The Harbinger was a sizable, experimental landing ship. It was conceived to seize and maintain control of planets for the Confederacy of Independent Systems during the Clone Wars. The Geonosians specifically constructed it for Count Dooku, who was the leader of the Confederacy. This ship was remarkably efficient, deploying armies in mere minutes. Furthermore, its enhanced light drive made it ideally suited for invading unsuspecting star systems.
During a battle on Alaris Prime, which occurred during the Dark Reaper crisis within the Clone Wars, the Harbinger saw action. The Separatists used it to take control of the moon. However, Jedi Anakin Skywalker destroyed it, employing a TX-130 Saber-class fighter tank.
The Geonosians built the Harbinger as a custom landing ship for Count Dooku, the leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Envisioned as a large, experimental vessel for conquering and holding planets, the ship had a supercharged light drive. This made it perfect for invading vulnerable star systems. Seven power cores were located on its underside. Brown in color, it could deploy Ground Armored Tanks from its two cargo bays. It also had capacity for multiple squadrons of tanks and walkers. Its compartmentalized design allowed it to deploy armies in mere minutes.
Twelve large turrets were positioned around the ship's exterior, along with numerous ion cannons. It also featured a prismatic turbolaser capable of firing continuous beams in several directions simultaneously.
In 21.9 BBY, a month following the Battle of Geonosis (the event that ignited the Clone Wars between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems), Dooku and the Separatist Droid Army employed the Harbinger to invade the moon of Alaris Prime within the Kashyyyk system. Dooku had recently captured the Jedi Anakin Skywalker on Raxus Prime. He then transported Skywalker to Alaris to evaluate the Force Harvester, an ancient Sith artifact. This device extracted the Force from living beings, using that energy to power the Dark Reaper superweapon.
However, Skywalker successfully escaped and contacted the Republic. His Padawan's Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, soon arrived on the moon with Republic reinforcements. Together, they defended a nearby Wookiee village. After routing the Separatist forces, the two Jedi ventured into a canyon aboard TX-130 Saber-class fighter tanks to locate and neutralize the source of the droid army.
While navigating the canyon, the Jedi encountered the Harbinger, which initiated an attack with its prismatic turbolaser. As the Jedi continued their assault on the ship, Ground Assault Tanks emerged from the Harbinger's cargo bays. Skywalker ultimately prevailed, using his fighter tank to obliterate the main turbolaser, triggering the Harbinger's destruction.
The Harbinger appears in the 2002 video game Star Wars: The Clone Wars, developed by Pandemic Studios. In the game, the ship served as the final boss in the level titled "Mission 10: The Liberation of Kashyyyk."