Lorth Needa

Imperial Era

 * "Shields up."
 * ―Captain Needa, after seeing the Millennium Falcon move to attack the Avenger —  Listen (file info) [src]

After the Clone Wars came to an end and the Galactic Empire was proclaimed, Needa served in the Imperial Navy as an officer, serving as a lieutenant commander aboard a Carrack-class light cruiser.

Later, he was in command of the Star Destroyer Avenger in Death Squadron, a task force of the Imperial Navy under the command of the Sith Lord Darth Vader. In the aftermath of the Battle of Yavin, Death Squadron was responsible for tracking down the hidden headquarters of the Rebel Alliance, an insurgent faction at war with the Galactic Empire for control of the galaxy. After discovering a Rebel base on the planet Hoth, Death Squadron launched an assault on the Rebel forces gathered there. During the fighting, which culminated in a resounding victory for the Empire, Needa and the Avenger engaged several Rebel ships in battle as they attempted to flee from the Imperial forces.

Among the Rebel vessels that found itself in Needa's sights was the Millennium Falcon, a freighter owned by Rebel sympathizer Han Solo. Solo, along with his co-pilot Chewbacca and the Rebel leader Princess Leia Organa, had fled from Imperial forces on Hoth. However, with the Falcon 's hyperdrive non-operational, they were unable to make the jump to hyperspace and escape from the Star Destroyers in orbit. Needa and the Avenger closed in on the Falcon, but Solo outmaneuvered his pursuers, causing the Avenger to nearly collide with two other Star Destroyers. Solo and company took refuge in a nearby asteroid field, whereupon the Empire lost track of them for a time. Via hologram, Needa informed Darth Vader that the Falcon had likely been destroyed in the asteroid field, but the Sith Lord suspected otherwise and ordered the search to continue. Needa then contacted Lieutenant Obrax and Theta Squadron, deploying a group of fighters to patrol the area and threatening to execute any pilot who returned from the patrol prematurely. Sure enough, the Falcon had not been destroyed; after the freighter emerged from the asteroid field, the Avenger resumed its pursuit. With Vader informed of this development, Needa prepared to capture the elusive freighter, but Solo abruptly altered course and flew directly toward the Avenger 's bridge; a move Needa interpreted to be an attack run. He ordered the Star Destroyer to raise its shields, but the Falcon merely skimmed the surface of the command tower before disappearing from the warship's sensors. An incredulous Needa could not comprehend how the Falcon could have disappeared, since it was too small to have a functional cloaking device—unbeknownst to the Imperials, Solo had merely attached his freighter to the rear of the Avenger 's bridge tower.

Nevertheless, when Vader demanded an update on the Avenger 's progress, Needa decided to travel to the Super Star Destroyer Executor to personally apologize to the Sith Lord for losing track of his quarry. Needa did just that, whereupon the Sith Lord telekinetically strangled the captain to death as punishment for his failure. Vader mockingly accepted Needa's apology before a pair of Imperial Navy Troopers dragged his lifeless body away. Meanwhile, the TIEs of Theta Squadron that disobeyed Needa's orders and broke off from their patrol to enter the asteroid field returned and avoided discipline from their late commanding officer.

Personality and traits
Standing 1.75 meters tall, Captain Lorth Needa was a ruthless and capable Star Destroyer commander within Darth Vader's fleet. Though he feared the Sith Lord, Needa decided to personally apologize to Vader after failing to capture the Millennium Falcon in the aftermath of the Hoth campaign. Vader "accepted" his apology, but Needa did not live to hear it. Needa had an accent reflective of his upbringing in the Core Worlds. After being assigned a patrol and threatened by Needa, TIE pilot "Howlrunner", who flew as Theta Seven, mocked his accent when complaining to fellow pilot "Shadow."