The Grand Army of the Republic Volunteer Corps, also called the GAR VC, was a group of various beings organized in 23 BBY. They agreed to serve as regulars if the Galactic Republic declared war on the Confederacy of Independent Systems; hence when the Clone Wars broke out, they were inducted into the ranks of the Clone Army. Members received CT identification numbers, preceeded by the letter V, to distinguish them from normal troops.
Combat effectiveness issues[]
With less than 8000 members at the beginning of the Clone Wars, many of them young idealists with little real combat experience, many of the volunteer soldiers were killed within the first 6 months of deployment, and others, disheartened by the bleak combat conditions and the difficulty relating with their comrades, deserted. By the start of the second year, only about 2500 volunteers remained in active duty, and by the start of the third that number had dwindled to less than 1200. 8% of the original 7786 members achieved ranks above Sergeant, 2% got above Lieutenant. The GAR VC became famous as a near-complete failure as a whole, and therefore they were mostly ignored by the media, and very few ever gained any widespread notoriety.