The principle underlying the shockball was based on the fact that the Sith Star was both the capital and the military and civilian command hub of the Empire. Its destruction, without some backup system, could cripple the Empire's response system in a single exchange. Tariun Sakaros designed the shockball to counter this weakness, enabling his sister Rin to command all military forces and the Order of Keltrayu from any location. The shockball had a biometric system which would respond only to the specific biorhythms of the Sovereign. Aside from providing military coordination, the Sovereign could also use the shockball to issue a HoloNet address to the public or summon all surviving Centurions of the Order of Keltrayu to a location.