Clone trooper

Class:Infantry
Strength:748 million
Species:Human[1] (cloned from the Mandalorian bounty hunter, Jango Fett)
Type:Front-line soldiers, led by the Jedi Order
Affiliation:Galactic Republic
Galactic Empire
Standard weapon:DC-15 blaster rifle
(or the DC-17 blaster rifle variant)

The clone troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic are soldiers in the Star Wars franchise, cloned from Jango Fett, a Mandalorian bounty hunter. They first appeared in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, and returned in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith where they were played primarily by Temuera Morrison. In the two Clone Wars animated television series, they are voiced by Andre Sogliuzzo and Dee Bradley Baker.

Clone troopers comprised the bulk of the Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars. They are depicted as the main part of the armed forces of the Galactic Republic in its final years, becoming one of the largest armies ever assembled, only surpassed by the Separatist Droid Army. Nearing the end of the Clone Wars, through a subliminal command known as "Order 66", the Clone Troopers turned on the Jedi and slaughtered most of them. After the Clone Wars, the Clone Troopers served as the nucleus for the armed forces of the Galactic Empire, eventually becoming the first Imperial Stormtroopers. Then later in the clone home world of Kamino the Kamion's made clones to fight the clones and The Empire. When the rebellion of clones was crushed The Emperor ended the cloning due to them being easy to turn on their leader. The clones were then replaced by "volunteers", but the clones that were already in the army were allowed to stay in the Imperial Army.

History

In Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, the cloners of Kamino tell Obi-Wan Kenobi that Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas had ordered the creation of a clone army for the Republic ten years ago. But Obi-Wan Kenobi, Master Windu and Yoda all believe Sifo-Dyas died before that order was placed so it remains a mystery who actually placed the order. The genetic template of the clone troopers was Jango Fett, one of the most feared bounty hunters in the Galaxy. In exchange for "considerable" payment and an unaltered clone "son", Boba Fett,[2] Jango provided his genetic material and Mandalorian battle training to the cloners on Kamino. All clone troopers' genes were manipulated; they had accelerated aging, making them grow and mature twice as fast as a normal human, and were made more loyal and willing to follow orders than their donor. The clone troopers were outfitted with armour styled after Mandalorian battle armor (notably the helmet and its T-shaped visor), and armed with weapons and vehicles produced in secret by Kuat Drive Yards, Rendili Stardrive, and Sienar Fleet Systems.

The Battle of Geonosis marked the first deployment of the clone troopers as well as the beginning of the Clone Wars. After Geonosis, clone trooper armies were led by Jedi generals, who were in turn accompanied by Clone Commanders. Chancellor Palpatine initiates the Great Jedi Purge by executing Order 66 to the clones against their Jedi generals. This marked the end of the Clone Wars, as well as the death of the Old Republic. After the war and the birth of the Galactic Empire, the clone trooper army evolved into the Imperial Stormtrooper Corps. This transition also resulted in the decrease of clones, and the increase of natural soldiers, which lowered the quality of the Empire's troops.[3]

In Star Wars Battlefront II, the surviving clone troopers were fitted with new armour and weapons, and became the Imperial Stormtrooper corps of the Empire. Later, a combination of natural-born humans as well as clones from different donor templates would be incorporated into the Stormtrooper corps. One of the few Stormtrooper legions to remain completely composed of Fett clones throughout the era of the Empire was the 501st Legion.

In the animated TV show The Clone Wars, the Clone Troopers become the focus of some of the episodes to depict them to be more than simple soldiers and with individual personalities. In the final season, more of the nature of "Order 66" is revealed when a Clone Trooper named Fives discovers that he and his brothers have chips implanted into their brains that would compel them to kill Jedi when "Order 66" is uttered. Ultimately, the Jedi remained unaware of this as Fives was executed by a shock trooper clone ordered by Palpatine to conceal the existence of the contingency order.

Specialized clone troopers

Within the film series and in the Star Wars Expanded Universe media, a number of specialized trooper units are seen, including elite special forces units such as the 'Advanced Reconnaissance Commandos' (ARC troopers), and Null ARCs,[4] who usually work alone, and Republic Commandos, who operate in squads of four, with each member a specialist of some kind, created for the video game Star Wars: Republic Commando and reappearing in the Star Wars: Republic Commando novel series by Karen Traviss. All clone commandos and ARCs were trained by Mandalorian mercenaries; the elite Clone Troopers are known as Shadow Troopers.

The style and color of a clone troopers armor often varies depending on their rank, specialization, unit, or environment, for example, the clone troopers on Kashyyk wear camouflage green scout-style armour whereas the 501st legion wears standard white armor with blue accents. Another example is the aquatic SCUBA troopers, who appear in the animated series Star Wars: Clone Wars. SCUBA troopers are equipped with high-tech breathing apparatuses and long range blaster rifles. Notable units in the novels are Delta Squad and Omega Squad.[5][6]

Clone trooper armor

Phase I Clone Trooper cosplayer WonderCon 2010

No physical clone trooper costume was produced for their first onscreen appearance. As revealed in the audio commentary of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, every single clone trooper in the film is a computer generated image. In fact, the only thing present on the set was the actor, whose head was used during scenes requiring a clone's face.

In Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, the armor is redesigned to look more like the Stormtrooper armor, but remains computer generated. Within the fictional history of the Star Wars universe, this is the basis of the Imperial Stormtrooper armor and shows a gradual evolution in design toward the armor worn in episodes III-VI, known as "Phase II" armor. The actual armor never changes, but the helmet progresses.

Ranks

Originally clone troopers were identified in rank by the color of their armor, as in this list below. However, by Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith, colors became associated with a trooper's legion affiliation.

Once the Galactic Empire is established, all armor uniforms of the clone-troopers, now re-classified as 'storm-troopers' and issued new armor, are once again all white, with no outward sign of rank, legion, or other unit affiliation.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "clone troopers". Star Wars Databank. Lucasfilm. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
  2. ↑ Star Wars: Bounty Hunter (Video Game), LucasArts
  3. ↑ Star Wars Battlefront II, LucasArts
  4. ↑ "Republic Commando: Triple Zero"
  5. ↑ Traviss, Karen (2004). Hard Contact. Del Rey Books. ISBN 0-345-47827-4.
  6. ↑ Traviss, Karen (2006). Triple Zero. Del Rey Books. ISBN 0-345-49009-6.

External links