Ziost

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Warning: This infobox is missing the following parameters: otherlife Ziost (pronounced /ziɒst/),^[3] sometimes referred to as the "Gateway to the Empire" in the days of the Old Republic, was a world made up of ancient dark forests and barren tundra. However, the trees withered away and the planet became very similar, in landscape, to Korriban. Much of the planet was covered in ice. Not only was it a focal point of the dark side, but it was also the adopted homeworld and Imperial capital of the Sith species, who left their original homeworld, Korriban, as a graveyard world after the death of their leader Adas.

Eventually it became a major Sith buffer world during the days of Vitiate's Sith Empire before being forgotten entirely.

History

A new homeworld

Ziost egtf — Exiled Dark Jedi, Ajunta Pall, on Ziost

Ziost became the capital of the ancient Sith Empire after the reign of the Sith Overlord Adas came to an end. Without his unifying force holding them together, the Sith degenerated into their previous feudal ways. After centuries of battle and strife, the remaining Sith utilized Rakatan vessels to relocate to other planets, leaving their desolated homeworld Korriban as a vast graveyard world populated by religious fanatics who would, thousands of years later, be subjugated by the Jedi Exiles, forming a new Sith Empire.^[1] By the time of the Great Hyperspace War, Ziost remained a key planet within the Empire, but following the Republic's victory, it was abandoned, the remaining Sith following the new emperor into hyperspace. A new Sith capital was established on Dromund Kaas, which left Ziost forgotten. At some point during this era, Ziost had also suffered from an Ice Age that had changed the world's terrain and climate.

The Old Republic

Eventually, the planet was resettled by the new empire, once again becoming a major Sith holding. It served as capital of Imperial buffer space and, eventually, housed the Orbital Defense Command Center, headquarters of the Ministry of Logistics. The city of New Adasta was established on the surface of the planet by Imperial forces to serve as the world's capital, quickly overshadowing the Sith Citadel, political center of the Old Empire. The city quickly became a major trade hub, leading to the planet's being nicknamed the "Gateway to the Empire." During Operation End Game, Theron Shan visited the planet, where he infiltrated the Orbital Defense Command Center in New Adasta to steal a Black cipher from Minister Davidge's executive office. By the time local officials found out, the agent was already long gone.

In spite of the harsh defeat as a result of Shan's cunning and local security's inability to protect the cipher, the planet remained a key world throughout the duration of the Galactic War.

Following the defeat of Revan by combined Republic and Imperial forces on Yavin 4, the resurrected Sith Emperor attacked Ziost in an attempt to regain control of the empire that he once ruled. He took the minds of legions of Imperial forces on the planet and used them to take the lives of many of the planet's citizens to fuel his own power. When the Republic took notice and sent the Sixth Line to Ziost to investigate, Vitiate forced their ship to crash-land on the surface and took the minds of most of the Jedi inside. At the same time, an Imperial task force led by the Minister of Sith Intelligence Lana Beniko arrived and attempted to stop Vitiate. Undeterred, he was able to consume Ziost, resulting in a barren, frozen wasteland which only left a few Monoliths alive. The atmosphere, however, remained breathable. Members of the Republic and the Sith Empire traveled to Ziost once more to gather information on what exactly had taken place.

A world lost

Ritual aftermath — The dead surface of Ziost after Vitiate consumed the world.

Ziost's existence was once again forgotten after the Seventh Battle of Ruusan, due to the secrecy of Darth Bane's Sith Order. Many ancient and evil secrets remained on this place of great dark power. In 3 BBY, fugitive Jedi Rahm Kota visited Ziost while on the run from the Galactic Empire. The following year, Galen Marek came to the system during his search for Kota. A year after the Battle of Yavin, after being roused on Yavin 4 by the Rebel Alliance, the mutated Massassi Kalgrath came to Ziost hoping to find his people. He was disappointed, having found only a frozen waste.

Lumiya visited the planet and created her lightwhip using technology she found on Ziost. Following the Battle of Endor, she apparently trained her apprentices—first Flint and then Carnor Jax—on Ziost or possibly nearby Korriban.^[source?]

Almost a decade later, the Jedi scholar Tionne set out to find Kalgrath. She traced his trail as far as Ziost, but there it disappeared. Another ten years later bounty hunter Zekk, ran into Dengar on the planet while the rival bounty hunters were searching for Bornan Thul.^[4]

At the time of the Second Galactic Civil War, Jacen Solo (overseen by Lumiya) dispatched Ben Skywalker to the world, supposedly to recover a Sith amulet, but in reality to test him against opponents, to see if he was worthy of becoming a Sith apprentice. After having an epiphany of sorts, Ben accompanied the stranded child Kiara Olvidan across the surface of the planet, led by mysterious voices to an ancient temple. Throughout his journey the young Jedi was attacked by neks and pirates orbiting the planet under the command of Byalfin Dyur. Ben escaped the planet eventually, finding an antiquated but extremely powerful Sith Meditation Sphere in the ruined temple, and took the attack to the pirates.

Behind the scenes

Ziost versus Korriban?

Ziost TOR — Ziost prior to the devastation.

Though Ziost was established as the original Sith homeworld in Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi — The Golden Age of the Sith, many sources described Korriban as the Sith homeworld. It was the "public" capital world of the Sith Empire during the era of Darth Revan, but was a mausoleum-world for millennia beforehand and would return to such a state not long after.

The controversy was put to rest in the article Evil Never Dies: The Sith Dynasties by Abel G. Peña, which clearly established the Sith originating on Korriban and relocating the capital to Ziost before the arrival of the Dark Jedi exiles during the Hundred-Year Darkness, though the Dark Jedi exiles themselves landed on Korriban.

From the article Evil Never Dies: The Sith Dynasties:

Without Adas' unifying influence, wars once again raged for rule of the Sith people, with the reigning combatants arrogantly claiming the title of Sith'ari, and eventually forcing a relocation of the Sith capitol to the planet Ziost. Eventually, almost two-dozen millennia after Adas' death, a proper successor to Adas seemed to come at last. Known in Republic space as the Exiles, traitorous Jedi defeated in a galactic war called the Hundred-Year Darkness arrived on Korriban and cowed the Sith people with their astounding Force abilities, lightsabers, and superior technology.

Other appearances

Ziost dead surface — The surface of Ziost after the ritual

In the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic, General Threnoldt mentions Rakata Inscriptions in a place called the Ziost Abyss, suggesting that the Rakata may have once had a major presence on Ziost. These inscriptions, discovered and translated by the Imperial Reclamation Service, are said to describe a Rakatan prisoner on Belsavis called The Infernal One. In another instance, when playing Empire on Tatooine one can hear Imperial Reclamation Service member Hael Phirce remembering his experience during an expedition on Ziost where he was buried alive. Also, one of the capital ships on the imperial fleet is called The Ziost Shadow.

Part of the 2012 Drew Karpyshyn novel The Old Republic: Annihilation also takes place on the planet. Ziost appears in Game Update 3.2 of The Old Republic, which was released on April 28th 2015.