Battle of Wenderal

The Battle of Wenderal was the final battle of the pacification campaign during the early, resulting in the 's subjugation of the region.

Prelude
With the made several months earlier, a number of systems in the remote  region declared their independence and loyalty to the new Rebel Alliance. The dispatched a task force in response to quell the uprisings, under the command of  Antonius Valak. The campaign proceeded well, with a number of worlds falling to the Empire's hands, most notably during the Battle of Thela.

A large force, consisting of former and  ships, mercenaries, local patrol fleets, and remnants of  gathered in the  for a decisive battle with the Imperial Fleet. They were joined by a few stragglers from the defeat at. Its commander was a veteran of the, and had experience in fleet battles. Unbeknownst to the Imperials, the Neimoidian detached a small squadron which hid in an asteroid field not far from the chosen battle site, as a secret reserve force.

The battle
When the Imperial fleet arrived and engaged the gathered enemy force, the battle was initially at a stalemate. The Imperials had the smaller force, but the two fleets were equal in firepower due to the resistance possessing smaller and older ships. An hour into the engagement, to break the stalemate, Valak gave the orders for some of his ships to move above and below the s, attacking the enemy from different angles. The enemy force began taking heavy losses, fired at from the front, above, and below, unable to hold its line. The front began to temporarily withdraw in order to get out of the firing range of the Imperial ships for the time being.

However, the Neimoidian gave orders to the reserve detachment to enter the fighting and attack the Imperial force from the rear. It did so, taking the Imperial fleet by surprise and giving it considerable casualties. At that moment, the Neimoidian officer also commanded his main fleet in front to press its attack, so Valak ordered his force to concentrate its fire on their center and break through it. The concentrated artillery strike tore apart through the formation, and the Imperial ships charged into it. The shocked resistance force fell apart during the charge, with the Neimoidian being taken by surprise by the boldness and quickness of the attack. He died aboard his flagship as it was destroyed.

With its commanding officer dead and nearly half of the fleet lost, the collective rebel force fell into confusion and disarray. Valak's fleet, meanwhile, turned around and began an offensive, causing the surviving ships to scatter and retreat in all directions.

Aftermath
In the end, the resistance force took about 75% losses, with its ships scrambling to get away from the system. The battle saw the destruction of what was most of the forces capable of challenging the Empire's invasion, essentially concluding the campaign.