Dilgar War - The Tide Turns: The Earth Alliance Intervenes

The Tide Turns: The Earth Alliance Intervenes

When the Dilgar War began, the Earth Alliance had only recently emerged as an interstellar power, having acquired Jumpgate technology from the Centauri. In 2230, Earth decided to intervene in the Dilgar War on the side of the League. At first the Earth Alliance was motivated only by a desire to establish a reputation for themselves as a major player in galactic affairs. However, as human soldiers and fighter pilots witnessed first-hand the atrocities committed by the Dilgar on civilian populations, the Earth Alliance came to see the Dilgar Empire as an immoral, evil force not unlike the Nazis of Earth's twentieth century. Thus, the war effort on Earth took on a clear rationale of defeating a despicable enemy with a fierce enthuasism in an arguably just war.

In revenge for Earth's interference in the war, the Dilgar sent an assault force against the Earth Alliance's Orion Colonies. The Dilgar fleet included more than 180 warships; their plan was to reduce the Orion colonies to ashes and convince humanity to stay out of the war. Unfortunately for the Dilgar, they were unaware that their communications had been intercepted and descrambled by EarthForce intelligence. When the Dilgar attack fleet emerged from hyperspace, instead of facing a small colonial garrison, they faced more than 600 Earth warships and thousands of Starfury fighters. Against such overwhelming numbers the Dilgar were forced to make a hasty retreat.

Earth's entry turned the tide of the war. Assisted by EarthForce, the League worlds succeeded in driving the Dilgar away from their territories and pushing them back to their homeworld. The final battle of the war was the Battle of Balos in 2232; after this defeat the Dilgar were forced to surrender. All Dilgar Warmasters were captured and tried for their crimes, except for one, Jha'dur, who disappeared during the fighting at Balos.

As part of the surrender terms, the Dilgar agreed to let Earth warships blockade the Dilgar jump-gate, thus trapping the Dilgar in their home solar system. Shortly after the war ended, the Dilgar sun went supernova, vaporizing the Dilgar homeworld and wiping out the entire species. Unknown to Earth and the League, a single Dilgar survived both the war and the supernova eruption: Warmaster Jha'dur, nicknamed "Deathwalker", the most infamous Dilgar leader of the war. Jha'dur had been the foremost proponent of using captured aliens as live "guinea pigs" in sadistic medical and scientific experiments. Approximately twenty years after the Dilgar War ended, Jha'dur would reemerge on the Babylon 5 space station, where she claimed to have invented a serum that gave its users immortality - but at a terrible price.