Throughout the Star Wars timeline, the Sith have created far more superweapons than the Death Star to fight the Jedi and take over the galaxy. The Death Star is an admittedly powerful space station that can destroy entire planets, hence why the Empire built two in the original Star Wars trilogy. The First and Final Orders then put their own versions in the Star Wars sequel trilogy and made weapons capable of obliterating multiple planets.

Besides the Sith superweapons introduced in the new canon under Disney, there were even more in the original Star Wars Expanded Universe, now known as “Legends.” Some were similar to the Death Star in design and function, while others targeted the Sith’s enemies differently. These superweapons reflect how cruel the Sith could be and the courage it took for the Jedi to stop them.

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The Thought Bomb (Legends)

A Sith ritual that destroyed all Force users caught in the blast

The thought bomb was a last resort by the Sith to defeat the Jedi, but it nearly led to their complete extinction. This Sith ritual collected dark side energy into a single orb and then released it all at once, instantly killing any Force user caught in the blast radius. The only remaining Sith Lord was Darth Bane, who then created the Rule of Two, limiting the Sith to one master and one apprentice at a time.

The thought bomb is a more terrifying weapon than the Death Star for Force users, trapping their souls in anguish for all time. Of course, it wouldn’t be much use against non-Force users, but even if it was, it could only target a limited area. So while it’s still dangerous and cruel in its own right, it doesn’t have the Death Star’s ability to destroy entire planets.

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The Dark Reaper (Legends)

It used a Force Harvester to power its weapons

Like the thought bomb, the Dark Reaper was a superweapon that targeted Force users, but it could still be used against anyone. It was powered by a Force Harvester, draining the Force from living beings and converting them into energy beams that could be fired. The Dark Reaper was defeated when a former Sith taught the Jedi to defend themselves against the Force Harvester.

This Sith weapon did have the Death Star’s ability to fire energy blasts, but not nearly on the same scale. It was also limited by powering itself through the Force Harvester, which Jedi could teach themselves to defend against with time. It’s not as cruel a fate for Force-sensitives as the thought bomb, though the Sith wouldn’t be likely to destroy themselves either.

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The Star Forge (Legends)

A station that could produce endless ships for a Sith fleet

The Star Forge was created by the Rakatan Infinite Empire, which ruled much of the galaxy in an era before the Republic. It drained energy from stars – like Starkiller Base in Star Wars: The Force Awakens – powering shipyards that could quickly churn out a mᴀssive fleet. Darth Malak eventually discovered the Star Forge and attempted to conquer the Republic, but he was defeated by his former master, Revan, who had turned back to the light.

Creating countless ships with the Star Forge would give the Sith more range and power than one Death Star. Malak also devastated the surface of the planet Taris with his fleet, so while he didn’t destroy a world, it had the same effect. The Death Star is still more dangerous because of what its superlaser can do, but the Star Forge does have an undeniable advantage.

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The Sith Temple Of Malachor

An ancient battle station similar to the Death Star

Introduced in the season 2 finale of Star Wars Rebels, the Sith Temple on Malachor seems to be an early version of what the Sith would eventually achieve with the Death Star. It was a battle station that could scorch a planet’s surface and could only be powered by a Sith Holocron. While we have yet to see it traveling through space, Maul implied it was powerful enough to crush all his enemies.

Of course, the Malachor superweapon backfired by killing every Jedi and Sith present at a final battle, much like the thought bomb. While it’s similar to the Death Star, there’s no confirmation of how powerful it would be in space, or if it could target an entire planet. It’s certainly possible, but without a direct answer, comparing it to the Death Star requires a bit of speculation.

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The Final Order Fleet

A fleet of 10,000 planet killers

Without a doubt, the one Sith superweapon undeniably more dangerous than the Death Star is the Final Order fleet. 10,000 star destroyers would be plenty powerful on their own, but each ship of the Final Order could destroy an entire planet single-handedly. It combines the range of a traditional Sith fleet with the planet-killing capabilities of the Death Star.

If the Resistance had failed to stop the Final Order fleet from leaving Exegol, it would have been nearly impossible to free the galaxy from Palpatine’s control. Of course, these ships had similar weaknesses to the Death Star, from one tower guiding the whole fleet to the canons being vulnerable to blaster fire. Even so, the Final Order embodies the ultimate goal of Sith superweapons in Star Wars and is just as dangerous as the Death Star.

Star Wars

Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just тιтled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.