Another trailer for "The Force Awakens" released

New Death Star is the Star Killer Base. I suspect after reading "Aftermath" that this is a weapon used to cleanse star systems that are unworthy of a new Empire that is being built. My other thought was that it was something like "Star Forge" used to build an army rapidly, but the description on the Star Wars Data Bank makes it sound like it "shoots" something. I'm not happy about a Death Star reboot, but Kylo's comment of "I will finish what you started" at least makes it seem like he's fanatically obsessed with Vader...although he really doesn't know that Vader went "good guy" at the end.

People suspect Poe Dameron will go do the dark side. I doubt it. I think he gets murdered by Kylo.

We see a shot of a bunch of soldiers surrounding Kylo Ren. If you look closely you can see they are all dressed slightly different and some appear to be carrying other weapons. Are these the Knights of Ren?

I really hope the "Rule Of 2" has been broken and we see a group of Dark Side Knights. At the end of Aftermath, a mysterious leader says thats Palpatine believed a "wellspring" of Dark Side energy could be found in outer realms of the known space. Have the Knights of Ren found that source?

In reply to PHeller:

how the hell do you know those names?

I'm not a star wars nerd, apparently.

PHeller wrote: Are these the Knights of Ren?

That would be awesome!

alfadriver wrote: In reply to PHeller: how the hell do you know those names? I'm not a star wars nerd, apparently.

Learning the lore, backstory and politics of a fictional universe is much calming and exciting than trying to figure out all that stuff in reality.

David S. Wallens wrote: According to Wookieepedia: Clone stormtroopers were the original elite soldiers of the Galactic Empire. After the fall of the Galactic Republic and the formation of Emperor Palpatine's New Order, the Republic Grand Army's clone troopers were re-designated as stormtroopers. Throughout the early years of Palpatine's reign, the Empire continued to utilize the Jango Fett template, but later commissioned the creation of new troopers from different genetic sources. Cloning remained essential to the Imperial Military, although the introduction of birth-born recruits into the ranks of the Stormtrooper Corps gradually reduced clone soldiers to a minority status. Source: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Clone_stormtrooper

Wouldn't rely on it, based on the books and they have binned it for the new movies. They did it for the prequels as well back in the day.

PHeller wrote:

alfadriver wrote: In reply to PHeller: how the hell do you know those names? I'm not a star wars nerd, apparently.

Learning the lore, backstory and politics of a fictional universe is much calming and exciting than trying to figure out all that stuff in reality.

Well, hopefully not reading any of the books does not mean the movie is totally confusing.

I'n not a big fan of movies that require a reading list to understand.

(a wiki page has about 100 actual star wars books, as well as a lot of other documentation)

That sounds about right, actually. By the destruction of the second Death Star many of the Storm Troopers would have been recruits sourced through the Imperial Academy.We do know that the Fett clones aged a rapid pace to bring them up to fighting age more quickly, and therefore only lived for about 40-50 years. The Kamino uprising also illustrated the danger of having of having too many fighters of the same mindset.

I'm not sure if Tarkin covered the topic of Storm Trooper or not, but it would've been the time period that the transition from clone to recruit was happening.

EDIT: found a reference in Tarkin (which is Canon)

For an answer from canon, the best information we currently have is from the canon novel Tarkin. It includes an scene where a group of stormtroopers are led by a Fett clone sergeant but all the other troopers are non-clone recruits. Here is the relevant quote from p. 94 (the stormtroopers are loading Darth Vader's meditation chamber onto Tarkin's ship):

When the stormtrooper operating the equipment accidentally allowed the flattened sphere to bang against the edge of the cargo hold’s retracted hatch, Vader stamped forward with his gloved hands clenched.

“I warned you to be careful!” he shouted up at the trooper.

“My apologies, Lord Vader. Wind shear from—”

“Excuses won’t suffice, Sergeant Crest,” Vader cut him off. “Perhaps you are aging too quickly to remain on active duty.”

Tarkin couldn’t make sense of the remark until he realized that Crest’s was a face he had seen countless times during the war—the face of an original Kamino clone trooper. The bare-headed others comprising Vader’s squad were human regulars who had enlisted after the war. The novel takes place about 5 years after the end of the Clone Wars (14 BBY), so clone production evidently stopped at the end of the Clone Wars and within 5 years the clones were becoming too old to be useful as soldiers (due to their age acceleration). The Empire likely phased out the last of the Fett clones within a few years of this event. For all we know, Sergeant Crest was the last clone stormtrooper.

I was a little disappointed seeing the "Star Killer" or whatever it was. All I could think of was DeathStar MK3.

In reply to PHeller:

Which is to say- if you have not read the books, don't pay attention to the details, as you'll never know the whys, whos, and whats of those details.

I'd agree. I'd rather the super weapon be a massive force of Sith.

In reply to PHeller:

...all of that might also explain why the Stormtroopers in IV, V & VI can't hit anything with a blaster.

Ian F wrote: In reply to PHeller: ...all of that might also explain why the Stormtroopers in IV, V & VI can't hit anything with a blaster.

I thought that was because bag guys in westerns and war movies can't hit a barn, too.

Ian F wrote: In reply to PHeller: ...all of that might also explain why the Stormtroopers in IV, V & VI can't hit anything with a blaster.

If you played the old Dark Forces game you'd know exactly what's happening - the stormtrooper rifle has the accuracy of a paintball gun. It was fun with the rapid-fire cheat codes though

On the topic of storm trooper marksmanship, Cracked did a good take on it.

Ian F wrote: In reply to PHeller: ...all of that might also explain why the Stormtroopers in IV, V & VI can't hit anything with a blaster.

Ian F wrote: In reply to PHeller: ...all of that might also explain why the Stormtroopers in IV, V & VI can't hit anything with a blaster.

I think the head is too big in that photo. I'd expect a little more padding at the top of the helmet.

I know you guys are not Jalopnik fans, but this is a pretty cool breakdown of the trailer. Get your nerd on!

In reply to David S. Wallens:

Good point. That would, however, move the helmet eye holes even higher.

Jerry wrote:

Ian F wrote: In reply to PHeller: ...all of that might also explain why the Stormtroopers in IV, V & VI can't hit anything with a blaster.

Hell - that picture alone shows Stormtrooper training sucks ballz. Every single one of them is holding his blaster differently.

Here's a JaCRAPnik-less version for the trailer breakdown: No Gawker here

Also, Ignorant racist is ignorant Yep. Some "people" are boycotting Star Wars for promoting "white genocide" (did anyone mention to them that stormtroopers are wearing white armor on purpose?)

PHeller wrote:

alfadriver wrote: In reply to PHeller: how the hell do you know those names? I'm not a star wars nerd, apparently.

Learning the lore, backstory and politics of a fictional universe is much calming and exciting than trying to figure out all that stuff in reality.

Except that Disney threw everything that didn't happen in the previous movies out. So all of the books, comics and fan-fiction prior to Disney's purchase are now, technically, useless.

I feel like people who think stormtroopers can't shoot didn't really pay attention to the film, or watch it at all in decades, maybe ever. It's outright discussed from both sides in IV right after the gang escapes the Death Star, they were allowed to escape so they could be tracked. Then there's how the first scene is stormtroopers blasting through a Rebel held choke point with minimal losses, and like 20 minutes later Obi-Wan Kenobi, a respected general and Jedi master, praises their accuracy.

Stefan (Not Bruce) wrote:

PHeller wrote:

alfadriver wrote: In reply to PHeller: how the hell do you know those names? I'm not a star wars nerd, apparently.

Learning the lore, backstory and politics of a fictional universe is much calming and exciting than trying to figure out all that stuff in reality.

Except that Disney threw everything that didn't happen in the previous movies out. So all of the books, comics and fan-fiction prior to Disney's purchase are now, technically, useless.

I've been reading the now canon new books and yes, watched the cartoons as well. Luckily its been a few years since I read any of the expanded universe, so I can erase that from my mind. Everything I've quoted or commented on so far is from the new Disney stuff we know.

Another cool thing is that most of the games are still canon.

Stefan (Not Bruce) wrote: Here's a JaCRAPnik-less version for the trailer breakdown: No Gawker here Also, Ignorant racist is ignorant Yep. Some "people" are boycotting Star Wars for promoting "white genocide" (did anyone mention to them that stormtroopers are wearing white armor on purpose?)

I don't think the white armor was used to symbolize white oppression of blacks. That would make the dressed in all black Darth Vader really screwed up.

Regarding the stormtrooper helmets: In both the now non-cannon EU and in some of the "explain the technology with cutaways" books, starting with the clone troopers, the view out the helmets was actually through projected screens that had information overlays. The exterior eye ports were for show.