Nightsister crystal ball

The Nightsister crystal ball was a type of Witches' Orb. A spherical object with varying degrees of orange coloration, it was kept within the Nightsister lair on the Outer Rim planet Dathomir, held up by a small, gray pedestal on a table.

The crystal ball was made by Mother Talzin—the leader of the Nightsisters, a coven of witches from Dathomir—who managed to create it due to the Nightsisters' ability to tap into deep areas of the Force almost entirely unknown to those trained in the ways of the Jedi and Sith. The Nightsister crystal ball could be used to see visions of the future or locate specific individuals, such as the former Nightbrothers—a clan of male warriors ruled by the Nightsisters—Savage Opress and Darth Maul. When locating Opress and Maul, the crystal ball showcased images of them.

The Nightsisters of Dathomir used crystal balls to peer into the future. One of these crystal balls was handcrafted by Mother Talzin. Talzin kept the artifact atop a table within the Nightsister lair on Dathomir, and it was present when Separatist leader and Dark Lord of the Sith Count Dooku visited the witch in 20 BBY to discuss taking a new apprentice for himself. That apprentice soon became Savage Opress, one of Talzin's sons who, unbeknownst to Dooku, was merely an instrument in a plot by the Nightsisters to assassinate the count.

After Opress's existence became known to the Jedi Order, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker traveled to Dathomir and met with Talzin to learn his location. Manipulating her crystal ball, the witch moved her hands around the artifact and repeated Opress's name, discovering that he was on the Mid Rim planet Toydaria, which she revealed to the two Jedi.

Opress engaged the Jedi on Toydaria before returning to Dooku's ship in space over the planet. There, Opress revealed his true allegiance and dueled Dooku but was forced to flee. The former Sith apprentice returned to Talzin on Dathomir, telling her that he was not powerful enough to defeat all his foes. She comforted Opress, informing him that there was still someone who could teach him: another of her sons and a brother of Opress, the Sith Lord Darth Maul, who was thought to have died on the Mid Rim planet Naboo several years earlier. As Maul's image appeared in the crystal ball, Talzin sent Opress to find his brother, who was at the time residing in the Outer Rim on the planet Lotho Minor.

Although he did find Maul, Opress perished during a duel with Maul's former Sith Master, Darth Sidious, on the Outer Rim planet Mandalore in 19 BBY. Despite Maul surviving further run-ins with Sidious and the Jedi, he became stranded on the Sith planet Malachor in the Outer Rim. After escaping Malachor, Maul eventually returned to his home of Dathomir, where he kept many items of past importance to him within the Nightsister lair, which was deserted by then. Among these items was the Nightsister crystal ball, which was there when Maul brought the Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger to the lair in 2 BBY.

The Nightsister crystal ball was created for the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, first appearing unidentified in "Monster," the thirteenth episode of the series' third season, which aired on January 14, 2011. Prior to the release of the episode, the crystal ball was depicted in a preview clip for the episode that was posted on StarWars.com on January 11 of the same year. The 2015 reference book Ultimate Star Wars later identified it by name.

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars The Complete Season Three
• Ultimate Star Wars
• Ultimate Star Wars, New Edition