Admiral, you will attack the enemy fleet with due haste. That is an order.
—Warlord Balmus Cail during the Battle of Coruscant, 9 ABY
Balmus Cail (41 BBY – ) was a Human male from Thyferra who served as a politician, Grand Moff, Warlord of the Empire, and admiral in the Galactic Empire. He was appointed as the Grand Moff of the Corellian Oversector by Emperor Palpatine in 2 BBY. Despite being a well-known statesman and admiral in his time serving the Empire, he reached the peak of his power and influence after his crushing victories at the Battle of Loronar and Battle of Coruscant in 6 ABY and 9 ABY respectively, effectively making him the leader of all the splintered Imperial factions. From that point on, he waged total war with the Galactic Federation for control of the galaxy.
Cail was born to relatively wealthy parents on the planet Thyferra in 41 BBY. His father was a prominent local farmer and distributor of bacta, and collected a respectable small fortune. The younger of two brothers, he joined the Republic Navy in 22 BBY at the outset of the Clone Wars; his brother had joined the Navy several years prior. Cail displayed a skill for organizing and quickly developed a commanding presence while a junior officer. He served as the first mate to his brother, captain of a Venator-class Star Destroyer, Liberator. In several instances his brother was wounded and he was forced to take command as acting captain; here, he displayed his reasonable skill as a tactician as well.
After the issuing of Order 66, he served the Emperor faithfully in the ensuing Jedi Purge and in the campaigns against the collapsing Confederacy of Independent Systems. Serving as a captain of his own Imperial-class Star Destroyer -- one of the first ever built -- he embarked on several campaigns which resulted in the destruction of over a dozen rebel groups across the galaxy, while simultaneously reining in crime and enforcing the laws of the new Empire.
In 9 BBY, his elder brother, secretly disillusioned with the Empire and its track record for repression, retired from the Navy as a well-respect Captain and returned to the family business on Thyferra. Cail continued to rise up through the ranks, becoming a full Admiral in 4 BBY after his involvement in the Nimban Crisis and the subsequent Battle of Nimban. This earned the attention of the Emperor, and two years later he was made a Grand Moff and head of the Corellian Oversector. Basing his rule out of the planet Nubia, his skill as an administrator and organizer, coupled with his seemingly natural skill as a leader, ensured he maintained his post for years. After the humiliating Imperial defeat in the Corellian Rebellion in 1 ABY, Cail personally led a second, larger Imperial fleet to defeat the Rebels and succeeded, though suffering a Pyyrhic victory at the hands of Rebel Admiral Ackbar.
Cail played a major role in Imperial suppression of Rebel operations and liberation efforts in the "Southern" galaxy until the Empire's total defeat at the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY. Having built up his influence over the years as Grand Moff of the Corellian Oversector, he became one of the principal Imperial warlords vying for control of the remnants of the Empire, establishing his own empire. After directly challenging the legitimacy of the Imperial Ruling Council, Cail gathered to him several allied warlords and defeated the Council-led Grand Imperial Alliance at the Battle of Loronar in 6 ABY, making him the most powerful of the Imperial warlords and the greatest threat to the Alliance to Restore the Republic. He proceeded to wage a highly destructive war against the Rebellion, while simultaneously fighting (and often succeeding) to keep the less-obedient Imperial warlords in line.
Biography[]
Early life and childhood[]
Service in the Republic[]
Transition to Empire[]
Service in the early Galactic Civil War[]
Battles of Corellia[]
Emerging Imperial leader[]
Battle of Loronar[]
Core World Sieges[]
Battle of Coruscant[]
As defacto leader of the Empire[]
Emergence of the Infinite Empire[]
Legacy[]
Dates of rank[]
Administrative and non-military ranks are marked with †
Republic Navy
22 BBY – Ensign
22 BBY – Junior Lieutenant
21 BBY – Senior Lieutenant
20 BBY – Junior Commander
- 19 BBY – Senior Captain (brevetted)
Imperial Navy
14 BBY – Senior Commander (skipped)
14 BBY – Senior Captain
8 BBY – Rear Admiral
6 BBY – Vice Admiral
4 BBY – Admiral
2 BBY – Grand Moff† (Corellian Oversector)
1 BBY – Grand Admiral
2 ABY – Warlord of the Empire†