TK stormtrooper armor

"AZI, you said all clone troopers were gone."
"Correct. Those are not clone troopers."
"They're TK troopers, like on Daro."

―Omega, AZI-3, and Echo^[4]

TK stormtrooper armor was a type of armor used by TK stormtroopers early in the Imperial Era. The armor was an updated successor to Phase II clone trooper armor used by the Galactic Republic's clone troopers.^[2] While the remaining clone stormtroopers continued wearing their Phase II armor separately from the TK stormtroopers,^[5] the Empire eventually finalized the armor of the Stormtrooper Corps, creating modern stormtrooper armor.^[6]

Description[]

"Gear? We've been risking our lives to recover equipment we could have been wearing this whole time?"
"It's not clone trooper gear."
"Right. New toys for their shiny new military, and we get the scraps."

―Clone troopers Mayday and Crosshair, after discovering TK armor on Barton IV^[5]

TK-trooper — A TK stormtrooper in their armor

Like clone trooper armor, TK stormtrooper armor was comprised of white armor plates worn over a black body glove. Its most contrasting feature was the helmet, which contained a single visor, but no longer in the T-shape formation of clone trooper helmets. It also contained a raised ridge that ran from directly above the visor to the back of the helmet.^[2]

Similar to the clone troopers immediately following the formation of the Empire, most TK armor used identical white plating, forgoing custom insignias, colors, and attachments. Some exceptions existed, such as how TK shock troopers were denoted by red markings on their armor, as well as red pauldrons. An early generation of Imperial Starfighter Pilots known as conscription trooper pilots wore TK stormtrooper armor outfitted with life-support gear and air-supply hoses that connected to the filtration system of their helmets.^[7]

History[]

"This armor has been through a lot… and has a lot to show for it. Least I could do was patch it up."

―Sentinel dons TK trooper armor^[3]

With the initiation of Project War-Mantle in 19 BBY, the Galactic Empire had begun to enlist birth-born humans into its burgeoning military. For recruits of the newly-formed Stormtrooper Corps, which at the time was comprised entirely of clone troopers, the Empire introduced the TK trooper armor, which was modified to fit the varying body types of birth-born recruits, unlike clone trooper armor.^[2]

On an Imperial installation on the planet of Daro, the first thousand TK troopers underwent training under the supervision of fifty Imperial clone commandos. When Clone Force 99 infiltrated the base to extract a deserting clone commando, troopers in TK armor attempted to harry the squad's progress. TK troopers further pursued the squad's Omicron-class attack shuttle in V-wing starfighters after they had escaped the base, though several were shot down and the rogue clones managed to escape.^[2]

Subsequently, the Empire had terminated its cloning contract with Kamino, which suspended the further production of clones entirely. When all clone troopers on the planet had been evacuated and reassigned off-world, a contingent of TK troopers moved in to assist in the collection and extraction of the Kaminoan's cloning technology.^[4] By 18 BBY,^[8] word had reached Matese, who had served the Republic as a direct action operative, that recruits from Imperial Academies had begun wearing suits of white plastoid armor.^[9]

In 18 BBY,^[10] a year after the birth of the empire, TK troopers arrived in numbers on Barton IV to retrieve large shipments of TK armor for the growing numbers of recruits in the Stormtrooper Corps. Doing so, they replaced a small contingent of clones stationed at the depot that had succumbed to the elements and attacks from raiders.^[5] During the New Republic Era, Sentinel donned a suit of heavily used TK trooper armor at one point during his days as a Hunter in the Hunters of the Outer Rim competition.^[3] Per his on-stage persona of an Imperial loyalist,^[11] Sentinel restored the armor as a show of respect.^[3]