The Golden One represented a deity revered by the Ewok species inhabiting the forest moon orbiting Endor. Ewok lore dictates that the Golden One descended from the heavens to Endor, eradicating the pervasive darkness and ushering in an era of light, enabling their civilization to prosper. Ultimately, to maintain equilibrium, he brokered an agreement with the darkness, granting both equal dominion over Endor in a perpetual cycle of day and night. Subsequently, the Golden One ascended back to the celestial realm. Millennia later, when the golden-colored 3PO-series protocol droid C-3PO arrived on Endor, the Ewoks residing in Bright Tree Village mistook him for the Golden One.
The Ewok species of the moon named Endor venerated the Golden One as their deity. Ewok legends tell of a time before the Golden One, when life was hard in a place of darkness without balance. During this time, Ewok leaders had visions of a light that would come and end the darkness. So, they told the Ewoks to be kind and accepting, and to bring the tribes together. Because they were good, a being of great light came to Endor and he made the whole moon bright. The Ewoks called this being the Golden One, because his light was so strong that they could not look at him. After the Golden One came, trees grew on Endor, and the Ewoks left their caves to build towns in the new forest. Their culture grew, and they made art and talked about ideas.
But the Golden One knew that balance was needed, and darkness would try to take back its power. To keep the balance and stop a war, the Golden One made a deal to share the moon with the darkness, so the Ewoks would know both light and dark equally. The Ewoks were sad, but he went back to the sky, and the moon began to have days and nights. They learned that the balance of day and night was good, and they kept thanking the Golden One every day, even though he was not with them anymore. Later, Ewoks would say "By the Golden One" when they were surprised or excited.
Thousands of years after the Golden One's legendary arrival, in 4 ABY, the 3PO-series protocol droid designated C-3PO journeyed to Endor as part of a mission led by the Alliance to Restore the Republic. Their objective was to destroy the Galactic Empire's second Death Star, which was under construction in orbit above the moon. During this endeavor, the droid and his allies, including Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and R2-D2, encountered a group of Ewoks from Bright Tree Village. These Ewoks, due to the golden hue of his plating, erroneously believed him to be the Golden One, returned to Endor. Overjoyed by his supposed return, the Ewoks intended to offer C-3PO's companions as sacrifices and placed him upon a throne. Although hesitant to impersonate a deity, he, at the insistence of Solo and Princess Leia Organa, who had formed a bond with the village, attempted to convince the Ewoks to release his friends. When C-3PO's efforts proved futile, the Jedi Knight Skywalker employed the Force to levitate the protocol droid while he was seated on his throne. Fearing the wrath of their deity, the Ewoks swiftly freed the prisoners. That evening, C-3PO successfully persuaded them to join the fight against the Empire. With the assistance of the Ewok warriors, the rebels emerged victorious in the battle, and the Imperial invaders were forced to evacuate Endor.
The saga of C-3PO on Endor eventually became interwoven into the Ewok's narratives concerning the Golden One. According to these legends, when the Imperial "agents of darkness" descended upon Endor, the Ewoks implored the Golden One to return and aid them in combating the darkness that had violated their agreement. He once again descended to Endor, accompanied by companions, and his return rekindled their faith. After performing acts of magic, the Golden One elucidated to the Ewoks the true magnitude of the threat posed by their adversary. Re-arming themselves for the first time in generations, the Ewoks united with the Golden One and his companions to wage war against the agents of darkness. Following a valiant struggle, the darkness was vanquished, and equilibrium was restored. The Golden One retreated once more to the sky, and the Ewoks resumed their lives in the forest, secure in the knowledge that he would return to protect them whenever his assistance was truly required.
In 35 ABY, during an uprising against the First Order forces, sparked by the Resistance's victory on the planet Exegol, the young Ewok named Pommet Warrick inquired of his father, Wicket W. Warrick, whether the [Resurgent-class Star Destroyer](/article/resurgent-class_star_destroyer] plummeting from the sky was an arrowhead dispatched by the Golden One. The elder Warrick, having encountered C-3PO years prior and fought alongside his comrades against the Empire, affirmed to his son that the wrecked Star Destroyer stood as a blessed omen from the Golden One.
The concept of the Golden One was initially alluded to, though indirectly, in the 1983 film Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi. Within the Star Wars Legends continuity, the deity's name was first mentioned in the novelization of the film penned by James Kahn, which was released ahead of the film on May 12, 1983. The identity of the Golden One was officially established within canon in the 2018 comic Star Wars Adventures: Tales from Vader's Castle 4, authored by Cavan Scott. His initial appearance, in flashback sequences, occurred in the 2020 short story entitled "The Golden One," written by George Mann and featured in the Target-exclusive edition of Myths & Fables. "The Golden One" verified the connection between the Golden One and C-3PO.