Darth Vader's armor

"This is not living."

- Darth Vader's thoughts



The suit of Sith armor worn by Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith was essentially a mobile life-support system designed to contain and protect the Sith Lord's charred body. Constructed using methods of Sith alchemy, the armor was suffused with the power of the dark side of the Force. This power served to augment Vader's severely diminished physical strength and vitality.

Origin
After his fateful lightsaber duel with Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mustafar, Darth Vader was taken to the Emperor Palpatine Surgical Reconstruction Center on Coruscant, where a team of 2-1B, FX-6 and Model DD-13 "Galactic Chopper" droids rebuilt his body and fashioned the armor for him to wear, as his injuries required him to be placed on constant life support.



The technology and skill used to create such a life-support system had previously been tested on Grievous over a decade earlier, with less satisfying results. Even then, Palpatine foresaw the use of such technology in his dark side minions.

Description
"A magnificent jewel box, created both to protect and to exhibit the greatest treasure of the Sith. Terrifying. Mesmerizing. Perfect."

- Palpatine's thoughts upon seeing Darth Vader's armor for the first time.

Intimidating appearance


Entirely black and well polished, Darth Vader's armor consisted of durasteel shoulder, rib cage and shin armor, with blast dampening material affixed to the gloves, chest and arms. The suit employed a heating mechanism that allowed him to walk the surface of frozen worlds such as Hoth unimpeded, as well as a respiratory system matrix that regulated his breathing; Vader could breathe even while talking. An armor weave cape and tabard contributed to Vader's appearance, making it all the more intimidating.

Life support


The interior of the suit was also lined with circuitry that monitored and regulated Vader's pulmonary and neural systems, providing electrical impulses to stimulate his burned, paralyzed muscles and prosthetic limbs. The status of all of these functions was monitored by a panel affixed to Vader's solar plexus. Tremayne took advantage of this obvious flaw in a duel with Vader and managed to turn off his life support system. Vader, instead of killing him for this, admired his ingenuity and had Tremayne trained to become a member of the Inquisitorius, where he eventually became High Inquisitor. Roan Shryne also tried to take advantage of this vulnerability by trying to shove his lightsaber blade into Vader's chest control panel during their duel, but Shryne was unsuccessful. The physical limitations of the armor even required Vader to alter his preferred style of lightsaber combat, Form V, to suit his disabilities.

Helmet
Arguably the most vital system of the armor, the helmet, was made from Obsidian. Fitted to an air pump that connected to the air filter system on his back, it provided him with the ability to cycle air through his ravaged lungs, and the bloodlense filters protected his eyes from further damage. It also featured a nutrient feed that provided Vader with all the nourishment he would require. Vader would only remove it in his meditation chamber.

Restrictions
The suit was initially an extreme inconvenience for Vader to wear; his opinion of the quality of its construction was quite low, aggravating him greatly. It was incredibly heavy&mdash;the pectoral plating covered Vader's shoulders and made it almost impossible for him to lift his arms over his head. Vader's artificial feet in conjunction with the armor's boots shifted his balance forward to the point that Vader felt that he was in danger of stumbling or tripping. While he was still getting used to the suit, Vader speculated that he would have to use the Force just to help him walk from place to place.

The helmet's enhanced vision mode required adjustment, mainly because the eye-pieces gave Vader's vision an unnatural red tint to protect his already-damaged eyes against further injury. The field of view that the mask afforded was very limited and prevented him from seeing the toes of his boots unless he incanted his head almost 90 degrees. Without his armor's voice amplifier/synthesizer, the loudest that Vader could speak was slightly more than a whisper.

Vader's ears were so damaged that he required cybernetic implants to replace his ruined eardrums; however these unfortunately produced distorted sound and made it difficult to tell where a sound was coming from. His artificial limbs added to the suit's weight, and were badly constructed, frequently snagging on the inner lining of the pressurized body-suit. The control panel often started to beep alarms without cause, almost as if to mock Vader for his helplessness.



Also, the suit's weight forced him to almost completely abandon the Ataru, as performing its rigorous acrobatics would cause him to tire quickly, although he still included elements of its bladework in his swordplay. He compensated for the excess by focusing more on the brute strength of Form V and making more extensive use of the Dun Möch technique.

Vader was also unable to utilize Force Lightning as his life support systems were highly susceptable to it and any attempt to generate it with his mechanical arms would cause it to backfire. This factor eventually contributed to his death at the hands of Darth Sidious.

Overcoming limitations
Vader made many modifications to the suit over time to rectify its flaws and improve it, eliminating or decreasing many of the flaws, although the suit remained a major inconvenience to wear. In Vader's favor was the fact that since his limbs were all mechanical, his arms and legs never tired or weakened. Thus, Vader's one handed style of lightsaber combat was easy for him as he fought using arm strength alone. He was capable of feats of great physical power, such as when he strangled Raymus Antilles aboard Tantive IV, or broke Shadday Potkin's neck to claim her Cortosis sword. Vader ultimately adapted to his new situation, fighting and easily defeating multiple Jedi survivors on Kashyyyk during the Imperial enslavement, mere weeks after he sustained his injuries on Mustafar.

Behind the scenes



 * Darth Vader's armor (worn by David Prowse and Bob Anderson in the original trilogy and by Hayden Christensen in Revenge of the Sith), was designed by Ralph McQuarrie when he became aware of the fact that Vader would have to cross through space in order to board Tantive IV at the start of A New Hope. The reasons for Vader wearing the armor, of course, would end up becoming far more complicated.
 * For Revenge of the Sith, Costume Props Supervisor Ivo Coveney crafted a new set of armor that served a dual purpose. Not only was it designed to fit Christensen, but it provided an opportunity for the department to correct many of the flaws inherent in the original costume, such as the asymmetrical nature of the mask.
 * In the Star Wars Legacy comics, Cade Skywalker is seen to wear a pair of trousers very similar to Vader's as a part of his outfit.
 * In Star Wars Infinities: Return of the Jedi 4, after turning back into Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader donned a white suit of armor.
 * The costume's control panel bore Hebrew symbols that some fans believe can be translated as "His deeds will not be forgiven, until he merits".
 * Darth Vader's helmet was strongly influenced by Japanese samurai helmets, as well as German army helmets from World Wars I and II (see this World War II propaganda poster by artist Glen Grohe for a striking example).

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope novelization
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
 * See also: List of Darth Vader appearances