Star Wars: Rogue Squadron #19 - Chapter IV

1. Battle of Calamari, Chapter IV

The final true "mission" involves tricky dogfighting in V-wing craft and an all-out battle with massive World Devastators.

Briefing

In this all-out encounter with the Empire, Rogue Squadron will do battle on Mon Calamari, a planet almost completely covered by water. This marine world is inhabited by two species, the peaceful Mon Calamari, who live on islands and floating cities, and the wary Quarren, who live deep beneath the sea and can breathe both air and water. The Mon Calamari build enormous starships and warships from their orbiting shipbuilding docks, and are valuable members of the Rebel Alliance.

Description

The World Devastators are raining destruction on the peaceful world of Mon Calamari. Fly as Wedge antilles, and battle against all odds to stop their evil conquest.

Mission Objectives

1. Destroy the World Devastators
2. Protect the city

Requirements for Gold

1. Completion Time: 5:30
2. Enemies Destroyed: 24
3. Accuracy: 25%
4. Friendly Saves: 87
5. Bonus Collected: 0

Default Craft

V-Wing

Optional Craft

X-Wing, A-Wing

The Battle of Calamari, also known as the Battle of Mon Calamari or the Second Battle of Calamari, occurred in 10 ABY, when the reborn Emperor Palpatine's forces attacked the temporary New Republic capital Dac.

Prelude

Six years after his original death at the Battle of Endor, Emperor Palpatine returned in a clone body. He retook control of the Imperial forces and, striking from Byss, retook the New Republic capital world Coruscant.

To punish the Mon Calamari for supporting the New Republic, he unleashed his new superweapons—the World Devastators. These deadly machines were able to recycle an entire world's surface to create weapons of war. Palpatine planned to lead the final attack on the world personally from the Eclipse, but never had the chance.

The battle

Opening engagement

The Imperial forces attacked Mon Calamari from Byss, which was the Emperor's capital world in the Deep Core. World Devastators descended to the planet's surface and began devouring shipyards, floating cities and its defenses. The Mon Calamari defenders fought back, but they were hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned.

In one sector, only the Third Battalion under Captain Gammack was left alive, and losing soldiers by the minute. They sent an emergency message to the New Republic High Command, which had reformed at Pinnacle Base. Admiral Gial Ackbar immediately ordered forces to head to Mon Calamari and aid the evacuation of the world. Blue and Green squadrons were dispatched to escort several MC80 evacuation cruisers to Da Soocha V.

New Republic reinforcements arrived quickly and were lead by Wedge Antilles and Lando Calrissian. Commanding the fleet from the captured Imperial-class Star Destroyer Emancipator, the duo directed a formidable array of warships, including the Mon Remonda, a few of the new MC90 Star Cruisers, several escort frigates, and some small support vessels.

However, there was an Imperial blockade at Mon Calamari to ensure that the World Devastators went unhindered. The New Republic fleet that arrived from hyperspace had to fight through the blockade. Catching the Imperial communications ship Super Star Destroyer Allegiance and its escorting Star Destroyers with their shields down, the New Republic forces managed to shatter the blockade with minimal losses.

The Emancipator then launched its T-65 X-wing starfighter and V-wing airspeeder squadrons to head down to the surface. The squadrons fought hard, ready to battle the World Devastators.

Yet, the World Devastators had already accumulated enough resources to produce hundreds of new assault vehicles, including TIE/D automated starfighters and AQ-5 Waveskimmers. Catching the New Republic squadrons by surprise, the new Imperial fighters destroyed countless starfighters. Other starfighters were lost attacking the World Devastators.

Loss of the Emancipator

Eventually, the Emancipator was consumed by one of the World Devastators, forcing its crew into escape pods or face a fiery death in the superweapon's furnaces. Onboard the last escape pod, Lando, Wedge, and the surviving bridge crew watched as their flagship was slowly reduced to its most basic elements. The tide of battle shifted in favor of the Empire as the remaining New Republic warships struggled to maintain their attacks and recover escape pods.

However, the timely arrival of New Republic reinforcements kept the battle from turning into a rout. The New Republic forces consisted of multiple escort and rescue frigates, as well as the new E-wing escort starfighter. The new fighters, led by Knave Squadron, engaged the TIE/D automated starfighters while the rescue frigates gathered the escape pods from the Emancipator. At some point, Antilles took direct command of Rogue Squadron, part of which assailed a triad of smaller World Devastators in V-wing airspeeders and part of which undertook a separate offensive in X-wing superiority starfighters. The Rogues engaged took out three of the Devastators and destroyed squadrons of droid TIE fighters which were attacking Mon Calamari cities on the land. Kasan Moor flew a V-wing with Rogue Squadron at the behest of Antilles, though she had not flown with the squadron for years. In addition, three smaller-scale World Devastators were also destroyed by Rogue Squadron, exploiting their weak deflector shields by destroying two of their "legs."

Even the E-wings could not penetrate the heavy defenses of the World Devastators, with several of the new fighters being lost. Luckily for the New Republic, Luke Skywalker though having apparently joined the Emperor and become his Supreme Commander, had tampered with the Master Control Signal on Byss. This caused the loss of three Devastators.

Endgame

Help arrived again in the form of Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, Salla Zend, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2 aboard the Millennium Falcon. Luke had hidden the master control codes for the World Devastators in R2-D2. The droid was able to shut down the World Devastators' shields, weapons, and propulsion systems.

The World Devastators still churned out deadly AQ-5 Waveskimmers, which streamed out to engage oncoming water bound New Republic forces. The Sea Commandos, led by Gammack, raced towards the World Devastators aboard Amphibion transports while exchanging fire with Waveskimmer units. Soon the fighting moved to the top of the World Devastators themselves, with stormtroopers and sea commandos fighting a deadly close quarters battle.

Meanwhile, R2-D2 used the codes stored in his systems to create a virus, intended to interfere with the Devastator's central computers. This code started up the Devastators again, this time tasked with devouring each other.

The mighty World Devastators began devouring each other, accompanied by the cheers of New Republic and local Mon Calamari forces. The defense of Mon Calamari was an important victory against the reborn Palpatine's forces.

Aftermath

The New Republic had ensured that their Mon Calamari members were safe, though the world would take years to recover from the losses. Several floating cities were damaged or destroyed, with millions killed or wounded. The shipyards themselves suffered moderate damage as well, setting back production of the new MC90 Star Cruiser for over a year.

The Quarren blamed the Mon Calamari for the attack and threatened to move off-world en masse. Several Mon Calamari, including Admiral Ackbar, believed that might be for the best; however, few if any Quarren actually carried out their threat. Ackbar himself, although worn out by the experience of the attack to the point of considering retirement, helped lead the reconstruction effort.

A number of Mon Calamari refugees were relocated to Da Soocha by the New Republic during and after the battle.

One of the World Devastators ended up surviving the battle, to which New Republic Forces captured it and used it as a method of disposing of derelict vessels at their base at Pinnacle Moon.

Behind the scenes

The First Battle of Mon Calamari first appeared in the issue Dark Empire 2 of the Star Wars: Dark Empire series of comics. The battle was conceived and written by authors Tom Veitch, was drawn by artist Dave Dorman and colored by colorist Cam Kennedy. Veitch used this as one of the early conflicts of the subplot to bring about the conflict between Palpatine's Imperial Remnant and the New Republic.

The First Battle of Mon Calamari would eventually be featured in the Dark Empire audio drama. The audio version also includes an additional character Captain Gammack who does not appear in the original comic version.

The last campaign level of the Star Wars: Rogue Squadron video game featured the First Battle of Mon Calamari and allowed the player to assume the role of Wedge Antilles, leading several members of Rogue Squadron in an audacious counterstrike against World Devastators on the planet's surface. The presence of Antilles aboard the Emancipator in Dark Empire, as well as the fatal susceptibility of the Devastators to precision attacks by player craft in the game, renders the canonicity of the level to be somewhat questionable. It is probably safe to assume that Antilles did fly a V-wing airspeeder into battle against the Devastators, likely after the loss of the Star Destroyer he was seen commanding in Dark Empire, but the question of how the Rogues were able to destroy the supposedly nigh-invulnerable Devastators with their V-wings has never been definitively addressed and this element of the mission may be non-canon. The strategy guide for the game, however, rectified the confusion by stating that they were smaller-scale, weaker versions of the World Devastators with the shields being in a different location.

Strategy Guide

Follow your radar and your wingmen to the first World Devastator, making sure you do not rush in alone; if you do, all the Devastator's fire will focus on you and you will go down. Once it's in range, bombard it immediately with clusters, taking out the mounted Turbolasers and Missile Turrets scattered along the top and sides of the large machine.

One of your wingmen will tell you to focus on the Shield Generator, which is a small sphere located on the top corner of each Devastator. Once you take this out, make a run at the legs; take out 2 legs and the Devastator will go down. Now head into the nearby city and use your clusters on the Tie Fighters. They are advanced models, and are very fast and manueverable.

Repeat this procedure on the next two Devastators, eliminate the remaining Tie Fighters, and the mission is complete.

Tips

do not be shy about using your Cluster Missiles; otherwise as soon as you get close to the Devastators, they will take you out with their wealth of Turbolasers and Missile Turrets. Speed is key in this mission, because all 3 World Devastators are advancing on the Calamari cities. The Tie Fighters are only a small threat to you, so if you need to, take out all 3 Devastators first. The Ties are also very fast, easily a match for your V-Wing, so keep flying out fast and in slow to take them out.

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2. Beggar's Canyon, Chapter IV

The first bonus level is almost a type of mini-game, involving a race rather than variations of dogfighting.

Briefing

This mission takes you back to familiar territory, Luke Skywalker's home planet of Tatooine. You are to race against Zev, Dack and Wedge through the winding narrow passageways of Beggar's Canyon. You must choose the best of three routes to take to best your three companions, avoiding the sharp turns and obstacles that litter the canyon.

Description

Race through Beggar's Canyon in your T-16 Skyhopper! Test your skill against Zev, Dack, or Wedge.

Mission Objectives

1. Win the Race

Requirements for Gold

1. Competitor Beaten: Wedge

Default Craft

T-16 Skyhopper

Description

Beggar's Canyon was a canyon that cuts through the Ben's Mesa. It was formed by a junction of three rivers millennia ago when the planet had water and vegetation. It was home to the ferocious canyon krayt dragon, as well as the somewhat less dangerous womp rat.

Beggar's Canyon was used as a part of the Boonta Eve Classic podrace.[1] It also served as a place for bored youths who lived in and around the town of Anchorhead to show off their piloting skills to each other. Pilots would compete by racing inside its treacherous walls using the Incom T-16 skyhopper. They would also hone their targeting skills and earn some credits by attempting to blast womp rats as they raced at breakneck speeds.

Beggar's Canyon is also known for the Stone Needle, an unusual rock formation that rose 18.2 meters from the canyon floor. Occasionally the Stone Needle figured into these races, since passing through or "threading" it could help a pilot shave off at least five seconds from his or her time. However, it was an incredibly risky thing to do and many pilots decided that their life was more important than a race.There were only two pilots known to thread it. The first was Biggs Darklighter, who almost destroyed the Stone Needle on a number of occasions. The second was Luke Skywalker, who lost his stabilizer while passing though the Needle, much to the consternation of one of his peers, "Deak." Both Darklighter and Skywalker would later use their piloting skills to aid the Alliance to Restore the Republic in its war against the Galactic Empire.

Behind the scenes

Beggar's Canyon was first mentioned in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope—the first Star Wars film.

In the video game Star Wars: Rebel Assault, Beggar's Canyon was the location of a training center for new Rebel pilots known as Anchorhead Base. It was completely destroyed when it was attacked by a flight of TIE Fighters in 0 BBY.

Players could navigate Beggar's Canyon in three different stages of Rebel Assault. The first involved piloting a skyhopper and avoiding the walls of the treacherous canyon. At one point they were given a decision to take follow the leaders of the training flight through an "easy" stretch, or to go by themselves down a more difficult stretch of the canyon. Going through the difficult stretch resulted in more points being awarded to the player. In the next stage, from a top-down perspective, the player would navigate the skyhopper through the canyon, shooting down target drones as he/she progressed. The last stage involving Beggar's Canyon occurred a few chapters later. It was nearly identical to the first, except for the fact that the player's objective was to chase down and destroy the TIE Fighters that had destroyed Anchorhead Base while piloting an X-wing.

The concept of the training center appears only in Rebel Assault and this information is considered apocryphal due to Rebel Assault's canon status. This idea was probably derived from Luke and Biggs's use of the canyon during their teenage years.

In another scene of questionable canonicity, Beggar's Canyon is again featured in a later game, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. The Beggar's Canyon race bonus level could be unlocked by scoring at least a Bronze medal in all the normal levels. In the mission, Luke Skywalker (the player) races fellow Rogue Squadron pilots Zev Senesca, Dak Ralter and Wedge Antilles through the twisting confines of the narrow canyon, all in T-16 Skyhoppers. At various points, the player can choose to take different branches, some of them offering shorter routes to the finish line. However, the fastest routes are also the narrowest and most winding, requiring the most piloting skill to navigate successfully. Finishing the race in first place, ahead of Wedge, requires Luke to take the most difficult route. The Stone Needle is visible at the end of the canyon race course, and Luke can fly through its "eye". The game's 2001 sequel, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader, includes Beggar's Canyon in the training session, as does Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike.

Strategy Guide

Once you get at least a Bronze Medal on all missions, the Beggar's Canyon mission opens up. Here you simply race through Beggar's Canyon in a T-16 Skyhopper against Zev, Dack and Wedge.

To successfully complete the mission, you must at least beat Zev; beating Dack gets you a Silver and Wedge gets you the Gold.

If you take the leftmost route, watch out for Sandcrawlers. If you take the right, when you get close to the end bank left at the island.

Tips

You have three choices in which direction to fly, each with varying levels of difficulty. Make sure you stay low, because if you fly too high you are cheating and the mission will end. Also, avoid hitting the walls and other friendly craft, as your Skyhopper isn't heavily shielded.

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3. Death Star Trench Run, Chapter IV

The second bonus level puts players in control of the Rogues' first victory: the Battle of Yavin.

Briefing

Travel down the death star trench eliminating as many laser cannons as possible, if the trench guns stop firing, you can bet the death star's compliment of ties will be in close pursuit. Continue down the trench until you reach the exhaust port area. Good luck and may the force be with you.

Unlock Method

Earn silver medals on all previous levels.

Mission Objectives

1. Chase the Imperials through the trench
2. Destroy the power plant at the end of the trench

Requirements for Gold

1. Completion Time: 2:45
2. Enemies Destroyed: 30
3. Accuracy: 70%
4. Friendly Saves: 0
5. Bonus Collected: 0

Default Craft

X-Wing

The Battle of Yavin, also known as the Battle of the Death Star, the assault on the Death Star, the attack on the Death Star, or the Miracle of Yavin, was a major and decisive battle of the Galactic Civil War, in which the Rebel Alliance was able to destroy the Death Star and was seen as one of the first major victories over the Galactic Empire.

Prelude

During the Battle of Scarif, Jyn Erso managed to steal detailed plans and design specifications for the Imperial battle station known as the Death Star and transmit them to the Alliance Fleet above; these plans soon made their way to Princess Leia Organa. Imperial forces under the command of Darth Vader soon captured Princess Leia and the crew of the Tantive IV.

Princess Leia was taken prisoner aboard the Death Star by Darth Vader. The Princess was rescued from captivity by an unlikely alliance of the smuggler Han Solo, former Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, a young farmboy from Tatooine named Luke Skywalker, and Solo's First Mate, the Wookiee named Chewbacca. The group, which also included Rebel Alliance droids R2-D2 and C-3PO, in possession of the Death Star plans, fled to the Rebel base on Yavin 4—closely pursued by the battle station.

Before Organa arrived, Mon Mothma was evacuated aboard a shuttle, as General Dodonna considered her the core of the rebellion. During her time away, she composed a contingency plan: surrender to Emperor Palpatine.

General Jan Dodonna briefed the rebel pilots on the plan. The Death Star's defenses were designed for a direct, large-scale assault. By using small, one-man starfighters, the Rebels would slip through the Death Star's main defenses, maneuver down a narrow trench leading to the exhaust port, and fire proton torpedoes into the exhaust port. An analysis of the plans identified a weakness in the battle station, placed there by Imperial scientist Galen Erso: a small thermal exhaust port leading to the main reactor. A proton torpedo fired into the port would cause a chain reaction that would destroy the battle station.

The battle

The approach

With the Death Star approaching, Y-wings from Gold Squadron and X-wings from Red Squadron and Green Squadron were dispatched to carry out the attack plan. A total of 30 ships were deployed in the assault on the Death Star: 8 Y-wings from Gold Squadron as well as 22 X-wings, 12 from Red Squadron and the rest from Green Squadron. The starfighters weaved through the turret emplacements, destroying many as they passed. Red Six (Jek Tono Porkins) was the first to be destroyed in the volley of turret fire. The deployment of Imperial TIE fighters, including one piloted by Lieutenant Iden Versio, devastated the Rebel attackers, destroying them far faster and more efficiently than the station's weapon emplacements had been able to. Red Four (John D. Branon) was the first to be shot down by the incoming TIEs.

During the battle, Rebels in the temple, including pilots who were left behind watched the battle from the command center, along with Fighter Boss Nera Kase. She tallied the Rebel starfighter losses as they occurred during the battle.

Some time into the battle, Imperial officer Jude Edivon aboard the Death Star identified the threat of the Rebels' attack strategy, and attempted to warn her superiors of the danger. However, Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin ignored the warning and refused to evacuate. Meanwhile, Darth Vader himself decided to lead a squadron of TIE fighters to destroy the remaining Rebel fighters. This would be the only Imperial squadron launched during the battle.

Trench run

The first attack run was performed by a trio of Y-wings from Gold Squadron. The three Y-wings, led by Gold Leader Jon Vander with Gold Two Dex Tiree and Gold Five Davish Krail escorting, attempted to make a shot on the exhaust port but were shot down by Darth Vader. A second trench run was performed by a trio of X-wings from Red Squadron flown by Red Leader Garven Dreis, Red Ten Theron Nett, and Red Twelve Puck Naeco. Darth Vader picked off Nett and Naeco, but Dreis was able to fire off a shot at the exhaust port. However, his proton torpedoes missed their mark, only scratching the surface. Before being shot down by Darth Vader, Dreis ordered another attack run.

Following the final command of Red Leader, Red Five Luke Skywalker led the final attempt with Red Two Wedge Antilles and Red Three, Luke's old friend, Biggs Darklighter, as wingmen. Rushing down the trench at full throttle, they found themselves being tailed by Darth Vader and his fighters.

One of Vader's wingmen damaged Antilles' fighter, forcing him to disengage, whilst Vader personally destroyed Darklighter's X-wing, forcing Skywalker to attempt the shot on his own. In this dire moment the Rebel leaders were concerned when the young pilot deactivated his targeting system for the attempt, but Skywalker assured them that nothing was wrong; he was advised by the spirit of Kenobi to rely on the Force instead for his attack. For his part, Vader sensed this power himself and found firing on the fighter unusually difficult, with his single hit only putting R2-D2, who was serving as the fighter's astromech droid, out of commission. When Vader prepared to finally shoot down the enemy, one of his wingmen was suddenly shot down from above beside him. The source of that attack was the Millennium Falcon diving out of the nearby star's light. Han Solo and Chewbacca, believed to have abandoned the Rebels prior to the assault, unexpectedly returned to assist Skywalker in his most desperate moment.

Destruction of the Death Star

Momentarily distracted by the intervention, Vader's remaining wingman collided with his ship, and both spiraled out of control. The TIE fighter pilot flew into the side of the trench and knocked Vader away from the Death Star, and this allowed Skywalker to fire his shot. With the aid of the Force, the torpedoes shot along the trench and entered the shaft perfectly, as the two surviving X-wings, the lone surviving Y-wing and the aging freighter made for Yavin 4. The surviving rebel pilots included Skywalker, Antilles, and Gold Three Evaan Verlaine. Shortly before the explosion, while on the Death Star, Lieutenant Commander Ellian Zahra punched a stormtrooper and stole a Lambda-class T-4a shuttle. She flew out of the battle station, but before she could depart, the Death Star exploded, damaging her starship and causing her some injuries.

On the Overbridge, unaware of his impending doom, Grand Moff Tarkin continued to examine the battle as the technicians counted down the moments until firing commenced. Mere seconds before the superlaser could obliterate the moon, the torpedoes struck the reactor and the station exploded, killing all aboard and saving Yavin 4. After the destruction of the battle station, the Imperial II-class Star Destroyer known as Fortitude was hit by a piece of Death Star wreckage that heavily damaged its hull.

Aftermath

Rebel Alliance

Skywalker, Solo, and the surviving Rebel fighters returned to Yavin, where they held a celebration ceremony and awarded the pair with medals for their achievement in saving the Rebellion. Mothma, having heard of the victory, permanently discarded her contingency plan to surrender to Palpatine.

Shortly after the battle, the Rebels were forced to leave the site of their victory, fleeing the Empire once again. According to the Wild Space cartographer Emil Graf, in the days after the battle, the rebels' evacuation was briefly interrupted by an Imperial Star Destroyer which threatened to destroy the base before the evacuation could be completed. The rebels managed to disable the crew of the Star Destroyer, however, they soon discovered that its weapons were primed to fire at the base within minutes. Thanks to Verlaine's efforts, the ship misfired at its intended target, with the evacuation being resumed. Some time later, the Imperials regained control of the Destroyer.

As the Rebel evacuation was nearly complete, Imperial troops led by Colonel Brenna landed on the moon and engaged in a skirmish with the remaining Rebels at the base, led by Major Shin, with the hopes of obtaining the Rebel data banks that had not yet been evacuated.

To capitalize on the Empire's weakness following the destruction of the Death Star, the Rebels began to conduct dozens of raids against Imperial targets to weaken the now-vulnerable Empire. In addition to attacks carried out on the shipyards of Kuat and a supply base on Imdaar, a Rebel team composed of Leia Organa, Han Solo and Luke Skywalker assaulted and destroyed the Empire's largest armament factory on Cymoon 1, severely undermining Imperial military production.

Galactic Empire

The Star Destroyer Fortitude was caught in the ensuing blast of the Death Star's destruction. Despite surviving the blast, the ship incurred significant damage and loss of life. In spite of the damage, the ship was never brought to a shipyard for repairs, with the damaged sections and the bodies of the fallen Imperials being retained as a sort of memorial while the ship continued its service to the Empire under the new name Tarkin's Will.

Darth Vader, one of the few Imperial survivors of the battle, was recovered in his damaged TIE Advanced x1 by Imperial pilots Ciena Ree and Berisse Sai. Iden Versio, who was outside of the Death Star's explosion, managed to pilot her damaged TIE Fighter to Yavin IV, where she ejected before it crashed into the jungle. There, she patched her wounds and stole a transport from the Rebel Base during the festivities.

Nearly all blame on the defeat was placed on Tarkin and his overconfidence. He had assumed that the station would not need an escort, and had launched no TIEs. The only group had been the single squadron Vader had launched on his own authority. Regardless, Tarkin was no longer alive to defend himself, and the Empire would never engage the rebels without exploiting their larger numbers compared to their opponent again. The destruction of the Death Star was a major blow to the Empire and represented the threat that was the Alliance to Restore the Republic. Cassio Tagge was given the rank of Grand General, as the Emperor had taken note of his argument against using the Death Star as the sole weapon of the Empire, and his awareness of the degree of the rebel threat. Vader was chastised and personally reminded by the Emperor about how he alone was alive to bear the blame of the destruction and failure of the Death Star. He was then ordered to act upon the will of Tagge.

Thane Kyrell and the other Imperials stationed at the abandoned Rebel base on Dantooine during the battle were cut off from communication with Coruscant after the Death Star was destroyed. Unconfirmed rumors spread through the ranks that the new weapon was gone. Early on, these rumors were dismissed as an Imperial trap to lure the Rebels out of hiding.

The destruction of the Death Star caused chaos within the Imperial ranks, leading to deliberate oversights on internal investigations and the rapid promotion of many young officers and lieutenants such as Ciena Ree to replace the higher-ranked officers killed on the Death Star. Additionally, according to Everi Chalis, the destruction of the Death Star convinced Palpatine that "incompetence at the highest ranks was to blame for the destruction of his Death Star, and from there began a culling." Among the officers killed during the culling were Moff Coovern and Minister Khemt; other, less public deaths also occurred, while Chalis was exiled to Haidoral Prime. Darth Vader carried out at least some of the killing personally.

Legacy

In 3 ABY, Lieutenant Gorr of the Tarkin's Will, formerly known as Fortitude, proposed to Commander Ellian Zahra to execute repairs on the Star Destroyer's hull. Zahra replied that the ship represented a memorial to the destruction of the Death Star and told the lieutenant the ship's history during the Battle of Yavin. The commander also mentioned that when Darth Vader offered her any vessel in the fleet to hunt for the rebel remnants, she chose the Fortitude because of what it represented. Zahra continued, saying that she picked the ship's crew among those who had lost someone close to them during the Battle of Yavin. After hearing the story, Gorr asked Zahra if she had lost someone during the battle as well and offered his sympathies to her.

New Republic Era

Six years before the destruction of the Hosnian system, an unofficial political faction in the New Republic's Galactic Senate known to admire the Galactic Empire's rule, the Centrists, questioned the official New Republic historical accounts of the Battle of Yavin and the Galactic Civil War. They believed that the Death Star was destroyed by an Imperial traitor and not by Luke Skywalker and the Rebel Alliance.

Some time during the New Republic Era, the Ithorian cartographer Gammit Chond created a collection of maps that used a calendar system dating all events in reference to the Battle of Yavin.

Behind the scenes

The Battle of Yavin first appeared in the 1977 film, Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. It was heavily based on the battle scenes in the 1955 epic war film, The Dam Busters.

The timeline of Star Wars is most often based upon this event, where events are dated as happening so many years "Before the Battle of Yavin" (BBY) or "After the Battle of Yavin" (ABY).

Strategy Guide

Getting Gold Medals in all previous missions opens this level up. The mission starts with you coming head-to-head with a swarm of Probe Droids. Be swift in taking them out, and after the animation sequence, follow your radar and save Rogue 10, who is down and under attack by 3 AT-STs. Slow down and blast them.

Once they are gone, head towards the shield generator. First take out the 2 AT-STs. Then you will see 3 AT-ATs; 1 in the right canyon and 2 in the left. Ignore the one on the right for now and head for the pair advancing quickly on the shield generator, who are being led by a pair of AT-ST's. Ignore the AT-STs for now, and take out the 2 AT-ATs with your tow cable. Then fly around and quickly eliminate the AT-STs.

Now for the single remaining AT-AT. Fly over the nearby hill and head for the legs, and take him out. Then take out the AT-ST that is advancing on the generator. Once all armored transports are gone, your mission is complete.

Tips

The key to getting the Gold Medal in this mission is speed; waste no time in taking down the walkers. If you are good, you will finish the mission in plenty of time and the Gold Medal is yours.

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4. Battle of Hoth, Chapter IV

The third bonus level puts players in control of the Rogues' costly mission: the Battle of Hoth.

Description

experience the battle of hoth from the cockpit of your snowspeeder, as you hold off imperial forces and help the rebel transports escape

Unlock Method

Earn gold medals on all previous levels.

Mission Objectives

1. Destroy probe droids
2. Defend Rogue Ten from AT-ST attack
3. Defend the generator from the Imperial attack

Requirements for Gold

1. Completion Time: 3:45
2. Enemies Destroyed: 29
3. Accuracy: 60%
4. Friendly Saves: 0
5. Bonus Collected: 0

Default Craft

Y-Wing

Bonus

Seeker Proton Torpedoes

The Battle of Hoth was a major victory for the Galactic Empire and among the worst battlefield defeats suffered by the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War.[30] The battle was an Imperial invasion aimed at destroying the Rebel Alliance's Echo Base hidden on the remote ice world Hoth. The base's location was compromised when a viper probe droid deployed by Darth Vader landed on Hoth. When the Death Squadron fleet commanded by Admiral Kendal Ozzel left lightspeed too close to the Hoth system, the Admiral inadvertently alerted the Alliance of the Imperial's presence, giving the Rebels time to prepare for the necessary evacuation and raise the planetary shield. Thus, Vader executed him for that fatal mistake and immediately promoted Captain Firmus Piett to replace him.

The Imperial attack force consisted of primarily AT-AT walkers, commanded by Major General Maximilian Veers. His army was tasked with destroying Echo Base's main power generator to allow orbital bombardment of the planet. Spearheading the defense of the generator was the elite Rogue Squadron, manning snowspeeders, commanded by Luke Skywalker, renowned for being the pilot who destroyed the first Death Star. The snowspeeders did not have the necessary firepower to bring down the walkers, so Skywalker suggested an alternative tactic to trip up the walkers with the tow cables issued to every snowspeeder.

Despite the efforts by Rogue Squadron, the power generator was eventually destroyed by Veers. The remaining base personnel proceeded to evacuate, as the 501st Legion, led by Darth Vader, entered the base. It would prove a major victory for the Galactic Empire, and would heavily stymie the Rebels. The Alliance's loss was so great at the time, at least one member of the 501st Legion considered the Battle of Hoth to be the end of the rebel movement.

Prelude

Following the Rebel Alliance's major victory at Yavin, Imperial forces eventually forced the Rebellion to abandon their base on Yavin 4. A holocron created by Bail Organa, one of the founders of the Rebel Alliance, contained a list of possible hideouts in the event that the Yavin 4 base was lost. This list led the Rebellion to the "graveyard world" Boz Pity, but the Empire quickly discovered this base and forced the Rebellion to abandon Boz Pity as well.

Despite the loss of both the Yavin 4 and Boz Pity bases, around 1 ABY, Hoth was chosen by Luke Skywalker as the Rebellion's new main base after he was stranded on the planet for a period of time. During an assault on Zaloriis City to punish the Zaloran separatists between 2.5 ABY and 3 ABY, Lord Darth Vader and General Maximilian Veers discovered archives of the library which showed the new location to be somewhere near the Elrood system.

Ironically, an Imperial unit uncovered Echo Base during a mission on Hoth and attacked it, only for the Rebels to wipe out all but a handful of survivors. The survivors attempted to report their discovery, but their superior, General Nevar, deleted their report due of incompetence.

The battle

Preparations

Vader's personal Death Squadron fleet reached the Hoth system, following a chance discovery made by a Viper probe droid that was sent to the planet. The landing of the Viper droid was briefly witnessed by Luke Skywalker during one of his patrols, believing it to be a meteorite, although he was unable to investigate the issue further before he and his tauntaun were ambushed by a wampa.

Luke's disappearance did not go unnoticed, with Han Solo (who had originally planned to depart Hoth due to his status as a wanted criminal by Jabba the Hutt, with the main motivating factor behind the decision being an encounter with a bounty hunter at Ord Mantell) eventually deciding to go into the snowstorm to find Skywalker when he failed to report back before the personnel were forced to close the base due to the blizzard. Skywalker managed to escape the wampa cave, also amputating one of the occupants in the process, although he was left barely alive from the encounter due to both the attack as well as from being caught in the blizzard. He eventually saw the ghost of his deceased Jedi mentor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, who told Skywalker to head to the Dagobah system to seek training from the Jedi Grand Master Yoda just as Solo arrived and found Skywalker. Because Solo's own tauntaun perished from the blizzard, Solo and Skywalker were forced to camp out for the night, with the former using the latter's lightsaber to split open his deceased steed to offer them some warmth, choking back the stench.

The next morning, Zev Senesca, using the moniker Rogue Two, was dispatched to scout for them and bring them back to base, with Solo responding to his hailing of them. Upon being recovered and brought back to Echo Base, Skywalker was subject to a bacta tank for his injuries. The Viper was later discovered and encountered by Solo after investigating suspicious radio transmissions picked up near the shield generator, who alongside Chewbacca fought it. The probe droid ended up self-destructing shortly after Solo attempted to disable it with a blaster, although not before it transmitted evidence of their shield generator. Their discovery turned out to be the main base of the Rebel Alliance, located on the sixth planet of the system. Although Death Squadron's commander, Admiral Kendal Ozzel, felt the evidence only suggested that it was a base for smugglers rather than the Rebels, Vader believed otherwise. To oversee the vital assault on the heart of the Rebellion, Grand General Malcor Brashin and his talented second-in-command General Brenn Tantor were summoned to the Hoth system.

Vader and many of his top officers had planned a sneak attack, jumping out of hyperspace at some distance from the planet and taking advantage of the fact that the meteor activity made it difficult for the Rebels to spot approaching ships. They would then initiate limited long-range orbital bombardment to destroy the base, along with any spacecraft and defenses. Major General Maximilian Veers would then mount a sweeping ground assault to capture any survivors.

The plan would have likely allowed the Imperials to easily take the planet with few casualties. However, Ozzel made his own assault plan. He exited hyperspace close to the star system, hoping to surprise the Rebels before they could prepare their defenses. However, this backfired when the Rebels' early-warning sensors detected the fleet. The planetary shield protecting Echo Base was activated, which precluded any aerial bombardment. Veers notified Vader, who immediately realized that Death Squadron would have to mount a full-fledged ground assault to take the base rather than simply destroy it from the air. An incensed Vader Force choked Ozzel to death for his incompetence and promoted Firmus Piett, then chief fleet captain of the Star Dreadnought Executor, to Admiral.

Having assessed the situation, Vader ordered General Veers to land beyond the range of the energy shield and begin a surface assault aimed at knocking out the Rebels' power generator and thus bringing down the shield, while Death Squadron took up a blockade formation in an effort to prevent any fleeing Rebel starships from escaping. Veers would command the situation on the ground while Tantor oversaw the entire engagement and issued Veers's orders from orbit via the Battlefield Holographic Control Interface.

Various landing craft deposited the Imperial landing force at the Moorsh Moraine. The Imperial landing force, dubbed Blizzard Force, consisted of several battalions of cold-weather equipped 501st Legion Stormtroopers (known as Snowtroopers), some squads equipped with heavy repeating blasters. This infantry force was carried aboard All Terrain Armored Transports and A5 Juggernaut transports, which in turn were supported by All Terrain Personnel Transport, All Terrain Scout Transport, and All Terrain Advance Raider walkers, and with Viper probe droids providing extra sensory-support. In addition, the Blizzard Force also had five heavy anti-air troopers to take down any aerial threats, themselves also being heavily guarded due to their relative vulnerability. This mechanized force was deployed by several Y-85 Titan dropships, and larger landing assault craft.

An individual served in the defense of Echo Base. Using a lightsaber or blaster, the individual defeated attacking troopers, creatures, and droids. The Rebels also defended against AT-ATs and raids into Echo Base.

The Alliance employed T-47 snowspeeders, light aircraft modified for arctic combat conditions. The Rebel snowspeeders were led by the elite Rogue Squadron. Ground troops were armed with A280 blaster rifles and several types of artillery emplacements, including DF.9 anti-infantry laser batteries and the Clone Wars–era P-Tower anti-vehicle laser cannons.

A large ion cannon, the v-150 Planet Defender, provided fire support for the departing transports, disabling the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Tyrant long enough for the first evacuating Rebel transport, Quantum Storm, to escape. Like all their defenses, the Rebels' ion cannon was remotely hooked up to the stolen reactor equipment of a Praetor-class battlecruiser, feeding more power to Echo Base's defenses than the previous stolen Star Destroyer reactor had done to their Massassi Base. This enabled the Rebel forces to withstand bombardment from even a top-of-the-line Star Dreadnought like the Executor. To protect the interior of the base, Rebel troops employed small repulsorsleds, each armed with a blaster cannon, to form the last line of defense against the Empire's troops. The ion cannon also disabled a Star Destroyer, the Corrupter, allowing the civilian freighter Otana and its escorts to escape, although Otana sustained damage.

Imperial offensive

The Imperial assault was primarily aimed at destroying the Rebel's main power generators, which would shut down the planetary shield protecting the base from orbital bombardment. General Veers led the assault personally, commanding his AT-AT walker Blizzard 1, and crushed the Rebel defenses.

The Imperials suffered casualties before the battle even begun whenBlizzard 4 attempted to make its way through the Kerane Valley, hoping to impress Vader. Veers lost three walkers to crevasses ice. This prompted the force to retreat to the safer western route. As the Imperials advanced, one of the gunners obliterated Echo Post 64, killing the scout manning it.

Rogue Squadron had destroyed a group of probe droids that blocked the transporter's escape route, after which Rogue 10 was shot down. Skywalker and his wingmen destroyed three AT-STs threatening the pilot before rescuing him. Then Rieekan ordered them to defend the shield generator and Outpost Beta. The squadron proceeded to destroy three AT-ATs and five more AT-STs on their way.

Prior to Blizzard Force's arrival, a task force encompassing three medics, four AT-ARs, two heavy energy pummels, four heavy artillery platforms, eight heavy mounted troopers, six AT-PTs, five thermal detonator troopers, 10 repeater troopers, 3 74-Z speeder bike-mounted troopers, and one Viper droid attacked Echo Station 3-T-8 and then Echo Station 5-7, which contained some of the evacuation transports. Both bases along with the six ships were soon destroyed by the overwhelming Imperial forces.

Eventually, several Acclamator-class transport drop ships unload several AT-ATs and Juggernauts. The 4th Squad of the Alliance Special Forces' Wilderness Fighters, led by Jobin, the son of Rebel Alliance leader Mon Mothma, attempted to attack the forces. The Wilderness Fighters were later forced to split in half upon learning from Ion Control that a squad of snowtroopers and an AT-ST had arrived at the ion cannon to attack it, with Jobin personally leading the attempt to defend the ion cannon with his half, composed of Roj, Grond, Sora, and another rebel. He and his squad then attacked the stormtroopers, with Jobin, Roj, and another member of the squad directly attacking the AT-ST while Grond and Sora flanked it. The AT-ST eventually was destroyed by a satchel explosive, before moving on to the ion cannon.

The Imperial force then moved against the Rebel base. A task force composed of three squads of AT-ST walkers, AT-ARs, and a few AT-ATs moved toward the Outpost Beta ion cannon to prevent any Star Destroyer casualties in the space battle. Snowspeeders from Rogue Squadron flew in and destroyed the attackers before they reached the cannon. The Rogues also eliminated AT-ST reinforcements brought in by Imperial loader shuttles. In addition, to back up Rogue Squadron, various Rebel Thermal Detonator troopers and repeating blaster troopers destroyed various All Terrain Anti-Air walkers, although with a significant cost on the troopers end. Blizzard Force came under harassing fire from the Alliance emplacements, but the walkers' armor plating was too strong for Rebel lasers. Only Rogue Squadron succeeded in toppling one assault transport, using an unorthodox tactic imagined by Luke Skywalker and Alliance tactician Beryl Chiffonage, which relied on magnetic harpoons and tow cables to entangle the walker's feet.

Unfortunately, the tactic's success was minimal, and the AT-ATs downed many snowspeeders with deadly volleys from their blaster cannons. The rebels dove into the trenches, seeking cover. Luke's craft was hit by walker fire, killing his gunner Dak Ralter instantly, and is then shot down shortly after. Skywalker barely managed to escape the speeder wreckage before it was crushed by a walker, with Ralter's body still inside. Because of this, Wedge Antilles was granted command of Rogue Squadron for the duration of the mission. In an act that seemed to give Palpatine's concern about Skywalker's burgeoning power of a potential Jedi credibility, the young pilot decided to attempt to bring down two AT-ATs (one of them Blizzard 4) on his own. Using only a grappling hook, his father's lightsaber, and a concussion grenade, Luke managed to do precisely that, before heading off to rejoin the rebels. Afterwards, he managed to mount a tauntaun upon being pointed to one by Wedge Antilles, and, along with Derlin, rode them towards the south part of the base, cutting a swath through the Snowtroopers along the way. Likewise, Rogue Squadron, under the command of Wedge Antilles, managed to down three more AT-ATs.

Most of the rebels in the trenches were wounded, dying or dead, or scared, captured, or demoralized by the unstoppable Imperial attack. The rebel gun emplacements fired on the walkers, to little avail. Many rebels met their deaths from the walkers' ripping rays. AT-STs and snowtroopers body-mopped up what they could.

As the armored assault force reached the trenches, the Alliance soldiers, with most of their laser cannon emplacements destroyed, came under heavy fire, and the order to retreat was issued. With the other AT-ATs providing cover fire, Veers in Blizzard 1 broke through the defensive lines and proceeded to annihilate the shield power generators. Blizzard 1 provided the coup de grace on the shield generator shortly after eliminating its core and a turret guarding the generator, while the repeating troopers and AT-ARs provided backup by wiping out any remaining resistance. After the decisive victory move, the blockade in orbit began a piecemeal bombardment of the battlefield, taking out defensive emplacements and fleeing ships.[source?] Imperial forces then used airmobile tactics to deploy snowtroopers onto the surface. Rogue Squadron was also redirected to aid the remaining grounded transports and stop the bombing runs from various TIE Bombers until they were ready for liftoff.

Just before departing to aid the grounded transports, Antilles inspected the remains of the shield power generators, and managed to recover a tech upgrade for advanced lasers/blasters.

Skywalker and Derlin arrived too late at what was originally the power generator. Derlin, feeling that was as far as he could go, had Skywalker go aid a remaining rebel squad that was fighting some snowtroopers, and advised him to take out the snowtrooper manning the tripod gun and use it against the Imperials. Shortly afterwards, Imperial reinforcements in the form of two snowtrooper companies and three AT-STs arrived via loader shuttles, but Skywalker managed to eliminate the AT-STs.

During this time, the Rebel pilot also destroyed one of the AT-ST containers with the E-Web heavy repeating blaster and recovered some advanced cluster missiles.

Having earlier anticipated that the ion cannon was giving the Imperial fleet trouble, Blizzard Force was redirected to target the ion cannon again, with the AT-ARs and repeater troopers escorting the surviving AT-ATs, also wiping out dozens of surviving Rebel troopers and airspeeders who intended to halt the advance. The Imperials ultimately destroyed the ion cannon, although not before most of the Rebel transports escaped the planet. Around the time of the destruction of the ion cannon, Darth Vader arrived onto the battlefield with reinforcements. Blizzard Force, intending to rendezvous with Vader and his reinforcements, managed to take down any remaining minor Rebel bases in their way, including turrets, troop centers, mech factories, power cores, and a fortress. Afterwards, they arrived at Echo Base proper.

Some of Blizzard Force decided to attack Echo Base directly. Avoiding the two advanced turrets that guarded the main wall of the complex, the soldier succeeded in blowing up a vulnerable corner in the wall, and proceeded to attack the soldiers inside, also destroying fortresses within the compound.

Several Blizzard Force units proceeded towards the southern canyon with the intention of causing as much destruction as possible to draw out all remaining personnel at Echo Base, including at least two medium turrets and a troop center. The surviving troops who hadn't escaped yet charged at the Blizzard Force, being wiped out in the process. Afterwards, the AT-ATs then destroyed the fortress and surrounding troop centers as the snowtroopers held back the soldiers.

Infiltration of Echo Base

Jobin's squad then reached the ion cannon, and fought the snowtroopers. Grond attempted to radio to Echo Base's command room that Imperials had infiltrated the base but was shot in the back. He and another soldier were killed in the fight. Jobin stabbed one of the snowtroopers with an icicle, and managed to launch the ion cannon before setting it to self-destruct. The staff then evacuated to the remaining transports, specifically the Bright Hope.

Lord Vader personally led troopers of the 501st Legion into Echo Base, cutting down any who stood in his way, and, in one case, choking a soldier to death. Alliance troops attempted to delay Imperial progress, but were swiftly overwhelmed by the mechanized assault. As the snowtroopers breached the icy bunker walls of Echo Base and entered close range combat with the defenders, Rebel personnel were forced to flee. However, members of Renegade Squadron, who were defending the ion cannon team, put up a determined defense. They inflicted moderate casualties on the 501st Legion and engaged Darth Vader, managing to force him back, at least temporarily.

After the route to the rebel transports was blocked by a collapsing ceiling brought about by Imperial bombardment, Han Solo was forced to escape in the Millennium Falcon with Princess Leia Organa. The Medical Bay suffered relatively little damage, from which Solo and Organa retrieved some medical supplies. Another cave-in resulted in dislodged stalactites destroying most of the walkways, resulting in the two hopping across the remains of the walkways, while the 501st, under the direction of Vader, attempted to gun them down. Some Rebel soldiers arrived to back Solo and Organa up while the latter two escaped. They then had a brief run-in with Vader, but a cave-in prevented Vader from intercepting them, buying them enough time to arrive at the Falcon.

Because C-3PO had trouble keeping up upon arriving at the hangar, Solo yelled at 3PO to pick up the pace unless wanted to have a permanent residence at the doomed base. However, the Millennium Falcon still was in a significant state of disrepair (with Solo ultimately restoring cockpit power by punching a wall after it prematurely blacked out), thus forcing Solo to hold off an advance group snowtroopers via an automated Ax-108 "Ground Buzzer" surface-defense blaster cannon, also telling Organa that the ship still had its surprises when she expressed doubt about them being able to leave beforehand. Besides fending off Snowtroopers before they could set up an E-Web emplacement, he also used the "Ground Buzzer" to prevent any Snowtroopers from entering the ship. Solo, Chewbacca, Organa, and C-3PO then managed to escape after a close encounter with an advance group of snowtroopers, with the Falcon departing the hangar just seconds after Vader arrived. Luke also briefly witnessed their departure.

The 501st moved through the base and into the back hangar and landing area. There, the last of the Rebel troops were loading onto a last transport. The elite shock troops led by Vader pushed them back, but took several casualties at the hands of DF.9 anti-infantry laser batteries and E-Web heavy repeating blaster encampments. As the Rebel and Imperial forces were engaged in a firefight, an orbital strike beacon that had been placed in the hangar was positioned under the transport ship by the Imperials. The 501st managed to protect the beacon from the Rebels long enough for an orbiting Star Destroyer to lock in the co-ordinates of the beacon. The 501st and Vader then vacated the area as the Star Destroyer descended into the atmosphere and bombarded the ship from above. Most of the Rebel infantry were killed, though stragglers remained. Vader and the 501st later tracked down the 4th Squad of the Wilderness Fighters, led by Corporal Jobin, at Hangar 10. The Imperials fatally wounded Jobin, although not before he ensured the rest of his squad's escape as well as the delivery of a letter to his mother. Vader attempted to interrogate Jobin, who refused to answer. His defiance led to Vader snapping his neck.

One other Rebel, Dash Rendar, was trapped inside Echo Base in the hangar bays. His YT-2400 light freighter, the Outrider, was on the other side of the base, where the power was out. He used the station's supply of captive wampas as an advantage, setting them free to help his slaughter of the Imperial infantry. After restoring the power allowing the rest of the Rebels to escape, his troubles got worse; a lone AT-ST walker managed to slip behind the base's defenses and penetrated the base. Rendar nevertheless managed to destroy it, and he escaped in the Outrider.

Rogue Squadron and Luke Skywalker pushed into the atmosphere and defended the three remaining fleeing transports. As TIE/sa bombers moved in, the X-wings swooped and pushed back the attackers. The remaining transports fled, but the battle was not yet over. Clone X2 was about to confront his brother, X1.

Rebel retreat

X2 landed on the Avarice and killed all the stormtroopers in his path. X1 was waiting for him, and he had Falon Grey's lightsaber, as well as some skill with the dark side. They shortly fought, but as the ship exploded, both of them withdrew in their starfighters.

Approximately thirty Rebel GR-75 medium transports managed to take off along with six Kleeque-class transports and a number of other lighter craft. Despite the cover provided by the v-150 Planet Defender and starfighter escorts, the Imperial naval squadron blockading the planet managed to disable or destroy seventeen Rebel GR-75 Transports and all six Kleeque-class transports.[source?] The ion cannon crew, made up of Alliance troops from Alderaan, were among the last to leave, blowing up the cannon to mask the sensor reading of their escape. In addition, Renegade Squadron was the last squadron off Hoth. Despite the escape of most senior personnel, the loss in material and men proved a disaster for the Rebel Alliance, and was a terrible blow to its war effort.

Renegade Squadron was called into orbit to help escort the last of the transports out of the system, and were forced to engage with Darth Vader, piloting his TIE Advanced x1 starfighter, and forced him to retreat. The resistance of Renegade Squadron forced the Empire to test its new line of TIE fighters, the highly advanced TIE Defender. After fighting off some of these TIE Defenders, commandos part of Renegade Squadron managed to infiltrate the hangar bay of the TIE Defender's Star Destroyer and hijack one of them, returning it to their Mon Calamari Star Cruiser to await further analysis by Alliance technicians.

Likewise, the Millennium Falcon managed to escape orbit, as well as cause a near-collision between three Star Destroyers. Their escape route was cut off, however, so they ended up having to disable a Star Destroyer that was already damaged from the battle—having its left shield generator destroyed—before they had enough of an opening to escape. However, due to a hyperdrive malfunction, they were not able to escape through hyperspace and were instead forced to enter the asteroid field to elude the Imperial forces. At least four TIE fighters pursuing them and an Imperial II-class Star Destroyer ended up destroyed from the asteroids. Death Squadron continued to pursue them into the asteroid field, as well as sending TIE/sa bombers to force them out of hiding, only briefly disengaging when Palpatine wanted to contact Vader regarding Luke Skywalker's growing threat to him.

Afterwards, Vader proceeded to hire bounty hunters to commence the search for the Millennium Falcon, even deliberately holding the meeting with the bounty hunters out in the open on the Executor's command bridge as a subtle means of expressing his displeasure at the failure of the Imperial personnel. However, during the meeting, he learned from Piett that the Avenger had spotted the Millennium Falcon and was currently in pursuit. After the Millennium Falcon escaped from a space slug's jaws that they unknowingly hid inside, the Millennium Falcon managed to shoot down several squadrons of pursuing TIE fighters before hiding behind the Avenger by exploiting a blind spot in its sensors and then powering down and landing behind the conning tower. This feint ultimately resulted in Captain Lorth Needa, the commanding officer of the ship, personally reporting the failure to Darth Vader on the Executor, knowing full well this would most likely result in his execution by the Dark Lord, in the hopes that the Avenger's crew would be spared. Afterwards, Piett reported to Vader that, if the Millennium Falcon entered hyperspace, they were likely to be on the other side of the galaxy. Undaunted, Vader ordered Piett to put a notice out to all Imperial outposts to be on the lookout for the ship, and then warned him not to fail again before taking his leave.

The battle was not without loss for the Empire: at least one Star Destroyer was temporarily placed out of commission by the orbital-range ion cannon, and several AT-ATs were destroyed by Rebel defenders, with more lost when the treacherous ice floes gave way. Despite forcing the Rebels to flee, the Imperial forces were unable to destroy all of the transports, while Lord Vader failed in what he considered a primary objective, namely capturing Luke Skywalker.

Aftermath

The Battle of Hoth was a major disaster for the Rebel Alliance. The Rebels lost thousands of soldiers and pilots who either died during the defense or were killed when the ships transporting them off Hoth were destroyed. The loss of the base itself put the Rebels on the run once again, struggling to reorganize its battered forces. Of the thirty medium transports that fled the planet, seventeen were destroyed, resulting in massive material and personnel losses. The sheer loss of men and materials severely weakened the Alliance's combat capabilities in the war, giving the Empire an edge over the Rebels for some time as they pursued their fleet. Likewise, those personnel that did survive the battle but were not able to evacuate the planet, such as Karie Neth, were found by the Imperials, placed under arrest for their loyalty to the Rebel Alliance, and sent to various Imperial prisons around the galaxy, including facilities at the Maw and Bakura. Some Imperials went as far to call the war over. The Empire's victory at Hoth was significant enough that Emperor Palpatine, a short while after the event, had supplied a speech promising that the Galactic Civil War would soon end with the Empire's victory at hand, even redirecting all but the most essential elements of the Imperial Naval forces back to Coruscant due to the necessity of the speech.

Despite the failure of the battle, the Rebels were not defeated. Most of their leadership was able to escape the planet, which ultimately secured the Alliance's survival for some time more. Also, Darth Vader failed in his ultimate goal to capture Luke Skywalker, forcing him to pursue his allies on the Millennium Falcon in order to lure Luke out into the open.

Some time after the battle, a painting, Battle of Echo Base, was made in honor of the battle. Similarly, a holographic simulation of the battle was also presented to various Spacers across the galaxy.

Jobin's mother, Mon Mothma, would eventually receive his message a few months later via General Crix Madine, as well as confirmation of his death during the battle of Hoth. She then gave her speech to the Rebel Alliance regarding the development of the second Death Star and the Emperor's inspection.

After the Alliance was reorganized into the New Republic, the Battle of Hoth served as the basis for a historical training simulation designed to test New Republic officer cadets.

Behind the scenes

The Battle of Hoth and the events leading up to and following it formed the first half of The Empire Strikes Back. Since then, the battle has been expanded in many Expanded Universe works. It has appeared as a campaign mission in the Star Wars: Battlefront series and was also featured in the non-canon games LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy and LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga. In the 2004 entry into the series, Battlefront, the Battle of Hoth has its own mission, although the Rebels win the battle, although Leland Chee, the keeper of Lucasfilm Ltd. Holocron continuity database, refers to the the game's events as being s-canon. In 1998, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron included the battle as the third bonus mission. The 2001 video game Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds features two separate versions of the Battle of Hoth, one during the Darth Vader (Imperial) campaign and the other during the Leia Organa (Rebel/New Republic) campaign. The first was a main mission, and the second was a bonus mission. This article incorporates the mission from the Imperial campaign, with some elements from the Rebel/New Republic campaign. In the Imperial campaign, there were two methods nearing the end of winning the mission: One involved breaking into Echo Base via breaching a wall guarded with a pair of advanced turrets, as well as destroying both the fortresses inside and the troops, while the other merely requires going southbound to destroy enough targets to draw out the Rebel forces within Echo Base, and then using the AT-ATs to destroy the Fortresses and Troop Centers. Between the two, the first option has a significant casualty rate for the Imperial forces, while the second option is easier to accomplish.

During the escape from Echo Base, when arriving at the Millennium Falcon, Han Solo yells to C-3PO, "Hurry up, goldenrod! Or you are gonna be a permanent resident!" This was similar to a line made by Belloq in Raiders of the Lost Ark when he tells Indiana Jones that the latter will be a permanent addition to the Well of Souls after stealing the Ark of the Covenant from him. Due to Harrison Ford playing both Han Solo as well as Indiana Jones as well as both films being made by LucasFilm, the reference was most likely deliberate.

The Battle of Hoth also appeared in all three installments of the Rogue Squadron series of flight simulator video games. In the case of the first game, it appeared exclusively as an unlockable bonus mission. In the latter two installments, Rogue Leader and Rebel Strike, it had both a main mission and a bonus mission dedicated to it. In both of the second and third games, the main missions dealt with the Battle of Hoth proper, while the bonus missions focused on Han and Leia's escape from Hoth. In Rebel Strike, although the player has to board a T-47 Airspeeder in the hangar area to proceed with the mission, the player doesn't actually use it in the mission itself, as the mission takes place after Skywalker was shot down. Factor Five admitted in their commentary for Rebel Strike that they made the level a ground level for the most part to do something different, and to recreate the situation Luke was in when he was shot down. They also did it to focus on the Imperial aspect of the battle. They cited the programming of the cable hook aspect as being the most difficult part of testing.

The cross-section of Echo Base seen in Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy shows 15 T-47 airspeeders, 9 in Hangar 7 and the rest in the transports hangar. Whether or not all of these participated in the battle is not known.

The Battle of Hoth was the focus of Star Wars: Force Collection's December 2013 event "Operation Hoth Defensive." Players could join the event and face troops and probe droids, and battle AT-AT "raid bosses," including Blizzard 1. The optional Event places the player as part of the Rebel Alliance, using their character.

The Wampa attack in the beginning of Episode V during the prelude to the battle was added in primarily to explain Luke's facial scars that were present for the remainder of the film, as his actor, Mark Hamill, had just recovered from a severe motorcycling accident that left him with permanent scarring.

Strategy Guide

Your first objective is to take out the transmitters, which are heavily guarded by Turbolasers and Missile Turrets. Take out as many targets as possible, following your radar at all times. do not worry about conserving bombs here, because the Missile Turrets will take you out long before you exhaust your supply.

When you reach the transmitters near a landing platform, watch out for one close to the edge of the volcano, surrounded by Turbolasers and buildings and containers. The small building to the right contains the Bonus for this mission, Seeker Proton Torpedoes.

Once you get the Bonus resume taking out the transmitters. When you finish and the animation sequence plays, head to the center of the volcano, where the capacitor floats high overhead. You must take out the nodes that rest around the center of the capacitor. Ignore the TIE Interceptors and TIE Fighters flying about, take out all the nodes, and the mission is complete.

Tips

Your main focus in the first part of the mission should be taking out transmitters and Missile Turrets. do not waste time with fancy flying or chasing after TIEs, because no matter what you do missiles will be constantly hitting you. Try to stay on a constant flight path, and make sure you hit all of your targets. The main obstacles that keep you from getting your Gold Medal in this mission are the 4 minutes you have, the 40 enemies you need to destroy, and the required 75% accuracy.

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