Imperial Reunification

"One Empire, one fleet—only this will guarantee us victory."

- Admiral Daala

The Imperial Reunification was the final act of the Imperial Civil War. It resulted in the consolidation of the Imperial Army and Navy, and eventually the foundation of the modern Imperial Remnant.

Events Leading To Reunification
"I disdain what these puffed-up, self-appointed warlords have inflicted upon our fighting forces. These squabbling children have caused as much damage to the Empire as the Rebel Alliance has."

- Admiral Daala, 12 ABY

Following the death of Palpatine during the Battle of Endor, the Galactic Empire had slowly begun to dissolve, as numerous leaders worked to secure their own power, resulting in the creation of numerous fiefdoms. Most warlords had established themselves before Sate Pestage had been forced from the Imperial throne. His replacement, the Ruling Council held power for only a short period of time before the Director of Imperial Intelligence Ysanne Isard claimed the throne. Isard mostly managed to hold the rest of the Empire together for nearly two years before the New Republic made it a priority to capture Coruscant. With the loss of the capital world the Empire splintered heavily, with established warlords picking up the pieces that Isard left behind. Isard herself established a small kingdom based on the world of Thyferra. At this point the central power of the Empire fell to a coalition of moffs and advisors however their power was overshadowed by warlords, most notably Warlord Zsinj.

With the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn, the Empire enjoyed a brief period of relative unity. During this time many factions pledged loyalty to the Grand Admiral, however other factions managed little more than to stop fighting each other during this time. Warlords like Prince-Admiral Krennel lent support by providing personnel and resources. This Imperial peace was in danger of dying following the Battle of Bilbringi, however, Imperial commanders and Moffs managed to maintain and make use of this unity for a little while longer and launched an all-out assault on Coruscant, forcing the new government into exile. Once it seemed like the Empire might actually win, the infighting started again resulting in the Imperial Civil War.

Following the Imperial Civil War, Emperor Palpatine re-emerged in a clone body on the Deep Core world of Byss. With the weaker commanders culled from the herd and the traitors obvious and ready for execution, Palpatine was able to reforge the Empire into a great power. He spent all his resources building his fleet, most prominently through the use of superweapons. However, his clone host bodies were unstable and deteriorated rapidly. Before he could find a proper host Palpatine was killed and Byss was destroyed shortly afterwards. The result was the loss of the majority of the rebuilt Imperial fleet and many of its personnel.

In 11 ABY, after a brief bout of destruction, Admiral Daala was forced to retreat to the Deep Core, one of the last remaining Imperial holdings. She worked for months as a freelance diplomat, trying to get the warlords to unite and if that could not be achieved to at least stop fighting each other. Following an attack by High Admiral Treuten Teradoc and the death of her first-officer Commander Kratas, Admiral Daala was pressed into the service of Warlord Blitzer Harrsk.

Placed in command of Harrsk's fleet, Daala led the counterattack against Teradoc. However, before the battle could truly begin Daala took personal control of the gunnery station and fired on Warlord Harrsk's flagship, disabling it. She then threatened to blow them both up using her ship's self-destruct. An intrigued Vice Admiral Gilad Pellaeon, Thrawn's protégé, who was similarly dissatisfied with the state of the Empire convinced her to retreat with him and discuss a possible alliance.

The Conference at Tsoss Beacon
"I didn't want to rule. I had no intention of becoming a political leader. …but you have given me no choice. I cannot leave the Empire in the hands of fools like you."

- Admiral Daala at Tsoss Beacon

Daala and Pellaeon established a meeting place on the Deep Core asteroid world of Tsoss Beacon in 12 ABY, with the hope of convincing the Warlords to cease their petty rivalries for the good of the Empire. The two convened a conference of the thirteen most powerful warlords. Among those in attendance were Blitzer Harrsk, Treuten Teradoc, and Sander Delvardus. Shortly into the meeting it became clear that it wouldn't last much longer. Daala triggered the doors to slam shut and lock. Even she couldn't unlock them for three standard hours. This forced the warlords to hash things out. They began to discuss things but again resorted to their petty rivalries when they couldn't agree on anything.

Unfortunately, it became clear towards the end of the three hours that there would be no cooperation. Disgusted at the behavior of the supposed leaders, Daala released a powerful nerve gas which only she and Pellaeon were prepared against. Many of the leaders rushed to the doors trying to force them open. Superior General Delvardus assembled a blade from his rank insignia but fell short of killing Daala in his last moments. The last to survive was High Admiral Teradoc, whose bulk kept him planted in his chair and also made it take longer for the nerve gas to kill him. Shortly after the last of the warlords had died, the doors slid open, the three hours were up.

Daala's Reforms
"Imperial forces have been unified, squabbling warlords executed. Starship construction increased tenfold, new soldiers appearing by the tens of thousands&hellip;Imperial forces have clustered around a single commander, and it would appear that even women and aliens are allowed to serve to the extent of their abilities - a vast change from the Emperor's way of thinking, wouldn't you say? Charming to see an enlightened Imperial commander, isn't it?"

- Unnamed Hutt information broker

With the death of the Warlords, Daala became the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Fleet. She amassed a huge fighting force of millions of stormtroopers; 45 Imperial-class Star Destroyers, 112 Victory-class Star Destroyers, and one Executor-class Star Dreadnought, Knight Hammer; hundreds of AT-STs, Skipray Blastboats, TIE/LN starfighters, TIE/sa bombers, and TIE/IN interceptors; Gamma-class assault shuttles, and Lambda-class shuttles. Many of the vehicles and vessels were newly built from factories she personally toured, and many of the new soldiers were fresh recruits inspired by her charismatic public speaking. Daala's battle group quickly and quietly prepared for a brutal assault on the New Republic.

Daala assumed control over much of the Deep Core Imperial holdings. She also began reaching out to Imperial Fortress Worlds and systems with Imperial loyalties outside the Deep Core. While she didn't achieve solid alliances with many of these worlds at the time, she laid the groundwork for Pellaeon to eventually move the Imperial fleet out of the Deep Core and into the Mid Rim where he launched his own fresh assault against the New Republic.

In addition to military and political consolidation, Daala removed many of the restrictions on women and aliens that had run rampant. For the first time, women and nonhumans made up a large part of the Imperial war machine. This boosted morale and earned Daala the respect and loyalty of many Imperials.

Aftermath
Daala turned command over to Gilad Pellaeon following her disastrous defeat at Yavin. Pellaeon took what Daala had done and expanded upon it. He established solid alliances in the Mid Rim and moved the entire Imperial military and any resources he could out of the Deep Core and established a new and respectable Imperial holding. From here it was easier for him to attack the New Republic and resources were more readily available. Much of the infrastructure in the Deep Core remained, however, and replacement warlords sprang up to fill the shoes of the men Daala had murdered. These replacement warlords lacked military muscle but held tight control over their territories. Eventually these replacements wielded enough power that Daala formed them into a coalition to fight the New Republic. However, Daala didn't assume complete control this time and the replacement warlords crumbled under a series of border assaults by the New Republic.

The events Daala set in motion would pave the way for the formation of the Imperial Remnant, which would continue plaguing the Republic until the signing of the Bastion Accords on the Chimaera in 19 ABY.

Appearances

 * Darksaber
 * Legacy of the Force: Revelation