Summary
Over the past 22 years ofStar Warshistory, cloning, clone troopers, and Kamino have all become more and more important. Ever since the release ofStar Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clonesin 2002, audiences have known aboutthe Galactic Republic’s army ofclone troopers, and just how significant of a force it was in galactic history. The clones and the Clone Wars, however, have been a part ofStar Wars' history for even longer, dating back to a reference in the original movie in 1977.
Initially commissioned as part of Chancellor Palpatine’s plot to take over the galaxy while it was engulfed in the Clone Wars, the clone army was created on the planet Kamino. The army was discovered by Obi-Wan Kenobi, who found that the planet had been erased fromthe Jedi Temple’s archives. Ever since, it’s been revealed that there is so much more to the clones, their homeworld, and everything that they caused - and here’s all of it explained.
Every Clone Who Disobeyed Order 66 In Star Wars Canon & Legends
Star Wars' Clone Troopers were bred for absolute loyalty and secretly created to destroy the Jedi…but not every one obeyed the sinister Order 66.
Kamino Was The Home Of Cloning In Star Wars
The Kaminoans Were Master Cloners – And Created An Army
As seen inAttack of the Clones, and even more so inStar Wars:The Clone WarsandStar Wars:The Bad Batch, Kamino was an ocean planet, almost completely engulfed by storms. Kamino was located in the Wild Space sector of theStar Warsgalaxy, and was technically extra-galactic, being located just beyond theRishi Maze- a satellite galaxy to the main one. Kamino was home to the Kaminoans, aliens who specialized in cloning technology.
Not much is known about the Kaminoans before the creation of theGrand Army of the Republic, but it’s safe to assume that they had created armies before. The Kaminoans used accelerated growth rates to grow clones much faster, and even trained them for combat in their facilities. Still,no army they had created before 22 BBY, when the Clone Wars began, was as well-made as the Republic’s army, as stated by Kaminoan Prime Minister Lama Su himself:
Yes, a clone army. And, I must say, one of the finest we’ve ever created.
Cloning Was Vital During The Clone Wars Era
Kamino Became One Of The Most Important Planets In The Republic
Obi-Wan Kenobi’s discovery of the clones on Kamino was incredibly well-timed, too, as the Republic was soon after engulfed in a war against the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Because of that, Kamino and cloning became extremely important for the war effort. The Kaminoans used the genetic information of bounty hunter Jango Fett to create the army, leading to a distinct challenge after he was killed by Mace Windu on Geonosis.
Throughout the war,more and more clones were made, even as Jango’s DNA degraded - but never enough to majorly affect the cloning effort; only enough to encourage the Empire to shut it down after taking control. The original clones of Jango Fett were Boba Fett, an unaltered clone son for the bounty hunter, and Omega, an unaltered female clone who worked as a lab assistant on Kamino. At one point, Kamino was even attacked by Separatist forces, and clones fought to defend their home from destruction for the first time.
The Empire’s Destruction Of Kamino
After its rise followingOrder 66and the end of the Clone Wars, the Empire began to change what it used Kamino for. All clones, young and old, were moved off site, making way for the advanced facilities to be completely shut down as the Empire began filling its military with human soldiers rather than clones. This all came to a head whenthe Empire orbitally bombarded the capital of Kamino, Tipoca City, destroying all of its cloning technologyand leaving Kaminoans either as refugees or in the Empire’s custody - but cloning’s importance in galactic history didn’t stop there.
Why The Kaminoans Made Omega The Same Way As Boba Fett (Was It Jango?)
The Bad Batch has revealed that Omega is, like Boba, an unaltered clone of Jango - but why did the Kaminoans make another unaltered clone of Fett?
Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious
After gaining control of the galaxy as Emperor, Sheev Palpatine began focusing on efforts to make his rule more and more permanent, and one effort wasProject Necromancer. Necromancer was a designated effort for developing cloning technology that allowed for the creation of Force-sensitive clones, whom Palpatine could transfer his consciousness into upon his death.Necessary for the project was a clone with a high enough Midichlorian count, which led to the Emperor desperately hunting Omega, who had Force-sensitive levels of Midichlorians.
Necromancer was a designated effort for developing cloning technology that allowed for the creation of Force-sensitive clones.
Most of the research for Palpatine’s clone-based contingency happened on the planet Wayland, at a research base known as Mount Tantiss. Palpatine stationed a scientist named Doctor Royce Hemlock there to conduct research on Force-sensitive children, likely working towards making a suitable clone for the Emperor. All of this was disrupted byClone Force 99, also known as the Bad Batch, who were a group of rebellious and modified clone commandos that destroyed the base in the wake of their rescue of Omega from the facility.
Project Necromancer Began Again After Palpatine’s Death
The Imperial Remnant Continued This Effort
Long after the events ofThe Bad Batchin theStar Warstimeline, multiple episodes ofThe Mandalorianhave brought Project Necromancer to the forefront as well. The remnants of the Empire are shown, specifically in relation to Moff Gideon’s remnant, to be focusing on cloning technology for various reasons. Project Necromancer is even mentioned by name during theImperial Shadow Councilmeeting inThe Mandalorianseason 3, specifically in the context of Commandant Hux.
Grand Admiral Thrawn’s return will herald in the reemergence of our military, and provide Commandant Hux enough time to deliver on Project Necromancer.
Commandant Hux went on to help foundthe First Order, bringing everything full-circle in terms of Palpatine’s cloning andSupreme Leader Snoke. Snoke was created with cloning technology, and he eventually became the singular leader of the Imperial Remnant. These Remnant leaders, however, also seemed to all be working towards the goal of making suitable clones for the Emperor, one of which is clearly seen inStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. All of this together has made cloning a very solid throughline in theStar Warstimeline, from the Clone Wars to the Final Order.
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Star Wars
Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.
