Oceania Are the Stormtrooper in the Original Trilogy clones?

Conscripts/volunteers.

Whatever.

 

Would you volunteer?

 

If the Empire did spread propaganda like 'Troops' or 'Join the Empire' then sure, why not?

 

Heaps of people wanted to go to the Acadamy. Luke for one. I'm sure there would've been lots that wanted to be in the white.

 

Women love men in armour.


... or so I've heard ...

 

I think they were clones. Clones are cheap to make (presumably) and have total, unquestioned loyalty.

 

Being clones would sort of back up their inability to shoot accurately.

After all, after 20 years, at a 5 fold accelerated growth, these guys are pretty old.

 

My speculation is that the Clone Wars are still happening through the original trilogy. But I still think some were conscripts.

 

Well, this topic is guaranteed to fan flames in the movie forum, but it was the latest Homing Beacon (No. 61) that got me thinking that there was some sort of "official" thinking on this:

It appears that Fett genes and low headroom don't mix. In an homage to the classic Star Wars misstep, wherein a stormtrooper bangs his head on a low-hanging door, Jango Fett also takes a wallop on the noggin -- complete with sound effect -- as he enters the Slave I after tangling with Obi-Wan.

I guess it was the reference to the Fett Genes and an OT Stormie that got me thinking.

Personally, I've thought they were clones since 1977, I just couldn't concieve of an idea of a Death Star full of these guys who romp around in armour all day and get no shore leave, the clones as they were explained in AotC make perfect sense to me.

And I know that by ANH the Clone wars are over, but it's never clarified who actually won.

And sure Luke mentions an academy, but surely it's a pilot he wants to be?

Roll on EP3....

 

I'm sure the Empire would spring for a new batch of clones every now and then.

The obvious thing that just gives away they're not all from Fett is that they have different voices. Unless it's re-dubbed in an Ultimate Edition, I can't really consider anything else.

 

Yeah I reckon they're all clones but from different hosts. Or the ones in the OT went to school in the US and not NZ.

 

The clonetroopers in AOTC are also pilots, so why wouldn't the Empire have clone pilots as well? No, I don't think they are clones. I think they are conscripts for a number of reasons:

- The Kaminoans required fresh DNA regularly from Jango...but he's kinda dead.

- IMO, clones would probably be MORE expensive than conscription and basic training, plus the elite nature of the clones is no longer required when the Emperor takes over the galaxy, only "peacekeeping" forces are required.

- Stormtroopers have already been shown to have personalities and don't seem to be the character-devoid, mindless clones we see in AOTC. Think about the conversation between the two stormtroopers in ANH in the tractor beam scene - they definitely sound like they have different personalities.

- Finally, the officers. Were there individual officers in AOTC, or were they clones also? The officers of the Empire are certainly not clones, and neither are the commandos. If they were going to use clones as foot soldiers, why not use them for commandos as well, if they are as well-trained as they are in AOTC?

 

"Aren't you a little short for a Stormtrooper?"

I'm going with yes, they're clones.

 

I'm Saying Most are Volentires Mainly because Jango was supposed to have one of the best aims in the galixy... I rest my case.

 

Further on the DNA from jango factor - I guess it would make sense if they were clones. Cos as we all know, when you continually 'purify' DNA the results are some what erratic. I refer you to the great monarchies of europe, and the hills of west virginia...


Lets face it, Jango is the man, and stormtroopers can't hit the broad side of a barn from five feet away.

 

Definitely think they're clones, but the only way to account for different voices etc. in the OT would be a batch of a few people from which they took fragments. Makes sense to have a small pool of people to clone since Fett dies in AoTC (even though conceivably they'd still have living cells from him stored), and since the clones' growth is accelerated (meaning they wouldn't be the exact clones we see in OT cuz they'd be dead by then). Also just to account for development of the technology - they did say it's the first time they've ever cloned an army of that size.

Conscription is possible of course, but why go for it with its inevitable unpredictability when you can mass produce an expendable/disposable army while eliminating undesirable traits at the same time?

As for the bad aim, I'm just putting it down the usual corn that you find in every movie. It's the same reason fifteen heavily armed guards couldn't hit Neo when he did a little cartwheel right in front of them, or the same reason Arnie walks away from a bombed building with a scratch a bandaid can fix, but when the good guy shoots, somehow one bullet takes out at least five baddies.

 

Aim isn't genetic, if it was, I'd have been a sniper like my father, instead of being made a heavy machine gunner.

Also, some ppl seem to think that the Stormies near the tractor beam in ANH are "proof" of hem not being clones because they engage in conversation, I don't see clones not idly talking, especially when it's about imperial equipment.

And as for the Academy, couldn't luke have been talking about something like a fleet officer academy?

 

I won't say I haven't ruled out the idea of the stormtroopers being clones, but for the time being I'm going to stick with the idea of conscripts. I don't think GL would have let the EU expand so much on Carida and related things if he had something else in mind. Okay, he's contradicted the EU before, but it was never anything of this size. So I'm sticking with the conscription idea until something concrete is released.

 

I dont think they were clones. Remember Han Solo before he broke out his wookie friend. I think all of the clones probably will die out in the third episode with them the jedis.

 

Remember Han Solo before he broke out his wookie friend. Um, no?

I don't "remember" it, I did read something about it though, maybe you'd better tell George

 

Well its not in the movies. If I'm right than that is when Chewie gives Han the Life debt thing? Right?

 

Han was a naval officer, not a stormtrooper. He received TIE pilot training at the Academy, though I'm not sure if he did a tour as a pilot.

My take is that there would undoubtedly be some clones with-in the stormtrooper ranks, though the time needed to grow clones (as stated in AotC) would preclude all stormies being clones. I'm sure members of our armed forces can attest that it doesn't take 10 years to do basic training and other necessary training to become a combat soldier.

 

The fact that every stormtrooper sounds the same points to the fact they are clones.
However, a friend said they destroyed the cloning vats at the end of the clone wars so that leads me to believe a lot of the stormtroopers in the OT were conscripts. Prolly explains why they can't hit a sandcrawler at 5meters- absolutely no training. But then again if you've ever played jkII u'll know how inacurate the stormtrooper rifle is.

 

No it doesn't take 10 years to train an infantry soldier, but according to Taun-We, it takes ten years at accelerated growth to grow a clone to mayurity, in the meantime, they learn combat techniques.

Also, Taun-We said "And tell them, if they want more troops, it will take time to grow them" Indicating they weren't going to cease production with the current batch, nothing says the republic, or Palpatine, doesn't order more troops.