page_title: Sith
hierarchical_section_title: Sith
caption_attribution_description: English: The seal of the Sith.
context_page_description: The Sith are the main antagonists of the Star Wars universe. The Sith Order are depicted as an ancient monastic and kraterocratic cultist organization of supernaturally gifted Force-wielders driven by a machiavellian agenda of galactic domination and revenge against their arch-rivals, the Jedi Order.
  Sith are ruthless and totalitarian by design, in which a supreme autocratic authority is concentrated in a single individual granted the honorific Dark Lord of the Sith. Sith culture is of perpetual self-destruction and reinvention; transfer of power is conducted through state-sanctioned assassinations: when a Sith Lord grows complacent, begins to show weakness, and is eventually killed, their property and authority are transferred to the apprentice who killed them. Robberies, betrayal, and sabotage are commonplace; murder is acceptable so long as the culprit is not caught. Sith teach their apprentices to revere the dark side of the Force and to believe that the galaxy was theirs to rule by cosmic right.
context_section_description: The Sith are the main antagonists of the Star Wars universe. The Sith Order are depicted as an ancient monastic and kraterocratic cultist organization of supernaturally gifted Force-wielders driven by a machiavellian agenda of galactic domination and revenge against their arch-rivals, the Jedi Order.
  Sith are ruthless and totalitarian by design, in which a supreme autocratic authority is concentrated in a single individual granted the honorific Dark Lord of the Sith. Sith culture is of perpetual self-destruction and reinvention; transfer of power is conducted through state-sanctioned assassinations: when a Sith Lord grows complacent, begins to show weakness, and is eventually killed, their property and authority are transferred to the apprentice who killed them. Robberies, betrayal, and sabotage are commonplace; murder is acceptable so long as the culprit is not caught. Sith teach their apprentices to revere the dark side of the Force and to believe that the galaxy was theirs to rule by cosmic right. This kraterocratic system ensures that Sith society nurtures some of the most vicious and competitive individuals in the galaxy and is only governed by those strong enough to seize control.
  Sith philosophy lionizes conflict as a catalyst for growth and as a tool for purging the unworthy. Sith academies were structured with rules, lectures, and classes, with an underlying "kill or be killed" mentality amongst the apprentices. Sith emphasize "survival of the fittest" and view restraint as a weakness. Members adhere to master morality, are characterized by the desire to seize power by any means necessary, leveraging force (both physical and supernatural), social maneuvering, and political cunning to their advantage. The Sith cultivate a connection to the dark side of the Force, which provides them with easy access to superhuman power and arcane knowledge; however, the trade-off is the severe cost of adopting a dark triad personality that corrodes their basic capacity for empathy, kindness, and love.
  Throughout Star Wars media and in popular culture, the Sith are infamous as the dualistic antagonists to the Jedi, an affiliation of altruistic warriors who strive to use their own martial training and connection to the "light side" of the Force to promote peace and the common welfare throughout the galaxy. The Sith have a philosophical framework that "justifies" their ruthless and self-serving actions, but their agenda are considered appalling by society in general, and the Jedi who actively oppose them. To counteract the Jedi's benevolent influence, the Sith were responsible for secretly instigating many small regional conflicts as part of their larger plan to destabilize the Republic and eventually take control of the galaxy. Hiding in the shadows, their fingerprints are everywhere, in every conflict in the galaxy, and their subversive influence reaches far and wide.
  Over their long storied history, the Sith have established great empires, come close to realizing their ambitions of galactic conquest, and nearly eradicated the Jedi. Ultimately, however, they are self-defeating, their grand plans undone time and again by internal strife, rebellion inspired by their vicious tactics, and the psychologically noxious effects of their dark arts and philosophy.
caption: Emblem of the Sith Order
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