Darksaber ( novel ) Darksaber is a 1995 bestselling novel written by Kevin J . Anderson and published by Bantam Spectra . The novel is set immediately after " Children of the Jedi " in the Expanded Universe timeline . Narration for the audio version was performed by Anthony Heald . Publisher ' s summary . Acclaimed author of the Jedi Academy trilogy , Kevin J . Anderson , is back with a blockbuster novel , returning to Luke Skywalker ' s home planet of Tatooine . " Luke returns home with Han Solo , hoping to make contact with Obi - Wan Kenobi . Instead , what they find is disturbing news : the Hutts , criminal warlords of the galaxy , are building a secret superweapon , a reconstruction of the original Death Star superlaser , to be called " Darksaber " . This planet - crushing power will be in the ruthless hands of Durga , a creature without conscience or mercy . And there is trouble on another front : Admiral Daala is very much alive and , in league with Pellaeon , is marshaling forces to destroy the Rebels . Soon they and Luke will face the ultimate test of their power — one in which all the temptations of the dark side of the Force beckon … " Plot summary . Background and setting . In the " " trilogy , Admiral Daala was forced to retreat to the Core Worlds , where some of the remaining Imperial warlords bicker over the Empire ' s remaining forces in the region . Immediately thereafter , Luke Skywalker encounters Callista , a former Jedi who was trapped in the " Eye of Palpatine " . After being rescued , Callista is forced to take the form of one of Luke ' s former students . Luke and Callista immediately fall in love and work on building the Jedi Academy , though Callista still cannot use the Force . Meanwhile , Bevel Lemelisk is searching for a new assignment , which is given to him by Durga the Hutt . " Darksaber " was set eight years after the Battle of Endor , a time in which both Grand Admiral Thrawn and the resurrected Emperor were defeated , and the New Republic experienced a brief lull in conflict after the events in " Children of the Jedi " . Summary . While searching Jabba the Hutt ' s palace on Tatooine , Luke Skywalker and Han Solo learn that the Hutts are planning to build another superweapon . Meanwhile , in the Hoth Asteroid Belt , Durga the Hutt is planning a diplomatic mission to Coruscant , where he will secretly obtain the plans for the Death Star superlaser for Bevel Lemelisk , the Death Star ' s designer . Skywalker and Solo reveal their discoveries , but not before Durga ' s subordinates steal the plans from the Imperial Palace . In order to find out the location of the superweapon , the New Republic launches a covert operation to Nal Hutta , disguised as a diplomatic summit . Back at the Hoth asteroid belt , Lemelisk starts construction on the cylindrical superlaser , which he calls the " Darksaber " for its shape is similar to the hilt of a lightsaber . Luke and Callista embark on a journey to help Callista regain her Force powers . They discover that Callista can only tap into the Dark Side of the Force after they were attacked by some strange flying creatures on Dagobah . Their journey continues to the Hoth system where they encounter a group of stranded refugees . The group is attacked by a pack of Wampas , led by the same Wampa Luke dismembered several years ago . The refugees are killed in the attack , Luke and Callista try to escape only to find their ship wrecked . They lift off , but have little power and become stranded in the asteroid belt surrounding Hoth . They are rescued by Han and Leia Organa Solo , who just returned from the successful mission on Nal Hutta . However , Luke and Callista ' s rescue is mainly thanks to the Republic fleet , who arrived to launch Crix Madine and his squad to locate the Darksaber reported to be under construction in the region . While Madine succeeds in relaying the location to the fleet , he is captured and killed by Durga . However , Durga ' s triumph is short - lived when the Republic fleet spots the Darksaber and begins pursuit . The Darksaber attempts to fire its superlaser and make an escape , but the weapon fails and the ship is destroyed by two large asteroids . Meanwhile , Admiral Daala succeeds in uniting the remains of the Empire in the core systems by terminating the bickering Warlords during a conference . With the help of Pellaeon , she plans a strike force against a series of New Republic targets , including the Jedi academy on Yavin 4 . They also attack Khomm , after Jedi trainees Kyp Durron and Dorsk 81 are caught infiltrating an Imperial summit and escape to Khomm . The pair of Jedi succeed in warning the Republic and the academy of the attack . Using the combined powers of the Force of the Jedi trainees back at Yavin 4 , Dorsk 81 manages to physically throw Pellaeon and his fleet out of the Yavin system . Daala is forced to retreat when her Super Star Destroyer , the " Knight Hammer " , is destroyed . After the failed attack , Daala transfers control over the Imperial forces to Pellaeon . Meanwhile , Callista decides to temporarily leave Luke and venture on a journey to regain her powers . Luke is heartbroken , but decides to move on and continue to build the Jedi academy . Reception . " Darksaber " was published worldwide in November 1995 , a time in which Bantam Spectra was releasing several bestselling " Star Wars " novels a year . Although it was not as successful as the " Jedi Academy trilogy " , " Darksaber " peaked at number three on the New York Times Bestseller list . Nevertheless , fans in TheForce . net consider it it to be one of the worst Star Wars novels ever , giving it a 5 . 97 average rating . According to the back cover of " Darksaber " , " Starlog " claimed that " Anderson has all but assumed the title of chancellor of the " Star Wars " University . " Behind the scenes . Crix Madine ' s death in " Darksaber " made him the first Rebel film character with a speaking role to be killed in the Expanded Universe . The distinction of first overall belongs to Maximilian Veers , who was killed in " " almost a year prior to " Darksaber " publication . Darksaber was the last appearance of a unified Empire as a major threat until the Hand of Thrawn Duology . Kevin Anderson told AlternativeNation . net that the novel was an allegory for the real - life proliferation of nuclear weapons . Cover gallery . This is a gallery of the different cover variations of " Darksaber " .