Imperial I-class Star Destroyer
 Imperial I-class Star Destroyer | |
| Production Information | |
|---|---|
| Class |
Capital Ship |
| Model | |
| Manufacturer |
Kuat Drive Yards |
| Technical Specifications | |
| Length |
1,600 meters |
| Height/Depth |
448 meters |
| Maximum Acceleration |
>2,300 g |
| MGLT |
60 MGLT |
| Engine Units |
|
| Hyperdrive Rating |
|
| Shielding |
KDY ISD-72x shield generator domes (2) |
| Targeting Systems |
LeGrange targeting computers |
| Armament |
|
| Complement |
|
| Crew |
|
| Minimum Crew |
5,000 |
| Passengers |
1,800 |
| Cargo Capacity |
36,000 metric tonnes |
| Usage | |
| Roles |
|
| Number in Fleet |
10 |
Contents
Characteristics[edit]
Dimensions[edit]
The Imperial-class was produced in large numbers and was the premier warship class of the Galactic Empire. All known variants were 1,600 meters long (one mile). Compared to most common frigates and downscaled cruisers known from the days of the Old Republic, the Imperial-class was a huge warship, but in the Imperial Navy, it was one of the Empire's smaller main capital ships.
Crew Requirements[edit]
According to officially available statistics, Imperial-class Star Destroyers had at least 37,000 officers and crew. Counting the stormtrooper complement (one division or legion, 9,700 men) would total 46,700. This would include a stormtrooper detachment, starfighter pilots, and support craft pilots.
When serving as a flagship, 900 additional personnel were stationed onboard. The Star Destroyer could accommodate up to 1,800 passengers.
The crew requirements of the Imperial-class were extraordinarily high, relative to similar-sized vessels. New Republic ships of the closest size tended to have a small fraction of the crew. The ISD had a high ratio (over 7:1) between full and skeleton complement—a more usual ratio seemed to be 4:1 or 5:1 in large vessels.
Offensive and Defensive Systems[edit]
The Imperial I-class Star Destroyer possessed a main battery of twelve heavy turbolasers and four heavy ion cannons, arranged in eight dual mounts flanking the ship's tower structure.
Like with several other Star Destroyer classes, the designers did not take advantage of their wedge shape to give the heavy cannons the ability to focus on targets in the forward firing arc that were level with the ship. This could have been accomplished either by superelevating the aft turrets, or merely by spacing the turrets apart over a longer distance of the ship's length. In any case, this Star Destroyer class could bring all its heavy guns to bear by dipping its bow downward.
Numerous smaller and medium guns were mounted around the ship to ward off attacks against lesser ships not capable of being targeted by the main battery. They varied in size; some were designed as point-defense cannon to destroy incoming missiles and starfighters while others engaged lesser capital ships. Some ships, such as Emancipator (ex-Accuser), were refitted with proton torpedo launchers. Three triple-gun turrets were mounted on the ridge of the ship, just forward of the lowest, forwardmost terrace of the dorsal superstructure.
Mounted just beyond the forward tip of the attack hangar (see fighter complement), were two large ventral turbolasers, which sat near the corners of the massive hangar. The primary function of the turbolasers was to defend the vulnerable docking facilities, but could also be used for planetary bombardment.
The Star Destroyer's weapons were designed to make the vessel a long range warship. The weapons systems were not very capable of targeting at point-blank range, a weakness exploited by the Alliance Fleet at the Battle of Endor.
Complement[edit]
Imperial-class Star Destroyers typically carried a standard Imperial wing of 6 TIE squadrons, for a total of 72 starfighters. The standard wing included three TIE Fighter squadrons, one squadron of TIE Interceptors, one squadron of TIE Bombers (lower priority ships had to make do with TIE/gt starfighter-bombers), and one reconnaissance squadron of TIE/rc starfighters. One or two flights in a fighter squadron were TIE/fc starfighters. Sometimes, one of the fighter squadrons was used for training purposes. By the Battle of Endor, one of these fighter squadrons had been phased out in favor of a second squadron of TIE Interceptors.
The attack hangar was located on the underside on the ship and was guarded by a set of armored doors. TIE fighter service and refueling bays, and TIE launch hangars surrounded the main hangar. TIEs were launched from cycling racks and pilots boarded from overhead gantries and were released into space as they disengaged from the front position in the racks.
Returning fighters landed in separate hangars and then were guided by small tractor beams into receiver-carriers. The receivers carried the TIE to a debarkation station where the pilot would exit. Once moved through the transfer tunnels to a launch hangar, the fighter could be serviced and refueled in a separate bay. In the hangar the TIEs were cycled through a launch rack and ready for the next launch. The small forward hangar was for shuttle craft carrying high-ranking officials. The forward hangar was also used as a back-up to the main hangar.
These ships carried 9,700 troops, as well as massive war vehicles such as AT-AT and AT-ST walkers. AT-AT barges and other landing craft were used to deliver ground assault forces to a planet's surface. Although larger landing craft could only be carried onboard heavier vessels, the Imperial-class could transfer a large number of heavy walkers to other transports via a detachable rail system.
The Star Destroyer could use its guns and TIE starfighters to support any surface action. If a planet required a lasting presence, a Star Destroyer could quickly deploy a prefabricated garrison base. Like most other Star Destroyer models, the Imperial-class was capable of entering atmospheres and supporting ground operations directly.
Propulsion Systems[edit]
There were entire planets that, throughout their history, did not expend as much power as an Imperial-class ship did in one hyperspace jump. A massive solar ionization reactor bulged from the ventral spine, annihilating hypermatter as fuel to power the ship. Auxiliary reactors flanked the main reactor and the three reactors were connected to the three main engines. In addition, the backup engines were connected to additional reactors as well.
Catastrophic release braces were located underneath the ventral reactor bulge, in case of emergencies where the core of the main reactor had to be ejected from the ship.
For sublight propulsion, the Imperial-class relied on an array of three primary Destroyer-I ion engines produced by KDY specifically for the vessels. For emergency situations requiring additional thrust, the Imperial-class could use its four Gemon-4 ion engines. The engines were capable of accelerating the ship with a force of several thousand g.
Bridge[edit]
The command bridge tower of the Imperial-class Star Destroyer was massive, and the command bridge followed a design similar to that of many other KDY warship classes, like the Venator-class and Executor-class. The difference between the deck and the ceiling was three to four meters for the command walkways and one and a half meters more for the control pits. The total number of decks on the bridge tower was somewhere between 20 to 30, with the average spacing of 3 meters.
At a few areas there were portals that appeared at intervals halfway between the main decks. These corresponded to inhabited chambers, rooms, or shafts spanning more than one level.
The sensor array on top of the Mk. I's tower had support beams running diagonally across it. These would later be substituted for vertical ones during a minor refit, which made the array look similar to the one on Mk. II vessels.
Imperial Service[edit]
Imperial-class Star Destroyers had a distinguished career in the Imperial Starfleet, where they symbolized the Empire's military might (for better or worse). The Imperial-class was known to be in service as early as a month after the first Empire Day, and were still known as Imperator-class, at the time. The second ship of the class was Exactor, the first personal flagship of Darth Vader. Eventually, they would render Clone Wars-era vessels such as the Venator-class obsolete.
Capable of laying waste to entire worlds (provided those worlds did not have planetary shields), the Imperial-class became infamous as the prime enforcer of Imperial rule, serving as peacekeeping battleships.
Star Destroyers of this class took part in the major engagements of the Galactic Civil War, including the Battle of Hoth, the Battle of Endor, the First Battle of Coruscant, and the First Battle of Mon Calamari.
According to official records, over 25,000 were eventually produced. Many were destroyed in the fratricidal warfare that consumed the Empire after the death of Emperor Palpatine at Endor, while others defected or were captured.
Source[edit]
- Credit to Wookieepedia for the above information
