Predator-Class Starfighter

Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Starships of the Galaxy

The Predator-Class Starfighter is one of the foremost weapons in Darth Krayt's Imperial Fleet. Designed over a hundred years after the Empire's defeat at Endor, the Predator-Class Starfighter bears more than just a passing resemblance to the Imperial TIE Fighter. However, the Predator-Class Starfighter is far more than just Turbolaser fodder; these ships are fast, agile, shielded, and a far more formidable foe than even the most advanced Starfighters used during the Galactic Civil War. These ships boast Hyperdrives that allow them to travel over long distances without the need of a Capital Ship, though most Imperial vessels carry a complement of Predator-Class Starfighters for protection.

The Predator-Class Starfighter has two variant cockpit styles; the more traditional, TIE Fighter-like cockpit is reserved for squad leaders and commanders, while the remaining ships have a cockpit with a diagonally slashed set of viewing slots. Though the standard cockpit offers a reduced view of the battlefield, the interior of a Predator-Class Starfighter contains advanced computer technology with sophisticated heads-up displays to compensate for the reduction in visibility.

Capabilities[]

The Predator-Class Starfighter shares many of the characteristics of the TIE-Series, most notably the TIE Defender. Though more lightly armed, the Predator-Class Starfighter boasts shields and increased hull strength that makes a single Predator-Class ship last longer in combat. The Predator-Class Starfighter is also incredibly fast and agile, making it more adept at avoiding incoming attacks than its predecessors. In fact, the combination of enhanced durability with technology designed to avoid taking damage at all makes the Predator-Class Starfighter a fearsome ship to face in combat.

The Predator-Class Starfighter is primarily used as a space superiority fighter. Launched out of special hanging racks aboard larger Capital Ships, a Predator-Class Starfighter does not need to swarm over it's enemies in huge numbers like it's predecessors. Instead, small wings or squadrons of Predator-Class Starfighters are dispatched to handle most problems, with impressive results. A Predator-Class Starfighter can stand up to nearly any comparable Starfighter, including the X-83 TwinTail Starfighters, and as such Darth Krayt's Empire has seen a much higher survival rate among pilots of Predator-Class ships than the Empire ever did with TIE Fighter pilots. The Predator-Class Starfighter is also the favored Starfighter of The Imperial Knights, whose Force-assisted piloting makes them as deadly in a cockpit as they are in a Lightsaber duel.

Additional Predator-Class Starfighter Data[]

Reference Book: Star Wars Saga Edition Legacy Era Campaign Guide

The mainstay of the Imperial Navy's Starfighter Corps, the Predator-Class Starfighter from Sienar Fleet Systems answers the Empire's basic need for a space superiority fighter that, like the TIE Fighters of The Rebellion Era, can also be mass produced. Faster and more agile than past Sienar designs, the Predator-Class Starfighter boasts shielding to help protect it from those rare shots that manage to hit the fighter. Unlike its TIE predecessors, the Predator-Class Starfighter is fitted with a Hyperdrive, making it suitable for long-distance strike missions.

There are two primary cockpit styles among Predator-Class Starfighters. The standard configuration has a somewhat reduced view of the battlefield, instead encouraging the Pilot to rely on heads-up displays and computer-enhanced targeting and sensor data. Squadron leaders and wing commanders have a more traditional TIE Fighter-style cockpit, which allows for better visual scanning and situational assessment. Predator-Class Starfighters are kept in racks aboard Capital Ships and can be launched with speed from those ships' hangars.