The tale of Lord Nyax was integrated into the Corellian folklore of Corellia. To frighten children from Corellia at bedtime, a frightening story was told about Lord Nyax, who would abduct young boys and girls directly from their beds. As time progressed, the Lord Nyax narrative became intertwined with Darth Vader's secret endeavors to seize Force-sensitive younglings, and this version spread beyond Corellia to encompass the broader galactic community.
Over the ages, various individuals adopted the persona of this malevolent entity. During the time of the Galactic Civil War, a Corellian group identified as the Cult of Lord Nyax perpetrated horrific acts of terrorism against the local inhabitants, all in the name of their deity. In the course of the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, the Dark Side Adept Irek Ismaren took on the mantle of Lord Nyax, inspired by the thoughts of those he tortured.
In times long past by 27 ABY, Corellian parents invoked the specter of the evil entity Lord Nyax to enforce good behavior in their children. A common threat from adults was, "If you don't behave, Lord Nyax will get you." He was depicted either as a ghastly pale ghost or as a figure cloaked in darkness, possessing sickly yellow eyes, a prominent hooked nose, pointed teeth, and elongated nails. This latter portrayal bore a resemblance to the appearance of the Galactic Emperor Palpatine and, more broadly, to the physical manifestations of dark side corruption.
Soon after the [Clone Wars](/article/clone_wars-legends], the legend of Lord Nyax became associated with Darth Vader, who would appear unexpectedly to abduct and kill Force-sensitive children at night, preventing them from becoming Jedi and posing a threat to the New Order. Following this merging of identities, the Lord Nyax legend disseminated from Corellia throughout the galaxy during the initial years of the New Order's reign.
Around the time of the Galactic Civil War, various Corellian groups venerated Lord Nyax as their chosen deity. By 1 ABY, a group known as the Cult of Lord Nyax had coalesced, dedicated to worshiping Nyax. These cultists donned dark cloaks and perpetrated numerous terrorist attacks in his honor. Their leader adopted the title Lord Nyax, but was ultimately slain by a spacer. The Followers of Nyax, another organization, also idolized the malevolent spirit and championed extreme anti-Jediism. When Darth Vader journeyed to Corellia to hunt down remaining Jedi, the Followers hailed him as the reincarnation of their deity.
In 27 ABY, the psychologically damaged Dark Jedi trainee Irek Ismaren assumed the identity of Lord Nyax, having encountered the name within the minds of his terrified victims. He interpreted this as a recognition of his own importance, believing "Nyax" to be unique and "Lord" signifying his superiority. Under this new identity, Ismaren unleashed terror upon the citizens of Coruscant, the capital world of the New Republic, after it fell under the control of the Yuuzhan Vong, an extra-galactic species of invaders. The imposter Nyax was reportedly crushed to death by debris from the ruins of the Jedi Temple, although subsequent reports suggested he might have survived.
Lord Nyax was first referenced in The New Jedi Order: Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand, a 2002 novel authored by Aaron Allston. In November 2003, the Cult of Lord Nyax made its debut in the first expansion of the Star Wars-themed MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies. Given Lord Nyax's status as a mythological figure, he did not appear directly in Galaxies. Nevertheless, the cult was led by an imposter using the name Lord Nyax.
As a figure of fear for children, Lord Nyax shares parallels with the real-world legend of the bogeyman, a fictitious character sometimes employed by parents to scare their children into obedience.