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IG-100 MagnaGuard

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IG-100 MagnaGuard

Production information
Manufacturer	Holowan Mechanicals^[1]
Product line	IG-series^[1]
Model	IG-100 Self-Motivating Heuristically Programmed Combat Droid^[1]
Class	Bodyguard/battle droid^[1]
Technical specifications
Height	1.95 meters^[1]
Mass	123 kilograms^[2]
Gender	Masculine programming
Sensor color	Red^[1]
Armament	Depending on variant: Electrostaff^[1] Bulldog rocket launcher^[3] RD-4 grenade launcher^[3] Mark IV recon droid^[3]
Chronological and political information
Era(s)	Rise of the Empire era
Affiliation	Confederacy of Independent Systems^[1] Separatist holdouts^[3] Galactic Empire^[4]

[Source]

"I saw an Intel report on this. I think they are Grievous's personal bodyguard droids. Prototypes built to his specifications. To fight Jedi."

―Anakin Skywalker, to Obi-Wan Kenobi^[src]

The IG-100 MagnaGuard, also known as the Self-Motivating Heuristically Programmed Combat Droid, was an advanced type of battle droid that was used during the Clone Wars as bodyguards of General Grievous, as per Count Dooku's order as well as being specialized infantry on the battlefield. After the InterGalactic Banking Clan secured Grievous's services as an enforcer, they refused to hire his Kaleesh, and thus the cyborg general demanded a cadre of "more intelligent battle droids" to serve him. The construction of the MagnaGuards were then commissioned and were also occasionally employed to escort Count Dooku himself.

Appearance and characteristicsEdit

"Remember what you were saying about 'worse than destroyers?' I think we're looking at them."

―Anakin Skywalker, to Obi-Wan Kenobi^[src]

Constructed by Holowan Mechanicals, MagnaGuards were roughly two meters tall, with a humanoid body shape, but possessed a far-superior mechanical anatomy. This allowed for superhuman acrobatics, speed, and combat ability. Their internal systems were furnished with advanced combat learning programs, which, compared to most of the droids utilized by the Confederacy of Independent Systems, allowed the MagnaGuards to adapt to a highly diverse variety of tasks. These tasks ranged from melee and ranged combat to starfighter control. The faces of the MagnaGuards featured two red photoreceptor "eyes", which were complemented by a backup system mounted on the chest.^[1] The droid's weapon of choice was the lightsaber-resistant electrostaff, and wore cloaks and head wraps similar to the garments of Grievous's old Izvoshra elite during the general's time as a Kaleesh warlord.^[1] Several models of the IG-100 existed, superficially denoted by color—black, alabaster, blue, and the rare gray were all spotted throughout the war. Each model had a specific programing, training, and thus specialty.^[5] These droids were part of the same Holowan Mechanicals series as the later IG-88 line.^[1]

HardinessEdit

MagnaGuards were fully optimized to battle and kill Jedi Knights and Padwans and could prove a danger to even Masters. This was due to not only their impeccable melee functionality but also, distinctively, their capability to withstand a massive loss of structural integrity before total system failure, as well as their inability to feel pain. Even after decapitation,^[6] or bisection,^[7] they could continue to effectively engage a target. The only sure way to destroy a MagnaGuard would be to stab them in in the chest.^[6] In addition, they were ,at the very least, partially plated with strong duranium armor making it very hard for even a Jedi to destory the droid.^[1] This resilience, exceeding both organics and much cheaper armor used by regular battle droids, greatly enhanced the danger they posed to both clones and Jedi alike.

VocalizationEdit

MagnaGuards were capable of speech and were programmed to taunt their opponents in a low growling Basic.^[7] Aside from Human speech, they appeared to occasionally use an audible form of droid language.^[8]

TrainingEdit

"The age of the Jedi is over."

―An unknown MagnaGuard^[src]

The MagnaGuards were originally programmed with optimum performance in several combat techniques. However, this dissatisfied Grievous, who then had their minds wiped and personally trained his bodyguards in the seven classic styles of lightsaber combat so that they, like he, would be equipped to effectively engage and then kill Jedi. Grievous would not allow any repairs to be made to the droids, believing that their numerous scrapes and battle scars made them more intimidating to enemies.^[1] Grievous engaged his bodyguards in practice fights as part of training, often damaging them in the process.^[9]

BackgroundEdit

"What in the galaxy was that?"

―RC-1262, upon first sighting an IG-100^[src]

Clone WarsEdit

General Grievous was given the bodyguards even though he was very impatient with droids due to their many limitations such as limited artificial intellignece. Count Dooku then commissioned Holowan Mechanicals, a company indebted to the InterGalactic Banking Clan, to develop a cutting-edge warrior droid that would meet Grievous's standards. Upon activation, Grievous destroyed all the MagnaGuards present, venting his frustration at being treated as a droid.^[10] The droids were first used in combat during the Battle of Parein II 4, where one of Grievous's MagnaGuards killed the Jedi Sannen by thrusting its electrostaff through his throat.^[11] The MagnaGuards proved to be formidable, capable of taking on Jedi and clone troopers with ease, and were regarded as being even more daunting than droidekas by some.^[9] MagnaGuards were also sometimes employed to do General Grievous's dirty work.^[12]

During the Second Battle of Xagobah, the young bounty hunter Boba Fett encountered two MagnaGuards in the Mazariyan fortress, accompanying Grievous during the conflict. Fett, disguised as Durge with the help of a holo-shroud, engaged the droids in battle, and was able to momentarily incapacitate one with an ion stunner, though he was ultimately defeated and left for dead by Grievous himself.^[13]

During Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano's mission to Tatooine, they were attacked in the exosphere by several MagnaGuards piloting Rogue-class starfighters. Anakin managed to destroy the droids and make it onto the surface of the planet. Once on the planet, Ahsoka Tano faced off against three more MagnaGuards, while Anakin fought off Count Dooku. Ahsoka managed to destroy all three of her opponents.^[14]

During a mission to destroy a CIS listening post near Ruusan, Anakin Skywalker battled several MagnaGuards that were preventing R2-D2 from being rescued.^[15]

MagnaGuards were present at Grievous's castle on Vassek's third moon. Upon Grievous's return to his castle, he discovered his force of elite MagnaGuards had mysteriously been deactivated. When Count Dooku alerted him of the infiltration of his castle by Jedi Master Kit Fisto and his former apprentice, Nahdar Vebb, Grievous realized Dooku himself had deactivated his guards to see if Grievous was adept in handling the Jedi by himself, as Grievous had recently suffered a chain of defeats.

After being reactivated, one MagnaGuard was sent to destroy the Nu-class attack shuttle with a rocket launcher, while another squad was sent to destroy Kit Fisto's Jedi starfighter. However, Fisto's astromech droid managed to personally pilot the ship to safety. The remaining droids accompanied Grievous. As Nahdar Vebb made his way toward the General, he destroyed Grievous's entire escort and was later killed by Grievous himself. Many more were destroyed as he fought the Jedi, Kit Fisto, until Fisto managed to escape the castle with his Jedi starfighter.^[16]

Bounty hunter Cad Bane, while under contract with the CIS, was given several MagnaGuards for use in capturing keeper of the Kyber memory crystal, Jedi Master Bolla Ropal. One stood sentry as Cad Bane tortured the Jedi to death, afterward using its staff to crudely check for any vital response from the dead Rodian.^[8]

Grievous employed his guards in the capture of Jedi Master Eeth Koth over Saleucami. The droids aided the General in getting the upper hand on Koth, surrounding the Jedi and slowly wearing him down with electrostaff strikes. Once Koth was captured, the droids tortured the Jedi in a transmission sent to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. However, they were unaware that the Zabrak was still cognizant, resisting their torture, and sending a coded hand signal to alert the Jedi to his location.^[12]

During the Battle of Boz Pity, MagnaGuards were used in the service of Dooku. During the battle, two of them distracted Mace Windu long enough for the Count to make his escape, and one of them almost killed Asajj Ventress with a blaster under Dooku's orders.^[17]

Delta Squad was forced to fight several MagnaGuards on Kashyyyk during their rescue of the Wookiee chieftain Tarfful. The clone commandos managed to destroy the droids with great difficulty.^[18]

At the end of the war, MagnaGuards assisted Grievous in the kidnapping of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine during the Battle of Coruscant. Shaak Ti faced off dozens of MagnaGuards with difficulty before they retreated, alerting her to the Chancellor's danger.^[19]

Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi fought two of the droids on the bridge of General Grievous's command ship, the Invisible Hand, shortly afterward.^[9] Kenobi beheaded his opponent, only to find himself engaging a still-functioning headless droid. Skywalker managed to bisect the second droid as Kenobi finished the first off.^[6]

Kenobi also faced four MagnaGuards on Utapau. He incapacitated three of them immediately when he used the Force to drop a large block of metal upon them. The fourth was partly pinned under the block; it attempted to reach its electrostaff, but was decapitated by Kenobi by the time it picked up its weapon.^[6]

Post-Clone WarsEdit

Following the massacre of the Separatist Council by Darth Vader, under Darth Sidious's orders, all IG-100 MagnaGuards were deactivated. However, the Geonosian Gizor Dellso would later reactivate and use IG-100 MagnaGuards as infantry in his personal army.^[3] At least a decade later, two MagnaGuards were reactivated by the Galactic Empire for use as N-K Necrosis's bodyguards, and redesignated as NK-3s.^[4] The bureaucrat Narp Pilyev owned two MagnaGuards and used them as security guards, to protect his apartment on Coruscant.^[20] Aside from these examples, other persons of note occasionally employed them as guards and henchmen. Many IG-100s were commissioned at the end of The Clone Wars which was part of the reason that there were enough IG-100s to create a private army.

MagnaGuards in the galaxyEdit

"Crush them! Make them suffer!"

―Grievous, to his MagnaGuards aboard the Invisible Hand^[src]

Notable unitsEdit

Distinguished MagnaGuards include IG-101 and IG-102, both of whom served on the Invisible Hand^[9]. Other MagnaGuards who were named were IG-109 and IG-138, who were both destroyed in a training session with Grievous. Another pair, IG-153 and IG-182 were employed by Grand Moff 4-8C.^[21] One of the most noteworthy MagnaGuards was IG-179, Iron Knight Luxum's chief lieutenant.^[21]

Weapons and equipmentEdit

ElectrostaffsEdit

Grievous’s bodyguards notably wielded several models of high-quality phrik alloy electrostaffs, blunt energy weapons which emitted a visible, pink, electromagnetic pulse on each end. The lightsaber-resistant nature of phrik allowed the MagnaGuards to effectively deflect and attack a Jedi’s lightsaber. This, coupled with the specialized combat mechanics of the droids, made them a dangerous enemy, even to those skilled in the Force.

Armament flexibilityEdit

Though specialized to use electrostaffs, the on-board combat systems of the MagnaGuard, coupled with human like hands allowed them to be trained to operate a vast array of available weapons in addition to much more specialized armaments. Depending on the time and necessity, MagnaGuards were known to use blaster rifles,^[17] grenades, rocket launchers,^[16] remote-controlled drones, and lethally irradiating weapons as well as regular melee weapons.

On-board utilitiesEdit

The droids made use of many gadgets, such as built-in tow-cables, a personal cloaking device,^[18] and magnetized limbs.^[7] At least one MagnaGuard was known to have the ability to extend its arm many times its usual length.^[19] Another tool was a violent self destruct sequence,used if the system was still functional after severe damage. This was utilized by MagnaGuards who were encountered by clone commando squad Delta on Kashyyyk.^[18] In addition, these particular droids could fire pairs of small seeking missiles from internal magazines in their back plating.^[5]

Behind the scenesEdit

Grievous's MagnaGuards were acted in Revenge of the Sith by stunt performers wearing green and blue jumpsuits, which were then replaced by computer generated models.^[5] The MagnaGuard design was originally proposed by concept artist Warren Fu as a design for Grievous himself. George Lucas himself then reviewed it and asked for Grievous's final appearance to be developed from it, but it was nonetheless eventually used as the MagnaGuard.^[22] In the original script of Episode III, MagnaGuards could talk, but this concept did not make it to the released film.