The PLX-1, also known as the PLEX rocket launcher or simply Plex, functioned as a missile launcher utilized throughout the Galactic Civil War by factions such as the Alliance to Restore the Republic, which evolved into the New Republic, and even the opposing Galactic Empire. Its design allowed it to penetrate deflector shields, and it was prominently employed by Rebel Vanguards.
Following the Battle of Yavin in 0 BBY, some vanguards armed with PLX-1s were part of a rebel cell under the leadership of Saponza and their partner. The 61st Mobile Infantry of the Alliance employed PLX-1s on the planet Sullust in 3 ABY, and also on the planet Troithe around 5 ABY. On Troithe, there was concern that stormtroopers equipped with Plex launchers might pose a threat to New Republic starfighters.
The PLX-1, alternatively referred to as the PLEX rocket launcher or simply Plex, was a missile launcher engineered to circumvent shields and engage targets from a considerable distance. While considered unwieldy and cumbersome by figures such as Captain Hazram Namir of the Rebel Alliance and New Republic, the launcher featured control labels and settings that could be adjusted to verify the PLX-1's payload.
During the Galactic Civil War, the PLEX rocket launcher saw action with the Rebel Alliance, which later transformed into the New Republic, as well as the Galactic Empire. It was particularly favored by Rebel Vanguards, who specialized in targeting concealed enemy starfighter traps using their PLX-1s, and also by stormtroopers.
In the aftermath of the Battle of Yavin in 0 BBY, Rebel Vanguards carrying PLX-1s were deployed by a rebel cell that originated on the planet Tatooine and expanded its operations to include the worlds of Dandoran, Er'Kit, Yavin 4, Hoth, and Takodana. The 61st Mobile Infantry of the Alliance utilized multiple PLEX rocket launchers. In 3 ABY, Captain Hazram Namir employed one against an Imperial airspeeder during the capture of the Inyusu Tor mineral processing facility located on the planet Sullust. Subsequently, Plex-equipped anti-air gunners were strategically positioned to defend against further airspeeder attacks during the Empire's counteroffensive just two days later.
Around 5 ABY, Plex missiles were deployed on the planet Troithe. During a reconnaissance mission, concerns arose that a stormtrooper armed with a Plex launcher might target New Republic starfighters. Later, a New Republic ground team was restricted to a single Plex launcher when defending against TIE/ln space superiority starfighters belonging to the Empire's 204th Imperial Fighter Wing in Troithe's Thannerhouse District.
The PLX-1 made its initial appearance in the 2014 mobile game Star Wars: Commander, developed by Disney Interactive, where it was identified as a PLEX rocket launcher. This missile launcher served as the signature weapon of the rebel vanguard, a breacher unit that could be unlocked and possessed abilities such as area splash damage, the ability to penetrate shields, and a preference for targeting hidden starfighter traps within enemy bases. The PLX-1 was subsequently referenced in the 2015 novel Battlefront: Twilight Company, penned by Alexander Freed. In Freed's 2020 novel Shadow Fall, the launcher was referred to as the Plex rocket and Plex missile. The PLX-1 bears a resemblance to the E-60R missile launcher featured in the 2004 Star Wars Legends game Star Wars: Battlefront. While Star Wars: Commander depicts the launcher as taller than its carrier, Battlefront: Twilight Company described it as being half the height of a man.
Within Legends continuity, the PLX-1 portable missile launcher was first introduced in the short story A Glimmer of Hope, authored by Charlene Newcomb and published as part of the West End Games roleplaying magazine Star Wars Adventure Journal 1 on February 1 1994.