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Star Destroyers are iconic vessels of the fictional universe of '' Star Wars ''. Star Destroyers are depicted as large dagger-shaped and extremely well-armed Warship s, serving in the thousands in the immense Imperial Starfleet and elsewhere, including in the service of the Galactic Republic , the New Republic , the Galactic Federation Of Free Alliances — and possibly even in the corporate war fleets of the Confederacy Of Independent Systems . See Star Wars Ship Names for various Star Destroyer names. ''IMPERATOR/IMPERIAL''-CLASS STAR DESTROYER The term "Star Destroyer" most often refers to the common dagger-hulled combat vessels used by the Empire in the three films of the original Star Wars trilogy. These ships are commonly referred to as ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers, their official designation as of a short time after the declaration of the newly formed Empire. During the earliest weeks of Imperial regime and the latter days of the Clone Wars , the class was known as the ''Imperator''-class. This is regarded as the most common class of Star Destroyer, and one of the most important symbols of the Galactic Empire, serving the Imperial fleet for at least five decades. When the term "Star Destroyer" is used without further qualification, it usually refers to ships of this class. All ''Imperial''-class variants are said to be 1,600 meters (approximately one mile) long, with three large primary engines and four small secondary engines capable of accelerating the ship with a force of several thousand '' G ''. Each vessel includes a hyperdrive capable of carrying it across the galaxy in a matter of weeks. ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers carry a complement of at least 37,000 staff, including officers, technicians and computer operators, fighter pilots, and support-craft crew. These vessels also carry a full complement of 9,700 Stormtroopers which brings the overall total to 46,700 men. In service with the New Republic (forged by the heroes of the Rebel Alliance after the end of the movie saga) the crews were reduced to about 28,000 men. Although some Mon Calamari Cruiser s are considered equivalent to the Imperial Star Destroyers in space combat, the latter has no documented equal in its multiple roles for support and planetary assault. There are two subtypes of ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers: the Mark I and Mark II designs. This distinction that seems to reflect the two distinct VFX models used in the Star Wars films; on a Mark I ship, the tractor beam array at the top of the superstructure sometimes stands up to look like a tall, X-shaped structure, while the Mark II has the same array on its side to look flat. At other times the Mark I array appears in repose, as in the Battles of Hoth and Endor . More permanent variations include differences in weaponry (discussed below), and three small baffles arranged 60° apart around the main exhaust nozzles at the stern of the ISD-I. The Mark I was the only ISD type featured in '' A New Hope ''. A mixture of Mark I and Mark II vessels appear in '' The Empire Strikes Back '' and ''Return of the Jedi''. Naming debate While most Star Wars lore describes the Star Destroyer as an "''Imperial''-class" ship, an alternative designation ''Imperator''-class also exists. The ''Imperator''-class name apparently originates in a set of blueprints produced in 1978 attributed to Geoffrey Mandel and packaged with Lucasfilm copyright. The ''Imperial''-class designation, which seems to have originated in ''Star Wars'' , which explains that "''Imperator''-class" was the original designation, but the class was re-dubbed ''Imperial''after the Jedi Purge. Both terms are correct and interchangeable. Features =Main bridge The main bridge of all known Imperial ships has the same basic layout. The outermost part features nine triangular viewports. The center contains two crewpits which are sunken into the main deck 1.7 meters, and house the main controls and computer terminals/control consoles of the ship. Between these two crewpits is the command walkway. To the right and left sides of the bridge are two alcoves containing the weapons and defense stations. Behind the bridge are the communications stations, a turbolift, and a HoloNet pod for ship-to-ship communications. On the level directly beneath the bridge is the main navigation complex. =Weapons A single Imperial Star Destroyer is said to have sufficient firepower to overwhelm almost any warship deployed by enemies of the Empire, and to be capable of reducing a hostile planet to an uninhabitable ruin. Later Rebel Alliance ships, particularly Mon Calamari Cruiser s, could be a match for a Star Destroyer individually - although greatly outnumbered as a class. The ISD-I carries batteries of four massive double-barreled turrets on either side of the main superstructure six are heavy turbolasers and two are heavy ion cannons. The heavy turbolasers are 50 meters in length. There are smaller visible gun-emplacements on the centerline and in the notches on the edge of the hull. On the ISD-II, eight-barreled guns in open mountings replace the larger turrets. Other Published specifications contrast with this appearance. They give the ISD-I an armament of 60 Taim & Bak XX-9 Heavy Turbolasers , 60 Borstel NK-7 Ion Cannons , and 10 Phylon Q7 Tractor Beam projectors. The tractor beam projectors working in conjunction can reel in a Rebel Assault Frigate (modified Dreadnaught). The ISD-II is armed with 50 heavy turbolaser batteries, 50 heavy turbolaser cannons, 20 ion cannons, and 10 tractor beam projectors, which gives it a significant firepower advantage over the ISD-I. Both models can house a full wing of 72 Imperial TIE s organized into 12-fighter squadrons. At the time of the Battle Of Yavin , a standard wing included 4 TIE Fighter squadrons, 1 TIE Interceptor squadron, and 1 TIE Bomber squadron. By the Battle Of Endor , one of the fighter squadrons was replaced with an interceptor squadron. At least one ship, NRS ''Rebel Dream'', featured an enlarged hangar bay, but it is unknown if a greater number of fighters were carried. Star Destroyers also carry ground forces. Expanded Universe literature places several thousand troops, a prefabricated base for rapid subjugation of rebellious territories, 20 AT-AT s, and 30 AT-ST s. According to such sources, Imperial Star Destroyers also carried support craft and drop ships, including the Y85 Titan Dropship and the Sentinel-class Shuttle . They also had 8 Lambda-class shuttles. =Sensor globes or shield generators Geodesic Dome s located on and around the bridge superstructure of Star Destroyers and related ships have been alternatively portrayed as both sensor globes and shield gnerators in Star Wars literature. It appears that these domes were originally inteded to be sensor globes, as Richard Edlund , who was in charge of visual effects for Return of the Jedi, described the spheres as "radar domes" in a 1983 interview by Cinefex magazine in which he discussed the demise of the 'Executor'. However, in the movie itself, bridge officers declaraed that the shields were down after one of these globes was destroyed, leading to confusion among authors of various sourcebooks on the Star Wars universe. Many older reference books such as ''The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels'' and ''The Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology'' label the pair of globes on top of the bridge as "Deflector Shield Generators," while the use of the globes as shield generators is also evident in '' for Nintendo Gamecube, where the globes are referred to as shield generators - along with the hemisphere on the ship's underside. In the MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies, the globes are clearly labeled in the targeting system as "Shield" and "Secondary Shield" ''Inside the Worlds of Star Wars'' shows the bridge area of the Executor and declares the globes to be sensor globes. However, it also places backup bridge shield generators in the base of the domes. This would neatly explain why the bridge was vulnerable to being rammed by an errant A-Wing after the attack on the globes, while favoring the sensor globe explanation. Areas of service =Imperial service ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers had a distinguished place in the Imperial Starfleet , symbolizing the Empire's military might. According to official literature, the Imperial Fleet had a peak strength of "over 25,000 Star Destroyers." Some Star Destroyers were destroyed in the fractious warfare that followed the death of Emperor Palpatine at Endor. Others heeded the summons of Palpatine's clone, and rallied secretly in the Deep Core . Others defected to (or were captured by) Rebels. The majority of the surrendered vessels were decommissioned, but some remained in service in the New Republic's navy; ( See Below ). ''Imperial''-class star destroyers are identified as the centerpiece of Superiority Fleets, used by local sector-level forces to scour Imperial space clear of enemy warships (i.e., Rebel ships). Within each Superiority Fleet, six ISDs served as the command ships for component formations known as "Battle Squadrons." ISDs have also been observed to operate more or less independently, or in pairs as guard ships on important worlds. By the time of the final peace between the Remnants Of The Empire and the heirs of the Rebellion, the eight remaining sector fleets of what was left of Imperial Space still centered around the ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyer, with around a dozen such ships per Sector, but they often operated as battle lines without support from smaller vessels, and may have been refitted to carry more defensive weaponry on their own hulls, making them more capable of fending off fighter and gunship attack. Scores of ''Imperial''-class ships are shown as forming the vanguard of Imperial battle-fleets. At the Battle of Endor in ''Return of the Jedi'', there were about forty ''Imperial''-class destroyers and one Super Star Destroyer . In other Star Wars lore, a battlefleet charged with defending the Imperial Core Worlds had one Super Star Destroyer and fifty-seven other capital ships, while Grand Admiral Josef Grunger's fleet consisted of one Super Star Destroyer, thirty Star Destroyers, and almost 200 smaller ships, and the fleet assembled by Admiral Daala included one Super Star Destroyer, more than forty ''Imperial''-class ships, and more than a hundred ''Victory''-class ships. A fleet at the center of the Empire's strategies for defending the Outer Rim, ''Black Sword Command'', contained about forty ''Imperial''-class and ''Victory''-class Star Destroyers and three Super Star Destroyers, but one of these SSDs was simply fitting out at a shipyard within the command's jurisdiction, and it is not impossible that at least one of the others was merely under construction. =New Republic service The ''Imperial''-class (or ''Imperator''-class) Star Destroyer has also appeared in the forces of other space-defense navies. A number were commissioned into the private defense-fleet of the shipyard system of Kuat where they were initially designed, while the independent monarchy that ruled the Hapes Star Cluster was able to seize some vessels during their war against Imperial occupation. After the fall of the Empire, Star Destroyers were most visible in the armadas of the New Republic, the successor-state formed by the heroes of the Rebellion such as Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, and Han Solo. The refits implemented by that government often involved structural modifications, and generally required a much smaller crew. These revisions resulted in a lack of capability to deploy planetary-assault soldiers and greatly reduced endurance, as the New Republic Defense Force doctrine operated ships on relatively short patrols and deemphasized armies of occupation. Because Star Destroyers tended to be larger than most New Republic starships, they were often pressed into service as command ships or the centerpiece of battlegroups. The New Republic initially chose to focus on Mon Calamari Star Cruisers instead of the ''Imperial''-class, which was apparently too much of a symbol of Imperial might to deploy in large numbers. Many of those used by the heirs of the Rebellion were symbolically high-profile prizes of war, such as the ''Accuser'' and ''Adjudicator'' captured at the Battle of Endor, the ''Avarice'' which defected during the Bacta War , and the ''Tyrant'' which had once been part of Darth Vader's personal fleet; renamed ''Emancipator'', ''Liberator'', ''Freedom'' and ''Rebel Dream'' respectively Some ''Victory''-class Star Destroyers were used during the early years of the New Republic, perhaps because the ''Victory'' was a symbol of the Old Republic's military machine, or perhaps more simply because its designer had joined the Rebellion as opposed to the creators of the ''Imperial''-class design which remained loyal to the Empire. In later years, however, after the end of the Galactic Civil War, the use of ''Imperial''-class ships apparently became regarded as much more acceptable to the heirs of the Rebellion, with many new ships like the ''Mon Mothma'' being named for former heroes of the Rebel Alliance. By the time of '' Starfighters Of Adumar '', ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers were an "almost common sight" in the New Republic's fleet. =Private service Within the Expanded Universe, one ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyer is in private hands, the '' special-operations raid on an Imperial base, including a deep red paint job to replace the classic Imperial white. While Captain Terrik was not permitted to keep all of his weapons after the operation, they were reinstated during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, and, according to rumor, were augmented by a ship-killing superlaser. During the Vong invasion, the ''Errant Venture'' served as a temporary Jedi sanctuary and also as squadron flagship in the forces that rallied to defeat the Yuuzhan Vong. No other demilitarized and nominally civilian Star Destroyers in are known to exist, although in practice, some ex-Imperial ships like the pirate flagship ''Invidious'' were little different in their capabilities than the ''Errant Venture'' at some stages of her career. Individual ship names See for the names of some of the ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers in service before the Battle Of Hoth . For a more comprehensive list from Star Destroyers produced in the third year of the Clone Wars until the Galactic Alliance Chiss-Killik border war, see Star Wars Ship Names . OTHER STAR DESTROYERS In the original draft scripts of the movie that would become ''Star Wars'', it can be noted that the term "Stardestroyer" (as a Compound Word ) referred to two-man fighters flown by what would become the Galactic Empire in later versions. During the classic era of ''Star Wars'' merchandising (1976–1983), preproduction artworks and some published literature perpetuated the compound word as a reference to the large, movie versions of Imperial warships. Destroyers Within Star Wars lore, while similar dagger-hulled warships are said to have existed for thousands of years, the earliest ships called "Star Destroyers" are the 800 m ''Victory''-class and the 1,137 m ''Venator''-class, deployed by the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars, the conflict which saw that once-democratic federation transformed into the autocratic Empire. Although the two were comparable in size and power, each had distinct characteristics and abilities that the other lacked. These vessels were also employed by the fledgling Empire, but the ''Venator''-class was later phased out in favor of larger and more powerful designs. ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer The ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer was designed by Rendili Stardrive to compete with Kuat Drive Yards and the successful ''Acclamator''-class long-range military assault transport. They were the most powerful medium combatants of the Galactic Republic 's military machine during the Clone Wars. The Republic bought both the ''Victory''-class and KDY's competing ''Venator''-class ships in great numbers. Ships of the ''Victory'' class are 800 meters long. Depictions of the engines vary: some sources show the ''Victory'' possessing three primary ion drives for sub-light propulsion; others show two. However, they are somewhat sluggish spacecraft and even later refits never really fixed that design flaw. The first flight of ships was capable of independent flight in atmosphere; in one of the most infamous examples of this capability, then-Captain Tarkin landed his vessel on a crowd of protestors in what would later be called the Ghorman Massacre. The second flight was not capable of effective atmospheric operations. The ''Victory-I'' subclass included eighty concussion missile tubes, while the rarely produced ''Victory-II'' subclass lacked them in favour of ion cannons. The ''Victory-II'' also had faster sublight drives for better space-to-space combat and lost its atmospheric capability, perhaps making it an even closer predecessor to the ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers that followed. All ships carried two squadrons of star-fighters. Presumably there are heavy weapons turrets flanking the command tower, but they have never been explicitly shown in the official literature. With the rise of the Empire , the ''Victory'' was replaced in general service by the ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyer, a much more capable design. Many ''Victory''-class ships were sold off (many to the Corporate Sector ) or decommissioned. Nonetheless, ''Victory''-class ships still saw much action against Rebels and pirate groups. After the end of the civil war, the ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyer was seen by some in the New Republic government as too much a reminder of the Empire. Under Mon Mothma , the New Republic concentrated on developing new ships based on the ''Victory''-class design - which was seen as more of a product of the Old Republic that preceded the Empire. The design lineage lives on in the '' Republic ''-, '' Nebula ''-, and '' Defender ''-classes Star Destroyers in service with the New Republic . Grand Admiral Thrawn also made significant use of the Victory Star Destroyer to overcome his limited number of capital ships. One notable feature of the ''Victory''-class is that it is one of the largest ships capable of operating effectively in the atmosphere of a planet. This gives it an advantage over its larger cousins in planetary assault scenarios, where it can be used to provide close-support for ground forces, and to intimidate the enemy. This advantage did not prevent it from being phased out and replaced by new classes as the main warship of the Empire, but it did ensure that the ''Victory'' was often assigned to invasion or policing fleets to make use of this ability. The Victory Star Destroyers also have a faster hyperdrive than the succeeding Imperial-class vessels; this enables the former to respond faster to uprisings and incidents. The ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer was originally described in West End Games' ''The Star Wars Sourcebook'' in the 1980s (But the design existed since conceptual art of ANH. However, the ''Victory'' was never seen in the original Trilogy or Episode III, despite being widely recognized as the direct predecessor to the ''Imperial''-class in this and many later sources (including ''The Essential Guide to Vessels and Vehicles'', published before the release of ''The Phantom Menace''). It was perhaps because the ''Victory's'' wings and bridge/tower nodes seem like ugly additions to the otherwise sleek design and clean lines of the ''Imperial''-class (otherwise, the ''Victory'' is very similar to the ''Imperial'' in looks). The ''Acclamator'' and ''Venator''-class ships, however, were created for Episodes II and III, and never existed in any literature prior to the release of those movies. Ironically, the ''Victory I''-class Star Destroyer, with its absolutely devastating compliment of 80 List Of Star Wars Ship-mounted Weapons concussion missile launchers (of which a single salvo could down the shields of an ''Imperator''-class Star Destroyer or a Mon Cal Cruiser ), is more formidable than its ''Victory II''-class successor, where the concussion missiles were all replaced by Enhanced Ion Cannons . See Star Wars Ship Names for ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer names. ''Venator''-class Star Destroyer . The red and gold livery indicates that this is an Old Republic example of the class]] Also known as "Republic Attack Cruisers," ''Venator''-class Star Destroyers were the successors of the successful tradition of the ''Acclamator''-class assault transports and the ''Victory''-class Star Destroyers. While the ''Acclamator'' was primarily an armed troop transport and the ''Victory'' was a jack-of-all-trades, the ''Venator'' was primarily a Starfighter Carrier / Destroyer . The ''Venator''-class destroyer was 1,137 meters long and carried a crew of 7,400. Its main reactor could consume up to 400 tons of fuel per second and had engines that could accelerate the massive vessel at 30,000 m/s&2. The ship is capable of operating within atmospheres and landing for docking as well retrieving/disembarking the ground forces. The ''Venator''-class carried 420 starfighters in its large hangar bays, a feature phased out of successor Destroyer designs in favor of heavier weapons on the ships themselves. Standard fighter complement was 192 V-Wing starfighters, 36 ARC-170 starfighters, and 192 Eta-2 ''Actis'' Jedi Interceptor s. 40 LAAT/i gunships and 24 AT-TE walkers were carried for ground operations. Combined with its fighters, the ''Venator's'' powerful engines, strong deflector shields and armament consisting of 8 heavy turbolaser turrets, 2 medium dual turbolaser cannons, 52 point-defense laser cannons, 4 heavy proton torpedo tubes, and 6 tractor beam projectors made it one of the most powerful and fearsome medium warships of the time. Some ''Venator''-class ships also carried SPHA-T turbolaser walkers in their hangar bays, which were used to provide extra close-range firepower and to defend the open hangar bays, the most vulnerable part of the ships. ''Venator''-class Star Destroyers were deployed in a number of battles during the Clone Wars , most notably during the Battle Of Coruscant when upwards of a thousand of the ships helped protect the capital. As the Galactic Republic transformed into the Galactic Empire , the ''Venator'' ceased production in favor of the newer ''Imperator''-class Star Destroyer. Thousands of ''Venators'' procured during the Clone Wars were slowly mothballed over the succeeding decade. The ''Venator''-class is established as a destroyer, an escort, and a lighter vessel in the ''Revenge of the Sith Incredible Cross-Sections'' fact book. The name ''Venator'' comes from Latin and translates to both "Hunter" and "Skirmisher". See Star Wars Ship Names for ''Venator''-class Star Destroyer names. Confederacy of Independent Systems Star Destroyers The cigar-shaped Separatist cruisers seen in ''Revenge of the Sith'' have been called Star Destroyers by some fans, even though no canonical sources refer to them as such. While their capabilities and power levels are comparable to Old Republic and Imperial Star Destroyers, they are depicted solely as components of the CIS starfleet. For purposes of this article, such ships are considered to be Star Destroyers. ''Providence''-class destroyer A type of ship used by the Trade Federation and the Confederacy Of Independent Systems , this class was not the standard and more effective "dagger" shape favored by the Republic and later Empire. Instead it was a tapered cylinder, looking more like a Coruscanti skyscraper laid on its side then a warship. At 1,088 meters in length it was larger then the Republic's ''Victory'' class but smaller than Star Destroyers later fielded by the Republic. The standard ships apparently had limited hangar facilities, a limitation corrected in some variants. The variants had extended hangars at the expense of engine space, but were capable of 2,500 Gs in open space and 2,000 km/h in atmosphere. It has been claimed that these craft lacked direct power feeds from the reactor to the guns. However their offensive armament included a large number of Proton Torpedo launchers. The reactor power of the ''Invisible Hand'' (12,000 tons per second fuel annihilation) is within the band of vessels classed as Destroyers (e.g. between ''Venator'' with 40,000 tons/s and ''Recusant''-class with 8,600 tons/s), rather than the lower power of Star Frigates (e.g. ''Munificent'' with 2,300 tons/s). ''Invisible Hand''-type With a known production run of 3 ships, this ''Providence'' variant saw limited use in the Clone Wars . When Viceroy Gunray commissioned this ship, he had them remove the aft reactors, fuel stores, and some of the engine components to make room for a massive hangar. The result was a significant weakening of the ship in return for an extravagant hangar facility. When General Grievous assumed command of Confederacy's armed forces, he seized this ship as his personal vessel to insult the Viceroy, who had previously and repeatedly insulted him. Two sister ships were commissioned, the ''Lucid Voice'' and ''Collicoid Swarm'', and they were used in a disinformation campaign to keep Republic spies unable to pinpoint Grievous' exact location. The modifications to this ship left it with a reduced and weakened armament. It now carried only 14 Quad Turbolaser turrets, 34 dual Laser cannons, 2 Ion Cannon s, 12 Point-defense Ion Cannons , 102 Proton Torpedo launchers, and an unknown number of Point-defense Flak Cannons . It carried 240 droid starfighters, 160 Mobile Troop Transports, and 280 assorted droid vehicles. For infantry duty it caried up to 1.5 million deactivated droids, and had a crew of 600. In ''Revenge of the Sith: Incredible Cross-Sections'', it is called in what is apparently intended to be a technical capacity a "Modified ''Providence''-class carrier/destroyer". Galactic Empire Star Destroyers The most renowned user of Star Destroyer-type ships was the tyrannical Galactic Empire. The menacing profile of a huge Star Destroyer became a symbol of Imperial might and domination, and many Rebel convoys and even militarized armadas were punished by ''Imperial''-class warships acting as sector defense ships and blockade enforcers, either with impoundment or total destruction (and sometimes both, as evidenced by the off-record capture and annihilation of the '' Tantive IV '', consular ship of Princess Leia Organa ). At nearly all major engagements of the war, Star Destroyers were present. The Navy's standard ''Imperial''-class ship was 1,600 meters long, but the term "Star Destroyer" was also loosely applied as slang to larger ships, including massive star battleships stretching more than ten miles from bow to stern. ''Tector''-class Star Destroyer The existence of the ''Tector''-class is established in the ''Revenge of the Sith Incredible Cross-Sections'' fact book, but was presumed to have existed prior to that due to observations of Return of the Jedi. The alleged ''Tector''-class vessel in the movie appeared similar to the ''Imperial''-class, but lacked the ventral hangar bay and visible reactor-bulb. For this reason, it is hypothesized that it is a dedicated attack ship, and not a hybrid carrier/transport/attack ship like the ''Imperial''-class. It is never stated that this ship is a ''Tector''-class Star Destroyer, and there are no officially identified images of a ''Tector''-class Star Destroyer. ''Harrow''-type A Star Destroyer featuring ''Victory''-like "wings" but an ''Imperial''-class grade of hangar bay (fairly large) as well as several other cosmetic differences, the ''Harrow'' measured about the length of a ''Victory''-class vessel (900 meters or thereabouts) and may have been a Kuat Drive Yards attempt to shoo competitor Rendili StarDrive 's still-successful ''Victory'' out of the market with their own niche-fitting light Star Destroyer. Rogue Squadron encountered the ''Harrow'', which seems unlikely to be a one-of-a-kind vessel, in orbit of Tatooine some months after the Battle Of Endor , though with the confusion and chaos in the Imperial war machine following the Emperor's death, it would appear doubtful that the ''Harrow'' was constructed and put into service in the time following the Battle of Endor (meaning that it likely was introduced to the fleet during or before the height of the Galactic Civil War). The starship ''Harrow'' possessed two main Sub-light Engine drives and then two smaller ones between them stacked vertically. It was commanded as of the Tatooine mission by Captain Semtim , and judging by its mission (to recover supplies hidden by Grand Vizier Sate Pestage on Tatooine), size, and design similarities to the Victory -class Star Destroyer, was probably capable of travel through a planet's atmosphere. However, as with the conjecture on when it was introduced, there is no solid proof in one direction or the other. New Republic Star Destroyers The defeat at Endor did not lead to the immediate destruction of the Imperial fleet, but it did mark the end of the Empire as the galaxy's dominant superpower. The victorious Rebel Alliance became the New Republic , and it began to build new Star Destroyers of its own. Although considerably more compact than ''Imperial''-class Star Destroyers, these new ships rivaled them in firepower, armor, and combat capability. From the New Republic New Class Modernization Program , the ''Nebula''-class Star Destroyer was made, although some fans also include the new ''Defender''-class Assault Carriers as Star Destroyers, although this is technically untrue. ''Republic''-class Star Destroyer See Also: New Class program The ''Republic''-class Star Destroyer was designed and built by Rendili StarDrive for the New Republic as a lower-cost destroyer. She only required a fifth of the crew, yet had firepower twenty percent greater than that of an ''Imperial''. Fighter complement remained similar at six squadrons. However, the design almost certainly had much inferior endurance, with only about half of the armor of an ''Imperial'' , and the extensive ground-assault complement of the ''Imperial'' was probably eliminated. The design had much more in common with the ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer than the ''Imperial''. In the ''Star Wars: Visionaries'' graphic novel, in the Battle Of Coruscant , one ''Republic''-class Star Destroyer is seen right above General Grievous 's flagship. This can likely be dismissed as artistic license, error, or otherwise deviance, since ''Republic''-class Star Destroyers were nonexistent as of the end of the Clone Wars, and were for a good thirty-five or so years afterwards. ''Nebula''-class Star Destroyer See Also: New Class program The ''Nebula''-class Star Destroyer was designed by Republic Engineering Corporation as a relatively low-cost line warship for the New Republic as part of the New Class modernization program. It was 1,040 meters in length, and had a modular superstructure that was identical to the ''Endurance''-class Fleet Carrier, which was part of the idea of the New Class program. Unlike most Star Destroyers, the ''Nebula'' deletes the large dorsal superstructure that had exemplified the design of most major warships for decades; instead, it had what appeared to be a small navigation bridge thus making the lines much smoother. In addition, the firepower was considered equal to that of the ''Imperial I''-class Star Destroyer; its fighter complement consisted of one wing. Like most New Republic designs, the ''Nebula'' probably had endurance on the order of six months and virtually no ability to land troops. Notable vessels of the class are the ''Yakez'' and the ''Brilliant''. ''Defender''-class Star Destroyer See Also: New Class program Like the ''Nebula''-class Star Destroyer, the ''Defender'' follows a design philosophy of sleekness, largely eliminating the protruding bridge tower and mostly internalizing shield generators. ''Defender''-class vessels served with distinction during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion of the galaxy, participating in battles including the Battle of Ebaq 9]] and the Battle of Yuuzhan'tar. They became favorites of New Republic military commanders and continued to gain in popularity through the formation of the Galactic Federation Of Free Alliances under Cal Omas . ''Defender''s measure 1,040 meters in length, but have enough firepower to challenge ships as large and renowned for power as the ''Imperial''-class and ''Tector''-class Star Destroyers. Galactic Alliance Star Destroyers After the dissolution of the New Republic following the doctored election of Cal Omas into office as Chief Of State , the Galactic Federation Of Free Alliances was formed under a new constitution. After finally defeating the despicable Yuuzhan Vong Empire and retaking their seat of government at Coruscant , they began to build a more modern and more flexible military arsenal, drawing on new technologies developed and provided for them by such companies as Tendrando Arms . By the time of the Battle Of The Murgo Choke , the GFFA was ready to face the Killik s with a newly updated and equipped fleet. Among this fleet's components numbered new Star Destroyer types. ''Admiral Ackbar''-type Named after Ackbar , deceased former Supreme Commander of the New Republic Armed Forces, the ''Admiral Ackbar'' seems to be a ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer with extensive modifications, probably enough to push it into being at least a subtype, not the least of which is a giant turret-mounted Tractor Beam generator sufficient enough to seize ships at a considerable distance and tow them in for handling by smaller and more precise beam generators capable of guiding them to the hangar bay, as well as fifty Turbolaser Batteries . Commanded by Admiral Nek Bwau'tu , it captured the '' Millennium Falcon '' with Jedi and renowned heroines Leia Organa Solo and Saba Sebatyne aboard and impounded them for attempting to run a blockade against Killik -held worlds on the edge of the Unknown Regions . The Gorog Dark Nest of Killiks attacked and overwhelmed the ''Ackbar'', using carefully planted assassin bugs inside the ship to incapacitate much of her crew during the assault, and Raynar Thul , ex-Jedi and leader of the "Colony" of Killiks, came aboard the ship to take personal command. Though Bwau'tu, Organa Solo, and Sebatyne escaped along with many crew members, a large fraction of the ship's personnel was not so lucky. Crew members unlucky or stupid enough to get in the assassin bug swarms' way were usually badly wounded, sometimes sickened, and often killed, and the ''Ackbar'' came under Killik control. Although the class of ''Ackbar'' is unstated as of ''The Unseen Queen'', it seems that this flagship is not a unique vessel. Noghri bodyguard Cakhmaim identifies the ''Victory''-class update as "one of the new pirate hunters" upon seeing it, implying that ''Admiral Ackbar'' isn't the only ship of this class. Given the substantial modifications, this type might be classified as ''Victory III''-class Star Destroyers. Chiss Ascendancy Star Destroyers Recently, it has been revealed that the Chiss Ascendancy, too, has begun building their own Star Destroyer designs. Some of these vessels saw action in the Swarm War against the Killik Colony. Chiss Unnamed 1 Star Destroyer An unnamed example of a Chiss -built Star Destroyer was sighted at Qoribu and Kr in The Joiner King . It is said to be somewhat larger than a ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer, to which class Jaina Solo at first thought this ship belonged. However, its lines are notably more organic than the ''Victory''-class', and it is slightly more tapered, among other cosmetic dissimilarities. This ship carries an unknown complement of Chiss Clawcraft and is armed with conventional Turbolaser weaponry. It appears that they can also be fitted with cloaking devices, which were noted as protruding from their hulls at the battle for Kr. They also carry Tractor Beam s capable of locking on and drawing in swarms of fighters. Usage of the term "a" in the Star Wars literature denotes that this class is being actively produced, and there are multiple vessels. Chiss Unnamed 2 Star Destroyer During the Battle of Tenupe in the The Swarm War , there were also other Chiss Star Destroyers, which carried a wing of Chiss Clawcraft fighters. An example of this class is the ''Fallen Defender''. It also has capability to travel in atmosphere, contains several interrogation modules, and contains a contingent of troops. There are at least three of these vessels, which leads to the probable conclusion that these are being actively produced as well. SUPER STAR DESTROYERS See Also: Super Star Destroyer The term "Super Star Destroyer", often abbreviated SSD, is a general term used to refer to any ship in the Galactic Empire 's Starfleet using the wedge/dagger design aesthetic which is larger than the 1,600m long ''Imperial''-class. As such, several ships can be termed as a "Super Star Destroyer", whatever its more formal designation, and this is the most commonly taken path by Star Wars characters regardless of their alignment. PREDECESSORS AND RELATIVES Many ships similar to the Star Destroyers existed, either predating the line (and probably influencing it) or accompanying it in similar form, though officially not classed as Star Destroyer-type vessels. ''Leviathan''-type '']] Formerly an Old Republic flagship, Admiral Saul Karath took the ''Leviathan'' with him when he defected to the forces of the Sith Lord Darth Malak almost four thousand years BBY . A 600-meter-long interdictor with probably the first known example of Gravity-well Projector devices in the known galaxy, the ''Leviathan'' was the pride of the Republic until its defection, which was taken as a crushing blow to fleet morale. At the Battle Of The Star Forge , the Forge produced replicated ''Leviathan''-type warships to combat the huge Republic war fleets assaulting it. The ''Leviathan'' itself was attacked by the crew of the '' Ebon Hawk '' prior to the engagement, but the fate of the legendary cruiser is unknown. ''Ravager''-type .]] See Ravager This starship was used by the Old Republic around four thousand years BBY , most notably at the Battle Of Malachor V . The only known ship of this type seen, the ''Ravager'', was destroyed during the final battle of the Mandalorian Wars . The Sith Lord Darth Nihilus later used the Force to rip the ''Ravager'' from its graveyard orbit, and used it as his mobile command center during the Sith's shadow war against the Jedi until the ship was destroyed above Telos . A dagger-shaped warship, it seems to have been the design inspiration for the ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer. From in-game cinematic evidence, the ''Ravager'' was about twice the length of ''Leviathan''-class destroyers. ''Rand Ecliptic''-type See Rand Ecliptic This Imperial frigate was a variant of the ''Acclamator''-class Assault Ship , intended primarily for patrol and space combat rather than planetary assault. They could be distinguished visually from ''Acclamator''-class ships by their four ventral hangar bays. The most notable of these ships was the '' Rand Ecliptic '', which defected to the Rebel Alliance after a Mutiny by Rebel sympathizers including Derek Klivian and Biggs Darklighter . ''Procurator''-class Star Battlecruiser Battlecruisers of this kind were stated to be part of the Kuat Sector Defense Fleet at the start of the Clone Wars, according to the factbook. A ''Procurator''´s reactor was large enough to be visible from outside the hull, protruding with a ventral bulb. ''Its name bore several meanings, including " viceroy ; under the empire, financial agent or under-governor ." This could indicate the Procurators were used as command ships for smaller fleets.'' ''Praetor''-class Star Battlecruiser Some of the reactor equipment used to power Echo Base on the planet Hoth was scavenged from a Star Battlecruiser of this class. It was stated in the ''Inside the Worlds of the Original Trilogy'' factbook that this equipment was larger and more powerful than similar equipment taken from a Star Destroyer which was used to help power the Yavin Base on Yavin IV , thus indicating a much more powerful class of warship. ''Its name held several meanings possibly hinting at its role(s): A) "Senior Roman magistrate. During republic, commander of minor military forces." B) "Commander of allied contingent." Like the Procurator, it could have had a command role for smaller space forces.'' ''Mandator''-class Star Dreadnaught These massive dreadnaughts helped form the Kuat Sector Defense Fleet, working alongside ''Procurator''-class Star Battlecruisers (according to the ''AOTC ICS'' book.) The main reactor was large enough to have a ventral bulb protruding from the "belly" of the ship, differentiating it from the smaller ''Acclamator''-class Assault Ships. ''Mandator''-class ships were very powerful, but also had very limited range and thus were suitable only for defending planets within the Kuat Sector. There is known to be a ''Mandator''-class Mark II model developed for the Republic Starfleet by the time of the Battle of Coruscant. It was powerful enough to be challenged only by 1,000 of the Confederacy's ''Recusant''-class light destroyers, according to some sources. The ''Mandator''-class Mark II model under Republic service is established in the ''Revenge of the Sith Incredible Cross-Sections'' fact book. Another postulation of fans is that Emperor Palpatine forced a demilitarization of Kuat to have the ''Mandator''-class ships either ceded to the Empire or destroyed. This is also not embraced by canon and remains a simple fan-based theory. It is however known that all sector defense fleets were folded into the Republic navy during the Clone Wars. Since the ''Executor''-class were said to be the largest ships at the time of Hoth, it can be inferred that the ''Mandator''s were either slightly smaller or completely extinct. ''Vindicator''-class Heavy Cruiser The ''Vindicator''-class heavy cruiser was the standard 600 meter-long "heavy cruiser" of the Imperial Starfleet. It was intended for use in situations in which Imperial-class Star Destroyers were unavailable, and smaller ships were not powerful enough. The ship was manufactured by Sienar Fleet Systems, and designed by Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin himself. It is possible that Tarkin gave the ''Vindicator'' design to Sienar as a favor to his old friend, Raith Sienar . The ship's armament consisted of 25 light turbolasers, 20 light quad turbolasers, 10 point-defense laser cannons, 20 light point-defense ion cannons, and 3 tractor beam projectors. The Vindicator was equipped with a class 2 hyperdrive. It carried 400 troops and a crew of 2,551. Most ''Vindicator''s were specifically configured so that they could carry a full TIE starfighter wing and operate independently without the need for support ships. Although the Vindicator was designated as a "heavy cruiser," it was smaller than the ''Acclamator''-class assault ship as well as the ''Munificent''-class frigate. The Immobilizer-418 Interdictor cruiser was designed using the same basic hull as the ''Vindicator''. In addition to manufacturing new Immobilizer-418s, the Empire converted a number of Vindicators into Interdictor cruisers. The ''Vindicator'' hull was used again to build the ''Enforcer''-class picket cruiser, a patrol ship used by the Pentastar Alignment. Detainer CC2200 Another Interdictor cruiser, complete with gravity-well projectors. It appears in ''Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader'', in which Imperial troops under Lord Vader's command, very soon after his loss to Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mustafar, attack the Wookie homeworld of Kashyyyk. The Detainer is used to prevent merchants, and especially escaped Jedi, from escaping the planet. It is eventually destroyed by the self-destruct of a robotic Separatist ship reactivated by the Jedi. ''Enforcer''-class picket cruiser A lighter starship based on the ''Vindicator''-class hull used by the Pentastar Alignment splinter group in the aftermath of the Battle Of Endor . Presumably, ''Enforcer''s are about 600 meters in length. APPEARANCES Movies ''Imperial/Imperator''-class Star Destroyers were seen in all three movies of the original trilogy. However, the Imperial Star Destroyer had been slightly redesigned for "The Empire Strikes Back", and that variant is known as the Imperial-II, making the "A New Hope" vessels the Imperial-I. The "Super Star Destroyer" ''''. A ''Tector''-class Star Destroyer and the Communications Ship were briefly seen in ''Return of the Jedi''. The ''Acclamator''-class assault ship was seen in ''''. Expanded Universe Star Destroyers of various other classes occur throughout Expanded Universe material, most notably in '' Dark Empire ''. All ''Executor''-class ships listed after the ''Executor'' itself, had their origins in the Expanded Universe. There is a small amount of controversy, especially over a large number of ~1600 m long Star Destroyer classes seen in comic books; some believe them to be separate classes, others believe them to be poorly-drawn ''Imperial''-class ships. Even in ''Star Wars:Empire #55'' the ''Victory''-class Star Destroyer is seemingly too big and a few details remain un-depicted. In the Thrawn Trilogy written by Timothy Zahn, when Skywalker, Solo, Bel Iblis, and Leia Skywalker were trying to capture the Katana Fleet, Imperial Star Destroyers were involved in a battle. It was said that the forward ventral sensors were knocked out, thus giving the pirates "free rein of the Star Destroyer's underside". This implies that there are only two sensor stations that are solely responsible for targeting and detection. Games .]] Star Destroyers have featured prominently in many Star Wars computer games, primarily as targets to be destroyed by starfighters, as in the X-Wing Computer Game Series . The ''Doomgiver'' in the second Jedi Knight game can also be presumed to be a "Super Star Destroyer" of an as yet unnamed class. In the game , Star Destroyers serve as spawnpoints for Imperials during space battles. Star Destroyers are prominent in several Star Wars Real-time Strategy games. Lego In 2002 the Lego Group released the Imperial Star Destroyer. The model is made up of 3,104 pieces and at more than three feet long, the scale is roughly 1/1600. At the time of its release it was, piece-wise and length-wise, the largest set Lego had ever produced. Its piece count has since been surpassed by a model of the Death Star II released in 2005. A second, smaller Star Destroyer that opens up to reveal a playset is due to be released in the summer of 2006 . EXTERNAL LINKS |
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