Sith Eternal
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Sith Eternal
Organizational information
Title of leader
Headquarters
Affiliated organizations
Beliefs
Holy text(s)
Locations & temples
Relics & artifacts
Ceremonies
Historical information
Date founded
Other information
- "The galaxy has long trembled before the might of those who have sworn to execute my grand design. But the most committed of my followers have gone unseen, operating in secrecy here on Exegol. Seeking only my glory, the Sith Eternal have never wavered in their devotion."
- ―Darth Sidious[5]
TheSith Eternal, also known as theCult of the Sith Eternal, was a secretiveSith cult that resided on the darkdesertplanet ofExegol in theUnknown Regions. Mysteriouscultists, they venerated thedark side of the Force, and followedSithbeliefs—even after itsdestruction. The reach of the Sith Eternal was vast and went far beyond the veil of the Unknown Regions. Steeped in ancienttraditions, they used rituals designed to mine the secrets ofthe Force, they delved into the nature of phenomena such asForce-bonds anddyads in the Force, and believed thatthe galaxy was theirs to rule by cosmic right.
Due to its remote location and inherent veil of secrecy, the Sith Eternal chose Exegol as its sanctuary by thereign of theGalactic Empire, and reveredDarth Sidious, publicly known asEmperorPalpatine—who had the cultists experiment withcloning technology in a bid to extend his lifespan. Their myriadgenetic machinations led to the creation of various artificialgenetic constructs, known asstrandcasts, such asSnoke, as well as theEmperor'scloned son, who sired anatural-bornForce-sensitivedaughter namedRey. The Sith Eternal additionally beganconstructing amassivefleet, which would become the largest ingalactic history.
While the Sith became extinct during theGalactic Civil War, Sidious cheateddeath bytransferring his essence to an imperfectclone vessel that had beenmodeled on his original body on Exegol, his place ofexile after during theera of theNew Republic. The Sith Eternal strove to prevent his clone body from dying, and resorted to the science ofgene splicing in hopes of building a more suitable vessel for his dark essence. None of their endeavours succeeded in producing a viable host for Sidious' soul, however, and he was forced to rely onlife supportmachinery in order to survive as he worked patiently to rebuild his power and manipulate events. Meanwhile, the Sith Eternal laboured for a everlasting new, resurgentSith Empire and raised a generation ofchildren not only to embody the cult's values, but to serve aselite soldiers,officers, andfleet technicians in theirmilitary. Although they were not strong with the Force, the new generation was just as devoted to the dark side as the one that preceded them.
Under the hidden influence of Sidious through Snoke asSupreme Leader—engineering therise of theFirst Order as aforce capable of opposing the New Republic, which came to fruition by thetime of theFirst Order-Resistance War after the First Orderscattered the New Republic. After manyyears, their fleet andarmy were ready for deployment when Sidiousannounced his return across thegalaxy. By then, Snoke had fulfilled his purpose bydying at the hand of his apprentice,Kylo Ren, who, as Vader's grandson, was heir to thepowerfulSkywalker bloodline. Using Snoke as a proxy, the Emperor had groomed Ren to lead their forces as heir to the new Sith Empire. However, Ren renounced their cause by returning to thelight side of the Force as Ben Solo. After the Sith EternaldestroyedKijimi, theResistance invaded Exegol to prevent the Final Order's launch. The cult was ultimately destroyed along with their forces and the Emperor in theBattle of Exegol, preventing the return of the Sith.
Description[]
Organization[]
- "My Sith Eternal would provide me the tools I needed."
- ―Darth Sidious[5]
The Sith Eternal was a secret cult that operated on the Sith world of Exegol in the Unknown Regions.
The Cult of the Sith Eternal[9] was a secretivesect ofSith cultists who worshiped thedark side of the Force as well as theDark Lord of the Sith andGalactic EmperorDarth Sidious. As Sith loyalists they were instrumental in the preservation of their religion after theSith Order wasdestroyed. The Sith Eternal and their followers were spread throughoutthe galaxy and within the workings of theFirst Order, while those onExegol created afleet of hundreds of new-generationStar Destroyers and amassedlegions of well-trainedsoldiers. The existence of the Sith Eternal was a safeguarded secret, with even those in the upper echelons of the First Order unaware of their operation.[2]
The reach of the Sith Eternal was vast. Their operation extended beyond the veil of theUnknown Regions, with Sith loyalists serving on the executive boards of various galactic corporations such asSienar-Jaemus andKuat-Entralla, allowing them to secretly funnel supplies and designs to Exegol through various intermediaries. Foryears, Sith loyalists toiled in secret to achieve the final stage in the First Order's long-gestating plan of conquest. Among their ranks were scientists,engineers,technicians, shipwrights, andenslaved labor responsible for the creation of hundreds ofwarships and thousands ofstarfighters.[2]
As a cult, the Sith Eternal focused on spiritual matters in addition to their military goals. Steeped in rituals designed to mine the secrets ofthe Force, they delved into the nature of phenomena such asForce-bonds anddyads in the Force. Despite the fact that many of them were lacking inForce-sensitivity, they revered the power of the dark side and taught theirchildren to do the same. The younger generation of Sith cultists embodied the principles of the Sith Eternal, and believed thatthe galaxy was theirs to rule by cosmic right. Ultimately, the Sith Eternal coupled technology and the occult to bring forth unnatural embodiments of the dark side, thus furthering their quest to resurrect the Sith tradition.[2]
The cultists of Exegol wore a style ofapparel designed to conceal their identities. It included an oversize robe,gloves, face coverings, and a multi-layered hood whose length depended on the wearer's years of service to the Sith.[10]
The Sith Eternal resorted to science in their efforts to preserve the life of Darth Sidious.
While steeped in the Sith's ancient traditions, the Sith Eternal utilized modern and highly advanced science, specificallybioengineering,cloning, andbehavioral programming, in turn, all specifically ofKaminoan origin, in their quest to help Darth Sidious achieveeternal life. To this end, the cultists frequently experimented with their master'sgenetic code, attempting to grow a stable clone modeled on theEmperor'stemplate. They produced a number ofstrandcasts by resorting to gene splicing, but ultimately their experiments failed to achieve the desired results, leaving them with various unwanted specimens while Sidious remained trapped within an unstable, dying cloned body.[11] As noted, Sith Eternalscientists were also familiar with the Kaminoan program of behavioral modification, which they improved upon, both in order to unsuccessfully attempt to create a mentally stable exact Force-sensitive clone or Force-sensitive strandcast for their master, as well as to successfully ensure the programmed loyalty of theirSith troopers.[2]
Military[]
Main article:Sith Eternal military
- "My Sith Eternal would provide me the tools I needed. It was they who constructed a fully operational armada on Exegol at my command. It was they who trained their offspring to operate those vessels with deadly efficiency. For a generation, they toiled and trained, and now their efforts shall be put to the test as the Final Order prepares to arise!"
- ―Darth Sidious[5]
While the First Order became the military arm ofDarth Sidious' secretContingency,[2] following its subservient with Snoke as proxy ruler,[5] as part of Sidious ultimate plan to build a newSith Empire, the Sith Eternal served as its hidden spiritualheart and maintained a vast array ofmilitary power and groups who acted as enforcers. The fleet that the cult created—comprising more than a thousandXyston-class Star Destroyers along with the requisiteTIE/dg starfighters,fleet technicians, andSith Eternal officers[2]—was officially called theFinal Order.[1]
Sith troopers were the culmination of a contingency meant to ensure the perpetual reign of the Sith Empire.
Sithtroopers comprised the Sith Eternal'sground forces, which were divided into legions of five-thousand troopers based on the ancient standard of a legion. A Sith troopersquad consisted of ten troopers led by Sith troopersergeant. The squads were configured in threetriads, which consisted of a Sith troopercorporal leading twolance corporals. Legions were numerically identified, but also given the name of an ancientSith Lord. Such examples included3rd "Revan" Legion, the5th "Andeddu" Legion, the17th "Tanis" Legion, the26th "Tenebrous" Legion, the39th "Phobos" Legion, and the44th "Desolous" Legion.Sith Jetpack Trooper squads also consisted of ten soldiers, and squad names were that of weapons. Several examples includedWarblade Squad,Lanvorak Squad, andParang Squad.[2]
Despite the potential alliance between the Sith Eternal and theFirst Order military, there was a degree of friction between the two groups.First Order officers were of a pragmatic nature which clashed with the fanaticism of the Sith cultists.[2]GeneralDomaric Quinn andAllegiant GeneralEnric Pryde, both of whom served on theFirst Order Supreme Council, held opposite views concerning their Sith allies. Whereas Quinn disdained the Sith Eternal as a cult of mystics,[11] Pryde was more concerned with the practical advantages that the cult had to offer, their fleet in particular.[2] Pryde calculated that the Sith StarDestroyers would increase the First Order's resources by ten-thousandfold, more than making up for thedestruction ofStarkiller Base which he held GeneralArmitage Hux responsible.[11] The alliance between both factions was cemented when[12] Pryde pledged himself to Sidious.[1]
History[]
Imperial Era[]
- "Well done, Lord Vader, but you seem weary. And so many others wish to meet you. Only two Sith, just as you say. But any one of these might replace you."
- ―Darth Sidious, to Darth Vader[3]
Darth Vader once encountered the Sith cultists on Exegol who served the Emperor.
In19 BBY,[13] Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord who masterminded the fall of theGalactic Republic and rise of the Galactic Empire, withdrew from the eye of the public in order to begin probing the secrets of the dark side and arcane Sith lore in order to begin his quest in obtaining immortality.[2] On Exegol, the Sith Eternal, within the ancientSith Citadel on the planet, began to experiment with the science of cloning in a bid to extend, with the end goal to ultimately permanently sustain, their Emperor's lifespan.[14] During their service to Darth Sidious, the cult's labor andcloning experiments led to the creation several genetic constructs, including anelite guard, and the start of construction of a new fleet of Star Destroyers on the planet by the time of theGalactic Civil War.[3]
Following theDuel on Cloud City, Sidious'Sith apprentice,Darth Vader, discovered Exegol after he acquired aSith wayfinder from theEye of Webbish Bog onMustafar[15] and used it totravel to the hiddenplanet, where he sought to uncover hisSith Master's secrets.[16] There, at Sidious' command, Vader was attacked by the Tankers and a group of their Sith cultists, whom he killed, and witnessed Sith cultists harvesting a mountain ofkyber crystals in order to power theplanet-destroyingcannons used by the Star Destroyers of the Final Order fleet.[3]
New Republic Era[]
- "Through my manipulation of Snoke, I began gathering forces, building an army capable of opposing the New Republic that had arisen in my absence. Through Snoke, I would make certain that the First Order would be mine to control."
- ―Darth Sidious[17]
The Sith Eternal created the Final Order to be the largest fleet in the galaxy.
Thedeaths of Darth Sidious and Darth Vader fulfilled aJediprophecy that foretold the destruction of the Sith Order.[18] In the impassable depths of theUnknown Regions, however, loyalists kept the Sith religion alive even after the destruction of the two Sith Lords and sought to resurrect its tradition.[2] Sith cultists gathered on the lost world of Exegol to venerate and worship the Sith Order and ancient Sith in general while also swearing fealty to the last Sith Lord,[4] Darth Sidious, who cheated death by using the dark side of the Force to thrust his consciousness into a clone body previously prepared by the Sith Eternal usingClone Warsera technology sometime before the Battle ofEndor.[11] The cultists followed the Emperor's plan to extend his smallSith Empire and bring about a new fascist order across the galaxy after the Galactic Empirefell in theGalactic Civil War, with the galaxy at large assuming Emperor Palpatine was no more. Theirshipyards of Exegol operated in secret fordecades, building a vast fleet that the galaxy was unaware of. During thistime period, Exegol'shumanpopulation was indoctrinated with the values of the Sith Eternal, having been raised by the cultists as their children to becomeofficers,technicians, and soldiers in the new Sith Empire.[2]
During theera of theNew Republic, theEmperor's family was hunted byOchi of Bestoon.[1] A hunter ofSith artifacts, Ochi was an associate of theEmperor's adviser,Yupe Tashu, and the self-styledAcolytes of the Beyond. Though he was not Force-sensitive, Ochi believed that the dark side propelled him and shaped his actions.[2] He captured theEmperor's cloned son, but failed to locate his daughter,Rey, who was left onJakku for her own safety. After failing to coerce theparents into revealing the girl's location, Ochi used hisdagger to kill Rey's father and hermother. Ochi later perished onPasaana before he could find Rey and bring her to Exegol.[1]
First Order/Resistance War[]
- "Do not fear that feeble attack, my faithful. Nothing will stop the return of the Sith!"
- ―Darth Sidious[1]
Snoke was one of several strandcast clones, designed to be Darth Sidious' proxy in power.
In their quest to restore the Sith, the cultists deemed Vader'sgrandson, thedark warriorKylo Ren, a potential heir to the Sith legacy. Ren's own master,Supreme LeaderSnoke, was a product of the Sith Eternal's machinations.[2] Snoke was a strandcast—an artificial genetic construct—concocted by Sidious to lead the First Order as his proxy. He was also one of several identical clones which were stored in a vat on Exegol.[14] The Sith Eternal designed Snoke to test Ren's worthiness to become the Sith's inheritor. Ren was subjected to trials that molded him into a master of attack and cunning.[2] Despite having a will of his own,[14] Snoke's role was to serve as a final crucible in Ren's descent into darkness. Byoutmaneuvering and assassinating his master, Ren passed the last test in his apprenticeship as designed by the Sith Eternal.[2]
The Sith Eternal anointed Kylo Ren, grandson of Darth Vader, as the ruler of the new Sith Empire.
UsingVader's wayfinder to locate Exegol, the new Supreme Leader discovered the secrets of the Sith Eternal, including their clandestine operation[2] and Darth Sidious, whose cloned body continued deteriorating in spite of his followers' efforts to keep him alive.[11] Ren came to realize that he was heir to the vast Sith Empire which had been forged by the cult.[2] Bidden by Sidious to kill theJedi apprentice Rey,[1] Ren accepted the mantle but felt no indebtedness to the Sith cultists who groomed him[2] to become the new Emperor.[1] Although he resolved to fulfill his grandfather'slegacy, Ren was unwilling to return to a subservient state, having sacrificed so much to gain power and independence.[2]
TheResistance learned about the Sith Eternal through a First Orderspy, General Hux, who sought to undermine Ren and make him lose the war by supplying information to his enemies.CommanderPoe Dameron briefed the Resistance onAjan Kloss where he confirmed the validity of Emperor Palpatine's transmission, revealing that the Emperor was alive once more and that his followers were prepared to unleash an armada of planet-killingwarships.[1]
After losing Ren, who reclaimed his identity as Ben Solo upon the sacrifice of his mother and Resistance leader,GeneralLeia Skywalker Organa Solo, Darth Sidious cultivated Rey as his sole successor. Knowing the girl to be his granddaughter, the Dark Lord not only offered theThrone of the Sith to Rey, but also urged her to kill him in anger, to allow his spirit to pass into her body. By then, theXyston-class Star DestroyerDerriphan had destroyed the planetKijimi as ashow of force. As the Sith Eternal's fleet prepared to depart from Exegol, theResistance fleet made a desperate attempt to prevent the cult from returning thegalaxy to the rule of the Sith.[1]
Standing before his followers, Darth Sidious proclaimed his restoration as the one true Emperor.
During theBattle of Exegol, members of the Sith Eternal witnessed as Rey reluctantly began participating in Sidious' ritual, hoping to save her allies from being destroyed by the Sith forces. Her submission pleased the Emperor, who declared to his followers that theJedi Order was dead and a new Sith reign would commence with his granddaughter ascending to the throne as "Empress Palpatine." Before the ceremony could conclude with Sidious' sacrificial death, however, Ben Solo charged intoSith Citadel to fight alongside Rey. The Sith Eternal tried to prevent Solo from reaching thethrone room, in contrast to how they previously welcomed him when he was still Kylo Ren. Sensing Solo's presence through their bond, Rey stayed her hand rather than giving into the dark side. His plans thwarted, the Dark Lord attacked both Jedi and discovered that the power of their bond was the key to restoring his strength. Sidious therefore discarded the notion of being succeeded and reclaimed his former title of Emperor, having successfully siphoned enough energy from the[11] prophesied dyad in the Force,[2] to become whole again.[1]
Once restored, Sidious reassured his followers that the Resistance and theirallies were doomed to fail. However, as the reborn Emperor unleashed a chain ofForce lightning into the sky, destroying or disabling his opponents' vessels, Rey called on thespirits of all the Jedi to help her vanquish the Dark Lord of the Sith. The resulting explosion of Force energy destroyed Sidious' body and caused the Citadel's ceiling to collapse, crushing the thousands of cultists who witnessed their master's destruction.[11] Their demise, combined with the Final Order's decisive defeat, marked the destruction of the cult and prevented a return of the Sith[1] in the year35 ABY.[8] Without the promised reinforcements, the First Order's military rule crumbled under apan-galactic uprising, ending with the First Order's defeat in theFirst Order-Resistance War.[14]
Behind the scenes[]
The Sith Eternal first appeared in the final film of theStar Wars saga,Star Wars: Episode IXThe Rise of Skywalker.[1] It was first identified inStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: The Visual Dictionary, which was released on the same day as the film,December 20,2019.[2]
In theStar Wars Legends continuity, a cult known as theProphets of the Dark Side bears similarities with the Sith Eternal.[19] Both cults date back generations before the events of theSkywalker Saga, were based on hidden worlds with ancient ties to theSith, its members wore black robes and operated in secret, and servedDarth Sidious as they helped further hisdark side goals by manipulating the course of galactic events to ensure the outcome.[20][21][22][23][24][19]
Appearances[]
- Star Wars Battlefront II(DLC)
- Darth Vader (2020) 11
- Darth Vader (2020) 46
- Darth Vader (2020) 47
- Darth Vader (2020) 50
- Star Wars: Squadrons(Mentioned only)
- Star Wars: Hunters(Emblem only)
- Shadow of the Sith(andaudiobook)(First identified as Cult of the Sith Eternal)
- Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures — "The First Order vs. The Resistance"
- Star Wars: Episode IXThe Rise of Skywalker(First appearance)
- Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: Expanded Edition(andaudiobook)
- Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: A Junior Novel(andaudiobook)
- "A Eulogy for Snap" —Star Wars (2020) 25
Non-canon appearances[]
Sources[]
Notes and references[]
- Related categories:
- Sith Eternal
- Related Categories:
- Sith Eternal