When the newest Disney+ Star Wars series, The Acolyte, was first announced in 2020, one of the big takeaways from the then-enigmatic project was that it would take place during “the waning days of the High Republic.” The promise of a live-action series brought a new spotlight to the ambitious new multi-media literary effort slated to debut in early 2021. It offered a swath of new Star Wars stories set in an era that was older than the New Republic but newer than the Old Republic. This era is The High Republic.
Over the last several years, the High Republic gained a loyal cult following of Star Wars fans to its pages. The Acolyte will be many fans’ first real experience with the storytelling of this galactic era and some of the unique characters created for it. As such, we’ve decided to offer you a history of the era, as far as we know currently. While each book and story within the High Republic has its share of twists and turns, consider this a broad overview of the main overarching throughline of the High Republic as a collective in anticipation of The Acolyte. For a more in-depth coverage, check out our video timeline.
The real-world origins of the High Republic began in 2018 under the name Avengers Initiative. Wait, sorry, the All-Star Initiative, and later, Project Luminous. The initial project included five authors: Justina Ireland, Cavan Scott, Claudia Gray, Daniel José Older, and Charles Soule. Each are fan-favorite authors, both within the Star Wars canon and their outside work. They would later add more authors to the mix, like George Mann, Alyssa Wong, Zoraida Córdova, and Tessa Gratton.
Starting around 500 years before the first Star Wars movie, or “500 Before the Battle of Yavin,” the High Republic era is one of exploration and expansion. The Galactic Republic has largely recovered from the dark ages following the fall of the Old Republic. Now the Republic is trying to expand out again to the Outer Rim. This is especially true for the region known as the Galactic Frontier. This Frontier is popular among pirates including familiar faces like Maz Kanata.
This is a golden age for the Jedi. Believing the Sith threat fully defeated generations earlier, the Jedi focus on their mission as the “guardians of peace and justice” as Obi-Wan Kenobi would say. These Jedi often rally around the cry “For Light and Life.” They frequently dress in resplendent gold-on-white temple robes, though Jedi in the field still wear the more familiar brown vibes.
Story-wise, The High Republic consists of three main phases. We’re going to discuss them in chronological order instead of publishing order. We’ll start with Phase 2, which takes place in 382 BBY, 150 years before the rest of the series. Star Wars was like, “we heard you like prequels so here’s some prequel for your prequel.”
Phase 2 introduces a few different religious groups with affiliation to the Force, including groups that have appeared in previous Star Wars media. These groups include the Guardians of the Whills and the Church of the Force. We also meet a more fanatical cult known as the Path of the Open Hand. They believe the Jedi and any other Force sensitives who use powers are actively harming the Force. Their belief is basically a hyper-extended version of Chaos Theory. The use of the Force, even innocuously, in one spot could cause catastrophe somewhere else in the universe. Their own catchphrase is “The Force shall be free,” because any good cult should have a motto.
A good cult needs a false prophet too, and the Path has one in The Mother. Despite the cult’s beliefs, the Mother is secretly a Force-user herself, with a bitter personal grudge against the Jedi. She comes into possession of creatures that feed off of Force users, causing them to have intense, terrifying hallucinations before the creatures devour their essence, leaving a lifeless husk behind. The Mother calls these creatures the Leveler, but the Jedi and later books call them the Nameless.
The Mother’s powers allow her to pass most charisma checks, causing followers to flock to her, often not knowing why they find her so alluring. The Mother manipulates current events and even tries to sabotage the peace talks of a major generational war between two worlds to destabilize the region and drive more followers to her flock.
One such follower is Marda Ro, a member of refugee alien race the Evereni whom the galaxy at large distrusts. A great storm destroyed the Evereni homeworld, and then a corrupt government left the survivors distrustful of everyone but themselves. Marda is a true believer in the Path of the Open Hand. However, her love for the Jedi Padawan Kevmo Zink tests that faith.
Kevmo and his master are killed by the Nameless. Marda, in her fanaticism, interprets their deaths as an example of the destruction that follows from using the Force. This only strengthens Marda’s devotion to the Path’s cause. She claims they are now the Path of the Closed Fist, a more militant version of the cult. Soon more Jedi arrive at the Path’s homeworld of Dalna after their sabotage of a peace treaty leads to a full-scale riot and battle on the pilgrim’s moon of Jedha. Jedha, of course, is where Jyn Erso later visits in Rogue One.
The Nameless’ effects on the Jedi, as well as internal tensions within the cult, cause events to escalate into a massacre known as the Night of Sorrow. Marda swears revenge against the Jedi. The Path of the Closed Fist now becomes a gang of marauders called the Nihil.
Afraid public knowledge of the Nameless could harm the Jedi, Grand Master Yoda and other Jedi keep information about them out of the archives. Over the next few decades the Nameless become something of a Jedi folklore, a nursery rhyme to scare younglings in an era before Anakin Skywalker existed. And we come to the end of Phase 2.
A cargo ship known as the Legacy Run travels through hyperspace when a strange shadowy object appears in front of it causing a collision. The impact of the crash sends huge chunks of starship careening through hyperspace. These chunks cause more crashes and destruction along many high-traffic routes. These force ships in the region to drop out of hyperspace lanes and become stranded. This event is known as The Great Hyperspace Disaster.
The pieces of the ship emerging from lightspeed threaten to obliterate a system known as Hetzal, home to over 40 billion people. Every Jedi within reach of the system converges in an attempt to avert the disaster. Their leader in this Avar Kriss, a powerful Jedi who uses her impressive Force abilities to guide this task force to work as a collective unit.
The Republic’s current Chancellor, Lina Soh, engaged in a series of Great Works projects to present the Republic as a shining symbol of hope. One such project is the Starlight Beacon. This Jedi space station positioned near the Galactic Frontier would serve as the Jedi’s base of operations on the Galactic Frontier. It would allow them to respond to calls for aid sooner than the Temple on Coruscant could provide. As the Hero of Hetzal, Avar Kriss becomes marshal of the station.
In the last 150 years the Nihil have evolved, or devolved, into a marauding group of Viking-like raiders with a prominent storm theme. They are led from the shadows by Marchion Ro, a descendant of Marda, who carries her mission of vengeance with him. At first, the Nihil seem like opportunists, extorting worlds threatened by the emerging starship remnants from the Great Disaster. We later learn that the Nihil caused the explosion to begin with. Marchion sacrifices a third of the Nihil during a space battle against the Jedi and Republic, appearing that they lost.
A year after the Great Hyperspace Disaster, the Republic grows complacent thinking that the threat of the Nihil has gone. Chancellor Soh moves forward with her plans for another of her Great Works, The Republic Fair. This is like a World’s Fair but in Star Wars.
Shocking probably nobody except the characters in the book, the Nihil attack! A massive coordinated assault by the Nihil informs the Republic that they are indeed still around. The Jedi and Republic begin Operation: Counterstrike, an effort to seek out and destroy the Nihil. In an attack on a Nihil base, the Jedi learn that the marauders have some of the Nameless. One of the creatures kills a Jedi named Loden Greatstorm, reducing him to a Force-drained husk.
The Jedi mistakenly believe that one of Marchion Ro’s top lieutenants, a Twi’lek woman named Lourna Dee, is the leader of the whole organization. Avar Kriss and her Starlight Beacon Jedi defy the council and send Jedi undercover into Nihil territory to capture Lourna.
Once again the Jedi and Republic mistakenly believe that they’ve defeated the Nihil. Marchion Ro springs the next phase of his plan. He launches a series of assaults on a number of worlds, creating a refugee crisis at Starlight Beacon. A Nihil sabotage team takes advantage of how overwhelmed the Beacon is and slips through, moving quickly throughout the station causing systemic and structural failures. They also unleash a Nameless into the station to cause havoc among the Jedi onboard. Despite their best efforts, the Jedi are unable to save the station. Starlight crashes onto a nearby world, killing many of the Jedi serving on it. The Republic watches in horror as the crash rips the symbol of the Jedi’s light from the sky. It’s at this time that Marchion Ro finally reveals himself to the galaxy.
The Nihil have installed a massive barrier in space called the Stormwall. This series of disruptive buoys pull ships out of hyperspace preventing lightspeed travel beyond them. The Nihil have declared a region of the Galactic Frontier to be the Nihil Occlusion Zone. Thus far they have prevented the Jedi and Republic from traveling beyond this border. Avar Kriss finds herself trapped behind it in Nihil-controlled space. After months of isolation, Avar manages to get past the Stormwall and return to the Jedi Temple to report on her time behind enemy lines.
Phase 3 is still in the middle of publishing, so we don’t fully know how the events will play out beyond this point. We also don’t know how they’ll feed into the story of The Acolyte close to a century later. How much the events of these stories still press on the Jedi will become clear when the series debuts on June 4.
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Shedeur Sanders has been working with the Cleveland Browns' equipment staff as the No. 4 quarterback this summer. He'll have a new opportunity following the troubling injury news for Kenny Pickett. Per Adam Schefter of ESPN, Pickett suffered a hamstring injury during Saturday's practice and will not receive reps until his issue is re-evaluated. "Browns QB Kenny Pickett injured his hamstring near the end of Saturday’s practice and is expected to re-evaluate the injury later this week, per sources," Schefter posted on X. "Pickett was coming off a strong couple of practices, per sources, and at least for the short term, there now will be more reps for Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. Pickett's injury will shake up the quarterback race in Cleveland. Through OTAs and early in training camp, Sanders has been the odd man out as the only signal caller on the roster not to receive reps with the first-team offense. It's unclear if the Browns coaching staff intends to give Sanders reps with the first-team offense now that Pickett is sidelined, but the fifth-round pick will have more chances this week to prove that he deserves an opportunity to stay in Cleveland. The Browns are in a unique situation with their rookie quarterbacks. Third-round pick Dillon Gabriel was selected before Sanders, but the son of Deion Sanders fell to Day 3 of the draft for reasons other than talent. The majority of draft analysts had Sanders as a better-graded quarterback than Gabriel, and many thought the Colorado product would be taken in the first round. The Browns can use the injury as an excuse to give Sanders reps with the first team, and it's a task they need to take advantage of before the team names a starter. Sanders has the potential to be a starter in the league, and this week is pivotal for his rookie season in Cleveland.
We are still in the first week of Green Bay Packers training camp for the 2025 season. While it’s still early and fully padded practices are just beginning, here’s a look at five players who are off to a great start at Packers training camp 2025. We discuss the players; the reason they’re on this list and what their potential strong play could mean for them going forward. Five Players off to a Great Start at Packers Training Camp 2025, Number Five: K Brandon McManus Kicker Brandon McManus enjoyed a nearly perfect debut season in Green Bay in 2024, making all his extra points and missing just one field goal during the regular season. In training camp, the veteran kicker has been automatic. He made his first 15 field goal tries including three-of-three from 50 yards out or more. His long was a 56-yard effort. The Packers need another strong season from McManus after struggling through a season and a half of inconsistent kicking after parting ways with Mason Crosby. So far, he’s off to a great start. Number Four: WR Dontayvion Wicks Dontayvion Wicks led the team in targets last season with 76 but was only fourth on the team with 39 catches. Drops were a problem all season. He had nine drops or a drop percentage of 11.8. The Packers need Wicks to cut down on the drops and take advantage of his speed and ability to get open when running pass patterns. So far, Wicks has stood out in training camp and made some big plays. He is also holding on to almost every catchable ball sent his way. Wicks may have more upside than any healthy veteran receiver on the Packers roster. He needs to continue to be consistent to solidify his spot in the lineup in what is now a crowded receiver room. Five Players off to a Great Start at Packers Training Camp 2025, Number Three: CB Carrington Valentine Carrington Valentine has a fight on his hands for playing time as camp started. He will battle with Keisean Nixon and newcomer Nate Hobbs for a spot at boundary corner. At the start of camp, Hobbs and Nixon were ahead of Valentine on the depth chart. But Valentine has looked good thus far in camp. He had two interceptions during the first few days of practice and has done a good job in coverage. As usual, he’s played physically in coverage, and he’s done a good job of breaking up passes. His goal is to carve out a bigger role for himself in the defense as he enters this third season in the NFL. He’s come a long way from being a seventh-round draft pick and now hopes to establish himself as a full-time starter. Number Two: DT Kenny Clark Kenny Clark is coming off the worst season of his NFL career statistically in 2024. The three-time Pro Bowler went from a career-high 7.5 sacks in 2023 to just one in 2024. He lacked the explosiveness coming off the snap of the ball that made him a disruptive force in the middle of the defensive line throughout his career. At OTAs, Clark revealed that he played last season with a broken big toe which hampered his effectiveness. Thus far in camp, Clark seems to be regaining his explosiveness and so far, he feels good. “All that stuff is behind me,” Clark told reporters. “You don’t really know what to expect coming back, especially with the foot. Today I felt a lot more comfortable. I’m allowed to play free and be me.” A healthy Clark would be a big improvement for the Packers defensive line in 2025, both when defending the run and rushing the quarterback. Five Players off to a Great Start at Packers Training Camp 2025, Number One: WR Matthew Golden During the first few days of training camp, first round pick Matthew Golden flashed the talent he has that made him the Packers first wide receiver taken in the first round since 2002. Golden has been catching nearly everything thrown his way. The Packers receiving corps struggled with drops all season. One reason the Packers drafted him was because he has reliable hands. The Packers have also utilized Golden on jet sweeps and end arounds, much like they did the last two seasons with Jayden Reed. Head coach Matt LaFleur appears to be at least auditioning Golden for that role to see how he handles it. It would be one way to ensure he gets a certain number of touches early on while he’s still learning the offense. Golden still has work to do, but he’s made a good first impression at training camp.
With the trade for Ryan McMahon now complete, it would seem New York Yankees’ general manager Brian Cashman has fulfilled one of his three priorities. He can now cross third base off the list, which leaves the rotation and bullpen as his remaining priorities. However, according to one Yankees writer, Cashman might not be done with the infield. Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reported this after the McMahon trade: “The Yankees may not be done adding to their infield. A team source said the Yankees are interested in adding a right-handed hitter who could play the infield.” Kirschner adds that the Yankees have had interest in Willi Castro and Amed Rosario. But the question now is, how would another player fit into the Yankees’ infield? Needless to say, Paul Goldschmidt and Jazz Chisholm Jr. aren’t going anywhere, and McMahon is just getting there. That leaves the low-hanging fruit. Anthony Volpe has been at the center of controversy all this season. His 13 errors, many of which had come at make-or-break moments, amount to the second-highest total in the game. In addition, his bat has not been able to compensate, hitting .217/.288/.408 with 14 home runs. There was always a lot to like about Volpe. He won a Gold Glove in his rookie year, his power has always been promising and his speed is nothing to scoff at. Unfortunately, his glove has become a liability, and his speed has also produced very few results. Volpe has swiped just 10 bags in 17 attempts. His power is the one thing that still has some upside, but it hasn’t been enough to justify a spot in the lineup. Both Castro and Rosario have been far more productive at the plate this season than Volpe. Kirschner doesn’t clarify how serious the Yankees are in their pursuit of another infielder, but that most likely isn’t available information. Having just turned 24, Volpe could still become the type of player that was expected from him as a top prospect. However, his recent performance has weighed heavily on his team’s efforts, and it may be buying him a ticket out of the Bronx — or at least a spot on the bench.
The Yankees hold the top Wild Card spot in the American League, and while they’re fading fast in the American League East standings, they just need one good week to gain some momentum. Part of that momentum has to come with deadline additions to the pitching staff, as Brian Cashman has loaded New York’s offense with a solid pair of infielders in Ryan McMahon and Amed Rosario. Neither player will get MVP votes, but they’re dramatic upgrades over what the team had in Oswald Peraza and Jorbit Vivas, who combined for a -0.8 fWAR this season. McMahon’s presence has already been felt with the glove, and in this article, we’re going to predict a pair of trades the Yankees could make at this year’s trade deadline to reinforce their pitching staff with impact pitchers. To clarify; these are PREDICTIONS, not sourced information declaring the Yankees as frontrunners to acquire any of these two players. Yankees’ Revisit Trade Partner for Lockdown Versatile Bullpen Weapon COL Receives: 2B Roc Riggio and RHP Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz Brendan Kuty of The Athletic reported last night that the Yankees are interested in Rockies’ reliever Jake Bird, and he fits the mold of pitcher that Brian Cashman likes to target at the trade deadline. He’s not the flashy headline-grabbing name that Jhoan Duran is, but he provides a good amount of whiffs and tons of groundballs, with the 4.05 ERA being a mirage. Not only is that mark still 16% better than average when adjusting for park environments, but he sports a 3.09 FIP and 3.34 xERA as well. Bird has a .352 BABIP allowed which is inflated by the Rockies’ league-worst defense according to Defensive Runs Saved (-61), and also inflated by his home ballpark. People might be worried about his performance away from Coors Field this season, but it’s likely that the changing pitch shapes as he goes back and forth from high altitude is affecting that, and if he pitched for the Yankees I wouldn’t be worried. He’s also coming from a bottom-of-the-barrel development organization for pitching to one of the best; his already dynamic repertoire could get even better in the Bronx. Jake Bird’s 116 Stuff+ is the highest single-season mark for any Rockies’ pitcher since the metric was first tracked in 2020, meaning his pitch mix is ridiculously nasty. Yankees Land Groundball Machine From Cardinals In Three-Player Swap STL Receives: C Rafael Flores and RHP Ben Hess With a year and a half of control left, the St. Louis Cardinals probably wouldn’t shut the door on trade talks for LHP JoJo Romero, who has quietly been one of the best southpaws in baseball. His 2.12 ERA and 52.9% GB% would provide a nice addition to the bullpen, making Tim Hill the second-best lefty in their reliever group which is a brilliant reflection of their newfound depth. Romero is in the 93rd Percentile in xERA (2.75) due to a dominant sinker-slider combination that can pick up whiffs or induce soft contact on the ground. His changeup is nasty against right-handed batters, and he can mix in a four-seamer at the top of the zone as well to keep righties honest. The Yankees would suddenly boast an elite bullpen, as when they get Fernando Cruz back, they would have six late-inning options who can reliably get outs and deliver clean outings. Luke Weaver needs to get things rolling, but his stuff and command are starting to get back to normal, while Tim Hill and Devin Williams have been dominant since June 1st. Fernando Cruz had been the team’s best strikeout arm, and the combination of Jake Bird and JoJo Romero provide groundballs and whiffs to the backend of the bullpen. If the rotation can import Luis Gil and Ryan Yarbrough from the injured list, they could push someone such as Will Warren into a bullpen role, and Jack Curry of YES Network hinted at Cam Schlittler being able to do so as well. Ryan Yarbrough sliding back to the bullpen could happen as well, a role where he can provide long relief or get some tough outs with that nasty changeup. These two moves wouldn’t qualify as “making headlines”, but in combination with what they did for their infield and bench, it directly addresses the Yankees’ needs and puts them in prime position to go on a deep playoff run.