I maintain this article as my project page, my sandbox. Please do not delete. Jensaarai 05:19, April 23, 2011 (UTC)

Basic rule: no touchy without my go ahead. I welcome suggestions on the talk page, but please leave the article itself alone. I know I have probably made a whole laundry list of typos and I will get to them. Jensaarai 09:36, January 25, 2011 (UTC)

I hope. Jensaarai 00:27, October 20, 2011 (UTC)

Contents 1 Opening 2 Overview 2.1 Typical Skills and Abilities 2.2 Typical Wardrobe and Armament 2.3 Relationship with the Sith 2.4 Redemption 3 History 3.1 Force Wars on Tython (25,793 BBY - 25,783 BBY) 3.2 First Great Schism (24,500 BBY) 3.3 Hundred-Year Darkness (7,003 BBY - 6,900 BBY) 3.4 Vultar Cataclysm (4,250 BBY) 3.5 Involvement in the Sith Wars (4,000 BBY - 1,000 BBY) 3.6 Emergeance during the Republic Classic Era (1,000 BBY - 22 BBY) 3.7 Involvement in the Clone Wars (22 BBY - 19 BBY) 3.8 Servants and Victims of the Galactic Empire (19 BBY - 11 ABY) 3.9 Post-Imperial Dark Jedi (11 ABY - unknown) 4 Behind the Scenes 5 Sources 6 And Now For Something Totally Different

OpeningEdit

Dark Jedi, also referred to as Fallen Jedi, were typically former members of the Jedi Order who fell to the Dark Side of the Force and renounced their allegiance to their former comrades, often in the name of self-interest. Most Dark Jedi had received formal Jedi Training prior to leaving the Order, though the term "Dark Jedi" was something of a blanket term for any Darksider. The reasons for a Jedi to leave the Order and become a Dark Jedi were varied, ranging from simple philosophical disagreements to perceived betrayal, though the occurrence itself was almost always violent.

Most Dark Jedi worked independently, and were more concerned with personal wealth and importance rather than any overriding agenda or goal. However, many Dark Jedi went on to found their own organizations, effectively Jedi splinter sects. The most notable organization of this type was the Sith, a fact reflected by it's frequent reformations by fallen Jedi following it's previous destruction. However, most Dark Jedi organizations or individuals failed to achieve such a level of notoriety, and often served at the pleasure of the Sith.

OverviewEdit

The vast majority of Dark Jedi are former members of the Jedi Order who succumbed to the temptations of the Dark side of the Force and turned on their former comrades.^[1] The reasons for their falls were varied, ranging from a desire for vengeance against a perceived betrayal to a simple devotion to self-interest. Whatever the circumstances leading up to it, the event itself was almost always violent.^[2][3] Upon leaving the Order, Dark Jedi often prefer to go into isolation to experiment with the Dark Side, or find a more capable tutor, such as a Sith Lord, to complete their training.^[1]

Some Dark Jedi were not former Jedi trainees, but were instead Force-sensitives discovered and trained by other Darksiders in their own twisted brand of Jedi philosophy. Others didn't even begin life as Force-sensitives, but were instead artificially granted with such powers.^[1][4] Due to these differing circumstances, the term "Dark Jedi" has become something of a blanket term for any adherents of the Dark Side who weren't members preexisting Dark Side cults, such as the Sith.

As most Dark Jedi worked independently, they lacked any overall philosophy or mindset. Many simply cited self-interest as their motivation,^[3] though some were motivated by a personal hatred of the Jedi Order. Many of the latter would become noted Jedi hunters.^[5][6] Among the organizations, the guiding tenants often followed the Sith-style belief in the "rule of the strong".^[7][8] Ultimately, most Dark Jedi were little different from their former Jedi comrades, distinguished only by an adherence to the Dark Side of the Force.^[3]

Typical Skills and AbilitiesEdit

While the overall lack of organization between Dark Jedi prevented the formation of any sort of standard, there were a number of consistencies within the operating styles of various Dark Jedi. As most were former Jedi trainees, Dark Jedi typically demonstrated skills and talents associated with members of the Order, but with a decidedly more aggressive slant. Classical Jedi fighting forms were prevalent, though modified versions unique to individual duelists were not unheard of.^[3]

As far as Force abilities went, most Dark Jedi were adept at channeling their hatred and anger to boost their physical prowess, though most of their other skills were simply aggressive applications of typical Jedi abilities, such as Telekinesis. On occasion, some would demonstrate powerful Dark Side abilities such as Force lightning,^[9] though more advanced powers, such as Sith magicks or alchemy, typically evaded them.

Typical Wardrobe and ArmamentEdit

Most Dark Jedi would continue to favor a Jedi-style wardrobe, though they heavily favored darker colors over the tans and browns of the Order. However, the mode of dress for most was dictated by either personal preference or practical requirements. For example, Dark Jedi who frequently engaged in combat often favored some type of Armor, while those in positions of wealth and power often chose to flaunt their influence with the finest of clothing.^[3][10]

Among the Dark Jedi organizations, a standardized uniform was often the norm, ranging from imitation Jedi robes to Combat suits and armor.^[8][10] However, many organizations would allow for individualized attire.^[11][12]

The standard weapon of most Dark Jedi was the lightsaber, a hold-over from their Jedi training. Dark Jedi often continued to wield their original Jedi lightsabers, though many would choose to distinguish themselves with a Sith-style crimson blade.^[9]

Relationship with the SithEdit

In the conflict between the Jedi and the Sith, the Dark Jedi fell somewhere in the middle, lacking any significant allegiance to either organization. Despite this, Dark Jedi often became minions of various Sith Lords, and many were Sith aspirants. However, Dark Jedi were not Sith.^[1]

The prime differences between Dark Jedi and Sith is that the latter have their own formalized code and ideals, while the former lacked any organizational commonality. This often carried over to their skills and personal conduct, with Dark Jedi demonstrating haphazard and unrefined capabilities as compared to Sith, a result of their largely self-taught knowledge of the Dark Side.^[1] Notable Sith, such as Dooku, were of the opinion that the powers of Dark Jedi were negligible compared to a proper Sith.^[13] He even took this a step further and cited the prime difference between the two being a Sith's lack of fear.^[14]

Despite these differences, Dark Jedi were often cultivated as potential Sith apprentices by several Sith organizations, and it was not unheard of for Sith Lords to establish formalized Dark Jedi groups or cabals as their servants.^[9][11][15]

RedemptionEdit

It was not unheard of for Dark Jedi to atone for their actions and rejoin the Jedi Order, though it was a rare occurrence. According to Jedi Master Tolaris Shim, a Darksider had to be willing to relinquish his powers for redemption to even be possible. Furthermore, Shim stated that they had to properly atone for their actions through a selfless act of heroism, without using the Dark Side to attain results. However, redemption was rare, as most Dark Jedi were unwilling to give up their power.^[16] In fact, some chose suicide over redemption.^[17]

HistoryEdit

Force Wars on Tython (25,793 BBY - 25,783 BBY)Edit

Main article: Force Wars

Technically, the first Dark Jedi were the followers of the Bogan, one of the sects within the group of Seers and philosophers that eventually founded the Jedi Order. The Bogan followers refused to heed the will of the Force, in contrast to the followers of Ashla - the Light side of the Force - and allowed emotion to dictate their actions. In this unstable state, these early Jedi became prone to the temptations of the Dark side of the Force, and fell.^[18]

The Bogan Jedi used the Force to further their own self interests and greed, and things deteriorated to the point where the Bogan followers came into conflict with the Ashla Jedi. This early conflict, the first of many between Lightsiders and Darksiders, was fought with metal swords empowered through the Force. Ultimately, the followers of Bogan were defeated, and the Ashla Jedi went on to found the proper Jedi Order free of their influence.^[18]

First Great Schism (24,500 BBY)Edit

Main articles: First Great Schism and Legions of Lettow

The First Great Schism was brought about by Xendor, one of the earliest fallen Jedi and an exiled member of the Kashi Mer Dynasty.^[19] Xendor took the rank of General and created the Legions of Lettow, the first organized group of Dark Jedi. The Legions were composed of Jedi defectors who were frustrated with the rigid teachings of their masters, and celebrated their freedom by falling to the Dark Side of the Force. The Jedi Order was enraged by this disobedience and declared war on Xendor and the Legions of Lettow.^[16]

The conflict was vicious and brutal, though the Jedi Order proved victorious. Xendor was killed, while his lover Arden Lyn was placed in a millenia-long trance by Jedi Master Awdrysta Pina.^[20] One of the victims of the conflict, Jedi Padawan Danzigorro Potts, made a recording where he recounted his involvement in the war, and explained his idea that perhaps the Jedi Order itself was partly to blame for the schism.^[16]

Hundred-Year Darkness (7,003 BBY - 6,900 BBY)Edit

Main articles: Hundred-Year Darkness and Exiles

The Dark Jedi of this era began as experimenters and alchemists who dabbled in the Dark Side of the Force. While aware that the Jedi Order would condemn their actions, they stated in their own defense that they were taking the initiative with regards to the Dark Side, and claimed that the Jedi attacked them out of jealousy over their new abilities. The conflict resulting from this schism became known as the Hundred-Year Darkness.^[16]

This conflict was one of the most brutal in history, thanks to the Dark Jedi's avid use of Dark Side alchemy to create monstrous horrors to aid in their war effort. Massive leviathans drove entire armies into retreat with their ability to absorb the life-essences of their enemies, while grotesque Terentateks became the bane of Jedi, due to their predilection for feeding on the blood of Force-sensitives and their natural resistance to Force-based attacks. These destructive creatures boosted the drastically outnumbered Dark Jedi, and allowed them to inflict devastating damage on the Jedi.^[16][9]

Despite their efforts, it was all for naught, and the Dark Jedi were defeated. However, the Jedi lacked the stomach to coldly execute their former comrades, despite the contrary desires of the Republic, and instead stripped them of their weapons and armor and exiled them. The Dark Jedi were rounded up and loaded onto unarmed transports, and escorted out of Republic space. Bereft of Navigation computers, the Exiles were forced to make a blind hyperspace jump. They reverted in the space above the Outer Rim world Korriban, where the primitive Sith species dwelt. The Exiles conquered the race and declared themselves the Lords of the Sith.^[16][9]

Vultar Cataclysm (4,250 BBY)Edit

Main articles: Third Great Schism and Vultar Cataclysm

The Vultar Cataclysm was brought about by the Third Great Schism within the Jedi Order, when many Knights fell to the Dark Side. The resulting Jedi civil war was largely contained to Coruscant, and the Jedi Order gained the advantage. The Dark Jedi fell back to the Vultar system, where they discovered ancient technology that indicated that the entire system was an artificial construct, likely a creation of the vanished Celestial architects.^[20]

No doubt in an attempt to strike back at the Jedi Order, the Darksiders attempted to harness the technology, but could not control it. The Dark Jedi succeeded only in destroying themselves, along with the rest of the system.^[20] The devastation of the cataclysm would be long remembered, and recounted at the Jedi Conclave on Deneba centuries later by the aged Jedi Shayoto.^[21]

Involvement in the Sith Wars (4,000 BBY - 1,000 BBY)Edit

Main articles: Great Sith War, Jedi Civil War, New Sith Wars, and Dark Side Adept

Both of the Sith Lords who instigated the Great Sith War in 4,000 BBY, Ulic Qel-Droma and Exar Kun, began their dark careers as Fallen Jedi.

The arrogant Exar Kun was the apprentice of famed Jedi Master Vodo-Siosk Baas, and was long fascinated by the Dark Side of the Force. After a dispute with his master and fellow students, Kun left Baas' instruction and decided to pursue knowledge of the Dark Side independently. His slide to the Dark Side began after a close encounter with the spirit of Freedon Nadd on Dxun. Traveling to Korriban, Kun was given a tour of the Valley of the Dark Lords by Freedon Nadd's spirit, who subjected him to a number of vicious tests intended to further trigger his fall to the Dark Side. The last of these tests was on Yavin 4, where Kun was to be sacrificed by the native Massassi to a massive Sith wyrm. Equipped with a Sith amulet, Kun was forced to draw heavily on his Hatred to defeat the beast, falling completely to the Dark Side. In a further act of depravity, Kun destroyed the spirit of Freedon Nadd, having become enraged by his constant testing.^{[22][23][21][24][25]}

Ulic Qel-Droma, enraged by the death of his master during the Battle of Deneba, resolved to infiltrate the Sith-affiliated Krath cult and destroy them from within. The plan backfired horribly, as the Krath were aware of Ulic's presense on their homeworld, and staged an assassination attempt on one of their leaders, Aleema Keto, to lure him in. Qel-Droma stepped in and apparently saved Keto's life in a show of good faith, only to be incapacitated and interred in the Krath dungeons, where the sincerity "defection" was tested by torture. He was then drugged with Sith poison by Satal Keto, driving him partly mad, before being taken on as Aleema Keto's lover. Qel-Droma fell completely, driving away his former Jedi friends when they attempted to rescue him, and killing Satal Keto in a fit of rage and assuming complete control over the Krath.^[21][24][25]

Exar Kun got wind of Ulic Qel-Droma and the Krath through Freedon Nadd prior to his destruction, and Kun resolved to eliminate his rivals. Traveling to Empress Teta aboard a salvaged Sith dreadnaught, Kun breached the Krath Iron Citadel during the chaos of the Second Battle of Empress Teta, and in the battles aftermath, confronted Ulic Qel-Droma and Aleema Keto. Keto was quickly incapacitated by Kun's Force abilities, while Kun went blade-to-blade against Qel-Droma. Their duel was interrupted by the arrival of a retinue of Sith spirits, who had been summoned by the power of Kun's and Qel-Droma's Sith amulets. Led by Marka Ragnos, the Sith Lords called an end to the combat, and dubbed the two fighters the new Dark Lords of the Sith.^[26]

Despite the two reigning Dark Lords having begun as Dark Jedi, the involvement of simple fallen Jedi in the remainder of the Great Sith War was minimal, as all of the Force-sensitive servants of Kun and Qel-Droma were either Krath cultists, or proper Sith Acolytes.^[27] This would not be the case during the Jedi Civil War a mere four decades later.^[9]

When the Jedi heroes Revan and Malak returned from their long sojourn in the Unknown Regions, they returned as Sith conquerors with legions of Sith warriors and Dark Jedi at their heel, the twisted remnants of the Jedi forces who had chosen to join them during the Mandalorian Wars. Within Darth Revan's forces, Dark Jedi were low-level Sith trainees, Jedi defectors tasked with proving their loyalty. Due to the effectiveness of Revan's onslaught, many Jedi would flock to his banner, abandoning their former comrades. In addition, there were numerous agents tasked with capturing Jedi and either torturing them to death, or driving them to the Dark Side. While the presense of Dark Jedi within their ranks obviously boosted their forces, many fresh Sith trainees resented them. This was due in part to widespread arrogance among the Dark Jedi, due to their preexisting Jedi training giving them an edge over fellow Sith apprentices. Also, the Sith Lords and Dark Jedi were occasionally confused with one another, due to their similar skill sets and attire.^[9][28]

The details of involvement between the Dark Jedi and the resurgent Sith Empire, if there was any at all, remain sketchy. However, the New Sith Empire was founded by fallen Jedi led by Darth Ruin, though most of these Dark Jedi became Lords and Acolytes within the Empire.^[16] In the following years, Dark Jedi would be active from time to time, but their involvement with the Sith was minimal. This had the unexpected benefit of allowing them to operate as they pleased, as the Jedi Order was too focused on the Sith to trouble with them.^[29][3]

Emergeance during the Republic Classic Era (1,000 BBY - 22 BBY)Edit

Main article: Dark Jedi Conflict

In the years after the battle of Ruusan and the end of the New Sith Wars, the Jedi were free to shift their attention to Dark Jedi. One of the most notable of the period was Set Harth. Harth had an early inclination towards the Dark Side of the Force, prompting his master to leave him on Coruscant rather than allow him to participate in the battle of Ruusan. Harth's master died during the battle, and he was taken on by Master Obba, who assigned him to the Council of First Knowledge and tasked him with locating and confiscating Sith artifacts throughout the galaxy. Harth, who was of an arrogant and selfish nature, secretly hoarded many of these artifacts, and used them to amass a large fortune to facilitate his "resignation" from the Jedi Order.^[3]

In his continuing hunt for Sith artifacts, Harth ran afoul of both fellow Dark Jedi Bal Serinus and surviving Sith Lord Darth Zannah. With Serinus, Harth dueled her to exhaustion over possession of an artifact, allowing both to be captured by a Hutt slaver. Harth initiated a telepathic exchange with her during their captivity, attempting to plan their escape, but she rebuffed him out of fear. For this slight, Harth swore revenge.^[30] With Zannah, she sought him out after he beat her to a Sith artifact found on Doan, and after a duel, attempted to recruit him as her Sith apprentice. Harth was initially intrigued, but was ultimately disinterested in joining them, his only allegiance being to himself rather than the greater Sith agenda. Stealing the Holocron of Heresies from the Sith, Harth fled.^[3]

Set Harth was already described by his former Jedi master Obba as the "most dangerous individual in the galaxy" following the destruction of the Brotherhood of Darkness, and the knowledge he gleaned from the stolen holocron only increased his power further.^[3] Learning the archane power of Transfer essence, Harth was able to extend his life up to six hundred years by transferring his mind and spirit to clone bodies of himself.^[30]

In 600 BBY, the fallen Jedi Allya was banished to Dathomir. Not wanting to execute her, the Jedi hoped that long isolation would allow her to turn away from the Dark Side. They were only partially right; Allya dominated the native Rancors and used them to subjugate the other human exiles on Dathomir, founding a matriarchal society known as the Witches of Dathomir. Despite her early Dark Side corruption, and aggressive feminist tendencies, the central tenant of Allya's teachings was "never concede to evil". Due to this, any Darksiders among the witches were banished, eventually forming a rogue clan known as the Nightsisters.^[31][32]

In 188 BBY, the Jedi Padawan Kibh Jeen fell to the Dark Side. He and his master, Qornah, were tasked with investigating the old Sith fortress on Almas, and Jeen was turned by the powerful Dark Side aura permeating the structure. Jeen murdered his master while he was distracted, entered the fortress. Jeen disappeared and wasn't heard from for months, before reemerging as in the Cularin system as a Dark Jedi. Taking control of a large pirate gang based in the system, Jeen started the Dark Jedi Conflict, a vicious guerrilla campaign with the goal of taking over the Cularin system and destroying the Jedi Council. A tactical blunder brought about by his continuing internal conflict between the Dark and Light sides of the Force resulted in his death seven years later. Kibh Jeen was seen as a cautionary tale by the Jedi, who recounted it annually to students of the newly established Almas Academy in a drama known as the Ritual Tale of Kibh Jeen.^[33]

Xanatos was the student of Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, and while a talented Force-adept, he was arrogant and prideful. In 53 BBY, he joined his master in a mission to his homeworld, Telos, where the Telosian Civil War was under way. Xanatos chose to side with his father, Crion, the governor of Telos and leader of one of the factions in the war, failing as a Jedi. However, he didn't completely fall until Qui-Gon Jinn was forced to kill Crion, sending Xanatos spiraling into a rage. After an unsuccessful attempt to kill his master on the spot, Xanatos fled the scene.^[34][20] Xanatos utilized his father's former connections, his own training in the Force, and devious manipulations to build a power base. Through deceit and conspiracy, he took over the Offworld Mining Corporation and attained high standing within the Telosian government. Determined to gain revenge against the Jedi Order, and Qui-Gon Jinn in particular, Xanatos operated as a puppet master, subtly sabotaging the Order's efforts in various ways, while remaining a "man of the people" on Telos.^[35]

The second Dark Jedi to emerge during this period was Aurra Sing. Sing had aggressive tendencies even at a young age, and the Jedi Council chose to assign her to the controversial - though devout - Jedi Master known as the Dark Woman as a problem case. These efforts were in vain, as Sing never even attained the rank of Padawan. Sing was later captured by a pirate gang, who played on her fear of abandonment and betrayal to shake her trust in the Jedi, and raised her as a fellow pirate. Sing was later captured by the Hutt Crime lord Wallanooga, who lent her to a group of Anzati Assassins to be trained as a killer. Breaking free of her captors, Sing became a Bounty hunter and infamous Jedi hunter.^[36][37]

While Aurra Sing established herself as a Jedi hunter, Xanatos utilized his father's former connections, his own training in the Force, and devious manipulations to build a power base. Through deceit and conspiracy, he took over the Offworld Mining Corporation and attained high standing within the Telosian government. Determined to gain revenge against the Jedi Order, and Qui-Gon Jinn in particular, Xanatos operated as a puppet master, subtly sabotaging the Order's efforts in various ways, while remaining a "man of the people" on Telos.^[35] He even goes so far as to raid the Jedi Temple itself, almost destroying it. While doing so, he managed to corrupt on of the students, Bruck Chun, and take him on as an apprentice. The Jedi managed to stop Xanatos and his student, and Chun was killed by Obi-Wan Kenobi, though Xanatos escaped back to Telos.^[38] He was pursued by Jinn and Kenobi, who managed to expose his true colors to the Telosian people. Xanatos fled to the Park of Sacred Pools, once a site of natural beauty on Telos, now polluted and toxic thanks to Xanatos secret mining efforts. Defeated by Kenobi and Jinn in a lightsaber duel, Xanatos refused to be taken alive, and leapt into one of the pools, where his body was dissolved by the harsh acids.^[17]

A third Dark Jedi active during this era was Lycan. Master of Sardoth, Lycan introduced his student to the Dark Side of the Force, and eventually left the Jedi Order and struck out on his own as a Dark Jedi. He was apprehended by the his former comrades in 32 BBY, and was to be taken to Coruscant for trial. Lycan escaped his captors and attempted to take control of the transport they were aboard, though he only caused it to crash. Injured and stricken with amnesia, Lycan wandered to a nearby farm and killed the boy Neas Nyl when he attempted to defend himself. The boy's father, Darca, swore revenge and began searching for his son's murderer. Lycan was easy to track, wandering in circles with no clear goal in mind. When found, Lycan easily bested the non-Force-sensitive Darca in a lightsaber duel, but was killed by the former mercenaries clever use of explosives.^[39]

The emergeance of the Bando Gora cult in the Outer Rim territories called for the intervention of the Jedi Order. While the Jedi were successful in driving off the cult, it was at terrible cost, due to their lack of preparation. Two of the casualties of the conflict were failed Jedi Padawan Komari Vosa and Anzati Jedi Nikkos Tyris.^[19] Vosa was captured by the Bando Gora and brainwashed by the cult, resulting in her embracing the Dark Side and becoming their leader. She was later assassinated by Bounty Hunter Jango Fett, on orders from Count Dooku, Vosa's former Jedi teacher, now the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus.^[40] Nikkos Tyris likewise fell to the Dark Side, and retreated to the world Susevfi, where he began preaching a twisted version of Jedi teachings and history, heavily influenced by Sith philosophy. He gathered a small group of like-minded students about himself.^[7]

Involvement in the Clone Wars (22 BBY - 19 BBY)Edit

Main articles: Clone Wars and Dark Acolyte

The Dark Acolytes were arguably the most prolific Dark Jedi organization to ever exist, and operated as the enforcers of Sith Lord Count Dooku during the Clone Wars. Many of the groups members were former Jedi who defected to Dooku's Confederacy of Independent Systems out of frustration with the corrupt Galactic Republic, or out of personal loyalty to Dooku himself. Examples included Sora Bulq, Kadrian Sey, Tol Skorr, Quinlan Vos. Sora Bulq was a notable case, being a former Jedi Swordmaster who had fallen to the Dark Side due to his experiments with Form VII lightsaber combat. Bulq was tasked with infiltrating the Jedi Order and initiating a schism. However, he was exposed by Mace Windu, effectively squandering his potential as a double-agent, though he would go on to become one of Dooku's most capable field agents.^[41][11]

Other members of the organization were preexisting Darksiders approached by Dooku, notables being Saato, Nikkos Tyris, and Asajj Ventress. Ventress was without a doubt the most notable member of the Dark Acolytes, and was often referred to as Dooku's apprentice. A Dathomirian sold to Rattataki slavers, Ventress was found on her new homeworld by shipwrecked Jedi Ky Narec, who discovered her Force potential and trained her as his apprentice.^[42] Ventress and Narec became heroes on Rattatak, prompting the local warlords to band together and try to kill them, though only Narec died in the attempt. The enraged and vengeful Ventress fell to the Dark Side and struck back, becoming a powerful warlord herself and taking over most of the planet.^[43] A few weeks before the Clone Wars, she was approached by Dooku, who bested her in a lightsaber duel before recruiting her.^[20][14] During the war, she operated as Dooku's personal assassin, and was even provided with training in Sith powers to improve her effectiveness.^[44] However, her increasing power and skill alarmed Dooku's master, Darth Sidious, who became worried that he was training her as an apprentice, in defiance of the Sith Rule of Two, and ordered her executed. Ventress narrowly escaped, and unaware of Sidious' order, began a campaign of vengeance against Dooku, aided by her Nightsister brethren.^[42]

Also, large percentage of the Acolytes membership was composed of Force-sensitives who had no prior training, and recieved their instruction during their tenure in the organization. Examples included Savage Opress, and Sev'rance Tann. Opress was formerly a Nightsister slave, a member of the Zabrak Nightbrother clans. Opress was turned to the Dark Side and empowered by the Nightsister Force magicks, before being presented to Dooku, ostensibly as a replacement for Asajj Ventress, but in truth as her agent within the Dark Acolytes.^[45] Opress was provided with training in lightsaber combat by the Sith Lord, who offered to take him on as his true Sith apprentice. However, Opress' service to Dooku was shortlived, and he was forced to flee after his role as Ventress' agent was exposed.^[46]

However, many of the Acolytes lacked known origins, and several remained completely anonymous. It remains unknown how the Doppelgänger of Dooku was created, though evidence seems to point towards Cloning.^[47][48] The identities of the Dark Acolyte Trio remained hidden behind their Sith Enforcer battle tanks, and they perished on Geonosis before more could be discovered.^[49] Trenox, and the siblings Karoc and Vinoc all seemed to be relatively minor players within the group, and perished in short order.^[47]

In addition to operating as Dooku's agents, the Dark Acolytes served the purpose of eroding public faith in the Jedi Order, as much of the Acolytes membership was made up of Jedi traitors.^[50] However, the Dark Acolytes were not the only Dark Jedi to operate during the Clone Wars. Aurra Sing remained active during the Clone Wars, and while she didn't align herself with the Dark Acolytes, she would often take Separatist contracts on Jedi.^[51] In addition, she was involved in the Senate hostage crisis, having been subcontracted by fellow Bounty hunter Cad Bane,^[52] and aided the young Boba Fett in his own personal vendetta against the Jedi.^[53] However, Sing was captured by Aayla Secura on Devaron, and spent the remainder of the war in the Oovo IV prison complex.^[51]

While most Dark Jedi flocked to the Separatist banner or operated independently to strike out at the Jedi Order, there were some who concealed their falls to the Dark Side and continued to publicly operate as Jedi Knights. One of the most notable of such deceivers was Pong Krell, a Besalisk Jedi Master who became a recognized war hero due to his shrewd and relentless tactics, though his success was largely due to his moral bankruptcy and contempt for the Clone troopers under his command. Krell had fallen to the Dark Side after experiencing a vision of the impending fall of the Galactic Republic and the rise of the New Order, and planned on eventually defecting to Dooku's side to secure himself a place of power in the Empire. Krell was ultimately exposed by rebellion within his own ranks, and he was executed by one of the resentful clone officers once his betrayal was laid bare.^{[54][55][56][57]} Another fallen Jedi who continued to publically support the Republic was Depa Billaba, who fell to the Dark Side after witnessing atrocities during the Summertime War on Haruun Kal. After clashing with Mace Windu, she attempted suicide when victory became impossible, rather than face justice. She spent the remainder of the Clone Wars in a coma.^[58]

Like Krell and Billaba, many of the Dark Acolytes would also fall by the end of the war. Nikkos Tyris and his top students were killed by a Jedi strike team, while his surviving apprentices went on to found the Jensaarai, technically a Sith cult, but adhering to the Light side of the Force due to their desire to defend themselves against the Jedi Order, whom they vilified thanks to Tyris' propoganda.^[7] Sora Bulq died during the Siege of Saleucami at the hands of Quinlan Vos, who redefected back to the Jedi Order.^[59] Sev'rance Tann was slain on Krant,^[60] the short-lived Rhad Tarn was killed by Jedi on Ruul,^[41] Kadrian Sey was killed by Quinlan Vos on Kiffu,^[11] Saato was killed on Tatooine, Trenox died on Coruscant, the twins Karoc and Vinoc, and the Doppelgänger of Dooku died on Metalorn,^[47] and Tol Skorr died on Saleucami alongside Sora Bulq.^[59] Asajj Ventress disappeared at the end of the war.

Servants and Victims of the Galactic Empire (19 BBY - 11 ABY)Edit

Main articles: Emperor's Hand, Inquisitorius, Seven Dark Jedi, and Dark Side Elite

When Darth Sidious became the new Galactic Emperor Palpatine, he decried his former apprentice Dooku and his Dark Acolytes as Jedi agents, effectively scapegoating them for all of his own actions during the war.^[6] However, the new Sith Emperor was not without use for Dark Jedi; early into the Great Jedi Purge, he offered to spare the lives of any Jedi who turned to the Dark Side and joined him. While he took full advantage of their services in hunting Jedi survivors, he ultimately betrayed most of them, one of these victims being Lycan's erstwhile student, Sardoth.^[61] Those who were able to stay on as Imperial servants, such as Jerec or Maw, became founding members of Palpatine's Dark Jedi organizations, such as the Inquisitorius or the Dark Side Elite.^[15]

The Dark Jedi organization with the strongest ties to the Jedi Order was the Inquisitorius, with many of it's early members being either failed Jedi trainees from the Jedi Service Corps, or Jedi defectors.^[62][63] Appropriately, the Inquisitorius was tasked primarily with Jedi hunting, originally basing themselves out of the old Jedi Temple on Coruscant.^[64]

Inspired by his use of Darth Maul as a field agent, Palpatine decided to create another Dark Jedi organization to serve as operatives and assassins. While each of the Hands were selected at infancy, Palpatine allowed them to develop into adulthood without his influence, and simply waited for some display of skill or resourcefulness to catch his attention.^[30] When selected, the Hands were provided with training in a variety of areas beyond Force abilities, such as intelligence gathering and varied combat techniques. In terms of their training in the Force, Palpatine avoided any techniques unique to either the Sith or the Jedi,^[65] and most of the Hands were simply Darksiders rather than true Dark Jedi. Each of the Hand's were trained under the false impression that they were the only one, likely to reinforce any sense of loyalty they developed, though Palpatine was not above using the knowledge of the others to psychologically manipulate them.^[66] One of Palpatine's earliest Hands, Sa Cuis, was sent to assassinate Darth Vader as a test for the Sith Lord. Cuis remained loyal to his master to the end, and Vader "rewarded" this by taking a tissue sample from Cuis before killing him, which was used to create a cadre of Force-wielding clones.^[67]

The clones in question were trained by Sheyvan, another of the Emperor's Hands. Sheyvan was bitter and enraged to discover that he was not unique, and there were other Hands besides him. He trained the Cuis clones to be loyal to him rather than the Emperor, and waited for the opportunity to lash out at his former master. The chance came during the shuttle trip from the clones training facility on Yinchorr to Coruscant; Sheyvan and the clones took control of the shuttle, and planned to kill the Emperor. They were confronted by Darth Vader and a different set of clones based off of Imperial officer Erv Lekauf. The Cuis clones were all killed, and Sheyvan was personally cut down by Vader. The incident spelled the end to any attempt to create a Force-sensitive detachment of Stormtroopers,^[66] though attempts to clone Force-sensitives would not cease.^[68]

In addition to these formalized organizations, Palpatine also had a number of advisors and high level politicians that he provided with rudimentary training in the Force. When Palpatine perished at the Battle of Endor, and the Galactic Empire effectively splintered as various warlord factions began fighting for supremacy, many of these Dark Side Adepts responded by retreating to his throne world Byss.^[30] Others instead aligned themselves with various factions, or in the case of the Inquisitorius, participated fully in the infighting. Many Inquisitors also flocked to the Pentastar Alignment faction, where they were incorporated into the office of the Great InQuestor of Judgment. Among these was the former Jedi Jerec, who desired to take over the galaxy for himself. To thise end, he took full advantage of backing from both the Prophets of the Dark Side and the reborn Palpatine's Deep Core forces, and founded his own personal cadre of Dark Jedi.^[63]

Jerec's cadre was composed of Sariss, Boc Aseca, Maw, the Sith alchemical creations Pic and Gorc, and Yun. Jerec focused primarily on finding the Valley of the Jedi on Ruusan, apparently on orders from his superiors, but in truth for himself. Jerec was successful in locating the valley, but he was ultimately thwarted by nascent Jedi Kyle Katarn, who killed off Jerec's minions one by one, before slaying Jerec himself. Notably, Yun did not perish by Katarn's hand, but instead stepped in to prevent Sariss from executing the Jedi during a moment of vulnerability, citing that he deserved an honorable death in battle. Sariss accidentally killed him when he did this, before being cut down herself by Katarn.^[69]

The Dark Side Elite were formed after the Battle of Endor and Palpatine's first death. The first member was Sedriss, a former gun-for-hire who had been recruited personally by Palpatine and trained in the Dark Side of the Force. When word of Palpatine's death reached Coruscant, Sedriss was among the Dark Side Adepts who retreated to Byss to evade the inevitable strife and civil war. Sedriss took command of the world's military defenses and awaited Palpatine, his patience eventually being rewarded when the reborn Emperor granted him the rank of Executor. The Dark Side Elite were built around Sedriss, who served as their leader. The Elite was composed of exactly seven members, some former Jedi trainees, such as Kam Solusar, and others artificially empowered with the Dark Side of the Force. This group served as Palpatine's enforcers during Operation Shadow Hand.^[10][4] The organization was relatively short-lived, with most of the members, Sedriss included, being either killed by Luke Skywalker's early Jedi trainees, or being captured and imprisoned by the New Republic.^[70][71][72] Kam Solusar escaped this fate, and was instead recruited by Luke Skywalker.^[73]

Post-Imperial Dark Jedi (11 ABY - unknown)Edit

Main articles: Reborn and Shadow Academy

One of the primary forces active in the post-Imperial years was the Empire Reborn movement, led by the Vader-trained Dark Jedi Hethrir, now the former Imperial Procurator of Justice. Laying low after the fall of the Empire, Hethrir operated primarily from Crseih Station, an asteroid prison orbiting the crystalized star of the Crseih system. The combination of the Force disturbances caused by the star and Hethrir's experiments created an interdimensional portal that summoned the alien Waru. Hethrir made a deal with the powerful Waru; he would provide the alien with Force-sensitives to feed on in his attempt to create a new portal to return home, and Waru would empower him with unlimited command of the Force.^[74] With Waru's support, Hethrir set about establishing his Empire Reborn movement, recruiting various Imperial warlords and remaining military officials to his cause. Overcoming his ingrained pro-Human bias, Hethrir made fellow Dark Jedi Desann, a Chistori, his second in command.^[75]

Desann had been a former trainee within Luke Skywalker's New Jedi Order, but failed to get along with his fellow students, and ultimately killed on of them in a fit of rage. Desann fled the academy and gave into his anger, turning to the Dark Side.^[8] Desann's grasp of the Dark Side and it's powers was largely self-taught, and strongly resembled the basics he was trained in as a Jedi, though his powerful emotions helped compensate for his relative inexperience. Desann eventually sold his services to the Empire Reborn, and was gifted with high status within the organization.^[76] He was tasked with training an army of Dark Jedi to serve Hethrir, and Desann used the combination of Force-sensitives "purified" by Waru and those artificially granted such power through alchemical means to create the Reborn.^[74][77] By tricking Kyle Katarn, Desann was able to discover the location of the Valley of the Jedi, and empowered many of his Dark Jedi students there. He afterwards led the Reborn in an assault on the Jedi Praxeum, though the attack was unsuccessful, and Desann and all his followers perished.^[8]

This failure, among others, backed Hethrir into a corner. He was forced to take desperate measures to keep his bargain with Waru alive, going so far as to kidnap Jacen and Jaina Solo, the children of Han Solo and Leia Organa. Events came to a head, and Hethrir was defeated, and was himself devoured by Waru, who used his power to return to his home dimension.^[74] However, some of Desann's Reborn survived the organizations collapse, and were gathered together by Tavion Axmis, Desann's former apprentice, into the Disciples of Ragnos, a Sith cult. This organization was also defeated, and Tavion herself was possessed by the spirit of Marka Ragnos, who was in turn defeated by Jaden Korr, Kyle Katarn's apprentice.^[78]

Behind the ScenesEdit

The term "Dark Jedi" made it's first appearance in Timothy Zahn's Expanded Universe novel Heir to the Empire, a title he used due to his confusion regarding Sith naming conventions.^[79] The term would appear again in Dark Empire shortly afterwards, with the reborn Palpatine referring to Luke Skywalker by the title during his apprenticeship under the Sith Lord.^[80]

Dark Jedi would appear in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic as minions of the Sith, as well as prospective Sith trainees. This role would be carried over to the sequel, Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords, though to a much lesser degree.

The Dark Acolytes appeared in various installments of the Clone Wars multimedia project from 2003 to 2005. However, while numerous Dark Jedi servants to Dooku were established, their organization was never refered to by name, and was instead derived from the titles applied to the Dark Acolyte Trio in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars video game. While the character of Asajj Ventress was carried over to The Clone Wars TV series of 2008, none of the other Acolytes have been referenced, and comments made in various episodes suggest that Ventress was Dooku's only Dark Jedi servant.^[46] The Dark Jedi Savage Opress and Pong Krell were both created for and featured in the TV series.^[81]

SourcesEdit

And Now For Something Totally DifferentEdit

This bottom section is my experimentation area, where I work on smaller edits on other articles while in the middle of projects. I have difficulty focusing on anything for any significant period of time, so I wheel through different ideas to see if work in one spot inspires me elsewhere. As with the main section of this sandbox page, no edits without my go-ahead, but suggestions are more than welcome in the talk page. Jensaarai 08:09, November 13, 2011 (UTC)