Battle of Kromus The Battle of Kromus was a naval engagement in the Kro ' eval system during the Clone Wars . It climaxed in a cataclysm that engulfed the planet Kromus , causing more than a billion deaths . Prelude . The Confederacy of Independent Systems was constructing a superweapon known as the Starkiller in a drydock facility on the surface of Kromus , the fourth planet of the Kro ' eval system . When intelligence of this reached the Galactic Republic , a fleet of warships was dispatched with orders to destroy the Starkiller , led by Jedi General Darrus Jeht aboard the command cruiser " Maelstrom " . However , two major problems stood in the way of the mission ' s objectives . Separatist forces were alerted to the Republic ' s plans , and prepared a trap for the fleet . Perhaps more seriously , Republic files had transposed the information on Kromus and Kromol , the system ' s fifth planet . While the Republic believed that their target lay on an uninhabited world , it was in fact in the heart of a city of two million inhabitants , on a planet with a population of 1 . 3 billion . Both these factors were probably caused by the machinations of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine , the head of the Republic , who was also leader of the Separatist cause in his guise as the Sith Lord , Darth Sidious . Space battle . On exiting hyperspace , the Republic fleet found themselves faced with a powerful Separatist fleet above Kromus , divided into two squadrons . It appeared that they had not detected the approach of the Republic forces , but Master Jeht was unconvinced . The gap between the wings of the CIS fleet offered a tempting avenue of approach to Kromus , but Jeht could see how the two Separatist flotillas could quickly reverse course and close a trap around his forces . Ordering one of his gunships to open its reactor baffles and simulate the energy signature of the larger " Maelstrom " , Jeht sent the rest of his fleet ahead , while he and the command ship waited in reserve . As he had hoped , the battle droids manning the Separatist ships , depending on sensor readouts rather than visual identification , identified the gunship as " Maelstrom " and closed the trap . Ten percent of the Republic fleet was destroyed in the first moments of the battle , but the ruse allowed the " Maelstrom " to reach orbit around Kromus . Although heavily outnumbered , the rest of the Republic fleet continued to fight the Separatists — and , surprisingly , held their own in spite of further losses . One element of the Separatist force lost its battlefield coordination completely , perhaps indicating the destruction of a Droid Control Ship , while the other squadron was driven into full retreat . However , events around Kromus meant that no satisfaction could be taken from what might otherwise have been a remarkable victory for the Republic . Orbital bombardment . When the " Maelstrom " entered orbit , they discovered the true nature of the Starkiller facility ' s location — in the heart of a city on a highly - populated planet . Master Jeht ordered the " Maelstrom " to prepare to land and deploy ground troops for an assault . But then the cruiser ' s sensors detected that the Starkiller spacecraft was powering up to take off . Reluctantly , General Jeht gave the order to fire . The Separatist facility disappeared in a flash — taking the surrounding city with it . In less than a minute , two million lives were lost , and there was just a pall of destruction , spread over hundreds of miles around the target zone . Troubled not only by the destruction , but also by his ability to set it to one side , General Jeht ordered the fleet to withdraw from the system . For Kromus , however , the initial flashpoint was just the beginning . Aftermath . The catastrophe had ignited Kromus ' atmosphere , and destabilized the planet ' s crust . To the Sith agents monitoring the situation in orbit , to the Separatist media , and to the leaders of the Republic , it was clear that the planet was as good as dead . Within days , every life - form on Kromus , including more than a billion sentients , would die as a result of the devastation caused by the battle . The " Maelstrom " and the fleet were recalled to Coruscant , where General Jeht expected to be heavily censured for his actions in a formal hearing . Instead , he was surprised to find himself summoned into a personal audience with Chancellor Palpatine , and praised for his decisiveness in making a difficult decision . It is unclear whether Palpatine ' s encouragement of Jeht ' s inner darkness was simply an element of the wider strategy of corrupting the Jedi Order , or part of a specific plan to draw him to the dark side , but either way , it suggests that the real reason for the Kromus mission had been to force a Jedi Master to destroy a world . Moreover , it also appears that the Starkiller weapons platform had survived , becoming the warship known as " Shadowblade " . This ship and the " Maelstrom " would meet again in the last hours of the Clone Wars , in a battle near the planet Cularin . Behind the scenes . Aside from the two specific events cited in the endnotes , the information in this entry is drawn from the short story " Dark Soul " , part of the " Living Force " role - playing setting . Also , the report of the Sith agents monitoring Kromus after the battle make it clear that the planet - wide destruction was caused by " the loss of the hyper - point destabilizer and its delivery vehicle " , rather than simply by the bombardment . However , as the Starkiller spacecraft appears to have become the " Shadowblade " , it is not clear what was really destroyed in the Separatist facility .