'Rifts Coalition': Pirates or Privateers?

Archival image of 'Rifts Coalition' TIE Fighter

SRILUUR - Another Imperial patrol has gone missing in the Suolriep sector: a region of space where a sinister faction known as the 'Rifts Coalition' claims territory.

A reinforced patrol, consisting of an assault carrier, two flights of TIE Fighters, one flight of TIE Bombers and an element of TIE Interceptors, went missing in the Suolriep sector yesterday.

While none of the vessels constituting the patrol returned to report the incident, Imperial Navy authorities claim that it is likely a faction known as the 'Rifts Coalition' which is responsible.

As previously reported, the Rifts Coalition flies Imperial Navy vessels and fighters while sporting a skull and crossbones emblem against a sable background. This band of vessels, while made up of Imperial Navy-grade hardware, has an inconsistency in its makeup which suggests to analysts that the faction is irregular. It resembles a disorder of battle known to desperate bands of insurgents. That would put this Rifts Coalition in the ranks of pirates or, worse still, the Rebellion.

Previous instances of activities by the Rifts Coalition had been permitted, as they targeted Rebel and pirate forces attempting to undermine law and order in the Tharin sector. Now that the Coalition has repeatedly targeted Imperial Navy units, the Empire is determined to stamp them out of the galaxy.

Another theory considers the possibility that the reinforced patrol was swallowed by a ravenous space slug also known to inhabit the territory in which the Rifts Coalition operates.

Turmoil Returns to Tharin Suolriep sectors: Renegade Faction Attacks Rescue Mission

Raider-class corvette Dominatus sporting the emblem of the 'Rifts Coalition'.

SRILUUR - An Imperial patrol consisting of a Raider-class corvette and escorts were attacked near the Boonta system by what appears to be a renegade faction using Imperial vessels.

Answering a distress call from a disabled Gozanti cruiser, the patrol formation sent from the Imperial naval garrison on Sriluur was ambushed by Imperial-style military craft emblazoned with a humanoid skull and crossbones emblem with sable background.

According to retrieved footage from the wreckage of the patrol vessel, the sable-colored vessels belong to a renegade faction titling themselves the 'Rifts Coalition'.

The devices and paint scheme match those of forces that secured the Boonta system from the Rebel insurrection two months ago. The Boonta system was the first world to be held against Rebel forces during the Tharin campaign.

The Boonta system lies in the Suolriep sector adjacent to the Tharin sector, which remains a haven for criminal syndicates. Situated at the crossroutes of the Lesser Lantillian Route and the Salin Corridor. It is predominantly inhabited by humans and Hutts from nearby Hutt Space.

The forces responsible for Boonta were led by an eccentric commander known as Chaplin Vici, who is reputed to wear a headdress made from the pelt of a small orange canine. It is now believed that these forces once responsible for Boonta's security have turned on the legitimate galactic order.

Analysis of the wreckage found near the Boonta system suggest that the two Raider-class corvettes, one from the rescue mission and one from the Rifts Coalition renegades, were destroyed. The Gozanti cruiser, nor matching wreckage were located. It is believed the surviving renegades repaired the cruiser and forced its crew to return them to Boonta at blasterpoint.

Regional authorities vow to bring the Boonta system back into the Imperial fold and to bring the renegades to Imperial justice.

Tharin Sector: Imperial Navy Prevents Escape Rebellion

Rebel X-Wing fighters caught between TIE Fighters and the Raider-class corvette Pernicious; Gozanti-class cruiser alleged to be the Vector in the distance with civilian volunteers standing up against the Rebellion.

SRILUUR SYSTEM - The Empire was once again victorious in the Tharin sector as a Rebel escape from the Nimat system was made impossible by swift naval action.

The Imperial plan to secure the Tammar system was defly executed when the Interdictor-class star destroyer Injunction projected a gravity well along the Triellus Trade Route through the Tammar system. As this was the only route for Rebel forces to escape the Tharin sector, the naval strategists were certain the Rebel fugitives would fall into their hand.

While the Injunction carried out its strategic role in the distance, the heroic crew of the Raider-class corvette Pernicious and TIE Fighter escorts were on the scene to apprehend the fleeing members of the Rebellion.

Reports concerning the precise details of the naval action have become classified, but the Empire's most trustworthy source of official information, the Imperial Security Bureau (ISB) assured HNN that the Imperial Navy's action inspired local forces to stand with the Navy against the insurrectionist Rebels.

Civilian volunteers from the renowned House Benelex came to the aid of the Pernicious. According to a leaked image of the incident, the wayward cruiser Vector also made an appearance on the scene, and is rumored by some to have been directly responsible for the main Rebel vessel's destruction. The ISB assures HNN that this was a case of mistaken identity, and that these rumors are merely the cynical ravings of aliens and other malcontents.

The Pernicious meanwhile has been sent on assignment deeper into the Outer Rim. Friends and family of the vessel's crew have been told that these heroes of the Empire may be on their distant mission for some time, as they search for more Rebel hideouts.

Order in Tharin Sector Nearly Restored

Spheres of control in the Tharin Sector

SRILUUR SYSTEM - Despite a recent setback in the Yoribuunt system, the forces of the Imperial Navy have nearly restored order and control over the Tharin sector.

According to reports from Imperial Intelligence, Rebel elements have plagued the Nimat system, where there is believed to be a Rebel starfighter garrison.

Hoping to force the surrender of the garrison, the Imperial Navy aims to create a blockade around the system. Once surrendered the Imperial Security Bureau will re-educate the wayward rebels. After they have recognized the errors of their ways, they will be debriefed on their follies and allowed to take up a new vocation as miners in the Kessel system.

In the interim, the Imperial Security Bureau wished to give special recognition to two civilian volunteers, operating under ISB contract. These loyal citizens were previously reported to have assisted in the pacification of the Jabiim system. These citizens, Gargon and Achell Benelex, have since also driven Rebel insurgents from the Taskeed system.

Meanwhile, all naval patrols in the Tharin sector are under orders to keep a close look out for any sightings of the stolen Gozanti-class assault carrier, Vector, last sighted in the Yoribuunt system, departing in the direction of the Tammar system, expected to be en route to Junkfort station.

Gozanti Carrier Hijacked in the Yoribuunt System

Gozanti-class patrol vessel Vectoras and its escorts as it comes under assault.

YORIBUUNT SYSTEM - An Imperial patrol vessel was hijacked while lending assistance to a craft deemed to have been in distress. The hijackers are suspected of being in league with the criminal Scum Lord of Junkfort Station, Stason Joltz.

The Gozanti-class carrier Vector, conducting a routine patrol of the Yoribuunt system came under attack yesterday by a Firespray-31-class patrol craft believed to have been in distress. At unawares and without provocation, the crew of the Firespray - projecting the transponder callsign Slave-1 - turned on the crew of the Vector and hijacked the Imperial Navy vessel.

According to the pilots of the TIE-fighter escorts, who had been left for dead, had their distress signals not been heard by a rescue vessel, the Vector docked with the Slave-I entered hyperspace with a spinward vector, suggesting that the hijackers were in league with the dastardly scum lord Stason Joltz, usurper of Junkfort Station.

The attack on the Vector came not long after the Vector destroyed a number of syndicate vessels elsewhere in the system attempting to steal Imperial communications satellites. It is believed that the hijacking of the Vector occurred in retaliation for the successful curtailing of these criminal activities.

Imperial Navy spokesman Lt. Commander Justif Fication told HNN reporters that the Imperial Navy would not let such affronts go unpunished. As a signal of their resolve, Ace pilots flying for the Imperial Navy destroyed several flights of insurrectionist Rebel fighters in the nearby Sriluur and Tammar systems.

Deep Space Patrol Destroys Armed Rebel Transport

TIE interceptors flying by discovered Corellian corvette debris. Image source

TOONG'L SYSTEM - A deep space patrol encountered and destroyed an armed Correllian transport affiliated with the Rebellion beleaguered in the Calamari sector.

Responding to an alert from a deep space patrol operating in the Toon'l system of the Jubilar sector, Imperial Navy forces have discovered the remnants of a pitched battle in space. The combatants included the vessels of the deep space patrol and Rebel elements seeking to escape the Calamari blockade. The patrol destroyed a Corellian CR90 corvette and several escort fighters. All the vessels of the patrol were, regrettably, also destroyed.

While the loss of the vessels of the patrol is a sacrifice for the families of the crews, pilots and officers who went down with their vessel, the Imperial Navy considers the battle a success. With the Rebellion being vastly outnumbered - due to the Empire having vast numbers of loyal volunteers in their ranks, while the Rebellion numbers a handful of malcontents - such even-numbered casualty figures are a clear sign the Empire remains ascendant. Furthermore, the battle is evidence that a Rebel attempt to break through the blockade through a 'back door' was discovered, and measures will be taken to block the leak.

According to the Imperial Security Bureau (ISB), the attempted escape from the Calamari sector may also be evidence that the Rebellion is in turmoil and small groups are deserting the Rebellion and opting to slip away into obscurity in the Outer Rim. These individuals would seem to prefer the life of a fugitive to the fate of certain death that awaited them were they to remain with the Rebellion.

Deep space patrols have been dispatched to numerous systems in the Jubilar and Shadola sectors. These sectors lie between the Calamari sector and the hyperlanes of The Slice, where the Rebellion could attempt to escape from the blockaded sector. Meanwhile drills continue to take place in regional locations such as the Lantillian system, in order to prepare Imperial pilots to do their just duty in defense of the Empire.

Empire Removes Rebel Presence from Little-Known Hoth System

Rebels crushed under Imperial AT-AT walkers

HOTH SYSTEM - The Empire, under the personal command of Lord Darth Vader, has destroyed a rebel base in the far flung Hoth system in the Anoat sector of the Outer Rim.

Using probe droids to gather critical intelligence throughout the galaxy, the Empire was able to discover the location of a rebel base on the frozen main planet of the Hoth system. Acting forcefully and with great speed, the Empire quickly destroyed the rebel base, bringing Rebels to swift justice in the process.

During the ground engagement, Imperial walkers (All Terrain Armored and Scout Transports, AT-ATs and AT-STs) were deployed to destroy the Rebel shield generator protecting the planet. Meanwhile, Imperial Navy pilots prevented the escape of Rebel transports attempting to evade arrest and capture. The pathetic Rebel efforts to halt the armored walkers with nothing more than weaponized airspeeders was inconsequential.

Demonstrating their true colors, certain Rebel operatives - reputed to include the traitorous former Senator Leia Organa - decided to save themselves. While the senator fled, the transports attempting to evacuate non-combatants were intercepted and destroyed by TIE Fighters. The dilapidated light freighter carrying the fugitive former senator is believed to have be traced to the nearby Bespin system.

According to casualty reports, the Rebel commander - General Carlist Rieekan - was unavailable for interrogation on the account of being dead. He is believed to have died aboard one of the transports attempting to flee Hoth.

With the Rebel fleet cornered in the Calamari sector and elsewhere suppressed by the might of the Imperial Army, Navy, and Stormtrooper Corps, as well as the loyalty of the Emperor's subjects, the Rebellion has been forced to seek shelter in the most out-of-the-way corners of the galaxy. But even there they cannot be safe from the Empire's long reach of justice.

Imperial Embargo Nets Blockade Runners

A GR-75 transport with rebel X-wing escorts is halted by a TIE fighter patrol (earlier footage).

CALUULA SYSTEM - Enforcing the embargo on the Calamari sector for its separatism, Imperial patrols encountered numbers of blockade runners attempting to traffic contraband to the separatist Calamari and their Rebel cohorts.

Though news was slow to leak, the Imperial navy confirmed today that its patrols have destroyed a number of Rebel transports bound for the Calamari sector in several Tion cluster systems.

The Rebel smugglers were discovered attempting to pass through the outskirts of the Saheelindeel and Caluula systems. The smuggling vessels attempted to use dense asteroid belts to avoid detection. Fortunately, the Navy anticipated that cowardly gambit.

The wayward Rebel transport Bright Hope was rumored to be among the destroyed transports.

The Navy did regret to inform HNN that a number of Corellian corvettes escaped the embargo enforcement patrols. With the transports carrying a great deal more cargo, the navy is satisfied that the embargo is enforced and the Calamari sector continues to suffer from shortages.

Other reports indicate that the some transports were subject to piracy. Furthermore, there is some indication that the Black Sun crime syndicate operated both in smuggling as well as engaging in the aforementioned piracy.

Rumors also suggest that special commendation was given by Lord Darth Vader to one Captain Lorth Needa aboard a Gozanti-class Cruiser operating in conjunction with the Raider-class corvette Instigator. Captain Needa is considered a probable candidate for promotion to the command of a star destroyer, provided he not find reasons to disappoint Lord Vader.

Empire Quashes Sedicious Rumor

Gozanti-class assault carrier Suppressor returning from patrol during which it did not encounter the fugitive transport Bright Hope

BRIGIA SYSTEM - The Empire refutes rumor and speculation that the fugitive transport Bright Hope slipped past its blockade at the Eredenn system. Those spreading this hearsay will be charged with treason.

Treasonous rumors erupted earlier today that the fugitive transport Bright Hope escaped capture by the Imperial Assault Carrier Suppressor. The Suppressor has been on a routine outer-system patrol of the Eredenn system, but the ship's political officer reports that no fugitive transports were sighted.

The rumors falsely suggest that the Bright Hope bypassed the Imperial blockade that isolates the rebellious Calamari sector from interstellar commerce.

The Keldrath Sector office of the Commission for the Preservation of the New Order (COMPNOR) has declared spreading rumors about the passage of Rebel ships through the Imperial blockade as covered by the Official Falsehoods Act. Those spreading official falsehoods about such events will be charged, found guilty, and committed to the spice mines of Kessel for re-education.

The Official Falsehoods Act covers all statements found to be treasonous to the lawful order of the galaxy as governed by the Galactic Empire. Sector COMPNOR offices have the authority to place particular falsehoods on the Official Falsehoods list.

The Galactic Civil Liberties Union (GCLU) has appealed the decision. Pursuant to that appeal being put on the Official Falsehoods list, the chapter members of the GCLU were deported to the spice mines of Kessel.

Gozanti-class Assault Carriers Arrive in Brigia System

Gozanti-class assault carrier deploying TIE Fighters

BRIGIA SYSTEM - HNN has learned that Gozanti-class assault carriers have arrived at Roodkasteel Station, where these will be distributed to local commands.

The Gozanti-class assault carriers, a long-anticipated Imperial Navy vessels has recently arrived at Roodkasteel Station in the Brigia system in order to play a role in the embargo of the Calamari Sector.

The Assault Carrier is capable of deploying flights of TIE fighters in distant reaches of star systems. The non-hyperspace-capable TIE fighters suffer from limited deployment range, to which the Assault Carrier is a solution.

Near and around the Brigia system, the Assault Carrier will help deploy TIE fighters to distant asteroid fields of system, which are the suspected routes smugglers utilize to circumvent the gravity wells projected by craft such as the Immobilizer 418-class interdictor cruiser.

Manufactured by Corellian Engineering Corporation based on a design by the now-defunct Gallofree Yards, Inc., the assault carrier was a long time in arriving in the hands of the Imperial Navy. It was superseded by the Raider-class corvette, probably due to the Imperial Navy's preference for contracts with Kuat Drive Yards, the Raider's manufacturer, over the less-trustworthy and less-loyal Corellian Engineering Corporation (CEC). CEC vessels, such as the CR-90-series corvette, frequently wind up in the hands of the Rebellion. The same is true of the former products of Gallofree Yards, such as the GR-75 Medium Transport.

Empire to Revitalize Roodkasteel Space Station

Roodkasteel station in the Brigia system: formerly a haven for rebels and traitors, soon a hub of Imperial security and commerce

BRIGIA SYSTEM - Once a derelict hulk, Roodkasteel station in the Brigia system has been marked for a revitalization program ordered by the Empire, turning a former Rebel hideout into a haven for security and commerce in the Tion Hegemony sector.

Situated at the crossroutes of the Tion Trade Route and the Pakuuni Drift, Brigia and Roodkasteel station in particular were once regional hubs of commerce before a corvette piloted by an inebriated Gamorrean ship thief collided with the station and - worse - the Brigia system became a hive of rebel activity.

With the return of relative peace and stability after the Empire captured the Caluula and Pakuuni systems, isolating the wayward Calamari sector, Brigia and Roodkasteel station now have reason to hope for a brighter future.

While the station is a renowned den of sabacc and other types of card gamers, economic analysts working for the Empire project that a shift from such card games to sustaining local military operations will both lift Roodkasteel's fortunes as well as moral fiber.

A Gozanti-class cruiser carrying TIE fighters

While there are still reports of criminal and rebel activity on a much smaller scale, economists believe that the stationing of an Imperial Navy fighter garrison on Roodkasteel will provide a stimulus for economic growth. A departure point for Gozanti-class carriers, capable of deploying flights of TIE fighters for long-range patrols, the garrison is to assist with law enforcement and counterinsurgency in the system and along regional trade routes.

With the imminent recapturing of the Mon Calamari and Quarren homeword, the campaign to liberate the Calamari sector from rebel forces will also bring more traffic through Roodcasteel. According to reports, the Imperial Navy plans to launch missions to recapture the Shayling and Turkana systems within the coming week.

Imperial Navy Raiders Thwart Rebel Assassination on Emperor

  Escorted Rebel corvettes (top) attempt to assassinate Emperor Palpatine in His royal shuttle
  (bottom left).

RADNOR SYSTEM - Rebel forces attempt to assassinate Emperor Palpatine, the legitimate ruler of the galaxy, in an cowardly strike. Imperial Navy Raider-class corvettes thwart the assassination attempt by destroying Rebel corvettes and fighters.

En route back to Imperial Center (Coruscant), Emperor Palpatine's shuttle and honor guard of Raider-class corvettes were ambushed by a flotilla of Rebel corvettes yesterday. The new Raider-class corvettes, on their maiden tour of the Outer Rim, expertly thwarted the rebel attempt.

the Rebel flotilla deviously took the guise of a freighter convoy of Corellian CR-90 modular vessels accompanying a GR-75 Gallofree freighter. Their ruse was betrayed by the sudden appearance of a squadron of rebel A-wing fighters.

Taking quick action, one Raicer Corvette [name redacted] launched itself towards the fighters and flanking corvette, while the other came about to assault the stern of the other.

The former corvette was lost as it crew courageously gave their lives protecting the Emperor, while the Rebels' freighter engaged in a cowardly and abominable suicide mission in order to destroy the Raider protecting the Emperor.

The A-wing fighters were destroyed by a combination of proton bombs deployed from TIE/sa Bomber craft and quad laser cannons from the second Raider. Despite the nimbleness of these dastardly fightercraft, none ever endangered the life of Emperor Palpatine.

Though He remained on board his shuttle craft, which only engaged the enemy towards the very end, the crews of the Raider corvettes and the TIE Bombers claim they owe the Emperor their lives.

"It was His presence that gave us the inspiration to fight" Captain Hasselstein of the surviving corvette told HNN.

And so, in this moment of near-catastophe, the galaxy is reminded how fortunate it is to have such a dedicated and awe-inspiring leader as Emperor Palpatine, broadly considered the most capable and selfless leader the galaxy has ever known.

Loyal Citizens Eagerly Await Emperor and Raider

Raider-class corvette in hyperspace along the Corellian Run

ARKANIS SYSTEM - In order to accomplish complete pacification of the crime-ridden Arkanis sector, the Emperor Himself is expected to visit this far-flung sector of the Outer Rim. Meanwhile, the Raider-class corvette remains to be delivered to the most benighted commands within the sector.

The long-awaited delivery of the Raider-class corvette is reported to have happened in several sectors closer to the Galactic Core, while the Outer Rim - specifically, the Arkanis Sector, the most benighted sector of the Outer Rim - is left in want of this powerful new vessel. Loyal citizens, eagerly awaiting the return of law and the New Order to their corner of the galaxy, anticipate the arrival of a fleet of these vessels with 'bated breath.

This fleet will reportedly carry Emperor Palpatine as He arrives to receive a progress report from Moff Dzon Brennin on the pacification and de-criminalization of the sector. Moff Brennin is reportedly redoubling efforts to bring the sector to heel with concerted effort the day that the Emperor is scheduled to arrive.

Expectations are that if the Arkanis Sector is not brought under control by the time of the Emperor's arrival tomorrow, He will order Moff Brennin's removal as well as for the Imperial Navy to deploy capital ships to the sector in order to accomplish what smaller fighter-size craft have failed to accomplish.