Battle of Yavin
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Concurrent
Battle of Yavin
Conflict
Place
Outcome
Alliance to Restore the Republic[1] Black Squadron[10]
TheBattle of Yavin, also known as theBattle of the Death Star or theMiracle of Yavin, was a major and decisive battle of theGalactic Civil War, in which theRebel Alliance was able to destroy theDeath Star and was seen as one of the first major victories over theGalactic Empire.
Prelude[]
- "He put a fuse in the middle of your machine, and I've just told the entire galaxy how to light it."
- ―Jyn Erso, to Imperial Director Krennic[25]
During theBattle of Scarif,Jyn Erso andCassian Andor managed to steal detailedplans and design specifications for theImperialbattle station known as theDeath Star and transmit them to theAlliance Fleet above; these plans soon made their way toPrincessLeia Organa.[25] Imperial forces under the command of theDark Lord of the Sith,Darth Vader, soon captured Princess Leia and the crew of theTantive IV.[1]
Princess Leia wastakenprisoner aboard theDeath Star byLord Vader. The Princess wasrescued fromcaptivity by an unlikely alliance of thesmugglerHan Solo, formerJedi MasterObi-Wan Kenobi, a young farmboy fromTatooine namedLuke Skywalker, and Solo'sFirst Mate, theWookiee namedChewbacca. The group, which also includedRebel AlliancedroidsR2-D2 andC-3PO, in possession of the Death Star plans, fled to theRebel base onYavin 4—closely pursued by the battlestation.[1]
Before Organa arrived,ChancellorMon Mothma was evacuated aboard ashuttle, asGeneralDodonna considered her the core of the rebellion. During hertime away, she composed a contingency plan: surrender toEmperorPalpatine.[26]
General Dodonna gives a briefing on the battle plan.
General Jan Dodonna briefed therebel pilots on the plan. The Death Star's defenses were designed for a direct, large-scale assault. By using small, one-manstarfighters, the Rebels would slip through the Death Star's main defenses, maneuver down anarrow trench leading to the exhaust port, and fireproton torpedoes into the exhaust port. An analysis of the plans identified a weakness in the battle station,[1] placed there by ImperialscientistGalen Erso:[25] a smallthermal exhaust port leading to the mainreactor. Aproton torpedo fired into the port would cause a chain reaction that would destroy the battle station.[1]
The battle[]
The approach[]
- "Lock S-foils in attack position."
- ―Red Leader Garven Dreis[1]
With the Death Star approaching,Y-wings fromGold Squadron andX-wings fromRed Squadron andGreen Squadron[11] were dispatched to carry out the attack plan. A total of 30ships were deployed in the assault on the Death Star: 8Y-wings from GoldSquadron as well as 22X-wings, 12 fromRed Squadron and the other 10 from Green Squadron.[19] The starfighters weaved through theturret emplacements, destroying many as they passed.Red Six (Jek Tono Porkins) was the first to be destroyed in the volley of turret fire. The deployment of ImperialTIE fighters, including one piloted byLieutenantIden Versio,[16] devastated the Rebel attackers, destroying them far faster and more efficiently than the station's weapon emplacements had been able to.Red Four (John D. Branon) was the first to be shot down by the incomingTIEs.[1]
Rebel X-wings and Y-wings approach the Death Star.
During the battle, Rebels in thetemple, including pilots who were left behind watched the battle from the command center,[20] along with FighterBossNera Kase. She tallied the Rebel starfighter losses as they occurred during the battle.[19]
Some time into the battle,Imperial officerJude Edivon aboard the Death Star identified the threat of the Rebels' attack strategy, and attempted to warn her superiors of the danger. However,Grand MoffWilhuff Tarkin ignored the warning and refused to evacuate.[22] Informed byLieutenantTanbris[27] that the Rebels were avoiding the turbolaser fire, Vader himself decided to deploy asquadron of TIE fighters to destroy the remaining Rebel fighters.[1] This would be the only Imperial squadron launched during the battle.[10] Vader himself would join the battle, entering the fray aboard his personalTIE Advanced[1] asBlack Leader.[28] He was joined by two other members of Black Squadron, the TIE pilot[1] aces[29]"Backstabber"[30] andBlack TwoMithel,[31] as his hand-picked[29] wingmen.[1]
Trench run[]
Turbolasers defend the Death Star during the Battle of Yavin
The first attack run was performed by a trio of Y-wings from Gold Squadron. The three Y-wings, led byGold Leader (Jon Vander) withGold Two (Dex Tiree) andGold Five (Davish Krail) escorting, attempted to make a shot on the exhaust port but were shot down by Vader. A second trench run was performed by a trio of X-wings from Red Squadron flown byRed Leader (Garven Dreis),Red Ten (Theron Nett), andRed Twelve (Puck Naeco).Darth Vader picked off Nett and Naeco, but Dreis was able to fire off a shot at the exhaust port. However, his proton torpedoes missed their mark, only scratching the surface. Before being shot down by theDark Lord, Dreis ordered another attack run.[1]
Following the final command of Red Leader,Red Five (Luke Skywalker) led the final attempt withRed Two (Wedge Antilles) andRed Three, Luke's old friend, (Biggs Darklighter), aswingmen. Rushing down the trench at full throttle, they found themselves being tailed by Vader and his fighters.One of Vader's wingmen damaged Antilles' fighter, forcing him to disengage, whilst Vader personally destroyed Darklighter's X-wing, forcing Skywalker to attempt the shot on his own. In this dire moment the Rebel leaders were concerned when the youngpilot deactivated histargeting system for the attempt, but Skywalker assured them that nothing was wrong; he was advised by thespirit of Kenobi to rely onthe Force instead for his attack.[1]
Luke Skywalker flies as Red Five down the trench while pursued by Darth Vader in his TIE Advanced.
For his part, Vader sensed this power himself and found firing on the fighter unusually difficult, with his single hit only putting R2-D2, who was serving as the fighter'sastromech droid, out of commission. When the Dark Lord prepared to finally shoot down the enemy, his wingman Backstabber was suddenly shot down from above beside him. The source of that attack was theMillennium Falcon diving out of the nearby star's light. Han Solo and Chewbacca, believed to have abandoned the Rebels prior to the assault, unexpectedly returned to assist Skywalker in his most desperate moment.[1] Chewbacca had been urging Solo to return, with Solo's conscience finally getting the better of him when he decided he needed to help Skywalker, whom he had befriended.[32]
Destruction of the Death Star[]
- "Great shot, kid! That was one in a million!"
- ―Han Solo to Luke Skywalker[1]
Momentarily distracted by the intervention, the Dark Lord's remaining wingmanMithel collided with his ship, and both spiraled out of control. TheTIE fighter pilot flew into the side of the trench and knocked Vader away from the Death Star, and this allowed Skywalker to fire his shot. With the aid of the Force, the torpedoes shot along the trench and entered the shaft perfectly, as the two surviving X-wings, the lone surviving Y-wing and the agingfreighter made for Yavin 4. The surviving rebel pilots included Skywalker, Antilles,[1] andGold Three (Evaan Verlaine).[4]
The destruction of the First Death Star
On theOverbridge, unaware of his impending doom,Governor Tarkin continued to examine the battle as thetechnicians counted down the moments until firing commenced. Mere seconds before thesuperlaser could obliterate the moon, the torpedoes struck the reactor and the station exploded, killing all aboard and saving Yavin 4.[1] The explosion of the Death Star could be seen from the ground ofYavin 8, lighting up the entire sky and leaving debris within Yavin 8'satmosphere.[33]
Shortly before the explosion, while on the Death Star,Lieutenant CommanderEllian Zahra punched astormtrooper and stole aLambda-class T-4a shuttle, with which she planned to continue her hunt for thewarlordBurnium Ro. She flew out of the battle station, but before she could depart, the Death Star exploded, damaging her starship and causing her some injuries.[34] After the destruction of the battle station, theImperial-class Star Destroyer known asFortitude was hit by a piece of Death Star wreckage that heavily damaged itshull.[18]
Aftermath[]
Rebel Alliance[]
- "Thanks to your courage, we have delivered a telling blow to the Empire with the destruction of their Death Star."
- ―Leia Organa, to the assembled Alliance members[4]
Skywalker returned to a hero's welcome.
Skywalker, Solo, and the surviving Rebel fighters returned to Yavin, where they held acelebration ceremony and awarded the pair withmedals for their achievement in saving the Rebellion.[1] Mothma, having heard of the victory, permanently discarded her contingency plan to surrender to Palpatine.[26] Antilles' move with which he saved Skywalker's life during the battle would be remembered as theAntilles Maneuver.[35]
Shortly after the battle, the Rebels were forced toleave the site of their victory, fleeing the Empire once again.[36] According to theWild SpacecartographerEmil Graf, in thedays after the battle, the rebels' evacuation was briefly interrupted by anImperial Star Destroyer which threatened to destroy the base before the evacuation could be completed. The rebels managed to disable the crew of theStar Destroyer, however, they soon discovered that its weapons were primed to fire at the base within minutes. Thanks to Verlaine's efforts, the ship misfired at its intended target, with the evacuation being resumed. Some time later, the Imperials regained control of theDestroyer.[37]
To capitalize on the Empire's weakness following the destruction of the Death Star, the Rebels began to conduct dozens of raids against Imperial targets to weaken the now-vulnerable Empire. In addition toattackscarried out on theshipyards ofKuat and asupply base onImdaar, a Rebel team composed of Leia Organa, Han Solo and Luke Skywalkerassaulted and destroyed the Empire'slargest armament factory onCymoon 1, severely undermining Imperial military production.[38]
Galactic Empire[]
- "Countless loyal Imperial subjects died that day.People. Murdered byLeia Organa's traitorous insurgency."
- ―Commander Zahra, on the Battle of Yavin[18]
TheFortitude was heavily damaged during the Battle of Yavin.
The Star DestroyerFortitude was caught in the ensuing blast of the Death Star's destruction. Despite surviving the blast, the ship incurred significant damage and loss of life. In spite of the damage, the ship was never brought to ashipyard for repairs, with the damaged sections and the bodies of the fallen Imperials being retained as a sort of memorial while the ship continued its service to the Empire under the new nameTarkin's Will.[39] Lord Vader, one of the few notable Imperials who survived the battle, was recovered in his damagedTIE Advanced x1 by Imperial pilotsCiena Ree andBerisse Sai.[22] Iden Versio, who was outside of the Death Star's explosion, managed to pilot her damaged TIE Fighter to Yavin 4, where she ejected before it crashed into the jungle. There, she patched her wounds and stole atransport from the Rebel Base during the festivities.[16]
Nearly all blame on the defeat was placed on Tarkin and his overconfidence. He had assumed that the station would not need an escort, and had launched no TIEs. The only group had been the singlesquadron Vader had launched on his own authority. Regardless, the Grand Moff was no longer alive to defend himself, and the Empire would never engage the rebels without exploiting their larger numbers compared to their opponent again. The destruction of the Death Star was a major blow to the Empire and represented the threat that was the Alliance to Restore the Republic.[10]Cassio Tagge was given the rank ofGrand General, as Emperor Palpatine had taken note of his argument against using the Death Star as the sole weapon of the Empire, and his awareness of the degree of the rebel threat. Vader was chastised and personally reminded by Palpatine about how he alone was alive to bear the blame of the destruction and failure of the Death Star. He was then ordered to act upon the will of Tagge.[40]
The Death Star's debris field
Thane Kyrell and the other Imperials stationed at theabandoned Rebel base onDantooine during the battle were cut off from communication withCoruscant after the Death Star was destroyed. Unconfirmed rumors spread through theranks that the new weapon was gone. Early on, these rumors were dismissed as an Imperial trap to lure the Rebels out of hiding. Meanwhile, the destruction of the Death Star caused chaos within the Imperial ranks, leading to deliberate oversights on internal investigations and the rapid promotion of many youngofficers andlieutenants such as Ciena Ree to replace the higher-ranked officers killed on the Death Star.[22]
Additionally, according toEveri Chalis, Palpatine was convinced that the incompetence of high-ranking Imperials was responsible for allowing the Death Star to be destroyed, which led to a culling of officers includingMoffCoovern andMinisterKhemt. Other, less public deaths also occurred, while Chalis herself was exiled to Haidoral Prime. Darth Vader carried out at least some of the killing personally.[3] Though the Death Star and its purpose had disgusted Ciena Ree, who was horrified when she discovered the Empire was in the process of constructing the battle station's replacement, its destruction also cost the life of Jude Edivon, one of Ree's close friends, and Ciena, though she would grow to understand why her lover, Thane Kyrell, had chosen to abandon the Empire, nevertheless she doubted she would ever forgive the Rebel Alliance for its role in Jude's demise.[22]
Further influence[]
- "The loss of the Death Star made the galaxy think they could rebel. This has shown that the rebellion cannever win."
"Hmph. It is… satisfactory." - ―Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine after the Battle of Mako-Ta[41]
Darth Vader argues that his "master stroke," the Battle of Mako-Ta, has made up for the loss of the Death Star.
In1 ABY,[42] Vader sprung a major trap against the rebellion in theBattle of Mako-Ta, which he described as an attack on the Alliance's hope itself to AdmiralKendal Ozzel.[43] The battle would end with major rebel leaders dead, over half of the cruisers in the Alliance Navy destroyed, and over ninety percent of theRebel Alliance Starfighter Corps lost. In his report to Palpatine, Vader argued his "master stroke," as Palpatine called it, was a success despite some rebel forces managing to escape: whereas the Battle of Yavin had shown weakness in the Empire, the Battle of Mako-Ta did the same for the rebellion, with Vader declaring the galaxy would see it as proof the Alliance would never succeed in its crusade.[41] Ultimately, however, galactic sentiment continued to turn against the Empire as the war continued.[44]
Even years after the Battle of Yavin,[45] Imperial supply lines remained thinly stretched after to the rebellion's victory at Yavin and as the Galactic Civil War continued. Due to those thinly stretched supply lines, the elite stormtroopers ofTask Force 99 found themselves left to their own devices while performing their duties. The squad's leader,SergeantKreel, truly believed in the Empire and thought its victory in the Galactic Civil War was inevitable even despite the loss of the Death Star; as he reasoned, the Empire would be able to build twenty more battle stations to make up for the loss of one, whereas the rebels lacked such firepower and could not match Imperial numbers. However, upon landing on the once-Imperial loyal world ofHorford[44] at some point during or after2 ABY[45] and seeing how its populous had turned on the regime, Kreel came to believe the war was lost: in seeing people flee from his squad in fear and watching children play as the Heroes of Yavin, he believed the hearts and minds of the galactic populous were what mattered, instead of weapons like the Death Star, and realized stormtroopers like himself had hurt the Empire's reputation. Consumed by fear that they would be remembered as villains once the histories of the war were written, the squadronturned its weapons on the population.[44]
In3 ABY,[46]LieutenantGorr of theTarkin's Will, formerly known asFortitude, proposed toCommander Ellian Zahra to execute repairs on the Star Destroyer's hull. Zahra replied that the ship represented a memorial to the destruction of the Death Star and told the lieutenant the ship's history during the Battle of Yavin. The commander also mentioned that when Vader offered her any vessel in thefleet to hunt for the rebel remnants, she chose theFortitude because of what it represented. Zahra continued, saying that she picked the ship's crew among those who had lost someone close to them during the Battle of Yavin. After hearing the story, Gorr asked Zahra if she had lost someone during the battle as well and offered his sympathies to her.[18] Death Star debris could still be found in the atmosphere of Yavin 8[33] around that same year[47] according to thecousin of aQuarren spacer, who heard from their cousin what it was like to see the Death Star's destruction and later shared that story to anengineer in theBestine Cantina[33] around 3 ABY. Around the same time,[47] an announcement honoring the memory of the Imperials killed in the battle was broadcast in theMyrra Spaceport on the Outer Rim planetAkiva.[33]
New Republic Era[]
Six years before thedestruction of theHosnian system, an unofficial political faction in theNew Republic'sGalactic Senate known to admire the Galactic Empire's rule, theCentrists, questioned the official New Republic historical accounts of the Battle of Yavin and theGalactic Civil War. They believed that the Death Star was destroyed by an Imperialtraitor and not by Luke Skywalker and the Rebel Alliance. Another Centrist, Senator Ransolm Casterfo, would later remind Leia Organa how the destruction of the Death Star had cost thousand of fairly-innocent workers and employees their lives while listing the flaws of the Rebellion.[48]
Some time during theNew Republic Era, theIthorian cartographerGammit Chond created a collection of maps that used acalendar system dating all events in reference to the Battle of Yavin.[7]
Participants[]
- Rebel Pilots
| Name | Call Sign | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cmdr.Garven Dreis | Red Leader | KIA(Darth Vader) | also flew atBattle of Scarif, as Red Leader First flight leader, with Naeco & Nett |
| Wedge Antilles | Red Two | survived | |
| Biggs Darklighter | Red Three | KIA(Darth Vader) | |
| John D. Branon | Red Four | KIA | |
| Luke Skywalker | Red Five | survived | Fourth flight leader, with Antilles & Darklighter |
| Jek Tono Porkins | Red Six | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif, as Red Six |
| Cdt.Harb Binli | Red Seven | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif, as Red Seven |
| Lt.Zal Dinnes | Red Eight | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif, as Red Eight Third flight leader, with Porkins & Naytaan |
| Lt.Nozzo Naytaan | Red Nine | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif |
| Theron Nett | Red Ten | KIA("Backstabber") | also flew atBattle of Scarif |
| Maj.Ralo Surrel | Red Eleven | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif Second flight leader, with Binli & Branon |
| Puck Naeco | Red Twelve | KIA | |
| Capt.Jon "Dutch" Vander | Gold Leader | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif, as Gold Leader made trench run with Tyree & Krail |
| Dex Tiree | Gold Two | KIA(Darth Vader) | |
| Lt.Evaan Verlaine | Gold Three | survived | also flew atBattle of Scarif, as Gold Three |
| Davish "Pops" Krail | Gold Five | KIA | |
| Gazdo Woolcob | Gold Seven | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif first member of Gold Squadron to be lost |
| Hol Okand | Gold Squadron | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif |
| Lepira | Gold Squadron | KIA | |
| Ryle Torsyn | Gold Squadron | KIA | also flew atBattle of Scarif |
- Imperial Pilots
| Name | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Darth Vader | disabled by collision with wingmate Mithel | |
| "Backstabber" | KIA(Millennium Falcon) | |
| Mithel | KIA(collision with trench wall) | |
| Sr. Lt.Iden Versio(Sigma-Three) | survived | |
| "Wampa"(Black Eleven) | unknown | |
| Kela Neerik | unknown |
- Others
| Name | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Han Solo &Chewbacca | survived | late battle; assisted Skywalker |
Behind the scenes[]
The Battle of Yavin first appeared in the1977 film,Star Wars: Episode IVA New Hope.[1]
The timeline ofStar Wars is most often based upon this event, where events are dated as happening so many years "Before the Battle of Yavin" (BBY) or "After the Battle of Yavin" (ABY).[7]
The short stories inFrom a Certain Point of View are inconsistent regarding some elements of the battle. "Sparks" establishes thatGreen Squadron fought at the Battle of Yavin,[11] whereas "Grounded" states that onlyRed Squadron andGold Squadron fought at the battle.[19] This article assumes "Sparks" is correct, because "Grounded" additionally establishes that there were 22T-65B X-wing starfighters that fought in the battle, and "Duty Roster" states that Red Squadron had twelve pilots at the Battle of Yavin.[20] "Grounded" additionally established that 5 X-wings, 1 Y-wing and 1 U-Wing were left behind at the Massassi base because there was no available pilots,[19] whereas "Duty Roster" stated that several pilots stayed behind at the base during the battle.[20] This article assumes that Duty Roster is correct.
The reference bookStar Wars Super Graphic: A Visual Guide to a Galaxy Far, Far Away says a Red Squadron pilot flying asRed 16 took part in the battle,[49] which cannot be possible if only twelve Red Squadron pilots were involved.[20] Additionally, theBattle of Yavin Scenario Pack released byFantasy Flight Games claimed that theTIE/IN interceptors ofSigma Squadron took part in the battle.[50] However, other sources confirmed Tarkin refused to send out reinforcements beyond the group of TIE fighters,Black Squadron, Vader ordered into battle.[6][10]
Appearances[]
Non-canon appearances[]
- LEGO Star Wars: A New Hope DK Reader
- Phineas and Ferb: Star Wars
- Star Wars: Battle Pod
LEGO Star Wars: Droid Tales — "Mission to Mos Eisley"(In flashback(s))- LEGO Star Wars: Droid Tales Episodes I-III
- LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures — "A Hero Discovered"(Appears in hologram)
- LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures — "Rowan's Secret Adventure"(Mentioned only)
- LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures — "A New Home"(Mentioned only)
- Star Wars Blips — "Fan Droids"(Appears in hologram)
- The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special
- LEGO Star Wars Terrifying Tales(In flashback(s))
- LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga
