User:BaldFett

Hello, I'm BaldFett a 20-year-old student from the Netherlands. I've been a Star Wars-fan sinds I was 10 or something.

The Great Mon Calamari Cruiser Confusion
Mon Calamari Star Cruisers were originally designed by ILM as big Rebel capital ships that would encounter the Empire’s Star Destroyers in the Battle of Endor in ROTJ. Since then the ships have appeared in numerous novels and games in comparable roles. New designs have also appeared. However, the official documentation on the vessels is very inconsistent and lacking. In this editorial I will try to make sense of what happened using common sense and logical thinking. I am not stating this information to be canon. All the same it isn’t fanon either: I’m not looking for in-universe explanations, but real-world explanations. I’m only offering this little research for consideration, so please don't start flaming me. Comments are, off course, always welcome!

Beforehand notes: -	Mon Cal cruisers are often described in reference material as one of a kind and unique designs. However, movie evidence shows that difference between different ships could have only existed in small details like the bulbs and blisters, and not overall size, appearance or propulsion system and performance. (this is, off course, due to the fact that the model makers at ILM only made three different models

Early mix-up (1983/1984)

Return of the Jedi marks the first appearance of Mon Calamari Star Cruisers. The Model team at ILM made three ships models (size according to movie evidence): Home One model (~3.800m); Liberty model (1.200m ~ 1.500m) and a Wingless Liberty (also 1.200 ~ 1.500).

Because the wingless Liberty model was rebuilt into the Liberty itself, only two Calamari-models remained after the shooting of ROTJ: the Home One and Liberty model. With only two models left, the writers of first generation resource material incorrectly thought there were only two types of Calamari cruisers in ROTJ: Liberty, and Home One. Because the Home One model was just as large as the Liberty model (about 2.5 meters), and wingless, may have added up to the thought that the Home One model and the wingless Liberty being the same. The 1,200 meters figure ended up in the first resource material, along with the term MC80.

Conclusions: -	Wingless Liberty is forgotten as being a different model/ship than the, also wingless, Home One. -	Home One’s length is incorrectly put down as 1.200 meters. -	Home One, along with 1.200m long Liberty, are marked as MC80’s (because of the supposed same length).

Personal notes: -	I think having wings or not are such a big difference that, even then, different classification should have been given to both the Liberty and the wingless Calamari Cruiser (being it wingless Liberty or Home One) in the first place. The same goes for the Home One being a lot bigger. Compare the Victory and Imperial-class Star Destroyers for example: they don’t differ much in appearance, only in size and yet they are different classes. -	While ROTJ clearly shows that Home One is substantially bigger than the other Mon Cal cruisers, the intention could have been that Home One was about as big as the other cruisers (the fact that the models were the same size adds up to this). I find it very illogical to have a (almost) one of a kind cruiser, which is three times as big as normal MonCal Cruisers. The In-Universe explanation could have that maybe the Home One was some sort of experiment in which the Calamari tried to push the limit on the maximum starship size. Dark Empire (1991/1992)

These comic books form 1991/1992 introduce two new types of Mon Cal cruisers: the MC80B and the MC90. Without knowing what the difference is between these new cruisers and the earlier MC80 type one can guess. MC80B suggests some kind of upgrade or modification to the original MC80 concept, hence the extra “B”. MC90 suggest something that is still “MC”, but bigger or better: “90” in stead of “80”. In-universe, the MC90 is supposed to be the first MonCal ship designed with warfare in mind (clearly a different idea than converting passenger liners). And the MC80B is some sort of intermediate between the converted starliners and warships, featuring thicker hull and better shields than MC80s.

Notes: -	The appearances and performances of the MC80Bs and MC90s are relatively consistent in different reference material. This is probably due to decent documentation after the writing in the Dark Empire Sourcebook. -	Interesting fact is that the most notable MC80B and the first of its class, Mon Remonda, is destroyed in the first story it appears in. Although Mon Remonda is later featured in stories that take place before Dark Empire. -	While other MC80Bs do feature in stories that take place after Dark Empire, MC90s are never seen again (at least not stated as MC90s). This may have to do with the fact that Dark Empire is a comic story with somewhat far stretched ideas (remember: E-wings, World Devastators, Eclipse-class Star Dreadnoughts and the return of Boba Fett also happened in Dark Empire) and novel writers might be reluctant to use this (somewhat controversial) material.