Advanced Recon Commando
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ARC troopers are soldiers from George Lucas' fictional Star Wars saga that saw action during the Clone Wars era.
ARC Troopers - more formally known as Advanced Recon Commando - are part of the elite special forces of clone troopers under the Grand Army of the Republic.
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[edit] Background
At the behest of their military advisors and the clone template (Jango Fett), the creators of the Clone Army of The Republic came to view their basic infantry clone troopers as only the first stage of a greater project. To combat the first stage army's shortcomings in dealing with more covert and delicate missions, two additional batches of clones were created. Both were genetically altered to grow as fast as all their brothers but one set was developed without behavior correction.[Star Wars Republic Commando: Triple Zero]
They began life on Kamino like any of their brothers, receiving their training through flash data, but as time passed the future ARC Troopers found themselves under the direct tutelage of Jango Fett. Under Jango's strict discipline they learned to use their fierce independence, innate creativity, and physical superiority beyond the limits that Jango had set. At the end of their training, due in large part to the Clone Masters' growing fear of their defiant nature, the ARC troopers were held in stasis on Kamino. Only when the cloning facilities themselves became threatened by the Confederacy of Independent Systems were they activated. During the Battle of Kamino, the ARC troopers were reintegrated into the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR).[citation needed]
As the ARCs took their place in the larger world, a great number developed distinct personalities due to their unaltered nature, some giving themselves names and others establishing relationships outside the GAR. Clone commando Fi of Omega Squad once called them "pretty well raw Jango".[1]
[edit] Examples from Star Wars stories
Throughout the war, nearly all of the missions undertaken by ARC troopers were huge successes. After their activation and participation in the Battle of Kamino they served in campaigns on Muunilinst, Jabiim, and Pengalan IV. A small squad of ARC troopers was also responsible for the rescue of Jedi under the attack of General Grievous on the world of Hypori. Null-ARC troopers were also involved with the destruction of a terrorist network operating on Coruscant.[citation needed]
[edit] ARC Troopers
[edit] Alpha (A-17)
During the defense of the major cloning facilities on Tipoca City, Kamino, Alpha is the lone survivor to witness the final victory over the Confederate ground forces. When the Gungan moon colony of Ohma Dun is attacked, Alpha accompanies a Jedi Strike team sent to subdue a CIS Bio-Chemical weapon test and a trap set by the Bounty Hunter Durge and Confederate Commander Asajj Ventress. A-17 is also present during the opening conflicts of the Battle of Jabiim wherein he is captured along with General Obi-Wan Kenobi and is brought to the planet Rattatak.
Both break free from their captors and flee to the city of Riflor wherein they are rescued by Commander Anakin Skywalker. Due to his amassed experiences in almost any combat situation and service to the Jedi generals, Alpha is reassigned to conduct the Clone Commander Program. Later he is reassigned to Bail Organa's observation team and rescues Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker from a swarm of vulture droids. They launch an invasion on Boz Pity but Alpha is stabbed by General Grievous, with a lightsaber. He is later put on a ship with a supposedly dead Asajj Ventress, who takes over the ship and sends it as far away as she can from the war. Alpha's fate is unknown.
[edit] Captain Fordo
The instrumental sabotage of Muunilinst's defense artillery and successful capture of the Intergalactic Banking Clan's leaders is credited to Captain Fordo and his fellow ARC Troopers. Captain Fordo and his team are also known for their rescue of Jedi combatants from the doomed strike force that went against General Grievous in the Battle of Hypori. Although awarded the Chancellor's Service Medal, he instead gave it to the clone trooper who was killed soon after the gunship was shot down on Muunilinst. He was promoted to Commander and given Jaig Eyes for his acts of bravery on Muunilinst. He is present leading clone troops into battle on Coruscant. (as seen on Star Wars Clone Wars: Cartoon Network) Though during the battle his Gunship was shot down, he survived the crash.
[edit] Ordinance
Most ARC troopers were armed with heavy blaster rifles, reverse-polarity pulse grenades and, on occasion, PLX-1 missile launchers. They were also given a wide choice of other weapons.[citation needed] They wore advanced versions of clone trooper armour with ceremonial kamas that provided rank and honor insignia, and frequently customized their armor with additional pieces or specialized paint-jobs. This tradition continued later in the Clone Wars, when many former ARCs became legion commanders, and their troops followed their creative leads.[citation needed]
ARC troopers first appeared in the Republic comic series (specifically, Republic #50, the Defence of Kamino), and took center-stage in chapters 2 and 3 of the animated series Star Wars: Clone Wars.
[edit] Ranks and classes
[edit] ARC Trooper Captain
The ARC trooper Captain is a specialized Clone trooper tasked with leading squads of ARC troopers during the Clone Wars. Their armor is similar to their subordinates and the only distinguishing marks are the red colouring on their facemasks and upper armor. Since most ARC trooper squads are small and often consist of around 10 members, some of which are standard infantry clones, the ARC trooper captains often focus on infiltration, sabotage and surprise attacks. Captain Fordo, from The Clone Wars is seen wielding two blaster pistols and an electric taser-type weapon. During the Battle of Muunilinst, Captain Fordo's squad, the Muunilinst 10, is responsible for bringing down the defences of Muunilinst and capturing San Hill, the leader of the Intergalactic Banking Clan. Fordo leads the ARC troopers to the massive CIS turret on Muunilinst. Later, Captain Fordo and his ARC troopers rescue Ki-Adi Mundi, Aayla Secura, and Shaak Ti from General Grievous on the world of Hypori.During the Battle of Coruscant,Captain Fordo [in phase 2 armor] lead a battalion of clones against the invading CIS forces.
[edit] BARC troopers
BARC Troopers are an elite group of Republic ARC clone scouts. BARC Troopers, (BARC stands for Biker Advanced Reconnaissance Commando) are specially trained clone commandos and scouts. During the height of The Clone Wars, BARC Troopers were dispatched to such planets as Kashyyyk. Following the execution of Order 66 and the rise of the Empire, it is largely the elite, camouflaged BARC Troopers of the Republic that evolved into the less-advanced Scout troopers of the Galactic Empire.
Like the later Imperial Scouts, the BARC Troopers are primarily dispatched on ground-based missions. They wear lighter armor, and their gear incorporates comlinks, breathing gear, and macrobinocular lenses. They generally use lighter, more portable weapons than Imperial Scouts.
However, unlike the lightly armed and armored Speeder Bikes used by the Empire in later years, the BARC Troopers, who primarily see action on Kashyyyk, the Wookiee homeworld, use the fast, highly agile BARC speeder bike, which is both better armored and better armed than later Bikes used by the Empire, though it lacks the saddlebags mounted to the side. BARC Troopers normally wear the armor of whatever legion they are assigned to. For example, they wear camouflage armor on Kashyyyk, and the armor of the 327th Star Corps on Felucia.
[edit] Null-ARC troopers
The Null-ARC troopers are the result of an unsuccessful Kaminoan attempt to make super-soldier clones of Jango Fett. The genetic tampering resulted in unstable, erratic clone troopers loyal only to Sergeant Kal Skirata, a Mandalorian contracted by Kamino to aid with the training of special clone units, and only six of the twelve survived past the fetal stage. The Null-ARCs, as they become known, are a failed experiment that the Kaminoans did not try to replicate, instead resigning themselves to less spectacular clonings of their bounty hunter template. They wanted to "recondition" the troopers, which consisted of destroying them, but Kal Skirata wouldn't allow them to, and this experience led the troopers to only obey the orders of Kal Skirata and any others that he told them to.
During the Clone Wars, the Galactic Republic employs the Null-ARC, or Ø-ARC units as black-ops forces. Their roles cover special operations such as work for military intelligence, among others. They are very difficult to control, by most accounts, and often Sergeant Skirata has to be called off of Kamino to help with giving them directives. Finally the Republic returns Skirata to active duty and places the Null-ARCs under his command. Supposedly, Skirata's favorite Null ARC is Captain Ordo.
Skirata saved the Nulls when he had just arrived on Kamino. He was moved by their age and was unwilling to let the Kaminoans kill the Nulls because they didn't meet specifications. He was horrified to know that the Kaminoans would kill young Mandalorian clones as quality control. Skirata felt that the clones should not have a shorter life because of the growth acceleration and that the clones should know their Mandalorian roots. He also felt that the clones were unrecognized and used as slaves. Some facts are the nulls are 35% smarter than even the most elite Republic Commandos, Also Nulls are usually deployed in some of the most dangerous missions because of their expertise.
In the latest Star Wars book Bloodlines, it is implied that the Null-ARCs have found a way to circumvent their advanced aging and at least a few are still alive. One example is when Boba Fett's daughter, Ailyn, kills a clone, thinking it was Fett. It is mentioned that the clone that was killed possessed a Verpine rifle, which was a favorite weapon among the Nulls and their leader, Kal Skirata. There are also rumors that Skirata and the Nulls had finally tracked down Ko Sai, the lead scientist in Kaminoan cloning, and returned her to Kamino in pieces, presumably after they had extracted all necessary information from her. Finally, there are rumors of a Fett clone residing on Mandalore voicing his opinion on how the current Mandalore, Boba Fett, should act.
