Battle of Hoth/Legends

"No one ever complained about the cold on Hoth. We never felt it. Even though we were blinded by blizzards, we could see the final end of the Rebellion in our blaster sights. Was it only a mirage? Perhaps; but on that day, on that planet, our blood ran hot with dreams of victory, melting the ice that stood in our way."

- Unknown 501st Legion stormtrooper

The Battle of Hoth was a major event and a major victory for the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War. The battle was an offensive by the Galactic Empire aimed at destroying the Rebel Alliance's Echo Base hidden on the remote arctic world Hoth. The base's location was compromised when a viper probe droid deployed by Darth Vader landed on Hoth. When the fleet commanded by Admiral Kendal Ozzel entered the Hoth system, the Admiral inadvertently alerted the Alliance of the Imperial's presence, giving the Rebels time to prepare for the necessary evacuation and raise the planetary shield.

The Imperial attack force consisted of primarily AT-AT walkers, commanded by Major General Maximillian Veers. His army was tasked with destroying Echo Base's main power generator to allow orbital bombardment of the planet. Spearheading the defense of the generator was the elite Rogue Squadron, manning snowspeeders, commanded by Luke Skywalker, renowned for being the pilot who destroyed the first Death Star. The snowspeeders did not have the necessary firepower to bring down the walkers, so Skywalker suggested an alternative tactic to trip up the walkers with the tow cables issued to every snowspeeder.

Despite the efforts by Rogue Squadron, the power generator was eventually destroyed by Veers. The remaining base personnel proceeded to evacuate, as the 501st Legion, led by Darth Vader, entered the base. It would prove a major victory for the Galactic Empire, and would heavily stymie the Rebels. The Alliance's loss was so great at the time, at least one member of the 501st Legion considered the Battle of Hoth to be the end of the rebel movement.

Prelude
"My men and I spent long, arduous hours setting up the perimeter defenses, doing what we could in case we were ever found here. Then this morning Captain Solo made scrap out of an Imperial probe droid that slipped past our proximity sensors&hellip; We knew they'd be coming&mdash;and we were ready for them."

- Corporal Jobin

Following the Rebel Alliance's major victory at Yavin, Imperial forces struck back, and forced the Rebellion to abandon their base on Yavin 4. A holocron created by Bail Organa, one of the founders of the Rebel Alliance, contained a list of possible hideouts in the event that the Yavin 4 base was lost. This list led the Rebellion to the "graveyard world" Boz Pity, but the Empire quickly discovered this base and forced the Rebellion to abandon Boz Pity as well.

Despite the loss of both the Yavin 4 and Boz Pity bases, around 1 ABY, Hoth was chosen by Luke Skywalker as the Rebellion's new main base after being stranded on the planet for a period of time. During an assault on Zaloriis City to punish the Zaloran separatists, Lord Darth Vader and General Maximilian Veers discovered archives of the library which showed the new location to be somewhere near Elrood.

Preparations
"Make ready to land our troops beyond their energy field, then deploy the fleet so that nothing gets off the system. You are in command now, Admiral Piett."

- Darth Vader to Firmus Piett

Vader's personal Death Squadron fleet reached the Hoth system, following a chance discovery made by a Viper probe droid, which was later destroyed by Han Solo. Their discovery turned out to be the main base of the Rebel Alliance, located on the sixth planet of the system. To oversee the vital assault on the heart of the Rebellion, Grand General Malcor Brashin and his talented second-in-command General Brenn Tantor were summoned to the Hoth system.

Lord Vader and many of his top officers had planned a sneak attack, jumping out of hyperspace at some distance from the planet and taking advantage of the fact that the meteor activity made it difficult for the Rebels to spot approaching ships. They would then initiate limited long-range orbital bombardment to destroy any spacecraft and defenses, followed by a sweeping ground assault to capture any survivors.

The plan would have likely allowed the Imperials to easily take the planet with few casualties. However, Admiral Kendal Ozzel made his own assault plan, and exited hyperspace close to the star system planning for a saturated bombardment. This tactical blunder allowed the Rebel's early-warning sensors to detect the fleet. The theater shield protecting Echo Base was activated, which precluded any undesirable bombardment. An angry Darth Vader executed the Admiral with Force Choke for his incompetence and promoted Firmus Piett, then chief fleet captain of the Star Dreadnought Executor, to Admiral.

Having assessed the situation, Vader ordered General Veers to land beyond the range of the energy shield and begin a surface assault aimed at knocking out the Rebels' power generator and thus bringing down the shield, while Death Squadron took up a blockade formation in an effort to prevent any fleeing Rebel starships from escaping. Veers would command the situation on the ground while Tantor oversaw the entire engagement and issued Veers's orders from orbit via the Battlefield Holographic Control Interface.

Various landing craft deposited the Imperial landing force at the Moorsh Moraine. The Imperial landing force, dubbed Blizzard Force, consisted of several battalions of cold-weather equipped 501st Legion Stormtroopers (known as Snowtroopers), some squads equipped with heavy repeating blasters. This infantry force was carried aboard AT-AT and A5 Juggernaut transports, which in turn were supported by AT-PT, AT-ST and AT-AR walkers, and with Viper probe droids providing extra sensory-support. This mechanized force was deployed by several Y-85 Titan dropships, and larger landing assault craft.

The Alliance employed T-47 snowspeeders, light aircraft modified for arctic combat conditions led by the elite Rogue Squadron. Ground troops were armed with A280 blaster rifles and several types of artillery emplacements, including DF.9/B anti-infantry laser batteries and the Clone Wars-era P-Tower anti-vehicle laser cannons.

A large ion cannon, the v-150 Planet Defender, provided fire support for the leaving transports, successfully disabling the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Tyrant long enough for the first evacuating Rebel Transport, Quantum Storm, to successfully escape. Like all their defenses, the Rebels' ion cannon was remotely hooked up to the stolen reactor equipment of a Praetor-class Star Battlecruiser, feeding more power to Echo Base's defenses than the previous stolen Star Destroyer reactor had done to their Massassi Base. This enabled the Rebel forces to withstand bombardment from even a top-of-the-line Star Dreadnought like the Executor. To protect the interior of the base, Rebel troops employed small repulsorsleds, each armed with a blaster cannon, to form the last line of defense against the Empire's troops.

Imperial offensive
"There is no tomorrow, men. Today, we crush the Rebellion, once and for all."

- Unnamed Imperial officer during the Battle of Hoth

The Imperial assault was primarily aimed at destroying the Rebel's main power generators. This would shut down the theater shield protecting the base from orbital bombardment. General Veers led the assault personally, commanding his AT-AT walker, and crushed the Rebel defenses.

The Imperials suffered casualties before the battle even begun. Blizzard 4 had attempted to make its way through the Kerane Valley in an attempt to impress Vader. Veers lost three walkers to crevasses of ice flow. This prompted the force to retreat to the safer western route.

The Imperial troops first attacked Echo Station 3-T-8 and then Echo Station 5-7, that contained some of the evacuation transports. Both bases along with the six ships were soon destroyed by the overwhelming Imperial forces. AT-ST walkers moved toward the Outpost Beta ion cannon to prevent any Star Destroyer casualties in the space battle. Snowspeeders flew in and destroyed the attackers before they reached the cannon. Blizzard Force came under harassing fire from the Alliance emplacements, but the walkers' armor plating was too strong for Rebel lasers. Only Rogue Squadron succeeded in toppling one assault transport, using an unorthodox tactic imagined by Luke Skywalker and Alliance tactician Beryl Chiffonage, which relied on magnetic harpoons and tow cables to entangle the walker's feet.

Unfortunately, the tactic's success was minimal, and the AT-ATs downed many snowspeeders with deadly volleys from their blaster cannons. The rebels dove into the trenches, seeking cover. Luke was then shot down by walker fire, killing his gunner Dack Ralter instantly. He then barely managed to get out of his wrecked craft before it was crushed by a walker, with Ralter's body still inside. Because of this, Wedge Antilles was granted command of Rogue Squadron for the duration of the mission. In an act that seemed to give Palpatine's concern about Luke's burgeoning power of a potential Jedi credibility, the young pilot decided to attempt to bring down two AT-ATs (one of which being the Blizzard 4) on his own. Using only a grappling hook, his father's lightsaber, and a concussion grenade, Luke managed to do precisely that, before heading off to rejoin the rebels. Afterwards, he managed to mount a Tauntaun upon being pointed to one by Wedge Antilles, and, along with Derlin, rode them towards the south part of the base, cutting a swath through the Snowtroopers along the way. Likewise, Rogue Squadron, under the command of Wedge Antilles, managed to down three more AT-ATs.

Most of the rebels in the trenches were wounded, dying or dead, or scared, captured, or demoralized by the unstoppable Imperial attack. The rebel gun emplacements fired on the walkers, to little avail. Many rebels met their deaths to the walkers' ripping rays. AT-STs and snowtroopers body-mopped up what they could.

As the armored assault force reached the trenches, the Alliance soldiers, with most of their laser cannon emplacements destroyed, came under heavy fire, and the order to retreat was issued. With the other AT-ATs providing cover fire, Veers in Blizzard 1 broke through the defensive lines and proceeded to annihilate the shield power generators. After the decisive victory move, the blockade in orbit began a piecemeal bombardment of the battlefield, taking out defensive emplacements and fleeing ships. Imperial forces then used airmobile tactics to deploy snowtroopers onto the surface. Because of this, Rogue Squadron was also redirected to aid the transports and stop the bombing runs from various TIE Bombers until they are ready for liftoff.

Arriving too late, Luke and Derlin arrived at what was originally the power generator. Derlin, feeling that this is as far as he can go, has Luke go aid a remaining rebel squad that is currently fighting against some snowtroopers, and advises him to take out the snowtrooper manning the tripod gun and use it against the Imperials. Shortly afterwards, Imperial reinforcements in the form of two snowtrooper companies and three AT-STs arrived via dropship, but Luke managed to eliminate the AT-STs.

Infiltration of Echo Base
"Imperial troops have entered the base! Imperial troops have entered the [static]"

- Jobin

Lord Vader personally led troopers of the 501st Legion into Echo Base, cutting down any who stood in his way, and, in one case, choking a soldier to death. Alliance troops attempted to delay Imperial progress, but were swiftly overwhelmed by the mechanized assault. As the snowtroopers breached the icy bunker walls of Echo Base and entered close range combat with the defenders, Rebel personnel were forced to flee. However, members of Renegade Squadron, who were defending the ion cannon team, put up a determined defense. They inflicted moderate casualties on the 501st Legion and engaged Darth Vader, managing to force him back, at least temporarily. After the route to the rebel transports was blocked by a collapsing ceiling brought about by Imperial bombardment, Han Solo managed to escape in the Millennium Falcon with Princess Leia Organa, after a close encounter with an advance group of snowtroopers.

The 501st moved through the base and into the back hangar and landing area. There, the last of the Rebel troops were loading onto a last transport. The elite shock troops led by Vader pushed them back, but took several casualties at the hands of DF.9/B anti-infantry laser batteries and E-Web heavy repeating blaster encampments. As the Rebel and Imperial forces were engaged in a firefight, an orbital strike beacon that had been placed in the hangar was positioned under the transport ship by the Imperials. The 501st managed to protect the beacon from the Rebels long enough for an orbiting Star Destroyer to lock in the co-ordinates of the beacon. The 501st and Vader then vacated the area as the Star Destroyer descended into the atmosphere and bombarded the ship from above. Most of the Rebel infantry were killed, though stragglers remained.

One other Rebel, Dash Rendar, was trapped inside Echo Base in the hangar bays. His YT-2400 light freighter, the Outrider, was on the other side of the base, where the power was out. He used the station's supply of captive Wampas as an advantage, setting them free to help his slaughter of the Imperial infantry. After restoring the power allowing the rest of the Rebels to escape, his troubles got worse; a lone AT-ST walker managed to slip behind the base's defenses and penetrated the base. Rendar nevertheless managed to destroy it and he escaped in the Outrider.

Rogue Squadron and Luke Skywalker pushed into the atmosphere and defended the three remaining fleeing transports. As TIE/sa bombers moved in, the X-wings swooped and pushed back the attackers. The remaining transports fled, but the battle was not yet over. Clone X2 was about to confront his brother, X1.

Rebel retreat
"Our mission today is not to defeat the Empire. What we must do is to keep the Rebel Alliance alive."

- Leia Organa, before the battle begins

X2 landed on the Avarice, and killed all of the stormtroopers in his path. X1 was waiting for him, and he had Falon Grey's lightsaber, as well as some skill with the dark side. They shortly fought, but as the ship exploded, both of them withdrew in their starfighters.

Approximately thirty Rebel GR-75 medium transports managed to take off along with six Kleeque-class transports and a number of other lighter craft. Despite the cover provided by the KDY v-150 Planet Defender and starfighter escorts, the Imperial naval squadron blockading the planet managed to disable or destroy seventeen Rebel GR-75 Transports and all six Kleeque-class transports. The ion cannon crew, made up of Alliance troops from Alderaan, were among the last to leave, blowing up the cannon to mask the sensor reading of their escape. In addition, Renegade Squadron was the last squadron off Hoth. Despite the escape of most senior personnel, the loss in material and men proved a disaster for the Rebel Alliance, and was a terrible blow to its war effort.

Renegade Squadron was called into orbit to help escort the last of the transports out of the system, and were forced to engage with Darth Vader, piloting his TIE Advanced x1 starfighter, and forced him to retreat. The resistance of Renegade Squadron forced the Empire to test its new line of TIE fighters, the highly advanced TIE Defender. After fighting off some of these TIE defenders, commandos part of Renegade Squadron managed to infiltrate the hangar bay of the TIE Defender's Star Destroyer and hijack one of them, returning it to their Mon Calamari Star Cruiser to await further analysis by Alliance technicians.

The battle was not without loss for the Empire: at least one Star Destroyer was temporarily placed out of commission by the orbital-range ion cannon and several AT-ATs were destroyed by Rebel defenders, with more lost when the treacherous ice floes gave way. Despite forcing the Rebels to flee, the Imperial forces were unable to destroy all of the transports, while Lord Vader failed in what he considered a primary objective, namely capturing Luke Skywalker.

Aftermath
"As the Rebels fled, the 501st gathered around a burning bunker, and let out a cheer that shook the stars. The Rebellion was done."

- Anonymous 501st trooper

The Battle of Hoth was a major disaster for the Rebel Alliance. The Rebels lost thousands of soldiers and pilots who either died during the defense or were killed when the ships transporting them off Hoth were destroyed. The loss of the base itself put the Rebels on the run once again, struggling to reorganize its battered forces. Of the thirty medium transports that fled the planet, seventeen were destroyed, resulting in massive material and personnel losses. The sheer loss of men and materials severely weakened the Alliance's combat capabilities in the war, giving the Empire an edge over the Rebels for some time as they pursued their fleet. Some Imperials went as far to call the war over.

Despite the failure of the battle, the Rebels were not defeated. Most of their leadership was able to escape the planet, which ultimately secured the Alliance's survival for some time more. Also, Darth Vader failed in his ultimate goal to capture Luke Skywalker, forcing him to pursue his allies on the Millennium Falcon in order to lure Luke out into the open.

After the Alliance was reorganized into the New Republic, the Battle of Hoth served as the basis for a historical training simulation designed to test New Republic officer cadets.

Behind the scenes
The Battle of Hoth and the events leading up to and following it formed the first half of The Empire Strikes Back. Since then, the battle has been expanded in many Expanded Universe works. It has appeared as a campaign mission in the Star Wars: Battlefront series and was also featured in the non-canon games LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy and LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga. In the Battlefront mission, the Rebels win the battle (the Rebel's almost always win on the Hoth map).

The cross-section of Echo Base seen in Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy shows 15 T-47 airspeeders, 9 in Hangar 7 and the rest in the transports hangar. Whether or not all of these participated in the battle is not known.

Alternate Timeline I
"You are strong, Skywalker. But only your hatred will give you the power to save your friends. Give in to the Dark Side."

- Lord Starkiller, corrupting Luke Skywalker

The Force Unleashed: Ultimate Sith Edition features two non-canon events that followed the dark side ending of the game. The second of the two events takes place on the planet Hoth. In an effort to eradicate the Rebel Alliance, the Galactic Empire searched much of the galaxy for the Rebels' hidden base. After discovering said base to be located on Hoth, the Imperial Navy was dispatched in full force to annihilate the Rebel forces and bring an end to the Rebellion once and for all. But unlike the Battle of Hoth in the original timeline, the Sith Lord Darth Vader was not involved in the alternate battle. In his place, leading Imperial troops on Hoth, was his successor Lord Starkiller. Rather than spare Vader's life as he had done in the canon timeline, Galen Marek submitted once more to the power of the dark side by slaying his former master in cold blood. In doing so, Marek replaced Vader at Emperor Palpatine's side and became known as Lord Starkiller.

Unlike his predecessor, Lord Starkiller chose to partake in the Battle of Hoth, rather than watch from the orbiting Executor as the fighting unfolded. The Sith Lord personally aided his soldiers by infiltrating the Rebel Base as the Imperials' pushed towards the shield generator, eventually destroying it by the time Starkiller entered deep inside the base. After killing many Rebel soldiers and Wampas that stood in his way, Lord Starkiller finally met Luke Skywalker, the son of his former master, for the first time. Skywalker refused to believe that he was Darth Vader's son and asserted the lie that was told to him, leading him to think that Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader were literally two separate individuals. But as the Sith Lord and the pseudo-Jedi fought, Skywalker quickly discovered that he was utterly outmatched by the more powerful and experienced Starkiller, and thus chose to break off from the duel and retreat to the Rebel hangar.

Lord Starkiller pursued his target objective all the way to the Rebel hangar where he fought against Skywalker for a second time while the Millennium Falcon prepared to evacuate Princess Leia Organa before the battle was lost. Once again, Starkiller effortlessly dodged and countered against Skywalker's sloppy and unrefined attacks. When Starkiller threatened to kill Skywalker just as he had killed his father, Skywalker finally lost control of his anger and succumbed to the Dark side of the Force. With the dark side enhancing his strength and abilities, Skywalker launched a frenzied assault on the Sith Lord, driving Starkiller back with a combination of powerful lightsaber strikes and Force lightning.

But even under the influence of the dark side, Skywalker still failed to kill his enemy and lost his right hand as a result. It was at that moment when Starkiller forced Skywalker to choose between the lives of his friends or staying true to the Jedi way. Desperate and angry, Skywalker gave in to his hatred once more, creating a window of opportunity for the Millennium Falcon to escape from the hangar. But in doing so, he had fulfilled his journey down the path of the dark side, just as Starkiller intended. Standing above the fallen Jedi, Lord Starkiller congratulated Luke Skywalker on his descent into darkness and chose to take Vader's son as his own Sith apprentice.

Thus, the alternate Battle of Hoth resulted in a far worse outcome for the Rebel Alliance than its canon counterpart. The Rebels still lost and suffered severe casualties and loss of vital supplies, such as weapons and ships. Even though Leia Organa, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2 were able to escape from Hoth on the Millennium Falcon as they had done so in the original timeline, it was a calculated risk that Starkiller was willing to make. Ultimately, the greatest difference between the original and the alternate Battle of Hoth was the fall of Luke Skywalker, an accomplishment that both Palpatine and Vader failed at achieving in the other timeline.

Alternate Timeline II
"After my brother fell on Hoth, I fulfilled the destiny that he could not. Now I am a Jedi."

- Leia Organa, speaking to the Dark Apprentice

The Force Unleashed II featured its own alternate timeline that was based on the game's dark side ending, just as the first game had done so. Although only mentioned, another alternate Battle of Hoth took place. But unlike the battle in the canon timeline, in which Luke Skywalker escaped from Hoth, and the battle in the first alternate timeline, in which Skywalker fell to the dark side and became Lord Starkiller's apprentice, Skywalker never lived to realize his destiny as a Jedi. His untimely death saw his destiny placed on the galaxy's last hope, his twin sister Leia Organa. When the Battle of Endor took place in the second alternate timeline, Organa was already well trained in the Jedi arts.

During the construction of the second Death Star, Darth Vader dispatched his Dark Apprentice, the only perfect clone of the original Starkiller, to Endor in order to prevent the Rebels from destroying the Endor shield generator bunker. After killing hordes of Rebels and Imperials alike, including Han Solo and Chewbacca, the dark clone finally encountered his master's daughter, Princess Leia Organa. Before the two fought, Organa told the clone about how Luke Skywalker died during the Battle of Hoth and how that unexpected setback forced her to become a trained Jedi in order to fight against the Sith. Despite he exceptional skills, which even impressed the Dark Apprentice, Leia Organa was ultimately outmatched and overpowered by the clone's superior power and fighting prowess. Just as her twin brother had died on Hoth, Organa fell on Endor, effectively ending any hope of restoring the Old Republic.

Non-canonical history
The Battle of Hoth was referenced a few times in skits from the Star Wars specials of Robot Chicken. In one skit, Luke manages to use a cable, a lightsaber, and a concussion grenade to down an AT-AT similar to the movie, only unlike the movie, he threw the grenade inside an occupied lavatory. Later, it was referenced as Empire on Ice. Another skit had the Imperial attack on Hoth failing before it could even begin due to the drivers of two AT-ATs deciding to go into a race that greatly resembled freeway races frequently done by teenagers, complete with recklessness expected by the drivers and causing one of the AT-ATs to end up crashing and burning due to attempting to avoid a crossing Wampa family, causing the other AT-AT to win and celebrate, and leaving a dumbfounded Major General Veers to do nothing but express inaudible, gaping shock at what happened, as well as placing a plastic cup on Vader's holoprojection when the latter wanted to know how things were progressing with the invasion, being unable to even give Vader the results.

Non-canon appearances

 * LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
 * LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
 * Star Wars Infinities: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Perfect Evil
 * Perfect Evil