Imperial warbots were huge battle droids released to supplement Imperial ground forces following the Battle of Hoth. Although not considered as menacing as AT-ATs, they were nonetheless deadly—warbots played a crucial role in the Battle of Xeron, and were capable of fighting many foes at once using its blaster cannons. One damaged unit fell into the hands of Rebel Commander Luke Skywalker in 3 ABY, and was later unleashed against Imperial-aligned droids on Kligson's Moon.
A battle droid used by the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War, the Imperial warbot resembled a mobile turret, with treaded wheels, two clawed arms, and a rotating head equipped with blaster cannons. Several times taller than the average Human male, the warbots packed a significant punch, although Rebel troops did not believe them as fearsome as the All Terrain Armored Transports that pounded the Rebels on Hoth. Imperial warbots were far from invulnerable, and the skilled technician Kligson scorned what he saw as their shoddy craftsmanship, although they could be repaired rather simply using parts from similar machines.
A warbot crushes Z-X3's forces
A creation of the Imperial war effort in the months after the Battle of Hoth, Imperial warbots were in use against Rebel forces as early as 3 ABY, playing an important role in the Battle of Xeron. The effect they had against Rebel ground troops on Xeron brought them to the attention of the Rebel brass, which made capturing an intact specimen a priority. A damaged warbot fell into the hands of Rebel Commander Luke Skywalker not long after, prompting Skywalker to seek out the famed reclusive technician Kligson, whom he hoped could examine the droid and provide a full schematic. Kligson, a cyborg who oversaw a community of droids on the "Droid World" Kligson's Moon, accepted the offer on the condition that he be allowed to repair and keep the machine.
However, Kligson wasn't the only one with designs on the warbot. Although the cyborg had kept his moon officially out of the Galactic Civil War, his chief lieutenant, Zee-Exthree, secretly led a faction of Imperial-aligned droids that plotted to overthrow Kligson and deliver the "Droid World" to the Empire. Zee-Exthree also had come into possession of a damaged warbot, and hoped to use Skywalker's droid to repair their model and unleash it in their coup. However, they were outwitted and defeated by Kligson in the ensuing civil war, after the cyborg rebuilt Skywalker's droid and utterly destroyed Zee-Exthree's faction.
The Imperial warbot first appeared in Star Wars (1977) 47, written by Archie Goodwin and released in 1981. In the comic, the warbot was illustrated by Carmine Infantino.