Imperial I-class Star Destroyer

"Imperials have locked down the ports and put Destroyers in orbit."

- Jho

The Imperial I-class Star Destroyer was a model of Imperial-class Star Destroyer in the service of the Imperial Navy. A wedge-shaped capital ship, it was bristling with weapons emplacements. Its ventral hangar could launch land assault troops, boarding crafts, and TIE fighters. In the heyday of the Empire, its command bridge was staffed by the finest crewmen in the navy.

At first, Star Destroyers were deployed to sectors and systems caught in the aftermath of the Clone Wars, where they would crush any signs of sedition. During the Galactic Civil War the Destroyer's roles changed to hunting down high value Rebel targets and bases. They fought in such battles as the secret mission to Tatooine, Battle of Hoth, and Battle of Endor. At the peak of the Empire, over 25,000 of these ships were in existence.

Characteristics
"This is an Imperial Star Destroyer. All vital equipment is shielded. Even twenty bombs will do nothing."

- Prelate Verge

Dimensions
With a length of 1,600 meters, the wedge-shaped Imperial-class Star Destroyer was distinctly bigger than its immediate predecessor, the Venator-class Star Destroyer, which had been developed for the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars. In keeping with the Empire's habit of favoring muted colors whenever possible, the hull of the Imperial-class was painted in gray, while the Venator-class of the Clone Wars-era had had red markings.

Crew requirements
Imperial-class Star Destroyers had over 37,000 officers on board&mdash; 9,253 officers proper and 27,850 enlisted personnels. Counting the complement of 9,700 stormtrooper led to a total of 46,803 crew and passengers.

Armament
The Imperial-class Star Destroyer bristled with weapons emplacements. 60 Taim & Bak XX-9 heavy turbolaser batteries, 60 Borstel NK-7 ion cannons, and 10 Phylon 07 tractor beam projectors dotted its gray hull.

Complement
Within its vast belly hangar bay, an Imperial-class Star Destroyer typically carried an impressive complement of troops, consisting of seventy-two TIE/LN starfighters, eight Lambda-class T-4a shuttles, twenty AT-AT walkers, thirty AT-ST or AT-DP walkers, and fifteen Imperial Troop Transports. Every Imperial-class vessel also carried consumables for 2 years.

Propulsion systems
Powering the Destroyer were seven main engine units, including Cygnus Spaceworks Gemnon-4 ion engines, and could accelerate to speeds of up to 975 kph. The ship however was not suited towards planetary atmospheres, in which full power was required to stay aloft. Any interruption in the power supply in atmosphere could be catastrophic to the vessel, despite all vital equipment being shielded. The primary power generator on board the ship was large enough relative to the rest of the craft to protrude with a ventral bulb. In order to jump to light-speed and enter hyperspace the Imperial-class was equipped with a Class 2 hyperdrive.

Bridge tower
A prominent feature of the Imperial-class was its bridge tower. Located atop the tower were twin deflector shield generator globes and a tractor beam targeting array. On the command bridge, most of the crew worked in sunken pits below floor level, with no windows. The senior officers, however, could view the endless depths of space through wide viewports.

History
The Imperial-class Star Destroyers were the technological successors of the Venator-class Jedi cruisers used by the naval forces of the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars. After the the Republic was turned into the Empire at the end of the Clone Wars, the self-anointed Galactic Emperor Palpatine decreed a massive military buildup. Building upon the strengths of the Jedi cruisers, the bigger Imperial-class  vessels became one of the most instantly recognizable symbols of the Imperial might.

Initially, the new Star Destroyers were deployed to sectors and systems that had once been beyond the reach of Republic law, where they would subjugate them and crush any signs of resistance or rebellion. Imperial Star Destroyers became symbols of this new order. Citizens weary of chaos and war cheered the sight of these giant dagger-shaped warships, while pirates and slavers quailed at the thought of confronting them. But a few citizens wondered if the imposition of Imperial law was worth the freedoms lost.

At the peak of the Empire, over 25,000 Imperial Star Destroyers were in existence. Those giant crafts became the backbone of the Imperial Navy, hunting down Rebel task forces, blockading undisciplined worlds and serving as launch bases for planetary assaults.