Imperial Sentinel Imperial Sentinels were armored - and - cloaked warriors assigned to serve Emperor Palpatine ' s Dark Side Adepts . Cloned in hidden facilities on the secret Imperial throne world of Byss , these mute giants were mutated by Dark Side Adepts and injected with chemicals that suppressed their higher brain functions , causing them to become completely subservient . For the duration of their natural existence , Sentinels were slaves to their assigned Adept and carried out their master ' s bidding without question . They accompanied the Adepts on missions off - world , typically acting as bodyguards . Mainly remaining on Byss to guard the Emperor ' s Citadel , Sentinels had only been seen a handful of times in the short history of the Empire . This led to a great deal of speculation among the upper echelons of the Empire as to what exactly these armored behemoths were . In 10 ABY , Luke Skywalker , after defecting to the Empire , was known to have bred at least two of his own Sentinels . After a bold attempt to rescue Skywalker from Byss , Princess Leia Organa Solo — Skywalker ' s sister and prominent New Republic Council member — and Han Solo — Leia ' s husband and pilot of the " Millennium Falcon " — were escorted by Skywalker ' s Sentinels to Palpatine ' s clone laboratories on Byss . There they confronted both Skywalker and Palpatine himself . One year later , most of the Sentinels and their cloning facilities were obliterated with the destruction of Byss and the final death of Palpatine . Organization and origins . The origins of the Imperial Sentinels remained a mystery for most in even the highest levels of the Empire . Even the Imperial Sovereign Protector s , an elite cadre of Royal Guardsmen trained in the dark side of the Force , had no idea , nor interest , in how the Sentinels came to be . The Sentinels were in actuality an early experiment of Emperor Palpatine and his inner circle of dark side Force - users to create a race of beings completely subservient to their will . Sentinels were cloned from tissue stock in hidden facilities on the Imperial fortress world of Byss , where chemicals were introduced into their bodies during the gestation period , suppressing higher mental abilities such as speech . During the growth cycle , Sentinels were mutated by Dark Side Adepts through Sith alchemy as part of their training , during which the Adepts would attempt to form a mental bond with the Sentinels . If the process was successful , the Sentinels would end up as mindless living hulks totally dependent upon the will of the Adepts for purpose or movement . If the process was unsuccessful , the would - be sentries were simply disposed of . First - generation Imperial Sentinels were deemed too dangerous to keep around , leading to rumors that they may have been cloned from Force - sensitive individuals . Later generations were much less powerful , but far easier to control . Sentinels functioned primarily as bodyguards for Dark Side Adepts . Whenever Palpatine sent an Adept or Executor Sedriss on a high - priority mission for the Empire , one or more of these titans would escort them off - world . Few of these creatures existed , however , and when not on - duty with an Adept , they would remain on Byss to protect the Emperor ' s Citadel . Some Sentinels also guarded the more secure and private areas of the Imperial Palace on Coruscant . History . The Imperial Sentinels made their first known appearance at the scene of a battle in 19 BBY on an unnamed planet during the Great Jedi Purge where several Jedi had been captured by Imperial forces . The Sentinels carried authentic datachips allowing them to take custody of a single prisoner : the Jedi Master Ashka Boda . Boda , a member of the Librarian ' s Assembly of the Jedi Order , held in his possession the Tedryn Holocron , an ancient Jedi artifact containing the knowledge and teachings of Jedi Masters long past . The Sentinels escorted Boda from the battle back to their dungeon ship and flew him to Coruscant , where he was tortured and executed by Emperor Palpatine . Palpatine took possession of the Tedryn Holocron and used its vast repository of information to help create " The Book of Anger " , the first volume in his " Dark Side Compendium " . In that same year , first - generation Sentinels were present on a Golan space defense platform guarding a Super Star Destroyer prototype orbiting Byss as part of the Empire ' s Sarlacc Project . A group of Alderaanian Resistance agents boarded the space station during the Battle of Byss and confronted these Sentinels in Docking Bay 616 . As of 2 BBY , the Sentinels were still in their early stages of development and rarely left Byss . Occasionally , however , Sentinels would be seen briefly in public taking custody of Force - users — often Jedi — while in transit to Imperial Center or other locations . This led to a large amount of speculation and gossip among the Imperial court about the Sentinels and where they came from . Some believed that the Sentinels originated from a captured race of giant s while others believed them to be cyborgs or droids . Some even speculated that they were formed from a species who once openly rebelled against the Emperor and paid the ultimate price for their disobedience . The Sentinels would not see widespread use until over a decade later in 10 ABY after the launch of Operation Shadow Hand , the " reborn " Palpatine ' s military campaigns against the New Republic and its allies to once again take control of the galaxy . Operating out of Byss , Palpatine made use of Imperial Dungeoneer s and dungeon ships to ferry and administrate prisoners of war . Sentinels often worked in tandem with Dungeoneers , escorting prisoners such as Luke Skywalker , Jedi Knight and hero of the New Republic , to facilities on Byss . After Skywalker ' s defection to the Empire , he apprenticed himself to the resurrected Palpatine and bred two of his own Sentinels . Princess Leia Organa Solo , New Republic councilor and Skywalker ' s sister , her husband Han Solo , pilot and former New Republic general , and the droid C - 3PO later made an attempt to rescue Skywalker from Byss and flew the " Millennium Falcon " straight into the Emperor ' s Citadel . Skywalker appeared before Leia and had his two Sentinels escort the " Falcon " crew to Palpatine ' s clone laboratories hidden beneath the surface of Byss . After realizing how far her brother had fallen to the dark side and finding out that Palpatine was still alive , Leia attacked and severed the right hand one of these Sentinels when it restrained Han under Palpatine ' s orders . This resulted in Leia ' s capture and the imprisonment of the rest of the " Falcon " crew . As Operation Shadow Hand progressed , Sentinels continued to see use as guards in the Emperor ' s Citadel even after the Battle of Balmorra . In 11 ABY , Palpatine ' s newest flagship , " Eclipse II " , was boarded by a New Republic strike team led by Lando Calrissian and Kam Solusar . The astromech droid R2 - D2 sabotaged " Eclipse II " hyperdrive system and sent the Star Dreadnought on a collision course with the planet Byss . " Eclipse II " exited hyperspace too close to the Galaxy Gun , the Emperor ' s latest superweapon , and caused the cannon to fire prematurely . The projectile collided with Byss , destroying the planet along with many of the Sentinels stationed there and their cloning facilities . Characteristics . Gargantuan in size , Imperial Sentinels were easily distinguishable from any of Palpatine ' s other minions ; said to be twice the size and strength of other Imperial guards . The sight alone of a Sentinel following in the wake of a Dark Side Adept was enough to strike fear into the hearts of the Emperor ' s enemies . Sentinels were mute due to the introduction of harmful chemicals into their bodies which also caused them to lose the ability to think for themselves . They were altered through the use of Sith alchemy and completely dependent upon the will of Adepts , only able to do what they were told . It was rumored that Adepts had the ability to view what Sentinels perceived , thus allowing them to maintain complete control of the titans ; however this claim was never verified . The primary choice of weapons for Sentinels were large vibro - axes , though they were also proficient in the use of blasters . They also had training in both martial arts and beast - riding . Sentinels donned heavy battle armor under long , reddish - purple cloaks emblazoned with intricate gold patterns at the chest , back , and shoulders . They wore large helmets that concealed both the head and neck , leaving only their glowing red eyes visible . No parts of their bodies were left uncovered . Behind the scenes . The Imperial Sentinels made their first appearance in the of the " Dark Empire " comic book series in 1992 as background characters and later in the series ' s where they played a larger role in the story . They returned two years later for a brief appearance in " " , the first issue of the " Dark Empire II " comic series . Their background was greatly expounded upon in the " Dark Empire Sourcebook " in 1993 along with several other " Star Wars " RPG supplements released over the years . The Sentinels also made a brief appearance in the first of the " Dark Empire " audio adaptations in 1994 , which was notable for being to first and only source to give the Sentinels voices . In 2009 the Sentinels made their final in - universe appearance in " Jaws of the Sarlacc " , the final adventure in Wizards of the Coast ' s " Dawn of Defiance " campaign in the Star Wars Roleplaying Game . The original design for the Imperial Sentinels could be traced back to old " " concept designs for the Emperor ' s Royal Guard by Nilo Rodis - Jamero . One design depicted a pair of sentries wielding battle - axes similar to those used by the Sentinels in " Dark Empire " . This sketch was later used to depict a group of bounty hunters known as the Taloron Hunters in " The Star Wars Sourcebook " . Another design , more closely resembling the Sentinels , was used to create the character Atha Prime , a Clone Master who was to be the antagonist for a new storyline set after " Return of the Jedi " . Titled " The Epic Continues " , this storyline was to be adapted into a new toy line as early as 1986 by the toy company Kenner . Several design sketches were drawn including one of Prime , who strongly resembled a Royal Guardsman from the " Return of the Jedi " concept art . The proposal for the new storyline was , however , rejected by Lucasfilm Ltd . and the toy line was effectively canceled . In 1998 , an Imperial Sentinel action figure was released as part of Kenner ' s " Expanded Universe " series , a subset of the larger " " line . Over a decade later in 2009 an Imperial Sentinel miniature was released as part of the " " expansion to Wizards of the Coast ' s " Star Wars Miniatures " tabletop game . In 2008 the Playstation 2 , Playstation Portable and Nintendo Wii versions of the introduced a new subdivision of the Royal Guard known only as the " Imperial Sentinels . " These Sentinels guarded the Jedi Temple on Coruscant and bore no resemblance to the Imperial Sentinels introduced in " Dark Empire " . 2009 ' s " Galaxy at War " RPG supplement by Wizards of the Coast established these Sentinels as the Imperial Senate Sentinel s , a subdivision of the Imperial Senate Guard . " Dark Empire " audio drama voice inconsistencies . The " Dark Empire " audio adaptation was released in 1994 , three years after the release of the original comic series . The audio drama was notable for including extra scenes not found in the comics as well as changing much of the comic ' s dialogue , this ended up creating numerous continuity errors between the audio drama and comic series . For the purposes of this article , the comics as well as most other sources take precedence over the audio drama . One noticeable continuity error concerning Sentinel speech could be heard throughout the audio drama where several Sentinels were given the ability to speak despite the fact that numerous sources , including the " Dark Empire Sourcebook " , specifically stated that Sentinels did not possess this ability . In the audio drama , the Sentinels spoke in loud , booming voices and were typically restrained to simple phrases such as " halt droid " and " prisoner secured , " with rare instances where they could be heard muttering near - complete sentences . These lines did not appear in the " Dark Empire " comic series and were exclusive to the audio drama .