Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

For reviews and close examination of sources - episode reviews, book reviews, raves and rants about short stories, et cetera.
User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Wed Jun 11, 2014 3:20 pm

The first work of the new canon is completed, and already we have a potential contradiction with the films.

In brief, it is the story of a B-wing squadron involved in the attack on the second Death Star in RotJ, with many events occurring during the battle. The potential contradiction is that the story has the ship housing the B-wings going to Endor the following day. The ship is not specified as being part of the rest of the fleet, but even if not it's a tricky matter. We know pretty conclusively from RotJ that the transit time for the Rebel fleet was no less than two days, and quite probably more.

Beyond that are various details which seem largely consistent with the films and TCW. A squadron of B-wings, "assault fighters that maneuvered like freighters, stuffed as they were with avionics packages usually reserved for the smaller capital ships" which enabled them to make hits on larger vessels. They seemed to be more like PT boats here, armed with lasers, ion weapons, and proton torpedoes . . . two of them are able to make an attack run and destroy a damaged Star Destroyer. Attack squadron runs are executed as such, we are told, because it somehow creates a force multiplier effect rather than having ships attack individually. The B-wings sync up, line up, and go in, with one of the pilots generating and calculating an attack solution with computer assistance and transmitting it to the others so their nav-systems can lock on.

All in all, that sounds like an awful lot to be doing in the middle of combat, but whatever.

And this is all very interesting:

Issue 150 p. 37: Two B-wings lock flight paths, rotate their wings, slow down, and bring "ion cannons to bear", firing proton torpedoes and "scoring direct hits on the weak points in the Devastator's navigational shielding." The Devastator's hyperdrive "detonated, causing a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators." On the Star Destroyer's bridge, chaos ensues and the bridge is in flames, with internal communications to the "drive section" unanswered. The reason was "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds and ruptured the hyperdrive's magnetic containment bubble, which meant that everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, and the ship was undergoing systematic demolition." Artificial gravity then fails. After the B-wings pull away and accelerate at "maximum speed", regrouping and communicating with Ackbar's ship and other fighters, the Devastator started to explode, "lighting up the ships, a tiny daytime star in the skies over Endor."

Honestly, that sounds a bit too much like Star Trek, but whatever.

Suffice it to say that the hyperdrive itself can explode, which is a new idea to me, and then make badness happen to the primary generators.

Presumbly the ion overload is a reference to the ion cannons doing something disastrous to the hyperdrive cooling manifolds or the manifolds for cooling the magnetic containment bubble generator or similar. It isn't clear without more information on the technical details . . . some of what we're hearing about here is new to me.

So, we're off with the New SW with a bang.

User avatar
Mr. Oragahn
Admiral
Posts: 6865
Joined: Sun Dec 03, 2006 11:58 am
Location: Paradise Mountain

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by Mr. Oragahn » Wed Jun 11, 2014 7:01 pm

Ions cannons can fry stuff. When they fry what's helping the hot stuff not to be so hot, the hotness goes extra intense and makes all stuff (super structure, people, paperwork) attain a super crispy state of matter.

User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Thu Jun 12, 2014 1:14 am

I'm just not clear on how an ion cannon would damage manifolds in the sense of any special feature of the ion cannon.

I mean, the controlling circuitry if it's got it, sure, but the manifold itself? That would be like an ion cannon damaging your tailpipe. Sure, it's plasma, but I thought the big idea was that ion cannons are electrozappy electronics-killers by design and not so big on the kerplooey stuff.

User avatar
Mr. Oragahn
Admiral
Posts: 6865
Joined: Sun Dec 03, 2006 11:58 am
Location: Paradise Mountain

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by Mr. Oragahn » Thu Jun 12, 2014 9:16 pm

If it's metal, severe temperatures due to [@#%$&£] might already burn and melt elements, largely detoriating the structural integrity of hardware which we're sure is very sensitive (I'm thinking about big pipes mixed to something as complex as the hadron collider's ring). Besides, if there are plenty of things inside that will blow up in case of a surge (there could be plenty of electronic relays and what have you plasted all along inside the tubes), then they'll also burn or blow up and in return damage the pipe web.

User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Tue Jun 17, 2014 1:38 pm

Special preview . . . I have lavished attention on this work as part of the NoLettersHome stuff, just to test my template scheme.

With apologies, I used a text markup converter to get to BBcode for posting here, but it jacked up spacing after periods and heading sizes.

I'm also still making changes to the version on NLH . . . I noticed a few bits in the B-wing section that deserved mention in the ISD section, also. I don't mind repetition, here.

Contents

1 Blade Squadron (Star Wars Insider #149 and #150)
2 NoLettersHome Notes
3 Chronological Notes
4 Naval Info
4.1 Rebel Alliance Navy
4.1.1 Organization
4.1.2 Logistics
4.2 Imperial Navy
4.2.1 Organization
4.2.2 Logistics
5 Ship - All Rebel Fighters
5.1 Drive Systems - FTL
6 Ship - Rebel B-Wing
6.1 General Ship Info
6.2 Ship Crew
6.3 Ship Sensors
6.4 Drive Systems - STL
6.5 Ship Defense
6.5.1 Ship Armaments
6.5.2 Ship Firepower
6.5.3 Ship Shields
6.5.4 Ship Exterior
7 Ship - Rebel A-wing
7.1 Ship Sensors
7.2 Drive Systems - STL
7.3 Vessel Embarkation
7.4 Ship Defense
7.4.1 Ship Firepower
7.4.2 Ship Shields
7.4.3 Ship Exterior
8 Ship - Imperial Star Destroyer
8.1 General Ship Info
8.2 Ship Crew
8.3 Ship Internals
8.4 Ship Sensors
8.5 Ship Power Systems
8.6 Drive Systems - FTL
8.7 Drive Systems - STL
8.8 Vessel Embarkation
8.9 Ship Defense
8.9.1 Ship Armaments
8.9.2 Ship Weapons Range
8.9.3 Ship Shields
8.9.4 Ship Exterior
8.9.5 Ship Special
8.9.5.1 Jamming
8.9.5.2 Flak Envelope
9 Ship - Imperial TIE Interceptor
9.1 Ship Sensors
9.2 Drive Systems - STL
9.3 Ship Defense
9.3.1 Ship Firepower
9.3.2 Ship Weapons Range
9.3.3 Ship Exterior
10 Galactography
10.1 Transit Notes
10.2 World - Coruscant
10.3 World - Naboo
10.3.1 World Alignment
10.3.2 World Location
10.4 World - Endor
11 Armed Forces Info
11.1 Alliance Navy
11.2 Imperial Navy
12 Devices and Gear
12.1 Other Defenses
12.1.1 Shackles
12.2 General Space Tactics
13 Other Notes
13.1 Linguistics



Blade Squadron (Star Wars Insider #149 and #150)

NoLettersHome Notes


This is the first work of the Disney-era unified canon.Indeed, the first part of the story from Insider #149 pre-dated the announcement regarding the new canon policy.

And, we get our first contradiction with the "immovable objects" of the films, as discussed in the Transit Notes.

Chronological Notes


This short story literally occurs during Return of the Jedi.

149 p.54:The Rebel Wing Commander ponders his crew as still being green and scared, and recalls that he was the same way "not too long ago" at the Battle of Hoth.This is not especially helpful insofar as determining the length of time between Episodes V and VI, as on the one hand the Hoth battle was not too long before Endor, but on the other hand the Wing Commander (a) is one and (b) seems to believe he has a much more vast level of experience now.

Naval Info

Rebel Alliance Navy

Organization

B-wings are organized into squadrons.

Logistics

149 p. 54:A "green" squadron is initially ordered to act as rear guard, "safeguarding the fleet's lines of communications".

149 p. 54:We learn that at least one transport was destroyed at Hoth by the Star Destroyer blockade.On p. 57 we learn it was the Devastator that destroyed it.

Imperial Navy

Organization

An admiral captains the Star Destroyer Devastator.

Star Destroyers are arranged into named squadrons such as Vader's "Death Squadron".

Logistics

149 p. 56:The Devastator is noted as having been at Hoth, and is also said to have been "refitted dozens of times with the latest systems and weapons, keeping her more than competitive with the newer capital ships now operational."

149 p. 56:The Imperial fleet at Endor was "the largest flotilla of Star Destroyers ever assembled".

Ship - All Rebel Fighters

Drive Systems - FTL

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks[...]"

Ship - Rebel B-Wing

General Ship Info

150 p. 33:"B-wings were assault fighters"

150 p. 33:At the start of the squadron's attack run on the Devastator, B-wing pilots rotated the "ship's wing thirty degrees around the gyro-stabilized cockpit".The purpose of this design is not made explicit.

Ship Crew

Despite the B-wing's size, it is crewed by a single pilot.

Ship Sensors

150 p. 33:B-wings were "stuffed" "with avionics packages usually reserved for the smaller capital ships.Pilots relied on the complex nav systems to enable them to score hits"

150 p. 33:On a B-wing tactical display the Devastator was "a huge spinning ball of electronic countermeasures punctuated by an outgoing hail of laser cannon fire".

150 p. 35:The B-wing leader attempts to "mobilize an attack run amidst the dogfight".This involved the B-wings "syncing their fire control systems, automatically coordinating an attack package of laser fire and proton munitions", pending one of the fighters preparing the "attack data".

150 p. 36:A B-wing's nav-systems "lined up the angles, finding the pathway through the Devastator's electronic defense grid."The pilot also lines up crosshairs on a heads-up display.

150 p. 36:Timing constraints on the B-wing pilot doing the attack calculations and the B-wing's computer require implementation of a questionable plan.The pilot types in the vector and hits the transmit key.Other B-wings respond with readiness, causing a board to go green, though this response may be automated ... on p. 37 a fighter's readiness light goes yellow, indicating that the fighter's "targeting system must have been damaged and wouldn't lock on."A reset is suggested, but it is not possible because the system has crashed.

150 p. 37:A B-wing's sensors allow a pilot to know that a friendly ship is "experiencing multiple critical systems failures".

Drive Systems - STL

150 p. 33:"B-wings were assault fighters that maneuvered like freighters, stuffed as they were with avionics packages usually reserved for the smaller capital ships."

150 p. 33:It is said that there are not many options for getting close to a Star Destroyer except heading straight at it, though this may refer primarily to B-wings.34:"All they could do was accelerate toward the target, hoping that at least some of them would get close enough to deliver their payloads."

150 p. 33:The B-wings were moving much too fast for the Devastator's gunners to lock on.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot falls in behind a B-wing and blows out its "quad engine system" with a single shot, which the ace believes will result in the fighter's disintegration.

Ship Defense

Ship Armaments

Laser cannons, ion cannons, and proton torpedoes are referenced.

Ship Firepower

149 p.53:A B-wing squadron scoring three hits on a simulated Star Destroyer was considered a successful practice attack run by the Rebel Wing Commander, though perhaps not the computers.This suggests that three hits are sufficient to do some sort of damage to a Star Destroyer.The B-wing is thus presumably something like a PT Boat from World War 2, a tiny ship with a big weapon that enables it to punch well above its weight class.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot notes that the B-wing had been the subject of a lot of talk before the battle, noting that it was said to pose "an unprecedented danger to Star Destroyers if they could get enough maneuvering room to deploy their weaponry."

150 p. 37:Two B-wings lock flight paths, rotate their wings, slow down, and bring "ion cannons to bear", firing proton torpedoes and "scoring direct hits on the weak points in the Devastator's navigational shielding."The Devastator's hyperdrive "detonated, causing a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators."On the Star Destroyer's bridge, chaos ensues and the bridge is in flames, with internal communications to the "drive section" unanswered.The reason was "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds and ruptured the hyperdrive's magnetic containment bubble, which meant that everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, and the ship was undergoing systematic demolition."Artificial gravity then fails.After the B-wings pull away and accelerate at "maximum speed", regrouping and communicating with Ackbar's ship and other fighters, the Devastator started to explode, "lighting up the ships, a tiny daytime star in the skies over Endor."

The number of proton torpedoes fired is unknown.

Ship Shields

150 p. 33:A B-wing accelerating toward the Devastator has difficulty keeping on course, feeling the "S-foils buckling" due to hits from the Devastator's cannons draining the fighter's "deflector shield power" and rocking the ship.It is later noted that it would take several direct hits to knock out a B-wing.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 33:A B-wing accelerating toward the Devastator has difficulty keeping on course, feeling the "S-foils buckling" due to hits from the Devastator's cannons draining the fighter's "deflector shield power" and rocking the ship.It is later noted that it would take several direct hits to knock out a B-wing.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot falls in behind a B-wing and blows out its "quad engine system" with a single shot, which the ace believes will result in the fighter's disintegration.

150 p. 37:A B-wing pilot pursued by a pair of TIE Interceptors expects death in "a matter of seconds" when the TIEs get their firing solutions.The B-wing's shield status is unknown but they had been drained to some extent previously.

Ship - Rebel A-wing

Ship Sensors

149 p. 56:The tactical display on an A-wing showed a "multi-layered spider web of electromagnetic interference."

150 p. 35:An A-wing's "long range scanners picked up a huge electromagnetic buildup around the new Death Star" shortly before "a bright beam of green light leapt from its radial cannon and incinerated an entire rebel cruiser."

This suggests long-range scanners were required at Endor for the A-wing to read the Death Star.

Drive Systems - STL

150 p. 35:A direct hit on a damaged A-wing's drive system by a TIE Interceptor did not destroy the A-wing, to the TIE pilot's surprise.However, the ship is so heavily damaged it is difficult to control thereafter, and the pilot is injured.

150 p. 35:An A-wing pilot dials back his speed, causing the TIE Interceptors on his tail to miss and some to go past him, swerving to avoid colliding.

Vessel Embarkation

150 p. 37:The A-wing features an ejection system involving a pod, presumably the cockpit itself.However, damage to "main interlocks" can prevent the pilot from being able to "disengage".

Ship Defense

Ship Firepower

150 p. 35:An A-wing unleashes a "bracket of fire" which knocks off the wing of a TIE Interceptor, causing it to lose control and spin into another Imperial interceptor.

Ship Shields

150 p. 35:A TIE Interceptor laser cannon barrage at first is "cascading off the A-wing's heavy shielding", but "quickly" makes it through.Parts of the A-wing begin to burn.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 35:Parts of the A-wing begin to burn due to hits occurring after shield penetration.

150 p. 35:A direct hit on a damaged A-wing's drive system by a TIE Interceptor did not destroy the A-wing, to the TIE pilot's surprise.However, the ship is so heavily damaged it is difficult to control thereafter, and the pilot is injured.

150 p. 35:Two TIE Interceptors fire on an A-wing in a crossfire, destroying it instantly.

Ship - Imperial Star Destroyer

General Ship Info

149 p. 56:The Devastator is noted as having been at Hoth, and is also said to have been "refitted dozens of times with the latest systems and weapons, keeping her more than competitive with the newer capital ships now operational."

This makes the Devastator one of the most frequently seen vessels in Star Wars.It also implies that the different physical models of the ISD are sufficiently close in structure, despite appearances, to allow retrofitting from one to the other.That is to say, it wouldn't make much sense to refit a Star Destroyer into a different wedge-shape.

150 p. 33:A former smuggler who operated near Coruscant had seen many security and police cruisers, but had never seen a Star Destroyer until the Battle of Endor.

This is quite remarkable, suggesting an extreme rarity of Star Destroyers.

150 p. 33:The Star Destroyer was a "monstrous slab of metal covered with guns and armor".

Ship Crew

150 p. 33:The Star Destroyer was a "crewed by enough men to fill a city."

Ship Internals

150 p. 37:Artificial gravity fails after two B-wings attack and cause the hyperdrive to detonate as a cascading demolition of the burning ship proceeds.

Ship Sensors

149 p. 56:After the Rebel fleet emerges from hyperspace, the admiral on Devastator is informed of it by a bridge officer.There was no mention of the approach beforehand.

150 p. 36:The Star Destroyer bridge features a system-wide tactical display with assorted blinking lights and indicators stretching from high orbit of Endor to the fleet battle and Death Star.

Ship Power Systems

150 p. 37:Detonation of the ship's hyperdrive causes "a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators."It is then noted that "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds", as well.Along with the hyperdrive damage, the result was that "everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, the ship was undergoing systematic demolition."The ship soon explodes.

Drive Systems - FTL

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot notes that the B-wing had been the subject of a lot of talk before the battle, noting that it was said to pose "an unprecedented danger to Star Destroyers if they could get enough maneuvering room to deploy their weaponry."

150 p. 37:Two B-wings attacking with ion cannons and proton torpedoes result in the Devastator's hyperdrive having "detonated, causing a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators."It is then noted that "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds and ruptured the hyperdrive's magnetic containment bubble, which meant that everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, and the ship was undergoing systematic demolition."The ship soon explodes.

The hyperdrive thus has a magnetic containment bubble, which when ruptured contributes to the fact that everyone in the drive section is dead or dying.

Drive Systems - STL

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "[...] I want to be free to maneuver against their capital ships [...]".On p. 57 the result is seen as "two dozen TIE Interceptors swept in from the ship's aft".

Evidently, then, it is reasonably safe for fighters to be hanging around behind the ship's engines, even when maneuvers are a possibility.

Vessel Embarkation

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks, and I want to be free to maneuver against their capital ships [...]".On p. 57 the result is seen as "two dozen TIE Interceptors swept in from the ship's aft".This group of interceptors is described in 150 p. 33 as a "squadron".

At least two dozen TIE Interceptors are able to be launched from an Imperial Star Destroyer, though perhaps not at a sufficient rate to achieve a sweeping maneuver.Alternately, this may be related to the ship needing to hold somewhat steady during launches, thus precluding certain ISD maneuvers . . . but again, that wouldn't seem to be an issue if they could launch them fast enough.There is also the possibility of the ship needing to have her belly showing to the enemy for some reason during maneuvers, meaning the fighters could possibly get picked off if being launched close to a Rebel ship below the ISD.

150 p. 36:Devastator takes "major damage" to her flight deck 'offscreen', preventing launch or recovery of fighters.

150 p. 36:Without an adequate fighter screen of TIE Interceptors, the Devastator is threatened.

Ship Defense

Ship Armaments

150 p. 34:The admiral on Devastator orders a "fool" to stop firing into the B-wing squadron for fear of hitting the Devastator's TIE Interceptors.This gunnery officer who then stopped firing was therefore on the bridge, rather than at one of the guns as is commonly seen.

Ship Weapons Range

150 p. 36:With a B-wing attack imminent, the Devastator sets "all weapon batteries for point blank range and fire at will."

Ship Shields

149 p.53:A B-wing squadron scoring three hits on a simulated Star Destroyer was considered a successful practice attack run by the Rebel Wing Commander, though perhaps not the computers.This suggests that three hits are sufficient to do some sort of damage to a Star Destroyer.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot notes that the B-wing had been the subject of a lot of talk before the battle, noting that it was said to pose "an unprecedented danger to Star Destroyers if they could get enough maneuvering room to deploy their weaponry."

150 p. 37:Two B-wings bring "ion cannons to bear", firing proton torpedoes and "scoring direct hits on the weak points in the Devastator's navigational shielding."Evidently it is penetrated.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 37:Two B-wings firing ion cannon and proton torpedoes explicitly strike the "navigational shielding", however the Devastator's hyperdrive and related internals within the hull are destroyed, causing the ship's "systematic demolition" before it explodes completely.

Ship Special

Jamming

149 p. 56:The tactical display on an A-wing showed a "multi-layered spider web of electromagnetic interference."

Flak Envelope

150 p. 34:The Devastator is said to have a defensive "flak envelope".

150 p. 35:Three B-wings are within the Star Destroyer's "defense envelope".

Ship - Imperial TIE Interceptor

Ship Sensors

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot uses his scanner to determine which fighter was receiving "the most com traffic; it was an old trick he used to find the enemy wing leader."The pilot then locks that fighter into his targeting computer.

150 p. 35:A TIE Interceptor's targeting computer locks on to a maneuvering A-wing giving the pilot green lights, and the pilot unleashes a barrage from the laser cannons.

Drive Systems - STL

150 p. 35:The TIE Interceptor can match an A-wing's maneuverability even in the midst of a "dizzying set of maneuvers" of evasion.

Ship Defense

Ship Firepower

150 p. 35:Two TIE Interceptors fire on an A-wing in a crossfire, destroying it instantly.

Ship Weapons Range

150 p. 35:An A-wing pilot dials back his speed, causing the TIE Interceptors on his tail to miss and some to go past him, swerving to avoid colliding.This wouldn't be necessary if they were at a great distance.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 35:An A-wing unleashes a "bracket of fire" which knocks off the wing of a TIE Interceptor, causing it to lose control and spin into another Imperial interceptor.

Galactography

Transit Notes

149 p.54:"Tomorrow's the big show.The fleet moves on Endor."Given that it is known from the film, script, and novelization that the transit from near Sullust to Endor took days, we must go with one of the following options:[*].Discard this as an error.[*].Take "the fleet moves on Endor" as a phrase with a present continuous verb rather than one of the future tense.This does not follow well with the previous sentence, but avoids contradiction.

Some might ponder that the vessel upon which the statement was made was perhaps not with the rest of the Rebel fleet for some reason, and was instead much closer to Endor ... certainly there is no mention of other ships around.But, that still requires option #2 be true.

World - Coruscant

A Rebel pilot learned to fly on smuggling routes off of Coruscant.

World - Naboo

World Alignment

149 p. 55:Naboo is noted as having an Imperial garrison.

World Location

149 p. 55:A defector from the garrison on Naboo makes his way "into the Outer Rim", suggesting that Naboo is not in it.

Armed Forces Info

Rebel Alliance Navy

149 p. 54:The Rebel fleet is noted as having a pilot shortage, requiring troublemaking pilots of only 50 hours flight time in a B-wing cockpit to remain there, along with a similarly untrained squadron.However, the squadron is initially ordered to act as rear guard, "safeguarding the fleet's lines of communications".

Imperial Navy

149 p. 56:The admiral recalls Vader engaging in more than one Force choke of officers under Vader's command, and lived in fear of it.

150 p. 34:The admiral commanding Devastator personally oversaw the crew and the selection thereof to ensure that he had the best trained crew in the Imperial Navy.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot was aware of Vader having been ordered to capture Luke Skywalker, implying a fairly broad flow of information within the ranks.

Devices and Gear

Other Defenses

Shackles

149 p. 54:Shackles are used on Imperial prisoners here, evidently left on when they are being airlocked.

General Space Tactics

149 p. 53:A B-wing squadron scoring three hits on a simulated Star Destroyer was considered a successful practice attack run by the Rebel Wing Commander, though perhaps not the computers.Half the squadron was destroyed in the simulation.

149 p. 53:A B-wing formation's attack run involves one of the pilots, in this case the wing leader, sending calculations to the other fighters in the squadron.During the practice run, the seasoned wing leader's calculations were "off".

149 p. 53:"The whole point of a B-wing squadron attack is that the combined ships act as a force multiplier.If we integrate our attack vectors, we have a far better chance of finishing the mission successfully--and alive."

149 p. 54:A former Imperial officer, now a rebel, ponders the Battle of Yavin and considered it at least somewhat "lax" on the Empire's part that there were no "capital ships" guarding the battlestation in that engagement.

149 p. 54:A former Imperial officer, now a rebel, presumes that TIE fighters would be used as "long-range pickets".

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks, and I want to be free to maneuver against their capital ships [...]".On p. 57 the result is seen as "two dozen TIE Interceptors swept in from the ship's aft".This group of interceptors is described in 150 p. 33 as a "squadron".

At least two dozen TIE Interceptors are able to be launched from an Imperial Star Destroyer, though perhaps not at a sufficient rate to achieve a sweeping maneuver.Alternately, this may be related to the ship needing to hold somewhat steady during launches, thus precluding certain ISD maneuvers . . . but again, that wouldn't seem to be an issue if they could launch them fast enough.There is also the possibility of the ship needing to have her belly showing to the enemy for some reason during maneuvers, meaning the fighters could possibly get picked off if being launched close to a Rebel ship below the ISD.

150 p. 34:The admiral on Devastator orders a "fool" to stop firing into the B-wing squadron for fear of hitting the Devastator's TIE Interceptors.

150 p. 34:A rebel pilot abruptly cuts speed to allow two pursuers to pass.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot uses his scanner to determine which fighter was receiving "the most com traffic; it was an old trick he used to find the enemy wing leader."The pilot then locks that fighter into his targeting computer.

150 p. 35:The Imperial fighters had identified the wing commander on the A-wing as the leader and were gunning for him all the more.

150 p. 35:A well-piloted TIE Interceptor keeping pace with an evading A-wing is outmaneuvered by a high-g "barrel roll", a term denoting a corkscrew maneuver, losing the pursuit by trying to take a kill shot.Basically, the A-wing pilot apparently allowed himself to take fire so as to draw in the interceptor.

150 p. 35:The B-wing leader attempts to "mobilize an attack run amidst the dogfight".This involved the B-wings "syncing their fire control systems, automatically coordinating an attack package of laser fire and proton munitions", pending one of the fighters preparing the "attack data".

Other Notes

Linguistics

149 p. 57:The wing commander of the B-wing squadron orders his squadron to proceed on "heading one-seven-zero-delta".

359
Jedi Knight
Posts: 490
Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2015 8:28 pm

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 359 » Wed Jun 18, 2014 4:36 pm

"even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks"

LUKE: "It [a TIE fighter] followed us!"
BEN: "No. It's a short range fighter."
HAN: "There aren't any bases around here. Where did it come from?"


So unless the Empire did some extensive fleet-wide upgrades, or Obi-Wan is mistaken, we have another contradiction here.


Overall the style and tech do not seem too far off from the movies. We have fighters attacking capital ships. A couple of hits from point-defenst turrets take down a fighter. Point defense if firing off bursts that explode for flak defense.

Actually a lot of this is reminding me of battlestar combat styles, flack fields, fighter cover, combat maneuvers, except for the slow launch time suggested for fighters.


And the bit with the warp core, err... hyperdrive, seemingly exploding so easily is interesting to note as a comparison. So, without its containment field the hyperdrive emits deadly radiation as well as exploding and whatnot.

359
Jedi Knight
Posts: 490
Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2015 8:28 pm

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 359 » Wed Jun 18, 2014 4:39 pm

359 wrote:"even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks"

LUKE: "It [a TIE fighter] followed us!"
BEN: "No. It's a short range fighter."
HAN: "There aren't any bases around here. Where did it come from?"


So unless the Empire did some extensive fleet-wide upgrades, or Obi-Wan is mistaken, we have another contradiction here.
Actually, thinking about it some more, they could be hyperdrive equipped but not carry enough fuel to make it over great interstellar distances. But then that seems like it would be taking up more space than its worth in an already cramped design. Unless they do ever use tactical jumps for combat/ambush purposes.

User avatar
Mr. Oragahn
Admiral
Posts: 6865
Joined: Sun Dec 03, 2006 11:58 am
Location: Paradise Mountain

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by Mr. Oragahn » Thu Jun 19, 2014 12:07 pm

It's the rebel fighters that are equipped thusly, not imperial TIE fighters.

User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Thu Jun 19, 2014 12:55 pm

I probably left that less than clear in one of the uses of the quote.

359
Jedi Knight
Posts: 490
Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2015 8:28 pm

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 359 » Thu Jun 19, 2014 3:31 pm

Oops...
Well they were all clear that it was the Devistator's commander making that remark, but apparently that just flew right by me when reading it. :)

User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Sat Jun 21, 2014 1:29 pm

I will say my opinion of Rebel fighters has changed over the years.

Before the prequels and before reading the novelizations, I would've thought the Rebel fighters older than their pilots. But other than the Y-wing, it seems all Rebel fighters are newer than the Clone Wars, and the B-wing seems to be brand new. The ANH novelization nhas Imps noting that Rebel ships are excellent or somesuch, and of course here's this Admiral. And of course they are clearly quite well equipped… the A-wing especially seems like a ship with no weaknesses.

By analogy, I used to think it was a bunch of Edsels and Corsairs and a few Gran Torinos, but it turned out that they were Ariel Atoms, Veyrons, and maybe a handful of old Diablos.

Lucky
Jedi Master
Posts: 2239
Joined: Mon Aug 31, 2015 8:28 pm

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by Lucky » Mon Jun 23, 2014 6:59 am

2046 wrote:Special preview . . . I have lavished attention on this work as part of the NoLettersHome stuff, just to test my template scheme.

With apologies, I used a text markup converter to get to BBcode for posting here, but it jacked up spacing after periods and heading sizes.

I'm also still making changes to the version on NLH . . . I noticed a few bits in the B-wing section that deserved mention in the ISD section, also. I don't mind repetition, here.

Contents

1 Blade Squadron (Star Wars Insider #149 and #150)
2 NoLettersHome Notes
3 Chronological Notes
4 Naval Info
4.1 Rebel Alliance Navy
4.1.1 Organization
4.1.2 Logistics
4.2 Imperial Navy
4.2.1 Organization
4.2.2 Logistics
5 Ship - All Rebel Fighters
5.1 Drive Systems - FTL
6 Ship - Rebel B-Wing
6.1 General Ship Info
6.2 Ship Crew
6.3 Ship Sensors
6.4 Drive Systems - STL
6.5 Ship Defense
6.5.1 Ship Armaments
6.5.2 Ship Firepower
6.5.3 Ship Shields
6.5.4 Ship Exterior
7 Ship - Rebel A-wing
7.1 Ship Sensors
7.2 Drive Systems - STL
7.3 Vessel Embarkation
7.4 Ship Defense
7.4.1 Ship Firepower
7.4.2 Ship Shields
7.4.3 Ship Exterior
8 Ship - Imperial Star Destroyer
8.1 General Ship Info
8.2 Ship Crew
8.3 Ship Internals
8.4 Ship Sensors
8.5 Ship Power Systems
8.6 Drive Systems - FTL
8.7 Drive Systems - STL
8.8 Vessel Embarkation
8.9 Ship Defense
8.9.1 Ship Armaments
8.9.2 Ship Weapons Range
8.9.3 Ship Shields
8.9.4 Ship Exterior
8.9.5 Ship Special
8.9.5.1 Jamming
8.9.5.2 Flak Envelope
9 Ship - Imperial TIE Interceptor
9.1 Ship Sensors
9.2 Drive Systems - STL
9.3 Ship Defense
9.3.1 Ship Firepower
9.3.2 Ship Weapons Range
9.3.3 Ship Exterior
10 Galactography
10.1 Transit Notes
10.2 World - Coruscant
10.3 World - Naboo
10.3.1 World Alignment
10.3.2 World Location
10.4 World - Endor
11 Armed Forces Info
11.1 Alliance Navy
11.2 Imperial Navy
12 Devices and Gear
12.1 Other Defenses
12.1.1 Shackles
12.2 General Space Tactics
13 Other Notes
13.1 Linguistics



Blade Squadron (Star Wars Insider #149 and #150)

NoLettersHome Notes


This is the first work of the Disney-era unified canon.Indeed, the first part of the story from Insider #149 pre-dated the announcement regarding the new canon policy.

And, we get our first contradiction with the "immovable objects" of the films, as discussed in the Transit Notes.

Chronological Notes


This short story literally occurs during Return of the Jedi.

149 p.54:The Rebel Wing Commander ponders his crew as still being green and scared, and recalls that he was the same way "not too long ago" at the Battle of Hoth.This is not especially helpful insofar as determining the length of time between Episodes V and VI, as on the one hand the Hoth battle was not too long before Endor, but on the other hand the Wing Commander (a) is one and (b) seems to believe he has a much more vast level of experience now.

Naval Info

Rebel Alliance Navy

Organization

B-wings are organized into squadrons.

Logistics

149 p. 54:A "green" squadron is initially ordered to act as rear guard, "safeguarding the fleet's lines of communications".

149 p. 54:We learn that at least one transport was destroyed at Hoth by the Star Destroyer blockade.On p. 57 we learn it was the Devastator that destroyed it.

Imperial Navy

Organization

An admiral captains the Star Destroyer Devastator.

Star Destroyers are arranged into named squadrons such as Vader's "Death Squadron".

Logistics

149 p. 56:The Devastator is noted as having been at Hoth, and is also said to have been "refitted dozens of times with the latest systems and weapons, keeping her more than competitive with the newer capital ships now operational."

149 p. 56:The Imperial fleet at Endor was "the largest flotilla of Star Destroyers ever assembled".

Ship - All Rebel Fighters

Drive Systems - FTL

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks[...]"

Ship - Rebel B-Wing

General Ship Info

150 p. 33:"B-wings were assault fighters"

150 p. 33:At the start of the squadron's attack run on the Devastator, B-wing pilots rotated the "ship's wing thirty degrees around the gyro-stabilized cockpit".The purpose of this design is not made explicit.

Ship Crew

Despite the B-wing's size, it is crewed by a single pilot.

Ship Sensors

150 p. 33:B-wings were "stuffed" "with avionics packages usually reserved for the smaller capital ships.Pilots relied on the complex nav systems to enable them to score hits"

150 p. 33:On a B-wing tactical display the Devastator was "a huge spinning ball of electronic countermeasures punctuated by an outgoing hail of laser cannon fire".

150 p. 35:The B-wing leader attempts to "mobilize an attack run amidst the dogfight".This involved the B-wings "syncing their fire control systems, automatically coordinating an attack package of laser fire and proton munitions", pending one of the fighters preparing the "attack data".

150 p. 36:A B-wing's nav-systems "lined up the angles, finding the pathway through the Devastator's electronic defense grid."The pilot also lines up crosshairs on a heads-up display.

150 p. 36:Timing constraints on the B-wing pilot doing the attack calculations and the B-wing's computer require implementation of a questionable plan.The pilot types in the vector and hits the transmit key.Other B-wings respond with readiness, causing a board to go green, though this response may be automated ... on p. 37 a fighter's readiness light goes yellow, indicating that the fighter's "targeting system must have been damaged and wouldn't lock on."A reset is suggested, but it is not possible because the system has crashed.

150 p. 37:A B-wing's sensors allow a pilot to know that a friendly ship is "experiencing multiple critical systems failures".

Drive Systems - STL

150 p. 33:"B-wings were assault fighters that maneuvered like freighters, stuffed as they were with avionics packages usually reserved for the smaller capital ships."

150 p. 33:It is said that there are not many options for getting close to a Star Destroyer except heading straight at it, though this may refer primarily to B-wings.34:"All they could do was accelerate toward the target, hoping that at least some of them would get close enough to deliver their payloads."

150 p. 33:The B-wings were moving much too fast for the Devastator's gunners to lock on.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot falls in behind a B-wing and blows out its "quad engine system" with a single shot, which the ace believes will result in the fighter's disintegration.

Ship Defense

Ship Armaments

Laser cannons, ion cannons, and proton torpedoes are referenced.

Ship Firepower

149 p.53:A B-wing squadron scoring three hits on a simulated Star Destroyer was considered a successful practice attack run by the Rebel Wing Commander, though perhaps not the computers.This suggests that three hits are sufficient to do some sort of damage to a Star Destroyer.The B-wing is thus presumably something like a PT Boat from World War 2, a tiny ship with a big weapon that enables it to punch well above its weight class.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot notes that the B-wing had been the subject of a lot of talk before the battle, noting that it was said to pose "an unprecedented danger to Star Destroyers if they could get enough maneuvering room to deploy their weaponry."

150 p. 37:Two B-wings lock flight paths, rotate their wings, slow down, and bring "ion cannons to bear", firing proton torpedoes and "scoring direct hits on the weak points in the Devastator's navigational shielding."The Devastator's hyperdrive "detonated, causing a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators."On the Star Destroyer's bridge, chaos ensues and the bridge is in flames, with internal communications to the "drive section" unanswered.The reason was "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds and ruptured the hyperdrive's magnetic containment bubble, which meant that everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, and the ship was undergoing systematic demolition."Artificial gravity then fails.After the B-wings pull away and accelerate at "maximum speed", regrouping and communicating with Ackbar's ship and other fighters, the Devastator started to explode, "lighting up the ships, a tiny daytime star in the skies over Endor."

The number of proton torpedoes fired is unknown.

Ship Shields

150 p. 33:A B-wing accelerating toward the Devastator has difficulty keeping on course, feeling the "S-foils buckling" due to hits from the Devastator's cannons draining the fighter's "deflector shield power" and rocking the ship.It is later noted that it would take several direct hits to knock out a B-wing.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 33:A B-wing accelerating toward the Devastator has difficulty keeping on course, feeling the "S-foils buckling" due to hits from the Devastator's cannons draining the fighter's "deflector shield power" and rocking the ship.It is later noted that it would take several direct hits to knock out a B-wing.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot falls in behind a B-wing and blows out its "quad engine system" with a single shot, which the ace believes will result in the fighter's disintegration.

150 p. 37:A B-wing pilot pursued by a pair of TIE Interceptors expects death in "a matter of seconds" when the TIEs get their firing solutions.The B-wing's shield status is unknown but they had been drained to some extent previously.

Ship - Rebel A-wing

Ship Sensors

149 p. 56:The tactical display on an A-wing showed a "multi-layered spider web of electromagnetic interference."

150 p. 35:An A-wing's "long range scanners picked up a huge electromagnetic buildup around the new Death Star" shortly before "a bright beam of green light leapt from its radial cannon and incinerated an entire rebel cruiser."

This suggests long-range scanners were required at Endor for the A-wing to read the Death Star.

Drive Systems - STL

150 p. 35:A direct hit on a damaged A-wing's drive system by a TIE Interceptor did not destroy the A-wing, to the TIE pilot's surprise.However, the ship is so heavily damaged it is difficult to control thereafter, and the pilot is injured.

150 p. 35:An A-wing pilot dials back his speed, causing the TIE Interceptors on his tail to miss and some to go past him, swerving to avoid colliding.

Vessel Embarkation

150 p. 37:The A-wing features an ejection system involving a pod, presumably the cockpit itself.However, damage to "main interlocks" can prevent the pilot from being able to "disengage".

Ship Defense

Ship Firepower

150 p. 35:An A-wing unleashes a "bracket of fire" which knocks off the wing of a TIE Interceptor, causing it to lose control and spin into another Imperial interceptor.

Ship Shields

150 p. 35:A TIE Interceptor laser cannon barrage at first is "cascading off the A-wing's heavy shielding", but "quickly" makes it through.Parts of the A-wing begin to burn.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 35:Parts of the A-wing begin to burn due to hits occurring after shield penetration.

150 p. 35:A direct hit on a damaged A-wing's drive system by a TIE Interceptor did not destroy the A-wing, to the TIE pilot's surprise.However, the ship is so heavily damaged it is difficult to control thereafter, and the pilot is injured.

150 p. 35:Two TIE Interceptors fire on an A-wing in a crossfire, destroying it instantly.

Ship - Imperial Star Destroyer

General Ship Info

149 p. 56:The Devastator is noted as having been at Hoth, and is also said to have been "refitted dozens of times with the latest systems and weapons, keeping her more than competitive with the newer capital ships now operational."

This makes the Devastator one of the most frequently seen vessels in Star Wars.It also implies that the different physical models of the ISD are sufficiently close in structure, despite appearances, to allow retrofitting from one to the other.That is to say, it wouldn't make much sense to refit a Star Destroyer into a different wedge-shape.

150 p. 33:A former smuggler who operated near Coruscant had seen many security and police cruisers, but had never seen a Star Destroyer until the Battle of Endor.

This is quite remarkable, suggesting an extreme rarity of Star Destroyers.

150 p. 33:The Star Destroyer was a "monstrous slab of metal covered with guns and armor".

Ship Crew

150 p. 33:The Star Destroyer was a "crewed by enough men to fill a city."

Ship Internals

150 p. 37:Artificial gravity fails after two B-wings attack and cause the hyperdrive to detonate as a cascading demolition of the burning ship proceeds.

Ship Sensors

149 p. 56:After the Rebel fleet emerges from hyperspace, the admiral on Devastator is informed of it by a bridge officer.There was no mention of the approach beforehand.

150 p. 36:The Star Destroyer bridge features a system-wide tactical display with assorted blinking lights and indicators stretching from high orbit of Endor to the fleet battle and Death Star.

Ship Power Systems

150 p. 37:Detonation of the ship's hyperdrive causes "a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators."It is then noted that "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds", as well.Along with the hyperdrive damage, the result was that "everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, the ship was undergoing systematic demolition."The ship soon explodes.

Drive Systems - FTL

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot notes that the B-wing had been the subject of a lot of talk before the battle, noting that it was said to pose "an unprecedented danger to Star Destroyers if they could get enough maneuvering room to deploy their weaponry."

150 p. 37:Two B-wings attacking with ion cannons and proton torpedoes result in the Devastator's hyperdrive having "detonated, causing a chain reaction of explosions which blew back into the Star Destroyer's primary generators."It is then noted that "an ion overload had destroyed the cooling manifolds and ruptured the hyperdrive's magnetic containment bubble, which meant that everybody down in the power plant was either dead or dying, and the ship was undergoing systematic demolition."The ship soon explodes.

The hyperdrive thus has a magnetic containment bubble, which when ruptured contributes to the fact that everyone in the drive section is dead or dying.

Drive Systems - STL

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "[...] I want to be free to maneuver against their capital ships [...]".On p. 57 the result is seen as "two dozen TIE Interceptors swept in from the ship's aft".

Evidently, then, it is reasonably safe for fighters to be hanging around behind the ship's engines, even when maneuvers are a possibility.

Vessel Embarkation

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks, and I want to be free to maneuver against their capital ships [...]".On p. 57 the result is seen as "two dozen TIE Interceptors swept in from the ship's aft".This group of interceptors is described in 150 p. 33 as a "squadron".

At least two dozen TIE Interceptors are able to be launched from an Imperial Star Destroyer, though perhaps not at a sufficient rate to achieve a sweeping maneuver.Alternately, this may be related to the ship needing to hold somewhat steady during launches, thus precluding certain ISD maneuvers . . . but again, that wouldn't seem to be an issue if they could launch them fast enough.There is also the possibility of the ship needing to have her belly showing to the enemy for some reason during maneuvers, meaning the fighters could possibly get picked off if being launched close to a Rebel ship below the ISD.

150 p. 36:Devastator takes "major damage" to her flight deck 'offscreen', preventing launch or recovery of fighters.

150 p. 36:Without an adequate fighter screen of TIE Interceptors, the Devastator is threatened.

Ship Defense

Ship Armaments

150 p. 34:The admiral on Devastator orders a "fool" to stop firing into the B-wing squadron for fear of hitting the Devastator's TIE Interceptors.This gunnery officer who then stopped firing was therefore on the bridge, rather than at one of the guns as is commonly seen.

Ship Weapons Range

150 p. 36:With a B-wing attack imminent, the Devastator sets "all weapon batteries for point blank range and fire at will."

Ship Shields

149 p.53:A B-wing squadron scoring three hits on a simulated Star Destroyer was considered a successful practice attack run by the Rebel Wing Commander, though perhaps not the computers.This suggests that three hits are sufficient to do some sort of damage to a Star Destroyer.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot notes that the B-wing had been the subject of a lot of talk before the battle, noting that it was said to pose "an unprecedented danger to Star Destroyers if they could get enough maneuvering room to deploy their weaponry."

150 p. 37:Two B-wings bring "ion cannons to bear", firing proton torpedoes and "scoring direct hits on the weak points in the Devastator's navigational shielding."Evidently it is penetrated.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 37:Two B-wings firing ion cannon and proton torpedoes explicitly strike the "navigational shielding", however the Devastator's hyperdrive and related internals within the hull are destroyed, causing the ship's "systematic demolition" before it explodes completely.

Ship Special

Jamming

149 p. 56:The tactical display on an A-wing showed a "multi-layered spider web of electromagnetic interference."

Flak Envelope

150 p. 34:The Devastator is said to have a defensive "flak envelope".

150 p. 35:Three B-wings are within the Star Destroyer's "defense envelope".

Ship - Imperial TIE Interceptor

Ship Sensors

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot uses his scanner to determine which fighter was receiving "the most com traffic; it was an old trick he used to find the enemy wing leader."The pilot then locks that fighter into his targeting computer.

150 p. 35:A TIE Interceptor's targeting computer locks on to a maneuvering A-wing giving the pilot green lights, and the pilot unleashes a barrage from the laser cannons.

Drive Systems - STL

150 p. 35:The TIE Interceptor can match an A-wing's maneuverability even in the midst of a "dizzying set of maneuvers" of evasion.

Ship Defense

Ship Firepower

150 p. 35:Two TIE Interceptors fire on an A-wing in a crossfire, destroying it instantly.

Ship Weapons Range

150 p. 35:An A-wing pilot dials back his speed, causing the TIE Interceptors on his tail to miss and some to go past him, swerving to avoid colliding.This wouldn't be necessary if they were at a great distance.

Ship Exterior

150 p. 35:An A-wing unleashes a "bracket of fire" which knocks off the wing of a TIE Interceptor, causing it to lose control and spin into another Imperial interceptor.

Galactography

Transit Notes

149 p.54:"Tomorrow's the big show.The fleet moves on Endor."Given that it is known from the film, script, and novelization that the transit from near Sullust to Endor took days, we must go with one of the following options:[*].Discard this as an error.[*].Take "the fleet moves on Endor" as a phrase with a present continuous verb rather than one of the future tense.This does not follow well with the previous sentence, but avoids contradiction.

Some might ponder that the vessel upon which the statement was made was perhaps not with the rest of the Rebel fleet for some reason, and was instead much closer to Endor ... certainly there is no mention of other ships around.But, that still requires option #2 be true.

World - Coruscant

A Rebel pilot learned to fly on smuggling routes off of Coruscant.

World - Naboo

World Alignment

149 p. 55:Naboo is noted as having an Imperial garrison.

World Location

149 p. 55:A defector from the garrison on Naboo makes his way "into the Outer Rim", suggesting that Naboo is not in it.

Armed Forces Info

Rebel Alliance Navy

149 p. 54:The Rebel fleet is noted as having a pilot shortage, requiring troublemaking pilots of only 50 hours flight time in a B-wing cockpit to remain there, along with a similarly untrained squadron.However, the squadron is initially ordered to act as rear guard, "safeguarding the fleet's lines of communications".

Imperial Navy

149 p. 56:The admiral recalls Vader engaging in more than one Force choke of officers under Vader's command, and lived in fear of it.

150 p. 34:The admiral commanding Devastator personally oversaw the crew and the selection thereof to ensure that he had the best trained crew in the Imperial Navy.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot was aware of Vader having been ordered to capture Luke Skywalker, implying a fairly broad flow of information within the ranks.

Devices and Gear

Other Defenses

Shackles

149 p. 54:Shackles are used on Imperial prisoners here, evidently left on when they are being airlocked.

General Space Tactics

149 p. 53:A B-wing squadron scoring three hits on a simulated Star Destroyer was considered a successful practice attack run by the Rebel Wing Commander, though perhaps not the computers.Half the squadron was destroyed in the simulation.

149 p. 53:A B-wing formation's attack run involves one of the pilots, in this case the wing leader, sending calculations to the other fighters in the squadron.During the practice run, the seasoned wing leader's calculations were "off".

149 p. 53:"The whole point of a B-wing squadron attack is that the combined ships act as a force multiplier.If we integrate our attack vectors, we have a far better chance of finishing the mission successfully--and alive."

149 p. 54:A former Imperial officer, now a rebel, ponders the Battle of Yavin and considered it at least somewhat "lax" on the Empire's part that there were no "capital ships" guarding the battlestation in that engagement.

149 p. 54:A former Imperial officer, now a rebel, presumes that TIE fighters would be used as "long-range pickets".

149 p. 56:The admiral commanding Devastator wants his "interceptors" stationed aft of the ship in preparation for the final battle with the Rebels, noting "even the smallest of their attack craft have hyperdrives.I don't want to be taken by surprise by any snubfighter attacks, and I want to be free to maneuver against their capital ships [...]".On p. 57 the result is seen as "two dozen TIE Interceptors swept in from the ship's aft".This group of interceptors is described in 150 p. 33 as a "squadron".

At least two dozen TIE Interceptors are able to be launched from an Imperial Star Destroyer, though perhaps not at a sufficient rate to achieve a sweeping maneuver.Alternately, this may be related to the ship needing to hold somewhat steady during launches, thus precluding certain ISD maneuvers . . . but again, that wouldn't seem to be an issue if they could launch them fast enough.There is also the possibility of the ship needing to have her belly showing to the enemy for some reason during maneuvers, meaning the fighters could possibly get picked off if being launched close to a Rebel ship below the ISD.

150 p. 34:The admiral on Devastator orders a "fool" to stop firing into the B-wing squadron for fear of hitting the Devastator's TIE Interceptors.

150 p. 34:A rebel pilot abruptly cuts speed to allow two pursuers to pass.

150 p. 34:The ace TIE Interceptor pilot uses his scanner to determine which fighter was receiving "the most com traffic; it was an old trick he used to find the enemy wing leader."The pilot then locks that fighter into his targeting computer.

150 p. 35:The Imperial fighters had identified the wing commander on the A-wing as the leader and were gunning for him all the more.

150 p. 35:A well-piloted TIE Interceptor keeping pace with an evading A-wing is outmaneuvered by a high-g "barrel roll", a term denoting a corkscrew maneuver, losing the pursuit by trying to take a kill shot.Basically, the A-wing pilot apparently allowed himself to take fire so as to draw in the interceptor.

150 p. 35:The B-wing leader attempts to "mobilize an attack run amidst the dogfight".This involved the B-wings "syncing their fire control systems, automatically coordinating an attack package of laser fire and proton munitions", pending one of the fighters preparing the "attack data".

Other Notes

Linguistics

149 p. 57:The wing commander of the B-wing squadron orders his squadron to proceed on "heading one-seven-zero-delta".
I'm sure you aren't lying, but you may want to supply full quotes from the book so that people won't have to simply take your word for it?

User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Mon Jun 23, 2014 1:40 pm

I know what you mean and appreciate the thought, but I've done far more quoting than I needed to in that regard, simply with that thought in mind. This being the first work of the new canon I have lavished attention on it . . . future works will not be so quote-filled.

Put simply, if they want to say I'm lying, f*** them. I don't have time for that crap. After all, even with quotes or screenshots or video or whatever, people will try to disagree, claim you're evil, et cetera . . . a few extra words being quoted isn't going to help.

Thanks, though.

User avatar
Mr. Oragahn
Admiral
Posts: 6865
Joined: Sun Dec 03, 2006 11:58 am
Location: Paradise Mountain

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by Mr. Oragahn » Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:53 pm

Especially coming from people routinely known for leaving out huge contextual elements of quotes to tip the argument in their favour. And they would ask for more?
The difference is that they counted on the readers not doing the work and looking for full quotes.
Completely different from what we get there, since RSa will be the first to tell you to go read the quotes, even if he's got nothing to hide.

User avatar
2046
Starship Captain
Posts: 2040
Joined: Sat Sep 02, 2006 9:14 pm
Contact:

Re: Insider #149 & 150 - Blade Squadron

Post by 2046 » Wed Jun 25, 2014 1:48 am

Not "even if", but "especially because". I don't need to warp Star Wars into something it isn't . . . that's their job.

Post Reply