Way of the Blaster Part 2

Legion Sketchbook.

From Galactic Outlaws in Season 1, we see Captain Keel is quick on the trigger. Any time the man puts his mitts on the grip of his Intec X6 Heavy Blaster Pistol, someone is going to have a bad day. Beyond any other training and background the man has, winning these fights comes down to three factors.

READING THE SCENE. Aeson Keel’s military training extends far beyond most combatants, having spent years at galaxy’s edge running his game as a smuggler and bounty hunter. In tense situations, Keel does more than just apply an OODA loop and go from there. He’s a man that makes a mental map of his surroundings and runs his route accordingly. Time and experience play a big part here, as Keel can even prevail in unfamiliar terrain.

In the later part of Season 1, Keel boards an enemy ship and finds more than he bargains for when he reaches the deeper decks. Drawing on his time in the military aboard his share of star ships, he reasons out the most likely course to his objective and picks up a friend along the way.

Experience and knowing his battle space often turns tragedy into triumph for the captain, even when things look grim.

THE ART IS IN THE PRACTICE. Someone in Keel’s position would have spent thousands of hours in training to get as good as he is. He would have worked his pistol rig into his daily carry to maximize drawing and firing at any moment. Time spent shooting would have been essential in developing his speed out of the holster and his aim, especially with the heavy blaster he’d chosen as his weapon. As a beefier weapon than the standard blaster, getting to a spot where he can draw before someone with a lighter weapon meant practice with the added weight. For every time you see Aeson Keel draw and fire, you’re seeing an additional repetition added to years practicing the art of staying alive.

SWIMMING WITH THE SHARKS. It’s one thing to practice against holo-targets. They don’t shoot real bolts. Actually strapping impervisteel to your leg and going out among the gangsters, thieves, and bounty hunters teaches you that hesitation kills. Especially without the safety of legion armor or your brothers at your back

We see repeatedly in Galaxy’s Edge that Keel lives by a simple mantra. A good plan violently executed now beats a perfect plan later.

Sure, he doesn’t always do the right thing in the moment, but his years of forging himself have produced a man who acts on instinct; those instincts honed by his time running guns with the scum of the galaxy. When it’s time to draw down, Keel has the steel in his soul to lay bolts and let the chips fall where they may.