CT-7719

"Clone aren't bred for humor."

- Banks

CT-7719, nicknamed "Banks," was a clone trooper sergeant in the Grand Army of the Republic. When the Clone Wars broke out in 22 BBY, he joined millions of other clones in fighting for the Galactic Republic against the Confederacy of Independent Systems. His nickname was derived from the fact that he possessed a unique skill to see mathematical angles better than other clones, which resulted in an ability to "bank" blaster bolts off of a surface and into his target.

In the first year of the war, Banks was sent on a mission to the planet of Oznek, ostensibly to shut down a battle droid factory. The mission, however, was a plot by Republic Commander Griebs Kishpaugh and Banks's fellow clone, Ghost, to embroil the strategic planet and its native species, the Toma, in the war and allow both men to defect to the Confederacy. Throughout the mission, Banks lost his entire squad to both enemy droids and the treachery of Ghost; nevertheless, Banks managed to foil the plot, killing Ghost and arresting Kishpaugh. While he was forced to face a tribunal following the mission, Banks was later reassigned under the command of Jedi General Bultar Swan.

Early life
"In simulation, over seventy-two successful&mdash;''" "I'm not talking about simulations. I'm talking about boots on the ground. Live men against live ammunition." "''&hellip; This is my first."

- Banks and Ghost, prior to Oznek's first command

CT-7719 was a clone trooper, bred on the planet Kamino and based upon the template of the bounty hunter Jango Fett, a Human Mandalorian. When the Clone Wars broke out in the year 22 BBY, he was one of millions of clones who made up the Galactic Republic's Grand Army, his armor painted with the standard green designs for his rank. CT-7719 was trained to be an officer in the army, assigned the rank of sergeant.

During his training on Kamino, the trooper commanded seventy-two successful training missions. At some point, he realized that he had a knack for mathematics and angles, being able to both calculate and see better than most clones. He used this ability to calculate angles to bank his blaster bolts off objects, allowing them to hit their targets without losing their strength. The skill earned him his nickname "Banks" before he had even gone on his first mission.

Mission to Oznek
"Look at you, still some fight left! But that's why we chose you, isn't it? You're so determined. So unrelenting. Following orders like the little wind-up toy you are."

- Ghost, to Banks

Later in 22 BBY, Banks was selected by the Republic Commander Griebs Kishpaugh to lead a mission to the planet Oznek, a world that was considered vital to holding the surrounding sector. Although the Sergeant was a "shinie"&mdash;the clone troopers' derogatory term for those yet to fight on the battlefield&mdash;he was placed in charge of a squad of seasoned clones. The squad flew over the forests of Oznek aboard a Low Altitude Assault Transport on their seemingly routine reconnaissance mission. En route, two of the clones under his command, Syke and Ghost, questioned his methods and experience, causing him to become irate.

Shortly thereafter, the gunship came under heavy fire. The area was supposed to be unoccupied by Confederate forces, but they discovered a large droid army, which blasted them out of the sky. The LAAT crashed, killing the pilot and several other clones on impact. Syke escaped from the wreckage via a hatch, only to find hundreds of B1 and B2 battle droids bearing down on the troopers. Banks and the other clones fought off the attacking droids, while trying to protect their wounded. Eventually, the waves of droids ceased, and Banks covered the tracks of the surviving seven clones by detonating a thermal detonator.

Setting up camp in the woods, Syke attempted to repair and use a communications array to no avail. At the urging of Syke and fellow clone Crazy Legs, Banks demonstrated the origin of his nickname to the group, ricocheting a blaster bolt and knocking a food container out of Crazy Legs's hand. They were then contacted via holoprojector by Commander Kishpaugh after Syke managed to get the array working. Kishpaugh informed them that there was a droid command center twenty kilometers away, and that they were to investigate, and if possible, disable it despite their losses, within eighteen hours. He then ordered the rest of the clone troopers from the shelter in order to speak with Banks alone. Kishpaugh inquired after Banks's experience with the other clones and told him it would only get worse. He told the Sergeant that he trusted he would be an unfeeling and undiluted clone, able to commit to the mission to the letter. Moreover, the mission was to be "off the books," so the clones had to be careful not to be caught.

Banks and the others moved out before sunrise, leaving Crazy Legs behind to tend to his leg, broken in the crash. They moved through the forest, encountering dangerous terrain and creatures everywhere, and lost another clone, who was eaten by a large animal. As they traveled, Syke told a war story about how his armor was damaged early in the war when he destroyed two droidekas. Syke then asked Ghost for a story of his own, but the older clone demurred. Banks pointed out that they could all ask for their armor to be repaired, or even receive new armor. Syke, however, believed that a clone's armor was a way of telling a unique and individual story, and asked Banks why they would ever want to throw that away.

Cutter, the clone trooper leading the way, brought the others' attention to an ancient city in ruins. The clones remarked that their scanners had not picked up any trace of the large settlement, and they suddenly found themselves surrounded and captured by Toma, the native sentient species of Oznek. With their hands bound, Banks lied, telling the Toma patrol leader that the clones were on a humanitarian mission. The Toma saw through the ruse, pointing out that the troopers were carrying explosives, not medicine. The patrol leader ordered their executions, but the clones were discovered and attacked by droids once again. Upon Banks's request, the Toma leader cut the clones' bonds so they could fight together. The Sergeant and the others held back the droids, but Cutter urged Banks to break off with Ghost and Syke, leaving Cutter and the others to hold back the droids while allowing Banks to complete the mission within the allotted time frame. Banks resisted the plan, unwilling to leave Cutter behind, but Cutter pointed out that their presence could not be revealed, so the Toma could not be allowed to live either. As the fight raged on behind them, Banks and the others fled.

They traveled to the facility that Kishpaugh had targeted, where Ghost sniped the two Toma guards outside, allowing the clones to sneak inside. They made their way through the corridors, encountering little resistance&mdash;a fact that Banks later determined should have seemed suspicious. Once inside the main section of the facility, Banks ordered Syke and Ghost to spread out and look for signs of Separatist technology. Syke quickly noticed that something was awry, and that the facility did not look anything like how they were told it would. Banks was shocked when Ghost shot Syke in the back, killing him.

Ghost nonchalantly told Banks that Syke had to die because he did not know of their true orders: to destroy the facility, which was not a droid command center at all, but rather a power plant. Although Banks attempted to reason with Ghost&mdash;arguing that they should help stop wars, not start them&mdash;Ghost whirled around and fired his blaster rifle at Banks, saying that he did not need him after all. Banks dodged, and the blaster bolt grazed his visor. He then attempted to shoot Ghost using his ability to ricochet blaster bolts, but the elder clone had already slipped out of sight. Banks wanted to know why Ghost would betray his training and brothers, asking if his mind had gone defective from age, but Ghost told him that he had merely gained clarity and no longer wished to die.

Banks sneaked up on Ghost, but the other clone was ready and threw a grenade, which detonated right in front of the Sergeant. Battered and wounded, Banks was still alive, but Ghost was not willing to let him survive. As he explained that their sabotage would drive Oznek into the arms of the Separatists, he climbed atop Banks and pulled a garrote from his gauntlet to choke the Sergeant. Banks grabbed his own blaster, however, and fired a bolt that ricocheted around the room's turbines and slammed into the back of Ghost's head, killing him.

Banks deactivated Ghost's bombs and stole his helmet, escaping before the facility's Toma guards could catch up to him. Donning the dead clone's helmet, Banks contacted Kishpaugh and claimed that the mission had been completed. Kishpaugh picked him up in a shuttle, but he immediately realized the clone was not Ghost and pulled a blaster on the imposter. As they left the planet, making for hyperspace, Kishpaugh forced Banks to show his face and was surprised to find out that he had survived. Banks demanded answers: why had both Kishpaugh and Ghost betrayed the Republic? Kishpaugh told him that he had never wanted to fight in a galactic battle, while Ghost had simply wanted to live. Banks told Kishpaugh to surrender, but the Commander refused, noting that the clone had no weapon. Banks then threw Ghost's helmet at Kishpaugh, smashing his hand backward and forcing his blaster to fire and destroy his own pilot droid. Banks tackled the Commander, and after a crash landing, turned him over to Republic custody.

Aftermath and reassignment
"What's the hold-up, 7719&mdash;you have somewhere better to be?''" "There's no such place, General Swan. One more thing&hellip; call me Banks''."

- Bultar Swan and Banks

Banks, scarred from the battle and locked in binders, faced a military tribunal for his actions, where he told the whole story of the mission. His superiors reprimanded him for following Kishpaugh's orders, saying that the Republic's standing on Oznek had become damaged. However, they also noted that his clear-headed actions and bravery had prevented an even worse disaster and likely saved thousands of lives, so they could not punish him. Instead of commending him for his actions, he was reassigned&mdash;two weeks later, he was on a snow-covered planet under the command of Jedi General Bultar Swan. Because of the combat he had seen and the clones he had met, Banks ended up with three long scars covering his face&mdash;and he decided to leave unrepaired the damage Ghost had done to his helmet. Aboard an LAAT/i gunship en route to combat Separatist droids, he asked General Swan to no longer use his clone designation and to instead refer to him as Banks.

Personality and traits
"It's just mathematics. Same training we all had, only I can see the angles better than most."

- Banks

As a clone of Jango Fett, the clone trooper sergeant Banks was physically identical to both the bounty hunter and the millions of his clone brethren, born with fair skin and brown eyes, and black hair, which later appeared brown. Also like Fett, he grew to a height of 1.83 meters. As a clone fresh out of his training on Kamino, Banks strictly adhered to the regulations set forth for clones, including keeping his hair short and his armor and weapons clean. He did, however, paint yellow markings on his armor, differentiating it from that of other clones.

Banks possessed an ability to calculate mathematical angles. He could use this ability to shoot blaster bolts off of objects in order to ricochet them into a target. Although at first he believed the trick to be of little use outside the barracks, the skill saved his life when Ghost tried to murder him on Oznek, as he was still able to calculate the angles and fire his blaster while being strangled.

Banks originally did not like having the clones under his command use his nickname, nor did he appreciate their humor. En route to their mission, when Banks pulled off his helmet to clean it, Syke mocked him for his adherence to what Syke regarded as foolish regulations. Banks did not intend to suffer insolence at all and admonished Syke, informing him of the proper regulations and threatening him with being forced to write an in-depth report on regulation protocols. When Ghost asked Banks if he had ever been in the field and faced enemy fire before, Banks admitted that he had not, but tried to defend himself by saying he was undefeated during training missions.

Over the course of the mission on Oznek, however, Banks' outlook drastically changed. The one clone in his squad whom he admonished the most, Syke, ended up having the most influence on him, as Banks adopted Syke's outlook on being a clone and an individual at the same time. During his fight with Ghost, Banks suffered wounds to his face and ended up bearing three long scars across his features. He also adopted the common clone practices of preferring his individualized nickname and retaining the damage done to his armor.

Like most other clones in the beginning of the Clone Wars, Banks possessed Phase I battle armor, painted green to signify his rank as a sergeant. During the mission to Oznek, he used both a pair of DC-17 hand blasters and, later, a DC-15S blaster carbine.

Behind the scenes
CT-7719 made his first appearance in Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Enemy Within, the eighth of a series of digest-sized comics, based on Star Wars: The Clone Wars TV series. The Enemy Within was published on March 7, 2012. He was created by author Jeremy Barlow and illustrator Brian Koschak.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Enemy Within