Star Wars is a franchise that is full of famous and iconic designs. Groups such as the Jedi, with their loose robes and light colored lightsabers, and the Sith, with their dark-colored clothing and red sabers, are prime examples of this. Another example of this are the stormtroopers, one of the most instantly recognizable designs in the entire Star Wars galaxy.
These troopers, who serve the Empire and the First Order in each respective eras, commonly wear a white suit that denotes the standard base rank for the soldiers. There are, however, plenty of other ranks for stormtroopers (as well as many of the specialty soldiers seen in various stories over the years). Additionally, certain troopers feature subtle variations to their armor to note their various ranks. Ranks of stormtroopers include the standard trooper, the corporal, the sergeant, the squad leader, and, higher than the rest, the chief.
What Are The Different Ranks Of Stormtrooper?
The most commonly seen stormtrooper in both the original trilogy and sequel trilogy eras is the classic white soldier, equipped with black markings on their helmet for eye openings, and a mouthpiece so that they can effectively communicate with each other. These classic stormtroopers appeared way back in 1977 in the very first movie in a galaxy far, far away. At that time, they were the majority of the protection force that the Empire had on the first Death Star. Aboard the super weapon, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa, and company came up against countless numbers of these classic troopers.
Higher ranks of trooper have different to denote their position within the Imperial army. For example, the sergeant and corporal ranked soldiers have a colored shoulder patch to show their higher rank. These were seen in A New Hope over 40 years ago, when the standard stormtroopers were lead into the desert of Tatooine by higher ranked soldiers that had black, white, and orange shoulder pads to show their position. In addition to different armor, the higher ranked troopers also have different weaponry and roles within the army. For example, regular stormtroopers are almost always armed with a classic, standard blaster. On the other hand, the higher-ranked ones might have a rifle, a sniper, or a heavy infantry weapon.
It’s important to note that these rankings do not include various specialty troopers, whose tasks vary depending on assignment and are usually brought in special situations. These unique, higher-ranked soldiers are often presented as mercenaries in canon; that is, they are brought in by the Empire and the First Order during the most important missions.
This is why Director Orson Krennic had a group of Death Troopers by his side at all times in Rogue One, as Ben Mendelsohn’s character was conducting some of the most important work to the Empire with Project Stardust (the creation of the Death Star). These Death Troopers have more powerful weapons, sleeker armor that allows them to disguise themselves in the environment more (depending on the situation), and a voice scrambler so that outsiders can’t understand what they’re saying to each other.
Death Troopers are part of a special class of soldiers that the Empire classified as “elite.” Other specialty troopers that made this distinction include the Inquisitor Trooper, seen in both Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order on the video game side of things, and Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney+. As their name suggests, these special troopers are usually paired alongside the Inquistors. In the Obi-Wan show, for example, Ewan McGregor’s Jedi hero had snuck into the Inquisitor base in order to rescue Leia, where he encountered all different kinds of Imperial forces, including the Inquisitor troopers.
What Is The Highest Rank Of Stormtrooper?
There are some stormtroopers that, while not officially part of the standard ranking system, do hold a great significance to the Empire and the First Order and, therefore, also possess a high rank. The Sith troopers in The Rise of Skywalker, who essentially had a regular stormtrooper design but with a red color on top, were a part of Palpatine’s newly created Sith fleet that he planned to use in order to retake the galaxy. There were even higher ranked Sith troopers in that movie, including ones that had a specialized weapon and a long red cape, almost reminiscent of a Sith Lord (but without a lightsaber).
In terms of the standard class of troopers, though, the highest rank that wears the suit is the chief. In canon, the chief often leads the action and fighting side of the military operation that is being conducted by the group. They often help with the planning of an attack and stand back as the regular, standard stormtroopers are sent out on the front lines. This has become something of a running joke among fans of the franchise for years now, as the classic stormtroopers are seemingly sacrificed by the Empire in order to hold back the heroes from advancing. These standard soldiers also appear to have very questionable aim, which only adds to the humor that some fans find in the Empire’s military operation.
It’s also important to note that there are some stormtroopers who are not always in the battle armor. A battalion of stormtroopers is usually led by a Captain, someone who presumably was a regular stormtrooper at some point before making the move up the ranks. These captains typically have the classic Imperial outfit on that includes the unique looking headpiece and the rank on their chest in order to show their captain status. It’s the same look that the likes of Grand Moff Tarkin and Director Orson Krennic had on during their time with the Empire.