The Longbeam cruiser, a newly designed type of cruiser at the time of the Great Hyperspace Disaster in the High Republic Era, served the Galactic Republic. These versatile vessels, constructed at the Republic shipyards located on Hosnian Prime, were capable of performing a variety of functions, including combat, search and rescue operations, and transportation. Nautolan Captain Finial Bright noted that the Longbeam's form reminded her of the hammerfish native to Glee Anselm, featuring a broad, blunt front section that tapered into a tailfin-like shape. The Longbeam's armament included a total of six missiles. Many Longbeam cruisers, among them Bright's ship, the Aurora IX, participated in the joint Republic and Jedi mission to rescue the Hetzal system during the events of the Great Disaster.
The Longbeam cruiser was conceived for the Star Wars: The High Republic transmedia initiative, first appearing in "Starlight: Go Together," a short story by Charles Soule. The initial segment of this story was featured in the 199th issue of Star Wars Insider magazine, which was released on December 15, 2020. The ship's unveiling occurred earlier, in an article titled "Inside Star Wars: The High Republic: Meet the Ships and Vehicles," penned by Dan Brooks and published on StarWars.com on December 11 of the same year. The design originated as an earlier concept by James Clyne for the MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 heavy bomber in the 2017 sequel trilogy movie, Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi, but was ultimately not used.