No other individual poses a greater threat to the Star Wars galaxy than Emperor Palpatine. He serves as the root of all misfortune in every major Star Wars film (excluding the spinoffs). Palpatine's rise as the most powerful figure in the galaxy has been paved with deceit, betrayal, and copious amounts of brutality.
A veritable wealth of Star Wars material still exists within the Legends continuity. As one of the central characters of the franchise, there's no shortage of material involving Palpatine. As it turns out, the Emperor's callous dictatorship is filled with even more terrifying atrocities than fans may have realized. These are some of the Sith Lord's most fear-inducing actions.
5 Murdered His Entire Family
Fans interested in learning more about Palpatine's backstory should certainly consider reading the Legends novel Darth Plagueis by James Luceno. Although most of the novel focuses on the titular Darth Plagueis, fans will still learn a great deal about Palpatine in the process. Most notably, readers will get a small peek into the future emperor's family life. As some fans may have guessed, it doesn't make for very happy reading.
Readers learn that the relationship between Palpatine and his father is a fractious one. By the time Palpatine is a young man, both individuals clearly hate each other. After one particularly nasty disagreement, Palpatine, filled with rage and hatred, unleashes his latent Force powers. The resulting carnage leaves his father, mother, and siblings dead. After this event, the wayward Naboo nobleman commits himself totally to the Sith teachings of his new master, Darth Plagueis.
4 Created Horrifying Monsters With Sith Alchemy
There's more to the Dark Side of the Force than dazzling lightning and throat-closing pressure. The Legends continuity contains a plethora of examples of both Light and Dark powers that aren't seen in the movies. One of the Dark Side's more underrated strengths lay in Sith Alchemy. Some fans may not know that the Emperor excels in this field.
Palpatine's impressive grasp of Sith Alchemy is proven multiple times throughout the Legends continuity. He was able to create fearsome, alchemically-modified Rancors to guard his most secret sanctuaries. Palpatine also managed to create biomechanical droid/starfighter hybrids during the Dark Empire story arc.
3 Transferred His Essence Into A Younger Clone Body
In the Star Wars universe, death doesn't always remain a permanent state of being. In The Rise of Skywalker, fans learn that the former Emperor is far from dead. The movie offers little in the way of concrete details explaining how Palpatine managed to survive the destruction of the second Death Star.
Interestingly, the concept of Palpatine's resurrection had been explored before in the Expanded Universe as part of the Dark Empire comic book arc. In this story, Palpatine's spiritual essence manages to make its way back to a clone body as part of a contingency plan formulated by the Emperor himself for just such an eventuality. Unlike in the movie, Palpatine comes back as a man once again in his prime, a turn of events that justifiably terrifies the franchise's heroes.
2 Unleashed The World Devastators On The Galaxy
The Galactic Empire is known for its liberal employment of frightful superweapons. This fact is clearly illustrated by the regime's willingness to build and use the Death Star, a space station capable of annihilating an entire planet in a matter of seconds. Nevertheless, the Legends continuity is filled with examples of other Imperial superweapons that give the Death Star a run for its money.
One of the more forgotten superweapons is the aptly named World Devastators. These intimidating behemoths were unleashed by the reborn Palpatine during the previously mentioned Dark Empire story. The World Devastators, unlike the Death Star, used tractor beams to collect a planet's natural resources. These resources could then be used to serve the Empire's needs. The process, however, would leave the planet as nothing more than a barren husk. Palpatine's willingness to use such weapons without a second thought showcases his undiminished penchant for cruelty.
1 Formed The Empire's Brutal Intelligence Service
Although planet-destroying superweapons are certainly terrifying, the Empire also employed more tried-and-true methods of repression. After the dissolution of the Republic, the Empire sought to solidify its rule through a variety of methods, one of which was the strengthening of the security agencies. Palpatine's efforts to turn the former Republic into a police state are illustrated in both the Legends continuity and the current Canon. Both iterations extract obedience from a combination of fear and coercion.
The Emperor's security apparatus consisted of several organs, including COMPNOR (Commission for the Preservation of the New Order), Imperial Intelligence, and the ISB (Imperial Security Bureau). In the Expanded Universe, the Empire's intelligence agencies are one of the many factions that vie for dominance after the death of Palpatine. Ysanne Isard, the Director of Imperial Intelligence under Palpatine, even took control over a part of the Empire during the subsequent Imperial Civil War.