Warning: This article contains potential spoilers for Star Wars Zero Company and Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Star Wars Zero Company has many references to the excellent Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, but many of the game’s characters have ties to one of the show’s darkest and most memorable arcs: the Umbara saga of Season 4. This four-episode saga takes place toward the middle of the season, and might just be required viewing for players looking for more details about the backstories of Zero Company members like Trick, Luco Bronc, and even Hawks.
As its name suggests, the Umbara episodes take place on the planet of Umbara, a dark and mist-filled world that perfectly sets the mood for the tragic story to come. The Republic launches an invasion against the Separatist-allied Umbarans, prompting the 501st legion (usually commanded by Anakin Skywalker) to dive into action. However, Anakin is soon called back to Coruscant for some reason, resulting in his clone unit being temporarily placed under the command of a fellow Jedi named Pong Krell.
Pong Krell Is One Of Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ Darkest Characters
Straight off the bat, Krell comes across as a bullish and strict commander, but as the Umbara arc goes on, it becomes increasingly clear that this Besalisk Jedi Master doesn’t have the Clone Troopers’ best interests at heart. He treats Commander Rex and his fellow soldiers as expendable pawns and dismisses their criticisms of his messy attack plans – which leave many of them dead in his wake. At first, Rex tries to assure his men that this is all necessary for the good of the Republic, but even he grows increasingly doubtful of Krell’s leadership as his troops are slaughtered on the intense battlefield of Umbara.
This all boils over after a small squad of clones pulls off a dangerous attack on Umbara’s capital against Krell’s orders – prompting the Jedi to order them to be court-martialed and executed. Before that command can be carried out, the clones are tasked with defending against a group of enemies that are supposedly disguised as Clone Troopers – only for Rex to discover, to his horror, that they are actually his fellow clones who were tricked under similar orders from Pong Krell. He and his soldiers had been gunning down their own brothers the whole time, all at the behest of a Jedi that they thought was their ally.
The Tragedy of Umbara
With Krell’s real nature now readily apparent, Rex and his remaining troops set out to arrest the wayward Jedi, who is soon revealed to have turned to the Dark Side and is actively seeking an alliance with Count Dooku. Eventually, Krell is executed by Dogma, a Clone who had, until this point, been steadfastly loyal to him – even when his cruelty was first revealed. While the opening text crawl of Revenge of the Sith stated that there were “heroes on both sides” of the Clone Wars, Pong Krell ultimately proved that there were villains on both sides as well.
Krell and his associated arc dive into the morality of war and the need to question unethical leaders and commands – themes that grow increasingly relevant for the clones when Order 66 is issued. Aside from that, the Umbara storyline is well-written and animated, featuring appropriately foreboding visuals and some of the most intense action in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Star Wars Zero Company Ties Back To The Battle of Umbara
The Umbara arc is already a solid storyline in a great show, but what makes it a must-watch for fans of Star Wars Zero Company is that a surprising number of main characters have ties to Pong Krell and the battles he commanded. At the very start of the game, it’s established that main character Hawks once served under Krell on the planet Antine. There, they took part in a bloody battle that wiped out most of the original Zero Company (Hawks’s unit) and led to them being court-martialed and dishonorably discharged from the Republic Army.
Meanwhile, Trick, one of the clones serving in Zero Company and part of the playable squadmates in the game, suffered an injury in that battle that led to his retirement from active duty. As a result of this, neither he nor Hawks participated in the Battle of Umbara, but they consider it to be a great tragedy all the same. Trick mourns the brothers who were killed as a result of Krell’s scheming, and when the disgraced Jedi Master is brought up, Hawks simply replies, “Good riddance.” A sentiment that many Clone Wars fans share.
Veterans of Umbara Appear in Star Wars Zero Company
Someone who did participate in the Battle of Umbara is Luco Bronc, an Umbaran sniper who joins Zero Company to avenge the death of his commanding officer/lover, Rhy Cesca, at the hands of the Infinite Coil. Because he fought on the side of the Separatists in such an infamous battle, there is plenty of tension between Bronc and the rest of the crew, especially Trick.
However, Bronc also seems to harbor some bitterness toward the Separatist army over what became of his homeworld – as you watch the Umbara arc of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, you might notice that there aren’t a whole lot of Battle Droids supporting the native Umbaran forces. Judging from some of the things Bronc says after gunning down enemy droid soldiers, one might get the sense that he feels the Separatists abandoned his people after the Umbarans threw their lot in with them – a feeling that only grows after what happened to Cesca.
But perhaps the biggest connection between Star Wars Zero Company and the Umbara/Pong Krell arc of Star Wars: The Clone Wars is when you eventually make your way to the shadowy planet itself – and meet up with none other than Commander Rex. He and Hawks can discuss what happened with Krell before facing off against an even greater enemy…
The Legacy of Umbara
Playing through Star Wars Zero Company and rewatching the Season 4 Umbara storyline adds a whole new dimension to both experiences. Now, whenever the Umbaran forces appear onscreen, you might ask yourself where Luco Bronc or Rhy Cesca are, or think about what Hawks or Twitch’s initial reaction might have been to Pong Krell’s treachery and death.
There’s also something very fitting in Star Wars Zero Company, a game that offers a sympathetic look at Separatist supporters like Bronc and Runa Blask, having such a strong connection to an arc that shows that even the Republic and the Jedi have their own skeletons – skeletons that would eventually rise to the forefront in the form of the Galactic Empire.
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