During the Skytop Station campaign of the Clone Wars in 22 BBY, the Confederacy of Independent Systems and Galactic Republic engaged in a battle on the Mid Rim planet Falleen. Led by Count Dooku, General Grievous, and Commander Asajj Ventress, the Separatist forces emerged victorious, taking over the planet and destroying the Republic's battle group stationed there.
Falleen was a planet in the Mid Rim Territories which, before the outbreak of the Clone Wars between the Galactic Republic and Confederacy of Independent Systems, joined the latter faction, supplying the Separatists with an advantage in galactic trade during the Separatist Crisis. However, Falleen later joined the Republic, with a Republic Navy battle group being stationed there. Despite enduring several serious setbacks in 22 BBY, the first year of the war, Separatist leader General Grievous continued his crusade against the Jedi Order and the Republic through a new campaign.
After an encounter with the forces of Anakin Skywalker (center), General Grievous (left) led his fleet to Falleen and attacked the previously Confederacy-aligned world.
The campaign was made possible by intelligence secured through the Skytop Station listening post. After a month of invasions and blockades, Grievous's campaign had jeopardized the Republic's powerbase in the Outer Rim Territories. His next target was the planet Bothawui, which was important to the Republic's own intelligence operations and foothold in the Mid Rim. However, after the Republic fleet under Jedi General Anakin Skywalker and Jedi Commander Ahsoka Tano's command escaped one of Grievous's attacks while on its way to Bothawui, Grievous elected to alter his plans by instead helping to coordinate attacks launched against the Republic's forces stationed near Falleen.
Assisted by the leader of the Separatist state, Count Dooku, and his personal assassin, Commander Asajj Ventress, Grievous led an agile fleet to attack Falleen as part of his wider campaign. After the battle began on Falleen, the Confederate forces under Grievous's command emerged victorious and wiped out the entire Republic battle group, which became one of many losses the Republic sustained during Grievous's campaign. As such, Falleen fell to the Confederacy.
Due to losses like those on Falleen, the Republic's operations were heavily hampered. Following the victory on Falleen, the cyborg general and his fleet moved to capture Bothawui, where Skywalker was stationed with his task force. Although he was warned about the defeat on Falleen and Grievous's numbers by fellow Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi, Skywalker continued his defense, leading to a Republic victory that stopped the Confederacy from furthering its hold on the Mid Rim. While Grievous escaped and his victory on Falleen mitigated his loss at Bothawui, Skytop Station was destroyed a short while later.
Shortly after Grievous's victory on Falleen, the listening post that had made his wider campaign possible was destroyed.
Nonetheless, Grievous's attack on Falleen proved to be one of many attacks launched by the cyborg that disrupted the Republic, with his many victories making it seem like he was an almost indestructible enemy. As Grievous and his fleet continued to attack planets such as the Expansion Region world of Dorin, the Republic remained unable to estimate where he would strike next, which distracted the regime and enabled formerly pacified worlds to rise up once more, leading to engagements like the Second Battle of Geonosis. Even though both had served in the battle for Falleen, Grievous and Ventress did not come face-to-face during the operation and only met each other in person during the Battle of Kamino in 21 BBY.
The battle of Falleen was first mentioned in "Downfall of a Droid," the sixth episode of the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series's first season, which first aired on November 7, 2008. In the Star Wars Legends continuity, the battle was known as the Fall of Falleen, and it first appeared in "The Fall of Falleen," a webcomic released on the same day that led into "Downfall of a Droid." The comic was written by Pablo Hidalgo and illustrated by Thomas Hodges.
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