Mustafar, a mining planet on the Outer Rim where they were promised safety. Not long after departing Utapau, Grievous was killed by Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, and the Council took full control over the Confederacy.[2]

File:ThisPictureOfVaderKillingPasselArgenteInRevengeOfTheSithUsedToHaveAReallyAwfulFilename.png

Passel Argente was eventually slain on Mustafar by Darth Vader.

As the Council arrived on Mustafar, they quickly settled into the dimly lit command center at the mountainside Klegger Corp mining facility. Argente and the other Confederacy leaders were pressed into work at the facility's command center, supervising strategy and battle plans from their remote sanctuary. During their stay, the Council received a communications from the mysterious Darth Sidious, the Confederacy's shadowy benefactor. Sidious promised that the war was over and that the Republic had crumbled under the Separatist's war machine. Advising the Council to remain on the planet, Sidious assured them that he would send his apprentice, Darth Vader, to watch over them. Relieved by the news of victory, Argente and the others anxiously awaited for Vader's arrival and their eventual departure from the inhospitable world. Upon Vader's landing, the Council and its aides gathered in the facility's main command center to greet Vader only to realize soon after he sealed off all of the exits to the facility that he was not there to protect them. Igniting his lightsaber, Vader savagely cut down the guards flanking the doorway before attacking the unarmed Councilors and their aides. Denaria Kee, Argente's aide, was quickly stabbed while Argente himself tried to defend himself. Argente was not swift enough and was killed by Vader's saber, suffering a fast decapitation and dying instantly.[2] Soon after his death, the Corporate Alliance relocated its distribution companies to the Corporate Sector; with the death of Argente, the Corporate Alliance faded into oblivion.

Personality and traits

"This is taking too long. Or... it's happening too quickly. I don't know. I just don't like this!"
"Magistrate, please, try to calm yourself. Here, take your tea."
"Why did he have to make it so complicated? So many moving parts. Too many moving parts!"
"The droid is doing what it is built to do, Magistrate. You must trust to its programming."
"Is the Count still on schedule?"
"Yes, his shuttle has entered the system."
"I despise waiting games! Despise them!"
―Passel Argente and Denaria Kee, during Project Instinction[src]

A corrupt and wheedling individual, Argente was often viewed as unaccountable by his peers and colleagues, unwilling to shoulder any responsibility or admit a mistake. Suspicious by nature, Argente did not feel guilty by blaming others for his failures, believing them all in the process of trying to undermine him in every venture he took. Even in his days as a Koorivar Senator, Argente was colored by graft and corruption brought upon by his strong ties to corporate interests. Often one to shirk personal accountability, Argente was more than willing to blame others for his shortcomings and mistakes. Like all Koorivar, Argente prized the shape and size of his cranial horn, a physical feature prized by the race the larger it was. He was completely obsessed with wealth.[1]

Behind the scenes

Passel Argente was played by actor Steven Boyle in Attack of the Clones. In Revenge of the Sith, he was portrayed by Marty Wetherill. [14]

A "passel" is a casual word for "a large grouping of items," and "Argent" is French for "money", as well as an archaic word for "silver". Passel Argente's name, then, roughly means "a lot of money".

Appearances

Passel argente

Argente at the beginning of the Clone Wars.

Sources

Notes and references

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 Databank title Passel Argente in the Databank (content now obsolete; backup link)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
  3. ↑ Star Wars Character Encyclopedia
  4. ↑ Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader
  5. ↑ Cloak of Deception
  6. ↑ Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
  7. ↑ Outbound Flight
  8. ↑ HNNsmall Corporate Alliance Attacks Slicer Compound — HoloNet News Vol. 531 #48 (content now obsolete; backup link)
  9. ↑ HNNsmall RRM Fundraiser a Huge Success — HoloNet News Vol. 531 #53 (content now obsolete; backup link)
  10. ↑ Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
  11. ↑ Star Wars: Republic 50: The Defense of Kamino
  12. ↑ The Clone Wars: Discount
  13. ↑ The Clone Wars: Act on Instinct
  14. ↑ IMDB

External links

Members of the Separatist Council
Leader
Dooku · Grievous · Nute Gunray
Council members
Passel Argente · San Hill · Shu Mai · Po Nudo · Poggle the Lesser · Wat Tambor · Tikkes · Rogwa Wodrata
Aides
Sun Fac · Aruteous Gunnay · Rune Haako · Denaria Kee · Cat Miin · Nank Tun
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