Battle of Quell

The Battle of Quell was a battle that took place in 21 BBY—2 BFE—during the Clone Wars in orbit and later the upper atmosphere of the planet Quell, where the Galactic Republic fleet of Jedi General Aayla Secura was assaulted by a squadron of Confederacy of Independent Systems Munificent-class star frigates commanded by the T-series military strategic analysis and tactics droid TF-1726. As her forces suffered heavy losses to the Separatist squadron, Secura requested aid from fellow Jedi General Anakin Skywalker alongside his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, who traveled across the galaxy aboard his flagship, the Venator-class Star Destroyer Resolute to mount a rescue with little time to spare.
During the battle, Secura's two supporting Star Destroyers had been destroyed by the Separatist capital ships, while her flagship, the Venator-class Star Destroyer Liberty, succumbed to a boarding action undertaken by dozens B2-RP super battle droids as well as consistent heavy turbolaser fire from the Separatist frigates. After Skywalker arrived, he proceeded to board the Liberty while a Consular-class cruiser docked in the lower hangar in order to retrieve Secura and the others from the doomed vessel. However, while escaping Skywalker was severely injured after holding back an explosion with the Force while Secura, his Padawan, the Clone Captain Rex and Clone Marshal Commander Bly boarded the rescue frigate. Amid their departure from Secura's doomed flagship, the Republic frigate had suffered damage from Separatist cannon fire, which caused it to enter hyperspace at an unknown trajectory, causing Admiral Wullf Yularen to calculate the ship's trajectory in order to locate them after the end of the battle.
By the end of the fighting, while Secura was saved, the Republic had suffered heavy casualties among her 327th Star Corps of clone troopers as well as significant numbers of the clone crews aboard the three Republic Star Destroyers, who were unable to escape the destroyed vessels prior to their impact on the planet's surface. The Separatist victory, although an unqualified one, also underscored how the Republic's ultimate triumph in the war was not certain.
==Prelude==
Throughout the Clone Wars, a galactic war fought between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, the confederate government regularly utilized its naval forces' vast superior numbers to its advantage in engagements against the Republic. As such, the Confederacy used such tactics during battles that took place within the Outer Rim Territories, a region of the galaxy where separatism had flourished, including during an engagement at the planet Quell.
==The battle==
===Battle in the skies===
In 21 BBY, the Twi'lek Jedi General Aayla Secura and her task force of three Venator-class Star Destroyers flagged by the Star Destroyer Liberty were engaged by a squadron of five Munificent-class star frigates commanded by the T-series military strategic analysis and tactics droid TF-1726 from his command ship in orbit of the planet Quell in the Outer Rim. During the battle, both the Republic and Separatist capital ships had launched several units of starfighters in opposition of one another, with Secura deploying several groups of V-19 Torrent starfighters while the tactical droid sent out Vulture-class droid starfighters.
As the Separatist squadron lost a single of its frigates, the remaining capital ships pressed intense turbolaser fire on the Republic Star Destroyers, eventually bringing them into the planet's upper atmosphere as the other two Venators were torn apart and sent crashing to Quell's surface in a fiery wreckage. With the destruction of its supporting Star Destroyers, the Liberty was left outnumbered while it attempted to maintain altitude in the atmosphere. However, as the Liberty attempted to return turbolaser fire to the attacking frigates, the Star Destroyer continued to take heavy Separatist fire and eventually lost power to its deflector shields as it was struck.
Following the deactivation of the Republic flagship's shields, TF-1726 ordered dozens of jetpack-equipped B2-RP super battle droids from his command ship to board the heavily damaged Star Destroyer through the breaches in its hull. To support the rocket droids, B1-series battle droids were also sent aboard the Liberty, forcing Secura to order her Clone Commander, CC-5052, otherwise known as "Bly," to repel the invaders. Complying to his orders, Bly led several groups of clone troopers from the 327th Star Corps to engage the boarding battle droids.
===Arrival of Republic reinforcements===
While her forces suffered heavy losses, fellow Jedi General Anakin Skywalker aboard his flagship, the Venator-class Star Destroyer Resolute, had received word of Secura's circumstances and traveled across the galaxy to aid her in the battle. As the Resolute entered the atmosphere after arriving in the Quell system, Skywalker departed the Star Destroyer alongside his Padawan, Jedi Commander Ahsoka Tano, Clone Captain CT-7567, otherwise known as a "Rex," and clone troopers of the 501st Legion aboard several Low Altitude Assault Transport/infantry gunships to board the heavily damaged Liberty and rescue its crew before its destruction, while Admiral Wullf Yularen remained aboard the Resolute. After departing his flagship, Skywalker had also arranged for a retrofitted Consular-class cruiser to dock with Secura's flagship and retrieve them.
In their descent to Secura's Star Destroyer, Skywalker and his force of gunships were intercepted by several of the rocket droids that had been entering the Liberty. As the droids fired their blasters on the gunships, the Republic craft returned with laser cannon fire and missiles as one of the rocket droids latched onto the craft that was carrying Skywalker, his Padawan and Rex, and tore open the cockpit canopy in an attempt to kill its clone trooper pilot, who exited into the troop compartment while Skywalker jumped out onto one of the droids, in which he then made his way on the Liberty while the gunship had lost control and crashed into the Star Destroyer's hull. After crashing into the Liberty, Tano, Rex and several clone troopers exited the gunship and engaged the invading rocket droids and B1 battle droids, eventually meeting up with Secura and Bly in a long hallway after destroying several of the droids that had boarded.
While aboard the Liberty, TF-1726 aboard his frigate had grown impatient with the prolonged fighting and ordered his droid crew to open fire on the final Star Destroyer, despite the reminder that hundreds of their droids were still aboard and would be destroyed as a result. As Skywalker and Secura continued to fend off the battle droids within her cruiser, the two eventually met up with Tano and Rex and continued to press forward through the Star Destroyer's corridors while still destroying Separatist droids along the way. In response to an inquiry as to how he planned to rescue them from the Liberty, Skywalker explained that a Republic frigate was docking in the lower hangar in order to evacuate them. As the the frigate docked with the Star Destroyer, the Republic survivors extended the gangway and boarded, but were temporarily halted by a wall of flames from the intense Separatist fire, which consumed all clone troopers and battle droids that crossed its path. After catching sight of the flames, Skywalker used the Force to push his allies into the frigate and held the flames back.
Skywalker was rescued, and the cruiser departed the doomed Republic vessel just as it was being destroyed. Due to Skywalker's wounds, Secura sought to dock with the Resolute, which was engaging Separatist forces. Wullf Yularen warned about docking in the middle of the battle, but reluctantly allowed Secura and the cruiser to dock. However, during the docking procedure, the cruiser was attacked by vulture droids, which accidentally activated the ship's hyperdrive, forcing the cruiser into evasive action to avoid a catastrophic collision with the Resolute as it jumped into hyperspace.
Yularen ordered the last known trajectory of the cruiser be plotted so the missing ship could be located after the battle. Ultimately, the battle was a Separatist victory.
==Aftermath==
The out-of-control ship nearly collided with a star in hyperspace, but after it was forced out, the ship crashed on the planet Maridun. The stranded Jedi and clones found medical assistance for Skywalker at a village of Lurmen colonists. However, not long after their arrival, Separatist forces led by General Lok Durd arrived at Maridun, plotting to destroy the village as part of a test for Durd's experimental weapon, the Defoliator. The Republic group, including a mostly-recovered Skywalker, successfully defended the village from Durd's forces, before capturing him just before the Resolute arrived at Maridun in search of them.
==Behind the scenes==
The Battle of Quell was first depicted in the episode "Jedi Crash," the thirteenth episode of the first season of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated television series, which aired on January 16, 2009. The battle was identified in the corresponding episode guide on StarWars.com. In the Star Wars Legends continuity, the battle was first identified as the Sky Battle of Quell in the entry for Ahsoka Tano on StarWars.com.
In the initial script for "Jedi Crash," the Battle of Quell was originally planned as a space battle, but it was later moved to Quell's upper atmosphere during the episode's pre-production for dramatic effect. As a result of the changes made to the battle sequence, the altitude shift produced continuity errors regarding the operational capabilities of hyperdrives, which canon had already established possessed problems while operating close to planets.
==Appearances==
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==Sources==
==Notes and references==
Category:Battles of Quell
Category:Battles of the Clone Wars