Editing Battle of the Ionian Nebula

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{{Battle Data
| name=Battle of the Ionian Nebula
| image= Ionian Battle 1.jpg
| description= Cylons forces ambush the mysteriously crippled Colonial Fleet
| conflict= [[Cylon Attack|Second Cylon War]]
| date=Approx. [[Timeline (RDM)|3 years]] after the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]]
| place= [[Ionian Nebula]]
| result= Tactical [[Cylon (RDM)|Cylon]] victory<br>Withdrawal of the Cylon fleet<br>Triggers the [[Cylon Civil War]]
| combatant1= Remnants of the [[Colonial Fleet (TRS)|Colonial Fleet]]
| combatant2= [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylons]]
| co1= Admiral [[William Adama]]
| co2= [[Basestar command]]
| strength1= ''{{RDM|Galactica}}'', approx 80 [[Vipers]] and 30 [[Raptors]]<br/> 
| strength2= Four [[Basestar (RDM)|basestars]], associated [[Cylon Raider (RDM)|Raiders]] and [[Heavy Raider]]s
| shiploss1= ''[[Pyxis]]'' destroyed, ''[[Zephyr]]'' severely damaged, ''[[Astral Queen]]'' slightly damaged, ''Galactica'' damaged.
| shiploss2= Numerous Raiders
| casualties1= 600 civilians on ''[[Pyxis]]'', 1,101 deaths on other ships<ref>The [[survivor count]] in the credits decreases by 1,700, accounting for the deaths during the teaser and for the return of {{callsign|Starbuck}}. The majority of the 1,101 additional deaths likely occur on ''Zephyr'', but other ships are hit as well.</ref>.
| casualties2=Unknown, light
| prev=[[Battle of the Algae Planet]]
| next=[[Battle of the Trinary Star System]]
| series=RDM
}}
The '''Battle of the Ionian Nebula''' occurs soon after the [[The Fleet (RDM)|fleet of surviving Colonial ships]] jumps into the [[Ionian Nebula]]. Upon arriving at the nebula, the ships of the Fleet mysteriously lose all power. As the ships drift aimlessly, four Cylon basestars that had been tracking them jump into the nebula and begin launching Raiders. By the time power is restored to ''Galactica'' and the civilian ships, Raiders are already inbound and the Fleet is incapable of jumping to safety before they close to firing distance.

== Events leading up to the battle ==

During the power outage [[Saul Tigh]], [[Galen Tyrol]], [[Samuel Anders|Samuel "Longshot" Anders]], and [[Tory Foster]] begin to aimlessly wander the halls of ''Galactica'' muttering the lyrics to a [[The Music|mysterious song]], having heard it in their heads for the past few days. When all four arrive in the same room and see each other, they realize that they are actually Cylons themselves. When the alert is sounded, they resolve to continue serving in the roles they did when they believed they were human. Tyrol returns to the flight deck, Anders heads for his Viper, and Tigh and Foster go to [[CIC]] and return to the sides of their Admiral [[William Adama]] and President [[Laura Roslin]].

During the scramble to launch the alert Vipers, {{callsign|Lee Adama}}, now a civilian after resigning from the military just before the trial of [[Gaius Baltar]], returns to his quarters to retrieve his helmet and flight suit and join the fight. While intercepting the incoming waves of Raiders, he picks up an unknown contact on his Viper's [[DRADIS]] and breaks formation to investigate. The unknown contact is intermittent and toys with Adama until it pulls alongside him and reveals itself to be {{callsign|Starbuck}}, alive and flying a spotless [[Viper Mark II]].  Thrace claims she has been to Earth and that she will lead the Fleet there {{TRS|Crossroads, Part II}}.

== Civilians under attack ==

''Galactica'''s Vipers and Raptors are able to stop the main force of 200-plus Raiders, but the Cylon reserves manage to break through the Colonial lines. Outgunned and with the civilian ships requiring time to spin up their FTL drives, Admiral Adama orders all available pilots and ships to launch, including inexperienced [[nugget|nuggets]] like Samuel Anders and [[Diana Seelix|Diana "Hardball" Seelix]].

The battle floods over the drifting Fleet, Vipers and Raiders dogfighting among the ships while ''Galactica'' puts up anti-aircraft artillery ([[AAA]]) and fires its primary batteries at the Raiders and basestars. A damaged Raider collides with ''[[Pyxis]]'', destroying the liner and the 600 people aboard. The Cylon basestars launch a barrage of over 50 missiles, half of them targeting the civilian ships. Adama orders all Vipers and point defense batteries to concentrate on protecting the civilians, since ''Galactica'' can withstand the damage. Two missiles hit ''[[Zephyr]]'', resulting in severe damage to its ring section and many causalities, and another missile strikes ''[[Astral Queen]]'', breaching the forward section of its hull. A missile bound for ''[[Colonial One]]'' is successfully intercepted by Seelix.

When Anders maneuvers behind a Raider chasing Seelix, it abruptly turns around, scans him with its single red eye, and breaks off when Anders' own eyes flash red in a Cylon [[IFF|friend or foe identification signal]]. To the amazement of the Colonials, the other Raiders return to their basestars and the Cylons spin up their [[FTL]] drives to jump away. Adama seizes this opportunity and orders the Fleet to withdraw {{TRS|He That Believeth in Me}}.

== Aftermath ==

The Cylons now suspect that the [[Final Five]] reside within the human fleet. Since the Raiders broke off the attack of their own volition, a [[Number One|Cavil]] decides to have them lobotomized to remove part of their free will. The [[Number Four|Four]] and [[Number Five|Five]] models support that decision, but the [[Number Two|Two]], [[Number Six|Six]] and [[Number Eight|Eight]] models do not. When [[Sharon Valerii]] sides with Cavil, he takes that as the deciding vote and has the Raiders lobotomized. In retaliation, a Six named [[Natalie]], now advocating a search for the Five, removes the [[Telencephalic inhibitor|devices]] that enslave the Centurions, turning them on Number One's faction {{TRS|Six of One}}. This marks the beginning of the [[Cylon Civil War]] which forces the rebels and humans to work together in an alliance that ultimately leads to the [[Revelations|discovery of Earth]] and [[Battle of the Resurrection Hub|multiple]] [[Battle of The Colony|victories]] over the Ones and their forces.

== Behind the scenes ==

Co-executive producer [[Mark Verheiden]], in a weekly interview series discussing Season 4 episodes as they aired, described the opening battle sequence as "amazing."<ref group="commentary" name="ullrich_comicmix_verheiden_opening_battle_amazing">{{cite_web|url=https://comicmix.com/2008/04/08/battlestar-galactica-interview-mark-verheiden-on-cylon-babies-and-season-four-secrets/#:~:text=And%20the%20opening%20battle%20was%20amazing|title=Battlestar Galactica Interview: Mark Verheiden on Cylon Babies and Season Four Secrets|author=Chris Ullrich|publisher=ComicMix|date=8 April 2008|accessdate=16 February 2026}}</ref> When asked about his favorite moment from the episode, Verheiden singled out the scene where a Raider scans Anders' eye, stating it gave him "a little chill" – specifically citing "the red light from the raider scanning Anders' eyeball."<ref group="commentary" name="ullrich_comicmix_verheiden_raider_scanning_anders_favorite_moment">{{cite_web|url=https://comicmix.com/2008/04/08/battlestar-galactica-interview-mark-verheiden-on-cylon-babies-and-season-four-secrets/#:~:text=If%20there%27s%20a%20single%20moment%20that%20I%20really%20like%20in%20that%20%22gave%20me%20a%20little%20chill%22%20way%2C%20it%27s%20the%20red%20light%20from%20the%20raider%20scanning%20Anders%27%20eyeball|title=Battlestar Galactica Interview: Mark Verheiden on Cylon Babies and Season Four Secrets|author=Chris Ullrich|publisher=ComicMix|date=8 April 2008|accessdate=16 February 2026}}</ref>

Regarding the mysterious Cylon withdrawal after the Raider scanned Anders, Verheiden indicated this was an intentional narrative decision, telling fans to "keep watching" as the explanation would be "clarified in the next episode."<ref group="commentary" name="ullrich_comicmix_verheiden_cylon_withdrawal_clarified_next_episode">{{cite_web|url=https://comicmix.com/2008/04/08/battlestar-galactica-interview-mark-verheiden-on-cylon-babies-and-season-four-secrets/#:~:text=Why%20do%20the%20Cylons%20break%20off%20their%20attack%20after%20the%20raider%20scans%20Anders%3F%20Just%20a%20coincidence%3F%20Or%2C%20does%20the%20fact%20that%20Anders%20knows%20he%27s%20a%20Cylon%20make%20them%20want%20to%20leave,-Keep%20watching.%20Some%20of%20that%20will%20be%20clarified%20in%20the%20next%20episode|title=Battlestar Galactica Interview: Mark Verheiden on Cylon Babies and Season Four Secrets|author=Chris Ullrich|publisher=ComicMix|date=8 April 2008|accessdate=16 February 2026}}</ref>

Verheiden also clarified the timing of the [[Final Five]]'s self-awareness, explaining that Anders, Tigh, Tory, and Tyrol "only realized they were Cylons when they reached the area of space seen at the end of 'Crossroads, Part II'" – the location of the Ionian Nebula where this battle takes place.<ref group="commentary" name="ullrich_comicmix_verheiden_final_five_realization_location">{{cite_web|url=https://comicmix.com/2008/04/08/battlestar-galactica-interview-mark-verheiden-on-cylon-babies-and-season-four-secrets/#:~:text=remember%20that%20Anders%2C%20Tigh%2C%20Tory%20and%20Tyrol%20only%20realized%20they%20were%20Cylons%20when%20they%20reached%20the%20area%20of%20space%20seen%20at%20the%20end%20of%20%22Crossroads%2C%20Part%202|title=Battlestar Galactica Interview: Mark Verheiden on Cylon Babies and Season Four Secrets|author=Chris Ullrich|publisher=ComicMix|date=8 April 2008|accessdate=16 February 2026}}</ref>

== Related Images ==

<gallery mode="slideshow">
File:TRS - He That Believeth in Me - Battle of the Ionian Nebula DRADIS.jpg|''[[Galactica (TRS)|Galactica]]''{{'|s}} [[DRADIS]] during the initial encounter...
File:Raptor scramble.jpg|Raptors scramble...
File:Basestar fires missiles, "He That Believeth in Me".jpg|A basestar fires missiles.
File:Zephyr damaged, "He That Believeth in Me".jpg|''Zephyr'' is damaged during the battle.
File:Battered Battlestar.jpg|''Galactica'' after the battle, missing a gun turret. 
</gallery>

== References ==

=== Commentary and Interviews ===
{{reflist|group=commentary}}

=== Additional Sources ===
{{reflist}}

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{{Battles (RDM)}}

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[[Category:Colonial]]
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[[de:Schlacht im Ionischen Nebel]]
[[fr:Bataille de la Nébuleuse Ionienne]]
[[zh:爱奥尼亚星云之战]]