Star Wars Factions Explained

I am pretty sure it was not only me who struggled with understanding the “Who is who and what is what” of Star Wars. I am not saying Star Wars wasn’t fascinating. Still, there were instances when I could not understand why the Senate changed its emblem, why the troopers became bad all of a sudden, or why Star Destroyers were attacking innocent people.

So, suppose you are interested in learning more about Star Wars than just the futuristic laser blasters, colorful yet deadly lightsabers, intense battles, and some really alluring Senators. In that case, I recommend you carefully go through this extensive Star Wars factions explained guide. But remember, after reading this extract of my countless years of research, you will become the keeper of the memory crystal containing all the information about the major Star Wars factions. So, choose your path carefully!

Bottom Line Up Front

It is hard to trace the exact history of the Star Wars universe. However, if we focus on the main events of the original Star Wars saga, we can classify the major galactic powers into ten factions that played the most significant role throughout the Star Wars timeline. These factions include:

  • Jedi Order
  • Sith Order
  • Galactic Republic
  • Confederacy Of Independent Systems/Separatist Alliance
  • Galactic Empire
  • Rebel Alliance
  • New Republic
  • First Order
  • Final Order
  • Resistance

Jedi Order

Jedi Order
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The Star Wars history of the Galaxy spread over hundreds of millennia, and there seems to be no end to it. However, while keeping in view the original saga, the starting point, in my opinion, has to be the Jedi Order. After all, Star Wars is never complete without Jedis.

Almost 25000 years before the fall of the Galactic Empire, or 25000 BBY (before the battle of Yavin), the forever reigning Infinite Empire came to an end.

For those interested in the Infinite Empire, it was just like the Galactic Empire but more advanced and far-spread. Yes, you heard me right! One of the most powerful empires Star Wars has ever seen. However, being more inclined toward the Dark Side, the Empire saw its downfall owning to a deadly plague that killed millions of its subjects. As they say, nature has its own ways of doing things.

After the fall of the Infinite Empire, some of the greatest scholars of the Galaxy gathered on the planet of Tython to study “Ashla,” the spiritual power that enhanced the capabilities of the Force-sensitive beings. This “Ashla” later became known as the Light Side of the Force. And the scholars that practiced this power and taught its use became the Force wielders, known as Jedi.

Ashla Symbol
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Now, as these Force-wielders focused on spreading and practicing good, the driving force behind the Light Side or Ashla, some followers became clouded by the desire to reach the top and started undermining the values that the Light Side.

This rogue group, which began to lean more toward the Dark Side, was then resisted by a group of Jedi loyal to the Light Side of the Force called the Jedi Order. These Jedis remained the most powerful Force wielders of the Light Side throughout history and tried to maintain the balance in the universe by becoming its “peacekeepers.”

In the meantime, a lot was going on in the Galaxy. After the emergence of the Galactic Republic, some diplomats of the Republic made contact with the Jedi Order, and they were warmly greeted by the Jedi council for their great democratic values. After a few talks, considering democracy a way forward for future generations, the Jedi Order pledged to serve the Republic by becoming its ambassadors and settling on Coruscant.

Sith Order

Sith Order
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Now, you might be wondering what happened to the rogue Jedis who were inclined toward the Dark Side. Well, around 7000 BBY, these rogue Jedis started to experiment more with the Dark Side of the Force. Although they still stood for some good values, such as ending suffering and even reviving the lost lives, these apparent virtues were against the Jedi code. Consequently, these rogue Jedis got into many battles with the “good” Jedis.

This “good and bad” Jedi war called “100 years of darkness” lasted for about 100 years, obviously, which resulted in heavy losses on both sides. However, owing to the overwhelming number of Light Side Jedis, the rouge Jedis finally gave in. And our peace-loving Jedis, despite the Republic’s recommended execution, exiled these Dark Force wielders to the Unknown Regions.

As they say, love begets love, or should I say, Dark begets Dark; these exiled Jedis landed on the planet of Korriban, which was populated with the Sith specie, a natural wielder of the Dark Force. And this is where the real fun began.

Although the Canons have not given a detailed account of what happened next, the Legends explain that these rogue Jedis were soon accepted as masters by the Sith. And after almost 2000 years, these rogue Jedis became a part of the Sith culture; and the Sith Order emerged.

However, this Sith Order was a little different from what we have seen in the Star Wars saga. After settling in Korriban, the emerging Sith Order was becoming more and more powerful. Even though it was at endless war with the Jedi Order, the power struggle also found its way to the Sith Order. And this consequently led to the almost extinction of the Sith Order. However, this extinction was, in fact, the emergence of the new Sith Order based on the “rule of two,” thanks to Darth Bane. Under this new rule, a Sith Order could only have two Lords at a time: a master and its apprentice.

The Rule of Two
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And although this new Sith Order seemed very timid and frail, after all, there was the whole Jedi Order against the two Dark Lords; we all know how this duo inflicted trouble throughout the history of the Galaxy.

Galactic Republic

Galactic Republic
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If you watched the original Star Wars saga in chronological order, you might have noticed a parliamentary form of government in the prequels. With various ugly creatures hovering in their Repulsorpods, the Galactic Senate seemed nothing short of the parliaments that we observe here on our planet. And this Galactic Senate was actually the governing body of the hundreds of planets and star systems that made up the Galactic Republic.

After the fall of the Infinite Empire, around 25000 BBY, several star systems vouched for an independent system of democracy that could deal with the affairs of the Galaxy. Although not many planets, especially those of Unknown Regions and the Outer Rims, joined in this collective effort, the Galactic Republic still became the biggest political faction of the Galaxy.

Established to maintain peace in the Galaxy, this alliance joined hands with the Jedi Order and convinced them to be their ambassadors and peacekeepers. Although I cannot still comprehend how come these spiritual and mystical Jedis took such a naïve step of becoming a part of a political association, a reality the Jedi Council always denied, we all know how it destroyed the whole Jedi Order. This association could not have been described better than the words of the leader of the Zygerrian Slave Empire, Queen Scintel, “They are no different than others we have forced into submission. For they have forsaken their ideals to serve the corrupt Senate… Every Jedi has become a slave to the Republic!

Talking about its constituents, each planetary member of the Galactic Republic, simply known as the Republic, had their representation in Senate as Senators. These Senators had two primary duties: being the voice of their people and maintaining Intergalactic peace. Along with these Senators, there were also Representatives, for instance, our favorite Jar Jar Binks, who represented some minor specie of a planet or marginalized group of the Galaxy. Not to mention, the Republic also had the representation of several private entities such as the Trade Federation, Banking Clan, and Corporate Alliance.

The Senate Session
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Just like every parliament, the Republic had a head of government called the Supreme Chancellor and a sub-head called Vice-chair. Although they had ceremonial roles and were only supposed to regulate the affairs of the Senate, they manipulated different Senators. They provoked and used Senators for their underlying benefits, which eventually led to the fall of the Republic.

The capital of the Republic was based in Coruscant, one of the most advanced planets of the Galaxy with high-rise buildings, busy airways, and home to many underworld species. Also, all the major institutions, such as the Senate, the office of the Supreme Chancellor, and the Jedi Temple, were present on this planet.

Although Jedis led the Clone Wars, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine had direct control of the Republic’s war plans. Due to the raging Clone Wars under the influence of the Supreme Chancellor, Jedis became more involved in “peacekeeping missions.” And with the Jedi Code becoming more questionable among the general public, many protests erupted against the Jedi Order, one of which led to an attack on the Jedi temple.

In the meantime, the Jedi were pressing hard against the Separatist armies. However, exploiting these tumultuous conditions, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine bestowed himself with Emergency powers and ordered more intensive attacks against the Separatist settlements. At last, these orders made the Jedi Council question the illegal and ruthless authority of the Supreme Chancellor.

The Supreme Chancellor Palpatine
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On the other hand, our young Skywalker was also going through an existential crisis. After the death of his mother and constant visions of his inability to save the love of his life, Anakin also started questioning the Jedi Code. And when the remaining members of the Jedi Council on Coruscant went after Sheev Palpatine to apprehend the recently revealed Sith Lord, Anakin was taken over by the Dark Side, who was then manipulated by Sidious into killing these Jedis.

If Jedi Master Krell had been alive in 19 BBY, he would have changed his mind about the “useless clones.” After killing the Jedis on Coruscant, Darth Sidious used the final trick up his sleeve, Oder 66! This order initiated the Great Jedi Purge in 19 BBY, and the Clones hunted down whatever was left of the Jedis in the Galaxy, bringing down the millennia-long rule of the Republic.

Confederacy of Independent Systems/Separatist Alliance

Confederacy of Independent Systems/Separatist Alliance

If you are wondering whether only your government is corrupt, then you better take a second look at the history of the world. From the Greek Empire to the Fall of Romans, from colonial rule to the present governments, almost every regime fell victim to corruption. And that, unfortunately, was also the case with the Galactic Republic.

Founded on the pillars of compassion, peace, and prosperity of the Galaxy, the Republic became more interested in resource collection and colonization. And with the rapid annexation of the business guilds, the Republic was becoming more of an Oligarchy that only worked for its vested interests. Consequently, the expansion policy of the Republic Core World and its self-centered interests gave rise to tensions with the Outer Rim territories, which led to the creation of a bloc in the Republic. This bloc, consisting of the disappointed members of the Republic, made an alliance with the anti-Republic planets and star systems in 22 BBY and formed the Confederacy of Independent Systems, which also became known as Separatists.

Count Dooku, the most-talented rogue student of the Jedi Master Yoda, became the leader of the Confederacy. Although there were some genuine issues that led to the fragmentation of the Republic, the formation of the Separatist Alliance was actually a plot of Darth Sidious to raise a strong force against the Jedi Order and rule the Galaxy. And if you haven’t guessed by now, this mysterious Darth Lord also happened to be the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic Senate, Sheev Palpatine.

Although the Separatist Alliance existed for a very brief period, almost three years, it still played a momentous role in deciding the fate of the Galaxy. With more and more planets leaving the Republic and joining Confederacy, the power struggle increased between Separatists and Republic. Though the members of the Confederacy were still low in number than the Republic, due to the extensive production of battle droids, the Separatist army became the biggest in the Galaxy.

This might be interesting to know that most members of the Separatists Senate did not even know of the battles that were going on in the Galaxy. And this information was only available to the handful of Dooku’s loyalists called the Separatist Council. But the story does not end here; some of the leading members of this Council, such as the leader of the Trade Federation, Nute Gunray, Chairman of the Intergalactic Banking Clan, San Hill, and leader of the Corporate Alliance, Passel Argente, continued working for Count Dooku while they were still a part of the Republic Senate.

As already stated, the emergence of the Separatist movement gave rise to many fortunate and unfortunate events, and one such event was the formation of the Clone army. Anticipating the upcoming war, Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas proposed the idea of a Clone Army. Although his proposition was turned down by the Jedi Council, he managed to trick Kaminoans into creating a Clone army for the Republic.

Clone Army
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However, the introduction of the Clone army cannot be solely credited, or should I say, discredited, to Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas. It was actually Darth Sidious who first approached the Kaminoan Prime Minister Lama Su to make Clones that could be controlled by a single push of the button. Anyway, due to a limited number of Republic forces, given the emerging threat of the Separatist’s Droid army, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine officially commissioned the main force of the Republic, the Clone army, during the battle of Geonosis.

From here started the Era of Clone Wars, wherein the Clone army, under the command of the Jedi Council and Republic, pushed Separatists to the Outer Rim. However, with the death of Count Dooku, at the hands of the new Sith apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, this by-product of the Separatist movement did not only turn against the Republic but also became the nemesis of the Confederacy of Independent Systems in 19 BBY.

Galactic Empire

Galactic Empire
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After the fall of the Republic and with remaining Jedis went to hiding, Darth Sidious ordered Anakin, now Darth Vader, to kill all the remaining members of the Separatist Council on the planet of Mustafar and disable the Separatist battle droids army. Now, having everyone removed out of his way, Darth Sidious went to Senate and proclaimed to be the Galactic Emperor, laying the foundation of the Galactic Empire.

But before we move on, let me give you a quick overview of what really happened so far, in case you missed any details:

  • Galactic Empire was actually a transformation of the Galactic Republic.
  • The Confederacy of Independent Systems came to an end with the dawn of the Galactic Empire.
  • The Jedi Order was destroyed with the rise of the Empire.
  • The Empire was an Imperialist regime led by Darth Sidious and Darth Vader.
  • The Clone troopers became the loyal subjects of Darth Sidious.

The weird thing about the rise of the Galactic Empire was that most of the Senate members wholeheartedly accepted the formation of this newly formed government, and there was no significant resistance from the Republic during this transformation. The most apparent reason for such a response was the purported coup by the Jedi to confront Supreme Chancellor, which was actually staged by Darth Sidious.

Darth Sidious
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After becoming the most extensive regime in the Galaxy, the Galactic Empire offered the leftover Separatists to join their cause to bring “peace” to the Galaxy, which resulted in many factions annexing the Empire. After all, no one wanted to experience what happened to the Jedi Order.

Although the Galactic Empire had its Senate, the supreme authority always remained with Darth Sidious, who used his apprentice, Darth Vader, and Inquisitors to spread his influence through the Galaxy. For some time, the Senate remained façade to the “democratic” values Palpatine pledged to profess; the major decisions of the Empire were still made by a group of loyal subjects of Darth Sidious, called the Imperial Ruling Council. However, the Senate was consequently dissolved, and the control of different regions of the Empire was given to the Imperial Governors, who constituted the high-command military faction of the Empire.

Although, after the fall of the Republic, the Clone army came under the Empire’s command, they were soon replaced by natural species due to their short lifespans. Not to mention, the Imperial era also experienced a significant increase in prejudice against the alien species. This resulted in the discharge of these species from any major military or political position, further leading to a great influx of humans in the Imperial force.

The Imperial army inherited most of the equipment from the Clone army, while a significant portion of the Separatists’ arms and machinery was discarded. However, the Imperial army did inherit the most formidable military technology from Separatists, Death Star. And with the production of this planet-destroyer, the Imperial army became invincible.

It would be hard to believe, but, despite an intimidating naval fleet, humongous infantry, frightening firepower, and a pair of planet killers, this warmongering evil Empire could only survive for 23 years and saw its downfall in the Battle of Endor.

Rebel Alliance

Rebel Alliance
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If the Star Wars universe had actually existed, I am pretty sure the feats of the Republic Alliance would have been a part of every history book. With a small group of passionate freedom fighters, limited resources, and insignificant support from the rest of the Galaxy, the Rebel Alliance fulfills all the characteristics of the hero revolutionary groups we have ever heard of.

After the dawn of the Galactic Empire, few Senators acquiesced to the rule of the new Emperor but remained determined to bring back the Republic. However, with the expansion of its rule and the formidable army it had, the Empire could not care less about these trivial rebellious elements. Not to mention, the death of Senator Amidala, the possible voice against Emperor Palpatine, further narrowed down the chances of any such uprising.

Though not organized, the Imperial forces encountered different factions of resistant movements when the Empire spread its rule in the Outer Rim territories and the Unknown Regions. These movements, however, had a considerable proportion of criminal clans and alien species.

The spread of these resistance movements caught the eyes of Bail Organa and Mon Mothma, the Ex-Senators of the Empire. They proposed a unified campaign against the evil Empire, which was consequently accepted by these various rebellious groups. However, this newly formed alliance did not have proper military structures and often solely relied on modified civilian vehicles. Not to mention they did have some stolen Imperial crafts and a sizeable proportion of the Separatists’ equipment that was left untouched by the Empire.

The Rebel Alliance was officially formed in 2 BBY, with Mon Mathma being its first Chancellor. This faction had a closed group of different leaders of the resistance movements, Alliance High Command, to regulate the information and develop new strategies.

Mon Mothma
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Soon after the formation of the Alliance, it established different bases on far-off planets and conducted frequent attacks on key Imperial bases. Moreover, the Rebel Alliance had also established a few naval fleets to coordinate these attacks.

However, the actual turning point of the resistance movement was when a group of freedom fighters, Rogue One, became successful in obtaining classified information about the Death Star, the biggest weapon of the Empire. But unfortunately, these heroes were not lucky enough to witness the destruction of this superweapon as the whole planet of Alderaan was blown to pieces before the Alliance could do anything. Still, after the death of their beloved leader Bail Organa and thousands of comrades, the Rebel Alliance delivered its first major blow to the Empire by destroying the Death Star-I in the Battle of Yavin. And this battle also introduced two new leaders to the Alliance, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo.

After the destruction of DS-I, the Imperial forces launched a full-scale attack on the Rebel hideouts. And many major Rebel settlements, such as Hoth, fell victim to the ill-fated strikes. With no option left, and due to the continuously rising threat of another Death Star, the Rebel Alliance played their last card in 4 ABY and attacked the Death Star-II. And once again, against all odds, the Alliance emerged victorious by bringing down the DS-II and causing millions of casualties to the Imperial force in the Battle of Endor. At last, the tyrannical rule of the Empire came to an end with the death of Darth Sidious, apparently, and Darth Vader.

New Republic

New Republic
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After the fall of the Empire and the destruction of the Sith Order, there was no Supreme commander left to lead the Imperial forces. This resulted in the escape of the remnants of the Imperial forces to the Outer Rim territories and even the Unknown Regions. During this time, Man Mothma, leader of the Rebel Alliance, became Chancellor of the newly formed faction, the New Republic, to restore peace and equality in the Galaxy.

This new alliance was based on the old principles of democracy that laid the foundation of the Galactic Republic. However, to disperse equal power among different constituents of the newly formed government, its capital was proposed to keep changing, with the first being based in Chandrila.

With the fall of the Empire, even the locals of Coruscant came out to the streets. Although the aide of the Emperor, Mas Amedda, tried to maintain the rule of the Empire by claiming to be its de-facto leader, with the Imperial army dispersed, he had to let go of the Chancellor’s cozy seat. However, he made one last attempt to confront the New Republic by joining hands with one of the remnants of the Imperial forces headed by Grand Admiral Rae Sloane. But this plan also did not work.

After the Battle of Jakku, Mas Amedda had to surrender unconditionally to the New Republic and sign the Galactic Concordance, which brought an official end to the war between the Empire and the New Republic in 5 ABY.

Battle of Jakku
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After its official formation in 5 ABY, the New Republic tried to restore the balance that was badly disturbed by the Empire. However, being a successor of the Rebel Alliance, it lacked the resources to control the vast Empire left by Darth Sidious efficiently. Not to mention, after getting more inclined toward the pacifist ideology, the new Chancellor, Man Mothma, passed the military disarmament act, which further cut down the military power of the newly formed government. Although this act was heavily criticized by many leaders of the New Republic, such as our princess Leia Organa, Man Mothma suggested that the planetary members of the New Republic should establish strong defenses on their respective planets.

With time, every coming leader of the New Republic gave different policies that further led to a great polarization in the new Senate. The Senate became divided into two groups: Centrists, who believed in the supremacy of central authority, and Populists, who believed in a decentralized power. This divide led to the deterioration of the New Republic, and its leaders started joining forces with criminal organizations to achieve their goals. The disparity among these Senators grew so big that some Centrists even joined the powerful emerging remnant of the Imperial forces, the First Order, which eventually destroyed the New Republic in 34 ABY.

First Order

First Order
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As George Orwell said, “The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history.” If you are wondering whether the Imperial forces of the warmongering Empire had enlightenment after its fall, you are too innocent for this world. With constant lies being fed to the Imperial soldiers by their leftover high command, the Galaxy anticipated the rise of another evil soon after the fall of the Empire. However, the New Republic remained ignorant of this growing First Order threat.

After the final blow to the Imperial forces in the battle of Jakku, many remnants of this defeated army fled to the Unknown Regions with the sole purpose of getting back what was rightfully theirs. But being a resourceless faction, they could not take the newly founded New Republic head-on. So, following the pattern of Darth Sidious, they started infiltrating the ranks of the New Republic Senate and corrupted many Senators of the Centrist group, who left the Senate later on.

Albeit various deadly encounters with the small groups of these forces, the New Republic was so busy building up a new government that they could not see what was coming. And in 34 ABY, the Galaxy witnessed its most unfortunate event, the Starkiller crisis. For those Star Wars fans who still have not watched “The Force Awakens,” the First Order used its Starkiller base for the first time that not just destroyed a single planet but devoured the whole Hosnian Star system, which was home to the New Republic. One of the most distressing scenes of the entire Star Wars saga!

The First Order was a military faction that was commanded by a master of the Dark Force, Supreme Leader Snoke. Just like Darth Sidious, Snoke also had an apprentice, Kylo Ren, who used to carry out his dirty work. Kylo, originally Ben Solo, was actually the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa, who turned to the Dark Side and became the leader of the Knights of Ren, a group of powerful fighters like Inquisitors who were tasked with hunting down the leftover Jedis.

Supreme Leader Snoke
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Although most of the ground assault equipment, such as blasters, tanks, and troops’ transports, mainly dated back to the Empire, the First Order introduced significant advancements in its aerial and space vehicles. And it would not be wrong to say it had the most advanced superweapons. After all, no one ever constructed a Star system killer before.

The First Order did not have a ground capital, and all of its operations were coordinated by the ships soaring the Galaxy. However, its central command center was based in a Resurgent Class Star Destroyer, the most enormous and frightening Star Destroyer the Galaxy had ever seen.

After the destruction of the Hosnian Star system under the order of Supreme Leader Snoke, the Starkiller base was soon destroyed by the Resistance fighters. But unfortunately, the Galaxy’s best scoundrel and the father of Ben Solo, Han Solo, was also killed by his very son during this battle of Starkiller base.

The course of events made Kylo despaired of everything, be it Resistance, Jedi Order, or Sith Order. Hungry for power, he went after his leader, Snoke, killed him and all his guards, and became the Supreme Leader of the First Order. And this marked the beginning of the most tyrannical rule of the First Order.

Final Order

Final Order
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The Final Order was the last card played by the Dark Forces. With no one to answer to, Supreme Leader Kylo sent his forces across the Galaxy to spread his reign of terror, while he himself went after whatever was left of Jedis, such as Luke Skywalker. However, soon after his conquest of different planets and Star systems, present both in Core World and the Outer Rims, Kylo encountered the strongest Dark Force present on the planet of Exogel. It was Darth Sidious who was revived by the members of the Sith cult!

Darth Sidious soon made Kylo realize that he was the real mastermind behind the formation of the First Order and that Snoke was merely his pawn. He offered Kylo to join hands with him and establish the Final Order, however, on a condition that Kylo had to kill the Force-Sensitive member of the Resistance, Rey.

The idea behind this Final Order was more or less similar to the Empire. Sidious wanted to establish a forever Sith Empire through which he would rule the Galaxy with the help of his apprentice. But this time, Darth Sidious seemed more prepared than ever. With an army of Sith Stormtroopers, the Final Order had a formidable fleet of Xyston Class Star Destroyers, each capable of annihilating an entire planet. Although these battlecruisers were a little shorter than the Resurgent Class Star Destroyers the First Order had, their firepower was way more devastating than any other Star Destroyer ever produced.

To fulfill his promise of killing Rey, Kylo chased her to the moon of Kef Bir. They got into a fierce duel, but miraculously, Kylo returned to the Light Side and became Ben Solo again.

Darth Sidious, who was aware of such betrayal, did not let it deter the execution of the Final Order. He approached his old commander of the Imperial forces, Enric Pryde, who was at that time the Allegiant General in the First Order, to take control of his fleet of “planet killers.” Now, with the alliance of the First Order and Darth Sidious’ forces, the Sith Lord was ready to execute the Final Order.

Resistance

Resistance
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Although officially formed in 28 ABY, the reason for discussing Resistance at the end of all factions was because it served as the last nail in the coffin of the Final Order.

Going back to the era of the New Republic, with the demilitarization of the emerging government and no heed being paid to the anticipated attack of the Final Order, some Senators of the New Republic, under the leadership of Leia Organa, founded a private military faction to tackle these evident attacks.

This faction started very small, with only a handful of volunteers. But experiencing the deterioration of the New Republic and many Centrists joining the First Order, many individuals joined the efforts of the Resistance. However, it still remained insignificant compared to the Rebel Alliance, which consisted of many planets and Star systems.

Still, with its main base at D’Qar, the Resistance probed into many incidents that had a possible link with some powerful hidden forces. But even after discovering the involvement of remnants of the Imperial forces, mainly the First Order, the Resistance remained unsuccessful in convincing the New Republic to launch any significant attack against these factions. And we all see how it ended up for the New Republic.

After the destruction of the New Republic in the Starkiller base crisis, the Resistance became the last line of Galaxy’s defense against the ruthless First Order. However, against all odds, it successfully destroyed the most powerful superweapon of that time in ABY 34. But this victory made the Resistance more vulnerable to the First Order attacks, and they, consequently, had to go into hiding.

Starkiller Base
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When the news about the revival of Darth Sidious and his execution of the Final Order broke out, the Resistance knew it had to act, or there would be nothing left to save. With only a handful of starships, the Resistance made their final move against the massive Sith army stationed at Exogel. However, they were joined by the Citizens’ Fleet, under the command of General Lando Calrissian of the Resistance, just at the right moment, and the battle of Exogel began. This fleet, consisting of thousands of starships from across the Galaxy, turned the tide of events and destroyed the Sith army and fleet of Star Destroyers that was about to launch into the Galaxy.

On the other hand, Rey was also successful in defeating the Sith Lord, Darth Sidious, but at the cost of her life. However, the recently returned warrior of the Light Side, Ben Solo, sacrificed himself to bring the last Jedi back to life. With the end of the Final Order and the death of the Supreme Leader and commander of the First Order, the whole Galaxy saw an uprising against the First Order, and under the leadership of the Resistance leaders, the First Order was soon overcome by various rebellious groups and freedom movements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: How many Star Wars factions are actually there?

Answer: There are hundreds of Star Wars factions. However, the sub-factions, clans, political blocs, or guilds, other than the main ten factions, that greatly influenced the history of Star Wars include:
• Commerce Guild
• Corporate Alliance
• Clan Fett
• Centrists
• Death Watch
• Gungans Army
• Hutts Clan
• Intergalactic Banking Clan
• Loyalists
• Mandalorians
• Night Brothers/Sisters
• Pirates
• Populists
• Techno Union
• Trade Federation
• Wookie Warriors

Question: What was the most short-lived major faction of the Star Wars universe?

Answer: The Final Order was the most short-lived faction of Star Wars. After its official appearance in 35 ABY, when Kylo Ren discovered Darth Sidious on the planet of Exogel, the Order came to a quick end in the very same year due to the destruction of the Sith army and Sidious’ fleet of battlecruisers in the battle of Exogel.

Question: What was the most advanced and powerful faction of Star Wars?

Answer: It is hard to say which faction was the most powerful among other factions, as almost every faction has some unique traits that were missing in other factions. However, in my view, the faction that deserves more points than its counterparts is the Galactic Empire for the following reasons:
• It was controlled and commanded by the most powerful Force wielders of the Galaxy, i.e., Darth Sidious and Darth Vader.
• It had an enormous fleet of the most advanced battle cruisers of its time.
• The Imperial vehicles also had specially designed atmospheric fighters for planetary invasions.
• The Imperial troopers replaced the Clone troopers and were more efficient.
• The Empire developed two unique superweapons, Death Stars, that the Galaxy had never seen.

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