In the year 14 BBY, a significant battle unfolded within the Phindar system. This conflict pitted the forces of Berch Teller's rebel cell against the overwhelming might of the Imperial military, commanded by both Moff Wilhuff Tarkin and the formidable Darth Vader. The Imperials successfully intercepted the stolen vessel, Carrion Spike, just as the corvette was in the process of docking with a tanker for refueling operations above the planet Phindar. Vader and Tarkin unleashed their Yellow Squadron, composed of swift V-wing starfighters, to assault the Carrion Spike. In response, the tanker deployed its own squadron of Aggressive ReConnaissance-170 starfighters with the mission of intercepting Tarkin's attacking starfighters. However, before the Imperial forces could effectively engage the Carrion Spike, the vessel executed a daring escape into hyperspace. Subsequently, the tanker met its end due to a malfunctioning fuel cell, resulting in the destruction of several V-wings in the ensuing explosion.
During the age known as the Imperial Era, a group of dissidents, spearheaded by the former Republic Intelligence operative Berch Teller, initiated an insurgency against the oppressive rule of the Galactic Empire. Teller and his followers harbored a particular resentment towards Moff Wilhuff Tarkin due to his involvement in the horrific Antar Atrocity. As an act of defiance, Teller's group managed to steal Tarkin's personal corvette, the Carrion Spike, which was equipped with both an advanced hyperdrive system and cutting-edge stealth technology. Teller's dissidents proceeded to launch a series of attacks on various Imperial installations situated along the strategic Perlemian Trade Route. Unbeknownst to many, their efforts were secretly supported by Vice Admiral Dodd Rancit, a rival of Moff Tarkin. Rancit, leveraging his position as the Director of the Naval Intelligence Agency, funneled equipment, surplus Separatist weaponry, starships, and vital intelligence to Teller's rebel cell.
Following a successful raid targeting TaggeCo's mining operation on the planet Lucazec, Teller brought the Carrion Spike to a tanker facility orbiting the planet Phindar within the Mandalore sector for a crucial refueling stop. Teller, adopting the alias of Commander Abel LaSal, seemingly convinced the tanker personnel to allow them to dock and replenish their fuel reserves. However, Tarkin had already deduced that Teller's crew would likely seek refuge at either Phindar or the planet Gromas, based on the Carrion Spike's specific fuel requirements and its last known location within the sector. Consequently, Tarkin and the Sith Lord Darth Vader personally traveled to Phindar, while an Imperial task force was dispatched to Gromas as a precautionary measure. Teller, aware of Tarkin's past use of similar deductive reasoning during his service with the Outland's anti-pirate taskforce, anticipated that Tarkin might correctly guess their need for refueling. Upon receiving information from Rancit that the task force was en route to Gromas, Teller concluded that refueling at the less strategically important Phindar would be relatively safe, assuming their modified transponder held up.
Having been alerted to the presence of rebels but instructed to allow them passage, the Phindian tanker facility's administrator promptly notified Moff Tarkin of the Carrion Spike's arrival. He informed Tarkin that the corvette had completed its refueling process and was preparing to disengage. While the administrator offered to deploy his workers and stormtroopers to confront the crew, Tarkin advised against taking any action that might arouse suspicion. Meanwhile, as a safety measure, Teller had planted an explosive device within a discarded fuel cell that was deposited in one of the tanker's storage bins on the starboard side. Shortly after the dissidents completed their refueling, Imperial forces emerged from hyperspace.
For this particular engagement, Tarkin deployed the escort carrier Goliath, the V-wing squadron known as Yellow Squadron, and Darth Vader's personal black Eta-2 Actis-class light interceptor. In response, Teller's Gotal pilot, Salikk, suggested executing a hyperspace jump beyond Phindar and its primary moon. Teller then instructed him to pilot the ship as closely as possible to the tanker while prioritizing the protection of the hyperdrive generator above all else.
As the Imperial fighters rapidly approached the stolen Carrion Spike, Tarkin briefed his pilots, emphasizing that their primary objective was to force the corvette to lower its deflector shields before engaging in offensive maneuvers. Their secondary target was the hyperdrive generator, located aft of the main guns along the corvette's spine. Protected by formidable deflector shields, the Carrion Spike maneuvered beneath the tanker and unleashed its lateral laser cannons, destroying two V-wings in the process. Despite Vader and Tarkin's attempts to strafe the Carrion Spike as it continued its run, they failed to inflict any significant damage.
The remaining V-wings, Yellows Three, Five, Ten, and Twelve, concentrated their fire on the corvette's command center as it executed its third loop around the tanker, but their efforts were thwarted by the vessel's powerful shields. As the aerial dogfight intensified, the tanker deployed six Aggressive ReConnaissance-170 starfighter of its own. Tarkin ordered the Phindian administrator to recall his fighters, but the administrator insisted on defending his ship. Tarkin then instructed the Commander of the Goliath to launch its proton torpedoes at the corvette as it made a run along the crest of the tanker hull.
However, before the Goliath could launch its attack, the Carrion Spike accelerated away from the tanker and headed directly towards the support carrier, unleashing a barrage of fire from all its weapons. The Carrion Spike also managed to shoot down the V-wings Yellows Five and Twelve. Subsequently, the Carrion Spike activated its cloaking device, frustrating the Goliath's gunners. The Carrion Spike then jumped into hyperspace moments before the tanker exploded, obliterating the six ARC-170 starfighters and singeing the tails of Yellow Squadron's remaining starfighters. While Tarkin and Vader managed to survive the encounter, their forces were reduced to just two starfighters and their escort carrier.
In the wake of the battle in the Phindar system, Berch Teller and his followers discovered that Tarkin had been tracking them using the ship's paralight tracker. To mislead the Imperials, Teller transmitted false coordinates, leading them to believe that the insurgents were headed towards the Obroa-skai system in the Inner Rim. As a diversionary tactic, Teller's fellow dissident, the information broker Knotts, hired a Koorivar captain and his ship, the Reticent, to travel to Obroa-skai as decoys, thus setting the stage for the events that would unfold in the Obroa-skai system. The dissidents also transmitted a brief holovid depicting the clash on the Imperial HoloNet, which was received by several local systems.
Meanwhile, the rescue and recovery efforts on Phindar revealed that the tanker had been destroyed by an explosive device concealed within a discarded fuel cell. With reports suggesting that Teller's dissidents had fled to the Expansion Region, Vice Admiral Rancit convinced Emperor Palpatine that the dissidents were planning to target locations within the Inner Rim. The Empire also deployed interdictor vessels leased from the Deep Core Security Zone to assist in the pursuit of the Carrion Spike.
The Battle in the Phindar system was first depicted in James Luceno's 2014 novel, Tarkin, which was the second installment in a series of new Canon adult novels published by Del Rey.