Trade Federation / Legends The Trade Federation was a shipping conglomerate established in 350 BBY to mediate disputes between shipping firms . By the 100s BBY , it had evolved into a powerful commerce guild , trade cartel , megacorporation , and lobbying group in its own right as an association of business and trade groups , with its own large commercial trade fleet . The Federation grew to dominate entire star systems and all major trade routes , and possessed a formidable private military and droid army . Towards the end of the Republic , it would become increasingly dominated by the commerce - savvy Neimoidians . Its immense influence made it the favored pawn of the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious , who manipulated Viceroy Nute Gunray to stoke dissatisfaction in the systems controlled by the Federation , sowing the seeds for a war that would destroy the Galactic Republic . Under Gunray ' s leadership , the Trade Federation was responsible for the blockade of Naboo in 32 BBY in protest against increased taxation . After its defeat at Naboo , the Trade Federation and numerous other megacorporations sided with Count Dooku ' s Separatist movement out of fear of nationalization by the Republic . Again under Sidious ' influence , the Federation played a major role in the Clone Wars , and its large droid army and fleet formed the core of the CIS military . In 19 BBY , Sidious betrayed Gunray and orchestrated the CIS ' defeat . Under the brief leadership of its final Viceroy , Sentepeth Findos , the Trade Federation was dissolved and imperialized by Sidious ' new Galactic Empire . A small remnant led by Marath Vooro continued resistance for several months until its defeat in the Five Veils Campaign . The Trade Federation itself was not officially disbanded until the Imperial Senate was dissolved in 0 BBY . History . Pre - Clone Wars . Idealistic origins . The Trade Federation was founded in the Colonies in 350 BBY as a Republic - charted organization tasked with mediating disputes between the galaxy ' s merchants and shipping firms . At the time , transportation megacorporations such as Pulsar Supertanker , Quasar Cargo , Red Star Shipping Lines , and Ororo Transportation were stifling commerce by shutting out competitors from Rim spaceports and refusing to share navigational data . The Federation , initially composed of many species , including the Neimoidians , helped curb such abuses , and within a hundred years had become a powerful shipping cartel in its own right . The Federation was originally controlled by a directorate , which was led by a commanding Viceroy . The Trade Federation ' s members increasingly worked together to negotiate more favorable rates and policies , and also contracted with Hoersch - Kessel Drive , Inc . to build a new fleet of LH - 3210 cargo freighters . By 250 BBY , the Trade Federation had advanced beyond its original mission and had become a powerful association lobbying to advance trade interests in the Galactic Senate . It also worked to open up new regions of the galaxy to trade and commerce , with the Trade Explorer Corps blazing numerous new routes into the Outer Rim and establishing networks of retail outlets , depots , waystations and landing fields in thousands of isolated systems . As its power grew , the Trade Federation found itself having to defend its transports from piracy . Rather than rely on corrupt or ineffectual Planetary Security Forces , the Federation established its own Trade Defense Force , which became a capable and well - regarded paramilitary that earned the respect and admiration of the Republic ' s Judicial Forces . The Trade Federation of the late 200s BBY was seen by many as the ideal Republic institution : run by a diverse group of species and interests , it represented its members capably and fairly on Coruscant , made investments that advanced commerce across the galaxy , and augmented the power of the Judicials and Planetary Security Forces with the Trade Defense Force . And illustrative example can be seen in the Rseik sector in 214 BBY : the sector had an endemic problem with piracy , and in the aftermath of the Bordal Contagion , the firms Kett Shipping , Rseikharhl Hullspace , Cotellieri Transports Limited , and the Ma ' ar Shaddam Weaponsmiths Guild decided to approach the Trade Federation for aid . Following a secret meeting with a Balmorran Federation agent on the planet Syned , all parties agreed to become Federation subsidiaries . The Federation moved in a flotilla of gunboats and system patrol craft via Svivren , along with with a pair of " Munifex " - class light cruisers and a " Captor " - class heavy munitions cruiser . On their first convoy escort to Kabal , they were ambushed by the Fujari pirates at Tertiary Fujar . In the course of an hour , the Fujari pirates and their asteroid base were completely destroyed by the Trade Defense Force . A week later the TDF destroyed the Hajara pirate gang . Within a decade the Trade Federation had upgraded spaceport facilities at Kirdo III and Laria , established a depot for goods at Tyne Albamon , blazed a faster route to Svivren , and installed a TDF marine post at the Dravian Starport . By that time , Kett Shipping was running more than twenty convoys a year without a single loss . Cartelization . As its power grew , the Trade Federation became a cartel in its own right , dominating galactic trade and ruthlessly suppressing opposition . By 150 BBY , trade between the Core and the Rim was once again drying up . In an effort to jump - start commerce , the Galactic Senate declared the entire Outer Rim a Free Trade Zone in 124 BBY , but this merely exempted the Trade Federation from local taxation . It moved aggressively into the new Free Trade Zone , crafting arrangements with impoverished sectors that effectively handed over their Senate votes . Other sectors were forced to give up their economic self - determination , becoming perpetual customers for the Trade Federation . The Trade Federation held maps of hyperspace routes closely rather than sharing them , enabling them to cement their hold over trade routes . Only the Jedi and the Office of the Supreme Chancellor were able to maintain maps of similar quality . The Federation had many planetary protectorates throughout the galaxy , often using the ceremonial halls inside their core ships to sign protectorship agreements . Within two generations , the Trade Federation controlled enough Senate votes to hamper competitors , influence the courts , and stall legislation . In 67 BBY it even gained a seat in the Senate on the same level as a member world as a functional constituency , represented by Lott Dod . The Trade Federation gained full voting privileges as part of a deal secretly negotiated by Hego Damask II of Damask Holdings , the " alter ego " of the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Plagueis , in which they accepted the reform of the Free Trade Zones in the Outer Rim Territories , even though this would cost some of their shipping monopoly and expose them to competition from start - up companies . Though the Trade Federation gained representation in the Galactic Senate in exchange , the leadership remained disgruntled at the loss of some of its monopoly . In 65 BBY , the Trade Federation gained full rights to construct a new spaceport for Theed on the planet Naboo , and to export the planet ' s newly - discovered plasma resources : as Hego Damask , Darth Plagueis explicitly involved the Trade Federation to reconcile them to the earlier Free Trade Zone Deal . Many on Naboo , however , especially isolationists like Senator Vidar Kim , pointed out that the Trade Federation would sell Naboo ' s plasma on for ten or even twenty times what it paid for it , and saw the deal as unjust and exploitative . Many on Coruscant bemoaned the Trade Federation ' s corruption , predatory business practices , and the extinction of representation for the systems it controlled . When Senator Vidar Kim was assassinated by a never - identified Maladian gunman at the behest of Darth Plagueis , many were prepared to suggest that the Trade Federation had in fact been responsible . However , others admired it for the TDF ' s rapid extinction of piracy on the major hyperlanes . A terrorist group known as the Nebula Front declared its intention to fight the Trade Federation by any means necessary , while the Stark Commercial Combine led by Iaco Stark began raiding Trade Federation convoys and selling pirated goods for a huge markup . In this period , the Neimoidian faction became increasingly influential in the Trade Federation . The Neimoidians who ran the Trade Federation received their organizational skills from running mass hives and fungus farms on their homeworld of Neimoidia and the Neimoidian purse world s like Cato Neimoidia , Deko Neimoidia , and Koru Neimoidia . The Stark Hyperspace War . The Stark Hyperspace War of 44 BBY was a turning point for both the Trade Federation and its opponents in the Senate : amid a bacta shortage , Iaco Stark began raiding Trade Federation bacta shipments and selling them on for reduced prices , becoming a hero to many in the Outer Rim . In response , the Trade Federation demanded the right to greater armaments on its merchant ships . However , what appeared to be a simple smuggler conflict was in fact a ruse cooked up between Stark , the Xucphra bacta corporation , and Viceroy Hask , who saw it as an opportunity to cripple the Republic ' s military forces with Stark ' s navcomputer virus and so between them achieve economic domination over the galaxy . Senator Finis Valorum called for a peace conference to address the underlying causes of the war . However , aware that the Trade Federation had conspired with Xucphra to manufacture the bacta shortage , and believing that only force would resolve the conflict , Senator Ranulph Tarkin blackmailed Trade Federation Minister Nute Gunray into revealing the conference ' s location on Troiken . Assembling a fleet , Tarkin raced to Troiken to ambush Stark ' s forces , but his fleet was decimated by Stark ' s navcomputer virus and he was forced to go to ground on the planet . As bitter attritional fighting developed on Troiken , a Jedi task force discovered Xucphra and the Trade Federation ' s conspiracy . On Coruscant , Jedi Master Mace Windu used the information to intimidate Viceroy Hask and Nute Gunray into releasing TDF assets for a counterattack . Stark defected to the Republic and helped end the crisis in exchange for amnesty , but both the Trade Federation and its opponents in the Senate had been radicalized . Hask resigned over the conspiracy and was replaced as Viceroy by Nute Gunray , and the Trade Federation intensified its demands for greater protection on its merchant ships . The entire crisis had in fact been orchestrated by Darth Sidious , apprentice to Darth Plagueis and publicly Senator Palpatine of Naboo . Sidious used the crisis to intensify tensions between the Core Worlds and the Outer Rim systems dominated by the Trade Federation . He would continue manipulating the Trade Federation and its enemies until the galaxy stood on the brink of a war that would destroy the Republic . Under the Neimoidians . Over the next decade , the Neimoidian Inner Circle became increasingly influential in the seven - member Trade Federation Directorate , though the Federation only became a Neimoidian monopoly in 33 BBY , when six other members of the Trade Federation Directorate were murdered , leaving only Viceroy Nute Gunray . During this time , the Trade Federation also started building up a droid invasion army in secret . In order to ensure the creation and mobilization of the army was kept secret from the authorities at the Galactic Republic , they referred to the suspicious pieces of equipment as being shipments of the most expensive and latest rendition of binary loadlifters when undergoing checks by the Republic Customs Office . The Federation ' s growing power and influence led many in the Senate to consider re - imposing taxation on the Outer Rim , effectively abolishing the Free Trade Zones . The Trade Federation was invariably opposed to renewed taxation , and through its senator , Lott Dod , endlessly filibustered Senate debates on the issue . When Alaris Prime was discovered , a droid army under the leadership of Nute Gunray settled on the forest moon to begin stripping its resources and establish a base in the strategically located system , struggling against the moon ' s native Gundarks . Unaware of the Trade Federation ' s presence , the Wookiees legally brought colonists to Alaris Prime under the leadership of Attichitcuk , his son Chewbacca , and their friend Shoran . With the help of a Jedi force , the Federation left the moon . In 33 BBY , Darth Sidious was ready to launch his master plan and declared himself to the Neimoidian faction of the Directorate . Sidious both blackmailed and flattered Gunray into accepting a " partnership " , relying on his dissatisfaction with the current Directorate , which he felt did not recognise his talents and stymied his plans . Promising Gunray a " surprise promotion " , Sidious dispatched his apprentice Darth Maul to the mining world of Dorvalla , where Maul pit the rival companies Lommite Limited and InterGalactic Ore against one another . The Trade Federation had long sought to control the planet ' s lommite trade , and owing to Maul ' s actions the two companies merged to form Dorvalla Mining , which soon agreed to allow the Trade Federation to export lommite ore , and to accept Trade Federation representation in the Senate . As a result , Gunray ' s power was solidified , and so was the hold Sidious had over the Viceroy . Meanwhile , violence between the Nebula Front and the Trade Federation was intensifying . In further conversations with the Viceroy , Darth Sidious demanded that the Neimoidians willingly sacrifice one of their " Lucrehulk " - class freighters , the " Revenue " , and its cargo of aurodium ingots worth two billion credits . In a second incident at Dorvalla , a Nebula Front group led by Arwen Cohl raided the " Revenue " and made off with the cargo , which prompted Nute Gunray to again demand the right to increased protection on the Trade Federation ' s ships . As Senator Palpatine , Sidious convinced Supreme Chancellor Valorum that renewed taxation was the only way to check the abuses that produced the dissatisfaction that led to the violence of the Nebula Front . As this would effectively abolish the Free Trade Zones that had made the Trade Federation so wealthy , Senator Lott Dod again raised objections and repeated the demand that the Federation be allowed to expand its droid army to defend against the Nebula Front . Palpatine proposed that a summit be held on Eriadu to allow all sides to come to an agreement . Owing to Sidious ' manipulations , the summit was an utter disaster : the Trade Federation Directorate ' s security droids turned their weapons on their charges , killing the entire Directorate but for Gunray and Dod . In the aftermath of the disastrous Eriadu Trade Summit , Gunray proceeded to fill up the vacancies on the Directorate with his Neimoidian puppets , some of whom later comprised the Occupation Council that took control of Theed after the Naboo invasion . Showing little sympathy for the Trade Federation after Eriadu , the Galactic Senate became determined to impose taxation , drafting Senate Resolution BR - 0371 . The new Queen of Naboo , Padmé Amidala , led the call for new taxation , and Senator Palpatine , knowing it would antagonise the Trade Federation , agreed with his monarch . As Darth Sidious , he contacted Gunray and encouraged him to begin preparations for a blockade of Naboo in protest of the resolution . The invasion of Naboo . The Federation procured the necessary resources on a number of planets , including Alaris Prime , Esseles , and Eos . Gunray had a brief moment of panic before launching the blockade , fearing the cost of diverting so many ships from trade , though Sidious coldly informed him that any loss of revenues would inevitably be balanced out through the Trade Federation ' s investors shipping of weapons . Amid the preparations , Deputy Viceroy Hath Monchar attempted to reveal the plot to the Jedi Order , though he was killed by Darth Maul before he could succeed . Two of the Trade Federations member species — the Caarite s and the Filordi — felt this blockade would destroy the Federation , so they split off to form the Metatheran Cartel and forced the Federation out of the Cularin system . The Trade Federation ' s fleet was largely made up of converted " Lucrehulk " - class freighters , which included 50 conference rooms on the ships ' centersphere for trade negotiations . In large part because of this , the Trade Federation when designing the rooms deliberately gave special adaptations to them to specifically place clients at a disadvantage , including the installation of variable gas emitters as well as remote - operated " concentration deficit " chairs to make it difficult for their clients to think clearly . The Executive Board was unwilling to spend more credits ( being the thrifty businessmen they were ) , and chose to convert their enormous commercial freight carriers into formidable , three - kilometer long warships , complete with shields , turbolasers , and military grade communications arrays . Also , the Trade Federation struck deals with numerous species , like the Colicoids and the Xi Char , to construct massive armies for the Federation . Also because of their thriftiness , as well as the development of their droid army around the same time , they also had the air - traffic control rooms for the various ships replace both paid employees and expensive protocol droids with low - maintenance OOM pilot droids to offset the costs . In addition , even in the long awaited and profitable enterprise of battle , the Trade Federation warcraft were still manufactured inexpensively . Unwilling to spend more money on droid brains , the Trade Federation Executive Board controlled their massive armies from a single central control computer aboard a " Lucrehulk " - class Droid Control Ship . With Naboo blockaded and beginning to starve , Nute Gunray felt that the Senate would be forced to concede on the issue of taxation . However , while the Senate debated endlessly on the blockade , Supreme Chancellor Valorum secretly requested that two Jedi Knights be dispatched to force a settlement . Jedi Master Qui - Gon Jinn and his Padawan , Obi - Wan Kenobi arrived on the flagship " Saak ' ak " and were immediately set upon by poison gas and battle droids . On the orders of Darth Sidious , Gunray began a general invasion of Naboo in an effort to force the Senate to come to terms , expecting that Queen Amidala would easily be induced to sign a capitulation treaty to legitimise the invasion . The Trade Federation Droid Army swiftly secured the major cities and Nute Gunray installed himself as leader of an occupation government in the capital of Theed . The civilian population was largely interned in makeshift prison camps , and with battle droids having little idea of how to care for human beings , sickness and starvation soon set in . With the aid of Qui - Gon Jinn and Obi - Wan Kenobi , however , Queen Amidala escaped to Coruscant with a small entourage . While she failed to rally the Senate against the Federation , she orchestrated a vote of no confidence against the now largely - powerless Valorum , allowing Naboo ' s Senator Palpatine to be elected as his successor . Returning to Naboo , Amidala unilaterally set aside ancestral differences with the native Gungans and formed an alliance . In the ensuing battle , the droid control ship was destroyed and the droid army disabled . Gunray was forced to make a humiliating return to Coruscant to face a Senate investigation . It would not be until over a decade later that it was discovered that invasion had in fact been a massive ruse orchestrated by Darth Sidious to elevate his public persona of Palpatine to the office of Supreme Chancellor . Separatist Crisis . Despite the Naboo expecting that the Senate would revoke the Federation ' s trade franchise as punishment for the invasion , the Trade Federation retained much of its power . Despite four trials in the Supreme Court , Nute Gunray remained Viceroy . Following the Invasion of Naboo , the Federation began diversifying its fleets , with new destroyer s and cruisers using the modular core ships as control cores . In addition , Pammant Docks provided the Trade Federation with massive " Providence " - class carrier / destroyers , such as the " Invisible Hand " . After the collapse of his final trial , Nute Gunray approached Count Dooku , who had recently left the Jedi Order over the death of his former apprentice Qui - Gon Jinn on Naboo , and told him what he knew of Darth Sidious . Unbeknownst to Gunray , Dooku had already turned to the dark side of the Force and sworn himself to Sidious as Darth Tyranus . From 24 BBY , Count Dooku began rallying various systems and corporations to form the Confederacy of Independent Systems on Raxus Prime . Gunray however did not formally align the Trade Federation with the Separatists until the outbreak of war in 22 BBY . His price for the support of the Trade Federation and its droid army was the death of the now - Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo , in revenge for his humiliation ten years earlier . Clone Wars . In 22 BBY at the wake of the Clone Wars , Nute Gunray pledged the Trade Federation ' s resources to said cause in exchange for the death of Padmé Amidala , as revenge for the fiasco on Naboo . Unfortunately , a botched attempt on Amidala ' s life by Zam Wesell resulted in Obi - Wan Kenobi tracking a bounty hunter to Geonosis , where Gunray and the other various members of the CIS had gathered . Kenobi was captured , but this merely resulted in Anakin Skywalker and Amidala setting out to rescue Kenobi . Eventually , these events spiraled into Mace Windu leading a Jedi attack on the arena where the prisoners were about to be executed , much to Gunray ' s dismay . Upon Yoda ' s arrival with a large clone army , it descended into a full scale battle , starting off the Clone Wars between the Confederacy and the Republic . The Trade Federation was unable to break off now , and soon Federation automata formed much of the CIS army . During the Clone Wars , planet Rosha was deeply involved with the Trade Federation . Reorganization . With Nute Gunray ' s death in 19 BBY at the hands of former Jedi Anakin Skywalker , now Darth Vader , the Trade Federation fell . Acting Viceroy Sentepeth Findos who was on Cato Neimoidia resisted for a brief moment but was forced by Stormtroopers to sign a peace treaty with the Empire only a few days after the Clone Wars ended . This gave all of the Federation ' s resources to Palpatine ' s disposal to help him build the Galactic Empire . However , there was still some resistance . This had made the federation a puppet government of the Imperial Senate . Some of the insurgents were absorbed into the Rebel Alliance in 2 BBY . The rest continued to be a puppet government until they sank with the Imperial Senate in 0 BBY . Nonetheless , Trade Federation holdouts remained after the Battle of Yavin . Fanatical loyalists , zealots , and avengers affiliated with the Trade Federation remained on the planet Naboo , where they were considered enemies of the Royal Naboo Security Forces and the Nal Raka Criminal Empire led by Borvo the Hutt . In fact , the Nal Raka Criminal Empire assumed control over the Old Trade Federation Route following the Invasion of Naboo . Associations . Notable members . See . Battle droids . The Trade Federation ' s military forces , by the time of the Naboo Invasion , were primarily composed of battle droids , largely owing to the Neimoidians ' major influence in the organization . The most common mainstay of the Trade Federation ' s mechanized forces were the B - series battle droid , which had been modeled after decayed corpses of Neimoidians as a form of psychological terror . During the Naboo Crisis , the B - series had the B1 battle droid , with the only other variant being B1 battle droids riding Beetle droid s as steeds . It won ' t be until the Clone Wars nearly a decade later that the B - series would include additional variations , including the sniper - wielding battle droid assassin s , the Droid marine s ( which despite technically being B - series , had green markings akin to the OOM - series ) that acted as the last line of defense against boarding , and the B2 super battle droid . The latter droid model was derived from the E4 baron droid , which had originally been designed as an assassin droid model until being repurposed for guard duty largely because of the Battle of Naboo . The OOM - series battle droids had a similar design to the B - series battle droids , only they were more regulated to duties that rarely involved direct combat situations . There were at least three variants for them that dealt with a different function each . The OOM command battle droid , who directly led the various units within the Trade Federation ' s droid armies ( and , later , the Confederacy of Independent Systems ' droid armies ) , which were identified by yellow markings on the torso and the head ; The OOM pilot battle droid , likewise , functioned as pilots for various war machines for the Trade Federation , from AATs to droid control ships , and had blue shoulders for its identifying characteristics ; the OOM security battle droid , likewise , acted as guard units on either Trade Federation battleships or in conquered territory , and are identifiable via magenta markings on the torso . The other most prevalent droid model within the Trade Federation were Droidekas , also known as Destroyer droids or wheel droids ( the latter due to their form of rapid transportation involving turning into a wheel and speeding towards the opponent ) , which had been supplied to them at a special rate by the Colicoids in exchange for rare treats . The models were notorious for not only their prowess in battle , but also the fact that their shield generators were powerful enough to withstand even lightsabers , leaving even the Jedi wary of them . There were two variants of the Droideka model . The first , the P - series destroyer droid , was under the service of a Central Droid Computer . The second , the more advanced W - series droideka , operated in complete autonomy . Other Trade Federation droid models included the Trade Federation probe ( which later saw extensive use under General Grievous during the Clone Wars ) , and the turret droid s , which included a tripod variation and a specialized variant known as the T4 turret droid . Organic forces . The Trade Federation ' s armed forces were originally composed of organics , with the Trade Defense Force being the primary military arm . It was formed as a deterrent against pirates and other neer - do - wells . However , like its parent organization , it would grow corrupt and ruthless , exploiting sectors . They also ended up generally replaced by the mechanized forces due to growing Neimoidian influence as a result of the disastrous trade summit . The TDF ' s officers primarily wore black uniforms , and also commanded several of their ships . The TDF was largely disbanded after the Naboo Crisis was resolved when most of their members were arrested for their role in the invasion , and was eventually disbanded for good with the Declaration of a New Order . During the Clone Wars , although organics fighting on the ground were rare , organic units did exist , including the Neimoidian Gunnery Battalion and the Neimoidian Home Defense Legion . Starfighters . Like with its main armed forces , the various Starfighters utilized by the Trade Federation were unmanned . Their most well known Starfighter was the Variable Geometry Self - Propelled Battle Droid , Mark I , later known as the " Vulture " - class Battle Droid during the Clone Wars , which had three modes : A ground mode , which allowed them to act as walkers , a flight mode , where their wings were closed , and an attack mode where their wings open to reveal cannons inside for Starfighter combat . Although originally non - sentient , by the time of the late Clone Wars , they gained enough sentience to make commands in Neimoidian before doing any maneuvers . There were two other variants used during the Battle of Naboo , the Advanced Droid Starfighter and a light version , which were composed of two wings ( one at the bottom ) and an airspeeder - like design , respectively . The Trade Federation droid bomber had a similar design to the " Vulture " - class , particularly in the " cockpit " ( composed of two slit - like " eye " sensors ) , although it could not transform and was slow and little maneuverability . Besides the " Vulture " - class , other Starfighters included the " Scarab " - class droid starfighters and the E - STAP Starbomber series . The E - STAP series , as indicated by the name , acted as bombers , which had at least three models . A standard model , a more heavily armored version , and a shielded version . Ground units . The artillery for the Trade Federation included the AML ( an anti - air vehicle ) , the HAML ( an improved version of the AML ) , the Bio cannon ( a Droideka - like droid functionally similar to the SPHA - T ) , and the Heavy Artillery Gun , alongside its cousins the HAG \ - M and the HHAG \ - M ( an improved version of the former ) . In addition , the main battle tanks for the Trade Federation were the Armored Assault Tank , as well as its more heavily armored cousin , the Heavy Armored Assault Tank . A smaller version used primarily for hit and run tactics was known as the Armored Scout Tank . One - droid repulsorlifts known as Single Trooper Aerial Platforms were used to scout the area as well as if needs be take out stragglers . A more heavily armed version existed known as the Heavy Single Trooper Aerial Platform . The MVR - 3 speeder bike served a similar purpose to the STAPs alongside the Speeder platform s . The Trade Federation also had access to Energy Pummels , siege engines that allowed for breaching into bases . They came in two variants , one having one pummel , and another having two . Due to their being very slow and vulnerable despite being heavily armored , they were often supplied heavy escorts during the time of the Battle of Naboo to compensate . Aside from the more direct offensive measures , the ground forces also had transport vehicles for delivering their troops . The Multi - Troop Transport carried as many as 122 B - series battle droids and / or 20 droidekas . By the time they were refitted during the Clone Wars , they could also carry 12 B2 Battle Droids . A multi - purpose version known as the Multi - Utility Transport was also used during the Clone Wars , which was capable of carrying large amounts of cargo , although at the cost of its speed , and was an offshoot of the Trade Federation Troop Transport . The Platoon Attack Craft was a smaller scale version of the MTT , with the main difference being that it lacked armaments , being purely a troop carrier . OX9 labor droids were frequently used as support regarding developing various bases . Mechanized Assault Flyer and XT Beetle Transports were also in use during the Clone Wars . Although technically spacecraft , the Neimoidian trader was used to deliver Nova Crystals between Trade Federation bases in occupied territory . Aquatic units . Although rarely used during the Invasion of Naboo , Aquatic units existed during the time of the Naboo Crisis . The Ocean Troop Transport s were used to deliver troops to underwater combat zones ( although , ironically , the OTTs themselves functioned poorly in such environments due to tending to sink ) and had an armed version described as battleships , while the Trade Federation Patrol Boat s were used to guard various prison camps . In addition , their maritime fleets also were composed of various frigates ( S - FRG s , S - HFRG s and S - LFRG s ) , destroyers ( S - DST s and S - DST s ) , cruisers ( S - CRS s and S - HCRS s ) , and anti - air destroyers ( S - AAD s and S - HAAD s ) . During the Clone Wars , their aquatic units have increased somewhat , with their usage of open - air single - droid submarines called Mini - sub s , aquatic variants of the AATs called the " Ostracoda " - class gunboat , underwater carriers known as the Separatist Sub - Carrier s ( which had some design similarities to the " Vulture " - class Starfighter droid ) , ambush submarines , and the " Manta " droid subfighters . Aerial units . Although comparatively rare , the Trade Federation had some aerial units , including the Long Range Air Attack Mechanism s and the Mechanized Assault Flyers . Capital ships . The Trade Federation ' s primary battleship ( and , at the time of the Naboo Crisis , their only vessel ) was the " Lucrehulk " - class battleship , which had been modified from the " Lucrehulk " - class LH - 3210 cargo freighter . Two variants existed : A standard battleship , and a specialized version called the " Lurehulk " - class Droid Control Ship that , as implied by the name , served as the central control ship for the Droid Armies . The Core ships were created as a direct response to the end of the Naboo Crisis when the Trade Federation was forced to dismantle their ships . Specifically , it was created as a form of deception , to make the cores of the " Lucrehulk " - class battleships detachable so that they would only appear to have been dismantled . Aside from the " Lucrehulk " - class , the only other capital ships the Trade Federation had access to during the Clone Wars were the " Providence " - class carrier / destroyer as well as an unidentified cruiser model used during the Second Battle of Lok . Support craft . Centuries prior to the Naboo Crisis , the Trade Federation had access to the LH - 3010 capital freighter , but was eventually decommissioned . Another vessel predating the Naboo Crisis , the Trade Federation cargo hauler s , had a similar design , although they were specifically stated to be much smaller than the LH - 3010 . By the time of the Naboo Crisis , the Trade Federation utilized quad - wing landing ships known as the C - 9979 landing craft , with each wing containing a set number of troops and vehicles ( eg , 7 Platoon Attack Craft per wing , 24 AATs and 3 MTTs per fore wing , and 33 AATs per aft wing , plus three MTTs in the staging area and two MTTs in the landing pedestal ) . These vessels were derived in design from the commercial barges in the Federation ' s merchant fleet . The Trade Federation transport had a similar design to the C - 9979 . Although they formed the basis of the " Lucrehulk " - class battleships , the " Lucrehulk " - class LH - 3210 cargo freighters themselves also saw use in the blockade and later invasion of Naboo . The Trade Federation Dropship had a similar use to the C - 9979s , although in their case , they dropped necessary troops to the battlefield directly instead of landing , with its complement including either two AMTs and six B1 battle droids , or six AATs . In addition , the Neimoidian transport was used to ferry over organic troops , as unlike most other vessels in the Trade Federation , it was one of the few vessels to specifically transport organic troops instead of droids . The " Sheathipede " - class transport shuttles were used to deliver Trade Federation VIPs to an occupied world . The Trade Federation also had access to escort cruisers . The Trade Federation Freighter and Trade Federation Superfreighter acted as cargo delivery vessels , with the latter being an improved version of the former and even having the former dock with it . Trade Federation gunship s were also utilized . The Trade Federation shuttle utilized by then - Senator Nute Gunray had some similarities in design to the later Clone Wars - era " Captor " - class heavy munitions cruisers , although they delivered VIPs as well as Hunter - Killer droids . The Trade Federation was also rumored to use Droch - class boarding ships during the Clone Wars . Behind the scenes . The Trade Federation is the main antagonist in , and become a core faction of a larger movement in , " " , and . Although they had their onscreen debut in " The Phantom Menace " , their role in Palpatine ' s rise to power had been indirectly alluded to as early as the for , where it mentioned that Palpatine had been aided in becoming President of the Republic by " the massive organs of commerce . " Their creation , and to some extent their motives and characterization in " The Phantom Menace " , had been part of George Lucas ' s response to the in 1994 ( which had occurred eight days into Lucas ' draft - writing the screenplay for " The Phantom Menace " ) , in particular then - Speaker of the House " " . The article " The Trade Federation and Neimoidians : A History " , written on October 14 , 2014 by Tim Veekhoven , also implied that the and played some historical basis for the Trade Federation as well . The Trade Federation ' s creation date was speculation of Michael Potts . He chose the date of 350 BBY in his timeline , based on available information , and was pleasantly surprised when his fellow member Ann Margaret Lewis used Time Tales as a reference point when writing " The Essential Guide to Alien Species " , and therefore established this date within continuity . The Trade Federation ' s backstory and origins were substantially expanded by author Jason Fry in " The Essential Atlas " and " The Essential Guide to Warfare " . Fry posited that the Trade Federation had begun as a noble institution with a positive influence on galactic affairs , before becoming a victim of its own success and transforming into the very shipping cartel it had been formed to regulate .