Shadow trooper

"Shadow troopers! Don't underestimate them!"

- Admiral Gial Ackbar of the Rebel Alliance

Shadow troopers were elite and highly trained stormtroopers that served the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War against the Rebel Alliance. The troopers wore distinguishing black suits of experimental armor coupled with portable cloaking devices, rendering them almost completely invisible and highly suited for stealth missions. They were known to overwhelm their enemies by attacking in hordes, and using T-21 heavy blasters along with flash grenades.

Description
Shadow troopers were highly trained, elite, and fanatically loyal stormtroopers that served the Galactic Empire. Although their armor looked similar in design to the traditional stormtrooper armor, it was specialized, experimental stealth armor made from stygian-triprismatic polymer, enhancing the shadow troopers' stealth capability and allowing them to avoid sensors. The armor was entirely black in color, with the exception of the Imperial crest adorning the left side of the chest section, and gray-colored visors.

Like the standard stormtrooper helmets, the armored helmets worn by shadow troopers featured heat dispersion vents, blue-colored exhaust filters placed near the rim, a direct speaker placed between two induction filters located on the chin section, and audio pickups on the sides.

Shadow troopers were equipped with portable cloaking devices that rendered them almost completely invisible as they moved around. They also carried N-20 Baradium-core thermal detonators in matching black color on the back of their utility belt. Outfitted with a wide range of survival equipment, the troopers mainly wielded T-21 heavy blasters and flash grenades.

Application
"Stay on guard! Shadow troopers approaching!"

- Admiral Gial Ackbar

Shadow troopers' stealth equipment made them highly suitable for missions requiring cunning rather than brute force. They were able to appear out of thin air and surprise their enemies. With their T-21 heavy blasters capable of delivering massive damage at long ranges, and flash grenades capable of disorienting their enemies, the elite shock troops attacked in hordes to overwhelm their opponents.

History
"Elite shadow troopers reported in the zone!"

- Admiral Gial Ackbar

Shadow troopers served the Galactic Empire during the Galactic Civil War, a major galactic conflict fought between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance. They were based off of their clone shadow trooper predecessors, a variant of the clone troopers that served the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars. According to Admiral Gial Ackbar of the Rebel Alliance, shadow troopers were elite soldiers who were to be taken into account.

Introduction into canon in Star Wars Battlefront
"Unlikely we'll see the Shadowtrooper return though&mdash;there's a new Black Stormtrooper in town."

- Dennis Brännvall, on the addition of death troopers to Star Wars Battlefront II

Shadow troopers first appeared in Star Wars canon in Star Wars Battlefront, a 2015 video game developed by EA DICE. The cards representing shadow troopers in Star Wars: Force Collection, a 2013 digital card game based on the canonical continuity, were initially labeled "Shadow Stormtrooper," but they were later changed to "Shadow Trooper."

Besides being an unlockable appearance customization in the multiplayer mode of Star Wars Battlefront, the shadow troopers only appear in the survival mode, where the player can play as one of the two rebel troopers stranded in an area surrounded by Imperial forces. In the mode, shadow troopers are part of the incoming enemy waves whom the rebels need to hold off until their extraction. The same scenario can be played in various locations on the planets Hoth, Sullust, Tatooine, or the Forest Moon of Endor.

Although the promotional image for shadow troopers on the official Star Wars Battlefront website depicts a shadow trooper wielding a DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle, the description of the image as well as the game itself explicitly state that they carried T-21 heavy blasters.

According to Dennis Brännvall, associate design director for Star Wars Battlefront II, it is unlikely that the shadow troopers will be included in the sequel game due to the addition of another black-colored stormtrooper &mdash;the death trooper.

Origins in Star Wars Legends
All-black stormtroopers equipped with cloaking devices were originally introduced in the Star Wars Legends continuity, where they were known as "shadow stormtroopers" or "Blackhole stormtroopers" and first appeared in the 1979 comic strip Gambler's World by Russ Manning. Additionally, the 2008 Legends video game Star Wars: The Force Unleashed introduced gray-colored stormtroopers with blue-lit plating who also possessed cloaking devices, identified as "Shadow Troopers."

Appearances

 * Star Wars Battlefront