In the movies of Star Wars, some powerful Sith Lords like Darth Vader or Darth Sidious can be seen. One who also had a great influence on the Order lived about 5,000 years earlier and even returned after his death.
Who is meant? In the long time that the Sith Order existed, there were several feared and influential Lords. One of them was Marka Ragnos. He hailed from the planet Korriban, the ancient homeworld of the Sith. He lived about 5,000 years before the movies we know today. His first appearance was in the comic Tales of the Jedi – Dark Lords of the Sith from 1995.
Marka Ragnos was a mix of human and Sith, with the Sith species being meant here (more on this in the dropdown below). He quickly laid claim to take over leadership of the Empire. However, he had an opponent, another Lord named Simus.
During a battle, Marka Ragnos managed to defeat his opponent and rightly seized power over the Order. He became the Dark Lord of the Sith and ensured that the Empire continued to grow. In fact, he managed to amplify the influence of the Order across large parts of the galaxy.
Under the leadership of Marka Ragnos, the Sith experienced a golden age, which was also marked by great wealth.
Sith the people vs Sith Lords
The Sith were a power-sensitive people living on the planet Korriban. When the Dark Jedi, who would form the later Sith Order, arrived on the planet, they took the name and subjugated the people. Accordingly, there are the Sith Lords known from the movies, but also the people of the Sith.
What weapons and abilities did he use? Unlike most Sith, Ragnos mostly refrained from using a lightsaber, instead wielding a Sith sword with a blade enchanted by magic.
He had enormous talent in manipulating the Force. It went so far that he could make himself virtually invulnerable in battle – the Sith Darth Sion had a similar ability. Moreover, he managed to keep the essence of his body alive to return after his death.
He was admired by his followers. A relatively young fan of his was the later, immensely powerful Sith Emperor Vitiate, who made it to the top ranks in our ranking on MeinMMO.
Marka Ragnos passed away after about a hundred years of rule. He received a magnificent tomb, depicted in games like Jedi Academy, which you can view on YouTube.
However, his story was far from over.
A Sith Lord Returns
What happened next with Marka Ragnos? The death of the Sith Lord set many things in motion. For example, some lakes on the planet Kesh, where human Sith had settled, were named after Ragnos.
At the same time, a power struggle began among the Sith. This even culminated in the so-called “Great Hyperspace War.” Shortly after the funeral, some Sith began to quarrel, and the spirit of Marka Ragnos set them straight. Vitiate, the future Emperor, avoided getting involved. He remained hidden, waiting for the right moment to seize power.
4,000 years before the film trilogy, there was a duel between a young Sith named Exar Kun and a former Jedi named Ulic Qel-Droma. During the battle, the spirit of Marka Ragnos suddenly appeared to them. He separated the combatants and told them to join forces to lead the Sith to even greater glory.
By branding a sign on their foreheads, Marka Ragnos appointed them as master and apprentice. From then on, he haunted the ruins on the moon Yavin IV, which appears in Star Wars Episode 4 and where the Rebel base was located.
Ten years after the Battle of Yavin in Episode 4 of the well-known films, the Dark Jedi Tavion Axmis wanted to resurrect Marka Ragnos by using a scepter that once belonged to the Lord. This allowed energy to be stored and granted powers to creatures that were otherwise not Force-sensitive. A group of Jedi tried to prevent Ragnos from being resurrected – including Luke Skywalker.
During a battle, Tavion Axmis was almost defeated when she summoned the spirit of Marka Ragnos, who took over her body and fought instead of her. However, the opponent, a Jedi named Jaden Korr, managed to destroy the scepter. This prevented Marka Ragnos from being brought back permanently. His spirit returned to the grave, where he belonged.
Over time, it was visited by prominent Sith. Among them was Revan, who wanted to retrieve an ancient Sith artifact from the tomb. And Darth Plagueis once encountered an apparition of Marka Ragnos. The spirit turned against Plagueis and his plans to destroy the old traditions of the Sith home Korriban. This episode ultimately found its way into the Book of the Sith, compiled by Darth Sidious aka Palpatine.
These are just a few examples of the deeds of Marka Ragnos. The Sith Lord may not be one of the best-known in Star Wars, but his influence on the Order was nonetheless enormous. On MeinMMO, you can find more exciting stories about the various rulers of the Sith: A Sith Lord in Star Wars was created only because he was hit by a powerful superweapon
