Project Necromancer was a top-secret biological investigation into cloning, initiated by the Galactic Empire. The goal was to elevate the concentration of midi-chlorians within an individual's blood, quantified as their M-count. The project's methodology centered on transferring the M-count while preserving the subject's original DNA, effectively achieving M-count replication.
In the early years of the Imperial Era, this research endeavor was under the guidance of Chief Scientist Doctor Royce Hemlock from the Advanced Science Division, operating from a secret base located within Mount Tantiss on the planet Wayland. The Galactic Emperor Sheev Palpatine himself deemed Project Necromancer crucial for the Empire's long-term survival. Trials were conducted using retired clone troopers, and Force-sensitive individuals served as sources in the quest for blood rich in midi-chlorians. Ultimately, the project faced indefinite suspension following an incident, leading Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin to redirect its funds and assets to Project Stardust.
Later, after the collapse of the Empire, its remaining remnants revived the project. Commandant Brendol Hux of the Shadow Council took charge of Project Necromancer when Grand Admiral Thrawn returned to the galaxy.
Project Necromancer represented a significant biological and cloning initiative undertaken by the Imperial Advanced Science Division. The central objective revolved around enriching an individual's blood with midi-chlorians during the cloning procedure. These midi-chlorians were obtained from a source with a high M-count, all while preserving the subject's original DNA. To overcome the challenges of directly replicating the M-count, a transfer binder was implemented.
Leveraging the cloning technologies developed during the Republic Era, Project Necromancer emerged as a valuable asset during the age of the Galactic Empire. Sanctioned by Galactic Emperor Sheev Palpatine, this clandestine cloning project was spearheaded by Chief Scientist Doctor Royce Hemlock of the Advanced Science Division, operating from their secret base within Mount Tantiss on Wayland. Emperor Palpatine recognized Project Necromancer's critical importance to the Empire's future and authorized Hemlock to utilize all necessary resources to achieve its objectives. Kaminoan Chief Medical Scientist Doctor Nala Se was forcibly relocated from Kamino following the destruction of Tipoca City to apply her expertise in service of the Empire by Vice Admiral Edmon Rampart under the direction of Palpatine's protege Governor Wilhuff Tarkin. To ensure her compliance, Hemlock took her medical assistant Omega hostage as a means of leverage.
Over a period of three months, Hemlock collected blood samples from clone prisoners, mirroring his practices at his initial laboratory on Setron, including Omega, to assess their suitability for transferring midi-chlorians from their original hosts. Nala Se, secretly aware of Omega's blood's potential to enhance Project Necromancer, covertly destroyed her samples to prevent Hemlock from discovering this. Eventually, when Emperor Palpatine made an unannounced visit to Tantiss Base to evaluate Hemlock's progress on Project Necromancer, Hemlock's assistant Doctor Emerie Karr was assigned to analyze Omega's sample in Se's place. Recognizing the danger Omega faced, Se urged her to escape. She also attempted to inform Omega about Project Necromancer but was interrupted by Hemlock before she could reveal the details.
While Omega assisted Crosshair in escaping from captivity, Hemlock and Se presented Palpatine with a series of specimen tanks in the vault. With Hemlock's assurances that they could achieve successful M-count replication given more time and resources, Palpatine pledged his support for Project Necromancer. As he was being escorted back to his shuttle, Palpatine emphasized the importance of maintaining the secrecy and security of Tantiss Base, fearing that many of his adversaries, including those within the Empire, would consider Hemlock's work an abomination. He then assured Hemlock that his efforts on Necromancer would elevate him to the esteemed position of scientific minister within the Imperial Science Bureau.
Immediately after Palpatine's shuttle departed, Hemlock learned of Omega and Crosshair's escape and dispatched a squadron of V-wings to pursue their hijacked Rho-class shuttle, as well as imprisoning Se for aiding in their escape. By this time, Omega's blood sample had tested positive for M-count transfer with no degradation from the specimen, as Karr informed Hemlock, prompting him to recall the squadron, allowing the two clones to jump into hyperspace. Now aware of Omega's significance to his work, Hemlock made her recapture his top priority.
Hemlock tracked the escaped shuttle to Lau, only to discover that the clones had stolen a cargo ship. Hemlock ordered the ship tracked, but this proved futile, as the clones abandoned it after reuniting with Clone Force 99, and made Omega's recapture a high priority to all his clone operatives.
CX-2 fortuitously located Omega with the Clone Underground on Teth while on a mission to assassinate CX-1. After reporting this development to Commander Scorch, who dispatched a division led by Commander Wolffe to assist him, CX-2 attempted to capture Omega but ultimately failed, as Clone Force 99 and the leaders of the Underground managed to escape Teth.
As a consequence of Se's recapture, progress in the lab stalled. No longer trusting the Kaminoan and recognizing her ambition, Hemlock reluctantly promoted Karr to Se's former position and granted her access to the vault, revealing a chamber where he was holding three Force-sensitive children captured by certain class one bounty hunters for blood sampling. As a result, Karr became increasingly disillusioned with the Empire after witnessing the cruel treatment her colleagues inflicted on the children.
Meanwhile, Governor Tarkin contacted Hemlock via hologram to inform him that concerns had been raised regarding the financial burden Tantiss Base was placing on Imperial resources and that the doctor had diverted additional funding. Hemlock informed Tarkin that the additional funding was for Project Necromancer which was classified was of personal interest to the Emperor and declined his offer of personal assistance after asking the Governor for the reason of this summons. Tarkin signed off after warning Hemlock that if Project Necromancer failed to yield Emperor Palpatine's proper results, it would not be a good omen for the Imperial cloning program and himself. Faced with the growing implications for his career, Hemlock contacted CX-2, who had acquired information from Ciddarin Scaleback about a pirate Omega was associated with, and warned him not to return without Omega.
Later on, CX-2 recaptured Omega after invading Pabu with the Advanced Science Division to force her surrender. Omega was subsequently returned to Tantiss, where Karr had her blood re-tested. Upon its confirmation, Hemlock transferred Omega to the room of the vault where the children were.
Project Necromancer was later threatened as Omega and the children managed to escape from their room in the vault through a weak point in the walls, releasing Tantiss' captive Zillo Beast in the process. Around the same time, Clone Force 99 arrived at Tantiss to rescue Omega. While Hunter, Wrecker and Crosshair were forced to approach Tantiss Base on foot, Echo managed to infiltrate the facility disguised as a stormtrooper and made contact with Karr, who offered to help him rescue Omega and the children. When the pair eventually find the children, Karr helped transport them offworld while Echo and Omega remained to rescue their squad, who were captured by Hemlock's clone operatives. In the process, they freed all the other clone prisoners, including Se and Rampart. The clones then infiltrated Tantiss Base's training room only to fall into a trap set by Hemlock, resulting in multiple clones being killed by his operatives.
At the same time, Se made her way to the lab to destroy the databanks and the collected blood samples, only to be confronted by Rampart, who forced her at blasterpoint to tell him everything about Project Necromancer and downloaded its data onto a datapad with the intent to use it to get his career back after Hemlock told him how vital it was and fatally shot Se, only for her drop a thermal detonator, killing Rampart and accomplishing her desire to free Omega.
Commander Scorch then reported the incident to Hemlock, who dismissed the loss as inconsequential after recapturing Omega again. However, Omega managed to release Wrecker's restraints, forcing Hemlock to cuff her to himself and flee. Hunter and Crosshair thwarted his escape by shooting down the CX Dagger vessel and killing Scorch, forcing Hemlock to threaten to sacrifice themselves, knowing the clones wouldn't risk hurting her. However, Omega stabbed in the leg with a hidden tool, allowing Crosshair to shoot the binders before he and Hunter fatally shot Hemlock multiple times and sent his corpse off the platform.
The surviving clones fled the planet, jumping to hyperspace before Tarkin's fleet arrived. Upon completing an assessment, Captain Bragg informed Tarkin of the heavy damage in various wings of Tantiss Base due to the escape of the Zillo Beast, the demise of Hemlock and several other troopers from the Advanced Science Division as well as the destruction of the databanks upon being asked by the Governor if any of his research was salvageable. Deciding that Hemlock's failings had cost them enough, he ordered Bragg to shutter Tantiss Base indefinitely and redistribute all funds and remaining assets to his rival Commander Orson Callan Krennic's Project Stardust.
During the time of the New Republic, the surviving remnants of the Empire resumed the unfinished work on the defunct Project Necromancer. Captain Gilad Pellaeon mentioned Project Necromancer being delivered as well as the herald of the reemergence of the Imperial Military upon the return of his superior Grand Admiral Thrawn in a meeting with the Shadow Council. Commandant Brendol Hux replaced Hemlock as the leader of Project Necromancer and discussed how its old aim of cloning will introduce new leadership to the Imperial remnants.