Darth Sion

Darth Sion (&mdash; 3,951 BBY) was a Sith Lord around 4,000 BBY. Sion was unique in that he would normally be dead if not for the power of hatred embodied by the Dark Side and sheer force of will that held together his body, damaged to the point it consisted of burned bits and pieces. He was in constant pain.

When the factions of the Sith Order on Korriban turned on each other after Malak's death and Revan's disappearance, Sion was one of the Sith Lords that escaped to the Unknown Regions of the galaxy. It seemed he had escaped to Malachor V, where he was apprenticed by Darth Traya, a former teacher of Darth Revan.

Sion was a uniquely powerful Sith Lord, having learned the ways of pain in the Trayus Academy on Malachor V. Torturing and killing others help him enhance his strength in the Force, and his ability to feed on his own pain and hatred made him immortal. Sion was master with a lightsaber and arguably the most infamous and deadly Sith Assassins of the era, Sion was known to be responsible for the deaths of countless Jedi during the shadow war waged by himself and Darth Nihilus.

While on Korriban, he captured and killed Jedi Master Lonna Vash, who was one of the members of the Jedi Council which sent the Jedi Exile to the Outer Rim as part of his exile. He would later duel with the Exile on Korriban, and defeat him, but the Exile was able to Vash's fate escape.

Darth Sion, along with fellow Darth Nihilus, was a former apprentice of Darth Traya, before he and Nihilus cast her out of the Sith Order and stripped her of her powers. He was killed by the Exile, who had served Darth Revan during the Mandalorian Wars in the Trayus Core, the heart of the Trayus Academy on the ancient Sith world of Malachor V.

Having lived so long knowing nothing but hatred, he was glad to leave that evil place at last. Interestingly enough, because of Sion's command of his own pain, saber skills, and preternatural ability to survive through the dark side, the Exile was unable to defeat him in hand to hand combat. Instead, the Exile was forced to use his powers of persuasion to turn Sion against his own beliefs, he eroded his will and convinced him that Darth Traya had no more use for him, and that by giving up the Force, he would finally be free from the horrible pain and hatred which he endured. Sion gave in to the Exile's influence, sacrificing his own life to the Force.

Behind the scenes
Like most other Sith Lords whose names begin with Darth, Sion's name suggests another word: scion, meaning heir. In this case, heir to his master, Traya, and the legacy of the Sith.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords