Ever thought about how Palpatine became the galaxy’s most terrifying Sith Lord? I did, and wow, the answer is more insane than I expected. We’re talking murder, ice planets, torture, and hunts straight out of a horror movie. Darth Plagueis didn’t just train him—he broke him.
This is the kind of story that makes you rethink everything you thought you knew about Sidious. Let me tell you what I found.
Table of Contents
The Crash Course
It all began with an act so dark it’s almost hard to believe. Palpatine—in a fit of pure, unbridled rage—murdered his entire family. Yeah, you heard that right. That’s what got Plagueis’s attention. He saw this act and thought, “That’s my guy.”
From there, things only got crazier. Plagueis took Palpatine to Mygeeto, a planet that’s basically an ice cube floating in space. He handed Palps a flimsy enviro-suit and said, “Survive.” The freezing cold wasn’t just a physical challenge—it was a lesson. While Jedi clung to peace and harmony, Sith thrived on chaos and discomfort. If Palpatine wanted to survive, he’d have to embrace the dark side as his only lifeline.
The Mountain Climb
Now imagine this: Palpatine, starving, sleep-deprived, and freezing, standing at the base of a massive, icy mountain. Plagueis’s instructions? Climb it. With your bare hands. And while Palps is out there, struggling to hold on, Plagueis is chilling at the top, probably sipping hot cocoa and throwing out insults like, “You call that climbing?”
Every time Palpatine fell—and he fell a lot—he had to start over. Injured? Too bad. Keep climbing. The point wasn’t just to make him stronger; it was to make him angry. Rage fuels the dark side, and Plagueis wanted Palpatine to tap into that fury. By the time Palps reached the top, he was so filled with hate he tried to attack Plagueis. Of course, Plagueis swatted him away like a fly. But that was the lesson: power comes from channeling your emotions, not just brute strength.
The Torture
If you thought things couldn’t get worse, think again. Plagueis cranked up the intensity with a round of pure, unrelenting torture. Lightsaber burns, constant attacks, and the unforgiving tundra—it was a nightmare. But this wasn’t just about pain for pain’s sake. Plagueis wanted Palpatine to learn something vital: pain is power.
For the Sith, suffering isn’t a weakness; it’s a tool. The more Palpatine endured, the stronger he became. Crawling through snow, barely clinging to life, he had to let go of everything that made him human. Compassion? Gone. Remorse? Forget it. The only thing left was the dark side, and it was ready to consume him.
The Hunt
Finally, we’ve got the hunt. Plagueis took Palpatine to a low-gravity planet called Buoyant (seriously, who names these places?). Armed with vibroblades, they hunted animals in a ritual that was more “Sith Hunger Games” than survival training. Blood everywhere. It was primal, raw, and… kind of horrifying.
But this wasn’t just about survival. Plagueis used the hunt to teach Palpatine how to dominate his prey—literally controlling their minds with the dark side before delivering the killing blow. It was about power, pure and simple: power over life and death, over fear, over everything.
And that, my friends, is how Palpatine went from “meh” to “master of the galaxy.” Brutal, horrifying, and absolutely fascinating. It’s hard to imagine anyone surviving this, let alone coming out stronger. But that’s the Sith way, isn’t it?
If you’re curious, go check out the novel (or the YouTube videos above). It’s a wild ride, and I’d love to hear your thoughts.