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The B1 battle droid, originally known as the OOM battle droid, was a line of battle droid developed at the behest of the Trade Federation military leadership in the wake of the Stark Hyperspace War. Designed to be easily assembled and cost-effective, the series was capable of enduring circumstances Federation biological soldiers were unable to fight in by sacrificing more advanced artificial intelligence and built-in armament in favor of a master control signal and handheld weapons.
The droids were initially utilized in anti-pirate operations and were first deployed en masse during the Invasion of Naboo in 32 BBY, when 900,000–1,200,000 of them were used to seize and hold the planet until being cut from their control signal in the Naboo Space Battle. In the period following the armistice that had concluded the conflict, the Federation droid army continued to grow in size and was merged into the armed forces of the newly formed Confederacy of Independent Systems in 24 BBY. They were again used in large numbers in the Clone Wars of 22–19 BBY, with several billion of them used across the galaxy.
With the Confederate leadership's death in 19 BBY on the world of Mustafar, most droid forces were deactivated and melted down by the Galactic Empire. About two to three percent of the armóy avoided destruction and were later used by Separatist holdouts and various criminal forces.
Characteristics[]
Design[]
Planned and manufactured by Baktoid Combat Automata, the B1 battle droid was a skeletal robot relying on a master control signal downloaded from a central computer in order to operate; the signal contained sensor definitions for enemies, orders and other information, in the absence of which the droid would shut down automatically. According to manufacturer statistics, the droid could operate at a maximum distance of 500,000 kilometers from the controller at standard signal strength.
The initial B1 units, known then as the OOM series, were divided into groups based on their intended role, such as security, marine and commander, and were color-coded on their torso and head as such. Field troops were painted tan, security droids had a red chest area, pilot droids were denoted by the color blue and commanders were yellow. This distinction was simplified in 24 BBY with the abolition of the OOM security and marine groups and the renaming of the series to B1. From 21 BBY and onwards, camouflage colorization was introduced for standard droids to better blend with the environment.
Technical details[]
The B1 battle droid's skeleton was composed of a molybdenum–steel alloy with added carvanium. Precautionary measures were taken during manufacturing to avoid excessive carvanium addition, as an early faulty line of droids were proven to be more vulnerable and fragile to physical shock. Later versions of the droid were enhanced by added rare earth metals to improve their durability; 18 BBY tests on new B1s showed that slugthrower bullets hitting the torso of the robot caused little to no damage and did not disrupt its combat skills. The robot's two arms and hands could use weapons and were fitted with a stabilizer to increase accuracy while moving. its bipedal locomotion, provided by twin electric motors situated at the top of the legs, allowed it to reach sustained speeds up to 25-30 kilometers an hour.
The head of the droid housed a pair of audiovisual sensors and a speech synthesizer. Initial versions would compare the sensory information to the enemy's definitions contained within the master control signal, while later ones actively analyzed it. The droid could understand Galactic Basic Standard—in which it could initiate simple conversations and respond to queries—and was capable of communicating with other automata through Binary or direct radio signals.
Situated at the back of the droid was a rechargeable battery that could provide power for approximately twelve hours of constant combat, or several days of normal duty. The battery was connected to the droid's computer, which stored the data provided by the master control signal and relayed the signal's orders to the electric motors responsible for operating the robot's moving parts. By the onset of the Clone Wars, the computer was expanded to analyse sensory data and recognize hostile behavior, which it would transmit back to the master control computer to be stored and sent to other units on the battlefield.
B1 battle droids could fold into a cube when transported or in storage and could be activated by a specific signal. Baktoid also provided several vehicles designed specifically for B1-related logistics, such as the Multi-Troop Transport and the Platoon Attack Craft, each of which could carry 112 B1 units. A Federation Lucrehulk-class battleship had room for 350,000 B1s, while a Munificent-class star frigate could accommodate 150,000.
Operational history[]
Genesis and initial use[]
The B1 battle droid was conceived by the Neimoidian leaders of the Trade Federation, a galactic commercial organization, after the Stark Hyperspace War of 44 BBY as a means of effectively protecting the company's assets at a low cost. The resulting tender, which aimed for a droid 1.5 to 2 standard meters tall with a weight of a maximum of sixty kilograms, was won by Baktoid Combat Automata's design and 150 prototypes were delivered to the Federation capital planet, Neimoidia, for testing and training.
Following a period of intensive testing, the prototypes, codenamed B1-0, were transferred to various outposts and a further 150,000 droids were ordered. These units, delivered in 43-42 BBY, were assigned to Lucrehulk-class freighters for defense and also formed the core of the forming Federation military, filling in most of the crew and transport slots on its first battleship class. In this period, B1s were used to protect Federation cargo ships against piracy, guarded key personnel and served garrison duty on Federation outposts and embassies. By 32 BBY, more than 30,000,000 droids had been supplied to the Federation, organized into five army groups. Two groups were tasked with protecting the Federation capital world of Neimoidia and the most valuable colonies, dubbed the Purse Worlds, while the other units were divided between the fleet and various ground bases.
Invasion of Naboo[]
In 32 BBY, a plot by Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Sidious culminated in the Federation invasion of the Inner Rim planet Naboo. Between 900,000–1,200,000 droids and several thousands of other vehicles were landed on the world, capturing the capital Theed and other key cities with minimal losses. The Federation force disarmed the Naboo defense forces and took over its installations, while detachments of security droids arrested the planetary government, including Queen Padmé Amidala. Although the government was rescued by Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi, approximately 11,000 individuals were placed in encampments constructed and guarded by the Federation's droid units. By the end of the first three days of the event, the Naboo settlements were secured and the invasion army, now numbering more than a million droids, was unified under the command of Neimoidian leaders Viceroy Nute Gunray and Rune Haako. Security droids also began to replace the local police force in their role as law enforcement.
With the planet's landmasses firmly under Trade Federation control, the organization—following demands from Darth Sidious—planned to attack and enslave the amphibious Gungan inhabitants, who dwelt in underwater cities in the world's oceans. The initial raid, which targeted their capital city Otoh Gunga, involved two divisions—mustering 25,000 droids and a number of heavy vehicles—led by Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Maul, with aerial support from droid starfighters and the Lucrehulk-class droid control ship orbiting the planet. Finished in about four hours, the battle prompted the Gungans to evacuate Otoh Gunga and retreat, suffering about 1,500 dead and 2-3,000 wounded. The droid force then established a garrison in the city, intending to use it as a base for further attacks on the Gungan nation.
After a campaign that purged the Gungans from several settlements in close proximity to Otoh Gunga, the Gungan army moved off the ocean and advanced towards Naboo's capital city, Theed, which housed the Federation administration. Panicked, Viceroy Nute Gunray dispatched the city's garrison to stop them, which resulted in the Battle of Grassy Plains. The Federation army, which outnumbered the Gungan force and had the advantage of heavy vehicles, brought down the deflector shield protecting the Gungans and killed several hundred of them until the droid control ship responsible for directing the droids was brought down in the Naboo Space Battle, prompting the shutdown of all Federation forces on the planet. The deactivated droids were initially stored on Naboo and were returned to the Federation in 29 BBY.