So, Onderon is in the Japrael system, and as far as I can tell, also in the Japrael sector(http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Japrael_sector).
So, if Moffs are usually in charge of a sector (read: Moff Dardano), where does he hang out all the time while his little Whisper Base is collecting intelligence?
It seems that Onderon is the main planet in the system and sector, so shouldn't he be on-planet the whole time? Seems a little strange that he sends in shuttles with recon teams if his assets might already be on-planet. As well as the showdown where his fleet is 'on its way' to the system.
I'm thinking of justifying it as though his office has been relegated to another planet after Admiral Corlen leveraged some political clout and got his navy group direct control of Onderon, leaving the Moff to control the rest of the unimportant sections of the sector. This would justify the rivalry, and the Moff wanting to find a way to force the Admiral off planet to end his 'embarrassing' posting on whatever other planet in the sector.
Operation Shadowpoint Japrael Sector politics
I justified it that
He's specifically not using his assets, but rather hiring mercenaries to do this to keep his hands clean... but his pride forces him to personally oversee the attack. Leading up to the final battle I had Whisper Base intercept a communication that the Moff had just purchased an AT-AT out of pocket and was taking it for a joy ride in the jungles, which could also explain its massive modifications... including, in my game, the landing pad for his TIE/sa.
I used Imperial Army Trooper and Officer stats in the ratios called for, except I called them mercenaries.
My understanding is that most of his assets arent on world. The point of the base was to spy on the Admiral who is based out of Onderon after. My reasoning is that he needed to bring in troops from offworld so that the admiral wouldnt notice Imperial assets under his command being used and risk the admiral discovering what the moff has been up to,
Keep in mind that a sector has thousands of inhabited planets. Onderon might be the capital of the sector but most of the Sector Group's assets will be spread throughout maintaining order and control.
I don't think Onderon would be the sector capital. The sector may be named after the Japrael system, but that could just be because the Japrael system is in the middle of the sector. When all's said and done, Onderon is a planet with a population of about four million, mostly concentrated into a single city. I doubt it's anywhere close to being the most populous, richest or most important planet in the sector. In fact, I suspect that Jyrene Base, the resupply depot, was put there for precisely that reason; it's (theoretically, at least) less vulnerable on less-populated world.
It is unclear which planet is the capitol of the Japrael Sector, but Onderon is the only habitable planet in the Japrael system atleast.
My understanding is that most of his assets arent on world. The point of the base was to spy on the Admiral who is based out of Onderon after. My reasoning is that he needed to bring in troops from offworld so that the admiral wouldnt notice Imperial assets under his command being used and risk the admiral discovering what the moff has been up to,
Not an official answer, but this is more or less the reasoning I had in my head when I wrote the adventure. Whisper Base is not a primary strongpoint for Dardano, it's an opportunistic way to mess with the strongpoint of his biggest rival.
I have handled it this way:
the Moff has the theoretical Command over all Imperial Troops in the Sector, but most of the Troops are part of different Admirals and Generals Fleets and Armys. He cannot issue Commands without his Rival taking notice, so most of whisper Base was run by the loyal troops he could use without gathering interest. After Whisper Base has fallen, he cannot act immidiatly, otherwise he would be ridiculed for the discovery of an unsanctioned Imperial Base to spy on an High Ranking Officer without knowledge or approval for Imperial Intelligence etc. I will discribe the Moff as an excentric and arrogant man, who despretly seeks to get more power in the empire. He also will take on extensive Hunting Trips to cover for is Operations in the Jungle.
The Admiral is a old school Officer, Veteran of the Clone Wars,, who tries do keep his Faith of the Honorable Officer Corps alive under the Empire. Desertion was unthinkable for him, even disagreing with many of the Empires new Tactics, just until the Empire destroys Alderaan. Because of the "dated" views of Tactics and "lack of initative" he was put in charge of the Jyrenne Base and is no longer onboard a Star Destroyer. I am also considering giving him a Wife who was of Alderaanien Origin who comitted surcide after the Destruction of Alderaan, which was covered up as a tragic accident by Imperial Intelligence. He also has a Son, a rising Captian in the Imperial Fleet, but the relationship is growing distant do to the different points of views on the Empire.
My plan is to play a campaign on Onderon, where the characters establish a Foothold for the Rebellion, grow their Power Base and finally orcastrate the Destruction of Jyrenne Base as a major blow the Empire. To achieve that the will work with the Admiral, who will defect to the Rebellion with the right arguments.
Just to follow how everyone's been doing it:
The way I've been running it is that Onderon is only important due to its history, astrographic position, and the military presence. In terms of economy and productivity, it's clearly of lower status. The moff could only leverage small forces loyal to him, along mercenaries, to operate the base.
As a Moff, only some forces would be easy for him to deploy, while others would affect the balance of power and security that should be provided to Imperial systems. Also, I've placed the Moff on a different system altogether, which is more central to the politics of the sector as a whole.