The story of a Jedi falling to the Dark Side is so commonplace that it makes fans wonder why the Jedi Order seems surprised when it happens. The further fans look back into the past of Star Wars, the more often it comes up. It's a wonder that they ever bothered to train new Jedi since a significant percentage just become Sith.

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One of those Jedi was Ben Solo, who eventually became a Sith named Kylo Ren. Like his grandfather did for the Empire, Kylo helped the First Order gain a foothold in the galaxy, but being a Sith definitively ruined Kylo's life.

10 Killed His Fellow Students — In the end, this was all the result of another manipulation by Palpatine

Kylo Ren

Much like his grandfather, Ben Solo was manipulated by Emperor Palpatine into turning to the Dark Side of the Force. At the time, Ben was in training at Luke Skywalker's Jedi Academy. That didn't go so well for anyone.

Luke could sense the evil in Ben and considered killing him. Ben lashed out, killing his fellow students and burning the building to the ground. In the end, this was all the result of another manipulation by Palpatine and a key step on his journey to becoming Kylo Ren.

9 Conquering The Galaxy — After killing Snoke, Kylo Ren took over the role of Supreme Leader of the First Order

Kylo Ren with his lightsaber in Star Wars

Palpatine, who worked through Supreme Leader Snoke, needed Kylo Ren to help build the First Order into the new Empire. And he came exceedingly close, much closer than anyone in the galaxy would have felt comfortable with.

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He led the First Order in conquering the galaxy, much in the same way his grandfather had done for Palpatine many years before him.

8 It Prevented Him & Rey From Being Together — which could have been the beginning of a new future for the Jedi

Kylo Ren

As much as some fans hate thinking about this, Ben Solo and Rey were a Force dyad. But it also became increasingly evident that their connection was much deeper than that, which is saying a lot.

Once Ben turned into Kylo Ren, cost him any chance at exploring that deeper relationship with Rey. It was only at the end of his life that Ben realized what turning to the Dark Side cost him.

7 Hunting His Uncle — Had he stayed under Luke's tutelage, they would have been able to bring some sort of actual peace to the galaxy together

Kylo Ren star wars

The relationship between Luke Skywalker and Ben Solo was incredibly awkward, to say the least. Luke tried to kill Ben when he started turning to the Dark Side. Ben spent much of his life after that trying to track Luke down and kill him.

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Becoming a Sith put Kylo Ren at odds with his own uncle, driving him into hiding and spending much of his life hunting him.

6 Had To Listen To Snoke — Being ordered around & manipulated by Snoke might have been one of the worst parts of choosing the Dark Side

Kylo Ren from Star Wars

Like the Empire before it, the goal of the First Order was to take full control over the galaxy. Being that Palpatine was behind both initiatives, the real goal was the continued subjugation of the Jedi. The man was nothing if not obsessed.

But Palpatine did not run the First Order openly. He maintained the illusion of his death by installing Supreme Leader Snoke as its figurehead.

5 Leading The First Order — Kylo betrayed Luke & then he betrayed Snoke before leading the First Order on its merciless galactic mission

Kylo Ren

The Dark Side of the Force is not exactly filled with honorable individuals. Over and over again, Sith betray each other for power and control. The Rule of Two might have stopped massive wars between various Sith Lords but it certainly didn't stop the backstabbing.

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Kylo Ren was not immune to this. First, he betrayed Luke, and then he betrayed Snoke. Keeping in mind that killing Snoke wasn't much of a loss for the galaxy, it was still a hateful act on his part.

4 Never Reconciled With His Mother — Ren losing his familial connections was key to Palpatine's plan of turning him

leia organa star wars

As the son of Han Solo and Leia Organa, Ben Solo had the pedigree to be one of the greatest forces for good in the galaxy. Had he completed his training as a Jedi with his uncle, then he would have been even more dangerous to the First Order.

While their family might have fragmented, Leia never stopped loving her son. She always hoped for the opportunity to reconnect with him but that never happened before she died.

3 Murdered His Father — It would also become Kylo's greatest regret

Kylo Ren killing Han Solo

One of the few people who truly believed that Kylo Ren could be brought back to the Light Side of the Force was Han Solo. In The Force Awakens, Han made a last-ditch attempt to try and reach his son. That attempt failed miserably.

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For a moment, it seemed like Han was getting through to Ben. Then, Kylo took back over and ran Han Solo through with his lightsaber. It was a surprisingly ignominious way for one of the galaxy's greatest heroes to die.

2 Helped Kill Millions Of People — the First Order utilized its superweapon known as Starkiller Base to destroy the Hosnian System

Kylo Ren in the rain

The Emperor's love of gigantic superweapons is legendary at this point. It's been going on since the Clone Wars, and it never seems to completely work out for him. The galaxy is basically littered with mangled Death Star parts.

The first major atrocity committed by the First Order was utilizing their superweapon known as Starkiller Base. It was located on the sacred Jedi planet of Ilum, and was used to destroy the Hosnian System. It was the home of the New Republic. Destroying it took millions upon millions of lives and a large piece of Ren's soul.

1 Lost Everything — Palpatine turned him against his friends & family

Kylo Ren

The simple reality is that becoming a Sith Lord cost Kylo Ren literally everything that mattered in his life. The manipulations of Emperor Palpatine turned him against his friends and family and put him on a course that was filled with nothing but death and destruction.

In the end, Ren gave up the Dark Side and spent the last few moments of his life trying to stop Palpatine. But while he might have been Ben Solo for the final fight, that doesn't erase all the damage he did as Kylo Ren.

NEXT: Star Wars: 10 Forgotten Sith From Legends