The Steps and Effort Involved in Constructing the Death Star

In the supervillainous saga of Star Wars, the Death Star is the epitome of malevolent might, a stain upon the galaxy's cosmic tapestry. Its creation story, however, is as tangled as strategic webs spun by scheming Spider-Men. This story delves into the insidious machinations behind the construction of the ultimate planet-crushing weapon.

Beyond its omnipresent folklore - the daring Rebel Alliance's valiant stand against the Death Star - lies a far more complex tale of its origination. The Death Star wasn't the sole evil Empire's exclusive project, but a grotesque manifestation of a larger, sinister rot festering in the galaxy. Born from devious Geonosian blueprints, sanctioned by a troop of Republic military officials, and crucially orchestrated by the hands of those very officials turned Death Star architects, this galactic menace represented a rot that transcended singular, malignant forces.

In a galaxy shrouded by the escalating cycle of interstellar conflict, power struggles, and atrocities, the creation of such a colossal superweapon - one capable of vaporizing entire worlds instantaneously - was, tragically, the inevitable outcome. The Death Star was never destined to be singular; it was merely a question of which power-hungry faction would achieve it first.

The Blueprints

While the fantasies of planet-scale superweapons old as the galaxy itself, the blueprints for the conflict station that would eventually become the inaugural Death Star were crafted by the cunning minds of the Geonosian populace. Led by their weaponsmiths and the Geonosian Archduke, Poggle the Lesser, these schematics were showcased to Count Dooku during the initial stages of the Clone Wars, later ending up in the safekeeping of Dooku's Sith Master, the disguised Chancellor Palpatine.

Palpatine concealed these weapon designs for nearly a year, only revealing them to a panel of Republic advisors after the second Battle of Geonosis, claiming they had emerged shortly after that battle and represented proof of the Separatists' pursuit of their own planet-killer. With this elaborate ruse, Palpatine successfully maneuvered the Republic into using the designs to build their first Death Star.

Republic Construction...

The death star's mammoth construction process began in secret, ostracizing the Jedi Order from any decision-making regarding funds and logistics. The Republic amassed support from senators, representatives of shipyard worlds such as Corellia and Kuat, and high-ranking military personnel, preparing to erect the military behemoth in the orbit of the former Separatist stronghold, Geonosis.

Initial funding, fueled by the Senate's enduring support of the war effort, propelled early construction to commence hastily. Asteroids surrounding Geonosis were swiftly mined for raw materials, with droid factories repurposed after the conflict tasked with refining these materials for the initial phases of construction. Ship flotillas carried materials across the Geonosian system, while early phases of construction were primarily carried out by automated machinery. Within barely a year, the battle station's basic superstructure was constructed, progressing to the creation of an equatorial band and subsequent support bands to lay the groundwork for the station's hull.

That subsequent phase, however, unveiled a grim reality: to expedite construction and stay ahead of the Separatists, sentient labor was urgently required. Initial plans to borrow the services of the Kaminoans for a cloned workforce fell through; however, the resourceful Lieutenant Commander Orson Krennic negotiated a deal with Poggle the Lesser, the detained Archduke. In exchange for safety and Republic cooperation, Lesser agreed to task his Geonosian people with constructing the station.

Tens of thousands of Geonosian drones worked tirelessly to rapidly advance the following phases of manufacturing, with Krennic overseeing the installation of the station's large dish on its northern hemisphere, which would eventually house the weapon that was still under development. But the Geonosian labor force's productivity had a short lifespan; Geonosian mistreatment and delays led to widespread resentment among the working castes, culminating in large-scale riots in 19 BBY, which destroyed months of work and provided an opportunity for Lesser to escape the Republic and return to the Separatist ranks.

Lesser's return to the Separatists was short-lived; the Clone Wars were rapidly drawing to an end, and the remnant of the Separatist hierarchy - including Poggle - would be assassinated by Palpatine's agents, setting the stage for the birth of the utter terror that was the Galactic Empire. Although the Separatist planet-killer never came to fruition during the Clone Wars, the Empire wasn't about to squander the Republic's labor of love.

...And Imperial Expansion

Almost immediately after the proclamation of the New Order, the battle station was baptized with its dreadful name: Death Star. The veil of secrecy surrounding the project remained tight as ever, even while construction was formally handed over to the Imperial Navy, spearheaded by Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin and Lieutenant Commander Orson Krennic.

With the hull and interior work on the Death Star well underway, focus turned to developing the machine's eventual superweapon. Krennic headed up Project Celestial Power, presenting it as an Imperial scientific thinktank designed to leverage the energy-conducting capacity of kyber crystals to aid worlds still reeling from the catastrophic damages of the Clone Wars. With the enticing promise of creating efficient, environmentally-friendly power systems for the suffering galaxy, Krennic recruited top scientific minds - including the notorious pacifist kyber researcher Galen Erso - to aid in the Death Star's superlaser development.

Tarkin and Krennic's rivalry, however, created constant friction within the nascent Empire. Tarkin kept a distance from the Death Star project, trying to take credit for its ultimate completion, while Krennic maneuvered behind the scenes, seeking to discredit Tarkin by causing distractions and delays.

Yet it was Krennic who would suffer for one of the Death Star's first significant setbacks: although Galen Erso's research had enabled tremendous advancements in the development of the battle station's superlaser, the scientist eventually realized that his kyber research - now being primarily funded by the mining and acquisition of kyber crystals from fallen Jedi and various worlds - was being repurposed for deadly military endeavors, escalating after the disastrous first test-firing of the superlaser on the planet Malpaz. The explosion devastated the planet's capital city and surrounding areas, killing thousands. Despite subsequent tests refining the superlaser's safety, the revelation of Krennic's true intentions for Galen's research would lead to the scientist's arrest and forced continued cooperation on the Death Star project.

As the dreaded Death Star neared completion, its history was as crooked as its long construction period. Threats of betrayal, insurgent activities, and countless bureaucratic hurdles colored the Death Star's construction process. However, as the Empire continued to tighten its control over the galaxy and its resources, the world trembled in anticipation of the ultimate weapon's arrival. And yet, the Rebel Alliance, long in the shadows, prepared to strike back.

The blueprints for the Death Star, a project originating from the schematics crafted by the Geonosian populace, were initially shown to Count Dooku during the Clone Wars and later concealed by Chancellor Palpatine.
The Republic, under Palpatine's manipulation, used these designs to build their first Death Star, with senators, representatives, and military personnel providing support for its construction in the orbit of Geonosis.
Asteroids surrounding Geonosis were mined for raw materials, and initial construction commenced rapidly, utilizing automated machinery and repurposed droid factories. However, sentient labor was soon required, leading to the use of Geonosian drones for constructing subsequent phases.
The creation of the Death Star coincided with the escalating cycle of interstellar conflict, power struggles, and atrocities, exemplifying the dark side of galactic entertainment and science.
After the proclamation of the New Order, the Death Star was officially handed over to the Imperial Navy for completion, becoming an integral part of Disney's space-and-astronomy streaming content, blending elements of science, entertainment, and sports.