Planetary shield

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Starkiller Base full — Starkiller Base enveloped in a planetary shield

Planetary shields, also known as a planetary shield generator, were large deflector shields designed to protect entire planets. These shields were used by the Galactic Empire to protect important military installations such as the security complex on Scarif, and by the First Order to protect their base of operations/superweapon, Starkiller Base.

Description[]

Planetary shields^[1] were monolithic deflector shields^[2] that enveloped entire planets. Designed to protect important installations from attack, planetary shields were impregnable against starship fire and proton torpedoes; however, they proved no resistance against superlasers, such as that of the Death Star. In the case of Scarif's planetary shield, an orbital Shield Gate was used to create an aperture through which vessels could pass through.^[3] Planetary shields were so powerful that any starship unlucky enough to careen into one would be at least severely damaged, or even destroyed.^[4]

The planetary shield that surrounded Starkiller Base had a fractional refresh rate, preventing any spacecraft traveling slower than lightspeed from transitioning into the planet's atmosphere.^[5]

History[]

In 1 BBY,^[6] Lothal's Imperial Complex was equipped with a shield. During the Lothal resistance group's liberation of Lothal, the Rebels were able to take control of the complex and it's shield. However, the Imperial Seventh Fleet's commander, Grand Admiral Thrawn had his agent, Rukh disable the Dome's shield. Rukh and several technicians were able to disable the shield's generator and the Chimaera opened fired on Capital City. After Lieutenant Commander Ezra Bridger surrendered to Thrawn, Captain Garazeb Orrelios attacked Rukh while the other rebels took out the technicians. The rebels were then able to get the shield up and prevent the Chimaera from resuming it's bombardment of the capital.^[7]

Scarif shield vs Star Destroyer — The Star Destroyer *Persecutor* colliding with Scarif's planetary shield

At the end of 1 BBY,^[6] the Rebel Alliance launched an attack on the shielded Imperial world of Scarif in an attempt to steal the plans to the Death Star battle station. During the battle, the Sphyrna-class Hammerhead corvette Lightmaker pushed the disabled Star Destroyer Persecutor into Scarif's Shield Gate and in turn, the planetary shield itself, creating an opening and allowing the Death Star plans to be transmitted to the Rebel Fleet.^[3] Seconds later, the Death Star itself arrived, firing a low-power superlaser blast at the Imperial installation below and completely dissipating the planetary shield.^[1]

After the Galactic Empire's defeat in 5 ABY,^[8] remnants of the fallen regime fled into the Unknown Regions in order to rebuild. The fledgling First Order began construction on Starkiller Base,^[9] a planet-converted superweapon protected by a planetary shield. During their conflict with the First Order, the Resistance launched an assault on the planet, bypassing the shield at lightspeed via the Millennium Falcon and managed to force one of the Order's top officers to lower the deflector shield, allowing the Resistance Starfighter Corps to attack the base's thermal oscillator and ultimately destroy the planet.^[5]