Hyena-class Droid Fighter/Bomber

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Hyena-class Droid Fighter/Bomber

Production information

Manufacturer

Baktoid Armor Workshop^[1]

Model

Hyena-class Droid Fighter/Bomber^[2]

Type

Cost

120,000 credits^[1]

Technical specifications

Length

12.48 meters (in flight)^[3]

Height/depth

3.1 meters (in flight)^[3]

Maximum atmospheric speed

1,150 kph^[4]

Engine unit(s)

Equipped^[5]

Hull

Sturdy hull^[3]

Sensor systems

2 photoreceptors^[3]

Armament

4 Quad light laser cannons^[1]
Concussion missile launchers (6 concussion missiles)^[1]
Proton torpedo launchers (6 proton torpedoes)^[1]
Proton bomb chute (4 proton bombs)^[1]

Crew

Integrated droid brain^[1]

Consumables

48 hours^[1]

Usage

Role(s)

Bombing raids^[6]
Fortification/capital ship bombardment^[7]

Affiliation

Confederacy of Independent Systems^[3]
- Confederacy of Independent Systems Navy^[3]

"We need to add some pressure on those who are sent to rescue our enemies on Christophsis. Send the Hyena bombers to hit Senator Organa on the surface."

―Admiral Trench^[8]

Hyena-class Droid Fighter/Bombers, also known as Hyena-class Droid Bombers, Hyena-class bombers, Hyena droid bombers, or Hyena bombers, were droid starfighters manufactured by Baktoid Armor Workshop. They were designed for heavy ordnance bombing runs. Based on vulture droid designs, Hyena bombers had wider and sturdier hulls with huge wings to gain stability during flight. Like vulture droids, it could transform its shape into walking mode.^[3] These were used by the Confederacy of Independent Systems, against the Republic forces during the Clone Wars.^[9]

Hyena bombers were heavily used in multiple battles during the Clone Wars, conducting bombing raids on enemy fortifications or taking out vehicles.

Description[]

Hyena bomber prep on Ryloth — *Hyena* bombers in walker mode

The Hyena-class Droid Fighter/Bomber was a model of droid starfighter that was the technical successor to the smaller, less sturdy, and more lightly armored Variable Geometry Self-Propelled Battle Droid, Mark I, also known as vulture droids. Like its predecessor, it was designed to be cheaper and easier to construct than equivalent starships driven by organic pilots, also making it more disposable. The space that would usually be taken up by a pilot was instead used to carry a hefty armament of ordnance, including light laser cannons, proton torpedos, concussion missiles, and proton bombs.^[6]

One of the Hyena-class bomber's greatest strengths was its versatility. The bomber was slower and less maneuverable than a vulture droid, but was still light enough to perform the role of a starfighter rather than a bomber if required, working alongside vulture droids and making good use of its laser cannons. The bomber's droid brain, located in the bump next to the droids head, was made versatile enough to handle this switching of roles, and could use its own initiative in battle or follow precise orders blindly, even including suicide runs. The integrated droid brain also allowed the bombers to execute physically demanding maneuvers that biological pilots would not be able to withstand, making it a tough opponent for biological pilots not at the top of their game.^[6]

Hyena-class bombers were able to fly in both deep space and atmosphere, but were also capable of entering "walker mode" like their predecessors. In walker mode, the bomber's wings would split to fold beneath the body and become legs, allowing it to walk in an upright configuration. While walking, the bombers towered intimidatingly over most ground troops and gave Separatist tacticians yet another deployment option for the versatile craft.^[6]

History[]

Proof of concept[]

Baktoid Prototype SWZ — Baktoid technicians work on a *Hyena*-class bomber prototype

The Hyena-class Droid Bomber was designed and constructed in initially limited numbers by Baktoid Armor Workshop for use by the Confederacy of Independent Systems during the Clone Wars. The bombers quickly proved their worth at the Battle of Christophsis, where Separatist Admiral Trench used Hyena-class vessels to run repeated and deadly bombing raids on Republic-controlled areas of the planet Christophsis. The battle allowed the speed and efficiency with which the bombers could strike and return to base to be fully demonstrated, and it was not long before the Hyena-class started to show up in Separatist flight wings across the galaxy.^[6]

HyenaClassDroidBomberSquadron-SWM37 — A squadron of *Hyena*-class bombers during the Clone Wars

As Hyena-class bomber became a serious player in the increasingly deadly aerial arena of the war, the addition of the light bomber to compliment and fly alongside the other droid starfighters of the Confederacy navy added a new dimension for the Galactic Republic's strategists to deal with. Throughout the war the Hyena-class' ordnance proved devastating to Republic forces on a number of occasions, and their versatility and efficiency when used alongside vulture droids gave the Separatists the upper hand in a number of key battles.^[6]

This led to Republic commanders making their destruction a top priority and targeting the bombers from the outset of any battle in order to reduce the havoc they could wreak on vulnerable ground targets or strongholds. This singling out of the vessels was seen as a nod to the proficiency of Baktoid Armor Workshop and the ships they produced, being as near to a compliment as any military leader could pay an enemy.^[6]

Priority target[]

BombardmentDrone-SWZ — Bombardment carried out by *Hyena*-class drones

The model was still relatively rare compared to the innumerable hordes of vulture droids deployed by the Separatists, but the bombers were highly desirable to the Confederacy's commanders and so saw action across many of the battlefields of the Clone Wars. Separatist leader Wat Tambor made use of Hyena-class bombers during the Battle of Ryloth, using the droids to target populated villages on the planet as part of a campaign of cruel shock tactics.^[6]

At the Battle of Sullust, the T-series tactical droid TJ-912 had a Hyena-class bomber carry out a suicide run on the hangar of a Republic starship in order to kill the personnel inside, although the attempt was ultimately thwarted. At the Battle of Malastare, Hyena-bombers proved that even upon failing in their objective the bombers could cause large amounts of damage to the enemy when RX-200 Falchion-class assault tanks targeted a Hyena-class squadron and disabled their primary weapons, forcing them to abandon their compromised primary aerial assault strategy and instead launch kamikaze runs on the Republic's armored columns. While this did prove successful, the tactic was nonetheless frowned upon.^[6]