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"Ganch" was a clone trooper commander serving in the Grand Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars. He was assigned to Devaron, where under Jedi General Bolla Ropal he and his men aided the locals in construction of non-military fortifications. He was with Ropal's padawan, Jedi Commander Tyzen Xebec, when the Confederacy of Independent Systems launched a surprise assault on the planet.

Attack on Devaron
"Adapting to new commands is just part of our duty. And our duty is all."

- Ganch

Under the command of Jedi General Bolla Ropal on Devaron, Ganch supervised the building of non-military structures. While he was reprimanding one of his troopers, Squawk, he was joined by Jedi Padawan Tyzen Xebec. When Cad Bane and the Separatists suddenly attacked the planet, Ganch was caught off-guard, as both he and Tyzen thought they were far from any action.

During the surprise assault, Aurra Sing and her Nashtah Team destroyed a Low Altitude Assault Transport on the dam above Ganch, which fell from its landing place and plummeted toward Ganch and Tyzen. The pair escaped the blast, though other troopers were killed. Ganch recovered quickly, carrying the unconscious Padawan to safety. The two then found themselves under fire from Sing and her team. While they hid, Tyzen sensed that Master Ropal had been taken off-planet, and despaired over his Master's inability to foresee this event. Ganch reminded the Padawan that his mind should be on the "here and now", trying to bring his commander back into the battle. Tyzen then told Ganch to order his men to seal their helmets and to target the braces on the dam they had been building. Tyzen and the clones then destroyed the dam, allowing the pent up water to rush through the valley, washing themselves away along with Sing and her droids.

Ganch later joined Tyzen on higher ground, congratulating him on his plan. As LAAT gunships flew to their position, Tyzen told Ganch that Ropal's failing was that he never saw the present, and due to that, he was gone.

Mission to Ukio
"In my experience, a Jedi General is not one to do things lightly, and she's entrusting planetside security to you sir. To us."

- Ganch to Xebec regarding General Reus

Some time later, after Tyzen had been assigned to a new Master, Ganch accompanied the Jedi aboard a Venator-class Star Destroyer, part of a fleet orbiting Ukio. In the bay of a LAAT, Ganch showed Tyzen how to assemble a blaster rifle, coaching him through a difficulty with aligning the adaptor prongs. He expressed his congratulations to the Padawan, though was skeptical that Tyzen would ever need to know that particular skill. When Master Keelyvine Reus ordered Admiral Dron to contact Ganch and Tyzen, they were unable to reach the pair. After an officer came to find them, Ganch told him that he had turned off his communicator, under Tyzen's orders, as Tyzen said that he didn't want to be interrupted. As Tyzen left to attend the briefing, Ganch slipped and called Tyzen "kid", then corrected himself and called him "sir".

Soon, Ganch and his men accompanied Tyzen planetside, where they were to inspect the Ukian's defenses. Though Squawk and Tyzen both believed that they would be in for a quiet time on the planet, Ganch told them that the in-depth review of the planet's shields would keep them busy. When Tyzen told Ganch that he suspected to real reason he was sent to the planet was because Keelyvine didn't want him in her way, Ganch replied that a Jedi General wouldn't do things lightly, and that she had entrusted the entirety of the planet's security to him. After they landed and met with Liege, a leader of the Ukians, the man expressed doubt that someone as young as Tyzen could lead men like Ganch. Tyzen asked Ganch for his opinion, to which Ganch pointed out that Tyzen was actually older than him. Ganch and the other clones were then granted full access to the shield generator assembly, so they could assess it.

Project Instinction
"Run Tyzen. Run before I can get my hands on you."

- Clone Commander Ganch after attacking Xebec.

After his inspection, Ganch was impressed with the Ukian's defenses, commending Liege on the system. Just as he observed the enormous gigauns in the fields nearby, a Ukian sounded an orbital alert. The alert was sent up to Keelyvine and Fisto in orbit above, who scrambled fighters to investigate. Modified Seismic tanks were being dropped above the planet, and began to release a black cloud. The cloud then adhered to the planet's shields, and after analysis, was determined to be soil from Moorja. After the various parties realized the purpose of the cloud was to blot out the sun and destroy the Ukian harvest, Liege confronted the Jedi via Hologram, telling them this attack would ruin the planet. Liege then realized they could drop their shields, to which Ganch immediately disagreed. However, Reus and Captain McQuarrie agreed this would be the only way to disperse the soil, and Liege was told by Reus to drop the shields under the afflicted area.

The plan seemed to be working well, until an Ukian technician noticed that the gigaun herds were straying off-course. Liege, greatly disturbed by this, ordered Ganch to investigate and the commander leaped to comply. Unknown to the clones, the animals were under the influence of a mind-altered Separatist device, which shortly began to affect Ganch's men as well. Outside, he found Squawk firing at the gigauns, and ordered him to stop. When Squawk mocked him for his adherence to orders and his "soft spot for animals", Ganch pulled his pistol and pointed it at Squawk's head. The clone dropped his blaster rifle, then made as if to fight Ganch, telling him to drop his weapon too. Just as Ganch was about to fire at his trooper, his blaster was sliced in half by Xebec, who then ordered the clones to explain their actions. The two of them then turned on him, and Ganch began to struggle to speak and removed his helmet. When Xebec showed concern that Ganch was in pain, Sanya warned him to stay away, and Ganch struck Xebec in the face with his helmet. Ganch regained control of his thoughts long enough to tell Xebec to run before the clone could catch him.

Xebec and Sanya were split up in the fields, amid the stampeding gigauns. Xebec himself soon came under the influence of the Project Instinction device, and attacked Ganch. He screamed at the clone to stop telling him what to do and tried to strike him, but Ganch grappled with him, still trying to fight the effects of the device. He lost the mental battle, however, and violently struck Xebec in the face, which temporarily cleared the Padawan's mind. Sanya then found the confused young Jedi and told him to use the Force to center himself. Just as Xebec was able to fully clear the effects from his mind, Ganch caught up with him, and began to strangle him. Xebec tried to convince the clone that he wasn't himself, and appealed to Ganch's strict nature by telling him he was acting against orders. Ganch then stabbed himself in the neck with a med-shot, knocking himself out. Xebec carried the unconscious clone to safety, sheltering him in a nearby building to prevent him from being trampled by the gigauns.

Personality and traits
Ganch was a dedicated soldier, with a fondness for order. He had a tense relationship with one of his troopers, Squawk, and often reprimanded him for his complaints. He did let down his guard around Xebec, however, and quickly grew fond of him.

Behind the scenes
Artist Tom Hodges modeled Ganch's front, chest-mounted holsters in the same style as those worn by famous gunfighter Doc Holliday. By giving him a larger pauldron and a different pattern on the helmet, he made Ganch look different from other clone commanders. Pablo Hidalgo came up with Ganch's name.

Appearances

 * The Clone Wars: Act on Instinct

Notes and references
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