Within the annals of the Galactic Civil War, a conflict that pitted the Galactic Empire against the Alliance to Restore the Republic, the Emperor's Will emerges as a significant vessel. This Star Galleon-class frigate, under the authority of the Imperial Taxation Bureau, operated in 0 ABY. In that year, this ship embarked on a voyage to the planet Esseles, transporting a substantial cargo valued at 400 million credits. Escorting it was the Imperial Navy's Zaff Jendinpurg, an EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate. En route, the Far Orbit, an Alliance-aligned Nebulon-B frigate operating as a privateer vessel, intercepted them. The Zaff Jendinpurg was destroyed during the encounter, and subsequently, the Far Orbit captured the cargo intended for Esseles. To safeguard its valuable contents, the Emperor's Will jettisoned its ejectable cargo bay pod, but the Far Orbit successfully seized the pod.
Constructed by Kuat Drive Yards, the Emperor's Will was a Star Galleon-class frigate with a length of 300 meters. For interstellar travel, it was equipped with a Class 2 primary hyperdrive and a Class 15 backup. The frigate also featured sensors, deflector shields, and a navigation computer. Its offensive capabilities included ten turbolaser cannons, distributed evenly on each side, and a concussion missile launcher at the front. The vessel carried 50 concussion missiles and sufficient blaster gas for 1,000 shots from its laser cannons. Additionally, it was fitted with braking thrusters and six engines.
The ship had a cargo capacity of 100,000 metric tons, and could sustain a crew of 130 and twenty gunners for three months. The Emperor's Will could accommodate 300 passengers, typically soldiers, and could operate with a reduced crew of fifty and ten gunners. Its armor was comparable to that of a cruiser, and the crew could reconfigure sections of the interior from the bridge to deter pirates or other intruders. Internal defenses included blaster slits and gas dispensers. The cargo bay was designed to be ejected, automatically initiating a jump to a random location selected from a pool of hundreds of coordinates. The ejected pod emitted a hypertransceiver signal for tracking and would remain at its destination for a variable time before jumping again.
During the Galactic Civil War, around 0 ABY, the Imperial Taxation Bureau of the Galactic Empire deployed the Emperor's Will. In that year, the frigate embarked from the Arkanis sector to Esseles in the Ringali Shell region. It was accompanied by the Imperial Navy's EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate Zaff Jendinpurg, and its cargo, valued at 400 million credits, consisted of precious metals, minerals, spices, and valuable artwork, all derived from taxes collected from primitive worlds in the Outer Rim Territories of the galaxy. Specifically, the cargo hold contained a variety of gems including Bothan Glitterstones, chrysopazs, crystalline vertices, diamonds, emeralds, Gallinorean rainbow gems, a Jasse heart, kuggerags, a nova crystal, Quella gems, sapphires, and Sasho gems; among the treasure was also a single Corusca gem which had unique tracking properties. Furthermore, the Emperor's Will carried a Jorallan opal necklace, as well as matched pairs of Lalmy'ashian pearl necklaces and earrings. As for spices, the cargo included Andris, Carsunum, and ryll kor. The cargo's weight was significantly below the ship's maximum capacity, and a company of Imperial stormtroopers was also onboard.
During its uninterrupted hyperspace journey, the Emperor's Will, along with its escort, was abruptly forced back into realspace near the Ringali Nebula. This interruption was caused by asteroids strategically placed in their path by the EF76 Far Orbit, a privateervessel serving the Alliance. The Far Orbit had learned of the Emperor's Will's route after some of its crew had obtained a datacard with the information from an Alliance contact on Brentaal IV.
Under the command of Captain Dhas Fenoep Vedij, the Far Orbit attacked the Emperor's Will's escort, which had already been weakened by the unexpected exit from hyperspace. Caught completely off guard, the Star Galleon-class frigate's escort was destroyed, despite its attempts to launch its full squadron of TIE Series starfighters to engage the Far Orbit. The Emperor's Will then engaged the Far Orbit, firing its concussion missile launcher, before trying to retreat from the battle and jump into hyperspace once again. The attempt, however, left the Emperor's Will's unarmed aft open to attack, which the Far Orbit capitalized on. The damage dealt by the privateering vessel prevented the Imperial frigate from jumping, leaving it to re-engage the enemy, and the captain of the Emperor's Will tried to attack the Far Orbit on its side, where it was more vulnerable. Realizing defeat was inevitable, the captain of the Emperor's Will initiated a final maneuver to release the ship's cargo pod, hoping to deny it to the privateers.
Explosive charges split the hull apart across the long axis, releasing the cargo pod, which tried to escape, to no avail. The Far Orbit captured the pod, and stole the treasures contained within. Following the loss of the Emperor's Will's cargo, Vocis Kenit, the Imperial captain responsible for tracking the Far Orbit, was executed by Emperor Palpatine for his failure to intercept the privateers. The Corusca gem hidden away in the cargo hold the privateers had captured possessed unique tracking values that Kenit wished to use to catch the Far Orbit with, but the secret of the gem died with him.
At the time of its encounter with the Far Orbit, the Emperor's Will was commanded by a captain. The Imperial frigate was crewed by a 150 people, including twenty gunners. At skeleton crew, the ship could run with fifty crew and ten gunners.
The Emperor's Will was initially introduced in 1998's The Far Orbit Project, authored by Timothy S. O'Brien. It featured in several adventure scenarios within the book, including the concluding scenario, The Grand Prize. The Far Orbit Project served as a supplement to West End Games's Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game, sharing thematic elements with its predecessor, Pirates & Privateers, by focusing on the privateering vessel Far Orbit. The frigate was the final objective for the Far Orbit in the provided adventure scenario. The capture of the Emperor's Will is the suggested spot where the Far Orbit finishes its campaign in the Ringali Shell.
In the battle with the privateering vessel, the Emperor's Will can be disabled by the privateers, as they do not want the treasure to be destroyed, in numerous ways. Precision fire against the engines, ion cannon fire against the main hull if the Far Orbit has acquired those, or even attaching itself to the Imperial frigate with its tractor beams to prevent it from escaping would work, though the ultimate path is up to the players. The players can also choose to board the Emperor's Will, though the stormtroopers will resist; The Far Orbit Project mentions that if the gamemaster wishes to kill Vedij off, the boarding of the Emperor's Will would be an ideal place, as long as the death is heroic. The adventure scenario contradicts itself on how many passengers the Emperor's Will could hold, as it said the amounts of both 150 and 300. However, this article assumes the correct number is 300, as it is the number backed up more.
The gamemaster can calculate the total value of the treasure in order to adjust it to personal and player preference, as well as the size of the roleplaying campaign. They can also add additional rare items to the cargo hold of the Emperor's Will if they want to prolong the Far Orbit's campaign against the Empire.