Knights of Ren

"Even you, master of the Knights of Ren, have never faced such a test."

- Supreme Leader Snoke, to Kylo Ren

The Knights of Ren was a dark side order that operated under the command of Supreme Leader Snoke in the years following the destruction of the Sith. Among the order's ranks was Kylo Ren; grandson of the Sith Lord Darth Vader and nephew of Jedi Master Luke Skywalker, Kylo held the title "master of the Knights of Ren" during his apprenticeship under Snoke. At the time of the galactic war between the First Order and the Resistance, Kylo became the new Supreme Leader after assassinating his Master in 34 ABY.

Organization
The Knights of Ren included Kylo Ren, whom Supreme Leader Snoke&mdash;the leader of these forces of dark side users &mdash;referred to as a master of the Knights of Ren. As a member of the Knights of Ren, Kylo was not part of the formal hierarchy of the First Order but nonetheless operated with freedom among the military command, who tolerated his presence with some hesitation as his agenda trumped their own. Kylo wore a black and silver combat helmet based on the battle gear worn by the Knights of Ren. Though Ren served the First Order, the rest of the Knights of Ren were not aligned to the Order, as only Kylo and Snoke were known for being the two Force-users in that hermit state.

History
The Knights of Ren operated in the decades following the Galactic Civil War. Although the Sith ended with the death of Darth Vader, Kylo Ren's grandfather, the dark side of the Force was strong with Kylo and Snoke, who used the Knights of Ren as a tool of the dark side alongside the First Order.

Rey, a Force-sensitive scavenger who hailed from Jakku, saw the Knights of Ren in a vision. After the galaxy fell into a state of war between the First Order and the Resistance in 34 ABY, Kylo assassinated Snoke and claimed his throne as the new Supreme Leader.

Behind the scenes
The Knights of Ren were created for the 2015 film Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens, the first installment of the Star Wars sequel trilogy. In the film, they are just mentioned by Lor San Tekka and appear in one of Rey's visions at Takodana.

According to Rian Johnson, writer and director of the 2017 sequel Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi, the reason why the group does not appear in the film is that the movie was already full and there literally was no room for them. Johnson mused that they could have been used in place of Snoke's Elite Praetorian Guards, but it would have been a waste because all the guards had to die and Kylo's connection to the Knights of Ren would have added unwanted complications to the scene.

In the 2016 video game LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the Knights of Ren were depicted during Rey's vision on Takodana with classic medieval knights attires for comedic purposes.

Non-canon appearances

 * LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens
 * Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes