Though it does not show up too often in the extended universe, Tython is one of the most important locations in all of Star Wars. The reason for this is simple. Tython is the planet where the Jedi Order was first founded and where the natures of the Light and Dark side of the force were first explored. From this planet emerged the beginnings of what can be considered the most influential and powerful group to exist in the known universe. Yet despite this, Tython has not been explored in great detail by the various lore weavers who have built the Star Wars universe into what it is. Starting planet of both the Jedi Knight and Jedi Consular, it has had less information revealed about it than any of the other Origin Worlds. Today we are going to dive into what info is out there in the final installment of our four part series featuring the Origin Worlds in The Old Republic.

Tython is located in the region of the galaxy known as the Deep Core. Primarily a forest world, Tython is a planet of serene natural beauty. The massive amount of life on the planet makes it a perfect location for the Jedi to study and meditate upon the Light Side of the Force. Much like Korriban is to the Sith, Tython can be considered almost a “holy” location to the Jedi. It was on this planet that the groundwork for the Jedi Order was established.

Almost 36,500 years before the events of “A New Hope”, nine massive pyramid ships, known as the Tho Yor, gathered Force-Sensitive individuals from various species and brought them to the planet of Tython. No one knows who built these ships, or if they were ever intended to serve any purpose outside of transporting these Force-Sensitives to the planet, but after they fulfilled this purpose, the ships were scattered across the planet and converted into various temples that served as centers of learning for the Force-Sensitive individuals that they transported there. For over 10,000 years these individuals and their descendants studied the mystical power known as Ashla, which would later come to be known as the Light Side of the Force. However, conflict arose when certain individuals began to be seduced by a philosophy known as Bogan, which in later years would be referred to as the Dark Side of the Force. The resulting decade long war, known as the “Force Wars”, was the first documented conflict between the two opposing sides of the Force. When the dust settled, the followers of Bogan found themselves defeated and the followers of Ashla were one step closer to establishing the Jedi Order.

Initially it was believed that the Force could only be felt on Tython until a group of Force-Sensitives left the planet to spread the teachings and discovered they could still feel the Force off planet. This eventually led to all the Force users to leave the planet to explore the galaxy. They eventually settled on Ossus and formally established the Jedi Order, abandoning Tython completely. Though some Jedi may have remained or returned from time to time, the planet played no great role in the Order’s history for many years. The next major event to occur on Tython happened during the time of the Great Hunt. The Great Hunt was organized after the war with Exar Kun in an attempt to destroy the various Sithspawn that had been developed during the war. Their main focus was on destroying the Terentateks, creatures who fed off the blood of Force-Sensitive individuals. Tython was one of the planets visited during the hunt, and during that time the Jedi are believed to have cleansed all remaining Terentateks from the planet.

Sometime after this, the location of Tython was lost to the Jedi for reasons unknown. A few different theories for this can be speculated. Perhaps a changing of major hyperspace routes led to the planet going relatively unvisited for years. Perhaps the details of its location were lost during the First Jedi Purge. Whatever the reason may be, the fact remains that the location of the planet was lost to the Jedi for hundreds of years. After the Sacking of Coruscant, the Jedi Order lost not only their temple on Coruscant, but their reputation as defenders of the Republic. They needed a place to recover away from the general public where they could best decide their role in the galaxy after the peace agreement with the Sith Empire. Satele Shan, who players should recognize from the “Hope” and “Return” trailers, rediscovered the location of the ancient Jedi home-world during the course of the war. This discovery proved critical as the Jedi Order decided to relocate to Tython and establish it as their main base of operations.

Despite the generally small amount of information we have on hand, the history of Tython is quite rich and deep. The additions that the writers at BioWare can add to it are near limitless and will hopefully give us a greater insight into the Jedi Order. With any luck we will discover new secrets, new info, and hopefully gain a deeper understanding into the origins of the Jedi Order. Given how little Tython has been discussed in the greater Star Wars lore, I personally am looking forward to exploring it more than the other Origin Worlds based on my belief that it will reveal more new info than any other starting planet. That being said, all of the Origin Worlds look like they are going to be a blast to explore and I can’t wait to get in there and find all the little nuggets of Star Wars lore I can get my greedy little hands on. I hope you have enjoyed our four part look into the starting planets. I’ll be back next week with some brand new TOR Lore to get you ready to dive into the massive world of Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Tags: Jedi Consular, jedi knight, Origin World, tython