Wookieepedia:Featured article queue/February 25, 2009

Star Maps were artifacts left behind by the ancient Rakatan Infinite Empire. Constructed of a self-sustaining technology that was imbued with and drew upon the dark side of the Force, these Star Maps were fabricated to be monuments to the glory of the Rakatan Empire. Originally, each Map indicated the precise location of the Infinite Empire's greatest achievement: the Star Forge, a factory of immense proportions. Through intentional sabotage from the retreating Rakata as their empire fell, much of the information contained within the Star Maps was lost. Over time, however, the Maps repaired themselves as designed, allowing those who sought the information contained within to piece together their full contents from multiple Maps. The most complete known example, as of the Mandalorian Wars, was located on Dantooine. This Map was housed in an ancient temple built by Rakatan slaves and protected by a set of droids, including one designed for informational purposes.

During the close of the Mandalorian Wars, the fallen Jedi Revan sought out the Maps, traveling to at least five planets in order to fully uncover their secrets. After piecing together all the information, Revan and his apprentice Malak found and took control of the Star Forge. With the massive space station and factory under their command, the newly proclaimed Sith Lords created an immense fleet with which to conquer a Galactic Republic that was still recovering from the Mandalorian onslaught. During the Jedi Civil War, Revan was captured and nearly killed. After being retrained at the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine, the mindwiped Revan was charged with once again completing the quest of accessing each Star Map in order to combat the continued expansion of the Sith Empire. After piecing together the fragmented information, he and his companions set out for the Lehon system in order to finally destroy the Star Forge.