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The Battle of Alderaan
Foreword
The following is an accumulation of knowledge of one of the last battles of the war between the Hutt Cartel and the Galactic Republic, compiled from official records from recordings of the battle and interviews with the men and women who served during this climatic battle.
While it can never be said that the war would be lost by the Republic should they have lost the Battle of Alderaan, it must not be suggested that this battle was anything less than a turning point in the history of the Republic and of the Hutt Cartel. It was through actions on this day that names were immortalised in history to this day and the Galaxy was shaped into the Galaxy that we now live in today.
My name is Captain Tilburn of the Imperial Military Academy of Chandrila and today you will learn more about The Battle of Alderaan or, as it was known locally for many years;
The Fall of the Corrupt Queen.
Notable Figures
Battles on the scale of the Republic and Cartel war were not nearly as large as those waged between the Jedi Exiles and the Republic during the Hundred Years Darkness - indeed, the war fatigue that many felt from such battles was part of the reason why these battles were far smaller. Simply put, the public didn't have the desire to push their young men and women into the grinder of war and those in command had begun to adapt to using smaller forces to achieve the same objectives.
Most notably was the reliance on outstanding individuals.
Republic Notable Figures;
Sith Notable Figures;
Cartel Notable Figures;
Seizing The Hanger
Sith-led forces assaulted the main hanger of the Palace of Alderaan first, eager to make sure that they could land troops safely and immediately direct them to where the battle was still fiercest. During the initial assault here, Sith Halmo'de Torobah earned distinction from the other Sith and Imperial forces by leading the charge by example and aiming to break the morale of the Cartel forces to secure victory for the Imperials. Charging forwards with an almost reckless attitude towards his own health, Halmo'de took down a large tank that the Cartel forces had brought into the hanger to destroy Imperial landing craft, tearing into it with his lightsaber with such frightful efficiency that one Imperial trooper, who was later interviewed, described it as such;
The Sith Pureblood, Risha Sharro, was also commended during this part of the battle for recognising some sabotage that the Cartel had set up before their retreat from the hanger. It was through her quick thinking and hard work that the Empire had a hanger to hold onto once Halmo'de had led the effort to take it in the first place.
Sealing Off The Escape Tunnels
Tobian Solaris & Spencer Ward VS Surai Kyaata & An'ru
The battle for the escape tunnels was one that was almost not expected to happen. The Sith expected to take the escape tunnels and clear out the rear guard before moving further into the Palace but it was not to be - indeed, a Jedi by the name of An'Ru had joined forces with the Cartel men and women under the command of Surai Kyaata. Now no one is quite sure why this Jedi did this but we are certain that they were met in battle by Spencer Ward and Imperial forces commanded by Tobian Solaris.
Jedi and Sith clashed as the non-Force sensitive men and women fought around them in the narrow confines of the escape tunnels.
No interviews were obtained and there is no holovid footage that survives so we cannot speak with absolute certainly about what happened there that day. All we can confirm is that the battle came to an end when the escape tunnels were collapsed by a series of explosions, which rocked the entirety of the Palace of Alderaan and, in fact, caused some sections of the building to sink into the ground due to a lack of support.
Securing The Main Gate
While the hanger was an overwhelming Sith victory and the escape tunnels were inconclusive and lacking in information, the assault on the main gates of the Palace of Alderaan was incredibly hard fought and well documented. Unlike the other two parts of the battle before this, the assault on the gates was a larger affair. The Republic forces, commanded by Talos Barrenfist and Bretharr Bargall, assaulted the gates with hundreds of Republic marines at their back and a half a dozen tanks.
Had the defenders been led by anyone other than Darren Reed and Preyt Jhess, this might have been a simple victory for the Republic. But the Cartel men had something that the Republic had not brought with them - they had air support. The following is an account from Takun'danat, a Cartel enforcer conscripted by Reed and Jhess to man some of the weapons in their gunship.
Indeed, Darren Reed and Preyt Jhess owned the skies over the gates of the Palace due to an oversight with the officers of the Republic forces, which had prioritised air forces to the hanger, in case the Sith assault there failed. This meant that the Cartel air forces were unopposed and they destroyed five of the six tanks that the Republic had brought to bare on the gatehouse, killing dozens of Republic marines and entirely halting the advance of the Republic forces.
It was only when the Sith forces from the hanger pushed on the gate from the inside of the Palace that things turned around, with the assembled forces trapping the Cartel ground forces between the two forces. At this time, the gunship of Reed and Jhess was seen leaving the area - soon leaving the system to continue their lives as wanted men within the Republic.
However, there was one final part of the battle for the gatehouse that ended in tragedy.
That was Commander Doth Kartan, in an interview where she was asked about her time spent serving under the now legendary Talos Barrenfist. Indeed, the Republic officer was killed in action at the base of the gate before a breach could be secured and it fell to another Republic officer, Bretharr Bargall, to make the breach.
In the end, Bargall led a charge against the gates themselves with the sole-surviving tank providing fire support on the upper levels. When he reached the gates themselves, Bargall planted explosives to the doors themselves and detonated once to one side, blasting the gates open beyond what the shielding could stop. Having created the breach, Bretharr Bargall led the charge of the remaining Republic forces and overwhelmed the garrison of the gatehouse with sheer numbers and ferocity.
The Ending Of Lucille
The actual fall of Lucille Antilles, as well as the other unlucky heirs that had accused and confronted her, is a thing some historians still say is shrouded in mystery. We all know the aftermath of that fight, the Queen dead on her throne with Kalendros and Werner crumpled at her feet, yet despite one clear detailing of the battle it is still a topic for debate. The sole witness and survivor at the time, Commander Cidney of the maligned House Harlow, has become such a source of ire for contemporary Imperials that his words can no longer be trusted by the more zealous among us. Despite this, however, I feel it is my obligation to give you his recount of the event despite the dubious nature of the House's current allegiance.
House Harlow would survive the civil war of Alderaan, returning to their normal duties after the coronation of the next ruler. Their rise and fall afterwards, though, is a lesson for a different time. For now, heed the lessons learned from this debacle: a soldier should always remained detached from their emotions during a battle. It was the bitterness and hatred of the Antilles Siblings that brought about their mutual downfall, as if their heads had been clear then the outcome could have been accomplished with much less bloodshed.
Immediate Aftermath
The Battle for Alderaan ended with a Republic victory and the Cartel routed from the planet with large numbers of their enforcers killed, captured or forced to flee the system. While it was a costly victory, it was a victory that the Republic sorely needed. While the Republic had been winning the majority of engagements with the Cartel throughout the war, it was necessary that they won this battle, to truly cement that the war they had declared had not been foolish, had not been a waste of credits or lives but had, in fact, accomplished it's primary and secondary goals.
Alderaan was freed from the rule of Lucille and the Hutt Cartel had it's back broken by the military might and dedication of the Galactic Republic.
As a test of the alliance between Sith and Republic against their mutual enemies, the Hutts, the Battle of Alderaan showed cracks already forming. Indeed, by all accounts there was palpable tension during any meeting of the allies from the ground level all the way up to the higher ranks.
But that is a topic for another day.
The following is an accumulation of knowledge of one of the last battles of the war between the Hutt Cartel and the Galactic Republic, compiled from official records from recordings of the battle and interviews with the men and women who served during this climatic battle.
While it can never be said that the war would be lost by the Republic should they have lost the Battle of Alderaan, it must not be suggested that this battle was anything less than a turning point in the history of the Republic and of the Hutt Cartel. It was through actions on this day that names were immortalised in history to this day and the Galaxy was shaped into the Galaxy that we now live in today.
My name is Captain Tilburn of the Imperial Military Academy of Chandrila and today you will learn more about The Battle of Alderaan or, as it was known locally for many years;
The Fall of the Corrupt Queen.
Notable Figures
Battles on the scale of the Republic and Cartel war were not nearly as large as those waged between the Jedi Exiles and the Republic during the Hundred Years Darkness - indeed, the war fatigue that many felt from such battles was part of the reason why these battles were far smaller. Simply put, the public didn't have the desire to push their young men and women into the grinder of war and those in command had begun to adapt to using smaller forces to achieve the same objectives.
Most notably was the reliance on outstanding individuals.
Republic Notable Figures;
- Talos Barrenfist
- Bretharr Bargall
Sith Notable Figures;
- Spencer Ward
- Halmo'de Torobah
- Risha Sharro
- Tobian Solaris
Cartel Notable Figures;
- Darren Reed
- Preyt Jhess
- An'ru
- Surai Kyaata
- Charlie Quentel
Seizing The Hanger
"I had seen Sith fight before this, you understand, but that was always against either other Sith or against some Jedi scum. When you see fights like that - it looks like a holovid, all stylised and almost... almost like it's scripted or something! There's a lot of fluid motions and such and a lot of concentration and the like.
But here?
Nah, this Sith wasn't fighting other Force users... and he definitely wasn't fight the Cartel. To call it fighting would be like saying that the poor saps stood a chance and put up a fight. The Sith cut through their tank like a hot knife through butter and they bolted because even Cartel karks aren't stupid enough to stick around a guy who has just cut through armour thick as your body."
But here?
Nah, this Sith wasn't fighting other Force users... and he definitely wasn't fight the Cartel. To call it fighting would be like saying that the poor saps stood a chance and put up a fight. The Sith cut through their tank like a hot knife through butter and they bolted because even Cartel karks aren't stupid enough to stick around a guy who has just cut through armour thick as your body."
The Sith Pureblood, Risha Sharro, was also commended during this part of the battle for recognising some sabotage that the Cartel had set up before their retreat from the hanger. It was through her quick thinking and hard work that the Empire had a hanger to hold onto once Halmo'de had led the effort to take it in the first place.
Sealing Off The Escape Tunnels
The battle for the escape tunnels was one that was almost not expected to happen. The Sith expected to take the escape tunnels and clear out the rear guard before moving further into the Palace but it was not to be - indeed, a Jedi by the name of An'Ru had joined forces with the Cartel men and women under the command of Surai Kyaata. Now no one is quite sure why this Jedi did this but we are certain that they were met in battle by Spencer Ward and Imperial forces commanded by Tobian Solaris.
Jedi and Sith clashed as the non-Force sensitive men and women fought around them in the narrow confines of the escape tunnels.
No interviews were obtained and there is no holovid footage that survives so we cannot speak with absolute certainly about what happened there that day. All we can confirm is that the battle came to an end when the escape tunnels were collapsed by a series of explosions, which rocked the entirety of the Palace of Alderaan and, in fact, caused some sections of the building to sink into the ground due to a lack of support.
Securing The Main Gate
Had the defenders been led by anyone other than Darren Reed and Preyt Jhess, this might have been a simple victory for the Republic. But the Cartel men had something that the Republic had not brought with them - they had air support. The following is an account from Takun'danat, a Cartel enforcer conscripted by Reed and Jhess to man some of the weapons in their gunship.
"First thing you need to understand is that Darren Reed is absolutely insane and Preyt Jhess is a terrible influence on him. Like, alone? They'd probably be a wildcard worthy of a lot of attention but together? Together those kark-face shite-shooters pulled me on board their gunship and told me that I was going to be in charge of shooting missiles.
I told them I'd never shot a missile in my life and they kriffing laughed in my face.
But you know what? I don't even care - I'd jump into that gunship with them again in a heartbeat. You wanna know why?
Because when we were up there, we were untouchable. Darren flew it and Preyt was in charge of the rest of the guns and by the gods and the force and every firm-breasted twi'lek dancer girl in the outer rim - they knew what they were doing. We swooped down low and we strafed them, we spun in the air to evade tank shots and missiles and PIPEs and all kinds of crazy kark, you know what I'm saying?
At one point, we were running low on ammo and needed to wait for the weapons to cool down - normally pilots would fly away to regroup right? Not Darren. That mad motherkarker strafed us down so low that we actually splattered two Pub marines on the bloody view screen!"
I told them I'd never shot a missile in my life and they kriffing laughed in my face.
But you know what? I don't even care - I'd jump into that gunship with them again in a heartbeat. You wanna know why?
Because when we were up there, we were untouchable. Darren flew it and Preyt was in charge of the rest of the guns and by the gods and the force and every firm-breasted twi'lek dancer girl in the outer rim - they knew what they were doing. We swooped down low and we strafed them, we spun in the air to evade tank shots and missiles and PIPEs and all kinds of crazy kark, you know what I'm saying?
At one point, we were running low on ammo and needed to wait for the weapons to cool down - normally pilots would fly away to regroup right? Not Darren. That mad motherkarker strafed us down so low that we actually splattered two Pub marines on the bloody view screen!"
It was only when the Sith forces from the hanger pushed on the gate from the inside of the Palace that things turned around, with the assembled forces trapping the Cartel ground forces between the two forces. At this time, the gunship of Reed and Jhess was seen leaving the area - soon leaving the system to continue their lives as wanted men within the Republic.
However, there was one final part of the battle for the gatehouse that ended in tragedy.
"Talos Barrenfist was, without a doubt, the greatest soldier I have ever seen or had the honour of fighting alongside. He was my commanding officer during the closing days of the Pub-Cartel war and he had seen me and my fellow marines through the deepest kark and seen us through it.
He knew that, to be a good leader he would need to lead us well on the battlefield.
And he knew that to be a great leader, he needed to make sure that he knew us almost as well as we knew ourselves.
I remember this one time, he actually reminded me of my daughter's dance recital... I'd forgotten about it but he'd heard me yammering away about it months ago and remembered. He covered my watch duty that day so that I could go and be with my baby girl and he never asked for anything in return.
So that's why, when we were pinned down in front of that blasted gatehouse, hiding in a crater with blaster fire all around us... and that grenade came rolling to a stop in the middle of us?
It wasn't a surprise that he threw himself on the grenade and took the blast for us.
That man, Talos Barrenfist, could have had a long and decorated life in the military and he would have deserved every moment of it - but he sacrificed himself, without a moment's hesitation, for us, for his squad. When people speak to me about how amazing he was in the war, they speak about how much of an amazing warrior he was and they're wrong.
Talos Barrenfist wasn't a warrior - he was a soldier and he was a good man. He didn't care about glory or rewards, he was there for us when we needed him and when we didn't even know we needed him. A man who knew that a unit was more important than any one person and he applied that to himself right to the very end.
The records do have one thing right though I will say.
Talos was a hero and the military is far poorer for his loss - all I've tried to do since then is follow his example and do my best for the men and women under my command. And, I hope, that will be enough to repay him, wherever he is in the great beyond, for his sacrifice that day."
He knew that, to be a good leader he would need to lead us well on the battlefield.
And he knew that to be a great leader, he needed to make sure that he knew us almost as well as we knew ourselves.
I remember this one time, he actually reminded me of my daughter's dance recital... I'd forgotten about it but he'd heard me yammering away about it months ago and remembered. He covered my watch duty that day so that I could go and be with my baby girl and he never asked for anything in return.
So that's why, when we were pinned down in front of that blasted gatehouse, hiding in a crater with blaster fire all around us... and that grenade came rolling to a stop in the middle of us?
It wasn't a surprise that he threw himself on the grenade and took the blast for us.
That man, Talos Barrenfist, could have had a long and decorated life in the military and he would have deserved every moment of it - but he sacrificed himself, without a moment's hesitation, for us, for his squad. When people speak to me about how amazing he was in the war, they speak about how much of an amazing warrior he was and they're wrong.
Talos Barrenfist wasn't a warrior - he was a soldier and he was a good man. He didn't care about glory or rewards, he was there for us when we needed him and when we didn't even know we needed him. A man who knew that a unit was more important than any one person and he applied that to himself right to the very end.
The records do have one thing right though I will say.
Talos was a hero and the military is far poorer for his loss - all I've tried to do since then is follow his example and do my best for the men and women under my command. And, I hope, that will be enough to repay him, wherever he is in the great beyond, for his sacrifice that day."
That was Commander Doth Kartan, in an interview where she was asked about her time spent serving under the now legendary Talos Barrenfist. Indeed, the Republic officer was killed in action at the base of the gate before a breach could be secured and it fell to another Republic officer, Bretharr Bargall, to make the breach.
In the end, Bargall led a charge against the gates themselves with the sole-surviving tank providing fire support on the upper levels. When he reached the gates themselves, Bargall planted explosives to the doors themselves and detonated once to one side, blasting the gates open beyond what the shielding could stop. Having created the breach, Bretharr Bargall led the charge of the remaining Republic forces and overwhelmed the garrison of the gatehouse with sheer numbers and ferocity.
The Ending Of Lucille
"She knew we were coming, we'd made no secret of the attack. Kalendros was a proven soldier, meaning he'd earned a place on my short list of operatives to take Lucille down. Werner had come home around that time too, to help in the transition once his sister was laid low. Turned out we had another guest at the same time, though I'll get to him. The important thing was that the squad of us burst into that throne room guns blazing. Her forces were perhaps just a bit quicker to the trigger, though.
The room filled with the flashes of blaster fire. A quarter of my boys were down within moments, though one managed to toss a smoke grenade just before losing his face. The acrid stench the grenade gave off covered the smell of burnt flesh, something all too common those days. By my count we'd taken down about five of her henchmen before the smoke made us start shooting blindly. I motioned for us to get to cover, using anything that was handy. That's when I found out about our special guest.
I don't know how Henric broke out of prison, or where he'd learned to use the Force, but at the moment I had bigger things to care about. He'd knocked out one of my boys just before we launched, taking his armor and making like he was one of us all along. In any case, Lucille's cronies got lucky with a few more shots. I could hear her laughing from her throne as Kal took a shot to the torso, almost blasting his arm clean off. It almost seemed like she was winning. She might have, if it hadn't been for Werner.
The man must have toughened himself up a bit during his exile. He tossed a flashbang and waited for it to go off before charging in with the old family sword. None of us, our boys included, figured that there was anyone else from there that was a threat, so he caught us ALL with our pants down. He looked both grim and thrilled as he managed to stab Lucille in the gut, right before she emptied her blaster in his own. Maybe if he'd kept being a pacifist he'd have lived longer.
While that drama was going on Henric was using his knife to take out one remaining Cartel fighter at a time. Must have been something he'd worked hard at perfecting with how brutal it was. Lucille was still alive, though, and while painful her wound would have let her live. I was about to come up to finish the job when some reinforcements crashed in through the far window, tossing a frag at the two living brothers with their entrance. I picked up my repeater and let them have it, though I almost dropped the thing again when I saw what happened next.
Henric pushed Kalendros out of range of the grenade, or as far away as he could. The concussion sent him flying, bloody and battered, through one of the last remaining windows and down to his apparent death. We never did find the body, though by the time we could look the scavengers could have taken it off. I didn't know the man had it in him to pull off such a brave act. His redemption for his crimes wouldn't be up to me, but I couldn't help but respect the guy a bit.
Kalendros was on his last legs, yet he was a trooper. He made a charge full tilt at Lucille, who had been hoping for her new forces to protect her as she put on a medkit to her wounds. She refused to leave the throne, as if doing so would put it forever beyond her again. I managed to shoot the couple thugs between Kalendros and Lucille, the prince drawing his blaster and hesitating in thought for only a second before chucking it with surprising accuracy at the queen. It nailed her straight in the forehead, stunning her and most of us more with the audacity of the thing than any actual pain.
Werner's sword lay at the foot of the throne, next to where he'd died trying to kill his sister. With a deft kick Kalendros shot it into the air, catching it with his good hand. In a moment it was over, thrusting the blade through Lucille's chest and the back of the throne to the sound of steel on bone. He gave her a grin as he said something, though I wasn't close enough to hear. Hate filled her face before the pain took over, that snarl being the only thing left when she died. Kalendros slumped to his knees, also dead from his wounds.
I'd intended to die there too, killing as many Cartel thugs as I could. That was when the men from the outside fight came running in, their own battle done. As they mopped up, all I could do was sit there and look at the tragic scene in front of me. Lucille had killed her mother for the throne she died in, her siblings dying to try to remover her from it. In the end, that spelled the downfall of the Antilles dynasty of rulers. A whole new battle was about to start over the succession, but for now I was perhaps the only one to shed a tear for the lives lost to Lucille the Last."
The room filled with the flashes of blaster fire. A quarter of my boys were down within moments, though one managed to toss a smoke grenade just before losing his face. The acrid stench the grenade gave off covered the smell of burnt flesh, something all too common those days. By my count we'd taken down about five of her henchmen before the smoke made us start shooting blindly. I motioned for us to get to cover, using anything that was handy. That's when I found out about our special guest.
I don't know how Henric broke out of prison, or where he'd learned to use the Force, but at the moment I had bigger things to care about. He'd knocked out one of my boys just before we launched, taking his armor and making like he was one of us all along. In any case, Lucille's cronies got lucky with a few more shots. I could hear her laughing from her throne as Kal took a shot to the torso, almost blasting his arm clean off. It almost seemed like she was winning. She might have, if it hadn't been for Werner.
The man must have toughened himself up a bit during his exile. He tossed a flashbang and waited for it to go off before charging in with the old family sword. None of us, our boys included, figured that there was anyone else from there that was a threat, so he caught us ALL with our pants down. He looked both grim and thrilled as he managed to stab Lucille in the gut, right before she emptied her blaster in his own. Maybe if he'd kept being a pacifist he'd have lived longer.
While that drama was going on Henric was using his knife to take out one remaining Cartel fighter at a time. Must have been something he'd worked hard at perfecting with how brutal it was. Lucille was still alive, though, and while painful her wound would have let her live. I was about to come up to finish the job when some reinforcements crashed in through the far window, tossing a frag at the two living brothers with their entrance. I picked up my repeater and let them have it, though I almost dropped the thing again when I saw what happened next.
Henric pushed Kalendros out of range of the grenade, or as far away as he could. The concussion sent him flying, bloody and battered, through one of the last remaining windows and down to his apparent death. We never did find the body, though by the time we could look the scavengers could have taken it off. I didn't know the man had it in him to pull off such a brave act. His redemption for his crimes wouldn't be up to me, but I couldn't help but respect the guy a bit.
Kalendros was on his last legs, yet he was a trooper. He made a charge full tilt at Lucille, who had been hoping for her new forces to protect her as she put on a medkit to her wounds. She refused to leave the throne, as if doing so would put it forever beyond her again. I managed to shoot the couple thugs between Kalendros and Lucille, the prince drawing his blaster and hesitating in thought for only a second before chucking it with surprising accuracy at the queen. It nailed her straight in the forehead, stunning her and most of us more with the audacity of the thing than any actual pain.
Werner's sword lay at the foot of the throne, next to where he'd died trying to kill his sister. With a deft kick Kalendros shot it into the air, catching it with his good hand. In a moment it was over, thrusting the blade through Lucille's chest and the back of the throne to the sound of steel on bone. He gave her a grin as he said something, though I wasn't close enough to hear. Hate filled her face before the pain took over, that snarl being the only thing left when she died. Kalendros slumped to his knees, also dead from his wounds.
I'd intended to die there too, killing as many Cartel thugs as I could. That was when the men from the outside fight came running in, their own battle done. As they mopped up, all I could do was sit there and look at the tragic scene in front of me. Lucille had killed her mother for the throne she died in, her siblings dying to try to remover her from it. In the end, that spelled the downfall of the Antilles dynasty of rulers. A whole new battle was about to start over the succession, but for now I was perhaps the only one to shed a tear for the lives lost to Lucille the Last."
House Harlow would survive the civil war of Alderaan, returning to their normal duties after the coronation of the next ruler. Their rise and fall afterwards, though, is a lesson for a different time. For now, heed the lessons learned from this debacle: a soldier should always remained detached from their emotions during a battle. It was the bitterness and hatred of the Antilles Siblings that brought about their mutual downfall, as if their heads had been clear then the outcome could have been accomplished with much less bloodshed.
Immediate Aftermath
Alderaan was freed from the rule of Lucille and the Hutt Cartel had it's back broken by the military might and dedication of the Galactic Republic.
As a test of the alliance between Sith and Republic against their mutual enemies, the Hutts, the Battle of Alderaan showed cracks already forming. Indeed, by all accounts there was palpable tension during any meeting of the allies from the ground level all the way up to the higher ranks.
But that is a topic for another day.