The world of Star Wars is an ever-expanding one, with new insights into its lore, history, and side stories coming to light on an seemingly daily basis.
We’re now getting new insights into a pivotal moment from Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith thanks to a newly published canon reference book by Lucasfilm called Secrets of the Sith.
As ScreenRant reports, planet Mustafar had been an interest to the Sith long before the climatic battle between Anakin Skywalker and Obi Wan Kenobi left the former tragically deformed from lava flows and getting sliced up by his master’s lightsaber.
After Skywalker then gets cybernetic enhancements and dons the famous black helmet to become Darth Vader, he takes up residence on the planet at the behest of his master Emperor Palpatine. We see Vader living in a tower on Mustafar in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, something that must’ve been a constant and painful reminder of the battle that left him missing some limbs and the heartbreak associated with his love Padme’s death.
But as Palpatine’s notes in the new book indicate, Vader being dispatched to the planet was an intentional move. As someone who was powerful with The Force, Vader was likely the best candidate for locating the long-lost Aeon Engine, a device that was rumored to bring the dead back to life⏤a lifelong obsession of Palpatine’s.
The engine itself was created at the cost of draining the entire planet of life long ago.
“The cost of activating the Aeon Engine was steep, draining the life energies from Mustafar and those who dwelled there… But to obtain true dominion over death, any price is worth paying… If such a device could be re-created, it would undoubtedly prove useful in the hands of the Sith,” Darth Sidious reflects in the book.
What Star Wars theories do you have rolling around in your head? Leave some in the comments below.