Significant aspects of the ship included five primary thrusters and four sensor globes, distinguishing the design from the three primary thrusters and two globes of Imperial-class Star Destroyers. Also unlike the more common Star Destroyers, the main reactor was small enough relative to the rest of the ship to not protrude from the ventral hull. Additionally, the ship had extensive armor plating compared to smaller vessels.
Some time after Yavin, the Sith Lord Darth Vader used a battlecruiser as his flagship while the Star Dreadnought Executor was being constructed in the Fondor system. The vessel participated in the blockade of the Yavin system and would also ferry Vader to numerous galactic locations.
Captain Wermis served as commanding officer under Vader and was in charge when the Dark Lord was not on-board. He managed to capture the Millennium Falcon during a mission to Monastery, but subsequently lost it due to his incompetence.