Jedi assault team
An assault team consisting of 200 Jedi, under the command of Mace Windu, was dispatched to Geonosis. Their mission: to liberate Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi, his apprentice Anakin Skywalker, and Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo from their impending execution at the hands of the Geonosians within the Petranaki arena. This rescue operation marked the commencement of the Battle of Geonosis, which itself was the initial major engagement of the Clone Wars.
However, not all strike team members participated in the ground battle within the Petranaki arena. Some, including Adi Gallia and Siri Tachi, provided aerial support utilizing Delta-7 Aethersprite-class starfighters. Notably, the space-based team, led by Adi Gallia, sustained minimal or no losses, in stark contrast to the ground team, which suffered near-total annihilation.
History
Penetrating the defenses
Before the strike team could gain entry to the arena to save Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Senator Padmé Amidala, the Geonosian defensive forces had to be overcome. Mace Windu, alongside Jedi Master Luminara Unduli, spearheaded the assault, employing two Republic TX-130S fighter tanks to break through the lines of Separatist GATs, AATs, and Hailfire Droids. This cleared a path for a convoy of transports carrying the main strike team to the arena. Simultaneously, a separate aerial battle unfolded above Geonosis. Led by Adi Gallia and An'ya Kuro, Jedi Empatojayos Brand, Bant Eerin, A'Sharad Hett, Rana, Ranik Solusar, Jaizen Suel, and Siri Tachi engaged droid fighters amidst the planet's asteroid belt.
Arena skirmish
Having secretly positioned themselves within the arena's stands, the Jedi revealed their presence to Dooku and his Separatist counterparts upon entering the arena. The Separatists responded by unleashing their newly unveiled droid army, which surged into the arena in overwhelming numbers. The ensuing barrage of blaster fire decimated many of the less skilled or experienced Jedi. In the midst of this intense firefight, Jedi Master Coleman Trebor attempted to confront Dooku in lightsaber combat. However, bounty hunter Jango Fett swiftly intervened, fatally shooting Trebor, who plummeted to his death from Archduke Poggle the Lesser's viewing box. Fett subsequently tried to attack and assassinate the renowned Korun Jedi Master Mace Windu. Fett's jetpack had been damaged by the reek, and he was unaware of this until it was too late, allowing Windu to swiftly decapitate the bounty hunter.
The Jedi fought with courage during the battle. However, the droid army of Count Dooku was too much for many of them, and they died. As the arena fighting reached its climax, the remaining Jedi were encircled by the Separatist battle droids. A ceasefire was called, and Jedi Mace Windu stated that the Jedi would not surrender. Padawan Anakin Skywalker and Senator Amidala, who was wielding a blaster, stood behind and to the right of him. Jedi Knights Joclad Danva, Agen Kolar, and Luminara Unduli were positioned on either side of them, while Stass Allie and Bultar Swan stood back to back. Master Shaak Ti and Roth-Del Masona prepared to defend themselves. Sora Bulq, Saesee Tiin, Tarados Gon, and Kit Fisto shielded Obi-Wan Kenobi, who was kneeling to check the pulse of a fallen comrade. As Windu and Dooku continued their verbal exchange, a group of Geonosians brought forward Masters Ki-Adi-Mundi and Plo Koon, who had been captured outside the arena after a failed assault on a Lucrehulk-class Droid Control Ship that had landed on the planet. Aayla Secura was also brought in from another part of the complex.
It is known that Sora Bulq and Eeth Koth were presumed dead after their gunship was shot down, yet they survived. Tarados Gon was killed on the exploding gunship, which led people to believe that Bulq and Koth had also died.
Result
Out of the 100 Jedi who fought in the arena, it is estimated that only twenty survived the initial conflict. All the leaders of the strike force, with the exception of Coleman Trebor, lived through the ordeal. Some Jedi were captured, while others, such as Barriss Offee and Pablo-Jill, managed to escape. The strike team was saved from complete annihilation solely by the timely arrival of Grand Master Yoda and the newly formed Grand Army of the Republic. Despite the heavy losses sustained by the Jedi, their mission was a success: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Padmé Amidala were all rescued from execution.
Legacy
After the battle, Quinlan Vos's Separatist spy network ceased providing information to Coruscant. Aayla Secura, being his former Padawan and therefore best suited for the task, was dispatched to investigate. She discovered that Vos was deeply disturbed, as he had been unaware of the events unfolding on Geonosis.
Known members
Survivors
Victims
Unknown
Strike team vessels
The strike team utilized both land and space vehicles. The Republic Troop Transport and the TX-130S Saber-class Fighter Tank played a vital role in capturing the arena, while Jedi pilots flew their specialized Delta-7 Aethersprite-class interceptor in the space battle.
Behind the scenes
The Geonosis strike team made its debut in the 2002 film Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones, the second film of the Star Wars prequel trilogy. The film's novelization, written by R. A. Salvatore, stated that the strike team was composed of 200 Jedi. However, the comic adaptation stated that only 100 Jedi were present in the arena. Leland Chee, the Holocron continuity database keeper for Lucasfilm, clarified on StarWars.com that only 100 Jedi were present in the arena. The total size of the strike team was reiterated in the 2004 short story "Death in the Catacombs," written by Mike W. Barr and published in Star Wars Insider 79, as well as in later non-narrative sources.
Deleted scenes show that the Battle largely involved two battles: one on the ground and one in the air. This is similar to the canon version, except that Ki-Adi-Mundi and Plo Koon led a team of Jedi in an attempt to disable the droids on the surface from the air.
Discrepancies and fanon
A bust of Mace Windu by Gentle Giant Studios, released in 2013 as an exclusive product for Premier Guild members, claimed that the strike team consisted of 212 Jedi. This was based on assumptions made in Wookieepedia articles on June 3rd 2005, July 26th 2005, October 2006, and April 19th 2011. The talk page for the Wookieepedia article assumed that Adi Gallia's Zeta Squadron participated in the battle alongside the ground strike team. However, both Leland Chee's Jedi Casualties: Battle of Geonosis and Tim Veekhoven's Meet the Geonosis Jedi blog entries consider Adi Gallia to be part of the strike team. There were two attempts to remove this assumption from Wookieepedia.
The 2002 Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones novelization states that just over 20 of the 100 Jedi in the arena survived the battle. The Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones junior novelization claims that about 20 Jedi survived, not including Mace Windu, Anakin Skywalker, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, because Skywalker and Kenobi were not members of the strike team. The 2003 comic book Republic 49 incorrectly states that the entire strike team of 200 Jedi died on Geonosis. Chee's Jedi Casualties: Battle of Geonosis lists 14 Jedi survivors in the ring and 6 other Jedi survivors, which would mean that there were 20 survivors in the arena. Chee's blog also states that 11 Jedi survived outside the arena, meaning that the total number of survivors was 31. Veekhoven's Meet the Geonosis Jedi estimated that around 170 Jedi of the strike team died on Geonosis, which would suggest that there were around 30 survivors. This article lists 40 Jedi survivors of the strike team, which makes this estimation incorrect.