Battle of Crait

The Battle of Crait was a major battle during the war between the First Order and the Resistance.

Prelude
Following the Resistance's major victory in destroying Starkiller Base, the Resistance evacuated its base on D'Qar after the First Order attacked their base.

While searching the galaxy for a new base of operation, First Order general Armitage Hux tracked the Resistance fleet through hyperspace and gave chase through space. Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo eventually sacrificed herself and her cruiser to allow the remaining Resistance fighters to escape to the planet Crait in the Crait system.

The battle
The remaining members of the Resistance landed and reactivated the old Rebel base. Finn and Rose Tico later crash-landed at the base in a First Order shuttle after escaping the damaged First Order flagship Supremacy, initially being shot at by the Resistance soldiers in the confusion. General Leia Organa called upon their allies across the Outer Rim Territories for reinforcements as the group prepared the base's defenses, including several laser turrets and V-4X-D ski speeders. Meanwhile the First Order deployed their own forces, landing at least six AT-M6s, two AT-ATs, one Upsilon-class command shuttle, and several TIE fighters along with a superlaser battering ram towed by All Terrain Heavy Haulers to break through the base's massive steel doors.

The Resistance launched all of their remaining forces, firing heavy artillery and dispatching thirteen of the ski speeders to knock out the superlaser, led by Poe Dameron. The First Order walkers and TIE fighters returned fire and the battle began. The Resistance suffered heavy losses from the combined ground and air assaults. The Millennium Falcon, piloted by Chewbacca and Rey, arrived unexpectedly and attacked the fighters, drawing them away from the battlefield. As the battering ram prepared to open fire, Poe ordered all speeders to fall back as it would be a suicide run. Finn, however, refused and bravely piloted his speeder directly towards the barrel of the cannon. Unable to handle such a sacrifice, Rose intercepted his speeder and the two crashed, saving Finn's life but badly injuring Rose.

The cannon opened fire at the base, punching easily through the main doors. As snowtroopers approach the breach, the Resistance realized that all of the messages sent to their allies had been received, but none had responded. The Resistance was preparing for a final stand when Luke appeared to the group and went out to face the First Order on his own. Meanwhile, Poe ordered the group to follow Vulptices to find an escape. Ren ordered all walkers to open fire on Skywalker; however the Jedi Master emerged unscathed. Ren was forced to go down to the surface and face his old Master himself. After a brief but fierce battle, Ren realized that the Luke he was fighting was just a Force projection, projected by Luke himself, who was still on Ahch-To.

Meanwhile, with the time bought by Luke's distraction, the Resistance found the end of the base's cave system, but saw that a rockslide had blocked the exit to the outside. From the other side of the blockage, Rey used the Force to lift the rocks and cleared a path for them escape to the Falcon, living to fight another day.

Aftermath
After the battle, Luke Skywalker, having heavily exerted himself in the effort to buy time for the Resistance, became one with The Force. His passing was felt by Rey and General Organa, who noted that he was content and at peace. Rey worried that the Resistance was all but destroyed, but Leia reassured her, saying they had everything they needed to rebuild.

The tale of Luke's stand against the First Order quickly spread across the galaxy, inspiring many to support the Resistance and stand against the First Order.

Behind the scenes
The first footage of the battle was shown in the Star Wars: The Last Jedi theatrical trailer on October 9, 2017. The battle of Crait made its first appearance in Star Wars Battlefront II as a a free downloadable level available on December 13, 2017. the battle made its first formal appearance on December 15, 2017 with the release of the film, Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi

Appearances

 * Star Wars Battlefront II
 * Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Tours: The Adventures Continue