Spacetrooper

"Commodore Faro, have Major Carvia deploy a spacetrooper patrol to examine the hull for traps and residual danger, and prepare a survey team to go inside once the spacetroopers have finished their examination."

―Grand Admiral Thrawn, to Commodore Faro^[2]

Spacetroopers were a specialized variant of stormtrooper who were deployed into zero gravity environments, such as into the vacuum of realspace. For such missions, their specialized stormtrooper armor featured a rebreather pack.

Description

Spacetroopers on the outside of the Death Star

Spacetroopers were specialized stormtroopers equipped to operate in Zero-G environments,^[3] such as the vacuum of space.^[1] Spacetroopers wore a variant of stormtrooper armor fitted with a rebreather pack. They wielded E-11 medium blaster rifles, thermal detonators, and specialized heavy blasters.^[3] Spacetroopers could be organized into patrol groups.^[2]

History

Commander Zahra personally leads spacetroopers into battle during the Galactic Civil War

Spacetroopers were part of the stormtrooper contingent aboard the Chimaera, the flagship of Grand Admiral Thrawn's 7th Fleet.^[2] At one point in 1 BBY,^[4] Thrawn ordered the deployment of a spacetrooper patrol in order to examine the hull of a wrecked way station.^[2] Spacetroopers were also used to patrol the outside of the Death Star, a moon-sized battle station.^[1] In 0 BBY,^[5] two spacetroopers on duty outside the Death Star watched as the YT-series freighter Millennium Falcon was pulled into Docking Bay 327. The Death Star was destroyed only a short time later at the Battle of Yavin.^[1] Commander Ellian Zahra personally led spacetroopers into battle during the engagement near Elessia^[6] in 3 ABY.^[4]

Behind the scenes

Joe Johnston in spacetrooper armor on the set of the first Star Wars film — Joe Johnston in spacetrooper armor on the set of the first *Star Wars* film

Spacetroopers appeared unidentified in Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope.^[1] They were both played by ILM's Joe Johnston using a split screen technique because there was only one suit available on the day of filming, the other having been stolen.^[7]

They were originally set to appear in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, going as far as building a full costume used during the promotional photoshoot. However, they were replaced by normal stormtroopers in the space sequences, where it was planned they would be used, in the final film.^[8]