#if they weren't i think the republic would've been a lot worse off just in general

[antianakin]

There is exactly one criticism that I agree with my, very anti-Jedi, cousin on and that's the Jedi were TERRIBLE Generals. Generals may TRY to make sure their men mostly come back. But useless sacrifices are not only acceptable, but expected, the men are mostly expandable in war. The Jedi did not consider sacrifices like that acceptable or expected. Sure it did happen. It was WAR. But they tried their best to make sure it DIDN'T. The Jedi were terrible Generals. But they were the teachers and Leaders the CLONES NEEDED.

I'm not sure I'd ENTIRELY agree with that. I think I'd be willing to agree that the Jedi were perhaps less CONVENTIONAL Generals, and they definitely do seem to at least TRY to place the lives of their men above just tossing them away for an easy victory, but you can just as easily claim that keeping the men alive to keep fighting is a good strategy in and of itself.

The biggest piece of evidence I'd point to that the Jedi were actually perfectly good Generals is the Citadel arc and Tarkin's criticisms. The one real criticism he makes of the Jedi as military leaders is that they're occasionally too soft and will abandon a mission if it looks impossible to win without near total casualties (on either side). But he's generally fairly positive about the Jedi and if they were truly awful at their jobs, I don't think TARKIN of all people would hold back on saying so, even to the Jedi's faces.

And we DO see the Jedi willing to make sacrifices and accepting that this is a necessary part of war. The Citadel arc is, again, a perfectly good example of this. Obi-Wan and Anakin go in with like 3-4 men each I think and they come back with a grand total of 3 (Rex, Cody, and Fives). A LOT of clones die on this mission that they all KNEW was basically a suicide mission because the Jedi themselves decided that getting the information about the hyperspace lanes was vital enough to the war that it was worth losing multiple lives over (including their own).

So it's not that the Jedi don't understand that sacrifices are necessary in war or even that they avoid it entirely, they just avoid what they see as UNNECESSARY sacrifice for what might amount to a fairly minor victory. Keeping more of their men alive might, in the long run, be a better strategic choice than losing all of them on one campaign, especially if it's over like one uninhabited moon or something like that. There's nothing to say that the losses the Jedi deem acceptable are things that would've changed the entire tide of the war had they chosen to push forward instead.

The other good evidence that the Jedi acting this way would've been the WORSE choice is the Umbara arc. We are told and then see that Krell IS the kind of General who is willing to lose a lot of clones in order to gain victories in battle, and the clones do recognize that he has a lot of victories under his belt. But never once do they discuss whether those victories really MEANT anything or had a large impact on the war effort. It certainly never seems that the Republic is majorly pushing back the Separatists because of Krell's victories, nobody ever mentions that Krell gained them a major advantage with those victories or took out anyone of any consequence on the Separatist side with his strategies. And by the time he gets to Umbara, he's explicitly using this strategy to WEAKEN the Republic side and cause a loss. Several of his strategies WOULD'VE meant the Republic lost on Umbara and it's only the clones utilizing different strategies that put fewer of them at risk that they actually end up continuing to HAVE victories at all.

I'll also point out that the Jedi continuously getting their men killed en masse would've bankrupted the Republic a LOT earlier because they'd have to be paying for more clones a LOT more often than they did in canon and I can't imagine anyone would've considered that a particularly sound strategy and at some point I'm sure the Senate would've felt obligated to put a stop to it anyway and insisted on strategies that kept more clones alive for longer. So I'm not sure it's fair to claim the Jedi were utilizing BAD strategy by not just exclusively using tactics that meant most of their men were killed for every single victory.

So the ONLY criticism we EVER see of the Jedi's ability as military leaders is Tarkin claiming they're "too soft" and Tarkin is the kind of person who would likely say that until the Jedi started carpet bombing entire Separatist planets. Would it give them a victory? Yeah, sure, maybe, but that's the exact same strategy the Separatists are using and look how well that works out for THEM. Everything else we ever see seems to showcase that the Jedi are in fact perfectly good Generals, not just in that they're kind to the clones and are unwilling to carpet bomb Separatist planets, but also because they're just... good at this. They CAN be strategic, they CAN run wars if they want to. And I think that's the whole point of the Jedi in some ways is that yes, they CAN make war when they need to, they just actively choose NOT TO every time they can. THIS is why Qui-Gon tells Padme that he and Obi-Wan are there to protect her but that they can't win this war for her and they end up going off to fight off a Sith while Padme has to actually win the war with her own people and the Gungans instead. The Jedi don't WANT to be in the position of doing nothing but fighting, but they're absolutely capable of this kind of work.

That's the tragedy of the war in some ways, the Jedi ARE good at this no matter how much they wish they weren't sometimes. But being good at it means they can actually protect the Republic, their own men, and even the Separatist civilians better, so they're not going to just sit there and do things that will screw over a bunch of people. Yes, they're going to fight the war in such a way that they reduce casualties as much as possible, but reducing casualties also requires doing enough to not LOSE the damn war, too. It's a delicate balance they're trying to hold on to and I'd argue they manage it better than anybody else would've ever done in their position.

#star wars #jedi #pro jedi #clones #clone troopers #the clone wars #listen i am not a strategist #i CERTAINLY am not a military strategist #but just looking at what we're shown and told by tcw and the films i think it's fairly the clear the jedi were GOOD at being generals #regardless of whether they LIKED that or not #yes they wanted to protect the clones but they weren't idiots and they clearly weren't causing the republic to lose all the time either #there's a difference between strategically retreating from battles that can only be won by massive casualties with little to no reward #and prioritizing saving the clones OVER necessary victories in the war #the jedi are doing the former to my perspective #if they weren't i think the republic would've been a lot worse off just in general #unless we're about to start claiming that the clones and/or civilian officers were doing all of the real work instead of the jedi #which i personally would not #esp since we see the jedi sitting there going over battle plans and coming up with their own strategies quite often #tarkin's opinion on the matter is suspect - don't take his word for it when he says the jedi are too soft

[get-wr3ckered]

| Karma- (GN Reader x The Bad Batch) |

Warnings: SW cursing but does that actually need a warning? Other than that I don’t think any warnings are warranted.

Wordcount: 1,200+

Notes:

Reader has an established nickname/ callsign.

While Reader is gender neutral, they're AFAB.

I think I’ve added all the appropriate warnings and tags but if I’ve missed something or tagged it incorrectly feel free to let me know and I’ll fix it asap!

Am I writing this without actually having started watching TBB yet? Yes I am. Am I praying that from the brief snippet we saw of the Batch in SWTCW that I’m doing their characterisation some semblance of justice? Also yes.

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-Chapter Two-

< Previous Next >

"Alright," Hunter voiced once they made the jump to hyperspace, drawing his brother's focus. He nodded to Tech who'd already had his datapad in hand, Cody's briefing no doubt at the ready. "What're we in for?"

Tech was silent for a moment. His eyes scanning quickly over the words in front of him. "Well, it's certainly not good."

"You don't say," Crosshair jibed. The eye roll that would've no doubt followed never came to be as Hunter shot a warning look his way.

Unbothered by Crosshair's words, Tech read on through Commander Cody's briefing. "It appears that a Special Operative known as 'Karma' has been captured by the Separatists, General Grievous to be precise."

Hunter gave a slow nod, gesturing for Tech to continue, seemingly unaware of the slight furrow that pulled at Echo's brows.

"They were to gather vital information on a new make of Battle Droid that has been giving the GAR particular trouble as of late." Adjusting his goggles, he continued. "They were assigned the task three rotations ago. I wonder why Commander Cody is so adamant about this 'Karma' being retrieved so swiftly. The Separatists have held Republic prisoners for considerably longer before any rescues were attempted."

"It's obvious isn't it?" Crosshair scoffed, Tech furrowed his brow and turned to his brother questioningly. "Commander Cody's got a soft spot for this one."

"Stow it, Cross," Hunter sighed. Crosshair's comment wasn't helpful, and even if that were the case, it wasn't any of their business. Turning his attention to Echo, Hunter took note of the thoughtful look twisting at his pallid features. "Echo, you good?"

Echo let out a quiet hum in response. He knew that callsign from somewhere and yet he couldn't quite place where. It was almost mocking him, the way the name nagged at him to remember something just out of reach.

"Echo?" Hunter tried again but got no response.

The furrow of Echo's brow deepened momentarily. The edges of a blurred memory began to clear up, a seemingly inconsequential interaction clawing its way to the surface... And then the realisation slammed into him like an out-of-control speeder.

"What?" Wrecker guffawed, exchanging a look with the others as Echo's demeanour dropped without a word. "You know 'em or something?"

"Or something," Echo muttered cryptically, his eyes widening a fraction as his mind danced with the memory of how he knew you and who had been the cause of your brief meeting.

Sensing his reluctance to speak further, Hunter turned back to Tech. "What's our ETA looking like?"

Turning back to the Pilot's controls, Tech looked them over briefly before answering. "We'll be dropping out of Hyperspace in a moment, by my calculations we'll be on the ground in eleven minutes or so."

"Let's gear up then."

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Alarms blaring was not an ideal wake-up call, but given you were currently stuck with the Separatists you supposed it could've been worse, a lot worse.

You weren't sure when you'd nodded off in all honesty but after three rotations of forcing yourself to stay awake, the small amount of unwanted rest came as a relief. The tired sting of your eyes wasn't as intense, your limbs didn't feel as heavy and the pounding in your head had dispersed a little. It seemed your impromptu nap had done a world of good.

Shimmying forward, as far from the wall as your restraints would allow, you peeked through to where the droids had been stationed... only to find them nowhere in sight.

'What the kriff is going on?' You silently asked yourself as you move back to the wall to give yourself some slack on the restraints.

While the alarm itself was somewhat concerning, this was the first instance since your capture that you had been left unsupervised and you were not about to waste this opportunity. Twisting your bound wrists behind your back, you manoeuvred your flesh hand to grasp the section of your prosthetic that connected to your arm. Working quickly, your fingers danced over the plastoid shell of your bionic limb, seeking out the release mechanism with practised ease.

Your prosthetic fell limp, a quiet clatter hanging in the air as it fell to the floor unceremoniously. Pulling your now hand-free wrist from the restraints was all too easy- getting the prosthetic back on without the use of your still bound hand however, not so much. It took a great deal of fighting with the limp hand and an uncomfortable amount of time trying to position it just right between your knees but eventually, you managed to click the artificial hand back into place.

With your hand firmly secured, breaking free of the remaining restraint was a breeze. The worn metal clasp that kept them shut didn't hold up when pitted against the strength of your artificial fingers. The small scratches left in the plastoid covering of your fingers were a small price to pay for being free of those damned restraints.

Pinpointing your escape route wasn't hard, you'd spent the majority of your captivity planning for this very moment. Crossing over to the left side of the cell, you made quick work of prying the vent cover from the wall, a silent thank you to the Separatists for being stupid enough to install vents in their cells passed briefly through your thoughts as you hauled yourself inside the small shaft, taking care to prop the cover back into place as best you could.

Climbing through the vent system, you aimed to put as much distance between you and the detention centre as possible. After several minutes of manoeuvring through the tight space, you paused briefly both to catch your breath and to try and get ahold of your partner-in-crime.

Sliding the plastoid panel that covered the back of your artificial hand to the side, you revealed the small blinking light of your comm. A sigh of relief fell from your lips. It was still active, the Separatists hadn't clocked the signal and put a block in place.

It really was a blessing how oblivious Separatist droids were sometimes. After all, who wouldn't check a bionic limb for built-in trackers or comms and such? Seppie droids, that's who.

"Hey Buddy," You tested, voice low as the clanking of metal feet echoed beneath you. "You reading me?"

A painful silence hung over you.

"Bewoop!"

Never in your life had you been so glad to hear the high-pitched beeps of a droid.

"For a second there I thought the Seppies gotcha," You mused, carefully inching forward through the vent system once more. "Please tell me this alarm's got nothing to do with you."

The sad sequence of beeps that crackled over your shared frequency wasn't comforting.

"Alright Buddy, it's not your fault." You assured despite the little droid admitting to having been spotted by a squad of battle droids. "You've got the data right?"

"Boop!"

"Good work little guy," You praised softly. "Alright, I need you to hightail it outta here with that data. If they catch you, they'll scrap you."

Another series of sad beeps came through, leaving you to shake your head at the droid despite it being unable to see you.

"Don't worry 'bout me, Buddy," You sighed. "Getting that data back to Cody is all that matters right now. I've gotten myself out of tighter spots, and I'll get myself out of this alright?"

With a quiet confirmation from the small droid, the comms channel went dead. Now all you could do was pray that Buddy got that data back to Cody.

It was out of your hands now.

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#star wars fic #star wars #star wars tbb #star wars clone wars #the bad batch #clone force 99 #gn reader #x reader