Shoretroopers, officially designated as coastal defender stormtroopers and sometimes called the coastal guard, were a unique class of Galactic Empire stormtroopers specifically trained and outfitted for fighting in tropical climates. Those stationed on the planet Scarif were specifically known as Scarif stormtroopers. Operating as part of the Coastal Defense Division, shoretroopers were led by sergeants, who commanded squads composed of standard stormtroopers. A key characteristic of coastal defender stormtroopers was the temporary nature of their roles and ranks, which could change. Globally, shoretroopers were a rare sight, as their specialized skills were only needed in a limited number of locations, specifically coastal or tropical planets with Imperial stations or garrisons.
Many coastal defender stormtroopers were stationed at the highly classified Imperial security complex located on the tropical world of Scarif, where they conducted patrols of the beaches and fortified bunkers. Del Meeko, who would later join Inferno Squad, served as a shoretrooper on Scarif before becoming a TIE fighter pilot. During the events of 1 BBY, shoretroopers participated in the Battle of Scarif against the Rebel Alliance, suffering heavy casualties when the Death Star destroyed the Imperial security complex in an attempt to eliminate the remaining Rebels.
Around 0 ABY, shoretroopers engaged in conflict with Rebel leaders Leia Organa and Luke Skywalker after they crash-landed on an ocean planet.
During the New Republic Era, shoretroopers were part of an Imperial remnant group situated on the planet Morak, where they were tasked with defending an Imperial refinery from attacks by insurgents and rebels in 9 ABY.
During the Cold War between the Resistance and the First Order, Agent Terex of the First Order Security Bureau possessed a shoretrooper helmet on board the Carrion Spike, displayed alongside helmets of an Imperial Royal Guard, an AT-AT pilot, a death trooper, and others, as well as a custom set of armor. The First Order military also deployed mountain troopers whose armor bore a resemblance to that of the Imperial shoretroopers.
While stationed on Scarif, shoretroopers were armed with both the E-11 medium blaster rifle and the enhanced E-22 reciprocating double-barreled blaster rifle. They also carried the C-25 fragmentation grenade, a powerful grenade used to destroy SW-0608, an Imperial cargo shuttle that the Rogue One team employed to circumvent the Empire's Shield Gate in orbit above the planet. Additional equipment included a zap rod-like baton and the E-11P blaster, a blaster pistol featuring water-sealed cooling vanes and sand filters. The pistol was carried in a holster when not in use.
Shoretroopers had at least three distinct ranks, each identifiable by unique markings on their shoretrooper armor. Standard shoretroopers wore sand-colored armor with a red band on their right arm and a white stripe on their left shoulder guard. Squad leaders were distinguished by a sand blue stripe running along the top of their breastplates and shoulder guards. They also wore a kama attached to their belt. Captains had mostly blue breastplates, along with a small plate of armor on their left side. Their right shoulder guard was sand colored, while their left shoulder guard was entirely sand blue except for the white stripe. Further down the left arm were stripes of sand blue and yellow. They also had reduced or no upper leg armor for increased mobility, similar to scout troopers.
On Niamos, some shoretroopers used an unidentified Blaster Pistol. This shoretrooper variant also featured a white line across the upper breastplate, a red band on the lower-right arm, a bag on the upper-right leg, and white shoulder armor with two black stripes on the left shoulder. They held a rank of lieutenant or higher, allowing them to command KX-series security droids. Shore troopers guarding the Niamos Courthouse used a stun baton with the same unidentified Blaster Pistol, and featured a white band with two black lines on the edges on their upper-left arm, and a red band on their lower-right arm. They appeared to have a policing/security role.
Despite having more advanced features than standard stormtrooper armor, shoretrooper armor proved to be no more durable, as demonstrated on Scarif. Shoretroopers also utilized different armor configurations and weapon loadouts based on the specific conditions of their deployment. One specialized type was the Heavy Shoretrooper, who specialized in heavy weapons and carried additional ammunition. Another specialized type was the shoretrooper sniper, trained in the use of long-range weaponry.
The initial glimpse of the shoretrooper occurred in the teaser trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, a Star Wars standalone film, on April 7, 2016. Their official designation was revealed in the third episode of The Star Wars Show on May 25, 2016.
According to Production Designer Doug Chiang: "Glyn [Dillon] actually modeled the color scheme on the [WWII fighter] Messerschmitt, where the base color that was sort of tannish, but then it had patches of this blue and orange that were so elegant. Again, it makes that reinforcement of connecting it with something that we know from history, it makes that connection to Episode IV, which was World War II technology, vehicles, and colorations. So the shoretrooper, I think, is a wonderful blend of all those requirements into something new."