SW: The Clone Wars Technology

Yeah, I've noticed it. It makes no sense whatsoever in-universe, but they do it like that so that the staging of the scene makes sense to the viewer... However, similar things did happen in the films as well. When a hologram of a Jedi is sitting in the council chamber and looks across to a fellow Jedi, do you think the guy transmitting the hologram has a real-size mock-up of the council chamber around him so he can look towards the other guys' holograms in that same position?

 

That happens throughout Star Wars, though . . . Episode III gives us Yoda talking to the council. He's projected in his chair, but we see that he's watching a subscale display on a tabletop. His projection looks around, though, as if actually present.

Suffice it to say that there is precedent.

 

Finally catching up on the last two episodes, and making some notes.

1. There were only eight of the fighter-type hyperspace rings visible, stowed at or near the front of the large landing bay in open space and which operate by floating up and away by fighter command. Override is possible from the bridge, though it takes time.

2. The armor and bodysuit of a clone (in the area of the arm, at least) does not seem to prevent fluid leakage, as Cad Bane's green blood drips on the floor and elsewhere.

3. Instead of Jedi being taken at a time very near birth, there seems instead to be some delay, somewhere in the crawling range it looks like. The Rodian child was sitting up on his own. In a human, this would be circa five months of age, and with the Jedi Ropal being quoted as saying it would be some time yet before the child was taken, this would imply at least the crawling period of 7-10 months age, if not later.

4. Ahsoka dodges behind a chair when Bane's shooting at her, and the bolts do not penetrate it.

5. Bane's antigrav bootjets fail when Anakin latches on, and the pair drop to the ground.

6. A previously-unseen (so far as I know) Republic shuttle type is observed. Featuring a rotating cockpit assembly and half-circle wings that go vertical in flight, as well as a full docking port, the shuttle is unusual. One is reminded of a Minbari ship from Babylon 5.

7. Bane's fighter is captured. Presumably this is the Rogue Class fighter he had requested previously, but no evidence of the cloaking device is observed.

8. "673117 cross 7rp71" is, I believe, an accurate transcription of a set of coordinates that Bane gives. Obi-Wan mentions that those coordinates take them to the "far Outer Rim, neutral space". This is our first indication of a galactic coordinate system that does not require droids to comprehend.

9. Anakin makes it to Coruscant before the Republic shuttle carrying Bane makes it to the far Outer Rim.

10. Obi-Wan deflects a steady-beam cutting beam weapon, quite possibly the first time such a deflection has been observed in the canon.

More to come . . .

 

The most likely explanation is a hole in the bodysuit, rather than a problem with the bodysuit design---we know they can be completely sealed against vacuum or hostile atmospheres, so blood leakage does not seem likely under ordinary operating conditions. So, I'd say Bane , er, perforated it when he took it from Denal, or he just put it on sloppily.

What's more significant, IMO, is that armor intended for humans can fit Bane's alien (albeit humanoid) physiology so well. Especially the helmet.

This is quite interesting, due to the physical issues of interstellar travel. Not to be overly simplistic, but bodies within the galaxy are constantly in motion, at astronomical speeds, so astronavigation would require one to take into account this motion. I doubt ordinary, Cartesian-style coordinates would be sufficient.

But, fortunately, that's not what Bane gives. The string he does give may be some sort of navigational shorthand, which a nav-computer can translate into the actual coordinates. Whatever it is, it has to be both short and organic-understandable (since Kenobi immediately recognizes it as being in the Outer Rim.) Some sort of mnemonic device, perhaps?

 

The armor was probably damaged when Cad Bane killed Denal to take it, otherwise it wouldn't leak like that.

It probably has a weight limit (as jetpack RPG stats state). When it tried to carry two people, it shorted out.

I'm sure Obi-Wan didn't decode that whole string of coordinates in his head to pinpoint where they were going. It could be something like a bar-code, where each number position has a specific meaning. So, for example, the first number could be the distance from the core, and from just that one number Obi-Wan could know that a 6 means it's somewhere in the outer rim.

 

It would be enough to tell you a point on a map, more or less, but you probably couldn't just fly there without a full-on navicomputer to actually get you there. For instance, my GPS allows me to enter latitude and longitude, so if I'm feeling sufficiently frisky I could tell it a destination in coordinates, but it still plots the course based on use of roads.

Oh of course, I'm sure Obi-Wan didn't have a specific star system in mind or anything. But I'd imagine that a military type used to dealing with modern latitude and longitude across the planet might be able to discern that a given set of coordinates down to several decimal places (e.g. 25.757682 by -41.308594) was, say, in the Atlantic somewhere (just based off of the 25 by -41), even if he didn't know more than that.

As for Bane's coordinates, the use of letters really throws me off. Had it just been numbers then it could've been a simple polar coordinate system featuring a really large number of degrees. For instance, if galactic "north" was directly opposite the galactic core from Coruscant and you were using a million-degree circle (the units of which we'll call millionths to distinguish from real degrees), then 673117 would be somewhere west of Coruscant (which would be 500000). It could be anywhere on a line between the core and the galactic rim, and it could be anywhere from well above to well below the galactic plane.

The problem with this idea is that even with a circle measured in millionths, by the time you're 7,500 light-years out from the core your coordinates are getting a bit inaccurate. A distinction of one millionth at that distance from the core is the equivalent of about 0.047 light-years, or about 3000 AU. That's 60 times greater than the Pluto-Sun distance at its maximum. If the EU's 120,000 light year galactic diameter were correct, then at 60,000 light-years the width would be about .377 light-years, or almost 24,000 AU.

Still, I suppose that isn't too bad, especially if your navicomputer is plotting hyperspace lanes to get you where you want to go, just as GPS takes you along roads. Since hyperspace lanes seem to be narrow enough to be mined, not to mention always having everyone come out of hyperspace at about the same place near planets, then being off by over a third of a light-year at the edge of the galaxy is hardly traumatic . . . you'll just be at the end of the closest hyperspace lane.

"cross 7rp71" is where I get lost, though. For a galactic polar coordinate system, you'll want to have a planar value (which I'm presuming is the first part) and some indication of third dimension angle (up/down) and then distance.

It's possible that "cross" means "down" and some other term could imply an angle that is galactic "up". The first 7 could thus be a degree or another millionth. The "rp71" may be a complex distance value, sector indicator, nearby hyperlane notation, or something similar.

In any case, my transcription may completely miss correct spacing of characters

 

Mace did the same in the 2D CW, and deflected said beam back onto the droid shooting it.

 

Sorry I've not been updating either here or at the NLH site. I'm trying to re-organize and re-format the site so that it's more easy to maintain and easier to find things. (A wiki isn't quite what I have in mind, though I may have to settle for that.)

In any case, just a quick note regarding the earlier shield conversation. Now that we've seen that ray-shielded supertanks with well-nigh impenetrable shielding exist, what effect does that have given that a lightsaber clearly defeated both its shield and hull? Are you as confused as I am?

 

I thought that the "ray shielding" of the tank was actually impenetrable, but in a stunning design oversight, the cockpit area that pops open to deploy the, erm, firework-looking missile things was unshielded. That thing didn't pop open on the tanks outside until after they'd given up on penetrating the shields, but on the tank attacking the Padawans, some great flash of insight told Barriss where to cut through it when it popped open.

The term "ray shield" is used twice in the films, right? Once for the (invisible) shield on the Death Star reactor shaft, and once for the (visibly glowy) things that trap Obi-Wan, Anakin and Palpatine on the Invisible Hand.

If it's like the former, you'd think the tanks would be impermeable to energy weapons but not projectiles, but if Anakin didn't figure that out, that sort of explains Vader signing off on the DS plans:

VADER: Hey, what about this small thermal exhaust port here? That looks kind of vulnerable.
GEONOSIAN DESIGNER GUY (subtitled): Don't worry about that... we're putting ray shields on it.
VADER: Like on those invulnerable super tanks? Oh, carry on then.

 

I'm normally not this nitpicky, but has anybody noticed the laser colors for Jedi Starfighters switching constantly between blue and green? I guess this is more of an FX issue than a tech issue, but in-universe there seems to be very little reason for the lasers to switch colors.

In the Clone Wars movie, the opening newsreel shot of Anakin and Obi-Wan's fighters over Christophsis shows them firing blue lasers, but later at the Battle of Teth Obi-Wan's fighter fires green rounds. In "Downfall of a Droid" Anakin's fighter fires green. In "Storm Over Ryloth" Ahsoka's fighter fires blue lasers. In "Liberty on Ryloth" both Anakin and Ahsoka's fighters fire blue.

I've always taken it that laser colors in Star Wars are like tracer rounds - they are intentionally colored that way to indicate friendly or enemy fire. However, given that line of reasoning, why would the Republic predominantly use blue tracers but also have some green tracers? Wouldn't it make more sense to have a uniform color?

One would think the animation department would have notes pinning these kinds of details down. Anyway, it's really not that big of a deal, but it is something I've taken note of.

 

Yeah, odd, that, although not really a continuity issue per se. The Jedi starfighers fire green in ROTS while the Star Destroyer turbolasers are blue (I don't think any of either are seen being fired in AOTC). Given that the Naboo ships fire green in TPM, you'd guess from the films that green is just "standard starfighter" color, but in TCW they seem to have adopted blue as the laser color for all Repubic ships, fighters and capital ships as well as ground troops (with the exception of the Jedi fighters in the very very earliest TCW footage). At least it seemed that way until Point Rain brought back the ball-turrets on the gunships and had them fire Death-Star-style green as in AOTC.

Slightly more distracting to me was Padme's blue blaster bolts in the Malevolence arc. Just felt wrong. Naboo ground lasers... gotta be green, right?

And then over the next twenty years the Empire adopts green for all their space gunnery and the Rebels roll with Separatist Red. Except for the ground troops on both sides, who all must be using leftover red-laser battle droid munitions. Oh, and that stun setting... has anyone ever been stunned onscreen since the first reel of ANH?

I could really go for seeing a Naboo starfighter in flight again. They have the models already...

 

I've always seen blaster/lightsabre colours as something that comes from the precision and focus of the weapon. Red blasters are the easiest to make, green slightly more difficult and blue the most focused, high frequency - that require more tuning. Thus Sith sabres are easy to make, you just bung the components in together and barely bother with tuning it up - Luke, who wasn't very skilled could only tune up to a Green sabre. Mace Windu - the blade master for the Order created an extremely rare violet sabre through ultra-careful tuning.

The same way that in the later films only imperial ships had access to the technology to build green energy weapons, everyone else had to go with the cheaper red. When the Clone first show up they are an extremely well armed, high tech army - thus the blue energy weapons.

 

A descent explanation, but a few flaws...

Yoda has a green saber does that make him a unskilled?
This lops all dark siders into the lazy category.
If I am getting my SW physics right, blasters shoot bolts of plasma, but lightsabers have a beam of it, but blasters ionize gas and shoot it, lightsabers use crystals to turn energy into plasma, I don't think they work the same way.

 

So, perhaps Yoda built his is in the heat of battle, the West End Games Star Wars Sourcebook descibed that jedi could build a sabre in a couple of hours if the need was there - maybe Yoda had lost his previous lightsabre and wanted a new one in a hurry - or perhaps he didn't feel the need to tune it up further.

My theory went a step further with the idea of wavelengths and frequencies with a red sabre having a longer, more ragged wavelength, therefore causing more burning and damage around the wound as opposed to a green/blue/violet sabre creating a more precise cut. It would explain why the sith would prefer the red sabres for the increased tissue damage.

Beyond that perhaps both lightsabres and blasters share a similar focusing device beyond the crystal/blaster gas ignition point.


Whilst I am fond of this theory I do appreciate it's not particularly supported by the EU descriptions of the function of these weapons.

 

I loved the look of those tractor beam ships in Brain Invaders and the way they were used as tug boats.

Also, Killian Plunkett is the man. His designs are very SW (simple yet functional designs that you get at a glance yet want to study in more detail) and he's totally nailed it! Great hire, Dave!

 

I don't know, maybe Artoo being more advanced than he was in the OT? And the Republic Transport having large coolant tanks when it's just a transport? Still, it makes more sense than some EU tech.

 

What's the problem with the transport having a large cooling tank? Even my small car has a couple of cooling tanks...

 

R2 seems to fly or float underneath the water on Dagobah, that's pretty advanced. I'm pretty sure he also gets into his X-wing socket when they're leaving in the same film, two good places to have him use his boosters.

The tug boats were cool to see. They're first mentioned in The Clone Wars: The Visual Guide, where they're said to move the Kaliida Shoals space station to that nebula. Now all we need to see is some kind of Republic battleship and the navy will be as diverse as the Confederate one.

And, yeah, cooling tanks are essential in any machinery to disperse the heat generated. It's not surprising starships have them as well.

 

Well, I hated the introduction of Artoo's boosters, possibly because it came right after Artoo casully tried to *murder* Threepio, but my personal retcon of Artoo's de-evolution between trilogies is pretty easy. I assume all of Artoo's add-ons were unique Anakin modifications, and that over 20-some years aboard the Tantive IV they either broke down, and the Rebel techs removed them because they couldn't figure them out, or just plain took them out during regular maintenance because they were unneeded for Artoo's duties on the ship.

 

Makes sense.

 

R2 seems to fly or float underneath the water on Dagobah, that's pretty advanced. I'm pretty sure he also gets into his X-wing socket when they're leaving in the same film

Or Luke took the oppotunity to show off his Force skills to Yoda. R2 may well use another method for underwater propulsion as well.


I believe that R2's rockets were designed for Ep I but not used until Ep II. It makes perfect sense for a droid like R2 (astromech) to have such devices when you consider what his job entails. When he is introduced in Ep I he is seen trundling about on the outside of the ship - so rockets may come in handy in that situation if he gets separated from the ship. It seem like they're the type of gadget a droid would use sparingly - to travel short distances in space or perhaps just jump from one level to another on the ground. It would be quite rare to fly long distances like R2 does in Ep II and TCW but it is necessary for him to do so. Other droids would not necessarily get into the situations he does.

There are some quite good pointers in the OT for why R2 does not use his rockets - ie that they may have ceased functioning since Ep III. Threepio makes reference in ANH that he's amazed the pair of them are in such good condition which points to them suffering some damage along the way (also denoted by Threepio's silver shin plate). Then of course, at the end of ANH, R2 is smashed up pretty good and must be given practically a whole new body - which perhaps did not include rocket boosters. Perhaps the Alliance could not supply them, or did not think R2 would need them and fitted him with something else. Rockets may have been an optional extra to begin with - the Naboo fitted their R2s with them because of their role aboard the Royal starship, but other owners did not need to. So post ANH, R2 may not even have rockets and thus does not use them in TESB or ROTJ. There was also the info on Holonet News that pointed to R2 rockets having only a 20 year warranty.

 

The TPM script and novel both have a scene on Coruscant where he falls off the platform and uses his rockets.

 

I often wonder when we'll see a transition between the AOTC-style hardware (Jedi Starfighters, Clone armor) to the ROTS-style. My best guess is that they'll save it up until maybe the final season of the show (4? 5?) to drive home to the audience that we're in the final stretch of the war - then again, they may want to introduce elements more gradually. I hope the ARC-170s (as X-Wing forerunners) get as cool an introduction as the Y-Wings were given in "Shadow of Malevolence". Oh, and I almost forgot the V-Wings! It makes me wonder how the TIE Fighter evolved - did they come from the ROTS JSF or the V-Wing, or was one a later, more advanced model than the other?

 

So I was watching "Legacy of Terror" the other day and noticed, referencing the coordinate discussion from the last page, that while on the ground Luminara's clone refers to the course of a hovertank as something like "11-mark-82".

Star Trek uses such course notation to refer to a bearing, and I think someone's worked up a way for that to refer to a galactic course as well (always in reference to the center of the galaxy as local "north" or zero degrees). But I can't think of any obvious way for such a system to refer to two-dimensional heading. A coordinate system, sure, but a heading?

In other news, episode 9 (and 10 to some extent) are both quite tech-heavy.

A few quickie notes:

Two Consulars in the midst of the battle fly over the docked ships in a brief scene after the rescue of Koth. Rough estimation puts their speed at half their length (or about 60 meters) per frame, which for my framecount works out to about 1440 meters per second. I believe this is the first time we've ever seen anything other than a fighter move that fast relative to other ships in combat, which looked a little weird and un-Star-Wars to me. The Seppies were unable to hit them, though, so I guess it worked. But given the usual velocities of Consulars, I wonder how long it took them to turn around!

Commando droid swords were used against Jedi, but the Jedi always dodged and never parried with the lightsaber. Presumably they could've cut through, but at the expense of having a heavy blade with one hot end and one sharp end coming toward them still.

The ship classification got more complicated again. Despite Leia's ship being called a Galactic Cruiser, here we get a distinction between the Venator "cruisers" and the other ships, referred to as "escorts". This includes a wonderful small vessel that looks to be the love-child of a Consular and Venator. Eyeball estimation of its size puts it at or just over 200 meters, but the Sep droid calls it an escort.

Shields of the Recusant variant are penetrated by a shuttle in this episode, allowing direct contact with the hull despite no apparent damage on the vessel. Though this is consistent with other examples it is still perplexing. We are led to assume the shields were still up since earlier in the episode we saw Koth's Venator seemingly cause damage to the Recusant's hull as the docking procedure occurred. However, a powerful tractor beam was in use at the time, which might have meant that shields had to be down.

After the shuttle powers down, we see the other Jedi's alien dreadlock-pod thingies on her head hanging as if gravity has inverted. Given that they were upside-down against the Recusant's docking port, this suggests that when they powered down they terminated shuttle gravity and the Recusant's gravity field extended outside the ship. The alternative is that they inverted the shuttle's gravity field intentionally, but this makes little sense. And, if you'll recall Grievous jumped down into the escape pod in RotS, so the idea of external field bleed seems accurate.

The Magna-Guard staffs (in the non-glowy-bit areas) are cut through by Grievous with his lightsabers. This is interesting, since previously they have been seen to be lightsaber resistant. (The TCW movie has Tano parrying with her lightsaber against the handle in multiple instances, and the same thing happens dead-center on the staff in RotS by Anakin and Obi-Wan on separate occasions.) Apparently the staffs are lightsaber-resistant, but not lightsaber-proof, provided one swings with sufficient force . . . though one would also think that this level of force would've meant it would've been knocked from Obi-Wan's hand altogether.

The shock treatment given to Koth by the tactical droid resulted in a skull glow incident similar to that seen when Vader saved Luke. Given that Koth was in one of those floating forcefields that is capable of holding Jedi, one wonders just what was involved there.

More later.

 

I'm still rather confused on why they call the Venators, "cruisers". Clearly, they're Star Destroyers. And many sources such as cross-sections and the ROTS art book states this.