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Sea Skimmer's comment about the clones already living aboard their transports reminded me that these AOTC clones may be profoundly different from regular humans in much more than the obvious way. Personally, I would not like to live aboard a transport...or an aircraft carrier...or even be confined to a military base for any great length of time. But would it bother clones? Do they, for example, have a need for entertainment to pass the time? Have any desire for possessions of their own, their own space? Relationships beyond those work-related? Sex?
If I were designing living soldiers, I wouldn't want them thinking about or wanting any of those things. They look like males, but I think they must be non-functioning, not unlike geldings or oxen, except that in their case the sex drive simply never developed. Any thoughts?

Darth Fanboy wrote:I think the equipment came with the soldiers from Kamino. The troopers seemed incredibly well versed in it and just beause they are uber military clones doesn't mean they hop in a Tank or a LAAT and know how to do everything.

They were trained in the Rothana equipment. So what? It doesn't need to be designed and produced at Kamino for them to train on it.

Biddybot wrote:Sea Skimmer's comment about the clones already living aboard their transports reminded me that these AOTC clones may be profoundly different from regular humans in much more than the obvious way. Personally, I would not like to live aboard a transport...or an aircraft carrier...or even be confined to a military base for any great length of time. But would it bother clones? Do they, for example, have a need for entertainment to pass the time? Have any desire for possessions of their own, their own space? Relationships beyond those work-related? Sex?
If I were designing living soldiers, I wouldn't want them thinking about or wanting any of those things. They look like males, but I think they must be non-functioning, not unlike geldings or oxen, except that in their case the sex drive simply never developed. Any thoughts?

They were genetically engineered to be more docile, in a sense, and not as independent as Jango. They probably were also designed to not have some of those characteristics that humans have that may be a hinderance to them as soldiers, such as those you mentioned.

The "stormtroopers are clones" thing isn't official yet, even though it's what Lucas said on the AOTC DVD audio commentary. He could still change his mind. ; )

He may yet overthrow the EU contention that they're not clones. The difference in heights and voices could be explained as different templates or genetic manipulation. I doubt that they are still using Jango's DNA 20-50 years later, especially now that he's dead (and Boba, what did he do? Go off by himself?). But who knows...

With regard to the original question, i.e., whence did some of the Grand Army of the Republic's heavy equipment come, the following information could potentially be of great interest... and yet is most probably completely unnoticed by most observers:

ZOGOTO, EXARGA - Despite repeated assurances that they do not know who authorized the strip-mining of a doonium-rich asteroid belt in their sector, the Exargan Mining Authority has been fined for failure to disclose revenue to the Mining Guild. The Outer Rim world administers a rich asteroid belt deep within its sector, which is used to supply such major consumers as Kuat Drive Yards, Rendili StarDrive and Rothana Heavy Engineering. Their year-end inventory revealed a discrepancy of over 200 million tons of doonium ore. The Mining Guild is poised to launch a full investigation for corruption within the executive board of the Authority. In the meantime, they are being fined an amount based on the current market value of the doonium, well into the trillions of credits. [HoloNet News Vol. 531 #52: "Mining Guild to Fine Exarga"]

What is of particular interest to this excerpt is the fact that 200 million tonnes of doonium ore "mysteriously" disappeared at some point the year before the events seen in Attack of the Clones, and that the discrepancy was only noted in the months immediately prior to those events.

What is of even more interest is that the Exargan Mining Authority, the mining interest which failed to account for the said missing ore, was a supplier to Rothana Heavy Engineering, the dummy corporation for Kuat Drive Yards which manufactured the Acclamator-class trans-galactic military transport ships, AT-TEs, SPHA-Ts and LAAT/i gunships seen in use by the clonetroopers in Attack of the Clones.

Although it is not certain that Rothana came to possess the said missing ore, if one accepts the likely, implicit connexion between the two, it provides some idea as to when Rothana began construction on whatever war machines require doonium.

On an unrelated note, this is the second confirmed reference to the Mining Guild in the prequel era. The Mining Guild is as of this time the only corporate co-operative known to have survived the Clone War and to still exist in the time of the Empire. Given that Bespin's Cloud City was too small an operation to merit notice from the Guild, there exists a mostly useless indication of scale of the Exargan Mining Authority.

Publius

Biddybot wrote:Sea Skimmer's comment about the clones already living aboard their transports reminded me that these AOTC clones may be profoundly different from regular humans in much more than the obvious way. Personally, I would not like to live aboard a transport...or an aircraft carrier...or even be confined to a military base for any great length of time. But would it bother clones? Do they, for example, have a need for entertainment to pass the time? Have any desire for possessions of their own, their own space? Relationships beyond those work-related? Sex?
If I were designing living soldiers, I wouldn't want them thinking about or wanting any of those things. They look like males, but I think they must be non-functioning, not unlike geldings or oxen, except that in their case the sex drive simply never developed. Any thoughts?

If you never know anything better you won't miss it. That doesn't mean you won't still feel discomfort being on a warship, but you won't notice it as much. People can be quite happy without many convenience we take for granite now in the developed modern world.

However Star Wars technology allows for a lot more recreation onship then you'd find on a comparable USN vessel. And of course the troops would likely be off ship pretty often for training.

As for sex, they may all be gay, the Spartans come to mind, or just have a bunch of pleasure driods onboard. Though I'm sure a galaxy of quintillions has some 20 year old virgins.....

Or, since they're grown in a lab, maybe they have been genetically modifed to be sterile (though the Ask the Jedi Council seems to feel that this isn't the case). ; )

Now if this were the EU, they'd probably say that Black Sun funneled in all their equipment. ; )

However much credit you place in this is up to you, but...

http://www.starwars.com/community/askjc ... 21212.html

Q: Can the clones procreate without scientific intervention?

A: Yes, clones are fully capable of biological reproduction.

Sea Skimmer wrote:

Biddybot wrote:Sea Skimmer's comment about the clones already living aboard their transports reminded me that these AOTC clones may be profoundly different from regular humans in much more than the obvious way. Personally, I would not like to live aboard a transport...or an aircraft carrier...or even be confined to a military base for any great length of time. But would it bother clones? Do they, for example, have a need for entertainment to pass the time? Have any desire for possessions of their own, their own space? Relationships beyond those work-related? Sex?
If I were designing living soldiers, I wouldn't want them thinking about or wanting any of those things. They look like males, but I think they must be non-functioning, not unlike geldings or oxen, except that in their case the sex drive simply never developed. Any thoughts?

If you never know anything better you won't miss it. That doesn't mean you won't still feel discomfort being on a warship, but you won't notice it as much. People can be quite happy without many convenience we take for granite now in the developed modern world.

However Star Wars technology allows for a lot more recreation onship then you'd find on a comparable USN vessel. And of course the troops would likely be off ship pretty often for training.

As for sex, they may all be gay, the Spartans come to mind, or just have a bunch of pleasure driods onboard. Though I'm sure a galaxy of quintillions has some 20 year old virgins.....

The Spartans were all gay?