Evacuation of Yavin

"Luke Skywalker had done the impossible; the Death Star was destroyed. But the Empire would not take such a blow lightly. The counter attack on Yavin 4 hit us like lightning. The Alliance would have to evacuate, or be wiped out."

- X2

The Evacuation of Yavin was a battle between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire that took place six months after the Battle of Yavin in 0 ABY. It was to be the final clash of the long siege of the moon before the Alliance base was evacuated.

Prelude
On what was later marked as the start of a new calendar system by the New Republic, the Rebel Alliance destroyed the Galactic Empire's Death Star near their base on the moon Yavin 4. Although the Rebels celebrated the destruction of the superweapon, they prepared to evacuate from their base. The Empire blockaded the system, though. Small ships were able to escape the blockade, and Rebel leader Leia Organa undertook several missions on behalf of the Rebellion. Before the blockade was in place, heavy equipment was taken away from Yavin base, although the base's commander, General Jan Dodonna, concluded that the personnel could be evacuated quickly, and so convinced the Rebellion's leader Mon Mothma to allow the base to remain in operation as an act of defiance. The Imperial leadership therefore faced a dilemma with Yavin base still in operation. They could concentrate on wiping out the base, and risk a devastating raid elsewhere by the Alliance Fleet; or they could not focus heavily enough on blockading the system, and allow Mothma's forces to break the blockade. The blockade was therefore formed from a hastily-assembled task force from the House of Tagge and requisitioned from Nox Vellam, Grand Moff of the Bright Jewel Oversector, which contained the Yavin system.

During the blockade, Yavin 4 was the site of several battles and retaliatory strikes. The Rebels also fought against small raiding parties. The blockade was successful in catching several Rebel units. The blockade continued for six months, angering Imperial fleet commanders, although the Supreme Commander and Sith Lord Darth Vader held off from ordering Yavin base's destruction while construction continued on his flagship, the Super Star Destroyer Executor. When it was finished, it launched toward the blockade. The Rebels used an power gem mounted on a starship piloted by Vrad Dodonna to delay the flagship. The move succeeded, but with the loss of Dodonna. The main portion of the Alliance Fleet was not at Yavin, though, and was able to stage a diversion to attempt to break the blockade.

Defending the temple
"The surprise is mine, bucketheads!"

- Jan Dodonna before the destruction of the main base Rebel forces under Admiral Gial Ackbar engaged Imperial ships at three locations&mdash;Kil'aar, Pinoora, and the Vallusk Cluster&mdash;in order to trick the Imperial blockade into diverting ships to reinforce the attacked positions, leaving a space open for the Rebel fleet to go into hyperspace.

However, the completed Executor finally arrived at Yavin 4 with Lord Vader's Death Squadron fleet, as well as elements of the personal fleet of Baron Tagge, and the battle began. TIE/LN starfighter and scouts on 74-Z speeder bikes scoured the moon for stragglers.

Survivors of the Death Star combined their ranks and moved against the Rebel's main base. Imperial All Terrain Scout Transports, stormtroopers, shock troopers, scout troopers, and Imperial Army pilots fought against Rebel troopers, snipers, Wookiee soldiers, and vanguard divisions around a set of ruins and a Fountain near the base. The Rebels defeated those forces, buying time for the evacuation. General Dodonna ordered the base's fighters and transports to escape though he refused to evacuate himself until everyone had left.

During the assault, the Empire launched an array of vehicles including A5 Juggernauts along with All Terrain Armored Transport and All Terrain Scout Transports carried on-board Y-85 Titan dropships, and PX-4 Mobile Command Bases. TIE Fighters and TIE/sa bombers also shelled the jungle area. Other Rebel forces included Rebel Armored Freerunners.

The Rebel operatives X2 and Shara fought against Imperial forces during the battle. X2 helped destroy a TX-130T fighter tank, and went into the base to activate the evacuation signal. A TIE bomber blew the comm tower, though, and X2 was forced activate turrets to destroy the bombers, then went out to repair the tower. X2 took a T4-B heavy tank to make his way to the waterfall. He then used his Force powers to jump to the top of the tower and used a fusioncutter to repair the tower. He then took control of an anti-air gun to defend the tower from more bombers. X2 then retreated to the hangar and took an X-wing starfighter.

Lord Vader personally led a force of stormtroopers and dewback troopers in an attack on the main Rebel base, but he was caught in a fight with the Rebel forces from two other bases, Falcon Base and Raven Base. Although he was harassed by scouts on swoops, he proceeded to destroy both outposts, which were defended by troopers, cavalry units, and Rebel hover tanks. After eliminating the Rebel troop centers and Mech factories, he was supplied with reinforcements, including 2 AT-STs and TIE bombers. The force pushed all the way up to the Rebel's Massassi Temple and destroyed the missile turrets to allow for an aerial bombardment. Vader commented that they had a "special surprise" waiting for when the air defenses were down.

Evacuating
"Keep moving commander. We will need to eliminate any lingering rebels."

- Darth Vader

After the evacuation order had been given, a smaller Imperial force had pushed their way through to the Massassi Temple. However, Commander Col Serra and his newly created fighting force, Renegade Squadron, pushed back the Imperials and set up a perimeter to keep the Imperials busy while the evacuation proceeded. The door to the temple jammed, so a jetpack-equipped Squadron member jumped through a hole and repaired the door, as well as a turret to defend the temple. Another TX-130T fighter tank then arrived, and Serra ordered the squadron to destroy it. The group then captured a position near the Pyramid, killing at least four stormtroopers. A scout trooper managed to steal communication logs from the Temple, and the Squadron hunted the trooper and recovered the logs. Serra then ordered the Squadron to destroy three Data Banks with sensitive information to prevent them from falling into Imperial hands before escaping.

Dodonna had planted several concussion charges, which decimated a whole squadron of TIE Interdictors as they attacked the Temple. It was believed that the General had died in action, though it was later revealed he had been captured and imprisoned in the Star Dreadnought and prison Lusankya. A mind-scan conducted on the captive officer revealed the Rebel's plan to attack the agriworld Reytha.

Over the moon, X2 joined with Commander Serra and took out a communications array on a Star Destroyer to prevent reinforcements from being called in. They then boarded the ship, and X2 sabotaged the reactor core. The two escaped before the ship blew.

The evacuated Rebels rendezvoused in orbit to run the blockade. Vader, on-board his flagship, deliberately left a weak spot in the blockade to try to trap Luke Skywalker, the pilot who had destroyed the Death Star. The Rebel fleet moved within range of the Executor, but Admiral Amise Griff, commanding three Star Destroyers, made a hyperspace jump to cover the hole, and his three starships crashed into Vader's flagship, allowing the Rebels an instant in which to escape into hyperspace.

Aftermath
During the blockade, Skywalker had discovered an ice world called Hoth. He suggested that a command center for the Alliance could be established there if necessary. The evacuated Rebels hoped to establish a base on Hoth, but they had to replenish their supplies first. After escaping the blockade, the Heroes of Yavin were forced to battle the starship Hungry Ghost. Renegade Squadron searched for a new base. After his failure to capture the Rebel leadership, Vader continued his search for Skywalker. In 2 ABY, the Rebels were able to take refuge on Hoth, beginning the construction of a new base.

Behind the scenes
"The destruction of the Death Star is a tremendous victory, but several Imperial garrisons escaped the blast and their escape pods have crashed on the planet. They have combined their ranks and are moving on our base to attack. We must finish off the Imperials before our celebration can truly begin."

- Admiral Ackbar briefing the player before the mission

The evacuation of Yavin was first mentioned in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, and appeared in the Doom Mission and Race for Survival comic strips in 1983. Other sources released since then expanded on the battle.

In the Darth Vader campaign 2001 video game Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds, Mara Jade can be spotted on the game map during the battle. After she is spotted, Vader exclaims "What's this?!" and Jade leaves on a Sentinel-class landing craft. However, since it is required to use cheat codes to see her, her appearance is likely an easter-egg and its canon status is dubious. In addition, the same game also implies that Darth Vader killed Jan Dodonna shortly after learning about Rebel activities on Raythar.

One source which includes the evacuation is the 2004 video game Star Wars: Battlefront, although the storyline is considered S-canon by Leland Chee, the Keeper of the Lucasfilm Ltd. Holocron continuity database. The battle also appears in the game's 2009 sequel, Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron, although only in the PlayStation Portable version.

A seeming continuity error was created by Imperial Spy, which placed Q-7N at the Evacuation of Yavin and the preceding evacuation preparation. This clashes with Star Wars Missions 20: Total Destruction, which shows Q-7N's destruction, and, subsequently, the Rebels returning to Yavin Four. However, in Imperial Spy, Q-7N does not appear in the last set of frames, which show the Rebels after the evacuation. It is possible that the events of the final Missions arc took place during the events of Imperial Spy, though this has not been confirmed. However, it is also possible that Imperial Spy shows an entirely different event, after which the Rebels returned to Yavin.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: X-wing Tour of Duty: Imperial Pursuit
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds
 * Star Wars: Battlefront
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns
 * Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron
 * Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron
 * Therefore I Am: The Tale of IG-88
 * Doom Mission
 * Race for Survival
 * Imperial Spy
 * Star Wars: Empire 19: Target: Vader
 * Star Wars: Empire 20: A Little Piece of Home, Part 1
 * Rebel Mission to Ord Mantell
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * X-Wing: The Bacta War