Clone trooper armor

Clone trooper armor, also known as clone armor or generation one armor, was the armor used by Galactic Republic clone troopers during the Clone Wars. Designed by Kaminoan armorsmiths, clone armor consisted of a set of form-fitting plastoid plates attached to a black body glove. It could withstand impacts, pressure, heat and acrid vapors, yet was vulnerable to direct blaster fire. The armor was also standardized and produced rapidly as the clones were genetically identical soldiers modeled on a human template, the Mandalorian foundling and bounty hunter Jango Fett.

The first version of clone armor was called Phase I clone trooper armor which was inspired by Mandalorian armor, most notably its helmet. Over the course of the war, improvements were made to the armor's design, creating lighter and stronger plates. Phase I was eventually retired as Phase II clone trooper armor saw widespread distribution through the ranks of the Grand Army of the Republic. By then, a wide array of armor variants were created for specialized troopers, such as the ARC trooper armor of Advanced Recon Commandos, the Katarn-class Commando armor of clone commandos, and the Clone Dive Armor of clone SCUBA troopers.

With the rise of the Galactic Empire, the new regime initially retained usage of clone trooper armor before it was eventually mothballed and replaced with stormtrooper armor, worn by Imperial stormtroopers. However, some clone veterans continued to wear their old armor years after their service in the Clone Wars, while mercenaries and pirates utilized scavenged armor plates. The legacy of clone armor ultimately outlived the Empire that fell to the New Republic, influencing a new model of armor made for a new generation of stormtroopers by the First Order. This was followed by the crimson armor of the Sith troopers—soldiers of the Sith Eternal cult—which was reminiscent of clone trooper armor, particularly the helmet's T-shaped visor.

Due to the combined influence of Imperial and First Order use, the heritage of clone armor was effectively appropriated by its successors, transforming what civilians once saw as a symbol of honorable defense and galactic salvation into a faceless icon of fascism. Nevertheless, the combined legacy of clone trooper armor and stormtrooper armor made white-armored soldiers one of the galaxy's most enduring symbols of military might.

Text and facts from the “Clone trooper armor” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.