The Special Operations Executive, more commonly known as the SpecOps, was an elite military force within the Imperial Armed Forces during the reign of the Dark Lord of the Decreton Empire, Darth Abeonis. Responsible for the security of some of the Empire's most crucial installations and vessels, such as The Soiyo; SpecOps were highly regarded for the military skill throughout the galaxy.
Trained on an unknown ice world inside a single, hidden facility, the SpecOps received the best training available within the Sith Empire and endured a rigorous training regime lasting on average, twenty years. Unlike SpecOps trained following the Sith Crusade, some of the first, and arguably most skilled SpecOps, received little more than a decades training however; though they were considered amongst the greatest of their kind.
History[]
Formation and early years[]
Formed out of members of the Temple Security Force and Galactic Alliance Security who had been assigned to The Soiyo for its exploratory expedition in 38 ABY, the two forces were merged into one following the capture of Jasca Ducato during the Battle of Nerezza on the orders of Pantene; feeling that the hostile rivalry between the two organizations was negatively impacting their ability to operate within the reaches of the Unknown Regions. Pantene, having chosen an individual whom he felt was capable of easing the transition, left the newly created Special Operations Executive in the hands of Jadon Tarr.
Tarr had been a member of the GA Security since its inception and long harbored an intense rivalry with the Temple Security Force, whom he felt acted against the jurisdiction of GA Security. Unlike others within GA Security however, his rivalry did not extend to hatred and as such he felt that the two could work well together under the Special Operations Executive; things did not go well at first however, and it quickly became apparent that the SpecOps would have to be limited in size and rely on skill more than firepower. The lack of facilities aboard The Soiyo also restricted the SpecOps ability to operate efficiently and so command of Hidden Side was temporarily handed over to Tarr — now known as Commander 001 — so that the SpecOps could operate independently of The Soiyo and construct the necessary facilities for training.
In 39 ABY The Soiyo stumbled upon a secluded ice world that had been long abandoned. On the planet, the SpecOps discovered an extensive military facility that had been left behind by the planets previous inhabitants, and assumed control of the facility for training purposes; within weeks the Special Operations Executive had moved its entire operation into the facility. From here the SpecOps were able to construct a fully facilitated and supplied base of operations, maintaining constant communication with The Soiyo and utilizing Hidden Side to move their units off-world. The SpecOps continued to operate from the planet following the return of Jasca Ducato — now Darth Abeonis — and, like the crew of The Soiyo, were corrupted by the Dark Lord.
Despite their training regime being far from complete, the SpecOps were soon called upon for their extensive military expertise; in order to aid the Dark Lord's conquest of those Sith who had remained loyal to Guerreiro. By the start of the Sith Crusade, active military service had become as integral a part of SpecOps training as standard military exercise, with as much as 70% of prospective members not lasting the ten years; however, by 48 ABY the "first class" of SpecOps had completed their training. In this year, the SpecOps operative Commander 113 assumed control over the facility's training regime, allowing the remainder of the first class to operate completely at the behest of their Dark Lord. As Abeonis' war against the Sith Order of Decreto continued however, the SpecOps ranks thinned and it became apparent to 001, who had by this point been nicknamed "First", that the SpecOps needed to improve their technology if the were to survive. As such, First sought to approach the Dark Lord himself to request the facilities necessary to research the upgrade; impressing the Dark Lord when he managed to fight his way through to the bridge of The Soiyo. Now with the facilities and equipment necessary to begin their research, the SpecOps began designing a type of armor that allowed them more freedom to operate than the standard armor of the lesser Sith trooper. By 58 ABY the SpecOps had completed the upgrade, as well as deigning to use only guns for military service.
The Sith Crusade[]
The SpecOps were instrumental in many of the early victories of the Sith Crusade, acting behind the lines to disrupt Chiss communications, destroying key Imperial Remnant military facilities and later still, destroying the HoloNet nodes on Balamak. Following the initial invasion of the Galactic Alliance the Dark Lord assumed personal command of SpecOps, assigning them to assist the Sith Knight Darth Micail in his assault upon the Jedi Academy on Dathomir; although they saw no action in the battle. As a result of this, Abeonis placed the SpecOps under the temporary command of the Sith Lord Darth Dimicatio who, much like Darth Micail, saw no reason for the SpecOps presence when she had Sith Knights at her disposal. For the rest of the first year's campaign the SpecOps remained at the headquarters, rarely leaving save for service aboard The Soiyo. The year following however things changed.
Sith SpecOps scour Yavin IV for the missing Jedi
At this point Darth Dimicatio was heading up a long-term Sith mission on Yavin IV, however it was felt that the presence of large numbers of Sith troopers on the planet would draw to much attention; as such it was decided that a group of no more than fifty SpecOps should be responsible for the missions security, whilst being backed up by a standard planetary garrison. The arrival of Ben Skywalker and his Jedi entourage in 62 ABY complicated things however; fr upon discovery the Jedi proceeded to exfiltrate the facility violently, cutting down many Sith and SpecOps units. Skywalker escaped alive, a failure in Dimicatio's eyes, although the fact that three of the four Jedi killed that day had been SpecOps hits served as their saving grace; especially considering two of these kills had been face on with the Jedi. Whilst this early victory against the Jedi prevented Dimicatio from breaking up the Special Operations Executive, it had also revealed the existence of the SpecOps too the Galactic Alliance. After the third battle of Yavin IV the SpecOps continued to operate, although on a much more restricted rota now the Jedi were aware of them.
They participated in numerous mission throughout the war, including the invasion of the Mando'ade Alliance, the hunt for Luke Skywalker after the Duel on Gand, the battle of Tund, Kubindi — where a force of fifteen SpecOps took on a force of over two hundred — and the battle of Praesitlyn.
A terrible loss[]
No! Don't talk like that, you can't die! Not after what we've been through together. You just ca…
—Commander 001 to Commander 039 as he dies
By the year 65 ABY the Sith Empire had, for the most part, ended its civil war with a victory for those loyal to the Dark Lord; the relative success the GFFA had enjoyed in their own campaign over the year previous had started to falter and both sides were preparing for a decisive encounter in the Outer rim territories. The planet Praesitlyn was chosen to host this engagement, and the SpecOps were chosen by Darth Abeonis to lead the assault. And so, the entire active roster for the SpecOps was assigned to Darth Micail, who was to lead the invasion of the planet. Upon arrival on the undefended planet the SpecOps set about securing defensive positions in preparation of the inevitable Jedi assault.
During the engagement, the SpecOps were spread thin across the entire battlefield; often leading the defense of their respective sectors when their superiors were otherwise engaged. Early on in the battle however, the SpecOps suffered a heavy hit to their morale when Commander 039 was felled in a duel with the Jedi Katae-muri. Impaled through the torso by the Jedi Knight, 039 died in the arms of 001; who had himself, nearly been slain by his enemy. Katae escaped retribution at the hands of 001, although she would not out live 039 much longer herself.
Despite knowing of the death of 039 the SpecOps were still busy defending against the Jedi assault, and forty-five more lost their lives that day. By the close of battle only 001 and three others from the active roster had survived, and were subsequently assigned to coordinate the clear-up of any remaining Alliance units on the planet. Following the battle the SpecOps returned to their headquarters and were shortly reassigned throughout the Empire as per before the battle. Just over a year later the Sith Crusade had ended, and by this point the SpecOps had taken up the duty of public bodyguards for the Dark Lord; working in conjunction with the Hand, whose existence remained a secret.
Organization[]
Due to the limited size of their roster, the SpecOps were trained to work in four man teams, with each member fulfilling a specif role. A team was made up of one C&C unit, and three standard troops who each had a distinct expertise; ranging from explosive, to computer technology to heavy weaponry and more. With only fifty SpecOps ever being active at any one time, each team lived together and worked together permanently; however, despite the limited sive of their active roster the total number of SpecOps during the latter part of the reign of Darth Abeonis was estimated to number around one-thousand individuals, drawn from the top echelon of the Imperial Armed Forces.
SpecOps ranks[]
Despite the wide array of expertise SpecOps were expected to learn, and the complexity of the social structure between the individuals SpecOps, the organization had only three official ranks. Within each of these ranks however existed multiple unofficial ranks indicating the level of seniority between similarly placed units.
SpecOps engage an unknown enemy.
Command & Control[]
Command & Control SpecOps were the leaders of each four-man team. Each C&C was expected to lead from the front, and was responsible for any failures or breach of procedures made by a member of their team. Known C&C's include Commander 001, and Commander 039.
Standard unit[]
The standard unit for the SpecOps made up the bulk of the active roster, filling the remaining three positions in each team. Bearing a crimson-red armor for ceremonial purposes, they also each possessed multiple extra armors dependent on the mission. Deadly in hand-to-hand combat and experts in use of the gun, the standard SpecOps unit were the most visible to the public, often being seen in positions of command over planetary garrisons.
Elite[]
The ranks Elites were made up of the longest serving and most respected of the SpecOps. Donning jet black armor and responsible for the personal security of the Dark Lord, those Elite not protecting the Dark Lord were often in positions of power; acting as governors over various Sith world. Suspected Elites include Commander 313 and Commander 348, despite the latter wearing white armor for the greater part of his career.