#Xelarra

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Cadet Thrawn and Apprentice Xelarra enjoy their first kiss

Too bad the picrew was rather buggy, and I wish I could have made their hair blacker, but it's still cute.

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This trope is so prevalent -- I just had to avert it in my fics:

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“It’s all right,” Pellaeon assured her, “I should be heading back soon, but if you ever need anything …”

“I’ll be sure to contact you. In the meantime, please don’t tell anyone else the location of Nirauan. It’s my responsibility now to continue the work Thrawn began, but I can’t do that if the Rebels find out we’re here. Nirauan will need to be independent of the Empire from now on.”

“I can’t say I understand completely, but Grand Admiral Thrawn always had good reasons for what he did, and I don’t expect his wife would be any different. I trust you. I’ll erase Nirauan’s location from the Chimaera’s logs when I get back.” Pellaeon promised. “Will you be all right?”

Xelarra looked lovingly at her son, who was now wide awake. Flame-red eyes met sparkling ones, already wide with curiosity, just like ... she took a breath. It was good to have the reminder, she tried to convince herself.

“I will be. I have to be, for Shran. He needs his mother,” she answered.

“All right. Until we meet again, My Lady,” Pellaeon said in farewell.

“Until then, Vice Admiral.

As Pellaeon left to go build whatever future for the remnants of the Empire he could, Xelarra could finally let down her guard. As a rule, Chiss have better control over their emotions than humans do, but that does not mean that those emotions do not exist. She held Shran close, her baby son who would never even have a chance to meet his father.

Xelarra cried for both of them.

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Xelarra's husband, Grand Admiral Thrawn, had just died (that was canon - not my fault), but she had a baby son to take care of. She must live, for her child.

She lives not only to be a mother to her son, but to seek justice for her husband's murderers and rise to the position of Empress of the Hand.

This woman lives.

the woman dies.

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Xelarra, Empress of the Hand

I was playing with the picrew again :D

It's not as good as my husband's pic of Xelarra, but it's always nice to have another one!

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Empress of the Hand

May I present her Imperial Majesty, Governor of Nirauan, Grand Moff of the Unknown Regions, Empress of the Hand (and her favourite title), Wife of Grand Admiral Thrawn

Empress Lexx'elarra'nuruodo of the Empire of the Hand -- Xelarra

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The asteroid, hurdling towards Honoghr, several ships in its path trying, and some failing, to get out of its way.

Its plunge into the atmosphere, reaching the surface in mere seconds, the asteroid itself vapourizing upon impact.

A bright, white bubble of energy emerged from the surface of the planet, ejecta shooting into space like fireworks, the planet itself shuddered from its off-the-scale earthquakes. Smaller circles of light appear on the far side as the impact awakens volcanoes a planetary diameter away.

The barren, greenish oceans rising up, tsunamis over a kilometre high battering the coastlines of the single continent.

The sickly purple landscape turning magma red, as ejecta re-entered the atmosphere, firestorms igniting across the meager plains, the air itself burning like an oven.

Footage from the surface right before the shockwave hit, the primitive dwellings of the Noghri incinerated, before the holocamera joined them.

The ash cloud spreading over the planet, covering it in a black, sooty blanket, an impact winter destined to last for decades.

Xelarra watched the destruction dispassionately, her face carefully neutral.

- "Nightfall of the Final Day"

as one of my commenters put it, don't fuck with the Chiss.

art beautifully provided by my husband

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For the OC ask game --

🙌 - How many sibling does your OC have?

🍎 - What is the OC’s relationship w/their parents like?

🙌 - How many sibling does your OC have?

I'm not completely sure yet, but I know Xelarra has at least one older sibling since I did describe her as "a younger daughter of House Lexx". I did kind of imagine her with at least one older brother and sister. And, of course, she sees Ar'alani and Syal Fel as better "sisters" than her bio-siblings ever were.

🍎 - What is the OC’s relationship w/their parents like?

Not the best.

Xelarra's mother, Lexx'evai'natash - Xevain, is the "Matriarch" of the Lexx, but the use of the non-traditional title is the only way in which the two have anything in common.

The Lexx came to power as a Ruling Family (replacing the Ufsa in my AU -- they're still around, just one of the 40 Great Families instead) fairly recently, when Xelarra was very young. They gained the status through their monopoly on Rainbow Gems, a resource found only on their stronghold world, Abrixus (a gas giant moon), which are used to greatly empower spectrum lasers on Chiss ships. Spectrum lasers *can* work without the gems, but not anywhere near as well. This resource, as well as push from their allies, the Irizi, and at the time, the Mitth, propelled them to Ruling Family status, though the alliance with the Mitth didn't last longer than Thurfian figuring out that Xevain was only using him.

(@admiral-arelami gave me the idea that Xevain and Thurfian had an affair, and it's too deliciously soap-opera-ish to not use!)

Xevain is a ruthless, cut-throat matriarch, and as the Lexx only just became a Ruling Family under her tenure, she's determined to keep it that way through any means necessary. She sees pretty much everyone around her as tools towards her own political goals - even her own children -- and her quiet, anti-social daughter irked her pretty much from her birth. She only "let" Xelarra study to be a librarian because she thought it keep her distracted until she could marry her off for political gain. She was furious when she found out Xelarra had actually found a boyfriend on her own, and refused to even consider the idea of Xelarra marrying a hated Mitth, especially a "low-born 'merit' adoptive" like Thrawn.

When Xelarra left the Ascendency to join Thrawn in the Empire, Xevain disowned her and formally kicked her out of the Family (something even the Mitth didn't do to Thrawn). By the time the Empire of the Hand formally contacts the Chiss Ascendency, the Lexx, Xevain especially, are the loudest voices against acknowledging the Empire of the Hand as an official government in its own right, instead referring to the citizens of the Hand, including her daughter, the Empress, as "aliens and traitors". Xelarra only uses the Lexx name now out of spite, and to demonstrate by example that Family drama is completely meaningless in the Empire of the Hand -- that no Chiss needs to put up with that bullshit anymore.

Xelarra's father is a Stybla. I haven't really characterized him yet, but he divorced Xevain when Xelarra still fairly young, and she didn't get to see him very often. Ba'kif is actually a distant cousin of Xelarra's through her father's side of the family (though if you look back far enough, pretty much all the Ruling Family Blood members are probably related) . If we can assume Xelarra got her own ruthless streak and stubbornness from her mother, she got her intellectualism and love of reading from her father's Family. I can see him reaching out to his daughter and grandchildren eventually.

If I created Xelarra today, I probably would have outright made her a Stybla. Unfortunately, we knew nothing about the Chiss families until Chaos Rising came out, and I started my AU during the Legends era.

The one older family member that Xelarra was actually somewhat close to as a child was her aunt, who was married off to the Chaf in a political alliance, but it actually ended up being a good match. I don't have a name for her yet, but she's married to Formbi, which is why Formbi becomes probably the Empire of the Hand's strongest behind-the-scenes ally in the Syndicure (as seen in Survivor's Quest).

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What's your favoritest random fact about Xelarra? One you don't talk about/mention a ton?

Xelarra thought she would detest her 'son-in-law', Luke Skywalker. She assumed he would just be another arrogant, book-burning Jedi like the kind she read about while working at the Imperial Palace Library (aka the former Jedi archives), and was pissed when Mara married him instead of killing him.

When she actually met Luke, however, his sweet, farmboy demeanor threw her completely for a loop. He reminded her more of Eli Vanto, than the jerk Jedi and Rebel she was expecting (maybe she got his reputation confused with Han's? :P)

They actually get along surprisingly well (especially since Luke did save Shran from a Noghri attack), and share a love of hot chocolate.

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Hair & Change for the OC design ask! Let's do both for Xelarra, Andorra, and Shran!

hair: How does your OC wear their hair? Does it have some kind of meaning?

Xelarra usually wears her hair in a "braided crown" or headband style, with a single, thin, braid going down her back to her waist, with the rest of her hair loose. She likes it for its regal looks, while showing off how long her hair is.

Shran usually has a military cut similar to his father's, except for his spikey bangs that just won't stay flat, with a stray strand or two always hanging over his eye. As an Explorer, he can get away with a less formal style than most military officers.

I'm not too sure about Andorra, but I think she'd prefer a simple style, probably just a pony tail with side strands most of the time.

change: Has your OC ever drastically changed their appearance? Significant haircuts, big tattoos, complete wardrobe swap, etc? Why? How do they feel about the change?

Like most Chiss who are members of Ruling families, Xelarra had really no choice but to dress in her family's colours while in the Ascendency. For the Lexx, those colours were royal purple with silver trim. It's not a bad combination (better than Chaf yellow at any rate!) so she didn't mind too much.

In the Empire of the Hand, especially after becoming Empress, she usually wears white, to symbolize her commitment to her Empire, in much the same as her husband's Grand Admiral uniform. She's actually rather relieved to not have to show any affiliation to the Lexx anymore, especially after her mother, Matriarch Xevain, disowned her for following her husband into exile. She only keeps the Lexx part of her name out of spite.

Shran was only 12 years old when he was accepted into the Explorer program as a cadet (usually military academies in the Empire of the Hand go from ages 14-18, replacing high school), and he was thrilled to finally put on an Explorer uniform. He very rarely wears anything else, even wearing the field variant when on shore leave -- he's that proud of his role, especially after he makes captain.

Andorra's wardrobe changes frequently for different diplomatic missions, usually stuffy formal wear. At home, she just prefers something comfortable and practical. Both she and her mother will hang out at home in their pyjamas when they can get away with it.

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The same people who bitch and complain about OCs of any kind are all for Canon x Reader fics, which I personally despise. I can only think of a single example (written by one of the members of The Write Way) that's written well, IMO.

If I wanted a complete blank slate, I'd play any video game which lets you create your character. I prefer an actual *character* in my writing, to learn about, to empathize with, to journey with as you both discover the plot. Rooting for "yourself" as an "reader" just seems weird and self-serving to me. I much prefer the distance and creativity that comes with writing an actual character. You don't see any professionally published "x reader" stories, now, do you?

Frankly, the whole discourse around any OCs (but mostly female or female-presenting ones) being automatically dismissed as "Mary Sues" is ridiculous. The original Mary Sue was actually a parody of the concept in the first place. We should be free to create our own characters without fear. You never know -- you could come up with the next Mara Jade.

Ultimately, ship and let ship. Read and write x reader fics if you want. Just don't do it only because you're afraid of your OCs getting boo'ed.

[OC X CANON APPRECIATION POST! 🩷✨]

REBLOG IF YOU LOVE AND SUPPORT OC X CANON!!

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What are your OC's favorite foods?

Xelarra's favourite is chocolate. She was quite happy to discover the tropical climate of Nirauan's southeastern continent is ideal for growing caoco trees, and several farms have sprung up a short ways away from Hand Base. She likes chocolate of all sorts, bars, boxes, covering fruit, or hot chocolate to drink, the latter of which becomes a kind of bonding moment between her, her long lost adopted daughter, and her previously unwanted son-in-law.

To quote a great sage (Timothy Zahn, in his author's comments in the Heir to the Empire 20th anniversary edition) "a galaxy without chocolate isn't one I'd want to be in."

Andorra loves traditional Chiss food, since she didn't get any growing up. She's become quite fond of yapel triangles, and prefers caccoleaf over caf or lesser space teas. She considers it the highlight of her otherwise stressful diplomatic visits to the Ascendency ("it's just not the same on Nirauan!")

Shran likes popcorn, a "Corillian delicacy" introduced to him by the Fels. He especially likes to munch on a bucket while observing something particularly interesting/entertaining from his captain's chair on the Intrepid, usually offering to share with his bridge crew.

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For the OC interest ask, number 7 for Xelarra and 6 for Shran!

7. How does your character handle failure or setbacks? Are they resilient or easily discouraged?

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Xelarra usually mopes for a short while, and reads (a lot more than usual) to get her mind off things, but usually her reading will get her thinking. She then considers what went wrong and plots how to either (a) change things on the next attempt or (b) plans how to avoid the situation in the future. For an example of the (b) mentality, see "Nightfall of the Final Day", and how she "solved" the problem of the Noghri's continuing threat to her family.

6. What is your character's preferred way of coping with stress or difficult situations.

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True to his calling as an Explorer (and taking after his parents a great deal), Shran takes a breath, calms down, and examines a difficult situation from all possible angles, seeing difficulties as puzzles that need to be solved.

To relax, Shran actually enjoys singing and music. He loves karaoke, often roping his best friend Jagged Fel into "performing" with him (Jag's more of a rapper - I can't hear a Linkin Park song without imagining the two of them). He doesn't quite use music the way his parents use art and literature, but he still finds it insightful.

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Been playing with a Picrew shared by one of my Discord friends to make some OCs of mine.

First, Thrawn and Xelarra's kids

Captain Shran of the RRS Intrepid (believe me, the anime sparkles suit him perfectly)

Princess Andorra, the Heir to the Empire (of the Hand). Wish her headband/tiara could have had a little Imperial cogwheel, but I suppose that's close enough.

Cherith Fel

(not actually an OC, but might as well be). It wouldn't let me give her a proper Fel skunk stripe, but again, close enough. (yes, the hand is Shran's -- she got the guy!)

Check out the Picrew here!

https://picrew.me/share?cd=lkKIQQp6pS#google_vignette

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Imperial Handbook: Empire of the Hand - Capital Ships of the Navy of the Hand

Another Worldbuilding exercise for my Empire of the Hand AU. See my Ranks document here:

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While it might have began as a small task force under Thrawn’s command and whatever largely Clone Wars era scraps the Empire proper would send their way, as time went on and the Empire of the Hand began to build up the infrastructure needed to build its own ships, the variety of vessels available to it increased.  Here some of the Capital ships used by the Navy of the Hand, including some unique classes.

Renaissance-class Super Star Destroyer  (about 12 km long)

Built:  Kuat Drive Yard’s Spiral Shipyards, Nirauan system.  Officially finished construction in 21 ABY, but Admiral Parck would occasionally make use of its incomplete state before then. 

The Renaissance class is a shorter, wider, heavier-set, ship than the more familiar Executor-class SSDs from the old Galactic Empire, taking several design features from the prototype Eclipse class, including integrated interdiction technology, a complement of over 400 TIE Defender fighters, and a superlaser capable of cracking a planetary crust (or a Yuuzhan Vong world ship). Like other Empire of the Hand designs, the Renaissance-class’ bridge is not located in an exposed tower, but rather deep inside the ship, with cameras and a powerful sensor suite compensating for the lack of viewports.  Borrowing from Mon Calamari designs, the Renaissance-class also utilizes overlapping shield technology.  As well as standard Imperial weaponry like turbolasers, tractor beams and ion cannons, the Renaissance -class also utilizes Chiss Ascendency weaponry such as Plasma ball launchers and breacher missiles.

The main difference from the earlier class (and, the "selling point" that convinced then-Grand Moff Xelarra to sign off on its creation) is the ability of the Renaissance-class to carry up to five Imperial or Spiral- class Star Destroyers on the hull itself, with the smaller (but still capital sized) ships docking on five triangular recesses on the main hull, 3 on top of the superstructure, two below.  The Renaissance-class can thus act as a mobile repair station as well as the command ship.  Its main hanger bay can internally carry ships up to 300 m in length (i.e. the size of an Arquitens-class light cruiser or an Explorer-class research/scout vessel).

The Renaissance also has integrated Interdictor technology, and is equipped with several cloaking devices (necessary because of the ship’s size).  These two systems cannot normally be used at the same time, though Grand Admiral Thrawn remembers a few tricks learned earlier in his career to get around this limitation.  As cloaking devices are double-blind – they protect a ship from detection, but said ship also cannot see outside of it when activated through conventional means, the cloak is most effectively used with the cooperation of an Imperial Knight, who can use the Force to sense outside the cloak.  However, with proper timing and practice the cloaks can be used without the assistance of Force-users. 

As the Empire of the Hand did not sign the Pellaeon–Gavrisom Treaty, they are not prohibited from using cloaking devices. 

Known vessels in the class:

SSD Renaissance        

CO:  Fleet Admiral Voss Parck (19-28 ABY), Grand Admiral Thrawn (28 ABY +)

XO:  Commodore Eli Vanto (28 ABY+)

Starfighter commander:  Colonel Jagged Fel (28 ABY +)

Flagship of the Navy of the Hand.  Displays the same Paccosh signil as the ISD Chimaera on its hull.

Commissioned by Fleet Admiral Parck, in anticipation of Grand Admiral Thrawn’s rumoured return in 19 ABY.  Thrawn (actually his clone, known as ‘Raw’nuru’ until he was ready to retake the mantle of Grand Admiral) did not take command until the beginning of the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, after the Evacuation of Lysatra.

Imperial-Class Star Destroyers

These iconic ships were inherited from the Galactic Empire.  Only a few were assigned to Thrawn’s task force in the Unknown Regions/The Chaos, and he chose the leave the ones he did have behind in the Empire of the Hand during his campaign of 8-9 ABY.  The Empire of the Hand has been retrofitting the ISDs when they can with more automation, in order to reduce its crew component from over 37 000 personnel down to 10 000.  As the less crew-intensive Spiral-Class Star Destroyers became more prominent in the Navy of the Hand, the remaining, aging Imperial-Class Star Destroyers were mainly regulated to defensive roles around prominent star systems and installations.  

Differences with standard Imperial Class ISDs:

As opposed to the “mobile base” role that the Old Galactic Empire used the Imperial-class for, Empire of the Hand ISDs are more starfighter-focused, with the majority of their standard ground forces (an entire legion of Stormtroopers, 20 AT-AT walkers and associated vehicles at the Empire’s height) regulated to the Clone Wars era Acclimator and new Nightstalker-class assault cruisers instead, unless the mission profile specifically calls for their inclusion.  With more room that would have been otherwise been taken up by ground vehicles, Hand ISDs have more than doubled the number of TIE –series fighters carried. 

To accommodate the additional TIES, the bridge tower has been reassigned to be a communications tower, focusing on air traffic control.  The actual bridge of the ship has been moved to a far more secure location in the interior of the ship, with cameras and sensors making up for the lack of traditional viewports.  

Known Vessels in this Class:

ISD Admonitor

CO:  Captain Dagon Niriz, then-Captain Voss Parck

The Star Destroyer first assigned to Thrawn’s “mapping expedition” in the Unknown Regions/The Chaos which would grow into the Empire of the Hand.  It later serves as the Hand Fleet's flagship until the Renaissance’s construction is completed in 21 ABY. 

ISD Vengeance  renamed the Resolute once in Hand space

CO:  then-Captain Thrawn (6 BBY), Commodore Karyn Faro (1 BBY +)

This is (officially) the first ISD Thrawn was assigned to as captain, which he used to subjugate the Kaleesh colony world of Oben.  Surprisingly, Thrawn earned the fierce, reptilian aliens’ respect for not just defeating, but crushing them in battle.  After the Battle of Endor, Thrawn personally extends an invitation to the Kaleesh to join the Empire of the Hand.  The say they will consider his offer, but don’t actually join until after Thrawn’s death.  

Commodore Karyn Faro served as Thrawn’s executive officer on the Resolute for many years, before being promoted to commanding officer of the Resolute itself, then climbing ever higher in the Hand Navy. 

The Resolute, along with the Admonitor, were also largely responsible for the creation of “Thrawn’s Cut” -- the hyperspace beacon route through The Chaos stretching from the Nirauan system to the border with the Chiss Ascendency. 

Beacons are modified Imperial probe droids, deployed in small groups that transmit real time astrometrics along a frequency that to anyone other than Empire of the Hand communications networks, appears as regular galactic background radiation.  By deploying the beacons in regular intervals, they form a trail of “breadcrumbs” that subsequent Hand ships can follow, allowing navigation through the Chaos without relying on Force users, though the initial deployment can be quite slow, relying on jump-by-jump navigation to plant the next “crumb” in the trail.  It took nearly a decade to carve Thrawn’s Cut, and the time involved convinced the Grand Admiral of the need for a dedicated exploration and beacon planting corps. 

ISDs the Empire of the Hand wants:

ISD Chimaera, currently serving as the flagship of the Imperial Loyalists (aka the Imperial Remnant)

CO:  Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon Possibly the most famous ISD in the Galaxy, the Chimaera served as Grand Admiral Thrawn’s flagship during his campaign to retake the galaxy in 9 ABY, with Gilad Pellaeon serving as his XO.  Both Fleet Admiral Parck and Empress Xelarra herself have made numerous offers to the Imperial Loyalists to acquire the historic ship, including offering the trade several state-of-the-art Spiral-class Star Destroyers for her.  Grand Admiral Pellaeon declines to give up his flagship every time.

Spiral-class Star Destroyers

Named for the magnificent ringed gas giant Spiral, the fifth planet in the Nirauan system, around which the Empire of the Hand’s main shipyards are built, these slim, daggerlike ships are smaller than Imperial-class Star Destroyers  (1.2 km long compared to an ISD's 1.6 km) and take a lot less crew (only about 5000).  As is standard on newer Hand ships, the Bridge tower is eliminated, with the bridge itself nestled deep within the structure of the ship.  They are powerful for their size.  Like a “mini-Renaissance”, (though they are, in fact, the basis for the larger ship) SpSDs are equipped with both Imperial and Chiss Ascendency weapons, featuring banks of turbo and spectrum lasers, deployed in retractable turrets, tractor beams, ion cannons and/or plasma spheres and breacher missiles. Some, though not all (usually 1-2 per battle group) have interdiction technology equipped.   Like the Hand’s ISDs, SpSDs also focus on starfighter deployment over ground forces, even though their TIEs usually consist of hyperspace-capable TIE Defenders.

Spiral class ships are predominantly assigned to Fleet Admiral Karyn Faro's Seeker Fleet, whose primary mission is to patrol the Galactic Rim hunting for any signs of the Far Outsiders.  As an added bit of psychological warfare against the technophobic Far Outsiders, Seeker Fleet ships are usually named after fictional machine lifeforms from a children’s novel and ani-holo series once popular in the Core. 

They also perform limited exploration duties (at least until the dedicated Explorer program is implemented) and plant hyperspace beacons.  They are slowly replacing the aging ISDs to become the premier battleship in the Navy of the Hand. 

Spiral-class ships use the designation “HMS” - “her Majesty’s Ship”, in honour of her Imperial Majesty, Lexx’elarra’nuruodo (Xelarra), Empress of the Hand. 

Known vessels in the class:

HMS Starscream

CO:  Fleet Admiral Karyn Faro (2 ABY +)

Flagship of Seeker Fleet, for a short time Flagship of the Navy of the Hand, during Admiral Faro’s tenure as Supreme Commander. 

One of the first four Spiral-class ships built, and founding member of Seeker Fleet. 

(featured in "Seat of Command" as the site of Thrawn and Xelarra having some "quality time" - NSFW)

HMS Thundercracker

CO:  Captain Rae Sloane ( 5 ABY)

Thrawn’s flagship while assisting the Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet against Ssi’ruuk incursions (“Reunion”).  Captain Sloan was personally mentored by the Grand Admiral, and is considered Admiral Faro’s protégée.   

One of the first four Spiral-class ships built, and founding member of Seeker Fleet. 

HMS Skywarp

Torguta CO

Equipped with Interdiction technology, its smooth lines are broken up by its spherical, gravity well generators.

One of the first four Spiral-class ships built, and founding member of Seeker Fleet

HMS Shockwave

CO:  Captain Kyra Pyrondi

Captained by a long-time crewmate of both Grand Admiral Thrawn’s and Admiral Faro’s, this ship serves as a testbed for new weapons developments, with Captain Pyrondi herself often participating in the design teams. 

One of the first four Spiral-class ships built, and founding member of Seeker Fleet

HMS Grievous

Kaleesh CO Named for the legendary, deified  leader of the Kaleesh and General of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, specializes in long-range “hunting”, and preemptive strikes.

Victory-Class Star Destroyers, Venator-Class Star Destroyers

Clone Wars-era capital ships, regulated to less-important sectors of the Galactic Empire during the Imperial era as the larger Imperial-class better fulfilled the Tarkin doctrine of “rule by fear”, even if the larger ships were far less efficient in other respects.  Thrawn managed to get a number of these older ships assigned to his “mapping expedition” in the Unknown Regions/The Chaos, mostly because they were undervalued by that point by mainstream commanders in the Galactic Empire.   

Like the Imperial-class, these older ships are slowly being phased out in favour of the Spiral-class, but are still in use – mostly used against known threats in the Chaos (like the Vagaari pirates, and some client species of the Grysts – themselves clients of the Far Outsiders).  While these aging ships may be less effective in Lesser Space, even Clone Wars-era shields and weaponry is superior to most technology that cultures of the Chaos can muster, including the Chiss Ascendency.  Thrawn has a talent for using limited resources in the most effective way possible, and these older star destroyers are no exception.

Arguably, these ships make up the backbone of the Navy of the Hand, and keep the Empire of the Hand safe from the known threats of the Chaos.  Whether they will be effective against the Far Outsiders remains to be seen.   

Known vessels in these classes:

VSD Strikefast

CO:  Captain Voss Parck (19 BBY), Commodore Rae Sloane (10 ABY +)

The Victory-class Star Destroyer which was commanded by Voss Parck when he made first contact with Thrawn in 19 BBY.  While Parck himself was reassigned to the ISD Admonitor, Thrawn did manage to get the Strikefast herself assigned to his “mapping expedition”.   

The Strikefast, under Commodore Rae Sloan, later became the flagship of the Explorer program.  Though the Explorers themselves would later use primarily their own class of ship, modified Arquitens-class light cruisers, the Strikefast remains in service, stationed at Watchtower Station – the space station built at the Ascendency-end of Thrawn’s Cut, and the Explorer program’s base of operations, still serving as now-Admiral Sloane’s flagship (and is to Watchtower what the USS Defiant is to DS9). 

Dreadnaught-class Heavy Cruisers

Pre-Clone Wars capital ships are rare, due to the Old Republic’s anti-military policies.  Nevertheless, Grand Admiral Thrawn managed to discover the location of the legendary Katana fleet during his campaign of 9 ABY.  Though the majority of the 178 ships he acquired were used in his campaign, with surviving vessels becoming Imperial Loyalist property, He did manage to send 30 of the vessels home to the Empire of the Hand. 

Though older, like with the Venator and Victory-Class Star Destroyers, the Dreadnaugts still outgun anything native to the Chaos, as demonstrated by the Chiss Ascendency’s efforts to acquire the six Dreadnaughts of the Outbound Flight expedition.  Surviving Dreadnaughts usually server as auxiliary craft in the Hand Navy, backing up Star Destroyers.  Five vessels, unfortunately, were in such a state of disrepair that they had to be decommissioned and scrapped.  (“Nightfall of the Final Day”).

Like with other Clone Wars and earlier era ships, the Hand is occasionally able to procure additional vessels from Lesser Space scrapyards in the Outer Rim, though as our own shipbuilding capabilities have improved, this has become far less necessary. 

Known Vessels in the Class:

HMS Rapier

Official transport of her Imperial Majesty, Empress Xelarra.  The Empress declines to use a Star Destroyer for her needs, preferring that the newer, stronger vessels serve in “more important” Naval missions.  Instead, she uses one of the Katana Fleet dreadnaughts, saying she has an “appreciation” for such ships.  As the Imperial transport, the Rapier has civilian amenities more typical to diplomatic vessels (including relatively large shipboard library) and is more comfortable than most navel vessels, even for its enlisted crewmembers.  However, make no mistake – it is still a warship, and is perfectly capable of defending itself.

The Rapier features an upgraded Class 1 hyperdrive, stronger shields (even with the typical strong armour of a Dreadnaught) and its nose cargo bay is more accurately deemed a hanger, housing a full wing of TIE Defenders, as well as having dedicated landing spots for both Empress Xelarra’s and Princess Andorra’s personal Lambda-class shuttles.  The cargo bay can also hold the Empress’ personal combat vehicle, the AT-AT Toraton (her Majesty is a qualified reservist AT-AT driver) though it is more usually stationed on the Renaissance, or on Nirauan itself.      While the Empress is on Nirauan, the Rapier serves as part of the capital’s planetary defense fleet, though it can be ready for Her Majesty’s departure within one standard hour.   

Acclamator and Nightstalker-Class Assault Ships

The Clone Wars-era Acclamator, and its “descendant”, the Nightstalker-class, serve primarily as ground troop transports, assault vehicles and landing craft for the Army of the Hand, Stormtroopers and member world elite troops.  As such, these ships will be described in more detail in the chapter on the Army of the Hand.    

Interdictors

Immobilizer-class cruisers 

These rare ships have the ability to project an artificial gravity field, mimicking the mass shadow of a large object (i.e. a planet) in hyperspace, and subsequently pulling other ships out of hyperspace.  They were not built in great numbers, despite being perhaps the best Rebel-hunting tool at the Empire's disposal.  Thrawn saw their potential when pretty much no other Imperial commander did, and managed to get a large percentage of the Empire's Interdictors assigned to him in the Empire of the Hand. 

While Interdictors are usually used to pull enemy ships out of hyperspace for easier capture/destruction, the “Thrawn Pincer” is a space battle tactic developed by Thrawn, where Interdictors are used to pull his own ships out of hyperspace in a specific formation, with a lot more control than would be possible with usual hyperspace jumps.  He uses the technique in his Campaign of 9 ABY to great affect.   

Immobilizers are about 600 m long, looks like a small Star Destroyer with 4 gravity projector domes sticking out from the lines of the hull)

Known Immobilizer cruisers:

Maelstrom

An old Immobilizer scheduled to be scrapped by the New Republic (as they didn't know how to use it properly).  Raw'nuru (Thrawn's clone) joins a band of pirates in capturing the ship, then seizes command himself.  He uses the Maelstrom as his primary vessel while patrolling the Empire of the Hand's borders, taking on privateer missions, recruiting allies, and protecting his Empire from the shadows as he regains the confidence he needs to retake his old mantle.

Between 20 and 28 ABY, the Maelstrom is involved in several notable events, such as destroying a New Republic vessel that attacked them unprovoked without even firing a shot, which subsequently leads to Raw'nuru finally getting to warn Admiral Ackbar about the Far Outsiders, and the start of their "long distance" friendship (fic idea - "Pen Pals").

The Maelstrom is destroyed in the Evacuation of Lysatra, at the onset of the Far Outsiders War, holding off an invading Vong force long enough for the Hand Fleet to arrive.  Most of the crew, however, survives, and rejoin their Captain (now once again Grand Admiral) on the Renaissance.

The Maelstrom is also where Imp Squadron is assigned.  These near-washout fighter pilots are given one last chance by Wing General Soontir Fel to prove themselves, so are given just standard TIES and assigned to "the Empress' favourite privateer" to shape up.  Under Raw'nuru's command, they become an elite fighter squadron, basically the Hand's version of the NR's Wraith Squadron.  They also join their commander aboard the Renaissance.

Other Interdictors (undetermined class):

Scylla and Charybdis

Assigned to the Renaissance's battle group, these two Interdictors are commanded by Devola and Popula, two redish-orange twin Twi'leks who were trained by Raw'nuru on the Maelstrom.  They had originally been slaves belonging to the first pirate captain, who were freed by Raw'nuru when he overthrew and spaced that captain.  He saw their potential, and personally mentored them into Imperial officers.  Both are good friends (sometimes with benefits) of the Explorer Captain Shran.

Some Spiral-class Star Destroyers are also equipped with Interdiction technology, including Seeker Fleet’s HMS Skywarp.  The Renaissance itself is also Interdiction-capable. 

Arquitens-class Light Cruisers 

Considered the Imperial answer to the Rebellion’s/New Republic’s CR90 Corvette (aka the Rebel Blockade Runner, often nicknamed the “Rebel Ass-Hauler” by Hand navel personnel), the 300-metre long Arquitens has been in service since the Clone Wars, and was of the few ships from that era to remain in service in the Galactic Empire for the entirety of its existence.  The Empire of the Hand likewise inherited a large number of these ships.  While most serve essentially unchanged from their roles in the Galactic Empire as support and scout/recon craft, notable Arquitens have become something more. 

Explorer-class research and scout vessels:

Between 10 BBY and 6 ABY, while Thrawn was building up the Empire of the Hand, it became apparent, especially during the decade-long establishment of the "Thrawn's Cut" hyperspace route, that relying on Star Destroyers and other navy vessels to plant hyperspace beacons and for the diplomatic relations with non-hostile civilisations of the Chaos was unsustainable, and frankly a waste of the Navy's time when they need to be preparing for the upcoming Far Outsider invasion.

With the assistance of Xelarra's research into past exploration initiatives in Lesser Space (both historical and fictional), Thrawn began developing the foundation of a new, offshoot from the Hand Navy, to focus on (relatively) peaceful exploration exclusively.

That said, the Explorer ships, while small, needed to be tough and fast, to survive encounters with less-friendly forces, and to eventually transfer to scout duties in the Far Outsider War.

The ubiquitous Imperial Arquitens-class light cruiser (like Thrawn's first Imperial assignment, the Thunder Wasp) would make an ideal basis.

Explorer-class ships differ from their foundation in having even their limited weapons further reduced, in order to make room for science labs, a larger hanger to hold more than two shuttles at a time, and the most advanced sensor suite in the known Galaxy.  The crew compliment is also reduced, to about 200, from an Arquitens' 700.

Explorer ships are not entirely helpless -- their weapons may be limited, but they pack a punch, and can handle nuisances like smugglers/pirates perfectly well.  Standard procedure has the ships in constant communication with the nearest active Navy vessel (as detected over the Hand's hyperspace beacon network), which is obligated to come to the Explorer's aid if called.

Explorer-class vessels are highly modular, and can be easily customized for different mission profiles.

Thrawn unfortunately did not live to see the Explorer program officially start, but after his death, the program was finally pushed through by Empress Xelarra, with support from Admiral Faro. 

While officially under Admiral Faro’s jurisdiction, she delegated command of the Explorer program to Admiral Rae Sloane.  The program is officially based on Watchtower Station, a space station built at the Ascendency end of Thrawn’s Cut, right outside the border with the Chiss Ascendency.  From this point, Explorer vessels begin their deep space expeditions.

Explorers primarily rely on their planted hyperspace beacons, and on their powerful sensor suites to plot jump-by-jump navigation.  If in a hurry to go somewhere uncharted, Explorers will (begrudgingly) hire the help of a Force-sensitive navigator (the Pathfinders Guild has a franchise based on Watchtower Station), or ask for the assistance of an Imperial Knight.  They will not, under any but the most dire circumstances to the Empire of the Hand as a whole, use Chiss sky-walkers, as the Empire of the Hand considers child labour abhorrent, illegal, and basically slavery.  Like all Hand Imperial forces, they will offer political sanctuary to any sky-walker who asks for it, and their immediate family (parents/caretakers, siblings), and will ensure their transport to Nirauan or another long-time (and well-protected) Hand member world.  Explorer-class vessels use the designation “RRS” for “Royal Research Ship”  

Known Explorer ships:

RRS Stargazer

CO:  Captain Rosk’alem’izeq - Kalemi

Commanded by the Chiss Captain Kalemi, a former member of the Rogue Phalanx, who specialises in astronomy and served alongside then-Govoner Xelarra and Phalanx Commander Stent on the Honoghr mission. ("Nightfall of the Final Day") 

Xelarra and Thrawn's son, Shran, is assigned to the Stargazer as a cadet, and is mentored by Kalemi.  It is the Stargazer that first encounters Mara Jade when she goes looking for the Explorers after hearing rumours about them from spacers/smugglers, and she meets Shran, growing more interested in her connection with the Empire of the Hand (upcoming fic “Daughter of the Empire”).

The Stargazer comes under attack from a trigger-happy New Republic vessel in 22 ABY, mistaking it for an Imperial Remnant Arquitens, in complete violation of the  Pellaeon–Gavrisom Treaty.  Mara distracts the NR ship long enough for a Star Destroyer to come to its rescue, then works with Shran to devise an excuse that the NR ship wandered into an old Clone Wars minefield, despite Mara’s attempt to warn them. 

Cadet Shran serves aboard the Stargazer for the first decade of his career as an Explorer, eventually rising to the rank of First Officer, until he gets his own command.

(named after the USS Stargazer, Captain Jean-Luc Picard's first command).

RRS Intrepid

CO:  Captain Mitth’shra’nuruodo – Shran

Notable officers:              XO and Communications:  Commander Dee (human augment - Tattooine)

Helms officer: Lieutenant Cherith Fel (human - Nirauan)

Navigation:  Hex (Tripod)

Chief Engineer:  Commander Gorbash (Draconian)

CMO:  Doctor Jackie Hatch  (human – Lysatra)

Engineering:  Lieutenant Neela Drakesdaughter (Twi’lek)

Quartermaster:  Ensign Sali Vanto (human – Lysatra)

Commanded by Captain Shran a year or two after start of the Vong War.  Involved in many adventures, including tricking a Vong ship into getting sucked into a black hole, and the raid on Ossus.   Visits the Renaissance often enough that the crews of the two ships know each other pretty well.

(“hero” ship captained by Thrawn’s son. Named after the Intrepid-class ships in Star Trek, the most prominent example being the USS Voyager)

RRS Nonsuch

CO:  Captain Davi Cecelia.  (Quarren) 

XO:  <Unnamed Gungan who speaks with a distinguished Core World accent>

This ship specialises in exploration of ocean worlds.  The majority of her crew are from species that can breathe underwater unaided, and the ship itself is specialised to be able to land (and float) on water.

Captain Cecelia is begrunding friends with Captain Shran, and the two ships collaborate more often than they wish, with the Nonsuch backing up the Intrepid during the Ossus raid. 

(named after the Nonsuch, an 18th century merchant ship which explored Hudson’s and James’ Bays, and helped to start the Canadian fur trade.  A replica – which can be boarded and explored by guests – is on display at the Manitoba museum in Winnipeg.)

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"Welcome to the Intrepid, Lieutenant ..."

My husband updated his Shran pic! See here for the old look. Eyes and hair are very much improved, and he "found" his rank plate.

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For ask meme - Thrawn x Xelarra - What is something they can never agree on? How do they meet in the middle?

I've been trying to think of how to answer this for a while, because there's actually very little Thrawn and Xelarra disagree on. Especially when they're exiled -- they literally have only each other to confide in for the first 9 years they're in the Empire. They're a team, mostly because they want to be, but also out of necessity.

After forming the Empire of the Hand in 10 BBY, they have an unspoken agreement -- Xelarra never interferes in military matters, and Thrawn agrees she can run Nirauan however she sees fit. They work as a team as more planets join up with their offshoot Empire, as it grows more distinct from the Lesser Space version.

I guess one thing they do disagree on is how to deal with the Chiss Ascendency. The Ascendency stubbornly refuses to acknowledge the Hand as a government in its own right. Thrawn says it doesn't matter -- he doesn't need the Ascendency's permission anymore to protect the Chiss people, and has his forces protect them from outside the CA's space, with some cooperation from the few friendly faces in the CEDF (especially Ar'alani) when he can get away with it. Xelarra thinks they shouldn't let the CA dismiss the Empire of the Hand's non-Chiss members the way they do, and should be more strict with their dealings.

Xelarra mentioned a few times that with their superior forces, they could just annex the CA into their Empire -- for their own protection, of course. Thrawn is against that, saying the last thing they want is to make an enemy of their own people. Besides, if a dire enough threat arises (like when the Far Outsiders finally make their move), the Chiss people, if not the Ruling Families on Csilla, are likely to invite the Hand to take over when they see that the Hand can and will protect them when the Ruling Families will turn a blind eye to the threat until it's too late. They both agree that the whole Family system needs to be reformed sooner or later (if not outright demolished), so the Chiss are no longer trapped by a system that rewards those who only look out for themselves, over the Greater Good of their species as a whole.

Together, as Empress and Grand Admiral, they will make the Galaxy a better place (whether it wants it or not).

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Unfortunately for Jocasta Nu, Palpatine recruits the perfect person to clean up the mess in the archives in my AU -- the Chiss librarian and information expert, Lexx’elar’randeth.  She can learn just as much about a culture from their literature as her husband Thrawn famously learns from their visual art.    

No computer completely deletes information on a first try.  I don’t think Jocasta remembered to fully empty the recycle bin.  Once Xelarra got a hang of Imperial tech, she was probably able to restore a lot of that data. 

Xelarra does not think highly of the Jedi for trying to erase a library in the first place.   

Even if a large portion was completely lost, I doubt the Jedi even bothered deleting their fiction archives, and that’s all Xelarra -- and by extension Thrawn -- would need.  

Jocasta’s Force ghost can take comfort in knowing the library she loved lives on, at the Hand of Thrawn fortress.     

DARTH VADER #8 written by Charles Soule art by Giuseppe Camuncoli and Daniele Orlandini JOCASTA GODDAMN NU, BAD ASS LIBRARIAN I appreciate the moments of her RUNNING UP THE WALL or grabbing the lightsaber sniper and just BLASTING IT RIGHT INTO VADER’S FACE, I love the physical things that are clearly super awesome!  But the thing that really wrenched my fannish heart and made me appreciate her more is that we spent the entire last couple of issues with Jocasta’s heartache and anger over what was being done to her home and to her beloved books, that she treasured this precious archive enough to be furious over it as the final insult to the Jedi, after everything that was Order 66 and the aftermath. And then she deleted all of it because she knew that was the only way to keep it out of the wrong hands, to keep it from being used to hurt people.  THAT is what being a Jedi means–something can absolutely be precious to you, you can have feelings over it, be furious over it, but if you’re presented with the time when it has to be let go of?  You’re able to do it. She bows her head, prays to the Force for forgiveness, acknowledges what this loss means to her, but keeps her mind on the present.  This is mindfulness in action, this is non-attachment in action.  This is a Jedi in action. JOCASTA NU, BAD ASS JEDI LIBRIARIAN

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What does Xelarra do for her family on their stardays?

For Mara and Andorra's first Starday (they have the same, since Xelarra didn't want Mara to feel left out), she and Thrawn took the girls in a shuttle above Coruscant for the first time, to see the bright, clustered stars of the Core firsthand, without the lights of the city planet blocking them out. Xelarra and Andorra have continued that tradition, usually going to see some cool celestial phenomenom together. Mara joins them once again after she gets her memories back.

For Thrawn, it's an all-day outing at an art gallery he hasn't visited yet, just the two of them. Once, they managed to go to Alderaan. Naboo's Gallery in Theed was also really good, and Xelarra quite enjoyed hearing Thrawn's story of actually meeting Queen Amidala while examining one of her royal portraits.

For Shran, when he was little, it was usually a quiet, mother-son day around Nirauan, "exploring" their home planet, whether it be the jungles outside Hand Base, watching the Toraton migration, a day trip to the underwater Quarren-majority town (which I still need to name), or just a nice hike through the temperate forests surrounding Chakra City. As Shran got older, he began to guide his Mom more, showing off all that he managed to "explore".

On her own Starday, Xelarra always looks forward to at least getting a comm. call from her childhood friend, who still lets her, if no one else, call her Ziara. She only one to even *remember* Xelarra's Starday for several years in a row when she was a child, and Ar'alani has never forgotten. Besides, now they have a couple decades' worth of exile to make up for.