Memory flash A memory flash , also known as memory imprint , was a form of psychological conditioning that affected the mental and emotional status of a clone . The process of creating memory flashes included the scanning of the original subject ' s brain patterns , which would then be downloaded into the clone ' s mind . Although this procedure provided the clone with the knowledge and experience of its progenitor , the side effects of inheriting the memories of another person ' s life were instability and ultimately insanity . History . After Galen Marek ' s death in 2 BBY , the Sith Lord Darth Vader endeavored to recreate his former apprentice by utilizing the Timira City Cloning Facility of the planet Kamino . An altered version of the Kaminoan cloning method resulted in the creation of " accelerated clones , " thereby producing fully grown subjects in a matter of weeks rather than years . Utilizing Marek ' s preserved corpse as a source of genetic material , Vader successfully duplicated the pseudo - Sith - turned - Jedi , only to discover that the procedure was flawed and the subjects unstable . Aside from the inherent difficulty of cloning a Force - sensitive template , the use of memory flashes undermined the psychological well - being of various clones . Vader wanted the new Starkiller to possess the original apprentice ' s skills ; where Marek learned how to utilize his Force powers after years of training , the same knowledge could simply be downloaded into his clone via memory flashes . But due to the fact that the clone also inherited the memories of a life that it never actually experienced , the subject ultimately succumbed to mental instability . As a result , Vader repeated the procedure numerous times , passing over one failure after another in the hope that a stable clone would finally be created once the cloning process was perfected . After six months of trial and error , Darth Vader secretly possessed many aberrant clone s of Galen Marek , including a more stable version whose progress attracted the Dark Lord ' s notice . Vader hoped that the project had at last made its first successful attempt to recreate Starkiller , but the latest clone proved unable to overcome certain memory and emotional imprints inherited from his genetic donor , much like other test subjects who failed to pass their trials before him . Realizing that the clone possessed Marek ' s emotional attachment to Juno Eclipse , Vader deemed him yet another failure in a long line of disappointments . Before the clone could be terminated however , he managed to escape his master in order to find Eclipse . Around the same time , Darth Vader also oversaw the development of another Starkiller clone , one of who proved even more promising than all of his precursors . While he too was initially confused by the memory imprints , the clone was driven by a desire to succeed where the others had failed . He strove to prove himself in Vader ' s eyes so that no more versions would come after him and after many trials , the Sith Lord claimed the dark clone as his new secret apprentice . Ultimately , it was the clone ' s ability to compartmentalize the memory flashes that contributed to his success . By separating Marek ' s memories from his own experiences , the Dark Apprentice freed himself from his template ' s emotional attachments , thus preventing him from becoming another clone controlled by the imprinted identity of Galen Marek . A cloning technician worked with another of Galen Marek ' s clone , Subject 1157 . 1157 received memory imprints as well , and the resulting visions caused 1157 ' s body to tremble and also worsened his temperament . The cloning technician tried sedating 1157 to control the tremblings as the memory flashes were imprinted . In addition to Marek ' s clones , Darth Vader also ordered the creation of accelerated clones of Boba Fett , but without the cloned bounty hunter ' s knowledge . Xasha , a female mercenary and Fett ' s occasional partner , provided Vader ' s cloning technicians with Fett ' s genetic material and the scanned brain patterns that would be used to develop memory flashes . But the Fett clones were unstable , just like the Starkiller batch . The Imperial scientist who oversaw Fett ' s clones concluded that the subjects would be fit for service as clone stormtrooper s for a short while before their minds completely degraded into insanity . Behind the scenes . Memory flashes , or memory imprints , were first mentioned in the of 2010 ' s " " multi - media project . Subject 1157 , who received memory flashes from Starkiller , was an ambiguously canon character in in the lead - in to the release of " Star Wars : The Force Unleashed II . "