Kreia is a character and member of the player's party in the video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords by Obsidian Entertainment. She is blind and can sense the Force, forming a special connection with the main character, the Jedi Exile, through the Force. Kreia acts as the Exile's teacher and challenges the idea that the Force has a strict light side and dark side. She also questions the belief that the Force controls everything that happens. At the end of the game, it is revealed that Kreia is actually the Sith Lord Darth Traya, who plans to destroy the Force. She becomes the final enemy in the game. Kreia does not appear in any other Star Wars stories, but a small model of her was released in 2008, and she can be played as a character in Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes.
Kreia was created by Chris Avellone to explore the role of the Jedi and the nature of the Force. Her character was inspired by a similar character from the game Planescape: Torment. She helps test the player's choices and shares questions and ideas about the Star Wars universe. Sara Kestelman provided Kreia's voice, and her casting was considered very important. Kreia's name is a reference to Princess Leia from the original Star Wars trilogy, and her appearance combines elements from Emperor Palpatine's hood and Obi-Wan Kenobi's robes.
Kreia was widely praised and is often considered one of the best parts of The Sith Lords. Players appreciated her dialogue, the questions she raised, and her voice acting. She has been listed in many top character rankings for Star Wars. One scene where Kreia talks about the risks of being too kind was especially noted. Although Avellone believed he did not fully create a Sith Lord who could be understood or liked, he still considers Kreia one of his favorite characters in the game.
Conception and creation
The first version of the game included a leader similar to Kreia, who ruled the Handmaiden's world. The player's mission was to free this world. This early idea was created before Obsidian, the game's developers, played the first game. After playing it, they decided to change this idea. However, some traits of Kreia were kept, while most other details were removed.
In the final version of the game, Kreia was created by Chris Avellone, who also designed the main characters for The Sith Lords. At first, Avellone was unsure about working on Star Wars, but he later became excited. He wanted to create a Sith Lord who could be understood and connected to. Kreia was inspired by a character named Ravel Puzzlewell from another game, Planescape: Torment, which Avellone also wrote. He wanted Kreia to share stories he could not tell in Torment. However, the Star Wars setting changed Kreia's character significantly.
A detailed biography was written for Kreia to help with the game's story, art, and sound. When creating characters, Avellone focused on their role in the story, their name, their appearance (worked on with the concept artist), and how they could express his ideas. Kreia's name was inspired by Princess Leia from the original Star Wars films. Like Leia, she acts as an ally, but her name includes a harsher prefix to show her darker past. Her appearance combines elements of wise mentors, like Obi-Wan's robes, with dark-side traits, like Palpatine's hood. Brian Menze, the lead concept artist, designed Kreia's look.
In the game, Kreia had several roles. She was a party member, a character who contrasted others, and someone who helped explore the game's themes, such as the Jedi's role and the Force's nature in the galaxy. Kreia helped Avellone express his thoughts about the Force. However, her views were carefully written to avoid conflicts with the rest of the Star Wars universe. Kreia was meant to challenge the player with important questions about the Star Wars world. She was rude and dismissive to everyone except the player, which was intended to make the player feel special.
An English actress named Sara Kestelman voiced Kreia in the game. Voice directors Will Beckman and Darragh O'Farrell said Kreia was the most important character to cast, but it was difficult because few games include women of her age. The developers worked hard to find a voice that matched Kreia's appearance without sounding "witchy or grating" due to her many lines.
The developers gave each companion a unique ability to make them stand out. In early plans, Kreia was shown in cutscenes recruiting characters like Hanharr to join her and tempt them to the dark side. However, her exact purpose was not clearly explained. At the end of the game, these characters were used as "cannon fodder" before the final battle with Kreia. This idea was later removed.
Kreia is shown as an elderly blind woman who uses the Force instead of her eyes. She sees the world through the Force, which she believes is more important than normal sight. The game's story reveals that Kreia was once a Jedi historian who taught Revan, the main character of the first game. Her teachings were blamed for Revan's fall to the dark side. Kreia trained two Sith villains in the game, Darth Sion and Darth Nihilus, before they cast her out. At first, she wears earth-brown Jedi robes with white eyes. After it is revealed that she is Darth Traya, a Sith and a betrayer, her robes and eyes become black, and her skin turns paler.
Kreia represented Avellone's frustration with the Force. He said her only redeeming quality was her love for the player, who she saw as a way to destroy the Force's control and free the galaxy. Kreia rejects the idea of good and evil, instead encouraging the player to make choices based on personal strength. Julie Muncy of The A.V. Club described Kreia's philosophy as focusing on power and struggle in a pessimistic way.
At the start of the game, Kreia appears as an ally and teacher, acting as a mentor. Alexander Gambotto-Burke of Eurogamer noted that Kreia has a "genuine, albeit twisted maternal" love for the player, her student. Unlike Darth Malak, the clear villain of the first game, Avellone said Kreia is not simply good or evil. Instead, she wants the player to grow as a person. Kreia's goals and motivations are complex, making her mysterious. Hilary Goldstein of IGN noted that Kreia's actions seem dark, yet she often protects the player, showing her role as both a defender and a protector.
Appearances
The game was first released in December 2004 on the Xbox, which was the character's first appearance. When the player character, a Jedi who was exiled, wakes up on a mining station, they find Kreia in the morgue. Kreia tells the player that while they both slept, they formed a Force bond, connecting them. It is revealed that Kreia and the Exile traveled together on the Ebon Hawk after the Exile's original ship was attacked by the Sith. During their escape, Kreia fought Darth Sion and lost her hand, causing the Exile pain because of their bond. After they leave the station on the Ebon Hawk, Kreia becomes the Exile's teacher.
Kreia stays with the player throughout the game and may speak at certain times to share her thoughts. The player's choices affect Kreia's "Influence," which shows how much the player trusts or controls her. Unlike other characters, Kreia's alignment stays neutral, but higher Influence unlocks new conversations. In the game, Kreia can only use one hand and is a "Jedi Consular," focusing on Force powers. Having Kreia in the party gives the player extra experience, and any Force effects used on either character also affect the other.
After the player finds all the Jedi Masters hiding, Kreia takes back her role as a Sith Lord. If the player doesn't kill the Jedi, Kreia stops them from cutting the Exile off from the Force, killing the Jedi herself. If the player kills the Jedi, Kreia leaves the Exile. Either way, Kreia leaves, and the player must find her on Malachor V, a place where past events caused a wound in the Force. Kreia plans to make another wound, silencing the Force and possibly killing those connected to it. The player faces Kreia, now called "Darth Traya," in the final battle. After she is defeated, she describes the future she saw before dying.
Kreia has not appeared in any other Star Wars stories. However, she is mentioned in books like Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force and The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia. Wizards of the Coast made a miniature of Kreia and other characters from the Knights of the Old Republic series, released on August 19, 2008. In February 2018, Darth Traya and other Sith Lords were added as playable characters and bosses in the mobile game Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes.
Reception
Kreia has been widely praised by critics and fans. Alexander Gambotto-Burke of Eurogamer called Kreia the greatest villain in video games, highlighting her strong dialogue, Kestelman’s "intelligent and subtle" voice acting, and how she made players think carefully about their choices. IGN’s Hilary Goldstein also praised Kreia’s dialogue. Gamasutra’s Katherine Cross noted that Kreia’s comments made players reflect more deeply on morality than the game’s traditional light-side and dark-side choices. Kotaku’s Phil Owen praised Kreia’s "practical" philosophy, which connected to real-life ideas rather than the extreme views of the Sith and Jedi. Eurogamer’s Richard Cobbett said Kreia was the most famous example of The Sith Lords’ subversion of Star Wars and the first Knights of the Old Republic, calling her a fresh and memorable character who was "easily one of the best RPG characters ever."
Many critics consider Kreia one of the most important characters in The Sith Lords. Julie Muncy of The A.V. Club called Kreia the most captivating part of the game, praising her "cold charisma." She said Kreia’s actions made her change how she played the game, caring deeply about Kreia’s opinions. PC Gamer credited Kreia with The Sith Lords’ success, describing her as "clearly haunted, bitter, manipulative, and yet right in so many ways." They said Obsidian’s portrayal of Kreia offered the most thoughtful take on Star Wars. Eurogamer’s Robert Purchese called Kreia "the strongest and most memorable character" in the game, praising her writing and how she represented the gray areas of The Sith Lords. GameSpy’s Allen Rausch called Kreia the most compelling character, noting how she challenged players’ choices, including a scene about the importance of lightsabers that changed his view of the game.
Kreia has appeared on many lists, showing her popularity as a Star Wars character. IGN ranked her 81st in "The Top 100 Star Wars Characters," noting her mysterious nature. She and the other Sith Lords in the game were ranked second in a modified list of the best Star Wars villains, based on reader requests. Game Informer’s Joe Juba called the Sith Lords from Knights of the Old Republic "cooler and better developed" than the Sith Lords in the actual Star Wars films. Game Informer also ranked Kreia seventh in "Top Ten Female Villains in Video Games," saying she represented the dark side of the Star Wars universe "relatively ruthlessly." GamesRadar’s Edwin Evans-Thirlwell called Kreia’s story one of "25 greatest Star Wars moments in Xbox history," calling the reveal of her plan "compelling" even though it was exposition-heavy.
Not all critics had positive opinions about Kreia. Adam Rosenburg of UGO Networks listed Kreia as one of the worst Star Wars expanded universe characters, saying she was at the center of Knights of the Old Republic II’s "stupidity" and criticizing her Sith name. Gamasutra’s Christopher Buecheler called Kreia’s comments "a bit trite and condescending" and said gaining Influence with her was essential to understanding the game’s main plot.
A famous scene on Nar Shaddaa lets players choose whether to give a beggar money or leave him. If the player gives the money, Kreia shows the beggar is later attacked. If the player refuses, Kreia reveals the beggar attacks others. Kotaku’s Phil Owen called this moment the best example of the game’s gray areas. Gamers Hell’s Anthony Brock said the scene made him argue passionately with a game character, praising Obsidian for making him feel involved. Eurogamer’s Richard Cobbett also praised this scene when talking about Kreia. However, Christopher Buecheler criticized the scene for using an unlikely event to make its point.
Kreia won "Best Character" in GameSpy’s 2005 game of the year awards. They called her a "deeply unpleasant, highly disturbing, and incredibly hateful person," but also "easily the most intriguing, complicated, enigmatic, well-designed, and nuanced character in a video game [in 2005]." She was also nominated for GameSpot’s 2004 "Best New Character" award, though she lost to "The Boss" in Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater.
Avellone said he felt he failed to create a sympathetic Sith Lord, noting that testers called Kreia "that crusty annoying lady." He said the ending’s explanations of her motivations were more "hamfisted" than kind. However, in an interview with 1UP.com, he called Kreia and the Handmaiden his favorite characters after T3-M4, citing the mystery around her. He called the revelation that Kreia was neither fully good nor evil his favorite "unexpected turn" in the game. In another interview with EU Cantina, he said his favorite character was either Kreia or T3-M4, calling the scene where Kreia explains her relationship with the Force one of his favorites in the game.
Analysis
Sometimes, people face situations with no clear good choices, and simple moral actions might lead to unexpected results. This situation shows how limiting choices in a game can unexpectedly encourage players to explore deeper ideas.
Alexander Gambotto-Burke believed the character represented Avellone's criticism of the Star Wars story and the moral choices in many video games after Garriott. He described the character as a guide meant to encourage players to consider moral choices they might avoid. Gambotto-Burke also believed the character was not completely evil, and at the game's end, players might see her as a person with good intentions but serious flaws. GameSpot said the character's purpose was to help players move past a type of thinking that suggests nothing matters and understand that making choices helps shape the world.
In her analysis of game morality, Katherine Cross discussed a scene on Nar Shaddaa where a beggar appears. She explained how this scene showed the character's moral views, raised questions about shallow moral actions, and highlighted the player's lack of control. Hilary Goldstein noted that the character's ideas also challenged the roles of the Jedi and the Sith in the game.