Nial Declann Nial Declann was a Human male Force - sensitive who fought for the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars . He later served the Galactic Empire both as one of its twelve Grand Admirals and as a Dark Side Adept . Declann ' s impressive , Force - enhanced skills as a TIE pilot brought him to the attention of Emperor Palpatine ' s agents . He was subsequently taken to the Sith world of Dromund Kaas , where he was educated in the ways of the dark side by the Prophets of the Dark Side . When his training was complete , he was allowed to return to service in the Imperial Navy . Declann , in time , was appointed to the newly created rank of Grand Admiral in 2 BBY . He built a reputation for himself , due to both his aptitude for battle meditation , and his severe mood swings . After a stint on Naboo assigning tasks to a spacer , Declann was stationed aboard the second Death Star , which was undergoing construction over Endor in 4 ABY . He served in the Battle of Endor , in which the Alliance to Restore the Republic launched a desperate attack against the superweapon — using his battle meditation , Declann was able to coordinate the Imperial forces . However , during the battle , Declann sensed the death of the Emperor , who was also present on the station , through the Force . Shortly afterward , the station was destroyed by the Alliance , killing Declann in the process . Biography . Early career . Nial Declann , a Force - sensitive Human male , participated in the Clone Wars , fighting for the Galactic Republic . He served aboard a Republic assault ship during the conflict , and went on to serve the Galactic Empire following the Declaration of a New Order . Enlisted in the Imperial Navy as a TIE pilot , Declann ' s uncanny skills garnered the attention of Emperor Palpatine ' s agents . They approached Declann and suggested that he not let his aptitude with the Force go to waste , purely because the Jedi Order was now extinct . The suggestions , posited to Declann in the form of rhetorical questions , troubled him , but he agreed to be trained in the ways of the dark side of the Force . At some point , he had a son , who was inducted into the Stormtrooper Corps and given the designation 17786 . Declann ' s training took place on the ancient Sith world of Dromund Kaas , where he became a Dark Side Adept under the tutelage of the Prophets of the Dark Side . Once his education was complete , he had to go through a graduation exercise , in which Declann used the Force to kill a captured member of the Alliance to Restore the Republic . Declann succeeded , and Palpatine allowed him to return to his fleet . During a New Year ' s celebration in 2 BBY , Declann — along with eleven other officers — was promoted to the newly created rank of Grand Admiral by Palpatine himself . During the elaborate ceremony , Palpatine decreed that there could only be twelve Grand Admirals in existence at any given time . Grand Admiral . Sometime following 0 ABY , Declann was stationed at the Theed Royal Palace on Naboo . There , he assigned a series of tasks to a spacer , whom he initially sent to Kessel to destroy thirty Alliance starfighters . When the spacer returned , the Grand Admiral dispatched the spacer to Kessel yet again , this time to destroy a CR90 corvette in the service of the Alliance . The spacer succeeded in completing the task . Three years later , Declann — along with fellow Grand Admirals Afsheen Makati , Miltin Takel , and Osvald Teshik — was stationed aboard the incomplete second Death Star superweapon over Endor . Shortly after Palpatine arrived to inspect the station , the Rebel Alliance launched an attack against the installment . During the ensuing battle , Declann used battle meditation to coordinate the Imperial fleet in their defense of the station . As the battle wore on , however , Declann felt Palpatine ' s death at the hands of his apprentice , Darth Vader , through the Force . Abandoning the battle meditation , he rushed to the throne room in response . While he was in transit , however , the station was destroyed by Alliance General Lando Calrissian , resulting in the death of all beings aboard , including Declann . Personality and traits . Declann was well - known for his mood swings and could alternatively be morose and threatening . He was troubled when confronted with the question of why the Jedi Order had failed to locate him . The Grand Admiral was later convinced by Palpatine ' s agents that his talent for the Force should not go squandered just because he had been overlooked at such an early age . Powers and abilities . As much as his mood swings , Declann ' s ability to use the Force to meld units under his command into a superior fighting force earned him fame . His aptitude for the Force also benefited his piloting skills , which in turn led him to be trained on Dromund Kaas . Once his training was complete , he possessed the ability to kill a man with the power of the Force . He was also able to use the skill of battle meditation even for a major force , as he demonstrated at the Battle of Endor . Behind the scenes . The character of Nial Declann was created by authors Daniel Wallace and Abel G . Peña for the article " , " which was published in the April 2003 issue of " Star Wars Insider " . Declann was the only original Grand Admiral in the article — the other twelve had all been named in previous sources . The character was a favorite of Wallace , who enjoyed the idea of a Force - sensitive Grand Admiral , and he supposed that the character would have been adept at lightsaber combat . Declann made his first appearance in the MMORPG " Star Wars Galaxies " . However , in the game , he is shown to be wearing a standard Imperial officer ' s uniform , rather than the white uniform of a Grand Admiral . Declann is positioned in the Throne room , replacing the Naboo royal throne that had been located there prior to his NPC being added . His appearance is also considerably different — he is shown to have lighter skin than that of the original Joe Corroney illustration in " Who ' s Who " . The character was later referenced in 2005 ' s " The New Essential Chronology " , which was co - authored by Wallace , as well as Ryder Windham ' s 2007 reference book , " " . Originally , " Who ' s Who : Imperial Grand Admirals " was intended for publication in the now - defunct " Star Wars Gamer " magazine , under the title " Dirty Dozen : The Imperial Grand Admirals " . In the original manuscript , there is considerably more information about Grand Admirals themselves , accompanied by roleplaying game statistics . Among other things , the original article identified Declann ' s homeworld as Raithal , and his personal Star Destroyer as the " Recondite " . It also went into greater detail about his appearance — while all the other Grand Admirals drawn by Corroney for " Who ' s Who " wear the standard white uniform of their rank , Declann is also depicted wearing a black cape . Cut content . Hailing from Raithal , Declann dreamed of attending his home planet ' s famed naval academy as a youth , in spite of the lack of career opportunities available for young officers . Due to the lack of a standing military within the Republic , Declann was reluctant to join the Judicial Forces or a planetary militia . Nevertheless , Declann graduated from the Raithal Academy with honors , and shortly afterward served aboard a Republic corvette during the Clone Wars . Due to his aptitude for battle meditation , he was once able to bring a Void Demons freighter to a halt , opening it to a broadside from his frigate . Later , during his training on Dromund Kaas , Declann felt uncomfortable amongst his more treacherous peers , such as Jerec and Kadann . He was allowed to return to his fleet only after killing the captured Rebel Quarsh Panaka . After his promotion to Grand Admiral , Declann was still haunted by the dual nature of his training , and so he offset his stark white uniform with a black cape and gloves . His fleet excelled above all others , and he was able to achieve victory with a minimal loss of life on both sides .