Major Faction
A Black Sun dog-tag, which are typically kept as trophies by mercenaries as proof of kills. Such soldiers are frequently said to liken killing members of the syndicate as akin to culling herds of animals, or destroying pests and vermin.
Throne World: unknown
If the Galactic Empire is said to rule the Core Worlds with an iron fist, then Black Sun could just as easily be said to rule it with a hidden one. While the Empire is undoubtedly the disputed authority in that space, no amount of stricture or law or even military prowess has been able to suppress the influence of this burgeoning criminal syndicate.
Scholars frequently point to the chaos of the Clone Wars as the catalyst for Black Sun’s ascendancy. When the Old Republic was left teetering on the brink of disaster during the Fourth Jedi Schism, countless criminals and mercenaries flocked from the Outer Rim to join the fray. Once corporate interests were enaged and there was money to be made, there was suddenly no end to those willing to partake in the conflict.
Perhaps Dark Sun was already ascendant, or perhaps it simply exploited the conflict for its own ends, but whatever the case by the time the Galactic Empire arose from the ashes of the Old Republic, Black Sun had taken its place as the dominant underworld force in the Core Worlds. The criminal enterprise had reached its tendrils into every dark crevice, involved itself in every deal, and crushed every opponent. They were unchallenged in the criminal world, and some historians suggest that only the immense size and strength of the Imperial war machine and the cruel oppression of the Imperial Security Bureau truly stood between Black Sun and control of what was left of the Old Republic.
Precisely who controls the Black Sun syndicate remains a mystery, as does the particulars of its structure or the precise degree of its power, influence, and reach. Yet one thing is certain: any organisation which can resist the prying eyes of the ISB and act right beneath its nose, and which cannot be stamped out by the forces of the Imperial military, is truly a force to be reckoned with.
Indeed, the syndicate has developed for itself a measure of significant notoriety, taking the notion of ruthlessness to a new level. Black Sun frequently sacrifice its own members without second thought, expecting them to lay down their lives as though it were some kind of cause or religious devotion. Precisely how the organisation maintains this degree of apparent loyalty is unknown.
Furthermore, the enemies of Black Sun—though they are many—are often treated to reprisals akin to the worst efforts of the Hutt cartels, or the vengeance of an Imperial Grand Admiral. That is to say that they are brutal and unrelenting in their application of force, and utterly remorseless in their stamping out of opposition. Not since before the Clone Wars has a significant criminal rival been able to lay claim to more than a smattering of locales in the Core Worlds: the Black Sun syndicate has controlled that entire region since then and tolerates no rivals whatsoever.
Naturally, one wonders what such a large and powerful organisation might think of its apparent overlord, the Galactic Empire itself. While Black Sun is indeed formidable, it cannot challenge such military might in an open conflict. Thus, even its impressive prowess must largely remain hidden.