Emperor's Royal Guard

Rumored to be a formidable fighting force, the Emperor personally selected each member of this group to act as his protectors. They underwent indoctrination in the Emperor's service to such an extent that they were entirely subservient to his desires. These bodyguards were utterly dedicated to Palpatine and willingly sacrificed their lives for him. Training emphasized unwavering loyalty and complete obedience to the Emperor. Upon command, they would instantly turn on each other, killing fellow guardsmen without hesitation, although not without remorse. Their training was so effective that even when injured, they did not plead for mercy, nor was any granted. Despite this intense loyalty, some guardsmen developed personal ambitions and motives, leading them to plot treasonous actions against the Emperor and their comrades. Others remained loyal only until the Emperor's death, after which they ceased to identify as members of the Royal Guard, believing the organization destroyed. Some guardsmen even defected; in one instance, a member of the Royal Guard, after participating in a terror attack, was so horrified by his actions that he abandoned his service and joined the Rebellion. Furthermore, not all Guardsmen remained in their role, as some were promoted to the rank of General and continued serving the Empire in a different capacity.

The exact number of Royal Guard members remained unknown, as they never fought as a unified unit. Only the Emperor himself and the highest-ranking Imperial officers possessed this knowledge. Speculation placed their numbers anywhere from fifty to tens of thousands. Ultimately, it was known that they were a powerful sub-unit within the Imperial military, directly serving the Emperor. Records of their precise numbers were kept by Palpatine in his private archives on Imperial Center or Byss.

The Imperial Guard's primary duties included providing personal protection for Palpatine and his designated individuals, as well as guarding his secret facilities and clone laboratories on Byss and the Emperor's Citadel. This prestigious task was typically reserved for the Sovereign Protectors. They also managed security at the Imperial Palace. As Palpatine's protectors, their mission involved thwarting assassination attempts, conducting covert assaults, and even serving as assassins for their master. Failure to protect their liege resulted in a slow and painful death, although in some cases, such as the Heinsnake plot, they were swiftly eliminated by being thrown out of a window. However, admitting failure and kneeling could earn them a reprieve, provided they redeemed themselves by identifying those responsible and ensuring the Emperor's safety or preventing the disclosure of events. At least two guardsmen were always present by Palpatine's side, within earshot of his Imperial Majesty. Royal Guardsmen only left their liege when commanded to do so by the Emperor, allowing him privacy with his guests. Others staffed the Guard training facility on Yinchorr or served at the Emperor's other safe houses. Palpatine also loaned detachments of the guard to his most trusted servants, though it remained unclear whether this was for genuine protection or to monitor them for signs of disloyalty.

During their service, they became one of the Empire's most recognizable units, largely due to their distinctive armor. With their primary mission focused on protecting the Emperor and his designated individuals, the Royal Guard was never deployed on combat missions as a unified corps. Instead, small elements of Royal Guardsmen were rotated into combat to maintain their fighting skills, appearing as and working alongside standard stormtroopers. During these operations, they remained together as a unit, never dispersed among ordinary army units.

While the Royal Guard comprised elite soldiers, it contained various ranks and even more elite subgroups. This structure stemmed from the Emperor's belief that limiting his subjects' aspirations and ambitions was unwise. He created nearly unattainable goals to observe his servants' struggles, thereby maintaining greater control over them. By continuously establishing new tiers of elite status, he kept his followers motivated and determined to excel.

One of the more elite positions was held by the Emperor's Shadow Guard, a unit clearly modeled after the Royal Guard. This special operations cadre was deployed on selective missions. They resembled the Royal Guard, wearing black versions of their uniform and wielding lightsaber pikes as their primary weapons. The Shadow Guard were rarely seen in public and were dispatched on missions directed by the Emperor himself. Some of its members were trained to serve as Palpatine's personal bodyguards. A significant advantage of these guardsmen was their Force-sensitivity, enabling them to use the dark side of the Force.

The highest-ranking position within the Royal Guard was held by elite, Force-sensitive warriors known as the Imperial Sovereign Protectors. Once identified, these guardsmen were trained in the use of the Dark side of the Force on worlds like Prakith, where they were mentored by the Inquisitorius. While their uniforms resembled those of the Royal Guard, the Sovereign Protectors wore a darker version of the attire. Their tactics often involved closing the distance to engage in melee combat, using vibroblades to pin foes against solid surfaces, allowing them to attack incapacitated enemies with their double vibroblades. Before the Emperor's final death, it was believed that he intended to create even higher positions, but the Sovereign Protectors remained the highest achievement for a Royal Guard member.

One of the most prestigious roles within the group was that of Master Instructor, held by the most experienced guardsmen responsible for training new recruits at the Royal Guard Academy. Other notable divisions included the Imperial Senate Guard and the Imperial Senate Sentinel, though their connection to the Royal Guard remains unclear.

Myths surrounding the Royal Guard outnumbered known facts. The unit's mystique led to uncertainty about whether its members were clones, recruits, or a mix of both. Some myths suggested that their reputation was merely propaganda and that they were not the elite fighting force they were believed to be. Another rumor claimed that a discerning individual could distinguish a stormtrooper from an Imperial Guardsman, whether in uniform or dying. However, these myths were false; guardsmen were highly skilled warriors capable of concealing their position within the Imperial hierarchy, as demonstrated by one who maintained the guise of a major for eight months, his identity only revealed through a thorough examination of Imperial records. Another rumor claimed that no guard had ever been killed in battle. While Han Solo dismissed this as a lie, Wedge Antilles implied he believed it, stating, "someone's got to be the best of the best," comforted by the fact that there were only a few dozen of them.

The Royal Guard, like other branches of the Imperial hierarchy, possessed its own insignia and banner. Similar to others, it was a variation of the Imperial crest, but the banner was black with red borders, and the crest itself was red. The banner and insignia were displayed wherever they operated, including at the Emperor's Retreat on Naboo.

The Royal Guard's origins trace back to the tumultuous years of the Galactic Republic preceding the Clone Wars. The Emperor's Royal Guard evolved from the Red Guard, which was formed after an assassination attempt on Palpatine's life and allegations of corruption within the Senate Guard. The Red Guard, tasked with protecting Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, consisted of highly skilled combat soldiers. Some members were handpicked from the militant Senate Commandos of the time, while others came from the recently disbanded Sun Guard.

When Palpatine oversaw the trial of Ahsoka Tano, Red Guard members stood watch on the dais with him. During the Battle of Coruscant, the Red Guard attempted to defend Palpatine from Separatist General Grievous, but they failed and were killed by the cyborg. When the Jedi Council learned of another Sith Lord known as Darth Sidious, they suspected that this Sith was hiding within the upper echelons of the government. Some believed that the mysterious Sith was concealed within the ranks of the Red Guard. Anakin Skywalker was later granted access to the Chancellor's office by a Red Guard member.

After the Declaration of a New Order and the formation of the Galactic Empire, the Red Guard became the Emperor's Royal Guard, dedicated to safeguarding the Emperor. They remained silent warriors, serving as elite protectors during the Emperor's visits to other worlds and meetings in the Imperial Palace on Coruscant. Many members of the decimated Sun Guard who had served Darth Sidious were later inducted into the Royal Guard, with Force-sensitive members joining the Emperor's Shadow Guard. The new Royal Guard, along with the Coruscant Guard, was responsible for security arrangements in the capital. They often accompanied their master and inspected items entering his private chambers as part of security protocols. In 19 BBY, the Royal Guard was present in the Emperor's chamber when Darth Vader was summoned to rescue Admiral Garoche Tarkin. Several were also victims of Aorth-6, with some even believing that Palpatine had died in the attack, prompting Vader to comment that they had failed their duty if that were the case. Two of them also accompanied Vader to an unknown moon to investigate and eliminate the Heinsnake Cult after they attempted to assassinate the Emperor.

At the height of the Galactic Empire, the New Order faced opposition from figures within the government, including Bail Organa of Alderaan. To silence him, the Emperor had his daughter, Leia Organa, taken as a Senatorial Observer, effectively holding her hostage. She was escorted by two Royal Guardsmen to Kashyyyk, where she was overseen by Ozzik Sturn. These guardsmen were later killed by the rogue Force user Galen Marek during his mission. Royal Guardsmen were also stationed aboard the Death Star I during its construction. These guardsmen were killed by Galen Marek during his mission. In 1 BBY, the Royal Guard defended their Emperor from the Anti-Sith conspiracy orchestrated by Grand Moff Trachta, who used a bomb to kill half of Palpatine's accompanying guardsmen. Despite this, the remaining guardsmen managed to slay the stormtroopers allied with Moff Kadir, who was part of the conspiracy. At some point during the conflict against the Rebel Alliance, Vin Northal of the Royal Guard defected to the Rebellion after witnessing the Emperor's regime's brutality.

During the Galactic Civil War, two Royal Guardsmen accompanied the Emperor aboard his Lambda-class T-4a shuttle to Bothawui, due to the Emperor's knowledge of the Bothan's secret allegiance to the Rebel Alliance. After confronting them, Palpatine and his Royal Guards killed many Bothans as an example of the consequences of betraying the Galactic Empire. Later, as the Death Star neared completion, Royal Guardsmen were stationed on the facility and were present when a Rebel Alliance team led by X2 infiltrated the base. These Royal Guardsmen battled the clone trooper but were killed, allowing X2 to escape the Death Star I with captured Rebels. Guardsmen were stationed in the Emperor's Museum, guarding his treasures, but were killed during an incursion by Tyber Zann and his followers. Royal Guard members also accompanied the Emperor during his inspection of the Death Star II and remained at his side until he dismissed them when Vader brought Luke Skywalker before him. They perished when the Death Star was destroyed near the end of the Battle of Endor.

Following the Emperor's death, the Royal Guard ranks scattered, with some following various warlords and others retreating into the Deep Core. After the Battle of Endor, Royal Guards served as personal protectors for those claiming Imperial power. Many rising warlords sought to include Royal Guard members in their entourage, though the effect varied as some guardsmen joined factions while others remained neutral. As part of X1's faction, guardsmen served the clone known as X1 during his bid for power, but they were killed during the Battle of Mustafar. After Palpatine's death, many Royal Guard members committed mass suicide. Some followed Lord Shadowspawn's while others sought the Prophets of the Dark Side, who claimed the Emperor would return. Others, such as Grodin Tierce, survived the destruction of the Death Star II by being rotated into stormtrooper service in 4 ABY.

In the same year, most of the remaining Royal Guard continued serving the Grand Vizier, Sate Pestage, and later escorted him to Axxila during negotiations with the New Republic. One Royal Guard member was present in the Central Committee of Grand Moffs when Grand Moff Bertroff Hissa claimed that the Supreme Slavelord of Kessel, Trioculus, was Palpatine's son in 5 ABY. The guardsmen protested, stating that many claimed to be the Emperor's heir and that Grand Admiral Josef Grunger seemed a more worthy ruler due to his military might. When Trioculus asserted his right to rule by blood, others criticized him for lacking a symbol of authority like the Glove of Darth Vader, and the guardsmen stated that Trioculus lacked the blessing of the Prophets of the Dark Side. Trioculus then unleashed an electric shock at the dissenters, including the Royal Guardsmen, until they begged him to stop, whereupon other Imperials pledged their allegiance to Trioculus.

A detachment of the Royal Guard was present on Coruscant in 6 ABY when the New Republic assaulted the planet, working with the Coruscant Security Force led by Tal Ashen. The guardsmen fought off the invaders but were killed by Rand Talor's forces. Later, in 7.5 ABY, Imperial Director of Imperial Intelligence Ysanne Isard gained the allegiance of several Imperial Royal Guard members. These Guardsmen added a black hem to their crimson robes even after the official Year of Mourning for the Emperor's death. After assuming stewardship of the Empire, a Royal Guard unit appeared as her personal bodyguard, and she retained them as Premier of Thyferra. They flanked the doorways of Isard's office, initially enforcing strict security procedures and treating everyone as a potential assassin, but later relenting when the native Thyferrans reacted negatively to the orders.

Some were genuine Royal Guards, while others may have been recruited from Isard's elite cadre of black-clad enforcers, hulking paramilitaries used as bodyguards, special operations troops, and lovers, who had disappeared from public view when she took power. Isard later loaned a force of Royal Guards to her former Imperial Intelligence subordinate Shira Brie, now the Dark Lady Lumiya. Unlike most Royal Guards, who wore scarlet ceremonial uniforms or white stormtrooper armor, these two squads wore distinctive crimson stormtrooper armor in the field, serving as crack shock-troops. One of them, Carnor Jax, showed Force potential and was trained by Lumiya as her Sith apprentice.

Unlike some comrades, Grodin Tierce believed that the Emperor's death meant the Royal Guard no longer existed, remaining a stormtrooper major. He later joined Grand Admiral Thrawn without revealing his past as a guardsman. Despite this, the Chiss Admiral deduced Tierce's origins and used him as a prime clone in 9 ABY to create advanced clones with Thrawn's mental genius, but the project failed. Thrawn did not surround himself with a visible Royal Guard detail; instead, the original Grodin Tierce, followed by his clone, served as officers with the stormtrooper force aboard Chimaera, supplementing the Grand Admiral's Noghri bodyguard. Tierce was later killed in action, and his clone replaced him, though he had forgotten his origin or Thrawn's discovery. However, others, such as Kir Kanos, refused to choose sides among the Imperial factions. Several remained undercover in their stormtrooper units, while some pledged themselves to Sate Pestage and his successors.

In the year 10 ABY, the Royal Guards all rallied to Byss upon the summons of the resurrected Palpatine. They fought alongside him until his ultimate demise the following year. It was later discovered that the renegade Protector Carnor Jax had sabotaged his clones, thereby hastening his death. One of the guardsmen overheard the Emperor's physician confess his involvement with Carnor Jax to Luke Skywalker. Subsequently, this guard attempted to alert his comrades to the betrayal, but he was attacked by Imperial forces loyal to Carnor Jax. Following Palpatine's final death, the surviving members of the Royal Guard, significantly reduced in number due to the catastrophes on Byss and Eclipse II, retreated to Yinchorr. There, they convened to mourn Palpatine and devise a strategy for revenge. The guardsmen who had become aware of the conspiracy later returned to inform their brothers of Jax's treachery. However, Jax had set a trap, and they were slaughtered by his stormtroopers. Ironically, the Royal Guards suffered a similar fate to the old Jedi Order. The stormtroopers annihilated the Royal Guards, mirroring the clone troopers's elimination of the Jedi decades prior. Only Kir Kanos survived, eventually killing Jax during a Duel in The Squall. He then dedicated himself to eliminating all those responsible for Emperor Palpatine's death.

In 12 ABY, Admiral Natasi Daala utilized the Imperial Guard to enhance her commanding presence while attempting to unify the disparate factions. The scarlet-robed guardsmen accompanied her during her speeches at various armament factories and shipyards, where she sought to bolster the morale of Imperial forces. Her intention was to portray herself as a charismatic leader guiding the remnants of the Empire against the New Republic by increasing her visibility. The guardsmen stood by her side, wherever she went. Additionally, some guards served X1 during the Battle of Mustafar, but were killed by X2.

Seven years later, Admiral Daala promoted four stormtroopers to the rank of Royal Guardsmen. These four individuals played a role in establishing the Second Imperium movement, which aimed to restore the Empire's dominance. They orchestrated a deception, falsely claiming that Emperor Palpatine had been reborn. The group then established the Shadow Academy and enlisted the Dark Jedi Brakiss to train an army of warriors for the Second Imperium. The New Jedi Order ultimately foiled their plans, and Brakiss killed three of the four guardsmen upon discovering their deception. After the discovery, the guardsmen activated hidden explosive charges, destroying the Shadow Academy around them, but one survived. This lone Guard later attempted to employ deadly plagues from an Imperial storehouse as a weapon against the New Republic, but Nolaa Tarkona of the Diversity Alliance killed him. In the same year, Moff Vilim Disra used the Imperial Records Library on Bastion to learn about Major Grodin Tierce within his forces of the Imperial Remnant, unaware that Tierce was a clone. By using the tactically brilliant Major and the impersonator Flim to form the Sinister Triumvirate, they orchestrated the Caamas Document Crisis to undermine the New Republic. Their plot was eventually exposed, revealing the clone Tierce's true origins and resulting in his death at the hands of Shada D'ukal, a Mistryl Shadow Guards woman. With Moff Disra's arrest, the triumvirate dissolved. Later, in 20 ABY, Moff Derran Takkar charged former guardsman Chik Apla, who had killed an Imperial commando, with disrupting the wedding of Mara Jade and Luke Skywalker. Despite launching a surprise attack, Jedi Knight Mara Jade easily defeated Apla.

During the era of the Fel dynasty, the newly established Imperial Knights assumed the responsibilities of the Royal Guard. Like their forerunners, they donned a distinctive set of red armor and served as the Emperor's bodyguards during the reign of the revived Galactic Empire.

Royal Guards were clad in matching scarlet robes, battle armor (worn beneath a loose-fitting tunic, concealed by the robe), and helmets. The armor's design drew inspiration from the uniforms of the Death Watch of the Mandalore system, the Sun Guards of the Thyrsus system, and the Senate Guards of the old Galactic Republic, with the Sun Guards' armor serving as a direct model. The resemblance of their armor to these other groups was intentional, and the mere sight of a guardsman tended to instill fear even in the most seasoned warriors. The Royal Guard wore fully functional battle armor, concealed by loose-fitting ceremonial robes, which provided superior protection compared to standard Imperial armor. Despite its ceremonial nature, the red armor did not restrict movement or combat. When assigned to Imperial service, the guardsmen relinquished their uniforms and donned stormtrooper armor, obscuring their true position within the Imperial hierarchy. However, they also possessed another set of combat uniform that resembled stormtrooper armor but was colored red.

During the Galactic Republic's transformation into the Galactic Empire, the newly established Imperial Royal Guard stood out as the sole unit within the nascent Stormtrooper Corps that excluded clones. Instead, Palpatine personally and meticulously selected potential recruits from non-clone military units. Candidates aspiring to join the Royal Guard's ranks were handpicked from various branches of the Imperial Academy system, specifically from within the Stormtrooper Corps. Subsequently, they were dispatched to the Imperial Royal Guard Academy on Yinchorr, where they underwent rigorous training in diverse combat techniques, including the unarmed combat art of Echani, practicing against one another within the Squall arena. Their final evaluation before acceptance into the ranks was a battle to the death, personally observed by the Emperor. Once accepted into the Guard, they were exhaustively trained in many forms of combat. Their preferred weapon was the meter-long force pike, originally employed by the Umbaran Shadow Assassins of the Brotherhood of Darkness. Although considered a modest weapon, these trained soldiers wielded it with deadly effectiveness. These pikes were primarily for ceremonial reasons but were capable of being used for crowd control, self-defense and even as tools for torture. Their training enabled them to inflict precise and lethal wounds with lightning-fast speed using these pikes, and their preference for it over a blaster owed to their extensive training in the deadly arts. In some instances, they would scrape or tap their pikes against the ground to generate a shockwave, disorienting their opponents. Furthermore, they were trained in the use of various common and exotic weapons and martial arts, such as Echani art, or a double vibroblade. Guardsmen also carried concealed heavy blaster pistols for ranged combat. They were also known at times to make use of ARC casters as a ranged weapon against foes. In rare cases, they also utilized lightsaber pikes of a similar make to those utilized by the Imperial Senate Guard and the Emperor's Shadow Guard. Royal Guardsmen were furthermore taught a special "combat language" that only they understood, and part of the training included removal of fingerprints. In addition, they flew specialized red variants of the TIE/IN interceptor. Finally, a lesser known aspect of their training involved being taught techniques designed to sustain the Emperor until help arrived though there was no known case where this feat was performed.

Members of the Royal Guard were selected from the most distinguished stormtroopers. Each applicant underwent thorough scrutiny to ensure they met specific requirements for size, strength, intelligence, loyalty, and latent Force sensitivity. Recruits exhibiting Force sensitivity, but not excessively strong, were identified and assessed for inclusion in a specialized class of Royal Guards known as Sovereign Protectors. Those who passed these more demanding evaluations were trained by Dark Jedi to harness the Force. The names of the Royal Guardsmen were never uttered by anyone outside the Guard, including Palpatine. The exact number of Royal Guard was never accounted for on official records which meant that the true strength of the organization was unknown. However, the Rebel pilot Wedge Antilles estimated there were at least a few dozen in existence.

The Imperial Royal Guard Academy on Yinchorr provided them with extensive equipment and training. Each class comprised forty students who underwent a rigorous training regimen. Typically, only a handful of candidates remained by the end to become guardsmen, and it was not uncommon for only a single survivor to emerge. Students engaged in fencing and fighting within an arena known as the Squall. Classes consisted of approximately forty students each, and trainees were partnered up into doubles. During a yearlong training program, recruits sparred against each other continuously to perfect their combat skills. A step away from the squad-based stormtrooper training received on Carida, by working both alone and in pairs, recruits learned how to rely on themselves or on a teammate to achieve victory. Training mainly centered on Echani hand-to-hand combat, and failure often resulted in death. Casualty rates were very high; out of Kir Kanos's class of forty-two, only two reached full Guardsman status—all others were killed in training. During their final test, trainees fought each other to the death before Palpatine himself. Only a handful would survive this final test in a display of their loyalty and skill. Kir Kanos regretted killing his sparring partner and upon looking up from his fallen comrade, he saw Vader swinging his lightsaber extremely close to Kir Kanos's face, leaving a scar. Vader told the young man that he was never allowed to question or regret an order given to him by the Emperor.

During training, the Guards were inculcated with the belief that Palpatine, and his every order, were beyond fault or question.

• Force pike (mid-range)
• Heavy blaster pistol (long range)
• " Homing shot " missile launcher (long range)
• Light repeating blaster (long range)
• Vibrosword (short range)
• ARC caster (long range)

There existed several specialized variants of the Royal Guards, each fulfilling distinct, sometimes clandestine, roles, and notable for their composition of Force-sensitives. These groups included:

• Imperial Sovereign Protector (several were Force-sensitives)
• Emperor's Shadow Guard
• Saber Guard
• Imperial Senate Guard Imperial Senate Sentinel

According to Randy Stradley, during the creation of Star Wars: Crimson Empire, the prevailing concept was that all Royal Guards were clones, with the unmasked Jax scene intended to demonstrate that he and Kanos originated from the same prime clone. However, the establishment of Jax's father, and the fact that other Royal Guardsmen have been developed, seem to have vanquished that concept (unless they are all oblivious GeNode clones). Also, Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary states that guards were chosen from non-clone military units.

Nilo Rodis-Jamero's early concept art of the Sentinels served as the basis for the Emperor's royal guards' appearance. These guard designs ranged from centurion-like warriors to monk-like priests, but the royal guards were ultimately given a crimson hue in all of the concept art. One of Rodis-Jamero's concept drawings later evolved into two Expanded Universe characters: the Imperial Sentinel from Star Wars: Dark Empire and Atha Prime by Kenner Products.

The Royal Guard's design bears a resemblance to the uniforms worn by the Imperial Guard from the Sith Empire during the Great Galactic War era, as depicted in the timeline video for Star Wars: The Old Republic.

In Star Wars: The Ultimate Visual Guide, they are referred to as the Red Guard.