Wookieepedia:Featured article queue/July 28, 2010

The Battle of Kal'Shebbol was fought between forces loyal to Moff Kentor Sarne and the New Republic in 8 ABY. With the New Republic actively looking to neutralize the threat of the various post–Endor Imperial warlords, it turned its attention to Moff Sarne, ruler of the backwater Kathol sector. Rumors had reached the New Republic that Sarne was in possession of dangerous, exotic weapons, so an operation was mounted to remove him from power and liberate his capital, the planet Kal'Shebbol. However, a prolonged campaign against the Moff's holdings was out of the question, as the New Republic's military was thinly stretched. A quick strike&mdash;consisting of a commando raid to disable the defense shields while a task force engaged Sarne's fleet&mdash;was authorized.

Elements of Page's Commandos, led by Lieutenant Judder Page, infiltrated the planet ahead of the main assault force. Proceeding to the Imperial Government Complex, the team accessed the base and discovered that Sarne had a hidden in an underground hangar as an escape vehicle. Reasoning that the hangar would contain controls for the defense shield, Page split his force. Page would lead a team to the hangar to shut off the shield and potentially capture Sarne, while the other team would rescue any prisoners in the complex's detention center. As Page and his commandos neared the hangar, they were incapacitated by Sarne, who used against them several of the alien artifacts that were the source of the rumors regarding exotic technology. Sarne used the diversion to escape the planet on board the light cruiser, although a member of Page's team, Keleman Ciro, managed to disable the defense shields after recovering from the artifact's effects.

In orbit, Sarne ordered his forces to retreat, fleeing into the depths of the Kathol sector. The New Republic task force completed its liberation of Kal'Shebbol, installing a governor to look after the interests of the population. With Sarne still at large and in possession of dangerous technology, the New Republic authorized the CR90 corvette FarStar to proceed into the Kathol sector to track down the rogue warlord and eliminate any threat he posed.