Ronin

Overview

Ronin is the founder and owner of the Emperor's Hammer. He was also Fleet Commander until January 2005. He is the Princeps of the Emperor's Hammer.

Biography

Stephan Ronin is the adopted son of Lord Krenn Alvaak, of noble Corellian descent. The Alvaak Clan has contributed many fine fighter pilots and command officers to the ranks of the Imperial Navy and has exhibited a strong and loyal military tradition, even during the days of the Old Republic. The family tree of the Alvaak Clan can reportedly be traced back 538 generations. Stephan was originally born the son of a moderately successful Outer Rim merchant family, possibly from Sif, in the Phare System (see the Systems Manual), who's surname has long since been forgotten. Following the conquest of the Corellian home world by the Galactic Empire, his family, while on a mercantile venture planet side, was murdered by Rebel Assassins at the "Treasure Ship Row" Bazaar during a brutal partisan attack on an Imperial guard post. Stephan was only 4 years old at the time and watched his parents and brother gunned down by Rebel blaster fire. Fortunately, Lord Alvaak and his entourage were also witness to this attack and the noble Lord took him home and raised him as his own son. Since that day, he has been legally adopted and privately tutored in Imperial history, the fine arts, combat strategy and tactics, physical sciences (concentrations in environmental studies and planetary geology) and philosophy by some of the finest instructors in the Empire.

Even before his enlistment in the Imperial Navy on his eighteenth birthday, when he officially changed his name from Lord Stephan Alvaak to Stephan Ronin, he had become an accomplished pilot and navigator. His skills at personal combat, tactics, logistics, communications and piloting had already exceeded those of his tutors by the time he entered Imperial Naval service. Ronin's excellent tactical and strategic skills, possibly the result of his forgotten Saraii heritage, impressed even his most skeptical instructors. Although Ronin could have lived a luxurious, care-free life as a noble Lord representing the Alvaak Clan in the Imperial Court on Coruscant, he chose to devote his life to vanquishing the Rebels who had caused him so much anguish in his youth. Thus, he renounced his adopted noble title of Lord in favor of military service in the Imperial Navy. In relinquishing his title, he chose the surname "Ronin" since it signified a disowned warrior without a home clan.

Following four years of advanced combat and command training at the Imperial Academy on Coruscant, Flight Cadet Ronin received his commission and was assigned to the FRG Inamo for TIE fighter pilot training. Following the Battle of Yavin, then loyal Admiral Zaarin was commanding a Strike Force commissioned to destroy the remnants of the Rebel Fleet. Ronin rapidly advanced through the command ranks, combating the Rebel, pirate and treasonous Admiral Harkov's forces in engagements in the Hoth, Sepan, Newland, Mylok, Parmel and Parmic Systems. The successful completion of this tour resulted in Emperor Palpatine personally awarding General Ronin the Medal of Emperor's Will in the Imperial Palace on Coruscant. After the final Mission in the Parmel System, General Ronin was assigned to Admiral Thrawn's Strike Force which was ordered by the Emperor to capture Admiral Zaarin. General Ronin's efforts were instrumental in saving several TIE Defender prototypes which were used to drive off Zaarin's forces. Following destruction of Admiral Zaarin's TIE Defender Manufacturing Platform, General Ronin was awarded the Medal of Horror and Thrawn was Promoted to Grand Admiral, one of only twelve such commands in the Imperial Navy.

After completion of his tenth Battle, General Ronin was promoted to Wing Commander of the Emperor's Hammer Strike Wing stationed on board the ISD Avenger. With Grand Admiral Thrawn's departure to the Unknown Regions in search of a large Rebel Fleet, Emperor Palpatine soon promoted Ronin to the coveted rank of Grand Admiral to fulfill Thrawn's duties as the 12th Grand Admiral in the Inner Core. The ISD Avenger was transferred to Lord Vader's personal Strike Force consisting of the SSD Executor, ISD Devastator, ISD Avenger, several VSDs and three Interdictor Cruisers. Grand Admiral Ronin quickly mobilized the Emperor's Hammer Strike Fleet with the SSD Avenger (christened after the famed original ISD Avenger) as his personal flagship. Following the defeat of Emperor Palpatine and Dark Lord Vader at the Battle of Endor, the Emperor's Hammer has become a symbol of continuing Imperial supremacy in the chaos that currently engulfs the Galactic Empire. Imperial Pilots, soldiers and Citizens from all over the Galaxy are seeking admittance to the Emperor's Hammer Strike Fleet. With Grand Admiral Ronin as its Fleet Commander and the newly constructed 15 km long, axial superlaser-equipped SSSD Sovereign as its Flagship, the Emperor's Hammer Strike Fleet will seek to restore the Empire to its full, former greater glory.

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Preceded by Position Created	Wing Commander NL1-NL21	Succeeded by Replaced with Fleet Commander
Preceded by Position Created	Fleet Commander NL22-2005	Succeeded by Astatine
Preceded by N/A	Director of Operations Sep 2005-2011	Succeeded by None
Preceded by None	Princeps 2005-Present	Succeeded by None