Death Star

The **Death Star** was the Galactic Empire’s ultimate weapon: a moon-sized space station with the ability to destroy an entire planet. But the Emperor and Imperial officers like Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin underestimated the tenacity of the Rebel Alliance, who refused to bow to this technological terror. The concept of this weapon was influenced by the old tales of such weapons being used in ancient wars between the Jedi and Sith, weapons powered with kyber crystals. The **DS Orbital Battle Station**, better known as the **Death Star**, was built an Imperial battle superweapon with a width of 160 kilometers designed to enforce law and order throughout the Empire with the threat of planetary destruction. It started off as the Separatist Alliance's **Ultimate Weapon** before it fell under Imperial control with its new designation of **Project Stardust** after it ceased to be a Separatist project. The original Death Star was destroyed by the rebel pilot Luke Skywalker during the Battle of Yavin. **Death Star II** was the successor of the first, made to be larger than the last, measuring with a width of 200 kilometers, built after the destruction of the first Death Star at Yavin. Palpatine insisted on the reconstruction of the battlestation as it was an integral part in his plan to destroy the Alliance, leaving the galaxy in the hands of the Empire. Death Star II's superlaser was made operational by the time of the rebels attack at Endor, as part of the Emperor's plan to destroy the rebels. But Palpatine's plans failed, because due to the rebels on the ground and in the skies above, Death Star II was destroyed from within, signifying the beginning of the downfall of the Empire.

## Death Star I

   The **Death Star**, known officially as the **DS-1 Orbital Battle Station**, also known as the **Death Star I**, the **First Death Star**, **Project Stardust** internally, and simply the **Ultimate Weapon** in early development stages, was a moon-sized, deep-spacemobile battle station constructed by the Galactic Empire. Designed to fire a superlaser with the power to destroy entire planets powered by massive kyber crystals, it was the pet project of the Emperor Palpatine, Darth Vader, and its eventual commander Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin to expound the military philosophy of the Tarkin Doctrine. Some of the earliest plans for a mobile, planet-destroying superweapon dated back millennia to the ancient Sith. Thousands of years later, before the outbreak of the Clone Wars, the Geonosians, aligned with the Count Dooku and the Separatist Alliance, designed the Ultimate Weapon in secret. After the fall of the Confederacy, construction of the Death Star was appropriated by the nascent Empire. It was built in orbit of Geonosis and supported by a complex logistical network of bases. The station, which took longer to complete than expected, was eventually moved from Geonosis to Scarif in its final stages of construction. When the Rebel Alliance learned of its existence, rebels were sent on a mission to steal the Death Star plans. The plans eventually made their way to the rebel base, from which the Alliance launched an attack with a small squadron of starfighters. The battle station was destroyed by a shot fired by rebel pilot Luke Skywalker.

## Death Star II

   The **Death Star II**, was a partially-completed moon-sized battle station constructed by the Empire as the successor to the original. Like the first battle station, the Death Star II's long-term purpose was to terrorize planets in league with the Rebel Alliance through the use of its planet-destroying superlaser. However, the Death Star II also served another purpose in luring the rebels into a battle that would, the Empire hoped, destroy them once and for all. Though it was designed to be similar in appearance and function to the first Death Star, this Death Star improved on its predecessor's design by incorporating millimeter-sized heat-dispersion tubes in place of the two-meter-wide exhaust port exploited by at the Battle of Yavin. Secretly constructed in orbit around the forest moon of Endor, the Death Star II was larger than its predecessor and was constructed using more efficient methods. Put into synchronous orbit above Endor, the battle station was protected by a deflector shield projected by a ground-based shield generator. With the superlaser being the main priority, the weapon was made operational while the rest of the superstructure was still under construction. After the Empire leaked the location of the "incomplete"Death Star to rebel spies, the rebellion fleet arrived at Endor and were shocked to find the superlaser fully operational. In the ensuing battle, rebels managed to destroy the shield protecting the Death Star, allowing the rebel starfighters to infiltrate the station's reactor core and destroy the second Death Star.

## Death Star Residents

### Death Star Trooper

As the Death Star came closer to completion, Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin sought the need to create a specially trained fighting force which were taken from the most elite of the Navy Troopers. Once their training was complete, the new **Death Star Troopers** became multi-talented individuals who fulfilled a wide variety of roles which included both combat and non-combat positions throughout the battlestations. This included training that taught them skills in combat as well as independent command training. Ultimately, the Troopers owed their loyalty to the Imperial Navy and Tarkin opposed to the Stormtroopers loyal to the Emperor. Their advanced training meant that they served in command positions where standard troopers were found throughout the station. To cement their positions, the Troopers wore distinctive uniforms that became a symbol of their new power. These soldiers were often found in support roles, like guarding the detention blocks, controlling the shields, monitoring sensor arrays, handling hangar traffic control, and manning the superlaser on the Death Stars. After its destruction, the uniform was spread to other Imperial Navy Troopers throughout the fleet. They were stationed aboard both the first and second Death Stars, and piloted the battle stations to their destinations.

### Imperial Weapons Technician

**Imperial Weapons Technicians**, also called **Imperial Gunners**or **Death Star Gunners**, were recruits with the Imperial Navy's piloting program but were still training or past their prime. The gunners operated turbolasers and ion cannons of the Galactic Empire's capital ships and bases, including the Death Stars, where the gunners controlled the first and the second battle stations' planet-destroying super superlasers while monitoring their titanic energy levels. Many gunners were recruits with the Imperial Navy's piloting program, but were still training or past their prime. Nevertheless, weapons technicians still possessed the skills and expertise necessary to operate their powerful weapons. The turbolasers were manned by teams of gunners, who monitored the weapons' recharge timings and heat levels while locking onto targets. Technicians also operated the four gravity well projectors aboard the experimental Imperial Interdictor. Imperial gunners used a ranking system similar to that of starfighter pilots, with ranks such as Captain, Major, and Colonel. Some would be deployed in ground operations as battlefield engineers, operating on damaged vehicles and wounded soldiers, and laying down defenses. The gunners wore black durasteel-tipped boots, black bodysuits with a belt, and black gloves.