Cold War

"This whole affair is endemic of the current crisis. The Sith are on the rise. We are on the wane. The Mandalorians and the Hutts stand between us, creating confusion and jostling for advantage. Our options are limited. If we do nothing, millions of people die. If we fight back, we engage with them at their level."

- Jedi Padawan Shigar Konshi

The Cold War was a very intense 11-year stand-off between the Sith Empire and the Galactic Republic after 3,653 BBY. The Treaty of Coruscant ended the Great Galactic War, sealing the Sith Empire's victory. Peace was gained, but tensions between the Empire and the Republic remained high. In the ten years after the War, fear and uncertainty gripped the galaxy. Border skirmishes and proxy wars between the Empire and Republic erupted and the uneasy truce between the two foes appeared to be on the verge of collapse.

History
"Thus began the unprecedented stalemate. The Jedi reconnecting with their roots, the Republic nursing its wounds, the Sith consolidating their power in a galaxy divided between darkness and light."

- Jedi Master Gnost-Dural

The terms of the punitive Treaty of Coruscant called for an immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of all Republic and Jedi forces from battlefields across the galaxy. As the Treaty went into effect, worlds once allied with the Republic were left defenseless, and were quickly absorbed by the Empire. Coruscant was also placed under the rule of the Sith Empire for a short time.

As the Jedi returned to their ruined temple on Coruscant, they were met by anger on the part of the Senate, who placed blame for the war at the feet of the Order. The Jedi, unable to stay on Coruscant where public opinion had turned against them, relocated to the world of their origin, Tython. Although his Empire was stronger than ever, the Sith Emperor no longer seemed to desire total conquest. He handed over control of the Empire to the Dark Council, a body of twelve Sith Lords who would oversee the day-to-day affairs of state. The Dark Lord went on to pursue his own mysterious goals as the Sith consolidated their power.

Border skirmishes and proxy wars between the Sith and Republic erupted and the uneasy truce between the two foes appeared to be on the verge of collapse. The conflict included small battles in the Outer Rim and other conflicts fought by proxy. One such conflict was the Civil War on Ord Mantell between the corrupt planetary government that remained loyal to the Republic and a guerrilla force of separatists wishing to secede.

Although the galactic situation could easily have erupted into another galactic conflict, neither side was ready to wage a full-scale war yet again. During the Cold War, Kel Dor Jedi Master Gnost-Dural made a record of the events surrounding the treaty at the behest of the Jedi Council on Tython.

New Heroes Emerge
During the Cold War, both the Republic and Empire gained four, new, powerful heroes. On Tython, two incredibly talented apprentices arrived and were trained, both becoming notable members of the war and saving the Republic.

The Jedi Consular started off by saving the Tythonian Forge from destruction at the hands of Nalen Raloch, and successfully gathered three of four holocrons, and found the Fount of Rajivari, which contained the contents of the fourth holocron, and more. The Consular then saved the Jedi Order from internal destruction by learning an ancient shielding technique when several Jedi Masters became infected by an ancient, dark plague. Successfully learning the technique, the Consular healed the afflicted masters and tracked the plaguemaster to a lone flagship. The plaguemaster, Lord Vivicar was defeated, and after the spirit of Terrak Morrhage was expelled from his body, redeemed. The Consular was then named the third Barsen'thor in the history of the Jedi Order.

The Jedi Knight first began helping the Jedi Order by defeating the Flesh Raiders and the two Dark Jedi who were responsible for controlling the Flesh Raiders during the events of the Flesh Raider uprising. The Jedi Knight then followed up with glorious victories against the Sith, pursuing enemies across the galaxy, such as Tarnis, a doctor-disguised Sith Lord. When Tarnis was slain, his father Darth Angral bore a personal grudge against the Knight during the resulting Desolator crisis. When Angral decided to unleash a powerful superweapon on Tython in order to destroy it, the Knight was responsible for defeating Angral, destroying the Desolator and protecting Tython. Due to this, the Knight earned the title "Hero of Tython".

Simultaneously, a smuggler and trooper began training on Ord Mantell.

Champions of the Empire
At the same time that these heroes of the Republic came to light, four other exceptional individuals appeared in Imperial Space. Two of them, one a former Slave and another a Sith-trainee, were sent to Korriban and taken under the wings of Darth Zash and Darth Baras, respectively. And the other two, the Imperial Agent Cipher Nine and an unnamed Bounty Hunter, appeared on Hutta, the former working on a mission to secure Hutt supplies for the Empire, and the latter to gain sponsorship in the Great Hunt.

Appearances

 * Timeline 1: Treaty of Coruscant
 * Timeline 12: The Great Hyperspace War
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic: The Lost Suns