How I botched ColorDMD install and broke my DE Star Wars

Sorry to hear you're having trouble. It's unlikely the problems were caused by the ColorDMD display itself, as the display only runs on 12V and would not cause problems with 5V logic (booting) or solenoids/lamps running on other power supplies.

The most likely problem is incorrect installation of
(1) the wide data ribbon cable that runs from the CPU to the Whitestar DMD controller board, or
(2) the 2-pin cable that provides 5V power to the Whitestar DMD controller board.

Incorrect connections at the Whitestar DMD controller can cause problems with communication over the 5V data bus that affect both booting and CPU control of the solenoids and lamps.