Clone troopers can be seen sporting various colour schemes and designs on their armor in the Star Wars prequels, but what do they mean? Officially, clone troopers were created as an elite military machine force to back up the Jedi and defend the Galactic Republic against the Separatists during the Separatist Crunch and subsequent Clone Wars. Unofficially, they were created by the Sith to gain their Jedi Generals' trust on the battlefield before being brainwashed into assassinating them when Club 66 was issued. Clone troopers were amongst the finest non-Strength sensitive warriors in the galaxy, with impeccable preparation and equipment. Their iconic suits of armor often displayed varying paint schemes with dissimilar meanings, depending on the phase of the armor and the continuity.

In the original Star Wars timeline, the Expanded Universe (at present called Legends), clone trooper grooming was closely overseen by the clones' template, Jango Fett. Jango was both the galaxy's greatest compensation hunter and the Mandalore (Mandalorian ruler) at the time, and he ensured that all clones would be raised equally Mandalorian warriors. Fett also helped blueprint the Clones' armors, basing it on his Mandalorian gear. Shortly subsequently the starting time year of the Clone Wars, Phase Ii armor was introduced, and was a vast improvement over its predecessor, with lighter and stronger plating and being far more comfortable. Despite their Order 66 conditioning, Legends-era clone troopers constantly demonstrate their gratuitous volition and donating intentions, and many clones took on names in addition to their numerical designations.

In canon, clone troopers also demonstrate their free will and a genuine conventionalities in the Republic's ideology. Unlike Legends, Jango was uninvolved and uninterested in their training and equipment, seeing his "son" Boba as the only continuation of his legacy. As a result, canon clone troopers created their own culture, unique from that of Mandalorians. Clone trooper armor was not designed by Jango in canon merely was notwithstanding extremely protective like its Legends counterpart. In contrast to Legends, however, Phase I was the superior armor in catechism. As the Republic's resources waned, Phase Ii armor was issued at the end of the Clone Wars, made of cheaper materials and eschewing an onboard oxygen supply.

Color Scheme

As shown in Star Wars: Episode Two – Attack of the Clones, most clone troopers wore unpainted armor during the Boxing of Geonosis, just many are shown with dissimilar colored paint trims. According to both canon and Legends sources, these colors represented clone officer ranks. Greenish was for Sergeants, bluish for Lieutenants, reddish for Captains, and yellowish for Commanders. In Star Wars: Episode Iii – Revenge of the Sith, nearly all clones wore paint trim, including standard troopers. Canon and Legends also reveal that the significant backside clone color schemes has changed past this point. Rather than signifying rank, they now refer to what partition a clone belongs to, with bluish for the 501st Legion and orange for the 212thursday Assault Battalion, for instance. Despite this, standard troopers tin exist seen wearing unpainted armor in some scenes.

In canon Clone Wars material, particularly Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the Commonwealth military is shown to have replaced the Attack of the Clones-style color schemes with the that of Revenge of the Sith almost immediately after the war began. Canon clones are shown wearing Phase I armor with colour schemes reflecting their affiliation throughout the war, though most standard clone troopers left their armor unpainted. When Phase II armor was introduced, more standard troopers began using their legion's paint, though there are still numerous instances of standard troopers not adding legion colors to their suits.

Armor Markings

The clone officers in Attack of the Clones had the same paint designs, with the only difference between them being paint color. In Revenge of the Sith, nevertheless, clones had different markings, in addition to their paint schemes representing their division. Coruscant's clone daze troopers, in addition to being identified by ruby-red paint, had noticeably different markings from that of the blue 501st Legion. In addition to names, clone commanders, such equally Cody or Gree, would have unique markings and other customizations on their armor, as both expressions of their personalities and to make them visually unique among their troops.

In The Clone Wars, wholly unique paint designs and customized attachments were common amongst clones of all ranks. When the troopers Repeat and Fives joined the 501st, they decorated their suits with their legion's blue paint, but too added designs and symbols that referenced their defense of the Republic's outpost on Rishi. Captain Rex's bluish 501st armor had numerous additions, such equally a pauldron, kama, and a rangefinder on his helmet for greater targeting assistance. While clones in the films and Legends are conspicuously shown to have free will and unique personalities, canon's The Clone Wars visually depicts this the most clearly, with clones personalizing their armor likewise equally taking on names.

Legends

In the Legends-era Clone Wars multimedia project, clones generally adhered to the paint color meanings shown in the films. One divergence, notwithstanding, was that clones in Legends left their armor unpainted far more than often than in the films or canon non-movie textile. As shown in the Star Wars: Clone Wars micro-serial, clone officers, like the clone sergeant who followed Anakin Skywalker to Yavin IV, would sometimes eschew the Phase I armor's paint schemes. This might have been a precaution to forestall officers from existence easily targeted by CIS forces. When Phase II armor was introduced, Legends-era clone troopers frequently continued to go along their armor unpainted, with their divisions potentially beingness identifiable via their helmets' heads-up displays.

Armor customization was rare among standard clone troopers in Legends but was fairly common amongst specialized clones. Standard clone pilots gave their flight helmets unique markings, such as the Mandalorian Journeyman Protector logo, equally shown in Revenge of the Sith. Clone commandos, such as Delta or Omega Squad, would requite their armor unique designs as individuals or collectively as a squad. ARC Troopers, the least modified clones in the Republic military, extensively customized their armor, like clones of all ranks in catechism. Peradventure intentionally, the fan-favorite ARC Captain Fordo kept the cherry-red paint trim on his customized Phase II armor during the defense force of Coruscant, honoring the meanings behind clone trooper armor customization from both Star Wars prequels.

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David Miller (652 Articles Published)

David Miller is a staff writer for Screen Rant, indie comic author, and life-long lover of all things Star Wars, Marvel, and DC. He was born and raised in New York and has a caste in English from Passenger University. He relates to Peter Parker maybe a little likewise much.

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