Imperial Guards Handbook
The Imperial Guard, also called the Emperor's Guard or Sith Honour Guard, is the Emperor's personal force of protectors and enforcers. Every Guardsman is handpicked, rigorously trained and mentally bonded to the Emperor. They answer to him alone and are feared even by the Dark Council.
Organisation
Origins. Founded before the Great Galactic War as a force the Sith Order and the Dark Council cannot touch: unyielding, incorruptible and devoted only to the Emperor's life and will. The first members came from the best non-Force-sensitive warriors of the Imperial Military.
Selection. Candidates come from the elite ranks of the Imperial Military and are judged on past achievements, endurance and loyalty, then put through trials. The Guard is mostly non-Force-sensitive. A Force-sensitive candidate may very rarely be accepted if their loyalty and will are beyond question.
The Bond. Each new Guardsman is brought before the Emperor, who forms a psychic link with them. It makes betrayal impossible and lets him impose his will on them. While near the Emperor a Guardsman draws on his power: faster, stronger, nearly tireless, and able to overpower Jedi and Sith by surprise.
Place in the hierarchy. The Guard acts independently of the Dark Council and the military. It takes orders only from the Emperor and may oversee or countermand Sith or military operations that conflict with his wishes. It has its own command structure.
Assigned posts
Equipment
Training
Indoctrination. Recruits are conditioned to give up their former identity and doubt. This includes exposure to the Emperor's presence, sensory deprivation, memory manipulation and psychological trials. It ends with bonding rituals in the Emperor's sanctum. Recruits who fail are eliminated.
Training worlds. The Emperor chooses dark side-saturated worlds, such as Dromund Kaas and Korriban, that grind recruits down and attune them to him.
Death matches. Recruits fight each other or summoned creatures to the death. Only the strongest and most ruthless survive.
Combat modules
Graduation. A cadet graduates by defeating their veteran instructor in single combat. Those who fail are eliminated.
Service for life. Guardsmen serve until they can no longer fight, then become instructors. Recruits are expected to challenge their instructors, and an old Guardsman is often killed by the recruit he trained.
Combat and tactics
Against Jedi and Sith. Close the distance quickly, strike from unexpected angles, block line of sight and attack in coordinated waves. The aim is to deny the Force-user room to use their powers and break their concentration.
Against Republic operatives. Move fast between cover, use sudden attacks, mix ranged and melee weapons and disable key targets one by one.
Electrostaff. Use its reach for sweeping strikes and twirls that deflect lightsaber blows while keeping pressure on the opponent. Follow a deflection with a rapid counter-attack to the joints, pressure points or vital organs.
Stealth. Silent eliminations, shadowing and reconnaissance, and planned ambushes that lure enemies into kill zones.
Guarding duties and protocols
Protective duties. Guardsmen stand wherever the Emperor is: the throne room, his chambers, the battlefield. They also guard key sites, archives of Sith knowledge, artefacts and dark side relics.
Rotation. Posts and shifts are rotated and kept irregular and unpredictable, so no Guardsman gets complacent and enemies cannot plan around a pattern.
Stances
Emergency response
Duties beyond guarding
Relations with others
Military and Sith. The Guard cooperates in large campaigns only on its own terms, as shock troops or infiltrators, and never falls under the military chain of command.
Dark Council. The Guard operates outside the Council's authority, which causes distrust and resentment. The Council fears and respects the Guard and sees it as a check on its ambitions. Attempts to turn Guardsmen against each other or weaken the Emperor's standing have always failed.
Sith Intelligence. They work together on sensitive missions. Intelligence prefers secrecy and manipulation, the Guard prefers direct, overwhelming force. Where the Emperor's interests are at stake, the Guard takes priority, may disregard Intelligence orders that conflict with his commands, and may start its own covert operations to protect him.
Loyalty, failure and betrayal
Loyalty rites. Guardsmen regularly renew their bond. The Loyalty Oath is sworn in a circle in the Emperor's sanctum or a dark side temple, pledging service until death. Rites of Strength are combat trials against the Guard's veterans.
Failure. Even hesitation brings scrutiny. A faltering Guardsman gets one chance to redeem themselves through a lethal trial or a feat of exceptional sacrifice. Those who keep failing are quietly eliminated, often by fellow Guardsmen.
Betrayal. Any hint of disloyalty is treated as corruption of the mind. The suspect is interrogated by fellow Guardsmen and, if guilty, executed on the spot.
Code of conduct
The Imperial Guard, also called the Emperor's Guard or Sith Honour Guard, is the Emperor's personal force of protectors and enforcers. Every Guardsman is handpicked, rigorously trained and mentally bonded to the Emperor. They answer to him alone and are feared even by the Dark Council.
Organisation
Origins. Founded before the Great Galactic War as a force the Sith Order and the Dark Council cannot touch: unyielding, incorruptible and devoted only to the Emperor's life and will. The first members came from the best non-Force-sensitive warriors of the Imperial Military.
Selection. Candidates come from the elite ranks of the Imperial Military and are judged on past achievements, endurance and loyalty, then put through trials. The Guard is mostly non-Force-sensitive. A Force-sensitive candidate may very rarely be accepted if their loyalty and will are beyond question.
The Bond. Each new Guardsman is brought before the Emperor, who forms a psychic link with them. It makes betrayal impossible and lets him impose his will on them. While near the Emperor a Guardsman draws on his power: faster, stronger, nearly tireless, and able to overpower Jedi and Sith by surprise.
Place in the hierarchy. The Guard acts independently of the Dark Council and the military. It takes orders only from the Emperor and may oversee or countermand Sith or military operations that conflict with his wishes. It has its own command structure.
Assigned posts
- The Sith Sanctum and Imperial Citadel on Dromund Kaas.
- The Sith Academy on Korriban.
- The Emperor's Fortress, a secret site for a select few.
- Deployments across Imperial space to enforce the Emperor's will.
Equipment
- Electrostaff: the primary weapon, a double-ended pole weapon with electrical discharge.
- Other weapons: blaster rifles, pulse rifles, vibroblades, knives, thermal detonators, ion grenades and specialised grenades.
Training
Indoctrination. Recruits are conditioned to give up their former identity and doubt. This includes exposure to the Emperor's presence, sensory deprivation, memory manipulation and psychological trials. It ends with bonding rituals in the Emperor's sanctum. Recruits who fail are eliminated.
Training worlds. The Emperor chooses dark side-saturated worlds, such as Dromund Kaas and Korriban, that grind recruits down and attune them to him.
Death matches. Recruits fight each other or summoned creatures to the death. Only the strongest and most ruthless survive.
Combat modules
- Melee, hand-to-hand and electrostaff mastery.
- Blasters and heavy weapons.
- Martial arts made to defeat Jedi and Sith: speed, precision, counter-attacks, pressure points and grappling.
- Survival and operations in deserts, jungles, cold and radiation.
- Resisting fear, pain and psychic attack by drawing on the Emperor's presence.
Graduation. A cadet graduates by defeating their veteran instructor in single combat. Those who fail are eliminated.
Service for life. Guardsmen serve until they can no longer fight, then become instructors. Recruits are expected to challenge their instructors, and an old Guardsman is often killed by the recruit he trained.
Combat and tactics
Against Jedi and Sith. Close the distance quickly, strike from unexpected angles, block line of sight and attack in coordinated waves. The aim is to deny the Force-user room to use their powers and break their concentration.
Against Republic operatives. Move fast between cover, use sudden attacks, mix ranged and melee weapons and disable key targets one by one.
Electrostaff. Use its reach for sweeping strikes and twirls that deflect lightsaber blows while keeping pressure on the opponent. Follow a deflection with a rapid counter-attack to the joints, pressure points or vital organs.
Stealth. Silent eliminations, shadowing and reconnaissance, and planned ambushes that lure enemies into kill zones.
Guarding duties and protocols
Protective duties. Guardsmen stand wherever the Emperor is: the throne room, his chambers, the battlefield. They also guard key sites, archives of Sith knowledge, artefacts and dark side relics.
Rotation. Posts and shifts are rotated and kept irregular and unpredictable, so no Guardsman gets complacent and enemies cannot plan around a pattern.
Stances
- Sentinel Stance: a protective perimeter around entrances and points of interest, used at the Sith Sanctum and outside the Emperor's chambers.
- Fortress Formation: a compact interlocking ring around the Emperor with weapons ready. It is used at ceremonies, meetings and whenever he is vulnerable.
- At all times Guardsmen stay on maximum alert.
Emergency response
- Small breach: seal exits, pursue or eliminate the intruder, and isolate them from the Emperor.
- Large-scale attack: reinforced formations and shock-and-awe tactics. Other Imperial units may reinforce, but the Guard is always the first line.
- Battlefield: electrostaffs, melee and blasters. The Emperor's safety comes first, the threat second.
- Evacuation: extraction protocols to get the Emperor out of a hostile situation.
Duties beyond guarding
- Enforcement: carry out the Emperor's orders without question: eliminate traitors, crush rebellions, hunt rogue Sith and Republic spies, and covertly assassinate high-profile targets.
- Interrogation: some Guardsmen specialise in non-Force interrogation, wearing prisoners down through isolation, endurance and a cycle of hope and despair, with pain used only when needed.
- Project security: guard secret research, experimental technology, resource sites and installations, and watch the loyalty of the people working on them.
- Espionage: select Guardsmen infiltrate Republic or Imperial groups, gather intelligence and root out traitors inside the Empire.
Relations with others
Military and Sith. The Guard cooperates in large campaigns only on its own terms, as shock troops or infiltrators, and never falls under the military chain of command.
Dark Council. The Guard operates outside the Council's authority, which causes distrust and resentment. The Council fears and respects the Guard and sees it as a check on its ambitions. Attempts to turn Guardsmen against each other or weaken the Emperor's standing have always failed.
Sith Intelligence. They work together on sensitive missions. Intelligence prefers secrecy and manipulation, the Guard prefers direct, overwhelming force. Where the Emperor's interests are at stake, the Guard takes priority, may disregard Intelligence orders that conflict with his commands, and may start its own covert operations to protect him.
Loyalty, failure and betrayal
Loyalty rites. Guardsmen regularly renew their bond. The Loyalty Oath is sworn in a circle in the Emperor's sanctum or a dark side temple, pledging service until death. Rites of Strength are combat trials against the Guard's veterans.
Failure. Even hesitation brings scrutiny. A faltering Guardsman gets one chance to redeem themselves through a lethal trial or a feat of exceptional sacrifice. Those who keep failing are quietly eliminated, often by fellow Guardsmen.
Betrayal. Any hint of disloyalty is treated as corruption of the mind. The suspect is interrogated by fellow Guardsmen and, if guilty, executed on the spot.
Code of conduct
- No fraternisation. No close bonds with anyone outside the Guard, including civilians, military and Sith.
- Silence. No unprompted communication. Speak only when permitted.
- No unsanctioned leave. Nobody leaves their post or duties without the Emperor's or a superior's permission. Penalties include expulsion or execution.
- Operational secrecy. Guardsmen swear an oath of silence and never discuss missions, tactics or assignments with anyone, including other Imperials, unless the Emperor authorises it.
- Self-sacrifice is honour. A Guardsman's life is expendable. Failing to make a required sacrifice is a grave dishonour, and the shame can be answered by a ceremony of restitution or by execution.
- Obedience. Never act independently without orders from the Emperor or a superior. Acting alone risks expulsion, execution or reprogramming and is treated as treason.