Sith Academy (Korriban)

"There's a whole bunch of old Sith ruins up on the surface of the planet. That's why they put one of their academies here, to dig them all up."

- Dreshdae Spaceport Technician

The Sith Academy on Korriban was a facility in use during the Jedi Civil War and later the Cold War, dedicated to training Force-sensitives in the ways of the Sith, and running archaeological projects in the Valley of the Dark Lords.

Founding
Established at the back wall of the Valley of the Dark Lords, the exact date of the Academy's founding is lost to history, tracing its roots back to at least the time leading up to the Great Sith War. Following the Sith holocaust of 5,000 BBY, the temple's upper structures were ruined, but this did not prevent the academy from being fully operational as of 3,993 BBY. Despite the Academy's existence, the Jedi Order did not lead an assault on the facility after the conclusion of the war.

Revan's Empire
By the time of the Mandalorian Wars the entrance to the academy was the only surface level structure remaining, with sublevels being employed for the training of apprentices. When Darth Revan and Darth Malak reopened the academy upon their return as Sith Lords to train warriors for their Empire, classes resumed in the sublevels as they trained to fight in the Jedi Civil War. Its students during this time were either Force-sensitives looking to take a side in the conflict, or fallen Jedi, disillusioned with either the Jedi Order, the war or the Republic in general.

Headed by a Headmaster, one of the academy's leaders following the Great Sith War was Jorak Uln, an early headmaster of the who was later succeeded by Uthar Wynn who operated the academy during Lord Revan's reign over the Empire. Unbeknownst to Wynn, Revan had been captured by the Jedi during the war and his memory altered. Revan would return to Korriban in the guise of a Sith apprentice and infiltrate the academy during his search for the lost Rakatan Star Maps. During this time, Revan killed Wynn with the help of fellow apprentice Yuthura Ban, Wynn's own apprentice. After Wynn´s death, Revan convinced Ban to leave the academy and rejoin the Jedi Order. However, the redemption of Yuthura Ban and the death of Wynn caused an uprising at the academy. When leaving the valley, Revan and his crew were interrogated by the Sith Guards about why he left the Tomb of Naga Sadow untouched during his visit. Unintentionally revealing his purpose for visiting the tombs, the guards attacked, pitting the entirety of the Academy against the crew of the Ebon Hawk. However, due to the experience and training that the crew had and the sheer power and fighting prowess of the former Dark Lord, they managed to defeat the Sith and escape, killing most of the Sith present at the academy.

The history of the academy all but ended with the climax of the Jedi Civil War. Shortly after the destruction of the Star Forge in the Battle of Rakata Prime, infighting at the academy and elsewhere, known as the Sith Civil War turned Korriban into a graveyard once more. It was looted after the fighting died out and the Academy was abandoned again. It wasn't until 3,951 BBY that Jedi Knight Meetra Surik visited Korriban to search for Jedi Master Lonna Vash. Surik encountered an academy totally different than Revan had during his Star Forge quest: due to lack of Sith teachers, the academy had been completely automated, with students relying on computers for basic training. As Surik wandered the emptied academy, encountering only tuk'ata and cloaked Sith assassins of the Sith Triumvirate, she found Vash's corpse inside an interrogation room. On her way out, she briefly dueled with Darth Sion; however, at the urging of Kreia&mdash;who preferred not to accompany Surik and thus stayed on the Ebon Hawk&mdash;she fled the battle, knowing she would have another chance to battle the Sith Lord.

True Sith Empire
When the Sith Empire recaptured Korriban and ousted the Republic garrison there during the start of the Great Galactic War, the Empire ordered the reconstruction of the academy and the rejuvenation of the Valley. Rebuilding the pyramid structure that formed the main levels of the academy, the Academy trained hundreds of Sith over the years, swelling the ranks of the Empire's forces. During the Cold War the Sith Empire was losing more Sith than it was gaining, allowing for slaves and even aliens to train and become acolytes, although this was frowned upon by many Imperials.

Eventually the Emperor's Wrath and Darth Nox arrived and were trained, becoming immensely important members of the Sith Empire and reaching apprenticeship far quicker than usual acolytes. The academy was plagued not only by failed acolytes who caused problems outside the academy, but by instructors suspected of not being true Sith. Inquisitor Arzanon and his Intelligence agents patrolled the academy's grounds searching for traitors in their midst.

Legacy
Following the abandonment of the True Sith Empire, the academy fell into ruin and the Valley of the Dark Lords was forever more a husk of its former glory. While Sith would return to Korriban over the centuries, the old academy would never be reoccupied. When the Brotherhood of Darkness took up residence on the planet, they erected their own academy in nearby Dreshdae.

Layout
A towering pyramidal structure at the rear of the Valley of the Dark Lords on Korriban, the Sith Academy was made of stone and durasteel and reflected the sun framed at the apex of the structure. At the base of the Academy, the entrance was located at the top of a wide staircase and framed by two kneeling humanoid statues representing slaves bearing the weight of the Sith's power. Symbolic of a Sith's climb to power, the academy's main hall was located just past the main doors and contained dual stair cases leading to the upper levels. The center piece of the main hall was a narrow stone monument which was carved with the faces of Sith; the statue was meant to remind students that the climb to success meant crushing those who vie for power along the way. Containing jails in which prisoners would be kept before interrogation, the academy's lower levels contained many chambers for studying, lecturing, meditation and training. The Sith Archives were situated off of the main hall and contained several levels of resources contained on scrolls and holocrons as well as datapads and holobooks.



As a place of study, the Academy was equipped with dormitories to house its students. Guarded by the Dark Honor Guard, the Academy also housed secret Ritual Chambers where creatures such as the Bloodfiend lived; results of Sith alchemy and sorcery. Near the summit of the pyramid, the rooms were restricted to the highest ranking Sith on Korriban. The Dark Council kept chambers there when for conferences held on the planet and rumor held that the Sith Emperor had a throne room deep in the academy, though it was seldom used.

Curriculum and faculty
Entrance to and life at the Sith Academy was difficult. To be admitted, prospective students were required to impress one of the teachers or students who was already in the Academy, receiving as proof a medallion, or to kill a student and take his or her medallion. Fallen Jedi usually did not have much difficulty in gaining admission, because they had already been trained in the ways of the Force. Prospective students were forced to compete against each other in a group; one would gain enough prestige to impress the headmaster and become a true Sith, while the others would be forced to wait a year before trying again, assuming they survived.

Competition was fierce, and many students were killed in their attempts to outdo their competitors. Further, the Sith held no qualms about killing students to either facilitate an acquaintance's acceptance of the dark side or preventing other students being held back. Some students preferred to engage each other in a lethal duel within the Sith training room. Even the Academy's headmaster was not immune to backstabbing. It was not uncommon for a headmaster to be overthrown by his or her second-in-command. Whenever this or other political intrigue hit the academy, people had a tendency to disappear.

The cruelty was further demonstrated by the penchant of Academy students to visit the nearby colony of Dreshdae and torment hopefuls wishing to enter the academy. The Sith also kept their own store of captive Republic soldiers for practice in torture and battle, and had a prison wing to detain and interrogate prisoners. It was also complete with an interrogation room, where Sith officers brutally interrogated their prisoners.

Behind the scenes
The Sith Academy of Korriban made its first appearance in the RPG game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and not longer after, making another appearance in the game's sequel. It has recently made an appearance again on a videogame, this time the massively multiplayer online role-playing game Star Wars: The Old Republic, released by BioWare in December 2011 as the spawning and ending place for both the Sith Inquisitor and Sith Warrior classes' storylines.

Appearances

 * The Betrayal of Darth Revan
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
 * Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic, Blood of the Empire Act 1: Shades of the Sith
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic, Blood of the Empire Act 3: Burn the Future
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic, Threat of Peace Act 1: Treaty of Coruscant
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic, Threat of Peace Act 2: New Galactic Order
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance
 * Star Wars: The Old Republic
 * Darth Bane: Path of Destruction
 * Darth Bane: Rule of Two
 * Darth Bane: Dynasty of Evil
 * Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron
 * Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron