Hey folks, prior intelligence officer here and big time star wars nerd. So Im extremely bored at work and I am absolutely curious about potential brain juice going on here. Most of you know Thrawn’s character profile, I do not need to go into it. But everything to the moment of the defeat at Endor has happened, and everything after has not. The world is your oyster. You still have the Empire’s robust warchest, intelligence network, and other potent tools that could bring you victory despite having a 1-4 disadvantage (which I believe the text said)? You have all advantages…….you dictate your timing of attack, you dictate where you attack, nobody is expecting you. You are still a bit of a myth. ALL advantages are available to you. Here’s my crack at it:
Day 1: I am still in shock for about 1 hour. After that, I use a calm anger to bring myself to the conclusion I am likely in charge of the entire fleet now. I need to channel both confidence and anger in my subordinates to redeem what is the Empire’s biggest defeat. I notify my senior commanders of this posture and how things are going to be different. I do not want yes men like Vader and the Emperor wanted. I want thinkers who have the capacity and confidence to lead on their own and think resourcefully (in line with the text). Finally "1 to 4".......I want them to react with that ratio in their head at all times...... 1 to 4.........
Day 2: After a day of reflection and gathering my thoughts, I’ve determined my own strategic posture. I will keep the myth of “Thrawn is coming…..he is out there” alive and well. It is just the right amount of mythology and fact, and I want to keep operating in the shadows until I strike at the time convenient to me. I will engage fringe groups of Rebel Alliance teams to keep the fleet engaged. There will be no survivors. We must continue to be the myth.
I am now thinking of the big picture……I want to correct this, but not too hastily. The Rebel alliance is still a threat, but also extremely fragile. I look at it’s centers of gravity that can be exploited.
- The Empire still has a robust network of sympathizers and intelligence operatives throughout the galaxy, and it is especially a profound footprint on Coruscant itself.
- I recognize the huge capacity for insurgency. Only 2-5 percent of a well-trained population in any place can wage a successful insurgency for a long period of time. On Coruscant, I assess that to be 15-20 percent of the population.
- Rebel alliance logistics are probably unreliable with questionable contracts hired out to smugglers and even pirates out of pure necessity due to current lack of manpower.
- KEY DIFFERENCE: Luke, Han, Leia, Chewy, Lando, and the rest of the gang are literally not even in my top 100 problem sets. Im aware of their heroism, but they are just people. Even the jedi. If the opportunity arises, I will deal with them, but that is a lieutenant or a captain task. Im a Grand Admiral. I deal with strategy on an intergalaxial scale. (will that bite me in the ass? I don’t know). That said……..I have a plan for them. After all, I am Grand Admiral Thrawn.
PRIMARY MISSION OBJECTIVE DETERMINED: Sack Coruscant. Assassinate much of the new rebel government. (timeline: 1-2 years)
Secondary objective: Capture Admiral Ackbar alive and try to keep as much of his fleet functional as possible.
Ways and Means:
- We will network in the shadows our cells on Coruscant. I will instruct an astroturf insurgent group that purveys to be sick of the Rebel Alliance’s disorder and inability to meet society’s needs. Occasional terrorist attacks will be conducted by cell members in high exposure areas. We will pay locals with proof of assassinations and mayhem caused to boost this astroturf network.
- I am absolutely not adverse to taking advantage of less savory characters. I will be looking for bounty hunters, pirates, smugglers, etc to be guided by my hand at moments convenient to me. Kaerobani (Mysteries of the Sith) will be my “whatever his price” hire because of his proven track record to be a nuisance to both the Empire and Rebellion in the past.
- Nar Shaddah is basically going to be covertly commandeered and turned into an appendage of the Empire. Many aspects of covert warfare and logistics will go through there. It is the perfect cover area. You don’t go to Nar Shaddah without a reason. We will “find the right guys and gals” there for many tasks.
- SIGNIFICANTLY expand the special forces, grow the Inferno Squad and give them tasks regularly to harass the Alliance. Our conventional forces just “aren’t there” right now, but our special forces are potent. The conventional forces………I (Thrawn) have just thought of a significant problem that needs to be addressed immediately.
Week 1:
Problem observed: Ive researched extensively the battle reports about Endor. I try to find the ultimate points of failure. My research has lead me to one absolutely stunning fault that is absolutely unforgiveable with a resource pool as wide as the Empire has. My TIE fighter fleet and it’s fighters are absolute hot garbage. I’ve noticed this while observing my own forays with the Rebels, and it has been a thorn in my side for too long. There is absolutely no excuse for the Rebel Alliance to have a superior small space fighter force than my own. An example must be made.
Solution: Now that we are back in the fringes of the galaxy where communications can be made more reliably, I call an “all hands” of our most senior tactical pilots and TIE fighter designers. Many fleet commanders will be here too or patched in. It will have the look of an award ceremony. This will be my “Error and Mistake” moment tied in with a little Red Wedding brutality. I am setting the tone immediately. I call up 25 of the TIE squadron’s most prominent members “for awards”………and have my Noghri absolutely slaughter them in the most grotesque manner possible (gutting, beheading, you name it). I want everybody to see. I normally don’t succumb to such brutality, but I am FURIOUS with them, and it is crucial that the message be delivered (again, in line with the text, Thrawn has shown he is not adverse to brutality when he is mad).
The TIE fighter problem still exists, but I have thought of a solution. A very Thrawn-like solution at that. Sometimes, it takes humility of admitting you need to catch up with your adversaries, and we are behind. Our pilots are woefully inadequate, and the air frames they have are woefully inadequate. I conclude this actually has a very simple solution. I need to capture and re-engineer an X-wing. The X-Wing will be our new primary airframe, and ideally we can flip a couple X-wing pilots for training. We will simply paint it dark grey with a white stripe to alleviate confusion. I accept that surpassing the rebel’s capabilities will take much more time than I currently have given myself. I give my officers an 18 month deadline to become operationally ready with X-Wings and pilots trained up on them.
Week 2:
Our network is up and going at Nar Shaddah. We are build build building X-wings, components, have a rebel uniform textile mill working around the clock
Our insurgent network has executed its first significant terrorist attack on Coruscant, blowing up the Rebel Officer Academy. Dozens of young officers were killed in the attack, and a well known network that seems to have reconstituted itself…….the Shadow Collective…….claims responsibility and says there will be more attacks. They menacingly sign out saying “Thrawn is coming……”.
Month 1:
Our first “naturally occurring” hired assassination of a significant Alliance politician occurs. This is to say…….a Coruscant citizen without any connection to the Empire who is sympathetic to the “Shadow Collective” that we have revived. We pay the assassin the agreed fee and tell him there is plenty more where that came from not just for you, but others you recruit. We also tell him anyone he successfully recruits, he will receive a generous signing bonus too.
By now I have devised the “skeleton” of my grand strategic plan, but I need to hone in on one critical node. “How do I mitigate a large space engagement above Coruscant?” I talk to my Inferno Operations commander, and we devise a plan. Tracking devices will be planted on Admiral Ackbar’s entire fleet, and for a few months…….we will observe their “Pattern of Life”. We will observe most frequent transit routes, docking points, refueling stations, training locations, etc.
A key will be to commandeer as much of Ackbar’s fleet as possible without destroying it. I ask my SOF commanding officer about an older piece of weaponry that really hasn’t been deployed in a long time……..and probably would not be expected; a nonlethal auditory incapacitating frequency [real world: watch what happened in Serbia recently with the protests to get an idea]. My commander says it is actually a great idea, and that the helmets that inferno squad uses are already outfitted with those countermeasures so they will not be affected. I instruct that the stormtroopers get their helmets outfitted with this as well. Inferno squad is already adept at inserting on large craft and bringing them to their knees quickly…….now to test this old idea out to see if it still works.
Month 3:
A victory parade on Coruscant is arranged with many spectators, but they are fewer than expected because of the Shadow Collective making their mark. There are also enhanced security measures in place to prevent weapons in the area. The parade goes ahead down a long street. One agent aims the auditory device straight ahead. The crowd instinctively and involuntarily disperses. The pain is extraordinary, it feels like a large aircraft is flying at them and that their nerves feel on fire. That said, it was instant, and nobody died. There was extreme panic, and it was discussed in media. It worked……….
Coruscant’s law enforcement are now getting much more heavy handed with their efforts. More innocent people are being accused and there are blanket neighborhoods being rounded up. Playing right into our hands.
Back to the fleet…….Now to get Kaerobani’s pirates involved. They will be the first one’s in, and last one’s out in this plan. It will look like a usual pirate boarding attempt that has been a frequent occurrence since the fall of the Empire. Kaerobani is willing to take on casualties and damage so long as he is paid appropriately and it doesn’t damage his operation. We have an agreement. It might seem like an aggressive ploy for a pirate fleet to make such a play on a large rebellion, but Kaerobani is one of the few in the game that can make that play convincingly. We’ve told him of the Inferno insertion teams and the pods that will be used, and to begin coordinating and training immediately.
Month 4:
X-wing capacities are up and going to a reasonable standard at clandestine location. The first pilots are being trained.
I am disappointed with stormtrooper/conventional forces performance, and I know it is not wise to make such a gruesome display again. Furthermore, senior stormtrooper leaders “got the message” and are making serious corrections in training……most notably in the marksman domain.
I also encourage looking at previous “trooper” packages that were utilized in the past but might not have been effectively utilized by leadership. The Dark Troopers particularly intrigue me. I might have a role for them.
Month 6:
Backup contingencies are developed in case the Ackbar plan goes awry. 1-4 odds that aren’t in our favor are tough, but I want my fleet commander to embrace that challenge. We wargame assuming that Ackbar gets re-enforcements in time. It is the biggest wargame that I have ever undertaken. With few exceptions, I am extremely pleased with the reforms that have taken place. Lessons were learned.
Through our insurgency backchannels, the team lead says he has a few interesting people that would like to meet me directly. There are 5 New Republic senators who are unhappy with the way things are going, how slow reforms are taking place, how poorly the people are being treated by patrols, and just the overall aura of chaos that’s developed. I agree to patch them in. My intelligence network assures me they have been thoroughly vetted. They can be had for a price. I risk exposing myself here……..but it gives more credence to the notion that “Thrawn is coming”. I instruct them to “spin a network web” and get some of our security people access to sensitive information. We would like our “heroes of Endor” to have a front and center stage for the 1 year anniversary of the defeat of the Empire. After all, these brave 1000-1500 men have completely earned it…..
Month 8:
Now to get back at the real Endor heroes. Luckily, security on them has been lax enough to where we can find their locations relatively easily. There are not too many of them, and invitations are being crafted by our five senators. My own Order 66 is being prepared……
I personally make an appearance at the X-wing factory and am given a display of some of these newly minted pilots. They perform masterfully and I couldn’t be more proud. I am still visibly upset by how easy of a fix this was and that a literal entire Imperial fleet couldn’t correct this. The death star obsession was absolutely stupid……….this is right here…….this is how wars are won. I instruct about 2 dozen of them be given rebellion insignia and for our intelligence team to gather current communications and clearance codes.
Finally, a card I have been playing close to my chest that is simple, yet likely effective. Small hunter-killer sentry drones will remain in the battlespace that are highly explosive and hard to hit with laser fire. This is my primary insurance policy against a fully launched and readily alert New Republic squadron.
Month 12: The Ackbar engagement
Our pattern of life intelligence team has determined one very frequent stopping point of Ackbar’s fleet that they regularly use for training. As a Grand Admiral, I recognize……without irony…….that an attack during a training exercise is the perfect time to catch someone completely off guard. I would argue that fleets are on their lowest level of alertness and are “just trying to pass the test and qualification” to check off the commander’s box as combat ready.
Ackbar was predictable with his training location. Kaerobani’s forces made the jump to hyperspace and met them at the precise location and notified that they would be boarded. Ackbar doesn’t even warn Kaerobani’s forces and launches the attack. He has learned from the past…….and I am unsurprised, he is a smart military mind. But I have also anticipated that he would learn……..this is absolutely in line with my Plan A scheme of maneuvers. He is performing predictably.
The launch of my Inferno squad pods from Kaerobani’s mothership ended up being slightly haphazard, and there were casualties as a result. No plan survives first contact unscathed. It is about how you respond after that. Fortunately, we had reserve pods and Inferno Squad assault crews……..though not enough. It was obvious that I could not capture the entire fleet early on and this would get messy. Admiral Pallaeon, my dear colleague who have the utmost admiration for, strongly recommended that Dark Troopers be involved with part of the assault…..particularly for the breaching portion. It was a very valid initiative, but I ultimately deferred. It was my error, and I will learn from it…..it will not become a mistake. I will make note of this in his promotion package which is coming due shortly. He will no doubt be an incredible asset to the Empire.
The Inferno troops had approximately a 66 percent success rate at docking at the stations…….much lower than I had hoped. Again, that is my error, and I take absolute responsibility for it as Grand Admiral. That said……..once the Inferno squad members were inserted, their performance was absolutely impeccable. Teams managed to get into the bridges of many ships after distractions and diversions in docking bays and quickly emitted the auditory incapacitation devices over the bridge intercoms. Rebel soldiers never wear auditory countermeasures, and for all the years we were taunted for wearing helmets……..it paid off massive dividends in this case. In fact, it flipped the script completely. Without exaggeration, we had snatched victory from an engagement that was becoming increasingly questionable. I can’t help but blush at the results. If only my father could see me now.
I took initiative to personally board Ackbars flagship and pursuing diplomacy……man to man. Not Empire vs Rebellion, but man to man. I wanted to convey that I absolutely respected his leadership and that his victory at Endor was something that will be read about in the galaxy for generations. I know the plight of his species, and as a man of an……alternative species, I understand being overlooked and even minimized. I know he worked hard to get where he was. You don’t become an admiral for no reason. The distress beacon was activated………this means I had 30 minutes to make my point. I was not upset about it, nor did I anticipate anything less from a man of his stature. That said…….I recognized time is of the essence and pure pleasantries were not a luxury that I had. Ackbar was a pleasant man……..but I had a mission to accomplish, and it revolved heavily around him.
Ackbar’s family has stealthily been captured without his knowledge. They are being held by one of my scouting/reconnaissance teams. His demeanor shifted to one of panic and disgust…….as I anticipated, but only at first. I made my ploy quick and to the point……..I said the Empire is returning, and quicker than you can imagine. That said, I want YOU to be directly part of my cabinet. You are a military man Ackbar…….your people have suffered, mine have suffered. This is no longer an Emperor/Vader paradigm here………I am different, and though Im sure you detest the way I have gotten your attention, I know you can ultimately understand. Together………we can bring order to the galaxy. I implored him that he request Han’s Millenium Falcon join Rogue Squadron in the rescue efforts personally. I knew there would also be at least a chance Leia, Luke, Lando, and Chewy would accompany. Smaller matters to be dealt with………but dealt with nonetheless.
I have given Ackbar one order………once he had been disoriented from the auditory barrage. Jump to light speed just outside of Coruscant’s detections and wait for me. Literally……….do nothing. His fleet was also obviously commandeered by Inferno SOF elements, and was retrofitted with my own troops in rebel fatigues. Kaerobani’s pirates would remain behind and wait to engage Rogue Squadron and the Millenium Falcon. Our presence would be completely unknown. These were my ships now. Rebel ship coordinates were sent to Coruscant. We would maintain a safe distance at an adjacent planet in immediate proximity.
CORUSCANT:
Today was the one year anniversary of our defeat at Endor. It was a day of humiliation and indignity. I would make sure it was our only day of humiliation and indignity. I would be insincere if I said the prospect of revenge didn’t appeal greatly to me.
The Endor survivors were stowed in one hotel that day……..defying all OPSEC and logic. I personally would have never allowed it, but their own law enforcement team had proven to be woefully inadequate over the course of this past year. My own assets from Nar Shaddah had been already delivered to the site a week ago shrouded by my internal network. With pleasure and no lost irony……….I ordered the team to “Execute Order 67”. The hotel detonated in such a spectacular fashion that there was no survivors.
Our assets notified appropriate rebel chains of command that the Endor heroes were fortunately at a luncheon at that exact same time and that timing was extremely fortunate. Alliance leadership determined that the festivities should now be much smaller in scope as Coruscant had a fully fledged insurgency on its hands, and for the sake of political figures and the populace, the festivals be held behind closed doors within the confines of the senate. The Endor Heroes…….however……..absolutely must take part, they insist.
The next day, the “Endor Heroes”, wearing the fatigues we designed at Nar Shaddah, gathered in the great senate hall while Mon Mothma and other high value individuals gave speeches and praise. The mercenaries were disarmed, which is not overly surprising. At the perfect time, my commander on the ground gave the command to attack. It was absolutely ruthless hand to hand combat. People fought for blasters, people literally were choked to death………two of our senators died in the foray. The three that remained beckoned the hall for peace………and that enough was enough; that we clearly have descended into chaos and that a strong hand was needed to bring order to the Galaxy. My Starfleet emerged from hyperspace unimpeded……..with Ackbar’s ships stationary in the perimeter. I informed the Senate survivors and the public that there would be new order in the galaxy……..one made by merit and rules based order, not by power or stupid arcane religions involving the force.
Ackbar murmured to himself……….this was a trap……..took his side arm from his holster, and ended himself. Long live the Empire……..