Battle on Carlac

The Mandalorian terrorist group known as Death Watch came into existence to oppose Duchess Satine Kryze's New Mandalorians and their pacifist government. Lead by Pre Vizsla, who was angered by the Duchess and her government not following the ancient warrior ways of Mandalore, Death Watch allied with Count Dooku and his Confederacy of Independent Systems. However, their planned takeover failed and Vizsla confronted the Count. According to Death Watch's account, Dooku betrayed Death Watch, and the Confederate-Mandalorian alliance fell out. During their encounter, Dooku scarred Vizsla with his lightsaber. Death Watch became nomadic crew of brigands, and the once strictly regulated army's military precision fell, making them into a group of ruthless outlaws.

Death Watch ultimately found safe haven on the Outer Rim world of Carlac, creating a temporary base near Ming Po Town. The Mandalorians were able to raid this defenseless village, stealing food and taking the town's women as servants. Death Watch also possessed a small group of droids, some of which were reassembled battle droids, to use as target practice. With their alliance with the Separatists over, Death Watch made plans to assassinate Dooku. To accomplish this goal they came into contact with Lux Bonteri, who also wished to kill Dooku as well; the son of Separatist Senator Mina Bonteri, Bonteri's mother and Padmé Amidala, a close friend and Republic senator, attempted to promote peace between their warring governments. During that time, Lux also met and befriended Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano, eventually developing some romantic feelings for her.

However, the peace initiative failed with the bombing of Coruscant's central power distribution grid, and Dooku ordered for his agents to kill Mina. While he initially filled his mother's role in the Separatist Senate, Lux learned Dooku was behind his mother's death and swore revenge against him. Believing Death Watch was a noble group, he allied with them and planned to pinpoint Dooku's current location using a holotrace device. With Dooku's location, Bonteri hoped that the Mandalorians would be able to kill the Separatist Head of State to avenge his mother's death.

To get the Count's attention, Bonteri traveled to Mandalore to interrupt for the first-ever Confederate–Republic peace conference. Upon entering, Bonteri surprised the group, which included Amidala and Tano, and declared that Dooku had killed his mother. The Confederate representatives rejected his claims and had him arrested by two BX-series droid commandos. Secretly followed by Tano, Bonteri was taken inside a C-9969 landing craft and brought before Dooku's hologram, but he repeated his accusation and secretly activated his holotrace device to locate the count. Ordering for the droids to kill Bonteri, Dooku's hologram deactivated just before Tano entered the room, as Bonteri had hoped. The Jedi Padawan was able to quickly defeat both droids and called R2-D2 to prepare their starship for escape. Running from the landing craft, Tano and Bonteri were chased through the hallways of Sundari until they approached a Republic GX1 short hauler designated the Phoenix, allowing for the pair to escape while their droid pursers were held up by Captain Taggart's Senate Commandos.

The Separatist-Republic peace talks effectively collapsed around the same time. Reuniting with R2-D2 aboard the ship, it was Tano's intention to depart for Coruscant, where her master Anakin Skywalker, speaking to her via hologram, confirmed they could discuss giving Bonteri amnesty. Intending to reach Carlac, Bonteri pulled a small blaster on Tano after Skywalker's hologram vanished, although the Padawan quickly claimed the weapon from the inexperienced fighter. Declaring that he was longer a Separatist either but would not join the Republic, which he blamed for not helping his mother, Bonteri revealed that he had made contact with a like-minded group on Carlac. Ignoring Tano's warning that his crusade would result in his own demise, Bonteri tazed the distracted Tano with a small device he was carrying. When R2 entered, Bonteri claimed she needed sleep and took control of the ship, jumping into hyperspace to reach Carlac.

Bonteri also took Tano's lightsabers and hid them, but Tano woke up sometime after landing. She told R2-D2 to find them, but after going to outside to question Bonteri Death Watch forces appeared. Tano recognized the group and Bonteri told Bo-Katan Kryze he had the information. When questioned, Tano claimed to be Bonteri's betrothed. R2 came off the ship having found Tano's lightsaber, but she silently gestured to the droid to hide them from view. The Bonteri, Tano, and R2 arrived to the camp with the Death Watch soldiers, and as they entered various Death Watch soldiers blasted at captured droids, which frightened R2. Tano and Bonteri were brought inside to part of the camp.

• Star Wars Helmet Collection 7
• Star Wars Encyclopedia of Starfighters and Other Vehicles
• "Not a Mandalorian Like Any Other" — Star Wars - The Official Magazine 106
• Star Wars: Timelines