Lothal

"Look no further than Lothal if you want to see what happens when the Empire takes control of an entire world. The Empire shows up and makes people who have lived here for generations go into refugee settlements like Tarkintown... and then, to make things even worse, turns their family farms into strip mines to dig for ore and crystals!"

- From Sabine Wren's journal

Lothal was a planet in the Outer Rim Territories. It was in a state of economic disrepair and invited the Galactic Empire with the promise of prosperity and security. Despite welcoming the Empire, the Lothalians became disillusioned with the Empire's repressive policies and the pollution of their world. Several years before the Battle of Yavin, Lothal became the nesting ground for the Spectres, a small rebel cell which operated from the starship Ghost. After harrying Imperial forces and disrupting Imperial activities for at least a year, the Spectres eventually attracted the attention of Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin and Darth Vader, who tried unsuccessfully to stamp out these rebels. Darth Vader even imposed a blockade on the planet but the Spectres managed to slip through and rejoin the wider Rebel network in space.

Description
Lothal was located in the Outer Rim and was several minutes away from the planet Garel via hyperspace travel. The planet was home to several different types of environments including grassy plains, spine tree forests, farmland, mountains, and seas. Besides the administrative center Capital City, Lothal also hosted several other urban settlements including Jalath, Jhothal , Kothal , and Tangletown. Lothal was also known to contain several types of minerals including the scarce Kyber crystals.

Prior to the coming of the Galactic Empire, large areas of Lothal were covered by teeming spine tree forests and vivid farmland. The Empire established several factories and mines which polluted and marred much of the planet's previously pristine natural environment. Imperial meddling even disrupted the planet's varied weather, which had once brought natural wonders such as thunderheads rolling over its mountains and the sound of the wind. Even those who only knew the Empire still came to miss things such as the smell of jogan blossoms on the breeze since the Empire destroyed many orchards to make way for mines.

History
In ancient times, the Jedi Order established a Jedi Temple on Lothal, hidden beneath the planet's surface. The entrance could only be exposed through use of the Force. According to the Lothal Calendar, the planet was settled at least 3,245 years before Sheev Palpatine's rise to the position of Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic.

Following the emergence of the Galactic Empire, the inhabitants of Lothal initially welcomed the Empire's presence on their planet since Imperial investment seem to promise an economic boom for the Outer Rim world. However, some citizens began to resent the Empire's policies of restricting their freedoms. In addition, Imperial industrial plants and mines polluted the planet's skies and waterways. Besides exploiting the rich minerals including the scarce kyber crystals, the Empire also hoped to establish a new hyperspace route. The Empire also took over many farmlands and orchards to make way for Imperial mining projects. While some like Beck Ollet's family were compensated, others were violently evicted from their land. Governor Ryder Azadi was also arrested for treason when he supported rebellious broadcasts by Ephraim and Mira Bridger.

As the local population grew increasingly disillusioned with the Empire's policies, a rebel insurgency developed on Lothal. Their activities including planting explosives on Imperial mining droids and attacking Imperial personnel and facilities. One rebel cell was a three-man cell that included Beck Ollet, a young former Junior AppSci student who was angry with the Empire was destroying Lothal's orchards and murdering several unarmed protesters in the Westhills. Ollet's cell was captured after Imperial authorities managed to identify their landspeeder following an attempt to blow up an Imperial mining camp.

The most notable rebel cell to operate on Lothal were the Spectres, who lived on a modified VCX-100 light freighter called the Ghost. They were led by the former Jedi Padawan Kanan Jarrus and the Twi'lek pilot Hera Syndulla. The Spectres were part of a larger underground Rebel network. The Spectres waged a campaign of harassment and sabotage against the Imperial authorities. Some of their most notable exploits including ambushing Imperial convoys and stealing their supplies, sabotaging Imperial facilities and vehicles , infiltrating the Academy for Young Imperials , and disrupting the Empire Day celebrations. In addition, the Spectres distributed relief supplies to the displaced inhabitants of Tarkintown.

Following the disruption of the Empire Day celebrations and the exfiltration of the disillusioned Imperial Information Office employee Tseebo, Governor Arihnda Pryce ordered a planetwide crackdown on sedition and dissent. Under the direction of the Imperial Security Bureau Agent Kallus, Imperial cadets and stormtroopers were used to investigate illegal activities, round up criminals and their dependents, and to ensure that the population complied with all Imperial edicts. The Empire even made an unsuccessful attempt to arrest the Spectres with the help of the undercover Imperial agent Gall Trayvis at the Old Republic Senate Building. In response to the Spectres' insurgency, Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin visited Lothal to put a stop to the rebel insurgency there. After learning that the Spectres planned to hijack the main communications tower and use it to broadcast their own message, Tarkin devised a trap which succeeded in capturing Kanan.

However, Kanan's rebel associates staged a successful rescue with the help of members of the Rebel network. News of Kanan's rescue and the destruction of Tarkin's Star Destroyer Sovereign later trickled down to Lothal. Later, the Spectres returned to Lothal to rescue the defecting Imperial Minister Maketh Tua. However, this was a trap and Maketh was killed during an explosion, which was blamed on the rebels. In response, Darth Vader placed the planet on lockdown and several Imperial warships blockaded the planet. During the Siege of Lothal, Tarkintown was burned down to punish its inhabitants for accepting help from the rebels in the past. As a result of the Siege, the Spectres resolved not to return to Lothal to avoid endangering the planet's inhabitants.

Following the Siege of Lothal, Ezra's broadcast trickled down to the Imperial prison which housed Ephraim, Mira, and Ryder Azadi. Galvanized by hearing their son's speech, Ephraim and Mira staged a breakout from their prison. During the escape attempt, both Bridgers were killed but many prisoners including Azadi managed to escape. As a result of the escape attempt and his parents' deaths, Ezra experienced a Force vision which led him to return to Lothal with Kanan and Chopper. Their return to Lothal coincided with the departure of the Imperial fleet at Lothal for an assault on the Phoenix rebel cell's forces on the nearby planet of Garel. Shortly later, Ezra and his companions encountered Azadi and learned about the fate of his parents.

Society and economy
Prior to the coming of the Galactic Empire, Lothal was governed by a legislative body that was based at the Old Republic Senate Building in Capital City. Under Imperial rule, Lothal was ruled by a Planetary Governor who commanded the planets' armed forces and political affairs. Several years before the Battle of Yavin, Lothal was governed by Governor Ryder Azadi, until he was arrested for treason. Arihnda Pryce then became governor and was supported by several Ministers including Minister Maketh Tua and Assistant Vice Minister Sarkos. Lothal was also home to several Imperial government departments including the Ministry of Agriculture, the Imperial Agricultural Collective, the Transportation Ministry, the Security Ministry, the Education Ministry, and a substantial Imperial military garrison.

Known Imperial industrial operations including several mines in the Westhills, multiple Sienar Fleet Systems factories , and a BlasTech weapons laboratory in the Easthills near Capital City. Lothal was chosen by several Imperial corporations as a base since the planet provided plenty of open space for testing new spacecraft and weapons. These factories provided jobs for many of Lothal's citizens. Under Imperial rule, Lothal's previously self-sufficient farming communities were displaced as the Imperial Mining Institute evicted farmers to excavate their lands for metal deposits. Lothal's communications with the wider galaxy were handled by the main communications tower near the town of Jalath.

Lothal hosted several educational institutions including the Academy for Young Imperials, a one-year junior academy in Capital City that prepared Imperial cadets for further training offworld at senior academies throughout the Outer Rim. Other known educational institutions included the Technical Institute for Agricultural Research, the Pretor Flats Academy, the Junior Academy of Applied Sciences, and the Vocational School for Institutional Security. Schools and academies were used by the Imperial authorities to indoctrinate the planet's young people and to train them to contribute to Lothal's economic development.

The sports grav-ball was also popular among Lothalians and was played by two opposing teams. In the Lothalian version of the game, a grav-ball grid was divided lengthwise into eight zones, called octets. The team that won the chance cube toss started at the center of the grid. They had three drives to move eight meters into the next octet. If they succeeded, they got three new drives to continue for another eight meters. If they failed, the ball went to the opposing team, who played in the other direction. Grav-ball was played during the winter season and several schools fielded teams. One notable team was Junior AppSci's AppSci SaberCats, which won the championship several years before the Battle of Yavin.

Behind the scenes
"Where Ezra lives, where we meet him, the prairie that he lives on, the city, the town that it's adjacent to&mdash;all of that, literally down to what the alleys look like in the town&mdash;was inspired by Ralph's original art."

- Star Wars Rebels executive producer Simon Kinberg

After StarWars.com's reveal of the planet Lothal and its Sienar factory, a website called www.sienarfleetsystems.com appeared. It consists of only an image presented as an advert/propaganda poster for Sienar Fleet Systems on Lothal. This website has now been "vandalized" with pro-Rebellion graffiti.

Lothal's visual look is based directly off of concept paintings done by Ralph McQuarrie. These same paintings were used in The Illustrated Star Wars Universe to illustrate portions of Alderaan.