The HVs-2 hypervelocity gun, also known as simply the hypervelocity gun, and sometimes referred to as an electromagnetic gun, functioned as a stationary planetary defense system. It was employed by the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War to target orbiting spacecraft, including capital ships.
This weapon discharged super-accelerated solid slugs in rapid succession, achieving a rate of up to 120 slugs each minute, although firing durations were limited to a maximum of ten seconds. Fortifications against enemy bombardment included both ray and particle shield generators, which, along with the substantial power plant required to operate the gun and its generators, were situated underground for added protection.
The projectiles fired from the gun were designed to penetrate a target ship's ray shields before impacting and weakening its particle shields, which were specifically designed to mitigate slower, less frequent impacts. Once a vessel's shields collapsed, the slugs would bombard the armor, eventually causing breaches in the hull and subsequent loss of pressure.
Despite its power, the hypervelocity gun had a significant vulnerability. The particle shields would temporarily lower to allow the slugs to be fired, then rise again. Precisely timed missile strikes could exploit this opening, overwhelming the remaining ray shield and enabling subsequent projectiles to strike the gun directly.
Chiss Grand Admiral Thrawn oversaw the installation of a hypervelocity gun on the surface of Carida, where it was used in a conflict against the Zann Consortium.
As a concluding exercise for Operation Hammerblow, the New Republic Fifth Fleet utilized a hypervelocity gun located on the Core World of Bessimir.