The Kilji war cruiser, alternatively called a Kilji battle cruiser, represented a war cruiser class starship utilized by the Kilji species nation known as the Kilji Illumine. These cruisers, larger than Kilji picket cruisers and surpassing Chiss heavy cruisers in size, were armed with both spectrum lasers and missiles, protected by peace-sealing technology. Employed in ship-to-ship naval warfare, the Illumine's war cruisers were equipped with a standard engine, a [hyperdrive](/article/hyperdrive] system, and escape pods for emergencies. Generalirius Nakirre, the leader of the Illumine, commanded a Kilji war cruiser named the Whetstone. Another war cruiser, the Anvil, was under the command of Illumine General Crofyp and served as the flagship for his task force, which also included the picket cruiser named _Hammer_.
In the year 18 BBY, Nakirre formed an alliance with "Jixtus," a Grysk operative, who pledged to guide the Illumine's conquests of enlightenment within the Unknown Regions. The generalirius permitted the operative to travel on the Whetstone while they incited conflict among the families of the Chiss Ascendancy in the Unknown Regions, visiting several Chiss worlds and engaging with Ascendancy officials. Jixtus dispatched Crofyp's task force to the Rapacc system in the Unknown Regions, where the Kiljis attempted to seize a group of refugees hiding on the planet Rapacc. However, the task force was confronted by the Paccosh-commandeered Nikardun blockade frigate Aelos and the Chiss heavy cruiser Springhawk, preventing them from capturing the refugees. The Anvil was destroyed by the Springhawk, and the Hammer was forced to retreat.
Following the destruction of the Illumine's battle fleet, known as the Illumine Kilhorde, by the Paataatus Hiveborn nation, the Whetstone journeyed to the "Sunrise" system in the Unknown Regions. There, Jixtus killed Nakirre, deeming the generalirius useless without the Kilhorde. After Nakirre's assassination, the crew of the war cruiser fired the Whetstone's weapons at Jixtus's flagship, the FateSpinner, which prompted its commander to destroy his own warship and commit suicide.
The Kilji war cruiser, which was also known as the Kilji battle cruiser among the Chiss species, represented a medium-sized warship within the war cruiser category. These Kilji cruisers were propelled by engines and a hyperdrive, with the capacity to dock with shuttles. They included at least two Kilji escape pods on the bridge, positioned to starboard and portside, and peace-sealing technology that shielded their weaponry, including spectrum lasers and missiles. This sealing, removable by detonating a series of explosive bolts, covered the lasers and several missile tubes on the vessels' nyix-alloy hull. The hull was designed with shoulder and bow weapon clusters, along with electrostatic barrier nodes that generated electrostatic barriers to protect the warship's hull. The starships were also equipped with a comm system.
The war cruisers were longer than the Kilji picket cruisers, approximately two-thirds the size of a Chiss heavy cruiser, and significantly smaller (three to four times) than a Shatter-class WarMaster used by the Grysk species. As Kilji ships, the cruisers were engineered with a first-strike strategy in mind.
The cruisers featured a docking bay that opened into a vestibule, which led to a 30-meter utilitarian corridor made of cold metal and ceramic, followed by a hatch and a compartment resembling a child's playhouse. This compartment was decorated with patterns of pinpricks of colored chase-pattern lights and a thick, brush-topped carpet. It included a round table with a modern [multiscreen](/article/multiscreen] – a device with several screens displaying recordings – and six chairs. The war cruisers' corridors were illuminated by light globes.
The bridge, which featured a viewport, housed several stations: a helm, the pilot's chair, the navigator's station, the commander's station and command chair, and a table with a chair. Restraints were in place to protect the crew. The bridge also had speakers. Orange-rimmed doors on the starboard and portside led to the escape pods.
Kilji war cruisers could function in ship-to-ship naval warfare or as a [transport](/article/transport] vessel.
The Kilji Illumine, a nation of the Kilji species in the Unknown Regions, utilized the Kilji war cruisers. Illumine General Crofyp commanded the war cruiser Anvil, which served as the flagship of his task force, including the picket cruiser Hammer. Generalirius Nakirre, the Illumine's leader, commanded the Illumine Kilhorde battle fleet and the war cruiser Whetstone, which was the flagship of both the Illumine and the Kilhorde. Around 18 BBY, Nakirre allied with "Jixtus," a Grysk coordinator, who promised to guide a series of conquests of enlightenment in the Unknown Regions, carried out by the Kilji battle fleet. Nakirre allowed Jixtus to travel aboard the Whetstone as they instigated a civil war within the Chiss Ascendancy nation.
The Whetstone visited various worlds and systems in the Unknown Regions. In the Zyzek system, it encountered the Chiss heavy cruiser Springhawk and its commander, Senior Captain Mitth'raw'nuruodo, whose core name was "Thrawn." Nakirre engaged in a brief confrontation with Thrawn over the planet Zyzek. As Nakirre prepared his ship for combat, Zyzek System Defense intervened, leading the generalirius to leave Zyzek for the Ascendancy's planet Avidich.
There, Mitth family Patriel Thistrian ordered the Whetstone away. Jixtus complied, frustrating Nakirre, who believed they should have initiated an orbital bombardment of Avidich. The Grysk instructed the generalirius to bring the Whetstone to an unidentified star system in the Unknown Regions. Upon arrival, Jixtus summoned his Shatter-class WarMaster, the FateSpinner, and threatened Nakirre with its power to eradicate the Kilhorde and destroy the Whetstone, forcing the generalirius to obey his commands. After securing Nakirre's obedience, Jixtus had the Whetstone visit the Chiss planet Rhigar. The Grysk informed Captain Clarr'os'culry, known as "Roscu," that her family, the Clarr family, was in danger, inviting her to board the Whetstone for a private discussion. The captain, Nakirre, and Jixtus met in a meeting room to discuss the threat posed by the Dasklo ruling family. Roscu purchased a recording of Chiss vessels attacking a freighter and then departed.
Shortly thereafter, Jixtus dispatched General Crofyp's task force to the Rapacc system in the Unknown Regions, with orders to capture a group of refugees on the planet Rapacc. After traveling through hyperspace, the two cruisers under Crofyp's command reached Rapacc. Faced with the Nikardun blockade frigate Aelos, commandeered by the Paccosh species of the Rapacc system, the general directed the blockade frigate's commander, Commander Uingali foar Marocsaa, to move aside and allow his forces to retrieve the refugees; the Paccosh refused. This refusal prompted the Kilji general to position his ships for a cross-fire attack on the Aelos.
The Anvil moved past the frigate along its starboard side, and the Hammer did the same on its portside. However, as the Kilji ships moved into position, the Springhawk arrived in the outer system, firing two ship-disabling plasma sphere weapons at Crofyp's flagship before executing a microjump and joining the confrontation in the inner system. Thrawn commanded the Kilji commander to move clear of the Aelos, which he claimed as his prey, causing the Kilji to launch spectrum laser salvos from his war cruiser and picket cruiser in a fit of rage. However, the Kilji vessels failed to damage the Chiss heavy cruiser, and its plasma spheres soon disabled the Anvil while it shielded the Hammer to allow the smaller cruiser to escape. As Tildnis's ship fled, Chiss breacher missiles destroyed the Kilji flagship, and its navigator, Pathfinder Qilori, escaped aboard an escape pod.
After capturing Qilori, Thrawn brought the navigator aboard the Aelos and tasked him with using the Force to track down the remaining vessel. The blockade frigate's crew located the Hammer and boarded it, stealing Kilji data on the Kilhorde before leaving. One of Jixtus's Grysk warships destroyed the picket cruiser.
As the Kilhorde conquered several small nations south and southeast of the Ascendancy, it was later obliterated by the Paataatus Hiveborn nation after Thrawn shared the data from the Hammer with them. Nakirre and Jixtus continued their travels. Shortly afterward, the Whetstone traveled to the "Sunrise" system in the Unknown Regions, where it encountered a fleet of Kilji vessels under Thrawn's command. The senior captain confronted Nakirre via comm and revealed that his battle fleet had been destroyed by the Hiveborn, prompting Jixtus to kill the generalirius, as he deemed him useless without the Kilhorde.
As a battle between the Chiss's fleet and Jixtus's fleet erupted, Qilori, whom Jixtus had tasked with navigating the Whetstone, realized that as the FateSpinner fled the battle, it would pass in front of Nakirre's war cruiser, enabling the Grysk vessel to kill the Kiljis aboard. Qilori promised to guide the Whetstone's crew, consisting of Kilji vassals, Kilji followers of the Kilji way of order and enlightenment religion, until he could return them home, and commanded them to fire all of the Whetstone's weaponry at Jixtus's flagship. The Kilji attack disintegrated the FateSpinner's starboard aft flank, causing Jixtus to activate a self-destruct mechanism to destroy his vessel and commit suicide. Thrawn tasked Qilori with bringing Sarsh, another navigator who was navigating a Paccian troop transport within Thrawn's fleet, and the Kiljis to their respective homes after the senior captain disarmed the Whetstone.
Two Kilji war cruisers made appearances in the 2021 novel Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil, the second book in the Star Wars: The Ascendancy Trilogy authored by Timothy Zahn.