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| DROIDEKA |
| [Where are those droidekas?] |
| 13 BE | Droideka 01 |
| Type: Destroyer droid Manufacturer: Colicoids Techno Union Affiliation: Trade Federation Techno Union Confederacy of Independant Systems Height: 1.83 meters Weapons: Arm-mounted laser cannons |
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| Pronounced: Droy-dee-kah Links: The Droideka Project |
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| Designed with no thought for sophistry or mercy, destroyer droids were built as killing machines: no more, no less. Widely known as droidekas, but commonly called destroyer droids or simply destroyers, these droids were far more powerful than the battle droids they worked alongside. For a start, droidekas possessed shield generators, which encased them in a bubble of protection. Their armour was also stronger than that of the weak battle droids. While battle droids needed to carry blaster rifles on their backpacks, droidekas were far better equipped: their weapons were built-in. The hands of the droideka were actually twin laser cannons, which could fire a steady stream of lasers at an enemy. Their shields meant that even Jedi Knights would have difficulty in destroying a destroyer droid with a deflected shot. However, if an enemy managed to get the better of a droideka, it still had a method of quick escape. The whole droid could curl up and form a wheel. It could then roll away to safety, rather than having to rely on its three clumsy legs. This feature was especially useful for transporting the droids, as they could cover terrain quickly in wheel form. The design of the droideka was based on the form of their Colicoid creators, making for a frightening image. Though the droids were more advanced than other battle droids, they were also more expensive. Luckily for the creddit-conscious Trade Federation, it took fifty barges of exotic meat for the Colicoids to gain a number of droidekas. The droids were linked to the Central Control Computer which controlled all the Federation's droids, and were made part of its growing military. When the Federation blockaded Naboo, droidekas were dispatched to kill two Jedi Knights attempting to negotiate with Viceroy Gunray - something that would have undoubtably halted the Federation's invasion of Naboo. Thanks to the droidekas, the Jedi were forced to flee. Destroyer droids were later used to fend off the Gungan Army on the plains of Naboo, but were shut down with the rest of the droids when the Droid Control Ship was destroyed. After the battle, the Trade Federation made their droids independant of the Control Computer, to ensure the mistake was not repeated. When the Federation joined Count Dooku's Seperatist movement, Techno Union factories began churning out droidekas for Gunray's army. They were used in battle on Geonosis against the Jedi and the Army of the Republic, and later in the Clone Wars. However, by the end of the three year conflict, the droids were rendered obsolete with the fall of the Confederacy and the rise of the Empire. |
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| Throughout production, the droidekas were referred to as destroyer droids. It was not until post-production that the term droideka was introduced |
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