Introduction
Fast starfighters, massive capital ships, and epic battles. These are all elements of the Star Wars saga, most notably in climactic trilogy-ending movies like Revenge of the Sith or Return of the Jedi. This past weekend many of us were treated to what fans are already saying is one of the most epic, most daring, and best-executed fleet battles in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. In the movie’s climactic third act, we see the first formal engagement of the Alliance Navy against the evil Empire over Scarif. Sharp-eyed fans and Fleet Junkies of every persuasion noticed a lot of ships, both old and new. Yet these ships aren’t included just for visual pleasure or as Easter eggs, they are actually part of a much bigger story that has been weaved together throughout the new canon overseen by the Lucasfilm Story Group. The growth of the Rebel fleet, from its earliest days as a loosely-affiliated collection of rebel cells to the formal Alliance Navy we see in Return of the Jedi, is a story of adversity, daring, courage, and hope. From ragtag cells to a battle-ready fleet, this is the story of that evolution. Read More