Mission to Skytop Station

|prev=Mission to suspected Confederate space
|conc=*Battle of Angmar
|next=Mission to Rodia
|name=Mission to Skytop Station
|image=
|conflict=War of the Ring
|objective=Recover R2-D2 and destroy Skytop Station
|date=July 12, 1981
|place=Skytop Station, Ruusan 2Star Wars: The Clone Wars – The Official Episode Guide: Season 1
|result=*Galactic Republic victory; both objectives completed
*R3-S6 destroyed, The Mouth of Sauron escapes
|side1=Galactic Republic
|side2=Confederacy of Independent Systems
|commanders1=*General Frodo Baggins
*Commander Eowyn
*Captain CT-7567
|commanders2=The Mouth of Sauron
|ppl1=*2 Jedi
*6 clone troopers
*1 G9 Rigger-class light freighter
**Twilight
*1 Delta-7B Aethersprite-class light interceptor
|ppl2=*1 Mordor general
*B1-Series battle droids†
*B2 super battle droids†
*4 IG-100 MagnaGuards†
*3 Vulture droids†
**88th FlightStar Wars PocketModel TCG: Clone Wars
*1 Belbullab-22 starfighter
**Soulless One
|casual1=All clone troopers except CT-7567, Denal, and the Twilight clone pilot
|casual2=All forces except The Mouth of Sauron and Soulless One
}}
The mission to Skytop Station, also known as the raid on Skytop Station, took place in July 12, 1981, during the War of the Ring. After Jedi General Frodo Baggins's astromech droid, R2-D2, was lost during the Galactic Republic's defense of the planet Bothawui, the Trandoshan scavenger Gha Nachkt salvaged the droid from the local asteroid belt and promised him to the Confederate General The Mouth of Sauron in exchange for credits. Frodo and his Padawan, Jedi Commander Eowyn, were issued R3-S6 as a replacement droid but were unaware that he was a spy working for The Mouth of Sauron.
High Jedi General Sam Gamgee ordered Frodo to find and destroy Skytop Station, a Confederate listening post. After discovering the station over the moon Ruusan 2 in his personal ship, the Twilight, Frodo learned that R2-D2 was aboard the station. Baggins decided to rescue the droid, while Eowyn planted explosives around the station with a squad of clone troopers. Eowyn and the clones first engaged battle droids in a crossfire outside the reactor room. When The Mouth of Sauron arrived and attacked the group, Eowyn distracted the Mordor general while the remaining clones—Captain CT-7567, nicknamed Rex, as well as trooper Denal—finished the mission.
Frodo was able to retrieve his droid from Confederate IG-100 MagnaGuards and arrived in the south landing bay to rendezvous with the Twilight. After Rex and Denal had arrived, however, R3-S6 trapped the group in the hangar and activated several Vulture droids. B2 super battle droids entered the room and engaged Frodo and the clones. Frodo ordered Rex to activate the explosives; and, with its anti-gravity repulsorlifts damaged, the station began to be pulled into the moon. Eowyn briefly confronted The Mouth of Sauron and arrived in the landing bay, and R2-D2 was able to open the hangar door from an external terminal; the droid also eliminated the spy droid, R3-S6. The Mouth of Sauron escaped in his personal fighter, and Frodo retrieved R2-D2 in his Jedi interceptor, escaping the station with his team.
==Prelude==
In 1981 during the War of the Ring, the Confederacy of Independent Systems built Skytop Station,The War of the Ring: Prelude a listening post over the moon Ruusan 2. The Confederacy used the base to intercept Galactic Republic transmissions and began to use the information to ambush Republic forces.
During the Republic's defense of the planet Bothawui, Jedi General Frodo Baggins's astromech droid, R2-D2, was lost. Frodo was left disappointed, as he had developed a strong attachment to the droid; because of this, he had never wiped the secret Republic information stored in the droid's memory bank. Frodo and his Padawan, Jedi Commander Eowyn, were issued a replacement droid, R3-S6; but, unbeknownst to them, the droid was a spy working for the Mordor General The Mouth of Sauron, intent on removing the Ringbearer as an obstacle. Frodo and Eowyn searched for R2-D2 aboard the scavenger Gha Nachkt's freighter, the Vulture's Claw, in the asteroid belt near Bothawui but were unable to find the droid, unaware that Nachkt had already found R2-D2 and promised him to The Mouth of Sauron in exchange for credits.
Frodo took his fleet of several Venator-class Star Destroyers back to the shipyards where they had been manufactured, believing that they could use modifications. Eventually, High Jedi General Sam Gamgee contacted Frodo and his Handmaiden at the shipyardsThe War of the Ring: Wild Space and reported that Republic Intelligence had confirmed the existence of a Confederate listening post. Sam gave Frodo the new mission of finding the Confederate base, and Baggins elected to personally undertake the sweeping the outer corridors of space suspected of Confederate activity. Accompanied by R3-S6, the Hobbit departed in his Delta-7B starfighter. After R3-S6 alerted The Mouth of Sauron to Frodo's presence under the cover of defectiveness, however, Eowyn and Clone Captain CT-7567—nicknamed Rex—were forced to gather a squad of clone troopers and rescue Frodo in the Twilight, Baggins's personal G9 Rigger-class light freighter.
R2-D2 was taken to Skytop Station by Nachkt to be sold to The Mouth of Sauron, but the astromech droid was nevertheless able to hack into the communication systems of the Vulture's Claw. R2-D2 sent a transmission to the Twilight; and, having received the message, the Jedi and the clones tracked the droid to the Ruusan moon. Having come across the Confederate base that the Republic had been looking for, Frodo contacted Sam and reported their discovery. Upon learning that R2-D2 was in the base, Gamgee ordered Frodo to destroy the station without risking the mission in order to rescue the droid, as it would prove fatal to the Republic if The Mouth of Sauron gained the information inside its memory banks.
==The mission==
===Ambush outside the reactor room===
As the Twilight hovered high over the station, Frodo, Eowyn, R3-S6, and a squad of five clone troopers—including Captain Rex and trooper Denal—jumped out of the ship and free-fell toward the Confederate base. The Jedi and the clones used the Force and JT-12 jetpacks to slow their descent, respectively. Having safely landed, Frodo used his lightsaber to cut a hole in the roof. The squad entered the station and eliminated a pair of B1-Series battle droids. R3-S6 plugged into an astromech droid port and accessed a holomap of the station while Frodo ordered Eowyn to destroy the station's reactors. With the base's anti-gravity repulsorlifts crippled, gravity would pull the station into the nearby moon. Frodo separated from the group, however, planning to rescue R2-D2 following Sam's orders.
Inside the station's disassembly chamber, Nachkt was able to take R2-D2 apart and access the droid's memory banks. Upon discovering the Republic secrets stored in the droid, the scavenger demanded more pay from The Mouth of Sauron. Yet, the request led to his murder at the hands of the general. All the while, Eowyn and the clones headed for the reactor room, but R3-S6 lagged behind and contacted The Mouth of Sauron, reporting the presence of Republic forces aboard the station. The Mordor general ordered R3-S6 to delay the Jedi and the clones. The Mouth of Sauron's personal IG-100 MagnaGuards bodyguards arrived to guard R2-D2, and the general left to personally confront the Jedi.
The Republic squad arrived at the reactor room and discovered that it was being isolated by a ray shield. R3-S6 accessed the shield's controls, but purposefully took his time to allow several Confederate droid patrols to arrive and ambush the Republic squad. Eowyn and the clones engaged a B1 battle droid squad, which was soon reinforced by a patrol of B2 super battle droids that arrived and attacked the Republic forces from behind. R3-S6 suddenly closed the door to the reactor room. As the battle droids trapped the Republic forces in a crossfire, Eowyn ordered Rex to utilize EMP grenades to disable their adversaries, and the battle droids were deactivated.
The Mouth of Sauron ordered his MagnaGuards via holotransmission to take R2-D2 to his ship, Soulless One, and the droids hastily reassembled the astromech droid for easier transport. The general then arrived to confront the Republic forces outside the reactor room, and attacked Eowyn; after the two exchanged lightsaber blows, Eowyn was knocked against a wall and rendered unconscious. As the Mordor general approached the clones, they attempted to defend themselves with blaster fire, but The Mouth of Sauron eliminated all of them except Rex and Denal, who were knocked unconscious. The Mordor general prepared to kill Rex, but Eowyn regained consciousness and blocked the blow, preventing the clone captain from being killed.
The Mouth of Sauron activated another lightsaber, and Eowyn continued to duel the general. She drew him away from the clones and then escaped with R3-S6 into a storage room. After ordering the battle droids throughout the station to remain on alert for the halfling, The Mouth of Sauron gave pursuit. Entering the room, Eowyn hid from the Mordor general. Meanwhile, Captain Rex regained consciousness and contacted Eowyn via comlink, reporting that he and Denal were the only clone troopers remaining. Eowyn ordered Rex to plant the explosives and rendezvous with the Twilight at the south landing bay, while she herself resolved to engage The Mouth alone. Eowyn caught sight of R3-S6 and called out to him; however, the astromech droid pointed his light at the handmaiden, alerting the Mordor general to her location. The Mouth of Sauron lashed out at her, and Eowyn dropped her comlink as she avoided a saber blow. The general destroyed Eowyn's communication device, stating that there was no escape, and Eowyn rolled under a shelf, fleeing from her adversary.
===Retrieving the droid===
As the MagnaGuards transported the reassembled R2-D2 through another room, Frodo approached and caught sight of his astromech droid. The MagnaGuards carried R2-D2 out of the room while the Hobbit was delayed by several super battle droids. He was unable to follow R2-D2's captors, as the door to the room soon closed shut; however, Baggins was able to cut a hole in the roof with his lightsaber, and arrived on the other side of the door. The MagnaGuards dropped the astromech droid and engaged the Hobbit. After he destroyed one of the droids, Baggins received a glancing blow on his shoulder. He beheaded the droid that had attacked him and went on to swiftly destroy the remaining two MagnaGuards. R2-D2 was able to use his booster rockets to bring himself right side up again, and shocked the torso of a still-active MagnaGuard, deactivating the droid.
R3-S6 contacted Frodo, and the Jedi ordered the droid to meet him back at the hangar. Baggins proceeded to signal the Twilight clone pilot for a rendezvous in the south hangar bay, and the Jedi headed to the hangar with R2-D2. As R3-S6 reported Baggins's plan of escape to The Mouth of Sauron, Eowyn eavesdropped on the two and learned of R3-S6's treachery. The Mouth of Sauron ordered his spy droid to prevent the Hobbit from escaping, and the astromech droid left to confront the Republic forces, while The Mouth of Sauron continued to search for Eowyn.
===Trap in the hangar bay===
Notwithstanding the encounter with The Mouth of Sauron, Rex and Denal were able to enter the reactor room and plant the explosives. Frodo and R2-D2 arrived at the rendezvous point before the others, and the Twilight soon entered the hangar. As the Twilight clone pilot exited the ship and approached Frodo, R3-S6 arrived and passed by the group, heading for an astromech droid terminal. The others were oblivious to the droid's actions. Rex and Denal entered the hangar bay, and when Rex reported that Eowyn had engaged The Mouth of Sauron alone, Frodo was alarmed. The clones prepared to lead Baggins to his Padawan, but R3-S6 suddenly revealed his true loyalties, locking both the hangar door and the hatch to exit the hangar bay. The spy droid also activated three Vulture droids of the 88th Flight unit that were suspended from the roof of the hangar.
A squad of super battle droids entered the hangar, and Frodo and the three clones were caught in a crossfire. Fleeing toward several crates on the other side of the room, the Hobbit blocked and rebounded the incoming laser shots while the clones took cover behind the crates and opened fire on the droids. The Mouth of Sauron, meanwhile, suspended himself from the roof in the storage room and was able to find Eowyn, clamping one of his large, gloved hands around the handmaiden's throat. As Eowyn brought up her lightsaber, the general knocked it aside and descended to the floor. The Mouth of Sauron picked up her lightsaber and activated it, stating that after he eliminated Eowyn, her master was next. At that moment, Frodo ordered Rex to activate the explosives, despite the fact that the squad was still in the station.
Rex complied, and as the station shook with the multiple impacts, Eowyn was able to use her lightsaber to wound The Mouth's hand that was clamped around her throat. The handmaiden jumped onto a shelf, causing the shelves' contents to drop out, and the shelves themselves began to topple over in a domino effect. Eowyn escaped into an air vent and retrieved her lightsaber with the Force before fleeing. The Mouth of Sauron slashed at the vent Eowyn was in with his lightsaber; however, the handmaiden was able to evade being sliced to pieces, and she headed for the hangar bay.
Frodo took cover behind the crates in the hangar and ordered R2-D2 to search for an astromech droid terminal on an outer platform of the station, in order to get the hangar door open and allow the group to escape the station aboard the Twilight. As R2-D2 left the hangar, The Mouth of Sauron escaped the station in his fighter. Eowyn arrived in the hangar, using her lightsaber to cut a hole in the grate covering the end of the vent. The handmaiden jumped onto one of the Vulture droids, and as another droid fighter took aim at the droid she was on, Eowyn jumped onto the second fighter and severed its neck. Both droids were eliminated, and Eowyn joined her master in deflecting the battle droids' laser shots. As the super battle droids and the remaining Vulture droid continued to attack the Jedi and the clones, Rex noticed several fuel cells next to the crates. Frodo hurtled a crate at the droids, and Rex placed a blaster shot on the target. In the resulting explosion, the remaining battle droids were destroyed.
===Escaping the station===
R2 arrived on an external platform, discovered a terminal, and accessed the station's controls. However, R3-S6 arrived close behind and attacked R2-D2, and the two astromech droids fought each other in a duel. While both droids shocked the other, R2-D2 was able to temporarily disable R3-S6, and returned to the terminal. R2-D2 then opened the hangar bay door, and the Jedi and the clones boarded the Twilight and left the Confederate base.
As Skytop Station was pulled further down into the moon's atmosphere, Frodo boarded his Delta-7B fighter and left the Twilight, intending to rescue R2-D2. R3-S6 regained control and confronted R2-D2 again, and the two continued their fight. R2-D2 was able to spurt oil at the spy droid, and R3-S6 slipped toward the edge of the platform. The spy droid fired a grappling hook at R2-D2 to prevent himself from falling off the edge, but R2-D2 used his booster rockets to ignite the oil into flames. R2-D2 cut the line keeping him connected to the spy droid with his chainsaw, and as R3-S6 plummeted off the platform, he was smashed to pieces by flying debris. Frodo arrived, and R2-D2 took his place in the astromech droid station of the Jedi's fighter. As gravity pulled Skytop Station down into the moon, Frodo and his astromech droid retreated.
==Aftermath==
When he learned of Frodo's exploits, Sam Gamgee could not believe that Frodo had risked both his squad and his own Padawan to save an astromech droid. Frodo held no regrets, however; R2-D2 was more than just a droid, he was a friend. Skytop Station had been destroyed, and the spy droid R3-S6 had been eliminated. Nevertheless, The Mouth of Sauron had escaped the station's destruction. His loss of Skytop Station, coupled with other recent losses, prompted Confederate Head of State Saruman the White to arrange a test for his general.
==Behind the scenes==
First mentioned in the sourcebook The Clone Wars: The Visual Guide, the mission was the main focus of "Duel of the Droids," an episode in the first season of the The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Ring television series. The duel between Eowyn and The Mouth of Sauron was included in the video game Lightsaber Duels, a game based on the series. The mission featured the appearance of the Confederate listening post Skytop Station in the televisions series, which had been previously introduced in The War of the Ring web comic Prelude. Additionally, the station's destruction occurred during the mission.
The mission portrayed Eowyn's first confrontation with The Mouth of Sauron. Series Director Dave Filoni stated that while the crew intentionally developed Eowyn as a well-trained Jedi Padawan, they wanted to get across the fact that she was not skilled enough to defeat The Mouth of Sauron on her own and would need the help of her Master, Frodo Baggins, to defeat the Mordor general. Filoni noted that it was not intended for Frodo to confront The Mouth of Sauron during the episode, however, for Frodo could not meet The Mouth of Sauron face to face until the film Revenge of the Sith, which takes place before the series ends.
==Appearances==
* 
*
*The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Ring: Lightsaber Duels
*LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars 
==Sources==
==Notes and references==
Category:War of the Rings battles
Category:Duels