Who Are The 10 Most Powerful Sith Lords in the Star Wars Universe?

Star Wars is an American space opera franchise that has a huge cult following. In the adventures of different characters, “a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away”, good fights evil.

The Sith Lords are some of the most powerful, and most evil characters in the storyline, drawing upon the dark side of the Force to gain power. But who is the most evil Sith Lord?

Through this huge franchise, that includes books, films, and videogames, there can only be some Sith Lords that can make it on our top ten list. Here is our list of the greatest force users in the Star Wars universe.

Important Sith Lords

1 Darth Vader

Although he may not be the strongest of the Sith Lords, he is by far our favourite. Also known as Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader started out as a Jedi with the highest midi-chlorian levels of all time. Anakin joined the dark side so that he could save his wife’s life.

He was Darth Sidious’ aprentice (Senator Palpatine). During a battle against the Jedi, Obi-Wan Kenobi, his former Jedi master, dueled him and won. But his story isn’t over! Darth Sidious saved Vader and put him in his life-sustaining dark suit, that he wore for the rest of his life. But of course, Darth Vader is number one because of his complicated relationship with his son, Luke.

In their epic duel, Darth Vader saves his son from Darth Sidious, by killing him. He may not be the most evil, but he is number one in Star Wars’ fan’s hearts.

2 Darth Vitiate

Darth Vitiate, also known as Valkorion, is number two on our list, second only to Darth Vader. He led the Sith when they were at the height of their power, and was one of the most powerful users of the force in the Star Wars universe.

His power is so strong, that he was able to destroy an entire planet in exchange for immortality. As a child, Darth Vitiate’s master was Marka Ragnos. Darth Vitiate orchestrated the Mandolorian wars.

Many centuries later, when Darth Vitiate was confronted by the Hero of Tython, he would turn him to the dark side.

3 Darth Bane

Coming in third on our top ten list is Darth Bane, who created the Law of Two (the Law that states that only two Sith Lords can exist at one time). Bane also created his own Sith Order.

Trained by the old Sith Order, it was Darth Revan’s holocron that gave him the force to create a new Order. It was his apprentice, the female Sith Zannah, who would kill Darth Bane, thus maintaining the sacred Law of Two.

Much later, it was Darth Bane’s new Order that would overthrow the Republic.

4 Darth Revan

Darth Revan tops off at number four on our list, although some might contest this and think that he deserves to be even higher up on our list.

Starting out as a Jedi during the Madolorian wars, he convinced a group of Jedi to fight in the wars. It was here that he encountered the Sith Emperor, and became one of his servants.

Fighting against the Republic, Darth Revan tried to form his own Empire, but was entrapped by the Jedi, and betrayed by his apprentice, Darth Malak.

The Jedi erased Malak’s memory, bringing him back to the light side. When his memory returned, he stayed good,and would later destroy the Empire he founded and his apprentice, Darth Malak.

5 Ulic Qel-Droma

Coming in at number five,Ulic Qel-Droma is an important Sith Lord. Pretending to be dark Jedi, Ulic was injected with a chemical that made his fall to the dark side.

After turning to the dark side, Ulic duelled Exar Kun, Darth Freedon Nadd’s apprentice, in order to become the next Sith Lord. Nadd stopped their duel just in time to reveal that they would both become Sith Lords.

After killing his own Jedi brother, Nomi Sunrider severed Ulic’s connection with the Force. Ulic eventually became remorsefull of his actions and turned back to the light, leading the Jedi to attack the great Sith Lord Exar Kun.

6 Marka Ragnos

Marka Ragnos was an extremely powerful Sith lord, who was known for his incredible duels. One of the most powerful force users, the Sith empire flourished under his rule, leading it into its golden age.

Marka Ragnos took Tenebrae as his apprentice, who would also become a very powerful lord. Ragnos’ spirit lived on after his death, appearing to all those who tried to claim his throne.

Ragnos proclaimed Exar Kun the new Dark Lord. His spirit lived on into the New Republic. He was finally defeated by the Jedi.

7 Exar Kun

Exar Kun, much like Darth Plagueis, was a curious scholar. Unsure of which side to take, Exar Kun would change between the light and dark along his journey.

Starting out as a Jedi, he researched so deeply into the Force that it eventually led him to leave the Jedi order and awaken the spirit of the Sith Lord Freedon Nadd.

He then became Nadd’s apprentice, giving into the power of the dark side. Once his training was completed, Exar Kun destroyed Freedon Nadd’s spirit, and set out to destroy other Sith cults.

But, visited by the spirit of the Sith Marka Ragnos, Exar Kun returned to the dark side again. He then formed the Brotherhood of the Sith and began a war against the Republic and the Jedi Order. Kun would eventually be defeated on Yavin 4, and was betrayed by Ulic-Qel Droma, a warlord of a Sith cult.

8 Freedon Nadd

Freedon Nadd started out as a Jedi of the Old Republic, but quickly turned to the Dark side. This was one evil guy – he killed his master, left the Jedi order and fled to the old Sith empire.

After awakening the spirit of the dark lord Naga Sadow and becoming his apprentice. He was extremely good with that lightsaber, and eventually killed his master Naga Sadow.

He then ruled over the world of Onderon as their king. His spirit lived on after his death, and he would become the master of the super evil Sith, Exar Kun. Exar Kun would eventually kill Freedon Nadd.

9 Darth Sidious

Darth Sidious had this name for a reason – he was the most insidious of the Sith Lords. Leading a double life, Darth Sidious was a stealthy character who deceitfully entrapped his friends and enemies.

After being trained in the dark forces by Darth Plagueis, Sidious killed his own master when he was weak and asleep. He would become known as Palpatine, sneaking his way into the Republic Senate at the planet Naboo as their ambassador.

Manipulating politics, he eventually became the Supreme Chancellor. Palpatine organized the horrible Clone Wars, and convinced the younr Jedi, Anakin Skywalker, to become his apprentice. He eventually formed the Galactic Empire and placed himself as it’s ruler.

10 Darth Plagueis

Ok – so maybe Darth Plagueis didn’t master the force the best, but he is number ten on our list because he was a Sith scholar and a master of the midi-chlorian manipulation. Although many Sith Lords were mainly power-hungry, Sith Plagueis wanted to gain knowledge above all else.

In Episode III, Palpatine, the apprentice of Darth Plagueis, tells Anakin of his master’s scholarly philosophy. However, Darth Plagueis remains number 10 on our list, because he was never able to cheat death, and he was betrayed by his apprentice, Darth Sidious.

Related Facts – David Prowse Played Darth Vader!

Did you know that Darth Vader’s iconic character was played by the actor David Prowse. The character first appeared in Star Wars (1977), and last appeared in Revenge of the Sith (2005).

David Prowse memorized all of his lines and said them during the shooting of the films, without knowing that later on he would be voice-overed by James Earl Jones in episodes III-VI.

Another cool fact? The designer of Darth Vader and his now iconic life-preserving costume was not George Lucas, but a man named Ralph McQuarrie.
Source: “Vader, Darth”. Databank. Lucasfilm. Retrieved August 12, 2010.

Related: The Most Powerful Jedi in the Star Wars Universe

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Image Credit: “Sith Lord” by Crysco Photography is licensed underCC BY-NC-ND 2.0