User blog:KnightReturns422/The Clone Wars: The Downfall of the Light

''We have written this book to preserve and chronicle the war that brought about the Republic's downfall. Lawen Austin and myself, Hevor Jorkins, including several other people serving in the Clone Wars as well as the Jedi Knights who lead the clone troopers decided to write the true accounts that occurred. Let not these lead you astray, but rather, learn from them.''

Origins of the Clone Wars
By Ralana Ahln, Jedi Historian

Though the Clone Wars officially began in 22 BBY, its origins can be traced back to around ten years, roughly the time around the Blockade of Naboo. Very little was known back then, but what is known is that the Republic was waning gradually, with worlds losing faith in the Republic. Eight years later, dozens of planets seceded from the Galactic Republic because of its continual decline. Despite Chancellor Palpatine's best attempts at negotiations, hundreds of worlds despised his charismatic leadership, and so therefore broke away to form the separatist movement.

Two years later, the movement was at its peak. The Galactic Senate voted for resurrecting the Republic Army since the Ruusan Reformations, though this was never carried out due to an attempted assassination on a senator named Padme Amidala. The Republic and Jedi Order learned later that a Jedi Master named Sifo-Dyas placed an initial order for three million clones to be prepared, ready to serve the Republic at a moment's notice. A bounty hunter named Jango Fett, a Mandalorian, served as a template for this massive clone army. Little did the sleepy Republic know that a growing threat, involving these clones was about to awaken that would bring about their destruction three years later...

On Geonosis, Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi discovered that former Jedi Master Count Dooku had made several alliances with the Corporate Alliance, Techno Union, Inter-Galactic Banking Clan, the Commerce Guild and the Trade Federation. Their purpose: to wage war on the Republic and submit to their rule. When Kenobi was captured, the Jedi launched a rescue operation of over 200 Jedi to rescue him. When the Jedi arrived in the Petranaki Arena, their rescue turned into a battle. With many Knights and masters falling in the skirmish, it looked as if the end was near. But then, hope came. Several LAAT/i Gunships came in to the rescue, carrying platoons of clone troopers into the battle. Immediately the droids were caught off guard, and the survivors were rescued.

Following the rescue, the Jedi and clones were pressed into service, stopping any coreships from escaping the system. Despite the Clone Army aiding us, it was still a difficult job of routing the millions of battle droids. With artillery heard on both sides, firepower was all that counted. Amidst the smoke and blaster rifles, the Republic won its first battle: the Battle of Geonosis. However, that victory came with a cost: Count Dooku escaped, thousands of clone troopers were killed, and much of the Droid Army fled, regrouping and calling themselves the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The Senate, knowing that an all-out war was inevitable, prepared to gear up for a long and bloody fight; the Clone Wars had begun.

Rank, Organization and Structure
By Lawen Austin, Republic Soldier

Following Geonosis, the Senate took great strides to prepare the army for war. Organized from smallest to largest, noted units began to make their mark in the war. Broken into ten levels from a squad to Grand Army, they go as follows:

The Clone Trooper
By Lawen Austin, Republic Soldier and Kyle Redbreak, Jedi Master

No army is an army without soldiers to command and lead. In GAR circumstances, clone troopers became the backbone of the Republic. Clone troopers, as their name suggests, are genetically modified beings created from the template, Jango Fett. Genetically modified to grow twice as fast, troopers who are ten years old resembled those in their early twenties. Training took place on the watery world of Kamino, consisting of flash training, learning the basics of leadership, blaster training, piloting and computer skills. In some cases, clones who showed exceptional leadership were given special training to earn their command role. When the Kaminoians first created these clones, they altered their DNA by making them absolutely loyal to the Republic and to the Supreme Chancellor. In addition, they were given numbers instead of names. Their abosolute loyalty to the Supreme Chancellor himself would help bring about the Republic's destruction.



A clone trooper's armor consisted of twenty pieces of white armor plating, with a suit to protect the body. There were two phases of armor: Phase I and Phase II. Phase I armor was considered to be heavy, bulky and disliked by many clones. This was because that the Kaminoians had little knowledge of the human anatomy. During the second year of the war, Phase II came and was a huge improvement; thanks to the Kaminoans' improved knowledge of anatomy, the armor was light, heavily armored and its mobility allowed troops to move around quickly. The most important part of a clone trooper's armor was his helmet. This T-shaped visor contained a web of communications, the ability to see in the dark, and to see through fog and smoke during battle. While both armors didn't protect clones from heavy blaster-fire and artillery, it did provide heating when in harsh and cold environments. Moreover, it also protected troops from poison gases and glancing shots.

Color distinction was used during the first year of the war. Troops wearing Phase I armor had color distinction to identify rank. For instance, Sergeants and Sergeant-Majors were identified by olive green markings (to differentiate between two troopers with the same livery, glyphs were utilized by a slash on their armor). When troops switched to Phase II, however, color rank was used less, and instead of identifying command troops with color flashes, you could identify color depending on the clone's unit affiliation. For instance, the 501st Legion troops were identified by blue markings.

During the First Battle of Geonosis, 172,00 clone troopers were deployed on the battlefield. Due to the poor leadership of the Jedi, thousands of clones fell in combat. Following the battle, and in the first year of the Clone Wars, many clone units were assigned to a Jedi General. While the clones expected their general to be frank, short and straight to the point, the Jedi's leadership role was different. In contrast to that of a Republic General or a Navy Admiral (in some cases, they allow leniency), the Jedi were lenient, calm and encouraged their troops to develop their own individuality. To that end, many clone troopers customized their armor, their hairstyles, added tattoos to their faces and skin and even developed their own nicknames so as to avoid confusion among clone number calling.

Ranks
No matter what kind of military you're in, there are always ranks. In the Grand Army, clone trooper ranks were identified by color. However, as the Clone Wars went into its second year, rank colors were used less and less due to the types of unit affiliation. The table outlines the ranks of clones:

Special Operations Brigade
By Gram Alnin

(To be Expanded)

Specialized Roles
By Kyle Redbreak, Jedi Master

During my time on Kamino on numerous occasions, I witnessed troops undergoing special training, be it an ARC Trooper, a Clone Commando, a pilot, a demolition, any role you can think of in the Grand Army. But for all these roles, each has a special part to play in the Clone War.

(To be Expanded)

Machines of War
By Jonna Vogal, Republic Engineer

Troops along couldn't achieve without machines to reinforce them. In fact, if they did not have machines, how would they have reached their designated battlespot? I performed maintenance and repaired hundreds of machines for the Republic war effort, and none is greater than the other. What really mattered in the machines was its firepower, not its appearance. The Republic made several contracts such as Rothana Heavy Engineering and Kuat Drive Yards to produce these awesome machines that would later tear down millions of Droid soldiers.

Ground Vehicles
(To be Expanded)