Star Wars: The Death Star's Original Power Source Was Haunting, Tragic and TOXIC - CBR - Comic Book Resources

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The Star Wars franchise has undergone numerous revisions since the release of the first film in 1977, especially finer details such as the original power source of the Death Star. As the universe has expanded and additional creative voices come into play, questions like how the Empire would power such a weapon become a source of good stories. Canon Star Wars took a different approach to the question, but Legends content finds a haunting and tragic alternative answer.

The Death Star was ultimately powered by giant kyber crystals, as covered in the canonical novel Tarkin and confirmed by dialogue in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. That applies to both the first and second Death Stars, and to Starkiller Base in Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens which turned the kyber-rich planet of Ilum into a world-destroying superweapon. But before the movies spelled out the specifics, a non-canonical comic book uncovered something far more terrifying than kyber crystals.

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Dark Horse comics published Darth Vader and the Ninth Assassin in 2013, positing a lengthy encounter between Vader and a cult called the Headless Snake. The Snake possessed a great beam called the Basis, which they used to power their city and grow their crops. It also served as protection for their planet, capable of slicing approaching ships apart. They heralded Vader’s arrival as the sign of a great prophecy, before he took control of the weapon and killed them. He eventually turned the Basis over to Tarkin for use in an ominous "project". Multiple visual cues in the comics infer that the Death Star will be its final destination.

On the surface, that differs little from the kyber crystals, though its energy is more overtly mystical in origin. More disturbing is the physical and spiritual corruption it seemed to visit on the Headless Snake. Those who spent time around the Basis began to show physical deformities, as well as an increased appetite for violence and brutality. Insanity was strongly inferred as well, since they were essentially a death cult. One of the hieroglyphics on their temple wall suggested that the Basis was nuclear in nature.

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Whatever its true qualities, the Basis had a clear and devastating effect on those who remained around it for extended periods of time. By extension, that would include all of the personnel who built and manned the Death Star who would developed similar symptoms over time. Had the Basis turned out to be the source of its power, it would have let the Death Star live up to its name for its personnel as well as the planets they destroyed.

The overt toxicity of the Basis meant that the Emperor would happily poison his own forces – physically and spiritually – in order to wield that kind of power. A Death Star populated by a cult of death worshippers might have appealed to the Emperor a great deal, especially if they started out as his own loyal officers and stormtroopers. They might even have formed a source of Dark Force power on their own, allowing Palpatine or his apprentices to feed on their rage and insanity whenever they visited the station. That would have made good on Vader’s words in Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope in a terrifying way: the ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of the Force.

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Robert Vaux (30 Articles Published)

A native Californian, Rob Vaux has been a critic and entertainment writer for over 20 years, including work for Collider, Mania.com and the Sci-Fi Movie Page. He lives in the Los Angeles area, roots for the Angels, and is old enough to remember when Splinter of the Mind's Eye was a big deal.