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00:00 Alongside lightsabers and the Millennium Falcon, one of the most iconic aspects of Star Wars
00:05 is its constant use of superweapons.
00:08 These weapons and their destructive capabilities have been, and always will be, a mainstay
00:13 across the space opera, with new writers at the films, shows, comics and games seemingly
00:18 always finding a way to either utilise a pre-existing superweapon from Star Wars Legends or canon,
00:25 or invent a completely new terror machine for the heroes to inevitably blow up.
00:31 So with that in mind, I'm Josh from WhatCulture.com, and these are the 10 Deadliest Superweapons
00:36 in Star Wars.
00:37 10.
00:38 World Devastator
00:40 The World Devastators, or World Smashers, were created by the Dark Empire in the Star
00:45 Wars Expanded Universe, and were one of the most useful superweapons used by the Imperials.
00:51 The large machines were equipped with strong attractor beams on their lower halves, meaning
00:56 they were able to tear the surface beneath them, causing complete and utter chaos.
01:01 Unlike Death Stars for instance, these World Devastators were not merely planet-killing
01:06 machines.
01:07 No, no, no, these superweapons could be used to ruin a planet's surface, stomping out
01:12 rebellious defence while harvesting the resources of the planet that it was actually wreaking
01:17 havoc upon.
01:18 These resources would then later be used to both power the machines' foundries, which
01:22 produced warships and weaponry, as well as fuelling itself, making the World Devastators
01:28 very sophisticated yet terrifying machines.
01:31 The World Devastators were first seen in Star Wars Dark Empire back in 1992, where they
01:37 began to devastate the New Republic's temporary homeworld, Mon Calamari.
01:42 It was only through R2-D2 creating a virus which would then be fed to the machines, that
01:46 Luke Skywalker was able to destroy the World Devastators and free the planet from the Imperial
01:51 destruction.
01:52 9.
01:53 The Inhibitor Chip
01:54 When Revenge of the Sith released in 2005, there was virtually no explanation as to why
01:59 the clone troopers turned against the Jedi that they had been fighting with for years,
02:05 and just execute them with no remorse.
02:07 For a long time, the explanation of this betrayal remained a contentious topic, with writers
02:12 choosing to opt for the idea that the clones were loyal to the Chancellor and the Republic
02:16 first and foremost, and so any order coming from Palpatine was to be immediately followed
02:22 without hesitation.
02:23 However, with the sixth season of The Clone Wars, this idea had changed.
02:28 See the show introduced the Inhibitor Chip as the cause of the clones' turn.
02:33 While strictly not a megastructure, inhibitor chips were placed in every clone during their
02:38 creation and were then used to control the soldiers' every action.
02:42 Therefore, because of the chip, Palpatine was able to strip the clones of their free
02:46 will and force them to kill their friends and generals through Order 66.
02:52 The chip was also used for other evil orders as well, namely Order 37, as this order forced
02:57 troops to round up nearby civilians and murder all of the innocents if a Jedi did not show
03:03 themselves.
03:04 8.
03:05 Malevolence
03:06 Back in the first season of Star Wars The Clone Wars, the Malevolence was a separatist
03:10 heavy cruiser and flagship of General Grievous, which had a pair of massive ion cannons on
03:16 its hull and the ship's port.
03:18 When fired, the blast disrupted any starship it came into contact with, and these ships
03:23 had all of their energies, weaponry and defence measures disabled, meaning they were completely
03:28 vulnerable and were usually destroyed in a matter of moments by the Malevolence's many
03:33 laser cannons.
03:34 Now, not only was the warship equipped with its dangerous ion and laser cannons, but the
03:39 Malevolence also carried an abundance of Vulture Droids, Rocket Battle Droids and a plethora
03:44 of B1s, B2s and Droidekas on board, making an invasion of the ship a Herculean task.
03:51 Still, what The Clone Wars proved is that no matter how dangerous a weapon might be,
03:55 a well-placed bit of Jedi ingenuity could overcome and stop it, as was proven when Obi-Wan
04:01 Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker crashed the ship into a nearby moon.
04:05 7.
04:07 Mass Shadow Generator
04:08 The Mass Shadow Generator was a horrifyingly destructive superweapon created by the Jedi
04:14 Knight Revan, that was able to pull local natural shadows created by celestial bodies,
04:20 with it then unleashing a deadly blast, annihilating anything on and above the planet it was stationed
04:26 at.
04:27 Revan's plan to attempt to end the Mandalorian Wars once and for all, Revan allued a massive
04:31 Mandalorian fleet to Malachor V, where the generator would then be activated, which drew
04:36 many ships into a gravity vortex and crushed them, as well as fracturing the planet itself.
04:42 Because of the Mass Shadow Generator, Malachor V became a broken graveyard of both Republic
04:47 and Mandalorian warships, with nearly all life on the surface being completely annihilated.
04:53 6.
04:54 The Death Star
04:55 The first and of course most recognisable superweapon in Star Wars is the Death Star.
05:01 Appearing in A New Hope, the Death Star could produce a powerful blast which could range
05:05 from destroying a city to an entire planet.
05:08 And considering the Death Star was a complete and fully operational battle system, one of
05:13 the biggest dangers the superweapon posed to the galaxy other than its laser blasts
05:17 was its manoeuvrability.
05:19 See, the Death Star was fully equipped with a hyperdrive, meaning it could travel to virtually
05:24 anywhere in the Star Wars universe.
05:26 Therefore, if the Empire deemed a planet to be a threat, the station could get from one
05:31 side of the galaxy to the other and completely obliterate the planet, as was seen with the
05:35 Rebel sympathising Alderaan.
05:38 The Death Star's only weakness was an intentional flaw created by the rebellious Galen Erso,
05:43 but even that didn't stop it from coming back in Return of the Jedi, but more on that
05:47 in a bit.
05:48 5.
05:49 Sun Crusher
05:50 Residing in Star Wars Legends, the Sun Crusher was created by the Empire and would fire energy
05:56 resonance torpedoes which burrowed into stars, collapsing their core and ultimately causing
06:02 a supernova, which would obliterate an entire star system.
06:06 As well as this devastating weapon, the machine was also equipped with a hyperdrive, making
06:10 it even more dangerous than it initially seemed, for reasons I just explained in the Death
06:15 Star entry.
06:16 Worse still, the Star Crusher was coated in a powerful material, Quantum Crystalline
06:21 Armor, which was so strong that all fire from starships would just bounce off it, making
06:26 the crusher nearly invincible.
06:29 And in the Star Wars Legends continuity, the Sun Crusher was used to destroy the Cauldron
06:33 Nebula and was only stopped when it was sucked into a black hole.
06:37 And you know something's pretty hard when it's only weakness is a literal black hole.
06:44 Although the Sun Crusher is not part of canon, its capabilities make it a complete nightmare
06:48 for the galaxy, with its power being nearly unbelievable.
06:51 4.
06:53 The Death Star 2
06:54 Being much bigger and more destructive than the first, the second Death Star was a fun,
06:59 albeit kinda lazy addition to Return of the Jedi.
07:02 As well as the laser dish, the battle station was equipped with tens of thousands of heavy
07:07 turbo laser and super blaster cannons, making it a nearly invincible and impenetrable fortress.
07:13 And whilst the weapon was never used to eradicate a planet, it was used several times to destroy
07:18 a few Mon Calamari starcruisers with ease.
07:21 So not only was the Death Star 2 a planet destroyer, but it was also a fleet killer.
07:27 Still much like its predecessor, the second Death Star had a few major weaknesses.
07:32 By Return of the Jedi, the battle station itself was still under construction, despite
07:36 it being fully armed and operational.
07:39 This meant that the weapon had to be tethered to the forest moon of Endor, where a shield
07:43 generator provided defence for the Death Star whilst it was being completed.
07:47 And as the film shows, when that reactor was destroyed, the entire weapon collapsed.
07:52 3.
07:53 The Final Order Star Destroyers
07:56 One of the many failings of the Rise of Skywalker was its insistence to cram in yet another
08:01 superweapon amongst its overbearing original trilogy pandering.
08:06 Even so, the Final Order's Star Destroyers were very powerful indeed, with them being
08:10 nearly as dangerous as Starkiller Base itself.
08:13 See, the Star Destroyers had all of the abilities of the Death Stars, that being planet-killing
08:19 laser fire, but the Phantom Emperor had hundreds of them, making them the most hazardous superweapon
08:25 in terms of mobility.
08:26 If you wanted to, Palpatine could destroy hundreds of planets in one go with the Star
08:30 Destroyers, making them exceptionally dangerous.
08:34 Even so, the Star Destroyers suffered heavily from lacking many defensive measures.
08:39 As the Rise of Skywalker shows, the large cannons attached to the bottom of the ships
08:43 were very delicate and susceptible to attacks of any kind.
08:47 So a few torpedoes would start a chain reaction of explosions, ultimately resulting in the
08:52 ship's destruction.
08:54 2.
08:55 Starkiller Base
08:56 One of the biggest focuses of the Force Awakens' plot was Starkiller Base.
09:01 Although it was only used once on screen, the base was able to produce a planet-killing
09:06 laser by channeling the strength of its local star.
09:09 The laser itself had the capability to split once it had been fired as well, meaning that
09:13 it could actually hit and destroy more than one target with a single blast.
09:18 This was of course seen during the events of the film, where the First Order used the
09:22 weapon to destroy Hosnian Prime amongst other Republic planets, which essentially gave Snoke
09:27 clearance to reinstate a form of Imperial rule, since every major planet that had governed
09:33 the galaxy no longer existed.
09:35 Because of this, the Starkiller Base is more dangerous than both Death Stars combined,
09:39 simply because it could destroy multiple planets at once.
09:43 1.
09:44 Star Forge
09:45 Included in the 2003 classic Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic, the Star Forge is quite
09:51 possibly the most dangerous superweapon in Star Wars history, hence it getting the number
09:56 one spot.
09:57 Developed by the Rakata, the Forge fed off the dark side itself, and was capable of utilising
10:02 nearby components to mass-produce starships and weapons at an exceptionally fast rate,
10:08 much like the World Devastators.
10:11 Put in the wrong hands then and someone would have enough resources to take over the entire
10:15 galaxy.
10:17 And this nearly happened after Darth Malak gained control of the Forge and began an operation
10:22 to crush the Republic and take over the Star Wars universe.
10:26 It was only due to a redeemed Bastilla Shan that the Star Forge was able to fail.
10:31 Although certainly not the flashiest superweapon on this list, the potential of the Star Forge
10:36 makes it the deadliest and scariest superweapon in the franchise.
10:40 With enough demented determination, a Sith Lord could choose to either conquer the galaxy
10:45 or wreak total havoc on it with the Forge, without any hope of stopping them once they
10:50 got going.
10:51 So, that's our list.
10:52 I want to know what you guys think down in the comments below.
10:54 What do you think of these Star Wars superweapons and are there any incredibly powerful ones
10:59 I missed off here?
11:00 Let me know and while you're down there could you please give us a like, share, subscribe
11:02 and head over to Warculture Star Wars for more lists like this on the regular.
11:07 Even if you don't though, I've been Josh, thanks so much for watching and I'll see you