Rumor: The Emperor’s secret fleet will appear in Star Wars Episode IX
By Scott Brown
In Star Wars canon, The Emperor had developed many contingent plans upon his death. Now, the newest rumor is that one will appear in The Rise of Skywalker. Potential spoilers for Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker follow.
According to Jason Ward at MakingStarWars.net, the latest rumor surrounding the upcoming Star Wars film surrounds the origins of the Sith Troopers and potentially a massive fleet located in the Unknown Regions. According to the rumor, this is where the fleet has been located since the Emperor’s demise in Return of the Jedi so that they can be used to restore the Empire upon the Emperor’s potential resurrection.
They are only one part of the contingencies laid out by the Emperor upon his death, with another being Operation: Cinder. Their return will apparently be by Kylo Ren’s hands in an attempt to “unlock Palpatine’s legacy.” Also according to this report, the fleet is not only equipped with the Sith Troopers, but the Star Destroyers they are based on contain planet-killing weapons. If true, Emperor Palpatine really does love his planet-killers.
The Unknown Regions have previously appeared within the context of the sequel trilogy back in 2015, during the events of The Force Awakens. In fact, the entire third act that took place on Starkiller Base was in the Unknown Regions. This then led into The Last Jedi and its use of Ahch-To, which is also located within the Unknown Regions.
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In other works of canon, it’s not unprecedented for Imperial troops to have fled to the Unknown Regions in order to lie in wait. During the finale of the Star Wars: Aftermath trilogy, Empire’s End, it’s mentioned that several high-ranking officers had fled into the Unknown Regions to rendezvous with other members of the former Empire. The Chiss Ascendancy, of which Grand Admiral Thrawn is a member of, is also located outside of known space. So while this report may be a rumor, there’s plenty of precedent within Star Wars canon for it to be true.
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But because this report is simply a rumor at this point, it should be treated like as such. Little in the way of information has been revealed about the final chapter of the sequel trilogy. What we know for sure is entirely based around the teaser trailer that was released a few months back. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will be released on December 19th.