The battle of Orion IV was an engagement between the Galactic Empire and the Alliance to Restore the Republic that took place on the planet Orion IV in the Tion Cluster in 1 BBY, as part of Operation Strike Fear. After Imperial forces chased Alliance High Command from their headquarters on Brigia, the Rebels established a new base on Orion IV, a planet close to open rebellion against the Empire.
The Empire soon located the new base and launched an assault. A fleet of Star Destroyers bombarded the surface, before ground forces moved in to secure the planet. The Rebel base was heavily damaged in the attack, and several Rebel pilots were captured, but the Alliance was able to evacuate.
In 1 BBY, the Galactic Empire sent a task force of ten Imperial-class Star Destroyers to eliminate a Rebel Alliance fleet near the planet Turkana in the Pakuuni sector. The attack was defeated when the Alliance forces used their T-65 X-wing starfighters to inflict heavy damage to two of the Star Destroyers, forcing the Imperials to withdraw without destroying a single Rebel capital ship.
Shocked by the loss at Turkana, Emperor Palpatine ordered a major offensive code named Operation Strike Fear. Aimed at suppressing Rebel opposition and spreading fear of the Empire, the campaign's first target was Brigia, a planet in the Tion Hegemony which was the site of the Alliance's headquarters. After learning about Operation Strike Fear, Alliance High Command ordered a precautionary evacuation of the Brigia base. The evacuation was interrupted by Imperial forces, but the High Command and key personnel were able to escape. General Jan Dodonna relocated the headquarters to Orion IV, a manufacturing world in the Tion Cluster which was on the verge of open rebellion against the Empire.
Star Destroyer fleet bombarding the Rebel base on Orion IV.
The base on Orion IV quickly became Operation Strike Fear's next target. A fleet of at least six Imperial-class Star Destroyers entered orbit of the planet and performed a targeted turbolaser orbital bombardment before Imperial ground forces began their assault on the surface. All Terrain Armored Transports advanced on the Rebel base, with Alpha-class Xg-1 Star Wings providing aerial support against the Rebel defenses, including the R-22 Spearhead starfighter.
With the Rebel opposition defeated, Imperial stormtroopers moved in to secure the planet. The Rebel base was heavily damaged during the battle and several Rebel pilots stationed there were captured by Imperial forces, but the Alliance was able to evacuate the base.
A stormtrooper surveys prisoners on the newly secured planet.
General Dodonna again relocated the Alliance headquarters, moving to several other worlds before establishing a new main base on Dantooine in the Raioballo sector. Alliance Intelligence learned that Operation Strike Fear's next target was Rudrig, also in the Tion Cluster, and the Rebels launched an operation to delay the anticipated attack by preventing the Imperial forces from being resupplied. Operation Strike Fear continued until later in 1 BBY, when the Alliance destroyed its command ship, the Star Destroyer Invincible, by planting a stolen Imperial explosive device aboard the ship.
The Imperial attack on Orion IV first appeared in the 1993 LucasArts video game Star Wars: X-Wing, where it is depicted in a cutscene during "Tour of Duty I: A New Ally."
- Star Wars Encyclopedia
- The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- Star Wars: Age of Rebellion Core Rulebook