How did Vader get command of the Imperial fleet? In A New Hope, Vader was basically the Emperor’s attack dog, and existed outside of the Imperial military. But in The Empire Strikes Back, he leads the entire starfleet. How did that happen? As the sole survivors of the Battle of Yavin, Emperor Palpatine place much of the blame for the loss of the Death Star on his apprentice. He also challenged Vader with several rivals that could potentially take his place. For the following months, the Sith Lord removed his enemies one by one until none were left standing. He also worked with the rogue archaeologist Doctor Aphra to create a personal droid army that could use to overthrow the Emperor. Although that plan fell apart, Palpatine was pleased to see his apprentice following in the footsteps of the Sith of old. Reaffirmed of Vader’s dedication to the dark side, Sidious gave command of the Imperial fleet to him.
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