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Can anyone tell me what purpose stormtrooper armour serves? It doesn't give them any protection from blasters as epsiodes 4 to 6 clearly showed , or even for that matter from a 2 foot , hairy , c3-p0 worshipping little fella with a pointy stick as episode 6 showed.

I have my own theory on this. What if there is a problem (and ok this will open the whole are they / aren't they clones can of worms, for this lets assume yes)with the speeded up ageing process and the clones need some form of life support to , ermm support their lives etc. Much like vader but without the egg head under it. Another problem with the ageing process could be that it makes you the worst shot in the entire universe so much so that you couldn't hit a walking carpet from 10 feet away. 'Theese blastmarks , too accurate for sandpeople , only imperial stormtroopers are that accurate' how bad must sandpeople be? No wonder they have to physically beat up shimi rather than just shoot her.

I think it's just armor...a little added protection...given it's not full proof. Armor never is..

Stormtrooper may well be good at ambushing and snipering, but when it comes to running and shooting at the same time then forget it.

They did manage to shoot Leia, and they weren't runnning then.

Besides, trying to aim a heavy blaster when you're running is probaly pretty hard.

It isn't when you play Dark Forces or Quake 2. Can't trust games anymore than you can trust films though.

Stormtroopers are good shots. They invaded the rebel blockade runner very easily and look what they did to the rebel base on Hoth. I think the armour is just to make them look menacing. Armies on Earth all wear uniforms but there not bulletproof.

Hang on, when the invaded the blockade runner they missed most of the time.
Most of the injuries on Hoth were from ATAT shots.

Is it me or was it once revealed that originally A New Hope was pretty violent and gory when it came to gunshots? I seem to remember reading an article explaining how some of the deaths aboard the blockade runner and aboard the Deathstar were pretty gory, but they toned it down a lot for the release of the film.

Dunno, was it you?

I once heard that they wear it to protect there sensitive clone bodies from something in the air.

I imagine the armour is there to make them appear all the same while at the same time giving them mild protection from things such as temperature changes and physical blows. But a direct laser shot, what could protect from that? do you know how hot those things are.

If stormtroopers are such bad shots then why is everyone scared of them? When they invaded the blockade runner you could see the fear on the rebels faces and most of them were killed.

i also believe that the armor is for mild protection and a fearsome appearance and so the same 10 actors can appear to be a million different troopers. plus, (as in all movies) the stormtroopers appear to be cunning warriors with an accurate shot, except when firing at the main characters. if they were always as good as their reputation then ANH would have ended on tatooine.

First of all, Uniformed troops always gain respect.
The armour of the stormtroopers were designed for recognition and through recognition they gain respect, terror, fear etc. Also one must remember that they were posted in different environments around the galaxy. So they might as well serve as protection against any hostile environment such as bacteria, temperatures, lack of breathable air and so on.

I think the Stormtroopers main fear tactic was their sheer numbers. If you shoot one, two step up to replace him...

Well, that and mask *shudder* I hate masks...

I think they must use it for camoflauge. You know how Zebras all huddle up and are hidden amongst each other? Well perhaps the Storm Troopers all are like that too! Maybe they all dress the same so that they can hide from rebels and not be seen so that they can - no that wouldn't work, would it? Ah well...
bye everyone.

allright, here is the most logical extrapolation of the function of stormtrooper armour:
most modern armies issue a set of protective armour,a helmet and a flak vest for instance, they provide little protection against direct hits from small arms fire, they are simply to reduce the effects of blast, shell fragments, glancing shots, ect. one can assume the stormtrooper armour has an equivilent function. i do not believe the stormtrooper armour has much in the way of envinromental capabilities, maybe as much the equivilent of a gas mask and chemical suit, because of the number of specialized stormtrooper outfits there appear to be.
its appearance is probably designed to be intimidating, but not at the cost of practicality (the tie fighter helmets are of a similar design)
the stormtroopers are only poor shots when dealing with the main characters, if they werent, ANH would have been a much shorter film.

Actually Zebras have those colors so when they herd together, predators think its a big big animal. But anyway . . .

The basic Stormtrooper is equipped with the ability to go into harsh enviornments, but there are also specialized troops like Snowtroopers and Sandtroopers.

i think one of the reasons for the armour was that it controlled body temprature, and just to install fear into there enemies.