wookieepedia/Avenger.txt

Avenger


Production information

Product line
Imperial-class Star Destroyer


Model
Imperial II-class Star Destroyer


Type
Star Destroyer



Technical specifications

Length
1,600 meters


Engine unit(s)
Destroyer-I ion engines (3)Gemon-4 ion engines (4) (emergency use)


Power plant
Solar ionization reactor


Shielding
Deflector shield generator domes (2)


Complement
Hyperdrive pods


Docking bays
Equipped


Communication systems
Communications tower



Usage

Present for battles/events
Battle of Hoth


Affiliation
Galactic Empire


Navy
Imperial Navy


Fleet
Death Squadron


Commander(s)
Lorth Needa


Crewmembers
M'KaeNemetCarl AshonUnidentified Imperial officer (Avenger)


[Source]



"Sir, we have a priority signal from the Star Destroyer Avenger.""Right."
―An Imperial officer and Firmus Piett
The Avenger was an Imperial II-class Star Destroyer in the Imperial Navy's Death Squadron, under the command of Captain Lorth Needa. As a part of the Galactic Empire's Project Swarm, the Avenger was one of the destroyers responsible for deploying thousands of Viper probe droids across the galaxy in hyperdrive pods, in an attempt to discover the Rebel Alliance's secret base.

Description
     The Avenger in orbit of a planet.  
An Imperial II-class Star Destroyer, the Avenger was equipped with a hangar bay, a communications tower, a solar ionization reactor, and two deflector shield generator domes. Measuring 1,600 meters long, it was propelled by three destroyer-I ion engines and four emergency use gemon-4 ion engines. The Star Destroyer carried with it numerous hyperdrive pods containing Viper probe droids.

History
Project Swarm
In 3 ABY, the Avenger was owned by the Imperial Navy, and commanded by Captain Lorth Needa. It was involved in Project Swarm, an Imperial operation to dispatch Viper probe droids across the galaxy in order to locate the Rebel Alliance's secret base, from which they waged war on the Empire.

Pursuing the Millennium Falcon
     The Avenger and other Imperial forces pursuing the Millennium Falcon out of the Hoth asteroid belt  
Following the Battle of Hoth, the Avenger and the rest of Death Squadron pursued the rebel vessel Millennium Falcon, although its captain, Han Solo, evaded the Star Destroyer. The Falcon flew further into the asteroid field evading TIE fighters. To answer a call from Emperor Palpatine, the Executor left the asteroid field. After the Millennium Falcon underwent repairs in an asteroid cave, it was sighted by the Avenger's Captain Lorth Needa. He ordered the ship to fire and landed a shot on the Falcon's stern. Solo turned his ship around and charged the Star Destroyer, heading towards the bridge. Needa ordered for the shields to be raised but lost the Falcon. The rebel ship had hidden itself on the back of the Avenger's conning tower in a sensor blind spot. Needa decided to take full responsibility for losing the Millennium Falcon and left to apologize to Vader. Aboard the Executor, Vader ordered to disperse the fleet after killing Captain Needa. Following standard Imperial procedure, the Avenger dumped its garbage and flew into hyperspace while the Millennium Falcon detached and "drifted away with the garbage".

Behind the scenes
The Avenger first appeared in the opening scene of the 1980 original trilogy film, Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back. Although Star Wars Character Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded and Star Wars Helmet Collection 9 both identify the Star Destroyer that deployed the probe droid to Hoth as the Avenger, Star Wars: Complete Locations conversely calls the vessel the Stalker. The Stalker was later confirmed to exist in canon by the 2021 book The Odyssey of Star Wars: An Epic Poem, an adaptation of the original trilogy by Jack Mitchell. This article assumes that Complete Locations supplies the correct name, being the more recent source.