3955 BBY

"There are many factions within the Sith, each attempting to take what little remains from the Jedi Civil War."

- Visas Marr

The year 3,955 before the Battle of Yavin (BBY), also known as 302 before the Treaty of Coruscant (BTC), was a span of time that marked the beginning of the Dark Wars, following the conclusion of the Jedi Civil War. After Revan led the Jedi Order and Galactic Republic in victory over Darth Malak and the Sith Empire, the Sith remnants fractured and began to war amongst themselves. Amidst the power vacuum, Sith members became warlords, claiming small territories on the fringes of the Republic and fought for supremacy against each other in an opportunistic attempt at reviving the former glory of the Empire. At the same time, the Republic began to recover from the Jedi Civil War. In response to the destruction of Telos IV, Supreme Chancellor Cressa commenced the planet-wide Telosian Restoration Project, a terraforming project aimed at making the planet habitable once again. To assist in this effort and other redevelopment projects, Aratech launched the G0-T0 droid series. At the same time, the Kanz Disorders, a secessionist movement in the Kanz sector was still ongoing. Consumed by the recent wars and recovery, the Republic had not intervened in the conflict.

Proem
"The Jedi Civil War brought much suffering to the galaxy, and the forces that Malak and Revan amassed against us seemed limitless. Many worlds were destroyed, trade routes disrupted, and the Republic fleet was almost decimated. While it is said that Revan and several Republic heroes and Jedi defeated Malak, in many ways Malak had already won."

- Mical

The Jedi Civil War was a galaxy-wide conflict that followed in the wake of the also devastating Mandalorian Wars. The combination of two wars left the Galactic Republic reeling in commercially, politically, and militarily. Even though the Republic had defeated Darth Malak's Sith Empire at the Battle of Rakata Prime, in 3,956 BBY, the effects were far-flung. Worlds, such as Telos and Taris, had been destroyed through orbital bombardment; trade routes and infrastructure had been disrupted or destroyed which allowed for criminal organizations such as the Exchange or various Hutt Cartels to manipulate markets and hoard goods; in addition, the military which defended the Republic was on the verge of collapse. Similarly, the Jedi Order was in disarray from having lost so many members through defection and battle.

The hero of the war was Revan, the former Dark Lord who ruled the empire until being captured in 3,957 BBY. Having been redeemed, Revan successfully led the Republic to victory. His victory over Malak created a power vacuum in the Sith ranks. However, Revan did not stay in Republic space for the reconstruction. Feeling the need to combat what he called the "True Sith," Revan departed, alone, for the Unknown Regions.

Galactic Republic
"The surface of Telos was destroyed during the Jedi Civil War a few years ago. This – Citadel Station – is part of the Republic's planetary restoration initiative."

- Moza

Due to the devastation from the recent wars, Supreme Chancellor Cressa began large-scale rebuilding projects. One such was the Telosian Restoration Project, a terraforming project designed to make the world habitable following its destruction in 3,958 BBY. For the project, and other reconstruction efforts, the company Aratech launched the G0-T0 droid series. Round black droids, they were designed to carry out tasks of planetary administration within the confines of both Republic law and what would only benefit the project. While a G0-T0 droid was used in the administration of Telos, the responsible party for the Restoration Project was the Ithorian herd of Chodo Habat. The herd divided the planet into different zones, gradually healing the planet one portion at a time. Above Telos, the large Citadel Station was constructed to house all the operations along with the necessary business needed to accommodate the large number of employees. Moreover, the project, as a whole, was a test pilot to see if such an undertaking was possible on other devastated worlds.

Sith Empire remnant
"After the Jedi Civil War it took a year or two for the Republic to send a force here to deal with any Sith that may have remained. They found Korriban much as we have. Barren and lifeless. And no Sith at all."

- Kreia, to the Jedi Exile

The year 3,955 BBY marked the beginning of the Dark Wars, a series of smaller conflicts and skirmishes that stemmed from the Sith defeat at Rakata Prime. The defeat of Darth Malak had left a vacuum and power struggles ensued resulting in the quickly escalating Sith Civil War. The Sith remnant fractured the remaining strongholds of the Sith Empire into smaller territories. Declaring themselves sovereign warlords, they began to make war on each other with the goal of gaining or retaining whatever power they had. On Korriban, however, the destruction of the Sith Academy resulted in an insurrection there. The warring Sith massacred each other and the planet was left barren and lifeless. About this time, an expedition to the planet by Republic forces to root out any remaining Sith found it void of sentient life.

Kanz sector
Along the fringes of Republic space, in the Kanz sector, the secessionist Myrialites had created an independent government during height of the Mandalorian Wars. The secessionist movement, called the Argazdan Redoubt, continued to conquer the Kanz sector abated and subjugate the peoples of the worlds, putting many into slavery. Following the Jedi Civil War, the Republic still had not intervened in the conflict. One such peoples, the Lorrdians began to develop alternate forms of communication during this time in order to communicate even against the will of their masters.

Impact
"To be united by hatred is a fragile alliance at best."

- Kreia

The Telosian Restoration Project was not immune to corruption or scandal, however. Within four years, Czerka Corporation began trying to usurp control over the project from the Ithorian herd. Other criminal organizations, such as the Exchange began operations on Telos in an attempt to capitalize on the inflow of materials for the project. The G0-T0 droid assigned to the project confronted a paradox in its programming. The droid calculated that it was unable to benefit the project and the Republic without breaking the law. It eventually broke through its programming, becoming fully autonomous, and began to act illegally to bring about what it calculated as the best course for the Republic's efforts.

Elsewhere, the Sith continued to war against each other. Darth Traya, formerly known as Kreia, eventually began to train Darth Nihilus and Darth Sion at her academy on Malachor V. The three Sith Lords formed a frailly constructed triumvirate and consolidated power among the remaining factions. In 3,954 BBY, Sion unleashed a wave of agents throughout the galaxy to begin eliminating the remaining Jedi. At the same time, the Kanz Disorders continued unabated. The slavery and subjugation lasted nearly three hundred more years until 3,670 BBY.

Notable events

 * Supreme Chancellor Cressa starts the Telosian Restoration Project, for which Aratech launches the G0-T0 droid series.
 * The Dark Wars begin.

Behind the scenes
The events of 3,955 BBY were first described in relation to the conclusion of the Jedi Civil War in the video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, although the exact date of "3,955 BBY" is not provided therein. The New Essential Chronology and Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force establish the Jedi Civil War as ending in 3,956 BBY and further expand on events that occurred thereafter. The first explicit mention of the date 3,955 BBY, however, appears in The New Essential Guide to Droids, which was published in June of 2006. The events depicted in The Sith Lords and the Essential Guides were largely confirmed to have taken place in 3,955 BBY with the publication of the Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide by Wizards of the Coast. Most recently, the details of the Kanz Disorders are described in greater detail in the Hyperspace-published short story Death in the Slave Pits of Lorrd. Previously, limited information was only provided by brief mention in The Essential Chronology, although without dating the conflict, and The New Essential Chronology.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
 * Death in the Slave Pits of Lorrd

Notes and references
3955 VSY 3955 BBY