Imperial Sentinel

Imperial sentinels were giant, armoured and cloaked warriors who guarded the Emperor's dark side adepts and did their bidding. They were often seen in the Imperial Citadel on Byss. Their origins were an impenetrable secret to all but the dark adepts; even the Sovereign Protectors were innocent of the secret.

In reality, the sentinels were clones created from the adepts. The application of dark side powers and chemical treatments during gestation gifted each sentinel with the stature of a titan, at the cost of stunting its mental development. The mind of each sentinel was enslaved to the telepathic will of its creator. It is rumoured that the adept can perceive what his sentinel perceives.

The generation of sentinels may be one of the topics in Palpatine's textbook The Creation of Monsters.

Skywalker Sentinels
Under Palpatine's tutelage, Luke Skywalker bred at least two sentinels for himself on Byss. This pair met the crew of the Millennium Falcon when they landed in the Citadel in a bold attempt to rescue Luke. Princess Leia severed a hand from one of the giants.

There is a curious implication to the existence of these giants. As asexual genetic progeny of Luke Skywalker &mdash; however badly deformed &mdash; these particular sentinels qualify as members of the Skywalker family. Their travels and activities after Luke's reversion to the Light Side have not yet been documented.