For 49 years, Star Wars has had some of the coolest ships in science-fiction – but not all of them have made it to the movies. What makes Star Wars remarkable, though, is that there are so many different types of ships; single-person starfighters like the X-wings coexist with massive Imperial Star Destroyers, every vessel with its own unique capabilities. Luke Skywalker proved how dangerous even a single X-wing can be when he destroyed the Death Star.
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And yet, as cool as X-wings and the Millennium Falcon may be, some of the best Star Wars spaceships have never appeared in the movies. One of the most notable is the Ghost, the ship used by the heroes of Star Wars Rebels, but that actually appears in a fantastic Easter egg in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Discounting the Ghost, then, here are the five coolest ships that have never appeared in the movies.
7. The Interdictor Class Star Destroyer
First up, we have the Interdictor class Star Destroyer. Hailing from the old Star Wars Expanded Universe, the Interdictor made its way into canon in Star Wars Rebels as an experimental vessel that could have saved the Empire if it had been mass-produced. Fortunately, in canon at least, this terrifying ship never really developed beyond prototype stage; had Darth Vader used an Interdictor during the Battle of Hoth, the rebels would never have escaped.
In Star Wars, ships travel faster than light by accessing another dimensional plane called hyperspace. This intersects with conventional space through gravity, meaning you have to plot routes to avoid the gravity shadows created by black holes, stars, and even planets; otherwise, you’ll be pulled out of hyperspace. An Interdictor is a unique Star Destroyer capable of generating a mass shadow, making hyperspace impossible to navigate around it. Ships are pulled out of hyperspace, and unable to return. Smart military leaders would position an Interdictor at the rear of a fleet, so it was highly defended, and prevent their enemies escaping.
6. The Gladiator Class Star Destroyer
Next, we have the Gladiator class Star Destroyer. Introduced all the way back in 1985, in George Lucas’ Star Wars: Droids TV show, this went unnamed until 2008 when it appeared in The Force Unleashed. Created during the Clone Wars, mass production of the Gladiator had barely begun before the rise of the Empire. Palpatine’s strategists preferred larger Star Destroyers, which wouldn’t require a defensive fleet, so the Gladiator class was repurposed; it became a fairly common patrol vessel, carrying troops and firepower.
The Gladiator has made its way into canon, where it’s gradually taken on an even more dangerous form. The modern Gladiator has evolved into an independent, self-sustaining patrol vessel with a thousand-man crew. It’s capable of pacifying an entire sector of space for up to two years without needing supplies. No doubt Gladiators explain why the Imperial Remnant was able to survive so long after the Emperor’s death.
5. The Bes’uliik Starfighter
In the old Expanded Universe, Mandalore became a force to be reckoned with after the Yuuzhan Vong war. The Bes’uliik was a cutting-edge Mandalorian starfighter; early prototypes were flown by a single pilot, but they were designed for crews of two or three. Plated in Mandalorian beskar, the Bes’uliik was designed to be incredibly versatile, functioning as everything from an attack bomber to a long-range “hunter killer.”
We don’t know much about the Bes’uliik, even in Legends. Boba Fett led a squadron of four in battle at one point, finding them deeply impressive, because just four Bes’uliik were able to bomb factories on Murkhana despite being attacked by an entire fleet. Luke Skywalker himself took to flying a Bes’uliik during one battle, confirming just how dangerous these ships really are.
4. The Errant Venture
When it comes to Star Destroyers, the Errant Venture is the coolest one ever made. Created in Michael Stackpole and Aaron Allston’s X-Wing books, the Errant Venture is something quite unique: a Star Destroyer converted into a mobile gambling den, spray-painted bright red to distinguish it from anything Imperial. It’s easily one of the most delightful additions to Star Wars lore – and, surprisingly, the Errant Venture has even been mentioned in canon. Adam Christopher’s Shadow of the Sith name-drops the Errant Venture as one of the galaxy’s best gambling halls.
3. Dash Rendar’s Outrider
Now let’s move to Dash Rendar’s Outrider, introduced in the Shadows of the Empire transmedia event back in the ’90s. A heavily-modified YT-2400, the Outrider was deliberately designed to evoke memories of the Millennium Falcon, although Dash insisted his ship was better. Like most smugglers’ vessels, the Outrider has been tinkered with to make it faster than is strictly legal, and it has formidable firepower too. Like the Errant Venture, the Outrider has gradually made its way into canon – as has Dash Rendar himself, although he’s only been name-dropped.
2. The Jedi Vector
Introduced in Charles Soule’s Light of the Jedi, the Vector is a unique starfighter used by the Jedi of the High Republic Era. It’s designed only to be flown by Force-sensitives, with reduced safety features so only a Jedi can really take advantage of the Vector’s maneuverability. The Vector is unlike any other vessel, in that weapons can only fire when a lightsaber is used as a “key.” There’s a philosophical reason behind this; it means using weapons requires intentionality, encouraging a Jedi pilot to consider whether there is an alternative. A Jedi Vector was (all too briefly) seen in live-action in The Acolyte.
1. Luthen Rael’s Fondor
Only one ship could ever take first place on this list, though: Luthen Rael’s Fondor Haulcraft, introduced in Andor. A master-spy, Luthen converted the Fondor into something quite unique; it contains countermeasures to be used against tractor beams, as well as laser emitters that could be used almost like a lightsaber. Fondor Haulcraft are typically used for cargo transport, and they don’t tend to be used by smugglers, meaning the ship usually went under the radar. The Haulcraft was sadly eventually seized by the ISB after Luthen’s arrest.
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