Emperor Palpatine - Star Wars Return of the Jedi

Emperor Palpatine was the supreme ruler of the most powerful tyrannical regime the galaxy had ever witnessed; yet his roots seem extremely humble, traced back to the peaceful world of Naboo. Little did anyone suspect how Palpatine had engineered his own rise to power. Hidden beneath a façade of wan smiles and smooth political speeches was a Sith Lord. In truth, Palpatine was well versed in the ways of the Force. Upon the discovery of a secret army of droids, it became apparent that the Separatists were on the verge of declaring war against the Republic. To counter this, the Republic needed a military, and Palpatine required the authority to activate the Republic's newly forged army of clones. To that end, Senators loyal to Palpatine motioned that the Chancellor be given emergency powers to deal with the Separatist threat. He promised to return his absolute authority to the Senate after the emergency subsided. What no one realized was that the galaxy would undergo further upheaval, and that a state of crisis would ensure Palpatine's authority for decades. The public and the Senate willingly gave up their rights and freedoms in the name of security. Under Palpatine's guidance, the war would be won, and the Republic would be safe.

In the inner recesses of the Palpatine’s private office, the Jedi confronted Palpatine and he produced a lightsaber hidden in his sleeve and let the dark side of the Force flow through him. It granted him inhuman dexterity and speed, agility enough to quickly kill three Jedi Masters and force the mighty Mace Windu back. Before Mace Windu could take justice into his own hands Anakin Skywalker sprung into action. He cut off Mace Windu's hand with his lightsaber. Defenseless, Mace Windu was then bombarded by Palpatine's dark side lightning and thrown out the window. Anakin Skywalker knelt before Palpatine (Darth Sidious), and the Sith Lord bestowed upon him the title of Darth Vader.

Palpatine enacted Order 66, a coded command that identified the Jedi Knights as traitors to the Republic. The next day Palpatine called for a special session of the Galactic Senate. Despite his disfigurement, he appeared before the assembled politicians of the Republic, and gave a stirring speech of how he narrowly escaped a treacherous Jedi rebellion. He assured the people of the Republic that his resolve had not faltered. He had routed out the treachery that had entangled the Republic in the Clone Wars. He would flense the corruption from the bloated bureaucracy that strangled the august government and reform it, as a new, more powerful, more secure institution. That day, before thunderous applause, Palpatine declared himself Emperor.

During the Galactic Civil War, Palpatine ruled with an iron fist. He disbanded the Imperial Senate, and passed control down to the regional governors and the military. The Emperor was a scheming ruler, planning events far in the future, using the Force to foresee the results.

Palpatine concentrated on converting Luke Skywalker (son of Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader) to the dark side of the Force, even at the expense of sacrificing Darth Vader. Luke refused the Emperor's newfound dark side power, and so Palpatine used his deadly Force lightning to attack the young Jedi. Luke almost died in the assault, but his father, Darth Vader, returned to the light side of the Force, and hurled the Emperor into the Death Star's reactor core, killing him.


The Emperor's Head. To see how I created the head click here.


The Robe Clasp. To see how I created the Robe Clasp click here.


This is my second robe made out of a patterned material that resembles the Emperor's Robe from Retun of the Jedi.


My Emperor (first Robe) and Thorne on display at the Star Wars Celebration III.

To see how I created the Throne click here.

To see how I created the Emperor's body click here.