Any Star Wars fan who thinks too much about the galaxy far far away will run into a thousand little inconsistencies that are later explained in other stories. The prequels make choices that don't necessarily work with those of the original trilogy, which leads to a mix of quick fixes. For example, the clone army that made up the Republic army seems to disappear before the original trilogy.

Big sci-fi stories like Star Wars need a lot of soldiers to fill out the massive action scenes. Through multiple phases of the franchise, they've employed multiple swarms of armed goons to be cut down by the main characters. The clones have gradually become the most interesting of the bunch.

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The Clones and Order 66

Palpatine executing Order 66 in Revenge of the Sith

When examining the full strategy of the Sith, the clone troopers are the biggest and most important piece of the puzzle. Palpatine and Dooku did not commission the creation of the clone army. They were ordered into existence by Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas, who experienced a premonition warning him of a deadly galactic conflict. Unfortunately, during their creation process, Dooku arrived in disguise to sabotage the clones. He had the scientists on Kamino insert an inhibitor chip, which could control the mind of its victim. The inhibitor chip allowed for a verbal command that would instantly designate all Jedi traitors to the Republic and demand their execution. Order 66 worked, causing clones to gun down their former allies. However, some clones were able to evade their programming.

Due to a variety of circumstances, some clone troopers rebelled against Order 66. The fact that clones could defy the orders that are literally written into their brains caused a crisis of faith in the Empire. Since they couldn't command 100% control over the clones that they managed to ruin, regular conscripted soldiers offered an easier solution. Many of the issues were due to gradual mutations. As clones were produced from Jango Fett's DNA, many individuals developed unusual genetic changes. These factors made clones unpredictable and more difficult to control. Empire leader Grand Moff Tarkin attempted to test the degree to which they'd follow orders. As a result, the Empire ended the project in the most conclusive way possible.

The Cloning Facility on Kamino was Destroyed

Tarkin-arrives-on-Kamino in star wars. jpeg

After the Empire took the place of the Republic, they were released from any deal with the previous administration's business partners. As a result, they set to work dismantling Kamino's cloning infrastructure piece by piece. The process was gradual at first, but the Empire's attacks on Kamino culminated in a massive bombing campaign that destroyed the planet. Kamino was under siege throughout the clone wars, but once it had outlived its usefulness to the Empire, the entire planet was forfeit. The reason behind destroying the planet is multifaceted and partially left up to speculation. The Empire probably doesn't want more mutants running around, and they definitely don't want another faction somewhere in the galaxy creating a clone army to oppose them. The clones of the clone wars were left to fend for themselves.

Not every stage of the Sith's plan to overthrow the Republic and eliminate the Jedi went according to plan, but the scheme paid off. Based on what happened to Kamino throughout the franchise, it's fair to assume that the clone army has always been a part of the plan. They got Order 66 inserted into the project, properly executed the plan, and destroyed the factory used to manufacture their greatest weapon. The clone army was always a tool to be used and disposed of. Once the Empire got the power to start conscripting citizens into forced military service, that became the default method of building power. When Bad Batch member Crosshair joined the Empire, he was put in charge of a group of human soldiers. His path through the early days of the Empire is a great representation of the end of the clone era and the beginning of diverse soldiers.

Abandoning the clone army makes sense from a logistical perspective, removes the risk of enemies borrowing their strategy, and costs the Empire nothing. Obi-Wan Kenobi showed off the fate of most of the clones after the fall of the Republic. The treatment of clone troopers mirrors the real-world actions of fascist governments. The downfall of the Republic and the rise of the Empire comes from a single well-executed sabotage. The Empire has no use for a million identical gunmen when they can just grab any citizen off the street and throw a blaster in their hands. Many have noted the sharp decline in quality between clones and stormtroopers. Even this element of the story has an explanation. As Andor explains, the weakness of the Empire is its belief that its power is unquestionable. They're so sure of their dominance, they're willing to blow up the weapon that gave them their victory.

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