Among all of the evil entities within the Star Wars universe, none of their origins are as mysterious and as terrifying as those of the Inquisitors. The guild known as the Inquisitors are a puzzling bunch. They utilize the powers of the dark side of the Force to hunt and kill Jedi, yet they do not seem to be fully-fledged of the Sith. The story of how this mysterious organization came to be is one that is truly fascinating, as well as deeply unsettling.
The overall intent of the creation of the Inquisitors is to perform the task of hunting Jedi; more specifically, Jedi that have been able to survive and escape the shared fate of the rest of their brethren during the Great Jedi Purge of Order 66. Upon finding these (now undercover) Jedi, the Inquisitors are commanded to do one of two things: either kill them or turn them to the dark side, thus adding to their guild's numbers. They can also torture any Jedi they uncover, forcing them to give them information on the whereabouts of other Jedi survivors. To become such a formidable force and cause a great deal of fear amongst the Jedi, the Inquisitors must be powerful in their own right. The reason why they are as mighty and skilled as they are, however, is rather dark.
The latest Star Wars series, Obi-Wan Kenobi, revealed Reva's backstory and shed a little light on how she became an Inquisitor. Her story was tragic and dark, underscoring just how dangerous the Inquisitors are. However, Reva's story is just the tip of the very dark iceberg of how the Inquisitors are created.
Inquisitors' Origins: How The Empire Recruited Former Jedi
The Inquisitorious Program was created by Sheev Palpatine, better known as Darth Sidious, during his time serving as the Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Senate. Palpatine's recruitment process for his program has two different methods. The first is seen in bounty hunter Cad Bane, Palpatine makes plans to indoctrinate the Inquisitor training into younger, more impressionable minds. He tasks Bane with kidnapping Jedi younglings and other Force-sensitive children and bringing them to his hideout on the planet Mustafar so he can forcefully brainwash them into becoming his servants. Although this operation is seemingly halted by Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano, Palaptine discreetly relaunches the scheme and targets infants with rewired nanny droids to ensure their full compliance when they grow older.
The second means of recruitment is something slightly less sinister, and is modeled around the trait that Palpatine is most known for throughout the Star Wars continuity: his knack for manipulating others. Similar to how he swayed both Count Dooku and Anakin Skywalker to the dark side as his apprentices, Palpatine did his best to survey other Jedi Knights, making sure to discover any and all secrets and hidden weaknesses that they may have. He especially targets Knights that hold grudges and grievances toward the Jedi High Council for denying them something they want. Using his guise as Chancellor, Palpatine is able to manipulate these Jedi, promising them the things that the Council refuses to give. He also ensures them full immunity when Order 66 occurs, but on the sole condition that they betray their brethren and the dark side, pledging their full allegiance as one of his Inquisitors. Any other Jedi who are caught after the enactment of Order 66 can also be compelled into ing the Inquisitors' ranks for their own survival, especially after they are either threatened with or undergo torture upon their discovery.
Why The Empire Uses Former Jedi For Its Inquisitors
Palpatine founded the Inquisitors as a means of having them play in tandem with the Order 66 protocol, which he hardwired into every clone trooper that fought for both the Republic and the Jedi. The Inquisitors were a necessary contingency for if and when a Jedi survived the genocide, since, due to the Jedi Order's Force powers and fighting prowess, mere clone troopers would not be enough to take them all down, especially now that the Jedi have caught on to Palpatine's treachery. Palpatine believed that the best way to kill a Jedi is with another Jedi; someone who is equal and even superior in skill and power to the targets they are hunting. Said superiority comes from the Inquisitors' intensive and brutal training, which is headed by none other than Darth Vader himself, who teaches them how to become the hardened, seemingly soulless warriors they are known to be.
Why Inquisitors Don't Become Sith Lords
It seems to be a common misconception among the Star Wars community that the Inquisitiors are of the Sith. While many aspects about them suggest such an idea, this information is actually false. This is specifically due to the Sith Order's traditions, more specifically the Rule of Two. The Rule of Two, which was created by Darth Bane, commands that only two Sith Lords can exist at a time, one master and one apprentice. If an apprentice wishes to become a master, then they must grow powerful enough to kill their master and take their place. Because of these ideals, Palpatine, who desires to stay in power as a master for as long as possible, does several things to make sure he cannot be overthrown.
While most of these things are solely meant for the control and manipulation of his own apprentices (Darth Vader included), in of the Inquisitors, he has put in place one simple caveat that ensured that none of the of his Jedi-hunting guild are or ever will be equal to or more powerful than him or his apprentices. This rule is integrated within the recruitment process, as it seems that most, if not all former Jedi recruits are selected mainly because Palpatine saw their connection to the Force and knew that they had absolutely no chance of rising to his level of power. It is just another one of Palpatine's many machinations in the Star Wars universe that led him to stay in power for as long as he did.
