Battle of Kattada

In 1 BBY, amidst the Galactic Civil War between the Galactic Empire and the Alliance to Restore the Republic, Princess Leia Organa, a prominent figure in the Alliance, endeavored to transport medical supplies vital for combat to the Rebels on Ralltiir, a planet under Imperial subjugation. She utilized the CR90 corvette Tantive IV for this mission. This journey took place during Operation Skyhook, a Rebel endeavor aimed at acquiring the plans for the Empire's colossal battle station, the Death Star, with the intention of destroying it. During the Tantive IV's time on Ralltiir, the corvette's crew, all loyal to the Alliance, rescued Basso, a wounded Rebel soldier who had evaded the Imperial forces on Ralltiir to contact Organa. Basso carried information hypno-imprinted in his memory, accessible only with specialized medical equipment not available on Organa's corvette. To address his injuries, Basso was placed in a healing bacta tank. However, Organa was unable to deliver the medical supplies to the Rebels due to the threat from Imperial forces led by Lord Tion, who intended to search the Tantive IV for any evidence linking Organa to the Rebel cause. Organa successfully prevented the search, and the corvette departed Ralltiir, its mission unfulfilled.

Seeking an alternative route to deliver the medical supplies to Ralltiir, Organa and the Tantive IV crew journeyed to Kattada, landing at its largest spaceport, Haleoda. There, Organa held a private meeting with Mia Ikova, Haleoda's elected leader, to request the assistance of Kattadan smugglers in transporting the supplies to Ralltiir. Ikova agreed, and the supplies were unloaded. Meanwhile, an Imperial landing party led by Commander Karg and Lieutenant Spilik hastened to intercept Organa and the corvette crew, acting on orders from Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader. The Dark Lord intended to detain Organa and her companions if they landed on any planet other than her homeworld of Alderaan. As Organa and the crew prepared to leave Kattada for Alderaan, a Kattadan soldier alerted them to the approaching Imperial Sentinel-class landing craft carrying the Imperial force. After the vessel landed near the Tantive IV, the Imperials attempted to detain Organa and the others. Although Captain Raymus Antilles armed the crew and troopers with blasters and manned the ship's turbolaser turrets, Organa initially sought a peaceful resolution.

Organa's hopes for a peaceful outcome were dashed when the Imperials attempted to arrest Ikova alongside the Tantive IV crew for aiding the Princess. Two Kattadan guards intervened to protect their leader, but the Imperials responded with a firing squad, killing the guards and injuring Ikova. Enraged, Organa, who would have surrendered peacefully had Ikova not been harmed, ordered the corvette's crew to open fire on the Imperials using the ship's turrets. This forced the Imperial stormtroopers and scout troopers to retreat to their ship, though Karg stood his ground and confronted Organa at blasterpoint as she attended to Ikova. Antilles directed one of the Tantive IV's turrets to fire upon Karg, severely wounding him and saving Organa's life.

On the Imperial side, Spilik prevented his troopers from returning fire on the corvette, recognizing that their blasters would be ineffective against the ship's armor. Instead, he ordered his men to board the landing craft and prepare its weapons and missiles for action. Meanwhile, at Organa's insistence, both Karg and Ikova were brought aboard the Tantive IV for medical treatment in the medical bay. Antilles reported that the fighting had not yet resulted in any casualties for their side but warned the Princess of the potential consequences if the Imperials managed to contact their fleet command.

This possibility led Organa to authorize Antilles to target the Sentinel-class shuttle's communications array and landing gear with the corvette's turrets, effectively crippling the shuttle and preventing the Imperials from calling for reinforcements. However, the shuttle's deflector shields remained operational, and Spilik, now the commanding officer, ordered them to be raised to full strength. Despite Antilles' recommendation to eliminate the Imperials, Organa insisted on moving the Tantive IV away from the immediate danger to attend to Ikova's injuries. The corvette landed a short distance from the conflict zone.

Aboard the grounded corvette, Organa, along with Mia Ikova's father and the Tantive IV's medical team, witnessed Ikova's final wish: that the supplies reach Ralltiir. Karg, after accusing Organa of causing his demise, also succumbed to his injuries. At the battle site, Spilik's Imperials fortified their position, removing landing pad panels to create trenches and preparing their artillery-class E-Web heavy repeating blasters for combat.

The landing craft's shields were fully operational, but the speeder bikes inside remained inaccessible due to a jammed hatch. A scout trooper reported the situation to Spilik, who questioned why their enemies had allowed them to entrench themselves without immediately attacking. On the Tantive IV, Organa consulted with Basso, who had recovered from his wounds sustained on Ralltiir, about the possibility of a ground assault on the Imperial positions. Initially hesitant due to the potential cost, Organa was convinced by Basso that it was the only viable option. Meanwhile, Imperial High Command had marked the patrol to Kattada as overdue, and the Imperial forces were awaiting the arrival of another patrol ship by midday.

Returning to the battlefield, the Kattadans, along with the Tantive IV's crew and troopers, resumed their assault on the Imperials. The Imperials responded to enemy blaster fire with their own, revealing their location. This allowed the Rebel-allied forces to reduce the Imperial ranks with a sniper volley. Before the Imperials could target and eliminate the snipers, the Rebel forces charged the Imperial position, while others, including Organa and Antilles, remained behind. Ultimately, Organa's forces overwhelmed Spilik's, resulting in the Lieutenant's death and the surrender of a small number of surviving Imperial troops.

Due to the Rebel-allied forces preventing the Imperials on Kattada from communicating with their superiors, the Empire failed to obtain definitive proof of Organa's association with the Rebel cause. Following the battle, the Kattadans assured the Tantive IV crew that the Imperial landing craft would be dismantled, and all traces of the battle would be concealed before the arrival of another Imperial patrol. Organa and her companions departed for Alderaan, hoping that the doctors on her homeworld could unlock the information stored in Basso's memory. After the Rebels learned of the Empire's massive Death Star battlestation through Basso's information, Organa was tasked with retrieving the Death Star plans from Rebels in the Toprawa system.

The Battle of Kattada was first depicted in issues five and six of the Star Wars: Empire series by Dark Horse Comics. These issues, released in 2003, comprised the Princess... Warrior story arc, written by Randy Stradley and illustrated by Davidé Fabbri, Christian Dalla Vecchia, and Digital Chameleon. Star Wars Miniatures: Ultimate Missions: Rebel Storm (2004) by J.D. Wiker included instructions for a game scenario based on the Battle of Kattada, playable with Rebel Storm characters. In this scenario, players control the Imperials and Rebels during their standoff. The Imperial player wins by killing Organa or successfully repairing their transmitter to call for help, while the Rebel player wins by defeating the majority of the Imperials or if none of the Tantive IV's crew attacks and at least one Kattadan survives. In 2008's The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia, the battle was first identified as the Battle of Kattada in Basso's entry. The battle was later referenced in 2009's The Essential Atlas, written by Jason Fry and Daniel Wallace.