Star Wars: The Time JJ Abrams Invented A Fighter For The Dumbest Battle Ever – The TIE Dagger Breakdown
A TIE fighter so inconsequential you might not have noticed it. We break down the TIE/dg Starfighter, aka “TIE Dagger.”
The TIE/dg starfighter is a curious ship. It is at the end of a long line of starfighter evolutions hailing from Sienar Fleet Systems’ original Twin Ion Engine design. Though the TIE/dg, or TIE Dagger, is it is sometimes known, was intended to usher in a whole new generation of starfighters, the TIE Dagger actually played a relatively small role on the galactic stage.
Blink and you’d miss it–this is the tale of the TIE/dg.
TIE Dagger Design
In the aftermath of the Galactic Civil War and the fall of the Empire, Sienar Fleet Systems underwent a crisis. Emerging from it as Sienar-Jaemus Fleet Systems, and dedicated entirely to various Imperial Remnants, this company continued to do what it did best.
And that, friends, is designing Imperial starships and starfighters. Yes, despite the fact that the Galactic Empire was no more, their designs and ingenuity lived on. Not just in the First Order, who were obsessed with recreating the aesthetic, if not the principles, of the Empire, but in the many tendrils that made up the Imperial power base.
Including the Sith cults that made up the Sith Eternal. Their influence brought about the creation of the TIE Dagger. With directives to transform the traditional TIE/ln into a vessel worthy of the Sith–which is why the TIE Dagger is also sometimes called the Sith starfighter, SJFS overhauled the design making it sleeker and more maneuverable.
In theory it was meant to be the fastest version of TIE craft–but so inconsequential was it, and so absolute was the destruction of the Sith Eternal, that no records of its actual flight capabilities remain.
TIE Dagger Combat Capabilities
What we do know is that the TIE Daggercarried four laser cannons. Two ball-mounted lasers sat just beneath the cockpit. While two SJFS L-7.0 heavy laser cannons were mounted between the ship’s solar collector wing and suspended winglet.
What function the suspended winglet was intended for remains a mystery. However, these triangular wings and increased firepower made it deadly.
But the engineers rebelled against the old SFS designs. The traditional two-handle yoke was replaced with two independent control columns. This reportedly offered pilots a greater degree of movement. While force feedback on the columns allowed for a greater sense of connection between fighter and pilot.
Downfall at Exegol
But the potential of the TIE Dagger was never realized. Perhaps the most dramatic appearance they made during the war between the Resistance and First Order, was a battle between Y-wing pilot Aftab Ackbar and two Sith starfighters. They were one of three ship classes present in the Battle of Exegol, but, like the rest of the Sith Eternal forces, they were wiped out at Exegol when Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca showed up to save the day.
So ends the tale of the TIE/dg.
May the Force be with you
