For many years, the Alt-Universe time travel division of the United Nations has colluded with the nefarious Star Trek splinter group the “Federation for One SciFi Reality” to stamped TOP SECRET on the most technical and exacting specifications for various Star Wars spaceships. Certainly, there have been reveals and leaks from time to time— that was inevitable given the enthusiasm of the fan base— but nothing definitive. For those of us who have built rudimentary Star Wars vehicles using 3-D printers and whatnot, it’s been frustrating. My last attempt at creating an SUV-sized Death Star came out looking more like a huge lump of coal, and there were some absurd complications involving the authorities.
But now, Ryder Windham, Chris Reiff, and Chris Trevas have blown the lid off of the U.N.’s unnecessary secrecy. Their Star Wars: Millennium Falcon Owner’s Workshop Manual provides everything you need to build and repair a Modified YT-1300 Corellian Freighter. The Millennium Falcon is, of course, a legendary spaceship, made famous by its adventures under the command of smugglers Han Solo and Chewbacca, whose special modifications transformed their beat-up Corellian light freighter into one of the fastest ships in the galaxy.
It’s true that you may have to save up for awhile to actually afford to create one of these durable and tough freighters. However, if like most of us you have already hidden one in a gully somewhere and all you need is the technical knowledge to activate the hyperdrive or figure out the relationship of the reactor core to the thermal regulator, now you’re set. A flurry of diagrams and full-color photos makes everything simple and crystal-clear. Still shots from documentarian George Lucas’s dramatic big-screen Star Wars re-creations provide further historical context. (Admittedly, information about the bathroom situation is sketchy.)
Still, the biggest barrier to use of spacecraft is knowledge of how to pilot them, and here the owner’s manual proves extremely valuable. From a review of cockpit controls to navigation and the in’s and out’s of hyperspace travel, Windham, Reiff, and Trevas have provided everything you’ll need. An entire section on “Weapons & Defensive Systems,” meanwhile, will help you evade the U.N.’s One-Reality Shield and the Star Trek Federation ships waiting just outside of Earth Prime’s atmosphere long enough to escape into hyperspace and begin your adventures amid the stars. May the Force…well, you know the rest.