Extraction on Daro

The Clone Wars encompassed a three-year period of widespread conflict throughout the galaxy, pitting the Galactic Republic against the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The Republic's army primarily consisted of clone troopers, artificially created by the Kaminoan cloners. Despite the army's initial commission by Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas, his murder led to the project's hijacking by the Sith, the ancient enemies of the Jedi who sought galactic dominance. Disguised as a Jedi, the Sith Lord Tyranus convinced the Kaminoans to implant inhibitor chips within the clones, ostensibly for Jedi control, but secretly to enforce Order 66, the Sith's plan to eradicate the Jedi Order.

In 19 BBY, the Clone Wars were brought to an abrupt conclusion by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, secretly the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious, who issued Order 66 and deactivated the Separatist Droid Army. The majority of Jedi were eliminated, forcing the few surviving members into hiding from the Galactic Empire that Sidious established from the remnants of the Republic. Only a small number of clones were unaffected by Order 66, including most of the members of Clone Force 99, a unique clone commando unit known as the Bad Batch. The members of this squad defected from the Empire just days after its inception, with the exception of their sniper, Crosshair, who remained loyal due to the influence of his inhibitor chip. They also rescued Omega, a young female clone whose importance to the Kaminoans' cloning initiatives, especially their desire to maintain their Imperial cloning contracts which the Empire intended to terminate, was kept secret.

As part of their strategy to transition to a recruited military, the Empire initiated Project War-Mantle. Under the direction of Vice Admiral Rampart, Crosshair was appointed commander of the inaugural unit of Elite Squad Troopers, carefully selected from the galaxy's elite soldiers. Following the first mission's success, despite a recruit's death, Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin authorized the project's expansion. A hidden base was erected on the sparsely populated planet Daro in the Outer Rim, where new recruits, designated "TK stormtroopers," underwent training under the guidance of fifty clone commandos. Among these instructors was Captain Gregor, formerly of the 212th Attack Battalion's Foxtrot Group, who had been missing in action following the Battle of Sarrish, where he survived but developed amnesia. Gregor was a comrade of Clone Captain Rex, the former commanding officer of the 501st Legion, who the Empire believed to have died after Order 66, but who had actually faked his death and deserted after having his inhibitor chip removed.

Shortly after the Empire's formation, Rex located the Bad Batch and brought them to Bracca to have their inhibitor chips removed, as they had not yet done so. He then left to meet with a contact, but he and Batch leader Hunter promised to reach out if they needed assistance. The Batch began working as mercenaries for Ciddarin Scaleback, an information broker. Crosshair, now serving the Empire, became obsessed with capturing his former squadmates, but despite the Empire's warrant for their arrest, officers like Rampart did not consider them a high enough priority to dedicate resources to their pursuit. This changed when the Batch assisted in the rescue of prominent freedom fighters from Imperial custody on Ryloth, prompting Rampart to authorize Crosshair to hunt them down.

After some time at the Daro facility, Gregor determined to abandon his Imperial service and attempted to desert. He managed to escape the base, though unarmed and missing parts of his armor, while being pursued by troopers utilizing massiffs for tracking. During the chase, Gregor activated a rescue beacon, sending a distress signal to Rex, but was soon captured and imprisoned within the base. Rex, occupied with other matters, could not intervene personally, so he contacted the Batch, who were aboard their shuttle, the Marauder, in the midst of another assignment for Scaleback. After a brief conversation, Rex provided the Batch with the signal from Gregor's beacon. Tech, noting that the signal from "CC-5576" originated from a planet lacking known installations or settlements, opposed the mission due to its lack of financial reward for food. However, Echo insisted on the mission, trusting Rex's judgment and believing he would only ask for help if necessary. Omega felt that helping was more important than money, while Wrecker acknowledged the validity of everyone's points. Hunter was concerned about the limited information, but ultimately agreed to the mission after Echo's persistent stare.

As the Marauder exited hyperspace above Daro, Tech piloted the ship low to evade potential sensors. Hunter questioned the effort being expended for a clone they didn't know, but Echo replied that Rex's trust should be sufficient. The starship landed in the forest, and the Batch disembarked. After a short journey, Omega discovered and showed Tech the beacon's location. Wrecker inquired about the clone's whereabouts, and Hunter, surveying the scene, concluded it was too late. Analyzing the evidence, Hunter deduced a struggle had occurred, followed by the clone's abduction. They followed the trail to the base of the mountain concealing the training facility, where Hunter's enhanced senses detected something within. Tech confirmed this, stating his scanner was being jammed, and pointed out that Wrecker's information about Daro being uninhabited was outdated. Acknowledging the increased risk, Hunter ordered Omega and Wrecker back to the Marauder, silencing Omega's protests by stating that their presence on Daro was already a point of contention, but this order was not. Echo questioned the mountain's contents, and Hunter declared they would find out.

Hunter, Tech, and Echo ascended the mountain, discovering the hidden base centered around a large, open cylinder, clearly military in nature. Tech admitted his unfamiliarity with the base's type. After taking cover as a Rho-class transport shuttle entered the base, Hunter decided they needed a closer look. The trio approached the shaft's edge, and Echo, using macrobinoculars, observed an open assembly area with squads of TK troopers led by clone commandos. Mistaking the Imperial troopers for clones, Echo noted their updated armor. Hunter requested the binoculars to observe another squad of troopers disembarking from a shuttle before returning them. Declaring the mission no longer a simple extraction, Hunter decided to abort and report their findings to Rex. Tech and Hunter began to leave, but Echo refused. When Tech pointed out they didn't know if CC-5576 was still alive or in the facility, and Hunter added they would be entering without backup, Echo reminded them of their rescue of him from Skako Minor, and that he felt obligated to assist another clone in a similar situation. Faced with this argument, Hunter and Tech agreed to assist in the rescue.

Hunter contacted Wrecker and Omega on the Marauder, informing them they were still searching for the clone and that an Imperial base was built into the mountain. Omega asked him to wait for them, but Hunter instructed them to remain with the ship as backup and wait for a call. Hunter added that communications would be jammed once they entered the base before ending the transmission. Tech stated he needed to access the base's central computer to locate their target, and Echo noted entry points along the turbolift shaft. A lift arrived at the top, summoned by two clone commandos, and the three jumped onto it. They rode it down a short distance before Hunter ordered them to jump off, and they clung to the shaft's side. After a unit of troopers passed, Hunter led the way into the base.

The trio navigated the corridors, avoiding the base's personnel, until they found a control panel where Echo could use his scomp link arm. Noting the facility's new encryption, Echo said he would need time to bypass it. While he worked, Hunter and Tech kept watch. Hunter saw a unit pass through a nearby hallway, with the commando using a keycard to open a door. After Echo bypassed the encryption and accessed the muster list, he expressed confusion, noting the list of fifty commandos and one thousand TK troopers, a designation unfamiliar to both him and Tech. Shortly after, he located their target in Cellblock 25, only four levels down, and the Batch proceeded in that direction.

Gregor was in his cell when the TK trooper on guard walked by, and he demanded that the "newbie" bring him food. The trooper retorted that Gregor was a traitor before leaving, prompting him to reply that he preferred "Captain Traitor" and grumble about the "pleb's" insubordination. The Bad Batch knocked out the guard, and Echo approached Gregor's cell, asking if he was CC-5576. Gregor said it depended on who was asking, as Hunter and Tech arrived and deactivated the cell door. When Tech explained Rex had sent them, Gregor identified himself and suggested they leave. The group departed the cellblock and headed back towards the turbolift, avoiding passing squads.

Their progress was halted when they discovered the troopers were gathering for inspection, blocking the path to the lifts. Tech offered to create a diversion and located a nearby control panel. Gregor inquired if the Batch were CCs like him, based on their armor, and Hunter replied they were CT-99s. Surprised his rescuers were "defective" clones, Gregor mused that the clones who wanted to stay with the Empire were the truly defective ones. Echo asked Gregor about his role at the base, and Gregor began explaining he had been an instructor when an alarm sounded: Tech had attempted to use the clone Code-16 to create a diversion, but Gregor explained such codes were no longer valid. A unit of troopers found the intruders and opened fire, forcing them to take cover. Hunter threw a smoke bomb and charged in, stunning the troopers. As Hunter choked the leading commando, Gregor knocked out several TK troopers before retrieving a blaster. After rendering the commando unconscious, Hunter took his keycard and asked Gregor if there was another way out, and he replied there was only one: "Up."

Before they could move, however, Tech discovered the TK troopers were not clones after removing one's helmet. When he pointed this out, Gregor explained he had been trying to tell them, and that the recruits were intended to replace the clones, though he doubted their effectiveness. The group fled through the hallways, continuing to use stun shots against the Imperial troopers, with Hunter using an EMP grenade against one group. Tech asked Gregor if he knew where he was going, and when Gregor pointed out he had previously escaped, Tech noted he had been recaptured. Gregor retorted that that had only happened after he had made it out. When they briefly lost their pursuers, Echo, unimpressed by the recruits' competence, remarked that Gregor had said he trained them, and Gregor replied he hadn't taught them everything, as that would be unwise. Reaching the base's central shaft, Gregor saw an approaching turbolift. The Batch stunned the two TK troopers inside before boarding. Tech discovered an access code was needed, and Hunter gave him the keycard, allowing Tech to send the lift to the top.

Echo asked Gregor what he meant about the recruits replacing them. Gregor explained that while the clones served the Republic, which no longer existed, the recruits swore loyalty to the Empire, and although they weren't as effective, their numbers were endless. Hunter commented that numbers weren't everything. When the lift reached the top, however, the doors opened on a surprised group of TK troopers led by the commando Scorch, and the Batch quickly retreated, sending the elevator back down. As Tech quipped about Hunter and Gregor's earlier conversation, Gregor said they would have to take a detour. Exiting the lift, the intruders engaged in a running firefight with Imperial troopers as they tried to navigate around the facility's central shaft to another lift, using a smoke bomb at one point.

Scorch, in pursuit, took a shortcut across the top of a rising turbolift to ambush the Batch, shooting Gregor in the chest before attacking Tech and knocking him down. Hunter and Echo, assisting Gregor, fired stun blasts, rendering the enemy commando unconscious on the edge of the central shaft, before the group retreated deeper into the facility, away from another unit of troopers. They took refuge in a control room, Tech firing on the door controls to seal them as he brought up the rear. Hunter asked if Gregor was alright, and he replied he had been through worse, having been blown up once and surviving. Echo reported all access points to the central shaft were blocked. Tech deduced another escape route, noting a ventilation shaft leading from the room was actually a reactor conduit, allowing them to escape through its thermal exhaust port. Gregor protested the port was halfway up the mountain and they wouldn't survive the drop, but Tech countered the Batch could summon their ship before using a small explosive to remove the vent cover so they could climb in.

Reaching the exhaust port, with Hunter leading, Echo assisted the injured Gregor, asking how he ended up on Daro. Gregor explained the Empire sent him and the other commandos, but he quickly wanted out, quipping the Empire didn't approve of desertion before laughing. Echo agreed. Hunter contacted Wrecker and Omega on the Marauder, as Omega had been worrying while Wrecker tried to calm her, and told them they needed a pickup. Omega and Wrecker prepared the ship, taking off to meet the others. Reaching the exhaust port's opening, Hunter and his group stood on the narrow ledge, Gregor commenting on the sheer drop.

A unit of troopers and their commando leader found the control room, the commando surveying the scene and reporting the intruders planned to escape via the reactor port. Numerous shuttles, LAAT gunships, and Alpha-3 Nimbus-class V-wing starfighters were mobilized in pursuit, launching from the base's hangars. The unit initiated pursuit through the exhaust vents, opening fire on the Batch, forcing them to take cover. As a firefight erupted, the Marauder approached, Wrecker leaving Omega to fly and telling her to hold the ship steady while he went to the entry ramp. Opening the ramp as the ship pulled up, Wrecker provided cover fire, before telling Omega to move the shuttle closer. Wrecker yelled for the others to jump in, and Tech went first before Wrecker helped the injured Gregor onto the ramp. However, approaching Imperial starfighters forced Omega to pull the Marauder away from the exhaust port, leaving Hunter and Echo behind, as she tried to hold the ship steady.

Tech took over piloting, telling Omega she had done well and ordering Wrecker to the rear gun, while Gregor sat in the co-pilot's seat. Flying the Marauder away, Tech led the starfighters on a pursuit while Wrecker fired on them, shooting several down. At the exhaust port, the attacking squad's commando engaged Hunter and Echo in hand-to-hand combat. Hunter disarmed him, and Echo briefly held him before he broke free. However, the commando ran into the port entrance and was hit by friendly fire, falling down the mountain. In the sky, a V-wing hit one of the Marauder's engines, disabling the deflector shields and causing a power loss. Omega plugged in Gonky, the Batch's GNK-series power droid, to restore power, and Tech put the ship into a steep dive. Pulling out, they were followed by the remaining V-wings, but Wrecker shot one, causing it to crash into the other. With the pursuit temporarily ended, Tech alerted Hunter and Echo he was returning.

Tech brought the shuttle to the exhaust port, and Omega yelled for the others to jump. Echo made it onto the ramp, but more approaching V-wings forced Tech to jerk the Marauder away. Hunter jumped for the ship, but bounced off the ramp and fell, causing Omega to scream as Echo pulled her inside. Plummeting through trees, Hunter landed on a lower part of the mountain and tried to slow his fall with his knife, but his momentum carried him off the ledge. He fell through more trees before hitting the ground, briefly unconscious. The atmospheric pursuit caused Gonky to short out, and Tech dove again. As Hunter regained consciousness, a gunship landed nearby, deploying enemy troopers. Tech reported multiple system failures and the Marauder's inability to withstand more hits, while Wrecker continued firing at the Imperial starfighters.

Standing up, Hunter saw the pursuit and ordered Tech to leave, promising to find another way back. Refusing, Tech said escape was unlikely, but Hunter reiterated his order. Tech hesitated before engaging the thrusters, circling before heading upwards. As Wrecker continued firing, Omega screamed for them to return for Hunter, but he said he couldn't. Approached by numerous Imperial soldiers, some with massiffs, including a recovered Scorch, Hunter sheathed his knife and surrendered silently. The V-wings chased the Marauder out of Daro's atmosphere until it escaped into hyperspace.

Hunter found himself incarcerated at the Daro base. Upon learning about Hunter's capture, Crosshair, who had been aiding Vice Admiral Rampart during an operation targeting Kamino, journeyed to Daro alone. Hunter expressed no surprise at the sight of his former comrade. Crosshair communicated his initial desire for the entire Batch, but stated that Hunter would suffice.

The Batch gathered together again on Ord Mantell to fix the Marauder, leaving Gregor with Scaleback while they rescued Hunter. Crosshair transported Hunter to Kamino, turning on his comlink in order to bait the Batch into an ambush as the Empire readied itself to obliterate Tipoca City. Upon the squad's arrival on Kamino to free Hunter, Crosshair endeavored to convince them to enlist with the Empire, even going so far as to eliminate his own soldiers when they disobeyed orders. During their standoff, Crosshair disclosed that he had extracted his inhibitor chip, yet remained dedicated to the Empire regardless. After incapacitating the marksman and taking him as a captive, the Batch made an attempt to flee Tipoca City, while Rampart, having been notified that Crosshair had lost command of the situation, initiated a bombardment of the city. The Batch managed to get back to their vessel following a perilous underwater trek, but Crosshair declined all their pleas to accompany them, resulting in his abandonment on Kamino.