The long history of Sith vs Jedi produced multiple wars, battles, and duels, even before the events of the originalStar Warstrilogy. But where those battles are world famous, there is another conflict of organized criminals, bounty hunters, and Sith Lords most movie viewers don’t even know existed… since it took place entirely off-screen, beftweenThe Empire Strikes BackandReturn of the Jedi.
The war in question is the brianchild ofSolo’sQ’ira(played by Emilia Clarke) asthe new leader of Crimson Dawn. When Darth Maul, the leader of the criminal organization is killed by Obi-Wan Kenobi inStar Wars Rebels, Q’ira made her move in the form of a three-part comic crossover trilogy includingWar of the Bounty Hunters, Crimson Reign,and Hidden Empire. The goal?Take down Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vaderto restore the balance of power in the galaxy.
Solo’s Q’ira Started Her Own War Against Palpatine & Vader
The Plan: Turn Sith Technology Against The Dark Lords
Qi’ra’s plan involvedtrapping Emperor Palpatine and Vader in the Fermata Cage, a piece of Sith technology able to contain and freeze individuals or places in time. While Qi’ra amassed her power and developed her plan, she needed a distraction to occupy the Sith Lords, while simultaneously weakening all the other criminal syndicates in the galaxy. So began Q’ira’s auctioning off of the frozen Han Solo, soon stolen by Darth Vader, leading to the slaughter of the Hutt Council (who actually gave the winning bid).
6 Sith Lords Powerful Enough To Defeat Luke Skywalker (& How He’d Beat Them Anyway)
As powerful as Luke Skywalker may be, these Sith Lords would give him a run for his money… but here’s how he’d still defeat them anyway!
At that point Q’ira led Crimson Dawn and other syndicate leaders to spread the rumor that the Empire was looking for new allies after the betrayal and slaughter of the Hutts. But to claim that role, syndicates would need to either compete with their fellow gangsters, or be the last one standing. The chaos that ensued involved gangsters, assassins, bounty hunters, Jedi and Sith, just as Q’ira hoped it would.
Qi’ra Sacrifices The Lives of Thousands, Just As A Distraction
Palpatine Puts an End to Qi’ra’s Pointless Syndicate War
Not only did Qi’ra turn the syndicates against each other, but she turned the syndicates against themselves, as well. Chaos is the key, after all, and Q’ira admits more than once to instilling sabotage and infighting among other groups, just to weaken them for a total defeat. A smart tactic… but one that led to the unncessary deaths of thousands.
Eventually, Emperor Palpatine realizes the ongoing syndicate war is proof that the Sith have a true enemy, who are simply using the war as a distraction. Once the puppet masters pop on Palpatine’s radar, it was only a matter of time before Crimson Dawn was identified as the problem, and that information was shared with the other crime syndicates.
Q’ira’s War Against The Sith Lords Deserves To Be Known By All Fans
The war against the Sith is something every Star Wars fan should know about, because although Qi’ra ultimately fails to dethrone Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader as a result of her machinations and scheming, her actions eventually do lead the Rebellion todestroy the second Death Star, and create a galaxy free of the Sith. And her failure does not make her war any less devastating.
The syndicate war sparked byQ’ira and Crimson Dawnwas only one phase in her plan, but through her lies and manipulation, it resulted in thousands dying as a mere distraction, in exchange for her vision of a better, freerStar Warsgalaxy.
