Redemption/Legends

"They're heading for the Medical Frigate."

- Wedge Antilles, during the Battle of Endor

The Redemption was an EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate in service to the Rebel Alliance Fleet. It served as the fleet's primary medical frigate during the Galactic Civil War.

Description
The Redemption was originally a standard Kuat Drive Yards EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate. Like all ships of its class, the Redemption was 300 meters in length and comprised of a main section, connected to a smaller propulsion module by a slender neck. Though originally designed to escort convoys, the vessel later underwent a number of modifications to allow it to serve as a dedicated hospital ship.

The ship had an array of seven sublight engines, located at the rear of the propulsion module, together with a Class 2 Triple Taim hyperdrive for hyperspace travel. It was capable of achieving acceleration of 1,200 G in a vacuum or a maximum speed of 800 kilometers per hour in an atmosphere. This section of the ship also housed its main reactor and fuel tanks, along with main engineering and the chief engineer's quarters. A pair of static discharge vanes were located underneath the propulsion module.

Standard Nebulon-B frigates featured twelve turbolaser batteries for use against capital ships and a further twelve laser cannons, which used precision tracking servos and advanced targeting computers to target fast-moving starfighters. When it was refitted to serve as a medical frigate, much of the Redemption's weaponry was removed to make way for medical facilities. Following the refit, the Redemption was left with six Taim & Bak XI7 turbolasers and eight Borstel Galactic Defense RH8 laser cannons. The primary forward turbolaser and laser cannon were located on the lower main section, covering the direction in which the ship was traveling.

The Redemption originally had hangar space for two full squadrons of starfighters. Much of the hangar space was later taken up by bacta tanks and recovery areas, leaving the ship largely dependent on support ships to defend it during combat. Small ships could still dock to transfer patients to and from the Redemption using one of several docking fixtures, including two retractable docking tubes located along the engineering boom and a casualty boarding bay in the main section. When going into combat situations, the Redemption could carry a limited number of starfighters attached to the docking tubes and the ship could continue to move through space while another vessel was attached, pulling the smaller vessel along.

The reduced weaponry and loss of a starfighter complement was compensated by the enhanced Delphus JC-671 deflector shield generator on top of the propulsion module, a Serridge SEAL shielding system and a titanium reinforced alloy hull. The Rebels also used the refit to install redundant systems, including back-up power generators, shield projectors and life support systems. The vessel was equipped with two Phylon Q7 tractor beam projectors, which could be used to rescue crippled friendly starfighters or capture disabled enemy ships. A primary communications array was located on top of the ship's main section, with a smaller short-range communications array positioned further aft. Forward and aft sensor units were located towards the bottom of this section, as was the main sensor generator. The ship's emergency batteries and recycling systems were located further up the main section.

The main bridge was approximately half way up the main section, facing in the direction of the ship's travel, and quarters for both officers and passengers were positioned on the decks above the bridge. A series of turbolift shafts allowed movement between decks in both the main and propulsion sections, while an access corridor ran through the connecting engineering boom and permitted the crew to move between the two sections.

The Redemption had complete medical facilities, located on several decks in the main section, and containing the most sophisticated medical equipment available. Central to the medical facilities were fifteen bacta tanks for healing of skin injuries, including burns and lacerations. The bacta tanks enhanced the body's own ability to regenerate skin and muscle tissue, speeding up healing and preventing septic infections with little scarring or adhesion development. The bacta tanks were operated by 2-1B surgical droids, while the ship's main medical computer monitored and timed treatments. On the surrounding decks were a cluster of intensive care units, operating theaters and recovery wards to house the patients aboard the ship. Special facilities were available for non-oxygen breathers, including ammonia chambers. Quarters for medical personnel were located fore of the bacta tanks, as were the ship's blood banks, and its supply of fresh water was located nearby. The ship had its own morgue and laboratories, as well as a dedicated section for storing medical equipment and up to 6,000 metric tons of related cargo.

The Redemption's range of medical facilities allowed most injuries and conditions to be treated aboard. At full capacity, the ship had enough beds to treat 745 patients simultaneously with minimal waiting time for facilities, and achieved higher recovery rates than many planetside hospitals&mdash;almost 98% of patients made a full recovery and most were ready to return to duty within a couple of days.

History


Kuat Drive Yards originally developed the EF76 Nebulon-B escort frigate for the Galactic Empire, to help defend Imperial convoys from attack by Rebel starfighters. However, due to Rebel capture operations, along with defections by Imperial forces, many of the frigates came to be part of the Alliance Fleet. The ships proved vital for the Alliance in many early campaigns, but as the Rebels acquired larger vessels, the Nebulon-Bs were converted for other uses, including command ships, long-range reconnaissance and search and rescue frigates. The Redemption was one of the converted frigates and, by 1 BBY, was one of at least two Nebulon-Bs serving as medical frigates in the Alliance Fleet. The Alliance considered medical attention at the site of conflict to be a high priority, so the Redemption traveled with the fleet, often directly into combat situations. The ship soon proved its worth in helping to save the lives of many Rebel pilots and crew.

In 1 BBY, the Redemption hosted wounded personnel who survived the evacuation of Brigia during the early stages of the Operation Strike Fear, a major Imperial offensive aimed at eliminating the Rebellion. The majority of the wounded arrived aboard the CR90 corvette Korolev, with three Lambda-class T-4a shuttles from Medevac group bringing the rest. Four T-65 X-wing starfighters from Red Squadron were assigned to provide cover for the transfer of wounded to the Redemption.The transfer was interrupted by the arrival of the Imperial Nebulon-B frigate Warspite which launched one wave of TIE bombers and one of TIE fighters before jumping back to hyperspace. The defending starfighters moved to engage the incoming Imperials, but the Warspite soon returned on the other side of the Redemption and launched an additional wave of both types of TIE, hoping to catch the Rebels out of position. Red Squadron, and particularly Keyan Farlander, by ignoring the personal threat of the TIE fighters to eliminate the TIE bombers attacking the Korolev, were able to eliminate the Imperials and protect the transfer. After the Korolev followed the shuttles in delivering the wounded, the Rebel ships escaped into hyperspace. The mission was later recreated as a training scenario for New Republic pilots. Though officially known as the Redemption scenario, the difficulty of saving the Korolev led many pilots to refer to it as the Requiem scenario.

After the Alliance destroyed the Death Star I at the Battle of Yavin, they were forced to evacuate their base on Yavin 4, eventually choosing the remote ice-world of Hoth to act as their new headquarters. Soon after Echo Base was established, the Redemption, along with three members of Red Squadron, including Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles, joined a convoy of six GR-75 medium transports carrying supplies to the new base. The convoy was due to rendezvous with another convoy in the Ison Corridor before proceeding to Hoth, but emerged from hyperspace to discover that the other convoy had been destroyed. Despite the possibility of attack, the convoy was unable to jump straight back into hyperspace, and needed to clear the debris field first. However, it soon came under attack by TIE fighters, which moved against the Rebel transports. Red Squadron were able to defeat the first wave of TIEs, but with more incoming docked with the Redemption to swap their X-wings for the faster RZ-1 A-wing interceptors that were being transported aboard. The second wave of TIEs was soon destroyed and the convoy entered a nearby nebula, beyond which they would be able to enter hyperspace. However, the convoy came under further attack from TIE interceptors in the nebula, before the Redemption finally emerged and fled into hyperspace with the other surviving convoy ships.

In 3 ABY, the Rebels were again forced on the run after their defeat at the Battle of Hoth. The Redemption joined the remnants of the Alliance Fleet at their rendezvous point, beyond the edge of the galaxy, above the galactic equatorial plane. Among those treated aboard the ship at this time were Luke Skywalker and the Gand bounty hunter Zuckuss. After fleeing Hoth, Skywalker had lost his hand in a duel with Darth Vader on Cloud City. He arrived aboard the Millennium Falcon, having already had his condition stabilized using the ship's medical bed, and was taken to the Redemption's microsurgery room. There, a team of neurospecialists and medical droids, including 2-1B, replaced his amputated hand with a biosynthetic prosthetic. Skywalker was using his new hand as well as his old one within two days of the operation. Zuckuss, meanwhile, together with his partner 4-LOM, had helped rescue ninety Rebels from the GR-75 medium transport Bright Hope, which had been disabled while escaping Hoth. In exchange, the Rebels agreed to treat the ammonia breathing Gand for damage caused to his lungs by oxygen inhalation. After arriving aboard the Mist Hunter, 2-1B and F4-7 rushed him to the surgical bay, before 2-1B was called away to assist with Skywalker's operation. Working inside a special ammonia chamber, medical droids were able to regrow the damaged tissue inside Zuckuss, giving him functioning lungs within just a few days of the operation. Soon after, the Millennium Falcon departed for Tatooine in search of the captured Han Solo. Skywalker, along with Leia Organa remained on the Redemption while the Rebel recovered from his surgery. They were still aboard when the Rebels were discovered by an Imperial Strike-class medium cruiser. However, Rogue Squadron were able to eliminate the enemy vessel before it could escape to report their location.

Following the retreat from Hoth, the Redemption became part of the task force led by the Mon Calamari Star Cruiser Liberty. During this time, the Alliance received several transmissions from an Imperial informant, one Commander Zaletta, who eventually provided them with his location, aboard Outpost DX-11a in the Eidoloni system, and announced his intention to defect. Alliance High Command dispatched Commander Kupalo aboard the Redemption to rendezvous with Zaletta and discuss the terms of his defection. The Redemption was escorted to the rendezvous point by four X-wings from Red Squadron, and remained there while its escort proceeded to DX-11a and created a diversion, allowing Zaletta to escape aboard the shuttle AA-23. After returning to the rendezvous point, AA-23 docked in the Redemption's hangar and the frigate prepared to return to the Liberty. However, before it could jump to hyperspace, the Redemption was ambushed by the Immobilizer 418 cruiser Restrainer and the Imperial II-class Star Destroyer Subjugator. Kupalo placed Zaletta in custody and called the Liberty to assist. After the Liberty arrived, the Rebel forces were able to destroy the Restrainer and allow the Redemption to return safely to the Rebel fleet. It later emerged that Zaletta's defection was genuine and that it was Kupalo, having been previously captured and brainwashed, who had summoned the Imperial forces to the rendezvous.

The Redemption later served at the Battle of Kothlis. It was part of the Alliance fleet that gathered at Sullust prior to the Battle of Endor, going into battle despite its classification as a medical frigate. It fell under attack by numerous TIE fighter squadrons, though quick action by the Millennium Falcon and the X-wings of Red Squadron saved it from destruction.

Ultimately, however, the Redemption was one of several ships obliterated by the second Death Star's powerful superlaser, secretly controlled by IG-88.

Commanders and crew
The Redemption had a full staff of eighty medical personnel. Rebel medics were highly trained in the field treatment of common injuries, including blaster wounds, chemical poisoning, fractures and vacuum exposure. The medics could stabilize most serious wounds until the patient could be seen by one of the ship's specialists, such as its team of neurologists, or by one of its thirty medical droids. In addition to the medical staff, the ship had a crew of 850, comprised of 77 officers and 773 enlisted personnel, 66 gunners and 75 troops. The Redemption was commanded by an unidentified female captain from some point prior to the Battle of Hoth until its destruction at the Battle of Endor.

Behind the scenes
The Redemption was created for Irvin Kershner's 1980 film Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back and later appeared in the 1983 sequel, Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, directed by Richard Marquand. The ship was one of the last models to be created for The Empire Strikes Back and, at Star Wars creator, George Lucas's suggestion, was designed to resemble an outboard motor. The model measured 50 x 247 x 99 centimeters and was part constructed from plastic model kits, including miniature boat hulls, a B-29 Superfortress fuselage and aircraft carriers. The two halves of the ship were connected by a painted industrial PVC pipe. Early designs of the Redemption called for subdued colors and a heavily aged look to the ship's hull. The shot of Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, R2-D2 and C-3PO looking through the surgery suite window was achieved by using rear-projection photography.

The ship was not named in The Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi. The name Redemption was first used in the 1993 LucasArts video game Star Wars: X-wing, as one of two Rebel medical frigates, along with the Salvation. In the game, the Redemption appears in the fourth mission of Tour of Duty 1, "Protect Medical Frigate". The difficulty of eliminating waves of TIE bombers approaching the Redemption from opposite directions led to Michael A. Stackpole selecting it as a training scenario for Rogue Squadron in his 1996 novel X-wing: Rogue Squadron. However, it is possible to exploit a loophole in X-wing to make the mission easier&mdash;only the Korolev is required to dock successfully and players can make it dock with the Redemption more quickly by ordering the shuttles to jump to hyperspace at the start of the mission.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: X-wing
 * Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader
 * Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
 * Therefore I Am: The Tale of IG-88
 * Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM
 * Shadows of the Empire 1
 * Star Wars: X-wing vs. TIE Fighter: Balance of Power
 * Star Wars: X-wing Alliance
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi novelization
 * One Last Night in the Mos Eisley Cantina: The Tale of the Wolfman and the Lamproid
 * X-wing: Rogue Squadron