Gladiator-class Star Destroyer

The Gladiator-class Star Destroyer was a smaller type of Star Destroyer, sharing a similar keel design with the Broadside-class cruiser. A prominent ventral bulge on its hull appeared to house the primary reactor, but also served as a mounting point for several weapon emplacements. The vessel was equipped with two primary thrusters and lacked any readily apparent secondary thrusters.

Its arsenal included a variety of capital-grade torpedo or concussion missile launchers, as well as turbolaser batteries. Automated loading systems, controlled from a console located near the conveyor belt that supplied munitions, fed torpedoes into launching bays situated deep within the ship.

The total armament consisted of a dozen dual light turbolasers, ten medium laser cannons for point defense, ten medium assault concussion missile launchers, and eight tractor beam projectors. These weapons were organized into 6 turbolaser batteries, 3 laser batteries, 2 missile batteries, and 3 tractor beam batteries.

A defining characteristic of this Star Destroyer class was its substantial hangar bay. This bay featured an opening at the bow of the ship, which bifurcated the forward superstructure, a design reminiscent of the Broadside-class. The hangar's ample space allowed multiple starfighters to simultaneously enter or exit. Typically, a complement of 24 fighters was carried to project power and intimidate less developed worlds. The vessel also accommodated 5 AT-ST walkers, along with various shuttles and landing craft.

The Empire utilized two distinct variants of the Gladiator: the Gladiator I- and Gladiator II-class Star Destroyers.

The Gladiator-class was initially conceived during the era of the Clone Wars as a dedicated escort ship within the Republic Navy, intended to support larger warships such as the Victory-class Star Destroyer. Walex Blissex of Rendili StarDrive created the original design. However, the design was not finalized until after the Clone Wars concluded. As the Republic transformed into the Empire, the larger Imperial I-class Star Destroyer became the primary capital ship, rendering escorts unnecessary, and the Victory- and Venator-class ships were phased out. Consequently, the need for the Gladiator-class escort ship diminished, and the project was transferred to Kuat Drive Yards.

Kuat Drive Yards subsequently repurposed the design, transforming the class into a long-range patrol vessel. These ships possessed sufficient troops, fighters, and firepower to suppress local pirate groups and planetary defense forces operating in the outer regions of the galaxy. In essence, it became a platform for independently projecting Imperial power onto less strategically vital worlds, where deploying larger, more expensive Imperial-class vessels would have been excessive. However, as the Rebellion began deploying more powerful warships, smaller Imperial vessels like the Gladiator-class found themselves at a disadvantage.

The Demolisher, a ship of this class, served as the flagship for Imperial Admiral Terrinald Screed during his assignment in the Roon system. Around 15 BBY, prior to the Battle of Tammuz-an, the pirate leader Gir Kybo Ren-Cha and his crew stole the Demolisher from an Imperial repair facility. They then employed it in an attack on the planet Tammuz-an with the aim of plundering its wealth, but they were ultimately defeated, and the ship was rendered inoperable.

Numerous other Gladiator-class Star Destroyers fell into the hands of pirates. On the black market, a ship of this class was valued at 34 million credits.

In 2 BBY, at least one Gladiator-class Star Destroyer was stationed to protect the Timira City Cloning Facility on Kamino, and it subsequently participated in a battle against the emerging Alliance Fleet.

During the Galactic Civil War, the shipyard facilities orbiting Lianna were utilized for the maintenance of a Gladiator-class ship.

The Blood Ambition, a Gladiator-class ship, along with two Raider I-class corvettes, formed a force that attacked the planet Xorrn and engaged a Rebel fleet in combat.

Despite its appearance as one of the earliest Star Destroyer classes in official media, the Gladiator-class did not receive its official designation until 2008, when its profile was featured in The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide. Prior to this, fans had commonly referred to the class by the name of its only known vessel, the Demolisher. In the Droids animated series, the Demolisher appeared to fire its turbolasers from the ventral dome. The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide specifies the starship's length as 500 meters, while Friends Like These indicates a length of 600 meters.