The latest episode of Star Wars: Resistance, "The New Trooper," has finally revealed how the First Order conquered the galaxy so quickly. The First Order are the big threat to the galaxy in the Star Wars sequel trilogy. They emerged as a superpower in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, crippling the New Republic by destroying Hosnian Prime and making a move to conquer their planets.
In Star Wars: The Last Jedi, set just 24 hours after Episode VII, their supremacy seems to be confirmed: the opening titles stated "The First Order reigns" and the Resistance found themselves on the back foot, fleeing from the First Order's mightiest ship. At the same time, First Order fleets launched a stunning Blitzkrieg upon the galaxy, destroying defense fleets and planetary defenses. When the film came to a close the Resistance was little but a flickering candle in the darkness of the night.
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But how did the First Order achieve this? The latest episodes of Star Wars: Resistance are set in the build-up to The Force Awakens, and the latest episode blew the lid on their tactics. Kaz managed to steal a crucial holo-map from the First Order, one that displayed the current positions of the various First Order fleets. It revealed that the First Order had deliberately kept most of their armada back in the Unknown Regions, an uncharted region of space where Imperial stragglers were radicalized by Snoke. This area of space is largely inaccessible, closed off by a labyrinth of solar storms, rogue magnetospheres, black holes, gravity wells, and things far stranger. The First Order had inherited secret star-charts of the Unknown Regions from the Empire, so were able to hide their fleets where they couldn't be found by either the New Republic or the Resistance. They'd built up a military force that outstripped even the New Republic Navy and couldn't possibly be matched by the Resistance, but kept it all a secret.
The holo-map also explains how the First Order intended to conquer the galaxy; they'd sent their fleets around the galactic rim. The First Order's goal wasn't to drive a wedge into the galaxy and conquer core worlds; it was to attack everywhere at once, with their fleets pressing in to claim all the worlds of the galaxy in one stunning strike. It was a tactic that would prove successful, as recounted in the novelization of Star Wars: The Last Jedi. The destruction of Hosnian Prime took out most of the New Republic Navy, including their leadership; there was simply no way the remaining fleets could match the First Order's forces. Even if a Republic fleet survived its first encounter with a First Order fleet, there'd be another one nearby, ready to launch another strike. Meanwhile, many worlds wound find themselves unprotected, suddenly threatened by a First Order fleet; small wonder they'd swiftly acquiesce, and surrender to the First Order.
Until recently, Lucasfilm has reserved the Star Wars sequel trilogy era for the movies and sporadic tie-ins. Now, it appears to be opening up, with Star Wars: Resistance set to overlap with and perhaps go beyond The Force Awakens. Hopefully, more unanswered questions will be addressed as the show continues.
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Star Wars Resistance season 1 continues this Sunday, February 17 with "The Core Problem" at 10pm/9c on Disney XD.