In the years leading up to the Battle of Scarif, the Phoenix Cell was one of the most active
elements of the Rebellion against the Empire, and the fleet was responsible for some of
the most important victories achieved by the rebel movement during this period.
The range of warships and combat fighters which made up the Phoenix Fleet changed drastically
across the unit’s lifespan, but many of the core elements remained constant, and served
as an early example of the fast-attack style of warfare that would become a staple of the
Rebel Alliance.
As their primary fighter craft and short range interceptor, the Phoenix Cell employs the
Kuat Systems RZ-1 A-Wing.
Inspired by Clone Wars-era fighter designs, the A-Wing is famous for its extremely high
rate of acceleration and brutal effectiveness in close quarters combat.
Though the ship is generally lacking in endurance and pilot survivability, it easily outclasses
the TIE Fighters of the Galactic Empire in almost every regard, and when deployed in
larger numbers to protect the Phoenix Cell’s larger ships, the fighters create a defensive
screen that can repulse most Imperial fighter attacks without difficulty.
The fleet also possessed a small number of RZ-1T Training craft, which allowed the cell
to bring its aspiring pilots through basic training without placing its valuable strike
craft at risk.
The RZ-1T held space for a second occupant, allowing an instructor to accompany the trainee
pilot during flight, and due to the limited availability of spacecraft, the cell would
sometimes be forced to pull the craft from training duty, and redeploy them for missions
requiring the transport of a single passenger.
Across the lifespan of the Phoenix Cell, the fleet went through three separate flagships,
all of which were designated Phoenix Home.
The first of these was a converted Republic Pelta-Class Medical Frigate, heavily modified
to serve as a carrier for the fleet’s A-Wings.
Sporting moderate defensive armaments and carrying a crew of 900 personnel, Phoenix
Home served as an effective command vessel for the Phoenix Cell in its earliest years,
providing the pilots of Phoenix Squadron with a place to maintain their fighters, and recuperate
between missions.
This would change however, with the Siege of Lothal in 4 BBY, when a surgical attack
carried out by Darth Vader succeeded in eliminating not only a large portion of the cell’s fighter
wing, but the Phoenix Home itself, forcing Commander Sato and his staff to abandon ship
and retreat from the system with their remaining forces.
The second starship to bear the title of Phoenix Home was the CR90 Corellian Corvette, Liberator.
Much of the Phoenix Fleet was comprised of CR90’s for the unit’s entire career, and
the ships provided the cell with a wide range of adaptability in combat.
The Corellian Corvette was renowned as one of the most reliable and versatile light warships
of its time, with its high speed and arrays of turbolaser turrets making it extremely
effective against hostile fighter wings, and though the Liberator was never designed to
carry starfighters or to serve as a command ship, it nevertheless succeeded in leading
the Phoenix Cell through its darkest year, surviving the massacre at Garel, and safely
carrying the pilots of Phoenix Squadron into battle, until such time as a more suitable
command ship could be obtained.
Following the catastrophic losses suffered by the Phoenix Fleet in the Siege of Lothal,
it became clear to the leaders of the Rebellion that the cell would require reinforcements
as soon as possible, those reinforcements came in the form of three Hammerhead Class
Corvettes donated by House Organa of Alderaan.
Based upon the design of centuries-old republic warships, Hammerhead Corvettes are light multipurpose
combat vessels, carrying a pair of forward mounted dual laser cannons, as well as an
adjustable tail gun to engage pursuing targets.
In addition to their respectable combat abilities, the Hammerheads were useful as cargo vessels
and couriers, boasting a large retractable loading bay on their ventral hull, and throughout
their service to the Phoenix Fleet the ships were often employed as relief vessels and
blockade runners over worlds subjugated by the Empire.
Last and easily most impressive of the Phoenix Cell’s three Flagships was an Imperial Quasar-Fire
Class Light Carrier, captured over Ryloth during a joint operation with Cham Syndulla’s
Rebel Cell.
After months of mounting their fighters to the hulls of Corellian Corvettes, the acquisition
of a dedicated carrier vessel was a crucial victory for the Phoenix Fleet, allowing them
to store and maintain their fighter craft even more effectively than they had with the
original Phoenix Home.
The carrier sported numerous defensive turbolaser batteries and powerful shields, as well as
launch bays large enough to carry small freighters and support ships, in addition to the vessel’s
complement of strike craft.
Being a full-fledged Imperial warship, the Quasar Fire was by far the largest and most
advanced vessel to serve in the Phoenix Fleet, and under the command of Jun Sato the ship
provided the rebels with a powerful line of defence for their planetside base, as well
as a crucial edge in their battles with the Empire.
In spite of the many starfighters and warships that make up the Phoenix Fleet, perhaps the
most important vessel of all was a simple Corellian VCX-100 Freighter known as the Ghost.
As the personal starship of Captain Hera Syndulla and her Spectre Team, the Ghost carried out
many of the Phoenix Cell’s most crucial assignments, and the modifications made by
its captain and crew made the ship extraordinarily well suited to these covert operations.
The Ghost was armed 2 adjustable laser turrets and a pair of proton torpedo launchers, as
well as the rear-facing cannons fixed to its auxiliary fighter, the Phantom.
The ship also featured a suite of advanced stealth systems, capable of jamming enemy
transmissions and sensor systems as well as masking the freighter’s drive signature,
and in conjunction with the Phantom, the ship could quickly and silently deploy a small
team to a planet’s surface, affording the rebels a powerful tool of infiltration, that
would go on to secure victory over the Empire on dozens of separate occasions.