Clone ordnance specialist/Legends

Clone ordnance specialists, also known as bomb squad troopers, were specialized clone troopers in the Grand Army of the Republic, trained in both basic blaster and thinking skills and ordnance disarmament and disposal. In 21 BBY, four bomb squad troopers were deployed on Naboo when the Republic discovered a secret Separatist laboratory, where the scientist Nuvo Vindi had built dozens of bombs that would release an airborne version of the Blue Shadow Virus. The bomb squad troopers, alongside several standard clone troopers, led by Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, attacked the Separatist laboratory to disable the virus bombs and free a pair of prisoners. During the resulting battle, Vindi activated the virus bombs, but the bomb squad troopers managed to deactivate them before they could detonate, while Skywalker and Kenobi captured Vindi. As the bomb troopers were guarding the captured bomb store, Vindi's assistant droid sneaked past the guards and reactivated a bomb, causing the explosive to detonate and leak the Blue Shadow Virus throughout the laboratory. However, Skywalker and Kenobi were able to find a cure on the planet Iego.
==Characteristics==
Clone ordnance specialistsStar Wars: The Clone Wars Character Encyclopedia were specialized clone troopers in the Grand Army of the Republic, trained to disarm and dispose of bombs and explosive devices. This was often considered one of the most dangerous jobs in the army and required a gentle touch, steady nerves, well-trained dexterity, and a sense of how machines work from the troopers. The troopers served during the Clone Wars between the Galactic Republic and Confederacy of Independent Systems. Besides deactivating bombs, bomb squad members would also safeguard stores of disabled bombs in hostile conditions, such as during the middle of a battle. Bomb squad troopers wore phase I clone trooper armor, customized with orange marking and an insignia on the left shoulder to signify their bomb disposal role.
==History==
In 21 BBY,Star Wars Annual 2011 Republic Senator Padmé Amidala and Gungan Representative Jar Jar Binks discovered a secret laboratory in the eastern swamps on the planet of Naboo, where Confederate scientist Nuvo Vindi had created an airborne version of the deadly Blue Shadow Virus. Shortly after sending a message to Naboo Security Captain Gregar Typho, Amidala and Binks were captured by the Separatist battle droids. However, when Amidala and Binks disappeared, Captain Typho alerted the Republic about the situation on Naboo, and Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker were dispatched by the Jedi Council to rescue Amidala and destroy the Blue Shadow Virus. The Jedi took several clone troopers of the 501st Legion with them, as well as four bomb squad troopers.
Aboard several Low Altitude Assault Transports, the Jedi's strike team arrived at the eastern swamps, searching for the missing Amidala and Binks. Upon discovering Vindi's laboratory, the Republic forces attacked. While Skywalker's Padawan Ahsoka Tano—along with the clone troopers and Captain CT-7567—distracted the battle droids, Skywalker left to rescue Amidala and Binks. The Republic strategy was successful: The bomb trooper squad and Kenobi reached the room and found the virus bombs deactivated. However, at the moment when the troopers arrived in the bomb inventory, all the bombs were activated by the fleeing Vindi.
While Kenobi left the inventory to help Skywalker in the capturing of Vindi, the clones began disarming the bombs. After the scientist's capture, one virus bomb was taken by Vindi's private droid, however, Senator Amidala managed to find the droid and recover the bomb. After taking the virus bomb, Tano left Amidala to alert the bomb squad troopers. The bomb squad successfully disarmed the bombs before Vindi remotely detonated it.
However, one bomb squad trooper found out that a Blue Shadow Virus vial inside a bomb had been removed. Vindi's assistant droid inserted the vial in a bomb and detonated it, spreading the Blue Shadow Virus in the laboratory. Skywalker and Kenobi, who were outside of the laboratory when the explosion occurred, obtained a cure for the virus on the planet of Iego.
==Equipment==
Bomb squad troopers carried DC-15A blaster rifles with them as protection. As a sidearm, they also were equipped with DC-15s blaster pistols as well as explosive sensors, ion probes and defusing tools like wire cutters to slice the detonators of bombs. This tool was used to great effect on Naboo, as bomb squad troopers disabled dozens of virus bombs with their cutters.
==Behind the scenes==
Bomb squad troopers first appeared in "Blue Shadow Virus," the seventeenth episode in the first season of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series. The bomb squad troopers later appeared in the eighteenth episode, "Mystery of a Thousand Moons."
In the "Blue Shadow Virus" commentary, series Director Dave Filoni stated because of production reasons and limited resources while creating the episode, a unique suit of armor for the Bomb Squad was unable to be used. This was due to the fact that there were many new characters in the episode and for production reasons they decided to use the standard armor. Their name was first revealed in the entry in The Clone Wars Character Encyclopedia.
Two Clone ordnance specialists along with an ARF trooper, and a Horn Company Commander were included in the 2011 LEGO Clone Trooper Battle Pack.
==Appearances==
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==Sources==
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* Star Wars: The Clone Wars The Complete Season One
*Star Wars: The Clone Wars Character Encyclopedia 
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==Notes and references==
Category:Clone trooper variants