Denal/Legends

"I'm taking charge."

- Denal

Denal was one of the most experienced clone troopers in the elite 501st Legion, having survived many Clone Wars campaigns alongside Captain Rex and Jedi General Anakin Skywalker. At the start of the war, Denal saw action on Rodia, Tatooine and Orto Plutonia, conducting many missions on those planets. He rescued a battalion of clone troopers from a Separatist ambush, recovered a lost Republic cargo, and helped a Jedi in distress defeat a superior force of battle droids. On one occasion, he even saved General Skywalker's Padawan Ahsoka Tano from a Separatist prison on Tatooine. Denal was involved in the discovery and destruction of a new Confederacy superweapon&mdash;one that could prevent Republic radar from detecting enemy armies.

Later in the war, Denal accompanied Rex, Skywalker, and Tano on a mission to destroy a Separatist listening post, which they successfully completed. Of the five-man squad of clones that was sent there along with the Jedi, only he and Rex survived the mission.

Clone Wars
"This is where the fun begins."

- Denal

Denal was a clone trooper in the Grand Army of the Republic who served in the 501st Legion's Torrent Company during the Clone Wars. He was one of the most experienced troopers in the 501st, having survived many campaigns alongside Captain Rex and Jedi General Anakin Skywalker. Denal was assigned to patrol the feared Outer Rim region. That lawless and dangerous part of the galaxy became a test for his skills. At one point during the war, he was dispatched along with a battalion of clone troopers to the planet Rodia. While on Rodia, his battalion was ambushed and surrounded by overwhelming droid forces, after droid artillery took out most of their transports. Denal took charge of the battalion and ordered his men to call for reinforcements. However, they soon discovered that the droids had been jamming their signals, so Denal and his men needed to capture a comm relay station in order to contact the fleet. After successfully capturing it and defending against droid counter-attacks, Denal and his battalion managed to contact the fleet and escape to safety on a LAAT/i gunship.

Soon, Denal was contacted by Captain Rex who ordered him to make way for reinforcements by destroying all droids in a nearby jungle clearing. Denal quickly completed his objective, allowing the Republic to land additional forces on Rodia. He was then once again contacted by Rex with the order to destroy a transport factory. This factory could only be destroyed by hacking the console that triggered the self-destruct mechanism. Instead of using the shortest way to the console, Denal chose to go through the hidden path in the swamp, destroying an MTT with grenades along the way. He then triggered the base's self-destruction mechanism and left with his squad on a LAAT/i.

After that, Denal was called to assist a lone Jedi in distress on the frozen world of Orto Plutonia. His squad helped the Jedi to defeat the droids and evacuated him from the planet. Near the evacuation LAAT/i they met Ahsoka Tano, Padawan of General Skywalker, sent by her Master to help Denal. He then participated in two subsequent missions on Orto Plutonia, involving the recovery of a lost Republic cargo and the rescue of a downed LAAT/i crew. During these missions Denal grew suspicious of a large Separatist presence on a previously deserted world. Denal's squad was next dispatched by Rex to Tatooine, to investigate a seemingly deserted Separatist base, which was in fact swarming with droids. After clearing the base of the hostiles, Denal grew even more suspicious, as he was informed by the scout team about the droid presence in the desert. His suspicions finally proved true when the Republic discovered a hidden Confederacy research station there. Denal led his clones into the station, only to find a message from General Grievous, who claimed that the Republic would soon be finished. After downloading the secret plans hidden there, Denal and his men barely escaped the installation.

The data retrieved from Tatooine revealed a new Separatist superweapon capable of clouding entire armies from Republic radar. Denal was sent to investigate further to Rodia. He infiltrated the local Trade Federation base and stole another set of data. Returning to Tatooine, Denal received intelligence from Obi-Wan Kenobi about Tano being held in a Separatist prison. Once inside, Denal's troops encountered a Jedi, who joined them in a quest to free Skywalker's Padawan. With his help, Denal was able to free Ahsoka.

It was decided to steal the superweapon's plans and then attack the main Separatist headquarters. Denal was ordered by Rex to destroy several Confederacy bases that supplied the main base in order to weaken its defenses. Once again reuniting with the Jedi, Denal destroyed the construction yard on Tatooine and later, a weapons factory on Rodia. Denal infiltrated the research station on Orto Plutonia and stole the superweapon plans. He later destroyed the main Separatist base located nearby, bringing an end to the construction of the weapon.

Mission to Skytop Station
"I could always hot-wire it, sir."

- Denal upon R3-S6 not opening the door.

Under the command of Captain Rex, Denal participated in a mission to neutralize a Separatist listening post and to rescue Anakin Skywalker's droid R2-D2. Infiltrating the station with jetpacks, Denal, Rex, Ahsoka Tano, astromech droid R3-S6, and three clones soon separated from Skywalker, who ordered them to plant charges while he was searching for R2. Denal and the others then reached a door that was ray-shielded. Tano instructed R3-S6 to disable the shield, but the droid, who was in fact a Separatist spy, instead stalled them until battle droids arrived. Denal was first to hear them coming and warned his teamates. He suggested hot-wiring the door, but R3's seeming ineptitude blocked it. The group was outnumbered, yet were able to use EMP grenades to disable the battle droids. However, General Grievous arrived and engaged them, quickly knocking Jedi Tano unconscious. He then killed three clones and stunned Rex and Denal. As the droid general was about to finish off the two clones, Tano recovered in time to block the attack. She then ran off, drawing Grievous after her, allowing Rex and Denal to set charges on the repulsorlift generator for the station. Later, in the landing hangar, they met with Skywalker, who managed to rescue R2 and call his ship, the Twilight. When they informed Skywalker of Ahsoka's actions, he ordered them to go with him to assist his Padawan. But as they set off on a rescue, R3 appeared and sealed the hangar, revealing itself to them as a Separatist spy by activating several Vulture and B2 super battle droids. Rex, Denal, Skywalker and the Twilight pilot hid behind several shipping crates and fired at the droids. Skywalker then ordered Rex to trigger the explosives just as Tano rejoined the group. Together, they destroyed all enemies, and with the help of R2, who opened hangar doors and destroyed R3, escaped the doomed battlesphere aboard the Twilight.

Personality and traits
Denal was an experienced trooper and a gifted leader, as indicated by the many successful missions his squad completed. He usually did not question any orders from those of superior rank. He was known for being able to "hot-wire" a control panel, which would indicate that he was a proficient slicer. Denal wore a custom helmet, most likely of his own design and preference, marked with the blue color scheme of the 501st Legion. During the Mission to Skytop Station, he utilized a DC-15S blaster. Denal also showed proficiency with a jetpack during the infiltration of the station.

Behind the scenes
Denal was created for the 2008 Star Wars: The Clone Wars project and appeared in the seventh episode of the series, titled "Duel of the Droids." He later appeared as a main character in the wireless telephone game The Clone Wars. In the game, he starts as a mere trooper and receives promotions throughout the game, eventually making it to commander. Given the fact that he served under Rex in the TV series, who was a captain, Denal must have had a lower rank than him, making him either a sergeant or a lieutenant. His rapid advancement in rank during the game, however, must be reward mechanics and are not representing canonical promotions. Also, throughout the game, instead of his own trademark armor seen in "Duel of the Droids," Denal wears what seems to be the standard blue-colored lieutenant variant of the Phase I armor. In the episode he appeared in, the markings on Denal's armor tend to disappear from time to time, most notably in a scene after one of the droids gets his head torn off.

Aside from his appearances in "Duel of the Droids" and the wireless game, Denal was referenced in The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia written by Steve Sansweet and Pablo Hidalgo. In addition, Denal appears on a promotional image for the upcoming mobile phone game Star Wars Battlefront: Mobile Squadrons, though it is unknown if he will appear in the actual game itself.

Merchandise
A bobblehead of Denal was released by Funko in 2008, exclusively in Wal-Mart. Also, Denal is to be released as an action figure in September 2009 by Hasbro.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Battlefront: Mobile Squadrons
 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars (mobile)