Halmad campaign

Prelude

In the year 7 ABY, Wraith Squadron adopted the guise of the pirate faction, the Hawk-bat Independent Space Force. They began to target the Imperial-aligned planet of Halmad. Their dual objectives were to cultivate a reputation as a formidable pirate group, thereby attracting the attention of Warlord Zsinj, and to exert pressure on Halmad's governing body to solicit assistance and protection from Zsinj.

The mission

First raid

The operation commenced with Ton Phanan and [Kell Tainer](/article/kell_tainer], pilots in disguise, instigating a brawl within a bar on Halmad. This mirrored a prior incident on Coruscant involving squadron members. Six Imperial pilots became embroiled in the altercation, and within a mere two minutes, all were rendered unconscious. Subsequently, the bartender alerted the military police, prompting the arrival of the remaining Wraiths, clad in military police stormtrooper attire. The Wraiths apprehended the incapacitated pilots and escorted them outside. Once clear of the bar, the Wraiths stunned the Imperials and lay in wait. Meanwhile, Castin Donn had strategically distributed funds at other establishments in the capital city, Hullis, leading to multiple calls to the military police that evening. The Wraiths then approached a military police skiff returning to Victory Base, falsely reporting that their own vehicle had malfunctioned. They were granted permission to board and were transported into the base.

Upon arrival, all Wraiths disembarked, with the exception of Shalla Nelprin, who remained concealed within the skiff. After the others reported to an officer, they deposited the Imperial pilots in an alley and proceeded towards their designated target: the starfighter hangar. Nelprin remained in the skiff until it reached the vehicle hangar. She waited for the pilots to exit before attempting to stun them. However, her blaster was incorrectly set, resulting in the deaths of both troopers. By this time, the other Wraiths had reached the hangar and neutralized the guards with stun blasts. Phanan and Garik Loran assumed their positions. After a five-minute delay, Donn successfully decrypted the hangar entry code, allowing the Wraiths to gain access. Unexpectedly, they discovered TIE interceptors instead of standard fighters. They swiftly commenced disabling the TIEs' security systems and adorning the hangar walls with graffiti celebrating the Hawk-bats pirate group.

Outside, Phanan and Loran became engaged in a firefight with a squad of stormtroopers sent to relieve them. The other Wraiths joined the fray, but some troopers managed to escape and report the Wraiths' presence. Wedge Antilles, the mission commander, instructed Donn to deploy one of the pre-planned diversions. Moments later, the base's antiquated air raid sirens activated, and the turbolasers commenced firing into the sky. This was Donn's ruse. He had successfully infiltrated Victory Base's archives and located an outdated simulation of an Imperial raid on the base. He integrated this simulation into the sensor network, causing the base's computer to identify them as hostile entities. The Wraiths with TIE interceptor training commandeered five of the Interceptors and launched into the atmosphere. The remaining Wraiths were collected by Nelprin in the hijacked skimmer. During their escape, the Wraiths in the Interceptors bombarded Victory Base's command center before heading into space. The other Wraiths abandoned the skimmer once outside the base and waited for the pursuit to pass before discarding their stormtrooper armor and casually returning to town.

Later raids

During the period when the majority of the squadron was away, those remaining at Hawk-bat Base utilized their time effectively. Kell Tainer independently devised a couple of missions, including a raid on the port warehouse district of Fellon. The Wraiths successfully acquired substantial quantities of Imperial propaganda and recreational holos.

Upon their departure, they strafed the city's marina, where numerous recreational watercraft—owned by affluent citizens and officers from Victory Base—were docked. Tainer estimated that the property damage resulting from their raid amounted to millions of credits.

Another operation involved an assault on a money-exchange facility situated in the city of Hullis. This site was frequently utilized by Imperials stationed on the planet.

The Wraiths initiated their operation by dispatching their slicer, Castin Donn, a day prior to the raid to compromise the building's security system. The following day, Tainer and Ton Phanan breached the building's side using their TIE Fighters and absconded with as many Imperial credit notes, coins, and gems as their TIEs could accommodate.

They were pursued by the planet's TIE Fighters, but the Wraiths managed to outmaneuver them, sustaining only minor damage to Phanan's fighter.

Operation Groundquake

Following a string of successful raids on the planet, Halmad's government initiated the construction of two starfighter bases—Fellon base and another located east of Hullis—which Wraith pilot Kell Tainer interpreted as an attempt to counteract their ground assaults. Commander Wedge Antilles subsequently determined that the Wraiths' next objective was to eliminate both bases. To further demonstrate their superiority over the local forces, Antilles declared that both missions would be executed concurrently. During the planning phase of the operation, it was nicknamed Operation Groundquake by Tyria Sarkin.

The first component of the operation was spearheaded by Tainer's group, which included Sarkin, Hohass Ekwesh, Myn Donos, Voort saBinring, and Castin Donn. They seized the refueling tanker Bastion—which Tainer had rigged to explode—along with its two TIE Fighter escorts. The plan involved piloting Bastion into the base near Hullis while Sarkin and saBinring provided cover in the captured TIEs. Once the tanker was sufficiently close, Tainer would transmit a message to the base's personnel, instructing them to evacuate before the tanker detonated.

Concurrently, the second group in the operation flew their TIE Interceptors and Fighters towards Fellon base to neutralize it. Led by Garik Loran, disguised as General Kargin of the Hawk-bats, the group consisted of Antilles, Dia Passik, Wes Janson, Ton Phanan, Lara Notsil, and Shalla Nelprin.

Unbeknownst to the Wraiths, the planetary government of Halmad had already accepted Zsinj's protection, and both assault groups found themselves ambushed by superior forces. The tanker Bastion was tractored by Zsinj's flagship, the Executor-class Star Dreadnought Iron Fist, before it could complete its mission. Meanwhile, Loran's group encountered three squadrons of TIE Fighters and Interceptors—led by the renowned 181st Imperial Fighter Wing—that unexpectedly emerged to defend Fellon base. Further complicating matters for the Wraiths, Tainer realized that their communication systems were being jammed by Zsinj's forces.

Undaunted, Tainer's group devised an escape plan. Tainer reoriented Bastion using its repulsorlifts so that the tanker's upper surface faced Halmad instead of the Iron Fist. They then evacuated in the Narra, which was stowed inside Bastion. Another tractor beam was deployed on the fleeing Narra, and Donos, using a modified sniper rifle, transmitted a stream of data into Bastion's communications array. Due to a hastily programmed sequence implemented by Donn, the tanker detonated, and the Narra managed to break free of the tractor lock.

Loran's group, on the other hand, downed several enemy fighters despite the unfavorable odds. When Phanan's fighter was shot down, Antilles issued the code phrase "Stormies," which served as the Hawk-bats' equivalent of the retreat order Omega Signal. Loran, however, was pursued by two TIE Fighters and was unable to join the others in their retreat. He successfully destroyed both fighters and, despite having the opportunity to escape, landed on the planet to locate and rescue Phanan.

Aftermath

Loran located Phanan, but the latter succumbed to his injuries and soon died on the planet, marking him as the sole casualty suffered by the Wraiths during the operation. After destroying Phanan's body to prevent the enemy from obtaining any evidence, Loran returned to Hawk-bat Base. There, the Wraiths discovered that Halmad had joined Zsinj's protectorate and, through a holomessage recovered by Donn, that Zsinj himself wished to meet with the Hawk-bats to discuss the terms of a potential alliance.