Stormtrooper

At the dawn of the Galactic Empire, the initial stormtrooper generation was comprised of cloned soldiers who had previously served the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars. Under the guidance of the Jedi Knights, clone troopers engaged the droid armies of the Confederacy of Independent Systems across the galaxy. Despite their loyalty to both the Jedi and the Republic, the clones were secretly programmed to adhere to Order 66, a military directive authorizing the complete liquidation of the Jedi Order.

With only a few exceptions, including Jedi Generals Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi, the majority of the Jedi were killed by their own troops under the command of Darth Sidious, the Sith Lord who orchestrated the Clone Wars and manipulated the Galactic Senate through his concealed identity as Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine. As the Empire asserted that its rule brought order from galactic chaos, one explanation for the "stormtrooper" name was that it originated from the troopers emerging from the "storm" of galactic history. Another account traces the name to the final days of the Republic Era, when clone shock troopers enforced law on the Republic capital of Coruscant, assuming the role formerly held by the Senate Guard. Observers began referring to these soldiers as "stormtroopers."

Emperor Palpatine himself renamed the clone troopers as "stormtroopers" and assigned them their new responsibilities, enforcing his rule during the early years of the Imperial Era. Freed from the constraints of Jedi officers who had exercised restraint in warfare, the clones employed brutal tactics under the direction of Imperial officers and Governors, suppressing dissent and enforcing the New Order throughout the known galaxy as the initial generation of Imperial stormtroopers. The Empire promptly acted to suppress dissent within its legislative branch, deploying clones to execute the Senatorial arrests, rounding up sixty-three senators who were subsequently labeled as Jedi sympathizers.

However, the creation of clone troopers served only one purpose: the end of the Clone Wars. Although Palpatine had supported the Kaminoan government’s clone trooper program during his final years as Supreme Chancellor, his priorities shifted away from the costly cloning production after appointing himself Galactic Emperor. Lama Su, the Prime Minister of Kamino, insisted on the unrivaled combat skills and discipline of the clone troopers. Lama Su also believed that his clones were crucial to the security of the fledgling Empire. Despite this, Wilhuff Tarkin, Governor and Admiral, believed that the Empire would be better served by a force of recruits, which he saw as a cost-effective way to enforce order in the galaxy. Additionally, the clones' accelerated aging process, limited lifespan, and original purpose as soldiers for the Republic further incentivized the Empire to decommission its clone units in favor of natural-born humans.

Although Governor Tarkin favored conscription and recruitment over cloning, the Imperial Army, which replaced the Grand Army of the Republic, initially retained clone troopers. However, rumors circulated that the cloning facilities on Kamino had been shut down.

In the aftermath of the Clone Wars, Edmon Rampart, a Vice Admiral, authorized the formation of an Elite Squad consisting of non-clone human soldiers, led by CT-9904 "Crosshair," the former marksman of Clone Force 99. Rampart envisioned that enlisting human soldiers and having them train under skilled clones would be the best way to produce loyal soldiers without relying on the cloning program. The squad comprised four highly skilled recruits enlisted to be the first wave of such soldiers. These individuals exchanged their names for numbers, becoming ES-01, ES-02, ES-03, and ES-04, and undertook early missions to eliminate insurgents throughout the galaxy, specifically targeting the now-rogue Clone Force 99, Crosshair's former squad. The squad's success during these missions demonstrated the potential of enlistment as a method to fill the ranks of the Imperial Army to Tarkin, who allowed Rampart to continue secretly enlisting more recruits under Project War-Mantle. Although Tarkin supported Project War-Mantle, he believed that clone troopers would remain essential until the Imperial Army was prepared to retire them.

With the development of the new Imperial war machine under Project War-Mantle, a new armor model was created for use by the enlisted recruits. Massive stockpiles of this armor were stored on planets like Barton IV in anticipation of the influx of future recruits into the Stormtrooper Corps. Clone commandos were deployed as instructors to the enlisted troopers, who were designated as TK stormtroopers. During the first year of the Empire's reign, a secret training facility was established on Daro, where fifty clone commandos were tasked with training the first thousand TK stormtroopers. To fully cease clone production, Tarkin had Rampart destroy Tipoca City with his fleet of Venators. The continued recruitment of non-clone troops and the destruction of Kamino were kept secret from the Imperial Senate, with the latter incident being concealed as the result of a cataclysmic storm.

Stormtroopers wearing the current armor design were deployed to the planet Mon Cala, where they engaged the native Quarren and Mon Calamari in the Empire's planetary invasion. Also involved in the operation were clone troopers from the last Kaminoan batch, with the newly deployed clones having been assigned to Darth Vader and the Inquisitorius as a disposable death squad: the Purge Troopers. Recruited stormtrooper soldiers were also deployed in place of clones to worlds like the Outer Rim planet Thabeska, the moon of Raada, and the Separatist planet Desix. Specifically, Desix saw a large number of TK stormtroopers move in to occupy its lands after a clone trooper squad claimed Desix City for the Empire, with the squad's commanding officer, Clone Commander Cody, silently observing as the new soldiers took control. Cody had hoped to initiate diplomatic talks with Governor Tawni Ames, only to witness her execution at the order of the newly appointed Imperial Governor Grotton. Having also participated in the enslavement of Kashyyykk, Cody could no longer justify the Empire's actions and deserted the Imperial Military. Rampart used Cody's defection as further evidence that clones could no longer be trusted.

With funding for Project War-Mantle secured and preparations well underway, the only remaining step was to begin the gradual decommissioning of the clone army. To achieve this, Rampart proposed the Imperial Defense Recruitment Bill to the Imperial Senate, which would officially transition the Imperial Military from a clone army to a recruitment-based one. While many in the Senate deemed the creation of a new army unnecessary, others supported the idea, especially after the destruction of Kamino meant that fresh clone troopers could no longer be produced to protect the Empire. Due to an inability to reach an agreement, the Bill was tabled multiple times. However, testimony from Senator Riyo Chuchi exposed Rampart for his actions, leading to his arrest and seemingly shelving the Bill once more. However, Palpatine appeared before the Senate and expressed his belief that clones could no longer be fully trusted to form the Imperial Military due to the Attack on Kamino. With this development, the Senate passed the Bill. The passing of the Bill jeopardized the future of the clone stormtroopers, who still constituted the majority of the Empire's forces during the early Imperial Era. Although the Bill proposed pensions for the clones as they were gradually rotated out of military service due to aging, many troopers wished to continue their military service.

As the years passed, clone stormtroopers became increasingly rare as many were either killed in action or rotated out of military service due to aging. Consequently, the ranks of the Stormtrooper Corps swelled with conscripts and volunteers who sought to carry on the legacy of the clones glorified through wartime propaganda. By the later Imperial Era, it was rumored that a group of former clone commandos had established the Stormtrooper Corps within the Imperial Army. Nonetheless, several clones remained in service to the Empire during its later years despite their advanced aging, with some becoming instructors in the Imperial Academy, while a smaller number remained on active duty, such as Sergeant Crest, Crag, and Torrent, who was still active following the Battle of Yavin.

During the Emperor's reign, stormtroopers were used to bring any remaining Separatist worlds into line. Over time, stormtroopers replaced Imperial Army troopers—the primary infantry force of the early Empire, often composed of local planetary defense forces conscripted into the Imperial Military—as the main combat troops and security forces. Becoming the Empire's foot soldiers, the white-armored troopers served as the backbone and centerpiece of the Empire's ground forces. With a lack of jobs and opportunities in the wake of the Clone Wars, posterity would later criticize an "aimless generation" as complicit in abetting the rapid militarization and recruitment of the Imperial war machine. An entire generation grew up under Imperial rule, and many recruits had been indoctrinated into Imperial thinking since childhood, willingly joining the Stormtrooper Corps.

Propaganda led people from occupied planets to join the Corps out of fear and ambitions of power. Additionally, some stormtrooper recruits were from disenfranchised worlds who, according to future Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger, wanted to be part of something larger than themselves and willingly joined the Empire. However, Bridger was disturbed that people from his homeworld Lothal would join the Empire that had changed their world. Stormtrooper Corps training turned recruits into loyal followers of the Empire's will. While some stormtroopers deserted throughout the Empire's history, the Stormtrooper Corps was primarily composed of loyal Imperial soldiers who would kill any rebel they spotted, regardless of their background.

Darth Vader, the informal Commander-in-Chief, frequently coordinated stormtrooper operations in the field whenever his personal presence was required. The stormtroopers addressed him by his noble title of Lord. The stormtroopers' commitment to Vader bordered on worship. Despite his rapport with his stormtroopers, Vader was still willing to execute troops under his command, as he did with many other subordinates. During Rae Sloane's time as a junior officer, a joke circulated that Vader only kept stormtroopers on the bridge of his starships to drag out the bodies of those he executed. However, the joke quickly lost its humor as the cyborg's wrath became all too real for many of his subordinates.

As part of their oath to demonstrate absolute loyalty to the Empire in the Emperor's name, stormtroopers carried out some of the worst crimes committed by the Empire. Ultimately, stormtroopers came to represent the face of the Empire, but the soldiers were opposed by a growing Rebellion that sought to restore the rule of the Republic to the galaxy. On Lothal, the local stormtrooper garrison opposed Bridger and the Spectres rebel cell before the aspiring Jedi and his teammates joined the growing Rebellion.

The initial significant clash of the Galactic Civil War, a conflict between the Empire and the Alliance to Restore the Republic, unfolded during the Battle of Scarif, resulting in a pivotal Rebel triumph. Subsequent to the victory at Scarif, Darth Vader directed his stormtroopers to capture Princess Leia Organa’s Alderaanian corvette, the Tantive IV, above Tatooine. Furthermore, stormtroopers played a role in the arrest of dissenters across various planets, including Akiva and Zeitooine. They also participated in numerous other Imperial conflicts, swiftly suppressing a long-lasting uprising on Koshaga with the aid of Imperial machinery, fighting on the frontlines of the Mandalorian Civil War, confronting the Dreamers and their man-eating pets, and battling the Grysk Hegemony during the Imperial–Grysk conflict.

As the Galactic Civil War progressed, the Empire intensified the training of the Stormtrooper Corps to bolster its troop numbers. During the Galactic Civil War, stormtroopers were deployed against the Rebel Alliance in various engagements, including the Battle of Garel, the Battle of Atollon, the Battle of Hoth, the Mid Rim Retreat, and the Battle of Ab Dalis. While desertion was infrequent within the Stormtrooper Corps, the Empire's actions during a mission on Aleen were so appalling that three stormtroopers chose to desert the Imperial ranks. In addition, stormtroopers under the command of Admiral Gratloe aligned themselves with their superior's rogue faction within the Empire in the Kudo system, eventually clashing with the 204th Imperial Fighter Wing.

Concurrently, in 4 ABY, an entire legion of Palpatine's elite stormtroopers participated in the Battle of Endor. While some stormtroopers engaged Rebels and Ewoks on the ground of the forest moon, others were stationed on the DS-2 Death Star II Mobile Battle Station before its destruction. In the immediate aftermath of the battle, Rebel General Han Solo spearheaded an assault on a surviving Endor outpost manned by stormtroopers. Simultaneously, stormtroopers on the Imperial capital world of Coruscant engaged in the planet's civil war, which erupted following the deaths of Palpatine and Vader at Endor.

At some point, a stormtrooper met his end within the Sarlacc pit in the Great Pit of Carkoon on Tatooine, destined to be digested alongside the imprisoned bounty hunter Boba Fett. The trooper's demise proved crucial to Fett's escape, as he utilized a breathing apparatus from the soldier's armor to survive. Although disorganized following the Rebel victory at Endor, Imperial loyalists regrouped around prominent figures like Grand Admiral Rae Sloane and Fleet Admiral Gallius Rax. The Alliance, which had proclaimed itself the New Republic, deployed its armed forces to eliminate the remaining Imperial strongholds on remote planets such as Uyter, Naalol, and Akiva.

During the Iron Blockade, stormtroopers stationed in the Anoat sector suppressed any news of Palpatine's demise, only to face an Uprising aimed at liberating the sector. Amidst this conflict, Joval Rykk, a seasoned ten-year veteran of the Stormtrooper Corps, harbored no allegiance to the Empire. By this point, stormtroopers were being prematurely pulled from Academy training to replenish Imperial ranks. As the war persisted, numerous stormtroopers were captured and held as prisoners of war in the New Republic capital of Chandrila. On one occasion, Olia Choko, a New Republic public relations official, intervened to prevent New Republic soldiers from parading stormtrooper prisoners through the streets of Hanna City. Subsequently, stormtroopers participated in the liberation of Kashyyyk and the Battle of Jakku, which marked the Empire's final stand in 5 ABY.

Following the defeat of its loyalist forces on Jakku, the Empire formally capitulated to the New Republic. With the demise of Counselor Rax and Sloane's flight to the Unknown Regions, Grand Vizier Mas Amedda represented the Empire during the signing of the Galactic Concordance. The terms of the peace treaty encompassed the cessation of hostilities between the Empire and the New Republic, the dissolution of the Imperial government, and the prohibition of stormtrooper recruitment and training. Furthermore, the Empire was compelled to dismantle its network of Imperial Academies.

However, not all Imperial remnants adhered to the treaty's stipulations. While some stormtroopers, such as Terex and Corlac, abandoned their posts, the remaining Imperial forces on Jakku persisted in their fight for several months, refusing to acknowledge the Empire's defeat. Terex renounced his life as a stormtrooper because he believed that the fall of the Empire signified the collapse of order. Asserting the need to adapt, he assumed the role of a crime lord within the Ranc Gang. Conversely, a former Imperial identifying himself as "Sentinel" participated in the Hunters of the Outer Rim competition, donning stormtrooper armor in the hopes of reliving what he perceived as the glorious days of his service. While he appeared to be a stormtrooper unwilling to accept the Imperial regime's defeat, this was merely a fabricated persona intended to garner attention.

In the years following the conclusion of the civil war, the remnants of the former Galactic Empire primarily consisted of mercenaries, many of whom were stormtroopers known as "Remnant Stormtroopers," and the warlords they served, clinging to the remnants of Imperial authority in the Outer Rim Territories, where the New Republic's influence was limited. Despite the New Republic's restrictions on the defeated Empire, stormtroopers retained their battle-worn armor, giving them the appearance of an undisciplined mercenary force. Nevertheless, some of these mercenary troopers collaborated with more pristine stormtroopers, who were still referred to as "Remnant Stormtroopers" but operated directly as part of the remnants of the fallen Empire. Notably, stormtroopers served with Imperial remnants such as those on Morak and Moff Gideon's faction, which possessed an army's worth of stormtroopers. Gideon's remnant was secretly part of a network of Imperial remnants operating under the Shadow Council and awaiting the return of Grand Admiral Mitth'raw'nuruodo, also known as "Thrawn."

By 9 ABY, Gideon's remnant controlled an Imperial base on the planet Nevarro, which was staffed by a platoon of stormtroopers and other Imperials. A mercenary group of Remnant Stormtroopers also provided security for an Imperial Remnant safe house in Nevarro City, where they served as bodyguards for "the Client" and Doctor Penn Pershing. The Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin eliminated numerous stormtroopers while rescuing the Force-sensitive foundling Grogu, whose DNA Gideon's remnant sought to create an army of Force-sensitive Gideon clones to restore Imperial rule. Following Grogu's rescue, Djarin's Mandalorian tribe was nearly annihilated by the Imperial remnant, which occupied the city with its mercenary stormtroopers.

When Djarin returned to Nevarro with his allies to kill the Client, Gideon instead ordered his personal guard of death troopers to fire into the city's cantina, eliminating the Imperial and his personal stormtrooper guard, wiping out the entire stormtrooper squad. Gideon was then reinforced by a battalion, primarily composed of pristine stormtroopers from the Imperial base, to recapture "the Child" from Djarin. As the battle unfolded, mercenary and pristine stormtroopers fought alongside each other against the Mandalorian and his allies, who were forced into the sewers. Despite their efforts, they were ultimately defeated by the stormtroopers, but their triumph came at the expense of the Ugnaught Kuiil and IG-series assassin droid IG-11, the latter of whom sacrificed himself to eliminate a stormtrooper platoon.

Although he had lost control of Nevarro, Gideon escaped the planet to command his remnant from his Class 546 Cruiser, where numerous stormtroopers and Imperial officers were stationed. A force of Gideon's stormtroopers, stationed aboard a Gozanti-class Assault Carrier, was lost when Djarin joined forces with Lady Bo-Katan Kryze's unit and captured the carrier. The remnant maintained control of Nevarro's Imperial base until Djarin returned to repair his ship, the Razor Crest. The Mandalorian and his allies infiltrated the base to detonate it, fighting past the stormtroopers to escape in time. As he fled with his jetpack to protect Grogu, his allies, Magistrate Greef Karga, former shock trooper Marshal Cara Dune, and "the Mythrol," escaped from a squad of scout troopers and then Outland TIE fighters aboard a Trexler 906 Armored Marauder, taking out all but two of the starfighters until Djarin arrived in the Razor Crest. After Djarin eliminated the two fighters, he and Grogu departed for Tython.

Unbeknownst to Djarin, one of Gideon's agents, a Mimbanese worker undercover on Nevarro, had placed a tracker on the Razor Crest, leading Gideon to Tython. There, the Mandalorian found himself in a standoff with former bounty hunter Boba Fett and Master Assassin Fennec Shand over Fett's armor, which Djarin had acquired on Tatooine, while Grogu mediated and established contact with Luke Skywalker. Landing in two Imperial transports, a detachment of stormtroopers under a Stormtrooper Commander engaged the three outlaws in a skirmish, resulting in heavy casualties for the stormtroopers before they retreated. However, a missile fired from Fett's armor, which the former hunter reclaimed from the Razor Crest, destroyed both fleeing transports, eliminating the surviving stormtroopers. Despite this, a team of third-generation design Dark Troopers successfully captured Grogu and delivered him to Gideon's light cruiser, which then destroyed the Razor Crest.

Returning to Nevarro aboard Fett's Slave I starship and enlisting Dune in the new mission to rescue Grogu, the Mandalorian and his allies recruited former Imperial sniper Migs Mayfeld and infiltrated the Morak Imperial remnants, who operated from a refinery refining rhydonium for use against the New Republic. The remnants included stormtroopers, shoretroopers, and Juggernaut Pilots. Although they managed to obtain the codes needed to locate Gideon's cruiser, Djarin and Mayfield were exposed when Mayfield executed his former commanding officer, General Valin Hess, for his remarks about Operation: Cinder and the remnants' plans. Djarin and Mayfield fought their way past the base's detachment of shoretroopers and stormtroopers, with Dune and Shand providing covering fire. While escaping the base, Mayfield also targeted its supply of rhydonium to damage the refinery. Allowing Mayfield to remain on Morak, Djarin and his team recruited Lady Bo-Katan Kryze and launched an assault on Gideon's cruiser.

Aboard the cruiser, Shand, Kryze, Dune, and Mandalorian Nite Owl Koska Reeves fought their way past its stormtrooper complement, which included a garrison and platoon, and seized the bridge. Meanwhile, Djarin rescued Grogu and defeated Gideon in combat, inadvertently claiming the Mandalorian Darksaber in the process. The unexpected arrival of Skywalker also eliminated Gideon's Dark Trooper platoon, leading to the Moff's capture and transfer to the New Republic to face charges for his war crimes. However, Gideon was extracted before his trial and went into hiding in a hidden base on Mandalore. Meanwhile, the people of the now-independent Nevarro reported Gideon's occupation, including the stormtroopers' role, to the New Republic. These statements convinced New Republic pilot Captain Carson Teva that a larger Imperial conspiracy was developing in the Outer Rim Territories. However, Gideon and his remnant met their end when a united force of Mandalorians under Kryze retook Mandalore.

The return of Thrawn had the potential to revitalize the Imperial remnants. While many Imperial remnants secretly formed a network under the Shadow Council, their forces lacked strong leadership and remained divided by the council's infighting. Captain Gilad Pellaeon hindered unification efforts by promising Thrawn's imminent return, which would herald the resurgence of the Imperial Military, giving fellow council member Commandant Brendol Hux enough time to complete the late Chief Scientist Doctor Royce Hemlock’s Project Necromancer. However, since the Liberation of Lothal, Thrawn had been trapped in exile in another galaxy, remaining on the planet Peridea with a grouping of stormtrooper forces thanks to the actions of Bridger and the Purrgil star whales. Consequently, Thrawn's stormtrooper forces dwindled to only a legion's worth of stormtroopers. The Imperial remnant also allied with the Great Mothers of the long-fallen Witch Kingdom of the Dathmiri, whom Thrawn found slumbering within a Dathomiri fortress. After joining forces with the three Nightsisters, Thrawn and his forces began rebuilding their Star Destroyer, the Chimaera, as part of a plan to return home with their aid.

The Great Mothers imbued Thrawn's stormtroopers with unnatural tenacity, leading them to be called "Night Troopers," a title echoing the "Nightsister" moniker of the Dathomiri people. This unit was commanded by Captain Enoch, who also held the position of leader of Thrawn's death trooper guard. Beyond simply energizing Thrawn's living troops, the Great Mothers possessed the power of the Chant of Resurrection, which allowed them to revive fallen soldiers. However, Bridger never witnessed a Night Trooper being resurrected, as he avoided the Nightsister's stronghold and integrated into the Noti society. It is known that two members of Thrawn's death trooper guard who had served Emperor Palpatine were brought back to life at some point. Through the Great Mothers, Thrawn contacted his loyal servant, Magistrate Morgan Elsbeth, a Nightsister and leader of a remnant in the primary galaxy, with the promise of rescuing them from their exile, assuring the Great Mothers that he would transport them and their catacomb treasures to the main galaxy.

Elsbeth, utilizing Imperial loyalists at her former Corellian factory, constructed a colossal Hyperspace transport ring known as the Eye of Sion. Following a skirmish with former Jedi Ahsoka Tano, her Mandalorian apprentice Sabine Wren, their droid Huyang, and forces of the New Republic, Elsbeth, accompanied by mercenaries Baylan Skoll and his apprentice Shin Hati, embarked on an intergalactic hyperspace journey to the distant galaxy. Arriving on Peridea, Morgan and her allies joined forces with Thrawn, the Great Mothers, and his stormtroopers. In accordance with his agreement with the Great Mothers, Thrawn instructed Enoch to begin the transfer of their cargo into the Chimaera, a task Elsbeth estimated would require at least three rotations, a timeframe deemed acceptable by the Grand Admiral. With their arrival, Elsbeth's forces were placed under Thrawn's command, with Enoch overseeing the starfighter units. While allowing Wren to search for Bridger in the wilderness, Thrawn also deployed two attack teams to pursue Skoll and Hati, tasked with eliminating Wren and Bridger, rejecting Elsbeth's suggestion to deploy more troops due to his existing numbers. Eventually, Tano and Huyang arrived above Peridea with a pod of purrgil, but Thrawn, entering his command center guarded by two Night Troopers, instructed Enoch to call off a starfighter assault, opting for a more patient approach to conserve their limited resources.

Two Night Troopers remained on guard in Thrawn's command center as the Great Mothers pinpointed Tano's location within the debris field surrounding Peridea, providing the Eye of Sion, under Enoch's control, an opportunity to target her position and force her out of hiding. As their fighters continued to pursue Tano's T-6 shuttle, which was traveling away from Thrawn's location to reunite with Wren, Hati reported Bridger's location and instigated an attack by the local Bandits of Peridea on the nomadic Noti tribe, while Skoll abandoned his apprentice to seek a great power connected to the Mortis gods. Acting on Thrawn's orders, two Night Trooper squads—Team One and Team Two—arrived in LAAT/le patrol gunships after the bandits had been defeated, reinforcing Hati and encircling Bridger and Wren. Placed under Hati's command while Thrawn observed from a distance via a droid, the stormtroopers disregarded Bridger's attempts at negotiation and engaged Wren, Bridger, and the newly arrived Tano. Without Skoll's aid, Hati and the Night Troopers were overwhelmed by the three Jedi, compelling Thrawn to withdraw his troops and the starfighters pursuing the T-6, piloted by Huyang. The Night Troopers abandoned Hati, who fled on her howler mount.

Thrawn, deeming the skirmish against Tano and her allies a success because it diverted the Jedi's attention, allowing his stormtroopers to complete the cargo transfer to the Chimaera, ordered the Eye of Sion into position. The massive hyperdrive ring was designed to encircle the Chimaera, facilitating the escape of all aboard from their exile. He then dispatched two TIE fighters to engage Tano's T-6 shuttle. This attack forced the shuttle to land, compelling Tano, Wren, and Bridger to race towards the Nightsister fortress on howlers. This development was reported to Thrawn, who prepared for their impending ground assault. A select group of Night Troopers, honored by the task, volunteered to remain behind to ensure Thrawn's escape, which Thrawn interpreted as a testament to their loyalty to the Empire. Elsbeth, who was formally reinitiated into the Nightsisters by the Great Mothers as the Night Troopers completed the cargo transfer, viewed it as a demonstration of their personal devotion to Thrawn. Given the "blessing" of the Great Mothers by Elsbeth and instructed to prevent anyone from passing, these Night Troopers stood ready for Tano, Wren, and Bridger.

With Enoch and Elsbeth at his side, and the room guarded by two Night Troopers, Thrawn ordered the Chimarea to initiate an aerially bombard of the approaching Jedi, all of whom survived the attack. As their enemies drew closer, the Night Trooper volunteers were deployed to the fortress's lower levels, where they engaged the Jedi. The Jedi tricked the stormtroopers into exposing themselves, eliminating the entire force. However, the Great Mothers resurrected the corpses of the volunteers using the Chant of Resurrection, shocking the three Jedi, who found themselves unable to harm the reanimated soldiers. The reanimated stormtroopers cracked their bones as they rose and emitted undead groans as they pursued the Jedi, who sealed the undead behind heavy doors that the Night Troopers began to cut through. To protect the Chimaera, Thrawn's two undead death troopers prevented Wren and Bridger from reaching the departing destroyer's hangar at the top of the fortress, while Tano dueled Elsbeth. The zombified death troopers managed to hold off Bridger and Wren as Thrawn, assuming command of the Eye of Sion from its bridge with Enoch and the Great Mothers present, initiated his departure.

LS-757 and another Night Trooper were stationed in the Chimaera's hangar when Wren, unlocking her Force-sensitivity during the battle, and Bridger finally defeated the death troopers. Moving to the edge of the hangar, both stormtroopers rushed to defend the Chimaera but quickly assumed they were safe due to the distance between the starship and the fortress. Wren, however, assisted Bridger in crossing the gap with a Force push. LS-757 and the other trooper were unsure if the Jedi had made the jump until he leaped up from his landing place, quickly throwing the second trooper from the Chimaera before Wren shot LS-757 from her distance below. Meanwhile, the zombified Night Troopers had breached the last of the doors and joined Elsbeth in attacking Tano, whom Wren stayed behind to assist. The undead soldiers remained back as Elsbeth engaged Tano atop the tower until Wren revealed herself; as the apprentice distracted the undead Night Troopers, Tano finished her duel with Elsbeth and slayed the Nightsister, whose death was felt by the Great Mother Klothow and thus reported to Thrawn.

With the distance between the Chimaera and tower only having increased, Bridger was unable to go back for his friends and could only watch their battle with the zombie Night Troopers until an officer contacted LS-757 with news of incoming reinforcements. Bridger reacted quickly and took the trooper's suit of armor. While the news came as a shock to Klothow, Thrawn ordered the Chimaera to bombard the Nightsister fortress below, which was destroyed and took the undead Night Troopers with it. Wren and Tano, however, managed to escape when Huyang arrived in the T-6 in time. However, after Thrawn delivered a final message to Tano, the Eye of Sion and attached Chimaera would ultimately escape into hyperspace before the T-6 could catch up. Thrawn and his forces were thus delivered out of exile and returned to the main galaxy; while Bridger managed to slip away in LS-757's armor aboard an Eta-class shuttle previously used by Hati and Skoll, the Chimaera made its way to the Nightsister planet of Dathomir with the Great Mothers and their cargo safely aboard. While the appearance of a figure in stormtrooper armor did cause concern before he revealed his face, Bridger, meanwhile, made his way to Home One and met up with the New Republic.

Evaluations of stormtroopers' combat effectiveness and overall capabilities varied during the Empire's existence and after its collapse. Commander Alecia Beck lauded stormtroopers, regarding them as the Empire's "keenest weapon." Master Kenobi once acknowledged their blaster accuracy, while Knight Kanan Jarrus derided stormtroopers as inaccurate soldiers. Stormtrooper TD-7556 attributed aiming issues to the standard E-11 blaster in his satirical desertion report, while Clone Captain Rex considered the stormtroopers themselves the problem. Agent Alexsandr Kallus defended stormtroopers' loyalty to the Empire, but Rex used this to criticize them as inferior to the clone troopers they replaced.

During the initial phases of stormtrooper recruitment and training, Clone Commando Sergeant Hunter of Clone Force 99 observed the apparent ineffectiveness of recruits, with clone commando Gregor admitting to deliberately withholding knowledge from them. Reflecting on rebel propaganda portraying Imperial forces as poor shots, fleet logistics liaison Arvira of the Imperial Navy suggested that some stormtroopers needed more targeting practice. Tasu Leech, a pit fighter and rising criminal figure during the Galactic Civil War, mocked a shoretrooper holding a blaster to his head, risking his life to ridicule his captor's alleged poor aim. The shoretrooper responded by headbutting the bounty hunter, asserting their aim was direct, before being killed by the defecting Imperial Lieutenant Beilert Valance.

In reality, stormtrooper aim and training varied among individuals across the galaxy. While many troopers exhibited excellent aim, with Imperial specialist Ralsius Paldora claiming a 77 percent hit rate, rebel propaganda and instances of poor marksmanship fostered the stereotype of universally inaccurate troopers. This stereotype persisted beyond the Empire's fall. In the post-Imperial era, Din Djarin, a skilled Mandalorian warrior, held stormtroopers in low regard compared to Mandalorians, dismissing Migs Mayfeld's military background despite Ranzar Malk's assurance of his marksmanship. Mayfeld, a former sniper involved in Operation: Cinder, clarified he was not a stormtrooper. Axe Woves, another skilled Mandalorian supporting Bo-Katan Kryze, mocked the remnant stormtroopers of Gideon's forces, criticizing their lack of true marksmanship.

The stormtrooper became an emblem of the Empire throughout the galaxy, with their uniform serving as a lasting symbol of the regime after its demise. On Tatooine, citizens celebrated Palpatine's death and the subsequent fall of the Empire. In the liberated spaceport city of Mos Eisley, stormtrooper helmets were displayed on pikes by 9 ABY. Following the space station's destruction in the Battle of Endor, the ruins of the Death Star II settled in the waters of Kef Bir, a moon in the Endor system. Over time, the armor of deceased stormtroopers remained abandoned within the ruins, deteriorating with age and water damage. In the New Republic's Adelphi Base lounge, stormtrooper helmets were displayed among the war trophies kept above the Adelphi Rangers' bar.

Stormtrooper armor found a new purpose on the former Imperial world of Plazir-15, where the elected monarchy's secruity detail wore modified stormtrooper gear, without helmets and with planetary robes. An Ewok also wore a stormtrooper helmet during the Ewok Civil War. Nevertheless, the armor remained a symbol of the Empire and its ideals for the galaxy at large over the following decades. By 28 ABY, stormtrooper helmets and armor were collected by individuals like New Republic senator Ransolm Casterfo, who had an interest in Imperial "artifacts." Several of Casterfo's Centrist senators, including Ormes Apolin and Fatil also admired and collected Imperial uniforms and armor. In addition, Imperial armor and other artifacts also sold at markets on Chrome Citadel. Stories of how the stormtroopers treated the Nikto species were passed down as a warning of Imperial xenophobia.

The Imperial remnants that retreated to the Unknown Regions reorganized themselves as the First Order, achieving one of the Emperor's objectives—to destroy the Empire and then rebuild it—under the Contingency. Defying the Galactic Concordance, the First Order recruited and mobilized new stormtroopers. The new stormtroopers were influenced by the idea of Brendol. The First Order's stormtroopers were equipped with sleeker armor and powerful weaponry. Among the Order's agents was Terex, who had served as an Imperial stormtrooper. The former Imperial Stormtrooper Commander Ruthford, who had been at the disposal of the Emperor's Fist during a battle against the Benathy, served as a Captain in the First Order. Captain Ruthford would find himself seeing the Benathy once again, although this time he served under the grandson of Lord Vader, the warlord Kylo Ren.

Unlike their predecessors, the majority of stormtroopers were non-clone recruits. Imperial cadets were sent to Imperial Academies, where they underwent intense training programs to become highly skilled shock troopers fiercely loyal to the Empire. Cadets could be as young as thirteen standard years. Although uncommon, women were permitted to serve as stormtroopers. During training, female cadets were placed in all-female units. Unit Forn was an all-female unit at the Academy for Young Imperials on Lothal. All stormtroopers pledged allegiance to the Emperor and his will, expected to follow orders unquestioningly in service to the Empire and Palpatine.

Learning unquestioning obedience was central to stormtrooper training. Stormtroopers were trained to ignore fallen comrades and persevere, regardless of the cost, even against overwhelming odds. Recruits selected for stormtrooper training underwent additional reconditioning, dehumanizing them and leading them to identify by operating numbers instead of names. Ames Bunkle, an acquaintance of Zare Leonis, was one such cadet. Minister Pitina Mar-Mas Voor of the Imperial Coalition for Progress considered stormtroopers brainwashed and less effective than her division.

Stormtrooper recruits trained in various conditions, including jetpack scenarios. They learned to fire blasters, with Imperial specialist Ralsius Paldora reporting a 77 percent target hit rate. Cadets also learned to pilot Imperial walkers and the ruthlessness required to be a stormtrooper. Cadets at Imperial Academies also navigated simulated obstacle courses in the Well, testing their strength, agility, reflexes, and intelligence. These courses and skill tests became progressively harder, and accountability for failures was severe.

While cadets attended the academy, they wore white uniforms and specialized helmets, similar to the standard stormtrooper or pilot gear. Aside from their basic training, many cadets were also assigned other non-combat duties on base. Such duties offered cadets the opportunity to gain experience over their peers, and were often presented as rewards for excellent performance during training exercises.

During cadet evaluations, officers were instructed to identify and report any signs of Force sensitivity to their superiors. Cadets meeting these criteria were taken by the Grand Inquisitor and forcibly inducted into Project Harvester, a secret Imperial program based on Arkanis. Dhara Leonis, Zare's older sister, was a known subject of Project Harvester. Jai Kell was another prospective subject who escaped with Ezra Bridger's help.

Stormtrooper and other Imperial cadets also participated in law enforcement operations. Following increased rebel activity on Lothal, Imperial cadets searched homes and streets for illegal activities, detained children of fugitives, and raided smugglers. During these operations, some cadets, like Nazhros Oleg, flaunted their new powers, encouraged by officers like Captain Piers Roddance. Prospective officer cadets, like Leonis and Oleg, were also given the chance to lead adult stormtroopers in these raids. Cadets' backgrounds were also investigated for criminal connections and subversive activities.

Clone troopers who survived the Clone Wars initially continued to wear Phase II clone trooper armor as the first stormtroopers. The armor consisted of white plastoid plates attached to a black body glove, lacking the individualized color patterns adopted by the clones under the Jedi Order's influence, although units like the Imperial shock troopers retained the red markings of the Coruscant Guard.

The first non-clone stormtroopers, designated as TK stormtroopers, received an updated version of the Phase II armor as the Galactic Empire transitioned from clone soldiers to enlisted and conscripted personnel. Like its predecessor, the TK stormtrooper armor was white armor worn over a black body glove. Besides aesthetic differences, the TK helmet lacked the T-shaped visor of its Phase II predecessor and the earlier Phase I clone trooper armor.

Phase II clone trooper armor was discontinued upon the introduction of stormtrooper armor. The shift resulted in the recycling of vast quantities of clone armor as most clones were retired and replaced by soldiers born naturally. The white armor of the stormtroopers became a ubiquitous symbol of the New Order throughout the galaxy, a visual representation contrasting sharply with the clone armor associated with honor and defense during the Clone Wars.

The stormtrooper armor, a distinctive white ensemble, was designed to inspire both assurance in the Empire's supporters and dread in its enemies. It also incorporated survival gear and temperature regulation. It offered limited protection against blaster fire, occasionally allowing stormtroopers to survive shots from an E-11 medium blaster rifle. The armor was impervious to projectiles from basic slugthrowers. However, like most armor, stormtrooper armor had drawbacks. The plates slightly hindered running and provided limited defense against large pulse detonations and blunt force. A utility belt and grappling hook were also standard issue. Overall, the armor effectively minimized most common combat threats.

The helmet provided head protection, filtered air, and included advanced vision, communication, and a HUD (heads up display) for threat detection, navigation, and alerts. While most stormtroopers retained their standard white armor, those in forest operations sometimes used camouflaged armor featuring a greenery-inspired design for better concealment.

A color coded pauldron worn on the right shoulder indicated rank: orange or red for commander, black for enlisted troopers, and white for sergeant. Some pauldrons bore symbols indicating the unit, such as Grand Admiral Thrawn's forces, who displayed a stylized chimaera symbol.

The E-11 blaster rifle was the standard weapon for stormtroopers. However, early generations, especially clone stormtroopers and TK stormtroopers, used Clone Wars-era weapons like the DC-15A blaster carbine. Stormtroopers also used the SE-14r light repeating blaster, the DLT-20A blaster rifle, the T-21 light repeating blaster, the RT-97C heavy blaster rifle, the E-22 reciprocating double-barreled blaster rifle, or the DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle, particularly for long-range combat. They could also employ scatter guns and MPL-57 grenade launchers. Some were trained to use HH-12 rocket launchers or the T-7 ion disruptor rifle.

Outside of combat and security duties, stormtrooper officers wore black dress tunics, caps, and boots, along with code cylinders, rank insignia plaques, and officer's disks, following Imperial Navy standards.

Beyond standard stormtroopers, the Empire maintained specialized units for specific environments and roles. Once a trooper was specialized, their conditioning was so thorough that they rarely desired reassignment from their division. Mechanized stormtroopers with heavy handheld cannons participated in the Battle on Sevarcos.

• Clone stormtroopers: The original stormtroopers were the clone troopers who had previously fought for the Republic during the Clone Wars. [4]
• Elite Squad Troopers: The first enlisted Imperial troopers were highly trained soldiers. [33]
• TK stormtroopers: Early recruits trained by clone commandos to eventually replace clone stormtroopers. [32]

• Cave troopers: Equipped with scout trooper armor, blaster carbines, and large vibroknives, cave troopers also had low-light vision gear and rappelling cables for operating in dark environments. [162]

• Coastal defender stormtroopers: Commonly known as shoretroopers, these were trained and equipped for coastal and tropical operations, notably deployed on Scarif. [66]
• Cold weather assault stormtroopers: More commonly known as snowtroopers, these were trained for frozen environments and wore special masks and kamas resembling those of the 21st Nova Corps on Mygeeto during the Clone Wars. [23] [2] [76]
• Desert stormtroopers: Their armor was modified for operations on desert worlds like Tatooine. [163] Dewback troopers, or Dewback riders, were sandtroopers who used dewbacks as mounts. [164]
• Forest troopers: Trained for operations in forested environments. [14]

• Magma troopers: Equipped for extreme heat, they were trained to fight on volcanic worlds like Sullust, wearing reinforced leg armor, black pauldrons, and respirators connected to a backpack. [165]
• Seatroopers: Trained and equipped for aquatic environments, they wore white armor. [146]
• Spacetroopers: Trained for zero-gravity environments with armor designed for breathing in space. They patrolled parts of the first Death Star. [166]
• Swamptrooper: Trained for amphibious combat. [3]
• Volcanic environment stormtrooper: Wearing black armor and respiration tubes, these troopers defended Fortress Vader on Mustafar and were commonly called Lava Troopers. [167]
• Wet-weather gear stormtroopers: Wearing waterproof capes called "slicks" and modified armor for mobility in Mimbanese swamps, they were notably deployed on Mimban. [49]

• Artillery stormtrooper: Specialized in mortar weaponry. [111]
• ' Demolition Troopers': Wearing standard armor, they were equipped with Smart Rockets and SE-14C blaster pistols. Some did not wear helmets. [168]
• Flametroopers: Equipped with incendiary weapons. [69]
• Heavy Weapons Stormtroopers: Wielding large rotary blaster cannons and wearing black pauldrons, there were also heavy sandtroopers, heavy shoretroopers, and heavy snowtroopers for specific environments. [164] Heavy snowtroopers sometimes wore small black pauldrons. [87]
• Imperial Heavy Troopers: Equipped with heavy combat armor and electrostaffs. [9]
• Incinerator troopers: An elite class of stormtrooper wielding flamethrowers. [169]
• Jumptroopers: Also known as Rocket troopers, they were equipped with Jump Packs or jetpacks. One variant used standard armor and a jump pack, [159] while another used specialized armor with jetpacks and respirator tubes, with officers having an orange left shoulder pad. [170] Another variant had more sophisticated armor with a control panel, respirator tubes, and black markings. There were also arctic, desert, and forest jumptrooper variations. [164]

• Patrol troopers: Used C-PH patrol speeder bikes to police occupied city streets. [49]
• Range troopers: A branch of the Stormtrooper Corps known for harsh training and toughness, protecting Imperial cargo and deployed to combat zones, equipped with snowtrooper-like armor, fur, and magnetic boots. [49]
• Recon Stormtroopers: A variant that wears a pauldron and carries thermal detonators. [171]
• Riot control stormtroopers: Equipped with standard armor and batons, they subdued opponents with extreme force. [87] [172]
• Rocket stormtroopers were specialized stormtroopers equipped with missile launchers and wore a red emblem on their shoulder pads. [172]
• Scout troopers: Wearing lighter armor and using speeder bikes to patrol Imperial garrisons, they were equipped for long periods without support and for high maneuverability, and conditioned to operate in pairs. [81] [85]
• Stormtrooper grenadiers: Wielded grenade launchers and wore a red pauldron with a black bandolier. [172]
• Stormtrooper snipers: Selected from standard ranks, they wore a blue pauldron, a helmet visor, and a black bandolier. [172]

• Death troopers: Elite black-armored stormtroopers with specialized training and classified augmentations, serving under Imperial Intelligence as bodyguards for figures like Director Orson Callan Krennic, [66] Grand Admiral Thrawn [75], Lord Vader [173], and Moff Gideon. [174] They guarded shipments of kyber crystals and used SE-14r light repeating blasters, C-25 fragmentation grenades, and E-11D blaster carbines. Specialists wore a black pauldron. [144]
• Imperial shock troopers: Armed with heavy weaponry and wearing stormtrooper armor with red markings, [159] similar to Republic clone troopers in the Coruscant Guard during the Clone Wars, sometimes using Clone Wars-era armor. [164]
• Purge Troopers (Anoat sector): Elite stormtroopers in black heavy armor enforcing Imperial law in the Anoat sector, led by Commander Bragh during the Iron Blockade. [11]

• Purge Troopers (Inquisitorius): Assisted Lord Vader and the Inquisitors in hunting Jedi survivors after Order 66, activated after the Great Jedi Purge. death squads Trained as expendable. The initial deployment was the last batch of clone troopers, [40] but later generations were handpicked from stormtrooper legions for loyalty and aptitude, trained to combat Force-sensitives. [175]
• Shadow troopers: Elite black-armored stormtroopers with cloaking devices and deadly T-21 light repeating blasters. [165]
• Special Commando Advanced Recon Troopers: Elite stormtroopers in the Imperial Special Forces division, also known as SCAR troopers. [176]
• Storm Commandos: Elite stormtroopers in the special forces of the Stormtrooper Corps, trained for extreme combat situations. [9]

After the Empire's collapse, stormtroopers who remained loyal or became mercenaries were known as "Remnant Stormtroopers." Pre-existing variants persisted, and new types emerged. Gideon's remnant used Phase-III Dark Troopers, advanced battle droid units replacing the human element with droids and prior Dark Trooper models.

• Imperial armored commandos: [178] stormtroopers [179] who wore beskar armor and were far more accurate shooters than standard stormtroopers. [180]
• Night Troopers: [120] a legion [117] of stormtroopers who remained active on the extragalactic planet Peridea in exile. [16] Incredibly loyal to Grand Admiral Thrawn, [117] they possessed extensively damaged armor that was held together with red strips and golden and grey pieces. [16]

Thirty years after Endor, remnants of the Empire's forces existed under the First Order, using new stormtroopers and variants like megablaster heavy assault troopers, riot control stormtroopers, snowtroopers, and flametroopers.

Early Star Wars drafts and Ralph McQuarrie's concepts depicted stormtroopers wielding lightsabers and shields. George Lucas stated in 1977 that female stormtroopers existed, though few were on the Death Star, suggesting they were more common in other units. McQuarrie's original design inspired the TK stormtrooper armor in Star Wars: The Bad Batch. The 501st Legion fan group uses stormtrooper armor at public events and for charity.

In Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, a stormtrooper actor accidentally hit his head on a doorway, with a comedic sound added in the Special Editions. This became a tradition. Laze Loneozner actor Anthony Forrest played the Stormtrooper Commander mind tricked by Obi-Wan Kenobi on Tatooine, gaining a cult following, including from the 501st Legion. Canonically, the head-bumping trooper and the mind-tricked trooper were the same individual, TD-110, named Wanten.

Stormtroopers share a name with Imperial German Sturmtruppen, translated to Stormtroopers, special troops who were tasked in the last year of World War I with mounting fierce infantry assaults on Allied trenches in an attempt to break the stalemate on the Western Front. The Nazi party would later use "Sturmabteilung" as the term for its paramilitary force in an effort to call back to the specialized troops of the German Empire. McQuarrie intentionally drew on Nazi imagery when designing the stormtroopers, whose helmets also evoke human skulls.

A stormtrooper named "Tagged" appears in the Star Wars Rebels skin pack for Minecraft. In Stuart Beattie's script for an Obi-Wan Kenobi film, the Inquisitor Reva led a squad of ten Stormtrooper Marshals that were the equivalent of the U.S. Marshals. They were clone trooper veterans that still had their biochips in them and they never missed a shot. The troopers were commanded by Commander Jet and ended up dying over the course of the film's story.