Dice & Dispatches

The Siege of Crater Field

Posted on August 22, 2025 | System: Star Wars Legion

The Jundland desert is rarely quiet, but the morning this battle began, even the scavengers stayed away. The comm tower north of Mos Pelgo shimmered in the heat as Rebel and Imperial forces converged on the crater field below. By nightfall, two transports were burning, an imperial walker was scarred, and Darth Vader himself lay in the sand, silent at last.

Opening Fire

Green-armored snowtroopers were the first to break the silence, ion fire flashing across the dunes and rocking a Rebel A-A5 transport. Smoke hissed from its repulsors, but it kept moving. Purple-armored troopers swept along the flank, pouring fire into the orange-marked speeder truck and forcing its crew to ground.

"We saw the first ion hit and thought we'd have to ditch the bus right there. But the driver just kept yelling, 'Hold her steady!' while sparks flew from the console."

- Field Log - Rebel Technician

Moments later, the battlefield shook as General Weiss' AT-ST stalked out from behind a dune. Its cannons and mortar opened up, turning the orange transport into a fireball that scattered Rebel troops across the sand.

But the Rebels struck back. Ewok slingers skittered between stone spires, their projectiles whirring overhead. Even under heavy fire, they pressed forward, dropping stones into the Imperial line.

"I saw one of the small ones get hit, then stand back up screaming. It frightened the stormtroopers. You could see it in the way they hesitated."

- Local Witness, translaged from Huttese

Smoke and Diversion

As the crater field filled with haze, Han Solo stepped into view - blaster low, grin wide - drawing continued fire that should have been meant for the Rebel advance. The diversion worked. Heavy bolts chewed up the rocks around him as Rebel fleet troopers slipped into the smoky crater.

Inside the dust storm, blaster bolts traced orange lines in the haze. An E-Web, emplaced on a rooftop, rained fire down until the fleet troopers' scattergun silenced it with a devastating volley.

"The air smelled like burnt durasteel and ozone. The E-Web's gunner slumped over his weapon just as the smoke cleared enough to reveal the advancing Rebel line. The crater was theirs... for now."

- Field Notes - ORD Correspondent

But the Empire was not done. Weiss continued his press forward, opening up with his mortar and catching a squad of Rebel troopers in the open, forcing them to scatter.

Vader's Advance

The desert grew still. Then came the sound, a low mechancial rasp followed by the hiss of a lightsaber. Darth Vader strode through the smoke, cutting down a two-man Rebel squad with a single sweep.

"Target engaged. Advancing to close."

- Intercepted Imperial Comms

Rebel fire concentrated on him immediately, bolts slamming against his armor. He deflected shot after shot, one ricochet striking an Ewok slinger and dropping them mid-sling.

"The survivors called him 'the walking shadow.' Even as they bled, they kept throwing stones."

- Embedded Note - Local Translator

Vader pressed forward, wounds glowing on his armor where blasters found purchase. Fear rippled through the Rebel line, but so did resolve.

The Final Push

By the last cycle of fighting, both sides were exhausted. Vader unleashed a wave of fear that froze entire squads in place, but Lando Calrissian countered with a precise strike, pinning the Dark Lord just long enough for the fleet troopers to act.

They opened fire at close range. Blaster bolts hammered into Vader's chest plate, one finding its mark. His saber flickered once, then went dark as he fell to one knee and collapsed into the sand.

"We just kept shooting until he stopped moving. No one cheered. We just looked at each other, and then we remembered we still had a battle to finish."

- Fleet Trooper Sergeant

Galvanized by the moment, Rebel troops surged forward, sweeping the purple-armored snowtroopers from the field and forcing the Imperials back. The last AT-RT fell, yes... but not before clearing the crater long enough for Rebel control to be cemented.

After-Action Analysis

The Siege of Crater Field was a hard-fought Rebel victory. Several moments proved decisive:

Final Score: Rebels 8 - Empire 5

Crater Field remains under Rebel control, and with Vader fallen, Imperial presence in this sector appears to be temporarily weakened... though Rebel command expects a swift and brutal reprisal.