QUOTE(Darkness Eternal @ May 24 2014, 08:22 PM)

When you look at it, Maul was a weapon and while overconfidence did play part on it(Sidious chided him once about it), it was due to Sidious' lack of proper training as you said but it hardly changes Maul's talent. As Dooku put it"he was an animal, a skilled animal, but a beast nonetheless." When you look into it, Maul was used for a number of things to covertly further the Sith agenda, including killing Jedi, a large crime syndicate, etc. He was a weapon, yes. But he was also an apprentice, for he learned the ways of the Sith at Sidious' feet.
As I recall, Sidious' mistake that he admitted too was making Maul too full of rage. I suspect that contributed more to his death than overconfidence. Which is what made him only a weapon. From Sidious' perspective he was a failure.
QUOTE(Darkness Eternal @ May 24 2014, 08:22 PM)

Dooku/Darth Tyranus was also a weapon. He was used and prized for his political astuteness and his old title of count and his resources, as well as his Jedi training which Sidious enjoyed cause it would mean he wouldn't have to train someone from the start, as he didn't have enough time when his plan was put into motion. Still, Tyranus was used for everything. He helped finance the Clone Wars with his own money to further the Sith agenda, and I believe these were his last thoughts on the matter too . . . how he had been used and lied to all these years by Sidious who used him more as a tool than an apprentice.
Dooku thought he was going to be helping build an Empire of force-users composed of turned Jedi and skilled assassins in his Empire of Man and that Anakin would turn to the Dark Side and become a general in that army after Dooku surrendered himself purposely after killing Obi-Wan. Instead of his plans going smoothly, Sidious actually goaded Anakin into overpowering and killing Dooku, prompting the old man to figure out he was just fuel for Anakin's fire. That he would be Anakin's first cold-blooded execution(I'd count those animals we call Sand-people or Tusken raiders but that's a different story altogether).
I wouldn't call Dooku a weapon, more a tool. He served as a visible leader for the Confederacy, and being a former Jedi helped set up the idea that the whole war was perpetuated by the Jedi. Being wealthy made him more useful, as did the fact that Dooku sought Sidious out.
Not sure about the whole Empire of force users thing though, Dooku was aware of the Rule of Two, and the reasons behind it. Where does it cover that part?
QUOTE(Darkness Eternal @ May 24 2014, 08:22 PM)

Darth Vader was promised much, too. He was Sidious' prize weapon during the end of the Clone Wars after Dooku. Sidious used his newfound thirst for blood useful and set him out to assassinate the Jedi in the Temple and the Separatist Council, and if he crosses paths with Obi-Wan, him as well. After the events of Mustafar, Sidious sought to replace Vader with Galen Merek/Starkiller as a much more useful tool. Since it may not be canon any longer, we also have to consider Sidious doing something similar with Luke in
Return of the Jedi.
Where am I going with this? I just think all of Sidious' apprentices were used more as his own little murderous weapon box, he just liked each of them for their separate qualities and when something better came along, he would toss them aside.

And I don't think Vader was meant to be a weapon either, he only became one because he wasn't suited to anything else after Mustafar. Between the whole chosen one thing and the Plagueis ability that Sidious was chasing, I'd expect that to be Sidious' chief use for Vader.
Maul was a failure, Dooku was a tool, but only Vader was truly suited to be his apprentice, prior to the events of Mustafar. And Luke would gave served as Vader's replacement. And point of interest: Considering how Return of the Jedi ended, and that turning Luke to the darkside was Vader's idea, not the Emperor's, I think it's safe to say that Vader's motivation was sparing Luke, not bringing peace and order to the galaxy.
I'm going to skip over the everything past this point, because when arguing over ideology it can get real messy. And to be frank, considering my opinion of the Sith, I've actually had to scrap several replies simply because they came far too close to getting personal.