The path to The Dark Side of The Force is the quick and easy path, granting amazing power but forever dominating the destinies of those in its grasp.
You must have a Dark Side Score or 1 or higher to select Talents from this Talent Tree; if your Dark Side Score is ever reduced to 0, you lose access to all Talents in this Talent Tree until your Dark Side Score increases.
Power of the Dark Side
You allow your hatred to fuel your attacks. Whenever you spend a Force Point to modify an attack roll, you may choose to roll an additional bonus die and take the best result. However, doing so increases your Dark Side Score by 1. For example, a 1st-level character with this talent could increase their Dark Side Score by 1 to roll 2d6 instead of 1d6, taking the best die result and applying it as a bonus to their attack roll.
Dark Presence
Prerequisites: Power of the Dark Side, Charisma 13
As a Standard Action, you grant yourself and all allies within 6 squares of you a +1 Force bonus to all Defenses until the end of the encounter. These bonuses are lost if you fall unconscious or die. Affected allies that move out of range lose the benefits for as long as they remain out of range.
Revenge
Prerequisites: Dark Presence, Power of the Dark Side
Whenever an ally of equal or higher level than you is killed or reduced to 0 hit points within your line of sight, you gain a +2 Force bonus on attack rolls and damage rolls until the end of the encounter. (Since Force bonuses do not stack, you don't get a higher bonus if more than one ally falls in the same encounter.)
Swift Power
Prerequisite: Power of the Dark Side
Once per day, you can use a Force Power that normally takes a Standard Action or a Move Action as a Swift Action.
Additional Dark Side Talents
Consumed by Darkness
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Clone Wars Campaign Guide
Sometimes your anger consumes you. As a Swift Action, you can take a -5 penalty to your Will Defense to gain a +2 Force bonus on attack rolls. The penalty and bonus last until the beginning of your next turn.
Dark Preservation
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Legacy Era Campaign Guide
Prerequisite: Power of the Dark Side
Whenever an effect would normally move you down the Condition Track, you may spend a Force Point and increase your Dark Side Score by 1 to negate that movement down the Condition Track.
Dark Side Savant
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Jedi Academy Training Manual
Once per encounter as a Swift Action, you can return one Force Power with the [Dark Side] descriptor to your Force Power Suite without spending a Force Point. You can select this Talent multiple times. Each time you select it, you can use it one additional time per encounter.
Drain Knowledge
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Threats of the Galaxy
As a Standard Action, you can spend a Force Point to drain the knowledge of an opponent you touch; you must succeed on a Use the Force check (DC equal to the target's Will Defense) to activate this Talent, and if you fail to activate this Talent, you may not try again on the same target for one day. If successful, you immediately become Trained in one Skill that the target is Trained in; if you are already Trained in that Skill, you instead gain Skill Focus in that Skill. This effect lasts for one day. Additionally, your target moves -1 Persistent step along the Condition Track, and the Persistent Condition can be removed only by resting for 8 hours.
Additionally, you can choose to instead sift through the mind of the target, looking for a specific piece of knowledge or information. Doing so requires you to make a Perception check against the target's Will Defense; success indicates that you pull the relevant information from the target's mind. When you do so, you do not gain the bonus Trained Skill or Skill Focus normally granted by this Talent, but otherwise the Talent functions as normal. Using this Talent increases your Dark Side Score by 1.
Transfer Essence
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Jedi Academy Training Manual
Prerequisite: Dark Side Score equal to Wisdom Score
When you die, you become a Dark Side Spirit until the end of the encounter. You continue to occupy a space in this form, but other creatures can occupy the same space or move through your space without impediment. As a Standard Action, you can attempt to possess an adjacent target. You must succeed on a Use the Force check against an adjacent target's Will Defense. If your check result equals or exceeds the target's Will Defense, you deal 8d6 points of Stun damage to the target; if you reduce the target to 0 Hit Points or move it to the bottom of the Condition Track with this attack, you possess the target as though it were a willing host.
Alternatively, as a Standard Action, you can transfer your essence into a single adjacent object, such as a Holocron or a Lightsaber. If you do so, you lie dormant within the object until another creature attempts to use that object, at which time you can emerge and attempt to possess the creature, as described above.
If you do not possess a creature or object within 10 rounds of manifesting as a Dark Side Spirit, your spirit dissipates and ceases to exist.
Wrath of the Dark Side
Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Force Unleashed Campaign Guide
Prerequisite: Power of the Dark Side
When you roll a Natural 20 on a Use the Force check to activate a Force Power that directly deals damage to a target, you can choose not to regain all of your spent Force Powers as normal and instead the targets damaged by the Force Power take half that damage again at the start of their next turn. Only Force Powers that directly damage the target are subject to this Talent, including Corruption, Force Blast, Force Grip, Force Lightning, Force Slam, Force Thrust (Only when spending a Force Point), and Repulse (Only when spending a Force Point).
Homebrew Dark Side Talents
Dark Side Maelstrom
Homebrew Reference Book: Clone Wars Saga Edition Fan Sourcebook - The Dark Side
Prerequisites: At least one Talent from the Dark Side Talent Tree, Force Storm, Hatred, Dark Side Score equal to Wisdom
You create a wound in The Force itself, tearing open space in a vortex of intense Dark Side energy. Use of this Talent expends the Force Storm and Hatred Force Powers from your Force Power Suite. As a Full-Round Action, you may make a DC 25 Use the Force check. If the check succeeds, you create a Dark Side Maelstrom within your line of sight one square in size that deals 2d8 Force damage to all targets within its affected area. The maelstrom can only be controlled by the creator and is capable of movement up to 6 squares per round. The maelstrom requires a Use the Force check with a Standard Action to maintain from round to round.
The DC to maintain the maelstrom increases by one, the damage increases by +1d8 and it expands in size by one square area each round (1-square becomes 2x2 squares, etc.). If at any time a Use the Force check fails, the maelstrom disperses immediately. If the check fails by 10 or more, the maelstrom turns on its creator, dealing damage equal to its current damage die that round. If you take damage while maintaining Dark Side Maelstrom, you must succeed on a Use the Force check (DC = current round DC + damage taken) to continue maintaining the Talent and prevent it from turning on its creator.