Clone assassin

"You haven't seen anything as fast as me."

- Unknown clone assassin

Clone assassins were a specialized class of clone trooper secretly commissioned of the Kaminoan cloners by Darth Sidious, the Dark Lord of the Sith, before or during the Clone Wars specifically to eliminate Jedi. They were taught how to fight hand-to-hand through the use of Teräs Käsi and honed their skills by dueling with Padawans of the Jedi Order and gained greatly enhanced speed. They also learned to anticipate strikes and dodge completely as well as how to resist Jedi mind tricks.

They were put in use following the enaction of Order 66, a measure trained into all clone troops that commanded them to kill their Jedi commanders. A unit of them was sent by Palpatine to assist in an assault on the Jedi Temple on planet Coruscant which took place in 19 BBY, where a squad of them was used to guard the Jedi Communication Center. There, Darth Vader, the leader of the assault, alongside the 501st Legion had cleansed the halls of the Temple of all Jedi. Vader activated a beacon designed to contact all Jedi across the galaxy and sent a message ordering all Jedi to return to the Temple, where a large garrison of clone troops was waiting to eliminate each one that did so. The squad charged with defending the beacon was killed by Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, who was attempting to disable the beacon and ward any surviving Jedi away, when they attacked him and were rebuffed.

History
"Your Jedi mind tricks don't work on me."

- Unknown clone assassin

In 32 BBY, a clone army was secretly ordered for the Galactic Republic by Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas without the knowledge or approval of his comrades, in response to the growing shadow in the Force, though his army was soon discovered by Darth Sidious who plotted to use the clone army for his own plans to eliminate the Jedi. The Kaminoan cloners worked on-schedule for ten years to complete the first portion of the project. The Clone Wars between the Republic and the Confederacy of Independant Systems, a group of worlds that had seceded from the Republic, broke out and the first portion was mobilized while more clone soldiers were still being created. Clone assassins were secretly orderd by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, actually Sidious, through a special order as a way to combat Jedi if they ever decided to rebel against the Galactic Senate.

In 19 BBY, the final year of the Clone Wars, Sidious, was engaged in a lightsaber duel by a Jedi Master who had learned of his true identity. The engagement ended with Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi Knight and friend of Sidious's, cutting off the Jedi's sword arm and allowing Sidious to use Force lightning to push the Jedi out a window into the streets below, killing him. Following the battle, Skywalker swore loyalty to Sidious and his Sith teachings and became his Sith apprentice, Darth Vader. At the same time, Sidious enacted Order 66, a measure trained into the Republic's clone troopers that commanded them to turn on their Jedi commanders, and within minutes many Jedi around the galaxy were killed. Sidious sent a unit of these troopers to the Jedi Temple on the planet Coruscant with Vader and the 501st Legion to exterminate the Jedi inside. Numerous scores of Jedi were killed and only a few were able to escape the assault. Amidst the battle, Vader assigned a squad of assassins to protect the Jedi Communication Center, where he had altered a beacon that transmitted to all Jedi in the galaxy was being transmitted to lure the last of the Jedi in the galaxy there and ultimately to their demise.

In an effort to keep any Jedi from returning to the Temple, where they would only find a large garrison of clone troopers, Jedi Masters Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda infiltrated the Temple to reprogram the message, warning all Jedi away and into hiding. Kenobi entered the Communication Room and was attacked by the squad of assassins Vader left to protect the room and they were all killed by the Master. Even with their prowess and greater numbers, the majority of the assassins in the Temple were wiped out by the two powerful Jedi.

Equipment
Clone Assassins were outfitted in standardized Phase II clone trooper armor to protect them in battle. Wearing this full-body armor, they were still able to perform incredibly dexterous moves to avoid attacks with no obstruction to their movements. The armor had two twin vibro-blades attached to the elbows which extended their reach and increased the lethality of their attacks. These blades or be locked in position to follow the upper arms or unlocked to follow the trooper's forearm. The assassins wore kamas, which were kept on by a belt with two storage pouches on each hip.

Applications
"Clone assassins. Very deadly."

- Obi-Wan Kenobi

Assassins were commissioned and created for the sole purpose of combating Jedi on equal terms. The Clone assassins were trained to use the martial art of Teräs Käsi, a form of unarmed combat that was created specifically for defeating Jedi, in conjunction with twin vibro-blades on their arms. They honed their skills by fighting Padawans, Jedi trainees, and these battles allowed the clones of the late bounty hunter Jango Fett to increase their speed to a level far beyond that of their template. Their dexterity, mental fortitude, and reflexes were also increased greatly by these battles. They could easily dodge or parry most strikes from melee weapons, such as lightsabers, and were also able to withstand Jedi mind tricks without flinching. A squad of clone assassins could easily defeat a Jedi Knight though were not a true match for a Jedi Master. They were used to assist in the cleansing of the Jedi Temple and, later, to defend a room from Jedi.

Behind the scenes
This clone trooper classification first appeared as an enemy character in the Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith video game adaptation. There is a bonus level of the game where Jedi Grand Master Yoda is confronted in the Temple by several squads of assassins, though the canonicity of this is ambiguous. Concept art from the game depicts a clone assassin with dark armor as opposed to the white and blue seen in the game.

In the game, it is indicated that the clone assassins were trained by fighting Padawans. The Clone Wars Campaign Guide stated that the class of clone trooper was commissioned in secret by Darth Sidious, possibly implicating that the duels were conducted without the knowledge of the Jedi, that these duels never took place, or another option. Adding to the confusion, Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi who sat on the High Jedi Council, was familiar with clone assassins prior to his encounter with them in the Temple.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith game

Notes and references
Klon-Attentäter