Operation Take Down, occurring in 1 ABY, was one of the minor campaigns orchestrated by the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader. It was aimed at combating the growing strength of the Alliance to Restore the Republic. In the wake of the Battle of Yavin, amidst the broader Galactic Civil War, the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance fought fiercely for dominion over various urban centers across the galaxy. During times when the Empire held sway over cities like Bestine, Coronet City, and Theed, Darth Vader would arrive in his shuttle, the ST 321, at each of these three key locations. With a contingent of Triumphant-class dark troopers at his side, the Sith Lord sought to bolster Imperial support and enlist individuals for perilous missions targeting the Rebellion. Vader then enlisted a skilled group from the Imperial Special Forces with the task of tracking down and eliminating members of the Rebel Special Forces. These Imperial operatives then journeyed throughout the galaxy and successfully eliminated ten members of the Alliance Special Forces. These successful Imperial spacers were then reassigned to Operation Clenched Fist.
Operation Take Down was featured as a quest within the 2003 video game Star Wars Galaxies. This game was a massively multiplayer online roleplaying game created by Sony Online Entertainment and distributed by LucasArts. The game was shut down on December 15, 2011. The quest was incorporated into the game via "Publish 19," released on June 29, 2005.
During periods of Imperial occupation of Bestine, Coronet, or Theed, Darth Vader would periodically appear in those cities. Vader would present players aligned with the Imperial faction with up to eight distinct quests. Half of these quests were labeled "Combatant" missions, involving actions against Rebel non-player characters, while the remaining half were categorized as "Special Forces" quests, tasking players with actions against players aligned with the Rebellion. Operation Take Down was the second of the four Imperial Special Forces missions given to players by Darth Vader.