First battle of Korriban This skirmish was fought in 5000 BBY between the respective war fleets of Naga Sadow and Ludo Kressh — former rivals for the title of Dark Lord of the Sith — high above the Sith graveyard world of Korriban . Some time before this engagement , Sadow had defeated Kressh , who was forced to fake his death , leaving Sadow unopposed . Sadow then launched the ultimately unsuccessful Great Hyperspace War against the Galactic Republic in an effort to conquer the galaxy . After his defeat in the Battle at Primus Goluud , Sadow returned to the Sith Empire with the remains of his battered fleet . Sadow ' s forces were surprised by Kressh and his full battle force over Korriban . Laser fire ensued between the two sides , and many ships from both factions were destroyed . However , Sadow had a plan . He ordered one of his damaged ships to collide with Kressh ' s flagship . The strategy was successful , and Kressh was killed , instantly ending the battle with a victory for Sadow . Prelude . In 5000 BBY , Dark Lord of the Sith Naga Sadow rose to power in the Sith Empire . After dispatching his longtime rival , Sith Lord Ludo Kressh , in the Battle of Khar Delba , Sadow began readying a battle force to launch an attack on the Galactic Republic . Around the time of the fleet ' s completion , Ludo Kressh ' s flagship appeared in the skies over Khar Delba and was shot down , seemingly killing Kressh . However , little did Sadow know that Kressh had faked his death . With no obstacles in his way , Sadow invaded the Republic and started the Great Hyperspace War . However , Sadow ' s attempts to take both Coruscant and the Koros system were repelled by the Republic , and Sadow retreated . The Republic and Sith met again in battle over Primus Goluud , and Sadow was forced to flee back to the Sith Empire in defeat . The battle . Sadow ' s forces dropped out of hyperspace above the graveyard world of Korriban , but the Dark Lord was greeted by someone whom he had never expected to see again : Ludo Kressh . Kressh proclaimed himself the true Dark Lord of the Sith and revealed what had truly happened in the skies over Khar Delba : he had sent an empty decoy ship , which was what Sadow had shot down , and in the meantime had gathered his own forces in preparation for an attack on Sadow . Kressh also stated that Sadow was a threat to the well - being of the Sith Empire and told the Dark Lord that he was banished from the Sith Empire forever . Sadow refused to back down , and furious laser fire ensued between the two enemy factions . Numerous dogfights between opposing Sith starfighter s dotted the area of battle , and capital ships were destroyed on both sides by the constant laser fire . However , Sadow had a plan : he ordered one of his doomed and nearly destroyed ships to make a suicide run on Ludo Kressh ' s flagship . To Kressh ' s horror , the incoming ship and his flagship met in a fiery collision , killing Kressh and instantly ending the battle . Sadow had finally defeated his old nemesis . Aftermath . Several of the ships in Kressh ' s fleet remained operable but did not continue to fight after Kressh ' s death . Despite the victory , Sadow was shaken by the losses he had suffered . Immediately after the battle , Sadow and his forces were attacked again , this time by Republic forces that had followed him to the Sith Empire looking to seal a victory against the Sith . Led by Empress Teta , the ruler of the Koros system , Sadow and the Sith were defeated . Sadow was forced to fake his death and flee to the faraway moon of Yavin 4 . Behind the scenes . The First Battle of Korriban was an event that initially appeared in " " , a story arc of the " " comic book series , written by Kevin J . Anderson and released in 1997 . The battle took place in the arc ' s fifth and final issue , " " . In this appearance , the battle was illustrated by Dario Carrasco , Jr . In addition , the battle received mentions in several reference books in sections describing the events of the Great Hyperspace War , including " The New Essential Chronology " by Anderson and Daniel Wallace , " The New Essential Guide to Characters " by Wallace , and " The Essential Atlas " by Wallace and Jason Fry .