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- "'Slow, old, seemingly defunct, and practically unkillable? Just like its captain."
- ―Nikora Rhan
The Yastobaal was a GR-75 medium transport that served throughout the Galactic Empire's dominion, initially as a freighter for a private company and then later on as an asset to the Alliance to Restore the Republic across a number of battlefields. The ship was utilised until the retaking of Coruscant as a supplies vessel, before being mothballed as a wider number of transport ships became gradually more avalible. Although it served in minor roles during the following conflicts between the New Republic and the resurgent Empire, it would only be restored to full service under the command of its original captain, Essik Lyccane. Hidden as a possible backup site should the groups be allied with be driven from their homes, it became a mobile base of operations following the loss of The Fang and an HQ to the Kiast Free Droid Enclave.
Description
Average in speed and manoeuvrability, but with only light plating and shielding as protection from pirates, the ninety-meter long medium transport required a crew of only three to effectively pilot while in flight, with little need for substantial maintenance or modifications. The raised position of the command bridge far above its primary engines assisted to somewhat offset the design's limited manoeuvrability, giving the crew easy visibility over the design.
The GR-75's primary strength lay in the vast cargo capacity of its clamshell design, which could fly with up to nineteen thousand metric tons of cargo containers housed within its superstructure. Held in place by a combination of magnetic clamps and physical anchors, the modular components made it easy to rapidly load and retrieve pods as required. This was accomplished in part thanks to an internal loading arm-mounted beneath the prow, limiting the need for port infrastructure to accomodate its needs. The clamshell design of its outer frame also made it highly resistant to Imperial sensors and, along with its ability to comfortably transport up to forty individuals with easy room of movement, many of these qualities made it a popular choice with Rebel cells.
Although equipped with four dual laser turrets in its basic design, the Yastobaal is nevertheless extremely heavily reliant upon supporting fighters during encounters with hostile warships. During its time in the Rebellion, the vessel was frequently modified and reworked to carry out a variety of roles, from operating as a Q-Ship thanks to a number of combat modifications under Essik Lyccane, to a communications vessel, evacuation craft, and even a light carrier. Following its initial retirement, the ship was stripped of these upgrades and returned to its stock configuration.
Internal Layout
History
Laid down in the shipyards of Corellia in 20 BBY, the Yastobaal was a typical example of its class from its inception. Named after the infamous explorer from ages past, the transport was intended initially to operate as an inner rim livestock trader, but a string of poor fortune saw it instead purchased by a small shipping corporation operating out of Chandrila after its original commissioner defaulted on multiple payments. Along with several other transports of its class, the vessel instead flew as a mass delivery vessel for a multitude of worlds across the galaxy, but would soon find a new role under the command of Essik Lyccane.
A veteran of the Clone Wars, Lyccane's growing concern at the new order's choices swayed him into covertly utilising the vessel as a support ship for resistance groups. Initially focusing on making low-level supply runs to smaller cells, the Gand privately sought out essential supplies from surplus sources and criminal enterprises alike, often funding them with his personal fortune. Utilising a small network of drop-off and collection points, Lyccane would collect and then drop the supplies during his journeys. Lyccane gradually replaced its crew with other disillusioned figures who had fought in the Clone Wars, thus allowing him to make larger long-range drops and even entire runs in secret to major Rebel groups. While often requiring them to completely wipe segments of the navigation logs and even disguising their losses by faking pirate attacks, they were able to readily strengthen several groups when supplies were desperately needed.
Risking discovery multiple times, Lyccane was able to avoid being arrested on charges by framing his pro-Imperial employer as a sympathiser to the resistance groups. When the company was forced to scrap a number of its GR-75 Transports, they made sure that they would fall into Rebel hands. Upon having several of its assets seized by order of the Empire, every effort was made to create blind spots and vulnerabilities for the Rebels to raid and capture facilities and ships alike. However, it was clear that these minor acts would only work for a time. Lyccane knew that one suspicious act too many would eventually draw infiltrators or more likely a direct raid by Imperial Intelligence, and began preparing to cut and run at a moment's notice.
Moving the vast majority of essential assets onto the freighters in dummy cargo containers, they began moving them as far from the Core worlds as possible on a series of long-range supply runs to defunct contacts. When the Imperials were able to begin moving against them following unusual flight patterns which might have suggested meeting with Rebel ships, Lyccane tied them up in red tape long enough to broadcast a warning signal to every vessel within the company before quietly departing himself. All eighteen freighters owned by the company defected en masse, using a series of false IFF signals and sensor scramblers to disappear into the Outer Rim territories.
While several of the transports were lost in the evacuation, the Yastobaal was fortunate enough to escape and regroup with the survivors at Polis Massa, where Lyccane announced his plan to openly defect to the Rebellion. Most had been open to the idea, and those who had been wavering on the act of open support were eventually swayed into agreeing with the move. Only two ships and a handful of crewmen objected to this, and instead departed for regions unknown further toward the Outer Rim. After utilising old contacts to communicate with the more prominent Rebel cells, the Yastobaal became part of the Support Services, Lyccane served for over a year in this capacity while occasionally lending his assistance to Ordnance and Supply in gathering Clone Wars era equipment.
After a number of dangerous encounters with Imperial anti-piracy patrols and abrupt searches, the Yastobaal was reconfigured to better defend itself against enemy aggressors. Heavily inspired by the means in which the Mon Calamari had reworked their own warships, Lyccane was able to acquire and then install the prow heavy turbolaser cannons of a Munificent-class star frigate along with two sets of torpedo launchers. Hidden behind a multitude of fake cargo pods and sensor jamming equipment, the ship's upgraded firepower earned it a multitude of kills across its career, culminating in a fleeting battle that saw the destruction of a Guardian-class light cruiser and two escorting Imperial Customs Frigates. This gained some attention from his superiors, and Essik was pressed back to a frontline role, but insisted upon remaining in command of the vessel.
Taking the ship with him after he was dispatched to support the aligned Atrivis Sector Force, it would soon become a command carrier in support of his activities. Granted the military rank of Captain to support his efforts, Essik devised a plan to draw attention away from their territories by initiating a strike on twin Deepdock facilities in the Noonian sector, indicating a stronger rebel presence there. While intended as a false flag operation and denied the resources needed to directly stage such an ambitious strike, Essik was nevertheless able to successfully destroy their target. This had the unintended impact of sparking a number of genuine uprisings against the Imperial administration. Guilt and the weight of his actions made Essik go rogue, with the bulk of the strike team joining him as he pushed to support and organise the varied cells.
For the next several months, the Yastobaal would be used to support a small number of StarWars:BTL-S3 Y-wing starfighter/Y-Wings and ambushes on various patrol groups. It would be also used in multiple acts to evacuate troops and make supply drops, reinforcing and improving the status of various resistance cells, until those in the sector fully allied as a single unit and were accepted into the rebellion as another branch. This victory couldn't have been accomplished without Essik's actions, but it was nevertheless bittersweet. Having departed and ignored orders to return, Essik was demoted and stripped of his command, with only his successes blocking an outright court-martial. Dispatched to a more remote position, the transport would fall under the command of a Gotal officer, Johsas Vashon.
With Vashon's command, the ship focused far more upon its role as a supply and deployment ship. With its upgrades stripped and instead gifted to more combat-capable vessels, Vashon's tenure proved to be successful if unremarkable. Avoiding combat and otherwise acting in smuggling and supply duties, the Yastobaal would be among those used to rapidly evacuate Echo Base during the fall of Hoth. Escaping early on into the battle with a cargo full of replacement components for starfighters, it would later regroup with the main Rebel fleet. Absent from the closing Battle of Endor, it would only arrive in the wake of the battle to help repair a number of severely damaged cruisers.
Vashon would continue to command the ship until its supposedly final mission, acting as a troop deployment vessel for a multitude of assault troops during the Liberation of Coruscant. With age and damage wearing down on its frame, it was to be mothballed and stripped of parts, but the later Thrawn Campaign and Operation Shadow Hand would see it pressed back into service under other captains due to a lack of ships. The Yastobaal would be officially retired in 14 ABY to serve as a museum piece, only to be returned once more during the final evacuation of Coruscant during the later wars of the New Republic. Used to bring several hundred civilians free of the world, the ship's fate would go unrecorded in the chaotic years that followed, with it seemingly disappearing after jumping into hyperspace.
Modifications
Limited largely by modest funds and an ageing superstructure, the Yastobaal has seen no upgrades to its speed, defences, or firepower. Instead, its most prominent upgrade lies with extensive measures to limit potential security hazards. The exterior of the ship features a large number of false security panels and access points to distract potential intruders, many of which are rigged to deliver electrical discharges if heavily tampered with. The access hatches themselves have also seen considerable reinforcement, allowing them to resist anything short of a thermal detonator and military-grade encryption codes to counter slicing attempts against its systems. Finally, the ship's mag-locks have been improved, making efforts to prize the ship free of its chosen landing platform an extremely difficult venture without expending considerable time and resources on the attempt.