Holy Order of the Sith

## Sith Order

The **Holy Order of the Sith** (Sith: *Nerese'tvarka Tsis*), often shortened to **Sith Order**, was an organization made up of Force-sensitive individuals unified by its belief and observance of the Force as dictated by the Kieralite Code. The hierarchy and structure of the Sith Order was roughly based on that of the Jedi Order. Members of this incarnation of the Sith were housed and trained in academies, enclaves, or praxeums found all over the territories of the Sith Empire, although members with the rank of Knight or above were not required to live at these facilities.

## Organisation

### Qovik'dyt

The *Qovik'dyt*, rendered as "Way of Honour" or "Honourable Way" in Basic, was the sequential order of ranks a member of Sith Order could go through. It was comprised of four ranks, with the lowest being that of Sith Acolyte and the highest being that of Sith Master.

* ***Sith Acolyte*** (or *Youngling*) – The youngest members of the Order, these Force-sensitive child were given the rank of Acolyte when they began their training. Annual testing was required of all children in the Empire, to determine if they were Force-sensitive or not. Once a child was determined to be Force-sensitive and reached the age of five, they would be assigned to the nearest Sith temple and would be placed in one of the Acolyte clans. Despite this, Sith acolytes were not kept separate from their families, and parents or other living relatives were allowed and encouraged to maintain contact and make frequent visits.
* ***Sith Armiger*** – Upon reaching the age of 13, a Sith Acolyte would become an Armiger and thus begin a more advanced stage of their training in the Sith ways. Similarly to the Padawans of the Jedi Order, Armigers would wear a long braid of hair behind their ear which would be cut upon becoming a Knight.
* ***Sith Knight*** – Upon completing the Trials of Knighthood, a Sith Armiger would be raised to the rank of Sith Knight. Once raised to this rank, a Sith would no longer be attached to their assigned temple, but were expected to continue their studies on the Force independently. To further rise in rank, a Knight would have to become an apprentice to a Sith Master, who would then be instructed on the higher mysteries of the Force by their new master, and would eventually attempt the Trials of Mastery, whereupon they would be evaluated by the local Sith council.
* ***Sith Master*** – Once a Knight successfully passed the Trials of Mastery, they would be raised to the rank of Sith Master, and would thus be allowed to either take an apprentice of their own, or become instructors at Sith academies. Within the Qovik'dyt, this was the highest rank attainable.

### Arikut Vik'dyt

Above the ranks of the *Qovik'dyt* were the *Arikut Vik'dyt*, rendered as "Lords of Honour" or "Honourable Lords" in Basic. Unlike the *Qovik'dyt*, this was not a sequence of ranks, but a category which was comprised of the two highest ranks in the Sith Order, themselves outside of the *Qovik'dyt*.

* ***Sith Lord*** (or *Ari*) – Within the Empire and the Order, the rank of Sith Lord was restricted to two types of Sith - the leaders of the Sith clans, and the members of the Sith High Council. Only a Sith Master who managed instruct a Knight and train them successfully to the rank of Master was allowed to become a clan leader, and thus a Sith Lord. The same requirement was applied to any potential member of the Sith High Council, although they were not required to be leaders of a clan.
* ***Dark Lord of the Sith*** (or *Jen'ari*) – The head of the Sith Order. This position was intrinsically linked to that of Daritha, and both were held by Andrik Kieral, the founder of both the Holy Order and of the Sith Empire. All within the Sith Order deferred to the authority of the Dark Lord in all matters.