“Hunter” was the nickname of a clone commando sergeant who served as the commanding officer of Clone Force 99 in the Grand Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars, fought between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. He was genetically altered to have heightened senses and commanded his comrades who had their own unique mutations, in what they called the “Bad Batch.” Other members of the squad included Wrecker, Tech, and Crosshair, and later, Echo.

Most of the members’ mutations and the ordeal Echo suffered prior to joining caused their inhibitor chips to fail, meaning Clone Force 99 was able to disobey Order 66. With the Proclamation of the New Order and the rise of the Galactic Empire from the shell of the Republic, Clone Force 99—with the exception of Crosshair, whose chip had functioned properly—defected with a child named Omega, and Admiral Wilhuff Tarkin ordered that they be hunted down.