Fulminatrix

"These things are fleet-killers! We can't let it get away!"

- Poe Dameron, to General Leia Organa during the evacuation of D'Qar

The Fulminatrix was a Mandator IV-class Siege Dreadnought in the First Order Navy captained by Moden Canady. It participated during the evacuation of D'Qar, where it fired its orbital autocannons on the Resistance base and eradicated it, though an evacuation of the base had already been completed. Resistance Commander Poe Dameron launched a single-handed attack on the Fulminatrix, destroying its point-defense cannons in order to clear the way for Resistance bombers to make an attack run. The Fulminatrix scrambled its TIE fighters in an unsuccessful attempt to fend off the attack, leading to the destruction of all but one of the bombers. The Fulminatrix was subsequently destroyed by the last bomber when it dropped its bomb payload, going down with all hands.

Construction
The Fulminatrix was commissioned and constructed by the First Order some time prior to 34 ABY. Her class, aptly named the Siege Dreadnought, was more than twice the length of the Resurgent-class Star Destroyer, a standard ship of the line which otherwise dominated the First Order Navy. The red lighting which came from the Fulminatrix was to help the night vision of the gunnery crews as they switched back and forth between targeting scopes and visual scans of the surrounding space. This monster of a warship, like all members of her class, was armed with two orbital bombardment cannons designed to penetrate planetary shields. With an arsenal of weapons that demanded competent leadership, the dreadnought was assigned to Captain Moden Canady, veteran of the old Empire. Over time, these dreadnoughts amassed a particularly fearsome reputation, nicknamed "fleet killers" by some Resistance pilots.

Deployment at D'Qar
Following the Resistance's successful destruction of his Starkiller Base superweapon, General Armitage Hux hastily ordered his fleet to the newly discovered Resistance base on D'Qar. There he found a caravan of Resistance ships, busy evacuating the planet as Hux's armada descended on their position. However, General Hux had reserved the task of obliterating the Resistance base for the Fulminatrix, which arrived shortly thereafter, Captain Canady at the helm. Canady immediately deployed the Fulminatrix orbital ventral cannons against the planetary base, eradicating the structures and leftover equipment, though personnel had fully evacuated. Much to his chagrin, however, Hux had mistakenly allowed a T-70 X-wing fighter—the Black One, piloted by Resistance hero Poe Dameron—behind the First Order's line of fire, allowing the small craft to accelerate towards the Fulminatrix and eliminate its surface turbolasers. The unexpected strategy was effective, and Canady scrambled his ship's complement of TIE Fighters and Special Force TIE fighters to counter the assault.

With the dreadnought's surface turbolasers offline, Dameron engaged the second step of his plan. Cobalt Squadron—a unit of Resistance bombers—advanced towards the dreadnought, flanked by a number of smaller fighters. Notified of the bombers' approach, Canady ordered his cannons to be recharged and directed towards the Resistance flagship Raddus, where most of the rebel leadership had converged. A majority of the Resistance bombers were wiped out in the ensuing dogfight, especially after one spiraling TIE cockpit collided with a bomber that had armed its payload, causing a chain reaction that crippled two further craft. However, one final Cobalt bomber, the Cobalt Hammer, under the watch of Paige Tico, managed to drop its payload. The bombs struck a weak point, causing a cataclysmic series of explosions which brought an end to the final bomber, the dreadnought, Captain Canady and his loyal crew.

Free from danger, the Resistance fleet leaped into hyperspace, unaware they were being tracked by advanced First Order technology. As they escaped, Snoke, Supreme Leader of the First Order, contacted Hux and expressed his dissatisfaction with the latter's performance.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Battlefront II
 * Star Wars: Episode VIII The Last Jedi
 * Star Wars: The Last Jedi: Expanded Edition
 * Star Wars: The Last Jedi: A Junior Novel
 * The Last Jedi: Rose Tico: Resistance Fighter
 * The Last Jedi Adaptation 1