Joni Ree was a scientist (specifically, a female one) who, during the time of the Jedi Civil War, was employed by the Czerka Corporation, an arms manufacturing company. Ree held the position of chief administrator at the Czerka 431 research facility. After being compelled to work for the Sith Empire, who were allies of Czerka, she grew to dislike her new superiors and, with assistance from the Galactic Republic, escaped from Czerka 431. Following her escape, Ree joined the Republic and was dispatched to the captured Czerka laboratory AB-343 with the mission of securing specific data files. However, while inside the base, she was attacked by both a Sith assassin and an agent from the GenoHaradan organization.
During the Jedi Civil War, a conflict involving the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire, Joni Ree, a female scientist, was an employee of the Czerka Corporation, a manufacturer of weaponry. She was positioned at Czerka 431, a clandestine research installation belonging to Czerka that was situated on the edge of the known galaxy, where she functioned as the leading administrator of the base. During the period of conflict, Czerka engaged in transactions with the Sith Empire. The Sith military assumed direct command over Czerka 431, and Ree was assigned the responsibility of conducting experiments with Juggernaut war droids on behalf of the Sith. It wasn't long before Ree developed an aversion to her new overseers. To prevent her from attempting an escape, the Sith imprisoned her and assigned a heavy assault droid to guard her living quarters as she continued her work. Nevertheless, the Sith regarded Ree as such a valuable asset that the troops stationed at Czerka 431 received orders not to kill her under any circumstances.
Eventually, Ree secretly divulged the coordinates of Czerka 431 to the Republic. She then formulated a plan to escape in the event of a Republic assault on the facility. To this end, she engineered a device that would revive her if she were stunned, as she anticipated that the Sith would attempt to incapacitate, rather than eliminate, her if she tried to flee. As Ree anticipated, the Republic soon dispatched a squad of soldiers to Czerka 431. Their mission was to thwart the Sith's efforts to develop a new weapon by rescuing Ree and denying the Sith access to her expertise. When the Republic troops gained entry to the facility, Ree broke free from her quarters and, aided by two reprogrammed Juggernaut droids, launched an attack on her Sith guards. The Republic's assault proved successful, and Ree departed from the base alongside the squad.
Ree then became an employee of the Republic and was instructed to obtain certain data files from AB-343, a Czerka laboratory that the Republic had captured early in the war. However, Czerka and the Sith were concerned that the information stored at the outpost could reveal the full extent of their relationship to the Republic. Therefore, they dispatched a Sith assassin to the base with orders to eliminate Ree. The GenoHaradan, an independent bounty hunter guild, also believed that it was not in their best interest for the Republic to discover Czerka's alliance with the Sith. Consequently, they independently sent an assassin of their own to silence Ree. The scientist arrived at AB-343's command center and, with the assistance of three Republic guards, attempted to access the laboratory's damaged computer system. Shortly thereafter, the two assassins infiltrated the base and launched an attack on Ree and the guards.
While the Czerka Corporation's business practices were ethically questionable, Joni Ree did not share their views and found working for the Sith distasteful. She was a proficient scientist with expertise in reprogramming droids, creating new technologies, and accessing restricted computer systems. Both the Sith and the Republic sought her skills.
Sterling Hershey conceived Joni Ree, and she was a character in Czerka 431 and Permanent Demotion. These were a pair of combat scenarios for the Star Wars Miniatures game, published on the Wizards.com website in 2008. In Czerka 431, the scenario suggests using a "Czerka Scientist" miniature to represent Ree. The scenario allows for two possible outcomes: either the Sith defeat the Republic forces and prevent Ree from escaping, or she escapes with the Republic squad. However, Permanent Demotion later confirmed that she did escape, establishing this as the official outcome within Star Wars Legends continuity. Permanent Demotion recommends using a miniature of the Twi'lek Mission Vao to represent Ree. During the scenario, Ree is not allowed to leave the command center until the Republic troops have one of the assassins in their sights. The scenario can conclude in one of two ways: either the Republic troops defeat the assassins, or the two assassins succeed in their mission by killing Ree.