Shatterpoint (novel)

In the wake of the pivotal events culminating in the First Battle of Geonosis, Master Mace Windu is compelled to return to his home world—a perilous journey aimed at averting a potentially disastrous crisis for the Republic and confronting a terrifying mystery with profound personal implications.

The jungle planet of Haruun Kal, a world barely remembered by Mace, has transformed into a battleground amidst the escalating hostilities between the Republic and the rogue Separatist movement. The Jedi Council has dispatched Depa Billaba—Mace's former apprentice and fellow Council member—to Haruun Kal with the mission of training the local tribesmen into a guerrilla resistance force, tasked with combating the Separatists who control the planet and its strategically vital star system with their droid armies. However, the Separatists have since withdrawn, and Depa has vanished. The only indication of her whereabouts is a perplexing recording discovered at the site of a brutal massacre, hinting at madness, murder, and the encroaching darkness within the jungle—a recording bearing Depa's own voice.

Mace Windu was her mentor. He alone possesses the ability to locate her. Only he can decipher the changes she has undergone. And only he can bring her to a halt.

Jedi were never meant to be warriors. Yet, they are now left with no alternative. Mace must venture alone into the most treacherous jungle in the galaxy, delving deep into his own heritage. He will forsake the Republic he serves, the civilization he upholds, and everything except his unwavering commitment to peace and his dedication to his former Padawan. He will come to understand the horrific cost that must be borne when guardians of peace are compelled to wage war.

In 22 BBY, Mace Windu's one-time Padawan and fellow Jedi Master Depa Billaba was dispatched to Haruun Kal with the aim of instigating a rebellion against the Separatist-aligned government. This occurred two months following the Battle of Geonosis, which marked the onset of the Clone Wars; however, communication with her has been lost. After four months, a message is discovered on a voice chip, suggesting that Depa has succumbed to the dark side of the Force or has even lost her sanity. Given that Windu was her teacher, he recognizes that he is the only one capable of intervening. Consequently, the Jedi Council sends him alone to his birth world.

Upon landing on the planet, Mace is taken into custody by Lorz Geptun, the Security Chief for Haruun Kal and the leader of its offworlder militia faction. Following negotiations with the Chief, Mace is released into the planetary capital of Pelek Baw. There, he encounters his supposed contact, Phloremirlla Tenk, who is fatally shot in a subsequent incident. Mace is rendered unconscious and is introduced to Nick Rostu, a young Korun, along with his associates, Besh, Lesh, and Liane Trevval, also known as Chalk. Rostu reveals that Tenk was a Separatist operative and that he and his companions rescued Master Windu from imprisonment.

Nick guides Mace into the unforgiving jungles of Haruun Kal on grasser-back, where Depa is reportedly at large. Nick informs Mace about the Summertime War, a seasonal conflict between the natives of Haruun Kal—the Korunnai—and the offworlders—the Balawai—over resources and lifestyles. The Balawai are now also aligned with the Confederacy of Independent Systems. An attack by a Balawai gunship endangers the group, and shortly after, Lesh is killed by wasp larvae from contaminated thyssel bark. Mace euthanizes the young Korun. Besh is also lost not long after.

Further along, Mace and the group encounter Kar Vastor, a formidable lor pelek (lord of the jungle) and unstable Force-user who commands a cadre of elite warriors known as Akk Guards. Following a confrontation, Vastor allies with Mace, and the Master meets with Depa Billaba, who has succumbed to the dark side of the Force. After discovering that she is responsible for numerous atrocities, he apprehends her.

The assault ship Halleck, which Mace has positioned near Haruun Kal, is summoned to the planet to extract Mace and Depa but is targeted by droid starfighters. Mace orders the ship to jump out of the system and deploy its landers. Despite some hesitation, the acting commanding officer of the ship complies.

Shortly thereafter, Mace and Kar Vastor repel a Balawai militia attack using grassers and akk dogs. Mace successfully neutralizes the droid starfighters using a militia gunship and some ingenious sensor modifications. The landers from the Halleck touch down at Pelek Baw Spaceport, and the clone forces secure the facility. However, Mace is compelled to surrender to Geptun, whom he later recruits to assist him in halting the battle, which is reignited by the treacherous Depa and Vastor. Mace defeats them both, sustaining significant injuries, and Nick is critically wounded by an Akk Guard. Despite the campaign's many setbacks, Mace emerges victorious.

Following the incident, Master Billaba is taken to the Jedi Temple, where she is confined. Kar Vastor faces trial for war crimes. Nick, who was awarded the brevet rank of major during the conflict, recuperates in a medical center in the capital.

Throughout the mission, Mace maintains a journal, concluding it with the hope that Anakin Skywalker, as the "Chosen One," will restore balance to the Force.

The storyline of Shatterpoint drew significant inspiration from both Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness and its cinematic adaptation, Apocalypse Now. This deliberate choice aimed to imbue the narrative with a gritty atmosphere. Matthew Stover has mentioned that the concept originated during a brainstorming session and was succinctly described as "Apocalypse Now with Jedi."

This book includes foreshadowing of events that occur in Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith and The New Jedi Order: Star by Star from The New Jedi Order series. After defeating Depa Billaba and Kar Vastor, Mace experiences a disoriented moment where he doesn't remember where he is. He thinks "He could have even been in the Jedi Temple. But the Temple would never smell like this. Would it?" This moment is a hint of the future execution of Order 66 and the subsequent slaughter in the Temple halls. Earlier in the novel, Mace has a nightmare, where he envisions "Coruscant shattered by immense ships of impossible design…the center of galactic civilization has become a jungle more alien than Haruun Kal's," hinting at the bombardment and Vongforming of Coruscant.

In one instance, "akk" is incorrectly spelled as "aak."

Stover makes substantial references to Shatterpoint, along with Labyrinth of Evil and several graphic novels, in his novelization of Revenge of the Sith.

On the back covers of many New Jedi Order books released around the same time, Shatterpoint is incorrectly listed as The New Jedi Order: Shatterpoint, but it still contains a blurb that describes it as a Clone Wars novel.

• ISBN 9780345455734 and ISBN 0345455738 ; Del Rey ; June 3 , 2003 ; hardcover with 406 pages.
• ISBN 9780553713671 and ISBN 0553713671 ; Del Rey; June 3, 2003; Abridged CD.
• ISBN 9780345455741 and ISBN 0345455746 ; Del Rey; April 27 , 2004 ; paperback with 432 pages.
• ISBN 9780345464231 and ISBN 0345464230 ; Del Rey; December 6 , 2005 ; eBook .
• ISBN 9780593358788 and ISBN 0593358783 ; Del Rey; June 15 , 2021 ; Essential Legends Collection edition with 400 pages. [5]
• ISBN 3442360099 ; 2004, Blantvalet, German paperback with 471 pages ( Mace Windu und die Armee der Klone ).
• ISBN 8025202550 ; 2005 , EGMONT ČR , Czech paperback with 318 pages ( Štěpný bod ).
• ISBN 5699112219 ; 2005, Eksmo Publishing, Russian hardcover with 544 pages ( Уязвимая точка ).
• ISBN 8495070405 ; 2004, Alberto Santos Editor, Spanish paperback with 346 pages ( Punto de Ruptura ).
• ISBN 9789634973348 ; 2015, Szukits Kiadó, Hungarian paperback with 452 pages ( Töréspont ).
• ISBN 9737780175 and ISBN 9789737780171 ; 2005, Editura Amaltea , Romanian hardcover with 400 pages ( La Răscruce ).