Knight Hammer

The Knight Hammer, an Executor-class Star Dreadnought, represented a pinnacle of technology for Super Star Destroyers of its kind. Its hull was encased in heavy black stealth armor, rendering it virtually undetectable to enemy sensors and visual observation except at extremely close distances. Extending across 19 kilometers, it possessed the equivalent power of twenty Imperial-class Star Destroyers, boasting immense firepower and few weak points. The sheer size and dark coloration of the Knight Hammer made it a formidable psychological tool, enabling its commander to undermine enemy morale. It stood as a symbol of Imperial strength, the most formidable ship within its fleet. However, its immense scale also presented challenges; the Knight Hammer was both incredibly expensive and difficult to maneuver. It consisted of at least 293 decks, and transport tubes facilitated movement throughout the massive vessel. Simplified diagrams were placed throughout the Knight Hammer to aid new crew members in navigating the labyrinthine structure.

The Knight Hammer could accommodate a crew of up to one hundred thousand, a relatively small number considering its size. This efficiency was achieved through a highly redundant network of automated command systems. It had the capacity to carry sufficient forces to occupy a conquered world. Its launching bays housed thousands of TIE/LN starfighters and TIE/sa bombers, with specific bays located at the rear of the ship, adjacent to the massive engine systems, designated for bomber squadrons. Hundreds of escape pods were available for emergency evacuations.

The Knight Hammer featured a lavish ready room, comparable in size to the command deck of a Victory-class Star Destroyer, providing a private space for the vessel's commander to strategize. It included sleeping quarters, food processing facilities, and access to escape pods for command-level personnel. A viewport offered a view of the stars.

Following the Galactic Empire's defeat at the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, the Empire fractured into numerous independent kingdoms ruled by warlords. In 5 ABY, Admiral Sander Delvardus, one such warlord, was driven from his territories near Eriadu into the Deep Core by Sien Sovv of the New Republic. There, he proclaimed himself "Superior General," established a personal fiefdom, and initiated the construction of a Super Star Destroyer, the Night Hammer. Rumor had it that Delvardus named the ship Night Hammer in memory of his lost love, Seledra-Zin, whom he had rendered comatose after striking her with a dynamic hammer in a fit of anger. Delvardus diverted credits from the remaining Imperial resources, dedicating nearly all of them to the ship's development. In 12 ABY, Admiral Natasi Daala had Delvardus and twelve other powerful Deep Core warlords killed to prevent them from further fragmenting Imperial unity. Upon discovering that Delvardus had embezzled a significant amount of Imperial funds, Daala traveled to his fortress world to consult with his second in command, Colonel Ivan Cronus. Cronus escorted her to the edge of the planet's system where Night Hammer awaited, and upon seeing the vessel, Daala claimed it as her personal flagship.

Daala initially used the Night Hammer to consolidate the scattered remnants of the Empire, traveling from system to system to secure allegiances, forge alliances, and inspire Imperial subjects. She assembled a fleet of 112 Victory-class Star Destroyers and 45 Imperial-class Star Destroyers around her new flagship; the Night Hammer and its accompanying fleet remained docked at a nexus station in the Deep Core as Daala prepared for her next move. She convened with Vice Admiral Gilad Pellaeon in the Night Hammer's ready room to select their primary target; deeming Coruscant too heavily defended for an initial assault, Daala decided to eliminate the New Jedi Order at their Jedi Praxeum on Yavin 4. Cronus would use the Victories to divert the New Republic's attention elsewhere, while Pellaeon would spearhead the initial attack on Yavin with the Imperials, followed by Daala in the Night Hammer to secure the system.

When two Jedi Knights, Kyp Durron and Dorsk 81, infiltrated Daala's fleet muster and overheard her plans, she was forced to accelerate her timeline. Cronus was dispatched to cause chaos on Khomm and other locations, while Pellaeon was sent directly to Yavin 4 with his fleet of seventeen Imperial-class Star Destroyers. Aboard Night Hammer, Daala gathered enough forces to permanently occupy the praxeum. Before launching, Daala issued a final order to rename the ship Knight Hammer, symbolizing her intention to destroy the New Republic by eradicating the Jedi.

Having received a warning from the Jedi about the impending attack, Admiral Ackbar of the New Republic led his fleet, including his flagship, the MC90 cruiser Galactic Voyager, toward Yavin 4. Meanwhile, Pellaeon had encountered a setback; the Jedi had combined their powers to force his entire fleet out of the Yavin system. Upon arriving in-system, the Knight Hammer found no other Imperial forces around Yavin 4. Daala initiated a scan of the system to locate Pellaeon's fleet, but without success. Hesitant to commit her snubfighters to a battle where the enemy's strength was unknown, Daala ordered the Knight Hammer's TIE fighters and bombers to remain on standby. Instead, the Knight Hammer jammed communications, entered orbit around Yavin 4, and opened fire on the moon with all its turbolaser batteries, targeting Jedi structures and setting the surrounding forests ablaze.

The Millennium Falcon, carrying Jedi Master Luke Skywalker and Jedi Knight Callista Ming, arrived in the Yavin system during the bombardment, and the Knight Hammer redirected some of its guns toward the approaching ship. As the Falcon evaded its fire, the Knight Hammer launched TIE fighters to intercept the smaller vessel. However, the Falcon outmaneuvered them and landed on the moon, where Skywalker assisted in repelling the Imperial ground forces. Meanwhile, Ming commandeered a TIE bomber and returned to the Knight Hammer, feigning damage to gain access to the Super Star Destroyer's rear bomber bay, which was still fully loaded.

Simultaneously, the Falcon, piloted by Han Solo, returned to space to make a run at the Knight Hammer. The Super Star Destroyer ceased firing on the moon and focused all its guns on the Falcon, launching four squadrons from its forward hangar to intercept the ship. At that moment, Ackbar's fleet arrived, consisting of the Galactic Voyager and four CR90 corvettes. As the New Republic forces forced the TIE fighters to retreat back to the Super Star Destroyer and provided cover for the Falcon, the Knight Hammer opened fire on the Voyager. Ackbar intended to delay Daala until New Republic reinforcements arrived, but before he could, Cronus and his fleet of Victory-class Star Destroyers entered the system to support Daala. Catching the New Republic ships by surprise, Cronus's fleet destroyed one of Ackbar's corvettes. The Knight Hammer began firing indiscriminately into the battle, accidentally hitting one of Cronus's ships. Another corvette was destroyed, and Cronus himself was killed when a damaged corvette rammed his flagship. The Galactic Voyager disengaged from the moon and headed toward the gas giant Yavin Prime, pursued by the Knight Hammer. As they approached Ackbar's vessel, Daala received a message from Pellaeon outside the system, where his ships had finally regrouped.

While the battle raged outside, Ming sealed off the bay she was in, preventing the Knight Hammer's crew from entering, and began rigging each bomber to automatically fire its concussion missiles into the bulkhead separating the bay from the engines. She then escaped the bay via transport tube, heading toward the ship's bridge. As she approached, the timer expired, and the bombers unleashed their payload. A series of missile explosions tore through the rear of the Knight Hammer, disabling its engines. Power throughout the vessel failed, a shockwave reverberated toward the bow, and the ship became inert, drifting directly into the gas giant. The entire rear third of the ship sealed off as life support systems failed and toxins leaked into habitable areas.

Among Daala's fleet, panic erupted as the Imperials witnessed the extensive damage to the Knight Hammer. Daala called for assistance from Cronus, but upon learning of his death, she was forced to reassess the situation. She realized that the Knight Hammer was beyond repair and doomed to fall into Yavin; furthermore, the rest of the New Republic fleet arrived, vastly outnumbering her remaining forces. Daala ordered an evacuation of the Knight Hammer. She remained behind as her bridge crew departed, leading them to believe she would go down with the ship, then headed for the command escape pods in her ready room. However, she was intercepted by Callista Ming, who intended to delay Daala long enough to ensure her demise with the ship. After firing her blaster at Ming without success, as her shots were deflected by Ming's lightsaber, Daala incapacitated Ming with a stun blast. As the Knight Hammer entered the atmosphere of Yavin, Daala evacuated the doomed vessel. Ming recovered and followed shortly after. The Knight Hammer, subjected to intense atmospheric friction and pressure, exploded as it plunged into the depths of the gas giant.

Although the Night Hammer was intended for Sander Delvardus, Natasi Daala was its first and only commander. Despite preferring a smaller command post, Daala believed that an officer of her stature deserved nothing less than a Super Star Destroyer. She employed the vessel as a psychological weapon, expecting its appearance in battle to demoralize the enemy. Her renaming of the ship symbolized the destruction she intended to inflict upon the New Republic and the Jedi, and Daala considered it a display of her sense of humor. The Admiral cultivated her image and mystique, allowing her crew to believe she would perish with the ship when it was doomed.

With a maximum complement of one hundred thousand, the Knight Hammer's crew was relatively small for a ship of its size. Despite the Imperial military's usual bias against females, Daala's command included female officers on the bridge crew. During her travels throughout the remnants of the Empire aboard the Super Star Destroyer, Daala was also accompanied by a detachment of Royal Guards.

The Knight Hammer was introduced in Kevin J. Anderson's 1995 novel Darksaber. Darksaber states that the ship is as large as the Executor, which in 1995 was considered to be eight kilometers long; the novel even explicitly mentions that the ship is eight kilometers in length. However, the size of the Executor and all ships of its class has since been retconned to nineteen kilometers.