“Winning does not mean won.”
–Kyrsta Agate, Star Wars: Aftermath
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The Battle of Endor is over, and suddenly the Rebel Alliance finds itself in an unfamiliar position. Accustomed to running from the watchful eye of the Empire, the Rebels are now poised to take the offensive and make a decisive strike that could bring an end to the Galactic Civil War. As they do, a powerful new battleship leads their fleets: the Nadiri Starhawk.
Soon, you’ll be able to add one of these titanic warships to your Rebel fleets as you fight to take back the galaxy with the Nadiri Starhawk Expansion Pack for Star Wars™: Armada! Join us today as we take a closer look at how this powerful ship can help you turn the tides of battle.
Rise of the Republic
Constructed from the remnants of defeated Imperial Star Destroyers, there is perhaps no better symbol of the Rebellion’s newfound power—and the New Republic’s ascendance—than the Starhawk-class battleship. The largest and most powerful ship available to Rebel commanders, the Starhawk adds an imposing presence to any fleet that it backs up with pure brute strength.
As the first capital ship built by the fledgling New Republic, the Starhawk declares the Republic’s willingness to strike back against the Empire, and these intentions are made clear with the new salvo defense token it carries into battle. Rather than reducing or containing the damage a ship takes, spending one of these tokens allows a ship to launch an attack of its own after the Resolve Damage step of an attack made against it.
The Victory-class star destroyer attacks the Starhawk-class battleship Mark II. After damage has been resolved, the Starhawk spends its salvo token to fire back using its printed rear battery armament!
If the attack was made by a ship, the defender performs a salvo attack against the attacking hull zone using its printed rear battery armament. If the attacker was a squadron, however, the defender uses its printed anti-squadron armament. While dice cannot be added to a salvo attack, a retaliatory strike like this is the perfect way to whittle away at your opponent’s shields and hull while letting them know you won’t back down.
With the salvo defense token setting the tone, the Starhawk ushers in a new era of Rebel capital ships. With its heavy armament, the imposing Starhawk-class battleship can easily go toe-to-toe with a star destroyer and the Nadiri Starhawk Expansion Pack gives you two different ways to add one to your fleet. Both the Starhawk-class Battleship Mark I and Mark II feature the same upgrade bar, but mix up the ship’s attacks from each hull zone, giving you the freedom to choose the mixture of range and accuracy that works best for your strategy.
Such a large ship is bound to play a large role in your fleet, and you’ll want to assign the Alliance’s best personnel to it. In our announcement, we revealed that you can appoint the venerable Kyrsta Agate as the commander of your Starhawk, inviting you to spend a defense token, even when you would ordinarily be unable to do so. But you can also add Agate to a ship as an officer for a fraction of the cost, granting you the ability to ready an exhausted defense token with a red or blue critical result, even during a salvo attack.
Now that the Rebellion has amassed the power to sweep away the remnants of the Empire, some of its most well-known figures must step into new roles if they hope to usher in this new era. Although he’s best known for his exploits as a starfighter pilot, the legendary Wedge Antilles can still make contributions to your strategy as an officer aboard one of your capital ships. In this capacity, he acts as a mentor to your non-unique squadrons, granting them cloak until the end of the round.
Even with the firepower the Starhawk brings to the table, Rebel fleets are still likely to be outgunned by the large Imperial ships they regularly face. But a weapons team led by Shriv Suurgav can help you even the odds. For the cost of a squadron dial, they can strip a key upgrade card off an enemy ship at close range, forcing them to switch up their strategy in the middle of battle.
While the Rebellion's many heroes can be of service to any ship that will take them, the Starhawk itself can be upgraded with some experimental technology that further enhances its effectiveness in battle. Along with the Onager-class star destroyer, it is the first ship to feature the Superweapon upgrade icon. But while the Onager-class star destroyer uses its massive particle cannons to bombard targets with heavy fire, the Starhawk takes a different approach. Its Magnite Crystal Tractor Beam Array can be used at manipulate an enemy ship’s speed, helping you get it right where you want it.
The Starhawk activates its Magnite Crystal Tractor Beam Array at the end of its activation, forcing the Imperial Raider to match its speed!
No matter who's in command or what weapons it's armed with, the Starhawk-class battleship marks a new era for the Rebellion, and a handful of these powerful ships took part in some of the pivotal battles that led to the rise of the New Republic. The Concord, for example, helped turn the tides of the Battle of Jakku in the Republic’s favor. This ship enters battle with an extra salvo token and can spend a defense token while its speed is 0, making it particularly difficult to bring down.
The Amity, meanwhile, excels at avoiding enemy fire while it closes in on enemy ships. Once it does, it’s not afraid to sacrifice some of its own health to deal crucial damage to the enemy. Finally, the Unity works closely with its squadrons to eliminate opposing starfighters before they become too much of a threat.
Defeat the Empire
The Rebellion is on the brink of claiming victory in the Galactic Civil War. Defeat the last vestiges of the Empire and usher in a new era of peace with the Nadiri Starhawk!
