Sith

The Sith are the opposite number of the Jedi in the Star Wars continuum.

They use the Force for power, and care only for themselves. The Sith are considered evil. It is important to note that not every user of the Dark Side of the Force is a Sith -- to be a Sith requires specific training and instruction. Without this, a Dark Sider is often considered merely a Dark Jedi. The Mysterious Somebody is a Dark Jedi.

Before the films
The Sith were originally an alien species originating on the planet Korriban. Several thousand years before the film timeline, at the time of the Knights of the Old Rebublic II game, a handful of Jedi break from the Order to form their own group dedicated to the Dark Side of the Force.

Five thousand years before the A New Hope, the galaxy is ruled by the Sith Empire. Presumably they outnumber the Jedi at this point. However, infighting between Ludo Kressh and Naga Sadow, the two most powerful Sith Lords of the time, causes turmoil and the empire collapses from within.

One thousand years before The Phantom Menace, there are as many Sith as there are Jedi. However, they are too busy fighting amongst themselves to properly unite and try to regain control of the galaxy. Eventually Darth Bane decides to solve the problem by exterminating every Sith except for himself and his apprentice, Darth Zannah, and instituting the Rule of Two; "Only two shall there be, a master and an apprentice: one to embody power and the other to crave it.". Because of this, it is almost expected that one day either the master or the apprentice will turn on the other, resulting in death for the loser and the need for a new apprentice.

Prequel Trilogy
In The Phantom Menace the Jedi sent to assist Naboo are hounded by Darth Maul, apprentice of Darth Sidious (Senator Palpatine). Qui-Gon Jinn battles with Darth Maul twice, once on Tatooine where he barely escapes, and once on Naboo where he loses his life. Darth Maul is then killed by Qui-Gon's then-apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi. This incident draws Darth Sidious' attention to the newly-freed slave Anakin Skywalker, who is accepted as Obi-Wan's Padawan.

In  Sidious, as Palpatine, uses his new apprentice Darth Tyranus (former Jedi Master Count Dooku) to manipulate events in order to gain power. Using his influence as both trusted Senator and Sith Lord, he engineers a war between the Separatists' Droid Army and the newly formed Clone Army of the Republic. Tyranus duels with Kenobi, Anakin and Yoda on Geonosia after the clone troopers arrive, defeating the first two and fleeing from the third. He flees to Sidious' base on Coruscant and gives him the plans for the Death Star.

Revenge of the Sith has Sidious reveal himself as a Sith Lord, with Anakin Skywalker as his new apprentice. Once the Jedi realise what is going on it is too late. The clone troopers are ordered to kill all Jedi and Anakin Skywalker, now Darth Vader, is sent to wipe out everyone within the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Anakin and Obi-Wan battle on the volcanic planet of Mustafar, where Obi-Wan leaves Anakin badly wounded and near death, resulting in his transformation into the dreaded figure that most fans associate with Darth Vader. With the Jedi virtually eliminated he declares himself Emperor for life and transforms the Republic into the Galactic Empire.

The Original Trilogy
Darth Sidious, known to most as Emperor Palpatine, and Darth Vader rule the galaxy with an iron fist. Their only opposition is the Rebel Alliance, which is close to defeat. In A New Hope Vader and Obi-Wan have a final encounter, which ends in Obi-Wan's sacrifice as he buys time for Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa and Chewbacca to escape in the Millennium Falcon. At the end of A New Hope, Vader and Palpatine become aware of Luke Skywalker's presence after he uses the Force to aim the missiles that destroy the Death Star. They begin making plans to lure him to the Dark Side.

In The Empire Strikes Back Darth Vader duels with Luke Skywalker in Cloud City. Here he reveals that he is Luke's father, contrary to what Obi-Wan had told him. Despite Luke's training with Yoda, Vader still wins the fight and manages to chop off Luke's hand, in a chilling parallel to the wound inflicted on Anakin by Darth Tyranus.

Return of the Jedi marks Vader's redemption from the Dark Side. Palpatine captures Luke Skywalker and tries to convince him to turn to the Dark Side of the Force. Luke duels briefly with Vader and wins, almost turning to the Dark Side and killing him in a moment of anger. When he recovers his composure and throws away his lightsaber, Sidious tortures Luke with Force Lightning. Luke calls out to his father to save him in desperation, somehow penetrating to the small spark of Light within him. Vader saves Luke by throwing Sidious into the main reactor shaft of the new Death Star, receiving a lethal blast of Force Lightning in the process. Before he dies he asks Luke to remove his mask so his last breaths can be as Anakin Skywalker, rather than Darth Vader. His death and the actions leading up to it mean that he has fulfilled the prophecy and destroyed the Sith once and for all.

After Return of the Jedi
The Sith appear a few times in the Expanded Universe material set after Return of the Jedi. Palpatine appears in several of the comic books, and Vader's former minion Lumiya is a main antagonist in the Marvel Comics Star Wars and Legacy of the Force series. In the latter she causes a new civil war by turning one of the New Jedi Order's best Knights, Jacen Solo, into the Sith Lord Darth Caedus.

In the Star Wars: Legacy series, set 130 years after Return of the Jedi, the Jedi are decimated by the Sith (led by former Jedi Darth Krayt), and the galaxy is once again ruled by a Sith empire.

Notable Sith

 * Darth Vader


 * Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine

Darth Maul
Darth Maul is an Iridonian Zabrak, a sub-species of people from the planet Iridonia. He is notable for his red skin, prolific Sith tattoos, facial horns and his red-yellow eyes. He wields a double-bladed red-lightsaber, the second blade of which can be left unignited in a battle with a single opponent or extended to form a saberstaff in battle with large numbers of enemies. He also utilises probe driods to scout for his enemies, a self-constructed speeder bike Bloodfin to catch up to his enemies and a Sith Infiltator ship named Scimitar to travel between start systems.

It is revealed in the Expanded Universe material that Maul was kidnapped from the Jedi Temple at a young age and brainwashed by Sidious. He remembers nothing of his Jedi training or his homeworld and is capable of feeling only bloodlust and rage. With no capacity for fear, sorrow or mercy, Maul is the perfect Sith weapon.

He appears in The Phantom Menace, where he attacks Amidala's group on Tatooine. He duels Qui-Gin Jinn and is winning the fight, until Qui-Gon escapes by grabbing onto the boarding ramp of Amidala's ship as it flies overhead. He attacks again during the battle to free Naboo. He duels both Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, holding them off with the aid of his double-bladed lightsaber. He manages to separate them with the aid of timed forcefields, and kills Qui-Gon as Obi-Wan watches helplessly. He then duels Obi-Wan, who cuts his lightsaber in half, and shoves the Padawan down a pit. He is killed however, when Obi-Wan calms himself and leaps out of the pit, Force-guides Qui-Gon's lightsaber into his hand and cuts Darth Maul in half.

He appears several times in the Expanded Universe, serving as an opponent to Obi-Wan Kenobi and Lars Owen, Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker at different points in time through various means. He is always killed by his opponents.