The Bulk Cruiser is an aging design that combines the best attributes of combat capital ships and bulk cargo haulers, and has endured since the era of the Old Republic. This ten engine capital ship, introduced after the Clone Wars is one of the most common vessels in the Galaxy. This design was the premier warship of the Rendili StarDrive corporation, and it was ideally suited to the budgets and requirements of local governments and corporate manufacturing worlds. When persons encounter them, these ships tend to be modified from their original stock form, since the original design is slow, breaks down with alarming frequency, and is expensive to keep fuelled. This design is suited for most types of operations since, it sports a reasonable sum of firepower and shielding.

    It has been known that many of these vessels have found their way into Rebel hands and that several of them belonging corporations or star systems have since defected to the Rebel Alliance. Although pleased to actually receive any ships, Rebel fleet technicians and tacticians detest them even though they are now one of the mainstays of the Rebel Fleet. It must be noted that in many cases due to the extreme difficulty to making these ships battle worthy, it is not worthwhile to put in the effort and expense to make the necessary modifications.

    In short, against the Imperial Navy the Bulk Cruiser is too undependable to put into combat. To solve this dilemma the Rebels have deployed some of these ships for transport escort duty. Meanwhile, other Bulk Cruisers have undergone a more inexpensive and speedy refit which involves converting large portions of the vessels into docking bays and repair facilities; thus becoming carrier cruisers. Commanders of carrier cruisers are indoctrinated, if possible to keep their ships well out of combat range, and that their primary weapon is the starfighters carried onboard.

    Not only are Bulk Cruisers employed by the Rebellion, they see use by the Empire, numerous planetary and local governments, corporations, mercenaries, and criminals. Just after the Battle of Hoth, the Bulk Cruiser Cerberus was assigned to Admiral Holtz's task force which was on the search for Rebel ships that had escaped from the Hoth System. Usually, star systems and corporations featuring Bulk Cruisers receive minimal Imperial protection and thus have been permitted their own forces to protect against smuggling, piracy, Rebel attacks, and other enterprising profit leakages. Companies such as the Lant Mining Corporation in the Brak Sector employ these capital ships as part of their security forces. These old vessels are used to patrol star systems containing important corporate assets, or for convoy protection against pirates and privateers. Ironic as it may seem, pirates and criminal organizations also make use of this vessel. A famous example would be the Black Sun's Bulk Cruiser XTS-673.