Star Wars' House Organa Had A Force-Sensitive Handmaiden More Formidable Than Any Of Padme's...It's Just A Shame She Became A Sith

A handmaiden of the Alderaanian Noble House of Organa becomes a formidable Jedi – and later Sith – in the Star Wars Legends continuity. House Organa is one of the Great Houses of Alderaan and, thanks to Princess Leia Organa, is easily the most famous one in the Star Wars franchise. The intricacies of Alderaanian history, culture, and its Great Houses are explored in detail in the 2011 video game Star Wars: The Old Republic. The Old Republic, notably, is one of the few ongoing elements of the Legends continuity since the Star Wars franchise’s partial reboot in 2014.

Of The Old Republic’s playable classes, the Sith Warrior is one of the most fascinating, allowing players to create and characterize a Sith Lord who eventually earns the title of the Emperor’s Wrath. While it is assumed that the Emperor’s Wrath fully embraces the dark side of the Force and its corresponding gameplay and dialogue choices, players could make their Sith follow the “light side,” for a fascinating alternate storyline – albeit one that heavily conflicts with established Star Wars lore. In either case, a major character in the Sith Warrior’s storyline is the former Alderaanian handmaiden, Jaesa Willsaam.

Jaesa Willsaam Was A Force-Sensitive Handmaiden Of House Organa

Jaesa Willsaam’s backstory reveals that she was a humble handmaiden to General Gesselle Organa, and Willsaam may have eventually married an Organa noble if not for the discovery of her Force-sensitivity. Although Jaesa was far older than most initiates, she joined the Jedi Order. Willsaam’s first master was Yonlach, who lived on Tatooine and trained Willsaam on the harsh Outer Rim world. Willsaam would gain a new Jedi mentor, however, when the Jedi learned that she had the unique ability to recognize a being’s true intentions, making her especially vital to the Republic during their Cold War with the Sith.

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Nomen Karr became Jaesa Willsaam’s new Jedi Master, helping her hone and deploy her uncanny powers of discerning a person’s true alignment, particularly against agents of his rival – the Sith Lord Darth Baras. The frustrated Baras eventually discovered how Nomen Karr repeatedly foiled his schemes and dispatched his apprentice – the future Emperor’s Wrath – to hunt down Jaesa Willsaam and kill those close to her. Of course, if a player chooses “good” options for their Sith Warrior, the future Lord Wrath simply learns about Willsaam and how to find her without killing those closest to her.

How Jaesa Willsaam Became A Sith

In the canonical dark side storyline for the Sith Warrior, the eventual Emperor’s Wrath successfully draws out Jaesa Willsaam after killing Jedi Master Yonlach and even Willsaam’s own parents on Alderaan before confronting her and Nomen Karr on Hutta. In the ensuing duel, Nomen Karr falls to the dark side and Willsaam turns her power on him, discovering that he had always been predisposed to the dark side’s corruption. Willsaam lost her faith in the Jedi as a result and pledged herself to the Sith and the dark side, killing Karr and becoming a particularly sadistic Sith.

The “good side” version of the Sith Warrior, fascinatingly, still recruits Jaesa Willsaam to the Sith, but their acts of mercy and kindness cause Willsaam a great deal of confusion, as her powers reveal the darkness within her Jedi Master and the goodness within her supposed enemy. Willsaam spares her master but still leaves the Jedi Order. As a member of the Sith Empire, Willsaam and the Emperor’s Wrath secretly work to undermine the Empire from within, with Willsaam using her unique power to seek out other Sith who stray from the dark side’s corruption.

Did Leia Have Handmaidens On Alderaan Like Padmé?

Interestingly, Princess Leia Organa, unlike Padmé Amidala, never had handmaidens on Alderaan. Padmé’s former handmaiden from Naboo – Sabé – did serve House Organa following the fall of the Republic. Along with helping Bail Organa form the Rebel Alliance, Sabé also tutored a young Leia and her childhood friend, Winter. Leia would use a body double on occasion just like her mother, with Winter often disguising herself as Leia, serving as a decoy for the Princess. While neither Sabé nor Winter were handmaidens, both were invaluable allies and friends to Leia in the Star Wars Legends continuity.

Star Wars

Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.