CT-411

"General, the enemy fire is penetrating our shields!"

- CT-411, to Mace Windu

CT-411, nicknamed "Ponds," was a human male clone bred from the genetic template of Jango Fett. During the Clone Wars, he served at the side of Jedi General Mace Windu as a clone trooper commander in the Grand Army of the Republic. On Geonosis, Ponds arranged for five special commando units to follow Windu's orders during the first battle of the war. Specializing in military reconnaissance, Ponds was the commander of Lightning Squadron, a division of Advanced Recon Force troopers in the 91st Mobile Reconnaissance Corps.

As the conflict between the Galactic Republic and Confederacy of Independent Systems spread across the galaxy, Ponds accompanied Windu on a Republic military campaign to the Outer Rim planet of Ryloth in order to liberate the Twi'lek homeworld. There he fought alongside Windu with the support of Lightning Squadron, including troopers CT-6910 ("Razor") and "Stak." After joining forces with the Twi'lek Resistance, Ponds and Windu led a direct assault on the capital city of Lessu, captured Emir Wat Tambor and ultimately lifted the Separatist occupation of Ryloth.

In addition to the campaign on Ryloth, Ponds participated in the Battle of Malastare where he assisted Windu in the capture of a Zillo Beast. He was later stationed on the Venator-class Star Destroyer Endurance at a time when the bounty hunter Boba Fett plotted to assassinate Windu. After the Republic warship crashed on the surface of Vanqor&mdash;having been sabotaged by Fett&mdash;Ponds was taken prisoner by Fett's mercenary allies along with Admiral Kilian and a clone navigation officer. He was executed shortly afterwards by Aurra Sing in an attempt to lure Windu into a trap. Despite the commander's death, Fett ultimately failed in his attempts to kill Windu and was sent to prison after the Jedi captured him on Florrum.

Origin and debut on Geonosis
"Sir. I have five special commando units awaiting your orders, sir."

- CT-411, to Mace Windu

CT-411, also known as "Ponds," was a Clone Commander who belonged to an army of Kamino-based clone troopers&mdash;grown from the genetic material of the bounty hunter Jango Fett&mdash;created to serve the Galactic Republic. By modifying Fett's genetic structure, the Kaminoans accelerated the clones' aging process so that they would reach maturity within a decade of their inception. Around the same time, the Republic was on the verge of civil war due to a growing secessionist movement that ultimately led to the creation of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. As a result, Ponds and his brethren were pressed into service as the backbone of the newly-formed Grand Army of the Republic in 22 BBY.

Ponds was one of many clone troopers who accompanied Yoda, the Grand Master of the Jedi Order, to the planet Geonosis where they fought the Confederacy's droid army for the first time in a galaxy-wide conflict known as the Clone Wars. Although his training lacked instructions on how to interact with the Jedi like the adjutants Prime Minister Lama Su introduced to Yoda, Ponds was able to gain the trust of Jedi Master Mace Windu whom he served during the fighting on Geonosis. During the battle, he provided Windu with five special commando units.

Following the Republic victory on Geonosis, Ponds remained at Windu's side as the Clone Wars spread across the galaxy. A specialist in military reconnaissance, he would serve as the commander of Lightning Squadron, a division of Advanced Recon Force troopers in the 91st Mobile Reconnaissance Corps.

Battle of Ryloth
"Droids have begun a firebombing campaign. Several villages in our sector have been destroyed, sir."

- CT-411, to Mace Windu

Early in the war, Ryloth&mdash;the home planet of the Twi'lek species, located in the Outer Rim Territories&mdash;fell to a Separatist invasion led by Emir Wat Tambor, foreman of the Techno Union and a member of the Separatist Council. Though the Separatist navy formed a blockade around the planet in preparation for a Republic attack, Jedi General Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan, Jedi Commander Ahsoka Tano successfully created a breach in the enemy's defense perimeter, allowing for Ponds and General Windu to bring their ground forces to Ryloth.

The ground invasion was stalled by several J-1 proton cannons; located in the city of Nabat, the cannons opened fire on the Acclamator-class assault ships, destroying one of them just as Ponds informed Windu that the proton bombs had penetrated the transports' deflector shields. After the cannons were destroyed by General Obi-Wan Kenobi and the 212th Attack Battalion, Windu and Ponds brought the ground forces to the surface and proceeded to march on the capital city of Lessu.

En route to the capital, the Republic army was ambushed by a group of Armored Assault Tanks. At Windu's direction, Ponds ordered Lightning Squadron to engage the Separatists and although they succeeded in destroying the tanks, the casualties they sustained necessitated the need for reinforcements. To that end, Windu sought out Cham Syndulla to form an alliance with the Twi'lek Resistance while Ponds remained with the main force. After discovering a local village populated by women and children, Ponds intended to provide them with some of the army's rations, only to witness the village's destruction by a group of Separatist Hyena-class bombers. Upon learning of the attack from the commander's report, Syndulla committed his resistance fighters to the Republic's imminent assault on Lessu.

The battle for Lessu commenced with Windu leading the initial attack on the city, leaving Ponds and Syndulla to direct their combined forces into Lessu while the Jedi Master proceeded to capture Wat Tambor. Having succeeded in driving the remaining Separatists away from Ryloth, Ponds&mdash;along with Windu, Syndulla, and Senator Orn Free Taa&mdash;attended a victory parade in Lessu where the Twi'leks celebrated their renewed liberty.

Battle of Malastare
"Sir, there's nothing around here but rocks and debris.''" "''I have a bad feeling about this."

- CT-411 and Mace Windu, just prior to discovering the Zillo Beast

In 21 BBY Ponds followed Mace Windu to Malastare, a Mid Rim planet rich in natural fuel reserves. Working in conjunction with the native Dug population, as well as Anakin Skywalker and Clone Captain CT-7567 ("Rex") of the 501st Legion, Ponds' clone troopers defended Malastare against an army of Separatist battle droids. During the battle, the Republic field-tested an experimental superweapon called the electro-proton bomb, which could release an electromagnetic pulse disabling the Separatists' droids while causing no harm to the clones.

However, the bomb also had an adverse effect on the environment of Malastare, causing parts of the surface to break and form a large sinkhole in the center of the battlefield. Following the battle, Windu and Ponds led a search party into the pit to rescue survivors. In the course of their search, they encountered the Zillo Beast, a large creature that had been awoken from its slumber by the detonation of the bomb. Ponds and the clones opened fire, but the creature's skin proved impervious to blasters and even lightsabers. After Ponds and Windu escaped from the sinkhole, the Republic succeeded in capturing the Zillo Beast by using several stun cannon tanks to incapacitate it.

Service aboard the Endurance
"I'm staying with the Admiral. You'd better evacuate."

- CT-411, ordering a clone trooper to evacuate the Endurance

Later in the Clone Wars, Ponds joined Windu and Skywalker aboard the Venator-class Star Destroyer Endurance, commanded by Admiral Kilian of the Republic Navy. Unknown to Ponds and the crew, however, Boba Fett&mdash;an unaltered clone of Jango Fett&mdash;infiltrated the Republic flagship by posing as a member of the Clone Youth Brigade. After failing to assassinate Windu, who killed Jango in single combat on Geonosis, Boba sabotaged the Endurance in order to escape the vessel. Unable to prevent the Star Destroyer from crashing on Vanqor, the crew was evacuated in the escape pods, although Ponds elected to stay behind as Kilian refused to leave the bridge.

Capture and death
"What's your name?''" "''CT-411."

- Aurra Sing and CT-411, moments before the latter's execution

Ponds survived the crash of the Endurance on Vanqor, but was soon captured along with Kilian and a clone navigation officer by the bounty hunters Boba Fett, Aurra Sing, Bossk, and Castas. By the time Windu and Skywalker arrived at the crash site to search for survivors, the mercenaries had taken their prisoners to Slave I. While traveling through space, Sing executed Ponds, whose death Windu and Skywalker witnessed through a holographic transmission that was sent to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.

After Ponds' death, his body was jettisoned into space as the bounty hunters continued on their way to Florrum, where they were confronted by Plo Koon and Ahsoka Tano. Ultimately, the two Jedi successfully rescued the remaining hostages and captured Fett, who was sent to prison as punishment for his actions aboard the Endurance as well as the taking of hostages.

Equipment
The back of Ponds' helmet had a phrase stenciled in Aurebesh that read "some guys have all the luck."

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones