Shi'ar Empire

The Shi'ar Empire is an empire that features in Marvel Comics.

History

The Shi'ar Empire was an interstellar government and nation that was formed by the Shi'ar whose homeworld was the planet Chandilar. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #275)

Roughly a thousand years ago, the Shi'ar would encounter the M'Kraan and battle them after which they took their world as well as the M'Kraan Crystal as their own divine artifact.

At some point, the father of T'Korr brought the Strontians into the Shi'ar empire by giving them a cure to the Wraith Plague that afflicted their people. As a result, the Strontians pledged their undying loyalty to the Shi'ar throne. During the reign of Majestor T'Korr centuries ago, a decree was made to create an Imperial Guard to defend the Imperium. This saw candidates from Strontia being selected but T'Korr sought to test their loyalty by having Kallark of Strontia kill his peoples council of elders. After which, he ordered a Shi'ar Starcracker to destroy the system's sun destroying Strontia leaving Kallark among the only survivors with him going through his peoples Gladiator process. He was then admitted to head the newly formed Imperial Guard that was tasked with obeying the Shi'ar throne. (War of Kings: Warriors v1 #1)

At some point, when the empire was very young, they began sending exploration fleets to search for worlds to colonize or races to add to the ranks of the Imperium. The Shi'ar claimed that they brought culture to the heavens and their way of life to such species. Whilst many embraced them, one species actually opposed the Imperium's expansion which were the Mephistoids. A bitter war was fought with this race who had the ability to control others through the secretion of pheromones and they also sought to forge an empire with many Shi'ar lives lost in the conflict. According to legend, around twelve hundred years ago, a young warrior called T'ykll Alabar rose from the decimated ranks who inspired his warriors where they battled the Mephistoids on an unnamed world where they defeated their foe. In the aftermath, the Mephistoid leader known as the Butcher was brought to Chandilar in chains whilst their homeworld was placed under quarantine. However, a debate emerged in the war weary council of the Imperium on what to do with their prisoner as they believed his execuction would only incite rebellion against the already fragile quarantine. Thus, it was decided that the Butcher would be placed in stasis and Alabar be similarly placed in the prison to watch over the prisoner. (Avengers v1 #378)

Centuries ago, the Shi'ar were engaged in a war with another empire known as the Heptarchy and losing against this foes. Thus, they sought to find a weapon in order to defeat their enemy. As such, they took Ul'var Urizen of the Ul'var Clan whereupon they studied him in order to extract a dormant Mummudrai within him. This Mummudrai was known as Ev Teel Urizen where scientists opened it up with psi-scalpels to map it inside and out. The purpose of this project was the creation of a superweapon known as the Hecatomb that was an artificial Mummudrai which consumed the minds of victims but left infrastructure. The device as deployed on the Heptarchy homeworld where 18 billion died as their minds were consumed. However, instead of erasing their minds, it absorbed them and they awoke inside the Hecatomb's matrix. The Shi'ar attempted to deactivate the device but it went rogue and continued in its mad anger to feed off thought. (X-Men v2 #198)

Later on, an intelligence report drew the attention to a pre-galactic event on the primitive world of Earth where the native race managed to defeat a Flora Colossus warlord. This drew their attention who decided to send scouts to investigate the planet. The scout team came to land in the African continent in the northern reaches of Wakanda where they came to make contact with the dissident Jabari tribe. A pact was made between the two sides where the Wakandans served as guides to the region. The Shi'ar commander and Jabari warrior came to fall in love where they conceived a child together though it was decided that the offspring would remain on Earth. (Marvels v2 #8) They kept perfect records of all known aliens on the planet Earth and associates of those species. (Astonishing X-Men v3 #57) At some point, they established a secret base of operations on Earth that was used to determine if the world was worthy of being absorbed into the Imperium. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #476)

The Shi'ar put Reed Richards on trial for the crimes of genocide. He was guilty of reviving Galactus after he was defeated on Earth. Shortly after his revival, Galactus proceeded to consume the Skrull throneworld, resulting in the death of billions. Uatu the Watcher, acting as his lawyer and with the help of Odin and Galactus himself, convinced the gathered tribunal that Galactus was a necessary force of betterment of the universe, not a villain. This was done by summoning Eternity. The truth as shown by Eternity however, was so grand and overpowering that none of the tribunal's members could remember it fully, although the comprehension stayed. (Fantastic Four v1 #242)

Lilandra and D'ken's unstable exiled elder sibling, Deathbird, made several attempts to overthrow her sister from power. Deathbird even resorted to attacking Lilandra's Earth-based allies in order to achieve her goals. She was also responsible for initially directing the alien parasites known as the Brood towards the Earth and its heroes. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #162) Deathbird was eventually deposed with the assistance of the X-Men. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #275)

A formal ceremony was conducted on Hala for the formal joining of the Kree to the Shi'ar empire everlasting. Deathbird was appointed as the Viceroy who was charged with oversight of the surrendered Kree territories. However, a number of renegade Kree refused to be ruled by the Shi'ar and formed the Kree Resistance Front that sought to overthrow them. (X-Men Unlimited v1 #5)

Even though Jean Grey eliminated the threat of Cassandra Nova, the Shi'ar still wanted to eliminate her. A group of Shi'ar tried to permanently kill the Phoenix Force and Jean Grey. Jean, however, escaped their suicide bomb attack and returned to the White Hot Room to restore herself. (X-Men Phoenix Endsong v1 #5)

Seemingly, the Shi'ar Council was responsible for this act with Empress Lilandra being unaware of what had been done in her name. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #481)

The civil war between Vulcan's forces and those loyal the dethroned Lilandra raged on. Led by Havok and the Starjammers, Lilandra's forces gradually whittled away at Vulcan's forces, which were plagued by defections. The Shi'ar, contrary to Vulcan's expectations, were not happy to have an outsider as their ruler. Vulcan was discouraged by this, but Deathbird convinced him that they would come to accept him. (X-Men: Emperor Vulcan v1 #1)

Under Emperor Vulcan, the First Praetorian Fleet of the Shi'ar Armada attacked the planet Z'Nox in the Huz'deyr star system as part of their mandate of expanding the empire. Despite the Z'Nox defences, they were unable to combat the Shi'ar who successfully conquered them and incorporated them into the Shi'ar Empire. News of the Z'Nox defeat later reached the Ovoids whose representative spoke of the matter during an assembly of the Galactic Council. (X-Men: Kingbreaker v1 #1)

During the Last Annihilation, the forces of the Dread Dormammu came to invade the universe with the Faltine dispatching an army of Mindless Ones to conquer all space. In this time, he was targeting several mystically important worlds as part of a ritual to merge this realm with his own Dark Dimension. This involved conquering five planets that would be the corner stones of a giant cosmic pentagram. One of these worlds was the Shi'ar planet of Aerie where the Shi'ar Imperial Guard battled the Mindless Ones. (Last Annihilation: Wakanda v1 #1)

Overview

Government

The Shi'ar Imperium was described as holding a pan-galactic presence in the universe. (X-Men Unlimited v1 #5) Their empire was noted for having a number of skilled and powerful mentas that had psionic abilities. (Classic X-Men v1 #14) The Shi'ar were known to launch conversion missions designed to recruit member worlds into their empire through enlightenment with recruitment ships present among fleets such as the Grand Jhar. (Excalibur v1 #69) The Shi'ar were noted for holding the most massive military force in existence. (Guardians of the Galaxy v2 #13)

The Shivarn'n Halanau (Imperial Consort) of the ruler had a degree of power and decision making with their commands being considered to be lawfully followed though only to a point. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #155) Another position within the Shi'ar hierarchy was that of the Vice-Chancellor. (King in Black: Wiccan and Hulkling v1 #1) A body within the empire was the Supreme Executive Council. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #275) A high ranking position within the government was that of Minister of Peace. (Starjammers v1 #1) Another group within the empire was the Weather Council that was an advisory body who provided counsel and advice to the aviary entire. Members of the council took the title of counselor that was neither a political or military title. (X-Men v4 #19) A division within the empire was Imperial Intelligence that consisted of spies and covert operatives. (X-Men v1 #105) Torture priests were noted to be used in the extraction of information during an interrogation. (Wolverine and the X-Men v1 #13) A faction within the empire was the Secret Order who opposed the reign of Lilandra Neramani and sought to bring about the rise of the true empire. Thus, they operated secretly and sought to depose her in order to return her brother D'Ken to the throne. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #480)

Another body was the Weather Council was an advisory group that provided counsel and advice to the aviary entire. Members were referred to as Counselors with this being neither a military or political rank. (X-Men v4 #19)

Another position within the Shi'ar hierarchy was that of the Vice-Chancellor. (King in Black: Wiccan and Hulkling v1 #1) A body within the empire was the Supreme Executive Council. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #275) A high ranking position within the government was that of Minister of Peace. (Starjammers v1 #1) Another group within the empire was the Weather Council that was an advisory body who provided counsel and advice to the aviary entire. Members of the council took the title of counselor that was neither a political or military title. (X-Men v4 #19) A division within the empire was Imperial Intelligence that consisted of spies and covert operatives. (X-Men v1 #105) Torture priests were noted to be used in the extraction of information during an interrogation. (Wolverine and the X-Men v1 #13) A faction within the empire was the Secret Order who opposed the reign of Lilandra Neramani and sought to bring about the rise of the true empire. Thus, they operated secretly and sought to depose her in order to return her brother D'Ken to the throne. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #480)

A secret notable group within the empire were the Kin Crimson who considered themselves shepherds of Shi'ar history. Their members were of a rank that far exceeded those of the Superguardians where they had always existed and were hidden in plain sight. It was said that they had existed since before the first Majestor back in a time when the Shi'ar were nothing more than galactic raiders. Since then, they had defended their people from challenges both external and internal. The secret society were privy to important secrets that could endanger the empire's very existence if discovered. (Marauders v2 #1) It was known that they had developed a particular kind of light based technology derived from other species with this becoming the basis of their Hard Skin and Wet Skin abilities. (Marauders v2 #2)

Subject races of the empire included:

• Lupak :
• Mephitisoids :
• Strontians :
• Stygians :

The military had a wide range of assets at their disposal ranging from subatomic Superguardians to telepathic sniper squads. (Wolverine and the X-Men v1 #13) It was standard practice for Shi'ar to have psi-protection training if they operated off-world. (X-Men v4 #19) A particular military tactic included the Ehs'tyl (Bursting Cranium) assault designed to decapitate their enemies. (War of Kings v1 #1) Against dangerous threats, the empire was known to make use of atmospheric cremation to destroy an entire alien species with hymns of purification being recited. (New X-Men v1 #123)

An elite cadre of female Shi'ar warriors known as the Warbirds existed that operated as bodyguards that were able to engage superhuman foes and were skilled in the use of close-quarter weapons such as blades. (Wolverine and the X-Men Annual v1 #1) Royal Warbirds were divided into a number of rankings such as the Deathbringer Class. Their training was handled by Magistrates who taught the warriors to embrace the true way of the Shi’ar warrior. (Wolverine and the X-Men v1 #13) An elite group known as the Pathfinders existed that were part of the exploratory fleet. (Classic X-Men v1 #14) Imperial Pathfinders were one of the finest scouts in the Shi’ar Starfleet. (Uncanny X-Men Annual v1 #5)

It was known that they recorded their history in the Shi’ar chapterhouse with this knowledge being ancient. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #345) Within their empire, there was the Shi'ar Royal Bank that contained millions of credits. (Legendary Star-Lord v1 #5) One of the most sacred locations in the Imperium was a site that when roughly translated from Shi’arese meant the Nest. This was a collective womb and birthing place for their kind for the royals yet to be born. It was considered the heart of Shi’ar society where there was no distinction between ruling and lower caste with it representing the natural order. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #344)

Technology

As a people, the Shi'ar empire were described as a highly advanced Type 5 space civilization. (New X-Men v1 #122) All Shi'ar technology was described as being sentient. (Astonishing X-Men v3 #9) The building blocks of all their technology were Shi’ar nanomatrices with the science being commonplace within the Imperium. (X-Force and Cable Annual v1 #'96) Certain highly advanced computer were noted to be constructed from Shi'ar logic diamonds. (Powers of X v1 #5)

Sleeping modules made use of suspensor fields that were designed to allow a person a comfortable and restful sleep. (Classic X-Men v1 #16) Standard Shi'ar med-tech included bio-implants outfitted on people that recorded life signs and transmitted them through warp space. It made medical care response times brought down to zero as the Shi'ar were able to instantly respond to medical emergencies as they emerged rather than have a delay due to communication or lack of knowledge. (U.S.Avengers v1 #10) These bioimplants were capable of being tracked allowing for those familiar with it to find lost comrades. (Excalibur v1 #69) They had wetware that could be placed in the brain which could damage the synapses of telepaths that probed the mind of the individual with these being available on the black market. (X-Men: Blue v1 #8)

Shi'ar holographic projection was said to be hundreds of years beyond that of human technology. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #476) Their people used practical display holography with pictures that changed shape. (Classic X-Men v1 #16) They could build holempathic matrix crystals that could be sphere which were theoretically possible but many thousands of years beyond current Earth technology. It was a means of recording the thoughts and dreams of a person allowing their essence to live on after their death. Touching the crystal allowed a person to experience everything in that individuals life allowing them to see who and what they had been in their lives. Thus, they simply recorded and served as a memorium of the persons life in the event of their death. (Fantastic Four v1 #286) The Shi'ar were known to make use of hard light that was able to replicate any form of matter or color and distort spatial awareness to the point that they were capable of simulating worlds. (Astonishing X-Men v3 #9)

Certain armor worn by Shi'ar served only ceremonial purposes. (X-Men Unlimited v1 #5) One kind of specialist weapon were psi-bombs that were projectile weapons that exploded when they detected psionic energy and latched onto the signal back to the source thus rendering the target unconscious. (X-Man Annual v1 #2)

Prisoners were known to go through a process that turned them into cyborgs as a sentence with these being known as Imperial Shockers. Such individuals became grafted with cybernetic implants as part of a series of experiments with devices in their brains keeping them alive. These cyborgs had a desire to die and be free from this fate but were kept in sleeper states at secret Shi'ar installations to be deployed to battle enemies. Due to their nature, they felt no pain and had enhanced visual senses allowing them to determine threats with them having enhanced speeds and able to shoot collapsing energy fields to kill their targets. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #476)

Their starships had access to a naval Shi'ar datasphere. (War of Kings v1 #2) Their vessels tended to be referred to as warbirds whilst others were called star destroyers. (Guardians of the Galaxy 2 #13) Even more powerful craft used by the empire were superdestroyers. (New X-Men v1 #123) A homeport to their vast interstellar fleets was the immense, imprengnable orbital platform known as Starharbor. (Avengers v1 #363)

A type of warship used by the Shi’ar were Predator class warbirds. (X-Force and Cable Annual v1 #'96) H'jaht class warbirds were a type of craft used by the Imperium. (Secret Invasion: War of Kings v1 #1) Mid-class diplomatic vessels were a type of Shi'ar vessel that were capable of warp speeds. (U.S.Avengers v1 #11) Another type of ship were Apocalypse-class behemoths that served as a flagship of the Imperial fleet and were used to bear the ruler of the Shi'ar empire. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #275)

In space, they maintained massive Starstations which served as hubs over an entire sector and could hold thousands of occupants. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #342) Key facilities such as Feather's Edge were defended by powerful Armageddon-class killstations. (X-Men: Emperor Vulcan v1 #1)

One method of interstellar travel for the Shi'ar was the use of space based gateways known as Stargates. They were the only means of travelling swiftly to Shi'ar space. Only Shi'ar vessels were able to activate the Stargates. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #477) Smaller portable planet-based versions could also be built to allow for interstellar transportation for individuals. (X-Men v1 #105) Shi'ar jumpships were smaller craft that were capable of creating their own Stargates for faster travel. Prior to building the Stargates, Shi'ar vessels had to make their own jumps that required a set amount of power. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #481)

A weapon developed by the Shi'ar were Nega-Bombs that turned the power of the Negative Zone into pure destructive force. (Wonder Man v1 #8) Among the most powerful weapons in their arsenal were Starcrackers that were large missile warheads that were sent into suns to cause them to go into a nova and destroyed every planet in the system. (War of Kings: Warriors v1 #1) Another weapon within their armaments was the sleeping destroyer. One superweapon the Shi'ar developed was the Hecatomb that was an artificial Mummudrai that devoured the minds of living beings and left the worlds infrastructure intact but the weapon went rogue. (X-Men v2 #198)

Territory

The Shi'ar Imperium was centered in a galaxy located far away from the Milky Way galaxy. The administrative hub for the galaxy-spanning Imperial state was the Throneworld of Chandilar. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #275)

Planets in the empire included:

• Little Chandilar : resort world maintained by the Shi'ar that had beautiful beaches. (King in Black: Wiccan and Hulkling v1 #1)
• Kr'kn : a water surface world containing the Hole which serves as a prison facility.
• Ardent Spring :

A notable starstation was lay in the path to the Shi'ar throneworld was A'sura Tarrel. (Uncanny X-Men v1 #342)

The Shi’ar empire possessed a pan-dimensional prison located beneath the surface of a world with this being the rock called Krag. (Excalibur v1 #70) One facility the Imperium maintained was a galaxy-sized prison that they had manufactured. This was the Ravenstarr maximum-security prison galaxy that was built by the Shi'ar who manufactured artificial suns and planets. (Avengers v8 #27)

Members

• T'Korr :
• D'Ken :
• Lilandra :
• Kalark :
• T'ykll Alabar :
• Delphos the Red :

Notes

• The Shi'ar Empire was created by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum where it made its first appearance in X-Men v1 #97 (November, 1975).

Appearances

• X-Men v1: (1975)
• Uncanny X-Men v1:
• Fantastic Four v1:
• X-Men: Emperor Vulcan v1:
• X-Men: Kingbreaker v1:
• Last Annihilation: Wakanda v1: (2021)
• Marauders v2: (2022)

External Links

• Marvel Database Entry

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