Major Faction Black Spire Burning

Detailed Description

In early 864 ABY, the sinister Brotherhood of the Maw made its return from the Unknown Regions. Having ravaged distant colonies unheard of in known space, growing their strength by taking plunder and slaves across dozens of worlds, the Warlords of the Maw now sought to make a dramatic reemergence and spread terror before them. They chose the outlying spacer outpost of Batuu, just beyond the borders of the Eternal Empire but under its protection. By all rights it should have been an easy conquest, with little to hold the marauders back. However, the backwater planet was the headquarters of the Smugglers' Alliance, who banded together for mutual defense.

The Brotherhood made its attack rapidly, deploying huge numbers of marauder slave-soldiers to assault the main settlement at Black Spire Outpost. Assault shuttles blew gaps in the outpost's walls, and the slavering tribesmen poured in, led by the deadly Knights of Ren. Although many civilians were killed or dragged away into slavery within the opening minutes of the battle, Black Spire was not completely overrun. The Smuggler Queen Vexari Kahl, accustomed to dealing with pirate raids, immediately deployed her contingent of hired stormtroopers and AT-ST walkers. The marauders had no easy answer to the walkers, which rapidly cut through many of them.

At the same time, the bloodthirsty Force-users following the Maw ran into several counterparts. The wandering Jedi Aaran Tafo sprang into action to hold back the attackers, saving many lives as he dueled the Ren to a standstill. The horrific warlord Zachariel Steelblood, who might otherwise have destroyed the entire outpost almost by himself, became locked in a duel with a surprise visitor: the Eternal Empress Ingrid L'lerim-Vandiir, who had arrived to negotiate with the Smuggler Queen just before the raid began. While these deadly contests raged, the young Warden of the Shroud Calruss Shiman devastated the ranks of the attacking marauders all on his own.

Delaying tactics such as firebombs and blocking the streets with rubble, along with scavenged heavy weapons, eventually allowed the Brotherhood to force back the AT-STs; this was in addition to the terrible damage these tactics caused to the outpost itself. As the marauders drew within sight of Oga's Cantina, where the last refugees of the town were being sheltered, the Smuggler Queen deployed another trump card by calling in a favor owed to her by a group of Wookiee warriors. These warriors were able to hold the Brotherhood back; although the rest of the settlement was horrifically damaged, Oga's Cantina itself never fell to the raiders.

Although Vexari Kahl herself became locked in a duel with the sinister Sith warrior Maestus, temporarily keeping her from issuing new commands, her last one continued to bear fruit. The gunships that had deployed the Wookiees began to hunt down Brotherhood shuttles, preventing several from escaping with their cargoes of slaves by shooting them down with ion cannons. In response, the Brotherhood deployed squadrons of uglies, shooting down many of the less maneuverable gunships. As one of the Smuggler Queen's scavenged Star Destroyers returned to provide support, the Brotherhood fleet moved in and engaged, threatening to end the battle with scorched earth.

Although the initial orbital bombardment by a Brotherhood star destroyer was devastating, annihilating entire blocks of the town and drowning the streets in rubble, it was short-lived. The Smuggler Queen unveiled a planetary ion cannon, which proved powerful enough to knock the Brotherhood capital ship from the sky. As the star destroyer plummeted to the ground, causing terrible destruction to the surrounding countryside, the Maw forces withdrew. Despite their heavy losses, they had taken huge amounts of slaves and plunder, looting the rich warehouses and ship holds of the smugglers who called Batuu home. They escaped just as an Eternal Empire fleet arrived.

Ultimately, Black Spire Outpost survived the battle, but almost the entire town would have to be rebuilt. Outside of the protective cordon around Oga's Cantina, very little had been left intact; even the buildings that were still standing were carbon-scored and missile-scarred, and the streets were full of corpses. The town felt empty, too; so many of its citizens were either dead or in the slave pens aboard the mobile Holy City of Gehinnom that the population had been severely reduced. For their part, the Brotherhood retreated into deep space. Their losses had been higher than anticipated, but the spoils had been rich.

The horde moved on toward Jakku, aiming to replenish its supply of slaves and durasteel from the undefended salvage planet.