The Ascendant Fleet is one of the two military branches of Clan Plagueis. Comprised of naval, starfighter, and marine forces, the Ascendant Fleet is the primary force projection tool of Plagueis.
History
The original Ascendant Fleet served in the Jusadih System from 30 ABY to 36 ABY, conquering the system during the War of Ascension. Together with their Legion, a collection of Throne-loyal soldiers and conscripts, they order in a system that became more and more fragmented, disloyal, and difficult to police with each year. It saw its end at the hands of Archibald Zoraan during the fall of Jusadih, as both the Horizon Plague and Zoraan's forces crushed and destroyed the system and almost all of fleet. Only Ascendancy escaped.
Following Jusadih's destruction, the Plagueis found itself stranded, but not without hope - their blind hyperjump away from destruction lead them to a long abandoned station within the Stygian Caldera itself. Several members of Plagueis rendevoused with the Saraask'ar slaving guild, a group that had sold their services to Plagueis before, and the Trandoshans tried to take what was left of Plagueis for themselves. Having taken on more than they bargained for, the Saraask'ar were subjugated by Plagueis when their attack failed. This would be a boon to Plagueis, who used the resources of the Saraask'ar to start repairs on their ships.
With help from Plagueis, and with the hard-won consent of Quaestor Reith, the reptiles of the guild captured the crews of several ships to be slaves while stealing their cargoes to finance plans to rebuild Plagueis. This eventually would lead to a Plagueian assault on the Galactic Alliance base at Ord Padron where several ships were seized by Plagueis to form the core of a new Ascendant Fleet. These vessels served the House well during the Dark Crusade against the One Sith, and the spoils of war allowed Plagueis to further expand it's star navy.
Chain of Command
The command structure of the Ascendant Fleet exists as a natural outgrowth of the magocratic nature of the Plagueian feudal system. While vessel or unit command is vested in experienced officers drawn from the ranks of The Willing, overall command always rests in the hands of the Clan's Dark Jedi. The supreme commander of the fleet, like the Ascendant Legion, is the Dread Lord. The Consul, however, often chooses only to directly oversee the most important military operations, with the Dread Lord's Wrath serving in direct command in the latter's capacity of Military Executor. Additionally, the Quaestors command their own assigned fleet assets as Vassals of the Dread Lord. The authority of the Quaestors is still subordinate to that of the Wrath and the Dread Lord, however.
Direct day to day command authority is vested the non-Force using officers that make up much of the Fleet. The most senior officer of the Ascendant Fleet is Admiral Cyvaria Ranin, the ranking survivor of the Fall of Jusadih. Admiral Ranin commands the fleet from the Transcendence which serves as the fleet flagship. Each independent force attached to the two Houses are commanded by Commodores stationed aboard the twin Nebula-class destroyers attached to the House forces. All vessels of cruiser size or better are commanded by an officer holding the rank of captain, with ships of frigate size or less commanded by officers holding the rank of at least lieutenant commander. Any of these officers is still subordinate to the Dark Jedi of the Clan, but a lower ranked Jedi cannot countermand orders given by their superiors to the officers of the fleet.
Unlike the Galactic Alliance and New Republic before it, the starfighter forces of Clan Plagueis are not a separate service branch from the Ascendant Fleet. Due to their operational configuration as an almost entirely carrier based organization that is tasked to operate directly with the fleet, their command structure is integrated into that of the fleet itself. The senior starfighter officer aboard a ship that embarks several starfighter squadrons is given the position of Wing Commander and will hold a minimum rank of commander. Individual squadron commanders are at least lieutenants.
Organization
During normal operations the Ascendant Fleet is divided into three task forces, each centered around one of the Clan's three Star Destroyers. The main command group is centered around the Clan flagship Transendence, while groups under the direct authority of the Vassals of Ajunta Pall and Karness Muur are centered around the Ascendancy and Preeminence respectively.
Command Force Aurek
The main portion of the Ascendant Fleet is built around the Khyron-class Transcendent, with day-to-day operations overseen directly by fleet commander Cyvaria Ranin. The Transcendence forms a battle line with both of the Clan's Bothan Assault Cruisers, the Harrower and Terminus. Additionally, the Corellian gunships Headsman and Despair are assigned to the task force to serve as a screen. In addition, during assault operations, the Acclamator-class Ravager operates under the command of this task force.
Task Force Besh
The operational headquarters of House Ajunta Pall is aboard the Nebula-class Ascendancy. This task force is made up of the Ascendancy and her escorts, the gunships Nightmare and Wrath.
Task Force Cresh
Centered around the Nebula-class Preeminence, Task Force Cresh serves House Karness Muur. In combat, the Preeminence is escorted by the gunships Anguish and Curse.
Fleet Marines
For Clan Plagueis, protecting their naval assets is the single most important goal in combat. Unlike other Clans and Houses that have military control over a system or domain, Plagueis depends on its ships. As such, a significant number of the Clan's B2 super battle droids have been specifically programed to act as a marine force aboard the capital ships of Plagueis. Using droids for this role provides several benefits, especially the ability to carry large numbers of troops. Droids, in their shut down state, do not require the space or support facilities that humanoid troopers would, which allows even the smallest corvettes or gunships to support a larger fighting force than would otherwise be possible. Additionally, the main computer cores of all Plagueis starships have been outfitted to provide a command signal for the embarked droids, allowing them to fight with great efficiency. These droids are still capable of independent operation, but their combat efficiency and coordination is vastly improved with the signal. In an improvement over the use of these droids by the Confederacy of Independent Systems, the command signal also provides the droids full access to the ship's internal and external sensor systems. This gives the droids a full tactical view of any engagement, either aboard ship or aboard an enemy vessel they are in the process of capturing.
Rank Structure
While the fleet operated by Clan Plagueis is overseen by free officers, the non-commissioned portions of the fleet ranks are entirely made up of slave soldiers. As such, a formalized rank structure does not exist for those below officer rank within the fleet. The officer's rank insignia are worn on each side of the collar.
| Ascendant Fleet Rank Table
|
| Officer Rank
|
| O-8
|
O-7
|
O-6
|
O-5
|
O-4
|
O-3
|
O-2
|
O-1
|
| Admiral
ADM
|
Commodore
COM
|
Captain
CPT
|
Commander
CDR
|
Lt. Commander
LCDR
|
Lieutenant
LT
|
Sublieutenant
SLT
|
Ensign
ENS
|