Battle of Anaxes

During the Clone Wars, a conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems, the planet of Anaxes served as a crucial stronghold for the Republic's efforts against the Separatist Alliance. Furthermore, it housed a vital shipyard for the Republic Navy, which was one of the largest shipyards supporting the war effort. Anaxes was also home to the highly esteemed Republic Navy War College, which received substantial protection throughout the war.

Leading up to the Battle of Lola Sayu, Clone Captain Rex of the 501st Legion, along with ARC trooper Echo, formulated battle strategies for the Republic Military. Alongside fellow ARC trooper Fives, Echo possessed knowledge of an algorithm created by Rex to enhance Republic tactics. Following Echo's apparent death during the operation on Lola Sayu and Fives' subsequent death on Coruscant, Rex appeared to be the sole survivor with knowledge of the algorithm.

However, unbeknownst to the Republic, Echo had not perished at the Citadel. He had narrowly survived the explosion of the Sheathipede-class Type B shuttle he was attempting to recover and was rescued by the Separatists. Despite sustaining severe injuries, he eventually fell into the hands of the Techno Union, who transformed him into a cyborg to extract information from his [brain](/article/brain], including the strategy algorithm. He was confined in a facility on Skako Minor, the Techno Union's headquarters.

Following the Republic's assault on Cato Neimoidia, General Grievous attempted to seize control of the Anaxes shipyards, which led to a fierce battle when Admiral Trench launched his attack. Under Trench's command, Confederate forces laid siege to the Republic shipyards and clone forces on Anaxes, initiating one of the most significant battles in the war's final phase.

The Battle of Anaxes unfolded across numerous battlefields on the planet, with Jedi General Mace Windu leading Republic troops on the ground and Jedi General Anakin Skywalker commanding the Republic's aerial counterattacks. Initially, the Republic seemed to have the upper hand, containing the droid armies both on the ground and in the air. However, after weeks of intense combat, the Republic's hold on the planet began to weaken. Admiral [Trench](/article/trench], the Separatist commander at Anaxes, had access to the stolen algorithm extracted from Echo, which was being transmitted from Skako Minor to a Cyber Center on Anaxes, enabling him to counter the Republic's strategies.

As the Republic fleet (consisting of Venators, Arquitens, and C70 chargers) defended the shipyards against Trench's fleet (comprising Munificents, Recusant-class destroyers, DH omnis, and a Providence-class dreadnought), the Separatist frigates and dreadnoughts quickly gained the advantage, inflicting severe damage on the Republic defenses, destroying two Venators and one Arquitens, although the Republic managed to heavily damage a Separatist dreadnought. Clone starfighter squadrons also suffered significant losses in dogfights against Confederate droid fighters. Eventually, despite the Republic's defenses, the droids managed to overrun and seize the main production facility, jeopardizing the Republic's reserve fleet.

Windu and Skywalker expressed concern over the losses. Captain Rex believed that the droids had learned his strategic "playbook" and shared this theory with Skywalker and Windu. However, he refrained from disclosing that the Separatists were using plans he had developed with Echo, fearing the Jedi would dismiss the possibility of Echo's survival as implausible. Clone Commander Cody of the 212th Attack Battalion proposed sending a small squad behind enemy lines to infiltrate the Cyber Center, a plan approved by Windu.

Cody decided to enlist Clone Force 99, a squad of clones with unique, combat-effective mutations informally known as the "Bad Batch," with whom he had previously collaborated, due to their high success rate. The squad was dealing with an insurrection on Yalbec Prime when they received the Commander's transmission, causing them to arrive late at Fort Anaxes. Rex confided in Cody about his theory that Echo was still alive before their departure, although Cody remained skeptical. Along with ARC trooper Jesse and medic Kix, Cody and Rex met the Bad Batch upon their arrival in their gunship, the Marauder. After greeting Bad Batch leader Clone Sergeant Hunter, Cody and the rest of the strike team departed on an LAAT gunship.

During their transit to the Cyber Center, Cody briefed the team on the infiltration plan. However, the gunship was detected by patrolling battle droids and subsequently shot down while flying through a canyon. The pilot was killed in the crash, and although the other passengers were unharmed, Cody was trapped beneath the gunship. Wrecker, a member of the Bad Batch, used his immense strength to lift the wreckage off the Commander, who Kix determined had sustained internal injuries. The canyon soon came under attack from Separatist reinforcements, likely drawn to the area by the explosion caused by Wrecker lifting the gunship off of Cody. Hunter gathered his squad and executed "Plan 82" against the attacking droids, utilizing the damaged door of the gunship, emp grenades (droid poppers), and their blasters to quickly defeat the force. Rex ordered the strike team to move out, anticipating the arrival of more reinforcements. After the clones departed, a force of BX-series droid commandos with a C-9979 landing craft inspected the site and summoned a tactical droid to report to Trench that the droids had been defeated by clones employing unusual tactics. Trench ordered his droid forces to locate the clones.

The clones continued on foot, guided by Hunter's heightened senses. At a rest stop, Rex announced that he was assuming command due to Cody's injuries, having already called in an evac for Cody and deciding that Kix would stay with him. This sparked a disagreement between Jesse and Kix, who defended their captain, and Wrecker and Crosshair, who disrespected most regular clones and disliked the idea, as Rex and Tech attempted to quell the altercation and force Wrecker to release Jesse. Hunter ordered Wrecker and Crosshair to cease fighting the other clones and agreed to follow Rex's lead. The remaining strike team proceeded onward.

Upon encountering the Anaxes Separatist Security Outpost near the Cyber Center, Rex decided to seize it, using the Bad Batch's prior performance as his attack strategy. The clones swiftly overwhelmed the droids on guard. However, when Tech accessed the computers to ascertain the Cyber Center's defenses, he discovered that a platoon of reinforcements was en route. Rex decided to abandon the outpost, with Hunter, Tech, and Wrecker using stolen speeder bikes to flank the droids and enter the Cyber Center's back door, while Rex, Jesse, and Crosshair distracted the guards at the front. While the distraction was underway, the three Bad Batchers neutralized the droids in the Cyber Center, with Tech remaining to access the computers while Hunter and Wrecker proceeded to open the front door.

As Hunter, Wrecker, and Jesse held off attacking droids at the front entrance, Rex joined Tech in the control room and provided him with the algorithm so he could identify what he was searching for. However, both clones were surprised when Tech discovered that the algorithm was not stored in the Cyber Center's memory banks but was instead being transmitted from Skako Minor. Digging deeper, Tech discovered a transmission containing what sounded like a human voice. Shocked, Rex asked him to transmit a request for the voice's identity. The response they received, with the vocal masking removed to reveal the voice of a clone trooper, was "CT-1409": Echo's identification number. As the Separatist reinforcements arrived, Hunter, Wrecker, and Jesse retreated, with Hunter ordering Crosshair to secure transportation. Hunter had to repeatedly shout at Rex to get him to leave, due to his shock at discovering that Echo was still alive. The clones retreated from the Cyber Center in a stolen speeder.

When Trench's tactical droid investigated the site afterward, it reported to the Admiral that the clones had abandoned the facility without stealing any data. Trench was displeased, however, to learn that the strike team had apparently made a transmission to Skako Minor. The Admiral contacted Techno Union foreman Wat Tambor on Skako Minor to warn him that a Republic strike team was likely to violate corporate neutrality and attempt to retrieve the source of their algorithm.

After informing the Jedi and the general staff about Echo's situation, Rex, Hunter, and Skywalker awaited news on whether a rescue mission would be authorized. Eventually, Obi-Wan Kenobi arrived to inform Skywalker that the Jedi High Council had not granted permission for the rescue. However, Skywalker disregarded this and resolved to proceed with the mission, much to Kenobi's resignation. Departing on the Marauder, Skywalker, Rex, and the Bad Batch landed on Skako Minor and encountered the native Poletecs, who opposed further war on their world. The strike team managed to negotiate a truce, explaining that they were only there to rescue one of their own, and the chief provided them with scouts to guide them to Purkoll, the city where Echo was being held.

Upon infiltrating the building to which Tech had traced Echo's signal, the strike team was confronted by D1-series aerial battle droids when they located the door leading to Echo's location. Tambor appeared on a viewscreen and taunted the clones before ordering the droids to execute them, but they fought them off with Skywalker's assistance. As Skywalker, Hunter, Wrecker, and Crosshair held off more approaching droids, Rex and Tech entered the room where Echo's signal originated and released him from a stasis chamber.

After disconnecting Echo from the Techno Union's computers, the team escaped Purkoll by riding some of the planet's native keeradaks. When Tambor dispatched droid forces after them and attacked the Poletec village to which the reptiles had led them, Rex managed to persuade the Poletecs to assist them, and the groups joined forces to repel the attack before the Republic forces departed to return to Anaxes. Informed of the droids' failure to recapture Echo, Tambor decided to delay informing the Separatist military, as the loss of the clone represented a blow to the Techno Union's profits, and the avaricious foreman sought a way to recoup the losses first.

Upon the team's return to Anaxes, Echo was equipped with new cybernetics and armor but retained the socket arm with its scomp link. Although the Separatists unknowingly no longer possessed their greatest advantage against the Republic forces, they were still prevailing on most of the dozen or so fronts active around the planet. Despite concerns about his fitness, Echo approached the Jedi Generals and Rex with a plan to exploit his cybernetics and the fact that Trench was unaware of his rescue against the Separatists. His plan involved infiltrating Trench's flagship with the Bad Batch's assistance and feeding him false strategies while Windu and Kenobi led a major assault on the assembly complex. This time, with the Republic knowing all of Trench's moves, victory would be assured.

As the team prepared to depart, Hunter and Tech expressed skepticism about Echo's loyalty, noting how long he had been exploited by the Separatists, although Rex had no such concerns. The strike team departed on the Marauder while the main attack force prepared to move out. As the Bad Batch's gunship approached Trench's fleet, Echo plugged in and sent the flagship a signal masking it as Separatist shuttle TC-159. Two battle droids on the bridge detected the approaching ship but were deceived by the signal masking. The Marauder docked with an airlock on the underside of the ship. The team entered the com-vault undetected, and Echo requested Tech to rig up an interface for him.

On Anaxes, Windu and Kenobi's attack force approached the main assembly plant, with the Jedi Generals riding in gunships with their assault force. As Separatist fire rained down on the gunships, Windu authorized Gold Leader and his squadron of Y-wing starfighters to launch. Gold Squadron subsequently bombed the droid forces atop the assembly plant. When their gunships arrived above the assembly plant, Windu and Kenobi jumped out, smashed through a large skylight, and landed on the assembly floor. Confronted by large numbers of battle droids, Windu offered them the opportunity to surrender and be reprogrammed, which the Separatist forces declined. The 212th and 187th Battalion in the gunships followed the two Jedi Generals down via jetpacks and ascension cables.

Trench, informed of a massive Republic assault on the shipyards, ordered his super tactical droid to request the algorithm from Skako Minor. Echo, plugging into the com-vault's computers, detected the request and remarked that he was just in time. However, Tech prevented him from immediately responding, as they had to make his transmission appear to originate from Skako first, or Trench would realize the team was onboard his ship. Echo, posing as the algorithm, instructed Trench to send all droids on Anaxes to the shipyards, as the Republic would place all their faith in the Jedi and not send reinforcements. He explained to Rex, Hunter, and Skywalker that this was so he could shut down all of the droids with a feedback pulse in one go. Despite Hunter and Tech's skepticism, Rex insisted that they had to trust Echo.

Windu and Kenobi, informed of the plan, were apprehensive due to the overwhelming odds they and their men would face but continued fighting. After the first wave of droids, Kenobi commented that things were not as bad as he had anticipated, just as the Separatist reinforcements arrived. Whereupon the Jedi Master quipped to Windu that the number of droids exceeded his expectations. At that moment, Echo sent the feedback pulse, which worked as planned and disabled all of the Separatist ground forces on Anaxes. Trench, watching from the bridge of his flagship, was shocked and demanded an explanation, as the algorithm had never been wrong before. His super tactical droid reported that they were working to trace the source of the feedback pulse. Informed that it had originated on his ship, Trench ordered security droids sent to deal with the Republic infiltration and turned to his backup plan: "Total annihilation."

In the com-vault, Echo was about to unplug so the team could leave when he detected a command sent from the bridge activating a countdown. Trench, not wanting to rely solely on algorithms, had hidden a bomb powerful enough to destroy most of Anaxes near the fusion reactor of the assembly plant and had ordered it activated. The Admiral's super tactical droid also intended to send a pulse back to whoever had shut down the droids. Despite the danger, Echo refused to unplug, working to decrypt the bomb's deactivation code as quickly as possible. Skywalker, concerned that Echo would be unable to obtain the deactivation code, headed for the bridge of the cruiser to try and extract it from Trench personally. Informed of the bomb, Windu and Kenobi ordered their men to evacuate the assembly complex. Windu headed down to the fusion reactor to locate the bomb, as one person was needed on the ground to help disarm it.

However, Skywalker, having singlehandedly stormed the bridge, contacted Windu, having intimidated Trench into giving up the code. After the bomb was disarmed, Trench attempted to kill Skywalker, but the Jedi Knight fatally stabbed the admiral and took a detonator. Once he and the clones were fleeing aboard the Marauder, Skywalker gave the detonator to Wrecker as a gift, allowing the clone commando to annihilate the entire Separatist fleet.

As a reward for his actions, Echo was promoted to the rank of Clone Corporal and was hailed as the "Hero of Anaxes." The Republic's victory ensured that their shipyards could resume operations. It also meant that the Separatists could no longer exploit Echo's knowledge of Republic battle plans, particularly Anakin's tactics.

In recognition of their role in securing the Republic's victory at the Battle of Anaxes, medals were prepared for Rex, Echo, and the Bad Batch. However, the commando unit planned to depart before the ceremony. Now that the squad trusted him and, given his cyborg status, feeling more at home with his fellow irregular clones, Echo desired to leave with them. Although he had only recently been reunited with his friend, Rex allowed Echo to go. Before departing, Echo and his new squad-mates saluted the Clone Captain.

The battle was one of many successes for the Bad Batch and contributed to their strength in later events.

Despite the droid army's defeat on Anaxes, this battle demonstrated the vulnerability of even the Core Worlds to Separatist attacks. This was proven weeks later when General Grievous exploited this weakness and launched a massive assault on the Republic capital of Coruscant to kidnap Supreme Chancellor Palpatine.

Furthermore, the death of Admiral Trench and the significant loss of battle droids and Confederate warships at Anaxes dealt a severe blow to the Separatist war effort in the final weeks of the war. With Trench's death and the serious depletion of the Separatist Droid Army and Navy from Anaxes and the rest of the Outer Rim Sieges, General Grievous deployed the remaining forces of the droid army in a desperate counteroffensive on numerous Outer Rim Worlds in a final effort to halt the Republic advance following the Battle of Coruscant. The Separatist Droid Army ultimately collapsed weeks later following Grievous' own death and the execution of the Separatist Council, bringing the Clone War to an end.

The initial appearance of the Battle of Anaxes was in "The Bad Batch," a Star Wars: The Clone Wars episode. This episode was initially presented as an incomplete story reel in 2015. Later, a finished version was shown on Disney+ in 2020.

Prior to the Lucasfilm Story Group relocating Anaxes to the Outer Rim, the Star Wars Encyclopedia, in its "The First Order" edition, connected the Battle of Anaxes to the historical narrative of the planet Alsakan. The magazine stated that while Alsakan itself wasn't a target of the Confederacy during the conflict, since the Separatists chose to concentrate their offensive on Anaxes, Alsakan was nonetheless marked by the battle due to its close location. Post Republic reformation into the Galactic Empire, the magazine further noted that the battle played a significant role in establishing Alsakan as a major proponent of the Empire.