Stormtrooper

The Imperial shock troops who are totally loyal to the Emperor are called stormtroopers. Unlike regular Imperial soldiers, stormtroopers wear white and black armored spacesuits over black body gloves. They are deployed to neutralize resistance to the New Order, and placed aboard Imperial vessels to be used as first striker forces and to make sure lower officers stay true to the Emperor's vision. Trained to obey orders, stormtroopers will rush into combat without a thought for their own safety. If the Emperor issues an order, stormtroopers will drop everything else to obey it. Their armored spacesuits provide limited protection against blaster fire. The eighteen pieces that make up the outer shell create an enclosed, self sustaining environment. The two piece body glove controls body temperature. Stormtrooper officers wear shoulder poltroons.

Totally loyal to the Empire, stormtroopers cannot be bribed, seduced, or blackmailed into betraying the Emperor. They live in a totally disciplined, militaristic world where obedience is paramount and the will of the Emperor is absolute. In addition to the main stormtrooper legions, a number of special units have been assembled to operate on the varied worlds and climates of the Empire. To deal with problems on ice covered worlds, cold assault troopers are elite frozen environment combatants. Also called snowtroopers, these Imperial soldiers wear the basic white and black armor equipped with powerful heating and personal environment units, terrain grip boots, and breathing masks.

Second only to the Royal Guard, the elite zero-g stormtroopers, or spacetroopers, are trained to operate exclusively in space. When the Empire needs to launch an assault on a spacefaring vessel, spacetroopers are sent to do the job. Each trooper wears full body armor capable of withstanding the rigors of hard vacuum. This armor functions as a personal spacecraft and attack vehicle. With sensor arrays, magnetic couplers for adhering to ships, repulsorlift propulsion units, and a wide assortment of weaponry, spacetrooper armor makes these troopers fearsome to behold. Two meters tall and twice as wide as a normal stormtrooper, spacetroopers can unleash a devastating barrage on their targets. Concussion, gas, and stun grenades, miniature proton torpedoes, blaster cannons, and laser cutters are standard ordnance. Specially designed assault shuttles carry spacetroopers into combat.

Scout troopers are lightly armored, highly mobile stormtroopers who are usually assigned to Imperial garrisons. They use speeder bikes to patrol perimeters, perform reconnaissance missions, and scout enemy locations. To assist them when traveling at the high speeds speeder bikes reach, scout troopers wear specialized helmets equipped with built in binocular viewplates and sensor arrays. These feed into computers that analyze terrain features instantaneously to help the scouts navigate at high speeds. They also map the areas they explore, producing a continuous record of each mission they participate in. Scout troopers wear lightweight armor and padding over a black body glove, and carry small automatic blasters.