The Force-sensitive stormtroopers were a group of clone stormtroopers based on the genetic template of Sa Cuis, a Force-sensitive Human male who served as a Hand of the Emperor Palpatine. Their creation was the brainchild of the Sith Lord Darth Vader. Due to Cuis' unwavering allegiance to the Emperor, Vader hoped to create a new version of clone stormtroopers—soldiers that possessed both the loyalty and Force potential of an Emperor's Hand.

Although the experimental stormtroopers were impressive to both Palpatine and Vader, they were also too impressive as far as Vader was concerned; the Sith Lord judged them to be too dangerous to himself and his master. His fears were validated when the troopers staged an unanticipated insurrection, thus revealing their true loyalty to the one who trained them—the disillusioned Emperor's Hand Sheyvan.

Shortly after the fall of the Galactic Empire many years later, the Empire Reborn revived the Force-sensitive stormtrooper project through the development of the Shadowtroopers—Dark Jedi soldiers immersed in the Dark side of the Force.

Contents 1 History 2 Behind the scenes 3 Appearances 4 Sources 5 Notes and references

HistoryEdit

The Force-sensitive stormtroopers were Imperial soldiers that were trained in the ways of the Force and lightsaber combat. The first series of Force-sensitive stormtroopers were clones of Sa Cuis, one of the Hands that served Emperor Palpatine. After Cuis' death in late 19 BBY, the Sith Lord Darth Vader utilized cells taken from Cuis' corpse to engineer the creation and growth of clone stormtroopers that wielded the power of the Force. With the aid of Spaarti technology, the clones were able to reach adulthood within a year, thus completing their development around 18 BBY.

During their developmental stage, the Force-sensitive stormtroopers were trained under the guidance of Sheyvan, another Dark Jedi assassin who served among the Emperor's Hands. Although Vader was involved in their training, it was Sheyvan who was the most responsible for overseeing the clones' instruction in Force techniques and lightsaber combat. As a result, the clones developed a powerful sense of loyalty to Sheyvan. Though outwardly, they appeared to be loyal to Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader, their true allegiance ultimately fell to Sheyvan.

Sa Cuis' clones benefited well from Sheyvan's guidance. Their tests and performances in wielding a lightsaber impressed the Sith Lords to the point where Vader contemplated about adding them to the ranks of the elite 501st Legion, while Palpatine desired to authorize the creation of more Force-sensitive stormtroopers. During their journey back to Coruscant, however, Sa Cuis' clones staged an insurrection aboard the Emperor's Lambda-class shuttle, intent on killing Palpatine and Darth Vader. Unknown to both Sith Lords, Sheyvan discovered that he was not the only Emperor's Hand as he had been led to believe. The revelation of his master's lie outraged Sheyvan and left him utterly disillusioned with his service to the Dark Lord of the Sith. Nevertheless, he continued to maintain an outward appearance of loyalty, knowing that he could not defeat the Emperor alone. But with the clones of Sa Cuis utterly devoted to him, Sheyvan saw and capitalized on an opportunity to exact his revenge on the Sith.

Although taken by surprise, Darth Vader seized the initiative and launched a counterattack against the traitors, engaging the Force-sensitive stormtroopers in lightsaber combat. Despite their exceptional fighting skills, Sa Cuis' clones ultimately proved to be no match for the far more experienced Sith Lord. In spite of being heavily outnumbered, Vader succeeded in killing all of the Force-sensitive stormtroopers. Not long after their deaths, Sheyvan was killed by Vader as well. Even after the incident, Emperor Palpatine still appreciated the advantages of possessing Force-sensitive stormtroopers and considered ordering more. Darth Vader, however, disagreed because of the inherent danger in creating soldiers with connections to the Force.

The concept of the Force-sensitive stormtroopers was not revived until after the fall of the first Galactic Empire. Under the leadership of Lord Hethrir, the Empire Reborn launched a project to create a new generation of Force-sensitive stormtroopers, known as the Shadowtroopers. The project was headed by the Dark Jedi Desann and Admiral Galak Fyyar. Rather than resort to utilizing cloning technology, the shadowtroopers' ranks were filled by Force-sensitive adolescents taken from Empire Youth and imbued with the Dark side of the Force through Artusian crystals, which also served to enhance their Force abilities. Also unlike their precursors, the shadowtroopers wore a unique set of black armor. Like Sa Cuis' clones, they also wielded red-bladed lightsabers. But as with Cuis' clones, the shadowtroopers were wiped out before their ranks could increase to greater numbers. The indefinite halt to the Shadowtrooper Program resulted in the virtual end of the use of Force-sensitive stormtroopers.

Behind the scenesEdit

Lightsaber wielding stormtroopers originates in Ralph McQuarrie's concept art for A New Hope, referenced in the image above in the pose of the stormtrooper to the right of Darth Vader. In the commentaries for the Special Edition, George Lucas notes that in his early conceptions of the saga, lightsabers were commonplace weapons throughout the galaxy, but that he later decided that they should be limited to the Jedi.

AppearancesEdit

"A Two-Edged Sword"—Star Wars Insider 85

• Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron
• Dark Empire II (First appearance)
• Star Wars: Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast

SourcesEdit

• The Dark Forces Saga
• The New Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology

Notes and referencesEdit