With the help of clone commander CC-2224 Cody, Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano successfully escaped the trap aboard the Kent and confirmed that Jedi Master Pong Krell had fallen to the Dark Side and betrayed them. He had even colluded with the Separatist Dark Follower Asajj Ventress to intervene in the war on Ombara planet.
The situation was now extremely unfavorable for the Galactic Republic Army. The legion previously led by Pong Krell had already suffered grievous losses in its frontal assault, then endured the Kent's fierce bombardment. Nearly all its combat units had been scattered, and of its more than 9,000 troops, fewer than 2,000 still retained combat power!
Anakin Skywalker's 501st Legion was in somewhat better shape, with fewer than 3,000 casualties. But with the collapse of the other legion, they too had been left fighting alone.
The more serious problem was that Pong Krell's rash assault on the capital had forced Anakin Skywalker to adopt an aggressive strategy to support him, allowing the 501st Legion to break through the enemy blockade and reach the capital faster. Under these circumstances, Umbarians from their flank and rear had begun moving in to encircle them.
The four Acclamator-class assault ships they had arrived on were also in grave danger.
Of the two Acclamator-class assault ships carrying Pong Krell's legion, one—the Kent—had been seized by Asajj Ventress, who then destroyed the other Acclamator-class assault ship on the ground.
An Acclamator-class assault ship that had landed was effectively used as a heavily armed fortress and command center. With two Acclamator-class ships lost, the Umbarians in that direction could freely move troops through this area into the capital to reinforce the fighting.
As for the 212th Attack Battalion, which had been tasked with intercepting Umbarian reinforcements, it had been forced to retreat after