Advanced Recon Commando

ARC troopers - more formally known as Advanced Recon Commando - are elite special forces of clone troopers from George Lucas' fictional Star Wars saga. They saw action under the Grand Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars era.

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.

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).

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"

Armor
Arc troopers wear 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.

Weapons
Most ARC troopers were armed with heavy blaster rifles, reverse-polarity pulse grenades and, on occasion, s. They were also given a wide choice of other weapons.

Ranks

*White-standard.
*Blue-lieutenant.
*Red-captain.
*Yellow-commander.

Subdivisions
There were a few subdivisions of the Advanced Recon Commando:

*ARC heavy gunner
*ARC pilot
*BARC trooper
*Null trooper

Examples of Subdivisions
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 the 41st Elite legion, which they are assigned to, however they wore camouflage armor on Kashyyyk, as this suited their mission profile.

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.

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.

Notable ARCs
Alpha (A-17)

During the defense of the major cloning facilities on Tipoca City, Kamino, Alpha is the lone survivor of his squad to witness the final victory over the Confederate ground forces. When the Gungan moon colony of Ohma-D'un 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 a prison in the planet where they were tortured.

Both soon break free from their captors and flee to the city of 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 - possibly crippled - 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.

Captain Fordo

The instrumental sabotage of '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 including Ki-adi-mundi and Shaak Ti 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 was also given phase 2 armor with red markings, like those of a shock trooper. He is presently leading clone troops into battle on Coruscant. (as seen on Star Wars Clone Wars: Cartoon Network) where his team was being overrun by Separatists until Jedi Masters Yoda and Mace Windu rescued them. His fate later on is unknown

Known actions
*First Battle of Kamino
*Battle of Ohma-D'un
*Battle of Jabiim
*Battle of Pengalan IV
*Battle of Muunilinst
*Battle of Hypori
*Mission to Ord Cestus
*Battle of Colla IV
*Battle of Praesitlyn
*Battle of Byblos

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 . Null-ARC troopers were also involved with the destruction of a terrorist network operating on Coruscant.

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See Also

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