Kaggathyunkun

Kaggathyunkun, a Sith language compound word meaning "a kaggath of only two," was a type of single combat champion duel practiced by the Murese that was based on the ancient Sith Kaggath ritual and the gladiatorial duels of Rakata Force Hounds.

A product of the krato-magocratic Sithic-Rakata cultural mores that defined Murese culture, Kaggathyunkun were fought by Murese Force users over the right to occupy political appointments in the Second Predorate. Such duels were held between a presiding office holder and a title claimant, adjudicated by an unbiased audience to prevent corruption, and officiated by observing members of the Rakata priesthood. Kaggathyunkun were generally held in enclosed arenas from which combatants were forbidden to exit until either a clear victor emerged or a participant yielded the contest. With no defined time limit, some historically significant kaggathyunkun fought between particularly powerful Force users were known to have dragged on for several days until one or both combatants collapsed from exhaustion, though most contests lasted only several hours on average.

In accordance with Murese strength-based meritocracy, any Murese of sufficient Force ability could publicly challenge any office holder in the political hierarchy of the Second Predorate to a kaggathyunkun. Presiding rulers were expected to honor the challenges of upstart claimants in defense of their thrones, as such challenges were deemed necessary tests of each ruler's fitness to rule over the Murese population. Those who sought to shrug off or avoid such conflicts were quickly run out of town by their own constituents and the religious authorities alike for failing to fulfill their cultural responsibilities. As these conflicts defined in large part the manner in which a Murese community was run, high-level duels evolved into spectacles for the entertainment of the general populace, hosted in vast gladiatorial coliseums before thousands and covered in the press weeks in advance.

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