Dark Crusaders

The Dark Crusaders was a dark side organization that was dedicated to destroying the Jedi Order and ruling the galaxy. They were created after a group of individuals split from the Jedi Order in pursuit of their own goals. This schism led to a conflict between the Jedi and the Dark Crusaders, which eventually led to the near utter defeat of the Crusaders and the displacement of the Jedi Order (which eventually moved to ). The two factions developed a rivalry, and caused many conflicts, nearly all of them for control of the Republic. By 1,000 BBY the organization faded away in favor of the Sith; an organization of dark side Force users that were led by two members over a small group of lesser dark side members, this was unlike the Crusaders philosophy of fielding an army of dark side users.

Schism
The complete separation of the Jedi and the Dark Crusaders occurred in 7,000 BBY. After the invention of the lightsaber, the Jedi Order split into two distinct factions that advocated two different ideologies. One, the traditionalists, wanted the Jedi to remain in its current role where it had thrived for many millennia. The other faction believed that the Jedi would have been better served to take a more militant role in galactic affairs.

The dispute became so intense that they eventually called to arms. The Dark Crusaders, led by Sultan Saladeen, and the Jedi eventually fought on many battlefields, including inside the Ashta Matha Monastery. The result of the battle was the crippling of the renegade effort, after 70% of their forces were killed in that battle, as well as the destruction of the Jedi Monastery.

The newly christened "Dark Crusaders" fled the planet for an unknown destination (eventually the system of Korriban).

Devastation of Ossus
During the height of the in 3,996 BBY, Dark Crusaders, led by, visited  to recruit new members to their cause. While there, he entered the Chamber of Antiquities, slaying to get to one of the holocrons. Afterward, Ossus became a battlefield for the Jedi/Republic army, which eventually defeated the Dark Crusader/Sith Empire. Meanwhile, a supernova was threatening to devastate the planet. Exar Kun tried to gain access to the library before the destruction of Ossus, but was prevented by the collapse of the foyer leading to the library. After Ossus had been evacuated, the supernova's shockwave damaged the system severely. A major victory for the Crusader forces.

1st Jedi Purge
Soon after the Great Crusader War, a succession of short lived conflicts arose. The were finished by Jedi Knight  on, a Crusader world. Revan was corrupted by the dark energies on the world and he allied with the Crusaders, taking up the mantle of co-commander of the forces with Nurada Aladeen. Almost immediately afterward the, this time the Jedi were devoid of Revan's help, as he was on the attacking side, and the Jedi were quickly overcome. Near the end of the war Revan defected back to the Republic, betraying the Dark Crusaders, and defeated Aladeen and his former apprentice.



Following that, the Dark Crusaders returned yet again in the, from 3,955–3,954 BBY until 3,951 BBY. This purge saw nearly the entire Jedi Order disappear from the galaxy; the Order publicly disbanded and most of the survivors were killed by the Crusaders.

A former Jedi known as the, who had been cut off from the Force and exiled by the Jedi Council after joining Malak and Revan, sought out the remaining councilors who were in hiding, in an attempt to form a group to defeat the threat of the Crusader Triumvirate, who were threatening to annihilate the Jedi completely. As she traveled the galaxy in search of the hidden Jedi, the Exile trained several of her companions in the ways of the Force. She found on Dantooine,  on Nar Shaddaa and  on. The three former Councilors then met with the Exile once again on Dantooine. They decided to once again exile her, as well as sever her completely from the Force, as they felt she was a threat to all living beings around her. As they attempted to,, the Exile's mentor, killed them, and after revealing herself as the third Crusader Lord, Darth Traya, she left the Exile on Dantooine. The Exile's revival corresponded with the Crusader attack on the Republic, and she traveled to to fight the Crusader Lord. The Exile defeated Nihilus on his flagship above Telos, before traveling to Malachor V to kill Traya and.

Eventually, the group of individuals the Exile trained, known as the Lost Jedi, would, as Darth Traya prophesied, come together to re-establish another Jedi Order.

Galactic War
Around 300 years after the purge, the Order was struck another devastating blow, as the Dark Crusaders returned. The Crusaders, led by Baibars Zenge, went for the victory very early on and attacked Coruscant. Zenge planned on sacking Coruscant and essentially forcing the Jedi and the Republic to surrender. The sacking of Coruscant failed and the Dark Crusaders were forced to retreat with only the semi-destruction of the Jedi Temple to use as a morale boost. The Zenge eventually lost the war to the Republic and they were forced into hiding again.

Nearly a millennia and a half later in 2,000 BBY, the Crusaders started what many believe was their last gasp effort to destroy the Republic and the Jedi. The New Crusader Wars lasted one thousand years, the last century of which was known as the. The war concluded on Ruusan with the destruction of all, but one of the Crusaders, Killick Orslan. The victory for the Republic came after sacrificed himself to destroy nearly all the Dark Crusaders, he hoped by causing  to activate his, it would devastate all his remaining Crusader Forces. The plan succeed, but cost Hoth his life. The marked the end of of the Dark Crusader faction according to many historical sources, including the Jedi archives.

Legacy
The Dark Crusaders were considered completely destroyed after the Seventh Battle of Ruusan. They were forgotten about throughout the galaxy, with the exception of the Jedi Order. The Crusaders would be continued through the training of Killick Orslan's apprentice, after the lone surviving Crusader went into seclusion. He reorganized the order into the Sith; an organization run by two elite dark side users. The organization would be scaled down considerably to avoid detection, and to consolidate the power among every individual.

The Crusaders dissolved their military, which in turn reduced the power struggle immensely. The organization would feature a small elite guard of lesser Force users to do the bidding of the two leaders. By the time of the Great Galactic War the Sith had two leaders, a group of dark Force users and an army of non-Force users, this built the power and strength of their military without a clear way of detecting it by the Jedi.

Philosophy
The Jedi Order split into two distinct factions that advocated two different ideologies. One, the traditionalists, wanted the Jedi to remain in its current role where it had thrived for many millennia. The other faction, the Dark Crusaders, believed that the Jedi would have been better served to take a more militant role in galactic affairs. Even going as far as to suggest a Coup d'etat, with the Jedi Order taking total control of the government.

They advocated taking their military might and experience, and using it in a capacity similar to an army, or to gain power in the galaxy. They embraced the boost in their power given to them by their emotions. The Jedi called them power hungry and greedy. The Crusaders believed that conflict was the only true test of one's ability, and so emphasized its importance. It was their belief that conflict challenged both individuals and civilizations, and so forced them to grow and evolve. They believed that the avoidance of conflict–like the pacifist teachings of their brethren Jedi–resulted in stagnation and decline.

Another purpose served by conflict was the elevation of the strong and the death of the weak. They believed that the strong should survive, while the weak should be phased out. Likewise, after many years of conflict and service without, what they deemed as gratitude, morality started to be treated as an obstacle to be overcome, as it got in the way of a their ultimate task, to conquer and rule the Republic.

Leadership
The Dark Crusader leadership was composed of one central leader during their initial formation. The Sultan was the title used for the leader, and during the Schism, Sultan Saladeen assumed the role of Sultan. He acted as and leader of the Crusaders in their first conflict with the Jedi.

After Saladeen died, a power vaccuum devastated the Crusaders. Two leaders rose and took the mantle of leader. It was decided, amongst the two, that the organization would be composed of two leaders. It was decided this way so that one could keep the other in check, and essentially preserve the Dark Crusaders from being driven to destruction by a single leader. The dual commanders were used to spread the Dark Crusaders path of conquest twinfold, and split the Jedi Order's defense in half. Another reason behind having two leaders was to prevent the scenario of a leaderless organization, to keep a working government and always keep the lower tier members in order if one leader died. It also allowed the surviving leader to choose a successor.

Officers
The officers were a step below the leadership in power, prestige, and command, they were a group of lesser experienced and weaker powered individuals (in terms of Force potential). They were composed of apprentice level Force users, that were groomed to be the successors of the leadership and as the commanders of the battlefield. They were charged with executing the plan of attack and strategy, as well as bring stability to the troops. It was their responsibility to succeed in their part of the campaign or war effort. Failure resulted in death.

Grunts
Grunts were soldiers and the fodder of the Dark Crusaders. They served as the main force of the military and almost all members of the army were not trained in the. After the last Force users died in the first military, a rule was installed to forbid the training of any grunt in the Force. They were the lowest ranked members of the organization and did all the manual labor for the Crusaders. They were credited with building all the structures and landmarks of the Dark Crusaders.

Korriban
Korriban became the main planet for the Dark Crusaders after their Schism and war with the Jedi in 7,000 BBY. It was the location for two of their landmarks, the Crusader Temple and Tombs Row. The barren system was classified a desert world; not one area of the planet could sustain plantlife or fauna. It was said that the dark energies corrupted the environment and made it impossible to sustain life on the system. It held the spirits of Saladeen, Nurada Aladeen, Baibars Zenge, and Killick Orslan.

Ziost
Was a planet discovered and settled by Nurada Aladeen. It became the second system controlled and settled by the Dark Crusaders. was a world made up entirely of an ancient dark forest. However the trees withered away and the planet became very similar (in landscape) to Korriban. It was a focal point of the dark side, which coincidently, is said to have destroyed the forests of the system.

Malachor V
was an planet located in the Malachor system. It was the third established world of the Crusaders, it was the homeplanet of Baibars Zenge. Prior to the final battle of the, the planet was fertile and hospitable. After a major cataclysm caused by the Benzene Ring, it became a cracked and twisted wasteland covered with jagged cliffs and plagued by constant lightning storms. The Crusaders had to abandon it.

Onderon
The Crusader temple was actually based on its' moon. The natural dark side energy and savage native species protected the Crusaders from detection by the Republic. It was a minor settlement for the Crusaders, akin to a Jedi academy.

Byss
Byss itself was somewhat of a myth, seeming to be the perfect place to live. Its eerie blue-green glow, caused by its sun, also added to the strangeness of the world. Despite this outward appearance, however, Killick Orslan's dark side energies were everywhere, as he chose this system for his exile and to train his apprentice. His aura corrupted not only the inhabitants, but the planet itself.

Yavin IV
In 3,997 BBY, the fallen Jedi went to  at the advice of the dark side spirit of Saladeen. There he discovered the people. As the new Sultan of the Crusaders, he enslaved the Massassi and took over Yavin IV. He created vicious Sithspawn including the battle hydras, terentateks, Night Beast.

Later, Kun allied himself with the Krath - another group of dark-siders based in the Empress Teta system under the leadership of Aleema Keto and another fallen Jedi Ulic Qel-Droma. He then went to the Jedi world of Ossus and recruited twenty Jedi to his cause. The Crusaders built a monument on Yavin in honor of Kun for discovering the system, and achieving a major victory over the Jedi. In 3,996 BBY, Exar Kun along with his Krath and Mandalorian allies waged war on the Republic and the Jedi. The Jedi eventually prevailed and gathered their forces for an assault on Yavin. However, as the orbiting Jedi fleet launched a wall of power which bombarded the jungle moon, Kun gathered his Massassi followers into the Great Monument and drained their life energies in order to free his spirit from his body and invest it into the surrounding structures where he would remain for millennia.

Crusader Temple
The Crusader Temple, was the first structure the Dark Crusaders built after they split with the Jedi Order and left Tython. It served as the living quarters and training center for the Dark Crusaders. It had a powerful radar system and communications built into the basement level of the temple, and had the possibility of monitoring Republic communications undetected.

Yavin IV monument
The monument was built as a tribute to, while he was alive, because the Crusaders felt he became an important figure in their history when he destroyed the Jedi Temple on Ossus and when he discovered Yavin. The monument is surrounded by dark energy and the hidden corridors that are rumored to lead to Exar's body are blocked off by overgrown jungle. It is also rumored that Exar Kun's spirit is trapped within the Monument.

Tombs Row
Tombs row was a set of tombs on Korriban that overlooks a desert and mountain range. It was located near the Crusader Temple (separated by a small cave system). It housed the tombs of Saladeen, Nurada Aladeen, Baibars Zenge and Killick Orslan. Which were said to contain the spirits of their respective occupants.

Behind the scenes
All of the notable members of the Dark Crusaders are named similarly after famous leaders during the   on the  of /. This, like the Jedi Order (ESW), has its roots in the Crusades.