Simus

Simus was a Force-sensitive Sith warlord proficient in Sith magic who lived during the Golden Age of the Sith. He trained the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Naga Sadow and was one of the most powerful Sith Lords of his time. Over a century before Sadow's ascension to the Sith Empire's throne, Simus challenged fellow warlord Marka Ragnos for the mantle of Dark Lord. Although he was beheaded in a duel against Ragnos in 5150 BBY, Simus clung onto his life—relying on a Sith servant for mobility, the bodiless magician preserved himself from death by encasing his head in a crystal sphere.
Eventually, Lord Simus was made a part of Marka Ragnos' Sith Council, becoming a respected member whose opinion was highly valued. As Ragnos pitted his adversaries against each other to ensure his hold on the throne, Simus advised the Dark Lord, faithfully serving the Sith Empire. When Ragnos died in 5000 BBY over a century later, Simus' apprentice, Naga Sadow, was one of two challengers for the mantle of Dark Lord. The other was Ludo Kressh, a Sith Councilor who wished to keep the Empire hidden from the Galactic Republic, which controlled much of the galaxy. Sadow, however, wished to expand the Empire's borders. Although the Sith Council was split on the matter, Simus mediated between its clashing warlords whilst also providing support for his long-time friend Sadow, backing his candidacy for the Sith throne.
In Sadow's attempt to provide the other councilors with a reason to wage war against the Republic, Simus was killed by his apprentice with a Republic-issue blaster. Sadow proceeded to frame the Republic for the respected magician's assassination, inflaming the Sith to initiate their conquest of the galaxy. However, despite Sadow's efforts, the Sith Empire was repelled and defeated by the Republic. While the Golden Age of the Sith came to an end, just over a millennium later, within the empire of the Sith Lord Revan, Simus was one of a few Sith whose names were used as part of a training program for Sith students.
==Biography==
===Duel with Marka Ragnos===
Born several centuries before 5000 BBY, Simus was a Sith who became one of the most powerful Force-sensitives of his time. In 5150 BBY,Star Wars: Behind the Magic dates the power struggle between Marka Ragnos and Simus to become the new Dark Lord of the Sith to 5,150 years before the Battle of Yavin, which corresponds to 5150 BBY, per The New Essential Chronology. after the fall of the Sith Empire's reigning Dark Lord of the Sith, the Sith warlord Simus contended for the throne by challenging Marka Ragnos, his chief competitor, to battle.
The resulting duel between Marka Ragnos and Simus left the latter scarred and bodiless. However, as remembered over a century later by his apprentice, Naga Sadow, Lord Simus was determined not to fail the Sith. Using Sith techniques unknown to others, the magician kept himself alive, preserving his head in a crystal sphere. An armored Sith served as the bearer of Simus' device, ferrying it as his beheaded master willed.
===Golden Age of the Sith===
====Councilor of the Sith, Master of Naga Sadow====
Simus was eventually made a member of the Sith Council, the Dark Lord's advisory body composed of warlords that met at the Sith Citadel on the world Ziost, located in the Sith Worlds region of the Outer Rim Territories.The Essential Atlas The bodiless warlord survived the assassinations and infighting brought about by Ragnos amongst his detractors,The Dark Side Sourcebook instead advising the Dark Lord for over a hundred years and becoming greatly respected amongst fellow councilors.
Aside from attending the Council, Simus took on a Sith named Naga Sadow as his apprentice. Although most Sith during Marka Ragnos' reign were ignorant of their ancient enemies—the Jedi and the Galactic Republic that governed much of the galaxy—Sadow was raised from birth to fight against purported threats of a Republic invasion and the replacement of Sith tenets with that of the rivalling Jedi Order's.The Essential Guide to Warfare Amidst the frequent infighting amongst the Sith, which was stirred by Ragnos in his fear that further Sith expansion would result in contact with the Jedi and the Republic with disastrous effects, Sadow became viceroy of the moon Khar Shian in Sith Space.
When Ragnos died around 5000 BBY, Simus' pupil bidded for the position of Dark Lord against a fellow councilor named Ludo Kressh. Sadow was supported by his master as well as several other members of the Council in his aspiration to expand the borders of the Sith Empire, while Kressh was a conservative contender with popular support, wanting to remain unchanged in their golden age; keeping the Empire strong and stable before seeking new frontiers, and to ensure that they retained their wealth and kept firm control over the Sith people. Nevertheless, before a feud could be waged between the Sith, the late Marka Ragnos had to first be laid to rest at the ancient Valley of the Dark Lords on the burial world of Korriban.Tales of the Jedi – The Golden Age of the Sith 2
====Procession on Korriban====
Simus attended the funeral of Marka Ragnos, where the burial ritual required all participating Sith Lords to space themselves evenly in a perfect circle. The ceremony was conducted by twenty individuals, including Ludo Kressh, who led from the coveted sixth position, whereas Simus was in the sixteenth position located directly opposite.Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords After the tomb of Marka Ragnos was sealed, Sadow challenged Kressh to a duel for the title of Dark Lord before the tomb. While fighting, the combatants were interrupted by the appearance of a specter of Marka Ragnos, which told all the Sith present about the existence of their ancient foes, the Jedi, and that circumstances could soon change despite the current Golden Age of the Sith. Thus, before departing, the specter of Ragnos warned the Sith to choose their paths wisely.
As the ghost of Simus' former rival dissipated, a foreign starship made landing on Korriban; after inputting random coordinates into the navigation computer of their scoutship, the Starbreaker 12, two hyperspace explorers from the Republic had inadvertently discovered the mausoleum world with a direct hyperlane between the Republic's Core Worlds and Sith Space. The off-worlders, Human twins named Jori and Gav Daragon, proceeded to declare their intention of coming in peace and told the Sith that they hailed from the Republic. Upon hearing this, in their fear that the two Humans' arrival was the harbinger of a full-scale attack from the Republic Ragnos' specter had warned about, the Sith Council immediately ordered the Daragons' imprisonment and convened to discuss the matter.
===Dissension===
Simus, who was accompanied by his servant, and nine other members of the Sith Council held a meeting on Ziost, a world from where the Dark Lord of the Sith normally ruled. As a new Dark Lord had yet to be decided on, the Council's warlords vied for rulership of the Empire, leaving Simus to mediate between the power-hungry Sith Lords. Ludo Kressh claimed that the two Humans were spies sent by the Republic who, if allowed to escape, would return with Republic forces to plunder all that the Sith had worked hard to build. Members of Kressh's conservative faction further said that they should kill the two explorers and remove all evidence that they were ever in Sith territory. Lord Simus then interjected, telling Kressh that he was overtaken by fear and constrained by irrational prudence. The dismembered Sith further told the council that the arrival of the Daragons was an opportunity—one they should consider before destroying it forever.
Sadow sided with his master, telling Kressh that his mindset was still attached to the past times of Marka Ragnos and was afraid of change. Yet Kressh persisted, saying that if Simus was wrong, they would lose everything, while if he himself was wrong, they would lose but the lives of two worthless Humans. Sadow responded with anger, saying that to kill the two explorers was to lose the chance to pursue glory and riches, capture thousands of new worlds, and conquer the entire galaxy. Holding Simus' gaze, Sadow declared that it was their destiny.
===Death===
Nevertheless, a majority of the Council members did not share Sadow and Simus' ambition and decided that Jori and Gav Daragon posed too great a threat to their Empire. The Council's tribunalThe New Essential Chronology sentenced the captives to immediate execution and resolved to discuss the foreign ship at the next meeting. Simus then traveled to the Daragons' prison cell within the cold depths of the Sith Citadel and, assisted by his servant, peered through an opening in the cell door and told the explorers of their fate as well as the Sith Council's rationale behind it. Gav Daragon protested that they had not even provided a testimony, but Simus dismissed him, replying that their information was irrelevant to the Council's deliberations.
Despite political opposition, Sadow was determined to see out his plan and secretly placed a tracking device on the Daragons' ship. Later, Simus discovered a disruption in the cell block where the Daragons were being imprisoned on Ziost. Carried by his servant, the magician found Sadow, who stood facing away, alone in a corridor and surrounded by dozens of Sith corpses. Simus stated his concern for Sadow's wellbeing, believing that it had been a Republic raid. However, Sadow only turned towards his master and uttered the words "sorry, my old ally." As he spoke, Sadow shot Simus with a Republic-issue blaster pistol he had taken from the Starbreaker 12, shattering the wizened Sith's crystal sphere and killing him instantly with a single blaster bolt also piercing through Simus' servant.
===Legacy===
Leaving the weapon as incriminating evidence against the Republic, Sadow left the scene of the murder. Simus' charred head was soon found by the Council, which mourned his death and was angered that someone would kill such a helpless opponent. The Sith declared the "Republic agents" monsters for having slain the veteran Council member, who was respected by even those who did not support his ideas. Sadow then burst in with the pretense of being oblivious to the goings on. Presented the remains of Simus by councilor Dor Gal-ram, Sadow delivered a eulogy for his late mentor and successfully called for the Council to unite and ready to strike at the Republic, securing his own place as the new Dark Lord of the Sith. Left with Horak-mul and Dor Gal-ram as his only supporters on the Sith Council, Ludo Kressh stormed out of the Ziost citadel in defiance of what he saw as the impending destruction of everything he knew.
Sadow saw Simus' death as a necessary sacrifice, as it sparked the same opportunities the late Sith had supported; by manipulating the Sith into fear of impending Republic invasion, which resonated with many who were discontent with the lack of expansion of the Empire, Sadow was declared the successor to the Sith throne. In the following weeks,Tales of the Jedi – The Fall of the Sith Empire 1 the new Dark Lord of the Sith took Gav Daragon as his own apprentice, defeated Kressh, and allowed Jori Daragon to escape back to the Republic with a tracker in place. Thus, the Sith Empire's forces were united and provided a pathway to Republic space, allowing Darth Naga Sadow to launch the Great Hyperspace War, devastating the Republic with relentless, unpredictable tactics and his mastery of old and forbiddenTales of the Jedi – The Fall of the Sith Empire 2 Sith magic.
The war left the Sith defeated and their empire shattered, however. Nevertheless, the Sith resurfaced to the wider galaxy multiple times.Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force The rise of Darth Revan and his new Sith Empire in 3960 BBYStar Wars: The Old Republic Encyclopedia revitalized a Sith training academy on Korriban, although Revan's empire fractured years later and abandoned the site. In 3951 BBY,The New Essential Chronology dates the events of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords to 3951 BBY. a student terminal was found and operated within the Sith academy by the exiled Jedi Meetra Surik during her tutelage under the fellow exile and former Sith Lord Kreia. The terminal's level one written test's second question described Marka Ragnos' funeral, testing Sith students' skills in numerical problem-solving with the positioning of Sith Lords participating in the fallen Dark Lord's burial ritual. Aside from Ludo Kressh, Simus was the only member amongst the roster of Sith Lords who was named in the question.
==Personality and traits==
In his pursuit of ruling the Sith Empire, Simus was defeated and decapitated by Marka Ragnos in a duel. Simus persevered despite his loss, using his own proficiency in Sith magic to keep himself from death. While the Sith Lord was rendered immobile and had to rely on a servant, Simus faithfully served the Sith Empire as part of the Sith Council throughout and beyond Ragnos' reign.
Simus was respected by other Sith Council members across political divisions and, while other councilors remained skeptical of Naga Sadow, had faith in his apprentice. The august magician referred to Sadow as "old friend" and shared the aspirant Dark Lord's ambition to expand the Sith Empire's territories and conquer the galaxy. The alleged Republic murder of the wizened and frail councilor drew emotional reactions amongst his colleagues, inflaming wider support for attacking the Republic and leading most of the Sith Empire's warlords to pledge their domains to Sadow as their new Dark Lord. In his eulogy, Sadow stated that Simus was the most noble amongst the Sith Councilors, always providing his wisdom.
Along with wrinkled facial features, the beheaded Simus sported short dark hair, a pair of red eyes, and pale, gray-colored skin.
==Powers and abilities==
Simus challenged Marka Ragnos, a Sith powerful both physically and in the Force, to battle for the position of Dark Lord of the Sith. Although the brawl ended with Simus' decapitation at the hands of Marka Ragnos, the defeated warlord made use of his knowledge of Sith magic to remain alive, encasing his own head in a crystal sphere and serving as an advisor to Ragnos. Darth Naga Sadow, who led the Sith Empire in waging a devastating war against the Galactic Republic with his political cunning, leadership, and use of old and forbidden Sith magic, was trained by Lord Simus.
==Equipment==
The decapitated Simus made use of a crystal sphere encasing his severed head, which was perched atop a wider base. The life-support container was structured by opaque bars fitted between the base and a concave covering at the top, with transparent orange-colored material in between the bars through which the inset head spoke and saw. Laid within the crystalline container, the Sith Lord relied on a servant for transportation.
==Behind the scenes==
Created for the Tales of the Jedi comic series' Golden Age of the Sith sub-series, Simus first appeared in the third issue of the sub-series. Published on December 11, 1996 by Dark Horse Comics, the comic issue was authored by Kevin J. Anderson and illustrated by Dario Carrasco, Jr.
Simus was first depicted in a preliminary sketch done by Dario Carrasco, Jr.Tales of the Jedi – The Golden Age of the Sith 0 that was published in July 31, 1996, in the prologue issue of the Golden Age of the Sith series. Unlike the character's finalized appearance in The Fabric of an Empire, Simus is depicted without a container around his head.
==Appearances==
*Tales of the Jedi – The Golden Age of the Sith 0 
*Tales of the Jedi – The Golden Age of the Sith 3 
*Tales of the Jedi – The Golden Age of the Sith 4 
*Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords 
==Sources==
*Star Wars: Behind the Magic
*The New Essential Chronology
*The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
*The Essential Guide to Warfare 
*Star Wars: The Old Republic Encyclopedia 
==Notes and references==
Category:Individuals of unspecified gender
Category:Individuals with disabilities
Category:Individuals with he/him pronouns
Category:Sith Councilors
Category:Sith Masters
Category:Sith sorcerers
Category:Sith species
Category:Warlords