Star Wars: Who Created The Witches of Dathomir?

Star Wars

By Joshua Kristian McCoy

Published May 22, 2024

As the Star Wars franchise struggles to expand, the wisest strategy becomes digging deeper into lesser-known lore details. Sometimes, that means picking a popular character and focusing on their experience. Other examples find new uses for established canon. Several recent outings have played with the Nightsisters, also known as the Witches of Dathomir. Their distinctive appearances and powers help them stand out, but a lesser-known former Jedi named Allya gave them their traditions.

The Witches of Dathomir have made a strong campaign into the forefront of Star Wars material. Their first canonical appearance came in a 2011 episode of The Clone Wars. They made their live-action debut in Ahsoka after being mentioned in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett. Many fans remember their critical appearance in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, where Merrin became a fan favorite.

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Who was Allya?

Promo art for Star Wars Eclipse showing the Jedi Council room

Allya was a human Jedi first mentioned in Dave Wolverton's 1994 novelThe Courtship of Princess Leia. She joined the modern canon in an article about Dathomir published in Star Wars: Build the Millennium Falcon magazine. Allya was a Force-sensitive woman born sometime in the early Republic Era. Allya was strong in the Force, leading the Jedi Order to take her from her unknown home planet and train her to use her powers. She became a capable and respected Jedi Knight, but the call of the dark side reached her. Allya became a Dark Jedi, a questionable descriptor for a Jedi who followed the easy path to power through evil influence. The Jedi Council passed judgment upon her, but their respect for life led them to spare Allya. They exiled Allya to Dathomir, a remote, savage forest planet. The Jedi Masters expected Allya to meditate, cultivate serenity, and find inner peace while free from distraction. They did not take Dathomir's immense connection to the dark side of the Force into account.

How did Allya change Dathomir?

Continuing their long trend of making the worst possible decision in almost every situation, the Jedi Council exiled Allya to the worst possible location. In Disney's modern continuity, Dathomir has an unmatched connection to the dark side. The Legends continuity, on the other hand, depicts it as a long-established penal colony. Allya met many local criminals and the descendants of former prisoners. She also encountered the planet's most iconic natural predator, the rancor. She used her mastery of the Force to subjugate rancors. This allowed her to reorder the sparse society under her command. She established a matriarchal dictatorship, giving local women control based on genetic Force-sensitivity. Men held almost no power but often worked as warriors or laborers under their mothers and sisters. Allya gave birth to many daughters, each of whom wielded the Force to keep control over Dathomir. Her presence in the lore differs significantly based on the canon or Legends continuity.

The current canon has little to say about Allya. She is positioned as the potential founder of the Witches of Dathomir. Jedi records don't mention her, but the Witches maintain several possible stories about their creation. While her position in their origin story varies, one contribution remains inarguable. Allya wrote the Book of Law, which portrayed the Jedi Order in an unflattering light. This created a generations-long distrust between the Nightsisters and the Jedi, as seen in almost every depiction of the characters. Since she created the Dathomirians as fans know them, it stands to reason that the Book of Law remains integral to the planet's culture.

Did Allya turn to the light side?

The Legends continuity is much kinder to Allya. After her hostile takeover of Dathomir and the gradual construction of the matriarchal magic society, Allya saw the error of her ways. Her granddaughters gave her a grim glimpse of the monster she had become. Near the end of her life, she began instructing her daughters on the teachings of the light side. This version of Allya also wrote a Book of Law with the opposite intentions. Wielding elements of the Jedi Code, Allya left behind a guide that would teach the Nightsisters to use their magic wisely. While many Nightsister clans misinterpreted her mission, she died doing what she could to push her disciples in the right direction. This excerpt from the Book of Law unpacks her changed perspective:

Those who yield to passion will fail to dominate.

Those who fear death will never achieve pure power.

Never forget that your magic must always be used wisely.

Never concede to evil, lest you be consumed by it.

Allya is a fascinating character worthy of a solo project. Recent explorations of the Nightsisters often focus on the end of their story. While they suffer the tragic fate depicted in several adaptations, the beginning of their tale remains engaging. Though it took several centuries, the Jedi Council did eventually convince Allya to turn away from the dark side. She left behind a new dimension of fellow devotees, but Dathomir worked its magic over time.