Nebulon Ranger

The Nebulon Ranger, a starship of the Coruscant-class Heavy Courier type manufactured by Krasten Shipyards, was a relatively compact vessel measuring only twenty-five meters in length. Despite its size, it was heavily armed, equipped with four laser cannons, two concussion missile launchers (each holding up to eight missiles), two proton torpedo launchers (each holding up to six torpedoes), and a pulse-wave cannon, all managed from a gunnery station within the cockpit. For defense, the Nebulon Ranger had eight deflector shield generators that provided complete hull protection, though their high power consumption meant the deflector shields were only activated during combat, leaving the ship susceptible to surprise attacks. The Nebulon Ranger could carry up to twenty metric tons of cargo and enough supplies to sustain its crew for two months. Requiring a crew of two, it could also accommodate four passengers. The ship was designed with multiple sections, featuring two main engine arrays positioned on a right-angle frame, which allowed for easy engine separation and enhanced maneuverability without the need for maneuvering jets.

The ship's retractable wings, typically extended during hyperspace travel, were retracted for landing. The heavily armored main wing housed the fuel tanks, which supplied the ship's six AlderaanMotors power generators and engines. It also contained the Ranger's airlock and a sensor array pylon. Each wingtip had a retractable, rotating laser cannon, with a more powerful cannon situated at the base of the second engine array. The cockpit, located between the ship's forward mandibles, opened into the living and cargo areas in the center. The main boarding ramp and emergency escape hatch were located behind the cockpit, and three escape pods were mounted below the pulse cannon. An additional escape hatch was positioned on top of the ship, directly behind the main canopy. The Ranger's cargo bay was divided into several compartments and included life support, gravity, and atmosphere controls. Smaller vehicles could be stored in the bay, and a drop bay between the engines allowed for rapid deployment. To this end, short-range airspeeders were often carried in the cargo bay. The Nebulon Ranger was extensively modified by its owner, Jedi Knight Cay Qel-Droma, who equipped it with an improved hyperdrive and upgraded power couplings for increased sublight speed.

The Nebulon Ranger started as a common space transport before it came into the possession of Jedi Knight Cay Qel-Droma. Qel-Droma dedicated much of his free time to working on the ship, making numerous modifications, such as installing a new hyperdrive and enhancing the power couplings for better sublight speed. At this point, Qel-Droma, alongside his brother Ulic and their Twi'lek friend Tott Doneeta, was an apprentice under Jedi Master Arca Jeth. In 4000 BBY, while they were training on the planet of Arkania, Jeth assigned them a mission: to travel to Onderon, a world torn by a long-standing conflict between the aristocracy of the walled city of Iziz and exiled criminals known as the Beast Riders, and to bring peace. The group immediately set off in the Nebulon Ranger, journeying across the galaxy to Onderon. The Ranger crossed the orbit of the moon Dxun and circled the planet, eventually approaching Iziz. However, during their final approach to Iziz, the Ranger was attacked by a group of Beast Riders on their flying drexl mounts. Although Doneeta prepared to fire on the exiles, Ulic Qel-Droma forbade him from retaliating. Instead, they flew the ship directly through the swarm of Beast Riders towards Iziz without firing a shot, eventually landing at the Iziz Royal Palace after receiving covering fire from several Iziz defense towers on the city walls.

The three Jedi met with Amanoa, Queen of Onderon, and her daughter Princess Galia, but during their meeting, the same group of Beast Riders that had attacked the Nebulon Ranger on its approach to Iziz broke into the palace and kidnapped the Princess. Vowing to rescue her, the Jedi pursued the fleeing Beast Riders in the Nebulon Ranger. However, the Beast Riders launched a seeker-torpedo at the ship, which struck the Ranger before Tott Doneeta could activate the deflector shields. The torpedo caused significant damage to the Ranger, sending it into a downward spiral. With the lateral fins unresponsive and the systems computer offline, the ship crash-landed in Onderon's forests. However, the Jedi used the deflector shields to cushion the impact with the planet's surface, and although the lateral fins were damaged and the sublight transponder was lost, the damage was repairable. While searching for the Beast Riders, they discovered that Queen Amanoa and King Ommin of Onderon were dark-side cultists who worshiped the dead former Dark Lord of the Sith Freedon Nadd. The Jedi collaborated with the Beast Riders to devise a plan to end the Beast Wars—Galia and Beast-Lord Oron Kira, whom she had run away to marry, would join the Jedi on the Nebulon Ranger and fly to Iziz to attempt to peacefully persuade Queen Amanoa to end the war. If that failed, Oron Kira's father Modon would lead a large Beast Rider army against Iziz.

Cay Qel-Droma managed to repair the Nebulon Ranger in under a day, and the Ranger soon took off for Iziz, carrying Galia and Oron Kira, escorted by Beast Riders. However, the Beast Riders attracted the attention of the Iziz defense guns, which immediately opened fire on the ship and its escort. Cay Qel-Droma frantically contacted the Iziz Royal Palace, informing them that they had Princess Galia on board, which prompted the guns to cease fire and allow the Nebulon Ranger to land. Queen Amanoa rejected their peaceful proposals, and the Beast Riders subsequently attacked Iziz. The exile army won the battle, aided by the sudden arrival of Arca Jeth, who wielded battle meditation. Queen Amanoa died at the end of the battle, her dark-side power having abandoned her; Oron Kira and Galia soon formalized their marriage under the laws of the Galactic Republic, becoming King and Queen of Onderon, respectively.

In 3998 BBY, the Nebulon Ranger was involved in yet another conflict. The Freedon Nadd Uprising, in which Naddist cult members openly rebelled, plunged Iziz into chaos. In an attempt to reduce the remaining dark-side presence in the city, King Oron Kira and Queen Galia led a grand funeral procession through Iziz's streets, after which the sarcophagi of both Freedon Nadd and Amanoa would be moved to a new tomb on the moon Dxun. The Nebulon Ranger was used to bring in other Jedi to help quell the Naddist uprising, specifically the Vultan Oss Wilum, whom Tott Doneeta flew in from the Outer Rim. The Ranger landed during the funeral procession and was left unattended when Doneeta and Wilum went to meet the other Jedi present, including Master Jeth and the Qel-Droma brothers.

Although the Freedon Nadd Uprising was quickly suppressed, by the next year the Jedi faced a new threat, and the Nebulon Ranger was once again pressed into service. A Sith cult known as the Krath had risen to power in the Empress Teta system, and following an attack on a Jedi conclave that resulted in the death of Master Arca Jeth, Ulic Qel-Droma volunteered to go to Empress Teta and infiltrate the Krath, hoping to destroy it from within. However, Qel-Droma's friends and fellow Jedi, still in possession of the Nebulon Ranger, grew concerned about his well-being and decided to rescue him. Cay Qel-Droma, Tott Doneeta, and fellow Jedi Nomi Sunrider, who had romantic feelings for Ulic, subsequently traveled to Empress Teta in the Nebulon Ranger. They launched Sunrider onto the planet in an escape pod, hoping she could find a way to contact the wayward Qel-Droma. After Sunrider ejected in the escape pod, Qel-Droma and Doneeta hid the Ranger in the shadow of the Tetan Moon, awaiting a signal from Sunrider. Sunrider was soon captured by the Krath, but she escaped. Grabbing a comlink from a fallen guard, she instructed Doneeta and Qel-Droma to come and rescue Ulic. The Nebulon Ranger arrived from the Tetan Moon at full speed, killing several Krath soldiers with its laser cannons and finally landing in the streets of the Tetan capital city, Cinnagar, near Sunrider's location. Although they managed to contact Ulic, he refused to join them and even attacked them with the Force. Pursued by dozens of Krath soldiers and ships, they were forced to abandon Ulic and flee to hyperspace in the Nebulon Ranger. They subsequently returned to the Jedi world of Ossus in the ship to determine their next course of action.

The Nebulon Ranger was called into action again in 3996 BBY during the Great Sith War, where Ulic Qel-Droma, now a Sith apprentice, and his Sith Master Exar Kun led an army against the Galactic Republic and the Jedi Order. That year, a supernova caused by the destruction of the Cron Cluster of stars during the Battle of Kemplex Nine created a shock wave that was headed directly for Ossus. Knowing that the shock wave would obliterate all life on the planet and destroy Ossus' famed Great Jedi Library, the Jedi present, including Cay Qel-Droma, Tott Doneeta, and Nomi Sunrider, attempted to save as much Jedi knowledge and artifacts as possible in the limited time they had. The Nebulon Ranger was one of many ships involved in this evacuation. However, Exar Kun and Ulic Qel-Droma arrived on Ossus shortly after, intending to steal artifacts for their own purposes. Their arrival was witnessed by Ulic's brother Cay, who could sense Ulic's presence in his ship. Cay raced to the Nebulon Ranger and took to the skies, but Ulic was not receptive to his brother's greetings and tried to evade Cay's pursuit. However, Cay followed, targeting laser strikes at his brother's engines. Ulic proved to be the superior pilot that day, however, managing to get behind the Ranger and hit it with several precise blasts. Severely damaged and at risk of exploding, the Nebulon Ranger crashed onto the planet's surface, but Cay managed to escape alive.

Although Cay Qel-Droma's skilled piloting saved his life, the Nebulon Ranger was almost completely destroyed. His brother Ulic soon arrived at the scene, and the two brothers engaged in a lightsaber duel. However, Ulic proved too strong for Cay, and Cay was killed near the remains of the Ranger. Several hours later, the shock wave from the Cron Supernova reached Ossus, consigning the wreckage of the Nebulon Ranger to the same fate as everything else on Ossus. The wreckage was not completely destroyed however. The crumbling remains were still visible outside the Jedi Temple on Ossus during Luke Skywalker's exploration of the ruins during the events of the Dark Empire trilogy. A lasting monument to the tragedy of the Qel Droma brothers.

The Nebulon Ranger was owned by Cay Qel-Droma, who extensively modified the ship, transforming it from a standard space transport into a reliable vessel suitable for a Jedi. Qel-Droma regarded the ship as his most prized possession, dedicating much of his free time to modifying it. As a result, he possessed an intimate knowledge of the ship's inner workings and could perform major repairs in a short amount of time, as demonstrated after the Ranger was struck by a seeker-torpedo on Onderon. His brother Ulic also frequently flew the ship, including during their mission to Onderon. The Qel-Droma brothers were not the only ones to operate the Nebulon Ranger, however, as Tott Doneeta flew the ship alone on at least one occasion. Cay Qel-Droma was the last person to operate the Nebulon Ranger above Ossus in 3996 BBY, shortly before its destruction by the Cron Supernova's shock wave.

The Nebulon Ranger first appeared in Ulic Qel-Droma and the Beast Wars of Onderon, the initial story arc of the Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi comic-book series, written by Tom Veitch and released in 1993. The Ranger also appeared in the Freedon Nadd Uprising, Dark Lords of the Sith, and The Sith War story arcs. The ship was also featured in the Tales of the Jedi audio adaptation and the Dark Lords of the Sith audio drama. Three different artists drew the Ranger: Chris Gossett, who created the original design, Tony Akins, and Dario Carrasco, Jr.. Additional information regarding the Nebulon Ranger's history and technical specifications was provided in The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels, the Tales of the Jedi Companion, and the Power of the Jedi Sourcebook. In 2008, the Nebulon Ranger received its own entry in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia.