Dathomir: Shrouded in Darkness
Deep in the Outer Rim Territories lies a strange, shadowy, and inhospitable world that is shrouded in the dark side of the Force. This remote and scarcely populated planet is home to several bizarre groups of beings, the likes of which are found in few other places in the galaxy. With no spaceports, advanced industry, or access to trade routes, the native population is forced to survive without the aid of the rest of the galaxy. The hardy residents include warriors and witches who are uniquely suited to this dark world, nicknamed "the Rancor planet."
Dathomir is covered in several different ecosystems, each one providing their own unique challenges and dangerous creatures. Much of the planet is covered in foliage and swampland from which thick mists and noxious fumes permeate the landscape. The flora for the most part consists of short trees that form a thick overhead canopy and thick climbing vines, making traversing the terrain through the treetops possible. As if the environment wasn't sinister enough, this area of Dathomir is also home to the resident witch coven, the Nightsisters. There are many stories about how this coven came to be, one such legend being that an exiled Jedi taught the first Sisters the ways of the Force, which, combined with the planet's natural affinity for the dark side, imbued them with strange magics. However, the Jedi have no record of there ever being a Jedi exiled to Dathomir, so this origin story is disputed.
Regardless of their origins, the Nightsisters are extremely powerful dark Force wielders, drawing their power from the planet itself. These witches also have a long, complicated history with the Sith. The longtime leader of the Nightsisters around the time of the Skywalker saga, Mother Talzin, was one of the most powerful witches in Dathomir's histroy. Powerful enough to attract the attention of the Dark Lord himself. Originally in league with Darth Sidious some two decades before the Battle of Naboo, Mother Talzin was betrayed when Sidious took her son, Maul to be trained as Sidious' Sith apprentice. These witches became so powerful that the eldest among them, Old Daka, was even able to use an army of zombies to defend the coven. The Sisters honored their dead in cocoon-like coffins suspended from the viney canopy above. Old Daka could use her magic to reanimate the corpses within, causing them to attack any enemy of the Nightsisters in a frenzy of teeth and claws.
Other areas of the planet are covered in steep cliffs and rock formations. Here the men of the planet reside and train to be warriors in service to the Sisters. The population of the Nightbrothers is made up entirely of Zabrak. These men each live a brutal, violent, often short life in the hardscrabble cliff faces of the Dathomiri mountain ranges. It's in one of these villages that the future Sith apprentice Darth Maul was raised before being taken away by Darth Sidious. Maul, stripped of his title Darth after his bisection on Naboo, would eventually return to Dathomir. Here Mother Talzin would draw the madness from his mind and construct new legs for him. Maul returned to Dathomir on numerous occasions, making it his home base during his days as a crime lord, after the fall of his rule on Mandalore.
This matriarchal world is truly one of the most unique in the Star Wars universe. Serving as a ghoulish backdrop for a witch coven and group of hardy Zabrak fighters, this planet's landscape is as intimidating as its population. Only the strong survive on this deadly world, as demonstrated by its planetary population numbering only 600. While there are many beautiful and peaceful worlds in the galaxy, Dathomir falls more into the foreboding and violent category.