Darth Sidious

"Everything is proceeding as I have foreseen."

- Palpatine

Palpatine, also known as Darth Sidious, was a Force-sensitive Human male who served as the last Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic and the Emperor of the Galactic Empire. He was also the Dark Lord of the Sith, one of the inheritors of Darth Bane's Rule of Two. His master was Darth Plagueis the Wise, who, according to legend, could influence the midi-chlorians to create life and keep people from dying. Palpatine, to whom Plagueis had taught his powers, ended up killing him in his sleep.

In the years prior to his Imperial ascent, Palpatine was the Senator of Naboo, using politics as a means to amass power. All the while, he operated as a Sith in secret and trained an apprentice, Darth Maul. He engineered the Trade Federation's invasion of Naboo, using the political crisis as a pretext to be elected Supreme Chancellor by the Galactic Senate. He spent the next several years training a new apprentice, Count Dooku, to replace the fallen Maul, and together they created the Confederacy of Independent Systems to spark a galactic war.

Palpatine was given sweeping central, emergency powers to handle the Separatist crisis that unbeknownst to most, he himself had engineered, and he raised the Grand Army of the Republic to fight the Clone Wars. Palpatine and Dooku manipulated the Republic and the Separatists throughout the war, with Palpatine using the war as a means to amass more and more power over the Republic. By the end of the war, Palpatine had gained almost total control over the Republic, with the Senate having lost much of its authority. With his new power, Palpatine transformed the Republic into the Galactic Empire, branded the Jedi as traitors, and destroyed the Jedi Order. He also turned Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker to the dark side, anointing Skywalker as Darth Vader.

The Empire expanded across the galaxy over the next two decades, including building a Death Star to maintain order. After those decades, however, a Rebel Alliance was founded to resist Palpatine's rule, and the Death Star was destroyed by Luke Skywalker. Palpatine tasked Vader, Luke's father, with either destroying or turning the boy, and Vader ultimately brought Luke before Palpatine during the Battle of Endor. There, Palpatine attempted to turn Luke to the dark side, but Luke refused. As Palpatine attempted to kill Luke, Vader was redeemed and turned on his master, killing himself and Palpatine in the process. Through redemption, Anakin Skywalker destroyed the Sith, while the Rebels successfully destroyed the second Death Star and defeated the Empire.

Early life
Palpatine was an unassuming yet ambitious male Human senator who represented his home planet of Naboo on the Galactic Senate, and noticed the fervent bickering and corruption that mired the Galactic Republic. At some point during his life, Palpatine assumed the name Darth Sidious when he became apprenticed to the legendary Sith Lord Darth Plagueis the Wise, who could allegedly influence the midi-chlorians to create life and prevent death. Unfortunately for Plagueis, Sidious killed his master in his sleep after being taught everything Plagueis knew about the dark side of the Force.

Keeping his Sith identity a secret from the public eye, Sidious took it upon himself to execute the Sith's long-percolating plan to supplant the Old Republic with a new Sith Empire, and destroy the Jedi Order. He received a Sith apprentice in the form of Darth Maul, a young Dathomirian Zabrak and Nightbrother, as a gift from the Nightsister Mother Talzin. Sidious brutally trained Maul to be a weapon of the Sith, viewing Maul's prowess and combat abilities as an invaluable asset to his master plan.

Invasion of Naboo
Darth Sidious first orchestrated a plot to remove current Supreme Chancellor Valorum from office so that he, as Palpatine, would be elected to take his place. Through holographic communication, Sidious conspired with Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray to arrange a blockade around Naboo in response to the recent increase in taxation from the Senate. As a result, Valorum secretly dispatched two Jedi Knights—Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi—as ambassadors to resolve the dispute. Upon learning of the ambassadors' identities, Sidious ordered the immediate invasion of Naboo and execution of the two Jedi.

The Federation's droid army began occupying the planet's capital city of Theed and its surrounding regions, and Queen Padmé Amidala was quickly captured and presented with a treaty to legitimize the invasion. However, Jinn and Kenobi, who managed to survive the attempt on their lives, arrived and rescued the queen, who escaped from Naboo. Displeased with the Nemoidians' failure, Sidious dispatched Darth Maul to recapture Amidala. Though Maul succeeded in locating the queen on Tatooine, he was intercepted by Jinn, allowing her to slip through the Sith's grasp once more.

Valorum's fall and Palpatine's rise
Despite these setbacks, Sidious—as Palpatine—was able to convene with Amidala on Coruscant, where she intended to plead her case to Chancellor Valorum before the Galactic Senate. However, Palpatine convinced her that the Senate was frought with corrupt beurocrats whom Valorum was powerless to reign in. He successfully persuaded her to push for a vote of no confidence in Valorum, paving the way for a snap election for a new, stronger chancellor, for which Palpatine himself was nominated. Despite Palpatine's assurance that he would hastily bring peace and prosperity to the Republic, Amidala believed more immediate action was necessary and, against Palpatine's false display of concern, opted to return to Naboo to put an end to the invasion personally.

Battle of Naboo
"Wipe them out. All of them."

- Darth Sidious to Nute Gunray

Sidious contacted the Nemoidians on Naboo, instructing them to kill Amidala upon arrival, and sent Maul to accompany them. To his surprise, Amidala not only managed to escape Gunray's reach, but also forged an alliance with the Gungan people against the Federation occupation. Deeming her actions foolish, Sidious gave Gunray his approval to wipe out all who opposed them.

Aftermath of the invasion
Ultimately, Palpatine won the election for Supreme Chancellor, and the Battle of Naboo ended with Gunray's capture and his droid army's defeat, thanks in part to the unexpected intervention of Anakin Skywalker, a young slave boy from Tatooine whom Qui-Gon Jinn had emancipated, believing him to be the Chosen One of Jedi prophecy who would bring balance to the Force. The battle also saw the presumed death of Maul, though not before the Sith Lord struck down Jinn, whose funeral Palpatine would later attend. At the Jedi Knight's dying request, the Jedi Council named Skywalker as Obi-Wan Kenobi's Padawan. Palpatine personally commended the Jedi, particularly young Skywalker, whose career he declared he would be watching with "great interest".

Further preparations
Over the next ten years, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine amassed a favorable reputation as a mild-mannered servant of the common good, and the public remained oblivious to his true, insidious persona. As Anakin Skywalker grew older, his relationship with Palpatine deepened; on many occasions, Palpatine lauded Skywalker as the most gifted Jedi he had ever encountered, one who would surpass even Yoda, the Grand Master of the Jedi Council. Skywalker, who grew increasingly frustrated with the strict lifestyle of the Jedi under his master Kenobi's guidance, admired Palpatine's praise and greatly took to his counsel. In truth, this was all part of Sidious' plan to gain Skywalker's trust and groom him into his new Sith apprentice.

In the meantime, Sidious acquired another apprentice to replace Maul: former Jedi Master Count Dooku, whom Sidious lured to the dark side by appealing to his disgust with corruption inherent in the Galactic Republic, and the Jedi who he believed dishonored themselves by serving the Republic. With the turn of Dooku—anointed Darth Tyranus—the Sith orchestrated the death of Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas and took over his clientele for the commission of a clone army produced on Kamino; the event was subsequently covered up when Dooku erased all records of Kamino from the Jedi Archives. Subsequently, bounty hunter Jango Fett was hired as the clones' genetic template, and the clones were fitted with a bio-chip containing a protocol that would ensure their total obedience to Sidious when the time came for it.

Separatist crisis
Through Dooku, Sidious rallied several thousand solar systems into declaring independence from the galactic government, forming the Confederacy of Independent Systems, with Dooku acting as its leader. With the galaxy in chaos and civil war imminent, Sidious enacted the next phase of his plan: to ensure his complete control of the Republic.

Personality and traits
"We shall double our efforts.''" "''I hope so, Commander, for your sake. The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am."

- Commander Jerjerrod and Darth Vader

Prior to the creation of his Empire, Palpatine was careful to put on a charade, presenting himself as a grandfatherly gentleman and a servant of the public good. When in character, he always tried to avoid ostentation and often spoke of himself with great modesty. However, Palpatine was in fact a skilled manipulator and strategist, having orchestrated countless events in the galaxy, from the Invasion of Naboo to the Clone Wars, with the sole aim of increasing his own power. Even when something occurred that he did not initially plan for, the Sith Lord could rework his plans effectively.

After his ascension to Galactic Emperor, Palpatine renounced his public persona and started living as Sidious full-time. Freed from his gentle alter-ego, Palpatine demonstrated sadistic tendances. During his fight with Yoda, the Sith Lord kept cackling in delight. Years later, immediately before his death at the hands of Vader, the Emperor smiled at the young Jedi as he prepared to finish him off. He was also noted for his lack of forgiveness. Darth Vader, who was known for murdering the officers who had failed him in cold blood, considered Palpatine to be even less clement than himself. In spite of his exceptional mastery of the dark arts, he was no less susceptible to fear, one of the primary emotions of the dark side, than any other Sith: after being attacked by a powerful Force push from Yoda, he displayed visible panic, attempting to flee rather than fight, and only confronted his opponent when he appeared to have no other choice.

Power and abilities
"Do not underestimate the powers of the Emperor, or suffer your father's fate, you will."

- Yoda, to Luke Skywalker

As the reigning Dark Lord of the Sith in his time, Palpatine was a powerful Force-user. He was a practitioner of Force lightning, and was known to use this power both as a deadly attack, and as a means of torture. He was also skilled with telekinesis; during his duel with Yoda, he levitated several Senate pods simultaneously, including the one he was standing on, with great dexterity and accuracy. Likewise, he was skilled enough with telekinesis that he was also able to remove Luke Skywalker's handcuffs while barely even lifting his finger when meeting face to face on the Second Death Star.

Darth Sidious was highly adept at foreseeing the future, often utilizing the power to see his plots to fruition, ensuring that all would proceed as he had envisioned. Furthermore, Sidious was able to conceal his inner darknes from the Jedi for many years before allowing himself to be discovered. His power was so great that he managed to cloud the Jedi's vision, making it exceedingly difficult to predict future events. The Dark Lord also possessed knowledge of Sith magic, allowing him to utter incantations in the Balc speech.