STAR WARS EPISODE IV A NEW HOPE Ryder Windham Based on the story and screenplay by George Lucas Disney LUCASFILM PRESS
PROLOGUE A long time ago in a galaxy far far away The Clone Wars were over leaving entire civilizations in ruin The Jedi Knights were all but extinct And the Old Republic the dem o cratic galactic government that had prevailed for almost 25,000 years had been replaced by the Galactic Empire Yet the Empire’s supreme ruler the evil Emperor Palpatine remained hungry for even more power To expand his rule and crush all remnants of the Old Republic Republic Palpatine had approved the construction of a secret weapon the Death Star an immense armored space station that could destroy an entire planet The Empire was not without opposition The Alliance Alliance to Restore the Republic commonly known as the Rebel Alliance led the fight to overturn the Empire Empire and bring justice and freedom back to the galaxy After Rebel spies learned of the Death Star proj ect they managed to intercept an Imperial transmission of
