Xa Fel, situated within both the Core Worlds and the Interior regions of space, was an astronomical body of significance. It served as a critical location for Galactic Empire shipyards throughout the duration of the Galactic Civil War. Following the initial triumphs of the Rebel Alliance's 61st Mobile Infantry during Operation Ringbreaker in 3 ABY, General Crix Madine of the Alliance identified these shipyards as a potential target for future operations. By 5 ABY, the New Republic, which succeeded the Alliance, found itself in conflict over control of the Xa Fel shipyards.
In the galactic landscape, Xa Fel was an astronomical object that could be found where the Core Worlds and the Interior intersected. Its coordinates placed it in grid square K-9 on the Standard Galactic Grid.
Throughout the Galactic Civil War, a conflict between the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance, Xa Fel functioned as a key shipyard for the Empire. In 3 ABY, the 61st Mobile Infantry of the Alliance spearheaded Operation Ringbreaker, an offensive aimed at several smaller Imperial resource locations. The purpose of this operation was to weaken the defenses of Kuat Drive Yards, a major shipbuilding center, in preparation for a final assault. Alliance Intelligence monitored the campaign, and General Crix Madine, noting the initial success of Operation Ringbreaker, began compiling a galactic map of other significant Imperial shipyards, drydocks, and mining facilities that the Alliance might target. The shipyards of Xa Fel were included on this map under the designation "Xa fel," identified as a medium-priority target with low security.
This map, detailing Imperial industrial centers, was incorporated into an official document sent to Commander-in-Chief [Mon Mothma]((/article/mon_mothma) of the Alliance. Later, Hendri Underholt, an archivist, included it in The Rebel Files, a collection of non-electronic documents. Ultimately, Operation Ringbreaker did not reach Kuat Drive Yards. In 4 ABY, the Alliance transitioned and became the New Republic, continuing its fight against the declining Empire. By 5 ABY, the New Republic was actively fighting for control of the shipyards at Xa Fel. During a meeting with his new Imperial Shadow Council, Fleet Admiral Gallius Rax discussed the status of various Imperial shipyards, including those at Xa Fel. He reported that these shipyards were either contested or had been lost, and he emphasized the importance of Imperial assets in the Outer Rim Territories as an alternative. In 34 ABY, certain screens on the Star Cruiser Halcyon of the Chandrila Star Line displayed a partial map of the galaxy that showed the location of Xa Fel.
The current Star Wars canon introduced Xa Fel through a mention in the 2016 novel Aftermath: Life Debt, which is the second book in Chuck Wendig's Star Wars: The Aftermath Trilogy. Its first visual representation was as a map location in Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, an immersive role-playing experience at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, which opened to the public on March 1, 2022. The Xa Fel concept originated in the Star Wars Legends continuity, with its initial appearance in the 1993 novel The Last Command, the third novel of Timothy Zahn's Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy. It was first depicted visually in the 1998 LucasArts video game Star Wars: Rebellion, where the images used for it were also used for other locations.