We lost many good men on Karccev. Nearly half the soldiers stationed there were killed, as well as most of their officers and thousands of civilians. It was true hell.
—Tray Doich on the Battle of Karccev
The Battle of Karccev was a major, though not well known, battle between the Sinyan Imperium and the Taung Confederacy during the Cruentusian War. It was one of the longest battles of the war, lasting several months from the end of the third year all the way until the Battle of Dxun.
The battle began when the Taung Confederacy, wanting revenge for the losses the Sinyans had inflicted on them during a previous battle on Axra Prime, invaded the Sinyan-held planet of Karccev. Despite quick gains early on, the Taung advance was stopped and driven back by Sinyan reinforcements. The battle then turned into a stalemate, lasting several months with neither side making any major gains.
It finally came to an end when the Taung withdrew from Karccev to protect their homeworld of Dxun. The Taung Confederacy would be forced out of the war shortly thereafter, while the Sinyan Imperium would go on join the United Coalition of Worlds, an alliance of planets that would, in time, evolve into the Galactic Republic.
Prelude[]
In 24,297 BBY, the Sinyan Imperium and the Taung Confederacy engaged in a battle on Axra Prime as part of the Cruentusian War. The Sinyans set a trap on Axra Prime for the Taung forces, which had been in the middle of a conquest of Sinyan space, causing heavy damage on the Taung forces after the successful execution of the plan. The Sinyans chose to withdraw shortly thereafter, but they nonetheless emerged victorious from the battle.
Because of the losses they suffered to the Sinyan Imperium, the Taung Confederacy decided to seek revenge and continue their offensive into Sinyan space by invading the Sinyan fortress-world of Karccev. Spy work by Taung Intelligence operatives revealed that the planet was well defended for a possible strike, but also revealed that the Sinyans had no official leader in place. Karccev was also the last planet under Sinyan control other than Sinya itself, so the Taungs believed that a fast-paced invasion would easily defeat the unorganized garrison. The battle would also be an act of revenge for the Taung losses during a previous battle on Axra Prime that the Sinyans had inflicted on them.
The Sinyans, meanwhile, were in disarray. Sinya Defense Force leaders were still trying to relocate their troops that had been withdrawn from the planets of Axra Prime and Mu Nae while Joe Tylars, the SDF's Supreme Commander, was still angry over the events on Axra in which Bureau of Sinyan Intelligence Chief Herich Stimmlur had left behind large numbers of Sinya Defense Force soldiers and Sinyan colonists. To further complicate the situation, Sinyan Emperor Yen Balestone decided to voice his own opinion on the redeployment of troops, causing confusion among Sinyan officers as they were unaccustomed to their leader being involved in military affairs. Tylars opposed Balestone's plan and continued to push for his own redeployment strategy. The constant arguing amongst the various Sinyan leaders ended up drawing their attention away from the leaderless Karccev.
The battle[]
Initial moves[]
An SDF soldiers fires at Taung forces from behind a tree
Beginning their invasion, the Taung launched a space assault to take out the Sinyan orbital platforms above the planet. The lightly armed stations stood little chance against the Mandalore-class cruisers of the Taungs, although the Sinyans were able to deploy some modern fighters to counter the invaders. Despite their efforts, however, the Sinyan forces were quickly dispatched and Taung troops began to land on the planet surface.
Sinyan forces on the ground were no better prepared for the assault then their space-based counterparts, and the Taung rapidly conquered Sinyan territory. The lack of Sinyan officers on the planet only contributed to the chaos as panicked troops began a disorganized retreat. Keeping to their usual doctrine, the Taung executed any soldiers who surrendered and killed any civilians who got in their way. News of these events eventually reached Sinya, and Tylars immediately sent out reinforcements to aide in the defense of Karccev.
Orbital battle[]
Uh, is that supposed to be happening?"
"What...? Dive for cover!
—Dak Chamblers and Raulay Weggins seconds before their deaths
The Sinya defense task force, under the command of Admiral Raulay Weggins and General Dak Chamblers, reached Karccev in time to find it almost completely under Taung control. Chamblers wanted to withdraw, believing that the planet had been lost, but Weggins felt there was still a chance to regain the planet. Therefore, Weggins ordered his fleet to engage the enemy warships.
After Weggins' order was given, some of the Sinyan forces were able to fight their way to the planet's surface, while others were destroyed by Taung fighters. Chamblers and Weggins remained aboard the bridge of the Sinyan command ship Conquest to direct the ground battle, but both men were killed when a damaged Taung fighter crashed into the bridge tower. When word of their demise reached their forces, the remaining Sinyan ships headed toward the planet's surface. Taung interceptors attempted to stop them, but Sinyan fighters were able to provide enough cover to allow their transports to land.
Back and forth[]
The surviving Sinyan forces, now under the command of Sinya Defense Force officer Hanen Chards, began their landings as close to the front lines as possible. Chards wanted to reinforce the defenders as quickly as he could. With the added help, the Sinyans were able to halt the Taung advance. Before the Taungs had a chance to recover from this, Chards launched a surprise counter-offensive which rapidly gained back lost territory. The Taung were thrown into retreat with the Sinya Defense Force in pursuit. However, the Sinyans soon began to overstretch their troops, and the attack was forced to a halt.
The Taung then re-launched their offensive, inflicting heavy losses on the Sinyans. Among the dead was Chards, who had over-confidently placed his command center too close to the front lines, allowing the Taungs an opportunity to destroy it. The Sinyans were eventually able to stem the attack and began to dig in, as did the Taung forces. A long-lasting stalemate would ensue, with both sides unable to make any progress against the other.
Local trouble[]
A militiaman lies dead in the snow as SDF forces advance
I thought we had already crushed these fools!
—A Sinyan soldier on the re-entry of the Stiluun Loyalists
Not long after the factions entered the stalemate, a group of local insurgents loyal to the Stiluun family, the members of whom were formerly in charge of the planet, began to launch raids against both the Sinyan and Taung forces. Led by Jussen Stiluun, these men were determined to expel the so-called imperialists from their planet.
Despite their devotion to their anti-imperialist cause, the loyalists were poorly equipped to fight the larger and more advanced Sinyan and Taung forces. Regardless, they were able to cause enough damage to gain the attention of the Taungs. After several skirmishes, the Taung leadership sent a force of elite soldiers to defeat the insurgency. The Taung were ultimately successful, and Stiluun was killed along with nearly all his men. With this threat removed, the two factions turned their attention back toward the other.
Final hour[]
The stalemate between the two forces lasted for several months. During this time, Tylars ordered preparations to be made for a massive operation. The operation would be spearheaded by a large fleet of Sinyan warships led by Tylars' flagship, the Imperious, and followed by a land campaign led by Tray Doich.
After months of assembly and preparation, the assault was launched. When the Sinyan defense forces arrived near Karccev, they caught the Taungs off guard and, capitalizing on the lack of preparation by the Taungs, were able to break through the blockade to launch the Sinyan landing forces. Tylars remained aboard the bridge of the Imperious, which had been strengthened to avoid another disaster like with the Conquest.
Meanwhile, Doich landed and began his offensive. Taung troops put up a strong resistance to the Sinyan offensive, but the Taungs were unable to hold their ground for long as Doich's leadership helped the Sinyans overcome them. Several attempts by numerous Taung officers to launch a counter-attack were crushed. By the end of the day, the Taung forces were in complete disarray. The next morning, the Taung commander in charge of the entire campaign ordered a full withdrawal from the planet. The Taung troops returned to their homeworld of Dxun, which had recently been attacked by the Srav Federation, another faction fighting in the war.
Aftermath[]
Tylars gazes at Karccev from the bridge of the Imperious following the Taung withdrawal.
When the Taungs began running into their ships and flying off faster then a SAAV-4, we knew it was over.
—A Sinyan soldier recounting the Taung withdrawal
Despite the loss of thousands of troops and officers, the Sinyan forces claimed a victory against the Taungs. Doich's land campaign would long be considered his "finest hour" by Sinyan historians, and Tylars was praised by local Sinyan media outlets for his decision to launch the offensive against the Taungs. Regardless, the Sinyan armed forces had been decimated by the battle and Emperor Balestone feared the Imperium would be vulnerable to another invasion. Tylars shared the same fear and suggested Balestone attend a diplomatic meeting on Corellia that was to be held soon thereafter. Balestone agreed and traveled to Corellia, where he became one of the signers of the Treaty of Corellia which formed the United Coalition of Worlds, the predecessor alliance to the Galactic Republic. The Imperium unofficially lost its sovereignty, and many of its commanders, including Tylars, would become officers in the United Coalition's military.
The Taung Confederacy was severely crippled by both the battles of Dxun and Karccev. Because of these losses, which they were unable to recover from in a time frame sufficient enough for their continued participation in the conflict, the Taungs chose to exit the war.
Behind the scenes[]
The Battle of Karccev was conceived as part of Project Cruentus, a fan fiction project on Star Wars Fanon, the Star Wars wiki of fan invention. The story was planned as a collaborative effort between Star Wars Fanon users Darth Storm and Ty294, but Storm became inactive on the wiki and Ty294 opted to write the entire storyline himself.
When creating the story of the battle, Ty294 chose to partially base it off of the trench warfare of World War I and the Russian Front of World War II. Part of the inspiration came from the World War II sitcom Hogan's Heroes, in which German officers are in constant fear of being sent to the Russian Front. Ty294 hoped to create a parody of that with his Sinyan forces, though he never added mentions of it into the actual story. Ty294 also intended for the Battle of Karccev to be one of the longest battles of the Cruentusian War in terms of in-universe duration.
In September 2010, Ty294 released a Star Wars Battlefront mod map about the Battle of Karccev. The map can be downloaded here: [1].