Stormtroopers (STs)—also known as Imperial stormtroopers and colloquially referred

to as "bucketheads"—were the elite shock troops of the Galactic Empire, and were
part of the Stormtrooper Corps, an independent military branch operating under the
Imperial Army. These elite, obedient and zealous soldiers wore armor consisting of
white plastoid plates over a black body glove, and their standard weapon was the E-
11 medium blaster rifle. In addition to the standard variant trooper, various
specialized units such as scout troopers and snowtroopers comprised the ranks of
the corps. Alongside Imperial-class Star Destroyers and TIE fighters, stormtroopers
served as reminders of the absolute power of the Empire. In addition, stormtroopers
would serve with the regular infantry to enforce oppressive rule over the galaxy.

Taking their name from the "storm" of galactic history, clone troopers served as
the first generation of stormtroopers, and were gradually replaced by Imperial
recruits known as TK stormtroopers. Clone troopers were composed of the clones who
formed the backbone of the Grand Army of the Republic from its inception at the end
of the Clone Wars when the Sith Lord Darth Sidious declared the Galactic Republic
at an end and himself Galactic Emperor. Into the early years of the Imperial Era,
the cloning operation on Kamino was shut down as the Empire turned to conscription
and voluntary recruitment in order to fill the stormtrooper ranks. The remaining
clones were gradually retired from service due to their rapid aging, their legacy
inherited by natural-born humans who were also trained to render total allegiance
to the Emperor and his New Order.

Bucketheads were spread throughout galaxy during the Emperor's reign, from the
galactic capital of Coruscant in the Core Worlds, to major installations and vital
worlds, such as Lothal in the Outer Rim Territories. These shock soldiers fought
many battles against the forces of the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the
Galactic Civil War, including the Battle of Scarif, the Battle of Hoth, and the
Battle of Endor. Shortly before the Battle of Yavin, Princess Leia Organa was
captured by stormtroopers who served under the Emperor's lieutenant, Darth Vader.
However, Organa was rescued by Luke Skywalker and Han Solo who, disguised as
stormtroopers, infiltrated the first Death Star. The Emperor stationed a legion of
stormtroopers on Endor to protect the shield generator of the second Death Star,
although they were defeated by the Alliance's Ewok allies.

With the deaths of Emperor Palpatine and Lord Vader, Counselor to the Empire
Gallius Rax took control of the Empire, which rallied to his homeworld of Jakku to
make a final stand against the New Republic. After losing the Battle of Jakku, the
Empire signed the Imperial Instruments of Surrender and the Galactic Concordance,
and its stormtrooper forces were consequently demobilized as part of the New
Republic's terms for peace. Despite that, in violation of the agreement between the
New Republic and the Empire, a number of Imperial holdouts continued to make use of
Remnant Stormtroopers as soldiers or mercenaries, including Moff Gideon's faction
as well as the remnants on Morak. By the last days of the New Republic Era, a new
generation of stormtroopers emerged as standard soldiers of the First Order.

Specialized stormtroopers
Overview
In addition to the standard stormtroopers, the Empire had specialized stormtrooper
forces assembled to operate in different environments or roles. Once a trooper was
specialized to their role, their physiological conditioning was so strong that one
would rarely want to change what division they were in.[84] Stormtroopers in
mechanized battle armor armed with heavy handheld cannon were present at the Battle
on Sevarcos.[67]

Early generation
Clone stormtroopers: The clone troopers who had previously fought in the Clone Wars
for the Republic served as the first generation of stormtroopers.[4]
Elite Squad Troopers: Well-trained soldiers who were recruited as the first
enlisted Imperial troopers.[32]
TK stormtroopers: Early recruits who were trained by clone commandos to be the
eventual replacements of clone stormtroopers.[31]
Environment-specialized
Cave troopers: Stormtroopers that were equipped with scout trooper armor, blaster
carbines, as well as oversized vibroknives. Cave troopers were also equipped with
low-light vision gear to help them see in the darkness and had rappelling cables.
[161]
Imperial Stormtroopers Upgrade Expansion art
A pair of sandtroopers

Coastal defender stormtroopers: Stormtroopers more commonly known as shoretroopers

that were trained and equipped to operate in coastal and tropical regions. They
were notably deployed on Scarif.[65]
Cold weather assault stormtroopers: Stormtroopers more commonly known as
snowtroopers that were trained for frozen environments and wore a special mask and
a kama that both resembled the equipment worn by the 21st Nova Corps on Mygeeto
during the Clone Wars.[22][2][75]
Crimson stormtroopers: stormtroopers also trained to operate in extremely volcanic
environments.[162]
Desert stormtroopers: Stormtroopers with armor modified to operate on desert worlds
like Tatooine.[163] Dewback troopers, or Dewback riders, were sandtroopers that
utilized dewbacks as mounts.[164]
Forest troopers: Stormtroopers trained to operate in forested environments.[13]
Lava Troopers TFVC2
Lava troopers

Magma troopers: Stormtroopers that were equipped to operate in extremely high

temperatures, and were trained to fight on volcanic worlds like Sullust. They were
equipped with reinforced leg armor, black pauldrons, and respirators connected to a
backpack.[165]
Seatroopers: Stormtroopers trained and equipped to operate in aquatic environments
and wore white armor.[146]
Spacetroopers: Stormtroopers trained for zero-gravity environments with armor
designed to breathe in space. Spacetroopers were used to patrol parts of the first
Death Star.[166]
Swamptrooper: Stormtroopers trained for amphibious combat.[3]
Volcanic environment stormtrooper: Stormtroopers that were equipped with black
armor and respiration tubes that were charged with defending Fortress Vader on
Mustafar. They were commonly referred to as Lava Troopers.[167]
Wet-weather gear stormtroopers: Stormtroopers that wore waterproof capes and
additional armor and equipment. Notably deployed on Mimban.[48]
Role-specialized
Mortar-Stormtrooper
An artillery stormtrooper

Artillery stormtrooper: Stormtroopers that specialized in mortar weaponry.[111]

Demolition Troopers: Stormtroopers that wore standard armor and were equipped with
Smart Rockets and SE-14C blaster pistols. They sometimes were not equipped with
helmets.[168]
Flametroopers: Stormtroopers equipped with incendiary weapons.[68]
Heavy Weapons Stormtroopers: Specialized stormtroopers that wielded large rotary
blaster cannons and were equipped with black pauldrons. There were also heavy
sandtroopers for desert operations, heavy shoretroopers for coastal and tropical
regions, and heavy snowtroopers for cold weather environments.[164] Heavy
snowtroopers were sometimes also equipped with small black pauldrons.[86]
Imperial Heavy Troopers: Stormtroopers that were equipped with heavy combat armor
and electrostaffs.[8]
Incinerator troopers: An elite specialized class of stormtrooper that wielded
flamethrowers.[169]
Jumptroopers: Also known as Rocket troopers, were stormtroopers equipped with Jump
Packs or jetpacks. One variant of jumptrooper was equipped with standard
stormtrooper armor and a jump pack,[158] while another variant used specialized
armor equipped with jetpacks and respirator tubes. The officers of this variant
maintained an orange left shoulder pad to indicate rank.[170] There was also
another variant of jumptrooper with more sophisticated armor, consisting of a
control panel on the chest, respirator tubes, and black markings. There also
existed arctic, desert, and forest jumptrooper variations.[164]
Patrol Trooper HT
A patrol trooper

Patrol troopers: Stormtroopers that utilized C-PH patrol speeder bikes to police
the city streets of occupied worlds.[48]
Range troopers: A branch of the Stormtrooper Corps that was harshly trained and
were considered to be one of the toughest branches of Imperial Military. They were
equipped with snowtrooper-like armor, as well as fur and magnetic boots. They were
assigned to protect various Imperial cargo, and were deployed to combat zones.[48]
Recon Stormtroopers: A variant that wears a pauldron and carries thermal
detonators.[171]
Riot control stormtroopers: Stormtroopers that were equipped with standard armor
and batons.[86] They took down their opponents with extreme ferocity.[172]
Rocket stormtroopers were specialized stormtroopers equipped with missile launchers
and wore a red emblem on their shoulder pads.[172]
Scout troopers: Stormtroopers that wore lighter armor and used speeder bikes to
patrol the perimeter of the Imperial garrisons they were assigned to.[80] They were
equipped for long periods of time without support and high maneuverability. Scout
troopers were also conditioned to operate with a partner whenever they could.[84]
Stormtrooper grenadiers: Stormtroopers that wielded grenade launchers and wore a
red pauldron along with a black bandolier across their chest.[172]
Stormtrooper snipers: Stormtroopers that were pulled from standard stormtrooper
ranks which wore a blue pauldron over their shoulder, had a visor attached to their
helmet, and had a black bandolier across their chest plate.[172]
Elite troopers
Death Trooper-Sideshow
Death trooper armor

Death troopers: Elite black armored stormtroopers with specialized training and
classified augmentations to make them "beyond human."[144] They served under
Imperial Intelligence and were deployed as bodyguards to a number of upper-level
figures, such as Director Orson Callan Krennic,[65] Grand Admiral Thrawn[74], Lord
Vader[173] and Moff Gideon.[174] They were also given special assignments such as
guarding shipments of large kyber crystals. They were equipped with SE-14r light
repeating blasters, C-25 fragmentation grenades, and E-11D blaster carbines. Death
trooper specialists were equipped with a black pauldron.[144]
Imperial shock troopers: Stormtroopers that were armed with heavy weaponry and wore
stormtrooper armor with distinctive red markings,[158] similar to those of Republic
clone troopers who served as in the Coruscant Guard during the Clone Wars. It was
not uncommon for Imperial shock troopers to be equipped with Clone Wars era shock
trooper armor.[164]
Purge Troopers (Anoat sector): Elite stormtroopers in black heavy armor that helped
enforce Imperial law in the Anoat sector. They were lead by the formidable
Commander Bragh during the Iron Blockade.[10]
Sideshow-PurgeTrooper-Stormtrooperduo
Purge Troopers were handpicked from the ranks of the Stormtrooper Corps.
Purge Troopers (Inquisitorius): Stormtroopers that assisted Lord Vader and the
Inquisitors in hunting down Jedi survivors after Order 66. Trained as expendable
death squads, they were activated after the Great Jedi Purge. While the initial
deployment of Purge Troopers was actually the last batch of clone troopers,[39]
later generations of Purge Troopers were instead handpicked from the Empire's
stormtrooper legions. Perspective Purge Troopers were picked for their loyalty and
aptitude before being trained to combat Force-sensitives.[175]
Shadow troopers: Elite stormtroopers in black armor that were also equipped with
cloaking devices and used 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 that were part of the special forces of the
Stormtrooper Corps, and were trained to deal with extreme combat situations.[8]
Remnant variants
NightTrooper
A Night Trooper, a member of the legion that loyally served Thrawn during the New
Republic Era

After the fall of the Empire, remaining stormtroopers who continued to champion the
Imperial cause[97] or became mercenaries[94] became known as "Remnant
Stormtroopers."[95][98][99] Pre-existing stormtrooper variants existed amongst the
remnant forces,[103] but some specific variants would emerge as new trooper types
during the post-Imperial period.[15] Gideon's Imperial remnant would make use
of[102] "Imperial armored commandos,"[177] who wore beskar armor and were far more
accurate shooters than standard stormtroopers.[178]

Night Troopers:[120] a legion[117] of stormtroopers who remained active on the

extragalactic planet Peridea in exile.[15] Incredibly loyal to Grand Admiral
Thrawn,[117] they possessed extensively damaged armor that was held together with
red strips and golden and grey pieces.[15]
Thirty years after the Battle of Endor, variants of the former Galactic Empire's
armed forces would exist under the auspices of a new organization known as the
First Order. It utilized new stormtroopers and variants, such as the megablaster
heavy assault troopers, riot control stormtroopers, snowtroopers, and
flametroopers.[89]

Imperial stormtroopers, also known simply as stormtroopers, were the elite soldiers
of the Galactic Empire and many of its successor states. Like Imperial-class Star
Destroyers and TIE fighters, stormtroopers served as ever-present reminders of the
absolute power of Emperor Palpatine and would remain an icon of Imperial war
efforts for over a century following his death. These faceless enforcers of the New
Order were considered an extension of the Emperor's will, and often used efficient
yet brutal tactics to keep thousands of star systems throughout the galaxy in
submission to the Empire. At the height of the Empire, stormtroopers had
effectively become symbols of major authority. With few exceptions, they were
distinguished from all other military units by their signature white armor.

The Imperial stormtroopers were the evolution of the clone troopers of the Grand
Army of the Republic. By the end of the Clone Wars in 19 BBY, the Galactic Republic
was reorganized into the Galactic Empire. As a result, the Grand Army was reformed
into the Stormtrooper Corps and the clones were renamed "stormtroopers". Under the
Empire, stormtroopers operated alongside Imperial Army and Navy units, and some
were stationed on Naval ships where they served as marines. Although the Corps was
overseen by Stormtrooper Command, a military agency that was independent from
Imperial High Command, all stormtroopers ultimately answered to Emperor Palpatine,
and then to Supreme Commander Darth Vader, with unconditional loyalty and
subservience.

Members of the Rebel Alliance SpecForce had several slang names for stormtroopers,
including "whitehats", "plastic soldiers", "snowmen", "The Boys in White",
"bucketheads", "plastic boys", "egg heads". Another term was "Stormies", often used
by Wedge Antilles and Corran Horn.

Although the deaths of both Emperor Palpatine and Lord Vader in 4 ABY caused the
collapse and fragmentation of the original Galactic Empire, stormtroopers were
retained as elite soldiers under several successor states, such as the Imperial
Remnant, the Second Imperium, and the Empire of the Hand. By the year 138 ABY,
stormtroopers still existed in two Imperial states: the New Galactic Empire of the
Sith Emperor Darth Krayt, and the "Empire" of the exiled Emperor Roan Fel. By this
period, many had come to consider them the personification of war.

Specialized stormtroopers
"The Empire's army is infinite."
―A drunk Rahm Kota to Starkiller[68]
Storm1-vd
Standard stormtrooper

There were several subgroups in the Stormtrooper Corps with training and equipment
for particular mission profiles, generally sorted by the type of environment the
trooper would encounter. Recruits to the Stormtrooper Corps are selected for
specialization at an early stage of training, and thus are conditioned with the
appropriate knowledge and psychological training for the tasks required of them. As
a result, their psychological conditioning to their particular identity once
specialized is so strong that the resulting specialized stormtrooper almost never
wishes to change his division.

Aquatic assault stormtroopers: Stormtroopers trained for aquatic combat.[69]

Armored Stormtroopers: Stormtroopers equipped with heavier armor and weapons.[66]
Assault troopers: Stormtroopers who wore standard white armor with yellow markings.
[70]
Bomb squad stormtroopers: Stormtroopers trained in bomb disposal.[71]
Cavetroopers: A variant of stormtroopers who were trained to operate in various
geographical areas. They used a lighter version of armor, similar to that of scout
troopers and carried blaster carbines.[72]</nowiki>
Clone stormtroopers: Stormtroopers cloned from a variety of genetic templates.[19]
Cold assault stormtroopers: Also known as snowtroopers; stormtroopers equipped with
specialized armor suited to cold terrain environments.[58]
Coruscant Guard: A police force of elite stormtroopers tasked with patrolling
Coruscant.
Crowd Control Stormtroopers: Stormtroopers equipped and trained for combating
civilian uprisings.[73]
Cuis clones: Force-sensitive stormtroopers cloned from the genetic template of Sa
Cuis; trained in lightsaber combat and basic Force techniques.[74]
Dark troopers: Special droid/exoskeleton stormtroopers.[75]
Dark Trooper Project: An Imperial program designed to create an army of battle
droid stormtroopers.[76]
Phase Zero dark troopers: Aged clone troopers, transformed into cyborgs.[56]
Phase I dark troopers: Dark troopers armed with vibroswords and blast shields.[76]
Phase II dark troopers: Dark troopers armed with assault cannons, Imperial repeater
rifles, and equipped with jetpacks.[76]
Phase III dark troopers: Dark troopers armed with assault cannons and Seeker
missiles, occasionally a pair of dual blaster cannons, with two per wrist, as well
as six PLEX rocket tubes, with three per shoulder, and jetpacks.[76]
Triumphant-class dark trooper: Dark troopers created as a hybrid between battle
droids and stormtroopers.[70]
Black Hole dark troopers: Dark troopers deployed with shadow stormtroopers.[70]
Exogen-class dark trooper: A dark trooper variant used by the Galactic Empire.[70]
Dark novatrooper: Dark trooper variant, programmed with expertise in boarding
operations.[70]
Glory-class dark trooper: Dark trooper variant, primarily used as city guards.[70]
Inquisitorium dark troopers: Dark trooper variant, created to serve under the
direct command of the Inquisitorius.[77]
Purge trooper: Dark trooper prototype specialized for anti-Jedi combat.[22]
Dewback trooper: Sandtroopers mounted on dewbacks, used as a light cavalry force.
[4]
Stormtrooper droid: Droids manufactured on Mechis III with stormtrooper armor for
IG-88's Droid Army.[78]
DarkNovatrooper
Dark novatrooper

EVO troopers: Stormtroopers armed and trained to operate within the most hazardous
environments.[22]
Field stormtroopers: High-ranking stormtroopers with superior field experience and
weaponry.[79]
Hazard stormtroopers: Cyborg Stormtroopers equipped with armor that was impervious
to extreme temperatures, acidic damage and small-arms fire.[59]
Heavy troopers: Stormtroopers trained in close-range combat, armed with an
electrostaff for melee combat.[22]
Imperial Marines: Stormtroopers trained for boarding operations.[19]
Incinerator stormtroopers: Stormtroopers equipped with flamethrowers, composed of
pyromaniac clones raised to live with an intense urge to burn and destroy.[22]
Imperial Elite Guard: An elite honor guard tasked with protecting the leading
government officials of the Imperial Remnant, such as the Supreme Commander of the
Imperial Fleet and the Council of Moffs.[38]
Imperial jumptroopers: Stormtroopers trained for airborne combat.[22][80]
Imperial Navy commandos: Light-armored stormtroopers used by the Imperial Navy.[22]
ISB Stormtroopers: Stormtroopers under the direct command of the Imperial Security
Bureau, sometimes used as spies within the Stormtrooper Corps.[49]
Magma stormtroopers: Stormtroopers trained to operate within volcanic environments,
such as Mustafar.[48]
Minetroopers: Sevarcos II spice mine security troopers.[81]
Novatroopers: Stormtrooper honor guards, equipped with distinctive black and gold
armor, used as commandos for special assignments.[70]
Radiation zone assault troopers: An elite stormtrooper variant, equipped to operate
in deadly radiation-filled environments.[48]
Riot stormtroopers: Stormtroopers who specialized in combating insurrectionists and
uprisings.[23]
Sandtroopers: Stormtroopers who operated in desert terrain environments, such as
Tatooine.[4]
Scout troopers: Light-armored stormtrooper variants, trained as reconnaissance
troopers, spies and survivalists.[27]
Scouttrooper btm
Scout trooper

Shadow EVO Troopers: A variant of both shadow stormtroopers and EVO troopers.[22]
Shadow stormtroopers: Stormtroopers who specialized in stealth operations, equipped
with black armor and cloaking devices for camouflage purposes;[23] also known as
"Blackhole stormtroopers" because of their service under Agent Blackhole.[82]
Shadowtroopers (Empire Reborn): Dark Jedi stormtroopers trained in the dark side of
the Force.[5]
Shock troopers: Elite stormtroopers equipped and trained as heavy weapons
specialists,[19] later served in the Imperial Remnant as soldiers of the Imperial
Elite Guard.[38]
Stormtrooper recruits: Freshly-inducted members of the Galactic Empire's
Stormtrooper Corps. They had weaker armor and minimal experience in combat. Because
of this, they were very rarely used in direct combat.[66]
Storm commandos: An elite special forces unit that operated within the Stormtrooper
Corps.[83]
Stormrifles: Specialized soldiers of the Stormtrooper Corps, equipped with yellow
command pauldrons.[70]
Stormsnipers: Specialized soldiers of the Stormtrooper Corps, equipped with white
command pauldrons.[70]
Swamp trooper SWG Galactic hunters by Shoemaker
Swamptrooper

Wetland assault stormtroopers: Nicknamed swamptroopers; a variant unit of scout

troopers that operated in marshy environments.[70]
Zero-G assault stormtrooper: Stormtroopers equipped and trained to operate in outer
space.[84]
Occasionally, rank-and-file stormtroopers could serve as TIE fighter pilots, as was
the case of an Alderaanian stormtrooper who shot down Princess Leia Organa on
Yinchorr.[85]

Alien stormtroopers
"The stormtroopers of the 501st consist of humans and nonhumans. […] Including a
number of your own people."
―Grand Admiral Thrawn to Stromma Council Liaison Nyama[86]
Fel Empire Troops
A Talz stormtrooper of the Fel Empire alongside human soldiers.

Stormtroopers were one of the bases of the New Order during Palpatine's reign, and
thus their ranks were exclusively reserved for Human clones and recruits. An
exception to this policy were the T'Syriél stormtroopers, Imperial soldiers
recruited from among the alien T'Syriél by General Sk'ar.[87] Sk'ar himself was an
alien Kaleesh, which explains why he was prepared to deviate from standard Imperial
recruitment policy. Later, there was a small corps of alien stormtroopers serving
under Admiral Daala in the United Warlord Fleets until her resignation.[88] Alien
stormtroopers were more common in the Empire of the Hand[31] and Roan Fel's Empire
some 130 years ABY.[40]

ISB Stormtroopers
Blue Glass Arrow Main article: Imperial Security Bureau
The Imperial Security Bureau had its own stormtroopers that operated outside the
command structure of the Stormtrooper Corps. As they were identical to regular
stormtroopers in appearance, they were occasionally used to infiltrate standard
units of stormtroopers to ensure that assigned tasks were properly accomplished. A
good example of this practice was an attack against Rebel sympathizers on Teardrop
in 0 ABY. ISB stormtroopers noticed that Daric LaRone, an enlisted trooper, was
deliberately not shooting civilians.[49]

ISB stormtroopers were also more questioning of their orders than standard
stormtroopers. Two ISB troopers betrayed the Emperor's Hand Mara Jade while she was
infiltrating a pirate base on Gepparin. Aside from infiltrating regular military
units, they were often attached to ISB tactical units.[49]