“Always two there are; no more, no less. A master and an apprentice.”
Jedi Master Yoda
This quote from The Phantom Menace would become the catalyst for Dark Side lore that would be echoed throughout a plethora of both canonical and Expanded Universe material. Like many aspects of the Sith’s dealings, the origins of the ‘Rule of Two’ are shrouded in hatred and anger. One fact that remains clear, however, is that the directive was the brain child of the legendary Darth Bane. Bane operated at a time known as the ‘The Dark Ages’ during The Old Republic (approximately a millennia before The Phantom Menace) when the number of Dark Side users in the ‘Sith Empire’ equalled that of Jedi across the galaxy.
The demise of the Sith Order would be perfectly surmised by Jedi hero Obi-Wan Kenobi in Revenge of the Sith. Before his climatic dual with Anakin Skywalker on Mustafar, he tells his former apprentice that his fall to the Dark Side has been fuelled by his ‘anger and lust for power.’ These characteristics of the Sith would be the beginning of the end for the almighty warriors that would also be known as the ‘Brotherhood of Darkness.’ The Sith were forever at war with not only the Jedi but also with each other. Constantly vying for power greater than themselves, they would betray anyone who stood in their way and all but eradicated their own kind. This infighting would eventually cumulate on a planet called ‘Ruusan’ with the sole survivor emerging to be Darth Bane.
In order for the Sith to survive and one day enact their revenge, Bane realised that a new philosophy was needed and so the ‘Rule of Two’ was born. The doctrine was simple; there could only ever be two Sith at any given time and this would be personified by a Master and an Apprentice. Fundamentally; this is one to embody the power and one to crave it. In what would become an endless poetic pattern of death, each successive Sith Apprentice would attempt to slay their Master and, if successful, prove themselves to be worthy of the legacy of Bane himself.
The plan was executed perfectly and each generation of Master and Apprentice became more powerful and cunning as they operated in the shadows. By enacting this directive, Bane himself displayed something that the Jedi would lack years later and lead to their own downfall; humility. Instead of creating a new Sith Order, Bane changed course and displayed patience and was even struck down by his own apprentice who took on the mantle of his teachings. Meanwhile, the Jedi would not accept such penitence and would become blindsided by their own arrogance to believe the Sith were extinct.
The culmination of the ‘Rule of Two’ would come to fruition with the frighteningly powerful Chancellor Palpatine who had manipulated the Republic and Jedi Order for years as he operated secretly as a Dark Lord of the Sith. As the galaxy bled from the on-going Clone Wars, Sidious succeeded in turning Anakin Skywalker to the Dark Side and christen him Darth Vader. With the end of the Jedi Order and the Empire in control, both Palpatine and Vader secretly operated against the other. Eventually seeing the chance to turn Vader’s son Luke, to the Dark Side, Palpatine failed to comprehend Luke’s new Jedi abilities and thus the end of the Sith was brought about by not only Luke’s faith in the light but also the unfailing love for his father.
Guest article by Jonathan Hipkiss. You can find him on Linktree.
- Drew Karpyshyn (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 08/04/2025 (Publication Date) - random house (Publisher)