Darth Krayt's Galactic Empire (130–138 ABY), also known as the Galactic Empire, the Sith Empire, Darth Krayt's Sith Empire, the New Empire, or simply the Empire, was an incarnation of the Sith Empire that was formed out of the Fel Empire in 130 ABY, when Darth Krayt, Dark Lord of the Sith, made a coup against Emperor Roan Fel. Essentially, this government served as a revival of the Galactic Empire founded by Darth Sidious, and was composed of the Moff Council, which commanded the Imperial Military and agencies, such as Imperial Intelligence and the Imperial Diplomatic Corps. However, the Moffs answered to Sith Lords of Krayt, who himself became the new Emperor.
The Empire fought the Galactic Alliance Remnant and the Empire-in-exile (also called the Fel Empire) throughout the galaxy in the Second Imperial Civil War, and later the Jedi. A major problem during the war was that many officers defected to Fel, as Vul Isen noted, and many incompetent ones were promoted to replace them. In 138 ABY, Fel's Empire, the Alliance Remnant, and the Jedi attacked Coruscant, the capital, and managed to defeat the Sith Imperial forces there, killing the Sith leadership. The One Sith's Empire was disbanded as a result, and the united forces of the Empire, Remnant, and Jedi formed the Galactic Federation Triumvirate.
The Sith, led by Darth Nihl, fled Coruscant and vowed to infiltrate every galactic government and eventually return to retake the galaxy.
History[]
Origins[]
After nearly a thousand years of hiding, the Order of the Sith Lords emerged to destroy the Jedi Order under the command of the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious, publicly known as the Galactic Republic's Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. Following the three year long Clone Wars between the Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, the Old Republic was reorganized by Sidious into the First Galactic Empire and the Jedi were hunted down, all serving Sidious as the culmination of the ancient Sith Grand Plan. One of the survivors of the Jedi Purge was Jedi Master A'Sharad Hett, who after being defeated in combat against fellow Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi due to falling towards the dark side of the Force, would later become a bounty hunter and was marooned on the Sith homeworld of Korriban. While there, he was ensnared by the teachings of the ancient Sith Lady XoXaan after discovering her holocron. Meanwhile, the Galactic Empire engaged the Alliance to Restore the Republic in the Galactic Civil War. During the conflict, Galactic Emperor Darth Sidious was slain and the Jedi would return under Luke Skywalker. The war would end with the Empire defeated and forced to accept peace with the New Republic.
While Hett originally only sought power in order to take his revenge on Sidious and his apprentice, Darth Vader, upon emerging he discovered the Galactic Empire had fallen. After being tortured by the extra-galactic Yuuzhan Vong, he escaped and founded the One Sith on Korriban under the name Darth Krayt, spending a century in hiding planning to take over. All the while, the Imperial Remnant would ally with the Republic, rebranded as the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances, in a war against the Vong. Eventually, Jagged Fel was crowned the new Emperor of the Imperial Remnant, now the revived Galactic Empire, which for the next several decades would exist under the Fel dynasty in an uneasy peace with the Galactic Alliance. As Skywalker's New Jedi Order would grow in power, all three factions would be mostly unaware of Krayt's rising army under the New Sith Order.
The Sith–Imperial War[]
- "Roan Fel never really embraced the war or the idea of a unified galaxy. He went along with it as a political necessity. That's not what the Empire—what the galaxy—needs. The galaxy writhes in chaos and disorder. It requires a man of vision. I am that man of vision. I am the new Emperor."
- ―Darth Krayt
The peace between the Galactic Alliance and the Empire would collapse nearly 100 years after the end of the Yuuzhan Vong War, when the One Sith sabotaged the Ossus Project's reconstruction efforts on Yuuzhan Vong-terraformed worlds, to the detriment of the planets' inhabitants. The Galactic Federation of Free Alliances soon found itself facing a secession movement mirroring that of the Separatists during the Clone Wars. The Fel Empire used this situation to entice Alliance member worlds to secede and become part of Imperial space. But the Empire wanted all of the Alliance worlds, including its capital.
Eventually, the Moff Council invoked the Treaty of Anaxes against the will of Emperor Roan Fel, and in 127 ABY, the Sith-Imperial War broke out, and the One Sith allied with the Empire. The war resulted in the fall of the Alliance and the reestablishment of the Empire as the primary galactic government. The territories and bureaucracy of the Galactic Alliance were absorbed into the Empire, but the Galactic Alliance Core Forces refused to surrender, and continued to fight the resurgent Empire. Shortly after the fall of the Alliance, the Emperor called upon the entire New Jedi Order to surrender and subject their will to the Empire, in which some of them did, becoming Imperial Knights, while the others remained to the will of the Force and retreated to Ossus.
The coup[]
- "We owe our loyalty to a throne, not a man!"
- ―Lieutenant Kiefer
After the Alliance defeat and the Massacre at Ossus, the Sith under the command of Darth Krayt turned against Emperor Fel. Darth Krayt, who had survived the past hundred years by using various techniques and Sith rituals, launched a daring coup; marching with his cohorts straight into Fel's audience chamber himself, and killing the man who sat on the throne. After the man's death, Krayt sat himself in his place. Noting the confusion and outrage from the members of the Moff Council who were present, he laid out the new facts of life for them.
Faced with little choice, the Moffs swore loyalty to him; for the first time in ninety years, since Darth Caedus declared himself Chief of State of the Galactic Alliance, a Sith Lord held the galactic seat of power. At once he set about imposing order on a galaxy that sorely needed it, but this too was an incomplete victory. The "Emperor" he had killed had been a double; the real Fel was a fully trained Imperial Knight and would surely have defended himself, rather than just stand there and let himself be slain. It was imperative that the real Fel be found before he recruited allies among the Moffs, the military, or those Jedi who had survived the massacre at Ossus.
Civil War[]
Not all of the Empire recognized Darth Krayt's authority. Over the years, forces loyal to Fel gathered on Bastion, awaiting the return of their true Emperor. With the Imperial Knights leader Antares Draco and the 501st Legion commander General Oron Jaeger at his side, Fel took control of the planet in 137 ABY, knowing that Krayt would be wary to amass a frontal assault on the heavily fortified planet.
As the factions of Krayt and Fel grew larger, units that once served with each other were now forced to fight against one another for control of territory around the galaxy. Case in point was a battle between the 407th and 908th Stormtrooper Divisions on Borosk.
Krayt's Empire also had to contend with Gar Stazi and the Galactic Alliance Remnant. The Alliance admiral had become a thorn in their side. Though a possible alliance between the Remnant and Fel was prevented for the time being, the Alliance managed to steal the new Imperious-class Star Destroyer Imperious from its drydock at Mon Calamari. This infuriated Krayt to the point of ordering 10% of the Mon Calamaris population exterminated, and personally overseeing the execution of the Mon Calamari Council. But when Imperial Knights assisted Stazi in disabling the bombs they planted on the Imperious, Stazi sent one back to Fel with the message that he'd be willing to once again negotiate for an alliance with Fel, thus bringing about the possibility of a formidable force that could challenge the Sith and their Empire.
Recently, all forces in the Sith Empire were on the look out for the last Skywalker, whom the galaxy thought had died at Ossus. The search was called off when Skywalker was captured by the Sith but once again resumed when he escaped their clutches.
Yet barely a year into the latest galactic-wide conflict, Darth Krayt was killed on Had Abbadon after fighting against a female Jedi with an ancient Sith spirit Karness Muur, thus leaving both his Empire and the One Sith without an Emperor and a Dark Lord, respectively. However, Darth Wyyrlok, Krayt's second-in-command, assumed rule of both the Sith Order and the Empire. Wyyrlok, a cunning politician, realized that the Moffs and most of the military commanders were unsure of his true position within the Sith and if he was indeed the one to assume command. Wyyrlok appointed Grand Admiral Morlish Veed as the Regent of the Empire to assume all official business while secretly answering to him.
Wyyrlok then launched a massive reform of the Imperial Mission by ordering Moff Konrad Rus to have his missionaries start creating propaganda about the Sith teachings and the Sith Code as a mean to try and recruit every being in the galaxy into the One Sith. As a result, Jagged Fel's Victory Without War program was abandoned.
Sometime after his appointment as Regent, Admiral Veed received word that Roan Fel was meeting with the Jedi on Agamar so he organized a strike against the secret meeting, codenamed Operation: Thunderstroke. The First Sith Imperial Strikeforce, led by Moffs Rulf Yage and Fehlaaur'aitel'loro, were assigned for the task and attacked Fel's delegation. Nyna Calixte managed to warn the delegation, allowing Fel to narrowly escape the incoming attack. Nevertheless, the Sith Imperial forces managed to capture Princess Marasiah Fel.
At the same time, Wyyrlok gave the order for the Final Protocol to extinguish any undesirables from the Empire. Sith scientist Vul Isen was given free rein to use his poisons to massacre entire worlds such as Dac and Da Soocha.
The Rebirth of Darth Krayt[]
- "This galaxy must change. The Galaxy must experience the pain of death and rapture of rebirth as I have. I will bring chaos. It is time for war. It is time for death."
- ―Darth Krayt
Before Darth Wyyrlok could fulfill his plans, however, his attempt to consolidate the Galactic Empire under his leadership would be challenged by an unexpected contender—Darth Krayt. Resurrected and free of the constraints of his armor, the Dark Lord wasted little time in returning to Coruscant with the intention of reclaiming the One Sith and the Empire from the usurper. In his absence, Krayt completed a secret project that resulted in a new breed of Sith troopers—Force-sensitive beings heavily modified and programmed with absolute loyalty to the Dark Lord.[13] Though Wyyrlok stood his ground on the Galactic Capital as his former sovereign arrived at the Sith Temple, the Chagrian Sith Lord was slain by Krayt in a duel to the death. With the One Sith and the Galactic Empire under his rule once again, Darth Krayt took command of the war effort against the remnants of the former Alliance, the Fel loyalists and the Jedi Order.[14]
The return of Darth Krayt coincided with the decline of the Moff Council. Grand Moff Morlish Veed was forced to resign his title of Regent after begrudgingly swearing fealty to the Dark Lord for a second time[14]; Moff Nyna Calixte defected to Roan Fel's side[15]; Moff Geist died as collateral damage in the onslaught that was unleashed by Krayt's Sith troopers during the assault on the Jedi Hidden Temple. During the attack on the Hidden Temple, Moff Rulf Yage joined the Fel loyalists after his daughter defected in disgust of the Sith and their war crimes.[16]
The Fall of the Empire[]
- "My eyes are open. I have seen the vision. I understand now. No more doubts or questions. I know my place in the galaxy. I know who I am... I am a Jedi. And you are not my Master."
- ―Cade Skywalker, as he kills Darth Krayt and brings an end to his reign
The return of Darth Krayt and the creation of his deadly Sith troopers pushed those who defied the Empire to the point of desperation. In the hopes of destroying the Dark Lord, the One Sith and their empire in one stroke, Roan Fel convinced the Galactic Alliance Remnant and the Jedi Order to join the Fel loyalists in a surprise attack on Coruscant itself. While the allied forces fought against the Sith-Imperials in space, Cade Skywalker led a strike team on the planet with the objective of infiltrating the Sith Temple and assassinating Darth Krayt.[17]
In a final duel between the Dark Lord of the Sith and last known descendant of Anakin Skywalker's lineage, Cade Skywalker re-embraced his heritage as a Jedi and killed Darth Krayt without succumbing to the Dark side of the Force. But since Krayt had succeeded in returning from death once before and even now his spirit threatened to revive his corpse again, Skywalker resorted to using his mother's shuttle to send the Dark Lord's body into Coruscant's sun. The One Sith fell under the leadership of Darth Nihl and fled into hiding. Although Krayt was dead, Roan Fel perished in the final battle as well, thus ridding the galaxy of both Emperors. The victorious allies formed a new government, known as the Galactic Federation Triumvirate, to unite the galaxy.[10]
Government and politics[]
The Empire was ruled by the Dark Lord of the Sith, who held the title of Sith Emperor, yet the Moff Councils held considerable power, and were, supposedly, his advisers. By all accounts the reign of Roan Fel was relatively benevolent compared to that of the usurper, Krayt, and had far less of the abuses of power and tyrannical excesses of the Empire under Emperor Palpatine. Under Krayt's regime, however, harsh dictatorial conditions, even genocide, returned to the successor of Darth Sidious' Galactic Empire.
The Moffs managed both the Imperial Military and Imperial Intelligence, as well as other Imperial institutions such as the Imperial Mission and the Imperial Diplomatic Corps. However, with the Sith in power, Moffs, Admirals and other authorities had to follow Sith orders and answer to Krayt's Sith Lords. Thus, the Council sought to undermine some of Krayt's efforts in order to maintain its own power and influence.
The Empire also employed propaganda and media in order to promote Emperor Krayt's agenda for the Galaxy. The Massacre of the Mon Calamari Council and Darth Krayt's edict ordering the extermination and internment of the Mon Calamari was broadcast all over the galaxy. News sources also referred to the regime's enemies in an unfavorable manner. Gar Stazi was referred to as a pirate while Cade Skywalker was labeled a terrorist.
Astrography[]
As a result of the Sith–Imperial War, many of the territories of the Galactic Alliance were absorbed into the Empire, even the old Alliance stronghold of Mon Calamari. The system became a production facility for warships for the Sith Empire. The Empire spread throughout the entire galaxy, from the Deep Core to Wild Space.
The capital of the Empire was Coruscant, seat of Emperor Krayt and the location of his Temple of the Sith, constructed over the ruins of the Jedi Temple. Unlike the First Galactic Empire, the official name of the planet remained the same.
Appearances[]
Non-canon appearances[]
- Battle of the Sith Lords (Canceled)
Sources[]
- "New Force Rising" — Star Wars Insider 87 (First mentioned)
- Star Wars: Legacy (2006) 0
- "Legacies of Future Orders" — Star Wars Insider 88
- Star Wars: The Ultimate Visual Guide: Special Edition
- Starships of the Galaxy, Saga Edition
- Star Wars: Legacy (2006) 0½ (First identified as Sith Empire)
- Legacy Era Campaign Guide (First identified as Galactic Empire)
- The Essential Atlas (First identified as Darth Krayt's Sith Empire)
- Andeddu, Darth in the Databank (content now obsolete; backup link)
- The Essential Guide to Warfare
- Star Wars: The Ultimate Visual Guide: Updated and Expanded
- The Essential Reader's Companion
- Viva Space Vegas! The History of the Marvelous Wheel, Part 2 on StarWars.com (article) (content now obsolete; backup link)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Legacy (2006) 1
- ↑ Legacy (2006) 16
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Legacy (2006) 34
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Legacy (2006) 15
- ↑ Star Wars: Legacy (2006) 0½
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Legacy Era Campaign Guide
- ↑ Legacy (2006) 5
- ↑ Legacy (2006) 2
- ↑ Star Wars: Legacy (2006) 0
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Legacy—War 6
- ↑ Legacy (2006) 44
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Legacy (2006) 3
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Legacy (2006) 50
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Legacy—War 1
- ↑ Legacy—War 2
- ↑ Legacy—War 4
- ↑ Legacy—War 5