How did Kylo Ren become master of the Knights of Ren?

With Star Wars launching into the new Legacy of Vader comic series exploring Kylo Ren’s character arc in-between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, we are taking a look at some other notable moments from his life that the films didn’t explore. Today, we’re looking at when Kylo first met the Knights of Ren…

One of the first things we learn about Kylo Ren (a.k.a. Ben Solo) in The Force Awakens is that he is, as Supreme Leader Snoke says, “master of the Knights of Ren”. The way he first met them is a fascinating tale, told in Charles Soule’s The Rise of Kylo Ren mini-series.

Years before the sequel trilogy, Ben traveled with his uncle and Jedi Master, Luke Skywalker, to an old Jedi outpost on Elphrona, also accompanied by Lor San Tekka. The outpost was home to many ancient Jedi artifacts that were of great interest to Skywalker in his efforts to learn more of the Jedi Order, but the Knights of Ren were also interested in the treasure, being a group of Force users out to make some money.

Ren, the knights’ leader, claimed the treasure for them, but Luke said it belonged to the Jedi Order – which meant him. When Ren threatened him, Ben Solo spoke up, shouting, “this is Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. He is a legend!” Luke instructed Ben to guard Lor San Tekka, while he dealt with the Knights of Ren. Though the knights worked in unison to attack, Luke easily defeated them using his lightsaber and the Force, leaving them humbled, disarmed, and beaten.

Before the knights retreated, however, Ren made one final threat – this time aimed at Ben Solo. Ren told Luke that surely he could sense the powerful shadow in his apprentice, and then told Ben that if he ever wanted a different path, to learn more about the shadow, he could find them.

That, in fact, was what happened. After Ben destroyed Luke’s Academy on that fateful night years later, he told Snoke he was going to find the Knights of Ren. He met up with them, and they made it clear that in order to join them Ben would have to kill someone. That someone turned out to be Ren himself, as Ben defeated him in a duel to become the leader of the Knights of Ren, after which Ben also killed one of his fellow Jedi pupils to cement his fall.

In the aftermath, the rest of the Knights of Ren bowed before him, and Kylo forged his unstable red lightsaber. In this, he took up the mantle of master of the Knights of Ren, but he would ultimately fight against them, and kill them, upon returning to the light as he rushed to Rey’s aid on Exegol. It’s rather fitting that his joining the Knights of Ren cemented his fall to the dark side, and his turning on the Knights of Ren cemented his return to the light. It’s like poetry – it rhymes.