Coruscant Guard/Legends

The elite Coruscant Guard, also known as the Elite Stormtroopers, were a specialized branch of the Imperial stormtroopers who served as law enforcers on Coruscant and a few other Core Worlds during the height of the Galactic Empire. They were commonly called Imperial Guards, but should not be confused with the Emperor's Royal Guard.

History
These troops were descendants of the Republic shock troopers of the Grand Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars. Established during the height of the Clone Wars, they began as a pure-clone unit led by Clone Commander Fox and were initially charged with protecting the Republic Senate facilities and all senators in residence, filling the role of the Republic Senate Guardsman that were in use prior to the Great Sith War, but not supplanting the non-clone Senate Guard already in place. As the Clone Wars continued, the unit's directives were expanded to maintaining law and order on the capital world.

In the time of the Galactic Empire, under Palpatine's issue of martial law and sweeping emergency powers, the Coruscant Guards were empowered to search any facility or dwelling, arrest any citizen, and locate and detain suspected criminals and Rebel agents. These elite troops rarely saw combat, and were instead strictly for police service. They were in almost all Coruscant's districts and many of them were assigned to watch the city planet's sewers.

Shortly before the Battle of Endor, Luke Skywalker, Lando Calrissian, and Dash Rendar traveled to Coruscant to rescue Princess Leia Organa. In order to rescue her, they went though the sewers underneath Prince Xizor's palace, where they faced several Coruscant Guards on patrol. Eventually, they got rid of them and rescued the Princess.

Armor


During the Clone Wars, the clone troopers of the Coruscant Guard utilized the Phase I armor. As individuality and creativity steadily became promoted within the Grand Army of the Republic, the Guard used the crimson red color to designate their status as the capital world's police force - the most notable symbol being the emblem of the Galactic Senate, located in the center of their torso armor. The symbol was more ornately fashioned on the chest plate of Commander Fox, designating him as the commander of the Guard.

As of the Galactic Civil War, the Coruscant Guards wore light yet heavily padded crimson and black armor that provided protection against physical attacks. Their sophisticated battle helmet which was lined with advanced sensors, allowed them to work in complete darkness, and also contained a comlink scrambler for communication with fellow personnel. A unit commander's helmet was also equipped with a voice activated heads-up display that showed Coruscant Guard positions. Optional tracking beacon software let a unit commander know the whereabouts of his subordinates at all times.

Weaponry
Standard weapons included Merr-Sonn taser staves, Merr-Sonn e-ss Suppressor riot rifles, stun grenades, and a blaster rifle. The Merr-Sonn taser staves were used to control crowds and suppress riots. It also had variable power settings and was capable of delivering a lethal or incapacitating charge when it strikes its target. Some Coruscant Guards also carried the more advanced Merr-Sonn R-88 Suppressor riot rifle.



Notable Coruscant guards

 * Commander Fox
 * CC-4477 "Thire"
 * Jek
 * Rys
 * Commander Stone

Behind the scenes
The Coruscant Guard were developed for the Shadows of the Empire multimedia project. Kenner developed an action figure of Luke Skywalker in Coruscant Guard armor as a tie-in to the novel. The novel itself refers to them as "Elite Stormtroopers".

The Hasbro toys of the Senate Guard incorrectly name them as Coruscant Guards.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars film
 * Out Foxed
 * The Core of Corruption
 * Coruscant Nights I: Jedi Twilight
 * Death Star
 * Shadows of the Empire novel
 * Shadows of the Empire game
 * Shadows of the Empire novel
 * Shadows of the Empire game

Non-canonical appearances

 * Giant spiders are awesome