The century tank is a cheap mass-produced ground combat vehicle that became popular during the Imperial resurgence after the death of Grand Admiral Thrawn and the campaign to recapture the Imperial capital of Coruscant. While the proper name of the vehicle is "century tank," Imperial soldiers took to calling the vehicle the TIE tank (or TIE crawler) because of the familiar command pod taken from the TIE fighter.

The vehicle is a simple combat machine with modular components and simple controls. It is the perfect light assault vehicle, with a light drive system and respectable weapons. It requires only a single crewman, who handles both piloting and gunnery.

The TIE tank has the same central pod used in the standard TIE fighter. It is manufactured by Santhe/Sienar Technologies, a sister corporation to Sienar Fleet Systems, manufacturers of the TIE fighter. The use of this pod, while awkward for old-line Imperial soldiers, cut the cost of the tank by thousands of credits per unit.

The twin Santhe SSct power generators are attached to each side of the pod and drive the tread wheels. The TIE tank has a top speed of only ninety kilometers per hour, but drive components are common and cheap. The drive system is simple enough, that many pilots can fix the tank themselves if it is damaged in the field, and it is not unusual to see damaged TIE tanks scavenged for parts.

The TIE tank can navigate most terrain and is substantially cheaper than comparable repulsorlift craft. The weapons are powered by a single power generator mounted in the rear of the craft and they include two medium blaster cannons that are forward firing, while a retractable light turbolaser is mounted in the bottom of the command pod and can fire in any direction. The TIE tank has light armor plating on all surfaces, but the drive system and tread wheels are easily damaged by enemy fire.

Personnel enter through a top hatch. The pilot is strapped into an automatically adjusting grav-couch(slightly modified from the standard TIE fighter). Foot controls adjust the angle of steering and the speed, while hand controls are tied into the weapons systems and targeting computer. The TIE tank uses the familiar N-s6 fire-control module for weapon targeting and utilizes many of the same interfaces as the standard TIE fighter, requiring some training for ground vehicle troops but allowing Imperial commanders to place TIE fighter cadet washouts into the tanks.