First Battle of Geonosis

"This is just the beginning!"

- Count Dooku

The First Battle of Geonosis, known most commonly as simply the Battle of Geonosis, was the first battle between the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Galactic Republic in the conflict that would become known as the Clone Wars. It would be the first major combat of the Grand Army of the Republic, as well as the first major battle the Jedi would fight in years.

Prelude
"More happening on Geonosis, I feel, than has been revealed."

- Yoda

In 22 BBY, the Galactic Republic was in the midst of a crisis. Thousands of star systems and conglomerates including the Trade Federation, InterGalactic Banking Clan, Techno Union, Commerce Guild and the Corporate Alliance, had seceded and joined the Confederacy of Independent Systems under the guidance of former-Jedi Count Dooku as terrorist strikes hit the capital planet Coruscant. The Republic Senate planned to meet that year to discuss the Military Creation Act. Three months before the vote, angry showdowns occurred between planets' inhabitants and among the two opposing governments while the Refugee Relief Movement tried to help where possible.

The day of the vote, Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo arrived on Coruscant to vote against the Act, but faced an assassination attempt. She was then assigned Jedi protectors&mdash;Obi-Wan Kenobi and his youthful Padawan, Anakin Skywalker. Kenobi followed the trail of the toxic dart which ended the life of the assassin while Skywalker escorted the Senator back to Naboo.

Kenobi followed the tip from his friend Dexter Jettster to the planet Kamino, which had been erased from the Jedi Archives by forces unknown. There he discovered that ten years earlier, Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas had placed an order for a clone trooper army. During the tour, he met the bounty hunter Jango Fett. Kenobi reported back to the Jedi Council and decided to pursue Fett, suspecting that he was involved in the assassination attempt. They battled on a landing platform, and Kenobi was able to plant a homing beacon on Fett's ship.

On his way to Geonosis, Dooku encoded a message to General Sev'rance Tann telling her he foresaw a great battle was about to happen. He also ordered her to prepare for his swift departure.

Kenobi pursued Fett to Geonosis. His ship barely avoided a homing torpedo, and he landed on the surface. He snuck into a facility and watched a meeting of Separatist leadership, where it was revealed that Viceroy Nute Gunray of the Trade Federation was behind Amidala's assassination attempt. Kenobi reported back to the Jedi Council but was captured by destroyer droids. His signal was rerouted through Amidala's ship on Tatooine, as she and Skywalker had traveled there in a failed attempt to rescue his mother. Meanwhile, Dooku met with the captive Kenobi to try to turn him to his side, even revealing that the events on Naboo years prior had in fact been orchestrated by a Sith lord named Darth Sidious, and also strongly insinuated that Sidious was one of the high ranking officials of the Republic's government. Kenobi refused, and Dooku suggested it would be difficult for him to secure his release.

Skywalker and Amidala traveled to Geonosis to rescue Kenobi but were captured in the Geonosis droid foundries. The two were sentenced to death in the Petranaki arena along with Kenobi. When Kenobi enquired them as to why they were present, Skywalker explained Amidala's idea to rescue him, with Kenobi sarcastically congratulating them for the failed objective. They narrowly escaped their executions, which involved an acklay, a nexu, and a reek.

In response to Kenobi's report about the Separatists' conspiracy, the Galactic Senate, at the suggestion of Representative Jar Jar Binks, granted Supreme Chancellor Palpatine "emergency powers" to deal with the crisis.

Jedi Grand Master Yoda brought the secret clone trooper army into use, and sent them to Geonosis right behind a Jedi strike force. The rapid nature of the deployment off Kamino left "Cuy'val Dar" sergeants such as Kal Skirata reeling at waking up to discover the commando squads they had trained gone.

Penetrating the defenses
"You call this a diplomatic solution?''" "''No, I call it aggressive negotiations."

- Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala

A group of 212 Jedi, led by Jedi Masters Mace Windu, Coleman Trebor, Eeth Koth, Kit Fisto, Plo Koon, Shaak Ti, Even Piell, Luminara Unduli and Ki-Adi-Mundi were sent to Geonosis by the Jedi High Council to rescue Obi-Wan Kenobi and investigate reports that Separatists were constructing an army on Geonosis. Upon entering the system, the fleet of Jedi starfighters were fired upon by Anti-orbital cannons, taking several casualties. Mace Windu and Luminara Unduli slipped past the firing range of the cannons and piloted TX-130S fighter tanks, and employed communications jamming to stop any CIS forces from calling for reinforcements. They set off to disable the orbital cannons. The droid defenses, consisting of GATs, Hailfire droids, and STAPs, attempted to hold them off, but were destroyed by the Jedi. The power nodes were destroyed, causing the cannons to explode.

The last cannon, however, was housed in a Geonosian base. Windu set out on foot to disable the cannon. He penetrated the droid defenses and destroyed the last power nodes with his lightsaber. With the orbital defenses disabled, a landing zone had to be made. The Jedi strike team landed in a captured Confederate outpost and moved toward the arena in a convoy of RTTs. Windu and Unduli cleared the way in their tanks. They reached the perimeter of the arena, where they destroyed tunnel catacombs deploying battle droids. The Jedi deployed into the arena quietly.

Also around this time, the Acclamator-class assault ship Aken was traveling to Geonosis through its asteroid belt. Aken was escorted by Jedi starfighters lead by Adi Gallia, who had traveled from Nod Kartha, and Siri Tachi. After they were spotted by droid starfighters, the Jedi had to defend the Aken from two C-9979 landing craft and two Trade Federation Missile Frigates that appeared behind them along with Geonosian starfighters from the surface. The Separatist forces pushed the Republic group forward until the Aken reached the edge of the asteroid ring. There, a blockade of Missile Frigates arrived to trap them. Gallia led the starfighters and destroyed a pair of the frigates in their line. This allowed the Aken to escape and eventually reach the surface of Geonosis. Eventually, the rest of the Acclamator-class Assault ships penetrated the atmosphere, and proceeded to make pre-emptive strikes against the Geonosian beak-wing facilities, which resulted in the few fighters remaining unable to make headway against the Republic's orbital blockade.

Republic Strategic Command, including the Zilkin Meebur Gascon, was involved in planning the battle and analyzing maps to direct Republic forces. Gaba-18 airspeeders provided reconnaissance. V-19 Torrent starfighter prototypes also fought in the battle.

Arena battle
"This party's over."

- Mace Windu to Dooku and the Separatist leadership

The three captives, Skywalker, Amidala and Kenobi managed to avoid the beasts that had been set upon them long enough for Master Windu's 212-Jedi rescue mission team to arrive. However, Count Dooku revealed the Separatist's new secret battle droid army, and a heated battle took place. At one point in the battle, the Padawan Tu'ala, taking after her master, sacrificed herself to save Anakin Skywalker from a Geonosian soldier.

Though outnumbered, the Jedi fought to the end. As the Jedi appeared throughout the arena, many Geonosians fled.

It was during the heated battle that followed that bounty hunter Jango Fett attempted to fight and kill the legendary Korun Jedi Master, Mace Windu. However, during the fight, the reek nearly trampled Fett and damaged his jet pack. After killing the reek, Fett was charged by Mace Windu; at the last second the Mandalorian attempted to activate his jetpack, but failed. Mace Windu quickly beheaded the infamous bounty hunter. His battered helmet was soon found by his "son" Boba Fett. However, Dooku's forces held the upper hand. C-3PO had accidentally lost his head in a droid factory, and his head was attached to a battle droid's body, while his own body walked onto the assembly line and had a battle droid's head attached in turn. Both incarnations of C-3PO were defeated in the arena and were re-attached by R2-D2. Eventually, Dooku signaled for a cessation of the fight. He offered the chance to surrender, but Windu refused, saying the Jedi would not become hostages. Dooku then remorsefully signaled the surrounding droids to execute the Jedi.

Meanwhile, huge Republic assault ships penetrated the upper atmosphere and dropped a fleet of gunships, carrying thousands of clone troopers and dozens of AT-TEs as well as Jedi General Yoda, to the surface. By the time the fleet reached the arena, the Jedi had already suffered heavy casualties; all but 30 had been killed. Yoda ordered the clones to form a perimeter around the survivors as they evacuated. As they left, the empty stadium was littered with droid parts as the opening battle of the Clone Wars began.

A Jedi joined the strike team, cutting down numerous battle droids. As the battle spread past the arena, the Jedi continued to fight.

Desert battle
"If Dooku escapes, rally more systems to his cause, he will."

- Yoda

Around the time of the arena battle, a group of clone troopers lead by Jedi Master Adi Gallia and Jedi Knight Siri Tachi attacked a power plant that fueled the droid foundries in the surrounding area. After having escorted the Aken to the surface of Geonosis, Master Gallia and Siri Tachi led several LAAT/i gunships at their command to deploy troopers near the power plant. The two Jedi defended the clones on the ground and in the air from Separatist forces which included battle droids, Armored Assault Tanks, and droid starfighters. Along the way, Gallia had the gunships destroy a nearby Trade Federation Core Ship. Clone troopers eventually reached the power plant and set up explosives inside it. After the plant was detonated by the clones, Adi Gallia and Siri Tachi took to space to prevent Separatist transports from escaping.

After the rescue of the Jedi, the droid and clone armies engaged one another in a complex series of engagements on a number of different fronts. The Republic had planned the attack as a sudden, overwhelming assault that would catch the Separatists off guard and prevent them from gaining further influence.

Their army landed in twelve Acclamator-class assault ships, off-loading infantry, armored vehicles, artillery, and air support. The Separatist army consisted of droid infantry of varying strength and larger droid-controlled vehicles.



The Battle of Geonosis was primarily a ground campaign. However, the Republic's crucial use of aerial bombardment of the Separatists' fighter craft allowed the Republic's gunships to have air superiority throughout much of the battle, giving the clone forces a crucial advantage. And although the clone troopers were vastly outnumbered by droids, the droids were heavily exposed to attacks from the air by Republic gunships. The Republic's armored AT-TE walkers were strong against the lightly armored spider droids employed by the Separatists, but were vulnerable to the missiles on the Hailfire droids and the intense laser flak projected into the air. The Republic gunships were instrumental in clearing away the Hailfire droids and allowing the AT-TEs to establish superiority on the battlefield, although the Hailfires were able to shoot down a number of LAATs, and a few were destroyed by lucky shots from laser emplacements.

Clone trooper CT-1226's regiment was deployed near the arena. A wave of droids headed toward the force. One of the Republic walkers launched a projectile which created a crater, and CT-1226 fell into it. A Hailfire droid passed over his head. A B2-HA series super battle droid swatted aside B1 battle droids to target one of the walkers. CT-1226 was able to target the B2's heat exchangers, and a missile the droid launched hit a Hailfire instead. CT-1226 disabled the B2 with an electromagnetic pulse grenade and destroyed the droid with his blaster. The clone was then helped inside the walker as it plowed through the hole in the droid's defensive formation CT-1226 had formed.

Separatist General Sev'rance Tann was ordered to clear the way for Count Dooku. Along with a force of B2 super battle droids, she proceeded along a canyon where Confederacy forces engaged Republic forces. Tann took control of surviving units, including Mortar Super Battle Droids, Repeater super battle droids, heavy dwarf spider droids to battle Clone Scout Walkers and Clone Personal Walkers, and OG-9 spider droids to duel AT-TEs. At least one Blurrg trooper fought in those skirmishes. A trooper kept Tann updated with Count Dooku's status. Near the end of the canyon, Tann dueled and defeated three Jedi Knights. When Dooku arrived at the end of the canyon, he congratulated her for her efforts.



Republic reconnaissance troopers mounted their speeder bikes and raced across the battlefield, gathering vital information about enemy activity. Elsewhere, Geonosian-trained acklays and nexus devoured unfortunate clone troopers. A group of the airborne infantry, including Battalion Commander CRC-09/571, led the frontal assault on the Separatist Core Ships. Jedi Master Mace Windu, who was fighting on the ground, made his way to a LAAT/i and used it to destroy several Hardcell-class interstellar transports before landing and defending in a TX-130 Saber-class fighter tank SPHA guns bringing down Core Ships. In this way, another three Core Ships were taken down, before Windu was informed that contact with Master Yoda had been lost. Windu raced off to find the Grand Master but was intercepted by a trio of Dooku's Sith Acolytes piloting Enforcer hovertanks. Windu was able to defeat the trio.

Having beaten the droid army into retreat, Yoda noted that much of the Confederate Navy was still grounded receiving shipments of droids when the Republic attacked. Lightly armored and vulnerable Techno Union starships attempted to withdraw immediately, but many were destroyed in the first wave of attacks from the Republic gunships. The Jedi Master now ordered the army's artillery to attempt to take down as many of the heavily armored Trade Federation Core Ships as possible, as they each held millions of deadly battle droids, and managed to bring down at least one. In space, the Republic fleet fought to intercept and destroy the Separatist ships that carried scores of combat droids.

Despite taking control of the surface of the planet, the Republic was unable to capture the Separatist leadership and stop the war before it began, and most of the Confederacy's battle droids and heavy equipment escaped aboard Core Ships. Meanwhile, Jedi Master Echuu Shen-Jon and a team of other Jedi, including Plo Koon, destroyed several Core Ships and Techno Union vessels. They received reinforcements in the form of 10 GAR Energy Pummels carried aboard AA-9 freighters while a nearby Republic Starship and Gunship Bombers engaged targets of opportunity. Corporate Alliance Artillery Regulars were among the Separatist forces. The Jedi team then set off to pursue Count Dooku. However, they were delayed by Sev'rance Tann, who killed Stam Reath, Echuu's apprentice, angering Shen-Jon. Tann then escaped.

In the midst of battle, the Republic's Hawkbat Battalion was ordered to march directly into the line of fire of a column of spider droids. The battalion was almost completely annihilated, but Captain CT-65/91-6210, leader of K Company, stayed behind in a shallow crater to tend to two critically injured troopers at great personal risk. Surrounded by spider droids, he defended their position for three hours until the casevac team arrived. His heroic acts had not been in vain, as the two men under his command were rescued.

Elsewhere, ARC trooper CT-96/298, previously having studied power cell recharge cycles, recognized when a Hailfire droid was about to enter a reflux pattern. The whine of the droid's capacitor was barely audible, but CT-96/298 leapt from cover and eliminated the Hailfire before it could explode, thus saving the lives of five of his cohorts.

Deep within the Geonosian catacombs, the Separatist Kaleesh/cyborg General Grievous had his first combat deployment during the battle. He killed Master Ur-Sema Du and a battalion of clone troopers with an electrostaff, claiming the Jedi's lightsaber as part of what would soon be his gruesome "collection."

Later, above a crevasse, the Republic Commando squad Theta Squad rappelled in and placed charges on a Geonosian door, while Delta Squad held off OG-9 homing spider droids nearby. After the door was blown, Theta and Delta entered the Geonosian caverns and split up. Heading for a droid foundry, Theta squad leader RC-1133 ordered RC-1136 to stay behind and hold a position while the rest moved forward. 1136, or Darman, lost contact with his squad and pulled out. He was the only survivor of Theta.

Delta Squad managed to kill Geonosian Separatist General Sun Fac as he attempted to flee the planet in his personal Geonosian fighter. They also spotted General Grievous's Soulless One. The acquisition of the codes allowed the Republic artillery and fleet to take down the rest of the CIS fleet. Along the way, Delta Squad also eliminated significant numbers of droids, Geonosian warriors, and an anti-aircraft turret.

A LAAT/i gunship deployed the four members of Delta Squad into a canyon relatively close the Core Ship access way. They proceeded into the canyon, and fought through a series of ambushes. They finally reached the entrance to the Core Ship, but they were unable to penetrate the shield, so their Clone advisor, CC-01/425, ordered them to blast through a rock wall to reach a nearby exit. RC-1138 led his three commandos towards the second door, and the defending droids were destroyed in short order.

Suddenly, however, an A-DSD advanced dwarf spider droid came through a different doorway, and began firing its cannons at the stranded squad. After several intense minutes, the droid was blown up, and a gunship blasted the shield protecting the Core Ship's entryway, allowing access for Delta Squad. The squad split up, tasked with sabotaging various crucial systems. RC-1138 stormed through the B2 battle droid storage racks, rapidly finishing off any of them that were activated. RC-1138 found Sev in a corridor just before three destroyer droids rolled by, but they easily destroyed them using EC detonators, proceeding to save Scorch and Fixer, who were under heavy fire. Now together Delta Squad encountered a B1 battle droid dispenser, then several Geonosian elites and a second Advanced dwarf spider droid. Entering a lift, the squad prepared for their ultimate objective, the theft of the Core Ship launch codes, which were housed on the bridge. At that moment, a battle droid announced over a loudspeaker that all primary systems would overload in five minutes.

Delta Squad charged through multiple corridors, meeting dozens of droids on the way, and finally entered the bridge with only about one and a half minutes to spare. They brought down three auto-turrets and a squad of B1 battle droids, and Fixer began extracting the codes from a console as droidekas and B2s began swarming onto the bridge. After a minute, Delta Squad, gravely injured and being constantly hit by laser bolts, retreated through a corridor to a waiting LAAT/i Gunship just as the Core Ship began to explode. Delta squad was one of only a handful of Republic Commando squads not to lose any members during the Battle of Geonosis.

501st Mission
"Frankly I’m still amazed we ever made it through the first hour, never mind the first day."

- Entry from the Journal of the 501st

During the battle, a portion of the 501st Legion engaged in combat. A clone trooper was assigned to secure Checkpoint Alpha. He encountered three B2 super battle droid scouts, but managed to destroy them before they called in reinforcements. Blowing a Hailfire droid to pieces with his thermal detonators, he then secured the wreckage of a nearby Hardcell-class interstellar transport. The events soon became a full scale battle between the Geonosians, droids, and clones. A clone engineer was deployed to repair the Power droids and FX-series medical assistant droids, ensuring ammunition and medical supplies would aid the battle. During the course of the engagement, two Spider Droids arrived on the battlefield. The clone engineer was then ordered to the recently-deployed AT-TE. The Republic force soon destroyed the droids to prevent the balance of power from swinging. A Geonosian soldier was shot and killed, which resulted in him dropping a Sith Holocron on top of the wrecked Hardcell. A clone jet trooper was called in, and managed to get the Holocron to Checkpoint Alpha. The troopers then used the AT-TE to mount an assault on a nearby hill fortress, soon securing it. A clone sniper was deployed, and picked off Geonosians and droids alike. A clone heavy trooper came into play, using his rocket launcher to destroy a Spider droid. General Windu arrived shortly after, and led an assault that secured the Northern CIS bunker against droids including Assault battle droids, engineer battle droids. and IG-100 MagnaGuards.

Spire Mission
Master Yoda then sent a group of clone troopers, an AT-TE, and a couple of LAAT/i gunships into battle. Their mission was to secure the Spire council chamber, and wipe out the remaining droids in the area. They first destroyed the Techno Union Transport ships, denying the droids escape. The clone troopers then wiped out the remaining droids, and successfully captured the spire. The droid defenses included battle droid assassins, B2 battle droids, and destroyer droids.

Space battle
"Droid transports may yet try to escape. We must protect the planet from space to stop that happening."

- Adi Gallia to Siri Tachi

Following an initial raid on a Geonosian power plant, Adi Gallia and Siri Tachi, flew into orbit in their Delta-7 starfighters, intending to intercept escaping droid transports. Navigating through the asteroid ring, the Jedi received a hyperspace transmission from the pirate Nym, warning that Captain Cavik Toth of Sabaoth Squadron was en route to Geonosis with his Hex fleet. With the power of the biological weapon Trihexalon, Toth intended to level the battlefield on Geonosis, under the orders of Count Dooku.

Galia and Tachi led the fight against Toth's 8 Hex Deployers and 12 Bombers alongside Zeta Squadron, a squadron of Jedi pilots, including A'Sharad Hett, Bant Eerin, and An'ya Kuro. The Hex threat was summarily defeated under Jedi firepower, though the pilots were soon outmatched with the arrival of two Sabaoth destroyers and complements of Sabaoth starfighters and Defenders. Fortunately, Loyalist aid arrived in the form of Nym and the Lok Revenants with three G-400 starfighters and Nym's Havoc soon joined by three Mere cruisers capable of taking down Toth's capital ships. Nym and his forces dealt with the capital ship turrets on the destroyers while the Jedi attacked the waves of fighters.

After one warship was destroyed, a third Destroyer emerged from hyperspace&mdash;Toth's flagship. The Mere cruisers, led by Antilles on the Tritus, directed their fire on the second vessel while all starfighter forces then began to target the flagship's capital turrets before they could cripple the Mere cruisers. Developments on Geonosis forced Master Windu to call back Zeta Squadron leaving Gallia and Tachi with only the Revenants for support. Nym sustained critical damage to his craft during the fight, and was forced to leave the battlefield. Nevertheless, the Revenants penetrated the flagship's deflector shields, and the Destroyer's main systems went critical. Toth himself fled his flagship in a personal starfighter, and engaged Adi Gallia in single combat. Toth's weaponry could not overcome the Jedi's mastery of the Force, and his fighter was destroyed moments before his flagship exploded.

Confrontation with Darth Tyranus
"I can't take Dooku alone! I need you! If we catch him, we can end this war right now! We have a job to do!"

- Obi-Wan Kenobi to Anakin Skywalker

In the confusion of the battle, the Separatist leader Dooku, also known as Darth Tyranus, tried to flee to a hangar where his starship was docked. A Republic gunship carrying Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Padmé Amidala, and clone troopers pursued him. Dooku's wing guard of fighters piloted by Geonosians opened fire on the gunship; the resulting attack on the gunship led to Amidala and a clone trooper falling to the desert below. The gunship continued to give chase, deploying Kenobi and Skywalker into the Count's hangar shortly before being destroyed by laser fire. Trailing Dooku and the Republic gunship was General Mace Windu in a fighter tank, who was intercepted by three of Dooku's Dark Acolytes in front of the hangar. They engaged Windu in combat, and all three were killed by the Jedi Master's TX-130S fighter tank, but not soon enough to allow the Korun master to involve himself in the fight.

Kenobi vs. Tyranus
Upon arriving at Dooku's hangar, Kenobi and Skywalker challenged the Count. As Kenobi began to strategize, Skywalker, his anger getting the best of him, charged at Dooku. Dooku released a barrage of Force lightning and blasted Skywalker aside before turning to Kenobi. Kenobi began to circle Dooku as the Count attempted to blast Kenobi with another bolt of Force lightning, demanding the Jedi Knight's surrender. Kenobi grounded the blast on his lightsaber and calmly stated that he would not withdraw. Drawing his lightsaber and angling the blade into a guard position, Dooku awaited Kenobi. Kenobi promptly charged at Dooku and attacked, but Dooku quickly deflected Kenobi's initial attack and his subsequent jab. After a quick flurry of bladework, Kenobi slashed at Dooku's legs. Dooku overleapt the attack and flourished his blade to drive Kenobi back as he landed. As Kenobi fell back, Dooku calmly taunted him, telling him that he had expected a better performance from someone who was held in such high esteem by Yoda.

Kenobi attacked again, attempting to regain the offensive, but was forced into retreat by Dooku's elegant Form II bladework. Dooku quickly seized the offensive, the precision bladework of his Makashi style wearing away at Kenobi's Form III defense. Despite the energy efficiency of Kenobi's defense, Dooku's precision was so great that most of Kenobi's defensive slashes missed Dooku's blade entirely, forcing him to awkwardly scramble to fend off Dooku's attacks and quickly tiring him. Eventually Kenobi, straining to keep up, was pulled into a bladelock. Dooku, a wide grin on his face, pushed Kenobi's blade aside, and suddenly jabbed at Kenobi's arm, cutting it across the side. As Kenobi fell back in pain, the Count stayed on him, slashing the Jedi across the leg and bringing him down. Despite his wisely shown restraint against Dooku, Kenobi, fatigued by the battle, wielding an unfamiliar lightsaber, and outmatched by Dooku's skills, was defeated.

As Dooku raised his lightsaber to kill Kenobi, Skywalker recovered from the blast of Force lightning and saw Kenobi's predicament. Leaping across the hangar from the corner in which he lay, Skywalker reached the two in time to block the Count's blow. As Dooku turned to regard Skywalker, Kenobi used the Force to retrieve his fallen lightsaber and tossed it to Skywalker.

Skywalker vs. Tyranus
"Brave of you, boy, but I would have thought you had learned your lesson.''" "I am'' a slow learner."

- Dooku and Anakin Skywalker

Skywalker, taking up the second blade, began to unleash of flurry of broad Form IV attacks, briefly taking the Count off his guard. Dooku was able to recover his guard and drive Anakin back. Skywalker was forced to revert to his standard Form V practices when Dooku masterfully disarmed him, flicking his second blade out of Skywalker's hand and destroying the hilt in mid air. Warding off Dooku with two rapid strikes, Skywalker quickly retreated, regaining his composure.

Slashing a power cable connected to Dooku's ship as he raised his blade into a high guard, Skywalker caused a short circuit that briefly caused the hangar lights to flicker. As the chamber dimmed, the two advanced on each other. As they stared at one another, blades at the ready, Skywalker attacked. The two engaged in a flurry of swordplay, seemingly equally matched. Briefly breaking off, Dooku quickly reassessed Anakin's strength before quickly attacking, and the duel resumed. Despite holding his own against Dooku for much of the duel, Skywalker was finally brought down when Dooku twirled and slashed off his arm with a sudden undercut. As Anakin cried out in pain, Dooku blasted the Jedi aside with a Force push.

Yoda vs. Tyranus
"Master Yoda.''" "Count Dooku." "You have interfered with our affairs for the last time." "Powerful, you have become, Dooku. The dark side, I sense in you." "I've become more powerful than any Jedi&hellip; even you." "Much to learn, you still have." "''It is obvious that this contest cannot be decided by our knowledge of the Force, but by our skills with the lightsaber."

- Count Dooku and Grand Master Yoda

As Dooku briefly caught his breath, he noticed the sound of footsteps and the clack of a cane, as well as the characteristic panting. Turning to the hangar entrance, Dooku and the newly-arrived Yoda regarded one another. Dooku attempted to kill Yoda by telekinetically ripping wall fixtures out of the hangar sides and hurling them at Yoda. When the ancient Jedi blocked, Dooku countered by ripping chunks of stone out of the hangar ceiling, a dangerous proposition as the hangar was carved out of a cavern and doing so could cause a cave-in. Yoda caught the chunks and threw them aside, turning to Dooku and acknowledging his power, but noting that he sensed the dark side of the Force in Dooku. Dooku, affirming his apparent superior power, unleashed a barrage of Force lightning at Yoda. The Jedi effortlessly caught the lightning and deflected it back at Dooku, who again deflected it into a nearby wall. Dooku proceeded to unleash a second blast against Yoda, but as a show of his mastery, Yoda absorbed the bolt completely, with no need for deflection, showing Dooku the clear futility of this assault.

Dooku brandished his lightsaber, stating that this contest would not be decided by their mastery of the Force, but rather by their skill with a lightsaber. As Yoda drew his own weapon, Dooku leapt into action, unleashing his full Form II mastery against Yoda. However, Yoda's own mastery of Form IV allowed him to hold off Dooku's relentless attacks, and seize the offensive. Realizing both that he would not be able to defeat Yoda and that Republic reinforcements would soon arrive, Dooku distracted Yoda by using the Force to topple one of the hangar's power columns onto Kenobi and Skywalker. As Yoda broke off the duel to telekinetically catch the power column, Dooku was able to quickly board his ship and escape.

Aftermath
"I have good news for you, my Lord. The war has begun."'' ''"Excellent. Everything is going as planned."

- Darth Tyranus and Darth Sidious

The explosion of Toth's flagship was seen from the surface. Master Windu contacted Master Gallia for a status update. Gallia confirmed her mission was successful, and Windu informed her that the battle was over, although Dooku escaped and Skywalker had been wounded. The two later had a private meeting in the High Council Chamber.

By the end of the battle, only Republic soldiers remained. However, the victory had not come easy. When the Republic assault ship Implacable was extracted from Geonosis to Ord Mantell, med triage on board estimated 12,000 seriously injured men and 8,000 walking wounded. Approximately 72,000 clones were deemed combat-fit. Thousands of clone troopers had died in the fighting, and most of the Confederacy's army had been safely evacuated aboard Core Ships during the battle.

Geonosian Archduke Poggle the Lesser had fled along with the rest of the Separatist Council, and his warriors had retreated into the catacombs, where they resisted the Republic's every effort to dislodge them.

Count Dooku traveled to Coruscant to meet with his master, who was settled in an abandoned executive building in The Works, not far from the Senate District and the Jedi Temple. Pleased by the news of war he received from Dooku, Darth Sidious ordered the former Jedi, now the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus, to retreat to Raxus Prime to prepare a second battlefront against the Republic. Meanwhile, the Grand Army of the Republic was mobilized throughout the galaxy as the Clone Wars began. The main reason for the Separatist's defeat was that they were caught completely by surprise, working against their numerical superiority. Another reason they lost is that despite the fact Sev'rance Tann and General Grievous, arguably the Droid Army's most brilliant commanders, were present, they were not given command of the army, and were instead placed in support positions. Grievous remained unknown to the Republic, for he killed off any of the Jedi or clones he encountered, while Sev'rance Tann escaped Geonosis after killing Shen-Jon's Padawan, Stam Reath.

Cuy'val Dar sergeant Kal Skirata lost nine commandos that he trained in the battle, namely the casualties from Theta Squad, Prudii Squad, and Teroch Squad. He, Walon Vau, RC-1309, and RC-8015 would later reflect that this had been due to the Jedi's ill-advised usage of the commandos as infantry rather than special forces.

While back at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, Masters Kenobi and Windu both expressed their mutual belief that the battle would not have been won without the clones, but Master Yoda retorted at the irony of Obi-Wan's use of the word "victory." The battle was but the first of many in what became known as the Clone Wars. They also decided to investigate the Sith Lord that Dooku had mentioned to Obi-Wan Kenobi during the latter's imprisonment, Darth Sidious, in case Dooku was truthful about this revelation. It would not be until three years later, nearing the end of the Clone Wars, that they would eventually identify Sidious as being none other than the Supreme Chancellor, Palpatine. Skywalker, meanwhile, escorted Senator Amidala back to Naboo, where they were wed in a secret ceremony.

After the battle, a collection of reports known as the Geonosian Debriefings was compiled, and for his role in the battle, CT-1226 was given a medal at the insistence of the Republic generals.

Jango Fett's son Boba buried his father and then took his ship to the moons of Bogden, where he engaged in a firefight.

The pirate Nym was later offered the post of commander of the Karthakk system, although he declined. Gallia then volunteered to be his personal "Jedi advisor."

In the months following the battle Mace Windu would regret his decision not to strike down Count Dooku when he had the chance, and killing Jango Fett without a second thought.

Depa Billaba would later state to Windu on Haruun Kal that by simply bombing the arena on Geonosis, the Republic could have prevented a war that destroyed billions of lives at the expense of only a few hundred Jedi.

As the Separatists and Republic built up their forces, they engaged in harassment tactics. Shortly afterward, the opposing governments fought the Decimator campaign and the Dark Reaper Crisis.

Months later, the Republic occupation force was defeated, necessitating another planet-wide invasion.

Around two years after the battle, the Republic built on Coruscant a memorial listing the names of every clone trooper that died during this first battle.

Three years after the battle, when Skywalker and Kenobi confronted Dooku for what was ultimately the final time aboard the Invisible Hand above Coruscant, Kenobi told Skywalker that they are to fight him together this time around, referring to Skywalker's earlier brash attempt at attacking Dooku head-on that got him blasted with Force Lightning, with Skywalker admitting he was going to suggest the exact same thing.

Participants
"I may be the only veteran of Geonosis who doesn't have nightmares of that place. [&hellip;] My nightmare is what I find when I wake up."

- Mace Windu

Victims

 * Sun Fac (Geonosian General, aide to Poggle the Lesser)
 * Jango Fett (Dooku's henchman, former Mandalore)
 * Cavik Toth (participated in the space battle above)
 * Dark Acolyte Trio (3 Dark Jedi)

Behind the scenes
The First Battle of Geonosis continued the Star Wars saga's tradition of huge battles in the 2002 film Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones.

A scene where Plo Koon and Ki-Adi-Mundi raid a Lucrehulk-class Droid Control Ship was originally going to be included, but did not appear in the final cut. Another cut scene was the appearance of the Corporate Alliance tank droid.

At one point in the arena battle, Ki-Adi-Mundi can be seen wielding a green lightsaber, unlike his customary blue lightsaber. In the arena battle, one of the Jedi in the strike team can be seen using a blue and a green lightsaber.

In the 2013 mobile card game Star Wars: Force Collection, players had the chance to take part in two large-scale "quests" known as the Geonosis Battlefields. The participation was optional, although this article assumes the player did so. The quest featured bosses such as B1 battle droids and Yoda, regardless of the player's alignment.

Non-canon appearances
In LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game and LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga, Padmé Amidala, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Anakin Skywalker face a battle droid firing squad rather than the three lethal beasts, and Anakin is seen wielding a green lightsaber.

In the 2012 young-readers book LEGO Star Wars: Anakin to the Rescue, Kenobi is captured by a trap set by Count Dooku&mdash;cookies. During the execution, the three captives manage to subdue the beasts but are surrounded by battle droids. The Jedi then appear and battle the droids. Amidala and Skywalker ride the Reek, while Fett fights Windu. A Jawa carrying a probe droid in a net bumps into him and drags him away. Yoda and Kenobi corner the Count, but he distracts Kenobi with more cookies and escapes. The Jedi then celebrate with a roller coaster.

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game
 * LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
 * Star Wars: Force Collection