Battle of Ryloth/Legends

"Droid! Is Ryloth one of our targeted worlds?" "Yes, Emir. According to wealth, resources, and overall strategic value, it is currently ranked as number seventy-nine." "Mobilize our troops. We are moving it to number one."

- Wat Tambor and TA-175

The Battle of Ryloth took place on the Twi'lek homeworld of Ryloth during the Clone Wars. Emir Wat Tambor ordered the invasion, which resulted in the planet-wide subjugation and internment of the Twi'lek people. Tambor blockaded the planet and made headquarters out of the conquered capital of Lessu.

Jedi Masters Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi, along with Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and Padawan Ahsoka Tano, were dispatched by the Jedi Council, along with a contingent of the Grand Army of the Republic, to liberate the planet. Emir Tambor commanded the defense from Lessu – a defense which included the use of living shields and indiscriminate bombings. The planet was freed from Confederacy control following General Windu's enlistment of the Twi'lek freedom fighters and the raid on Lessu, along with the capture of Tambor.

Prelude
"...I'm certain those are Separatist battle droids." "The War's coming here? To Ryloth?" "We'd best prepare. You know we can't rely on Coruscant to take notice of what happens out here."

- Cham Syndulla and Voyla



Prior to the battle, Techno Union Foreman Wat Tambor came to distrust fellow Separatist Council member and Corporate Alliance Magistrate Passel Argente. Tambor used droid dealer Gha Nachkt to place a spy RA-7 protocol droid close to the Koorivar, and was able to track his movements across the galaxy. Argente arrived in Lessu, on Ryloth, to meet with Artruk, a broker hired to conceal Argente's treasures pilfered from conquered worlds. Tambor witnessed the meeting, and ordered that Ryloth be moved to top priority for a Confederacy invasion.

Tambor seized control of Ryloth, placing a blockade over the planet under the command of Neimoidian Captain Mar Tuuk. On the surface below, the Twi'leks were forced from their homes and starved. Tambor placed tactical droids in command of the defenses while he took up residence in the capital city of Lessu. However, a young Twi'lek girl by name of Numa managed to avoid capture, and would later be of assistance to General Kenobi.

Shortly after the invasion, the Jedi Council received a plea from the Senate for assistance. Ryloth Senator and Loyalist Committee member Orn Free Taa requested that his planet be freed from the Confederate oppression, and remained by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's side during the conflict. The Jedi Council devised a plan to invade and liberate Ryloth, with General Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan, Commander Ahsoka Tano to breach the Separatist blockade surrounding the planet, in order to allow Generals Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi to land with the invasion force.

The Twi'lek resistance
"Isn't this the spot where they were... massacred?" "Looks like it was a hell of a fight."

- Razor and Stak, upon seeing the remains of Cazne



Following Tambor's subjugation of the planet, Cham Syndulla organized and led the Twi'lek freedom fighters, a resistance movement focused on liberating Ryloth from the invaders. Syndulla had been a political rival of Orn Free Taa's prior to the Clone Wars, and retained a strong reputation with the Twi'lek people. His resistance was the first force to combat the Confederate droids, and they suffered heavily in the confrontation in the Cazne flatlands. The battle caused the land to become scarred and cratered, and many Confederate ships and transports were destroyed. However, Syndulla's forces were forced to go into hiding as the droids continued to hunt them down. The freedom fighters created hideouts within downed C-9979 landing crafts and destroyed MTTs. These bases not only housed soldiers, but refugees as well, making them into a safe haven for any Twi'lek fortunate enough to escape capture.

In Nabat, the Twi'leks were taken from their homes and forced into imprisonment. TX-20, the tactical droid in charge of the town, took it upon himself to order the Twi'leks be placed near heavy anti-air cannons. The prisoners would act as living shields, preventing any liberating forces from attacking the guns. However, the Twi'lek child Numa was able to avoid capture, and hid in the empty town and the tunnels beneath it. TX-20 planned to use gutkurrs for defense against any attack, and kept the animals starved in cages, so as to make them more vicious when released.

The Republic assault
"The Twi'leks on that planet can't wait for long, Master. The longer the Techno Union keeps control of Ryloth, the more difficult it'll be to free them." "I agree. We don't have much time."

- Anakin Skywalker and Mace Windu

Breaking the blockade
"Our blockade is impenetrable. When the Republic attacks, they will get quite a surprise."

- Mar Tuuk to Wat Tambor



The first wave of the Republic assault was lead by General Skywalker, Commander Tano, and Admiral Yularen. They and their task force of three Venator-class destroyers were charged with breaking Mar Tuuk's blockade in orbit of Ryloth. Upon emergence from hyperspace, the Resolute, Defender and Redeemer engaged Tuuk's forces, comprised of a Lucrehulk-class droid control ship flanked by two Munificent-class frigates.

Tano, in her first command position, took Blue Squadron into battle against advancing Vulture droids. With the droid fighters occupied, she hoped to be able to make a successful attack run on the blockade. However, Captain Tuuk had planned for an attack, and ordered his reinforcements to join the battle. Four additional Munificent-class frigates arrived out of hyperspace and engaged the attacking Republic fleet, prompting Admiral Yularen and General Skywalker to order Tano back to the cruisers for a retreat. Tano, confident in her ability to break the blockade, disobeyed the order and continued toward the enemy, losing many of her pilots along the way. When Vulture droids began to break Republic lines, Tano acquiesced and attempted to return to the Resolute. However, the Resolute was already suffering under repeated impacts from Vulture droids on suicide runs. A single Vulture droid slipped through the anti-fighter fire screen and slammed into the bridge where General Skywalker and Admiral Yularen stood.



Tano lost the majority of her squadron by the time she returned, with only two of the original ten fighters in her squadron surviving the battle. Admiral Yularen was critically injured, the Redeemer was destroyed, and both the Resolute and the Defender were forced to retreat in flames. Captain Tuuk had successfully repelled the Republic offensive, and began preparations for Skywalker's inevitable return. The Republic fleet regrouped outside of the combat zone in order to take an accounting of the fallen and tend to the wounded.

After consoling a severely dejected Tano, Skywalker proceeded to confer with Generals Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi. He delivering the report of their failure, and was given one planetary rotation to breach the blockade, even with only half his original forces remaining. In an attempt to both bolster Tano's confidence and complete his mandate, Skywalker devised a plan to ram the heavily damaged Defender into the blockade's lead ship. Skywalker evacuated the Defender, moving all crew and supplies to the Resolute. He and astromech droid R2-D2 took control of the Defender, while command of the remaining fleet was given to Tano.



Skywalker piloted the Defender back to the Ryloth system and offered the ship, its crew and himself to Captain Tuuk, all in exchange for the passage of food and medical supplies to the Twi'lek people. Tuuk accepted, eager for the glory that would come with capturing General Skywalker. Only after a complete scan of the Defender did Tuuk realize that there was only one life form aboard. Tuuk ordered the ship destroyed; however, the cruiser could not be stopped, even by the combined firepower of all the ships in the blockade. The Defender smashed straight into the center sphere of the control ship shortly after Skywalker and R2-D2 fled in an escape pod. Tuuk escaped the command ship before its destruction, leaving the droids in charge of the remaining fleet.



Meanwhile, Ahsoka was to command the Resolute and engage the remaining Separatist fleet of six Munificent-class frigates. After conferring with Captain Rex, the navigation and Admiral Yularen, Ahsoka planned to angle the bottom hull of the Resolute towards the blockade, thereby protecting the bridge and main hangar. This classic Marg Sabl maneuver would draw the frigates in, allowing them to be outflanked by the Resolute's bombers.

The Resolute came out of hyperspace and began to move into position. The confused droid forces closed in, and a more confident Ahsoka proceeded to lead a squadron of BTL-B Y-wing fighters and V-19 torrent fighters against the Munificent-class frigates. The Republic fighters managed to successfully eliminate the Separatist blockade shortly before the arrival of Master Windu's invasion force, comprised of three Acclamator assault ships. While Generals Windu and Kenobi prepared to land, Skywalker's escape pod was retrieved with a shuttle, and he and Tano finished securing the space around Ryloth.

Landing on the planet
"We can't risk landing the larger transports until you take out those guns!" "Pull back. We'll take care of it."

- Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi



General Obi-Wan Kenobi landed in the city of Nabat with Ghost Company aboard the Crumb Bomber and other gunships. Although their mission was to retake the city, Ghost Company was forced to limit themselves to blasters and droid poppers, so as not to destroy the Twi'leks' home. However, proton cannons attacked the Acclamator assault ships above, and General Mace Windu tasked Kenobi with destroying the cannons to allow the transports to land.

After utilizing the EMP grenades and taking out the droids in a bunker on the outskirts of the city, Kenobi and his clone forces entered the village and set up a temporary camp. Clone Commander Cody went to scout ahead with Wooley, Waxer and Boil. After discovering that the Twi'leks were being held hostage, Cody and Wooley returned and reported their findings to Generals Kenobi and Windu. Unfortunately, a recon droid sent by tactical droid commander TX-20 was spying on them, and overheard their conference. Soon after, the tactical droid ordered the captured and starved gutkurrs released to destroy the Republic forces.



Waxer and Boil, who had meanwhile stumbled across the young Twi'lek girl Numa, were the first to encounter the creatures, and managed to escape into a secret underground passage in Numa's home. Kenobi and Ghost Company ran into the creatures, but Kenobi managed to lure the gutkurrs into an alley with the Force, and they were trapped after Cody and his men blasted the bridge above the entrance. Waxer and Boil then appeared out of the tunnels with Numa. Obi-Wan conversed in Twi'leki to Numa and learned that she could lead them to the prisoners. Cody and his men went to create a diversion, while Kenobi headed through the tunnels with Waxer and Boil.



After the droids were distracted by Ghost Company, Kenobi and the two clones managed to free the Twi'lek hostages, and the freed prisoners escaped into the tunnels. Kenobi then took control of one of the proton cannons, and with the help of Waxer and Boil, he managed to take out the rest of the cannons. However, a shot from TX-20's tank blasted the three aside, and Numa ran over to the clones; after they had recovered, she ran over to Obi-Wan. As the tactical droid aimed his cannon at Kenobi and the young Twi'lek, the former Twi'lek hostages retaliated against the droid and ripped him apart piece by piece. With the cannons no longer harassing them, the transports were able to land. After Waxer and Boil said goodbye to Numa, Windu's forces headed to the capital city of Lessu to retake it and free the planet, while Kenobi headed down to secure the southern hemisphere of the planet.

Retaking the capital city
"I'll hold them off! Get that bridge back up!"

- Mace Windu to Razor and Stak



Whilst attempting to liberate the capital, General Mace Windu, Commander Ponds and Lightning Squadron took a cliffside path to the city. On their journey, they were ambushed by AATs from a nearby hill, and the tanks disabled the two front walkers. Once this was done, the droid commander sought to disable the rear walkers as well in order to trap the Republic forces on the hillside. However, Windu evacuated the disabled lead walker of its crew and used the Force to push it over the cliff, allowing Lightning Squadron to use their AT-RTs to raid the Separatist position. Leading the assault, Windu was successful in the attack, allowing the Republic forces to push towards the capital. However, he had lost thirty-two men and three AT-TE walker command crews, and would need further help if he was going to complete his mission.

During a conference with Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, Senator Orn Free Taa, Grand Master Yoda, Admiral Yularen and General Skywalker, Skywalker reported that the space around Ryloth was secure. General Kenobi had secured the southern hemisphere, leaving it to Windu to take the capital. Windu sought to acquire aid from the local resistance force led by Cham Syndulla. Despite the objections of Senator Taa on the Republic's political relations with Syndulla, Windu believed it to be the only way to get the city, as Republic reinforcements were unavailable.



Windu took two ARF troopers to Cazne to find the freedom fighters. Noting a graveyard of Twi'leks and a squad of droids, Windu, Razor, and Stak hid in the shadows of an inactive C-9979 landing craft. The Separatist patrol was ambushed by the freedom fighters, and Windu finally came face to face with Syndulla. However, Syndulla expressed his misgivings about helping the Republic.

Meanwhile, Count Dooku was not pleased by Wat Tambor's failure in maintaining Ryloth, and urged the Techno Union Foreman to retreat after taking whatever treasures remained behind. Dooku ordered everything to be destroyed, all villages and even the capital, with the idea of showing the galaxy the "cost" of a Republic victory. Tambor's tactical droid, TA-175, was ready to obey Dooku's orders, but Tambor was not yet ready to leave. Despite his orders, Tambor stayed behind while he awaited his treasure-bearing convoys to return, not willing to leave until every last treasure was his. As the Republic forces came closer to the city, the Separatists armed bombers to destroy the nearby Twi'lek villages.



Among the Twi'lek resistance, Windu was given a tour of their base, and asked Syndulla to help free his own world. However, Syndulla was reluctant, believing that another armed occupation would not make Ryloth free. Furthermore, Syndulla was a political rival to Senator Taa, and did not trust him. However, a Separatist bombing of a Twi'lek village under the witness of Commander Ponds and the rest of Windu's forces reminded Syndulla of the death and devastation being wrought on his world, and he agreed to speak with Senator Taa. With the help of Master Windu, Syndulla and Senator Taa reached an agreement: Taa would not let an armed occupation befall Ryloth, while Syndulla promised not to seek political power. Syndulla took his fighters to join with the clone army.

However, there was still the problem of entering the capital, as a plasma bridge was the only link into Lessu, and its controls were inside the city itself. Furthermore, Tambor had ordered the civilians out of the city, employing the use of a "living shield" as TX-20 had done earlier. Windu, Syndulla and their forces were forced to activate the bridge, as long-range fire would be impossible without taking innocent lives.



Taking Stak and Razor with him, Windu attacked one of two MTTs hauling the last of the treasures to Tambor. Stowing onboard, the Republic infiltrators managed to get onto the activated plasma bridge, where it was scanned by droids. When their presence was discovered, Windu and the two clones attacked and destroyed the droid guards, but not before the Separatists deactivated the bridge. However, Windu Force-pushed the two ARF troopers across to the other side, while he himself used an STAP to get across. Whilst Windu engaged the droid forces alone, the two ARF troopers fought for the bridge's controls and reactivated the bridge. Syndulla led the charge across, and Windu proceeded to capture Tambor. Battle droids and droid commandos attacked Stak and Razor in the control room, but the two managed to fend them off.



Tambor prepared to escape in his shuttle, but TA-175, too impatient to wait for his master, had already left without him. Aboard the shuttle, the tactical droid reported Tambor's refusal to leave to Dooku. The Count stated that it was "unfortunate," but proceeded to order the bombers to destroy the capital, even with Tambor's life on the line. As Windu held Tambor at lightsaber point, the bombers headed toward the city. However, the timely intervention of Skywalker and Tano in their fighters prevented the city from being destroyed. Tambor received unconditional terms of surrender from Syndulla, to which he reluctantly agreed. Ryloth was free once more.



Aftermath
"I thank you, Master Jedi. Today, all of Ryloth thanks you." "You've earned your freedom, General. All of you."

- Cham Syndulla and Mace Windu

Soon after the battle had ended, Senator Taa, Syndulla, Windu and Commander Ponds watched a parade of the clone forces and the Twi'lek people. With a common enemy, Senator Taa and Syndulla had managed to reach a resolution to their long political debacle. In addition, Wat Tambor had been arrested, and Ryloth was under Separatist rule no longer. However, Captain Mar Tuuk had escaped, as well as TA-175 and the shuttle containing most of the Separatists' treasures.

Behind the scenes
The Battle of Ryloth was the first major battle to be featured in The Clone Wars TV series, as it was spread out over the span of three episodes: "Storm Over Ryloth," "Innocents of Ryloth" and "Liberty on Ryloth." This allowed different characters to be expanded upon, such as that of Ahsoka Tano in "Storm Over Ryloth," who led a squadron for the first time and discovered the "reality of command": being able to suffer losses in battle, and still be able to continue. Waxer and Boil also served as a different form of character development: clones who had developed compassion in helping Numa during "Innocents of Ryloth."

The web comic The Ballad of Cham Syndulla, leading into "Liberty on Ryloth," was the only one of the comics leading into the three episodes that featured the actual battle. However, Covetous, leading into "Storm Over Ryloth," portrayed the events directly before the battle, and Curfew took place shortly before the droid invasion.

The battle marked one of the first uses (and appearances) of the Hyena-class bombers. The droid bombers appeared briefly in The Fall of Falleen.

Appearances

 * The Clone Wars: The Ballad of Cham Syndulla
 * The Clone Wars: The Ballad of Cham Syndulla
 * The Clone Wars: The Ballad of Cham Syndulla

Notes and references
Schlacht um Ryloth