Popular support, also called loyalty, is the measure of how strongly the population of a system backs one side in Star Wars: Rebellion. It is closely tied to control of the system, since the controlling side can station troops there and draw on its resources.

Support and control

A side can gain control of a system by swaying its loyalty. If support is not high enough, the side can instead take control by landing trooper regiments in a planetary assault, although systems taken with troops may go into uprising. Systems that neither the Galactic Empire nor the Rebel Alliance controls are neutral and do not strongly support either side. Raising support on a neutral system can bring it under control.

A system can support one side while the other controls it. On the Galactic Information Display, for example, a large green star marks a system that the Empire controls but that supports the Alliance.

Support still matters when troops hold a system. Local support influences how fast mines and refineries there turn out material points, and how likely those points are to be smuggled away. The manual lists smuggling as a way a side loses resources when support is weak, with the stolen resources passing to the opponent. Trooper regiments, ships and fighters on the system reduce smuggling.

Unpopulated systems have no population to be loyal. A side controls one only while at least one regiment stays there, but the first facility to arrive attracts a population that is entirely loyal to that side.

Some key systems begin the game completely loyal to their side: Coruscant for the Empire, and Yavin and Alliance headquarters for the Alliance.

Factors that change support

The manual lists these influences on popular support.

• Diplomacy missions raise support for the sending side. They cannot be sent to enemy systems. A single mission can raise support without swaying the system, so several may be needed.
• Subdue Uprising missions also raise support, but much more slowly than diplomacy, and only on systems in uprising.
• Other systems in the same sector: a change of control caused by support can spread to other systems in the sector, in either direction.
• Abandoning a system: removing the last regiment can cost support throughout the sector if control shifts away as a result.
• Troops: the first troops stationed after an assault lower support unless it is already strong. The manual adds that the presence of troops slowly raises support for the Empire while no uprising is underway.
• Losing a battle lowers support across the sector where it happened, depending on the ships and troops lost relative to the opponent.
• An uprising on a controlled system costs more support the longer it continues.
• A blockade changes support on the blockaded system, which grows for whichever side it already favors as the blockade continues.
• Damaging civilian facilities in a bombardment, even by accident, lowers the bombarding side's support.
• The Death Star: having one in a sector helps the Empire keep control of the systems there, while using it to destroy a planet lowers support across the whole galaxy.
• Losing a headquarters causes a severe drop in support in the sector. For the Alliance, moving the headquarters causes a small drop at the system it leaves.

A successful diplomacy mission to a system taken by force also lowers that system's garrison requirements.

Garrison requirements

A controlled system that does not strongly support its owner may have a garrison requirement, a minimum number of troops that the owner must keep there.

Where support is shown

On the Galactic Information Display, the Popular Support view makes larger stars stand for stronger support for the viewing side, whoever controls the system. A Sector window shows a loyalty gauge under each system, with red for the Alliance and green for the Empire. The Uprisings view marks systems in uprising.

How current the information is depends on the region. In the galactic core, changes in support are known at once, while in the sparsely populated Rim they only become apparent when a fleet or mission is sent to investigate.