Exegol

**Exegol** (also spell Ixigul in ancient texts) was a dark desert planet located somewhere in the Unknown Regions that, according to many legends, was the hidden redoubt world of the Sith. A hellish world, it was occupied by several entities throughout history. The planet was believed to be a major conduit of the Dark side, and some even believed the dark side had originated on Exegol.

The planet was first occupied by the Rakatan Infinite Empire, but was paid little attention to, and abandoned once the Infinite Empire collapsed. Shortly after the great Hyperspace War, a Sith Lord discovered a lost Rakatan inscription that mentioned Exegol, and was able to relocate the planet. The Sith turned it into a hidden fortress world, and a Throne of the Sith was constructed there. It would go through various periods of occupation by the Sith over thousands of years until the defeat of the Brotherhood of Darkness at the end of the New Sith Wars.

A Sith cult, the Sith Eternal, rediscovered Exegol about a century before the Galactic Civil War. Sheev Palpatine, aka Darth Sidious, discovered Exegol shortly before the rise of the Galactic Empire during his investigation into the Sith Eternal, and made it his secret base. Following his physical death on the second Death Star, Sidious was reborn on Exegol in a clone body, where he remained hidden as he prepared his eventual return and revenge.

## Description

Exegol was a dark, barren and rocky planet with desert flats, plateaus, mountains, and other rocky terrain features. Its dry conditions, combined with the rubbing of dust particles and the planet's natural electric field, caused frequent static discharges that came in the form of lightning strikes at random across the planet. This made navigation difficult for ships while within Exegol's atmosphere, and made use of deflector shields risky.

Exegol was also home to a number of geologic features. Rocky pillars frequently dotted the landscape. The planet was covered in a number of fissures that had been excavated by the Sith and Sith loyalists over the millenia, seeking to reach a vergence they believed existed below the planet's crust. Exegol was also home to a number of volcanoes believed to have formed after the initial Sith occupation. These volcanoes contributed to the hellish feel of the planet and the lightning strikes across the planet. Most were dormant by the time of the Galactic Civil War, but a few remained active.

Exegol also held a major supply of naturally forming Kyber crystals.

## History

### Infinite Empire

The planet that would later be known as Exegol was first colonized by the Rakata under the Infinite Empire. Guesses for the date of colonization lay somewhere around 30,000 BBY. At the time, Exegol had a very fertile and lush environment, and looked nothing like what it would later become. The Rakata discovered that Exegol was home to an extreme presence in the Dark Side, and that their powers in the Force increased while on Exegol. However, due to the remoteness of Exegol, it did not become as important within the Infinite Empire as it could have been.

During the rule of the Rakata, Exegol's environment began to change. Both due to the additional influence of the Rakata's strength in the dark side, and their exploitation of the planet. Deserts began to form in certain areas of the planet, and the various obstacles that would later make Exegol difficult to travel to formed during this time.

After the collapse of the Infinite Empire, the few Rakata still on Exegol retreated back to Lehon, and Exegol was left barren. Most of the natural wildlife was dead by this point, and the planet was now longer as lush as it once was. However, over the millenia following the downfall of the Infinite Empire, the planet began to slowly recover. However, the taint of the Rakata's strength in the dark side remained and stunted the planet's recovery.

### Sith Rule

#### First Discovery

After the events of the Great Hyperspace War, the Sith Lord Vitiate summoned 8,000 Sith Lords to Nathema, where he conducted a ritual that left him immortal and immensely powerful. Declaring himself the Sith Emperor, he led his people on a 20 year journey to find the lost Sith World of Dromund Kaas.

After the rediscovery of Dromund Kaas, a Sith Lord discovered a Rakata inscription, left behind on the planet, that spoke of Exegol. Taking it before the Sith Emperor, the Sith Lord, Felkor, was tasked by the Emperor with finding Exegol. After years of travel through the Unknown Regions, Felkor finally discovered Exegol in 4950 BBY. For this, he was later honored by a massive statue of him being constructed in the citadel that would later be built.

#### Sith Colonization

After the rediscovery of Exegol, by Felkor, the Sith Emperor ordered that the world be colonized. Fearing that perhaps the Republic could one day discover Dromund Kaas, the Emperor decided to turn Exegol into a hidden fortress world: a bastion that the Sith could retreat to in their darkest hours.

The Sith constructed a number of things on Exegol over the next few centuries. The main construct was a massive Citadel, intended as the fortress of the Sith. A number of laboratories were constructed under the Citadel, along with a library with a large store of ancient Sith knowledge. A number of statues of Sith Lords over the history of the Sith were constructed under and within the Citadel. Statues of other notable Sith Lords would be added over the following millenia.

Also constructed on Exegol, in area near the Citadel known as the Forbidden District, the Sith also constructed a massive series of underground shipyards.

Over the centuries after the Sith occupied Exegol, the planet deteriorated further. This was caused by not only the extreme eploitation the Sith subjected the planet to, but also the powerful influence of the Sith and the horrendous experiments the Sith Emperor performed on the planet as he delved deeper into the secrets of the Dark Side.

By 4600 BBY, Exegol was completely a desert planet. The planet was devoid of almost all life, and the few plants that would occassionally sprout up were always destroyed soon by wildfires ignited by the lightning strikes frequent on the planet. During this time, several volcanoes also formed on the planet, believed to be caused by the Sith presence disturbing the core and causing magma to rise to the surface. Because of the ash in the air, fires that sometimes burned on the planet, and gases from the volcanoes, the sky of Exegol took on a very reddish hue, which would remain permanent. The planet was incapable of supporting life naturally, so a number of special underground greenhouses and farms had to be constructed to allow the Sith colonists to support themselves if outside support were ever cut off.

Over the centuries, Exegol was sparsely used by the Sith, in order to help keep its secrecy from the Republic. The shipyards were used to help produce the fleet that the Sith Emperor intended to use to eventually launch his revenge attack on the Republic. The Sith Citadel was also used for important meeting, usually involving the Dark Council, and secret Sith rituals. The Sith Emperor also performed some of his most horrific experiments in the Force on Exegol due to its strength in the dark side.

#### Other attempts to find Exegol

Around 4000 BBY, Exar Kun learned of Exegol during his rise to the title of Dark Lord of the Sith. However, Kun was unable to find the secrets of how to reach the planet, and despite his desire to, was never able to set up a presence on Exegol.

Hundreds of years after the defeat of Exar Kun, Darth Revan and Darth Malak were turned to the dark side by the Sith Emperor. Malak sought to find Exegol, but Revan insisted that Exegol would not be as useful to their plans as Malak believed, and that they should instead seek out the Star Forge. After Revan's defeat, Malak attempted to glean the location of Exegol from the Sith Emperor, who refused to give up the information.

After the defeat of Darth Malak, the Sith Triumivrate rose to power. Darth Nihilus became obsessed with trying to find Exegol, hoping that the planet's Force energies would be able to sustain him. However, he was killed by Meetra Surik before he could locate Exegol.

During his efforts to kill the Sith Emperor with the help of Scourge and Meetra Surik, Revan attempted to locate Exegol, considering that it could be a possible hiding place of the Emperor. However, when he confirmed that the Emperor was in another location, he abandoned the search for Exegol.

#### Galactic Wars

As the Sith Emperor prepared to unleash the Sith Empire upon the Republic, in what would become known as the Great Galactic War, he had become disillusioned with the Sith and his empire, seeing them as restraints to his ambition and power. Around this time, he discovered the Eternal Fleet and the planet Zakuul. Planning to make Zakuul his new seat of power, the Emperor abandoned Exegol. He pulled almost all of the Sith and their slaves off of Exegol, in the name of preparing to finally engage the Republic. However, some Sith remained behind on the planet to ensure the security of the planet. The Emperor also did not pull out any of the shipyard workers in the Forbidden District, keeping the shipyards running to help maintain the Sith Empire's fleet, which he still needed.

During the Great Galactic War, as the Sith Empire clashed with the Republic, the Jedi finally truly learned about Exegol. Although rumors of a mysterious Sith hideout world had reached them as early as the time of Freedon Nadd, they had learned no details. However, thanks to a captured Sith, the Jedi learned of Exegol's existence, as well as the need of a Sith wayfinder to reach Exegol without taking years of travel that would otherwise be required. After the end of the Great Galactic War, and during the Cold War, Satele Shan travelled to Ach-To, where she would record the information learned about Exegol in one of the sacred Jedi texts.

During the Cold War, Exegol was almost devoid of inhabitants, with few Sith remaining behind to watch over the planet. During his brief attempt to declare a new Sith Empire, Darth Malgus travelled to Exegol and laid claim to the planet and sat himself on the Throne of the Sith, declaring himself a new Sith Emperor, intending to make Exegol his seat of power. However, in a trip off of Exegol, he was cornered and killed. After Malgus' death, Exegol was all but abandoned.

However, during the Galactic War, the Sith Emperor's new Eternal Empire attacked both the Republic and Sith, and occupied Exegol. Despite chosing Zakuul as his new seat of power, the Sith Emperor, now known as Valkorion, still saw the value of Exegol, both for its remoteness and its strength in the dark side. However, when the Eternal Empire was defeated and Valkorion killed, the planet returned into the hands of the Sith Empire. However, following a third Galactic War with the Republic, the Sith Empire was all but destroyed. Initially abandoned during this war, many of the survivors retreated to Exegol, finally utilizing the planet as a place to hide in dire straits.

#### Downfall of the Sith

After their defeat in the Third Galactic War, many of the surviving Sith hid out on Exegol. For over 1,500 years, the remnants of the Sith Order hid out on Exegol. During this time, Darth Desolous attempted to establish a presence on Exegol, but was killed before he could find the planet.

Around 2000 BBY, a fallen Jedi named himself Darth Ruin and took up the title of Dark Lord of the Sith. He travelled to Exegol, and was able to rally the Sith hiding on Exegol to his cause.

Exegol remained a Sith hideout during the New Sith Wars. Many artifacts and depositories of knowledge were kept safe on Exegol during the New Sith Wars.

During the New Sith Wars, a Dark Lord of the Sith known as the Dark Underlord rose to power. Among the rumors of his origins were that he had been born on Exegol, or that he had risen from a vergence underneath Exegol's surface.

During the New Sith Wars, a Sith Lord named Darth Noctyss travelled to Exegol in search of immortality. She was helped by a creature who was in fact another Sith Lord named Darth Sanguis. Sanguis had achieved immortality, but at the cost of transforming into a horrific creature. Eventually, Noctyss was tricked by Sanguis into performing the same ritual he had, freeing him from his agony, but trapping Noctyss in the same form.

At the end of the New Sith Wars, Lord Kaan moved away from using Exegol as a major base, hoping to use that move as a symbol of the Sith moving away from the old ways and into a new order. However, during this time, the Sith Lord Darth Bane travelled to Exegol several times, recording all that he could about Exegol and its unique characteristics. He also took two Sith wayfinders, which were compasses designed to lead the way to Exegol.

#### Abandonment

During the millenium following the defeat of the Sith at Ruusan, Exegol was completely abandoned. Darth Bane saw remaining at the planet as both dangerous and counterproductive to his Grand Plan, given that the Sith needed to enmesh themselves in galactic affairs.

For over a thousand years, Exegol saw no visitors or inhabitants. A number of Sith cults attempted to find Exegol, but none succeeded. A small colony of pureblood Sith existed on another planet in the system, but the Sith purebloods had no way to leave their planet, and so remained trapped in the system.

About 500 years after Exegol was abandoned, Darth Gravid attempted to destroy the legacy of the Sith after he felt the pull of the light side. His apprentice, Darth Gean, realized what was happening and killed him. However, during this incident, the Sith wayfinders were lost.

#### Rediscovery

Around 100 BBY, a powerful and large Sith cult called the Sith Eternal discovered the Sith wayfinders that had been lost by Darth Gravid. Seeking to set up their main base on Exegol as part of their plan to help preserve the Sith religion, the Sith Eternal travelled to Exegol. There, they set up operations in the Sith Citadel, restored many of the ancient structures, and recovered much of the lost knowledge stored on Exegol.

In the year 30 BBY, the current Dark Lord of the Sith, Sheev Palpatine, also known as Darth Sidious, learned about the Sith Eternal and that they had hidden on a secret Sith world. Sidious investigated the Sith Eternal, and when he attacked one of their bases, he discovered one of the Sith wayfinders.

Sidious used the wayfinder to travel to Exegol. Upon his arrival, Sidious recognized the planet, having learned of it from his master, Darth Plageuis. Sidious made contact with Sith Eternal, who swore their allegiance to him as Dark Lord of the Sith.

Following his discovery of Exegol and what it was home to, Sidious planned to make Exegol his eventual seat of power. By the time of the rise of the Empire, the Sith Eternal had grown, and had also repaired and modernized the shipyards in the Forbidden District. Palpatine also began his experiments with cloning and his efforts to achieve immortality on Exegol.

At some point during the Imperial Era, Sidious initiated production of a massive fleet of ships in the Forbidden District, including the superlaser-armed Xyston class Star Destroyers. Sidious intended to use this fleet alongside the Imperial fleet to completely cement his reign over the galaxy and begin expanding his Empire outside the bounds of the Andromeda Galaxy. During the Galactic Civil War, he mounted several Imperial expeditions to Exegol, preparing to hide a portion of the Imperial military on Exegol should the Terran Alliance and Rebel Alliance emerge victorious, as well as to chart new ways to Exegol so that a wayfinder would not necessarily be needed. Among the Imperials tasked with finding new ways to Exegol was Gilad Pellaeon.

During the Galactic Civil War, Darth Vader, Sidious' apprentice, became aware that his master was keeping something from him. Discovering the other Sith wayfinder in the possession of a Sith Eternal cultist, Vader travelled to Exegol with the help of Ochi of Bestoon. Vader fought his way through Sidious' defenses and investigated the various secrets his master was keeping there. Sidious taunted Vader with the power he held at his disposal on Exegol, and was able to convince Vader to return to his position as Sidious' apprentice.

#### Final Order era

After Sidious' death on the Death Star, Sidious transferred his consciousness into a clone body that had been prepared for him on Exegol. However, due to the imperfections in the cloning process, Sidious' new body was not fully functional, partly due to the corrupting nature of Sidious' spirit and his evil, and needed constant life support, as well as remaining within a machine.

During the remaining years of the Galactic Civil War, a large portion of the Imperial Navy was sent to hide at Exegol. This was part of Palpatine's contingency, with his intent for this section of the Imperial fleet to be as a support for the second, more powerful fleet being built in the Forbidden District to carry out his plan of revenge. The ships would remain moored above Exegol for decades, and despite the efforts of their crews and the Sith Eternal, most of the ships fell into sub-optimal condition over the years.

Seeking to create a better body for himself, Sidious made contact with his former Hand, Lumiya, and sought for her to bring him Grogu, a Force-sensitive Jedi youngling, whose DNA might be able to help build a new, stronger body that could handle Sidious' spirit. The plan was foiled when Lumiya was eventually killed by Calvin Adams and Din Djarin, but Palpatine continued with his many contingencies to carry out his plan for revenge.

During this time, Sidious created a Force-sensitive being known as Snoke through genetic engineering, and sent him out to help prepare the way for his eventual return. Snoke would eventually take control of the First Order. The Sith Eternal also continued construction of the massive fleet in the Forbidden District.

Not long after the end of the Galactic Civil War, the Terran Alliance dispatched the battlecruiser *TAS Hood* to locate Exegol, as the Alliance wished to locate the planet and determine Sidious' prior interest in it, not realizing what Sidious and the Sith Eternal had actually done on the planet. During the trip to locate Exegol, the *Hood* disappeared.