Greetings,
Rebelscum readers! Welcome back to another entry in our series on
Star Wars: The Old Republic, the hugely popular multiplayer online game that celebrates its tenth anniversary this year. Make sure to check out our “
Expand Your Mind” article first in order to read up on the game’s development, history, features, and some of the best tie-in merch. There’s a whole lot of
The Old Republic supplemental articles coming this week including our Darth Malgus “Character Spotlight” and our perspective “Force Casting” speculation, as well as and Bobby’s merchandising videos.
The Old Republic has an interesting place within the Legends timeline. Obviously player-generated adventures are strictly non-canon, but the expansion packs and story details make up an essential period within the Legends timeline. Right now, it's the only active ongoing storyline within Legends, as all other new projects take place within Disney’s canon timeline.
The Old Republic is set thousands of years before the events of the film franchise and long before the "Rule of Two" limited the Sith to only a master and apprentice. However, it's hardly the first time that
Star Wars storytelling explored this ancient era, and not everything in the “Old Republic Era” is directly part of
The Old Republic. Several different projects have fleshed out this period. We’ve broken down some of the key storylines within the Old Republic timeline.
Star Wars Old Republic Era Content
- 25,793 BBY - Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi (2012-2013): This comic series and the spinoff novel Into the Void date back to the initial foundation of the Jedi Order.
- 5,000 BBY to 3,986 BBY - Tales of the Jedi (1993-1998): These comics detailed the development of the Sith Empire under the Dark Lord Naga Sadow, who led the dark side in its first conflict with the Jedi. The later storyline focused on the saga of Ulic Qel-Droma, a Jedi Knight corrupted by the dark side whose Force powers are stripped away by his love interest Nomi Sunrider. Qel-Droma’s master Exar Kun would become a prominent figure within Legends when his Force spirit is discovered by Anakin Solo on Yavin IV.
- 3964 BBY - Knights of the Old Republic comic book series (2006-2010): Not to be confused with the video games of the same name, this comic series ran for 52 issues and followed the exploits of Jedi Padawan Zayne Carrick. Zayne is framed by a conspiracy within the Jedi Order for the murder of other padawans and forced to go on the run; check out the Vector storyline that told an interconnected story between Dark Horse comics Knights of the Old Republic, Dark Times, Rebellion, and Legacy.
- 3956 BBY - Knights of the Old Republic video game (2003): Among the most popular Star Wars games ever, it’s here where you can witness the story of Darth Revan and his apprentice Darth Malak. Uniquely, players got to choose whether or not Revan is redeemed, but only the “light side” ending is considered canon.
- 3951 BBY - Knights of the Old Republic II - The Sith Lords (2004): After Revan’s conflicts, the Jedi Order has become nearly extinct by the time of the sequel game. Surviving Jedi hide in the outskirts of the universe in hopes of reclaiming the Republic, but they’re hunted by the triumvirate of new Sith Lords Darth Sion, Darth Nihilus, and Darth Revan.
- 3643 – 3639 BBY - Star Wars: The Old Republic (2011-present): After Darth Malgus sacks Coursuscant, the Republic and Sith are in a stalemate with intermittent skirmishes across the galaxy.
- 1032 BBY - Knight Errant (2011-2012): In this novel and comic series, the Sith have amassed thousands and engage in a massive galactic war against the Jedi. The new protagonist Jedi Kerra Holt gathers a motley crew of allies to take down some of the most prominent Sith warlords who’ve established stagnated, loyal followings.
- 1003-1000 BBY - The Darth Bane Trilogy (2006-2009): The trilogy of novels that conclude the Old Republic era center on a character envisioned by George Lucas himself. Darth Bane sees the destructive nature of the Sith Lords and creates the "Rule of Two" that would be adopted afterwards, and it is after Bane’s disappearance that the Sith go into hiding for the nearly 1,000 years before The Phantom Menace.
What do you think of this era? Do you have a favorite storyline? Are you a "Rule of Two" fan, or do you like the larger Sith Empire? Who are some of your favorite characters? Let us know in the
forums, and as always, may the Force be with you!
