TIE/ob Obliterator Starfighter
TIE/ob Obliterator Capital Assault Starfighter | |
| Production information | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | |
| Product Line |
TIE series |
| Class |
Starfighter |
| Technical Specifications | |
| Length |
19.6 m |
| Megalight (MGLT) |
84 MGLT |
| Maximum speed (atmosphere) |
850 km/h |
| Maneuverability rating |
75 DPF |
| Engine unit(s) |
2 SFS P-sz9.8 Twin Ion Engines |
| Hyperdrive rating |
Class 1 SFS ND9 Hyperdrive Activator Unit |
| Power plant |
SFS I-s4f solar ionization reactor |
| Shielding |
135 SBD Forward/Rear Projecting Novaldex Shields |
| Hull |
96 RU Titanium hull with Quadanium Solar Panels |
| Navigation system |
SFS N-s8.6 Navcom computer system |
| Avionics |
SFS F-s7 Flight avionics system |
| Armament |
|
| Crew |
Pilot (1), Navigator/gunner (1) |
| Passengers |
none |
| Cargo capacity |
90 kg |
| Consumables |
1 week |
| Usage | |
| Role(s) |
Anti-capital attack starfighter |
| Affiliation | |
The TIE/ob Obliterator is a craft created for anti-capital attacks against enemy command ships that would otherwise be difficult to destroy without the means of a large fleet. Ideally, the Obliterator - with a hefty defensive escort - would hyper in, target the primary capital ship, hold off enemy defenders until the superlaser was charged up, fire, and wait until enough power had been restored to initiate a hyperspace jump from the battlezone.
Characteristics[edit]
During the latter years of the Galactic Civil War, the Empire was forced to contend with an ever-growing New Republic naval presence. As Imperial forces fractured, it was difficult to contend with the movement of these forces with enough firepower to blunt their advances. The TIE/ob Obliterator was developed as an attempt to counter New Republic capital ships with a relatively inexpensive, fighter-sized craft.
The entire fuselage of the craft is occupied by a powerful, advanced and miniaturized superlaser with its integral power cell. The cockpit pod, extensively modified from a standard TIE-Bomber cockpit pod, is perched above it with accommodation for a crew of 2; the pilot and the navigator/gunner. The aft end of the cockpit pod no longer houses the engines. Instead, it is replaced by an airlock and entry hatch for the crew. The two twin-ion engine pods are relocated to the tips of the solar array wings, between the paired panels.
The superlaser can be fired at 25%, 50%, 75% or at full charge. At full charge the weapon has enough power for only one shot, which is powerful enough to drain the shields and rupture the hull of even the heaviest of the New Republic's Mon Calamari cruisers. The Obliterator is equipped with a hyperdrive and extensive shielding.
Operating in pairs and using hit-and-fade tactics, TIE Obliterators achieved some early successes, catching New Republic capital squadrons by surprise and destroying or damaging a number of light cruisers. However, as their deployment became known they became priority targets for New Republic interceptors, forcing the Imperial Navy to protect them with substantial escorts by hyperdrive-capable fighters. Since these types of fighters are in short supply in many fleets, the Obliterators were rarely used. Merely a few dozen TIE Obliterators were ever produced, most destroyed by New Republic forces once their counter-tactics successfully changed.
Origins[edit]
The TIE/ob Obliberator is the creation of Alfred Wong. Archived details of the craft can be found here. Current site is here. Item use permission has been requested and granted by the artist.
